davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30
Elephants ss Laborers.

Most amusing Is IL to see one of
these working elephants tackllng Il
huge squared log and placing II on the
stack. First Of all he estimates It's
length and weight as Il lies on the
ground Then he digs his tusks under
il at one end curls his trunk over and
tries to drag one end OF the log on to
his tusks Should lie find the task be
yond him, he will give queer little
trumpet note, and up comes col.
league to help him at the other end,
In moment the two elephants have
swung the big log between them walk
In step TO the pile, and then one OF
them. apparently by preconcerted
agreement, places his end in position
on the stack, while the other rams
home the log-'rhe Circle.
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

was practically empty There was a
handful of Spanish and English gold
coins and several jewels Of which the
one wear Is one. in the box and on
the floor. We searched thoroughly.
What we found was valued ut $4,000.
The balance OF the treasure, which
the letter stated TO be over $4,000,
had been taken by some one. possibly
some accidental discoverer. The 9th.
er places indicated to contain treas.
ure we did not find. The descriptions
We're imperfect or else the places were
too well hidden Our time was lin.
tied, since II soon became noised
about what we were doing and we
were stopped You know what the
Mexican government is.
Believes Treasure Still There.
81 feel certain that the treasure is
still there, If the places can be 10.
Gated, but do not see how that can be
done without plenty of time and pos
sibly pulling down the house. The
outer walls at the Casa Mata are now
obliterated and II would require u
great deal of digging to locate the
treasure indicated to be buried there.
The letter gave the value of one as
100000 in jewels and the other as
$125.000 in gold. have fun belief
that there is much treasure buried In
this locality, by the pirates, the SNUG
glers. the reyolutionists and ever
those who operated here during the
civil war when this was the only port
the south had open for many months.
The sunken place In the brick pave
ment of the basement at the Casa
Tarnava, | think, indicates secret
passage from the well In the court to
the street; but il may just as well
lead to treasure chamber.
The cannon shot over the door In
the second story? Oh. ! don't know
the history OF that. 1t Ia my impress.
sion that II was shot In there during
some OF the many revolutionary fights
which took place In the streets OF Mat,
amoros. II may have been planted
there during the bombardment of Mat.
amoros by Gen. Scott, and some
times think 1t was"
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

was. There was no railroad to Mata-
Inoros or that locality. and neither Of
them ever expected to get there. Since
the completion Of the new st. l.. b. q
NJ. railway, however, he concluded to
go down on one Of the Homeseekers'
excursions. The existence of the map
required to his mind and he brought 1t
along, though with little faith In it's
having any foundation in fact.
Found Chest We'll Hidden.
I'VE visited the ruined house. The
map was very accurate as regarded
the apartments with the exception
that the room marked with the croes
did not seem to exist. BY measuring
the walls. however. we found an inside
wall of brick--all the inner walls In
this building are of brlck--near a
stairway, was much thicker than the
others. and Gu. 'atJ it--and there was
the treasure room. It had been built
into the wall In such manner that
its existence would never be suspect
ed. Though four feet square, the stair.
way at the side, running to the sec.
ond and third stories, prevented the
extra thickness OF the wall being no.
ticed part Of the width of the room
being taken OFF the width of the stair.
way. The only entrance was through
the floor In the top story. the place be.
ing practically dry well In the wall
reaching clear from the top floor to the
basement.
"The treasure chest, OF old wood.
with brass bindings and peculiar locks,
remained, and we smashed 1t open. II
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30
Consultation Free and Conf
Dental. Correspondents
Solicited.
DR.. MAHON
ll9 Winthrop Street:
TOLEDO OHIO.
SEVENTEEN YEARS
OF
SUCCESSFUL WORK

