Jerilderie Letter Jerilderie Letter

him neither me or Gould used their horse. he said I was a liar & he could welt me or any of my breed I was about 14 years of age but accepted the challenge & dismounting when Mrs McCormack struck my horse in the flank with a bullocks skin it jumped forward & my fist came in collision with McCormack's nose & caused him to loose his equilibrium & fall postrate I tied up my horse to finish the battle but McCormack got up and ran to the Police camp. Constable hall asked me what the row was about I told him they accused me & Gould of using their horse & I hit him and I would do the same to him if he challenged me McCormack pulled me & swore their lies against me I was sentenced to three months for hitting him and three months for the parcel and bound to keep the peace for 12 months. Mrs McCormack gave good substantial evidence as she is well acquainted with that place called Tasmania better known as the Dervon or Vandiemans land and McCormack being a Police man over the convicts & women being scarce released her from that land of bondage and tyranny, & they came to Victoria & are at present residents of Greta and on the 29th of March, I was released from prison & came home. Wild Wright came to the eleven mile to see Mr Gunn stopped all night and lost his mare both him & me looked all day for her & could not get her Wright who was a stranger to me was in a hurry to get back to Mansfield & I gave him another mare & he told me if I found his mare to keep her until he brought mine back I was going to Wangaratta & saw the mare I caught her & took her with me all the Police & Detective Berrill seen her as Martins girls used to ride her about the town during several days that I stopped at Petre Martains Star Hotel in Wangaratta, she was a chestnut mare white face docked tail very remarkable branded M as plain as the hands on a town clock, the property of a Telegraph Master in Mansfield he lost her on the 6th gazetted her on the 12th of March & I was a prisoner in Beechworth Gaol until the 29th March therefore I could not have stolen the mare. I was riding the mare through Greta. Constable Hall came to me & said he wanted me to sign some papers that I did not sign at Beechworth concerning my bail bonds I thought it was the truth he said the papers was