The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1902-1905, 1904-06-24
TRITON ISLAND
Copyright, 1904, by C. b, I,ewis.1

~ ~'NA' hN was NIcChCu On IlIOn
Island, in the China sea. where he
round a big Chinese junk full of sill
yer bars worth $4,000 He removed
the bars to grove and two weeks
later was rescued by passing vessel.
Resolved to get the treasure, l made
up a party to do so.
Five of us were to make up a purse
Tor the expense and share and share
alike. OF course the arrangement was
not concluded until the other four had
seen Andrews and heard his story and
satisfied themselves as to its truth.
After carefully canvassing the matter
1t was thought best that he and |
should take steamer to Singapore and
there hire and man sailing craft to
proceed to the island and fetch away
the treasure.
When we reached Singapore the first
move was to find and charter craft.
l cautioned my man over and over
again not to drop hint of what we
were after. Indeed, after finding a
craft to please me we did not pretend
to know each other In public, and he
shipped aboard Of her in the regular
way as foremost hand.
had not seen Andrews for three
or four days when | called at his
boarding house one evening to give
him fresh instructions and found him
! fp,Inh thot 7 ,1nnhln 70 nT
him. BY few careless inquiries from
the landlady l learned that he had
been knocking around all day with
two strangers, one of whom was chief
mate of IN American vessel and just
out of hospital after run Of fever.
Next morning l found Andrews quite
sobered up and very much ashamed
of himself. He plainly told me that
he feared he had said too much to the
strangers the day previous He had
not intended to go on q spree, and II
was his belief that he had been drug
ged. He was frightened and repentant,
but our only recourse was to hope that
no harm had been done and to push
along as fast as possible
Two days before we were ready to
sail, an Arab dhOw. which had been
berthed near our craft and aboard Of
which had seen the Yankee mate and
several other English speaking people,
sailed away to the north, leaving the
harbor at night and as secretly as pos
sible
From the moment of the departure
of the dhOw felt sure that she was
acting on a hint dropped by Andrews.
1t was a question Of how much he had
told. If he had not mentioned the
name of the island, then we had still a
good show. The news Of the loss Of the
Junk ut sea was public property In a
way and Mt least two searching eX-
petitions had spent some time trying
to solve the mystery Of her fate. We
worked day and night to get off, and
we were only two days behind the
dhow. She hau left with fair wind,
and all the way up to the gulf Of Siam
we had wretched luck and no show
whatever 10 ONertuke ucl.
1t was long dreary voyage we had
I'D the China sea, and it was not half
complete before Andrews fell Ill. His
only ailment was remorse. For many
long months he had dreamed and
MANNED on what he would do when
that treasure was recovered. his
share of it, with wages added, would
enable him to leave the sea and spend
the rest of his days on land 1t was
the fear that he had been foolish
enough to betray the secret that mar
assed him until he became seriously ILL.,
On arriving at the island at last IL
boat was sent off to see If the place
was clear. She found no craft ana
went far enough up the bay to see the
wreck of the junk. We then lowered
another boat and towed our craft H..
and as soon as she had been anchored
and made snug we landed ana made
straight for the thlcket where the Sill
YER bars had been hidden away years
before.
If did not take us minute to dis
cover that they had been removed, and
that within a few days. In place OF
them were broken spades and the
prlnts of shoes, and on the beach near
the wreck were the ashes Of camp
fire. We beat up the locality, thinking
the bars might have been removed to a
new place, and before we were done
with the search we took in the whole
island.
We had at last to face the fact that
some one had got ahead Of us ana Sc
cured the treasure, and Andrews was
40 upset by it that he took to his bed
and did nothing but lament ana call
down curses on the heads of the I'M
known. The day before we were 10
leave he died, and we buried him IN
the nit from which the silver bars had
heen taken, In widening the grave we
came across a single bar which had
been accidentally left behind, but that
was our sole share Of the loot we had
come so far to bear away.
We of course suspected that the
dhow which had sailed away ahead OF
us had got the money, but found out
nothing positive until the day we bur-
led Andrews. Then one Of the men
picked up a piece Of paper that hau
once been affixed to tree, but had
later on been detached by the wind
On it was scrawled in pencil and IN
sailors hand
"When you get hold of another good
thing in the treasure line don't take
drunken man into 1t to give the secret
away. The Yankee mate and his
friends are much obliged to the man
who gabbled. Had he kept his mouth
shut we would still have been poor
sailors instead of rich men,"
We made Singapore in safety but
+boro was not man aboard who