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   “The story was told by Esquire Magazine, but WAS NEVER PRINTED.

   “I sure as hell would like to know why Esquire paid good money for a story and never used it and WHAT WAS BEHIND IT? The story was read and critiqued by Arnold Gingrich himself. This I know, because it came back in its first draft with suggestions for changes by Gingrich and was purchased in its second draft and Harmer was paid. I think the price of the article was $175.00, but I could be wrong -- if it's important.

   “Substantially, the story was this -- Several years before 1935 three Indian youths appeared in Needles carrying the mangled body of a fourth -- their brother, or brother tribesman. Time dims the memory.  

   “It developed that they had been mining a vast underground cavern, complete with a series of terraces, and the youth had slipped and fallen from the lowest of the series, falling EIGHT HUNDRED FEET to his death.

   “The boys said they had been depositing their gold in the bank of Needles. This was investigated and found to be true. I believe they had deposited about $55,000 worth.

   “The cavern was reached on the property of the Dorr brothers in San Bernardino county and rouphly was under the Ivanpah mountains. See map.

   “Fearing the gold rush, the Dorr brothers made arrangements to keep others out, and conducted an underground exploration that took 8 days (and they) failed to complete exploration of the main vast cavern.

   “When they emerged they found the danger of the gold rush even worse. They dynamited the entrance and spent several years and all their money perfecting title to their land and buying up all the desert lands they adjudged to lie above their protected underground domain.

   “As of 1935 they were unable to find their way back