Confederate Gold and Silver

by Peter F. Warren

  Giggling to herself at first and then unable to hold it any longer, Jayne burst out laughing. Her laughter drew smiles from those who walked by on the sidewalk. “Paul, you know Chick’s right. He and I have talked about this since we were digging back in North Carolina. You seem to have a special talent at seeing through the fog which surrounds all of these clues you have uncovered. It’s almost like you know what the important details are and which ones are the superfluous ones. I want to know how you do it.”

  “Don’t know what to tell you. I didn’t know I was doing anything different than what you two were doing. Maybe being a state cop for all of those years makes me look at things differently. Who knows?”

  “Maybe.”

  They soon got back on track and walked the short distance to a nearby tourist kiosk. There Paul obtained three colored maps of the city, the same ones tourists often use when they want to find the various Civil War sites, museums, restaurants and shops which are spread out across Charleston. They were fortunate enough to have obtained the maps from a longtime resident of the city. She was able to tell them of a few other locations to check for cannons which had been put on display. “Seems everywhere you go in Charleston we have cannons. Tourists like you folks love them. Hope you find the right one to have your picture taken next to.”

  Sitting down on a bench at one of the city’s bus stops, Paul pulled a blue Sharpie pen from his pants pocket and dissected each of the maps into three fairly equal sections. He did so by drawing blue lines across the maps. “Chick, you take this piece of the pie, the piece up around Park Circle and south as far as Cosgrove Avenue; Jayne you take the middle piece, the piece which starts with Cosgrove as the northern most point and go south as far as where Hampton Park is on the west side of the city and as far east where Highway 17 enters the city. I’ll take the last piece, from where Jayne stops here at Hampton Park and I will finish down by the harbor. Call me when you find something and I’ll keep a running tally on what we find. I’ll call you both later and we will meet somewhere for a late lunch or whatever.”

  Walking the short distance back down Meeting Street, Paul decided he would start back at the park where Donna and he had located the three cannons the previous day. He wanted to start there so he could make sure in his excitement from the previous day he had not missed any other cannons in the area. Walking through the park, he could not help but notice the tourists who were having their pictures taken next to the three cannons. The very same cannons inscribed with the markings Donna had accidently found for him. A large church group held up a small sign identifying their church as they stood next to the cannon inscribed with the number sixteen. The church group was all smiles as their pastor took several photos of them surrounding the cannon. Nearby, the cannon marked with the number ten was patiently letting three young children sit on it as their father took digital pictures to document their visit to Charleston. Filling in the sheet of paper he was working with to log the locations of the cannons they had found, he could not help but smile at the sight of the cannons being used as props in the tourist’s pictures. “If only they knew how much money they were standing next to. They all would be amazed.”

  Paul soon left the park after finding he had not missed any other cannons the previous day. Now he started to search his section on the map for any others. He walked around for almost two hours trying to find any types of cannons, but found none. As he walked, he took a moment to stop at a neighborhood deli on Queen Street to use the bathroom and to buy a bottle of water to quench his thirst. Taking his first sip of water, his cell phone announced an incoming call from Chick.

  “Chick, talk to me!”

  “I found two, one good and one bad. I found one marked with the number eighteen and one marked with the number three.” Chick described the locations where he had found them. They were in a small park near the east side of the city, just off of Oakwood Avenue.

  “Nice work, but listen. I know we talked about telling me where you find them, but now that I have thought about it, don’t do that. Just tell me the numbers you find on them. I know what it is you are after. I don’t mean to sound paranoid, but you never know who might be listening. Let’s not tip our hands to someone who might be. And one more thing, just keep some rough notes on where you find them. Later in the day we will compare our notes with each other. From now on just call me with the numbers you find.”

  “OK, I’ve got you. Good idea.”

  “Chick, number three is not a bad one. The way I look at it, it’s one we wanted to find no matter what. Now we only need to find seven more. Any number is a good number for us, but I know what you meant when you said a bad one.”

  “Understand. Hey, did you hear from Jayne yet?”

  “Nope, not yet. Keep hunting and I’ll talk to you soon. Hey, nice find with those two. Good job!”

  For the next forty-five minutes, Paul scoured several places on his section of the map. He had just finished checking two nearby city parks for the still to be found cannons when he found cannons number seven and twelve by pure accident. He noticed them as he was walking to another nearby park. The two cannons stood guard at the entrance to a small private cemetery located near the intersection of Broad and Logan Streets. It was obvious they had been there for many years. The cemetery was one which had been neglected for far too long as it was easy to see the grounds had not been cared for recently. Throwing a couple of dead tree branches out of the way made it possible for him to read the inscriptions on the barrels of the two Napoleon style cannons. After logging the cannons on his form, he walked a short distance into the cemetery to survey the neglect it had received. “I guess either this place has fallen victim to budget cuts or else no one buried here is important enough to have someone care for its upkeep.” In the brief time he spent in the cemetery, he saw several headstones marking the graves of men and women who had served the United States in several different wars. “I’ll make sure we take care of this problem real soon.”

