The Argus at KellyGang 2/9/1881
At the sitting ol the Police Commission yesterday Mr, Hare made his closing statement, and was cross-examined by the commissioners and Mr Nicolson. The com mission then adjourned until Tuesday next.
POLICE COMMISSION
THURSDAY, SEPT. 1
Present - Messrs Longmore (chairman), Fincham, Hall, Levey, and Dixon .
Superintendent Hare, who was called upon to make his closing statement, said that in his report to Captain Standish of the 2nd July, 1880 , he made certain statements to the effect that when he was sent to relieve Mr Nicolson, that gentleman gave him no verbal information as to the Kelly gang. He still maintained that those statements were correct, and he submitted that they were borne out by his own evidence, and that of Mr Sadleir, who said that Mr Nicolson only spoke to him (Mr Hare) for 15 or 20 minutes. It would be for the commission to say whether he could take over the accounts of agents and receive information of all that had been done in that short time.
He had to positively assert that Mr Nicolson told him nothing about the stealing of plough mould boards and the making of the armour, or of Jack Sherritt being a person who gave important information. There were many other points within the knowledge of the commission on which he was also silent. Moreover, in his evidence Mr Nicolson said be used to enter the information he got from his agents in a private note-book. How then, was Mr Sadleir or himself (Mr Hare) to obtain that information?' He (Mr Hare) had simply the piles of papers which had been laid before the commission to wade through for his information. Again, he had said in his report that Mr Nicolson when leaving Benalla sent a telegram to Detective Ward at Beechworth, leaving no copy, as he should have done for the information of the officers at Benalla. Had he (Mr Hare) not sent for Ward next day the Sherritt family would have been discharged, the strength of the police at Beechworth reduced, and the watch party at Sherritt's hut withdrawn. Now supposing the commander of an army was relieved by another officer, and that six hours after handing over the command to his successor he gave orders to remove some of the outposts and to make other important changes, what would have been said to him?
He (Mr Hare) occupied the position of the new commander, and that was how he was treated. It had been said all along that he had only been from five to 20 minutes at Glenrowan on the 28th June. The facts, however, were that he left Benalla at 2am , and returned within a few minutes of 5 am. He allowed 30 minutes for the journey to Glenrowan and 10 minutes for the return trip. This then left two hours and a quarter for his stay at Glenrowan. His report of to the capture of the Kellys was dictated by himself and without the assistance of any one. Mr O'Connor implied that somebody assisted him in it and no doubt meant Captain Standish, but Captain Standish positively never saw it until it was sent in. He would leave the commission to say whether it was a faithful account or not. One fact he wished to impress on the board, and that was that when he was shot he did not move one foot from the position he took up, but kept on firing as fast as he could until he saw the outlaws retreat into the hotel. Then he called upon his men to surround the place. He distinctly remembered standing in front of the hotel by him- self and then going to the station to get his wrist bound.
Notwithstanding the pressure of those on the platform he returned to the fight and remained behind a tree until compelled to leave by loss of blood. Had he been able to return from Benalla after his wound was dressed he would have done so, but the commission had heard the state he was in then. Ned Kelly was seriously wounded in the first engagement by a bullet in his foot and another through his lower and upper arm. It was, in fact, impossible for him to escape. This would be further proved by the following sworn declaration -
"I, Henry Geo Weston, of Melbourne , in the colony of Victoria , now confined in Her Majesty s gaol, Melbourne , do solemnly and sincerely declare that Edward Kelly was received into the gaol hospital on the afternoon of the 29th June, 1880 . I was present when he was admitted, and attended on him subsequently, acting under the instructions of Dr Shields, the medical officer of the gaol, until his (Kelly's) removal to Beechworth on the 31st July, 1880. I had several conversations with Kelly during this period while dressing his wounds and attending on him as aforesaid, in the course of some of which he told me ('Inter alia') that he was one of the first wounded in the fight with the police at Glenrowan, while he was on the verandah of the hotel; that as soon as he heard the train stop he knew that there had been foul play, meaning (as he explained) that the police had received information that the gang were at Glenrowan, and he and his mates then prepared for resistance. He distinctly told me that he recognised Superintendent Hare, and took deliberate aim at him, and when Kelly was told that Superintendent Hare was severely wounded in the wrist, he seemed much pleased and described to me the position the superintendent was in (according to Kelly's idea) when he received his wound, viz, a 'firing' position, and made use of words similar to the following - 'The --- meant to have shot me or my mates. I wish the bullet had struck him two inches lower.' On my asking him why he had deserted his mates, he replied in words similar to the following - 'I had plenty of mates in the neighbourhood ready to join us, but I could not mount my horse, the flap of my armour broke, and my arm was useless. The wound in his arm, he said, was received in the first volley of the police, whilst he was on the verandah of Jones's Hotel, and the wound in the thumb, received early in the fight, prevented him from using his gun, as he could not cock it.
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