NEW SOUTH WALES. EXAMINATION OF VANE, THE BUSHRANGER.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 21, 24 December 1863, Page 5 (Supplement)

NEW SOUTH WALES. EXAMINATION OF VANE, THE BUSHRANGER.

I (From the Bathurst Times.) Yesterday, John Vane was brought up before tbe magistrates. The examination took place in the large Court Room, in Order to accommodate the crowd which had assembled to witness the^^ceedings. The prisoner is a fine muscular and well knit young man, standing quite six feet high, and so youthful-looking as to make it impossible that he can be more than twenty. Those who anticipated anything repulsive in the prisoner's manner or appearance were altogether disappointed in seeing before them a well-dressed, I quiet, and respectable looking youth. Only two witnesses were examined — Mr Keightley and Dr Pechey, who generally corroborated his statements. The evidence given was as follows : — Henry M. Keightley, a magistrate of Vie colony, and a commissioner stationed at Rockley, said he knew the prisoner. On the evening of Saturday, the 24th October, -he was standing in the yard of ibis house, at Dunn's Plains, when he saw five horsemen coming over a hill, -at a walking pace, towards the house. He thought they were a party of police who had camped in the paddock the night previously. They passed the gate, which is the only entrance into wits nets' place, and as they still came on I at a walk, he was still under the impres--1 slon they were police. But he told Dr 1 Pechey, who was standing by his side,I if they should prove to be bushrangers, I to make a rush for the camp-keeper's I room, and procure some firearms placed I there. It was in consequence of this I that he afterwards retreated to the roof, I being under the impression that Dr I Pechey had secured the weaponsI which, however, he had been unable to | 'do. The party came up slowly, until I within thirty yards, when they simul- | taneously jumped off their horses, and I leapt over the fence. He ran by the back I door into the house furthest from where | "he «tood. As they jumped off, they | cried out "Stand;" but he did not I heed them. In his bedroom he picked -aup a revolver. As he was entering | the house, two or three shots were | fired. From the glance he caught of | Ihem, he thought they were a parcel '£ of lads, soyounu were their appearance. ;: He picked up his gun, and ran to the | backdoor, which adjoins the office. I The door was open, and as he made his I appearance"" several shots were fired — I the bushrangers standing in a semicircle, at various distances from each other. \t the time he took up his gun, 'he concluded that it was loaded in both 'barrels — one with snipe and the other 1 with buck-shot, forgetting that he had I drawn one of the charges about an hour - 1 Wnen at the door, he l sitoticed a man at the left, who fired I •more frequently than the rest — some I foe <**• five shots. He advanced and |TetiVeu in the direction of a cask, and ?S -when he appeared the last time, witness I 'put his gun to h'\s BhoviUtev and fired. 1 Witness satv the man place his hands |on his stomach, and retreat. Witness | fired the right barrel, which he thought -j -Contained the small shot. After this I Recalled Out to Dr. Pechey, "Now, 1 doctor, the roof (upou which he had I erected a barricade). When on the I roof he caught sight of Vane, the priI floner before the Court; that was the I first time he saw him to recognize him. lAs soon as the bushrangers caught I sight of witness, they commenced to | fire at the roof. Before going up I witness looked "for his powder-flask, 1 which he could not find, and then con. ijcluded that Dr. Pechey had taken it. lAt this time -the bouse was open, and | Mrs Keighley and child were below. SHe called to Dr. Pechoy to hand him and then learnt that he had been unable to procure any firearms. I Witness then examined his own weapon, j and found the remaining barrel had been discharged. The shooting of one (of the party below (he believed Ben | Hall) was becoming closer; he appear|ing to be getting into better range. |One bullet passed between himself and | Dr. Pechey, another went through his 1 beard, and another through his hat. I They called upon him to surrender, when he consulted with the doctor, who, in their helpless condition, advised the adoption of that course. Two of the voices called out to bim to lay down his arms, and they would not molest him. He called out, ** Honor bright?" when they answered in the same words. He then came down the ladder into the j garden, concluding that the bushrangers were aware that one of their - party had been hit. As soon as witness and the doctor reached the ground, the party rushed up to them, and Vane struck Dr. Pechey on the bead with his revolver, and knocked him down. Witness asked why be did that, when some one inquired whether the doctor was not Keightley. Witness said, " No, lam not Keightley." Vane then said, " You wretch, you have killed my mate." Witness denied having done «o, when they again said that he had, and that they would shoot both witness and the doctor for having done so. -*'- Ttfey then made him a prisoner, and i took him round to where Burke was lying. They held a consultation, and the result was he was told that he would be shot, and they ordered him to - go down a paddock for that purpose, thi/^Jie did. It appeared by their owt/^litement that Burke had shot himself, having fired at his own head. I Witness was told that he should be killed, and that he had better say " good-bye " to his wife. As he had been ensnared into coming down from his position of safety, he begged them not to shoot him, entreating them " for Sod's sake not to commit murder." At this period it was arranged that Dr. '■:\ Pechey should go into Rockley, to //Ifetch his instruments and such things lis he might require. While he was

