BURIED TREASURE

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 288, 31 August 1929, Page 29

BURIED TREASURE

LURE FOR THE ADVENTUROUS

According to Mr. Patrick Vaux there are vast deposits of buried treasures in the world awaiting the lucky or daring explorer. In an article on “Finding Buried Treasure,” in “Chambers’s Journal” he not only tells of their existence but also indicates their approximate locality. As proof, he tells how, in 1927, two Englishmen and an American unearthed in the ruined town of Panama gold vessels and ornaments, as well as diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and other precious articles from under the debris of the Church of San Jose. The treasure had been buried under the church when it was destroyed by Morgan and his buccaneers, who also slaughtered those who had bidden it. It Is believed with good reason that there is much more treasure of great value buried on the site of the old town. When the Spaniards invaded Mexico and Central America the natives possessed so much precious metal that they had no use for the greater part of their gold and sitver. Thus whole shiploads were sent to Spain. It was this wealth, causing a contempt for hard work and commercial enterprise, that brought about the poverty and stagnation from which Spain has not yet recovered. When pirates and buccaneers raided the Spanish ports immense quantities of valuables were hidden. Many of those who found the hiding-places lost their lives, and the treasure remained undiscovered. In August, 1667, when Morgan attacked Neuvitas the authorities collected all the portable' wealth, to the value of 14.000.000 dollars, and sent it out of the town by mule train under an escort of musketeers. In the fighting that followed Morgan destroyed practically all the people of the totvn Everv member of the escort was killed. This immense treasure lias never been recovered, though it must be close to Neuvitas, for heavily laden mules could not have trave led far in the brief time during which they were absent. Mr. Vaux recalls- the storv, believed to be authentic, of the hidden city of the Incas, reputed to be now a dead town in the Andes. Here the Incas hid their colossal store of gold before the Spaniards seized the Peruvian capital. There is no doubt that enormous treasure was missed by the Spanish Invaders and never traced. Another well-authenticated treasure is that of the old city of Panama. When Morgan raided the city vast quantities of gold and jewels were hidden in hastily constructed false bottoms of the numerous ships in the harbour. In his rage at having been outwitted. Morgan not only destroyed the town, but also sank all the shipping in the harbour, and the treasure with it. It is thought that the remains of these ships are not beyond the reach of modern salvage appliances.