San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-03-14

ing in the breeze as though his legs
were under some ceaseless uncontrolla-
BILE influence of the hornpipe.
i will dine on board this ship, ;
shouted Robert, and be with you be-
fore sundown.' And he turned his great,
red, dear old face round the sea to find
out how the weather promised.
He told Mr.. Matthews and me the
story of his going ashore and getting
the men and the nuggets. He found the
woods very thick and walked with great
anxiety, fearing that they might be shot
at by the men in concealment. The
grass was tall and their tread soundless.
There was 10 dry bush or brushwood TO
crackle. After they had gone a few
hundred yards in green twilight of
wood, they arrived suddenly at an open
space of sunshine and grass, in the
midst of which was tent. 1t was a
little tent shaped like house and con-
trived out of spars and spare sails. At
the entrance stood Mr.. Burn, who yelled
men, then let his arms fall and stood
like one Thunderstorm, deprived of
speech by q stroke. The others We're in
side asleep. Robert noticed plenty Of
bottles aud some glasses and the re-
mains of meal. All three were secur-
ed, two of them scarcely awake when
they were seized. The commander asked
them to tell him where the gold was.
Cavendish grinned hideously; the three
kept obstinately silent They began
to look at one another, however, when
Robert told him that the longboat was
captured and Trollope dead and the
balance of the gang in irons aboard the
Queen, which, with the Wellesley, lay
out of sight upon the sea beyond the
trees. Still they would not speak, but as
they marched down to the beach, Burn,
who walked behind his two associates,
signed to the commander and softly ad
dressed him, and Robert gathered that
he would be willing to make clean
breast of it when he was alone.
"They found the chests in the place
where Mr.. Burn had told them to look.
They were in cleft or fissure at the
foot of hill facing east, so beautifully
and luxuriously concealed by the wild
growths of that spot of land that it was
wonderful they should have lighted
upon it. Robert told me he might have
explored the island in vain for months.
The Is cases were there intact. Burn
assured the commander they had not
been opened since the day when they
had been removed from the ships hold.
They had proposed indeed to open one
that contained dust, with the idea of
buying a small vessel, but fell out over
this, as indeed they quarreled about
nearly everything, and the lougboat
sailed away, as Robert had cleverly con-
cluded, on piratical mission to seize.
"Well, before / close this letter, which
am sure you would not wish shorter,
must give you few interesting items
of news which the commander picked
up from the traitor Burn, who talked
very freely, being evidently hopeful that
Robert would intercede for him. He
said that it was well known that a
great purchase or cargo of gold was to
be consigned from the diggings by the
ship Queen. Trollope met him one day
in Sydney and asked him if he was
willing to join gang who meant to
sail as passengers i'll the ship and seize
her at sea. He went with Trollope to
the house of one Moses Jacobs, who, it
seems, found the capital for this enter
prise, and there met Davenire, Caldwell
and others. They wanted company of
ten. Some believed they could not do
with less, and so he introduced Masters
The brigantine that was to rendezvous
at the island was commanded by Jacobs
brother in-law. This man was brought
in here, dead of paralysis, fortnight
ago. He lived till the vessel entered Sgd
ney harbor, SO he had his wish and was
buried by the side of his child.
"On our arrival we heard that ia
cobs, for whom, as you may suppose, in
quiries were Immediately made, had
vanished shortly after the brigantine
anchored. He has not yet been found
He is the worst of the culprits, but his
loss is heavy. Robert calculated that he
could not have put less than e., 500 into
this venture This without any other
security than the arrival of the brigan-
tine at the islandl This ON the chance
of the men rising and successfully seiz-
ing the ship and navigating her to the
islandl This on the chance of Saunders
remaining loyal 1 do not think that
the people of the nation to which Mr..
Jacobs belongs are commonly great low
ers of such loose, insecure speculations
as this. And yet You do hear of money
lenders advancing large sums on notes
of hand at crushing rates of interest
and then uselessly suing the persons to
whom the balance was advanced.
Robert and have been made much
of here. Robert is the hero of the hour.
Hundreds go down to the water side to
look at the Queen, which, by the way,
Mr.. Matthews will command on her
voyage home. cannot tell what the
award will be, but as the value of the
treasure is very great, it is generally