Evening Tribune. (Galveston, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 166, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 3, 1893 Page: 2 of 8
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THE GOLDBUG
By EDGAR ALLAN POL
[CONTINUED.]
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gleaming before us.
Besides all this, there was a vast quan-
tity of solid gold ornaments—nearly 2G0
massive finger and earrings; rich chains
—30 of these, if I remember—83 very
large and heavy crucifixes; five gold cen-
sers of great value; a prodigious golden
punch bowl, ornamented with richly
chased vine leaves and bacchanalian
figures, with two sword handles .ex-
fflk H.
the vicinity, or rather this was the ap-
prehension of Legrand. For myself, 1
should have rejoiced at any interruption
which might have enabled me to get the
wanderer home. The noise was at
confirmation by the finding of the scara-
bseus, or perhaps by Jupiter’s obstinacy
in maintaining it to be “a bug of real
gold.” A mind disposed to lunacy would
readily be led away by such suggestions,
especially if chiming in with favorite
preconceived ideas, and then I called to
mind the poor fellow’s speech about the
beetle’s being “the index of his fortune.”
Upon the whole I was sadly vexed and
puzzled, but at length I concluded to
make a virtue of necessity—to dig with
a good will, and thus the sooner to con-
vince the visionary by ocular demonstra-
tion of the fallacy of the opinions he en-
tertained.
The lanterns having been lit, we all
fell to work with a zeal worthy a more
rational cause, and as the glare fell up-
on our persons and implements I could
not help thinking how picturesque a
group we composed, and how strange
and suspicious our labors must have ap-
peared to any interloper who by chance
might have stumbled upon our where-
abouts.
We dug very steadily for two hours.
Little was said, and our chief embar-
rassment lay in the yelpings of the dog,
who took exceeding interest in our pro-
ceedings. He at length became so ob-
streperous that we grew fearful of his
spent the whole day and the greater felt it impossible to explain, but even at’
that early moment there seemed to glim-
mer faintly within the most remote and
secret chambers of my intellect a glow-
wormlike conception of that/ truth
which last night’s adventure brought
to so magnificent a demonstration. I
arose at once, and putting -the parch-
ment securely away dismissed all further
reflection until I should be alone.
“When you had gone and when Jupi-
ter was fast asleep, 1 betook myself to a
more methodical investigation of the af-
fair. In the first place, I considered the
manner in which the parchment had
come into my possession. The spot where
we discovered the scarabseus was on the
coast of the mainland, about a mile east-
ward of the island and but a short dis-
tance above high water mark. Upon my
taking hold of it, it gave me a sharp bite,
which caused me to let it drop.
“Jupiter, with his accustomed caution,
before seizing the insect, which had
flown towarc; him, looked about him for
a leaf or something of that nature by
which to take hold of it. It was at this
moment that his eyes, and mine also,
fell upon the scrap of parchment which
I then supposed to be paper. It was ly-
ing half buried in the sand, a comer
---. Near the spot where we
found it I observed the remnants of the
hull of what appeared to have been a
ship’s longboat. The wreck seemed to
have been there for a very great while,
for the resemblance to boat timbers could
scarcely be traced.
“Well, Jupiter picked up the parch-
ment, wrapped the beetle in it and gave
it to me. Soon afterward we turned to
go home and on the way met Lieutenant
G---. I showed him the insect, and ho
begged me to let him take it to the fort.
Upon my consenting he thrust it forth-
with into his waistcoat pocket without
the parchment in which it had been
wrapped, and which I had continued to
hold in my hand during his inspection.
Perhaps he dreaded my changing my
mind and thought it best to make sure .
of the prize at once—you know how en-
thusiastic he is on all subjects con-
nected with natural history. At the
same time, without being conscious of
it, I must have deposited the parchment
in my own pocket.
