Iron County register., 1889-11-21
THE DEVILS GOLD.

THE DEVILS GOLD.
Story OF the Biggest Lump of the Metal
Eser Found in America.
How many know where the largest
single lump of native gold ever seen in
America was found? In California?
No. In Colorado? No. In the Black
Hills, 'C@ur d'Alene, Nevada, New
Mexico? No. In old Mexico, Peru,
BOLIVIA, in Potosi, the Caliao of Vene-
zueia? No. Where then? In North
Carolina. And its story is as weird and
fateful as the Rhinegold's.
A poor and ignorant Irishman. living
In the mountains solitary and lonely,
propped open the door with a lump of
metal He had found it sticking out
irom water-washed gully and carried
1t home as curiosity. Though no larger
than small cymling, it was a weighty
lug for mile. 1t was a dull yellow,
irregular in shape, and pieces of stone
were embedded in it. For over two
years fortune lay upon the floor of his
novel while he toiled early and late,
making little whisky and digging GIN
seng root to earn a scanty living.
companion mountaineer, who had
known more of the outside world,
thought. this strange stone might
be sold at Asheville as curios-
ity for lot of money-s10 perhaps.
This was in the flush days before the
war. He had seen quartz crystal from
Roam mountain bring that much. A
third mountaineer was called in consul
tation. Ten dollars was a lot of money.
The third man had been a traveller, a
regular globe trotter. He went to Ashe-
Vile four times year, and he had been
clear to Washington.
Walking around the lump, he gazed
at it from every side, touched it with his
toe, spat on it, and breathed heavily.
"Hit air wuth nuthin', er hit air wuth
pile," said he. ''Hit air nothin' but
brass, er hit air" He looked around
on the other two with queer expression
-''goold.'
''Ef hit air brass"-he drew a clasp
knife and scraped the dull metal till a
new surface 'vinegar'u rust
hit. Eff hit air goold hit won't"
He poured some vinegar from Jug
which was brought him upon the fresh
facing of the lump. The three men
hung over it intently. Five, ten, fif-
teen minutes passed, and still the metal
shone clear and untarnished.
''Hit's goold!''
''And I've heerd goold was wuth more'n
$500 pound" said the second.
''What fool I've been," groaned the
owner of the cabin. ''For two years
I've worked, an wealth never dreamed
of kicking under my feet"
81 claims third broke in the as
sayer. 'sYe'd never a knowed what it
was but for me-"
can third for me-" said the other.
The owner of the gold gave a sullen
assent. They obtained pair of steel
yards and weighed the gold. 1t turned
the scale at over 100 pounds avoirdupois,
and they roughly estimated it to be
worth S25, 000-over IS, 900 apiece. That
night all three sat up and watched the
treasure, unable to sleep from excite
ment, and thoroughly suspicious of each
other. The next day they rolled it
securely in cloth and started for Ashe-
vile afoot, with the gold slung to pole,
and carried between two.
1t was the DEVILS gold. At the first
halting place the Irishman and the Sec
ond mountaineer conspired to kill the
third, and he was shot dead from be-
hind. Hastily throwing his body into
clump of bushes the murderers faced
each other in the road. Suspicion
reused in each breast saw treachery in
the others glance.
''Here,'' said one, forcing an uneasy
laugh, 'there's only one way to settle
this. Let's divide the gold and each go
his way"
agreed" said the other.
The lump was laid in the roadway and
chopped in two with hatchet.
''Take your choice" said one. AS the
other bent to lift his half his compan-
ion split the head of the STOPPING man
with his hatchet. The gold was his.
With blind faulty he dragged the Sec
ond victim to the side of the road, lift
ed the blood-stained treasure, and
went on. At Ashevillle he took
it to the bank and had it
shipped to the United States mint.
In less than a week. and before any re-
turn could be made from the mint, the
bodies of the murdered men had been
discovered and the crime traced directly
home. The miserable wretch was placed
in Jail, and there he died within year.
The witch gold fortune never crossed
his hands, remaining, believe, in the
Federal Treasury for lack Of ownership.
The region where the lump was found
has been secured foot by foot, but not
another lump like that has ever been
discovered in that or any other section
of America. It is said that few weeks
ago an English company, which is work.
ing the Nacoochee mine in Georgia, took
out a nugget weighing 1900 penny
weights, yet the North Carolina lump
weighed over ], 500 Washington
Post
NICKELS AND PENNIES.