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The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879-1954) (about)
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Cite: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3214360
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THE DALKEITH TRAGEDY.
CONTINUATION OF THE INQUEST.
At the Coroner's Court yesterday, the inquiry into the cause of the death of Rosa Fox, who was found murdered near her residence, at Dalkeith, on Sunday, the 5th inst., was resumed. Detective Connell ap- peared on behalf of the police, and Mr. Purkiss for the accused, John Alexander Fox, who was again present in custody.
The first witness called was
" Billy Gallop," an aboriginal employed by Mr. Gallop, at Dalkeith, during the past four or five years, who said that his wife was working at Mr. Richardson's, at Claremont. She was called Annie Richardson. Four Saturdays ago he left Richardson's about 9 or 9.30 a.m. He got to Dalkeith about 10 or half-past. When he got there he went down the garden shooting. He saw Jim Gallop in the garden. Before he went down the garden he went to Gallop's house and saw the housekeeper. He could not tell the time. He finished shooting about 12, Jim Gallop being with him all the time. At noon he had dinner at his tent. Jim Gallop went to his own house. After dinner witness went down to Gallop's house and
sat on the wall in front of the house. Jim Gallop came out and asked witness to go
for a swim, and both went. They took a boat. When they finished their swim they went for fish with a net. They made two hauls with the net, and then came in to the jetty. Then they went shooting again till 3.45. They went to Pope's about 3 o'clock. Pope had some packets of cigar- ettes for witness. He had been to Perth
that day, witness thought. Witness saw Pope coming home. Jim Gallop went with witness, and they stopped at Pope's about five minutes. After they left Pope's they saw John Gallop; coming home from Fre- mantle, Jim Gallop, witness, Jack Wil- liamson, and Charley Pope went down the garden. As they went along they met Fox. Witness heard Fox say " Jim." Fox went away towards Matthews's, and wit- ness went to Gallop's house. In about 10 minutes or more witness heard Fox shout- ing. Witness went up to get clean. He did not know how long Fox stayed at Gallop's house. When he heard Fox shouting he was shouting to Jim Gallop. After that Fox came to witness and asked where the boys were, meaning the young Gallops. Witness told Fox that they had gone along the garden with Mr. Mann. After witness had finished work they went up to the big house. He did not know what time that was, but on Saturdays they always knocked off work at 4 o'clock. Fox stayed with witness all the time he was working.
After Fox was with witness the latter was
watering trees. He could not tell the time. Witness did not know which way Fox was coming when he was shouting for Jim. He was near the jetty. Witness saw the children after Fox was shouting. They were going to Matthews's, and Fox came to witness and sat down. After he got cleaned witness went to Gallop's house and found Fox there. Fox asked witness if he was
going to Claremont, and witness said "Yes." Witness went to Claremont in company with John Gallop, Mr. Mann and Fox. They drove right to where Mr. Mann lived. Witness got out and walked to Richard son's. The next morning Huxtable roused witness about 6 o'clock. Witness went to Dalkeith on horseback before Huxtable.
He "saw " Sammy " and " Billy " there. They looked for tracks in the garden. Huxtable said a woman was missing. Fox never told witness that his wife was lost, but witness heard him telling Gallop. On the Sunday morning witness, " Sammy " and " Billy " went down to look for tracks
in the garden. They did not find any woman's tracks there. Then they went to Fox's house. Then witness went through the little gate, and found a woman's track behind the fowlhouse. He knew it was a woman's track by the small heel mark. A
little farther he saw more tracks. Witness
pointed them out to " Sammy" and " Billy," Constable Macdonald and Fox, the lastnamed saying, " That's her track." They followed the track, and saw where a man walked across an old cart track with the woman. " Sammy " was the first to see the man's track. Witness described the tracks as the other natives had done.
Witness knew Fox's track, and would swear that the man's track they followed on Sunday was his. He knew Fox's work- ing boot and Sunday boot. Fox was hang- ing back all the time they were following
the tracks. The tracks must have been
made about Saturday morning. When coming from Claremont witness followed the short cut, but did not meet anyone.