“You remember that when I went to
the table for the purpose of making a
sketch of the beetle I found no paper
where it was usually kept. I looked in
the drawer and found none there. I
searched my pockets, hoping to find an.
quisitely embossed, and many other
smaller articles which I cannot recollect.
The weight of these valuables exceeded
350 pounds avoirdupois, and in this esti-
mate I have not included 197 superb gold
watches; three of the number being worth
each $500, if $1. Many of them were
very old, and as timekeepers valueless,
the works having suffered more or less
from corrosion, but all were richly jew-
eled and in cases of greath worth. J|
We estimated the entire contents of |
the chest that night at $1,500,000, and
upon the subsequent disposal of tbe^H
trinkets and jewels (a few being retained "
for our own use) it was found that we
had greatly undervalued the treasure.
When at length we had concluded our
examination and the intense excitement
of the time had in some measure sub-
sided, Legrand, who saw that I was dy-
ing with impatience for a solution of this
most extraordinary riddle, entered into a
full detail of all the circumstances con-
nected with it.
“You remember,”' said he, “the night
When I haflded you the rough sketch I
had made of the scarabaeus. You recol-
lect also that I became quite vexed at
you for insisting that my drawing re-
sembled a death’s head. ^iien you first
made this assertion I thought you were
jesting, but afterward I called to mind
the peculiar spots on the back of the in-
*sect and admitted to myself that your
remark had some little foundation in
fact. Still the sneer at my graphic
powers irritated me—for I am consid-
ered a good artist—and therefore, when
you handed me the scrap of parchment
I was about to crumple it up and throw
it angrily into the fire.”
“The scrap of paper, you mean,”
said I.
“No; it had much of the appearance of
paper, and at first I supposed it to be
such, but when I came to draw upon it
I discovered it at once to be a piece of
very thin parchment. It was quite
dirty, you remember. Well, as I was in
the very act of crumpling it up my
glance fell upon the sketch at which
you had been locking, and you may im-
agine my astonishment when I per-
ceived in fact the figure of a death’s head
just where, it seemed to me, I had made
the drawing of the beetle. For a moment
I was too much amazed to think with
accuracy. « I knew that my design was
very different in detail from this—al-
though there was a certain similarity in
general outline.
Presently I took a candle, and seating
myself at the other end of the room pro-
ceeded to scrutinize the parchment more
closely. Upon turning it over I saw my
own sketch upon the reverse just as I
had made it. My first idea now was
mere surprise at the really remarkable
similarity of outline—at the singular co-
incidence involved in the fact that, un-
known to me, there should have been a
skull upon the other side of the parch-
ment immediately beneath my figure of
the scarabseus, and that this skull, not
1 only in outline, but in size, should so
1 closely resemble my drawing. I say the
singularity of this coincidence absolute-
• ly stupefied me for a time. This is the
usual effect of such coincidences. The
mind struggles to establish a connection
' —a sequence of cause and effect—and
1 being unable to do so suffers a species
' of temporary paralysis.
L But when I recovered from this stupor
there dawned upon me gradually a con-
i viction which startled me even far more
s than the coincidence. I began distinctly,
i positively, to remember that there had
been no drawing upon the parchment
when I made my sketch of the scarabseus.
I became perfectly certain of this, for I
recollected turning up first one side and
then the other in search of the cleanest •
spot. Had the skull been then there, of
course I could not have failed to notice 1
it. Here was indeed a mystery which I
“You scoundrel!” said Legrand.
“Oh, my golly, Massa Will, ain’t dis
here my lef’ eye for sartain?” roared the
terrified Jupiter, placing his hand upon
his right organ of vision and holding it
there with a desperate pertinacity, as if
in immediate dread of his master’s at-
tempt at a gouge.
“I thought so—I knew it! Hurrah!”
vociferated Legrand, letting the negro
go and executing a series of curvets and
caracoles, much to the astonishment of
his valet, who, arising from his knees,
looked mutely from his master to myself
and then from myself to his master.
“Come, we must go back!” said the
latter; “the game’s not up yet.” And he
again led the way to the tulip tree.
