WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:06.000 I hope you're all feeling fine today. I have a story for you as fascinating and interesting as any you'll ever hear. 00:06.000 --> 00:14.000 Every word of it is true, too. If you'll believe the word of old Jack Norris, a good friend of mine who lives in the San Fernando Valley in California. 00:14.000 --> 00:18.000 It's the story of the famous treasure of Cahuenga Pass and how it got there. 00:18.000 --> 00:22.000 From the tack room of Ken Maynard's Diamond Caye Ranch, we're bringing you stories of adventure, 00:22.000 --> 00:28.000 stories of circus life, fascinating transcribed tales of the old west where cowboys still follow the cattle trails, 00:28.000 --> 00:34.000 stories of rodeos and parades, colorful legends of the Red Man, hidden gold and buried treasures. 00:34.000 --> 00:40.000 The exciting tales from the Diamond Caye are told by Hollywood's champion of western stars, internationally famous Ken Maynard. 00:40.000 --> 00:46.000 Now while Ken is getting ready to spin another breathtaking yarn, I want to ask you buckaroos a question. 00:46.000 --> 00:51.000 Have you closed your eyes and crossed your fingers when you've dropped one of mother's or dad's favorite phonograph records? 00:51.000 --> 00:54.000 Boy, that's a breathtaking moment, I'll tell you. 00:54.000 --> 00:59.000 But now if you have your very own phonograph records to play, you won't want to borrow your folks. 00:59.000 --> 01:05.000 And you won't have to worry about breaking the records if you have a Diamond Caye record album of stories by Ken Maynard. 01:05.000 --> 01:09.000 The Diamond Caye records are absolutely unbreakable. 01:09.000 --> 01:15.000 Yes, sir, they're made of expensive vinylite that won't break like regular records, and they play so smoothly. 01:15.000 --> 01:19.000 It's just like hearing Ken and Tarzan in person right in your own living room, 01:19.000 --> 01:23.000 especially when Ken says hello to you and calls you by name right on the record. 01:23.000 --> 01:28.000 Like, hello, Mickey. Hello, Louise. Or whatever your name is. 01:28.000 --> 01:30.000 So the album will be especially yours. 01:30.000 --> 01:35.000 Just send your name and address and the dollar bill to Records in Care at this station. 01:35.000 --> 01:40.000 But be sure to include your name, buckaroos, so Ken can call you by name. 01:40.000 --> 01:45.000 If you want the album sent to a friend, send your friend's name. But do it today. 01:45.000 --> 01:48.000 Now here's Ken. 01:48.000 --> 01:51.000 Well, folks, the story I'm going to tell you today is based on a real happening. 01:51.000 --> 01:54.000 And I know you'll find it as interesting as I did. 01:54.000 --> 01:57.000 It's the story of the treasure of Kalanga Pass. 01:57.000 --> 02:01.000 I'd better explain first that Kalanga Pass is the name of a sharp two-mile highway 02:01.000 --> 02:04.000 which connects Hollywood, California with the San Fernando Valley. 02:04.000 --> 02:07.000 It follows an old pass through the Santa Monica Mountains. 02:07.000 --> 02:11.000 Famous Hollywood is on the south, and the Great Valley of San Fernando is on the north. 02:11.000 --> 02:16.000 When I'm in California, I drive through Kalanga Pass almost every day, just like thousands of other folks, 02:16.000 --> 02:21.000 without thinking for a minute about its history or the strange story of the Kalanga Pass treasure. 02:21.000 --> 02:25.000 Lots of people never even heard of it, and I might not have either 02:25.000 --> 02:29.000 if Tarzan and I hadn't rode over to old Jack Norris Ranch one day for a visit. 02:29.000 --> 02:33.000 He lived on the north end of the valley, up near the olive-growing country. 02:33.000 --> 02:37.000 He had written me a letter about some fine Mexican saddles he wanted to sell, 02:37.000 --> 02:39.000 and Tarzan and I went over to have a look at them. 02:39.000 --> 02:42.000 We're sitting around the tack room talking. 02:42.000 --> 02:47.000 He said, you know, a lot of interesting things went on in the days when California was a part of Mexico. 