"THE FIRST NEW ZEALAND BUSHRANGER."

NZ Truth, Issue 79, 22 December 1906, Page 8

"THE FIRST NEW ZEALAND BUSHRANGER."

TO THE EDITOR.

Sii*j— -In your last issue you asked any of your readers who could to give the end of Gariett's (JNew Zealand's first bushranger) career, and 1 will do so. Garrett, previous to coming to i\ew. Zealand, was one : of four wh n attempted to rob a hank m Sydney, about Kedfern. They took a' shop opposite, put a tunnel under the street, let the safe down^ and- took.chalrge of the bank. A boy who was on top of a stair head saw what was going on, jumped but of ; a .window, and .gave the alarm. Three were captured running towards Victoria Barracks. Garrett escaped, and next appeared sticking up Mungatui, N.Z., 25 miles from Dunedin, for which he received the sentence you mention. When he was returned to Australia it was thought action would be taken against him. Such not being the case he niade his way back to Dunedin andfor a couple of years worked at his trade as cooper m Walker-street, and was considered a respectable citizen. But he could not resist the inclination to follow his old trade arid possessed himself .of skeleton keys, and was caught robbing some of the business places, fan which he got a life sentence, a portion of which he did m [Dunedin Gaol. Afterwards he was re--1 moved- to _,ytteiton Gaol,' where he died.' My authority is the warder who was present and closed his eyes.

Gairrett's memoirs of his Hie and other notorious criminals is very interesting reading, as well as a treatise on Mary Queen of Scots, Queen Victoria and John Brown, that noble looking savage. When at Dunedin working m the prison gan**-' .sometimes rain come on and the prisoners would be marched into the railway station at Caversham for shelter. The stationmaster would allow Garrett to go to the . office fire to warm himself on several occasions, for which Garrett was very thankful to Mr Forsyth, the then stationmaster. In return he said he would give him something that might do him some good ; he cave his manuscripts, but not to 'be published till after his death, which took place about 1880., The Otago "Witness" published a good portion of them until an order obtained by "Fire low and lay 'em out" Col. Tom Price forbade the publishing of any more of the papers. A horrible murder was committed, m Dune-din;-the Dwyers, father a.nd mother and baby m its cot being tne victims. The notorious Butler was the reputed murderer. He confessed to arson, got a life sentence and became a fellow, prisoner of . Garrett's. He- confessed the murders to Garrett, who then made a- savage attack on him with the leg of an iron bedstead, aud only for timely (?) aid he would have done for him. The killing of the baby was what roused him. Butler was hanged some tim*. ago m Queensland for murder, but under tlie name of Warton. The bailing up you allude to near Lawrence was at Weatherstones by Sullivan and Co. At noon day they were driven away by. the police under Sub-inspector Simcock and Detective Trimble. The same-night Sullivan and Burgess were arrested by Sergt. Mcc, singlehanded, m a tent five miles up the Waitahuna River. The , ethers were arrested by Sergt.-Major Bracken and got three years sentence m Dunedin Gaol, where Burgees was fiottged. He. took it badly and swore to he revenged on mankind and the consequence was the loss of life m Nelson province.— Yours, etc., i AN OLD HAND.