“Jupiter,” said he when we reached
the foot, “come here! Was the skull
nailed to the limb with the face out-
ward or with the face to the limb?”
“De face was out, massa, so dat de
crows could get at de eyes good widout
any trouble.”
“Well, then, was it this eye or that
through which you dropped the beetle?”
Here Legrand touched each of Jupi-
ter’s eyes.
“ ’Twas dis eye, massa—de lef’ eye—jis?
as you tell me,” and here it was his right
eye that the negro indicated.
“That will do—we must try it again.”
Here my friend, about whose mad-
ness I now saw, or fancied that I saw,
certain indications of method, removed
the peg which marked the spot where
the beetle fell, to a spot about 3 inches
to the westward of its former position.
Taking now the tape measure from the
nearest point of the trunk to the peg, as
before, and continuing the extension in a
straight line to the distance of 50 feet, a
spot was indicated, removed by several
yards from the point at which we had
been digging.
Around the new position a circle
somewhat larger than in the former in-
stance was now described, and we again
set to work with the spades. I was
dreadfully weary, but scarcely under-
standing what had occasioned the change
in my thoughts I felt no longer any
great aversion from the labor imposed.
I had become most unaccountably in-
terested—nay, even excited. Perhaps
there was something amid all the ex-
travagant demeanor of Legrand—some
air of forethought or of deliberation--
I
a
wk*
covered that it would have been impos-
sible to force our way but for the scythe,
and Jupiter, by direction of his master,
proceeded to clear for us a path to the
foot of an enormously tall tulip tree,
which stood, with some eight or ten oaks,
upon the level, and far surpassed them
all, and all ocher trees which I had then
ever seen in the beauty of its foliage and
form, in the wide spread of its branches
and in the general majesty of its appear-
ance. When we reached this tree, Le-
grand turned to Jupiter and asked him
if he thought he could climb it. Theoid
man seemed a little staggered by the
question, and for some moments made
no reply. At length he approached the
huge trunk, walked slowly around it
and examined it with minute attention.
When he had completed his scrutiny, he
merely said:
“Yes, massa, Jup climb any tree he
ebber see in he life.”
“Then up with you as soon as possible,
for it will soon be too dark to see what
we are about.”
“How far mus’ go up, massa?” inquired
Jupiter.
“Getup the main trunk first, and then
I will tell you which way to go. And
here; stop! Take this beetle with you.”
“De bug, Massa Will! De goolebug!”
cried the negro, drawing back in dis-
may. “What for mus’ tote de bug why
up de tree? D—n if I do!”
“If you are afraid, Jup, a great big
negro like you, to take hold of a harm-
less little dead beetle, why you can carry
it up by this string. But if you do not
take it up with you in some way I shall
be under the necessity of breaking your
head with this shovel.”
“What de matter now, massa?” said
Jup, evidently shamed into compliance.
“Always want for to raise fuss wid old
nigger. Was only funnin anyhow. Me
feered de bug! What I keer for de bug?”
Here he took cautiously hold of the ex-
treme end of the string, and maintain-
ing the insect as far from his person as
circumstances would permit prepared to
ascend the tree.
piter, who, getting out of the hole with
a dogged air of deliberation, tied the
brute’s mouth up with one of his sus-
penders and then returned with a grave
chuckle to his task.
> When the time mentioned had ex-
, we had reached a depth of 5
feet, and yet no signs of any treasure be-
came manifest. A general pause en-
sued, and I began to hope that the farce
was at an end. Legrand, however, al-
though evidently much disconcerted,
wiped his brow thoughtfully and re-
commenced. We had excavated the en-
tire circle of 4 feet diameter, and now
we slightly enlarged the limit, and went
to the farther depth of 2 feet. Still
nothing appeared. The gold seeker,
whom I sincerely pitied, at length clam-
bered from the pit, with the bitterest
disappointment imprinted upon every
feature, and proceeded slowly and re-
luctantly to put on his coat, which he
had thrown off at the beginning of his
labor. In the meantime I made no re-
mark. Jupiter, at a signal from his mas-
ter, began to gather up his tools. This
done, and the dog having been unmuz-
zled, we turned in profound silence to-
ward home.
