I, Mr. Dwight I. Gray, am burying these bonds in the Adena Indian snake mound in the hope of preserving some of my family's fortune. Although worthless as I pen this letter, it is my hope that after the war, the New York Stock and Exchange Bureau will continue to trade these bonds from the secessionist states, or that the states themselves as part of the new Confederacy will honor their worth. Emotions run high, and my southern background is enough to arouse the suspicion of my neighbors; if they were to discover these documents, my very life may be in danger. If fate renders me unable to return for these bonds, I beg the finder to return the contents to my wife and children.