Herald

The Herald

28/06/1880

... part of the KellyGang story

' ' 'full text of the article'

[The Herald stated the report of the KellyGang at Glenrowan. The Herald was an afternoon paper and it carried the first news of the events at Glenrowan. The siege started early in the morning and the Herald ran with the story like a modern day television or radio station like a big fast breaking breaking story.

The Herald did not have a correspondent on the special train but they had access to the telegraph. The story grew as the telegraph messages were collected from local journalists, the police and many other sources. Problems of broken telegraph wires, congested wires and a lack of telegraph operators were all over come to give the outside world the first detailed news of the extraordinary events that were taking place at Glenrowan. The Herald also captured the excitement of the crowds around its office eager for the latest news and its attempt to produce additional editions to meet the demand. ]

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SPECIAL EDITION

HERALD Office 3.30pm

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CAPTURE

OF THE

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KELLY GANG

TWO CHILDREN SUPPOSED TO BE SHOT DEAD DURING THE ENCOUNTER

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SUPERINTENDENT HARE AND SOME CONSTABLES WOUNDED

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NED KELLY SEROUSLY WOUNDED

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A DESPERATE FIGHT

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The city this morning has been in a state of the most intense excitement. Yesterday it became known that the Kelly gang had once more broken cover, and had committed an outrage on the El Dorado road, near the residence of Byrne’s mother, where they shot Aaron Skerritt dead and besieged four constables the during the whole of Saturday night, but made off on Sunday morning early. Some particulars of this dastardly outrage were published in this morning’s papers, and served to arouse public indignation and curiosity, but early in the forenoon telegrams commenced to arrive which were of such thrilling interest as to completely banish all remembrance of the El Dorado affair. It seemed, from all that could be gathered from the disjointed messages that came to hand, that after leaving the scene of Skerritt’s residence the gang made a desperate attempt to once more reach the fastnesses of the Strathbogie Ranges, but probably becoming beware that the police were on their track, they found themselves cut off, and determined to make a last and despairing stand. At all events it appears that the outlaws made for the township of Glenrowan , a small collection of buildings situated alongside the North-eastern railway line, and close to the Glenrowan railway station. The accounts of the doings received so far are meagre in the extreme, but it can be gathered that they hoped to keep the police at bay, and trust to some chance of escape by gathering the inhabitants of the township into the hotel kept by Mrs Jones, and fighting from there, no doubt with the idea that the presence of so many innocent persons – including women and children – in the building, would deter the police from firing upon them, or at least would seriously embarrass the movements of the force under the command of Superintendent Hare and Superintendent Sadleir. Before finally entrenching themselves, the telegraph wires were cut, and the railway lines torn up on both sides of the Glenrowan station; but a pilot engine discovered the perpetration of the latter diabolical deed, and a serious accident was prevented. The police, in two parties; under the officers named, soon appeared on the scene, probably in several parties and from various points of the compass. The hotel was rapidly surrounded, so as to make escape practically impossible, and at last these notorious outlaws, who since November, 1878, have set the law at defiance, and baffled all attempts to capture them, were in the power of the police. The township of Glenrowan; it may be mentioned, is an insignificant collection of buildings, and is about five miles north of Greta, where the Kelly family has resided so long. The place having been surrounded, operations for the purpose of dislodging the bushrangers were commenced, and, from all accounts, a regular set fight must have raged for some hours, the murderers keeping up a steady fire on the police whenever opportunity offered. The police returned the fire, and evidently with some success, for the next thing that was heard was that Ned Kelly was captured alive, although seriously wounded while at the time on the side of the police the casualties reported were Superintendent Hare, wounded in the wrist, and two constables also wounded. The superintendent’s wound is painful, although not dangerous, but nothing is known at the time of writing as to the wounds of the constables.

continued

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