Murder and scandal on the river

Last month’s article was about the murder of William Stephens in 1866. At the same time, another murder occurred. Jane Jones was indicted for the murder of timber-getter Martin Farrell.

Jane Jones nee McCartney, had migrated on the Wilson, arriving in Sydney in January 1842. Soon after, she travelled to Moreton Bay on one of the little schooners that plied between the two settlements.

She married ticket-of-leave man Richard Jones. Her name appeared regularly in newspapers when her husband was often away timber-getting in the bush and Jane was left to her own devices in Brisbane. There were many charges against her, but generally, she was acquitted or let off with a caution when faced with the law.

By 1866, Richard, Jane and the children relocated to the Maroochy River and were living in a slab hut near other timber-getters upstream from the river mouth. There, logs were received from rafts and snigged by bullocks to William Pettigrew’s timber depot on the Mooloolah River for shipping.

On March 24, 1866, Jane Jones was indicted on a murder charge that she did feloniously, wilfully and of her malice aforethought kill and murder one Martin Farrell.

About a dozen timber-getters were witnesses to the crime. All were well known to one another over many years of working together in the timber industry in Moggill and on the Maroochy. Jane Jones admitted to taking a double-barrelled shotgun and discharging it into fellow timber-getter Martin Farrell.

Brisbane sawmiller William Pettigrew, Justice of the Peace, took depositions from the witnesses who stated that Mrs Jones had been asking for some grog. Farrell had told her that he had some earlier, but she had drunk it all.

She then called him a liar. The comments of one only served to provoke the other.

No one had any grog, but there was a suggestion that some might be found in another hut. Mrs Jones had also asked the deceased for a smoke of his pipe, which he refused. However, he followed her. Mrs Jones claimed that he tried to take liberties with her and threw her on the bed.

A gun was lying at the end of the bed, and she grabbed it, telling Farrell she would shoot him if he did not leave her alone. Farrell ran outside as she fired at him without aiming. He attempted to take the gun from her, but in the struggle the gun was again fired, and Farrell was fatally shot through the left side of his chest.

The sound of gunfire caused a stir and one timber-getter rushed to alert the detectives who had just arrived on the Gneering from Brisbane to investigate the Stephens murder.

Mrs Jones readily confessed and was taken aboard the Gneering to face a criminal charge of murder at the Brisbane Court. Farrell’s body was buried nearby the following day.

At her trial, witnesses recounted events and the court provided the evidence. Jane Jones was adamant, she had shot him while endeavouring to protect her honour. A verdict of acquittal was returned and the prisoner was discharged.

 Audienne Blyth is a member of the Nambour Historical Museum, open  1-4pm Wednesday to Friday and  10am-3pm Saturday.