absent, Gilbert came to the brow of the hill, and called out that Burke was dead. One of the party then made the remark that witness bad better be shot at once, without wasting any more time. Altogether he was an hour and a half under sentence of death. It appeared that during witness's absence, terms had been made for his ransom for a sum of £500, which was to be paid into their hands by Dr. Pechey. It was stipulated that the money should be paid in a given time, or witness was to be shot. He believed the time specified was a week ; but as he wished to put a termination to his captivity, he suggested the next day as the time for the payment of the money. The conditions were agreed upon between Mrs Keightley and the party. Dr Pechey drove Mrs Keightley into Bathurst. Before doing so, however, they had supper ; and Vane, with O'Meally (to the best of witness' belief) went into bis bed-room and took some clothes, rings, his arms, and a few other things which he had since missed. Witness was then taken upon a hi 1 about a half a mile distant, where, upon his parole that he would not attempt to escape, little restraint was imposed upon him till the morning, when the ransom was paid and he was released. Amongst the arms were two doublebarrelled guns, three revolvers, and three other pistols. They afterwards returned one of them which belonged to the Government, as useless. A horse - they had taken also came back, as they promised it should, the next day. The prisoner was one of the party ; he could not be mistaken as to his identity. He threatened at one time to shoot him, making use of »orae such observation as " You wretch, I'll stop your shooting ; you have killed my mate.' 1 The whole of the party threatened him, and he fully believed he would be s^hot. The hat he now produced was tbe one he wore on tbe occasion. (There were two holes in it on the right side, which had evidently been fired in an upward direction, entering about two inches from the brim, and passing out at the crown on the same side.) He was liberated about 10 o clock on Sunday morning, and he saw a quantity of notes which were handed to the party by Dr Pechey, The party by whom he was kept prisoner were Ben Hall, Gilbert, O'Me.-dly, and Vane. He only knew that they were the individuals because they answered to those names when addressed by their companions, and witness had so called them when speaking to them. — Cross examined. — Witness was not kept in confinement, but liberated next morning. He had supper with them. He did not join them, he w 3 compelled to be present as their prisoner. Vane he considered to bo the mest energetic in insisting that he should be shot. He attributed his safety to Gilbert and Hall. Vane did not delibe-ately cover him. Every one of the party said he shou'd be shot. X3ne of them turned to Mrs Keightley, and said, " You will be a widow in three minutes." Dr Pechey did not see the first encounter when Burke was shot. He was behind witness, further back in the hall. William Crisp Pechey, being sworn, deposed that he was a medical practitioner residing at Rockley, and on the evening of the Qith October he remembered five men coming to Mr Keightley's house, where he was staying. Vane was present. When they approached, they called to witness and his companion to stand. They ran back, witness endeavoring to reach the servants" room, where there were some firearms, but he was confronted by one of the bushrangers, and he then retreated towards the house, and took his position near Mr Keightley. While doing so, he heard the repori of firearms all round. Shortly after they made for the roof, when the bushrangers commenced to fire on them again, and a bullet passed through Mr Keightley's hat. The hat produced was the one worn by Mr Keightley. The men were then screening themselves behind posts and other things. They shouted out to witness and Mr Keightley to surrender, which they consented to do, and came down. The bushrangers, finding by that time that their mate was wounded, rushed up to them, and Vane knocked witness down with his hand, in which he had a revolver, producing the Cut of which the scar now remained on his temple. He asked them to let him attend to the wounded man, telling them he was a docter. Upon going up to Burke, he found a large wound in his abdomen, from which his bowels was protruding about two feet. He asked them to let him go into Rockley and fetch his instruments, which they did upon his promising not to give the alarm. When he came back, he learned that Mr Keightley had been taken prisoner, and that he was kept until £500 was paid. He heard so from Mrs Keightley, who had made the arrangement with Gilbert and Hall. Witness came into Bathurst, procured the money, and handed it £to the bushrangers, Vane being one of the party. Mr. Keightley was then'liberated. By the Bench — When they first came down from the roof of the house, the whole party threatened to shoot them, and he believed presented "revolvers or guns at them. Mrs. Keightley and the servant interceded. Vane was not more active than the rest, except in knocking witness down. The blow upon his brow was not a severe one; it just cut the skin. No shots were fired by Mr. Keightley or witness from the roof. They had no ammunition with them. When witness returned from Rockley, Mr Keightley was on the hill. Shortly after coming down from the roof, after a lapse of a minute or two, witness went for his instruments. Gilbert and Hall appeared to be the ringleaders. Vane did not appear to take a leading I part. When he returned from Bathurst

he handed tbe money to Gilbert, and j Mr. Keightley was liberated. The examination being concluded, the prisoner was remanded for seven days, and re- I moved to the gaol between two constables. j