MAORILAND MEMORIES.

NZ Truth, Issue 72, 8 December 1906, Page 7

MAORILAND MEMORIES.

:-■ » — NEW ZEALAND'S FIRST BUSHRANGER. HENRY BERESEORD GARRETT, ALIAS ROUSE. . ♦- : . ■ (BY "OLD CHUM.")

Though the murdsrous quartet known is the Maungatapu murderers were the | uost noteworthy tj/ud tho most bloodhirsty m the history of crime m New 'ealand, they were not the first KNIGHTS OF THE ROAD r> honor Maoriland with their presence. '!iat distinction belongs to one Henry '.eresford Garrett, a daring • and accomplished scoundrel, well up m all species jf villainy, a very Napoleon m crime, .vho, after noted exploits elsewhere, ap« icared as a bushranger m Maoriland m 1862. • :• « Before going into details of the career of HENRY BERESFORD GARRETT, f may be permitted to supplement ' the history of Sullivan, Burgess, Levy and ft'olly, given m the first issue of New i Zealand "Truth." These additional, cir- j cumstances have- come to my knowledge i since the first article was published. ! # • * { It appears that Kelly, alias Noon ; R. H. Burgess, alias Miller : and Philip Levy went to the new rush known as The West Coost diggings early m 1866, and committ-' several robberies there. They were shiAtly afterwards joined by John Joseph Sullivan, a recent arrival from Victoria. On June 14, Stephen Owens, landlord of the Mitre Hotel, Nelson, went to the wharf to meet the coastal steamer Wallaby as she arrived from the West Coast, and saw four men on

board. They were very poorly dressed, but Owens gave his card to L«vy, and told him that he and his mates could obtain accommodation at the hotel. On the following day Sullivan and Kelly visited the hotel m new clothes. Sullivan gave the landlord (Stephen Owens) two twenty-pound bank notes to keep for him. There was nothing remarkable m this ■; it was the usual custom for diggers m "town for a spree" to leave a "nest-egg" with the publican. The pair appeared to have plenty of money, and they spent it freely. They each ordered » pair of pants and a vest from Mr. Charles Flood, tailor, paying £>± each. They also spent £3 17s (jd at Merrinj*ton's drapery establishment, and Kelly paid £3 5s for a lady's dress. He also bought as an afterthought a bonnet, a. mantle and other articles of feminine wear. •'♦ • ' Levy and Burgess lodged at an oyster shop, kept by Francis Pprcelli. They were "■' ' " '.'"'. COVERED WITH MUD when they went there first, but purchased new clothing at J. M. Richardson's and other places m the town. » ♦ * Sullivan landed at the. Grey River from Victoria m 1865 with the intention ol digging for gold. He was unlucky, and, chancing to make the. acquaintance i of Kelly, Levy and Burgess, who had been sticking up people upon tho roads, joined them, with results previously pjjbiished. « • ♦ The police ascertained that Sullivan had sold to the banks m Nelson gold to the value of £106 7s 6d. Kelly had sold g-old to the palue of £76 and a few shillings, and Levy had sold another lot. These, with three nuggets which were sold for £5 3s sd, made a total of afoout £230 disposed of by the robbers subsequent to the murders. ■♦■■ ♦ » Felix Mathieu, one of the MURDERED MEN, was well-known m Australia. He was a native of Marseilles, aged about 40 years, and had been a colonist of over 12 years' standing. On his first arrival m Australia lie is said to have been employed as barman at the Union Hotel, Beechworth, . after which he opened a bakery at Spring Creek. When the rush took place to. the Snowy River. New South Wales, Mathieu wont there and opened a store. Later on he migrated ,to Lambing Flat, mow Young, and opened a store there. He subsequently went to Forbes' and commenced business. From Forbes he went to tho West Coast of New Zealand, where he met his death. •» ' * • . « It was stated that Levy had been tried i at Castlemafne, Victoria, for the j MUJtDER OF A WOMAN, with whom ne had been cohabiting, but was acquitted for want of sufficient evidence.; I * ■«.».- ! It is also stated that J. J.< Sullivan had been a convict, by transportation, m Van Diemen's Land, and that he went to Victoria m 1853. His first venture was a butchering business at Ironbark Gully, Bendigo, where he was well known. He removed, and opened the Haly-way Inn, on the Inglewood—Ben-dlgo-road. At the time that he sailed for New Zealand he left his wife m charge of a store at Mount Korong, and sold an allotment of land to raise the cash to pay his fare to Maoriland. * « • As to Sullivan's exit from this valo of tears, it will be remembered that a "Truth" correspondent furnished the information that Sullivan died m an old men's institute at Perth, where he had been living for some years under an assumed name. Another authority states that he drifted from town to town, and finally made his way to Sydney, from whence it was said he went to South America and was lost sight of. The four Maungatapu murderers hailed from Victoria, as did the FIRST NEW ZEALAND BUSHRANGEII, GAIURETT. • * * Henry Beresford Garrett got into notoriety and gaol m 1854-55 somewhat m this manner. On December 14, ,185-i. according to G. E. Boxall, a stonemason, named Thomas Quinn, started on horse-hack from his home m Geelong and' ; rode to Bailarat. When about three miles from his destination ho left his pony at Mrs. Smith's ar.d walked Into town. ' He stopped at the tent of John. Boulton and played cards with Boulton and his mate, a man named Marriott. Later on QUINN, BOULTON AND MARRIOTT visited the tent owned by Henry Beresford Oarrett, at the place known as the Big O ravel P'ts. The four took their revolvers, but s.o powder fir shot, and walked a«-oss Metat.tfoct to the Bank

