The Shasta courier., 1865-09-23
An Australian Story.

Few townships in the interior of Victoria
are more pleasantly situated than II,
on the banks of the Glenelg. Behind the
picturesque little settlement rise lofty hills,
generally well timbered, while here and
there amidst the apparently interminabie
forests Of gum trees, the oak ana
bark. NAV be seen the quiet homes Of the
squatter, or the dwellings of smaller settlers
dotting the hillsides. Below runs the
GIenelg-in the winter season a rapid and
dangerous stream, though in summer little
more than a chain Of water-holes-a circum-
stance noteworthy because of It's connection
with this story.
Pleasant evenings have l spent at Il,
sitting in the verandah of friends cottage,
covered with the clematis and passion flower,
while the heliotrope, geraniums, and roses
of the garden waited up as evening incense
their delicious perfumes. Gently also up
the hillside crept the dim murmurs of the
little township; emigrants' children at play,
whose loud laugh told that they were brlmful
of merriment; the hearty shouts Of the crick-
eter flor Il has rather a celebrated
club. preparing for friendly contest with
the squatters of the Malice Sorub( or some
times the subdued sounds of a few who in
humble school room were singing God s
high praises Scattered along the valley
were the few houses composing the township,
in the centre Of which was an imposing suit
of buildings, comprising a hotel, a store, the
postofice, and suitable outhouse5, including
extensive stabling fo2 the horses Of Cobb's
telegraph line Of mail-coaches On the
occasion of recent sQiourn at Ii, 1
heard the story I am about to tell; it has
never yet been given to the public, and yet
it well deserves place among those detec-
tive notabilia which of late years have fur
nished such curious illustrations of the
science of crime discovery. give it in the
words Of my informant, at least SO fer as
substantial verify is concerned:
60 | am a detective in the Victoria police,
and have been one for some years; | was
formerly one in Paris, and | was employed
as such in the Hyde Park Exhibition of 1851.
Since then | have been in various parts Of
the world in fact, there are very few of the
force haven't knocked about the world a good
DEAL However, at last l settled in Austria
liza, and hope my rowing is ended. | have
never had but one crack case intTusted to
my care; have some times tracked thieves
from the diggings into the interior. and
found them boundary-ride on stations, or
clerks that did not keep their accounts
straight, and fonnd them bullock driving up
country, but they were small affairs; a pair
of bracelets soon settled such; but once
had a matter to find out on the very slightest
information received, which required all my
skill and all the resources of my long ex-
perience. Some four years ago, there lived
about mile down the river, beyond the
l,,,l 10, Il 1 /
ported to have made somewhere good pile ,
lie was a thorough hermit; seldom stirred
out. except to 90 to the store and buy few
necessaries, for which be always paid, and
never was known to beat down or haggle
about the price of anything. This natural
ly led to the surmise that be had plenty of
money. Near him lived another single man
in slab and bark hut; be was q shoemaker
by trade, but in small town like this his
customers were but few, and his livelihood
preearious. lie was known to be as poor as
his neighbor was supposed to be rich, and
as much dependant of his creditors as the
other was on his ready money. Between
these two solitary men living ON the river
side there sprung up strangely intimate
friendship; always after breakfast, often
through the day, and regularly at night
they had their pipe together sometimes with
a panlkin of tea only, at others with glass
OF grog. There was dim mystery hanging
over the supposed rich mans history where
he had come from, or how he had made his
money no one knew, and his churlish ways
forbade any one to ask him; he and the
shoemaker were all the world to each other
and beyond that neither seemed to care
anything. In this uniform but curious mode
OF lite, weeks and months passed away the
only difference observable being. that al
though Stevens, the shoemaker, had no
more customers than formerly, he now
seemed to have money always at command
and not only paid off his old scores but had
ready money for all he needed
Zone morning, however-it was in the
winter season, and the Glenelg was rolling
Its turbulent waters, muddy and swift,
down to the seattle old mans hut was not
opened wood-splitters passing by observed
that the old hermit was not Stunning himself
and smoking his cutty' as usual, and that
night Stevens came running into the town
ship greatly excited, and calling on Mr.. T.,
at the inn, told him that not having seen old
jeffrey all the day, he had forced an en-
trance into the hut, but that the CID man
'"9 - eHOAOf anu " lislt uau become OF llin
ne did not know. a policeman, for Il
is police station, was immediatelv sent to
take charge Of the hut until the magistrates
should make inquiry. Some DAYS after. the
inquiry was made, but nothing came Of it,
turther than the suspicion that jeffrey had
met with foul play. Still nothing was
proved, nor could be proved, until the body
was found for, eccentric as the old man was.
who could say he had not cot up in the
night, and as suddenly started from Il
as he had once suddenly made his appear.
ance there?
" As soon as intelligence of this affair
reached headquarters at Melbourne the mat
ter was placed in my hands. with instruc-
tions to exercise my own discretion in nv
proceedings. absolying me from all DISGRACE
If | failed, and promising me one hundred
pounds if ! succeeded. Nv nlan wss
adopted after muck consideration. and have
no reason tc regret the steps took. as will
be seen in the sequel. / took the little
steamer Restern, Captain Lucas. to port
land, 26O miles, and after stopping dav @,
two at Macs celebrated hotel, | Started by
the mail for the far interior. After three