The morning call., 1892-07-03
THE DIVERS AT WORK.

to this port. he started out in command Of
the brig Laura in 1872 to search for the
treasure.
Our whole outfit, including the brig.
cost about $1,000 said he yesterday. II
received $50 a month as master and had
S1J0,0G0 worth of stock in the enterprise.
There were q persons aboard ship
altogether. not including an old couple. Mr..
and Mrs. Welsh, who went along to show
us where the treasure was hidden. There
was quite romantic story regarding this
couple. II seems that In their early years
they were travelling on board British ship
| which was taken by pirates. They were
taken TO COcOs Island and there saw the
treasure cave of the pirates. in which lay
the millions that had been brought from the
Mexican coast and on tho high seas. They
got alOag very well with the pirates, who
had them landed at Valparaiso ana put
| aboard ship going TO Australia. After
ward they heard that the vessel sailed by
the pirates was lost and all but one or two
men were drowned.
"The old couple were very earnest and
seemingly conscientious in their statements
TO US. The man was GA years old and the
woman &c. They described with great pre-
cision the treasure cave and its surround
ings.
when we arrived there we found the
cave just as they had described il, and those
Of US holding stock in the enterprise would
not have sold out for six times the par value
of our shares.
THE old man said that the treasure was
buried inside the cave shout 2j feet back.
on the right-hand side. We dug there but
/ found. nothing. Then we dug along for %
feet and tapped the inside of the cave all
around, but we were not rewarded. We
came across some old cOld-chlseis and old
fashioned gin-bottles, but while these made
US feel more confident that there was treas
ure there, they were the only indications Of
the presence Of any one in the cave at for
ner times, Yes, there were some oates cut
in the rock. the earliest being 1863.
"Cocos Island is about six miles broad.
| We searched all over ii for the treasure,
nsing dvining rod. We were all per-
fectly satisfied that there was treasure
there somewhere, but we couldn't get at
Ii. The divining rod dipped strongly IN one
place about two miles from the cave, and
We dug there, but found nothing Of value.
I'VE were % days on the island alto
gether. and we all worked like beavers
When we wero nearly discouraged we took
the old man and the old woman into the
cave to let them look around a bit and see
If they couldn't be OF some assistance TO
US. They were very suspicious. fearing
that We were angry at them and would kill
| them, but we forced them in. We soon
| found they could be of no earthly service to
| Us and 20, after searching around the island
! for awhile longer, we came away, gong 10
| Point Arena and taking on load of coffee,
| with which we sailed to San Francisco.
made enough out Of the cargo TO pay the
sailors wages, so we were not out anything
| on that score. We lett the old couple at
Point Arena. suppose they are both dead
| by this time"
Some OF the shareholders in the Laura's
search-party enterprise, who were in this
| city, still talk over the COcos Island expe-
dition. Some of those who held stock were
! poor persons, and they awaited news from
the party on board with great eagerDess.
One day Pacific Mail steamer came into
! this port with the information that the
Laura bad been sighted, loaded down with
! treasure. A leading capitalist, who was
among the first to learn the glad tidings,
went TO poor widow who had several
! shares and offered her five times their par
value for them. He received the stock, and
| also received very severe shock when the
schooner came in with only coffee abroad.
A pIinter-boy. who held several shares,
| was of1ered large sum for them, but think
ing he had a.life of ease ahead of him when
| the brig load OF treasure should be divided,
| would not sell cut. He, too, lived to learn
that there are far more blanks in the treas
ure.hunter's wheel than there are prizes.
II think that this Captain Gisler who Is
going out in the Hayseed has some secret
information regarding the location of the
! treasure" said Captain Plummer. "He
may be able To secure IT, 1t is there but
believe the pirates fooled the Welshes as to
| its location"
Since Captain Plummer made his famous
voyage no other expedition has ever gone
TO COcos. There WAS former expedition,
under the leadership of Mrs. Captain
| Brown, who went as the mistress of @
schooner several years before, but il, too,
was unsuccessful.
CHARLES Greenberg leaned over the coun.
| ter In his cigar shop the other day and told
OF his voyage to the Ecuador coast after
lost riches 20 years ago.
we went in the Mary Taylor, IA Of us,
10 make our everlasting fortunes. The
MARY Taylor was steam schooner, and
CAPTAIN Parker was her master. She was
| Just the KIND of vessel for such trip being
trim and stout and very good sailer.
1T. was on the "a of February, 1872, that
we set sail from San Francisco, and we
| MADE good time all the way down. We
were going IN search of the $4,000. 600 in
gold and silver supposed to have been part
of the cargo OF the old Spanish galleon,
Leocadia, which was wrecked near St.
| Helena Point, on Quay aquil Bay away bach
In 1902 The Leocadia belonged to the
Spanish Government. She had been down
the coast gathering taxes from Spain's de-
pendencies 10 be shipped via Panama tC
Madrid. She sailed from Callao for Panama
wtth her vast store OF wealth aboard, and
struck ashoal 10 Guayaqul Bay, sinking in
three fathoms Of water.
I'VE didn't know what shape we would
nnd the wreck in after all those years, but
we had learned that the Spanish Govern.
ment nad sent men to take off what they
could get from ;he sunken craft, and il was
reported that 100000 had been recovered
by them.
III there still remained over S4. .OOo. COO VIC
thought that the amount was well worti
looking for, and we knAw that we had
great advantage over the old Spanish
wreckers, who had taken off the 5000 eco
as lney were without the modern means OF