Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-12-20
THEMISSING WEALTH
A GOOD STORY OF BURIED TREAS
URE AT NEW LONDON.
Vain Search For the Gold That Disappear
ed From the Spanish Galleon-Fntile Ef-
forts of this Descendants of Witch strick-
land, Whose Charm Failed.

craft, digging for buried treasure, and the
robbery of Spanish galleon, all of which
occurred inside the limits of New London
within $50 years. The last two features
of the story are facts in history.
As late as July II, 1927, two men from
Vermont, said to be descendants of an ante
Revolutionary witch named Strickland,
dug by the side of what is now Law
rence's wharf for buried goW by the ad-
vice of some of their f.aefathers who dug
there before them in the seventeen hun
dreds. The digSers we.s hunting for the
treasure of the Spanish galleon st. .Io-
seph and St Helena, which was plundered
at her mornings while lying there for re
pairs and shelter in 1854. None of the
diggers was successful. The first party
We're grandsons Of the Strickland woman,
who as witch was expelled long before
from both the Connecticut and Massachu
sets colonies.
The state of Vermont, however, will
ingly harbored all gray, lean sisters of
the airy broomstick race, and this &C
counts for Witch Stricklands settling
there.
This witch was said to have possessed a
magic pebble, as clear az crystal into
which she could look and see treasure
buried under land or water. 1t was
through this happy medium that she
CHANGED upon the missing treasure of the
St. Joseph and St Helena.
This galleon, which left so much bullion
about New London, was the occasion Of
local event which was not only diScrcdita-
BILE to the Connecticut colony but showed
that our Old time solOns We're not above re
proach. lively political disturbance re-
suited.
The St Joseph and st. Helena, while
putting in here in distress in 1893, ran
upon reef Of rocks outside the harbor.
Before she could be floated it became nee
essary to unload her Then she was re
paired here. Her freight was put in charge
of Joseph Hill, at that time collector of
the port. Tie supercargo Of the gallcon
was Don Joseph Miguel de st. Juan His
vessel was bound from Havana to Cadiz,
and her cargo consisted in part of gold
bars and coin.
That he might proceed with his cargo
early in the spring Don Miguel chartered %
smaller vessel of eco tons, which was
ready to sail the following April. But
when he had shipped IA part of his cargo,
other parts of it were withholdcn from
him or lost, and he was unable to recover
them. The don could obtain no relief,
and finally, in the following October he
petitioned the general assembly upon the
matter.
In his petition he said that much of his
cargo had been embezzled, and he prayed
that he might roland that portion of his
cargo which remained and secure it at
their expense Tho general assembly, after
much debate, decided that they did not
l., : y.
neither could they prevent them. They
declared the don's requests We're too I'M
reasonable to be granted, but las protec-
ton was due Il foreigner cast among us, +"
the government was directed to grant all
due relief to the don, according to the laws
of trade nature and nations. The govern
or was also empowered to direct II full
search after the missing portion of the YES
sells cargo.
Collector Hill was holly censured. How
such quantity of treasure could be stolen |
without his knowledge and no search made |
for so long time was held to be unac-
countable. Nothing was over found, and |
the colony was not put to any great cx-
pense for this shameful proceeding, which |
was finally lost sight Qfin the causes which |
led up to the war of the Revolution
two in number, grandsons Of Granny |
Strickland, appeared. They were sent here |
through the old lady's written instruc-
.ions. Ii seems that years before, after
prolonged observation through the pre-
2ious pebble She possessed, she distinctly
viewed, deeply buried in the ground, many
boxes of shining dollars packed edgewise
She also cspicd bullion as well. The 10.
3ality, which was al about the moorings
Of the Spanish galleons, was pointed out
70 an inch Not long after she died
New Londoners, the story goes, laughed
1t the efforts of the raw boncd Nermontcrs
70 recover the buried treasure The ira
1ltiun says the delivers worked only at
night, in accordance with the witch's in
structions, and that finally they uncovered
the lids OF a number Of iron boxes ju.t
under the surface Of the river No sooner
were these revealed than it was said a troop
OF snarling black dogs and a flock of green
eyed geese interposcdI themselves, barking,
Kissing and yelling SO furiously as to hold
in check and finally to drive them away.
They went back to Marin Strickland's
homo to request her presence in the spirit
at New London, with her witch hazel
wand, to hold in check the vicious water
spritcs, which were so vehement in pro-
tecting the buried treasure. But it was
in vain. Although the witch camo to
earth at their invocation she refused to
come to Connecticut to help them out, it
was said, because she believed the same
laws expelling witches still existed here
as when she was in the flesh.
50 the money diggers We're compelled to
give over their quest. Their descendants
who came many decades later were no
more successful. They worked by the side
of the wharf in the hours of daylight, from
a plan left by their ancestors. They used
oyster tongs, clam rakes and grapnels. and
although no ugly dogs and kissing geese
hindered their movements they were IN
able to find anything Of value.-New Lon
don Conn. Day.