This Is the seventeenth year Lima
Business College has beeN In sue
cessful operation in the city Of
Lima. It is now one OF the larg-
est private schools In the west.
Many a young man points with
pride to the fact that ne Is gradu-
ate of Lima Business College.
Many successful business man
owes his success to the thorough
buiness training he received there
Seventeen years Of successful ef-
fort as business college is no
mean record. Seventeen years Of
steady growth, Of business doub-
led twice In that time means that
1t has merited what 1t has gained:
that It has met the requirements Of
a modern business age: that II has
turned out students who have sue.
cessfnlly held the positions furnish
ed to them: that it has established
q record for honesty and square
dealing; that it is recognized q one
OF Ohio's best institutions Of
learning. Bookkeeping or Short
hand course $50.
For information, address,
H. w. PEARS President
Lima. Ohio.
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30
STONY Of PIRATE PLUMBER 4
&C. RECALLS DAYS OF LAFTTTE
suA4 OF FREEBoorERs WEALTH RECOVERED
lendd Gem Now Owned by Brownsville Texas, At.
i &srnsy, Was Part of Accumulated Booty Smussers
Houses at Matamoros, Mexico Still Stand
in Magnificent Ruin. ~

tn instrumental Discovering Hiding Treasure
0svss That Much Of Remains Old Render
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

gold heels on their shoes. They enter
tained in princelx style. giving recep.
tons and banquets which for magnif.
cence were not excelled even in Eu.
ropean courts. Kings and queens Of
England. Spain or France gave nothing
more elegant In this line. Nothing ap.
preaching them was ever given on this
continent in those days, even IL at the
present time
Entertained Prominent Men.
All prominent people who came to
Matamoros were received and enter.
tained by them-Gen. Lawton, Gen.
Corbin, the McCooks. even Gen. Sheri.
dan--hayc been their guests at these
receptions Among their visitors oc-
casionally was seen man of mag.
nihcent bearing, great manly beauty
and carriage. He wore jewels of ex-
traordinary splendor, and always car.
ried a court swOru with embroidered
belt blazing with jewels. was boy
then, and remember these things well,
for they were to me like n dream of
the Arabian Nights. The man had
with him on these visits Spanish
lady of great beauty who was always
at his side. None except the Tarnava
family ever talked with her, but 1t was
q current belief among us children
that the man was Lafltte and the
woman lady whom he had captured
in some of his sea fights, killing her
al tys Ia,
and still held her as his wife. She was
even supposed to bear title. She at
tempted to escape from him twice. but
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

did not succeed. Her people no doubt
mourned her as dead
After the Tarnavas left the house
Il was never again occupied and so far
IS know has not been entered for SO
years until about a year ago. The en-
tire premises are in ruins. as you saw,
but In it's prime II was as handsome as
any residence on this continent. The
slate roof is falling In, though the
brick walls will probably stand for q.
century as they are very thick and
solid. The rotting balconies look down
into an inner court still full of orange
and fig trees laden with frult-but
have seen this garden and the bal.
comics lighted up at night. filled with
the handsomest women wearing the
finest dresses the world then con
tained. The high ceilings. magnifi.
Gently proportioned rooms, carved
spiral stalrways of mahogany large
arched windows, mahogany foors--all
indicate the taste of the occupants.
The pigeons Of the town now make 1t u
roosting place, entering through the
falling roof and the broken windows,
but In its day Il was = magnificent
home, such as few ever enter even III
this era Of wealth. except the most ex.
elusive and aristocraatic. Now to the
story of this ring:
Had Treasure Chart.
IN June, 1906, gentleman from
Chicago came to my Office soliciting
my assistance. He had map or chart
and letter. of which he gave the fol-
lowing history: His mother. widow,
kept a boarding house 20 years ago In
Chicago. Among her boarders was Il
man of about GO years. who was sail
or On the lake. He had evidently
crniscd on salt water for Many years,
of that. and the fact that he seemed
to hold himself aloof from them; that
while mixing freely with them, he
would never relate any OF his expert.
ences In the past, us sailors generally
love to do, This mans name vas Por-
frio LaFon. One night he was
drowned by the wrecking of his ves-
sci, the Irene, OF Sandusky His OF.
fects lay about the house for years in
an old sea chest. al. efforts to discover
any relatives being Intellectual. In the
bottom OF the chest was the chart and
letter, the latter stating tina. I.aFon
mad been pirate under Lafitte previ-
ous to coming to the lakes. and had,
with HIS companions, buried a very
large treasure in Matamoros. There
was also some fine jewelry and beau
TRULY decorated dagger in the chest,
and the chart The latter | ut once
recognized as partial map of the city
OF Matamoros in the vicinity OF the
Casa Tarnava or ''house of the
pirates" as 1t Is now called, and the
street leading to the Casa Mata, or
"house of death In the outskirts
where the prisoners were executed in
the early days.
"A smaller chart on the same parch-
ment gave complete map OF the
rooms In the Casa Tarnava. In one OF
these rooms u spot was marked with
cross near the wall a similar mark
was placed in the basement of tle
house, and also In Il place in the outer
walls at the Casa Idata. The Chicago
man. whose name do not give for pro-
fessional reasons, said that the map
had never received any attention from
his mother or hims slf because they did
not really know where Matamoros
No..
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30
win Collect southern eIrd,.

