The Express.
London, England, 1857-01-29 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

TRAGEDY IN 11. M.'s 4ftu

REGIMENT.

We have received Melbourne papers to the 31st
October, and we regret that on this occasion the
prominent topic is not the gold, or the advancing
prosperity of the colony, but an incident which has
occurred in H. M.'s 40th Regiment.

The circumstances of the tragedy arc these:—
" His Excellency the Acting Governor held the usual
half-yearly inspection of the troops in garrison yes-
terday at the Prince's Bridge barracks, when
the 40th Regiment was paraded, and went
through various evolutions. The inspection being
over, the officers retired to their quarters, and
Ensign Pennefather, with others, engaged in &mi.
liar and friendly conversation. Shortly after-
wards, between 12 and 1 o'clock, Ensign Penne-
father rushed out of his room with a six-barrelled
revolver in his hand, and meeting, just as he
got outside of the house, Ensign Keith, he
presented the pistol and fired at him. The
ball passed through Ensign Keith's cheek,
and came out at the back of the neck. At this time
Dr. M'Cauley was seated in an arm chair on the
grass in front of his quarters, reading. In conse-
quence of the accident which he met with a few weeks
since, by falling from the gallery upon the vestibule
of the Theatre Royal, the doctor was an invalid, and
his crutch lay by his aide. After firing at Ensign
Keith, Pennefather ran to where Dr. M'Cauley
was sitting, and placing the pistol on the doctor's
mouth, be fired, and the ball passed out at the back
of his neck. Pennefather then looked round as if
anxious to find some one else to shoot, when Ensign
Lucas ran forward to wrest the pistol from him. On
seeing him approach Pennefather fired, and shot him
in the jaw. With a manaical'llit,ha!' the wretched
man then placed the pistol to his own head
and fired, the ball entering his right temple.
Such, as near u we can learn, are the brief but
shocking incidents of this distraising affair. Dr.
M'Cauley is dead. Several persons ran to him
immediately after he was shot : he was still sitting
in has chair, but life was extinct. Ensign Lucas
is severely, and Ensign Keith dangerously wound-
ed, but both are expected to recover. Of Ensign
Pennefather there is no hope. By making incisions
the ball and piece of skull have been removed,
but the injuries are of too serious a nature to
allow of a belief that the unfortunate cause of the
tragedy can survive. The commission of so frightful
an act can only be attributed to a fit of insanity. For
the last three weeks Ensign Pennefather had been on
the sick list, and it was generally believed that his
mind was affected. Only a few days since Dr. M'Cauley
is reported to have said to Pennefather, in a half joking
way, that if he didn't mend he should have to send
him to the Yarra Bend. Whether the frenzy was
provoked by any temporary cause, we have not been
able to ascertain ; but in the absence of any such,
the fit was probably owing to the sudden change in
the weather and the excitement of the review.
Poor Dr. M'Cauley died in his chair, after
one or two ineffectual attempts to speak or respire.
As might be anticipated the wretched maniac was
dead before midnight ; and subsequently an inquest
was held on the bodies of Dr. M'Cauley sad
Ensign Pennefather. The evidence was conclu-
sive as to the insanity of the poor young man."
The following notice of the affair in the summary
of the Melbourne Herald, gives some additional
particulars. We are glad to announce that both
Ensigns Lucas and Veith are expected to mover:
Pennefather, who had been on the sick list for
same 'drys, and was absent from the impaction, se&
dimly entered Ensign Veith's room with a revolver. Mr.
Veith asked him whom be was
,going to shoot; ant
he replied, " Wait until Lucas;' another ensign in
the regiment, "comes in." Immediately afterwards fa
levelled the pistol at Mr. Veitch and gad, the shot Whig
effect in the lower part of the face of the latter and naming at
the neck. Mr. Pennefather then rushed through to the back
of the house, and meeting Ensign Lucas, tired at him
and wounded him severely, also in the jaw and
neck. The unhappy maniac then rolled out, " Now
for M'Cauley l" the assistant surgeon of the regi-
ment, and running round to where that gentle-
men, who had only • short time previously sustained
severe injuries by falling out of the window of the Royal
Hotel., was sitting in an easy chair, shot him dead. He then
looked round as if in search of another victim, and then
uttering • wild laugh, discharged the pistol at his own heed,
the contents of the barrel passing through the brain and
shattering the skull. The unhappy man lingered for nine
hours and thane:spired. A coroner s inquest was held the neat
day, and • voile!, declaring that Ensign Pennefather had
committed the radii act under temporary insanity, was is-
turned. K ireninind at the inquest to lead to the
fuselage' NU like dub were done while the_perpetrator
VMS Ole ribose of Ls proper reason. The remains
of both smalsemon wee hatened on the folloaawg FridayJ with
the relesevasees. Ronne Veith and Lucas
are new pas ieelag favourably to recovery.
The nate paper contains the details of another
act of Titian*. A number of convicts, headed
by a desperado named Mitchell, made an attempt
to escape from Port Phillip Harbour in
brad daylight. They killed two of their keepers,
in the attempt—were themselves fired upon by the
guard-ship, and one of their number was lulled.
A verdict of wilful murder was returned against
nine convicts, the whole of whom will probably be
hanged. The two leaders were undergoing sen-
tences of thirty-two and twenty-two years respec-
tively, so that they must have been criminals of the
deepest dye.
Sergeant M'Sally, of the police, has been shot
dead, by a desperado called " Gipsy Smith," who
was subsequently eaptared. The wife of a police-
constable, in a fit of insanity, had murdered both her
children.

EABTEMI7AKIE AT LYONEL—The Salut Public of
Lyons, of the Nth inetant, spiels in the followleg arm of
shooks of swelipsoke felt in that town, of which the Omarirr
dp=lehea se eisties —During: the whole of yeleraty a
salts* areesweestion in our town was a shook el
white was Mt at Lyons at twenty-five admen
pli sinVe la same "martens that shook was soak wow por-
ffs this In aims. At Sesiteans, for imlnonikm=
la demo seethed the beans, it anda
awl Ins mie soma that senssms whines* Milli
Tees Sams Itsm their shake the eseillation of the
ME.
ma slime& was rii sour mow
*en ern. The lest sect was pranced is; a
t the Mid U. assupied by the in-patient%
Ms situ! Iselal ad awe than three or four mecca&