THE MAUNGATUA STICKING-UPS

As promised, here are the details surrounding the first 'sticking-ups' in Otago.

Dunedin, prior to the discovery of gold at Gabriel's Gully in 1861, was a quiet little village with an almost total lack of crime. The one small gaol was used primarily for the incarceration of runaway sailors and the Gaoler, Mr Johnny Barr, often released his prisoners for the day with strict instructions to return before nightfall or they would be locked out!  It would seem that the prisoners were obedient.

Along came the advent of gold and the sleepy village became a seething mass of newly arrived diggers from Victoria, California and further afield. Although most of the miners were hardworking, honest men, there came with them a criminal element.

One such criminal stands out: Henry Beresford Garrett. A tall, strong man who was reportedly good natured and humorous. Transported from England to Norfolk Island in his youth, he went on to lead a life divided between spells in prison and outlaw pursuits. A more in depth look at this man's fascinating life can be found in THE FIRST NEW ZEALAND BUSHRANGER by David McGill. I haven't read this book as yet, but it promises to be a good read.

The very first 'sticking-up', which has been attributed to Garrett or one of his gang, occurred on the track between Gabriel's and Tokomairiro. The robber, with blackened face and pistol, relieved his victim of 3 pound.

It is the second 'sticking-up' which has caught my imagination and provided fodder for a short story. This  robbery was executed on a much larger scale with Garrett's gang of seven men.

The trail from Gabriel's came through the township of Waipori, crossed the shoulder of Maungatua (almost 3000ft high) and dropped down through bush to the Taieri Plains and on to Dunedin. On a lonely spot on Maungatua, near Woodside, Garrett's men laid a daring plan.

At the bottom of a gully, by a creek surrounded in trees, they accosted passing travelers. Holding them at gun point, they robbed them, then tied them up. By the end of the day, the victims numbered fifteen and the gang had amassed four hundred pounds in stolen cash and gold.

The good natured Garrett cheered the prisoners as the day wore on, lighting their pipes, holding cups of tea to their lips and imparting nips of gin. Toward evening he told them he was leaving, but would send someone along soon to release them. His parting gift was to wrap them up warmly with tents and blankets, before the gang mounted their horses and galloped away.

Only two men were ever brought to trial for this crime. A Mr Anderson who was nabbed from a local hotel and Garrett himself who was caught in Sydney and shipped back to Dunedin where he was imprisoned.

But for me the most interesting and humorous event of the day is the large shipment of gold that escaped Garrett's gang.

Sixteen year old George Calder from the North East Valley quarry, in Dunedin, was transporting 200 ounces of gold in the back of a dray, when he came across two of Garrett's men. Posted at the head of what is now called 'Sticking-up Gully', these men were charged with advising travelers to take the short cut down to where the gang lay in wait. Ascertaining that the track was too steep for Master Calder's dray, they offered him a drink of water and sent him, and 800 Pounds worth of gold, on his way!

THE MAID SERVANTS SCANDAL

Dunedin Wharf from Bell Hill 1862

I haven't written too much of my Catlins novel yet, but I have done a ton of research. In the process I have learnt some interesting things about my home town. One book in particular has opened my eyes to events that were completely unknown to me.

When searching the shelves at the Dunedin Public Library I came across a booklet: "The Maid Servants Scandal," by Olive Trotter. I thought: history and scandal, I need that! Once back home I skimmed the first page intending to give it my full attention later that week, but it grabbed me for the next hour.

Here's the first two paragraphs:

"Ill-fed, ill-housed, ill-cared for, one was starved to death; others were driven to desperate courses ... Who can fail to realize the misery of these poor girls, thrust into a filthy crowded building, then subjected to slow starvation? Who can wonder that they welcome any alternative that removes them from the wretched den?"


These dramatic words appeared in the Otago Daily times of 23 March 1863. They referred to the hundreds of girls who were given temporary lodging in the Dunedin Female Immigration Barracks, until they found positions as domestic servants.


After the gold rushes of the 1860s Dunedin merchants built impressive mansions with their newly acquired wealth. And mansions need domestic servants. From late 1862 ship loads of single girls arrived from Britain. 1,220 girls arrived in the first ten months.

Until such time as they were employed they needed to be housed. The Female immigration Barracks were located on what is now Police Street. The unglazed building was cold, lacked cooking, laundry and bathroom facilities and the bunks had no mattresses or blankets. There was a public pump twenty yards away on the main street and the toilet was on a steep slippery clay bank at the harbour's edge.

In the first months they were without chaperone and left to forage for food themselves - an almost impossible task for women on their own in that time. Later, a matron was employed to care for them and they were provided with bread, butter and tea twice a day.

I was fascinated and a little shocked by what I had unearthed, but I have to say a little germ of an idea has sprung to life in a dark corner of my muse. A Scottish girl sets sail for Dunedin, an orphan perhaps. She arrives to atrocious conditions ... and what if ... ?