Wigton Davy 1885.pdf - Gilburri

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Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (7) righthand ; charged had been stabbing. and con victed of Re-examined by Mr. Powers : Could anyone sitting doorstep see on the from where he was sitting. . His Honor;Wasnotin Bygoingabout knife the habit of with a Powers in herband. addressed Mr. C. the jury 011 prisoner. behalf of the . addressed Mr. Real prosecution. the iury for the carefullyanalysed He the evidence and combatted the views put inflicted forward that the wound was by accident. prisoner, contended, The he intentionally inflicting was guilty of greviousbodilyharm. His Honor summed up lucidlyaud circumstances ably. He dwelt 011 tbe prisoner which wentto without coercion showthat consentiicted husband, 01* even the incited ot her aud was not to the provocation. deed witnesses by undue The three evidence concurred substantial in their on facts,though they differed in mere matters of detail, and he deemed testimony truthful their account. on that very His Honor laiddownthe law relatingto 'intent'and denneu grevious bodily lesser harm, and 'unlawfully the offence of wounding.' further instructed He the jurythatif reasonable they had any prisoner doubts they benefit must thereof. givethe the retired Thejury itclock p.m. butdidnot 3 struck agree untilthe six,when returned V they'guilty into courtwith agrievousverdict intent bodily \ of of to do S fearm.' - Prisoner was remanded for sentence, \ [Murder* aboriginal, BillyBarcoo, an and Wig stalwart half-caste, ton Davy, a placed charged were in the dock dering Billy Barlow, with mur aboriginal, an at Gayndahon 22rd July. Sheridan, instructed Mr. Stafford, F. appeared B. by prisoners, Mr. pleaded for the guilty. who not following empanelled The jury were Archibald . Messrs. John Duulop, Camp (Jickowski, bell, Charles A. Campbell, Jacobsen, Eve, J. H. gpiden, Lars M. Kruse,D. Edwards, Hansen, R. P. J. National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772 Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (8) Steffensen, A. Hubert. ^ Prosecutor, , The Crown opened stating Real, Mr. facts, the case by the but subjected interruptions was to constant Sheridan, length bv Mr. who was at silenced by His Honor, who considered interruptions the tf- the formal opening improper. the caseas very ofConstable stationed John Kellydeposed : Gayndah That LhewasJulyhe 23rd attosawthe went ontheof thebedof Burnett ; river, there aud dead body BillyBarlow ; a man namedMorgan was ?with me (DickyDutton produced and ? identified Morgan) ; Barlow bad as forehead, a deep wound in the an inch deep, and another wound four or live inches long ou tbetopof bis head; Mor buried the gan clothing and I arrested body with prisoner its 011 ; Debateable I the at Mount ou 10th August; they together nothing were both ; they said when I charged them with the murder searched prisoners of Billy Barlow ; I found knife Billy Barcoo [knife and a on producedj half-caste Katey Law (a Chinese and aboriginal) deposed : That she Chinaman was mar ried to a namedKai : know prisoner the Barlow and knew Billy Barlow ; saw on the 22ndJuly at the bed Gayndah of the river near prisoners, ; there were there the two two gins, two half-caste old gins, Charley tbe and his blackfellow gin, and an old ; it was 12 o'clock at night ; I was asleep when Barlow came to the camp ; his camp was a milefromours ; he said ' Davy, getup and havea nip;' Davy gotup and drank bottle Barlow Barcoo out of the had ; had a uip,too,so did Barlow, who thencom menced a row ; don't know what they Barcoo said ; thenwent to his camp two or three yards away ; Barlow followed, and knocked him down and took his nullah from him Barlow then hit ; Davy nullah with the ; Davy was in my camp with me ; I was living withhim ; Davy spearand as Barlow got holdof a went to hit him again, Davey speared him National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772 Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (9) through Barcoo then got tbe right arm ; nailed nullah a heavy and hit Barlow on back head, tbe of tbe andhe fell ; I then gathered things up my and went to children where I bad hidden my under hollow going I heard a log ; an I was Barcoo Davy,we'llcut his throat ;' say ' I said ' No, Davy, don't youdo it ;' Bar low was sitting up then ; Davy came afterme in ten minutes ; I saw Barcoo daylight, again at with Billy Barlow's gin with him ; the gin was not at our previous camp the night; I went to town evening stayed there a next and week ; when I went back I saw Barcoo and Davey, and said to them 'Who hit Billy Barlow ou the Lead with a toma hawk?' Barcoo said' I did,I hit him stopped twice with the back of it ; with arrested. I Davy till he Cross-examined was Sheridan: by Mr. I living years, have been with Davy for considered G aud myself bis wife ; I was married Chitiumau fo a a long time be fore, but I gave him up ; there was 110 Barlow there grog in the camptill came ; was no money in the camp, and we had public-bouse not beeu to the that night; the blacks did not go oftento the public house (witness was then subjected to cross-examinatiou a long ou the details of quarrelsome Barlow was a the row) ; big, fellow ; when he was goingto hit Davy he said he was boss of all the black fellows wouldlikeDavy to ; I get oft, puni'sbmeut. but he shouldhave bis aboriginal CharleyPepper,an : Said be spokeEnglish and knew the oath ; he worked at Wetherou Station ; saw pri soners, Barlow, number of and a gins at tbe Burnett Rivercamp ; one gin was his; half-caste Davy had four gins there, three blackfellow; and one it was a Wednesday night. evidence Witness corroborated most of theconversation of KateyLaw, and related the which began tbe