Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-11-12

Had the raft been without cargo the |
mans story would have been laughed at |
and yidiculed He said he had found |
gold and ivory-a great fortune. He
had the ivory and the gold to prove his
assertions. 1t made no difference that
he conld not identify the island-that |
the chart did not place it, 1t was a
queer story, but with the proofs at hand
to back it what could we do but believe,
Our captain was a Scotchman, and he
took whole day to think tho matter
over and assure himself that the stuff
before him was actually gold and ivory
Then he made Scott a proposition. The
sailor knew the worth of what he had
secured-knew that he was fixed for
life, and having knocked about Oh the
raft for nine days before we sighted
him he was not at all anxious about
what he had left behind in the cave.
Our captain was, however, and so was
every man of the crew. The matter was
talked over, and it was finally agreed
that Scott should pilot us to the island
and take another jar of gold dust for his
share. He would then be landed at Ba-
tavia to go where he pleased The rest
of the treasure was to be recovered for
the owners Of the bark, but we We're
told that they would be liberal with all.
1t was hard bargain the Scotchman
drove with the rescued sailor but Scott
fell in with the idea and the course of
the ship was changed. We We're 200
miles to the south of the Chagos hay
ing passed them so miles to the east
and as the wind was from the north we
had to beat back This was slow work.
and we had not yet made half the dis
lance when we got a gale from this
west which sent us driving away to-
ward the Javanese coast until we were
almost in sight Of it. We had then to
recover our lost ground, but what with
the loss Of two topmasts and several
sails in squall and continuation Of
bad weather it was Is days before a
man was sent to the masthead to look
for land.
The Chagos archipelago consists of "a
score of islands, banks and reefs. Scott
believed that his island was the eastern
most one of all, but as he could not be
sure of it we had to examine all Run
ming between them and around them
was slow work, and we had to feel our
way, and it was six or seven days be-
fore we reached the last. We had found
no such island as described by the sail
or, and in our disappointment and
chagrin he came in for plenty of abuse.
He retaliated by pointing to his treas
ure. If there were no island, no cave and
no treasure, how did he come by tho
ivory and gold dust? 1t was a convinc-
ing argument and our captain decided
to bear away to the east and search al
haphazard. At the close of the fourth
day, sailing back and forth across sea
supposed to contain no land for hun
dreds of miles in every direction but
the west, we sighted Scott's island Our
man identified it as soon as it could be-
seen from the deck, and we ran in and
came to anchor for the night within a
mile from the beach. Had the night not
been SO dark I believe the captain would
have had boat down, but as it was ho
dared not chance it. Such was the eX-
element aboard that no man slept for
an hour, and as soon as daylight had
come and the men had bite to eat we
set off to secure the treasure.
We soon found the opening of the bay
and rowed into it. Scott had been OH
the island for over year and the hut
he occupied and the flagstaff he erected
were in plain sight. At the end of the
bay we came to the cave, and, leaping
out of the boat, the captain was the first
to enter. A moment later he reappeared
| and for the next quarter Of an hour he
cursed as never heard seaman before
or SINCE The cave had been plundered.
| One broken tusk had been left behind,
and there was perhaps all ounce Of gold
dust lying on the spot where Scott emp
tied the Jars. That was proof enough
that he had told a straight story. When
we landed and went up to the hut, we
soon solved the problem. Some whaler
had touched there for wood and water.
For wood they had used all the wreck
stuff lying about and had also partially
pulled the hut to pieces. They had filled
their casks at the spring, and we could
| still see the marks where they had been
rolled down hill to the boats.
Then the Scotchman did mean thing
by the rescued sailor. He made a great
ado Of how he had deviated from his
course and lost fortnight's time and
insisted that Scott divide with him.
believe he threatened to leave him on
the island if he didn't. There was trou-
| BILE for few hours, and then the sailor
came to terms, but not SO much as a
penny's worth was ever handed over to
the owners OF distributed among the
crew. Scott was transshipped to a craft
bound for Java and that was the last
ever saw or heard of him. A year later,
! however, met an American runaway
sailor in Batavia, and he told me that
his craft, the Bessie Herrick Of Marble
head, put in at the island remained for
two days, and her captain discovered
! the cave and the treasure while fishing
in the bay. He gave every man aboard
| 500 in cash as present, but kept the
dust and the ivory end turned them into
cash at Singapore. 1t was rich haul
Of treasure, and the captain must have
been made independent for life. How
old the island was, how the treasure
came to be deposited there, who were
the rightful owners of it-well, those
are questions ( cannot answer. 1t was
at least two years after we visited the
place before it was surveyed and char
| tered. &C. B. Lewis.
In Bohemia.
| II prepare all my meals myself, /" OBJ