By Mr. Purkiss: Witness went on Thurs- day, and stopped at Richardson's till Satur- day morning. He did not ask Mr. Gallop if he could go. When he went home he went to his tent and got his gun. When he went to the garden Jim Gallop said it was about half-past 10, and looked at his watch. He could hardly see Fox's house from his tent. He did not see Mrs. Fox
knocking about outside. He did not see Mrs. Fox at all that day. He did not see Fox or the children either. Witness got to Pope's about half-past 3 he thought. When they were following the tracks wit- ness did not tell Fox that they were his tracks, but he told P.c. MacDonald that they were when he got to the burnt ground. That was where they picked up the tracks after some trouble. They did not know it was Fox's track till they got to the burnt ground. He did not tell Fox, but told the policeman. He thought those tracks were made about breakfast time Saturday morning. He was quite sure of it. They could not have been made late on Saturday afternoon.
By the jury: Witness always let the boys know when he was going to Richard- son's. He told Jim Gallop on Thursday night that he was going that time, but he did not say when he was coming back. He saw his wife every Wednesday and Satur- day night. On this occasion he saw her on Thursday night too. On Friday morn- ing he went to the blacks' camp, but did not stop long. No one told witness that it was half-past nine when he left Richard- son's. It was after Richardson had break- fast. After they had been shooting some time Jim Gallop said that is was half-past
10. He looked at his watch. He asked
the time because he thought he was very late. They were near the beach then. He heard no one screaming out that morning. When they started tracking, Fox was in his own house, but came out after witness called him. Fox kept on the right hand side while they were following the tracks. He knew that Fox's best boots had patches on them. He would know Fox's track by the way he walked. He thought he would know Fox's track if Fox had on a new pair of boots. He knew Fox's boots had patches on, because he saw them after. The boots produced were like Fox's Sunday boots. The first time he had seen the boots was in
Court. He knew the boots because they made the tracks. Fox did not wear those boots on Sunday morning. Witness did
not notice which boots Fox had on then. Fox said, " Billy's track." Witness re- plied, " No, not my track," and Fox added, " No, not your track."
Mr. Purkiss : He was joking.
Witness: Yes.
Mr. Purkiss : Do you know what a joke
is?
Witness: Yes. Tell a lie. (Laughter). By the jury: He never saw Mrs. Fox in the bush. He generally saw her on the verandah. " Billy " and " Sammy " told witness that Fox had boots like that. They
did not tell him that Fox's boots had made those marks on the ground. He was there on Sunday when Fox was arrested. He knew the policeman took Fox's boots on Sunday. The policeman was carrying the
boots. He meant that he had never seen
the patches on the boots before that day.
Charles Pope, employed at Dalkeith, said he had known accused and deceased for the
past 11 or 12 years. He first heard of the
death of Mrs. Fox on the 5th inst. He heard from Fox about 3.30 p.m. on Satur- day that Mrs. Fox was missing. Fox asked, witness if he had seen Mrs. Fox, Witness was in the garden then, and Fox was going in the direction of Matthews'. Witness went to the pig sty, and Fox's children were down there with him. He
was feeding the pigs. This was about 4 o'clock. Witness was at the pig sty twenty minutes or half an hour. The children stepped there half an hour all the time witness was there. They asked
if witness had seen their father, and he said that he had seen him going down the path. Witness saw Fox between 5 and half-past 5. The children used to come down for water and play about the pig-sty. Witness had never heard of Fox and his wife quarrelling. The last time witness saw Mrs. Fox was on the 3rd inst., about 10.30. Her head was tied up.
By Mr. Purkiss : Witness saw Fox up at Gallop's house from the time when some
dogs up there were fighting till he went to Claremont. He was sitting on his verandah and could not help seeing him. Witness looked because they were clapping their hands and setting on the dogs. When witness saw Fox the latter was quite sober. He looked as if he had had a glass or two.
James Gallop, junior, re-called, said that he met Fox a little further down than the bottom of the steps about 3.45. Fox was going towards Matthews's, while witness had just come from Pope's. Fox asked if witness had seen his wife, and added a moment later, " Don't tell Charley," mean- ing Pope. Fox put the beer that they got at Mrs. Smith's in the front of the trap. They drank a few bottles of beer between them on the road to Cottesloe. Fox had the least of any.
By Mr. Purkiss : Witness paid for the
beer.
By the Coroner : Witness did not see Fox
after 3.45 till he saw him about 6 o'clock.
By the jury: Witness did not think it was a serious thing for Fox to encourage dogs to fight on witness's father's pro- perty.
By Mr. Purkiss : If it was 6 o'clock when they went to Claremont it would be about a quarter to 6 when he first saw Fox at the
house.
At this stage the inquiry was further ad- journed till 10.30 a.m. to-day.