The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-12-30
NAPIER'S S5O.O0O NUGGET.
It Got Him an Introduction to Queen
Victoria and Was the Cause
of His Ruin.


nugget valued at 900 recalls the
famous Napier nugget found in the
Australian diggings forty years ago.
The front end of Mr.. Napier's name is
Samuel H. He has resided in this town
nearly all his life and was once elected
to the New Brunswick legislature, but
his chief fame rests on the fact that he
once upon a time picked up the biggest
chunk of gold that had ever, up to then,
gladdened the heart of man.
1T was in 1854" said Mr.. Napier,
that 1 left this country for Australia
on the bark Marco Polo, which, when
condemned about ten years ago, was
believed to be the oldest sailing craft
ahoat 1t was no chicken, even in the
sos. sailed four voyages from Liver
pool to Melbourne, chiefly as purser
mining fever. In 1857 I started for the
diggings and remained there a year and
a half 1 went to Bendigo first and
then Staked a claim at Hangover, about
about forty miles from the Bendigo dig
gings, on an arm of the Murim bedgIc
called the LOdden. I had been al
Hangover about six months when 1
found the celebrated Napier or Blanche
Barley nugget. My brother, Charles
H. Napier, was in partnership with me.
and our cook and general handy man
about camp was an Englishman, %
years of age, Robert Ambrose. He is
he was.
1.-The Hangover diggings was a small
one compared with the Bendigo, and
didn't pan out much at first. 1t was on
August Il at 10 o'clock in the forenoon,
that we made the big strike. We had
dug down about fourteen feet to the
pipe-clay stratum and were shufling
around in the bottom of the shaft more
dead than alive from the heat. Old
Ambrose lit his pipe and leaned against
the side of the hole for a rest. Just
CT hi NfaIr
1 turned it up so the light could strike
it, and by jimminy frostI it was a hunk
of gold as big as a Hubbard squash!
''Wel, that minute I knew our for
tune was made. Old Ambrose got eX-
cited, and jumped around till I thought
he'd have the whole diggings down
upon us. Charley and 1 kept cool and
covered the nugget up in the earth and
didn't go nigh it for the rest of the day
After night we lugged the beauty to
our tent and covered it up in the bed
ding. That evening was a mighty
anxious one, for the boys were liable
to Hquidate, and We didn't know what
minute they'd come in and turn our
whole caboose upside down. About
midnight we set to work as quiet as
possible with our picks and sunk a
shaft down about six feet underneath
the table in the tent and buried the
nugget out of sight. For three long
months it staid there with US eating
over it, walking over it, sleeping on it.
and dreaming on it, and not a soul at
IH5 OlSSlnSS any the wiser. Ambrose
used to talk in his sleep, but we found
that a. good dose of gin would settle
that, and he generally got all he could
cleverly stow away. Sometimes we lay
awake all night with our guns handy
in case we were mO1ested, for there
were plenty of tough subjects at the
diggings that would have made short
work Of US if they had guessed our
secret.
well. about the middle of November
we bought horse and cart and lit out
for Melbourne having in the meantime
dug out our claim and piled up enough
of the yellow stuff to carry US to Lon
don. 1t took us four days and four
nights to reach Melbourne and hardly
slept a wink on the way. The nugget
was packed up in a rough box with
some old clothes, and we told every one
we met that we were going to New Zea-
land We carried no arms with US for
fear of being suspected. When we
reached Melbourne we took private
lodgings, and the next morning logged
her ladyShip to the Bank of Victoria
and made all the necessary arrange
ments for shipping her. and we never
saw her again until produced the nee
essary documents at the Bank of Eng
land in London. OF course by this time
the thing had leaked out and in no time
the city of Melbourne was crazy with
excitement.
I'VE sailed for England In a vessel
called the SCARBOROUGH, paying LAG
half crowns export duty on the nugget
and ESQ insurance. When we reached
London we found the news had got
there before US, and we thought Moth
ing of having half q dozen lords and
dukes for breakfast while the craze
lasted. The Crystal Palace was booming
then but it wasn't a hyspeck on the
map Of the world to US for more than
week. We sold our beauty to the
Bank of England for 81o, 600 my broth
er and dividing the profits equally and
pooling in handsomely for old Ambrose
How much did it weigh? The heft of
that nugget was just 146 pounds 4
ounces and pennywelghts, and when
1t was melted 1t was found to be 235k
carats fine, containing only ten ounces
of drOss- For some time it was exhibit
ted in the British museum by permission
of the bank, and there IS a cast of 1t
there now, as well as one at Kingston
while in London we were presented
to the queen. She sent her carriage
and a battalion of mounted police to
take the nugget and US to the palace
We stopped with her for lunch, and I
must say she made herself generally
agreea BILE. teetered the Prince of
Wales on my knee, for he was only a
kid then, and he promised to come to
Canada to see me, which he did about
eight years afterWard. Then I went to
Liverpool and got married, and went
into the ship chandlery and sailmaking
business, and pretty soon every ounce
of that nugget was gone to kingdom
come. Mind you, I've got no fault to
| find with marriage in general. but I
! didn't seem to strike a pay streak. So
/ then came back to my old home, and
when I got here the boys took hold in
earnest and elected me at the head of
| the pen by 140 majority But the mug
| get was my ruination after all for I've
| done nothing ever since but hunt for
| gold on the NashWaak, the Nepisiguit
| and the Nappadoggau. I found lots of
signs, but nothing to pan out.
Il heard about this K1ondilxe nugget
| the other day. Maybe it wifi beat mine
| and maybe it won't The Weltham mug
| get weighed $50 pounds. but it had 90
pounds of stone in it. 1t was found at