The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1909-04-16
FORTUNE in Mon
Ely and JEWELRY.
Found Under Hearth Of
Kentucky House.
Recalls Guerailla Times When
the Farmers in Their Ter
ror Hid Their Money.

old residence ON the farm Of H. S.
Hensley, near Paint Lick i'm Gorrard
county, he's revived many thrilling
stories of the guerrilla period imme-
diately subsequent to tie Civil War.
Other rich finds that have been
made from time to time since those
uncertain days have been brought to
the minds of the older citizens, many
of whom had personal experiences
with the various guerrilla bands, which
spread terror throughout Central Ken
lucky.
The noted Miller brothers, of Ranch
101, VINO recently sold their possession
to john W. Gates for a sum re-
puted TO have been $1,000,000. were
reared at Crab. Orchard, few miles
southeast of Danwlle, and their out
set on the road to wealth was brought
about by a rich discovery made by
their father beneath an old hearth,
In residence which is still standing
three miles east of Crab Orchard, on
the MT. Vernon road.
In those days George Miller, father
OF the millionaire Miller brothers, was
poor huckster. In repairing the
hearth in the old residence which had
been inherited by his wife from ther
father, Jackson Fish, Miller found
small kettle containing $4,000. The sup
position is that the money had been
placed there by Fish about the close
of the war, and having died before
quiet had been restored tire secret
was never divulged.
That was in 1876 and gave Miller
start In the world. Other large
amounts have been discovered from
time DO time, buried in various places
about wartime homes. While large
percentage of those who buried their
treasures lived to reclaim them, still
many were either killed by the rohbeG
or died without making known their
secrets.
II is said that practically every fam
lily of wealth buried their money and
jewelry when Frank and Jessie James
made their wild dash through, Kentucky
spreading TERROR and bloodshed. When
the Bank of Columbia was robbed and
the Cashier killed excitement became
so intense that most of those VINO
had money in the banks through this
section withdrew it and sought out q
secret aiding place for it.
At one time the soil of Central Ken
tuck held within its bosom miHlions of
dollars i'm gold and silver, and much
of 1t still remains undiscovered. Pre-
ceding TIE mad raid, of the james
brothers and their band, One-Armed |
Sam Berry, who had been a modest |
schoolteacher at Perryville in this !
county, became enraged over what |
he thought was brutal deeds commit |
ted by Federal soldiers following t1e !
famous battle of PerTyville, quit his |
school and established headquarters at |
Bloomfield Nelson county where he |
organized one OF the most desperate |
bands of robbiDg guefrrillas that ever /
traversed Kentucky soil. Shortly after
entering upon hds new vocation ne
made a raid on his adopted town OF |
Perryville and terTorized Federal SYM
pathizers and men who he fancied |
x.to~, lSo ,,oreaonoI o,,ovataa
Dashing into tine quiet little village
yelling, Stand in line" Berry and IL |
of his men forced 1875 stalwart men TO
stand In line while the pockets were
rifeld. Old Man Lawson refused to
follow suit and was shot to pieces on
the. street.
The band was seeking Richard Les
ter especially. He was strong Fed
eral sympathd7er and had frequently
the One-Armed. He was
in Wallace Green's drugstore, and
Berry suspecting his presence there
rode into the store. LesteN jumped
out of back window, landing in Chap
lin River, and swimming to the OPP
posite shore, made his escape.
Wallace Green slim runs his store
In the same building and Richard Les
ter resides a snort distance from
Perryvilie, being highly respected
substantial farmer. From there Berry
went to Hustonwlle, where several
men were killed. He continued ON his
Wild career through Kentucky and
Indiana into Illinnods, where he was
captured and placed i'm the Federel
prison at Jeliet.
He was tied to a stake and a small
stream of cold water was adjusted TO
Tall constantly ON mis- head until death
came. His trunk is still in the pos
session OF John j. VandeEipe, of Per-
ryville with whose father the famous
guerrilla boarded while in charge of
the village school.
He was reared at shakertown in