A new flare-up of public interest in the fabulous treasures of Cocos Island, a tiny piece of land lost in the ocean 550 miles west of Panama City, made me turn to my own archives and fish from the very bottom of the essay about Sir's journey there, which was never published. Malcolm Campbell in 1926 (when he was still the most ordinary captain) and my own attempts to attract two well-known mediums of his time to the search.
I think the time has come for this, for the recently published book by Ralph Hancock and Julian E. Weston convincingly proves that somewhere in the waters of the Pacific Ocean the greatest treasure of our planet really lies.
It is generally accepted that three treasures are buried on Cocos Island; Sir Malcolm Campbell was of the same opinion in 1933, when we were in the same carriage of the Orient Express, heading from London to Budapest, where the International Congress of Newspapers was to take place. "King of Speed" (remember, the first in the world to overcome the three-hundred-mile speed limit) represented Lord Rotmere and the Daily Mail. Sir Malcolm presented me with his book My Greatest Adventure (1931) and, while the express train raced us across the European expanses, laid out all the facts he knew.
The first of the treasures was buried here by Captain Edward Davis, an accomplice of Damphier: in 1685, he completely blocked the Gulf of Panama and ransacked the Nicaraguan city of Leon to the ground. Here's what we read about it from Hancock and Weston:
“Captain Davis has made Cocos Island his home base. It was from here that pirates carried out armed raids on the coast of New Spain - from Bahia to Caliph. From time to time the ships of many other "free artists" of the sea joined the "Bachelor's Joy". All of them in turn came to the island to bury the loot here. Tons of silver bars, chests full of exquisite jewelry, sacks of gold bursting at the seams … Why hasn't a grain of this treasure been found so far?"
Captain Davis first "surrendered himself into the hands of Her Majesty," then, along with the entire pirate community, was amnestied by King James II and retired to Virginia. Waiting in the wings, a few years later he again went out to sea on a small boat, but could not resist, began to robbery and … disappeared in the most mysterious way.
The second treasure was buried here by the notorious captain Benito Bonito, nicknamed the Bloody Blade. This villain, who reigned in the waters of Central America in 1818-1820, is believed to have left not one, but several fantastic fortunes in the bowels of the Coconut.
In 1819, together with a gang of thugs, Benito landed on the mainland, captured a convoy with a cargo of gold, heading from Mexico City to Acapulco, and, returning to the island, buried it here. In 1821, the Blade finally found its end: it fell at the hands of its own mutinous sailors. But the main asset of this tiny tropical islet (which is only 4 miles long and 3 - wide) is the famous "treasures of Lima".
Promotional video:
In 1820, the Peruvian governor of the Spanish king was in great excitement: the rebel army of José de San Martín was about to invade the capital province. He hastily emptied the vaults of the State Mint, stripped the gold and silver from the churches and transported all this untold riches to the port of Callao, where they were loaded aboard the British merchant ship "Sweet Mary" under the command of the Scotsman, Captain Thompson. Under the terms of the contract, the latter was supposed to go to sea and drift there for a couple of months. In the event of a victory by the authorities, he was ordered to return to Lima, otherwise - to transfer the cargo to the Spanish mission in Panama.
Half a dozen people, including two priests, boarded the ship to guard the fabulous treasure. Before the "Sweet Mary" had time to go to sea, the very next morning, the sailors, distraught from the proximity of gold, dealt with the Spaniards and headed for Cocos Island. Captain Thompson hoped that he could bury the treasures here, and two years later return here with a new team and ship the cargo to England, but this plan was destined to come true only partially. "Sweet Mary" dropped anchor in one of the three bays of the northern coast and the boat, loaded to the very loopholes, made 11 voyages to the island.
Only the captain and his assistant, who handed out only a small share of the coins to the sailors, knew exactly where the wealth was buried. "Sweet Mary" weighed anchor and … was immediately stopped by a Spanish combat ship. The command of the latter, subjecting Thompson and the company to a thorough interrogation, sentenced the criminals to be hanged, having found them guilty of murder and robbery at sea. The verdict was carried out gradually - in other words, the innocent was hanged, and when it came to the captain and the mate, they made a deal with them. In exchange for his life, Thompson promised to point out the place where he hid Lima's treasures. No sooner had the expedition landed on the island than the British instantly disappeared into the jungle. After several days of vain hunting for the fugitives, the Spaniards sailed away empty-handed. Voluntary exiles lived here for several months, eating coconuts,bird eggs and small game, until in 1822 they were finally picked up by a British whaling ship, which stopped to replenish the supply of fresh water. Thompson and his assistant pretended to be shipwrecked, did not say a word about the treasures and, so as not to arouse suspicion, did not take with them a grain of gold. They never returned here, traces of them are lost somewhere in Costa Rica.
The history of Cocos Island from 1822 to the present is a bizarre interweaving of legends, facts and accounts of endless expeditions, both amateur and well-organized. In 1826, motivated by "exclusively romantic motives", Captain Malcolm Campbell moved here. One night, languishing with unbearable heat and fatigue, he tried in vain to sleep.
“A dog suddenly lying next to me,” we read in the book “My main adventure”, jumped up, burst out of the tent with a furious barking and stopped at the entrance, trying to frighten some invisible enemy with a wild growl. Both of my partners woke up. I took my revolver out of my holster and crept out, expecting to meet anyone - from a red-skinned Indian to a ghost, but … I saw no one. The sparks of a huge bonfire, built by us in the hope of driving away insects, frolicked in a merry dance against the velvet background of tropical darkness. The myriad stars above my head flickered with a shining scattering of gems. All this time the dog howled desperately at the entrance to the tent. Until the very last moment, I had the feeling that someone was watching my every move. When I returned, I lay motionless for about an hour, holding a revolver in my hand, but the dog calmed down,and soon my eyelids closed.
