The Park in Muskau 129 



and for which he had but little time to spare. 

 Under the peculiar circumstances of that time, 

 his request could hardly be refused, but, being 

 rather uneasy about the unknown intentions of 

 the stranger, a reliable person was sought out and 

 directed to make an exact report of whatever 

 happened. This individual afterwards made the 

 following report: The strange officer began by 

 interrogating his guide at great length concern- 

 ing all the conditions of this place, and at length 

 disclosed, but with strict injunctions of the great- 

 est secrecy, that he was here with the intention 

 of discovering a considerable treasure, of whose 

 existence and probable situation he possessed the 

 fullest particulars. He had been born in Moscow 

 and his Slav forefathers had in former times pos- 

 sessed the town of Muskau, whose name for- 

 merly was pronounced in the same manner and 

 had the same Slav origin as Moscow.' Their cas- 

 tle used to stand in the forest, and a watch-tower 

 stood on the high hill already mentioned. 



Upon this he showed the man a mouldy but 

 yet decipherable plan of the main features of the 

 region, and by pacing off in accordance with the 

 indications thereon, he really discovered the hith- 

 erto quite unknown remains of a cellar, and, about 

 forty paces farther on, those of a filled-up well, 

 where they began at once to dig, but could dis- 

 cover nothing but a few small coins which were 



' It is rather striking that the attribution of a Slav origin is fairly cor- 

 roborated by an old manuscript chronicle of the town, in which it is 

 written as Moska. On the land charts it is also named in the same way. 



