INSPECTOR GILLIES' CAREER.

Northern Advocate, 22 February 1911, Page 6

INSPECTOR GILLIES' CAREER.

BRAVE DEEDS,

LAW UPHELD AT ALL RISKS

After having served in the New ( Zealand Police Force for over thirtysix years, in addition to four years in the Royal Irish Constabulary before he came to the Dominion, Inspector . n. J. Gillies retired from the force recently. Mr Gillies gave some particulars of his career to an interviewer, from which it appears that he attributes some of the success which has attended him to the excellent training he received in the Royal Irish Constabulary, the mounted branch of .vhich he joined as a youth of nineteen. He had been only a year on outy when he and others were put on to a murder case. In 1874 Mr Gillies lafj the Royal Irish Constabulary to come to New Zealand. He had booked his passage by the ill-fated Cospatrick (which was burned at sea with all hands), but was prevailed upon by Dr. Young (who was subsequently medical superintendent of the Avondale Mental Hospital at Auckland) to transfer to the Essex. He reached Auckland in December, 1874, and he made himself known to ( Inspector Broham, who was subsefluently inspector in Christchurch ; and who undertook to take Mr Gillies on as soon as a vacancy occurred. In ( the meantime Mr Gillies joined the j armed Constabulary under Colonel Ly- , ciii and was in the Waikato district. Three months later he was appointed a constable and transferred to Auckland, where he remained for two years and a half. Burglaries and robberies were of frequent occurrence in that city at the period mentioned, and Mr Gillies was entrusted with several important cases. As the result of the work done by him he was v/jthin eighteen months promoted from third-class to first-class constable. He was then given charge of the Te Awamutu Country, which was at that time practically outside the 1-ale of European civilisation and the Queen's writ ran with considerable difficulty. The nearest police station' was over twenty miles distant at Hamilton, and was in charge of ex-Inspec-tor McGovern. For eight years Mr Gillies had charge of the Te Awamutu station, acting also as Clerk of the Magistrate's Court and as clerk of the different licensing courts. HIS CLOSEST CALL. Owing to his energy, horse-stealing by the Maoris, which was previously ■very prevalent, was practically .stamped out. It was whilst arresting a Maori horse-stealer that Mr Gillies followed him up into the bush to a place called Te Rahu, about nine miles from Te Awamutu. Here a fierce hand-to-hand encounter ensued. Sammy was powerfully built, and struggled teriffically and he assaulted Mr Gr'llies so ferociously as to draw blood. Just when the Maori was gor-i-.mg the better of Mr Gillies a M>- Sibbley opportunely arrived, and the horse-thief was handcuffed and brought to justice. Mr Gillies was •jomplimented by his inspector and oy the commissioner, and got a handsome reward for his services. CAPTURING A MAORI MURDERER. It was in connection with the captare of the notorious Maori murderer Winiata that Mr Gillies came more prominently before the public. Winiata, in 1876, brutally murdered a cadel named Packer, who was, with Winiota, in the employ of a Mr Cleghorn at Epsom, near Auckland. Winiata got clear away to the King Country, where he successfully denied arrest for six years. Ex-Inspector McGovcrn and Mr Gillies formulated a scheme for Winiata's capture, and in. order to attain that end they obtained the co-operation of a half-caste named Barlow. They supplied him with , ihe necessary funds to obtain liquor • and Barlow went to where Winiata i was and bargained with him for the M sale of some pigs, cattle, and wheat her had for sale. Barlow concluded his bargain, one of the conditions of which • was that Winiata and his bodyguard > should help him with the conveyance P oil the stock to Barlow's place. It was i arranged that Barlow should send a

note by his daughter to Te Awamutu, but the girl was thrown from her horse and was unable to convey the message. Barlow, however, carried out his programme, which was to ply Winiata and his bodyguard with liquor and as a nightcap administer to them a potent sleeping draught. The origin £.1 intention was, if the note had reached Tg Awamutu, for the police to go to Barlow's and take Winiata prison-

er. The note not having been sent, 15:irlow, with the assistance of hiy wife, tied Winiata to a packhorse and brought him in to Te Awamutu, a distance of twenty miles. Winiata subsequently paid the penalty of hit , cime, and Mr Gillies was promoted, to third-class sergeant. Mr Ballance, who had recently come into power, visited the Waikato about this time, end on hearing of Mr Gillies' part in the capture of Winiata gave him further promotion. Barlow, for his share in the capture, got £700 as well as a farm at Mangere.

In 1884 Mr Gillies was transferred to the charge of the Devonport subdistrict, which extended as far north H6 Waiwera. At this time cattle stealing was rife in the Wade district, but Mr Gillies was successful in stamping it out. Three years later he was giv<m charge of the Thames district, a position he held for nine years. In 1880 be was promoted to an inspectorship and took charge of the Wanganui district early in 1890. In 1902 Commisn moner Tunbridge gave him the Canterbury and North Otago district, A\hich position he held to his resignation.