The Pascagoula democrat-star., 1884-09-12
ON, MISSISSIPPI, FRIDAY. II.

enough to rob Il love eutombed,
and the absence of the monument
persuaded me that this money still
lay in It's hiding place Oh Big
Black. | at once made up my
mind to make the search, aud the
next day l had taken passage to
Grand Gulf, the nearest point on
tue Mississippi to the Big Black.
| had never heard of Hankinson's
ferry. But / soon learned all
about IL when | got upon The arena
over which Grant, Sherman, John.
sou and Pemberton had wrestled
during that thunderous May time
of 1868. It was household word
among this people and with a
country hack, a good team and a
niger | was soon bowling along a
series of awfully bad roads mp the
south bank OF the Big Black. l
got to the ferry about nightfall and
secured accommodations ut house
near by. The next morning | took
the role of u land hunter aud in.
quired for Abrams place. The
good old lady, my hostess, threw
up her hands and asked me where
l had heard that name. 1The
Abrams have been dead and gone
since before the war. The last
log on their house was burnt when
Grant went through. You'll find
the old stone chimney standing
about two miles up the road"
"North bank or south n
"South. III send boy with
you"
"Never mind, Ill walk up.r
And | did. Not to detain you too
long, | soon located the Awram
place by the great staring stone
chimney. Aud the hollows where
the stables stood l also fixed.
There was no bur oak, nor any
tree in sight, but a rotting stump,
v ahich | took to be the point iudi.
Gated. | had forgotten to bring a
spade, and a search finally deyel.
oped an old rusted bayonet stick.
ing in n log on the river bank.
With this | dug at the stump long
aud painfully, finally uncoveIiug
the corner of . chest. In another
half hour | had the box out and
open aud there money was before
me. 1t was too bulky a load to
carry, but made swift to get most
of the gold and greenbacks to the
house that night, having first put
what could not carry iuto another
cache. Ol the third day l was
ready to 60 with my treasure. trove,
and having literally paid my
hostess and the darkey, l took the
boat tor New Orleaus richer by
nearer $4,000 than when / landed
a couple of day before. In my
statercom / had time to examine
the lind. The paper money was
all in an excellent state of preser-
walton, nothing more than q little
mildew being perceptible. There
was $62, 900 the great majority of
it being in $40 bills, the rest in
hundreds and small bills aud
fractional currency. The gold, of
which there was $500 instead of
$500 was in twenty dollar pieces,
aud the silver in halves, quarters
and dollars aud dimes. There
was u card, in tho shape of a
voucher for $1,000 of the gold,
stating that it had been taken for
present necessities by the four cap
tors. My first step on reaching
New Orleans was 10 order the mon.
ument which my dead benefactor
had ordered, and Celia Manderson's
grave will no longer be neglected.
said nothing about my treasure
troye to anybody at first because
was afraid that the government
could recover it, but am advised
by my lawyers that under the cir
cumstances recovery is impossible,
| found out also that this very
money that was the cause of a
courtmartial in which one of Nc.
Pherson's officers was vindicated,
although severely criticised. 1t
seems that the tour Confederates
discovered that the paymaster's
escort was small one, and that
they ambnshed the party halt
mile above the ferry, killed three
men and drove off the other ten in
a most gallant manner. Certainly,