THE MURDERER SULLIVAN.

Globe, Volume II, Issue 193, 21 January 1875, Page 3

THE MURDERER SULLIVAN.

The. Ballarat correspondent of the Argus writes: —"A gentleman on Ballarat has favored me with the following information in connection with the Victorian career of. the murderer Sullivan, which may be of value in assisting to implicate the miscreant in some of the deeds of blood he is supposed to have been guilty of before he left this colony. The gentleman had the information from his brother, who still resides in Wedderburn, or close to it, and who, he says, he is sure will be too glad to assist the police in any way he can. About the year 1862 Sullivan had a shanty between Korong (now Wedderburn) and Inglewood. He afterwards removed to Korong, where he had a house and garden. He was a great gambler, and had always plenty of money, but was never known to do any work. Robberies were frequent at the time, and though it was not attempted to connect Sullivan with them, it was remarked that he was always seen near the place of the robbery before it was committed. These robberies seemed to be perpetra'ed on some well defined plan. Travellers were generally accosted on the road by an inquisitive individual, who seemed to take much interest in their affairs. If this inquisitive man accompanied them beyond a certain part of the road, they were never interfered with. If he left them on any pretence, the persons were attacked, taken into the bush, tied up and robbed, and possibly murdered. Many victims got off with their lives, and these all spoke of the same course of action being taken by the inquisitive person, who was not apparently known. One day, however, Sullivan was either stuck up, tied to a tree and robbed, or got himself placed in a such a po3ition as to lead to that inference, and then for the first time he was identified as the inquisitive accoster of those who had been robbed. The author of this narrative says he on one occasion went to Korong, and remained there some time, trying to discover or to prospect a quartz reef he had heard of. He knew Sullivan well from report, and had frequent opportunities of seeing him then, and in conversation with his brother he repeatedly told him he believed Sullivan to be a general robber, who would resort to any means to acquire plunder. A month or two after this, the gentleman sent for his brother one day, and told him he was most anxious to have a chat with him about Sullivan, as from observations he had made he had come to the conclusion that Sullivan was a murderer as well as a robber. His brother advised him to be cautious how he indulged in that opinion, unless he had something tangible to guide him. He repliedjthat he was as firmly convinced of the correctness of his surmises as he was of his own existence, and illustrated the cases of three men, all of whom he knew, and all of whom were known to possess tolerably large sums of money, who had mysteriously disappeared within a very short time, Sullivan, as usual, being either the last man seen with them, or his house being the last they were seen at. His brother remarked to him that if people were murdered to the number he supposed there should not be much difficulty in finding the remains ; dead bodies were not very easily disposed of clandestinely. He replied that he had a horrible idea which he could not rid himself of, and it was based on the strict observation which his interest in Sullivan had led him to make. He believed that Sullivan was carrying out a diabolical scheme for the disposal of his victims. He had noticed for some time he had been engaged in trenching his garden to an un usual depth; that he was in the habit of collecting all kinds of bones, and of depositing them at the very bottom of the trenching, but that he was rarely seen at work in his garden during the daytime; and

unless some extraordinary motive actuated him, he could Dot account for a man like "nllivan, who detested work, voluntarily indulging in such a task. In these trenches he said there was room enough fo*- numbers of human bodies to be buried and carefully hidden from view. He then recommended his brother to lay his surmises before the police, and to leave the matter in their hands, although he at the time expressed a strong opinion that his brother's estimate of Sullivan was not justified. He says, he believes his brother did mention his suspicion to the police; but thinks that, from want of definite facts, no action was taken. Perhaps the stricter supervision of Sullivan and his shanty by the police, after hearing these suspicions, may have had the effect of making the place too hot for the fiend, as he shortly afterwards cleared out for New Zealand. On the new? of the Maungatapu murders reaching Korong, the gentleman who had formed so just—although supposed at the time by many to be unjust—an opinion of Sullivan, as a diabolical robber and murderer, at once wrote to his brother here, rather exultingly, drawing his attention to the then proved correctness of his estimate of the miscreant. Perhaps if that garden at Korong be retrenched, his suspicions might receive still further, though more harrowing confirmation."