THE KELLY GANG.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8305, 7 December 1906, Page 3

THE KELLY GANG.

' In . view of ithe-coming production .'at the .Town Hall on Monday eventing nest of the Australian Bushranging romance "The Kelly Gang" ■by the Macmahbn Dramatic Company, the i following extract from the Sydney "Morning Herald" should prove of interest:— The memories of a cold-blooded tragedy of a generation ago were revived at Lithgow (N.S.VV.) one night recently when James Skillion took . into his confidence a Salvation Army gathering, and boastingly disclosed his close relationship with the notorious Kelly gang of bushrangers and • murderers, who had held in terror a whole countryside for some years. It was a relationship by marriage, by sympathy, by ' self-interest, and-by theft, as the receiver of stolen money. The following is a summary of Mr Skillion's confession as given in the "Sydney Morning Herald," 20-11- ' 'OS: —At a meeting of the Salvation 'Army a few nights ago one of the converts told part of the history of his life. He said his name was James Skillion. and that his brother William had married Maggie Kelly, eldest sister of Ned Kelly, the bushranger. He (Skillion) had ■ acted as a bush telegraph, and in various other ways proved himself . useful to the gang. The commencement of the gang's career arose from . the fact that a mounted constable went to Mrs Kelly's to arrest her ■ son Dan Kelly, who was away at the time, for horse-stealing. The constable attempted familiarity with Kate Kelly, but Mrs Kelly, William Skillion, and a man named Williamson rushed in and handled the ■ policeman very roughly. The day following several constables came from Benalla and arrested Mrs Kelly William Skillion, and Williamson on a charge of assaulting a con.stable 'The two men got six years and Mrs Kelly three years. Ned .and Dan Kelly came home and found their mother had been arrested. Ned remarked : "We will give the police'something to do." That was the start of the gang. In his capacity of bush telegraph James Skillion assumed various disguises—sometimes carrying a swag, at other times wearing a belltopper, and ■ Sometimes dressed in Kate Kelly's -clothes. In a subsequent conversation Skillion made a statement that when the bank at Euroa was stuck up and robbed the proceeds were divided between 100 sympathisers. From tHe proceeds of the robberies Skillion received £3,000, and spent it in travelling through America and Great Britain with Kate Kelly and Kate Byrne (Joe Byrne's sister).1 Skillion, who has been made a member of the local corps of the Army, is now working here. He speaks freely of this connection with the gang, and says he can give dates, places and all particulars. The only ; point on which hej refuses to give any information is that of the name of the man who made Ned Kelly's armour.