Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1891-08-21
A MILLION IN A CHEST.
AN ODD INCIDENT OF THE
GREAT FIRE OF IS4e.
How Joe Marshall Came Into Possession
OF ~ Fortune and Held IL for Day
"A Brothers Crime and
Tragic Death.

| BUGS one Ol INC
Joe Marshall by name.
Joe clings fondly to tho traditions
and superstitions of the early French.
and his stories OF events that occurred
in his early life about Carondelet are
marvellous in the extreme. Joe's lit
tie cabin on the river bank near ELL
wood street is often filled with eager
listeners TO his marvellous stories, and
none of his friends ever question the
veracity of his accounts; for the mo-
ment they do the Ancient Mariner, ="
as he is sometimes called in conse-
Quence of his knowledge of the rive'
will point significantly TO the door OF
his cabin with the words:
you don't believe it. you--P
! There's the door.
Joe is in the habit OF prefacing his
remarks by stating that he remembers
the time when the Mississippi was IA
creek. 1t may not be generally known
| that Joe was millionaire for two
whole hours ut one time and the cir
cumstances Of his rise and fall are best
told in his own words
1T was in the summer Of 1871
was on the river then. The river was
! booming. and it was unsafe to go out
in il in "A small boat. That was in the
early steamboat days when every one
Travelled by river, and the wharf in 81.
Louis was lined with boats which stuck
their bows so close together, in order
TO get to the wharf at all, that they
formed wall along the river front
and when fire broke out on one boat
the others were so tightly wedged in
that escape was impossible. 1t had
been storming all day, and in the even
ing the river was raging torrent,
ready 10 tear away its banks or to dash
the huge trees that had been uprooted
by it in its mad course through the
hull of the steamer that ventured from
the bank out into midstream.
about nine o'clock that evening d
fire broke out on the levee among the
boats, There was a panic. Some OF
the passengers who were spending the
night on the boats in order TO make
sure of their staterooms lost their lives
in the panic which followed and others
left their vaiuables. The loss was inn
mense both in life and property. The
red glare of the fire was distinctly Wis
ible in Vide Poche, and | and my part
ner sat up and kept watch on the river
expecting TO see some of the passen-
gers OF the burning boats drift by and
TO rescue them if possible. We
waited long, but no victims of the fire
came. At last, as we We're about TO
! -; Il, al -, Ia
current dark object that appeared to
be raft. 1t shot swiftly into view.
and as it passed us we could see the
white face of man holding on to
raft which he had constructed of -four
life preservers, and on which he float
ed large chest which from the care
he had taken TO place IL in safety at
the risk of his own life, we judged to
be very valuable We resolved to save
him. If possible. and jumping out into
our skiff we pulled toward him. At
that moment the raft was caught in
one of the whirlpools below the Ell
wood street dixie and was broken TO
pieces. The man lost his hold and
was swallowed in the vortex, while the
chest, too went down. We rowed
about the spot to pick up the life pre-
servers, which had separated, and in
picking up the second one found n
rope attached TO it. My partner want
ed TO cut it. but | stopped him and
told him TO save the rope, as it might
be useful. He commenced pulling il
in, but before he had gotten much Of
it in the boat he called me 10 his
assistance and we worked away pull
ing in the dead weight at the other
end of the rope. Finally the task was
! finished, and as reward instead of
the body of the man whom we had
just seen drown before our eyes we
! found we had the chest which he val
ued more than his life. We hauled it
ashore with more misglvings and ! did
not open it but put it carelessly be-
| fore my shanty. The next day | had
/ plenty to do picking up wreckage and
watching for the bodies of those who
had persisted on the boats. About >
o'clock in the evening gentleman
drove down 10 the shanty. He seemed
greatly excited. lIe was accompanied
| by u constable. They asked me If |
had seen chest floating down the
river. Well, to make a long story
short the man was the owner OF the
chest which contained his whole for
tune-more than million. The man
who was drowned was his brother
who had locked him in his state-room
to perish and tried TO make off with
the treasure in the way described.
Il told him of his brothers death,
and he remarked: Poor fellow. |
forgive him. and shall not tell fathe
Of his attempted crime He was "A
a member of one of the best families
Of the city at the time, and after TAX
ing me TO the nearest saloon, where
we had the best in the house. he gave
me s.. 600 TO keep the whole affair quiet
and not let his name be known. What
did do with the So, 600? | lived like
q gentleman on 1t for year.
Ibid | ever see the gentleman
again? Yes. quite often. He is one
| Of Tho l,,Htn., ,,,n,, Of N.,,- nrfy. >,