Frank NJ. Chapman, a curator of the
department of ornithology of the
American Museum OF Natural History
has left New York to make a colIec
tion of southern birds for the institu
tion, He will try especially to obtain
white herons in various stages of de
velopment, for ii Is feared the species
owing to activities for the millinery
trade, will become extlDat.
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

which he had been subjected. Az
there was no war between France and
England at the time Of his release, he
obtained a privateer's commission un-
der the Carthaginian government
against Spain. have seen this com
mission. which Is still in existence,
in Spanish. and held by relatives of
his, near Brownsville. These rela.
tives claim that his only acts Of piracy
were against British vessels-and he
was beyond question scourge to
these. In 1907 he came to New Or
leans. and in 1894 was at the head
OF formidable community OF free
hooters In Barrataria bay. about 40
miles west OF the mouth of the Mis-.
sissippi. They had many small ves-
sells and the bay afforded them Sc.
cure retreat. In 1914 Commodore Pat
terson attacked their town and de.
stroyed It. but Lafitte and most of his
men escaped, returning later ON and
resuming operations.
Refused British Bribe.
About the same time the British
were maturing their plans for the de.
scent upon the southern coast of the
United States, and sent brig Of war.
the Sophia. under command OF Cant.
Lockyer, at Barrataria. with letter
from Commodore Percy, commanding
the British naval forces In the gulf,
and one from Col Nichols. then In
mn mn IN M ,f lan la, In
Offering Laiitte the command Of fine
ship and $4,000 in gold on condition
of his assisting the contemplated ex.
pedition to New Orleans The prom.
lse of the British commander Of
bounty and beauty" to his men In
case of victory Is matter OF record.
Lafitte Immediately wrote to Gov.
Claiborne OF Louisiana, inclosing the
two letters. which ! have seen. and
offering his services in defending Lou
isiana on the sole condition of pardon
for himself and his men. The offer
was accepted, and the assistance Of
the Barratarians under command of
LATTE. who had charge of one of the
eight small cannon which constituted
Jackson's artillery force at this bat
tie, was an important factor In scoring
the great victory Of New Orleans, Jan
uary 8. 1915 From this time the his
tory of Iafitte is involved in obscur.
fly. There was a piratical com
munity formed at what is now Calves.
ton. by Lafltte. but whether by Jean
or his brother Pierre, is now not clear.
Il was broken up In 1921 by lieuten-
ant, afterward Commodore Kearney.
Lafitte's portraits. of which there are
two at Matamoros, show him to have
been handsome man, over six feet
tall with black hair, hazel eyes: .and
his polished, easy manners and win
ming address are still remarked upon.
Pirates Were Scattered.
after the destruction OF this rem
devious the pirates scattered. Many
Of them are heard of afterward and
are known In history. They were
skilled seamen and bold fighters.
Many left the sea and located ut Mat.
amoros, just across the river from
Brownsville. This was then great
field for all sorts OF semi-piratical ex.
ploits. Smuggling was prevalent and
fortunes were made on all sides. Yes.
sells would unload their cargoes by
day or night. and the goods were often
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

