The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-05-06
;p.cia1 Correspondence of The Journal.

correspondence p
r ONDON, April 22.-There is more
likelihood Of success rewardlng
the efforts that a are soon 1o TO b bs
King John nearly six and hall
centuries ago than seemed probable
when some inkling Of the project first
leaked out. The Society of Antigua
ries is backing the scheme with money
and enthusiasm. II Its members have
great faith in the Investigations ana
calculations made by the learned as,
sistant secretary, ST; John hope, VINO
has been quietly working on the matter
for several years. The search will be
conducted under his directions.
Everybody knows or is supposed
to knoW-that King John lost his bag
gage train when he was making a
Short cut across the Wash to escape his
! wrathful barons who were in hot Pur-
| suit of him. The Wash, it should pc
| explained for the benefit of those read
ers who have forgotten much OF t l1e1
geography, is wide and shallow
ESTUARY on the east coast of England
! between the counties Of Lincoln and
I Norfolk. John, according. to one Of
his candid contemporaries, was a
| knight without truth, "a king without
| Justice, a Christian without faith -
i He had signed Magma Charta, the
great bulwark of English freedom, only
to repudiate it, and when war broke out
; between him and the barons again, he
| knew that they would not give him an II !.
! other chance to break his word with
: them. In his haste to make tracks he
= did not make sufficient allowance fol
) the tide, and the quicksands swallowed
up his army chest and his crown jewels
and a lot Of other paraphernalia, that
is now worth vastly more than it was
in his time. He had a close shave. OF
, it himself, according to Shakspere
who thus refers to; the incident Il
licking ~John:'', 1.q%rrr,y42~ci; -.--s:@ ri
! tell thee, Hubert, half my power this night
: Passing these fats is taken by the tide,
i. These Lincoln waves have devoured them,
: Myself, we'll mounted, hardly have escaped.
According to some accounts, to drow1
! his sorrow he went on big spre
= which brought on an attack Of dyson
= terry of which he died. He was burie'
T. in Worcester cathedral, wrapped IN
n monk g gown, and as further protec
3 ton against vandal hands was laid be
- Tween two Saxon saints. y -.
. It has been generally assumed tina
= King Johns lost treasure was : sti
= buried somewhere in the quicksand
n that the sea .oyerfoys3 at every tldt
=, = and that in. tie: course OF the centairie
:, that have since elapsed, the stuff mus
n have sunk many fathoms deep in tn
a shifting sands. Uuder such clrcun
=. stances it's recovery would be SO cost
s and difficult as to render the prospect
n of success well nigh hopeless. But NJ
# Hope is able to state definitely ths
re owing to the changes that have: take
re place in the sea line and the reclam'
ton Of waste lands the treasure no
ii. lilies some distance inland. In tt
+ search for it no diving will be necessa1
, and digging operations are compar
IS lively cheap. - ~ ,ry..7,.
ID !, Mr. Hope has made a map Of IL
Id IIdistrict as twas in King John s tim
I'd on tI,at map he has draVsaa.a line, an
9y somewhere on, that line he assert
re probably about forty feet below Il
r. surface, under a substratum of sil