SHOUT-LIVED BUSHRANGERS

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2682, 11 December 1909, Page 2 (Supplement)

SHOUT-LIVED BUSHRANGERS

VIII.—A NIGHT RAID FRUSTRATED; .

There was no country store west of the Blue Mountains better known than that kept by Mrs. Webb, at a place called Mutton’s Falls, on the Fish River, and it was in the centre of a bushranger district, and in a sparsely populated locality, the “men of. the road” paid it a visit on more than one occasion, demanding money and goods without offering a suitable equivalent. One evening in May, 1.864, after the store had closed, Mrs. Webb, her son William, her daughter, Hannah, and her nephew, John Thick, proceeded across the yard at the rear of the stable, when the young folk employed themselves in husking corn by candle light, Mrs. Webb looking on. They were chatting merrily when they' heard the dogs bark; and W illiam Webb went out to see what was disturbing them. The moon was shining brightly, and he saw two strangers approaching, leading their horses, from which they had just dismounted. Crossing the yard to the kitchen he saw the men hitch their horses to the fence, and as he came out of the kitchen one of them stepped forward and asked, “Is this a store?” to which question Webb replied in the affirmative. “Well, I want some tobacco,” said the man. “Which you can’t get to-niglit,” said. Webb, “as the store is closed, and we sell nothing after nightfall.” “That’s very, strange,” the man rejoined, “as travellers can generally get what they want at night. How far is it to the next store?” “Nine or ten miles,” said Webb. And then the man’s mood and manner changed. Pulling out a revolver, he covered Webb, saying: “Go inside; I’ll put- the contents of this through you!” As Webb did not move instantly he stepped nearer, and presenting the revolver at,his breast, ordered him a second time to go inside. Putting his hand to the kitchen door and pushing it, Webb turned and said, “The door is fastened and I can’t got in.” When the reply came, “You go in or I’ll soon make you.” Just here, however, there was a diver sion. Hearing a noise in the direction of the stable, both men turned and saw Miss Webb disappearing round the corner, in the direction of Mr. Il'.cliard Webb’s house —some distance away. As the man moved a step in that direction watching the runaway, Webb darted off round the opposite corner of the house ; but as soon as lie heard him running, the man wheeled, and called out, “Stop, or by time firing at the retreading figure, but missing the mark, and Webb continued his race towards his brother’s residence. Meanwhile the second man had not been idle. Ho had gone to the stable whore the com-shelling was still in progress, and presenting a double-barrel gun at the inmates called out, “Bail up!” Tinck at once confronted him, and seeing the gun was pointed at Miss Webb, he called out, “Don’t- point the gun in the girl’s face.” In reply the- man told them all to come out and “walk below, where there’ is a man who will take care- of you.” Mrs. Webb at once passed out and walked quietly across the yard into the house. Miss Webb followed her into the yard, but as Tinck did not seem inclined to obey orders the man pushed him forward with the gun and told him to “go below,” declaring that he would not repeat the order. As Tinck walked out of the stable Miss Webb was seen racing for bare life out of the yard, and the man at once ran after her, declaring with an oath that he would soon bring her back. This was Tinck’s chance, and he wasn’t slow in seizing it, going hot foot round the buildings in the oposite direction. The chase "was fruitless, for Miss Webb knew the track through the bush, while her pursuer did not, and, moreover, she was as fleet of foot as most healthy Australian bush girls; and the man returned, to find that his companion’s prisoner had disappeared also. The two men did not wait for further developments, but mounted their horses, -and passed at a hand-gallop down the road they had come. , Within a quarter of an hour William Webb, Tinck, and Miss Webb returned, the two former prepared to meet the bushrangers on level terms; hut there were no bushrangers about the place, and word of the affair was at once sent to the nearest police station. Next morning, at daybreak, William and Richard Webb and Tinck picked up the tracks of the horses and followed them from the fence where they had been tied! for about three miles, at which point the two tracks became three, and these were followed for about nine miles, to the Sydney-Bathurst road, near Sheppard’s toll-bar. At this point they fell in with Senior Constable Woods, of Meadow Flat, who was already acting on the information he had received on the previous evening, and 1 who had quickly fixed upon the possible offenders from the description given him. Calling at the tollibar on the main road, Woods found that two men had aroused the gateman shortly after midnight, paid double toll and passed through, inquiring the way to Piper’s flat road. They were leading a third horse, and asked the toll-keeper if he saw a black boy on the road to hurry him on after them, as they were going to the Mudgee road to buy some sheep. _ Taking up the tracks from the tollbar, 1 Woods followed them for another nine miles along the road from Mudgee to Piper’s Flat,, Everything so far served to confirm the suspicion entertained by the constable when, first the men were described, to him,; and from j this point he passed straight' 7 to the ■ residence of a farmer named Norris,

