Royal Commission report day 37 page 23
The Royal Commission evidence for 20/7/1881
(see also introduction to day 37)
[[../../people/peB/barryEllenMrs.html|Mrs. Ellen Barry]] 'giving evidence'
13431 You never heard Wallace speak himself?— No, they never talked inside.
13432 By Constable Alexander — Which of the police was the means of keeping you in the house?— Constables Duross and Dowling. It was between the both of them.
13433 Did I interfere in any way?— No, you did not, you were over the other side of the room.
13434 What did I say when Armstrong asked me to go out?— Well, I do not know exactly what you said, but I heard Dowling and Duross say they could do nothing by going out.
13435 -You did not hear what I said?— No, I could not hear well what you said. I do not know whether you spoke or not. I was next to those two men.
13436 Are you sure Armstrong volunteered to go out?— Yes.
13437 Are you sure he did not ask us if we would go out?— He said, “Well, boys, if you will go out, I will follow you,” and a couple of the men said they could do no good, the night was too dark.
13438 Did I say so?— I did not say you said so. —
13439 By the Commission— Is there anything else you wish to say?— There are a couple of words I would like to say privately.
The room was cleared.
13440 What is it you wish to say?— I would just like to make it known that Aaron was not good friends with some of his own people after he got married, except one brother that used to stop at the place—he used to sleep there every night. He was especially bad friends with his brother John; and the father and himself had some difference too, one time at the Gap, for Aaron was telling me about it; and there was a side-saddle that he bought for my daughter, and it was taken from my place one night, when Aaron was on duty with the police; taken from outside at the back, and when Aaron came home in the morning he missed the saddle, and he blamed his brother for it.
13441 We have had to ask the question whether there was any religious difficulty—we thought it was possible that the fact of Miss Byrne being a Roman Catholic, and we were led to understand that he was a Protestant; we thought that might be the cause of difficulty, but it could not well be, as your daughter is a Roman Catholic?— Yes, I was talking about that to Aaron myself, but he always said it was not the religion that was up with him. He used to say they did not seem to him so very religious—he said they got very religious all at once.
13442 Do you know whether his own family disagreed with him on account of marrying your daughter?— Yes; I know they were bad friends with him through that, but I do not think it was through religion. He used to say it was not that; it was just because he left them and got married.
13443 How old was he?— I think twenty-five years.
13444 Would they have been better satisfied if he had married Miss Byrne?— I do not think they cared for him to get married at all, that is about the size of it.
13445 Your daughter was just about six months married?— Yes.
13446 Is there any reason that you can assign other than that for their differences with him?— No; unless just that they were not good friends with him
13447 You do not think his own friends would let the outlaws know he was harboring the police?— I do not know; but I know he seemed in dread of them, and he thought his brother John had a down on him. Of course I mentioned it to a sister of his since, and she used to say he said it out of a lark; but still Aaron always said it was he that took the saddle. John was down with the police with horses once, sent by Ward to my place, and he was taking to my daughter, and he said he thought it was young Byrne who took the saddle. The police got the saddle at Byrne's place after, but young Byrne did not know where the saddle was at my place.
13448 Mrs. Byrne was prosecuted for having that saddle?— Yes.
13449 Did Aaron appear to be in dread of his life, or afraid they would shoot him?— No, he did not; but for about a couple of weeks before he was shot he seemed to be looking downhearted; and I said “You do not look well”; and I said, “Perhaps it does not agree with you to be out at nights”; and he said it did not matter; and I had a dream of bad before that—I dreamed that the Kellys came and stuck up his place, and I told him that, and he said, “That is how I believe it will be before long.” That is all I ever heard from him.
13450 He never made remarks to lead you to believe he knew where Byrne and Dan Kelly were staying?— No. I said at one time that the Kellys had left the country—at the time there was not much about them in the papers—and he said, “They have not left the country, and you will soon hear of them turning up again,” and that was about three weeks before he was shot.
13451 Do you think he gave all the information he could to the police?— I do, because he believed in the police, and I believe he did all he could for them.
13452 Did you ever hear anything about the Kellys having armour they came out at Glenrowan?— No; the two outlaws at Aaron 's had no armour on, for they looked too slight for it.
13453 You never heard who made the armour?— No, I never did.
13454 Is there anything else you wish to say?— No.
13455 Is your daughter living with you now?— Yes; she was not very strong, and I have a large family to look after at my place, so I could not stay with her at Beechworth. She has not had good health since the occurrence.
13456 Do they keep the selection on where he was shot?— No, he sold that before he was married.
The witness withdrew.
The public were again admitted....
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