BUSHRANGING IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume II, Issue 346, 21 December 1864, Page 5

BUSHRANGING IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

Seveiiai gangs of bushrangers in the neighboring colony still pursue their avocation in defiance of thu polico. For a considerable time the " sticking up" of country mails has occurred on iin average twice a week. The latest affairs of the kind were 011 the 15th and 16th instant, on the. main Southern road between Gundagai and Y'ass. On this occasion two of the police behaved with undaunted courage. One of the two wa3 shot dead. The affair is so recent, that, up to this time wo have but little more than the bare telegraphic announcement, but the want is now supplied by the following history from the 1 «»••>■ Courier: —

011 Tuesday afternoon the mail from Gundngui reached the hill at Deep Creel;, about iour or live miles on the Yass side of Jugiotig, between lour and five o'clock. Mr. Shealian, of dugiong, the mail contractor, and Mr. Bradbury, of Q ueiinb.'y'.ni, were passengers by the coach, and had alighted to walk up the hill. They were some distance in advance of the coach. Mr. Shealian was in the act of pointing out the spot where Iho mail was stuck up 11 few weeks before, when three horsemen appeared < n the op of the hill, and spreading out —one on each side the other in the centre of the road —they galloped to wards the coach. On coming near, it was noticed that each had a revolver in his hi id, and the order wa* given by Ben lla'l to "bail up." Hail pointed, uud told them t" "walk up there; wu have got a little town bi;> there." After going up t ie hill some distance, tiiey were ordered to turn olf to the left, and ajpioa-huU a spot where twelve teams were stuck up, as we i -■- a number of horsemen. The mail was then stopped. Mr. Shealian waj naked if ho had any money ; he replied that lie had not, and they might seuic'i Mini if they liked. Hall declined to search, remarking that Mr. Shealian was " not a bad sort of follow." Bradbury was then searched, although hehnd handed them a cheque for one pound, stating that th it was

| all he had, yet they examined his pockcts, and askci j him if he had not a 'watch. They got nothing from I him but the cheque, and subsequently, on his telling [ them that it was all ho had to carry him on the road, the-cheque was returned. Hall and his companions then took out the mail bags, six in number, and cut them all open. Befoio proceeding to cxamino the the letters, they asked Mr, Sheahan and Mr. Bradbury if they would hare some wine. They answered " Yes," when Hall called to one of the teamsters to fetch over some port wine. 'I ho wine was brought in a quart pot, and a portion of it drunk by those present. Tho examination of the mail bags meanwhile proceeded, the three bushrangers sitting down on the ground with the bags before them. The letters weie speedily runaacked of any bank notes they contained, Mr. Bradbury remarking to them that they sorted the letters much quicker than was generally done in Sydney. Mr. Sheahan asked if he would bo ullowed to sit down, and Hall told him he could do so. Mr. Sheahan availed himself of an empty mail bag close beside Hall, and, noticing a large number of whole and half cheques, remarked they were of no use to them, and asked permission totako them. The buslu-angers consented, and Mr. Sheahan was enabled to bring on to tho Yass post office his coat pocket as full of cheque.J as it would hold, as well as three bank dralts. The eoach and passengers werejfept an hour before they were permitted to depart, Mr. Sliealian and Mr. iiradbury gathering up the remains of the letters, and placing them in a mail bag. On the bushrangers completing their work, the driver of the coach pushed ou as fast as possible to Yass, iind reached here only half an hour behind time. The matter was instantly reported to sub-inspector Brennan, who, with a couple of mounted men, took the road within half an hour.

