The Detroit times., 1915-11-12
SEARCH FOR
.buRIEDeOlD
Of PIRATES
Kansas City Adven-
turers Hope to Find
Treasure
HAVE CHART TO
GUIDE SEARCH
Real Old Salt Will Pilot
Party to New COcOs
Island.

KANSAS CITY, Nov. l2.-An ex-
pedition left Kansas City recently
TO search for a new Treasure Island
In the Pacific Ocean. At the head
of the party was sure-enough old
sea captain, grizZled. weather beat
en-, white whiskered. and as myster-
ious and romantic looking as II he
had Just stepped out OF the pages
Of Robert Louis Stevenson's book.
And to make II all the more real,
the old sea captain carried in a
whale-skin pouch next his heart a
map of the island, with arrows
pointing to the cave where the
pirates treasure lies.
n Is staggering. but these are the
words Of the old captain himself:
II know that treasure. I've seen
II. I've handled It. help bury 1t.
I've stood over it. I've seen dead
men by the score lying around
there. I've seen q score Of men
murdered for that treasure. I know
how much there is of 1t. It's be-
tween three hundred and four hun
dred tons. figured it out to be 50
million dollars worth or there
abouts. The treasure II in gold
sovereigns. gold bars. bullion, sill
yer dollars. There are gold crosses.
gold plate and gold angels. that
they took out of churches, and
plenty of diamonds, great diamonds
as big rs haxelnuts. was hrst
mate. and when II came on board
I took count and entered II in the
book"
That Is the way James Brown,
the old sea captain, told 1t to the
men In Kansas City. Springfield and
Mountain Grove. Mo-. who put in
Thousands of dollars to back the
expedition which departed from the
Hotel Muehlebach last Thursday
night
+ James Brown, the old sea cap
tain went along, Of course. So did
Frank p. Blair. clerk at the Hotel
Muehlebach, who resigned his posi-
tion to voyage to the island in the
South Seas where the treasure lies
buried,
Blair's father, John T. Blair, lives
in Marshall. Mo. Young Blair told
him he was going to San Francisco
to see the exposition. But II is
mighty little he will bother about
the exposition when his head is
filled with dreams of a mysterious
sea-swept island, its shore line
lashed by the surf into vast cav
erns. In one OF which reposes
enough glistening gold and spark
ling diamonds to make a kings ran
som.
The financial hackers OF the ex-
pedition are thirty business men C
Springfield and Mountain Grovc
Among them are r. c. Hardin
secretary of the Mountain Grove
Grocery company; c. A. Swenson
humber dealer: f. J. Greene. bank
cashier, all Of Mountain Grove, and
~ Fred Ellis and Lyle Ellis, in
surance men: Alva Milligan, presi-
dent of the Milligan Grocery com
pany. and president OF the Missouri
Wholesale Grocers' association: J.
n. Hinerman, contractor and city
councilman: W. b. Lee, travelling
salesman. and DR.. A. A. Lowe. OF
Springfield
These and others. convinced that
the old sea captain was telling the
truth about the treasure, incorpor-
ated the South Sea pearl fishing
expedition. with thirty stockhold-
ers and shares at $3.50 each.
Great secrecy ATTENDED the form
alton of the company and its de-
arturo from Kansas City. Captain
Brown said this was necessary. be-
cause the treasure island to which
they were going belonged to Great
Britain and II Johnny Bull found
out that the treasure was about TO
be lifted. he would send a warship
TO watch. When the treasure was
found he would demand 25 per cent
Of It. Browns theory was that
finders should be keepers and he
didn't propose TO let the British
government find out anything about
II, no stree. and so nothing about
the expedition leaked out until af-
ter the party was far on its way to.
San Francisco.
There the Kansas City party will
take ship for Sydney, Australia.
where IL will charter schooner
and sail for the island. the exact
location OF which no one knows ex-
cept Captain Brown.