Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-02-14

4
as told how, in 1744, British man-of-war
captured the Santa Anna Spanish gal
leon, with millions of money on board"
millions! Not millions of poundssn
"Yes, millions of pounds. She was a
big ship, carried forty guns, and must have
been matter of two thousand tons bur-
den. Now, ship of that size can hold a
sight of gold and silver, Mr.. Erle''
Rather. Almost as much as there is In
all England, should say"
"Just so, Mr.. Erie" said Bolsover, with
glistening eyes. Suppose she carried no
more than one thousand five hundred tons
dead weight, and half of it was gold and
half silver, that would be pile of money
make baskets and buckets full of sover-
eigns and crowns and shillings, to say moth
! ing of sixpences and fourpenny-pieces,
wouldn't it, sir,'
"Carloadsl Why, you might give away
few wheelbarrOws full without missing
them" AS the poor fellow was evidently
! quite cracked on the subject, I thought it
best to humor him. "But you surely don't
mean to say that the galleon was full
bang up full Of gold and silver?"
Eyes, do; and why nots Doesn't the
dokyment say as she was richly laden
reason as if she was richly laden-mark
them words, sir, richly laden'-that she
must have been full?"
"Why, yes, it does look so, when you
| come to think Rhout it." 7 said. grsvelv.
''The man VINO finds the Santa Anna will
have grand haul; nothing so sure"
"Won't hep returned the boatswain,
gleefully; in his excitement chucking his
pipe into the sea. Nov, look here, Mr..
| Erie; you said you was poor-as you had
lost all the money as you had. Here's q
| chance for you to get it all back, and
| twenty thousand times moreI Help me to
| find the Santa Anna and we will go
halves-share and share alike, you know"
! '"Thank you very much. Bolsover. It's
a very handsome offer on your part, and
am awfully obliged but as yet must own
! to being just little in the dark. Say ex
actly what it is you want me to do. If il
| is a case of diving, don't think am the
man for you; for, though fair swimmer
could never stay long under water, and
don't understand diving-bells.
mo, no, sir; the Santa Anna never
foundered; she is on the sea, not under it
You surely don't think, sir, as God AL
mighty would let all that money go tC
! Davy Jones locker? AS far as I can make
! out, all the ships company died of thirst
! When that dOkyment was written, they
was dreadful short OF water; and the ship
! became derelict, and went on knocking
about all by herself-is, may be, knocking
about yet-she was teak-huilt and very
staunch-or otherwise she has run aground
on some Out-of-the-way island, or drifted
into cove or inlet of the sea. Anyhow,
she is worth looking after and | have al
ways thought as if some gentleman would
give me a helpin' hand-somebody with
more 'ead and education than I have my
self-we should be sure to succeed in the
/ end; nay, am SIre we should-I feel IL;
{ know it. VIII you help me, Mr.. Erlef
cannot tell you howl am only a common
seafaring man; but you are scholar, with
head like book. They say as you knows
| I1oyd's Register by heart, and man as
can learn 'Lloyd's Register by heart can
do anything"
"You are very complimentary, Bolsover,
and am extremely obliged for your good
opinion. But you give me credit for a good
deal more cleverness than | possess; for,
tempting as is an offer of half a shipload
of gold and silver, really don't see what
l can do. If | were a skipper and had a
ship, or rich man and owned a yacht, I
might possibly help you; but you must see
Yourself that | cannot go about exploring
every island and inlet and cove in the
world, or keep sailing round it until spot
the derelict Santa Anna particularly as
you don't seem to have the least idea where
she was when last heard Of"
"There you are mistaken, Mr.. Erie. /
| could almost put my finger on the very
spot. But will you read the dokymenti
Then you will know all about it-mOre
than know myself, for man as can learn
'Lloyd's Register'-'
'The document The paper your father
foundi You surely don't mean to say you
have it?' exclaimed, in surprise; for up
to that moment had thought the boat
swain's story pure illusion, and himself as
crazy on the point as Peyton said he was.
Yes, have it. My father, he gave it
me just afore he died. Tom, he says, I
cannot leave you no money, but l gives
you this dokyment. Take care of it, and
look out for the Santa Anna and you'll
die a rich man. VIII you read it, Mr..
Erle?'
Certainly. I'll read it with pleasure"
Bolsover rose from the coil of ropes, slip
ped into the forecastle, and in few min
utes came back, with a smile of satisfac-
ton on his face and highly polished tin
case in his hand.
"Here it ISL he said; you'll find it in
side"
But this is surely not the case your
father found at the Azoress"
"No. That was all rusty and much bat
tered. He had hard work to get the doky-
ment out without spelling it. He got this
case made a-purpose. Nobody has evef
read it but him and me. Everybody as
mentioned it to always laughed, and that
made me not like showing it, When you
have read it, Mr.. Erie, you'll tell me what
you think. But keep the dokyment to
yourself What's least said is soonest
mepded, you know; and if you was to men
| ton it to the others they'd only laugh.
And now''-looking at his watch-"I must
pipe up the second dog-watch."
| Promising to observe the utmost discre-
/ ton, put the tin case in my pocket, went
! to the after part of the ship, lighted 8
cigar, sat me down on Southampton
! chair, and proceeded to carry out Toms
/ wish by reading the paper which had SO
! much excited his imagination, and was
now, in spite of myself, beginning to ex.
| cite mine.
CHAPTER V.-THE DOCUMENT.
The ''dokyment," as poor Tom called It,
! though it seemed to have been carefully
! used (the leaves being neatly stitched to