THE VICTORIAN BUSHRANGERS.

Kumara Times, Issue 673, 23 November 1878, Page 2

THE VICTORIAN BUSHRANGERS.

The following additional particulars were giveu by Constable Thomas Mclntyre, at a magisterial inquiry held on the bodies of Lonigan and Scanlan, two of the three unfortunate constables who were murdered while in the execution of their duty : Constable Thomas M'lntyre deposed: He had not seen Edward or Daniel Kelly before, but recognised them at once from the descriptions given in the Police Gazette. The remark Edward Kelly made when he saw he had shot Longian was, " Dear, dear, what a pity that man tr'ed to get away." They then sat down to wait the absentees. One of the two strangers told M'lntyre to take some tea, and asked for tobacco. He supplied tobacco to two or three of them, and had a smoke himself. Daniel Kelly suggested that he should be handcuffed, but Edward pointed to his rifle and said, " I have something better here. Don't you attempt to go; if you do I'll track yon to Mansfield and shoot you at the police station." Edward Kelly said he bad never heard of Kennedy, but Scanlan was a flash ——. M'lntyre asked" whether he was to be shot. Kelly replied, " No ; why should I want to shoot you ? Could I not have done it half an hoar ago if I had wanted?" He added, "At first I thought you were Constable Flood. If you had been, I would have rousted you in the fire." Kelly asked for news of the Sydney man, the murderer of Sergeant Wallinga. M'lntyre said the police had shot him. " I suppose you came out to shoot rae 1" '.'No," replied M'lntyre, " we came to apprehend you." " What," said Kelly, " brings yon out here at all ? It is a shame to see fine, big strapping fellows like you in a lazy loafing billet like policemen.". He told M'lntyre if he was let yo he must leave the police, aud M'lntyre said he would. The bast thing M'lntyre could do was to get his comrades to surrender, for if they escaped he would be shot. "If you attempt to let them know we are here, you will be shot at once. ~.16 .you, get. them to surrender I will allow you. all to go in the morning, hut you will have to go on foot, for we want your horses... We will handcuff you at night,! as we want to sleep." M'lntyre asked K°lly if he woold promise faithfully not to shoot if they surrendered, nor let his mates fire. Kelly said, " I won't shoot them, but the rest can please themselves." Kennedy rode into the camp first and Scanlan followed close behind. They went to the usual dismounting place. M'lntyre had advanced to within a yard <>f Kennedy when the men called out. "Biil up, put up your hands." Sergeant Kennedy grasped the case of his revolver, and '.immediately shots were fired at him'.' ,: Scanlan was dropped' as he made for a tree. M'lntyre "sa* - the blood spirt from his. right-side as he fell. A great many shots were fired, lint the police had no time to draw their arms. Though Kennedy pnrrendered, the fire was contained, and M'ln- l

tyre made up his mind .that K*lly did not intend to spare any livJL He therefore mounted Kennedy's Jtorse and V.ol ted. As he rode off he heafcd Daniel Kelly call out, " Shoot More Shots were fired, but none struck him. Kennedy was quite close to M'lntyre when the latter but- did not say a word.. M-Intyre got. a severe fall as he rode through the scrab, but remounted and went a long distance further before his horse gave, in. He made a brief memorandum of what had occurred as he lay concealed in the'wombat hole. It concluded witjj. the words, " the Lord have mercy on me." At dark, he started on foot,; ; and walked for an hour with his boots off to make no noise. He took a westerly course • to strike the Benalla arid Mansfield \ telegraph line. On Sunday afternoon . he reached the latter place. -. ■' These notorious highwaymen,. whey,, according to last accounts, are still at I \ large, are liable to be shot down at any' moment uuder the recently proclaimed Victorian Outlaw Act. ' . ' / . '