American Who Espo,Iscd. Losing Cause
In War nnd Was shot.
might tell OF former ownership by
some. Spanish senoritas. OF. the bloody
sea fight which terminated in the
sinking OF ship with It's crimson
deck burdened with the corpses of its
defenders: Of murder done afterwards
In disposing of the wounded by the
pifatical custom of walking the plank;
Of drunken outrage and orgy at Bar
rataria following the piratical vic.
tory. In which very likely the fair
owner OF this very ring was one OF the
pfjzes. There Is certainly romance
connected with this stone and II at
tracts ms the more for the reason that
! know SO little OF II.
Lasitte's Real Character.
.Jeap Lafitte Is referred to in the
histories as a pirate. and such he was
but from those who knew him, with
whom have talked. ! gain the impress
sion that he was not fully entitled to
that reputation, though he was fear
less fighter. with band OF freeboot-
era to whom his word was law. whose
bravery made them a scourge Of the
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30
1T. Mahon, MD.

FORMERLY OF CHICAGO, NOW
PERMANENTLY LOCATED IN TO-
LEDO, TO VISIT MARION CON-
sULTATION IN ENGLISH. FRENCH
AND GERMAN, AND EXAMlNA-
TION FREE AT HIS PARLORS.
The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-30

sea 10 years ago, In these very waters.
He was Frenchman and began his
career as a Lieutenant on u French pri-
vsteer. was captured by an English
lish hSlnan-of.war and thrown into prIg-
on at an English port. where he was
kept for many years and so barbar-
ousIy treated that his resentment had
. large bearing in shaping his subse.
QLent pursuits.
1T is asserted by old residents at
Matamcras who knew him that his ac-
tion IN Detraying the English in their
attempt to capture New Orleans was
n Installation for the brutalities to
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01
URGES CENTRAL BANK.

Washington, D. c., Nov. THAT
strong impetus will be given to the
consideration of currency legislation
the coming winter because OF recent
financial difficulties, Is the belief Of
George E. Roberts, ex-director OF the
mint and president Of the Comm ercial
National bank of Chicago, who is in
Washington. Est. :
Mr.. Roberts said yesterday the re-
cent stringency had shown con.
clusively that legislation was needed
to give elasticity to the currency sys
tenn, and that congress could no Ion
ger sit by and take the position that
the present system was adequate to
the country's needs. The Chicago
fiancier believes, moreover, that con-
gress will take up the currency ques-
tion seriously and will inquire care.
fully into what Is needed. either next
session or in the near future.
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01
TO- CuT OuT"TO2kCCO CROP
SITUATION in KENTUCKY BE.
COMING VERY SERIOUS.
Efforts to Form PocI-Strong Oppo-
sition by the Buyers of Hen
derson County.

Louisville, Ky. - With peaceful
armies" of invasion in the dark tobac-
CO districts and the hurley growers
having reached decision not to raise
any crop next year, the tobacco situa-
ton in Kentucky appears to be seri-
Gus.
From the western end of the state,
and especially in the Green river and
Henderson stemming districts, re-
dRprts of rather an unsettling nature
re received Wednesday,. Bodies OF
SD Hers claiming to be members of
SAAmerican Society of Equity are
tatEng through Mclean county notify
VI" buyers to quit the tobacco fields
hatil the 1905 crop is sold and urg-
in&Sgrowers to pool their crop with
thSssociety. The same thing has al
ready been done in Daviess county, of
which Greensboro is the county seat;
in Henderson county, of which Hen
derson is the chief city, and in sew
eral other neighborhoods.
In many instances the buyers have
05i ecu W Null luC lloJollly VI
the growers have expressed their de-
termination to pool their crops, but
especially in Henderson county has
there been considerable opposition to
the plan of the growers. In fact, the
buyers of Henderson have refused to
accede to the request of the growers
and another meeting is in progress
there to consider what is to be done
in the premises. The growers are
determined TO carry their point.
Every warehouse Of any conse-
quence in Henderson and Owensboro
is guarded by armed men and there
Is considerable uneasiness. Especial
ly is this true as the time for deliv-
ering the tobacco which has been
bought outside the pool approaches.
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01
s-----~-N-~-~~-S~~-
BOLD FIGHT BY MUTlNEERS.
Crew Of Russian Destroyer Battle
with Four Other Vessels.

