Star.
London, England, 1818-01-05 00:00:00

RUNAWAT CONI7C2'S Ar L'OTANY B4l'.

•
lIIDNEY-G A ZrerE, 3A4irgA1ty 25,
lbw accounts of robberiee by the banditti of bush-1
;angers on Van Diemen 's Laird presents a melan-
choly picture of the distresses to Which the more re.;
syectable classes of inhabitants are constantly ex-
posed from the daring vices of those infamous ma-
rauders, who are divided into small parties, and are
designated by the name of the principal ruffian at,
their head, of whom one Mithael Howe appears to
be the most alert in depredation. On the 7th, the
house and premises of r: David Rose, at Port Dal-
rymple, were attacked and plundered of a conside-
rable property by Peter Sepses and (his gang. The
delinquents were pursued by the Gommaneant, at
the head of a strong detachment of the 46th, but re-
puted eller a five days'Unt through the woods,
without being able to discover the. villains, among
whom is stated to have been ;lice man named Den-
nis M'Craig, who went from hence to Port Dal-
rymple in the Brothers.
On the night of the 17th of November, the pre-
raises of Mr. Thomas Hayes, at Bagdad, were attack-
id at a time when. Mr. W. Stocker and his wife, and
Bkir. Andrew Whitehead (the former on their route
from Hobart Town to Fort Dalrymple, with a cart
containing a large and valuable property), had un-
fortunately put up at the house for the night. Mi-
chael Howe was the chief of this banditti, which
consisted of eight other,. The property of which
they plundered Mr. and Mrs. Stocker on this occa.
sion was upwards of L'2oo value ; among which
were two kegs of spirits. One of these, a member
of the gang wantonly wasted by firing a pistol ball
through the head of the kee, which contained eleven
gallons: They set their watches by Mr. Whitehead's,
which they afterwards returned to him, but *took
Mr. Stocker's away with their other plunder. Mr.
Wade, chief constable of Hobert Town, had stop'.
ped with the others at Mr. Hayes's, but hearing a
noise which he considered to denote the approach of
hush-rangers, he prudently attended to the admoni-
tion, and escaped their fury, which it was concluded
would have fallen heavily upon him, as they are at
variance with all' conditions of life that are inimical
to their crimes.
On the morning of the 2d instant, Mr. William
Maum, of Hobart Town, sustained the loss of three
sacks of wheat by fire, at his farm at Clarence Plains,
owing to the act of an incendiary, who it was not
likely would be discovered. The stacks contained
upwards of 290 bushels of grain.
On the 14th of November, a large body, consist-
i,ng of 14 men and two *omen, were unwelcornely
fallen in with by a single man on horseback, at
Scantling's Plains : Howe and Geary were the most
conspicuous ; they compelled him to bear testimony
to the swearing in of their whole party to abide by
some resolution dictated in a written piper, which
one of thessi finished writing in the unveller's pre-
ience. After a detention of about three quarters of
an hour, he was sulered to proceed, under strong
injunctions to declare what he had been an eye-win,
rives of, end to desire Mr.-Humphrey, the Magi-,
swam and Mr. Wade. the Chief Constable, to tale
nate cf themselves, as they were bent upon taking
their liras, as well as to prevent them from growing
grain or keeping stocking cf an/aries ; and by the
information of a person upon. it appears that
they had, about the sane period, forced away twol
Government servants from their. habitations to a dis-
tant place. on which the crimes of these wretches'
have stamped the appellation of .MurJerers' Plakik
thi ti,creselves facetiously called the l'ellow CAO
61:Vi's Si/of 1, where they kept them to work three
days in re.::,!,:•r:og down beef fat. How they could
afterwards 4,.:-opriate so great a quantity of ren-
dered fat and suet is truly a question worthy to .be
demanded, for it is far more likely it should be taken
of their hands by persons in or near the Settlements,
,who are leagued with them in the way of bartering
one commodity for another, than that the bush-ran-
gers should either keep it for their own use, or be-
stow so much trouble on the preparation of an article
that would soon spoil upon their bands. The cattle
that were in this instance so devoted were the pro-
perty of Stones and Tref, who declare, that out of
300 head, 14.0 have lately disappeared.