of Victoria on Bakery Hill. 'The quartet had concocted a plan to rob the bank, Quinn being induced to join on the understanding that no violence was to be used. This accounts for the empty revolvers. However, they put new caps on the revolvers and stuffed papers m the muzzles to give them an appearance of being loaded. Garrott and Boulton entered the bank ; Marriott stopped at the door inside, while Quinn kept guard and watch outside. Garrett and Boulton ordered the cashier and teller, Messrs. Buckley and Marshall, to "bail up." Then they tied the hands of the two officials and proceeded to gather m the shekels. As soon as they were outside the building the quartet separated, one going down Bakery Hill, another along the Melbourne-road, and the others by different routes across the Eureka plat- | eau.- They appear to have agreed to meet at Garrett's tent. * « - • The amount of money stated to have been taken was, £14,300 m notes, gold, and silver, and 350 ounces of unminted gold. When the spoil was divided m Garrett's tent, Marriott returned to his lodgings m "township," now known the world over ag ■ THEi CITY OF' BALLARAT. He lodged m a boarding house m Lydiardstreet. Garrett disposed of his tools and tent and took Cobb's coach, to Melbourne, and almost immediately sailed for London. Messrs. Quinn and Boulton went to Geelong. They stayed for one night at Quinn's Jiousp m Chiiwell, and I went by boat next day to Melbourne, where they sold their share of the gold to the then London Chartered Bank m Collins-street. The pair returned next day to Geelong, and again- stopped at Quinn's house for a aiight, and then went -back to Boulton's tent at Ballarat. The pair took good care to make no mention of the robbery before Mrs. Boulton, as < she was J A STRAIGHTGOING, GOOD WOMAN. ■• •- . « * . On the following day Boulton went- to the bank on Bakery Hill from which the money had been stolen and asked for a draft on London for £1450. Ho tendered m payment for this draft some of the stolen bank notes, amongst those which he had received from the gold, m Melbourne. The notes were recognised, and Boulton was kept waiting on some pretence while the police were sent for, and was then taken into custody. One of the stolen £10 notes was produced at the trial and identified as part of the money offered by Boulton m, payment tot the dralt on London. Quinn and Marriott wore without delay arrested, and Quinn turned approver. Marriott and Boulton were of course convicted, and got 10 years' hard labor on the roads. I * ' * I * Tho "Illustrated London News" oi February 17, 1855, contained this paragraph :— "GREAT BANK ROBBERY at Melbourne. — The Metropolitan and City Police have received intelligence by the overland mail, from the Chief of Police at Melbourne, of a great bank robbery of- £31,000 at Ballarat, and the probable flight of the thieves- to England. From the information sent, it appears that the robbery was committed on the branch Victoria Bank on the Second of November last (sic) by four of those I 'out nnd out villains,' who committed several fearful atrocities at the diggings. With their faces concealed with black crape, and each armed with a revolver, they boldly entered the bank m broad daylight, seized Mr. Buckley, the manager, and Mr. Marshall, the chief clerk, the only two wh.o were' m the bank at the time, and, having bound them with cords, they rifled the -establishment of all it contained, aod decamped, previously threatening the lives of those above named if they moved. The. 'Police Gazette' of Sydney publishes a full descrip-

tion'of the thieves, with a partial list of the bank notes and bags of gold stolen. The value of the notes stolen is nearly £17,000. Several bags of gold, m the whole amounting to £17,000, were among the plunder. The Colonial Government have offered £1600 for tho ap- j prehension of the offenders." ■ * « * i A Melbourne detective, whose . name ! was given as Webb, though I" cannot re- j member one of that name m the fifties, | FOLLOWED GARRETT TO LONDON, ! on the information supplied, no doubt, j by the approver Quinn. The detective ] traced the bank-robber to fashionable lodgings near Oxford-street. The detective watched him for some days before he could make up his mind that the fashionably-dressed gentleman was the Ballarat bank-robber. One day he 'saw Garrett out of bis lodgings and followed him into Oxford-street. Suddenly the detective shouted "Garrett," and the fashionably-dressed man, taken by surprise, stopped and partly turned round. This convinced the detective that he had his man. He walked up to the robber, familiarly slapped him on the shoulder, and said, ''How do you do, Mr. Garrett ?" "I don't know you," replied . Garrett. "Perhaps not," said Webb,