  As excited as Chick had been when he called with the news of the cannons he had found, Paul found himself just as excited when he phoned Chick and Jayne with the news of the two cannons he had found. “We are down to five we have to find. We are doing fabulous so far.”

  As Paul gave Jayne the good news, she also gave him equally good news. It was news he misunderstood at first. “Paul, we really only need to find four more.”

  “Jayne, is your math that bad? We had twelve we had to find. We reduced the number by three from the ones Donna and I found yesterday, so that’s nine left to find. Chick and I have found a total of four more this morning so that means we have five left to find. What’s so hard to figure out?”

  “Paul, when you called me I was just about to call you. I found another one. It’s been marked with the number thirty, it’s on . . . .”

  Quickly he cut her off, explaining to her why he had. “Jayne, I’m sorry for doubting your math skills, I apologize. Guess I just got caught up in the moment. Listen, I should have called you earlier about this, but just tell me the numbers you find and you keep notes on where they are. I’ll explain the rest later, OK?”

  “OK, I think I know what you mean, but I got it for now. Something like loose lips sink ships, correct?”

  “Exactly. Hey, what kind of shape is it in?”

  “Looks fine, strong and black just as he said it would. Right now a young mother is holding her child on it while daddy takes their picture. If only they knew, huh? I’ll go tell them not to dent it while they are having their pictures taken.”

  “Yeah, do that. Nice find by the way, I’ll call you later.”

  By mid-afternoon Paul had not found any other of the four still to be located cannons. Neither had Jayne or Chick. At least not ones he had been told about as his cell phone had not rung to tell him any more good news. Taking a break after being in the sun for most of the day, he sat in the shade pro
vided by a small maple tree in front of one of the many restaurants in the city’s entertainment district. It was one of the neighborhoods the city had revitalized several years ago. Now tourists flocked to the area to spend their vacation dollars on overpriced sweatshirts and expensive dinners. Sitting in the shade, he called Jayne on her cell phone for an update.

  “Hey, Paul.”

  “I take it no news is bad news. Am I correct?”

  “Unfortunately you are. I’ve checked everywhere I could think and then some, but no dice. I don’t know where else to check in my section. What’s the plan from here?”

  “I’ll call Chick and tell him we are done for the day. Let’s meet back in front of the hotel and then we can pick one of the bars near there to have a beer at. I’m hot and thirsty, I need a beer. I’ll see you there.”

  “Sounds good to me. I’ll be there in a few.”

  Calling Chick to give him the news, Paul found he was as tired as they both were when he answered the call. “If you had not called me, I was stopping for a beer without you. My feet are killing me from all of this walking. I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes, don’t start without me!”

  After meeting back in front of their hotel, the first order of business was to sit and rest. They did so at The Blue and Grey Saloon, an upscale neighborhood bar close to their hotel. Hot and thirsty, they each quickly drained two ice cold mugs of PBR. Drinking their beers, they exchanged notes on where they had found the cannons. “Here are some photos of the one I found, it looks like it could fire a cannon ball right now. It’s still in great shape.” Donna showed them the digital photos she had taken with her Nikon camera.

  After taking a strong hit from his third beer, Paul set the frosted glass mug down on the bar. It was a long wooden bar which had been lacquered with far too many coats of polyurethane. The saloon was designed to cater to the tourists who came to Charleston to visit Fort Sumter and the other Civil War attractions in the area. In both the bar and dining area hung numerous paintings and pictures of what Fort Sumter had looked like after the cannon firing had ceased upon the tiny fort. Several facsimile Civil War uniforms and other curios decorated both areas of the saloon.

  “Well, we made some progress today, but we didn’t find all of them. Let’s try it again tomorrow and see what happens, then we will make our move to the mayor’s office.” Chick nodded his approval as he downed his last mouthful of PBR from the mug he had been drinking from. Trying to get the barmaid’s attention so she could order another round of beers for them, Jayne briefly looked at Paul and nodded her approval as well. She was still tired and hot from a long day of walking. Now she was just ready to relax in the air conditioned saloon for the balance of the evening. Her companions offered no protest when she told them she was not planning on moving from her bar stool for a while. Her plan had just become their plan as well.

  They had become pretty comfortable sitting around and just talking after chasing down Civil War cannons on a warm November afternoon. They had not relaxed like this together since they first teamed up to hunt for the missing money. It was a moment which was far overdue.

  Fall, 1863

  26

  The Yankees Are Coming.

  “Let me beseech you to lay aside all rancor and bring about a

  consummation devoutly to be wished—a reunited country.”

