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I went therefore supperless to bed; but I
dreamed of Captain Kid's money, and the character
of my dream was quite surprising. I thought
that my house had fallen down in a high wind, as,
indeed, it was like enough to do, and that I was
sitting on a broken chair before the ruins, when
Squire Higginson made his appearance, looking,
however, like a dead man; for his face was pale,
and he was swathed about with a winding-sheet.
Instead of a gun he carried a spade in his hand;
and a great black pig followed at his heels in place
of his dog. He came directly towards me, and
looking me full in the face, said, “Sheppard Lee,
what are you doing here?” but I was struck with
fear, and could make no reply. With that, he
spoke again, saying, “The sheriff is coming to levy
on your property; get up, therefore, and follow
me.” So saying, he began to walk away, whistling
to the pig, which ran at his heels like a dog; and
I found myself impelled to follow him. He took
the path to the Owl-roost, and, arriving there, came
to a pause, saying, “Sheppard Lee, you are a poor
man, and eaten up with discontent; but I am your
friend, and you shall have all your wishes.” He

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then turned to the pig, which was rooting under a
gum-tree, and blowing his whistle, said, “Black
Pig, show me some game, or I'll trounce you;”
and immediately the pig began to run about snuffing,
and snorting, and coursing like a dog, so that
it was wonderful to behold him. At last the squire,
growing impatient, and finding fault with the animal's
ill success, for he discovered nothing, took a
whip from under his shroud, and fell to beating
him; after which the pig hunted more to his liking;
and, having coursed about us for a while, ran up to
the beech-tree, under which I had sat the day before,
and began with snout and hoof to tear up the
earth at its roots. “Oho!” said Squire Higginson,
“I never knew Black Pig to deceive me. We shall
have fine sport now.” Then, putting the spade
into my hands, he bade me dig, exhorting me to
be of good heart, for I was now to live a new life
altogether. But before I struck the spade into the
earth he drew a mark on the ground, to guide me,
and the figure was precisely that of a human grave.
Not daunted by this circumstance, for in my dream
it appeared natural enough, I began to dig; and
after throwing out the earth to a depth just equal
to the length of the spade, I discovered an iron
coffin, the lid of which was in three pieces, and,
not being fastened in any way, was therefore easily
removed. Judge of my transports when, having
lifted up the piece in the middle, I found the whole
coffin full of gold and silver, some in the form of
ancient coins, but the most of it in bars and ingots.

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I would have lifted up the whole coffin, and carried
it away at once, but that was impossible; I therefore
began to fill my pockets, my hat, my handkerchief,
and even my bosom; until the squire
bade me cease, telling me I should visit the treasure
at the same hour on the following night. I
then replaced the iron cover, and threw the earth
again into the grave, as the squire commanded;
and then leaving him, and running home as hard
as I could, in fear lest some one should see me, I
fell into a miry place, where I was weighed down
by the mass of gold I had about me, and smothered.
In the midst of my dying agonies I awoke, and
found that all was a dream.

Ah! how much torment a poor man has dreaming
of riches! The dream made me very melancholy;
and I went moping about all that day, wishing
myself anybody or any thing but that I was,
and hiding in the woods at the sight of any one
who chanced to pass by, for I thought everybody
was the sheriff. I went to bed the following night
in great disorder of spirit, and had no sooner closed
my eyes than I dreamed the same dream over
again. The squire made his appearance as before,
led me to the Owl-roost, and set the black pig
hunting until the grave was found. In a word, the
dream did not vary in a single particular from that I
had had the night before; and when I woke up the
next day, the surprise of such an occurrence filled
me with new and superstitious ideas, and I awaited
the next night with anxious expectations, resolved,

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if the dream should be repeated again, to go dig at
the place, and see what should come of it.

Remembering what old Jim had said in regard
to the full of the moon, I went to a neighbour's to
look at his almanack (for I had none of my own),
and discovered, to my unspeakable surprise and
agitation, though I had half known it before, that
the moon we then had would be at her full between
ten and eleven o'clock on the following
morning.

Such a coincidence betwixt the time of my
dreams and the proper period for hunting the treasure
(since at the full moon was the proper time),
was enough of itself to excite my expectations;
and the identity between the two visions was so
extraordinary, that I began to believe that the
treasure did really exist in the Owl-roost, which,
being very solitary, and yet conveniently accessible
from the river through the medium of the creek,
was one of the best hiding-places in the world, and
that I was the happy man destined to obtain it.

I went to bed accordingly the third night with
a strong persuasion that the vision would be repeated:
I was not disappointed. I found myself
again digging at the beech-roots, and scraping up
great wedges of gold and silver from the iron coffin.
What was remarkable in this dream, however,
was, that when I had picked up as much as I could
carry, the squire nodded to me, and said, “Now,
Sheppard Lee, you know the way to Captain Kid's
treasure, and you can come to-morrow night by

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yourself.” And what was further observable, I
did not dream of falling into a miry place on this
occasion, but arrived safely home, and beheld with
surprise and delight that my house, which I had
left in ruins, was standing up more beautiful than
ever it had been, newly painted from top to bottom,
and the pillars of the porch were gilded over, and
shining like gold.

While enjoying this agreeable prospect I awoke,
and such was the influence of the vision on my
mind, and the certain belief I now cherished that
the vast treasure was mine,—a whole coffinful of
gold and silver,—that I fell to shouting and dancing;
so that old Jim Jumble, who ran up into my chamber
to see what was the matter, was persuaded I
had gone mad, and began to blubber and scold, and
take on in the most diverting way in the world.

I pacified him as well as I could, but resolved
to keep my secret until I could surprise him with
the sight of my treasure, all collected together in
the house; and I proceeded without delay to make
such preparations as were proper for the coming
occasion. I took a spade and mattock, and carried
them to the hollow, where I hid them among the
bushes. But this I found difficult to do as secretly
as I wished; for old Jim, either from suspecting
what I was after, or believing I had lost my mind,
kept dogging me about; so that it was near midday
before I succeeded in giving him the slip, and
carrying my tools to the hollow.

p016-056

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