We had taken perhaps a dozen steps
in this direction when, with a loud oath,
Legrand strode up to Jupiter and seized
him by the collar. The astonished negro
opened his eyes and mouth to the fullest
extent, let fall the spades and fell upon
his knees.
“You scoundrel!” said Legrand, hiss-
ing out the syllables from between his
clinched teeth, “you infernal black vil-
lian—speak, 1 tell you—answer me this
instant without prevarication—which—
which is your left eye?”
Je
phbs
1W
A/?
&
With a heavy heart I accompanied my
friend.
In youth the tulip tree, or Lirioden-
drontulipiferum, the most magnificent of
American foresters, has a trunk peculiar-
ly smooth and often rises to a great
height without lateral branches, but in
its riper age the bark becomes knarled
and uneven, while many short limbs
make their appearance on the stem.
Thus the difficulty of ascension in the
present case lay more in semblance than
in reality.
Embracing the huge cylinder as
closely as possible with his arms and
. knees, seizing with his hands some pro-
i jections, and resting his naked toes up-
on others, Jupiter, after one or two nar-
i row escapes from falling, at length
l wriggled himself into the first great
fork and seemed to consider the whole
■ business as virtually accomplished. The
l risk of the achievement was, in fact, now
s over, although the climber was some GO
I or 70 feet from the ground.
j “Which may mus’ go now, Massa
Will?” he asked.
j “Keep up the largest branch, the one
on this side,” said Legrand. The negro
obeyed him promptly, and apparently
with but little trouble, ascending higher
and higher, until no glimpse of his squat
figure could be obtained through the
dense foliage which enveloped it. Pres-
ently his voice was hear-d in a sort of
halloo:
“How much fudder is got for go?”
“How high up are you?” asked Le-
grand.
“Ebber so fur,” replied the negro, “can
see de sky fru de top ob de tree.”
“Never mind the sky, but attend to
what I say. Look down the trunk and
count the limbs below you on this side.
How many limbs have you passed?”
“One, two, tree, four, fibe—I done pass
fibe big limb, massa, ’pon dis side.”
“Then go one limb higher.”
In a few minutes the voice was heard
again, announcing that the seventh limb
was attained.
“Now, Jup,” cried Legrand, evidently
much excited, “I want you to work your
way out upon that limb as far as you
can. If you see anything strange, let me
know.”
By this time what little doubt I might
have entertained of my poor friend’s in-
sanity was put finally at rest. I had no
^alternative but to conclude him stricken
with lunacy, and I became seriously anx-
ious about getting him home. While I
was pondering upon what was best to be
done, Jupiter’s voice was again heard.
“Mos’ feered for to ventur ’pon dis
limb berry far—tis dead limb putty much
all de way.”
“Did you say it was a dead limb, Ju-
piter?” cried Legrand in a quavering
voice.
“Yes, massa, him dead as de door nail
—done up for sartain—done departed dis
here life.”
“What in the name of heaven shall I
do?” asked Legrand, seemingly in the
greatest distress.
“Do!” said I, glad of an opportunity to
interpose a word, “why come home and
go to bed. Come, now, that’s a fine fel-
low. It’s getting late, and, besides, you
remember your promise.”
“Jupiter,” cried he, without heeding
me in the least, “do you hear me?”
“Yes, Massa Will, hear you ebber so
plain.”
“Try the wood well, then, with your
knife and see if you think it very rot-
ten.”
“Him rotten, massa, sure nuff,” re-
plied the negro in a few moments, “but
not so berry rotten as mought be.