02:47.000 --> 02:51.000 Well, even old Kalanga Pass over there has a treasure story that's a dandy. 02:51.000 --> 02:54.000 Ever hear it? I had to admit I never had. 02:54.000 --> 02:56.000 Well, get comfortable, and I'll tell you about it. 02:56.000 --> 02:58.000 And here's the story he told me. 02:58.000 --> 03:03.000 In the year 1864 or 1865, when Maximilian was emperor of Mexico, 03:03.000 --> 03:06.000 the native Mexicans were in revolt against the Spanish rule. 03:06.000 --> 03:11.000 They were trying to win their freedom by revolution, much like we won ours from England. 03:11.000 --> 03:15.000 One of the generals leading the fighting was Pasito Vega. 03:15.000 --> 03:18.000 He had a lot of trouble raising enough money to buy guns and ammunition, 03:18.000 --> 03:23.000 so he called on the rich landowners to help out by giving their gold, jewels, and family treasures to the cause. 03:23.000 --> 03:31.000 This they did, and General Vega collected a vast amount of diamonds, rubies, and other precious stones, and gold, and jewelry of every kind. 03:31.000 --> 03:37.000 He selected the best of all these and trusted them with his favorite friend, General Carlos Riena. 03:37.000 --> 03:45.000 Riena's instructions were to take the treasure secretly to San Francisco and sell it to raise money for munitions, food, and supplies for the Patriot's Mexican army. 03:45.000 --> 03:49.000 General Riena selected three friends to help him on this dangerous mission. 03:49.000 --> 03:54.000 There was Major Cecil Brompton, an English soldier of fortune, and a Captain Henry Malcolm, 03:54.000 --> 04:01.000 who was an American adventurer fighting in the Mexican army, and Captain Orovia, a Mexican patron. 04:01.000 --> 04:07.000 These four men carrying the golden jewels left Mazatlan and traveled northward, heavily armed and avoiding the settlements. 04:07.000 --> 04:10.000 Some were on the way. General Riena fell sick and died. 04:10.000 --> 04:14.000 The remaining three went on with the treasure to San Francisco. 04:14.000 --> 04:18.000 Since General Riena had been the leader of the party, the three remaining felt they could not sell 04:18.000 --> 04:23.000 unless someone with authority of the Mexican Patriots were there to supervise the sale. 04:23.000 --> 04:27.000 So they decided to bury the treasure in the hills beyond San Bruno near Frisco 04:27.000 --> 04:32.000 and send a messenger back to General Vega with the news that Riena had died and to await his orders. 04:32.000 --> 04:37.000 In due time, General Vega himself arrived in Frisco to supervise the sale. 04:37.000 --> 04:41.000 As soon as possible, the four went out one dark night to the lonely San Bruno hills to dig up the sacks, 04:41.000 --> 04:44.000 since the Patriots were in great need of supplies. 04:44.000 --> 04:51.000 They dug at the exact spot where Brompton, Malcolm, and Orovia had buried them, but as you may have guessed, they were gone. 04:51.000 --> 04:55.000 Of course, this led to trouble. General Vega accused the three of stealing the treasure. 04:55.000 --> 04:59.000 They said they were innocent. Then Bromley and Orovia accused each other, 04:59.000 --> 05:03.000 and one hot word led to another until their guns were out and blazing. 05:03.000 --> 05:08.000 When the smoke cleared, both men lay dead. Vega and Malcolm dug some more, but without result. 05:08.000 --> 05:12.000 General Vega was almost crazy with rage, fear, and disappointment. 05:12.000 --> 05:15.000 He would be disgraced forever if he went back without the supplies, 05:15.000 --> 05:19.000 and only a lame story that the treasure had just vanished. 05:19.000 --> 05:22.000 He did what he thought was his duty. He committed suicide. 05:22.000 --> 05:26.000 Only Henry Malcolm was left of the original party. 05:26.000 --> 05:30.000 He knew someone had taken the treasure, and that there would be a price on his head, 05:30.000 --> 05:33.000 so he kept going north and later was killed in a saloon brawl. 05:33.000 --> 05:38.000 This would be an end of the story, except for a strange thing which happened a few months later, 05:38.000 --> 05:41.000 and I'll tell you about it in just a moment. 