Papua's Only White-Man Outlaw

The Evil Career of Joe O'Brien, 40 Years Ago

WRITTEN FOR “PIM” BY D. H. OSBORNE

JOE O’BRIEN was the only white man to be outlawed in Papua. Here is a description of the man as I knew him about 40 years ago.

He was about 30 years of age, six feet tall, well-built, rather handsome, and neither drank, smoked nor gambled. He was clean in his habits, and dressed tidily; but he had a quick, cruel temper and a low conceit that was his downfall.

He was detested by white women. He used to rush into the company of women, make some foolish remark, be snubbed, lose his temper and speak offensively.

I first met him in Queensland, when he was abusing an old ferryman, Joe had crossed in the ferry a couple of times without paying, and wished to cross again, but was refused passage.

When we met on the Gira, in North eastern Papua, he pretended he did not know me.

O’Brien and several others had camped within a few yards of the Whitten store, in tents. The storekeeper lived in a loft over the store and he used to take the cash-box up and sleep with it under his pillow. One night, he left the cash-box on the counter while he drank a cup of cocoa in the kitchen, just off the store.

When he returned the cash-box was missing and no one knew who had taken it. O’Brien’s subsequent conversation

and actions suggested that he was the culprit.

He worked about the field for several months, without a mate. At that time, natives were not allowed to work in the claims.

When news of a new find was reported on the lower Aikora, O’Brien set off on his own, took the wrong track and fol lowed Pish Creek instead of Clunas Creek, and was bushed for days. After that he left the field and remained in Queensland for several years.

WHEN O’Brien returned, he brought a mate from Sydney who was deaf and dumb. He was a boxing man, and was supposed to be training O’Brien to be a world-champion boxer. But when someone, writing on a slate, asked Dummy what were O’Brien’s chances, he wrote down, “Hopeless—lacks guts.”

After a short stay in Samarai, Dummy returned to Queensland, and O’Brien went back to the Gira, mining again. On the field, O’Brien said he and Dummy had left Sydney with the intention of robbing the Samarai stores. Dummy was a safe-breaker, and considered the safes there would be easy.

But when he saw Samarai, he aban doned the plan. No get-away, he said.

O’Brien started mining with a team of natives and then joined Mat Crowe and Bill Ivory on a prospecting trip on the Waria. The party broke up without find ing payable gold.

Crowe and Ivory returned to the Gira, and O’Brien went into German New Guinea, and worked for wages for a time. When he returned to Tamata, he had little to say about the Germans, more than that they were no good. After wards, there was a report that he had committed a criminal offence there, and had been allowed to leave the country with a warning not to return. He com menced mining on the Gira again, and was very hard on the natives who worked with him.

He became convinced that everyone was afraid of him and he could do as he wished. He often threatened to punch white men and shoot storekeepers.

Bill Whitten threw six bottles into Tamata Creek. With a six-shooter he broke the six bottles in six shots, and said, “Let O’Brien come along!”

The only time I heard of O’Brien being in a fight was in Samarai, one night.

Only one round was fought before the fight was stopped.

FROM the Gira, O’Brien went to the Aikora (Elliott’s Creek). The moun tain natives used to bring vegetables to the miners. The men would go first, and the women follow with the loads.

O’Brien posted his natives along the side of the track, and they caught a young woman, whom he kept captive for the night. There were rumours that she was murdered by her own people, afterwards.

After that, while O’Brien remained in the locality, not a native was seen by the white men. A few hours after O’Brien moved away, the mountain natives were back again, dealing as friendlv as ever.

O’Brien moved a few miles down the Aikora and pitched his camp on a high bank, overlooking a deep nool in the river. The river floods almost every night.

A native working for Jim Wallace de serted. O’Brien’s boys caught him and

tied him up. O’Brien sent a note to Wallace saying that his boy was there and he could come along and get him.

Wallace replied that it was too late at night, but he would go down in the morning and get him.

Jim and Bill Coleman were brothers, and working apart. Bill intended leav ing the country, and going to Sydney.

During that day, he had been to Jim’s camp, and had exchanged gold for 37 sovereigns. Then he left the sovereigns in his camp, and went to work in his claim. When he returned to his camp, he had been robbed—the sovereigns were gone.

During that night, O’Brien sent his boys away, knocked Wallace’s boy on the head with a tomahawk, and threw his body into the river. It was surmised that O’Brien had found the sovereigns on the boy.

In the morning, he sent a note to Wallace to say that the boy had escaped.

He told several men, later, that he had killed the boy, but he did not mention the sovereigns.