Mought ventur out leetle way ’pon de
limb by myself, dat’s true.” f
“By yourself! What do you mean?”
the words v ere hardly uttered when I <
stumbled and fell forward, having i
caught the toe of my boot in a large ring '
of iron that lay half buried in the loose ;
earth.
We now worked in earnest, and never ■
did I pass 10 minutes of more intense ex- ,
citement. During this interval we had
fairly uneartned an oblong chest of wood,
which, from its perfect preservation and
wonderful hardness, had plainly been
subjected to some mineralizing process—
perhaps that of the bichloride of mer-
cury. This box was 3| feet long, 3 feet
broad and 2-J feet deep. It was firmly se-
cured by bands of wrought iron, riveted,
and forming a kind of open trellis work
over the whole. On each side of the chest
near the top were three rings of iron—
six in all—by means of which a firm hold
could be obtained by six persons.
Our utmost united endeavors served
only to disturb the coffer very slightly in
its bed. We at once saw the impossi-
bility of removing so great a weight.
Luckily the sole fastenings of the lid con-
sisted of two sliding bolts. These we
drew back, trembling and panting with
anxiety. In an instant a treasure of in-
calculable value lay gleaming before us.
As the rays of the lanterns fell within
the pit there flashed upward a glow and
a glare from a confused heap of gold and
of jewels that absolutely dazzled our
eyes. *
I shall not pretend to describe the feel-
ings with which 1 gazed. Amazement
was of course predominant. Legrand
appeared exhausted with excitement and
spoke very few words. Jupiter’s coun-
tenance wore for some minutes as dead-
ly a pallor as it is possible in the nature
of things for any negro’s visage to as-
sume. He seemed stupefied—thunder-
stricken. Presently he fell upon his
knees in the pit, and burying his naked
arms up to the elbows in gold let them
there remain, as if enjoying the luxury
of a bath. At length with a deep sigh
he exclaimed, as if in a soliloquy:
“And dis all come ob de goolebug! de
putty goolebug! de poor little goolebug
what I boosed in dat sabage kind ob
style! Ain’t you shamed ob yourself, nig-
ger? Answer me dat!”
It became necessary at last that I
should arouse both master and valet to
the expediency of removing the treasure.
It was growing late, and it behoved us
to make exertion, that we might get
everything housed before daylight. It
was difficult to say -what should be done,
and much time was spent in deliberation,
so confused vzere the ideas of all. We
finally lightened the box by removing
two-thirds of its contents, when we were
enabled, with some trouble, to raise it
from the hole. The articles taken out
were deposited among the brambles and
the dog left to guard them, with strict
orders from Jupiter neither upon any
pretense to stir from the spot nor to
open his mouth until our return.
We then hurriedly made for home with
the chest, reaching the hut in safety, but
after excessive toil at 1 o’clock in the
morning. Worn out as we were, it was
not in human nature to do more imme-
diately. We rested until 2 and had sup-
per, starting for the hills immediately
afterward, rmed with three stout sacks,
which, by good luck,wrere upon the prem-
ises. A little before 4 wS arrived at the
pit, divided the remainder of the booty
as equally as might be among us, and
leaving the holes unfilled again set out
for the hut, at which, for the second
time, we deposited our golden burdenfl
just as the first faint streaks of dawn
gleamed from over the tree tops in the east.
W e were now thoroughly broken down,
but the intense excitement of the time
denied us repose. After an unquiet slum-
ber of some three or four hours’ duration
we arose, as if by preconcert, to make ex-
amination of our treasure.
The chest had been full to the brim, and
we
part of the next night in a scrutiny of its
contents. There had been nothing like
order or arrangment. Everything had
been heaped in promiscuously. Having
assorted all with care, we found ourselves
possessed of even vaster wealth than we
had at first supposed. In coin there was
rather more than $450,000—estimating
the value of the pieces as accurately as
we could by the tables of the period.
