Hola amigos,
Springfield wrote
This is hearsay from Higham alleging Petratch had proof, but said proof is not available to the public for confirmation. A strong opening, but a weak finish.
A fair observer would ask why the proof is not available. If it were available, the LDM legend would benefit greatly. Its absence moves the claim from 'possible evidence' to 'unsubstantiated rumor'.
I hate to keep raining on your parade Oro, but maybe the reason that Waltz's 'richest mine in the world' is still lost is because it never existed as he is alleged to have claimed.
No rain on my parade amigo, you are approaching this topic with the attitude of a court case, which it is very far from being. You also have your own theory, which may be coloring your view of the evidence. The point of the earlier post was that there is documentary evidence that others had seen proof of Waltz having shipped a large amount of gold, $250,000. That evidence may or may
not still exist, because
we are relative latecomers to the scene, and this is the very sort of evidence that survives the least well, and is very often secreted away by other treasure hunters never to be shared with the public.
Cactusjumper wrote
IMHO, there is a great deal more "proof" in the story I posted here about my family finding a treasure in the Supe's. At least there is historical documentation for most of the story. In the end, "...it is a good story don't you think."?
There is no historical confirmation of the minor or major details of the $250,000 in shipped gold ore. It seems to be a complete fabrication from start to finish. It's not so much that it didn't happen, as it could not have happened.
One of my sources for information on the above story, was a phone conversation with Dr. Robert J. Chandler from Wells Fargo in San Francisco. Some information can be found about him here:
Dr. Robert J. Chandler-Through History with Wells Fargo. Host:Len Rothman - Economic Round Table of San Francisco (San Francisco, CA) - Meetup
Take care,
I recall very well the earlier conversation, and the one I had with Mr Chandler as well; in which he informed me
that Wells Fargo has ZERO records from Arizona for that time period. Not that they never had any such records at any time, nor that they never had any records of Jacob Waltz shipping ore, for they have lost ALL their records for the time period, for Arizona, period. That is not exactly proof that Waltz did not ship the ore.
You have now classed the ore shipment as "complete fabrication" simply because the records which others reportedly have seen, are not now available for we the public to view and study. One might as well say that Coronado never entered the US land area for we have no trace that he ever did so, only written stories. For that matter, even in our Christian bible, we do not have any of the original texts, at best early copies only. As a famous person once said, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
I would also say that you are taking "it is a good story.." quite out of the way intended, for many true histories make a good story. Custer's career reads like an adventure novel, for example, and it is a well documented career. Still a good story, I think, as most true stories generally are.
We are talking about a lost mine, one that the skeptics seem to wish would go away. I say there is enough evidence, even such as it is, to warrant a search for the mine. Julia Thomas certainly believed that Waltz had a mine, the Petrasches certainly believed it, others who knew Jacob Waltz likewise had no doubts. The mine itself is not going to fit the confabulated tale that became legend, if and when someone does find it, they may well not recognize that it is in fact Waltz's mine because it may be something quite small, with an entrance "no bigger than a barrel" and no more than 12 feet or so deep, but the gold ore will settle the issue. Then again, even if some refuse to be swayed by any ore comparison, the gold should be enough to make the finder wealthy enough not to care what anyone else believes.
Markmar wrote
I want to write my opinion about Dick Holmes ( Waltz ) map and Julia thomas ( Waltz ) map . The maps are valid and both have the same X point . With the maps and the oral clues , I don't understand why they couldn't find the mine . Waltz spoke them separately , and gave each a different map and different oral clues .
I would only add this, beware of any and all treasure maps, particularly any that have been in the public eye for long. There is almost certainly something wrong with all of them, for they have failed to lead anyone to the lost mine, or lost treasure as the case may be. That said, the real reason why no one has found Jacob Waltz's mine may hinted at in something he told his friend Reiny Petrasch, quote
"Reiney, you better listen! That mine is hard to find, even when you know where it is!"
Waltz was making the point that the mine is hard to find even when you knew where it is, which should tell us that
it is NOT going to be easy to spot, certainly not from any aerial or satellite photo in which a boulder can be but a tiny dot in the photo. Waltz concealed the mine, using logs which are well known for their resistance to rot to close the entrance; finding the mine is not ever going to be an easy feat.
Good luck and good hunting amigos, I hope you find the treasures that you seek, sorry for the long delay in replying.
Oroblanco