The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-12-24

upon large canvas bag, rotten with
age and gaping open. 1t was as full
as it could hold of pieces of gold. bear
ing the superscription of the mint of
Spain.
civilian Jones! William Jones! And
all this was yours, at least by right of
plumber, upon the queens scaway; all
this which, turned into cash, would
have made a man rich beyond the
dreams of avarice. was the possession
of one who lived like miserlv hcgrar.
grudged himself and his flesh and
blood the common necessarics of life,
and had never been known. from boy
hood upward. to give a starving fellow
creature so much as crust of bread
or to dZpp penny into the poor box.
0 William Jones! o William Jones.
William Jones!
The above reflection belongs. not to
the present writer, but to nv adven-
turous discovcrer, the captain of the
caravan.
AS Brinkley proceeded on his tour of
inspection he became more and more
struck with wonder Nothing seemed
too insignificant or too prcpostcrouslv
useless for secretion in that cytraor-
binary ships cavern There were
mops and brooms, there were holy
stones, there were 'squccgecs" there
were canisters of timed provisions.
there We're bags of wccvil'd biscuits.
there were sacks of potatoes (Which
cSculents, long neglected. had actually
sprouted and put forth lcavcs). there
were ring bolts. there We're tin mugs
ana panniilins and, lastly. mirabilc
dlctu there We're books-said books
Jay pied on the top of heap of sacks
and were in the last stage of mildcyv
and decay. For what purpose had
they been carried there? Certainly
not to form library, for william
Jones could not read. AS curiosity
deepcncd, Brinkley opened some of the
lorlorn volumes covered with mildcw
and full of hideons crawling things.
Most were in foreign tongues. but
there were several English novcls half
IA century old. and IL book of ia
nous Voyages" also in English.
Near to them were some large paper
roils-ships charts, evidently. and al
most falling to pieces. And on the
Top OF the charts was Il tiny pravcr-
book allinc-covcrcd and dripping wet!
what possessed Brinklcy to examine
thc praycrboOk | cannot determine
bnt IN after years he always avcrrcd
that II was an inspiration. At any rate
he did open it, and saw that the fly
lcai was covered with writing. yellow.
uiHlcuit 70 dcciphcr. fast fading away.
i'ut what more particularly attracted
MS attention was loose piece of
parchment, fastened to the titlc-Darc
with a rusty pin, and covered also with
written characters.
flXlng the candle on n nool, in thc
damp wall he inspected the titlc-pape
and dcciphcrcd these words:
"Christmas-cvc, 1864. on board tho
snip Trinidad fast breaking up on
the Welsh coast. If any Christian soul
should find this book and these limos
where ! place them. if they sinl, not
with their bearer Ton whom | leave nv
last despairing blcssing) to the bottom
OF the sea. or if God in Ills infinite
mercy should spare and save the little
child" (Thc book trcmblcd in his
hand as he read. The writing wont
on:) Il cast her adrift in her cradle in
SIGHT of shore, on II little raft made bv
my own hands Ills II desperate hone
but lie can work miracles, and if if is
Ills VIII she may be saved. Attached
10 TINS holy bool; are the proof, nf her