GREAT TRAGEDY RECALLED.

Marlborough Express, Volume LIIII, Issue 82, 8 April 1920, Page 6

GREAT TRAGEDY RECALLED.

WOMAN ESCAPES WITH

MURDIiRERS

THREE MONTHS' CRUISE IN

KETCH

ZARA WHITE'S DEATH

The death of Zara White at the Long Bay Reformatory for Women, says the Sydney Sun, removes the last" of the three .concerned in the Great Barrier murder near Auckland, New Zealand, on June 19, 1886, when Robert Taylor was shot by John Cuffrey while his mate, Henry Fenn, held his hands.

The murder caused a sensation throughout Australasia, owing to the fact that the woman and the two men escaped in a ketch, Sovereign of the Seasf eventually landing at Crescent Heads, between Trial Bay and Macleay Heads. Within a few days ex-Sergeant May, En more, then stationed at Bellinger, brought about the arrest of Caffrey under unusual circumstances. Perm gave himself up to the police a few days later. They were taken to Auckland, tried, condemned to death, and executed in the Mount Eden gaol on January 22, 1887. . White, who also gave herself up to the police at the same time as Perm, was also taken to Auckland, where she was charged with having been an accessory after the fac£. She, however, turned Queen's evidence, and by her testimony against the two men, helped to send them to the gallows.

Returning to Sydney, -White became well known to the police. She was hardly out of gaol during the past 30 years, and had a record of iiearly 200 convictions for drunkenness, riotous behavior, and other offences. She was known as the "New Zealand Terror," and had ten aliases.

A handsome woman in her young days, she led a dissolute" life. Courageous, resourceful, and cool, she will be remembered by those acquainted with the details of the tragedy for the part she played while the murder was being committed, during the hazardous voyage, from New Zealand to Australia, and subsequently, when she, gun in hand, faced Caffrey on the beach at Crescent Heads, when he was about to fight a revolver duel with Perm.

PLOTTING THE MURDER

Caffrey was a master mariner, and Perm a draper's assistant in Auek- | land. Taylor was a selector at the 'Great Barrier.lsland, near Auckland. I Gaifrey had command of the ketch, Sovereign of the Sens, which traded between the ishnds and Auckland. Ho wanted to marry a daughter of Taylor's, but she rejected him. He vowed he would murder Taylor, and induced Perm to take a hand in the deed. Perm and White were on good terms and she consented to join the pair, and after the tragedy, to accompany them to America. During the talking over of the plans Caffrey callously suggested that after he had murdered Taylor a blatk flag should be hoisted on the vessel, as a reminder to him that he had got rid of a man he hated. But there was no flag at hand, and there was not time to purchase the material for i one in Auckland, so White, it was subsequently stated to the police, agreed to make one out of a piece of black silk dress she was wearing. This she did, and further, sewed a . white linen cross in one of the ! comers.

TAYLOR SHOT

j Caffrey, Perm, and White sailed ! from Auckland, and reaching the C4reat Barrier Island the same night, waited till daylight, when White j was loft in the ketch, .while Caffrey

and Perm reached .land in a, dinghy. They went to Taylor's house, and after speaking to him a while, Caf-fi-ey asked where his daughter was. She had, however, jumped through a window when she saw Caffrey and Perm, and Mrs Taylor and another daughter had also got away. Caffrey and Perm entered the place, and Perm, rushing at Taylor, caught hold of his hands, while Caffrey shot him. Going back to the Sovereign of the Seas, Caffrey ordered the improvised iiag to be hoisted, and with this floating in the breeze, rhe vessel left, supposedly for North America. When the Auckland polioje learned of the tragedy a man-o'-war was sent to search for the ketch, but could not sight it.

TOOK HER TURN AT THE WHEEL.

Well stocked with food, but as it turned out, with not sufficient water, the three criminals, after about a fortnight at sea, suffered a good deal from thirst, owing to the supply of water running out. They were in serious straits^ and at last Caffrey, who had brought with him a prize Newfoundland dog of his, killed the animal and poured the blood into a dish, from which they drank the contents.