neap Piper’s Flat, and about 21 miles , from Mrs. Webb’s. Here he arrested a young man named Henry Stratton and charged him with the offence, afterwards proceeding to Piper’s Flat, where he arrested another young man namedRichard Norris, and started off straightway with them as prisoners to' Bathurst. ' The men made no reply when charged with the offence, but afterwards when on the road they said they were not the men; they were, however, identified without hesitation by William Webb, Tinck, Miss Webb, and the toll-bar keeper. • j Five months after they were tried at the Bathurst Assize Court, before Mr. Justice Milford, the indictment against each prisoner containing three charges, namely: that being armed with a gun they did feloniously assault Hannah < Webb, with intent to'mb the property of Anne Webb against her .will; assaulting William Webb with the same weapon and with the same intent; and assaulting John Tinck with the same weapon and with the same intent. The prisoners pleaded not guilty, and were defended by two of the ablest members of the bar in the colony— Messrs. Dailey and lnnes. But the evidence was too strong against them to admit any hope of escape, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty on all three counts., Stratton was sentenced to twelve years and Norris to ten years hard labor on the roads or other public works of the colony, and a witness, named Ryan, whom they had called to prove an ahbi, was ordered into custpdy by the judge for having committed wilful and corrupt pur jury, and for that offence was subsequently sent to hard labor for four years. i This furnished one of the best instances of police activity recorded during the bushranger days. Although the bushrangers got clean away and Senior-constable Woods did not receive information until 10 o’clock on the night of the occurrence, by 9 o’clock next morning their tracks had been followed for over twenty miles, and they were on their way towards Bathurst in custody. Attempts were made to “stick up” Mrs. Webb’s store on three or four occasions, but more than once the bushrangers got more than they bargained for. During ode raid upon the store one of the bushrangers was fired upon and severely wounded liy Mrs. Webb’s third son, Robert, who was just recovering from an attack of fever; and on another occasion Miss Hannah Webb was about seizing the poker from the fender, with the intention of attacking the bushranger, who had several members of the family “bailed up” in the house, to which the store was attached, when her action was observed and frustrated by the man whose head was in danger. Subsequently the bushrangers gave the place at Mutton’s Falls a “wide birth.” IX.—HELD UP FOR SEVEN HOURS One bright frosty night in June, 1864, the driver of Cobb and Co.’s mail coach from Bathurst to Orange, Jimmy Nairn, and five passengers in the coach, had an experience on the road the reverse of pleasant. Half the journey had been covered and the horses had come to a walk in making a rather steep ascent, when the dozing passengers inside the coach were startled into full wakefulness by hearing a rough voice commanding the driver to “Bail up!” Looking out they saw three armed men, wearing masks, cue standing near the horses’ heads, covering the driver with a revolver, and the other two facing the body of the coach, one on each side. The usual formula was then observed. The passengers were all told to alight, and haying done so wei’e eased of their possessions and made to stand or sit in a group at the side of the road, with one of the bushrangers standing as custodian over them; at the same time the driver was busy throwing the mail bags out of the “boot” or off the rack on to the road, one or two of the men supervising the operation. This complete. the -bags were cut open and searched for money letters and other valuables. These having been appropriated, attention was next given to passengers’ luggage, '.and articles of wearing apparel were taken out, together with every portable thing of value, all the stolen property being packed into the valises on front of the bushrangers’ saddles. 1 , While this search and appropriation proceeded the coach-driver was allowed to sit upon the box holding the reins, and from that point of vantage he could observe all that went on although he was powerless to prevent or check it. The passengers were about fifteen yards off enjoying the frosty air of the hills as they sat in a row upon the trunk of a fallen tree; but the least suspicious movement on the part of any of them was met with a sudden pointing of his revolver by the bushranger standing guard over them, and a peremptory demand—“ Damn you, keep quiet, or I’ll empty this into you one against five, -certainly, hut that one had six little leaden messengers at his command, which could, by tbp simple pressure of a finger, be sent on their death-dealing Errand. So the five sat and waited until the search was ended, when they naturally expected to be permitted to resume the journey which had been so rudely broken. Not so, however; and when one of them ventured to ask why the bushrangers were detaining them after they nad got all they wanted, he was'" met with the answer: “We’re going to keep you here all night until the down coach, as we intend to kill two birdk • with one stone.” They were allowed, however, to converse with each other, in a low tone of voice, and to occasion- * ally make an effort to “keep their/spirits up by pouring spirits down,”, .from a

bottle of Old Tom which one : of them’ liad stoived. away in Jus -travelling' bag when commencing the journey.

