sited
kegs, barrels, and hogsheads of coined silver and gold, bars of gold,
golden images, brass kettles filled, with gold and silver, gold
candlesticks, swords, etcetera, etcetera. They would also say, that
nearly all the hills in this part of New York were thrown by human
hands, and in them were large caves, which Joseph, junior, could see, by
placing a stone of singular appearance in his hat, in such a manner as
to exclude all light; at which time they pretended he could see all
things within and under the earth; that he could spy within the
above-mentioned caves large gold bars and silver plates; that he could
also discover the spirits in whose charge these treasures were, clothed
in ancient dresses. At certain times, these treasures could be obtained
very easily; at others, the obtaining of them was difficult. The
facility of approaching them depended in a great measure on the state of
the moon. New moon and Good Friday, I believe, were regarded as the
most favourable times for obtaining these treasures. These tales, of
course, I regarded as visionary. However, being prompted by curiosity,
I at length accepted their invitation to join them in their nocturnal
excursions. I will now relate a few incidents attending these nocturnal
excursions.

"Joseph Smith, senior, came to me one night, and told me that Joseph,
junior, had been looking in his stone, and had seen, not many rods from
his house, two or three kegs of gold and silver, some feet under the
surface of the earth, and that none others but the elder Joseph and
myself could get them. I accordingly consented to go, and early in the
evening repaired to the place of deposit. Joseph, senior, first made a
circle, twelve or fourteen feet in diameter: `This circle,' said he,
`contains the treasure.' He then stuck in the ground a row of
witch-hazel sticks around the said circle, for the purpose of keeping
off the evil spirits. Within this circle he made another, of about
eight or ten feet in diameter. He walked around three times on the
periphery of this last circle, muttering to himself something I could
not understand. He next stuck a steel rod in the centre of the circles,
and then enjoined profound silence, lest we should arouse the evil
spirit who had the charge of these treasures. After we had dug a trench
of about five feet in depth around the rod, the old man, by signs and
motions asked leave of absence, and went to the house to inquire of the
so