  Confederate President Jefferson Davis, CSA, 1888

  The next morning Francis and his men had barely woken up when Confederate soldiers galloping through the city streets first sounded the alarm. Their cries warned everyone, soldiers and residents alike, that Union troops had been found camped twenty-five miles north of Charleston and just southwest of Georgetown. Charleston had lived in fear of Union reprisals since the start of the war and now the residents feared the worst was about to happen to them.

  Hearing the news, Francis quickly gathered his men together in the warehouse and prepared them for the return trip to the Allston family cemetery. They needed to try and retrieve the money they had buried there. He knew he was taking a risk making the trip, but his options were limited. As risky as it was to travel back to retrieve the money, it was even riskier leaving the rest of the gold and silver hidden in the damaged cannons. Now they had to move quickly or risk being trapped in Charleston. Before leaving the warehouse, he quickly inspected the cannons one last time. He prayed the money would remain safe until he could return to move it further south.

  As he pushed his men towards the outskirts of the city, Francis knew the trip to the cemetery would now be a difficult one to make because of the presence of Union soldiers in the area. He also knew the return trip to Charleston would likely be an even riskier trip to make as their slow moving wagon would be loaded down with gold and silver from the cemetery. He now worried about being overrun by Union cavalry and the money being lost. “I have to risk it. I have no other choice.”

  As they reached the outskirts of the city, Francis impulsively called them to a halt. “Men, this is going to be a difficult trip to make. I fully expect we will be attacked at some point. Somehow, and at all costs, we need to get the money we have buried in the cemetery back to the warehouse. Now listen carefully to what I have to say. If something should happen to me, I have written a letter to President Davis. It is in one my saddlebags, within a liquor bottle that has a likeness of President Washington on it. Also, in my saddlebags are letters written by President Davis and Treasury Secretary Memminger, they are in a second bottle. Extra copies of those two letters are within two envelopes inside my saddlebags as well. If I should die, or if I am no longer able to travel with you, take all of those letters with you as they will give you free and unobstructed passage across the South. Most importantly though, make sure the letter gets delivered to President Davis with my sincere apologies for not delivering it in person to him. If you get the money back to Charleston without me, I want you to hide the money from the cemetery in the cannons like we did with the rest of the money. Hide it just like we did last night. My letter to President Davis explains how we have protected it and where it is stored. Do not worry about me if I shall fall injured or dead; just worry about protecting the gold and silver. Promise me you will do so!”

  His remaining men, Sgts. Stine, Davis, Banks, and Odom, now truly realized the seriousness of the danger they faced. They had come to admire Francis as he had done everything they had done and even more. As they had worked in the heat, so had he; if they went without food, so had he. Other leaders they had served under would never have endured the same hardships with them as he had. Collectively they nodded their heads to show him they understood his orders, but individually each of them knew they would not let him fall into the hands of the hated Yankees. Injured or dead, he was their leader. They were determined not to fail him or to lose him.

  Riding northeast again, they rode together at first as they left the outskirts of Charleston. Sgt. Odom now drove the single wagon they were bringing back to the cemetery. His horse, a four year old grey stallion, trotted along behind the wagon, securely tied to the back of it. At first, they all rode their horses near the wagon as they were still close to the relative safety that Charleston afforded them. Shortly after leaving the area around the city, Francis sent Stine out on their west flank, Banks out in front of them, and Davis off to the east as they made their way towards Georgetown. As an experienced cavalry officer he knew what tactics to employ to protect his main body. On this occasion it was to protect the wagon they would need to bring the gold and silver back to Charleston in. He had always felt safer with scouts out protecting his main body, but in this case it was especially important to do for the overall safety of his small group of men. The sets of three eyes riding away from the wagon would give them a chance to make a stand and fight. It would also give them time to hide. The strength of the Union troops they encountered would decide which it would be. “The first sign of trouble you need to get back to us as soo
n as you can. We will have a much better chance of winning a fight and staying alive if we are all together. Now ride, but be alert!”

  The three sergeants had been out protecting their advance towards Georgetown for almost four hours when Odom heard Banks’ distinct whistle. Almost at the same time, Davis and Stine could be seen approaching at a fast gallop. They each had seen the threat approaching them.

  “Captain, Yankees!” Banks yelled, trying to catch his breath. “Yankees, four or five of them on horses, headed right this way, no more than two miles from here. They’s headed this way, but right casually mind you. They don’t look like they’s fixin’ to fight as they’s just riding along right casually, but they’s coming this way. I looked, but I didn’t see no others following after them.”

  Banks had just finished giving Francis the news of the approaching Union soldiers when Davis rode up next to them. “Captain, I ain’t one to run away from a fight, but I know what ya want to get done with the gold and silver. I seen an old road, not much more than a path really, over yonder off to the east a bit. If we hurry we can get down in there and make use of the pine trees to hide from view. It’s a thick stand of trees, it aught to give us some good cover.”