Sydney Daily Telegraph (NSW : 1879 -1883), Saturday 3 July 1880, page 6
THE KELLY GANG.
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The following graphic account of the destruction of the hotel at Glenrowan is given by the special reporter of the Melbourne Daily Telegraph :—
FIRING THE BESIEGED INN.
Amongst the numerous tragic incidents and scenes that occurred from time to time during the eventful day to keep those engaged in the siege in a perpetual state of excitement and alarm, none could vie with the extraordinary order which was given by Inspector Sadlier, at 3 p.m., to fire the building in which the three members of the gang — Dan Kelly, Steve Hart and Joe Byrne — continued to shelter themselves. The besieging party was now considerable, and the occasional fire which proceeded from their sheltered posts of observation around the building, not having elicited a reply of any description, much less a show of surrender, the ardour of the men gradually diminished and they became unmistakably tired of firing random shots into a tenement from which all signs of life had long since apparently departed. After the capture of the leader of the gang only occasional shots were fired from the house, and prior to 10 o’clock even these furtive indications of resistance finally ceased. The outposts, however, continued to amuse themselves firing, at the building, notwithstanding the fact that something like 20 unoffending people belonging to the neighbourhood, who had been taken to the place the previous day, and placed under arrest by the gang, were known to be huddled together in abject misery on the floor, patiently awaiting whatever end might be in store for them. The prospect was certainly not very inviting, and, taking every thing into consideration, it is surprising that there fear was sufficiently strong to restrain them from breaking the bondage which chained them to an almost certain death. The predicament was due to their misfortune, not their fault, and all lookers-on felt, as volley after volley was poured into the place, that if they escaped with their lives it would be indeed miraculous. The ostensible object in keeping up the fire was to drive the outlaws either to surrender or to seek safety elsewhere, and to prevent injury being done the unoffending captives, orders were given to “fire high.” It is to be regretted that this order was not strictly obeyed, but some allowance must be made for the difficulties which the men in the field had to overcome to ensure their own and their comrades’ safety and at the same time to follow out their instructions strictly to the letter. Silence had existed on the side of the outlaws for upwards of an hour, but it was by no means appreciated. It was thought to indicate mischief or some diabolical outrage by the gang, so double vigilance was directed to the riddled tenement, but without allaying the anxious and distrustful fears of those on duty. The police ceased firing shortly after 11 o’clock, and those posted nearest the place advanced under shelter closer in. This was done over the whole line that encircled the inn, where everything was in readiness should a dash be made for the inside. Inspector Sadlier called out in a loud voice, “Come out; if all those in the house do not come out in ten minutes, they will be shot,” and the warning was repeated by the troopers. Almost immediately on the word being given the front door was thrown open, and a terror-stricken mob of about twenty — children, youths and old men — rushed out, and were covered by thirty or forty rifles and revolvers, and they called out in the most pitiful tones of the most abject fear, “Don’t fire; for God’s sake, don’t; we will do anything you wish.” This was true enough. They were driven to such a state of fearful terror that they were in the mood to do anything that might be asked of them provided their lives were spared. “Throw up your hands” was responded to with instant punctuality, every individual, even to two small children who were clinging to an old man among the crowd, immediately holding their hands up to heaven, and looking so woe-begone and pitiful as almost to bring tears into the eyes of the hardiest in the crowd of lookers-on. The motley crowd slowly advanced into the paddock on the Wangaratta side of the inn, where they were ordered to lie down flat on the ground. and they instantly fell on their faces, much after the custom of Eastern people on entering the presence of their ruler. One by one they were allowed to depart, with the exception of two lads named M’Auliff, who were arrested on suspicion of having acted in an active manner quite recently on behalf of the outlaws. All this time 30 to 40 of the besiegers were within 20 yards of the house, many of whom dispensed with the necessity of taking shelter, but stood out in the open in an unnecessarily reckless and dangerous manner. The front door of the house was left open by the escapees, who brought a small table out under the verandah with them; but as Ned Kelly had said that his comrades were clad in similar armour to that which he wore himself, it was considered too hazardous to attempt to enter the place by a general charge. It was believed that, even if should Joe Byrne be disabled, Dan Kelly and Steve Hart certainly remained to perpetrate further deeds of brutality and bloodshed. Accepting these suppositions as reasonable, the officer in charge withdrew his men some paces, and firing recommenced, and continued at intervals till 3 o’clock, when a more terrible expedient was suggested as the most economical and expeditious means of ousting the intruders from their lair. It was suggested to burn down the house, and no time was lost in putting it into execution. Senior-constable Johnson, who arrived from Violet Town at the request of Superintendent Hare during the day, undertook the difficult task, and having prepared a small quantity of straw and other inflammable matter, and sprinkled kerosene upon them, he advanced without delay, to do his duty. As he advanced a heavy fire was kept up to distract the attention of the inmates, and before the public were aware of the fact, a gentle tongue of flame crept silently up the weatherboards, and the officer fell back to his original position in the field as if nothing had happened. The small blue tongue of flame increased its hold on the building, and the hundreds of spectators who were about the station took the alarm, and spread themselves