The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-02-26

Luke Benton told hugh Eastwood to come
iatn the ca BIZ
"We've just started, Hugh, said the
. IlaEaEog, addressing the StatWart collier.
WHO stood az tie other side of he able "to
clear al the ooJtOn Of the ovid Diuglu Pit,
and that's where IA wsut yo' to go. Some
o. toe dataliers are ols work, ami oh want
20 TO take charge Of the job to-day. An,
suppose yoli RoT
Certainly" was Uush's answer. "Ah'd
rayther do anything than 60 back this
mornin'."
That's rect then. Some Of these datall-
ers viii go with thee to draw aud PACK
dirt. Dick, here turning 10 the fire.
man-"wil show you the way through the
OVID aiTways."
Ten minutes afterward Eastwood and two
other miners, accompanied by the fireman,
Dick Graham, were proceeding along the
| disused galleries in the direction of the old
Dlngle Fit, which lay in the valley on the
other side Of Gale Wood
Although the Wood Pit and the Dingle
| Pit we're only half mile or whereabouts
apart on the surface, the distance one was
| compelled to travel underground in order
to get from one pit to the other was over
twice as lengthy, owing to the tortuous
! character Of the passage.
Only those who are familiar with old dis
used mining galleries can thoroughly COM
! prehend how difficult IL is Co travel oug
them. They are usually very low-so low
/ Indeed that one has to crawl on the hands
aud knees frequently; they wind in and out
like q maze, and the broken roof, "ratingn
sides, and heaps Of debris render the pas,
sage not only arduous, but often exceed
ingiy dangerous.
! 1t took the miners close upon an hour to
reach the scene of their days labor, and
| after dIcatlng the work to be done the
| hremen went away, promi8ing t. return for
them when it was time for them to cease
toiling in the afternoon.
There is no need TO dwell on the details of
| that days work underground. Hugh had
been placed in charge of the other two men,
and his work consisted in filing the small
dirt CARTS with the loose rocks and rub
Dish Of all kinds which had been permitted
to collect at the bottom of the old pit in the
course of five and twenty years.
| Hugh and his comrades worked away uu-
til monday, without anything OF an I'M
usual nature transpiring. But Immediately
after the dinner hour had elapsed and the
| three men had resumed work, Eastwood
made a most remarkable discovery.
Withdrawing his spade from out OF a
! heap OF loose dirt, into which he had thrust
| it, he noticed peculiar shaped mass upon
i 1t, which, upon examination, proved to be
a handbag OF stout brown leather.
With low exclamation of surprise he
! threw down his spade and took the bag
into his hands. 1t was In good condition
still, although 1t was evident from the posi-
! lion in which be had unearthed it that il
must have been buried for long period.
| The portmanteau was locked, and its
weight testified that its was well filled with
| something or other What it contents might
/ 10 he could not even conjecture. Placing
! the bag on the ground, be looked around for
| some implement which would enable him
! to force it open, and his eyes fell upon the
! heavy GOuhle-headed mining hammer which
rested against the side OF the road
lie seized the tool and was raising It to
| burst asunder the lock when the sound of
wheels running upon rails caught his ears,
and turning instinctively he saw that one
Of his worEmates was approaching with the
empty dirt cart.
| He hurriedly placed the handbag aside
| aud cast his coat over it, and then he turned
| to his coworher with impassive face They
| exchanged u few words, rested a minute or
! two, one sitting on the full cart the other
on the empty one; then the man went along
/ the level with the dirt-hled wagon to empty
it and Hugh was again alone.
When tina sound of the wagon died away
and the light of the mans lamp could no
longer be seea Eastwood again seized the
| bag, stretched out his long arm for the
hammer, and with one sharp, forceful blow
shivered the metal fastenings of the article
Then he pulled the bag open, and the in
slant his gaze fell upon what It contained a
| deep cry of mixed wonder and delight burst
from his parted lips.
There, lying in heap and giittering like
| specks of living flame In the rays of his
| Dayy lamp were trtnkets Of every descrip-
| ton. There we're bracelets and breaches,
| necklaces and many another form Of gew
! gsw, and the diamonds, emeralds, rubies
aud other gems dazzled the young miners
| eyes with the luster Of their various colored
/ fires.
He lifted the glittering treasures from
! the shattered casket which his hammer had
| crushed through as well as the metal fasten-
ings, and examined them one by one with
| flashing eyes and eager trembling fingers
The lust OF gain-which turks in the heart
! Of every human being-was raging fercely
now IN Hugh Eastwood's breast. He had
| been poor all his hfe-had shaved and toiled
for years-had saved a little now and again
and then spent It., and now a fortune-at
all events fortunes worth-lay there be-
! fore him.
To what dreams the sight of the precious
! jewels gave rise in his excited pain-what
hopes arose in his breast when he thought of
the gold they would bring himl Although
no knew little of the jewelers. art, he was
Dhrewd enough to know from the setting of
the gems that they were very valuable.
! Worthless stones would not, he felt assured,
| have been set in such massy and highly
ornate mounts of gold.
With the suddenly awakened aVarice of q
miser he was already calculating-or rather
making attempts to calculate tine value of
his treasure trove, and the means he should
adopt in order to convert the trinkets into
solid cash
he had already resolved to tell none Of
his wOrkmates of his remarkable find and
placing the jewels back in the shattered
casket, he emptied the hRlf-gallon can ia
which he carried his drink and stored the
| jewels therein.
Replacing the lid Of his can, he covered
| the same with his coat and then turned TO
| his work and began TO fill the empty wagon
beside him. He could find no place to hide
the handbag, so he cast it sside and went
on with his labor Shortly afterward he
was again joined by. the dirt drawer.
That do yo' think ah've just turned up,
| Miller~ Eastwood remarked as he rested a
moment on HIS spade and wiped his sweat
ing brow with his bare hand. He spoke in
O quiet, matter of fact tone, and the other
answered in the same Indifferent way:
"Ah dunnot know, Hugh. What is itY
IAN owd leather handbag. There IL is.
Look at it, Eastwood replied, pointing to
the empty aud broken portmanteau.
The middle-aged man went to the object