rders during the past two years. They killed five or six
poor Chinese diggers on the Cloncurry Road last year. They are both well
armed, and it is almost impossible to capture them, as they retreat to
the ranges whenever pursued."

"They are a most ferocious and desperate pair," said Mr. Wooler, who
then told their story, which was this:--

Some two or three years previously Sandy and Daylight, who belonged to
one of the Native Police camps in the Gulf district,{*} had, while out
on patrol, urged one of their comrades to join with them in murdering
their white officer and then absconding. The other man refused, and,
later on in the day, secretly told the officer that he was in great
danger of being shot if he rode on ahead of the patrol as usual. As soon
as the party returned to camp the two traitors were quietly disarmed,
handcuffed, and then chained to a log till the morning. During the night
they managed to free themselves (aided, no doubt, by the trooper who was
detailed to guard them), killed the man who had refused to join them by
cleaving his skull open with a blow from a tomahawk, and then decamped
to the ranges with their rifles and ammunition. They found a refuge and
safe retreat with the savage myalls (wild blacks) inhabiting the granite
ranges, and then began a career of robbery and murder. Small parties of
prospectors found it almost impossible to pursue their vocation in the
"myall country," for the dreaded ex-troopers and their treacherous and
cannibal allies were ever, on the watch to cut them off. In the course
of a few months, by surprising and killing two unfortunate Chinese
packers, the desperadoes became possessed of their repeating rifles
and a lot of ammunition, and the old single-shot police carbines were
discarded for the more effective weapons. Sandy, who was the leader, was
a noted shot, and he and his companion now began to haunt the
vicinity of isolated mining camps situated in country of the roughest
description. Parties of two or three men who had perhaps located
themselves in some almost inaccessible spot would go on working for a
few weeks in apparent security, leaving one of their number to guard
the camp and horses, and on returning from their toil would find their
comrade dead or severely wounded, the camp rifled of everything it
contained, and the horses speared; and the hardy and adventurous
pioneers would have to retreat to one of the main mining camps, situated
perhaps fifty mile