05:41.000 --> 05:44.000 How about it, folks? Are you enjoying your visit to the Diamond Cave? 05:44.000 --> 05:47.000 Well, I'll get along with the story in just a minute, 05:47.000 --> 05:50.000 but I want to shoot the breeze about my Diamond Cave brand for a minute. 05:50.000 --> 05:54.000 You know, I've always had my brand since I first started out in the rodeos, 05:54.000 --> 05:57.000 and it's traveled me all over the country and Europe with the circus, 05:57.000 --> 06:01.000 through Hollywood for movies, down in the jungles of Yucatan hunting for lost cities. 06:01.000 --> 06:05.000 So naturally, I'm kind of fond of that brand, and I'm proud to know so many of you young fellows 06:05.000 --> 06:09.000 have joined the Diamond Cave by wearing a K-shirt like mine. 06:09.000 --> 06:13.000 The K-shirt, like I told you, is a trim-looking cotton shirt in a desert color 06:13.000 --> 06:17.000 with a big red diamond K on the front that was made especially for me. 06:17.000 --> 06:20.000 It has my picture and Tarzan's on the front, too. 06:20.000 --> 06:24.000 I talked the fellow into making up some in buckaroo sizes to fit my young friends. 06:24.000 --> 06:27.000 So if you want to join the Diamond Cave outfit by wearing a K-shirt, 06:27.000 --> 06:30.000 just send me your name and address and what size you wear, 06:30.000 --> 06:34.000 like a 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12, 06:34.000 --> 06:37.000 and send along a dollar bill for the fellow who makes the K-shirt. 06:37.000 --> 06:40.000 Ask Mom your size, she'll know. 06:40.000 --> 06:44.000 Then send me your name and address and the dollar to K-shirt and care of this station, 06:44.000 --> 06:46.000 and yours will be mailed out right away. 06:46.000 --> 06:49.000 Pretty easy way to get a new shirt, I'd say. 06:49.000 --> 06:52.000 Now let's get back to the story. 06:52.000 --> 06:56.000 Well, now here's what happened next in the story of the treasure of Cahuenga Pass. 06:56.000 --> 07:00.000 Several months later in the year 1865, a lonely traveler 07:00.000 --> 07:03.000 leading three heavily loaded horses stopped for the night at an inn 07:03.000 --> 07:07.000 which stood at the south end of Cahuenga Pass in what is now Hollywood. 07:07.000 --> 07:11.000 That time the inn was the only stopping place between the Los Angeles Pueblo 07:11.000 --> 07:13.000 and San Fernando Mission. 07:13.000 --> 07:17.000 The traveler was coming from the north and seemed very tired and very sick. 07:17.000 --> 07:22.000 The innkeeper, a man named Martinez, learned that the traveler was Diego Moreno, 07:22.000 --> 07:24.000 a sheep herder from the San Francisco area. 07:24.000 --> 07:28.000 He seemed very frightened of something and before he went to bed that night, 07:28.000 --> 07:32.000 took all his horses with their heavy saddlebags back up the pass to the north. 07:32.000 --> 07:35.000 He came back looking exhausted and without the saddlebag. 07:35.000 --> 07:37.000 After stabling the horses, he went to bed. 07:37.000 --> 07:41.000 In the middle of the night, Martinez, the innkeeper, was awakened by loud groans 07:41.000 --> 07:43.000 coming from Diego Moreno's room. 07:43.000 --> 07:45.000 He rushed up to see what was the matter. 07:45.000 --> 07:47.000 Moreno was very ill. 07:47.000 --> 07:50.000 He said he was sinking fast and might not live till morning. 07:50.000 --> 07:52.000 Then he told Martinez this story. 07:52.000 --> 07:55.000 One night he said when he was sitting in the lonely hills, 07:55.000 --> 07:57.000 he heard three men riding up the valley below. 07:57.000 --> 08:01.000 He heard the horses stopping out of curiosity and he slipped down the hill to watch them. 08:01.000 --> 08:05.000 He crept close enough to see if they were burying something in the ground. 08:05.000 --> 08:08.000 Six large bags which were very heavy. 08:08.000 --> 08:11.000 After they had covered the hole carefully, they rode away without ever noticing Diego, 08:11.000 --> 08:13.000 hidden behind a bush in the darkness. 