Diggers Justice.
In 1894, near Kalgoorlie, a miner named Winter cheated his mate Bull of £80 worth of gold. The chief witness against Winter was a man named Ruse, who told Bull of Winter’s perfidy. This is a true account of the ‘roll up’ which ensued.
Winter at first denied having found or sent away any gold, but he was ultimately obliged to confess that he had done so, but refused to make restitution to his mate, Bull. Bull, thoroughly angered by his obstinacy, then said he would call a roll up, and seizing a tin dish from the store, he beat a tattoo on it, which soon brought all the diggers into the camp to see what important matter was at hand and why anyone should dare to call a ‘roll up’ on a Sunday morning.
When all of the diggers had assembled, Bull mounted a waggon and briefly told his story. As he proceeded, there were loud cries of ‘Hang the Wretch’ & ‘String him Up’, and other threats of a similar character but couched in less elegant, though more expressive language. It was decided that a formal trial should take place and that a judge should be appointed and the diggers as a body should act as jury. A judge was accordingly chosen and Billy Mentor, a well-known prospector agreed to act as a barrister for Bull, but no one could be obtained to act as counsel for Winter, who, in addition to not being represented by counsel, was compelled to stand up in a buggy with a rope around his neck, which was tied to a beam that projected from the side of the store.
After the usual formalities had been gone through, the culprit was asked how he pleaded, guilty or not guilty, to which he replied, not guilty. The prosecutor then gave his evidence. Ruse then detailed the circumstances under which he obtained the information from Winter. The judge then began to sum up which he did, in an able and impartial manner, but strongly against the prisoner.
A show of hands was then taken to decide whether the prisoner was guilty or not guilty of stealing gold from his mate. Nearly every hand was held up in favour of the accused being found guilty as charged. The judge then appealed to the crowd as to what sentence should be passed on the accused. The rougher element, of whom there were good many present, cried out, ‘Hang the Wretch’. But by far the larger number were strongly opposed to the extreme penalty being metered out for such an offence. Many rows took place which were only settled after a fair amount of gore had been spilled.
In the meantime, the trembling culprit looked down from his perch on the buggy at the swaying mass with terror depicted in his face. After a time, however, quiet was restored and the two well-known men addressed the crowd. They pleaded with the diggers to maintain the reputation they had achieved of being the most peaceful and law-abiding miners in the world. They also appealed on behalf of the wife and family of the unhappy man. They were, however, in favour of drastic measures being taken to compel the prisoner to make restitution as far as possible to his mate, and of expelling him from the camp with every mark of disgrace and ignominy.
Further …. that he should be blackballed in every mining camp in the state and be considered as a pariah amongst diggers all over Australia. This sentence was considered sufficiently severe to meet the case. It was carried by an overwhelming majority. The culprit was taken down from the waggon, the rope removed and he was escorted by a crowd of rather rough diggers who handled him in no gentle fashion. He was marched to his tent, where he had to make restitution, and then he was permitted to take sufficient water and provisions to carry him on to the next town. He was then marched out of the camp amid the groans and jeers of his fellows, well pleased to escape with his life.
Accounts of the trial were sent to the various Goldfields newspapers and wherever the culprit went, he found that someone knew him and ‘put him away’. After being hunted from field to field, he decided to leave the state, a victim of ‘Diggers Justice’, which is in many respects the most cruel, relentless and far-reaching to which a man can be subjected to in a free country like Australia.
Moya Sharp
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My great grandfather was Frederick Beel, he died at an early age and my great grandmother married Walter Ruse. Do you know of anyone who photographs of Frederick Beel.
I’m sorry Jane but OI have not been able to find a photo of him.