Vladivostok. - An exciting little
naval battle took place in this har-
Dor Wednesday between the mutinous
crew of Russian torpedo boat de.
stroyer and their loyal comrades. The
mutineers were finally subdued, but
not before a number of men had been
killed or wounded.
The mutinous boat is the Skory,
and she gave fight to the gunboat
Mandschur, the destroyers Garsovoz,
Smelly and Serditz and the garrison of
one of the harbor forts manned by the
Twelfth regiment Of artillery. The
Skory soon was overwhelmed and she
had to be beached to save her from
sinking.
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01
MOUNTAIN eURlEs VILLAGE.
karatagh, in Bokhara, Is Overwhelmed
by Landslide.

Tashkend, Russian Turkistan.-The
little town of Karatagh, in the Hussar
district of Bokhara, has been over
whelmed and completely destroyed by
a landslide that followed the earth
quake of October 81. According to
the latest reports of the disaster, a
majority of the inhabitants of Kara
tagh lost their lives.
The first reports Of the casualties
were exaggerated. the death list be-
ing placed as high as $4,000. Kara
tagh had about $500 jewellers, and
there is reason to believe that about
500 were buried alive. Among those
who survived the disaster are the
governor Of Karatagh and his mother.
Karatagh Is remotely situated. and
1t takes full week for news to get
out from there, but according to one
courier who has come through, an
enormous section of the Karatagh
mountain, which practically hung over
the town, broke loose and Numbered
down upon the village, which is al
most completely buried.
Efforts are being made to get IN
with the survivors and
learn the actual state of affairs and
to send such relief as may be re-
CURED.
Karatagh Is noted for its manufac-
lures of sabers, cutlery and fine silks,
and is used as a summer resort by
the people of Hussar, a somewhat
larger town and capital of the district
of Hussar. Karatagh is located in q
mountainous country at an elevation
of $500 feet above the level Of the
sea
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01
WILL ADD MILLIONS.
Ridgely Says Bank Note Circulation
Will Increase $4,000, 600.


Washington, D. c., Nov. TREAS
ury officials are agreeably surprised
at the number of banks throughout
the country which have already in
dicated their purpose to comply with
the suggestion of Controller OF the
Currency Ridgely that additional cir
culation be taken out.
George E. Roberts, former director
of the mint, and now president Of
the Commercial National bank of
Chicago, is here and has engaged
$2,00n000 additional circulation for
his bank. Sol Wexler, president OF
the Whitney Central bank OF New
Orleans, IS also here and is making
arrangements to materially increase
his holdings. Other prominent ban
kers, through Washington represen-
tatives, are arranging to deposit the
necessary securities preparatory to
taking out national bank notes to the
limit of their capital stock. One
large New York bank could, under
the law, 1t is said. take out 100000
600 additional circulation and In all
probability will soon ask for a m..-
terial increase. Mr.. Ridgely today
expressed the opinion that within the
next ten days the outstanding cir
culation of national banks will have
been increased by from $4,000, 900
to $30,000.000 or more. VIZ. 8
Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1907-11-01

On the Canadian Northern, from .
point 40 miles east OF Edmonton to
Lloydminster, oats and barley are gen.
orally excellent; wheat is somewhat
damaged and there Is some loss Of
late-sown oats and barley. South Of
High river there Is an enormous crop.
From High river to Edmonton and
from Edmonton to Lloydminster there
is an average crop Of over 50 per cent
Of last year and the price Is from so
to 100 per cent. higher than las. year.
The root crop Is excellent and the i've
stock Is in splendid condition.
At the time OF writing it is difficult
to determine even approximately the
quantity Of wheat that Central Canada
will market this year. The threshers'
returns will tell the story. Opinions
OF experts may well be taken In the
meantime. Frank o. Fowler. score
tary Of the grain exchange, Winnipeg.
wires: Expect 100000 bushels
wheat. 4o.ooo,ooo bushels Of II good
milling. The crop will realize moro
money than last year; wheat and bak
Icy are 30c. and fax csc higher.