Robert Louis Stevenson's Grandson Finds Buried Treasure

1910

SAN FRANCISCO — When little Louis Osborne, the eight-year-old son of Lloyd Osborne, novelist and stepson of Robert Louis Stevenson, armed himself with his midget shovel and went out on a sand hill near his home here to dig a few days ago he had visions of finding treasure. This is not an unusual thing for the lad, for he has not heard his father's illustrious stepfather talked about without getting some spirit of adventure of the author of "Treasure Island" fixed in his mind.

So while Louis dug he hummed "Sixteen Men on a Dead Man's Chest, Yo! Ho! Ho! and a Bottle of Rum."

The lad stopped digging because his shovel had encountered an obstruction. Tested carefully the thing that resisted proved to be metal. Then Louis dug more furiously than ever. In a few moments he unearthed a metal box. And, sure enough, it contained treasure. Opening it hastily, the boy found 2,600 shares of valuable stock, deeds to city property, other valuable papers and several empty ring boxes.

Of course, the boy did not realize the value of the property, but he knew the papers must be worth a great deal or they would not have been placed in such a secure box. So he hastily carried his find to his mother, who turned the property over to the police. The papers belong to Augustus Imbrie, a wealthy man whose house is closed and who is out of the city. The police think robbers ransacked the Imbrie residence and, after taking money and jewelry from the box, buried it.

Miser Swimm Dying — Buried $78,000, No One Knows Where

Ohio, 1895

MISER SWIMM DYING.

Unable to Tell Where His Money Is Concealed.

HE BURIED IT SOMEWHERE.

Suffering From a Stroke of Paralysis Which Will Undoubtedly Cause His Death, He Endeavors by Signs to Tell Where It Is Planted but Can Not. How He Surprised a Kenton Attorney.

COLUMBUS, O., April 8. — In his dying hours the mind of the aged miser, John Swimm, turns back toward his hidden treasures. The stroke of paralysis he suffered a few days ago, however, renders him speechless, and he can not tell where the fortune is buried. He tries to talk of it, and makes signs to indicate the location of the place where the money lies, but no one can understand him. The indications are that be will die without revealing the hiding place of his hoarded wealth. The only things he can leave behind him for the benefit of others, under the present circumstances, are his farm lands, valued at from $15,000 to $30,000.

Planted His Hoard.

It is undoubtedly a fact that the old man has planted considerable wealth. Some place in this wide domain of Uncle Sam's there might be found $78,000 that was placed underneath the ground by the miser. There is reliable foundation for the statement that he has buried this amount. The authority for it is General M. B. Walker of Kenton, a well known attorney, and a man of the utmost veracity. The story goes back to about 15 years ago. Swimm was then on one of his tramps about the country. At Kenton one night be was sleeping in a fence corner, and on awakening the next morning

Claimed to Have Been Robbed

of $10,000 during the night. He caused the arrest of two men who were subsequently acquitted. Then these two men in turn sued the miser for $10,000 damages for false arrest. General Walker was the attorney for Swimm. During the trial of the case one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs sarcastically remarked that he did not believe the old codger had 10,000 cents, let alone $10,000. This angered Swimm, and later in the day, in General Walker's office, he demonstrated to his attorney that he not only had $10,000 but considerable more. He dug down into the lining of his clothes and

Produced $78,000

in greenbacks. General Walker not only saw the money, but had it in We hands. At the time Swimm told the general that be intended to bury the money and take no more chances of being robbed. Shortly afterward he left the place, and a week later General Walker received a letter from the old man in which he stated the small fortune had been duly planted. It is believed the treasure is somewhere in Indiana.