TREASURE IN A LAKE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 9 October 1925, Page 10

TREASURE IN A LAKE.

PRICE OF A MAN’S FREEDOM

'WATERMAN’S LONG SEARCH

WOMAN ANXIOUSLY WATOHENG

A blue-jerseyed waterman recently spent clays raking the lake in Regent’s Park:, London, lor stolen gold, ancl silver boxes said to have been thrown into it. By his side, urging him on, was the girl wife of a man whose liberty might depend on the waterman’s success.

Thomas Marshall, a young bandsman, stole £SOO 'worth of gold and silver cigar, boxes from the house of Lord Revelstoke. His wife advised him to Jkike them back next day, but he was frightened, however, and threw them all in the lake A statement was made at BowStreet Police Court that the man had done his best to help the polite. He had shown them where he had thrown the treasure, and more than £l5O worth had been retrieved by the waterman, hut there was still £350 worth to be found. It' was apparent that Mr. Leycester, the magistrate, in ordering a remand in custody for a week, honed that the valuables would all be retrieved, in which case there was every- chance ol his merely binding Marshall over instead of disgracing him for life by a term of Imprisonment. The waterman, Mr. Harry Harris, was in court, and he, too, was so impressed by the possibility that he hurried back immediately to redouble his efforts. ‘•Marshall’s wife was here _ until closing time at 9.15 p.m. last night.” he said to a newspaper representative, who found him searching fieree.y with his rake. ‘‘She liopes that if I can find the boxes they will let her husband off. She comes up here day after day watching me, but I have found nothing for a long time now.” “It’s those shells that get me all muddled up,” he continued. “I keep on thinking 1 have got something, and then it turns out to be just one of these things. The very first time 1 put the rake in at all I found two silver boxes, vvoith £5'J each, one inside the other. It gave me a thrill, and 1 thought I should find ail the other stuff quickel.V. I hunted all the rest of the day, however, and found nothing. Then, at 9 o’clock the follow, jng evening, just when I was going, I discovered a gold and diamond box, also valued at £SO. Since then I have found nothing, though I have been at it day after day, with the poor girl watching me. “I spent half an hour once trying to land what turned out to be a gingerbeer bottle. Another day I putted out an old silver watch.” “Of course you will get a commission on anything you find,” it was suggested to him. “Do you think so?” said Mr. Harris. Anyway, I am not worring about that, I am only interested in helping this poor fellow out of his trouble if I can.” Suddenly it began to rain hard, lhe newspaper representative hurriedly withdrew, arid in a few minutes alt the pleasure craft on the lake had gone back to the boathouse. Through the grey, driving rain, however, the bl-ue-jerseyed figure could be seen still searching for what might well be the price of a man’s freedom.