Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1901-01-09
A BURIED TREASURE.
Interesting Story Of A Discovery AT
Natural Bridge.
Richmond Dispatch

Richmond Dispatch.
A gentleman who has just returned
from Natural Bridge tells an interest
ing story Of the recent discovery there
or suspected discovery, of hidden treas
ure Of a value unknown and unesti.
mated, Indeed, the character OF the
treasure-if treasure was found-is q
mys,ery, so far as the public knows.
1t seems that some time in October
two men approached the owners Of the
Natural Bridge property with propo-
sition fer an option upon the property
which should carry with IT permission
to dig. The inference was, OF course,
that the digging was to be done in
search of minerals. Upon payment OF
a small sum the option was secured.
The two men went to work almost
Immediately Several negro laborers
were employ ed and set to digging on
the lawn between the gate-house at the
entrance to the grounds Immediately
around the bridge, and the bridge
itself. A number of holes were dug,
anu long iron rod was driven into tie
ea,th at various spots.
OF course, these operations created
gres t interest among the country folk,
as well as the owners of the property.
In enious efforts were made to discover
the object OF the men having the dig
ding done, but absolutely without sue
cess. The strangers were eminently
coed fellows, loo. They lived at the
hotel, and sreDt more or less time,
especially at night, at the nearby store,
where the farmers sons gathered to
ia k olitics, or to start cut on 'possum
hurts. Bat never a word could be
Cotton f. ON the prospectors as 10 The
object Of their digging.
About dawn one morning, a day or
two be ere tie election, as an employe
was On lbs way from the hotel to the
stebles be saw one of the two men who
ha | obtained the option walking rap
dly away from the hotel along the
road which leads to the railroad sta
ton. The man carried sat, he'll
Robert Louis Stevenson would have
called it "black satchel." As a ma.
ter of fact 1t did look black, for the sun
was not yet up, and there was heav,
fog. TIE employe, in recountiDg his |
story of seeing the man, declares the
atchel appeared TO be very heavy.
And mis- hearers HAYS let it lose none of |
It's weight in subsequent feelings of the |
story.
AS maybe imagined, the story has
gained wide circulation, The farmers |
are deeply interested. Many who are
familiar with fifty years or more of Tie
BRIDGES histOr' and who have received |
ON their fAtptrs and mothers its
n tory fer fifty years further back
back to the days when Thomas Jefer-
son was its ouner-are willing to be.
ieve that the men were searching fer
reasure and found it.
Less than year ago young MIN
lom Rockbridge county, while en-
ployed in Craig county, obtained some
Information which is regarded as If a
nature that may throw ONE H. hit upon
he features OF the story as given above.
Tie young man referred 10 states that
ne metin Craig man from Indiana who
old him an odd story about treasure
hidden on the Natural Bridge property.
The Hoosier said that an old man
FAMED Crawford, who had once lived
n the vicinity OF the Natural Bridge,
old him, in Indiana, that there was
yold buried near TO the bridge. To be
more explicit, the old citizen said that
lear to the northeast corne' OF tie
.ortheIn buttress was buried treas.
ire which would be any mai Is for tie
liggine. He refused to go into details
nut his story made deep impressic II
Ipon the man who heard it ar he was
Ond Ct talking about it.
The Indiana end of the story greatly
nter' sted the people living near tae
Natural Bridge, The Oldest among !
hem recalled that long years ago q
Dung man living in the vicinity named l.