Ned Kelly's .Statement.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 27, 14 July 1880, Page 3

Ned Kelly's .Statement.

What I intended to do, and, in fact, was just about doing, was to go down with some of my mates and meet the special train, and rake it with shot. The train, however, came before I expected it, and I had to return to the hotel. I thought the train would go on, and on that account I had the rails pulled up so that these b black trackers might be settled. It does not matter much what brought me to Glenrowan. If I liked I could have got away last night. I .got into the bush with my grey mare, and laid there all night. 1 had a good chance, but I wanted to see th thing end. When the police fired the first round I got wounded on the foot ; it was the left one. Shortly afterwards I was shot through the left arm. It was in the front of the house where I received the injuries. I don't care what people say about Sergeant Kennedy's death. I have made my statement of it, and if they don't belLve me I can't help it. At all events, lam satisfied Scanlan was not shot kneeling. That is not true ; he never got off his horse. At the commencement of ihe affair this morning I fired three or four shots from the front of Jones' hotel, but I did not know who I was filing at. I only fired when I saw the flashes. I then cleared for the bush, but remained there, near the hotel, all night. Two constables passed by me talking, and I could have shot them before they had time to shoot. If I liked I could have shot several constables. At one time I was a good distance away, but I came back again. I have got a charge of duck shot in my leg. Why don't the police use bullets instead of duck shot? One of the policemen that was firing at me was a splendid shot. I don't know his name. Perhaps I would have done better had I cleared away on my gre3 r mare. It was just like blows from a man's fist receiving the blows on my armor. I wanted to fire into the carriages, only the police started on us too quickly. I knew the police would come, and I expected them. Inspector Sadlier here remarked, " You wanted then to kill the people in the train." Kelly replied, " Yes, of course I did. God help them ! They would have got shot all the same. Would they not have tried to kill me ?" Every kindness was shown to Kelly by the police, and his two sisters were permitted to remain with him during the afternoon. He was also seen by the Rev. Father Tierney, to whom he made a confession.