On 11 September 1863, he and Fred Britten escaped from gaol. They swam from Cockatoo Island and headed north to the New England district in north-east New South Wales. The government put up a reward of £25 for Ward’s capture. Late in October 1863, they robbed a woman at Gostwyck Hut, near Armidale, and stole a shotgun and some bacon. A few days later they were seen by the police near Thunderbolt's Rock. In the gunfight that followed Ward was shot in the back of the left knee. The two bushrangers split up soon afterwards.
In December 1863, Ward tried to take money from the toll keeper on the road between Maitland and Rutherford. There were only a few shillings in the cash box. Ward took the money but later gave it back. As he left, he told the toll keeper that his name was "Captain Thunderbolt". He then went into the Spread Eagle Inn (hotel) and asked for food. When he asked for his bill, the owner, Mrs. Byrne, told him that there was no charge. He replied that since she was so nice, he was not going to rob her. The police began to search for him but he managed to escape.
In 1864, Ward and Mary Ann lived quietly in the north-western plains near Bourke. Early in 1865 he joined up with three other men and formed his first gang. His three companions were McIntosh, Thomas Hogan (also known as The Bull), and a youth called John Thompson. They robbed travellers and stations near Collarenebri. A group of police from Bourke followed their tracks and found their camp in the bush. The gang escaped but Mary Ann and her two children were captured by the police. They started to take her to Bourke but she pretended she was having a baby and they left her at a nearby station. Ward went to the station and rescued his family, and took gunpowder and food. Ward and his first gang broke up after young Thompson was shot and nearly killed in April 1865 at Millie near Moree. Mary Ann was arrested again in 1866 and also in 1867 but she was soon released from prison because of support from the community.
Late in 1865, Ward formed his second bushranging gang with Patrick Kelly and Jemmy the Whisperer. They robbed as far south as
Quirindi, Currabubula and Carroll. At Carroll they had another shoot-out with the police in December 1865 where a trooper was shot in the arm. The gang split up early in January 1866.
Ward had another quiet year in 1866. Early in 1867 he took on another young accomplice, Thomas Mason. They carried out robberies from near Scone as far north as the Queensland border. Mason was captured by the police in September 1867. Later that year, Ward and Mary Ann separated. Mary Ann lived for the rest of her life at Mudgee where she died in 1905.
In 1868 Ward took on another young accomplice, William Monckton, and they committed many robberies in northern New South Wales. They separated in December 1868 and soon afterwards Monckton was captured by the police. Ward did not have any other accomplices. Some claim that Thunderbolt was involved in about 80 robberies and stole about £20,000, but his takings were much smaller than that.
On 25 May 1870 the police at Uralla were told that Thunderbolt was robbing travellers at Blanch's Royal Oak Inn, near Thunderbolt's Rock Constable Alexander Binney Walker chased after Ward on horseback for six or seven miles until they reached Kentucky Creek, south-west of Uralla. Ward jumped off his horse and began swimming across the creek. Constable Walker shot Thunderbolt’s horse, then he shot and killed Ward himself. Ward was later buried at Uralla.
While there have been stories that it was Ward's brother William who was killed, these stories are easily disproven.
Thunderbolt's Rock and Blanch's Royal Oak Inn were added to New South Wales State Heritage List in July 2012. This listing will protect the site which are now important places for tourists who come to the area. The site of his death at Kentucky Creek, and his grave, have also been added to the Heritage List.
Polish literature
Almost no Polish literature remains before Christianisation in the 10th century. Polish literature was written in the Latin language during the Middle Ages (there are only several Polish language texts from that times).
The Polish language was accepted as equal to Latin after the Renaissance for literature.
Jan Kochanowski was a leading poet of European Renaissance literature in the 16th century.
Polish writers were inspired by Western European literature but they had their own ideas and trends too. Those trends were coming to Poland because of noble people's travells and political contacts but they were becoming popular some time later then in other countries.
Polish Baroque literature had to trends: elitary one (Jan Andrzej Morsztyn, Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, Daniel Naborowski) and the other one, created by usual nobles (Jan Chryzostom Pasek).
In times of Enlightenment Polish literature was influenced by France. Poland-Lithuania was very weak country and needed political changes. Literature was mainly about society and state, not about love or religion.
In 19th century Poland was not independent. From 1822 to 1863 there was Romanticism in Polish literature. Romantic poets include Adam Mickiewicz who wrote "Pan Tadeusz" epic in 1834, Juliusz Słowacki and Zygmunt Krasiński.
After failed anti-Russian uprising in 1863 Romanticism ended in Poland.
Several Polish novelists have won the Nobel prize. Henryk Sienkiewicz won in 1905. He wrote dramatized versions of famous events in Polish history. Władysław Reymont won a Nobel prize in 1924. He wrote the novel Chłopi.
Stanisław Lem is famous science fiction author in the modern era. His "Solaris" novel was made twice into a feature film.
Motion of Confidence
A Motion of Confidence is a motion of support proposed by a government in a parliament or other assembly of elected representatives to give members of parliament (or other such assembly) a chance to register their confidence in a government. The motion is passed or rejected by means of a parliamentary vote (a Vote of confidence). Governments often propose a Motion of confidence to replace a Motion of no confidence proposed by the opposition.
Defeat of a Motion of Confidence in a parliamentary democracy generally requires one of two actions: the resignation of the government, or a request for a parliamentary dissolution and the calling of a General Election.
In Italy the Constitution provides only the motion of confidence and that of not-confidence, respectively to start and to end the life of a government; the question of confidence, by which the government asks a Chamber to approve without change its texts, is the result of a tradition of the late nineteenth century and is increasingly used to accelerate the legislative process, but does not apply to rules for amending Constitution.
Nevşehir
Nevşehir is a city in the center Turkey in Asia Minor.
Coca
Coca is a plant in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to north-western South America. The plant plays a significant role in traditional Andean culture. Coca leaves contain cocaine alkaloids, a basis for the drug cocaine, which is a powerful stimulant. Today the plant has many uses, including traditional use by Andean cultures to flavoring Coca-Cola products to use as an anesthetic.