VERY MISLEADING.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 469, 30 March 1909, Page 7

VERY MISLEADING.

Sir,—Tho paragraph in this day's Dominion is entirely wrong and misleading as to tho Mr. Joseph Cordoza recollections. Instead of the occurrence mentioned having takeii' place over sixty years ago, tho Maungatapu (locally called Mokotap) murders by the Sullivan, Burgess, Levy, and Kelly gang took' place in 1865-1866, and I v/as one of the coroner's jury on tho body of Mr. Dobson, tho Westland enginneer. Tho inquest was held in Kilgour's Hotel, Greymouth, Mr. W H. Itevell, S.M., coroner, and Count -Foppoli, tho Italiiin patriot, surgeon-doctor of tho Groymouth Hospital. The evidenco there brought forward by the police, who had arrested Do Lacey, tho Cosmopolitan Stables man, led to tho arrests, as he (Do Laccy),tho ticket-of-leavo convict, broke down with terror, and admitted that ho informed tho murderers of the movements of tho bank's gold buyers, and Mr. Dobson was murdered in mistake for ono of the gold buyers. v My friond, Mr. Walmsley, deputy property tax commissioner, ■Wellington, has cause to remember that mistake with satifaction. In tho previous year I witnessed the hanging of Captain Garvie, at Dunedin Gaol, for tlio poisoning of his wife and family, and comparing his behaviour with that of Burgess, Levy, end Kelly at Nelson Gaol, whore 1 saw thoso three criminals executed, they wero tho greatest cowards I have ever seen. For absolute fear their conduct could not bo surpassed. The Sullivan gang, after murdering Kompthorne, a brother of Mr. Kemptliorne, of tho Kompthorno, Prosser Drug Company, whom I know well, and Mr. Dudley , and Mr. Mathieu, and old Jimmy Battle, tho sailor, camo on to Nelson, and wore captured in the bop gardens, near tho old Nilo Street bridge. 1 have been requested by some old residents of Greymouth to correct tho misloading statements. My memory as to the exact month when Mr. Dobson's murder took placo is not exact. It was only a few miles out of Greymouth, on tho road to tho Abura.—l am, etc., JAMES M'DOWELL. March 20, 1900.