Difference between revisions of "Official Documents"

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[[James Scobie]]'s tent was next to [[Peter Lalor]]'s tent.
 
[[James Scobie]]'s tent was next to [[Peter Lalor]]'s tent.
 
  
 
== Scobie's Inquest ==
 
== Scobie's Inquest ==
 
... An inquest was held by a magistrate named Dewes, who was suspected of being under an obligation to Bentley, and believed to be what subsequent official investigation proved, a corrupt and unreliable officer. Instead of committing Bentley for trial, Dewes acquitted him. One of the commissioners (Johnston) was not satisfied with the inquiry, and forwarded his notes to headquarters. The diggers were enraged at so flagrant a miscarriage of justice. Bentley had a bad record, and his house a bad reputation. The incident served to increase the tension between the diggers and the authorities.<ref>''The Charleville Times'',  24 December 1904.</ref>
 
... An inquest was held by a magistrate named Dewes, who was suspected of being under an obligation to Bentley, and believed to be what subsequent official investigation proved, a corrupt and unreliable officer. Instead of committing Bentley for trial, Dewes acquitted him. One of the commissioners (Johnston) was not satisfied with the inquiry, and forwarded his notes to headquarters. The diggers were enraged at so flagrant a miscarriage of justice. Bentley had a bad record, and his house a bad reputation. The incident served to increase the tension between the diggers and the authorities.<ref>''The Charleville Times'',  24 December 1904.</ref>
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'''07 October 1854'''
 
'''07 October 1854'''
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The jury found there was not enough evidence against Bentley so the matter was adjourned. Several were unsatisfied with the proceedings and the verdict. ''Peter Lalor'' and several others formed a committee to further investigate the proceedings of the inquest.<ref>http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.</ref>
 
The jury found there was not enough evidence against Bentley so the matter was adjourned. Several were unsatisfied with the proceedings and the verdict. ''Peter Lalor'' and several others formed a committee to further investigate the proceedings of the inquest.<ref>http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.</ref>
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'''12 October 1854'''
 
'''12 October 1854'''

Revision as of 14:17, 11 August 2020

Forms, Evidence and Depositions in relation to the James Scobie trial - Public Record Office Victoria VPRS 5527 Official Forms, Evidence and Depositions, October 1854

"Official form on blue paper - evidence - Henry Wright, trooper, 27 October 1854, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 70
Recognizance to give evidence.
Be it remembered, that on 27th day of October in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty four Henry Wright of Ballarat in the Colony of Victoria Trooper personally came before me one of Her Majesty's Justices of the Peace for the said Colony, and acknowledged himself to owe to our Sovereign Lady the Queen the sum of one hundred pounds, of good lawful money of Great Britain, to be made and levied of the goods and chattels, lands and tenements, in the use of our said Lady the Queen, her Heirs and Successors, if the said Henry Wright shall fail in the condition indorsed.
Taken and acknowledged the day and year of your first above mentioned at Ballarat in the said Colony before me
EPS Sturt JP
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of James Francis Bentley, 4 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of James Bentley, 4 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Archibald Carmichael, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Archibald Carmichael, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of William Duncan, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of William Duncan, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Barnard Welch, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Barnard Welch, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Thomas Mooney, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Thomas Mooney, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Mary Ann Welch, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Mary Ann Welch, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.1, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Peter Martin, 7 October 1854, p.2, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Mary Ann Welch, 7 October 1854, p.3, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10
"Coroner's Inquest - Deposition of Mary Ann Welch, 7 October 1854, p.4, PROV, VPRS5527/P0 Unit 1, Item 10

Background

On 07 October 1854 two recently reunited Scotsmen, James Scobie and Peter Martin, were out celebrating. Wanting another drink, they knocked on the door of the Eureka Hotel at night after closing hours. Their request for another drink was refused, and after a scuffle James Scobie was struck on the head with a shovel, and Peter Martin was kicked to the ground. James Scobie died as the result of injuries he received. Dr James Stewart performed an inquest into Scobie's death with an open verdict returned, even though most believed James Bentley had killed Scobie.

James Scobie's tent was next to Peter Lalor's tent.

