ROBBERY OF THE CUSTOMS HOUSE

Otago Witness, Issue 2298, 17 March 1898, Page 19

ROBBERY OF THE CUSTOMS HOUSE

at Port Chalmers on the night of Ist June or the morning' of 2nd June, 1855. Mr. J. K. Monson, now living at Port Chalmers, had on the Ist of June begun his duties as landing waiter in the customs, and his surprise might be imagined when he was aroused early next morning and told that the custom house had been broken into and the safe, containing £1,400, taken away. Mr. Logic the collector, speedily sent Mr. Monson off to all the A'essels in the harbour to see if any of the crews were missing, and to prevent them .sailing, word was at once sent to Dunedin to Mr. Strode. The night of the robbery was a bright moonlight night, and the robbers had worked in the shadow at the end opposite Mr. Mansford's house which stood quite close to the customs house, which was a weatherboard building -with slate roof, built by the New Zealand Company as a store. The parties to the transaction must have known the size of the safe, as a square hole was cut in the side of the building just large enough to permit the iron chest to pass through. In cutting the timbers a four inch spike nail had been cut through, and the chest had then been rolled down on skids to a boat, so far the traces left pointed; but the thieves had apparently decamped safely with their booty. One party of boatmen had a providential escape that night. Antonio Joseph, who traded on the coast in an open boat, had cleared the customs the night before with the intention of sailing for Waikouaiti at three in the morning. But rain coining on. the projected trip was left till daylight. Imagine their surprise on proceeding to (lie boat in the morning when Mr. Logic ordered them to turn back, averring that neither boat nor ship should leave the harbour that day. The robbers nmst have known that the boat was sailing for Waikouaiti before daylight, and laid their plans to cast suspicion on them. However, a kind providence interposed and the innocent escaped what would have been an unjust arrest and imprisonment. One of the unfortunate crow. Bill Dunn by name, was actually arrested on suspicion afterwards, simply because bare feel marks were seen where the chest had been passed into a boat., and Dunn had the habit sometimes of going about without his boots. It was a false clue, and the party who suggested it to the police knew more about the affair. Shortly after the news spread that a boat was manned, with Constable Warren on board, to proceed down the harbour with authority to search every house, especially with a view to examining every safe found. In the boat were Antonio Joseph, Janice Adam, and two sailors rowing. When the boat had proceeded beyond Pulling Point Mr. Adam looked back and called attention to a red object half submerged in the water. The boat returned and there was the Custom House safe, burst open with the fall it got on the rocks when tipped over out of the boat. Four sovereigns were lj ing in the water, but otherwise the contents of the chest were intact. On the shore were a couple of pieces of scantling that had been laid across the boat to place the chest iipon, and up the hill a board was sticking in the scrub to mark the spot where the box lay. When the boat reached the box a young man up on the hill whistled to his dogs and disappeared from sight. Strange to say, although he was well known, neither he nor his friends w r ere taken up on suspicion separately, for it must" be remembered the whole community, male and female, were summoned and examined in court as to their knowledge of the affair. The box was recovered and all the contents — gold, silver and documents — were found mixed up together, but practically unharmed. When the boat returned with the box and it became known that the contents were safe, the crowd assembled on the wharf sent up a loud cheer, and later in the day practically the whole population of Dunedin went down to the Port to join in the rejoicings. The crime was never sheeted home to its author' ; poor Bill Dunn was liberated, and the boat's crew who recovered the safe had thirty sovereigns divided amongst them as a reward. Shortly after that the Custom House was removed to Dunedin, and its robbery was never again attempted. Meantime immigrant vessels continued to arrive, and some of them narrowly escaped shipwreck, either on the voyage or within sight of land. One ship loaded with immigrants missed stays in a northerly gale off the south head. The captain and crew were paralysed with fear, as a tremendous sea was running and the ship was heading straight for the perpendicular cliffs, where she wo\ild have sunk with all on board. But the bravest pilot and most skilful seaman that ever handled a ship was on board, and by his superior seamanship saved the ship from her imminent peril. He ran the full length of the ship and took charge of the jib sheets himself, which he fitted on her again, heading straight for the rocks. Then at the right moment he gave the word, and the ship swung up to the wind and fell off on the other tack as he directed. But so close did she come to the rocks as she swung round that the pilot boat was smashed, and Bill Stevens, who was at the steer oar. was towed, sometimes above, sometimes under water, for over a mile, before it was deemed safe to heave the ship to, to rescue him. For his splendid seamanship on that occasion. Pilot Driver received the unanimous thanks of the immigrants, and was accorded great praise in the newspapers. Another immigrant ship arrived with flush decks, her bulwarks, deck-houses and boats having been carried away in a storm.

The progress of the settlement up to the time immediately preceding the gold rush may best be indicated from the statistics published in the Otago Provincial Gazette in 1859, when the returns were last made. The population for 31st December, 1859, was given at— Dunedin : Males, 1,230 ; females, 1,032 ; total, 2,262. Otago: Ma1e5, 5,150; females, 3,749; t0ta1, 8,899. Customs: Imports, £218,884 ; exports, £81,577 12s. Bd. Revenue, £18,742 6s. Id. The Maori population was given at — Males, 238; females, 433; total, 671. The returns for the previous year show that there had been a considerable addition to the trade of the colony in twelve months. The Customs for 1858 are given at— lmports, £96.620 ; exports, £47,059. Revenue. £11,175 11s. 3d. Immigration for 1858 is returned at 2,678. and emigration at 513. For 1859 the figures are— Immigration, 1,937; emigration, 414. For the half-year ending 30th June, 18(50, the figures are— lmmigration, 1,534; emigration, •282. The shipping entries for 1859 are— Arrivals from ports outside the colony : Vessels, 54 ; tonnage, 16,606. Departures to ports outside colony : Vessels, 53; tonnage, 1(5,316. Coastal -Inwards : Yes sels, !)3 ; tonnage. 14,189. Outwards: Vessels, 79; tonnage, 13,251. The returns of live stock and cultivation arc as under: Wheat, 2,604 acres; oats, 3,234 acres ; potatoes, 486 acres ; turnips, 395 acres. Total acreage in crops, 11,273. Total area fenced, 2(5.081 acres. Horses, 2,541; cattle, 28,999; sheep, 378,180; goats, 200; swine, 2,017. The estimated quantity of wool to date 31st December, 1869, was 1,323,630 lbs. Of farm implements there were— ploughs, 432; drays and carts, 393 ; threshing machines, 63.