Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-06-22
ILL.GOTTEN GOLD,
The Chest Of Money Found Buried I'm
Ola Fanny HaregrOve's Cellar.
from the New York Morning Journal.

From the New York Morning Journal.
The death of Mrs. Fannie lIarCgroye in a
solitary house in East Seth street, near the
river, was peculiar. She has lived there
until the memory of the oldest inhabitant
remarks not to the contrary. No one
knew how she came there. s,he appear
cd to have no friends or relatives. At length
she went the way of all flesh. The first that
was known of that event was the sight Of q
hlarse driving up to the front gate. How
anybody had been notified of the death, or
who had taken charge Of the funeral arrange
ments nobody knew. But the coffin was car
ried out Of the house then and there, which
proved that the previous rites had been
attended to. Owen Murphy is Il laborer Of
| No. 2llS Second avenue. He was called
upon by man dressed In black and having
foreign accent last Thursday. lie was
asked what he would charge to do
a job at digging that would take
met the man in black the next
morning. lie was accompanied by another
man who from his talk he judged to be an
official of some sort. The man in black told
Murphy to come into the garden aud he
pointed out certain spot where TO dig. He
| went ut il and after about hail an hour when
ever he dug down over three feet the man in
black told HIM to come away. Then the two
| Others consulted.
"Lct us try the next" said the man in
black, and they went over to Il sycamore on
the left OF the garden.
Murphy was again put to digging. The
roots OF the sycamore made the job very
difficult one and Murphy had to 60 for his
pickaxc. When he got back the hole was
good deal decrer than when he left IT, lie
was urged 10 proceed. After moment or
two the tool struck on something that sound
cd like metal. The man in black went down
on his knees and then dug away with his
hands lie found the hard substance. Ii
looked like an old piece of iron, but was 50
lirextricably encased by the gnarled
roots of the trees that it could
not be budgcd. The man in black told him
to take the root away. To do this he had
to go and get a saw. 1t took a long time 10
saw the roots away and the saw was badly
damaged by coming in contact with a small
iron box about six inches long by four in
breadth. The man in black displayed great
Joy when the box was pried out from its en-
easements. lie took small key from his
! vest pocket and tried TO open the box but
| the lock was too rusty. They worked at it
for a long time and then smashed 1t in two
, blows Of the pickaxe. The box contained
, only papers. -Four or five of these they
read. The man in black said:
There is poor old Fanny's marriage cerIi-
ficae." Then he said, ''thereit is; the money
is in the cellar"
: Murphy went with them but not through
the house. The man in black went round to
, open the cellar door from the inside. lie
brought lighted lamp. In the cellar he
, counted off thirteen feet from one wall and
seven from another, and told the man TO dig
: again. lie had to break the cement which
was n foot thick with his pickaxe agans
e Then he dug quickly and about foot and a
@ half under ground came to an iron box five
e times the size of the first box. As II was
: dragged up by the three men-its weight de-
/ maudcd the eXertions of all three-it rolled
| over and broke open. \ shower OF gold
pieces fell out. The man in black took up
n few and looked AT them
O "All coins of Louis Philippe" he said
q "The box must have been there since lSiS
nj least "
:, GLOW much is there ?" asked the other
y There should be G0,000 francs" said the
y man in black, ''rhe box under the hearth
), stone had 40 000,"
lie then handed Murphy 50 blll and let
. him 90 without putting any injunction OF
= secrecy upon him. Murphy told the story
in the neighborhood.
/. A journal reporter found it next to i'm
10 possible 10 unu out anything huoul lills slh
1t gular woman who buried her money so
# carefully in her cellar and went out of the
o world leaving hardly nm impression of what
d she had been, though living IN New York
$ all these years. The story as told by one
', who knew her was that many years ago
n she was betrothed to paymaster in the
n French Navy-that during the turmoil OF the
=, revolution of lS4S he ran away to join her,
10 taking with him a chest Of gold which belong
" cd to his government They had been to-
!. gether only few weeks when she found that
III he was thief and upbraided him with it.
y Not long after, afraid of capture,he blew oul
Il, his brains. This blow almost dethroned hei
'd reason. The ill-goiten money she would moi
ut touch. To give it back would be to cast
is obloquy on the memory of man she tend
ery loved. The chest of gold disappeared
of The man who found it few days sine
es was no doubt an emssary of the Frenol
il government come to claim its own.