"but I know you; you have just arrived from Melbourne m the Dowstono. I have a warrant to arrest you for ROBBING THE BANK OF VICTORIA at Ballarafc* Will you come ?"' Garrett saw that the game was up sjjd dered.The Melbourne "Argus" of August 2, 1 855, contained the follawing : — "Garrett the bank-robber. — Our readers will remember that Garrett, inplicated m tha robbery of the Br.llarat branch of tha Bank of Victoria, wai apunthencled m /

LoiwJonf The particulars of the capture oiiow an amount of professional cleverness and tact on the part of the London detectives which may serve as a model to our own with considerable advantage to them and to the colonists. A large amount of money — more Indeed than £2000 — was said to have been recovered, and, as the apprehension of the robber was effected without loss of time, after the receipt of intelligence oi the robbery and details Dy the steamer Argo, it is supposed that nearly all the booty which fell to his share has been recovered. Garrett arrived m Melbourne yesterday by the Waratah from Sydney m charge of CAPTAIN HAMPTON, the inspector of a force of 100 English police, who have been despatched for police duty m Sydney, and 1 Sergeants Black, Doyle, Smith and Healey, ot tho. same detachment. He was committed into, the custody of these officers at Liverpool,, and sailed m their charge m the ftxodus, bound for Sydney, which left on April 21, and arrived at her destination on the 26th ultimo. The whole of the property recovered from Garrett, has, of course, been brought with him. He was m close confinement the whole of the voyage out, and has also been kept m the strictest surveillance during the passage from Sydney. His custodians describe his conduct as evinc ing those TRAITS OF RUFFIANISM which a long and complete acquaintance with crime, as taught m the pena) schools at Port Arthur, would be sure to inculcate. He was immediately on arrival locked up at the City Police Station, and will no doubt, be brought up this morning.''' * » * Henry Beresford Gavrett, for his share m the Ballarat Bank of Victoria robbery, was sentenced to 10 years'- l"hard labor on the roads or other public works of the colony," as the sentences (before penal servitude was introduced) ran. ' • • • . The discovery of rich goldfields m O.tago m 1861 attracted the floating population of Australia to that quarter. In September the escort brought down to Dunedin for shipment a smaller amount of gold than m any previous montli. Several reasons wero given for the f alliug-off. One was that the weather was abnormally "cold, and the freezing of the rivers, had for a time put a s-top to sluicing. Another was that (rold-buyers declined to pay more than £3 103 an ounce, . and the majority of the diggers, having come from Ballnrat and Bendigo, where £4 and £3 18s 6d pet* ounce were paid respectively, refused to send down their gold, and were holding for a rise. The "Southern Cross" said that the principal reason why the diggers were not sending their gold was THE FEAR OF BUSHRANGERS. The o-uard sent with the escort was wholly inadequate m the mountains through which it had to pass, and therefore the diggers declined to trust their earnings to its care. The "Otago Witness" pooh-poohed the assertion, and declared that there never yet had been a case of bushranging m the colony, and that if a fair price was offered by the banjks and other gold-buyers, the gold obtained by/ the diggers would speedily be placed on the market. The bank authorities, on being questioned, said that New Zealand gold contained a larger quantity of silver than either . Ballarat or Bendigo gold, and was therefore of less value than gold from those fields. ■» » * The New Zealand banks established gold-buying "offices on all the fields, and from the nature of the structures thieves would not have much difficulty m burglarising. The burglars ran the risk, however, of encountering a well-armed bank manager, who usually slept m Ms clothes, with one eye open and half-a--dozen loaded revolvers at hand. * » * The boast of the "Otago Witness" that there were no bushrangers m New Zealand did not hold good for very long. Henry Beresford Garrett was . liberated from PentricJge Prison m August, 1861. j on ticket-of-leave, having served six outj of his 10 years. Early m 1362 he made ; his appearance as the first bushranger on record m New Zealand. The sceno ho selected for his operations was the country between Otago Goldfields and • Dunedin. In one- day he ttuck .up 23 j persons near Gabriel's Gully, now the town af Lawrence ; was captured and I sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. ' After serving under " six years of the term, Garrett — who also went under the j alma of Rouse — was liberated and sent i back by the-New Zealand Government to j Melbourne, where he was promptly ar- : rested under the Influx of Criminals Act. j He complained bitterly of not boiug allowed to settle anywhere, and threatened to commit a murder m order that • his j life might be taken for him. The police j authorities returned him as an "'undesir-l able immigrant" to New Zealand, but j what became of him afterwards I know not — perhaps some of "Truth's" readers will kingly supply the information.