There was not a particle of silver. All
was gold of antique date and of great
variety—French, Spanish and German
money, with a few English guineas, an
some counters of which we had never
seen specimens before. There were sev-
eral very large and heavy coins so worn
that we could make nothing of their in-
scriptions. There was ho American
money. The value of the jewels we
found more difficulty in estimating.
There were diamonds, some of them ex-
ceedingly large and fine, 110 in all and
not one of them small; 18 rubies of re-
markable brilliancy; 310 emeralds, all
very beautiful, and 21 sapphires, with
an opal. These stones had all been
broken from their settings and thrown
loose in the chest. The settings them-
selves, which we picked out from _
among the other gold, appeared to have j sticking up.
been beaten up with hammers, as if to * 1 T -T
prevent identification.
nib
Wf'
A. treasure of incalculable value lay
“This bug is to make my fortune,” he .
continued, with a triumphant smile, “to
reinstate me in my family possessions.
Is it any wondej, then, that I prize it?
Since fortune has thought fit to bestow
it upon me, I have only to use it proper- .
Iy, and I shall arrive at the gold of which '
it is the index. Jupiter, bring me that '
scarabseus!”
“What! de bug, massa? I’d rudder
not go fer trflbble dat bug—you mus’ git
him for your own self.” Hereupon Le-
grand arose with a grave and stately
air and brought me the beetle from a
glass case, in which it was inclosed. It
was a beautiful scarabseus, and at that
time unknown to naturalists—of course
a great prize in a scientific point of view.
There were two round black spots near
one extremity of the back and a long one
near the other. The scales were exceed-
ingly hard and glossy, with all the ap-
pearance of burnished gold. The weight
of the insect was very remarkable, and
taking all things into consideration I
could hardly blame Jupiter for his opin-
ion respecting it. But what to make of
Legrand’s concordance with that opin-
ion I could not for the life of me tell.
“I sent for you,” said he in a grandilo-
quent tone when I had completed my
examination of the beetle, “I sent for
you, that I might have your counsel and
assistance in furthering the views of fate
and of the bug”---
“My dear Legrand,” I cried, interrupt-
ing him, “you are certainly unwell and
had better use some little precautions.
You shall go to bed, and I will remain
with you a few days until you get over
this. You are feverish and”---
“Feel my pulse,” said he.
I felt it and, to say the truth, found
not the slightest indication of fever.
“But you may be ill and yet have no
fever. Allow me this once to prescribe
for you. In the first place, go to bed. In
the next”---
“You are mistaken,” he interposed. “I
am as well as I can expect to be under
the excitement which I suffer. If you
really wish me well, you will relieve this
excitement.”
“And how is this to be done?”
‘.‘Very easily. Jupiter and myself are
going upon an expedition into the hills
upon the mainland, and in this expedi-
tion we shall need the aid of some per-
son in whom we can confide. You are
the only one we can trust. Whether we
succeed or fail the excitement which
you now perceive in me will be equally
allayed.”
“I am anxious to oblige you in any
way,” I replied, “but do you mean to
,say that this infernal beetle has any con-
nection with your expedition into the
hills?”
“It has.”
“Then, Legrand, I can become a party
to no such absurd proceedings.”
“I am sorry—very sorry—for we shall
have to try it by ourselves.”
“Try it by yourselves! The man is
surely mad! But stay! How long do
you propose to be absent?”
“Probably all night. We shall start
immediately, and be back at all events
by sunrise.”
“And will you promise me upon your
honor that when this freak of yours is
over, and the bug business (good God!)
settled to your satisfaction, you will
then return home and follow my advice
implicitly as that of your physician?”
“Yes, I promise. And now let us be
off, for we have no time to lose.”
