The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1889-02-23

tain Dird Whlcn ne nau Deen very ANXIOUS
to secure, and never noticed that l took my
heavy rifle instead of shotgun. also had
a revolver and a knife and 1t was not more
than all hour after sunrise when / set out
l followed the creek down TO where IL
branched and there struck the path that
the native had described. AS near as |
could determine it had been made by wild
animals coming aud going between the
Jungle and the creek. and at the first soft
spot found the imprint of tigers paws.
They were fresh, too. and there was no
doubt of his being at home. As proceeded
the patti wound about in the most eccen-
tric manner, v hile the jungle grew thicker
One could not see five feet in any direction
and the air was shut off.
The first hint that L had reached the
ruins came in the shape of block of dressed
stone lying right across INV path. AS
stepped upon it great corbra wriggled
slowly away from my feet, and saw Ealf
dozen columns and lengths of wall aris-
ing among the bushes. Fifteen years be.
fore here had been a clearing of perhaps
100 acres, with a village of several thous-
and people and temple covering half ar
acre Of ground. A man-eating tiger now
held sole possession. while the clearing had
crown up to jungle, and fire or explosion
had laid the great temple in ruins. Ten
feet ahead of ME was a second block. !
passed to that, and then the path turned to
the right and ran over a fallen wall. AS ]
reached this latter place and looked around
the tiger was stretched out on the earth
before me in little open space. His legs
we're drawn up and he was gasping, and,
though l was greatly starSled for mo-
ment, soon realized that he was dying.
Indeed, he did not live two minutes after
| set es on him. As afterward learned,
he natives had poisoned the body of man
ne had killed and only half devoured, and
in finishing his repast on human flesh
he met his death. He had doubtless just
returned from satisfying his thirst at the
creek 1t was well for me that | did not
come few minutes earlier. l examined
the body closely aud found the tiger to be
| old and mang', with many of his teeth de-
| cayed These we're sure evidences that he
Sas Solitary" and had no mate. need
therefore. have no fear that any other ami
NAL more savage than a hyena was con-
cealed in the vicinity.
The temple seemed to have been blown
up with gunpowder. The walls were torn
and rent and knocked down in every direc-
lion, and column and block and carved
| work lay heaped together in strange con.
| fusion. l was bewildered to see the vege-
ration CROWN. up through the ruins SO
profusely, and it stood me in hand to move
carefully in such snake infested spot.
picked my way carefully TO the centre of
the RUNS and here got pretty good idea
of what the building had been. Here were
the remains of shrine or altar which had
once been the cleanest of marble. 1t was
now stained and moss grown and covered
with creepers. To look for buried treasure
in such Jungle was like looking for a
needle in hayslack; but l had come for
that purpose and felt that l must make a
beginning. Flineing several stones into
} he bushes 10 frighten lurking serpents
away, put down my gun and began at the
creepers. In little while uncovered
what said was an altar or shrine. II may
not have been From the stone floor there
was solid wall about four feet high, in
closing space about six feet square. The
stone which rested on .hese four walls was
4 | r., ,htot> aud oaruad around fha adu uas
I could not tell whether the walls inclosed
a SPACE or the whole cube was solid as q
; support tor pillar, but after close in
{ speclion discovered spot where the end
! of a lever might be inserted. | had brought
: hatchet TO help me through the jungle
With this cut and trimmed small tree
D and after much effort l oosened the cap
D stone until could see that the wal S en-
h closed space. On the surface of this cap
= stone l clearly loade ont where the foot oi
pillar, which probably helped to suppor
s the roof had rested. 1t lay near by, bu
t was broken by It's fall.
! 1t was not more than eight o clock in thu
b morning when reached the ruins, but ]
= was two o'clock in the afternoon before
: had the heavy stone slowed around ia
d enough to meet its equilibrium and fore
e il TOO fall off was in tremble of eX
r citement from the first, and as slowed tn
J. stone further and further around fel
!. more and more sanguine of a large cavi
ID beneath. would not look in, however
ID until the stone was clear off. When l di
: bend oyel the wall and lcok down IL va
to find wooden chest occupying nearly a
ID the space. ! sounded it with :he pole an
I'd il gave back such solid echo that sa'
le that must pull the wall down TO get at i
&c This took me an hour or more, as the plai
Is ef was IS hard as the stone, but at lengt
We was at the chest. 1T was closed but nc
u, locked, and as l threw up the lid my eye
h. beheld such sight as will seldom come
as man. That chest held a good solid ton I
ns loot. how many tens of thousands of do
lars worth cannot say. There we're brac
'i' lets and rings, earrings, charms and ba
We of gold. There were diamonds and pear
Ell and rubies and other precious stones Son
gil we're in leather bags, some in parcels, son
N, tied together, and on the lid of the trnr
es was 4 list of the names Of The owners.
ID. hung over the chest for perhaps half
asl hour, hardly daring TO breathe for fear
Did would fly away. was rich-rich beyoi
AN the widest dream of man. This was loC
IVY It was all NINE If could keep the Fl
ath from the government officials. l could n
lie remove IL without help. was sto
Ca. man, but could not have lifted one e
to of the chest clear Of the ground. took
the paper containing four diamonds, packa
of Of gold coin which counted up $1250, a
AMI a couple of bars of the metal, and start
,nd back to camp on a run. / had been
way AIKEN up with my work that had civ
or. no attention. TO an thing else. / now