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Story of the KellyGang - the Royal Commission evidence
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== The Royal Commission evidence for 8/6/1881 ==
''''''
=== full text ===
(see also introduction to [[Royal Commission report 8/6/1881|day 27]])
[[../../people/peD_G/dowsett%20Jesse%20Mr.html|'''Mr Jesse Dowsett''']] '''sworn and examined'''
<span id="rc10898">[[#rc10898|10898]]</span> ''By the Commission—'' What are you?— Guard on the Victorian [[Railway Stations|railways]].
<span id="rc10899">[[#rc10899|10899]]</span> Do you remember the morning of the day on which the Kellys were captured?— Yes.
<span id="rc10900">[[#rc10900|10900]]</span> Where were you on that morning?— I left [[Benalla|Benalla]] after five o'clock .
<span id="rc10901">[[#rc10901|10901]]</span> You went up with Mr. [[Sadleir|Sadleir]] and his party?— Yes.
<span id="rc10902">[[#rc10902|10902]]</span> You were in charge of the train that time?— No; I was to have taken the first special up— it was arranged on Sunday, but there was some alteration made waiting for the special from Melbourne, and I was told to go home, and they would call me. They did not come to call me, but, about close on five o'clock, a chap that works on the coal stage came and knocked at the place where I was living, and told me that the Kellys were fighting [[Glenrowan|Glenrowan]], and Mr. [[Hare|Hare]] had come back wounded, so I jumped up and shoved on my clothes and ran over, and was just in time to go on the engine as it went away.
<span id="rc10903">[[#rc10903|10903]]</span> You were not in any official capacity on the railway then?— No.
<span id="rc10904">[[#rc10904|10904]]</span> You got there when?— Somewhere about half past five.
<span id="rc10905">[[#rc10905|10905]]</span> Of course it was not light then?— No.
<span id="rc10906">[[#rc10906|10906]]</span> What were you first engaged in on going there?— Shortly after I got up there they were talking about that one of the outlaws must have got away. They showed a revolving rifle and a skull cap, and Mr. Sadleir was talking to Constable Kelly—asking him how things were going on—and I heard him enquire where Mr. [[O'Connor|O'Connor]], and Kelly said he was down in the drain, opposite the hotel. While they were talking like this I heard some screams that seemed to come from the hotel, as if a woman was getting hurt; and I think [[Nicholson|Dr. Nicholson]] was making some remark were there women and children in there —a lot of conversation; but I cleared out when I heard this woman calling out, and I went up to the back of the station and crept on my hands and knees to where there were some tents alongside the railway fence, and I could hear her screaming out, but I could not see her distinctly for the smoke; but presently I saw a woman with her hair hanging down her back and screaming, with a child in her arms; so I called to her softly to come to me. I said, “Come to the police;” and she came towards me, crying most bitterly not to shoot her child the same as they had shot the father. I put one arm partly round her and took the child in my arms, and made my way to the station the best way I could.
<span id="rc10907">[[#rc10907|10907]]</span> What time?— Shortly after six o'clock , I should say.
<span id="rc10908">[[#rc10908|10908]]</span> What happened then?— Of course everybody was on to her to know who was in there, and what they were doing. I stayed there myself some little time, and I thought, “I will go back to where you came from, there does not seem to be anybody up there.” And I went up there again, and saw a man behind a tree that looked rather suspiciously at me, and I said, “Railway,” and stepped towards him. This was a policeman, and we stayed there a considerable time, and the firing was going on; there seemed to be any amount of pellets going about.
<span id="rc10909">[[#rc10909|10909]]</span> You could hear them in the trees?— Yes, and hear them whistle; and all at once something seemed to come as if somebody was hitting me at the back, and I turned round and saw this strange-looking object coming over the hill from the Wangaratta side.
<span id="rc10910">[[#rc10910|10910]]</span> What time was that?— About half past seven.
<span id="rc10911">[[#rc10911|10911]]</span> Was it getting daylight?— Yes, but the smoke of the guns hung over the ground and made like a fog.
<span id="rc10912">[[#rc10912|10912]]</span> What did you do?— It proved to be [[Ned Kelly|Ned Kelly]] afterwards, but at the time it looked like a great big blackfellow. I called out, I said, “Healey, what is this coming?” and somebody behind said, “Keep back, keep back”; but the object kept coming on, and presently I saw it was from that direction the shots came that seemed to strike me, and I said, “You had better scatter, boys.” The figure then seemed to stop in a clump of saplings, and you could see him from the centre firing away several times, and I went along.
<span id="rc10913">[[#rc10913|10913]]</span> In what direction did he fire?— Well, it seemed as if it was pointing towards where I was.
<span id="rc10914">[[#rc10914|10914]]</span> Towards the railway station?— Not exactly, but at the angle between that and the hotel.
<span id="rc10915">[[#rc10915|10915]]</span> You cannot say whether it was towards Arthur?— No, he fired several times.
<span id="rc10916">[[#rc10916|10916]]</span> What then?— I kept going from tree to tree to try and get closer to him, and Constable Kelly was on the right; and I thought as the outlaw Kelly seemed to sit down in this clump of saplings that he was reloading, and I thought it was a chance of firing at him; in fact I kept pegging away at the foot of the clump of saplings, and I said to Constable Kelly, “If you come here you can get a shot at him.”....
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[[Royal Commission report day 27 page 15|previous page]] / [[Royal Commission report day 27 page 17|next page]]
== The Royal Commission evidence for 8/6/1881 ==
''''''
=== full text ===
(see also introduction to [[Royal Commission report 8/6/1881|day 27]])
[[../../people/peD_G/dowsett%20Jesse%20Mr.html|'''Mr Jesse Dowsett''']] '''sworn and examined'''
<span id="rc10898">[[#rc10898|10898]]</span> ''By the Commission—'' What are you?— Guard on the Victorian [[Railway Stations|railways]].
