The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1879-05-03
THE BUSHRANGERS.

i My story has one great merit; it is
true. A simple narration, therefore, of
the following authentic events in con-
Dection with two notorious Australian
bushrangers, Pearson and Rutherford,
nay be read with ssme interest.
The scoundrels had q short and not
very brilliant career, but the details
which learned from eyewitness, the
facts that came out in the police court
where 4 had the painful duty to sit %
one of the committing magistrates in the
case of one of them, and the subsequent
awful fate of the other, together make
up record of crime not unworthy of
reproduction and should this story
reach the eyes of any of those who were
concerned in it, they viii pardon me for
adhering SO scrupulously to the bare
facts and incidents that have not even
suppressed their names.
During the terrible drought in De-
cember, 1858, of which Australian
sguatters viii have lively but bitter
recollection, SO great were my straits,
that had directed two of my oyerseers,
James MeNall and Henry Couch, to
brand and prepare some twenty thousand
sheep "for the road," TO travel In search
of grass and water, now getting very
scarce in my own country. The drafting
yards were at "Con's Hut" an out,
station about seventy miles from Fort
Bourke. Half q mile up the Wsrrego
aver from this place was bush public
mouse, kept by one William Shearer,
fifteen miles further, my Belalie head
station. For many miles no ether human
habitation broke the dreary monotopy OF
what is termed in Australia the BUSH
but what in reality consists in success
sion Of bare and parehed plains, inter-
sected at long intervals by marrow belts
of timber and occasional pine ridges.
Suddenly the men were disturbed il
their work, as they afterwatd void me
10y the sound OF several shots tired almost
simultaneously ia the direction of the
public house. To catch their hobbled
horses, saddle them, and gsllop off to see
"whst was up at Billy Shessers," was
the work of few minutes.
Now what did happen at Shearers
will describe by giving, as nsar as
memory viii serve me, tile substance OF
his evidence at the trial. He stated that
about noon on this December day he
was standing behind his counter in the
oar, o small room shout ten feet square,
when q party OF men, consisting of Ser
geant McCabe, Of the New South Wales
mounted police, McManus, q trooper of
the Queensland force, and their black
boy, the native " trscker," rode up, and
having ahghted, inquired if anything
had been heard of two bushrangers, Pear
son aad Rutherford, adding that they
were wanted about 8 late "stiching-upo
case in which they had been concerned,
f1hN Ah0 UcCn bi0ShON " SAAcsb &O~n&AOys
sShearer knew Rutherford from his hay-
ing been but few months previously
3ne of the station hands, and was xble
10 inform the police that this outlaw, at
any rate. had not yet put ia an appear
anee; the police must have missed them
in the bush and gone ahead Of then.
The sergeant bad just sat down on Q
asnaB forn on the left front of tie bar,
placing his rifle within reach against the
-eounter--the other constable was stand
ing beside him--when two men rode up,
hitched their horses to the yeranda nosts
An front of the inn, and without warning
the foremost, Rutherford, entered the
room, and covering Shearer vito his
2eyolver, uttered the formula 80 mach
dreaded at the time in Australia, !" Bail
app the doorway at the same time
being occupied by the other man, Pear
son also revolver in bend. Finding
themselves in such close proximity to
the police was no doubt o most unex>
pected surprise, but Sergeant MoCabe's
challenge "to surrender" had no other
effect than to cause Rutherford to wheel
half round after his aim, and fire,
Me0abe, as it appeared, Reeeiying the