The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-07-03

drcIl, on the west Slde ana along IIle base of the rocky cliffs, 1t was believed
 there existed pivotal rock. which, when released, would reveal an open ing to the vault of the long concealed treasure of the Incas and Peruvians, The nearest point on the Central Amer | lean coast to Cocos Island Is Punta Are
 mas, in Costa Rica about three hum dred miles away. The distance from | Panama is fully five hundred and eigh-
 ty miles,
 Early in June, 1893, Captain Geisler of | Stockton, accompanied by ten New | York capitalists, chartered the steamer
 Acapulco for an exploration of the is-
 land the captain being satisfied that he could find the treasure hidden by the ] pirates. It was on the afternoon of the 1 10th of that month that the vessel came l to anchor in Waffle Bay, on the north side of the island. Upon the shore of
 bend in the bay the treasure seekers ! saw a small building, and straining 1 their eyes they beheld smoke tumbling,
 from the chimney. Boats were lowered | and preparations made to land AS the voyagers neared the beach two men ran
 from the door of the cabin to the beach. 1 With all the ardent energy of his na- | ture Captain Geisler hurriedly took the party to the spot where he believed the treasure to be hidden. They could not find the pivotal rock. however, and for
 days and days they lived with the two
 men whom they found upon the island. Baffled in their efforts to find the 1 gold and silver, Captain Geisler gloom I fly and reluctantly weighed anchor and returned to San Francisco
 | Seekers for treasure on the Isle of 1 Cocos were known before the Acapulco dropped anchor in it's bay. Early in
 1892 the schooner Eliza Edwards was l fitted out for mysterious voyage. She sailed away from the harbor of San Di- l ego with eleven men on board. Among 1 them was ex-Mayor Barber of Santa Barbara. The voyagers were provided with an immense stock of provisions, l and carried with them a formidable as-
 sortment of picks, shovels and spades 1 The destination of the schooner was
 Cocos Island. The vessel was three l weeks on its way, and during all that 1 time, although frequently hugging the | shore closely. not house or living l creature was seen on land.
 l Ex-Mayor Barber and his men found no treasure on the island, although they remained until their provisions were nearly exhausted.
 Still another strange and weird story 1 about the stowaway wealth of Cocos | Island was told in 1894 by Charles Hen- derson of Weuseon, O.. who claimed | that while boy he ran away to sea, | serving as an apprentice under Captain I Summers on a vessel plying between l New York and Liverpool. Before the l late war, and while yet a lad, Tender | son claimed that he was on board pri- | vateer and slaving vessel called the Lark. He was afterward sub-officer of the ship.
 The Lark made many trips between l Africa and the East seas and was al- l ways successful. The captain became
 rich, but no one knew what became of his money. The Lark continued to
 make trips after slaves, and one day, while near the coast of South America, I a United States man-of-war attacked l the Lark. The slayer was ordered l headed for a rendezvous known to none l but Henderson and the captain. In l their haste to escape the war ship they 1 ran the Lark upon rock and she rap l idly sank, scarcely giving the eight men 1 time to escape.
 The captain told Henderson that he 1 had seventy-two thousand dollars in 1 gold on board the ship, and that if he would help him secret it from the crew he would share it with him. All on board the vessel escaped In boats, the captain and Henderson secretly taking the treasure with them. According to this foggy, yarn of Henderson they made for anisland and there In a cave hid the gold. While on the island, so J the story runs, the captain and three of the men died of smallpox and two were drowned by the capsizing of a small boat while returning to the yes seI. Henderson, so he says, was picked up by passing vessel and taken to New Orleans. He afterward tried to get some vessel owner to help him re- cover the treasure, but without success. { Henderson afterward fitted out a ship to go to this mysterious island (sup- ,I posed to be Cocos), built Is not known that he found more than an island upon
 which gulls roost and shrug their
 wings. The meagre telegrams from Panama to the effect that treasure has been found on the island simply adds more
 interest to one of the many popular TO- mances of the sea