over the field in every direction to watch the result. The excitement grew apace, and was unexpectedly increased by the appearance of Mrs. Skillion, sister of the Kelly outlaws, making her way up the gravel path to the doomed house. It was understood that her object was to induce the outlaws to surrender, but on passing through the railway gates she was prevented from putting her good resolution to the test by the police, who called upon her from various points, and she was compelled to desist. The fire crept up into the ceiling before discovering its existence, and when a good hold was obtained on the rafters, small jets of flame issued from innumerable bullet-holes in the corrugated iron roof, and every spectator felt the critical moment which should disclose the fate of the inmates was at hand, and all looked on with bated breath at the extraordinary scene. The progress of the fire was now more rapid, and the ceiling and top part of the front rooms were enveloped in flames, when the Rev. Father Gibney, of Western Australia, who is collecting funds in the colony, walked up as if intending to enter. The crowd, for the first time, broke the silence, and loudly cheered the act, and the rev. gentleman, who was on the point of turning back, went boldly into the burning house, and passed through to the back, carrying the body of Byrne, which he found lying on the bar floor, near the door. The body was quite devoid of life, and cold — a fact which showed that he had been dead some time, In passing through the rooms, the rev. gentleman saw two other bodies lying on couches in the left side room, but they were quite dead, and he hastened to the back and assisted to take the body of the old plate-layer, Martin Cherry, from the lean-to. Life was not yet extinct, but the old man had evidently only a few second to live, and the Rev. Father Gibney administered the last rites of the Church to the unconscious mortal, surrounded by a large concourse of people anxious to get a glimpse of the much-abused old man. Death was occasioned by loss of blood accelerated by a gunshot wound in the groin. The flames enveloped the whole house, and the roar which proceeded therefrom, accompanied by occasional explosions of cartridges, was echoed back from the hills, causing unwonted uproar and boisterous animation. The whole place was quickly gutted, and as the sides and front were burnt, hundreds of bullet marks could plainly be seen in the weatherboards. The bones of the outlaws, Dan Kelly and Steve Hart, were found lying close together, with heavy armour, similar to that worn by Ned, beside them, as if they had quietly laid down there on finding that they could not escape, and died either from their wounds or by self-slaughter.The former is the more reasonable, but while it is quite possible that on one of them dying, the other placed his body on the couch, and, lying down, put an end to his own existence, it is an almost absolute impossibility that these two men, could have committed suicide, or even killed each other at the same time. By whatever means they came by their tragic end, it is probable that the affair happened shortly after the firing ceased to come from the hut between 9 and 10 o’clock; but while these are only surmises, they are the most acceptable that have been offered. The whole of the inn and the lean-to were destroyed, with the exception of the old sign-post and lamp; and at 20 minutes past 3 o’clock the scene of the encounter was a total wreck, nothing remaining but the smouldering embers.
The following particulars, furnished by Dr. Charles Ryan, are from the Argus :—
DR. CHAS. RYAN’S STATEMENT.
“I came down in the same van as Ned Kelly. He spoke very little, and seemed like a man in a trance, and glared at any strangers he saw. He had had no sleep all the previous night. Most men wounded as he was would have been far more prostrated than he was, but he has a splendid constitution. Moreover, his body looked as if it had been well nourished. When I asked him if he had been pretty well fed, he said he had, but he did not add where he had got the food. I expected to find him, after the life he had been leading very dirty; but his skin was as clean as if he had just come out of a Turkish bath. I attended to his wounds, and now and then gave him some brandy and water. He seemed grateful, but gave me the idea that he wished to die. Of course in attending to his wounds, I gave him temporary pain, but he never complained in the least. His wounds would not be likely to prove mortal in an ordinary case, where the patient had as strong a constitution; but the prisoner is likewise suffering from a severe mental shock, and moreover wants to die. That must he borne in mind when considering his chances of recovery. Under ordinary circumstances a strong man with such wounds might be expected to be able to walk about — not to run about, and not to have the free use of his limbs — in some two months’ time. With regard to his wounds, his left arm is pierced by two bullet-holes, one above and one below the elbow. I feel confident that both wounds were caused by one bullet, which, entering below the elbow while the arm was bent, passed also through the arm above the elbow. When I asked him if his arm was bent at the time he received that wound, he said it was. There are also two slug wounds in the right hand, and seven slug wounds in the right leg. One of the slugs I got out. I don’t think the wound in the right groin is very dangerous. There is a nasty wound in the ball of the big toe of the right foot. I saw him last at 5 o’clock p.m. in the gaol. He seemed better then than during the journey down, and much less feverish. In the train his pulse was 125, but at the gaol it was only 114. He told me he didn’t think that his brother and Hart shot themselves, because they were “two —— cowards,” and hadn’t enough pluck to kill themselves. He said that Byrne was plucky enough. The prisoner’s breath smelt as if he had been drinking very bad liquor. Superintendent Hare is getting on very well. His wound is a very nasty one, and seems to have been caused by a conical bullet, revolving at a very rapid rate. The bones of the left wrist are very much shattered, and some portion of them has been ground to powder by the bullet. Still, I don’t think amputation will be necessary. He will probably be able to use his left hand in time, but there will be a stiffness in it, particularly in the thumb.
Glenrowan 