08:13.000 --> 08:18.000 He knew something valuable must be hidden there and after waiting long enough to be sure the men were gone, 08:18.000 --> 08:21.000 he crept down and dug into the same spot. 08:21.000 --> 08:27.000 The moment he uncovered the first leather bag, he reached his hand inside and his whole life was changed. 08:27.000 --> 08:29.000 The temptation was too great. 08:29.000 --> 08:33.000 He dug up all six of the packs and before dawn had stolen three horses, 08:33.000 --> 08:36.000 load them with the two sacks apiece and headed south. 08:36.000 --> 08:43.000 He left behind him unknowing the tragic consequences which befell Vega, Brompton, Malcolm, and Orovia. 08:43.000 --> 08:47.000 He did not know that he had harmed seriously the cause of the Mexican Patriots. 08:47.000 --> 08:50.000 He thought only of the great wealth that was now his. 08:50.000 --> 08:56.000 His conscience must have bothered him though, for he told Martinez the endkeeper of a bad dream that came to him every night. 08:56.000 --> 08:59.000 The dream told him to get rid of the treasure or die. 08:59.000 --> 09:05.000 As he felt death approaching, he at last believed the warning and that very night had taken the treasure and buried it in the Coahuanga Pass. 09:05.000 --> 09:12.000 In his words, I went north up the pass to the Five Mile Post, turned off the trail, went up to a big ash tree, 09:12.000 --> 09:15.000 dug six holes, and buried there the accursed sacks. 09:15.000 --> 09:20.000 I hope it's not too late, but it was too late for he died that same night. 09:20.000 --> 09:24.000 Well, Martinez the endkeeper was greatly excited by this story and as you can imagine, 09:24.000 --> 09:28.000 he lost no time getting up the trail to the Five Mile Post and the ash tree. 09:28.000 --> 09:32.000 He took with him his little grandson named Jose about ten years old. 09:32.000 --> 09:39.000 He found the right place, but the excitement was too much for his heart and he collapsed and died before he could even dig up one sack. 09:39.000 --> 09:46.000 Little Jose, being frightened out of his wits, ran home and never told anybody until years later when his grandfather was looking for him. 09:46.000 --> 09:50.000 Then about ten years later, we find a man named Echaparri. 09:50.000 --> 09:52.000 He is now the owner and manager of the inn. 09:52.000 --> 09:56.000 There are many sheep herders in the hills nearby and one of them, Miguel, has a dog. 09:56.000 --> 10:00.000 This dog one day digs up a single sack in the pass. 10:00.000 --> 10:05.000 Miguel takes it to Echaparri and the new innkeeper tells him it's very valuable. 10:05.000 --> 10:11.000 Miguel must have found this to be true for the story goes that he soon after returned to Spain a very wealthy man. 10:11.000 --> 10:14.000 That is, he started for Spain but never got there. 10:14.000 --> 10:16.000 Strange bad luck was following him too. 10:16.000 --> 10:21.000 He and what he had left of the jewels in that sack fell overboard as they reached Barcelona. 10:21.000 --> 10:27.000 When the boy Jose grew up, he made friends with a major bell and they hunted for the remaining five sacks. 10:27.000 --> 10:33.000 So while they were hunting one night, some suspicious landowner fired a rifle at them and killed Jose. 10:33.000 --> 10:38.000 The major bell dropped the search and there the story rests for about fifty years. 10:38.000 --> 10:43.000 Then one day, the Los Angeles man brought an old trunk at auction. 10:43.000 --> 10:47.000 While going through it, he discovered an old map which had belonged to Jose. 10:47.000 --> 10:51.000 It was dated April 11, 1892 and was hidden in a false bottom. 10:51.000 --> 10:55.000 A circle was drawn around the treasure spot as Jose remembered it. 10:55.000 --> 10:57.000 But this man never could find the right place. 