Another buried treasure?

[Shorty]

This story was told to me 30 years ago in Texas, by a man who may have had an ulterior motive; he sold metal detectors.  :roll:
He said that, when Maximillion was deposed in Mexico, he divided his treasury into two parts.  One half, he sent to the coast, and as insurance, he sent the other half overland north into Texas.  The part that went to the coast was intercepted, but the other half was never found.  Now, this guy claimed that he found a detector reading on private property near, I think Fort McKavett (sp?) that was as big as a car and very deep.  He said that he could not get permission to dig.  
Anybody ever hear such a story?  Was this guy just full of it?

Another.  Anybody know the tale of the lost silver in the Organ Mountains (or is it White Sands) of New Mexico?

[Capt Hamp Cox]

Shorty,

Lots and lots of storys out there on this subject.  Probably one of the more entertaining is at http://www.shout.net/~bigred/JesJames.htm.  An excerpt follows:

"The American Civil War "officially" ended at about the time General Robert Lee surrendered at Appomattox in April of 1865, but according to Del Schrader (Jesse James Was One Of His Names by Del Schrader, with Jesse James III. Arcadia, California: Santa Anita Press, 1975. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 74-33962), Nashville, Tennessee continued on as the underground capital of the Confederacy for nineteen more years. And as for the secret society known as "The Knights of the Golden Circle", it did not apparently disband until 1916.

"After Lee's surrender, a force of 2,000 Missouri cavalry and "a full regiment of Confederate-led Red Bone Indians from East Texas," led by General J.O. Shelby, headed south, into Mexico. (Schrader) They naturally went to join with their ally, the European puppet Emperor Maximilian. This force became threatened by Mexican patriots, followers of Benito Juarez. Sent to rescue Shelby's troops, says Schrader, was an elite force led by Colonels Quantrill and Jesse James.

"While in Mexico, Jesse James reportedly was introduced to Emperor Maximilian. James was enlisted to help the dictator smuggle a huge treasure out of his tottering empire. Included in the treasure were jewels and heirlooms of the House of Hapsburg, Aztec gold hidden, long ago, from the Conquistadores by servants of Montezuma, and a great quantity of other gold on loan to the emperor from the House of Rothschild.

"James and his band began moving the treasure northward. Shortly thereafter, they learned that Emperor Maximilian had apparently been executed by Juarez's patriots. But the emperor, says Schrader, had not been killed. Shot, with others, by firing squad, the bodies were loaded onto carts and hauled away for burial. At the gravesites, a group of Red Bone indians had infiltrated the burial ceremony. When they noticed signs of life in the emperor, the indians finagled the Mexicans into allowing them to give the "dead" dictator a separate burial. Maximilian was nursed back to health, and made his way to East Texas, where he was met by Jesse James.

"Grateful for the help James had given him, Maximilian gave him $5 million in gold. The Knights of the Golden Circle received an additional contribution of $12.5 million, says Schrader.

"Reportedly, Jesse James persuaded Maximilian to change his name to John Maxi and live undercover in America. James also reportedly went to Europe, found a look-alike of Maximilian's wife, Charlotta, and then smuggled the real Charlotta back to the U.S. There, she became re-united with her husband. Now buried in Maximilian's grave in Vienna, says Schrader, is a German seaman who had died in a gunfight in Vera Cruz. "Switching bodies is a subterfuge as old as mankind, and the Golden Circle certainly had no monopoly on this practice." (Schrader)"

[williamlayton]

Another unknown if it is true or whatever, but interesting tale.
My brother-in-law grew up on a ranch just outta Lampasas. During his youth he was wandering the lands around home, lookin fer arrowheads and such. In a gully on a neighbors ranch he fond a large boulder, well rather large, and on this boulder was a map. It had some signs and a picture of 7 mules. The date inscribed was from the 16 or 17 hundereds.
Jim, my b-i-l, asked the neighbor about the stone and the old woman said that her father had removed the stone from a field, cause he was tired of plowin around it, and hauled it to the gully and dumped it.
According to all he could gather, my b-i-l that is, the map showed the location of seven mules of gold buried by the Mexicans who were hauling it, as they were threatened by the Commanche.
Now boys I seen that stone and the map. It was just as I described, bout 35 year ago.
There is more legend to this story than I can remember, but I seen tha stone.
Blessings

[Capt Hamp Cox]

Now boys I seen that stone and the map. It was just as I described, bout 35 year ago.

Had me goin' there fer a while oldwilliamlayton, til ya made that statement.  We all know ya caint 'member whatcha done yestidy, much less sumthin 35 years ago.  'Sides, how do you know those was mules 'stead a donkeys?  Seven donkey loadsa gold ain't but 'bout half as much as seven mule loads.  Coulda even been pack dogs and that be even less. :grin:

I live on what was my maternal grandparents' place just west of Johnson City.  Over the years, there have been numerous "treasure hunters" show up with supposedly authentic maps indicating our bluff overlooking the Pedernales River was the location where a load of silver being transported on mules was stashed when Indians attacked.  Don't think any silver was ever found, but it has always made for an interesting story.

[williamlayton]

Them ptchures was definately mules, boys I can tell tha difference, what I seen was mule pictures. Dogs? Naw, that is a food line.
Blessings