The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-06-08

way. and thus It was six or seven days
before we reached the last.
We found no such island az. described
by the castaway. and in our disappoint-
ment and chagrIn were inclined to be-
heye him a liar who was working out
some scheme. He retaliated by pointing
to his treasure. 1t was a convincing
argument, and our captain decided to
bear away to the east and search at
haphazard.
At the close of the fourth day of sail
ing back and forth across sea Of which
the chart showed no land for hundreds
we sighted an island which Scott identi-
fed as soon as it could be seen from the
deck.
AS we came I'D to it, we ran into a
small but deep harbor and anchored for
the night within a cables length OF
the beach. Had tie night not been so
dark the captain would have had a boat
down, but as it was. he did not dare
aboard that no man slept for an hour,
and as soon as daylight had come and
the men had a bite TO eat we set off to
secure the treasure
We soon found the opening of the
bay and rowed toward it. Scott had
been on the island for many weeks, 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 @rst to enter
A moment later he reaDoeared, ana
for the next quarter OF an hour he
cursed as ] have never heard a seaman
before or since. The cave had been
plundereG.
One broken tusk had been left be
hind, and there was perhaps an ounce
of gold dust lying on the spot where
Scott had emitted the jars. That Was
proof enough that he had told i
strai light story
When we landed and went up to the
hut we soon solved the problem Some
whaler had touched there for food and
water. For wood they had used all the
wreck stuff lying around, and had also
partially pulled the hut to pieces. They
had flled 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 a mean thing
by the rescued sailor. He made a great
ado of how he had deviated from his
course and lost a fOrtnights time, and
insisted that Scott divide with him.
believe he threatened to leave him on
the island if he didn't. There was
trouble for a few hours and then the
sailor came to terms. but not so much
as Denny's worth was ever handed
over to the owners or distributed
among the crew.
Scott was transhiuped to a craft
bound for lava. and that was the last
I ever heard of him.
A year later l met an American run
away sailor at Batavia, and he told me
that his craft. the Bessie Herrick. of
Marblehead. put in at the island. re-
NAMED there for two davs. and her
captain discovered the cave and the
treasure while fishing in the bay He
gave every man aboard 800 in cash as
a present. but kept the dust and the
ivory and turned them into cash at
Singapore. 1t was a rich haul of treas
IRE. 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
we'll, those are questions I cannot an
swer. 1t was at least two years after
we visited the place before it was sur
veyed and charted.