It was a weary wait, although broken by two unexpected occurrences. An hour passed! when the “clipperty-clop, clipperty-clop” of a cantering horse upon the frosty ground was heard drawing nearer, and presently a lad on horseback rode up. He was on his way home ■from Bathurst,, and near the turn-off to his father’s farm, when he .came upon the row of huddled humans sitting like dosing kookaburras on a log.

Before he could recover his surprise at the unusual sight his bridle was seized and lie was ordered to dismount and take his seat with the others. Another hour passed and the sound was heard of an . unshod-' horse coining at a quick trot along the road in the opposite direction. This proved to be the lad’s lather, who, anxious concerning the non-appearance of his son, had set out to meet him. He also was compelled to join the others, but came nearer being shot through making a show of, resistance. For seven long hours they sat, fretting and fuming And freezing until at last* the' rattle of the down mail coach was heard, and the well-known voice of the driver, John Fagan, broke the stillness of the night with its cheery “Goet up!” Fagan had had experience with the knights of the read before, and saw -at a glance what the matter was when a horseman rode up to his leading horse’s head and a second man pulled up opposite the vehicle. There was only one passenger in the coach, and lie was conducted safely to where the others sat, after emptying his pockets; while Fagan was being searched and. the mail-bags wore being thrown out into the road. At last- the bushrangers announced the completion of their ‘“’job,” and in the small hours of the morning they mounted their horses and rode away into the bush with their booty, which was considerably smaller than they had hoped to gather in this double haul.. “Well, boys, how did you like it?” laughingly asked Fagan, as the released prisoners again sought their seats in the coach for Orange. , , “Oh, if I had only brought my revolver!” lamented one' of the victims, a well-known storekeeper from Orange. “I guarantee that —” “All, now stop it, C—,” interposed Fagan, who was intimate with the speaker. “I’ll bet you’re glad you didn’t- bring it, if it’s any value, for you’d have lost that, tog.” The inference .was so plain that even 0 could see it, and for liis own comfort joined in the Laugh that was raised. For long after that stoie-keep-er, whose boast was broken by the jocose John, was greatly affronted if any acquaintance chanced to speak of u revolver in his presence.

There was excitement in Bathurst and in Orange when the coaches arrived at their destination, with broken mailbags and moneyless passengers, and, of course, the mounted police at each end were soon, scouring th© bush between the two towns, in the hope of picking up tracks of the bushrangers. But several weeks passed in fruitless searching and then quite unexpectedly a clue was obtained, the result being the arrest of a young man named Thomas Kessy, and two empanions, who all lived near Bathurst. The arresting constable searched the room in which Kessy slept, and found in his box two shirts, one marked “James Hayes,” a guernsey, and two pairs of boots. These articles were subsequently idcntn.ed by two of th© coach passengers as part of the property stolen from them when the mail was stuck up.

The three men were tried before Judge Milford at the Bathurst Assize Court four months after arrest, and the case was clearly proved, against Kessy, whom three of the passengers positively identified as one of the robbers; but the evidence against the other two was inconclusive, and they were acquitted and discharged. Kessy was found guilty, and was sentenced to ton years’ hard labor on the roads.

At the- same Assize Court a brother of * the last-mentioned bushranger was also tried on a charge of robbery-under-arms, on the Limekilns road, some five miles from Bathurst, he being at the time accompanied by two other,.men. The victim on this occasion was a wellknown farmer and grazier at Limekilns. He was on his way home from Bathurst when boiled up by three men, who robbed! him of some silver, a poncho (a, sort of overcoat "without sleeves, at'that tim© in common use), and his horse and bridle. The robbery took place a few days after the Orange and Bathurst mails had been, stuck up, and the prisoner’s room was searched on th© same day as his brother’s. Beneath the bed was found ,a poncho which. McKinnon afterwards; identified as that which had been stolen from him. He could not, however, swear that the prisoner was one of the trio who robbed Kim, but said he was like one of them in size and build. - But the possession of the ponclio was considered by the jury sufficient proof of guilt and James Kessy was convicted. ’ He also received a sentence of ten years’ hard labor on the roads.