The Argus at KellyGang 12/11/1878

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(full text transcription)

THE POLICE MURDERS

[BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH]

(FROM OUR SPECIAL REPORTER)

WANGARATTA, MONDAY, 9 PM

After my telegram was sent last night, one of the search parties, numbering five men, came into town. They had nothing to report that should be made public, but had fulfilled the duty for which they were despatched. The authorities here very properly refuse to make known what is to be done by each party sent out, for if they were to do so the gang of which they are in search would soon know all about the proceedings. The men sent out do not know in what direction they are going, that only being confided to the non-commissioned officer or man who is put in charge. The authorities here are greatly annoyed at a statement that appeared in one of the morning papers to the effect that a Government horse had been found by one of the parties recently despatched from here. This fact was known on Saturday, but as it was hoped that it would lead up to something further there was a desire that it should not be made known.

The confidence having been broken, it may now be said that when a party was returning from the Murray in the Yarrawonga direction they came upon horse tracks, and after some searching a brown horse, bearing the Government brand, was found in the Warby Ranges, not more than six miles from this town. It was minus its shoes, and had evidently been travelled at such a rate that the gang were obliged to abandon it. This horse which is said to be 20 years old, was one of those attached to Sergeant Kennedy's party as a pack horse, and had at least been abandoned, owing to the hard work in the ranges having in- capacitated it for further effort. The horse will be brought in this evening but from a further investigation that has been made of the locality, it is believed that the tracks seen in the vicinity of the place where the horse was found were at least a week old. The only advantage derived from the discovery is, therefore, the almost certainty of the gang of desperadoes having doubled back on their tracks towards the Murray, and returned towards their native fastnesses.

The untoward publication of this fact about the discovery of the horse has quite upset one plan arranged by the authorities, and very naturally causes them to be much more reticent in giving information.

Some little excitement was caused to-day by the guard of the morning up train stating at Benalla that he had seen four armed men sticking up a bushman on the old main road between Glenrowan and Benalla. To the great amusement of all who had heard the statement, however, it turned out that the armed party was that of an officer of police, with his men, who had considered it necessary to interrogate a man whom they met on the road. This is one sample of the rumours that get afloat in the district.

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