SConst Mills

Side of Authority
This page contains content from police and those who supported authority.

Importance of SConst Mays

In charge police party watching Mrs Byrne's home Links to the KellyGang below, Early Years , Fitzpatrick Incident , Mansfield Murders , Sebastopol Cavalcade , Euroa Robbery , Watching Mrs Byrne's ,Autum 1879 , Hare replaced by Nicolson , Spring 1879 Early 1880 , Death of Aaron Sherritt , Glenrowan Siege , Ned Kelly's Trial , Royal Commission , Early service , Later service , Family ,

Links to the KellyGang

Early Years I had been stationed at Whittlesea before the cave party. Photograph Sebastopol Cavalcade 7/11/1878 Later

I came to Jacob Wilson's place, and he told me he would not give me any hay; he was frightened to give me any hay, and that if I went to Tom Lloyd's place I could get plenty of hay there. He said the KellyGang were camped and had put up their tents at the creek, and it was too late to go to Tom Lloyd's place. (RC4440)

Watching Mrs Byrne's home 3/1879 I was from Sup Hare's Bourke police district. In late February 1879 we set up a camp above Mrs Byrne's home to watch for the KellyGang. It lasted for about a month. We watched all night and lay under a rock by day. This is how Sup Hare described our camp. I was the 2IC and SConst Mays was incharge of the upper camp. See also Sup Hare's book for more details.

"I think I had seven men. At the same time, above us there was a wonderfully formed camp of the outlaws that they used to resort to, that Aaron Sherritt pointed out to me. It was most ingenious-a place impossible to be attacked. They could shoot any number of people coming up, and you could not touch them. I put four men in this camp. They were about one mile above me in the mountains. I formed a sort of a camp for myself-took our provisions there, about a mile away from Mrs. Byrne's, where we used to retire to every morning at daylight. The duty during this time was terribly irksome. We had no cover by day, lying under rocks, and sitting behind a tree all night."

"That duty was not only irksome but dangerous in the extreme. I never left my camp at night to take up my position but I felt anxious as to whether the outlaws might be in our watching place and open fire on us, and again when we returned to camp at daylight in the morning the outlaws might have taken up our position in the mountains, and shot the whole party without the slightest difficulty. My way of going to and from the watching place was this: I generally used to go ahead of the party and separate them. That is keep about twenty yards apart, get into the watching place myself first, and the men would follow, so that if one were shot, at any rate the others might be able to take the outlaws. That we carried on for five and twenty nights.

I felt the responsibility myself very great, but the prospect of our meeting the outlaws cheered us all up, and so it went on day by day. We had great difficulties to contend with, first to supply ourselves with water, which is one of the chief things in a watch party. There was only one waterhole, and we used to have to carry our water with a can, and even then, from our position, we used to see Mrs. Bryne looking for our tracks, because policemen's tracks are always known all over the place. They have different boots and different shoes to their horses.

We used to see this old woman go to the water and look for our tracks, and also look about the road. We had no fires, except occasionally when the men beseeched me to let them have a fire to boil tea, and then it was put out immediately. The nights were exceedingly cold."(RC1279-) See also Sup Hare's book for more details. Hare relied on Aaron Sherritt.

I gave Mrs Byrne a good fright when she discovered our camp (RC1284)

Early Service I had been at Whittlesea for a time Later Service

Family

wife ?... children ?.... home ?..

What happened to Const Mills' family KellyGang