The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1934-02-23
Chasing the Rainbow Cold
The Only Thing Likely to Be Got Out of Hunt for
Hidden Treasure Is Romance; and the Only
Money in 1t, What You Spend

Writing in London Answers, T. G.
Bridges. author of "The Romance OF
Buried Treasure" has the following !:
At least half million has been
spent in efforts to recover the pirate
treasure of Cocos island. and at the
present moment there is talk of a
new expedition to look for it. Yet,
as one of the former treasure seek
ers said to the writer: 1.-The only
way of making any money out of
Cocos island would be to start a
hotel for the treasure seekers"
You cannot get away from the fact
that treasure was buried on Cocos.
This lonely little island, which lies in
he Pacific, some 600 miles from the
nearest land, was haunt of pirates
for nearly 300 years, and the stories of
treasure buried there are numerous
and fairly well authenticated. The
last in particular.
In 1921. when the Spanish empire
in South America was tottering to it's
fail, there was sudden panic in Lima,
owing to the approach of a rebel
fleet.
A number of the wealthiest inhab-
itants hurried aboard an English brig
called the Mary Dier, which lay in
the harbor, and begged her skipper,
Captain Thompson, to carry them to
safety. He agreed to take them and
their treasure, and it is said that the
value of the gold and jewels brought
aboard exceeded f2,50O,0OO.
Once at sea, Thompson turned pi-
rate, and his wretched passengers
were forced to walk the plank.
Later Thompson was captured by
a British frigate, but managed to es-
cape and reach Newfoundland, where
he died. Before his death he confid-
ed his story TO man called Heating,
told him the treasure was buried on
Cocos, and gave him certain clews.
The first search began so long ago
as 1915, but was not successful.
There was another in 1870, third in
1894, and since then few years have
passed without at least one party of
treasure seekers landing on Cocos
and digging for the Lima treasure.
In stating that half million has
been spent in the search we are prob
ably far below the real sum. 1t is a
costly business to fit out a ship for
so long voyage, and some of the
vessels employed have been large.
The Melmore expedition, which
sailed from Barry, in Wales, in 1913,
was estimated to have cost 100000.
Another attempt by Earl Fitzwilliam
and Mr.. Harold Gray cost a deal of
money, while a Canadian vessel
which recently visited the island, car
ried no fewer than forty picked lum-
bermen engaged specially for their
powers of work and paid at high
rate of wages.
There have certainly been no few
er than 26 separate searches, and If
you average these at only 100000
apiece, you have sum in excess Of
half million.
Why, you will ask, If the treasure
Is there, has it not been found? After
all, the island is small, being only
about five miles long.
The reason is simple. Cocos lies
In The tropics. 1t has very hot cl;-
mateswith an enormous rainfall. One
result is that the shore line is con-
tinuously changing. Thousands of
tons of earth and rock dislodged by
foods from the pecipitous cliffs con-
stantly destroy landmarks and have
probably buried the treasure cave or
caves deep beyond finding.
Added to this, the whole island is
covered with brush and jungle, which
grows almost as fast as it can be
cleared. To make any real search
you would need not 40 men, but 400.
1t is safe to prophesy that Cocos will
hold its golden secrets till the crack
of doom.
The most mysterious of all the
worlds many treasure Islands is Oak
island, little spot of land lying off
the coast of Nova Scotia. Here, so
the story goes, lies buried vast
treasure Of gold and gems. The site
of the cache has been fixed at the
foot of an ancient oak tree not far