| 149 | 150 | 151 | 152 | 153 |
| 1 | 90 | 180 | 269 | 359 |
|
settings themselves, which we picked out from among the other gold,
appeared to have been beaten up with hammers, as if to prevent
identification. Besides all this, there was a vast quantity of solid
gold ornaments;--nearly two hundred massive finger and earrings;--rich
chains--thirty of these, if I remember;--eighty-three very large and
heavy crucifixes;--five gold censers of great value;--a prodigious
golden punch bowl, ornamented with richly chased vine-leaves and
Bacchanalian figures; with two sword-handles exquisitely embossed, and
many other smaller articles which I cannot recollect. The weight of
these valuables exceeded three hundred and fifty pounds avoirdupois; and
in this estimate I have not included one hundred and ninety-seven superb
gold watches; three of the number being worth each five hundred dollars,
if one. Many of them were very old, and as time keepers valueless; the
works having suffered, more or less, from corrosion--but all were richly
jewelled and in cases of great worth. We estimated the entire contents
of the chest, that night, at a million and a half of dollars; and upon
the subsequent disposal of the 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, subsided, Legrand,
who saw that I was dying with impatience for a solution of this
most extraordinary riddle, entered into a full detail of all the
circumstances connected with it.
"You remember;" said he, "the night when I handed you the rough sketch I
151
Page
Quick Jump
|