10:57.000 --> 11:00.000 Lots of other people have looked but no one's ever found it. 11:00.000 --> 11:04.000 Somewhere today in Coahuanga Pass lies the treasure of old General Vega. 11:04.000 --> 11:06.000 And there my story ends. 11:06.000 --> 11:09.000 Jack Norris leaned back and looked at me with a twinkle in his eye. 11:09.000 --> 11:11.000 What do you think of that tale, he said? 11:11.000 --> 11:17.000 Well, of course, I thought it was the weirdest story I'd ever heard and lost no time making plans to hunt for the treasure. 11:17.000 --> 11:19.000 This was around 1936. 11:19.000 --> 11:22.000 I was pretty busy with my shows and movies and kept putting it off. 11:22.000 --> 11:26.000 Then just as I was about ready to begin, I had to go off for a six-month tour. 11:26.000 --> 11:33.000 And when I got back, other things kept me busy and it was several years later before I finally got around to seriously starting the expedition. 11:33.000 --> 11:40.000 I hadn't been through the pass in quite a while and while I knew they were doing some work on it, I was not prepared for the sight which met my eyes. 11:40.000 --> 11:45.000 There was a four-lane double highway with two roads on each side and a double streetcar line in the middle. 11:45.000 --> 11:50.000 Bulldozers had cut down the hills and changed the whole place beyond recognition. 11:50.000 --> 11:56.000 Where now was the five-mile post and where was the lonely hillside of Diego Marino? 11:56.000 --> 12:00.000 And more to the point, where today are the five treasure sacks of General Vegas, 12:00.000 --> 12:04.000 probably buried under tons of earth and ten inches of concrete. 12:04.000 --> 12:06.000 Your guess is as good as mine. 12:06.000 --> 12:09.000 Well, I'd like to take a guess at that too, Ken. 12:09.000 --> 12:12.000 And, buckaroos, there's a real story for you. 12:12.000 --> 12:14.000 I enjoyed every minute of it. 12:14.000 --> 12:15.000 How about you? 12:15.000 --> 12:17.000 Would you like to hear Ken tell another story? 12:17.000 --> 12:22.000 Well, he hasn't time for one today but I'll tell you how you can hear a Ken Maynard story anytime you want. 12:22.000 --> 12:27.000 It's by having a Diamond K record album of real Wild West tales. 12:27.000 --> 12:34.000 The album is really a humdinger with beautiful color pictures of Ken and Tarson on the front and inside on the records too. 12:34.000 --> 12:38.000 You get two complete Ken Maynard stories in this album and here's the best part. 12:38.000 --> 12:40.000 The records are personalized. 12:40.000 --> 12:46.000 The first thing you'll hear when you play your Diamond K record album is Ken saying hello to you personally right on the record 12:46.000 --> 12:48.000 and calling you by name. 12:48.000 --> 12:51.000 For instance, if your name is Paul, Ken will say, 12:51.000 --> 12:55.000 hello Paul, this is Ken Maynard with a story just for you. 12:55.000 --> 13:00.000 All you have to do is send your name, address, and a dollar to Records and Care of this station. 13:00.000 --> 13:04.000 And Ken will see that you get a personalized record album by return mail. 13:04.000 --> 13:09.000 It's standard 78 RPM speed for the regular kind of record player folks have used for years. 13:09.000 --> 13:14.000 So if you want to get in on some real Western fun with a story record that you can play anytime you want, 13:14.000 --> 13:18.000 send your name and address and a dollar to Records and Care of this station. 13:18.000 --> 13:19.000 Do it today. 13:19.000 --> 13:22.000 Now once again, here's Ken. 13:22.000 --> 13:25.000 Well folks, it's time to bring our story round up to a close. 13:25.000 --> 13:27.000 This is Ken Maynard and Tarson. 13:27.000 --> 13:32.000 ... 13:32.000 --> 13:39.000 closing up the tack room at the Diamond K Ranch until I see you next time when I'll tell you the story about Peg Legg Smith. 13:39.000 --> 13:40.000 We'll be looking for you. 13:40.000 --> 13:45.000 In the meantime, get your one dollar bills in the mail now for some real Western fun. So long. 13:45.000 --> 13:48.000 You've been listening to Tales from the Diamond K, 13:48.000 --> 13:55.000 stories of adventure told by Ken Maynard, internationally famous cowboy stunt writer and Hollywood's champion of Western stars. 13:55.000 --> 14:10.000 Tales from the Diamond K was produced and transcribed in Hollywood.