HOT ON THE TRAIL OF HIDDEN RICHES
“The Man Who Buried a Treasure” told the story of Forrest
Fenn, who hid a chest full of gold and jewels and planted clues
to its location in a cryptic poem. Hundreds of people have
searched in vain for the bounty. One reader had this idea:who wrote in about
washing and ironing
the Communion cloth
at her church, really
struck close to home.
My mother also washed
the linens at her parish
in Stratford, Connecti-
cut, in the 1930s and
’40s, and her name
was also Mary Burns.
—Barbara
Burns Kolmer
Huddleston, VirginiaYour Mom Said What?
My wife always in-
advertently entertains
our kids and me with
her “mamapropisms.”
One night we hosted
a neighborhood party,
with people dropping
in for the food, drinks,
and laughter, which
were all in abundance.
As the party was wind-
ing down, the doorbell
rang yet again. Mindful
of the hour and think-
ing it was too late for
new arrivals, my wife
blurted out, “It’s Lou
Tate!” Now at any party
when someone arrives
late, Lou Tate’s name
is invariably invoked.
—Andrew DiStefano
Malvern, PennsylvaniaThe treasure must be at
the bottom of Horsetail
Fall in Yosemite National
Park. The clues are all in
the poem:
)Begin it where the warm
waters halt / And take it in
the canyon down = Yosem-
ite is full of canyons.
)Not far but too far to
walk. / Put in below the
home of Brown = Grafton
Tyler Brown, an artist
who painted Yosemite
waterfalls.
)From there it’s no place
for the meek / The end is
ever drawing nigh = Horse-
tail is a seasonal waterfall.
)There’ll be no paddle upyour creek = You can’t
paddle up a waterfall.
)Just heavy loads and
water high = The waterfall
is above your head.
)If you’ve been wise and
found the blaze = Horsetail
Fall looks red at sunset for
a few weeks in winter.
)Look quickly down, your
quest to cease, / But tarry
scant with marvel gaze =
The “firefall” is a marvel-
ously fleeting sight.
)Just take the chest and
go in peace = Unless it
technically belongs to the
National Park Service.
—Scott V. Morton
largo, fWord Power turns 75 inhave a fun yarn about how you used
it to your benefit—say, to razzle-
a date? Tell us your favorite Word Power
word at RD.COM/WORDPOWER 75.al
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