Hobart Town Gazette and Southern Reporter (Tas. : 1816 - 1821), Saturday 13 June 1818, page 1


HOBART TOWN.

Sitting Magistrate—Rev. R. Knopwood, A.M.

SHIP NEWS.— On Sunday last arrived from Port Jackson, the ship 'Minerva', Captain JOHN BELL, with 157 male prisoners from Ireland, where she left the 1st

of January. A guard of the 48th regiment, belonging to Major BELL'S detachment, commanded by Lieut. VANDERMULEN, forming part of the relief destined for Cap-tain NAIRN 's company of the 46th regi-ment, arrived by this vessel.—Surgeon Su-perintendant, Dr. HUNTER , R N. —Passengers P. G. HOGAN, Esq. Deputy Assistant Commissary General, and Lady ;

Lieutenant C. J. VANDERMULEN and

Lady; and Ensign LEWIS, of the 48th regt.

On Thursday arrived the ship Lady Castlereagh, of 842 tons, Captain WELTDEN, with 261 male prisoners, all in good health, from England, last from Port Jackson. -

The remainder of the detachment of the

48th regiment, under command of Major BELL, destined for the relief of this Station, came by the Lady Castlereagh, in which ship Captain NAIRN'S company of the 46th regt. embarks for India. - Surgeon Super-intendant, Dr. CRAIG, R.N. - Passengers, Major Bell, Lady, and family; Colonel DAVEY, late Lieutenant-Governor of this Colony; Assistant Surgeon Hamilton and Lady; and Mr. and Mrs. William Clarke, free settlers from England.

Same day also arrived the ship Mary, Captain Orman, from Calcutta, with a valuable cargo of merchandize.

The brig Sophia, Capt.Kelly, which sail-ed from this port; on the 24th ult. arrived at Port Jackson four days previous to the de-parture of the Lady Castlereagh, which was on the 4th inst. The wheat sent up by her was immediately sold at 10s. per bushel.

The ships Duke of Wellington and Frederick, Captains Collins and Mack-neelance, will, it is expected, sail for the Mauritius in the course of the ensuing week, laden with horned cattle and sheep.

Remain in the harbour, the ships Lady Castlereagh, Minerva, Ann (whaling down the river, and which has already taken 5 whales), Duke of Wellington, Frederick, and Mary ; and the schooner Sindbad.

At eleven o'clock on Thursday morning,

were executed pursuant to their sentence, George Gray for murder, and William Trimm for sheep-stealing; they having arrived in the Minerva, under warrants of execution. The crime of the former leads always to the same end—"Whosoever shed-deth Man's Blood, by Man shall his blood be shed." The unhappy malefactor, how-ever, died penitent and resigned; and it may be hoped, that his penitence, and his life surrendered to the outraged Laws, may be

received as an atonement for his crime.

The offence of sheep-stealing has been carried to such an extent in this Colony, that an example has been long required. The unhappy man, who has in this case suffered, is generally understood to have been for years engaged in these practices; and as he had so long escaped with impuni-ty, and his guilt in this instance was prov-ed beyond all question, perhaps the hand of justice could not have seized upon a more proper object of example. In this trial the necessity of severe punishment, as to the principal offender, was mingled, as it ever is under the British Laws, with mitigation of sentence towards the minor criminals Bentley and Brown, who were convicted before the same Court, and received the GOVERNOR in CHIEF'S mercy in commu-tation of their sentence, to transportation.

The attention and humane offices of the Rev. Mr. KNOPWOOD were on this occasion constant; and no doubt assisted essentially to bring the unhappy prisoners to a just sense of their situation, and to that state of mind which enabled them to meet their fate with decency and resignation.

It is to be hoped that the awful exam-ples presented by their fate will be felt as they ought; and that it will tend to prevent the recurrence of those violences amounting to murder, or very near it, which have so often occurred in moments of intoxication during the last year; and that those who are yet engaged in cattle and sheep-stealing will take warning by the termination of Trimm's life, foreseeing the imminent risk they run, in case of detection of coming to

the same end.

The Bench of Magistrates were, on Sat-urday last, occupied for a considerable time in investigating charges exhibited against Mr. R. W. Loane, for forcibly driving cat-tle from the Coal River, the property of Mr. G. W. Gunning, Mrs. Harris, and Roger Gavin. After the depositions of a

number of witnesses were taken, the Bench committed Mr. Loane for trial be-fore a Criminal Court of Jurisdiction at Syd-ney, that may assembie within the space of ten calendar months, to answer such charges as might be there prefered against him. He was also charged with forcibly taking a musket from Henry Rice (a servant of Mr. Gunning's) at the Coal River, while pro-tecting his master's property. On the a-bove charges Mr. Loane has been admitted to bail. Mr. Loane was next ordered to find surety, himself in £100, and two sur-eties in fifty pounds each, for twelve months, for using slanderous and disrespect-ful language to A. W. H. HUMPHREY, Esq. one of the Magistrates then presiding in the Court.

That great murderer Michael Howe, with

whose enormities our Readers are so well ac-quainted, within these few days made his ap-pearance to the stock-keepers of Mr. G. W. Evans, Deputy Surveyor General, at a place called Blinkworth's Hunting ground. He took what provisions the men had, and two

fine Kangaroo dogs. What is astonishing, he had plenty of ammunition, and was well armed. His beard is of a great length, and his appear-ance, connected with the idea of his horrid crimes, is altogether terrific.

