West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 1886.

West Coast Times, Issue 250, 11 July 1866, Page 2

West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 1886.

The news of the murder of Mr Dobson, and of the unfortunate men killed in the Nelson province by the same gang, has occasioned a great sensation throughout New Zealand, and especially in Otago, where these desperados were well known. They seem to have run a long career of crime, which, it is to bo hoped, will now be ended on the gallows. As a supplement to the mysterious story it has been our duty to detail, we give the following information communicated to the " Otago Daily Times. :—": — " At the time Burgess alias Hill, Kelly alias Hannon, and Sullivan were arested in this province, they lived in a small tent overlooking the Waipori-road ; and it was afterwards ascertained that they were watching a Mr Yatcs, at that time, and now, an agent of the Bank of New South Wales, who was in the habit of carrying large parcels of gold between Waipori and Tuapeka. It was ascertained that their intention was to shoot Mr Yates aud to bury his body ; but their career was then, fortunately, checked. Kelly is known in Victoria as Kelly alias Hanuon ; but he is better known as Thomas Noon. The latter is supposed to be x his proper name, as under that he and his brother '• Bill" Noon, with " Teddy " Gore, and " Sandy " Frazer, were tried for highway robbery and murder on the Ovens road, in 1 853. The whole four were penal prisoners at the time. Frazer turned approver. " Bill " Noon was executed, and the others were remanded to serve out their sentences. Burgess alias Hill, was at the time of the 1 above murder, serving a sentence of ten years in the hulks, having' received that sentence in February, 1852, for highway robbery under arms; so that at the time he appeared on the Otago goldfields his ticket-of-leave had nearly expired. Sullivan is a well known convict in Victoria, and particularly in Sydney - and Levy has been known as a famous" putter- up" (or planner) of crime, during the last fifteen years, in Victoria ■ and in this colony. Information as to the antecedents of Burgess and Kelly, together with a minute description of their persons and the marks they bore, were furnished to the police of the neighboring Provinces, when those men were discharged from gaol here on the 11th September Jast. Those in Otago who best knew' the characters of the four villains, predicted, i as soon as the news of their arrest had been received, that if Sullivan had been concerned in any way with either of the then suspected murders-, he would be tempted by a promise of pai'don to confess. When Levy was known to be in custody, it was believed that he would be the first to turn approver, because of his known habit of " putting up" robberies, but keeping himself out of any participation in violence. It seems, however, that Sullivan has been the means of giving to the world a history of the almost unparalleled villainy which has recently been perpetrated on the West Coast Goldfields. Burgess is described as a man who never allowed* himself to drink to excess, or to be enticed into the company of low women — two great sources of danger to a criminal. Whib cautious in these respects, he was [known to be one who would hesitate at nothing that could tend to hide a crime he had committed. Fortunately, as it would seem, he could not " work" without the aid of less secretive villains than himself." In another article giving further particulars of the career of Burgess, Kelly and Sullivan in Otago, the " Daily Times " calls attention io the fact, that the " free pardon" promised to any accomplice in the crime not actually the murderer, was proclaimed at thrr instance of Mr Moorhouse, the Superintendent of Canterbury, who made strong representations on the subject to the General Government, but that the guarantee of pardon " applies only to the case of poor young Dobson." The last words we have quoted are given by our contemporary in italics, and they can only be meant to convey the hint that the promise of indemnity " upon the strength of which " he made his confession as to the other murders, should not avail to save him from the , gallows for his participation

in the Nelson tragedy. We should protest earnestly against the policy of this virtual breach of faith, if there were any chance of its being carried out. We cannot, however, for a moment suppose that the Government will take advantage of this flaw. Black a villain as Sullivan is, according to his own showing, it is to his statements that the interests of justice will be indebted. Those interests are now best guaranteed by the chances that exist of gangs of ruffians yielding to the temptation to betray each other ; and any impression that the authorities, in holding out inducements to a confession, were laying ',' a trap " for a man's own conviction, would invariably lead to scoundrels associated together in any serious crime, holding by each other steadfastly to the last.