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The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864-1933) (about)
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Cite: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1280432
11 corrections, most recently by noisyoyster - Show corrections
MURDER AT THE LOGAN RIVER.
RUDOLPH MONBERGER and Caspar Schaig, the two men charged with the murder of Henry Bode, a German pedlar, at the Logan, on about the 27th August last, were brought up for examination at the Police Court, Bris- bane, on October 9, and fully committed for trial. As the evidence was very voluminous the proceedings lasting from a little after 10 o'clock until 20 minutes to 6 o'clock, a resumé of the facts, as disclosed by the wit- nesses, will be interesting. When we pub- lished an account of the capture of the prison- ers, we gave full particulars of the circum-
stances connected with the alleged murder, but in several respects it differed from the evidence, and therefore must be inaccurate. It was shown that Bode was at Stone's public house on the 27th August, being on a visit to the place for the purpose of collecting some debts. In the afternoon he went out, intending
to return that evening or the following morn- ing. Monberger was one of his debtors, and he took the track for their (prisoners') farm, which was about three miles from the ferry. He was seen within half a mile of their place about 7 o'clock in the evening, seeking directions, and was put in the path which led to their house by Halliday, a neighboring farmer. The farm is situated on the bank of the river, and the house stands in a small paddock, which is
entered at the rear, and the road passes through '
a scrub. Halliday was the last man who saw Bode. The prisoners were seen going home a little before Bode could have got there. On the 6th September the body of a young man was found in the river, about five miles above the prisoners' farm. The Logan is a tidal river. An inquest was held, and the jury arrived at a verdict of " Found drowned" before the body was properly examined. Then it was discovered that Bode was missing, and inquiries were made. The prisoners left their farm about the 18th September, and on the 24th Sub-Inspector Lloyd went to their hut. There he found a hat and purse, which was identified by Hoeman, an old friend of the deceased's, as Bode's property, and the ferryman proved that he was wearing
them on the 27th August. There seemed to be no doubt about the articles. The purse was found in a box bearing Monberger's name, and containing a locket, and the hat was stuffed into the straw forming the bed. There were traces of blood on the bed-post, the door-jam, a large maul weighing about 14 lbs., on some trousers, a bed-tick lying in another room, and on other things; and there was also hair on the maul. On part of the bed-room floor ashes had been recently strewed. The hut was in perfect order. Then the body of the drowned man was ex- humed, and the appearance of the hair, teeth, and clothes answered most accurately to the description given of Bode. He was a young man of about 21 years of age, without whiskers or beard, he was last seen with a Crimean shirt and flannel trousers, and the clothes of the same pattern were found on the body. There was a flannel vest on it, which was not identified. The body having been dead sometime was in a very decomposed state. The head was removed, and it presented a fracture on the right side just of such a nature as the heavy maul would make. The skull was thin, and a hole six inches by four was driven in it; and there were fissures on the left side corresponding with the fracture. Dr. Hobbs accounted for this by stating that the head must have been resting on a comparatively hard surface at the time the blow was given ; and the injury could not have happened to a dead body floating in water. Hoeman had no doubt from the clothes, teeth, of which Bode had a remarkably good set, and the height, that it was the pedlar's body. The prisoners were apprehended on the 3rd October, fourteen miles beyond Toowoomba, on the Dalby line. Schaig, when he saw the police coming, threw down his tools and was making off, when Sergeant Buckley arrested him. In their hut Mr. Lloyd found a pair of boots nearly new. Monberger said they were his, and he was understood to state he bought them at a particular shop in Brisbane. The Logan ferryman, without being able to swear positively, believed they were the pair Bode had on on the 27th August; and they were three inches too long for Monberger. On the same prisoner a pouch was found, and Hoeman identi- fied it at once as Bode's. On Monberger's hat there was a spot of blood. These are the main facts of the case, and, excepting the boots, we have only men- tioned articles which were positively identified. A model of the house was made, measurements taken of the ground, with the distance of the hut from the river and adjoining farms. One incident may be mentioned, that after the inquesfc the prisoners gave up passing Beetam's farm when they had to go to the German station. They never spoke of the missing man to any one. With this case against them they were committed to take their trial at the next criminal sittings, to be held in November. The court was crowded during the whole of the proceed- ings, in which great interest seemed to be taken. Both men are under the average height; Mon- berger seems the more intelligent of the two. They have been in the colony about a year.
GOVERNMENT EMIGRATION BOARD.- We have received a copy of a paper published in April last by the Government Emigration Board, containing information respecting the various systems under which emigration is car- ried on from Great Britain to the colonies. The South African and the Australian colonies ap- pear to be the only ones to which there is any free or assisted emigration. The North Ameri- can colonies, we presume, from their being so much nearer and the passage money so small in amount, have no such plan in operation. The paper before us gives full particulars in a con- cise form of the arrangements made by each of the South African and Australian Governments for the introduction of immigrants through the Imperial Commissioners. A longer space is de- voted to Queensland than to any other place, and in the last paragraph our system of immi- gration, by the agency of Mr. Jordan, is spoken of in a way that is seriously calculated to mis- lead. We can hardly complain that the Com- missioners should make the most of themselves and the little power that Mr. Herbert gives to them over our immigration, or that they should say as little as possible about our own system established under an Act of Parliament. But what little they do say ought to be both correct
and complete. It is said that Mr. Jordan has power to grant land-orders under certain con- ditions to persons paying their own passages ; leaving it to be inferred that all persons wanting free or assisted passages must go to the Com- missioners, which is notoriously untrue. But the following statement is still worse :-The land-orders "are available for the purchase of any lands offered for sale by the Government, without restriction, as to quality or locality." Such a mis-statement, published under, autho- rity, ls calculated to do serious mischief. Any person reading it and coming out here, paying his own passage-money, would certainly be dis- contented on finding that his land-order is not available for town lands. We trust that the Colonial Secretary will at once communicate with the English Government Board, if he has not already done so, and that he will procure the correction of such mischievous errors.
RAILWAY FROM BRISBANE TO IPSWICH.- We understand that the Government have determined on making the surveys for the line of railway between Brisbane and Ipswich as speedily as possible. Mr. Fitzgibbon com- mences operations this week by putting a sur- veying party to work on the, proposed line. The necessity for making the railways as suc- cessful as possible in a financial point of view, will compel the Government to push on the works. The profits to be derived from the working of this short length will do something towards making up for the losses of the longer portions through a thinly populated squatting district, and will thus assist in keeping up the credit of the colony on the London Stock Ex- change. It will be some time yet before the line over the Main Range is opened through to Toowoomba, and there is no practical difficulty in the way of having this end completed by the same time. The financial necessities of the case will probably enable the party accompany- ing his Excellency at the formal opening of the line on the ascent of the Main Range, to leave Brisbane by railway for that purpose.