MYSTERIOUS OCCURRENCE. — On Satur-

day night last, Ann Burne, wife of James Burne, a settler residing beyond Humphrey's Rivulet, in company with their Government servant (Corman Rigo), left Hobart Town, where they had been transacting some business. When on the road, and near the residence of Captain Blyth, Mrs. Burne laid down and complained she was so ill, she could go no further. Being dark, Rigo stood by his mistress a considerable time, till a man of the name of John Ballinger came up with Captain B's cart, when Rigo requested him to allow his mistress to be put into it. Ballinger would readily have acceded to his reqùest, but observed that she being a stout heavy woman, they could not get her in; he therefore promised, on taking home the cart, he would render him every assistance. On his return, he desired Rigo to go and inquire at Capt. B's for her husband, and get more help. Rigo returned, bringing one of Capt. B's servants

named Parker, but found that during his absence, his mistress had removed to a considerable distance from where he had left her, and Ballinger gone. She was to appearance nearly insensibe; for with all their efforts they could not remove her. By Parkers' desire, Rigo again returned to Capt. B's for blankets and straw, as they intended to make a fire to protect her from the inclemency of the weather. Parker remained with her while he was absent. Having procured another servant of Capt. B's, with a lanthern, they again repaired to the spot where his mistress was left, but to their great astonishment they found that she and Parker were not to be seen. They remained halooing for half an hour, till at last Parker made his appearance, near the place they then stood. They of course interrogated him as to what had become of the woman, to which he replied, "that two men had unexpectedly come upon him, and struck him with a musket, and carried the unfortu-nate woman away." Poor Rigo seeing no hopes of finding his mistress, returned to Capt. B's farm, and slept there that night; and the next morning hastened to his master with the afflicting intelligence before stated. The disconsolate husband, aided by some neighbours, immediately made every search where the sad affair happened, but were only able to find her shoes, bonnet, and cap torn in several places. For the present, the whole of this distressing transaction is veiled in obscurity. We are desired to state, that the husband of this poor

woman will pay a reward of £5 to whoever will give any information regarding her body, or, if dead, how she came by her death, or any further particulars of her fate.

This morning the detachment of His Ma-jesty's 48th regiment, under command of Brevet Major Bell, were dis-embarked from the ships Lady Castlereagh and Minerva, and marched to the Barracks. Immediately after which, part of Captain Nairn's detachment of His Majesty's 46th regt. were embarked on-board

the former vessel.

The prisoners by the Minerva were also landed this morning, and the greater part im-mediately assigned to private service.

The brigs Elizabeth Henrietta and Govern-or Macquarie have both safely arrived at Port Jackson from Launceston ; the former with Ma-jor Stewart, late commandant of that Settle-ment, and his detachment of the 46th regt, for-merly stationed there, and the latter with 3000

bushels of wheat.

Thomas McCann and Henry Headley, two of

the men mentioned in the Goverment and General Orders as having forfeited their Con-ditional Pardons by eloping from this Colony in 1814, are again returned to this Settlement with other prisoners in the ship Minerva.

Since the commencement of this Paper we never had occasion to mention so many daring depredations as have been committed within these few days past. Although the Police have been on the alert, yet their ex-ertions have not succeeded in preventing them. The depredators seem to have avail-ed themselves of the inclemency of the weather, to cover their objects of plunder. From their alarming extent we would sug-gest the necessity, and we have no doubt all house-holders will feel it their interest, to see that their premises are properly se-cured soon after sun-set, and also inspected when retiring to rest ; for, independent of the robberies that have been actually committed, several houses of individuals have been attempted to be broken open, but their designs were happily frustrated. The following are the particulars that have reached us :—Between Saturday night and Sunday morning last, the upper story of the premises of EDWARD LORD, Esq. in Macquarie-street were entered by means of a ladder being placed on the head of an empty cask, and robbed of goods to the amount of £400, with which they got clear off. There is every reason to believe that this extensive depredation had been long in contemplation by some old thieves,

Last Saturday week the residence of Mr. Cummings, near Launceston, was broke open and robbed by three or four armed fellows, with their faces blacked, to a con-siderable extent. Every exertion was used by the Magistrates to bring the villains to the hands of justice, but without effect.— This banditti also ill-treated a poor settler of the name of Cornish, and his wife, with-out any provocation whatever.

On Tuesday evening, soon after dark, the back door of the premises of Mr. D Lord in Macquarie-street, being left open only a few minutes, some villains took ithe opportunity of carrying off three bushels of wheat which stood in the passage.

About dusk on Sunday evening, whilst the family of Mr. James Mitchel in Collins-street were out on a visit, some villain entered the back window and succeeded in stealing a valu-able gold watch, which was not missed till the return of the family. The thief, in the hurry to escape, left his shoes in the room.

We have also heard, that several days ago

some robbers with their faces blacked attacked the house of Henry Hathaway, a poor indus-trious settler at Miller's Brush. They were forcing their way into his premises, when the family were alarmed by their dog. The owner, an infirm old man, got a cask of pork against the door, which prevented them entering, and alarmed his neighbours; who, upon the thieves perceiving they were coming to his assistance, made their escape without effecting their felo-

nious intention.

HOBART TOWN ; PRINTED BY A. BENT.