Fortunately the rain commenced to fall, or there is no telling what would have occurred on board. The next day their tanks were filled sufficiently for the rest of the journey. Quarrelling a good deal, they were pj very unhappy party, and Perm and Whit© took it in turns to sleep for fear that Caffrey, if he caught them slumbering at the same time, would shoot and throw them overboard.

Whitfe, who had Caffrey's initials and a tombstone tatooed on her left arm during the voyage, took her turn at the wheel every day, and also attended to the cooking, but it was fully three months before* land was sighted. They saw the coast of Australia a. few 'miles from Newcastle, and thought they had reached America. Sailing &outh, they arrived opposite Sydney Heads, which Caffrey, who had made trips from New Zealand to Sydney, recognised. A warship was cruising about. They turned the ketch—which, duiing the trip across the Tasman Caffrey had painted black and obliterated all the letters of the name on the bows except "Beign"— sailed north.

PREPARE FOR DUEL.

The ne*t day the Sovereign of the Seas entered Crescent Heads, and was anchored. A camp- was fixed up, and after all the provisions had been removed from the kech it was scuttled.

Caffrey and Perm quarrelled over White, then abo^it 19 years of age. Caffrey wanted to take her with him, but Perm and the girl were not willing parties. Cafirey offered to fight him a duel- for her. Agreed to, they procured revolvers and went to the beach to settle matters. White, however, would not be a party to the counter, and getting a gun she went between them and threatened to shoot Caffrey if he fired at Perm. Seeing that he was beaten, Caffrey packed up his swag and cleared out. The vessel broke up and the wreckage was washed up on the coast. Some of it found its way to Port Maequario, where the nameboard was picked up. : Although the letters 'reign" were olaar the rest of the name of 'the ketch, could be made out, and the police wore handed the piece of timber.

In the meantime tli© New Zealand police had acquainted the New South Wales authorities with the facts of the crime, a description of the vessel, and of Caffrey and his two companions.

POLICEMAN'S SUCCESSFUL DIS-

GUISE.

All the coast police stations were told to be on the look-out for tti<j murderers, and Sergeant May, stationed at Bellinger, conceived the idea of disguising himself as a swagrr>an and going on the tramp to try and pick up the murderers. His getup was faultless, and with an old broken-down horso he started out.

The third day he came across a man at Deep Creek, and noticed that he answered the description of Chffrey. He chummed in with him, and they agreed to walk to the Clarence River, where they could get work as cane-cutters. They travelled along for about ten miles. May was well armed, and "had his handcuffs with him. He noticed that* Caffrey occasionally put his hand :nside his shirt and guessing that a revolver was there, ho kept a sharp lookout. They reached a punt, and had crossed the river on it, when May decided to arrest hi 3 man.

CAFFREY ARRESTED

"I am looking for a man answering your description," said Sergeant May, "who is wanted for the murder of Richard Taylor at the Great Barrier, near Auckland. I think you are John Catfrey."

May quickly covered Caffrey with liis revolver. The handcuffs were placed on him, and he was taken to Bellinger, .12 miles away.

"If I had known you were a constable before you surprised me," said Ca'ffrey later to May, "I would have shot you like a dog. It was subsequently stated by Caffrey that he had killed two other men in his time, and ihat the greatest hero in the world, to his way of thinking, was Ned Kelly. » "Nosey Bob," well known as the hangman in New South Wales, was, cwing to the New Zealand Government being unable to get a man to draw the lever at the execution, sent oner to Auckland, and he hanged the two murderers.

WHITE'S LAST REQUEST.

It was strangely in accord with White's almost lifetime of gaol that she shouH die in a cell. On March 12 she was taken to the reformatory, and died later on the same day! The City Coroner, after hearing evidence at the inquest, found that death was due to heart failure, brought about by alcoholism. Nurse Eveleen Bourke, who was in charge of the hospital at the institution, stated that White was examined by the medical officer when she was admitted. She" had complained of a pain in the side, and after being treated on the doctor's instructions i'or that complaint, as well as for alcoholism, she appeared quite well, and was told she would be taken to a cell.

White, the nurse explained, said: "I would like to be 'associated.' " That is, placed in a cell with another prisoner. . The request was granted. A little later the other prisoner called an attendant, and when the cell was opened White was found lying on the stretcher, apparently in a faint. The gaol doctor was sent for, but she died, before he arrived.