Evening star., 1903-08-18
HUNTING PIRATE GOLD
A PURSUIT STILL POPULAR IN
THE WEST INDIES.
Many Expeditions to Seek Buried
Treasure-Some Searchers
Successful.
From the New York Sun.

| From the New York Sun.
The new worlds 'the-wisp. pirate
gold, has still many followers. Expeditions
are continually being fitted out at ports
| along the Atlantic seaboard to search the
palm-covered islands and coral Gays of the
West Indies for the boards of old Spanish
gold and pirate booty which are supposed
to be hidden there. Not long ago a private
yacht was secretly fitted out in New York
| for a West Indian treasure hunt. Other
expeditions have started recently from
Philadelphia Boston. Newport News, New
| Orleans and other ports.
| Nor is the hunt confined to Americans.
| A year does not pass without expeditions
leaving London. Glasgow, Liverpool or
| other British ports, while the West Indians
themselves. living in an atmosphere Of
| treasure stories, are naturally the keenest
| of all the hunters of phantom gold. Some
times these expeditions never return. The
| ship Is reported missing and another is
added to the long roll of ocean tragedies
! of which the public hears little or nothing
| Years afterward a few bleached bones on
| remote islet, or derelict floating in the
| track of shipping. tells a tale of shipwreck,
| mutiny or death by those diseases most
| dreaded by seafaring men-yellow fever
| and beri-beri.
In Jamaica.
Some months ago no fewer than five
| treasure hunting expeditions were reported
at Kingston. Jamaica. The Earl of Craw
| ford and Balcarres had brought his yacht
| into the harbor on a West Indian cruise,
| and it was said that he was combining
business with pleasure and meant to search
| for pirate treasure reported to be buried
| on the tiny island of Anegada, in the Vir-
gin group. Apparently he had no luck.
The second expedition was headed by an
| Englishman. who hoped to find the secret
| hoard left by King Christophe OF Haiti
The third was a small affair, got up by
Jamaican planter, who aimed at locating
| the treasure of that buccaneer king, Sir
Henry Morgan. This is said to be buried
| in a cave in Gun HILL Trelawny, Jamaica,
| and to be guarded, like Capt. Kidd's, by the
| devil in perSOn-hOofs, horns, tall pitch
| fork and all.
| Two other expeditions were working in
SantO Domingo and the Cayman Islands.
This was period of special activity
| in the treasure-hunting line, but such
enterprises are so familiar to the creoles
| that they hardly excite comment. Some
men waste their lives and fortunes fitting
| all over the Caribbean sea, from one re-
ported pirate haunt to another, and digging
| for buried gold When the mania once
| gets hold of a man it never seems to leave
him until it has soured his temper and
ruined his life.
Barbados.
Barbados is a favorite resort Of the
looms and pieces of eight have been found
| there in digging among old ruins. Capt.
Kidd once ran his ship ashore at Bar
bados when chased by a cruiser. He
| left paper describing a spot In small
| weed near Bridgetown, the island capital.
where he said he had buried an immense
| treasure.
Whether this was a post-mortem joke
| or not it is impossible to say. If it was
| 1t succeeded to perfection.
For acres around the spot indicated"
says Hesketh Bell, a colonial Official 'the
soil has been perfectly honeycombed by
| the excavations of treasure seekers. No
one knows whittier the booty was secured,
as the finder would in all probability
have been most careful to keep his success
| a secret, SO as not to have to share with
the government and the owner Of the land
besides. Even now, when any one Is noticed
to become suddenly well off and flush of
discovered a buried jar of gold, when, per-
haps, the reason of his aff1uence may be
much more questionable"
In Haiti. not long ago, hidden treasure
was brought to light in the picturesque
town Of Gonaives in a rather curious way.
A mulatto lived there who was almost
penniless. He Inhabited a desolate ruin
which had once been fine old planters
chateau in the days when the French owned
the islands. and he eked out a miserable
existence by cultivating feeble yam patch.
Found Hidden Wealth..
Suddenly this mulatto blossomed out as a
man Of wealth. He bought a fine house, a
provision store, a rum shop and horses and
mules galore. Everybody wondered where
he got his money. but only one man. an
other Haitian mulatto. had sense enough to
figure the matter out.
"See here" said the second mulatto I've
taken a fancy to that old ruin of yours.
Kind of picturesque, isn't it? I'll give you
$500 for it.
The first mulatto jumped at the offer. AS
soon as the deal had been effected the pur-
chaser had the house carefully pulled down,
brick by brick, and the foundations dug up.
AS the result he found nine small ironbound
chests filled with treasure. They contained
a great deal of French gold and silver coin
of the eighteenth century gold and silver
plate. jewelry, church ornaments and other
valuables. Altogether the nine chests were
valued at over 100000. When the first
owner heard of 1t he was furious 1t then
came out that one day by accident he had
found similar chest hidden in the wains-
coting of the hall and had realized upon it.
1t never struck him that there might be
more behind, SO he gladly sold the house.
fondly imagining that 1t was an empty
shell from which he had extracted the ker-
mel. He raved like a madman when he
heard the news. but the other mulatto pos-
sessed political pull and soon quieted him
by the simple expedient of having him
thrown into jail.