COCOS— A TALE OF TREASURE 251 



August Gissler, German by birth, sailor by 

 choice, first heard of the Treasure of Cocos in 1880. 

 He has written a book on his wanderings in search 

 of clues and his adventures on the island, which, 

 when published, will give in greater detail than is 

 possible here, the story of a lure that has drawn men 

 — and women — from all walks of life, from a hun- 

 dred different ports, that has made the name of 

 Cocos known over the world, and that, in the case 

 of Captain Gissler, was strong enough to hold him 

 during a great part of his life. He has seen expe- 

 ditions come and go during his sojourn, and is 

 qualified to speak with authority of the effects on 

 the human animal of those potent words "buried 

 treasure." It is to his generosity that I am in- 

 debted for the use here of some of the material from 

 his own book. 



This chapter pretends to be no more than an ap- 

 proximation of the facts, for many of the tales of 

 Cocos have more than one version, and it is hard to 

 sift out the truth in those cases where completely 

 trustworthy records do not exist, — or are, at any 

 rate, undiscoverable ; its chief interest must lie in 

 the story of the man whose pluck and persever- 

 ance kept him to his self-appointed task in the face 

 of every obstacle and discouragement. 



Buried treasure! That is surely the most ro- 

 mantic phrase in the language, warranted to bring 

 a sparkle to the dullest eye, and to quicken the 

 pulse of a paralytic. Quite baseless rumors of such 

 hoards have sufficed to cause excited stampedes, 

 so it is not surprising that the tale of the cache on 



