The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-02-17
EDGAR poE.s ..GoLD BUG.r
How and Where the Author of 'the Raven"
Found Material for One of His Tales.

800 LaS1A y ttO
The scene is on Sullivan's island, and as
the readers of the report of Professor Shep-
herds lecture on Edgar Allen Poe Will re-
member. that poet and story-wrlter was at
trie. Doubtless he came overfrequently to
Charleston for ales, wines, liquors and
cigars, of some of which the author of The
Gold Bug was inordinately fond. 1t was
also discovered yesterday that he had paid
many a visit to the old books in the office
of the Probate Judge-certainly, he paid
one visit and saw an old record ont OF
which he wove the interesting story of his
scarabeus, 1.-The Gold Bug"
A reporter upturned the very cum
yesterday which, allowing for the magma
ton of the poetic Poe, was the basis OF the
story. The document is dated Sept; 5. 1545,
records which Probate Judge Gleason was
collecting yesterday to have bound In a
separate Volume. As will be noted, the
paper, which is fairly well preserved. is
nearly 145 years of age. Of the accuracy
be no doubt. One of the affidavits among
q number, all by crews of the same pilot
boat, is as follows:
Andrew Poole, being duly sworn on the
Holy Evangelists of Almighty God. deposes
the 1st of September, A. ID. 1745, in about
seven fathOms0 of water off Sullivan's island,
he saw a schooner coming down afore the
wind aud made toward him until he came
WlGulu pIStOl SuOt. lu0 ScuOOutT lew %
black flag, and coming near. bade him
lower his mainsail. Upon hat he tackled
and stood away from him, upon which
they fired from the ~schooner both musquet
and Gun shot with the Spanish pendant
also flying, upon which this deponcntmade
the best of his way up to town."
But there is another affidavit, which is as
follows:
John Garvin, a full branch pilot, being
sworn on the Holy ~Evangelists of Almighty
N-l ILL., 49, -. - IL -s-lA -
Aug. 81, 1745, when coming in from sea, and
when off the shore of Long island, there
being a partial fogg, he suddenly, when
bearing west, ran into a'great number of
small boats, one of which he capsized. He
Immediately tackt and fetched up a quar-
ter of a mile to the westward, and almost
in speaking distance of a brigantine. 1t
was too late to haul of, and his course
brought him close alongside, and one of his
crew read the title Cid Campeador.' This
depOnent knows that the Cid CampeadOr'
is a Spanish brigantine, the commander of
which is Julian de Vega.
This depOnent further AYERS that about
fifty yards to the northeast of the brigan-
tine lay a schooner. The wind at this time
was unfavorable to entry, and he 1.-THE de-
pOnent) thought it best, in Gods grace, to
put back to sea, in which respect he was
aided by a providential wind. The brig
antine opened fire, but the shot was wide of
the range ON account of the fogg, and the
more because this depOnent had quenched
the lights, which he had hauled down.
He further AYERS that he kept on his way
along the coast and put into Waccamaw
18th. On reaching Waccamaw Point,
where the Kings Road ends, and where
is Grimbeck's Tavern, where the mail
the river to make the journey good to
Charles Town, this deponent was informed
that a Spanish brigantlne was ashore on
North island. This depOnent with his own
men and sundTy Of the GOO people from rom
found that a brlgantine had been cast away
and was on her beam ends over against the
red sand bluffs. The ~brigantine was
boarded, and there was found thereon only
Alfonso Realta, the second mate, and two
sailors. The commander surrendered to us
In the name of the King, and he was taken
on board with us and all his men.
that this Capt de Vega on the voyage to
Charles Town related a most i~ncredulous
story. He swOre that the brigantine had
been loaded at ST. Augustine with silver
and gold, the sum thereof in English ster-
ling being f5,SO0,O00; that be and the first
mate, Miguel Aretino, had agreed to make
good to themselves this money, and that
they should bury it on Long island; that
they had boldly permitted the whole crewe
the 3lst of August the captain, and the
mates, and the crew went ashore in the
small boats; that the mate selected a large
pine tree near the shore, which was blaZed
with a circle, with two inner cross marks
on the side of the tree turned from the
shore; that from this tree the mate took a
bearing with aland compass northeast
deg. min. The captain next measured a
distance of about twenty chains, or nearly
a marsh. The commander and the
mate had made unto themselves an agree
ment that the commander should keep the
memorandum of the distance secret from
the mate and crew. and that the mate
should keep the bearing. SO that there
should be no foul play at treachery. At
about 1 O'Clock on the morning of Sept. 1
the first mate boarded the ~brigantine's
companion schooner, and conveyed eight
small boats loaded with coin to the shore,
and it was buried. The captain further
said that When the small boats and convoy
were on the way to the shore they were
run through by a schooner, IS he thought
lthe same being my ~vessell,. which was
But thetmost villainous part of the captains
tale is that it had been agreed that when
the feet of small boats should return from
the shore the b~rigantine and the schooner
were to bear away from the fteet, the same
to be Abandoned to death.
THE commander further said that on the
return his schooner must have been fright
ened away by the fear of the vessel on
which he haQ nreQ, ana kept well away.
This deponent further states that on pass
ing into Charles Town yesterday he saw
the wreck of a schooner on the beach of
Sand island Morris islandl and picked up
one of the boats of the Cid Campeador in
which a share of the Spanish Kings money
had been carried to the Long island. He
hath no doubt and verify believes that the
schooner drifted southwark from Sullivan's
island, and was cast ashore on and island.
The mate on board the schooner, who was
lost, had with him the bearing of the gold
and silver, where it was buried in the
marsh, from the pine tree; and peradvent-
ure it would be idle to search therefor
without the chart. But by Gods grace this
deponent desireth an order from the Kings
lawful officer to search therefor and will
true return make to any magistrate of the
King"
Another of the papers recites the grant
ing of the ORDER, but no return has yet been
made; nor does it appear OF the records
what became of Julian de Vega and the
three other wrecked Spanish marines. 1t
is easy to understand why the schooner,
schooner ON the morning of Sept. 1, 1745,
was flying a pirate flag.
In the Gold Bug, Poe originates a parch-
ment which is supposed to be found on the
shore of the cove just west of SulIlvan's
island. On the parchment are a lot of fig
ures and punctuation marks, which, by a
wonderful process of reasoning, are made
to read as follows: "A good glass in the
| Bishops hostel in the devils seat, fOrty-one
degrees and thirteen minutes-nOrtheast
and by north-main branch seventh limb,
east side-shoot from the left eye OF the
deaths head-a bee line from the tree