The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-08-24
TREASURE BURIED ON
A SOU.H SEA ISLAND

schooner, the Mary Deer" sailing under
skull and cross-bones, raraged the coasts
OF Chill and Peru, and plundered mon.
asteries and treasure ships OF an enoT-.
nous amount of plate, coin and bullion.
estimated in value at about 100000, 600.
Laden down with this treasure, the pi-
rates ran to the first island they could
find-Cocos Island. a little bit of land
about three miles square lying off Pan
ANA, about six hundred miles due west
OF Mariata. The treasure was buried on.
on this island none too soon, for the
pirate had hardly gotten out to sea
again when. Peruvian n1an-of-war
swooped down on her and captured her.
taking the entire crew prisoners. All
of the captives were executed with one
exception, or. possibly. two exceptions.
There is living in Boston now an elderly.
sailor man named Richard NJ Young,
who married the daughter of John keat-
ing. This John Heating claimed to have
been one of the original pirates, and to
have made his escape from the man-of-
war with one William THOMPSON. Ac-
cording to the story told by Mrs Young,
her father, a native of st. Johns, N. F.,
jumped overheard with Thompson and
the two were picked up by an American
whaler. For three years. according to
keating. they cruised for whales and
kept the secret OF the buried treasure;
then the two went to England and Sc
cured the vessel '.Edgecomb,, Captain
Bog. and came back for the treasure.
There is good reason to believe from the
story of Heating that he was one Of the
pirate crew is pure fiction. Indeed.
Captain Boig, who was the mate with
ms uncle on the first expedition. gives
him the lie direct. and in a blunt, graphic
way tells the tale in a letter now in the
possession of Captain Harry Boig. his
nephew and grandson of the master
OF the Edgecomb.''
A LOG BOOK.
II have the log book Of the brig
Edgecomb. written by myself when sec
ond mate with my father: says Captain
Boig. The first knowledge he (Keat-
ing got of it was about the end of '3s
He had been working as carpenter.
doing some repairs to one Of McThomas'
vessels in st. Johns, Newfoundland, and
some light work not being finished Nc
Thomas asked him to go the voyage in
her to one of the West India Islands as
carpenter and finishe it In fine weather
They had lost one of their crew there
by sickness, and they shipped another
civilian thompson at one of the is
lands Heating and Thomas were III
11G same NdlCI CoIitiiiS Ioiic ~ 1<e"e
foundland, and nights while walking the
decks he informed Heating of the treas
ure, and Heating on arrival at ST. Johns
took him to lodge at his house..
Captain Boig's narrative continues:
MY father being then master of the
brigantine George Henry Harrison. Of
st Johns, and just arrived with a
general cargo from Liverpool. Heating
then working for the owners of the YES
Al fho off a n m father
Ho and Thompson met each other as
Royal Arch Masons. He gave all par
ticulars to my father. who tried to get
the merchants of st Johns to specu-
late in sending a ship to try for it, but
could not induce them to do so. My
father then went home with a vessel to
England, which was for sale on arrival
My father treated with Messrs. Smith
and Irwin, Liverpool. to send out a,
vessel. They made inquiry at Lloyd's
about several vessels that had sailed
some years before from Mexico West
Coast point Arenes) and Gulf of Cali
,fornia, which had treasure on board
and were bound for Peru and Chilli
BURIED THE GOLD.
Captain Boig then goes on to tell of
the treasure:
Thompson stated to my father that
they these vessels) had been robbed
anu me lIcdSuIe TAKEN out OIL several
vessels and buried on Cocos Island. as
their vessel was not in fit state to
proceed south. They are said to have
lost five boat loads of silver and the
crew of the boats with them.
Thompson was captain Of the Pirate
He and the remainder Of the crew crossed
the land to the Atlantic side. They got
small vessel and We're cruising in the
vicinity of the West indies. ar1ner and
trying to get possession OF another larger
vessel by piracy when taken. but Thomp-
son and another escaped. The rest of the
crew were hung at one of the West
India Islands. Thompson and the other
stole a small sloop-rigged vessel in the
night and run for some part Of Central
America. The other. he says. died on the
way, but fear he was killed, and then
to save suspicion when landing on the
beach in the surf he (Thompson) upset
the small boat and pretended to lose all
of his papers; no more is known Of him
until met by Heating as carpenter Of the
vessel.
CAPTAINS NARRATIVE
Captain Boig's narrative proceeds to