<span id="rc10899">[[#rc10899|10899]]</span> Do you remember the morning of the day on which the Kellys were captured?— Yes.
<span id="rc10900">[[#rc10900|10900]]</span> Where were you on that morning?— I left [[Benalla|Benalla]] after five o'clock .
<span id="rc10901">[[#rc10901|10901]]</span> You went up with Mr. [[Sadleir|Sadleir]] and his party?— Yes.
<span id="rc10902">[[#rc10902|10902]]</span> You were in charge of the train that time?— No; I was to have taken the first special up— it was arranged on Sunday, but there was some alteration made waiting for the special from Melbourne, and I was told to go home, and they would call me. They did not come to call me, but, about close on five o'clock, a chap that works on the coal stage came and knocked at the place where I was living, and told me that the Kellys were fighting [[Glenrowan|Glenrowan]], and Mr. [[Hare|Hare]] had come back wounded, so I jumped up and shoved on my clothes and ran over, and was just in time to go on the engine as it went away.
<span id="rc10903">[[#rc10903|10903]]</span> You were not in any official capacity on the railway then?— No.
<span id="rc10904">[[#rc10904|10904]]</span> You got there when?— Somewhere about half past five.
<span id="rc10905">[[#rc10905|10905]]</span> Of course it was not light then?— No.
<span id="rc10906">[[#rc10906|10906]]</span> What were you first engaged in on going there?— Shortly after I got up there they were talking about that one of the outlaws must have got away. They showed a revolving rifle and a skull cap, and Mr. Sadleir was talking to Constable Kelly—asking him how things were going on—and I heard him enquire where Mr. [[O'Connor|O'Connor]], and Kelly said he was down in the drain, opposite the hotel. While they were talking like this I heard some screams that seemed to come from the hotel, as if a woman was getting hurt; and I think [[Nicholson|Dr. Nicholson]] was making some remark were there women and children in there —a lot of conversation; but I cleared out when I heard this woman calling out, and I went up to the back of the station and crept on my hands and knees to where there were some tents alongside the railway fence, and I could hear her screaming out, but I could not see her distinctly for the smoke; but presently I saw a woman with her hair hanging down her back and screaming, with a child in her arms; so I called to her softly to come to me. I said, “Come to the police;” and she came towards me, crying most bitterly not to shoot her child the same as they had shot the father. I put one arm partly round her and took the child in my arms, and made my way to the station the best way I could.
<span id="rc10907">[[#rc10907|10907]]</span> What time?— Shortly after six o'clock , I should say.
<span id="rc10908">[[#rc10908|10908]]</span> What happened then?— Of course everybody was on to her to know who was in there, and what they were doing. I stayed there myself some little time, and I thought, “I will go back to where you came from, there does not seem to be anybody up there.” And I went up there again, and saw a man behind a tree that looked rather suspiciously at me, and I said, “Railway,” and stepped towards him. This was a policeman, and we stayed there a considerable time, and the firing was going on; there seemed to be any amount of pellets going about.
<span id="rc10909">[[#rc10909|10909]]</span> You could hear them in the trees?— Yes, and hear them whistle; and all at once something seemed to come as if somebody was hitting me at the back, and I turned round and saw this strange-looking object coming over the hill from the Wangaratta side.
<span id="rc10910">[[#rc10910|10910]]</span> What time was that?— About half past seven.
<span id="rc10911">[[#rc10911|10911]]</span> Was it getting daylight?— Yes, but the smoke of the guns hung over the ground and made like a fog.
<span id="rc10912">[[#rc10912|10912]]</span> What did you do?— It proved to be [[Ned Kelly|Ned Kelly]] afterwards, but at the time it looked like a great big blackfellow. I called out, I said, “Healey, what is this coming?” and somebody behind said, “Keep back, keep back”; but the object kept coming on, and presently I saw it was from that direction the shots came that seemed to strike me, and I said, “You had better scatter, boys.” The figure then seemed to stop in a clump of saplings, and you could see him from the centre firing away several times, and I went along.
<span id="rc10913">[[#rc10913|10913]]</span> In what direction did he fire?— Well, it seemed as if it was pointing towards where I was.
<span id="rc10914">[[#rc10914|10914]]</span> Towards the railway station?— Not exactly, but at the angle between that and the hotel.
<span id="rc10915">[[#rc10915|10915]]</span> You cannot say whether it was towards Arthur?— No, he fired several times.
<span id="rc10916">[[#rc10916|10916]]</span> What then?— I kept going from tree to tree to try and get closer to him, and Constable Kelly was on the right; and I thought as the outlaw Kelly seemed to sit down in this clump of saplings that he was reloading, and I thought it was a chance of firing at him; in fact I kept pegging away at the foot of the clump of saplings, and I said to Constable Kelly, “If you come here you can get a shot at him.”....
=== Previous page / Next page ===
<br />
{{MicroficheCopy}}<br />
'''The [[Royal Commission report day 26 page 1|previous day]] / [[Royal Commission report day 28 page 1|next day]] . . . Royal Commission [[Royal Commission Index|index]]''' [[RC_index.html|RC_index.html]]
[[Category:Royal Commission]] [[Category:March 1608]] [[Category:Royal Commission]] [[Category:Commisioner Standish]] [[Category:history]]
MediaWiki:Sidebar
{{^|Original page location \documents\RoyalCommission\RC810608_27_16_10898.html}}
