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of arrears of rent, and had given a garbled version of the transaction to Chief-Constable Brodie, a factotum of Major St. John : and that St. John and Brodie had a grudge against Palmer. Though Dr. Palmer was never a popular favourite, public opinion sided with him on this occasion. In 1842 three white m e n were executed for bushranging. They had committed a series of outrages north and south of the Yarra, and in the dark catalogue was the robbery of the homestead of Major N e w m a n over the river, their spoil consisting of ,£30, a powder horn, two watches, and some military ornaments. Though N e w m a n offered a reward for the recovery of the property, it had no effect. Connected with the culprits was what is termed a "fence," or thieves' receiver named Cam, sentenced to transportation, and the hut occupied as a residence by C a m passed into the possession of one A d a m s . In April, 1846, this person, whilst digging near the hut, turned up some object wrapped in flannel, and on examination it was found to be an old tin can or "billy, and from it was extracted the missing property, evidently so secreted by C a m . T h e treasure trove was advertised by itsfinder,and identified by, and restored to N e w m a n . O n Sunday, 19th M a y , 1842, Sergeant Corrte, recently retired from the police, was buried amidst a tempestuous deluge of rain. A s a m e m b e r of the Father Matthew Society, members of the Temperance Band played and marched in procession to the grave, but on this occasion they had a stiffer dose of cold water than their teetotal pledge ever contemplated. In 1844, M r . John Barker (now Clerk of Parliaments) was the proprietor of a station at Cape Schanck, and is so still. According to a newspaper of the period, on the 8th March a fire broke out and speedily rendered the residents for the time homeless. S o m e woodwork in the kitchen igniting, the flames rapidly spread, and the dwelling and an adjacent store were destroyed. Though the furniture and stores were with difficulty saved, the loss sustained was estimated at several hundreds of pounds. During the conflagration, which was short, sharp, and decisive, a somewhat amusing incident occurred. There was amongst the movables a cask of brandy, which the proprietor was very unwilling to have sacrificed as a burnt offering to the Fire god, so, seizing a blanket, which he wrapped about the cask, he dashed with it through the flames and landed it in a place of safety. On the 7th April, 1845, Mr. Frank Liardet, an indefatigable mail-contractor, was conveying an important ship mail in his two-horse post-cart from Sandridge to Melbourne, when the steeds turning refractory, the driver jumped off; but in doing so his leg got into collision with a wheel and was broken above the ankle. H e had not let go the reins, and with difficulty scrambling back to his seat, he succeeded in reaching town and delivering his charge. H e called at the shop of O'Connor, an Elizabeth Street druggist, where the maimed limb was set by Dr. Sanford, w h o advised him to lay up in town and send the cart h o m e by another person. This Liardet declined to do, and would insist upon driving back, alleging as a good reason for so doing, " that if anyone else drove there would be necks instead of legs broken." Beyond suffering m u c h on the return trip, there was neither inconvenience nor mishap. There was great commotion in March 1844, when the newspapers announced a veritable case of Asiatic cholera, and that a Sergeant M'Culla, of the 99th Regiment, had died of it after an illness of a couple of hours. After death his body turned quite blue. S o m e other cases presenting the usual symptoms were reported, but his was the only fatal one. T h e Sergeant's corpus obtained a soldier's funeral, and an obituary farewell from a firing party of twenty of his late comrades. The second instance of a triplet of births (two girls and a boy) occurred at Heidelberg, at the end of March, 1845, the prolific matron being a Mrs. Barney O'Leary. O n the 1st April (Fool's Day) the youngsters were brought into Melbourne to be "cleansed of original sin" at the R o m a n Catholic Church of St. Francis. They were escorted by the proud parents, and m a d e