This was repeated three more times. We were unable to unravel the mystery of what was happening then and cannot do it now. As far as I know, only wild boars are found on the island, but you cannot suspect them of excessive sophistication with all the desire: a boar, when it breaks through the thickets, can be heard from a mile away. I have not seen any rats, nor snakes, nor reptiles: who, then, visited us at night?"
On the way to Budapest, Sir Malcolm noticed that he was far from spiritualism and did not believe in evil spirits, but … would never agree to spend one more night on Cocos Island. Moreover, all any more or less serious expeditions to the island in this century not only turned out to be ineffective, but also ended in some tragic incidents. His hypothesis, for all its romance, is rather prosaic.
There is a legend according to which the Incas, who once fled from the cruel conquistadors, found refuge on the island of Cocos. It is possible that their descendants live here to this day: they are mortally afraid of the white man, when ships appear, they immediately extinguish their fires and hide on the top of the highest mountain. I quite frankly expressed my doubts to Sir Malcolm on this score: a man could not have led a dog to such wild horror; her behavior rather indicates the presence of some supernatural forces here. And by the way, why not resort to the help of specialists who are in direct contact with the supernatural?
Sir Malcolm met my proposal with skepticism, but willingly gave the Admiralty map, which he used on the expedition.
Having pasted over the top of it to hide the name, I took the map to the London College of Psychic Science and conducted a seance with the medium, Miss Jekkelin, during which I transcribed everything she said.
“Are we talking about an island? She asked (the map was rolled up). - Does his name begin with the letter "x"? Or to"? This is related to the search … There is something hidden on the island. I see … three … no, four people are looking for something here. What great prospects! It seems to me that I myself am going up somewhere with them: we are looking for treasures!"
I began to gradually unfold the map from the bottom, and Miss Jekkelin - to find important points:
“Was there an inscription on this place? Does this have to do with Glastonbury? Maybe that's the name of some person?.."
This mistake, oddly enough, reassured me: the medium obviously did not "read" information from my memory telepathically.
Coco … Coconut! This name tells me a spirit-mediator! " - Miss Jekkelin picked up her "magic wand", led her along the map, and I began to mark the points above which the wand began to vibrate. Finally, its tip rested against the island peak - Mount Iglesias.
"People live there!" - she exclaimed. Was the legend about the descendants of the Incas hiding at the summit true? Well, the first session seemed very encouraging to me.
I rolled the card again. It was Mrs Eileen J. Garrett's turn. Plunging into a trance, she got in touch with one of her spirits, "Uvani", who, in turn, summoned "John King", who claimed that during his lifetime he himself robbed the seas under the name of Henry Morgan (this pirate really acquired in his time worldwide fame).
“King says it smells like an exciting adventure! - spoke "Uvani" through the lips of Mrs. Garrett. - It's a map. I can feel the island - the map takes me to it. John is glad to realize that the spirit of adventure has not yet left the hearts of people living on earth today. There are treasures there. He says he feels buried jewels. The island has served as a haven for pirates in the past. There have been victims of shipwrecks and fugitive aristocrats here. A lot is hidden - especially under the church, which can be reached by a path leading from the coast. The island is called Ko … Coconut! King says that it is connected to the mainland: this path was paved by an ancient civilization. Here lived the ancient in … inc … Well, in general, the people that King calls "white Indians." At one time there was also the center of the Aztec occult sect. The western coast of the island is a sheer cliff. In the old days, there was a port here: it was used by merchants who ply between South America and the islands of the Southern Archipelago.
The treasures are hidden in the western part of the island. They have not yet been exported. King says he will help track them down. This will give him great pleasure - at the same time he will remember his own life. Only the expedition should be carefully organized, its preparation should be taken seriously."
Let me remind you that all the time, while “John King” was talking, the roll was rolled up: it was difficult to suspect that it was a card. By the way, let's take a look and we are inside the roll …
So, there are two hills on Cocos Island: Mount Iglesias 2,788 feet high and an unnamed rock 1574 feet. Whether they are really of volcanic origin, I cannot say: neither Hancock nor Weston say anything about it. From one glance at the map, it is clear that you really cannot get to the island from the western side. Incidentally, and Mrs. Pollack, the clairvoyant, mentioned in his book by Sir Malcolm, argued that "the treasures are high - perhaps a few hundred feet above sea level."
I have no doubt that if I knew at least something about the pirates who landed on Coconut and their atrocities, "John King" would have told a lot of interesting things. Why, it's hard for me to explain. It was just noticed for a long time: in sessions of mediumship, the subconscious mind of the present is used as a guide. A person who is an expert in the matter in question, without realizing it, "pulls" additional information from the spirit; on the contrary, the ignorant brain remains empty. Sir Malcolm, for example, received very clear directions from Mrs. Pollack on where to look for the jewels. Due to lack of time, the famous traveler, however, returned home empty-handed, but the messages of the clairvoyant made such an impression on him that he promised to reward her, regardless of whether the treasures were found at her behest or in some other way.
Hoping to arrange a face-to-face meeting between "John King" and Sir Malcolm, I wrote the latter a letter, but …
“One of these days I'm going to return to Coconut and stay there until either I find the treasure, or I make sure that this task is beyond the power of a person,” he wrote arrogantly in his reply. This promise, however, remained on paper. In the 30s, Sir Malcolm did not want to "wake up another attack of the gold rush in the world", later other reasons prevented.
This means that the fantastic “treasures of Lima” (including the human-sized icon of the Mother of God inlaid with huge gems, made of pure gold) still rest on a tiny patch of land lost among the stormy waters of the Pacific Ocean.
Fodor, Nandor. Between two worlds