GHASTLY TRAGEDY.

West Coast Times, Issue 96, 8 January 1866, Page 3

GHASTLY TRAGEDY.

A correspondent of the " Pastoral Times," writing from Wentworth, furnishes tho following details of a a ghastly tragedy :■— " A family of seven — father, mother, and five children — have recently left the service of Mr Gcll, of Lake Victoria, and had in search of employment, gone up the anabranch : they had been travelling some five weeks without success, and were on their way (Wn. The extreme heat of the weather had made their journCy a very toilsomo one. On Monday, tho 20th ultimo, the family had reached a point on Mr Pyle's run, whjch would necessitate a stage of ten miles to reach the next water ; hero their horses entirely failed, and with the intention of getting through the stage as they best could, they * all started on foot. Tho day, however, bping intensely hot they made but little progress, and the want 1 of water was extremely felt. The father, it would scorn, turned back upon the track to get some, taking with him tho only vessel they hud for carrying it, namely, a small billy. With this lie .returned; but the quantity was too small to afford tho relief that was now so much needed, as the wife and children woro quite prostrate with thirst ; towards evening they made an effort to push through, but night coming on they lost .the track. On Tuesday morning tho father set out to find tho track, or seek water ; deceived, after going some distance, by tho mirage, ho mado, as he thought, towards some water seemingly not far off. Not finding the object of his search, he endeavored to retrace his steps, and had not gone far before ho thought he again saw water close by, and which he had passed in his eagerness to secure some that ho thought he had just seen in the distance. Horrible to relate, disappointment met him at every turn. With difficulty ho got back to whero ho had left his wife and children, only to find them either dead or dying, and no help, no succour, no ministering angel near to snatch them from their impending fate, or to sooth their last agonising moments. From Monday till Friday this awful scene was enacting, when chance sent succour, but too lato to savo any of tho children, who were all dead and far advanced in decomposition. They were discovered by Mr Pyle, the owner of the run on which they wero, and who happened to pass near tho spot with sonic cattle. Mr Pyle hud them carefully removed. to his station, whero every attention nocossary was bestowed, and they are, I believe, now approaching convalescence."