A Tall Story.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume IV, Issue 252, 6 September 1902, Page 3

A Tall Story.

Wanganui, September 2.

The Wanganui Chronicle is publishing in the morning a telegram received from its Manaia correspondent. The telegram states that the “ Waimate Witness” publishes an account based on the statement of two officers of the Tenth Contingent of a fatal bout which took place between the Imperial troops and the New Zealanders at Newcastle, Natal, just after peace h id been declared. The report states that ill-feeling had been running high between the Imperial troops and the colonials, and that the Marshal dealing harshly with one New Zealander for infringing a minor service rule caused a body of New Zealanders two or three hundred strong to attack the Munster Fusiliers, who were acting as police in the town, the colonials using their stirrup-straps with the irons attached. The Provost-Marshal then ordered a squadron of dragoons to charge the New Zealanders’and to use their swords. A portion of the New Zealanders got into a blockhouse near, and hurled lumps of rock at the mounted men, upon whom the New Zealanders were using their stirrup-ironswith good effect. Another body, 500 strong, of colonials rushed down to help the New Zealanders, but the proceedings were then stopped by high officials arriving on the scene. Two dragoons were killed and many injured.. The affair so far has been' husheJ up. The Chronicle’s correspondent vouches for the truth of the statement, and the Chronicb publishes it for what it is worth.

STATEMENT OF AN EYE-WITNESS.

Corporal George Wilson (Tenth Contingent) of Waiiuace, has, supplied us with the following account of the affair j<—

“Tocommenceat the beginning, all police work in the triwn, while the country was under martial law, was done by the Tommies, and as the Munster Fusiliers were camped near Newcastle they policed the town. Under martial law, no soldier could be supplied with liquor, but certain of the Tenth were in the habit of getting civilians to procure the liquor, and as it was a luxury, they often took too much. At times a man would create a disturbance in the street, and in their capacity as police, the Munsters would ‘ lumber ’ him. A certain class of Tenth Contingenters blamed the Munsters, forgetting that they were real soldiers, and could not disobey orders with impunity, as irregulars often can. The better class of the Tenth (and they were many) recognised that the Tommies were only doing their duty. “ The ’method of procedure on occasions a New Zealander was jailed, was. for a few of the

seas'.t'j i-! >v|.ig, ngit itor- ik,; men fco go r.jiin l.ihs c.uup ami h tr-m.mc alt ha-vis abo it fie • imm tr of New Zealand, ’ ‘kit-ping up r,(ie gioil nairu of onr omi 17, etc.. nnt.il they g)t a good -hz 1 f» I > i ig. These were joined by others who wanted to see some fun, and off to the jail the crowd set, talking loud and Jong about To mny Atkins. About half-a-dozen such' ‘ affairs ’ had occurred without the writer having gone once, and 0 1 the evening in question, hearing that a North Islander had that J afternoon been ‘ lagged ’ for drunkenness, he made it his busi-

ness to be on the road towards town. Soon a crowd gathered, and about 120 strong, all hands set out for Newcastle Jail.

“Ou the road was a picket of 20 men, and though order.-d to stop, the crowd were deaf for the time being. Past the picket a little way a halt was called, and a'l hands armed them selves with wattle or peach branches, which they broke from neighbour ng trees A solf-constituted leader toM- off tiie crowd into fours," when it was found that they were about seventy strong, five of them being South Islanders,

“They marcho 1 info cow 1 in fours, stopping opposite the jail. The prisoner was very promptly fitted out into the street, and join d the band, speaking of bis wrongs as volubly as he could. The military (or some other sort of) ardour of the noble rescuers of the oppressed was not satisfied with so easy a victory and instantly l ho cry was raised— ‘ Let’s raid the Hiu in shops,’ there being quite a number of these in Newcastle, These shops proved to be closed, and the heroes straggled back to the main street. Here an unfortunate Tommy wandered across the road, and some New Zealanders struck him on the head with a stick. He was cried to shame by the otheis, who moved up near to the Town Hall. A big house standing back from the road next caught the eyes of the men, and they got down there and demanded jewellery. They got a good deal, and then made for the Post Office. Here a Tommy was standing, and one Colonial who was armed with a stirrup-iron struck him over the head. He was badly hurt and was carried away.' “ Word was then paseed that a body of mounted troops were coming to clear thg town, and the looters left for Fort Hay Camp. Just after they had dispersed ten mounted men with drawn swords galloped through the town, but our felluws were faded and gone.

“ Thus ended the Newcastle affair, except that every man was debited with 7d to pay damage done. As regards the two wounded men, I was in Newcastle Hospital two days before the Tenth left Newcastle, and was told that one of the men had left there fit for duty, and the other would be out in a few days.