POLICING THE WILDS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 4 August 1924, Page 7

POLICING THE WILDS.

CENTRAL AUSTRALIA

DESPERATE MAN AND BEASTS. A TROOPER'S MEMORIES. SYDNEY, July 17. The retirement from the public service of S«uth Australia of Mr B. Thorpe, Chief Inspector of Leases and Government Valuator, removes Irom active work one who, for 3b years, has seen mote of the adventitious side of wild Australia probably than any other living man. He joined the service as a. mounted trooper, and his first assignment was enough to daunt the most venturesome spirit.

Forthwith he was sent to Darwin, then known as Palmerston, to join -Mounted Constable Curnow, who was found for Camooweal in order to open a station on the Queensland border, where, cattle •'duffing” was prevalent. In addition, the blacks had proved exceedingly troublesome, and a number of bad characters were coming into the Territory from Queensland and New South Wales. Nobody in Darwin appeared to know where Camooweal was, much less how to get there. Finally Messrs C'urnow and Thorpe left by the Government steamer Victoria, and after a week of buffeting seas reached the mouth of the lfoper Diver, which is navigable for 90 miles. When half this distancel had been covered the captain anchored and blew the siren. In response to the clamour, scores of wild Blacks came out swimming in the alligator-infested waters, armed only wijth stout sapljngsl with whfch to scare off the saurians. Many of the men bore witness to previous encounters with the monsters, in the shape of terrible scars. One Blackfellow had a dreadful wound jlu the head. The skull had evidently been laid bare, and the wound had been filled up with a whitish clay, which must have had great medicinal properties, for it was all the natives ever used for their wounds, however severe. It was a habit among them to hamstring their adversaries in a tribal fight. ‘‘After 2000 miles of perilous travelling from Danvin,” relates Mr. Thorpe, ‘‘the party reached Camooweal, and my adventures an the Territory began On the evening when I arrived at Austral Downs, I wa s just in time to meet a Chinaman staggering into the head station with dried blood all over his face and clothes. The man, who was faint from weakness, was calling pitifully for water. It appeared that he Dad been attacked -liy a swagman, who had bailed him up with his own revolver. The swagman had snatched this from the belt of the astounded Chinese, but fortunately its aw net had expended his last three cartridges on an elusive wild turkey. Hi s assailant then beat the unfortunate man over the head and face in a shocking manner, and left him to get along as best he could. I immediately set off in pursuit of the swagman, who Was accompanied by a/ big wall-eyed sheep dog, according to the frightened Chinese. I found both the dog and his master savage fighters, and if it had not -been for my stout leather leggings, my legs would have been bitten by the collie, which sprang to its master's assistance. The s'vagman was summarily dealt with at Camooweal, but the sentence of six months’ imprisonment imposed on him meant that I now had to escort the man 400 miles to Boroloola police prison to serve it. At first my prisoner refused to mount a horse, and said he wonld have to be dragged all the way. AVhen hit last I pretended to take him at his word, and buckled a long leather strap round his waist and attached the other end to a pack horse, he gave in, and thereafter "'0 were good friends all the way.” The old wall-eyed dog followed his “boss” with pathetic faithfulness, and he, too, made friends with the trooper, who had to sleep handcuffed to his prisoner through manv a lonelv night watch.

Mr. Thorpe always took a deep interest in the habits and customs of the native tribes, a fact which stood him in good stead when he set out to avenge the murder of his friend, Mr. Mill Calder, a young squatter,who had been battered to death by Arralla, a ferocious blackfellow. The murderer had fled to the desert country, but' hearing that a big corroboree had been held near Lake Nash Station, Messrs Curnow and Thorpe, accompanied by Mr. Isaac Little, set out for the scene of festivity, where more than 100 wild blacks were assembled. Their camp was rushed at dawn by the white men, but Arralla was not among them. Finally, however, they unearthed him at the edge of the scrub, from which Mr. Thorpe tried to head him off. He then rallied the frightened blacks, and called on them to spear the white men, anti his own boomerang grazed Mr. Thorpe’s shoulder. It was impossible to take him alive, for at the slightest hint of mercy he howled and spat defiance, and the other warrigals were getting out of hand. Finally, pist as he was in. the act of flinging a stoneheaded spear at Mr. Thorpe, he was shot throngh the heart, and the others, seeing him fall, immediately sat down and made overtures for peace. There was rough justice in those days, hut even then Mr. Thorpe had to Vide ont m every direction in order to secure a justice and jury to visit the scene and tree him of blame in connection with the blackfellow’s death. From Camoow'eal, Mr. Thorpe was transferred to Powell’s Creek police station, 400 miles.inland Stores readied here once a year, aiid all flour had to be emptied out into a. huge tarpaulin and kept in the open air, lest the weevils and muggy heat should render it unfit to eat. “I got a lot of experience in tracking. for f wa s continually out in search of missing men,” s aid' Mr. Thorpe, ‘‘and have sometimes been able to beat the black boys at their own game in this regard. The lubras. I think, are better trackers than the men as a rule. Snakes and scorpions abounded at Powell’s Creek, and I have often shaken a scorpion out of my socks. One night at Cobb’s Creek, we killed 17 black snakes before we lay down to sleep and in the morning one fine horse was Ling dead. In addition to mv duties as a police constable. 1 acted as cattle inspector and Customs officer Ticks were a. curse to the cattle, and the hot fly also prevalent. *S\yamp cancer and lumpy throat also affected many of the poor beasts. The human beings made up for it all in ma_ lana, and I had my share of it. Nobody but a busliman knows the kinship which groivs up between !i man and his horse in these outback places. I only lost one horse during my strenuous career; an alligator got the poor beast as we were crossing a Hooded rii'er. These dreadful creatures are a terrific scourge, and T have heard runny tales of their ferocity. A man was dragged out of his boat on the McArthur River one moonlight night, and no trace was ever found of the unfortunate fellow, who had foolishly disregarded all warnings and gone t<> sleep Avith one foot hanging over the side of his boat. One station had so many horses and cattle taken bv alligators that the oAvners abandoned the place in disgust.”—Otago Daily Times.