Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-02-27
Newspaper Advertising Scheme
That Became One Of Biggest
Crazes on Record.
TROOPS CALLED OUT TO SAVE.
Public Property Was Being Dug Up by
Crowds Armed With Everything
From a Spade 10 Corkscrew.
sreelll Correspondence

Special Correspondence Y
I ONDON, Feb lJ,--''lt was found
necessary for mounted troops to
- dispense the mob OF treasure seek
ers on Woolwlch Common yester-
day morning"
This announcement was made In n
london paper a few days ago, and per-
haps 1t may give faint idea Of the eX-
tent Of the madness which at present
has London in its grip,
II was some evil genius In the Office
Of green.coverod penny weekly, pub
lshed by Sir George Newnes, who in
vented the now famous advertising
scheme and began the craze by burying
5000 in gold in a public place anG in
dicaung It's Whereabouts by means Of
clues embodied In serial story The
Identity Of the man has to be care
iully concealed in these days, for other
Wise he would stand In some danger
OF being torn limb from limb by indis-
hant property owners
Afford HarmsWorth, chief proprietor
OF the Daily Mail and SO many other
periodicals that he probably couldn't
name them all off-hand, was the first
70 copy the scheme In his Weekly Dis
patch, and then The News of the
World another London Sunday paper,
look 1t up, Between them treasure"
10 the extent of $4,000 has been con-
ceaed In public parts OF London and
the larger provincial towns. only one
OF these journals, however, has buried
the actual cash, the other having Sc
GREETED In different nelghborh00ds small
brass medalions, each OF which entities
us finder to $50, or $3.50.
10 begin with 20 Of these medallions,
representing $1,000, were planted by
the Irst newspaper, 10 being hidden in
London and 10 IN the provinces, The
'hlhs made such sensation that the
iNal Journal promptly went one better
oy 9urying 100 metal tubes each con-
tanning WOO in gold, or $1,000 In all
Inese tubes, like the other journals me.
uaillons, being secreed In absolutely
pubic places. OF course this gave an
Immense filllp 10 the business. but
Inlhgs came to climax when IL was
announced that the first newspaper had
una down a further series OF medal
ions representing an additional sum Of
THE CLUES.
Clues" TO the hiding places OF these
prl2es are published every Sunday by
we newspapers responsible for the
pp,1,neHles, but not, as was done by Tit
DIE IN the shape of illusions In the
s Nurse OF a continued story. The me-
SSallons ana tubes OF treasure were hid
,evh IN the different localities by spec
:" representatives OF the newspapers,
anu III the columns OF the journals
,nese men, after naming the specific
tt"nuoh or provincial district chosen
men, give rather vague descriptions
W we exact neighborhoud In which
.ney ma the treasure. Here, for exam.
pe' Is one OF these clues. which relates
W Mortlake, a small London suburb.
Sllll hugglng my tube containing ego
MlVV | Inspected the nelghborhood.
mere was a railway line, which cross
ed and went on past some shops and A
ema, common, until | arrived at
,,aIing OF only passing interest TO tee
I,0talers Turning down past this place,
tVunu myself between two rows OF
anal houses at the end Of which stood
W. educational establishment. The
"pol was most timely discovered. Not
y soul IN sight so, without let or hind
..aQce, tquickly buried the tube and az
".ward made my way back to town"
amazing scenes follow promptly on
.ne publication OF such clues. with
p'uaenee that has stood them well In