The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1904-02-17

g D has been around some. "rc.
I L minds me of story told
ros by Captain Greenleaf, OF
the Government service, and when
saw something the other day in the
papers about the Colombian forces
landing on the Isla de los Pinos in the
Gulf of Darien, 1t began to get warm.
met the captain three years ago doing
secret service work on the Pacific
Coast, and as an incident TO the Nome
gold excitement he told of his expe.
rlence on this island in the Gulf of Da-
rien.
He said he had been down there
several years previously on n trading
ship, and they had put in at the island.
No trading was allowed. however. ms
the island was Government reserya-
ton used as prison or hospital, or
something of the kind, but visitors
were allowed ashore, and they could
hunt over the island II they wished.
The captain and a companion. availing
themselves of the privilege. went into
the interior for the day and rambled
around through the forests. During
the afternoon they came to a small
stream, along whose banks were low
cliffs with many huge stones loosened
and lying about over the ground. These
stones were rough looking ut a little
distance, but closer inspection
showed them TO be of n peculiarly
bright quartz where pieces had been
broken off, exposing new surface. Evl-
IDENTIFY, however, the place had not
been visited in long time, and the
stones had never been disturbed.
"The captain and his companion each
carried away piece Of stone weighing
two or three pounds, as souvenirs.
They excited no particular comment on
shipboard, and the other man one day
threw his piece overheard with a lot of
rubbish. When they reached San
Francisco several months later the cap
tain rescued his piece from corner
where it was almost hidden in the dust
and took 1t along with him.
Just at that time 1t was the fad
along the coast for men to wear watch
chains made of small pieces of quartz
linked together, and the captain con-
cluded to have his Darien quartz made
up If it was worth 1t. The jeweler told
him 1t was, and to come back in four
or five days. He did so, and the jewel.
er showed great anxiety TO know where
the quartz had come from. The cap
tain became suspicious and would not
tell. When the jeweler was convinced
that he could not learn where the
quartz came from he informed the cap
tain If he had any more of that kind he
was rich man. The captain said he
knew where there were tons and tons
of it-whole chunks and cliffs, In fact.
The jeweler almost had fit, and told
him that one or two of the small pieces
had been assayed and showed a value
of S240,OO0 to the ton.
Naturally enough the captain was
pretty well agtated himself by this
time, and hurrying away to some
friends he told them the story. They
maintained the greatest secrecy, but at
once began efforts TO get at the field in
the island. They tried to secure con.
cessions without betraying their secret,
but the Colombian Government would
not permit them to take any part of
the island, and they would not say
what they We're after, because they
knew they would get none of it If they
did and at the time he told me the
story they We're still waiting their
chance to get in with such rights that
even Bogota boodlers couldn't work n
QesolatinC graft uDon them and their
gold field"