row, the gist of it beingthat Barlow spoke' seotty words abouta gin, ' Molly, belonging to his camp, whom he suspected Barcoo of beiug sweet upon ; Barcoo explaiued that the lady in ques tion was drunk and asleep at disturbed,that moment, aud could not be whereupon Barlow commenced active National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772 Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (10) hostilities, which was carried ou with much vigor aud heavy weapons on both sides until Barlow tried to run away, repeatedly but was by knocked down prisoners' nullahs. tbe When Barlow was properly'grassed,'prisonerswent away to theirfire ; aftera whileBarcoo went to where Barlow was lying and cut him underthe knee with a knife; Barlow cried Barcoo after out oh ! oh ! ; proposed that to cut his throat, aud all tbe ginssungout ' Don'tdo it, he die directly everybody Davy told to go, aud not to tell; we wentaway,but Davy Barcoo would and saidthey stop to see if Barlow tomahawk got up again; I saw a without a handle in camp; Davy's the gin tookit awaywithher. Cross-examined Sheridan: by Mr. The tomahawk audknife used were not mine; (produced) I saw the knife in the camp ; tomahawk I did not see any used that Bight; when Barcoo first struck Barlow, Barlow was sitting on Davy and usinga nullah aud belamon on him ; Barlow had takeDthem from Barcoo ; the nail headednullah was Davy's, and Barcoo did not use it ; if KateyLaw saysBarcoo did use it she tells a lie. half-caste Hetty,a young gin was next placed appeared in the box, but comprehend to be un able to the nature of the oath. Sheridanraised the Mr. point whether the law which renders a wifes evidence inadmissable against her husband blackfellows does not applyto if so, Hettv ; being Davy's gin, could not give evidence. His Honor said the law did not con template matter. should, the He blackfellows how ever, hold that a first gin subsequent was his legal wife, but his gins couldnot be regarded as wives. He shouldtake Hetty's evidence. Witnesshaving made a formal de claration, deposed Davy's : I am one of gins ; Davy bad Kittyand Lizzie as gins before Kitty he had me ; was first; he had black gins before that; (witness gave evidence generally corroborrative and added) ; Charlie saw when we were tomahawk leaving Charlie camp; butcher had a and kuife; he gave them to National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772 Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (11) butcher kuife and ; he gave them to Barcoo and said,'You kill him, be beat me at MountPerry' ; Barcoo went to where Barlow was lying, and hit him twiceon the head with the tomahawk ; tomahawk he then gave Charlie the and kuife back. Cross-examined Sheridan by Mr. F. ; I stopped camp all that day ; there iu was no grog there until Barlowbrought it. RichardThomas Morgan,of Gayndah, deposed prisoners : I have known the and Barlow about 14 years ; I went to the Burnett Riveron 23rd July,and saw therethe deadbody of Barlow ; it was not longdead ; saw two largewounds inflicted might be in his head such as tomahawk brains with tlie back of protruding a ; were from each wound; I subsequently helped to exhumed burythe body; further we the body for afterwards ex amination 12 days and ex injuries. amined the tendereda statement Mr. Real made Barcoo, evidence. by as Sheridanobjected statement Mr. aboriginal to the received. of au being statement His Honor ruled the not admissable. O'Counordeposed Dr. D. W. thatconsidered he evideuce and had heard the that either ofdescribed the two wounds on the head as Cross-examined wouldcausedeath. : I have known people exaggerate describing wounds, bijtnot rule. in as a Thisclosedthe caselor the Crown.No witnesses were calledfor the defence. Mr. Sheridanaddressed the jury for the defence. pointed blackfel He prosecuted out that lows placed byposition the Crown were inability in a of call todefence. evidence otherwise prepare a or unfortunate He dwelt on the social posi blackfellows, commented tion of and in Parliament solemn terms on the fact that voied year after year large sums for the maintenance of native police, money Parliament voted by license I shooting to givefree blacks, crimse for the down of for National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772 Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser (Qld. : 1860 - 1947), Friday 25 September 1885, page 2 (12) such as that charged against such poor men as thosetwo now in the box. Inci dentally, learned Counsel the drew har rowing pictures of blacks being shot down described in the public streets, and shooting the of five blackson the Marybo himself— for rough wharf— witnessed by tobacco. the alleged theft of acquittal two figs of claimed He the of the two pris oners on the ground that Barlow's death was the result of a free fightstarted by himself. His Honor, in summing up, claimed careful and from the impartial jury the same verdict that they would give if fellowcountry the prisoners were their travelled evidence, men.pointed He over tbe and out that ifself-defence a fatalwoundwas inflicted against in actual a violent assault, reduced the law manslaughter, the crime to but if weapons and violence employed were with fatal effect evidence after a lapse of time,there was malice, and crime was murder. of tbe His Honorread over the wholeof the evidence, pointed out and that the wit ness Charley being implicated, the jury must uot place too much reliance on his evidence. half-an-hour's The jury, after delibera tion, brought in a verdict of man slaughter againstboth prisoners. sentenced His Honor Billy Barcoo to two year's hard labor, and Wigton Davy eighteen months' to hard labor. National Library of Australia http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146859772