AUSTRALIA.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 56, 24 July 1862, Page 6 (Supplement)

AUSTRALIA.

By the barque City of Melbourne, we (Southern Cross) have two clays’ later news than that brought by the Lord Ashley cm the 23rd of June ; but the only particulars worth recording is the sticking up of the Lachlan escort, the particulars of which, copied from the Sydney Morning Herald will be found below—At Adelaide, Hour, silk dressed, is quoted at ATI to LTI 14s. ; wheat 4s. sd. to 4s. Gel., at which price these commodoties were much enquired for. —-At Melbourne the banks have raised the price of gold 9d. per ounce in anticipation of the reduction in the export duty. The excitement iu the tobacco trade was subsiding. Flour in good demand, the market opening at 4:14 per ton for Margarey ; Adelaide, lan gold has been struck in payable quantities in No. 3. claim, Union Lead North, 110 deep. The lead runs between the Caledonian and \ ictorian. This has caused considerable excitement. Bv Electric Telegraph. [from OUR COHHESrOXDEXT.'I GOLD ESCORT AND MAIL ROBBERY, ORANGE. Tuesday, 5 p.m. Between four and five o’clock, on Sunday Evening, the escort from the Lachlan, arrived at a creek near Mr. Clements,’ forty-five miles from Orange, when they saw two bullock teams and one horse team placed across the road in a peculiar position. The coachman had to drive round them and while doing so six men came out from behind some rocks and fifed upon the escort. They then retired, and six others followed their example. The escort then fired on the bushrangers. At the second volley the horses bolted, aud the coach turned over. Fifteen men, all in red shirts and caps, with blackened faces then rushed on (he escort and fired on them. They took the horses from the coach, and took two with them to carry the gold, the mail bags, two rifles and troopers’ cloaks. The senior-sergeant received three ball wounds; Moran, two. Neither of them was seriously hurt. The coachman received one ball through his hat, and another through the skirt of bis coat. It was then dark. The escort and coachman went to Mr. Clement’s. One of the men, the coachman, and others, returned aud gathered up the letters. Mr. Clements, accompanied by one of the escort, started immediately to give information of the occurrence to the police. About 6 o’clock yesterday morning, Sir F. Fottinger, with eleven troopers, twenty settlers, and two trackers, got on the track of the bushrangers. About three miles from the coach they found, near a camp fire, the gold boxes, which had been opened. The mails were delivered here about six last evening; registered letters were all saved. Soon after the mail left the post ofllcc, Ilaviland, one of the escort (the only man who escaped being wounded), was shot under the chin. Ho never spoke afterwards, but fell down in the coach. At the inquest held on the body to-day, the verdict given was—“ Died from a wound by "a bullet, who- j ther by intent or accident not known.” He leaves ; a widow and two children. "When the carriers arrived at the place where the robbery subsequently occurred, they were stopped by an armed man, and ordered to draw their teams across the road, and take down a case of gin and open it. They were then marched behind the rocks, and made to lie flat on their faces, an armed man standing over them. They had been in this pleasant posture three hours when the escort came up.— Sydney Morning Herald. The Government have offered a reward of

•£IOO each for the apprehension and conviction of the men (supposed to be ten in number) concerned in the above outrage. Previous to offering the reward, the Government proposed to the various banks that they should unite in offering, pound for pound, an equal amount to that offered by the Government, but the banks declined to enter into ’ such an arrangement. | FORBES, j (From a Correspondent.) ! Inspector Sanderson and his men, after four days pursuit, recovered about 1,400 ozs. of gold. He never saw the robbers' but they knew of his close pursuit on their tracks, and abandoned their packhorse, with gold and firearms. I can swear to some of the gold. The following is the official telegram received by the Inspector-General of Police, which has been kindly handed to us for publication, and is dated Forbes, Juno 22nd:— *’ Senior Sergeant Sanderson returned to Forbes yesterday, with half the gold taken from the escort on the 18th instant. It appears that, when near M hoege, Sanderson’s party saw a man at a distance riding towards them, who, when he saw the police, at once turned and rode back full galop. The police followed followed on his track, and ran him to the top of a high mountain, from which four others had just decamped. Hastings, a black tracker, being with (he police, they were enabled to follow on their tracks for twenty miles; and the bush-rangers, finding themselves so hotly pursued, let their packhorse go, and on him was found about 1,500 ounces of gold, the police cloak, and the two Terry’s breech-loading carbines, which had. been stolen from the escort coach. Sanderson s horses being quite knocked up, the party were compelled to return. Sir Frederick Pottinger’s party have not yet returned since they first started in pursuit.” DEFALCATION AT THE TELEGRAPH DEPARTMENT. We regret to have to report that an extensive defalcation has been discovered in the Sydney Office ol the Electric Telegraph Department; the accountant, Mr. Daniel Dunstan, having absconded with moneys belonging to the Government to the extent of nearly £IOOO. On Thursday morning last Dunstan left the office informing Mr. Cracknel! that he would be back in a few minutes. An hour having elapsed without any signs of his return, Mr. Cracknel! went to Dunsfan’s (able and examined some of thepaporslhere. Snspoctingfrom the appearance of these that there was something wrong, Mr. Crack null immediately proceeded to the Minister for Works, who returned with him to the ielcgraph Office. Upon a further examination of the accountant’s papers by Mr. Arnold and Mr. Cracknell, and on an inspection of the easli safe, which they found to bo empty, it was evident (hat a large sum of money had been embezzled, the amount of which was subsequently ascertained to have been upwards of £9OO. Information of the robbery was at once forwarded to the secretary, to (lie Inspector-General of Police, Captain M’Lerie being absent from Sydney; but although (ho detective officers were put upon (he absconder’s track within two hours of his leaving (he Telegraph office, they have not yet succeeded in apprehending him. Dunstan had been about two years connected with the Telegraph department, and was receiving a salary of £3OO per annum ; his being intrusted with the money order deposits and with the transmission of the salaries to the subordinate officers, accounts for his being enabled to become possessed of and to make away with so large a sum of money. Before coming to tins colony Dunstan was residing for some time in Hobart Town, whore he married the daughter of Mr. Driscoll, the manager of the Colonial Banking Company, obtaining with her a considerable fortune, which he rapidly squandered. We understand that a legal firm in Sydney served a writ upon him soon after his arrival in Sydney, and (hat Capt. Martindalc was cautioned against employing him on account of his having been previously implicated in a transaction of a similar character to that now brought to light. The alarm having been raised so soon after the absconding of the defaulter, has prevented his leaving Sydney by water ; and (here are reasons for believing that he is still in the city, in which case he will probably be soon arrested and brought to justice. Together with Dunstan, his younger brother, who had recently arrived in the colony, lias also disappeared. Pending an investigation into the affair, Mr. Philip B. W alker, Assistant-Superintendent of Telegraphs, his been suspended.