Show BIGGEST NUGGET OF GOLD It Weighed Pounds and the flan Man Who Found It Has Just Died Ned in Obscurity A romance and tragedy were bound up In the life of ot Samuel H. H Napier lately h In charge of one of the time lumber supply stations of of Gilmour Gimour Hugh Hughson on of Ottawa which is situated in the wilds of the Gatineau district and whose hod body halt half eaten up by rats was found a a few Cew lays clays cays ago lie le died nil all ni alone Inthe in inthe inthe the heart of the Cnn Canadian pine forest with no other companion save a faithful faithful faith falth- ful CuI dog doS who attracted the lie attention of ot some visitors to the lonely spot where the hod body of his master la lay Mr r. r Napier was once n n. successful gold miner and occupied Important public pub pub- lie lic lc positions in this country In late lute years ears however however however- misfortunes crowded upon him and swept awa away his wealth forcing him In his old age to seek a livelihood as a keeper of oC stores In a a lumber camp far beyond the limits of or civilization in the Ottawa valley uley He lie was the discoverer of or the greatest nugget nugget nug nuS' get of or pure gold that the world has ever eyer known Traveling with it from Australia Australia Aus Aus- tala where he lie had found It I to London he lie became one of the lions lons of that capital and the guest u st of ot roal royalty Returning to New Brunswick he was soon oon elected a 3 member of or th the Provincial Parliament Parlament for his native count county of Glou Glou- c cester ster The stor story of hl his great find Is one for Cor the latter day later day novelist but with the Important feature that It Is Is' strictly Is-strictly true and a matter of ot history In some respects respects In 12 1852 the world was as stirred b by the reports of great fortunes being won b by bythe bythe the pick In the gold sold fields of Australia Napier was then a a. a purser of or n a l clipper sailing ship plying between Liverpool and Melbourne He left seafaring life and joined hl his brother at the diggings The brothers brothers' brother claim caim was not a large lal'S one only thirty six feet square but In It was waR hidden a treasure that made even the time eyes of the Queen of En England land sparkle On August their find was made mad which gave fortune to the Napier brothers brothe and it I was WIL in th the year ear 1857 The circumstances are arc best given in Napier's Napier's Na Nn- piers pier's own language as related to Mr 11 Payne Pae the Secretary to the tho Minister of oC Railways here by hy Napier before he went up to th the lumber camps last spring springe We e c had got t down Gown to the pipe clay pipe cay bottom which arl ed the bed of or an extinct river and was the chief characteristic of or all al alluvial diggings in Au Aus Aumi- Australia when my pick struck something hard I knew at once that It was not nota a boulder There was not the same ame ring to it It struck dead Scraping the dirt away I caught sight of or the bright yellow color of pure gold I knew at once that It was wag as a nu nugget ct but but Its Is size I could not estimate This happened about 10 o'clock In the morning morinG Were ere you jou ou excited Excited I cannot de describe to you how excited I r was especially when th the nu nugget el was waa at last got free It was all al I could do to lift It it and I saw that it I was solid pure gold old It I was two tso feet four Inches lon long by ten inches wide ld and from one and a n. half halt to three and three quarters three thick It I weighed exactly ex ex- acty HG pounds four ounces and amI three pennyweights and vas waa actually the time largest and finest nugget of pure pun gold ever found anywhere In the world One or two others were discovered that weighed as much but they were ere not solid or pure goldAt goldAt goldAt gold At dusk we secret secretly transferred the time lump to our tent and at al midnight midnight mid mid- nl night ht when all un was quiet we made a hole six six feet deep In the middle of or the tent Into this we laid th the ne g and filled filed In the earth with wih great grent care so o oas as not to leave a trace trac of or our work Then only oni did lid we feel safe No one had seen the nugget nugget save ourselves ourselves-m ourselves ourselves-my my brother and I and I-and and It I was now burled buried se securely so- so curel from discovery Wo We e went ren to work as a usua usual ever every day and left lef our tent open to avoid exciting suspicion in the tIme camp For three months It lay thus burled buried and at th time the end of oC that time we washed out omit our claim We Ve found a number of other nu nuggets gets In the same hole one which weighed eight pounds Then we ve quit the diggings s and soon landed our prize In the bank at Melbourne tind all al was wa at an nn end The rime news then spread like wildfire and thousands thou thou- thousands sands ands ru rushed hed to the gold old fields We Ve named the famous nU nugget get the time Blanche Barcay Barclay In honor of the beautiful daughter of o the Governor and by that name Is the ode model now in the British mU museum eum known The bank gave us usan usan an Insurance of for th time the safe delivery delvery of oC the nugget In London and we set sail sl for England On our arrival we wr were made lions lons of ofIn Jn In in London The Queen sent nt for us usand usand usand and we wo dined at Buckingham palace Her Majesty and the Prince Consort re received received re- re us UK most graciously and amid the time Prince of Wales ales now nom the Kin King then a lad lami ladof of 16 showed n a vcr very deep Interest In iii the big mass mas of or gold and no wonder for tor forIt forit torI It I was one of or the prettiest t eights one could to see It I was 37 karats karts fine or as near nh absolutely pure gold as it Is possible to get et It IU Then it I was put on exhibition at the time Cr Crystal palace for which pr le privilege e we were paid a n. week week- This lasted for Cor some Bome three months month during which time Sir Roderick Murchison had a cast made mad of the nugget for Cor the British museum The work vork was so perfectly per per- perfectly done by hy nn on Italian that you ou cold col not tell one from frum the other until you ou lifted them Final Finally we sold Md the time nugget for It I was as however not w worth rth i imore more than Intrinsically but bel being the largest and finest gold nugget nug et ever eve I found we got ot 1000 more for It than Its rea real value alue After Acer a n. time It passed Into the hands of the Bank Dank of England the intention being to keep it for tor the British museum But nut after that time a new general manager or directorate came In tim In and to the tho surprise and regret of oC ever every one the time nugget was WI molted melted down own and turned into mone money It I yielded sovereigns and that was the time last of oC the I famous nU nugget Ottawa Ottawa ence St. St St Louis Luis Globe I |