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Fri 21 Mar 1890 - Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal (NSW : 1851 - 1862; 1872; 1882; 1885 - 1897; 1899 - 1904)
Page 4 - [COPYRIGHT.]
COPYRIGHT.
EARLY AUSTRALIAN HISTORY.
A Series of Historical Sketches bearing upon
Australian Colonisation and Convict Life in
New South Wales and Van Dieman's Land.
By "The Chatterer."
PART III.
The Story of the Blacks.
THE ABORIGINES OF AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER XIII. — MASSACRES.
The Natives of Port Phillip.
(Continued.)
Some days afterwards, several of
the sheep made their appearance at
the cattle station, and upon one of
the hands going to the sheep station
he found that spoliation and death had
been at work — everything about the place
having been destroyed, the sheep all scat-
tered, and the watchman and shepherd
nowhere to be seen. But the watchman's
hat was found near his hut with the crown
stove in and hair and blood inside it.
This was sign outward and visible enough
to convince the men that the aborigines
had been indulging in congenial bloody
exercise, and the men on the cattle station,
fearing for their own safety, at once left
the place to seek assistance on the adjoin-
ing runs of Messrs. Watson and Hunter.
Returning with some of the hands from
these stations, the whole party, well
armed, made diligent search for the bodies
of the unfortunate watchman and shep-
herd, but being unsuccessful in their
search, and the two men refusing to re-
main on the cattle station on any con-
sideration, the remnant of the flock was
taken from the run. All the sheep the
men could collect amounted to 538 - about
half the number there when Waugh left
for Melbourne - and these were all dread-
fully frightened and jaded, many of them
bearing spear wounds and dying on the
way. Two days afterwards the station
was re-visited, the intention being to re-
move any articles that might remain, but
it was found that the blacks had been
there in the meantime and carried off every
portable article from the huts. As soon
as possible information was conveyed to
the nearest police station, some 50 miles
distant, and a number of mounted men
visited the run, but they could not trace
the blacks or find any of the sheep that
had been driven off. Mr. Waugh esti-
mated his direct loss at 1200,ドル and applied
to the Government for compensation, but
the authorities could not entertain his
application, informing Mr. Waugh that
"the risk of loss, from the attacks of
blacks, was one to which every person
who goes beyond the boundaries of loca-
tion in this colony knows he is exposed,
and it is quite out of His Excellency's
power to make you any compensation."
The following extract from a letter, sent
from Port Phillip, by Mr. Charles Wedge,
in November, 1839, to his uncle, in Lon-
don, will also reveal some of the difficul-
ties of early settlement, and the feeling of
the settlers towards their natural enemies
- the blacks :- "I am very sorry to tell
you that the natives are here very trouble-
some. They took your horse "Rattler"
off the tether and killed and eat him ; they
also took at one haul, 70 ewes and 100
lambs, and have since taken about 25
more ; they killed a cow and calf, and
wounded another, and scattered them ter-
ribly. We have, however, collected them
again. One of my shepherds was severely
wounded in the hand ; he is, however,
now well. You may depend I do not
allow these things to be done with impu-
nity. The value of the stock destroyed
by these savages amounts to about 300ドル ;
and, although we have been compelled to
pay the following taxes — namely, license
to graze, 10ドル ; for every sheep 1d. per
head, for cattle 3d., and for horses 6d. per
head annually, with the promise held out
of establishing a border police, we have,
as yet, received no protection whatever.
I have made no complaints to the autho-
ties, as when they have been made no
notice has been taken of them, except to
threaten with the severity of the law, in
cases of retaliation."
In thus taking the law into his own
hands, however, the writer appears to
have brought not a little trouble upon
himself and those connected with him -
not from the authorities, but from the
blacks, for in subsequent reports from the
protectors and police of the nearest district
to the land which Wedge had taken up,
mention is made of "frequent collisions"
between the aborigines and the Wedges.
Here is one report, dated only four months
after the letter from Charles to his
uncle, was written :-
The establishment of Mr. Wedge, upon
the river Grange has frequently been at-
tacked by the natives since June last, when
it was established. On one occasion a
body of about 16 natives approached the
head station, and endeavoured to obtain
possession of the hut and store. The
natives demanded flour, and endeavoured
to compel the party, consisting of Mr.
Wedge, junr., Mr. Codd, and two servants,
to abandon the store, which had to be re-
solutely maintained and defended against
their attack. The natives threw between
30 and 40 spears, which were picked up
and destroyed by Mr. Wedge and his
party, who were compelled to fire a small
swivel gun, loaded with musket balls, in order
to alarm the natives, who shortly after-
wards retreated, driving before them some
cattle that were near the station, and
which were not recovered until some days
afterwards. Upon this occasion none of
the natives were wounded or killed, and
the gentlemen of this establishment now
earnestly request that measures may imme-
diately be taken by Government for the
protection of their lives and property.
Article identifier
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65350742
Page identifier
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page4860264
APA citation
[COPYRIGHT.] (1890, March 21). Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal (NSW : 1851 - 1862; 1872; 1882; 1885 - 1897; 1899 - 1904), p. 4. Retrieved April 2, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65350742
MLA citation
"[COPYRIGHT.]" Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal (NSW : 1851 - 1862; 1872; 1882; 1885 - 1897; 1899 - 1904) 21 March 1890: 4. Web. 2 Apr 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65350742>.
Harvard/Australian citation
1890 '[COPYRIGHT.]', Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal (NSW : 1851 - 1862; 1872; 1882; 1885 - 1897; 1899 - 1904), 21 March, p. 4. , viewed 02 Apr 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65350742
Wikipedia citation
{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65350742 |title=[COPYRIGHT.] |newspaper=[[Bathurst Free Press And Mining Journal]] |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=21 March 1890 |accessdate=2 April 2025 |page=4 |via=National Library of Australia}}

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