CHAPTEE Xn.
(1768-1770.)
Captain Eidd—Kew York Hotpital Founded—Fourth, or North, Churoh—
Varine Society Inoorporated-^Statne of Geoi^ m
Ordered Erected—Statue of Pitt.
The press teems with tales of treasure trove. Before the disasters
attending a bunt for Montezuma's wealth on Cocos Island are forgotten,
a treasure ship Is discovered on the Florida coast. Then a citizen of
Now Rochelle returns from an unsuccessful hunt of two years among the
South Sea Islands for 1^0,000,000 supposed to have been bidden by pirates.
Now comes the news that a number of New York business men are organls*
lng another expedition to hunt for the hidden hoards of our own Captain
Kidd. They are supplied wltb maps, too, and have apparently authentic
data on which to proceed. Some time In the early 70'b there arrived here
from San Francisco an old man whose name may not be mentioned here. He
had made a fortune In mining, and invented extensively In real estate In
Madison and Lexington avenues and Thirty-fltth street. He gave liberally
to charitable and religious institutions. One of hift benefactions wan a
church In that noighborhood, which he built and presented to the congrega¬
tion. He had numbered among his friends John Jacob Astor snd President
Zachary Taylor. A letter written to him by tbo latter, thanking him for
efforts In securing Tsylor^s election to the Presidency, has been frequently
read in some of the public schools or this city. Tbe old man Dnally suffered
business reverses* eventually becoming so old and poor that his friends had
him admitted to a home for aged men. To recompense one of these friends
he gave him a paper which purported to be a map of tbe place where Kidd's
treasure was burled. This map was given by Kidd's colored cook to Thomas
Clark* of New Haven. When Clark died he gave tho map to a daughter,
aged fifteen- She married and moved to Vermont In 1790. Dying In 1840,
she gave the map to her son, who was tbe Californian mentioned above. A
search was made for the treasure, which proved unsuccessful, but the topo¬
graphical description wss found to be accurate, so a second and more
iborough search may he made-
There Ib scarcely a spot on the coast between Cape Cod and Cape May.
however* which does not possess data apparently as authentic as that given
above, proving that KIdd's hosrd Is hidden somewhero nesr, and tbe ac¬
counts of Captain Kidd vary so widely that an authentic history of him is
of value.
Most people think Captain Kidd was a pirate, that he was tried on that
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