Coleman regarded the loss of his sovereigns as luck, because it delayed his departure, and he got a good patch of gold shortly afterwards. /nk’BRIEN returned again to the Gira, V/ and went partners with Bill Ivory.

When they dissolved partnership, they divided 260 ounces of gold.

O’Brien was then over £lOO in debt to each store, and his credit was stopped.

Bill Hancock threatened to lay a charge of murder against him if he did not square up. That did not bother Joe.

He went overland to the Yodda and on the road he was mixed up in more rape and murder trouble. He worked on the Yodda a short time, and then he returned to Tamata.

He arrived during the forenoon, stayed an hour or so, walked to the Gira River (about 20 miles from Tamata), travel led by canoe down the river and along the coast towards the Kumusi mouth, then walked along the coast to the Kumusi. rE Whitten store native arrived from Bogi with mails, and a parcel of gold. Two white men were pas sengers for Samarai, At that time, all stores for the Yodda were transported up the Kumusi River to Bogi, 62 miles up the river. Snags in the river damaged many propellers, so the launches had been taken off, and natives did the work with whale-boats.

A Samarai boy, in charge of the boat, would pick up a crew along the river.

The native in charge of the gold put the box in the store, and locked the store doot. O’Brien asked for the key, and the boy gave it to him. The native’s evidence showed that O’Brien kept the key for some time. He went up the river alone in a canoe a short distance, and then returned. It is estimated that he stole and hid the gold. The parcel con tained 300 ounces, part belonging to Whitten Brothers, and part to Rotchfort, and Whitten was responsible for the loss.

The gold was not missed until the launch “Bulldog” arrived from Samarai, a couple of days later. When the master received the mail, the gold was missing.

O’Brien travelled up the Kumusi to Bogi by canoe. He abused and threatened Ernie Oats, who was in charge of Whitten Bros.’ store.

Oates then said: “I have this waiting for you, Joe,” and presented a revolver.

“It will bring you down —small though I am.” Oates was about 7 stone, with a withered leg.

O’BRIEN then went to the Yodda, and commenced work in one of the creeks. then was Warden and RM in charge of the Division.

Captain Griffen was ARM—a military man from the Boer War. Dr. Bellamy was a medical student from England.

Bellamy was sent to arrest O’Brien. He had heard of O’Brien’s boast of shooting on sight, and he took a squad of armed native police. He left the police out of sight, while he went to O’Brien, holding the warrant in his hand.

“I have come to arrest you, O’Brien,” he said.

O’Brien snatched the warrant nnd threw ft on the m-ound He disced 2n it andthreatened anGovernment offl cials Government cm .

B , el i sat d ?wn. and > OBnen c °?i ed off ’ said: ‘ A * e y° u coming on wd;h me> or do 1 have t° use force?”

O’Brien said: “Will you make me a promise that you will not allow the black bastards of police to lay hand on me?

If you wish to put irons on me, do it yourself.”

Bellamy promised, and O’Brien went quietly to the Government station at Perpangi, on the Kumusi River.

Griffen sentenced O’Brien to a month’s hard labour, on a trivial offence, while they sought more evidence of O’Brien’s movements on the Kumusi.

He then was charged with murder, rape and stealing, and was held in gaol. One day, Griffen sent O’Brien out to cut grass, with a 14-inch knife, and set a native warder to guard him. The warder was armed with a rifle, a bayonet and three rounds of ammunition.

O’Brien awaited the opportunity and stunned the warder, took his rifle and

ammunition, and cleared off to the Yodda.

AT the Yodda, O’Brien went to his camp, took a few articles and his Winchester rifle, and walked to Rotchfort’s camp, where Rotchfort gave him some ammunition. In the scuffle with the warder, he had got a nasty wound in the arm, and it was looking angry, so Rotchfort dressed the arm.

O’Brien then disappeared into the bush and was not seen again.

Griffen declared O’Brien an outlaw, and sent warnings to every camp, notify ing each man of the penalties of assist ing the criminal in any way.

Only one old Irishman sympathised with him. Paddy Finegan said: “Joe is no good, but his name is O’Brien —and we must respect the name.”

Needless to say, while the miners did not agree with natives being ill-treated, all were against a white man being set N work with a native guard over him.

No one would have objected to O’Brien helping himself from any camp.

Patrols were sent out on all roads along w:. \h a man could escape, but not a trace of O’Brien was found.

There were rumours that he escaped via Yule Island to German New Guinea; others that he was seen in Brisbane and in Malaya, O’Brien had a fair parcel of gold— he was a good worker and fairly lucky— but he had not paid any storekeepers.

The storekeepers knew they had the power to prevent anyone leaving the Territory while owing a debt—which probably was the reason why he was allowed so much freedom.