Scobie's Inquest

... An inquest was held by a magistrate named Dewes, who was suspected of being under an obligation to Bentley, and believed to be what subsequent official investigation proved, a corrupt and unreliable officer. Instead of committing Bentley for trial, Dewes acquitted him. One of the commissioners (Johnston) was not satisfied with the inquiry, and forwarded his notes to headquarters. The diggers were enraged at so flagrant a miscarriage of justice. Bentley had a bad record, and his house a bad reputation. The incident served to increase the tension between the diggers and the authorities.[1]


07 October 1854

On the afternoon of 7 October 1854 Coroner David John Williams held an inquest into the death of James Scobie. Twelve jurors (many of whom had known Scobie) heard evidence and depositions, including forensic evidence from Dr Carr. During the inquest the Coroner was observed interrupting the proceedings on a fairly regular basis, and many questioned his decision to allow the Eureka Hotel proprietor, James Bentley, to cross-examine ten year old witness Bernard Welch; Peter Lalor saw Bentley talking to the Coroner while the jurors were deciding on a verdict.[2]

Bentley and his staff Thomas Mooney, the hotel watchman; Thomas Farrell, a clerk; and barman William Duncan denied taking part in the murder but agreed that two men did come knocking after midnight.[3]

Ten year old Bernard Welch's eyewitness account contradicted Bentley, Mooney and Farrell. Mary Ann Welch, Bernard’s mother, had also heard noises outside her tent:

‘My son the last witness and I had some conversation last night when we were disturbed during which I said I wonder if those voices are the voices of Mr or Mrs Bentley.’ (PROV, VPRS 5527 Unit 1, Item 1).[4]

The jury found there was not enough evidence against Bentley so the matter was adjourned. Several were unsatisfied with the proceedings and the verdict. Peter Lalor and several others formed a committee to further investigate the proceedings of the inquest.[5]


12 October 1854

The pressure placed on the Ballarat authorities for a further investigation into the circumstances surrounding Scobie’s death resulted in a judicial inquiry presided over by Gold Fields Commissioner Robert Rede, Police Magistrate John Dewes and Assistant Commissioner Johnston on 12 October.[6]

Inquest Jurors

Arthur Anderson; John Gillott; Henry Green; John Fletcher; John Phelan; Walter Davis; David Richards; Duncan Henderson; John Campbell; John Haig; Hugh Meikle; James Hasseltop

Judicial Inquiry

Dewes’s nefarious association with James Bentley was well known among the locals. The Police Magistrate’s financial association with Bentley had ensured that Bentley obtained the liquor licence for the Eureka Hotel without the usual red tape. Dewes’s biased attitude was demonstrated throughout the proceedings. Any witness who appeared to display an unfavourable view of Bentley was subjected to regular cross-examinations, a fact that did not fail to attract the attention of those present in the courtroom.

The same deponents who had been present during the inquest now related their account of the chain of events of 6 October. According to Peter Martin’s deposition for the coroner’s inquest, he and Scobie had made their way to the hotel after noticing that the lights were still on:

Deceased went up to one of the windows and asked to get in and a blow was struck at the head of the Deceased through the window as if by a man’s hand. I was knocked down… before I could distinguish who struck me… my eyes were attracted towards him [Bentley] because he was the only person I saw with a weapon in his hand’ (PROV, VPRS 5527 Unit 1, Item 1).[7]

After Martin was knocked he quickly ran thirty to forty yards from the scene of the attack. Upon his return he found Scobie unconscious and after examining his friend rushed towards the nearby butcher store owned by Archibald Carmichael, then went to summon Dr Carr. Upon his arrival Carr recommended the body be removed for a more thorough examination to Bentley’s Eureka Hotel, where scobiewas pronounced dead.[8]

During the adjournment Police Constable John Dougherty and Constable Michael Costello observed Bentley entering Magistrate Dewes’s office where he remained for approximately ten minutes. Once the hearing had reconvened, Dewes and Rede announced that the accused were to be discharged. Assistant Commissioner Johnston, however, did not share this view, nor did the multitude of diggers who were expecting a finding of guilty.[9]

Charles A. Doudiet, watercolour on paper, 1854, watercolour, on paper.
Courtesy Art Gallery of Ballarat, purchased by the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery with the assistance of many donors, 1996.

The Petition

A meeting to discuss the events was organised for 17 October 1854 outside James Bentley's Eureka Hotel. The aim was to demand for a more thorough investigation take place in front of a jury. .[10] The meeting got out of hand, and a riot occurred at Bentley’s Eureka Hotel that afternoon, and acted as a catalyst in bringing the case of Scobie’s murder to trial. The formation of the Committee for the Prosecution of the Investigation into the Death of James Scobie had sent a petition to Lieutenant Governor Sir Charles Hotham in Melbourne:

‘That your petitioners, feeling dissatisfied with the manner in which justice has been administered in regard to the death of one James Scobie who was brutally murdered near Bentley’s Hotel’ (PROV, VPRS 5527/P Unit 1, Item 6).[11]

Two days after the riot a reward of £500 was offered to any individual with information that could lead to the arrest and conviction of any persons involved in the death of James Scobie. Thomas Mooney was taken into custody and Detective Senior Sergeant Cummings travelled to Melbourne to apprehend Mr and Mrs Bentley.[12]

On 22 October the government was advised that new evidence had been brought to its attention. Thomas Mooney, a witness to the murder, conceded to the authorities the circumstances surrounding Scobie’s death, and provided a detailed account of the events, implicating both the Bentleys and Thomas Farrell:

‘I did not see Bentley strike the man but he had a spade in his hand he got the spade from near a tent … Mr Bentley said that is the right way to serve the vagabonds for breaking our windows they all went back to the House and I think they went to bed as the lights were put out’ (PROV, VPRS 5527/P Unit 1, Item 5).[13]

New depositions were collected for the upcoming trial, including the additional depositions by Mary Ann Welch and her son Bernard Welch. Michael Welsh, a waiter at the Eureka Hotel, was also able to provide a deposition incriminating not only the Bentleys but also two of their staff members, barman William Duncan and former Chief Constable Thomas Farrell, the hotel clerk. Evidence implicating a man named William Hance was also brought forward and he too was apprehended.

On 27 October 1854 a letter was sent to the Governor:

:27/10/54 Ballarat 23rd Oct 1854 :To His Excellency Sir Charles Hotham K.C.B. Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Victoria :We the committee for the prosecution of the investigation into the death of the late James Scobie, duly appointed at a public meeting, held here on the 17th inst do beg to forward to your Excellency the enclosed Petition.

Your Excellency having anticipated the object of the Petition, we desiring as much as possible to allay the excitement at present existing on these diggings have thought it unnecessary and impolitic to have signatures attached to the Petition.
We beg to tender our sincere thanks to your Excellency for the promptitude and vigour with which the case has been taken up by your Excellency’s Government, and which is rapidly restoring the confidence of this community in that due administration of the law, which is necessary to the preservation of society.
In any investigation which your Excellency may be pleased to institute into this matter, we feel confident that the conduct of the magistrates, and especially that of the coroner, will appear to your Excellency in its true light.
We beg to subscribe ourselves your Excellency’s most devoted and obedient servants-
James R. Thomson Chairman Peter Lalor Secretary Thomas P. Wanliss Treasurer John Weightman Gray William Cork Alexander McP. Grant, Archibald Carmichael.[14]
Redmond Barry, c1875. State Library of Victoria (H4706)

The Trial

William Stawell from Supreme Court Bench Victoria 1852-1894. Chuck Photorgrapher. State Library of Victoria Collection( H34675)

The case of Queen v. James Francis Bentley, Catherine Bentley, William Henry Hance and Thomas Farrell in the murder of James Scobie commenced on Saturday 18 November, in Melbourne’s Supreme Court. Judge Redmond Barry presided over the case, Richard Ireland acted as Counsel for the Bentleys, while Mr A. Michie and Mr Whipman represented Thomas Farrell and William Hance respectively. Crown Prosecutor, Attorney General W.F. Stawell, presented evidence that had been previously used in the inquests and magisterial hearings, but on this occasion called two new witnesses, who would alter the fate of the accused. The waiter, Michael Welsh, who resided at the Eureka Hotel, testified that on the night of Scobie’s murder he saw the victim arguing with the accused William Hance through the broken window of the hotel. This evidence was supported by the testimony given by Mooney.

In his sworn statement to the court Thomas Mooney gave a detailed account of his direct involvement in the murder of James Scobie:

‘Farrell struck Scobie and knocked him down I collared Martin and he was drunk and stumbled and fell, the Clerk and Farrell both kicked Scobie while he was down…I did not strike Martin but took him by the collar and he was so drunk he fell’ (VPRS 5527/P Unit 1, Item 5).

Mooney’s testimony also revealed Bentley and Farrell’s mendacious attempts to conceal the nature of what had transpired in the early hours of that morning:

‘he told me not to say anything about it except that 2 men were in the front of the house and he was in bed himself and that the 2 men went away, when Bentley said this Farrell was present the Clerk told me the day following not to say anything about it when Bentley returned from the Camp with the police he called me in again and again told me not to say anything more than he previously directed’ (PROV, VPRS 5527/P Unit 1, Item 5).[15]

The jury took only fifteen minutes of deliberation. James Bentley, William Hance and Thomas Farrell were all found guilty of manslaughter. The following Monday, 20 November, the three prisoners were each sentenced to three years hard labour on the roads. Catherine Bentley, heavily pregnant at the time, was found not guilty. That very same afternoon Judge Redmond Barry was to preside over the trial of the Eureka hotel Rioters.[16]


Forms, Evidence and Depositions in relation to the James Scobie trial - Public Record Office Victoria VPRS 5527 Official Forms, Evidence and Depositions, October 1854
  1. The Charleville Times, 24 December 1904.
  2. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  3. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  4. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  5. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  6. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  7. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  8. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  9. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  10. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  11. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  12. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  13. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  14. PROV, VPRS 5527 Eureka Stockade - Historical Collection P0, Unit 1.
  15. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.
  16. http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/eureka-on-trial/murder-of-james-scobie, downloaded 18 March 2013.