THE TICHBORNE CASE.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 4163, 25 November 1884, Page 4

THE TICHBORNE CASE.

ANOTHER AUSTRALIAN WITNESS

The following relating to the Tichborne mystery appears in the Gundagai Herald. The writer of the letter is George Edwards, of Cooba Creek, Clarendon, who is spoken of by the Rev. J. H. Williams, a local clergyman, as an honest, hard-working and trustworthy man. Edwards says he has continually written to the Attorney-General about the matter, but failing to get a reply, •wrote to the Gundagai Herald as follows :— "2nd Aug., 1884. To Mr Editor.—Dear sir,—l am sorry to take up so much of your valuable time and space of your valuable poper, but seeing so many different accounts of Mr Cressvrell being Arthur Orton, which I beg to inform you and the public that he is not, for the real. Sir Arthur Orton is Thomas Castro, the Claimant in England, ■which I have known since September 1842, and all of his family as well as I know my own parents. The ship that I was prentice in, our owners used to deul with Ortons for meat, and I used to be the one that used to go for the meat when our ship ■was in port, and I became ho much acquainted with the Ortons that I respected them as much as if they were my own family. My first voyage was to Valparaiso and home to London. My second one was to Hobart Town, Launceston, and home to London. Edmond and Arthur Orton used to sell the meat in the harness cart and see all the live stock and vegetables on board beforo the ship sailed. My third voyage ■was to Sydney to Guella for sugar for Melbourne and Sydney. Wo discharged our sugar in Sydney and took in ballast, as we •were chartered to go to another port in the colonies, which I decline to mention the name of at present. When we arrived at this port there was a large ship lying there, burquo rigged, which I decline to mention her name at present. We discharged our ballast, and began to take in cargo for London, when one afternoon about 2 o'clock the boat belonging to this barque camo alongsido of us. A young man came up the side .and jumped down on our ship's deck, and to my .surprise who should it be but young Arthur Orton, when I shook hands with him and said, "Good gracious, Arthur what brought you here." He shook hands with the chief officer, and then went and shook hands with the captain. He gave the chief officer a letter to take home to his mother, and sent private messages by me home to his parents. I decline at present to say what situation he had on board or the ship's name, for private reasons, but his ship sailed for London, loaded with wheat in bulk, about five weeks before we did. My ship sailed for London about five weeks after him, and we arrived home all safe. When I went up to Orton's, the butcher's, to my surprise I found his ship hadn't arrived, nor never did arrive. We loaded back a<*ain for the colonies. When we arrived in the colonies there we ascertained the fate of his ship. She was struck with a heavy snow squall; the cargo of whoat, being in bulk, shifted, and she •went over on her beam ends, and she was taken into Valparaiso a complete wreck in distress. Now, sir, that is the ill-fated Bhip that there was so much talk about. The next time I saw Arthur Orton was on the goldfields in Victoria with another man, and the man was young Roger Tichborno. They carried on a fine game there, and had to clear out. The police were after them. The next time I saw Arthur Orton in person was in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, as Thomas Castro, the butcher, when he acknowledged to me there that old Whiton, the ship butcher, in Wapping, England, ■was his father. I don't care who reads this. It is tho truth, which I could prove before a judge and jury. If Captain Barry, or whatever might bo his name, swears that Crosswell is Arthur Orton, and it was his first voyage when he went to Hobart Town ■with him in 1859, he is greatly mistaken, and wrong, and so is Edmond and Charles Orton, too, in their brother. I have every reason to believe if I went to a certain parish, a certain part in the colonies, and get a certain document, that I could make it look rather blue for them whom Arthur Orton was in company with. First, he was about between 19 and 20 years of age, and I was about 18. Dear Sir, lam sorry for takiug up so much of your valuable paper, but auy person wishing to communicate to me can do so by writing to the Editor of the Gundagai Herald."