With a heavy heart I accompanied my
friend. We started about 4 oclock—Le-
grand, Jupiter, the dog and myself. Ju-
piter had with him the scythe and spades,
the whole of which he insisted upon
carrying, more through fear, it seemed
to me, of trusting either of the imple-
ments within' reach of his master than
from any excess of, industry or com-
plaisance. His demeanor was dogged in
the extreme, and “dat deuced bug” were
the sole words which escaped his lips
during the journey. For my own part,
I had charge of a couple of' dark lan-
terns, while Legrand contented himself
with the scarabseus, which he carried
attached to the end of a bit of whipcord,
twirling it to and fro with the air of a
conjuror as he went.
When I observed this last plain evi-
dence of my friend’s aberration of mind,
I could scarcely refrain from tears. 1
thought it best, however, to humor his
fancy, at least for the present, or unti I
could adopt some more energetic mes s-
ures with a chance of success. In tne
meantime I endeavored, but all in vain,
to sound him in regard to the object ci
the expedition. Having succeeded in in-
ducing me to accompany him, he seemed
unwilling to hold conversation upon any
topic of minor importance, and to all my
- questions vouchsafed no other reply than
“We shall see.”
We crossed the creek at the head of
the island by means of a skiff, and as-
cending the high grounds on the shore
of the mainland proceeded in a north-
westerly direction through a tract of
country excessively wild and desolate,
where no trace of human footstep was
to be seen. Legrand led the way with
decision, pausing only for an instanii
here and there to consult what appeared
to be certain landmarks of his own con-
trivance upon a former occasion.
In this manner we journeyed for about
two hours, and the sun was just setting
when we entered a region infinitely more
dreary than any yet seen. It was a spe-
cies of tableland near the summit of an
almost inaccessible hill, densely wooded
from base to pinnacle and interspersed
with huge crags that appeared to lie
loosely upon the soil and in many cased
were prevented from precipitating them-
selves into the valleys below merely by
the support of the trees against which
they reclined. Deep ravines in varioud
directions gave an air of still sterner
solemnity to the scene.
The natural platform to which we had
clambered was thickly overgrown with
brambles, through which we soon dis-
“Why I mean de bug. ’Tis berry
hebby bug. S'pose I drop him down
fuss, and den de limb won’t break wid
just de weight ob one nigger.”
“You infernal scoundrel!” cried Le-
grand,, apparently much relieved, “what length very effectually silenced by Ju-
do you mean by telling me-such non- +
sense as that? As sure as you drop that
beetle I’ll break your neck. Look here,'
Jupiter, do you hear me?”
“Yes, massa, needn’t holler at poor nig-
ger dat style.” (
“Well, now listen. If you will ven- '
ture out on the limb as far as you think
safe and not let go the beetle, I'll make
you a present of a silver dollar as soon
as you get down.”
“I’m gwine, Massa Will—deed I is,”
replied the negro very promptly; “mos1
out to the eend now.”
“Out to the end!” here fairly screamed
Legrand, “do you say you are out to the
end of that limb?”
“Soon be to 'the eend, massa—o-o-o-o-
oh! Lor-gol-a-marcy! What is dis here
’pon de tree?” .
“Well!” cried Legrand, highly delight-
ed, “what is it?”
“Why, ’tain’t nuffin but a skull—some-
body bin lef’ him head up de tree, and de
crows done gobble ebery bit ob de meat
off.”
“A skull, you say! Very well! How
is it fastened to the limb—what holds it
on?”
“Sure nuff, massa; mus’ look. Why,
dis berry curious sarcumstance, ’pon my
word—dare’s a great big nail in de skull
what fastens ob it on to de tree.”
“Well, now, Jupiter, do exactly as 1
tell you—do you hear?”
“Yes, massa.”
“Pay attention then! Find the left eye
of the skull.”
“Hum! hoo! Dat’s good! Why, dare
. ain’t no eye lef’ at all.”
“Curse your stupidity! Do you know
your right hand from your left?”
“Yes, I nose dat—nose all about dat—
; ’tis my lef’ hand what I chops de wood
, wid.”
“To be sure! You are left handed, and
your left eye is on the same side as your
left hand. Now I suppose you can find
the left eye of the skull, or the place
where the left eye has been. Have you
found it?”
