The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-03-05
HIDDEN TREASURE.
Unexpected Places Where Fortunes
Have Been Found.
From the Boston Transcript.

From the Boston Transcript.
Hidden treasure has an irresistible
attraction for the human race. On the
slightest hint from seer or fortune
teller some one is sure to dig where
the buried treasure is supposed to be,
and disappointment does not dscour-
age another attempt when another
tip is received. Very few have ever
come upon hidden treasure, and the
few have found it Unexpectedly.
Take, for instance, that romantic un-
earthing of 100000 coins in the bed of
the River Dove, in Staffordshire, sew
enty-two years ago. Some workmen
were engaged in removing a mud bank
which had formed in the center of the
river, when one of them was amazed
to find on raising his spade that 1t
glittered with silver coins
Attracted by the digger's exclama-
ton OF astonishment and delight, his
fellow workmen hurried up, and in o
moment half dozen men were scram-
bling and fighting for the treasure
feverishly filling their pockets, their
hats and beer cans with silver coins,
which were worth their weight In gold,
for they were of the time of the first
two Edwards, and had lain in the river
for 500 years. That the bulk of the
treasure trove was ultimately claimed
by the Duchy of Lancaster matters
little, for its finders had already ap-
propriated scores of thousands of the
precious discs.
Only two years later a few village
boys were playing at marbles on Sun
day afternoon in field near Beaworth,
in Hampshire. when one of them
caught sight of piece of lead project
ing from a cart rut in a rough road
that crossed the pasture. Tugging at
the strip of metal he disclosed a hole,
and through the exposed opening he
saw pile of glittering coin, bright as
If fresh from the mint. To fill his
pockets and those of his playmates was
the work Of few moments, and SO lit
tie did the youngsters appreciate the
value of their discovery that on their
way home they amused themselves by
fiinging the coins into the village pond.
Ultimately nearly seven thousand
coins were recovered from this buried
treasure chest. and they proved to be
OF the reigns of William l and William
il and in a wonderful state of preser-
walton.
A similar discovery was made near
Wetherby i'm Yorkshire, when heavy
cart passing over a country road stuck
fast in rut and on being released dis
closed a number of silver coins which
had escaped from the burst lid of
chest hidden under the roadway. 1t
was assumed that the chest of coins
had been buried there in the perilous
days of the Civil War; and that the
gradual sinking of the road and the
weight of the passing cart had at last
brought IL again to the light of day.
In the year 1876 a most valuable de-
posif Of treasure was revealed in the
strangest fashion at Cuerdale, near
Preston in Lancashire. Some labor
ers We're digging near the banks OF the
River Ribbie when the pickax Of one
of them struck something harder than
earth and more yielding than rock. On
removing his pick he found transfixed
al the end of II a large ingot Of silver.
Plying his tool with renewed vigor.
he soon discoeered wealth consisting
OF scores Of silver ingots, weighing IN
all 900 ounces.
Similar fortune befell a couple OF
laborors who we're digging In ditch
near glastonbury. In Somersetshire.
when they unearthed an ancient chest
fun OF coins Of the days Of the Stuarta.
They took samples Of the coins TO a
neighh0rinR antiquary Of wealth. who
not only paid the men a large sum for
their treasure, but purchased score
or more acres o. land adjacent 10 the