Confederate Gold
The Missing Treasure
by
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I must have finally slept, for the distant rumble of thunder roused me. The strong sunlight filtering through the grimy whitewashed windows showed the day to be well advanced. It was time to move. I threw the blanket into the closet, replaced the boards and closed the wall for the last time. Brushing myself down I thought of all that had happened since I had last worn Dr. Robertson's clothes and wondered what fate might have in store for me before I changed again. After a final inspection of the empty room I grabbed the hardtack, canteen and knife, cautiously pulled back the bolts and opened the door. The lethargy of those working on the wharf contrasted sharply with the energy of the sun's rays glistening and dancing off the river's surface like candlelit diamonds a tiara. From my vantage point at the top of the steps I counted the ships berthed close by. They were all there except one and, sadly, I knew she had slipped safely away while I slept. My gaze wandered slowly along the riverfront and on out to the horizon. Then I saw it. A distant plume of smoke interspersed with licking flames, announced a disaster in the shipping channel that led to the open sea. In that moment I knew it was not thunder that had aroused me. Gripped with foreboding, I hurled myself down the steps two at a time. "What's happened?" I shouted, grabbing the first person I saw and pointing in the direction of the smoke. "Don't know for sure," he said shrugging his shoulders before hefting his large metal hook into a bale of cotton. "Hear they've launched a cutter to investigate. Some say it's that ship that slipped out early this morning. May have hit one of those torpedoes we put in the channel three years ago to keep the damned Yankee navy out. We thought they'd all been cleared." Stunned I gazed at the spiraling smoke certain I was now the only one of the group left. I had done everything I could. There was nothing else to do here in Savannah.
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About the Book
On April 2nd 1865, with the Confederate states in turmoil, a train carrying the separate monies of both the Confederate Treasury and the Virginia banks left Richmond. Following a hazardous flight south, the train was eventually split, allowing the bank money to return to Richmond. On May 24th, the wagon train carrying this money north was hijacked near Washington, Georgia. While some of the stolen money was recovered, much remains missing to this day. Rumors abound as to where the thieves hid their loot. Some claim it was dumped in that portion of the Savannah River, which is now part of Thurmond Lake. There have been many attempts to find it with no success although occasional claims of finding a gold bar or a few coins have been made. Others suggest the money is hidden in Crawfordville at the home of then Vice President Alexander Stephens but again no evidence has been found. Confederate Gold deftly blends fact and fiction into an historical mystery. The novel is woven around past realities and encompasses the many aspects of human strengths: loyalty, patience and fortitude offset by human frailties: greed, lust and deceit. Adventure and suspense are combined against a backdrop of real and fictional characters. In the end the novel suggests an answer to the whereabouts of that missing treasure. If it is not in the Savannah River or at the home of Vice President Alexander Stephens, it could well be where Singleton states it to be.
About the Author
Bill Westhead was born in Clitheroe, England and educated at Rossall School and Leeds University. After serving in the British Army he worked in the textile industry in Wales, England and Northern Ireland before emigrating, with his family, to the United States in 1973. He reads extensively about the history of each area in which he lives. Knowing the history of the people or place, he claims, helps one understand their attitude and reasoning today. Small as well as large historical events can play a major role in shaping the attitude of people. Confederate Gold is Bill Westhead's third novel. He first published Once in Old Frederica Town in 1993 a story based on the founding of the state of Georgia. This was followed in 1999 by Clogs dealing with the effect of mechanization on the textile industry in his hometown at the time of the Industrial Revolution. He has also been published in Cricket and Animal Tales magazines as well as several trade journals.