Here was a long pause. At length the
negro asked:
“Is de lef’ eyeob de skull ’pon de same
side as de lef’ hand ob de skull too?
’cause de skull ain’t got not a bit ob a
hand at all—nebber mind. I got de lef’
eye now. Here de lef’ eye. What mus’ do
wid it?”
“Let the beetle drop through it as far
as the string will reach, but be careful
and not let go your hold of the string. ”
“All dat done, Massa Will. Moughty
easy t’ing for to put de bug fru de hole.
Look out for him dare below!”
During this colloquy no portion of Ju-
piter’s person could be seen, but the bee-
tle, which he had suffered to descend,
was now visible at the 6nd of the string
and glistened like a globe of burnished
gold in the last rays of the setting sun,
some of which still faintly illumined the
eminence upon which we stood. The
scarabseus hung quite clear of any
branches, and if allowed to fall would
have fallen at our feet. Legrand imme-
diately took the scythe and cleared with
it a circular space three or four yards in
diameter just beneath the insect, and
having accomplished this ordered Jupi-
ter to let go the string and come down
from the tree.
Driving a peg with great nicety into
the ground at the precise spot where the
beetle fell, my friend now produced
from his pocket a tape measure. Fas-
tening one end of this at that point of
the trunk of the tree which was nearest
the peg, he unrolled it till it reached the
peg, and thence farther unrolled it in
the direction already established by the
two points of the tree and the peg for
the distance of 50 feet, Jupiter clearing
away the brambles with the scythe. At
the spot thus attained a second peg was
driven, and about this as a center a rude
circle about 4 feet in diameter described.
Taking now a spade himself and giv-
ing one to Jupiter and one to me, Le-
grand begged us to set about digging as
quickly as possible.
To speak the truth, I had no especial
relish for such amusements at any time,
and at that particular moment would
most willingly have declined it, for the
night wTas coming on and I felt much fa-
tigued with the exercise already taken,
but I saw no mode of escape and was
fearful of disturbing my poor friend’s
equanimity by a refusal. Could I have
depended, indeed, upon Jupiter’s aid, 1
would have had no hesitation in attempt-
ing to get the lunatic home by force, but
I was too well assured of the old negro’s
disposition to hope that he would assist
me under any circumstances in a per-
sonal content with his master.
I made no doubt that the latter had
been infected with some of the innumer-
able southern superstitions about money
buried, and that his fantasy had received . . , . j T , . ,
oonflnhtion bv the flndiR of the soars- whloh '“Passed me I dug eagerly and
now and then caught myself actually
looking, with something that very much
resembled expectation, for the fancied
treasure, the vision of which had de-
mented my unfortunate companion.
At a period when such vagaries of
thought most fully possessed me, and
when we had been at work perhaps an
hour and a half, we were again inter-
rupted by the violent bowlings of the
dog. His uneasiness in the first instance
had been evidently but the result of
playfulness r caprice, but he now as-
sumed a bitter and serious tone. Upon
Jupiter’s again attempting to muzzle
him, he made furious resistance, and
leaping into the hole tore up the mold
frantically with his claws.
In a few seconds he haR uncovered a
mass of human bones, forming two com-
plete skeletons, intermingled with sev-
eral buttons of metal, and what appeared
to be the dust o£ decayed woolen. One
or two strokes of a spade upturned the
blade of a large Spanish knife, and as
we dug farther three or four loose pieces
of gold and silver coin came to light.
At sight of these the joy of Jupiter
could scarcely be restrained, but the
countenance of his master wore an air of
extreme disappointment. He urged us,
giving the alarm to some stragglers in feoweyer, to cqntmueour exerfeon^ and
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Burson, J. W. Evening Tribune. (Galveston, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 166, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 3, 1893, newspaper, June 3, 1893; Galveston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1267418/m1/2/?q=Lamar+University: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rosenberg Library.