The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-03-07
A True Story of Pirate Days and Buried
 Treasure.
By WILL I. STEPHAN.

By WILL I. STEPHAN.
 The General Manager struck a match and lit his half burned cigar. He had
 forgotten 1t and let 1t go out in the
 earnestness of this talk to the Direc- tors.
 He moved his chair away from the mahogany table and pulled away si- lently a moment. Then he leaned for ward saying slowly, but with a slight note of eagerness and expectancy ap- parent in the evenly modulated tones, And now. gentlemen. you have the story. I have gone over the whole of ft--so far I know 1t. It Is a strange business proposition. But the story is q strange one--a strange one but a true one It Is for you to say whether we shall or shall not go Into the propo- sltion.
 speaking for myself I believe that
 we should dig for the treasure think that, perhape, thousand dollars would pay the expenses of the digging. If you gentlemen see Tit to set aside the thousand dollars I will direct the digging and if we should locate the private treasure we will share and
 share alike. In other words, If we find
 the treasure, half Is to go to me and
 half to the company
 There were dozen men about the
 mahogany table. Chicago business men
 accustomed to play a part in each days
 rough and tumble fight of western fi-
 nances. A full dozen of them
 sat there and smile ran around the table. At times the smile was audible. Some of the financiers had to laugh
 outright when they realized that the General Manager was perhaps serious
 and in earnest Why, why the thing
 was ridiculous.
 4 heavy gentleman with d wide ex- panse of white vest took the cigar from his mouth long enough to say: n,ls.s 5ristliing ains it's good story o ,fu fine too--this proposition of spending a thousand dollars digging holes in the pine woods of Baldwin county. I'm going to get you to tell that story at a dinner party some time. But just now I think we'd better attend to bus mess. What Is the report on the titles of that new tract?"
 It was a strange story, strange in the truth that was in it and strangest of all in the place where 1t was told. What right had this bit of romance and mystery in an office of the Auditorium building? What call was there for the telling of such a story to a Board of conservative. energetic and hard head ed business men of Chicago of tho year of 1906?
 Wandering pirate. marked tree, buried gold-all had place but the place was in the story books and not in the minutes and records of the Bald win County Coioniazation Company. The company was just as real, Just as material as any corporation can ne when 1t has been duly incorporated un- der the laws, with paid up capital stock, Board of Directors and Gen. eral Manager anxious to see that divt- dends are paid. But being real and material entity with utiltarian pur- poses, its business is not chasing the phantoms of romance and Of mystery. | Its definite purpose is the buying or | land in large tracts, selling it In small | tracts and settling immigrants upon 1t | in the Southern portion of Baldwin county. It is playing part of some | in the development of the | portion of Alabama.
 And Henry Breitling, the General Manager, is a real and vitality persona aiity-a substantial personality, too. for 1t weighs in the neighborhood or 200 pounds. He Is a typical Chicago business man, confident. energetic and self poised. He has fought his fight and held his own in the countless ousl- ness skirmishes. He is convincing and good man to have in | charge of the field work of a develop ment company, being convincing, even hammered and self possessed.
 This Is all set down fully, m the
  tsIa harks back to the day of Lafitte | and his Gulf pirates, that It IS not bit of romance but true record or act ual happenings. It's last slLtlng s .n conmercial America of the Fourteentn Century but its opening scene was In the violent and picturesque days or the first decade of the Twentieth century
 The shores of Mobile Bay are dreamy, restful and beautiful. The restless but easy and gentle wave or the bay break themselves at the very roots of the pines. For miles and miles inland the pines cover the earth. where inc saw mills have left them. From the beds of pine needles the violets peep out in January and in April the magnolia's throw their snowy banners afar to hail the conluering spring who for but few short weeks retires from his perennial reign in this, his chosen domain.
 And here and there the pines are broken by @ tropic river moving slow ly, almost majestically to the sea, through a labyrinth of verdant and floral beauty. The waters are dark but clear, and through their amber radiance, the fish of river and sea are seen in joyous sport
 The land rises here and there along these rivers and the crests are cover ed with pines. But by the rim of the river the water oaks, aged and hoary with spanish moss holds undisputed sway
 And youpon trees. with widespread ing branches. and festooned moss throw cool and refreshing shodaws up- on the glistening sands by the waters of the river.
 Almost hidden away in the shadowy beauty are the wooden homes of the ancient Creoles, that strange and pecu- liar rod that dweel along tn, rim of river and sea and to whom a hundred years is but as yesterday. As their lived so live they now. They are an inheritance which comes down to Fourteenth century Alabama from Castile and Spain. They are souvenirs of the Spanish proprietorship of Ala bama territory.
 Along Magnolia River they live. one might say, eternally and the same. The very land their houses are built upon, the very land upon which their cattle yraze is land that was given them by the crown of Spain. A land map of Baldwin County shows here and there about the twisting line that marks the easy flow of the Magnolia River, hicks. outs and squares which bear the ex- planatory note of spanish Land Grants.
 The crude buildings have neither been increased nor decreased The
 At A |