11 was tully expected in town that the mail on Wednesday would also be robbed, and tho spot where it was expected to tako place was mentioned to tho police before tjioy left Yass. The anticipation was realised, and even tho locality surmised as tho scono of the outrage proved to bo the spot selected. The mail is due in Yass at eleven p.m., and as it is generally very punctual to time, and not having arrived at a quarter to twelve, it began to be thought very likely that it had been stopped. A few minutes before twelve it was heard approaching, and much anxiety was felt to learn what had occurred to cause its detention. It was then ascertained that on the mail leaving Gtindagai, Constable Hoclie, of the Yass Police, who had gono as guard to the mail the • previous day to Gundagai, and Mr. Eose, Police Magistrate of Gundagai, were its occupants. It was escorted by Sub-Inspector O'Neill and Sergeant Edmund Parry, of the Gundagai police. On reaching within about lour miles of Jugiong, at a place known as the Black Spring, 1J all and his companions appeared from behind sume rocks. The moment they were noticed a signal was made from tho coach to the Sub-Inspector and sergeant to ride up, which they at once did ; and one of the bushrangers remarking that " the bobbies" were with the coach, Gilbert said "There are only two of them ; come on, Ictus rush the ." They then darted towards the coach, and on getting near, the police called out, " Come ou, you wretches ; we will fight you like men." A deadly encounter followed, in which poor Parry, who acted very bravely throughout, was shot through tho left shoulder, and dropped dead. The accounts of the affray vary very much —by one, some of the police are stated to have behaved* in a most cowardly manner; by the other they were perfect heroes. It is impossible at the time we write to ascertain which is the correct account; but the following particulars we believe to be generally accurate. Belore, however, narrating what transpired in the encounter with the police, we may state that Hall, Gilbert ami Dunn took up their position on the road early in the day, and stuck up a large number of teams and two carts, the latter followed by twenty or thirty Chinamen. Amongst those detained were a son of Mr. Owen Eyan, oi Demmgullen Creek ; Mr. Hayes, wife, and young man, who were in a buggy; ami others, to the number of forty'or fifty. Some considerable time before the coach came up, Constable M Laughlin, one of the Gundagai police, approached, leading a pack horse. Gilbert rode up to him and ordered him to surrender, but he replied by a shot from his revolver, which was returned by Gilbert, who then turned his horse and rode off a short distance, Hall then took up-his position, and fired at the constable, who again discharged his revolverHall's horse stumbled, and Dunn rode up and lired at M'Xiaughlin. The constable discharged the six barrels of his revolver in the encounter and then surrendered, some nine or a dozen sluts having previously been lired at him by the bushrangers. Dunn remarked that one of the constab e's shots was a veiy good oue, and they would " have it in for hitn " on that account. 'The constable was added to the mob of captives. The eoach subsequently came in sight, and the ail'ray commenced as stated above. Constable Boche, who was on the coach, armed with two large pistols, a six-barrel revolver, and a carbine, is stated to have slipped off the coaeli when tho light- begai', and to have darted into the bush, carrying his iir ■' arms along with him. He did not subsequently appes r i n the scene. Gilbert fought with Sergeant I'a'rry, who refused to surrender, and discharged every barrel of. his revolver before he fell. Hall and Huiin attacked Sub-irispector O'KeiU, who first discharged his carbine and then several tho Us from a levolver. On Parry falling dead, the sub-inspector surrendered. The bushrangers disarmed him, and took from him « l ing and Lis watch chain, but wo believe he was permitted to keep his watch on his informing tlu m that it had belonged to his father. The horse Mr. U'Noill rode was, however, taken, one of the bushrangers rcmaikiugit would make " ix good pack-horse." It seems singular that the driver of the coach did not take advantage of the proceedings going on to put his horses to their mettle and save the mails. Tiiis, however, lie did not do, lor Hall and his mates on the termination of the fight, ordered Mr. Eose to throw out the bags, which tne bushrangers cut open in their usual manner, and appropriated all they desiied. The mail was a very heavy one, and it is supposed they secured a large amount of money, from Constable M'Lauglilin they took £7 10s.; irom Mr. Hoss a watch and chain. We have not heard what was taken from Mr. Hayes, but he was searched; the lady who accompanied him they did not molest. Gilbert is said to havo turned over poor Parry's body, and to have remarked—" He's got it in the eabra (head); I am sorry for him, as he was a game fellow." The injury on tho head, however was received when he tell from his horse, and was not the effect of one of the shots fired. On the scoundrels abstracting from letters all that was valuable, they permitted tho fragments to be placed in a bag, which was brought on to Yass, and forwarded to .Sydney the samo'night. Parry's body was placed upon one of tho drays, and t»ken to Jugiong, where a magisterial investigation was held by Mr. Eose. The driver of the coach from Jugiong met SubInspector Brennan and two mounted men about foirr miles on tho Yass side of Jugiong, and informed him of what had occurred. The police rode on to Jugiong, and endeavoured to find tho tracks of the bushrangers. Darkness prevented much being done, and the sub-inspector and his men —unaccountably to those unacquainted with tho secret causes which iniluence police movements, returned to Yass, where they arrived at nine o'clock on Thursday morning. Wo may state that the bushrangers informed the police that they intended to rob the mail next day (i'huisday), and told them to send as many policemen as they liked, and (hey would fight them. On tho mail reaching Yass on Wednesday night, Sergt. Scully, who was in charge of tho force in tne absence of sub-Inspector Brennan, at once despatched five mounted men, four of whom are connected with the Goulburn force, and had reached Yass the previous day, after eight days' unsuccessful search for the whereabouts of the bushrangers.