RIOT BY RAILWAY NAVVIES

Dunstan Times, Issue 1237, 13 November 1885, Page 3

RIOT BY RAILWAY NAVVIES

- The Coeraubong: correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald gives" the following account of the riot which took place in the little bush township:—“ Being a wet. rainy day, the railway line from Homebush to Waratah had been obliged to stop work, and a band-of 16 or 18 young men came into town from the railway encampments at Two*mile Creek. After patronising some of the bar-rooms of the hotels in the town they became so hilarious and noisy as to attract the attention of the two constables stationed in the town ; one stout Irish navvy named Lawrence Kelly being so conscious of his great strength and fighting powers as to proclaim them to the world in a very loud voice from the verandahs of the hotels. The disorder was so great that the police considered it their duty to caution them several times, especially Kelly who resented the interference of the constablo in a defiant and eontemptous manner. At length the' police laid hands on Kelly for the purpose of taking him to the lock-up, which seemed to be the preconcerted signal for an attack on the police by Kelly’s companions. The whole mob gathered round the constables and their prisoner, headed by two men named John Bourke and James Walsh. Bourke demanded in an authoritative voice of Constable Jordan, ‘ What are yon going to do with him ? ’ referring to Kelly. Jordan replied, *I am going to take him to the look up., Bourke then said, ‘ Well, you’re not, then,’ and seized the constable by the throat and neck, threw him violently to the ground, and struck him with his fists while down, Walsh in the meantime went in search of a stone, in the absence of which he picked np a tinful of mud and threw it at the other constable M‘Kenzie, striking him on the head and shoulders with it. Kelly then got free and joined in the assult of the constables who had to retreat, pursued by a mob of 12 or 14 infuriated navvies,towards the Han I and Heart hotel, which they entered and closed the door. There was some talk of smashing open the dour, which however was not resorted to, the constables meanwhile escaping by the back door and proceeding to tbe station, where they armed themselves with revolvers and returned to the scene of the riot, which was still in full swing. The c nstables again arrested Lawrence Kelly, who appeared to be ringleader of the mob, Out they made no progress on their way to the lock-up owing to the obstruction caused by his companions. Bourke then came out of the Hand and Heart Hotel with a wooden chair, which he broke up in the middle of the roid, selected a leg of the chair for himself, and gave another to the prisoner Kelly. The attack on the police was then proceeded with in something like fighting order ; Kelly brandished the chair leg over the head of Constable Jordan, wlm, retreating from the blow drew his revolver and fired in the air. His object in this was apparently to frighten off his assailant, which object failing the constable again discharg 'd his revolver at Keily’s arm ; the bullet grazing his (Kelly’s) chin, and ins dieting a ileah wound in his neck, which bled freely and had a most alarming appearance. Bourke, teeing his companion bleeding, brandished his weapon, and rushed on Jordan, shouting out, • Dash tbe • ——’s bains out,’ when his attention was diverted by a bullet from Constable M'Kenzie’s revolver, which, if not striking bis legs, must have gone in a dangerous proximity to them. The mob then divided, j a party of them attacking each of the con- j stables, of which M'Kenzo fared the worst. I He discharged his revolver several times for j the apparent purpose of frightening his assailants, as their does not appear to have been any of them wounded, although at such close quar.ers. Several of them got round him, crught hold of and threw him to the ground, where they jumped, upon him, struck him, and kicked him with their feet with the result that he got his brow cut, both lips severely bruised aud cut, and two of the front teeth of his upper jaw brokenIt is difficult to toll how the cowardly assault on the constable might have ended but for the appearance on the scene at this stage of the proceedings of a large wooden paling-post, wielded by a townsman named James Willhigs to suca good effect j that two of M’Kenzie’s assailants were | quickly laid prostrate on the ground, with i such hoadmarks as removed any difficulty I as to their subsequeut identification. This ! had the effect of diverting their attention from the constable to Witlings who, being alone, was unable to cope with so many, so that he had to make good fcis escape by peremptorily borrowing a neighbours horse which stood’ convenient and galloped off into the bush. Meanwhile the two local justices of the peace—Messrs Iius»ol and Armstrong—were communicated with, as also the police magistrate from Gosford, Mr K Reeve, who happened to be in the locality. The mob then dispersed, and the two constables proceeded to arrest the rioters as they could find them. Kelly, the ringleader was taken in the Hand an i Heart Hotel, where his wound was attended to by by Dr Nash, Wallscnd, who also happened to bo in the locality. He considered Kelly’s wound to be of a trivial nature. Tbe police hearing that four of the ringleaders had “ cleared out,” mounted their horses and proeeo led along the Gosford road, overhauling the object of their pursuit about two miles trom tU ■ town One of them escaped in the darkness ; the other three were brought oaek to Gooraubong, and by 8 p.m. the constables had seven of their assailants in safe keeping. During the night police assistance arrived from Newcastle, Wallsead, Maitland, and Mulbring, having been summoned by telegraph and in the morning the force consisted of 10 men, who seemed to have sprung up like mushrooms during the night; and consi iering tne great distance from which assistance had to come, most of them coming a distance of 30 miles they at least impressed the good people of Gooraubong with an idea of the efficiency of the police department. “ The prisoners were brought before the Gooranhong bench of magistrates, and the seven prisoners committed for trial.”