ATTACKED BY BLACKS

Otago Witness, Issue 3595, 6 February 1923, Page 25

ATTACKED BY BLACKS

ADVENTURE IN THE WILDS. A story of an attack on a party of oil prospectors by Western Australian blacks was narrated by Mr Leo Joseph Jones, as-sistant-geologist for New South Wales, on his return to Sydney last week. The party, which was organised by a Sydney syndicate, loft Leonora, the railhead, on May 27 last, to make investigations in the vast area south of Kimberley. The expedition was well equipped with stores, carried by camels and horses. A few months later a section of the expedition, consisting of John M'Lernon, W. G. Turner, and Mr Jones, were engaged on special examination work. On the night of September 3 the party camped in the open and fell asleep, a few feet separating the three men. It was bright moonlight. An hour and a-half later Mr Jones was awakened by Turner calling his name. At the same moment he felt as though a tree had fallen on him, but he stood up, and saw Turner, with blood streaming froln his head, in the act' of firing his rifle at three nude male aboriginals, who were close together 15yds away. At a second shot from Turner, one of the blacks jumped into the air and dropped a club. M'Lernon remained motionless on the ground, and they discovered that his head was badly smashed, the wound extending from the top of Iris head to his chin. Mr Jones says that he himself had a head wound, his right eye was closed, and some teeth were broken. Turner received a severe gash on tlie right temple. M'Lernon died at 6 a.m., and they transported his body with difficulty to tlie main camp, where it was buried. After resting, in order to recover from their trying experience, the prospecting party proceeded along the stock route to Godfrey’s Tank. It was spinifex country for over 1000 miles. Later they reached Bilkiluna Station, where, at about the same time as Al'Lernon was killed, a black named Banjo, who was employed at the station, murdered two men named Condon and O’Suilivan by shooting them. There was no apparent reason for the tragedy. All the blacks ran away from the station, but Banjo sent a blackboy to report the murders to the police. Banjo was later killed while being arrested.