The Opelousas courier., 1889-11-30
THE B%USHRANGERS.

After a voyage from Liverpool to Mel
bourne 1 went up country with an Amer.
ican acquaintance named Shaw for 8
sort of vacation. Ihad sailed with Shaw
while he was Captain of a New Orleans
ship, filling the berth of second mate to
his satisfaction, and, as I had saved his
life on one occasion, there was a warm
feeling between us. He was now the
owner of o big sheep ranch ON the Muir.
ray River, and I was only too glad to get
p run ashore and see something OF
. country noted tor its anomalies. This
was before the days of railroads and
while the penal colony ives in full blast
and the b~ushranger king of the road.
q, We were five days riding out to Shaw's
ranch, our vehicle being a wagon loaded
with six yokes of bullockA which were
almost as wild as buffaloes.s I heard very
little about the bushrangers until Ee
seached the ranch, and then Shaw gave
me such accounts of the fellows as made
me hope I should never be obliged TO
form their acquaintance. His immedi-
ate district had not been visited for two
or three years, but they had
come in to the north and west
of him and INDUCED in many
fobberies and murders. There were three
Englishmen and twelve natives on the
range, which was an extent of country
nine miles long by five broad. The force
ats the headquarters house, after our
arrival, numbered three white men, q
white woman, three natives, two black
women, and four or FIVE black children.
No gang of ~bushrangers numbering less
than six would dare to attack us, as the
house was well armed and the black
women could fire a musket as well as a
man. Shaw had instructed his help to
adopt q peace policy. In case a bush
sanger applied at any of the stations for
food or shelter he was to be
dated, and If they picked off a sheep oc-
eassionally no notice was to be taken
Of 1t. AS I said before, he had not been
disturbed thus far, but while he deluded
himself with the idea that it was an &C.
count Of the policy pursued, events were
about to occur to prove that the gentle.
men of the bush had been waiting their
own convenience.
A bushranger was, In every instance, a
desperate criminal who had made his es-
cape from prison or the penal settle
ments. There wasn't one Of them who
had not deserved the gallows before he
lied to the bush. A dozen or more Of tbs
most desperate characters sent to Tasma-
MIA had escaped and reached the larger
island and penetrated to the interior, and
these men were particularly ferocious and
and without mercy. Shaw seemed TO rest
easy. however, and 30 during the first
week OF my stay I did not bother my
bead about the rangers. Indeed q new.
egn1ef had enough to do to get acous-
soiaed to the snakes, lizards, insects and
nther arnoyances which kept him stirred
up day and night.
On the tenth day Of my stay Ne. Shaw
and I set out DO visit one of the outlying
saationsin charge Of an Englishman named
Thnmss. This man was about forty-fve
years old and had deserted from an Eng.
sah man-of-war. He had three black !
msn under his charge, and one OF them
had been sent In the day before with O /
badly written nots TO the effect that
laany shesp we're being killed, and that
All signs went to show that o gang of
angsrs had settled down in the neigh
&oshood. We were mounted on good
AoFses and well armed az Wa rode away, I
snd after an hours ride we
drew near the station, which consisted Of
. stout log hut for the keeper, another for
he blacks, and pens for herding the sheep.
we found the place silent and apparently
deserted, and leaving our horses In q
shacket. wseautiouslE approached on foote
he 1irst discovery made was that the
blacks had been killed, and we pushed
Oh to the larger hut to find Thomas With
ii half ia hour Of breathing his last. He
could speak In whispers, and no told US
hist seven hushrangsrs had appeared tAs
Bvening befefe and committed ths atro5
Visible on eyery hand. AlthoaRN
Be- had made them welcome d prepar1d
Dupper. they had come for different nurs
pose. The blacks, one by one, had been
tortured ii tbs most horrible manner, and
when the last one was dead they had
turned on Thomas. They had sliced on
his ears, broken his fingers, cut OF the
% his nose, hacked OF his toes, and
apEtlred him in other waya and had not