apprehensive of eventual punishment, in a few months afterwards they again betook themselves to the woods, and rejoined those who had been excluded from the amnesty.  After this, they rivalled their former atrocities, and a general feeling of consternation was again excited among the well disposed part of the community.  And here, as it may not be uninteresting to many of my readers to be acquainted with some of the specific outrages of these monsters, I subjoin the following extracts from the Sydney Gazette of the 25th Jan. 1817.

The accounts of robberies by the banditti of bush-rangers on Van Diemen’s Land, presents a melancholy picture of the distresses to which the more respectable classes of inhabitants are constantly exposed from the daring acts of those infamous marauders, who are divided into small parties, and are designated by the name of the principal ruffian at their head, of whom one Michael Howe appears to be the most alert in depredation.  The accounts received by the Kangaroo, which commence from the beginning of November, state that on the 7th of that month, the house and premises of Mr. David Rose at Port Dalrymple, were attacked and plundered of a considerable property, by Peter Sefton and his gang.  The delinquents were pursued by the commandant at the head of a strong detachment of the 46th regiment; but returned after a five days hunt through the woods, without being able to discover the villains, among whom is stated to have been a free man, named Denis M’Caig, who went from hence to Port Dalrymple in the Brothers.

On the night of the 17th of November, the premises of Mr. Thomas Hayes, at Bagdad, were attacked at a time when Mr. Stocker and wife, and Mr. Andrew Whitehead (the former on their route from Hobart Town to Port Dalrymple, with a cart containing a large and valuable property) had unfortunately put up at the house for the night.  Michael Howe was the chief of this banditti, which consisted of eight others.  The property of which they plundered Mr. and Mrs. Stocker on this occasion, was upwards of L300 value, among which were two kegs of spirits.  One of these, a member of the gang wantonly wasted, by firing a pistol-ball through the head of the keg, which contained eleven gallons.  They set their watches by Mr. Whitehead’s, which they afterwards returned; but took Mr. Stocker’s away with their other plunder.  Mr. Wade, chief constable of Hobart Town, had stopped with the others at Mr. Hayes’s; but hearing a noise, which he considered to denote the approach of bush-rangers, he prudently attended to the admonition, and escaped their fury, which it was concluded would have fallen heavily upon him, as they are at variance with all conditions in life that are inimical to their crimes.  On the morning of the 2d instant, Mr. William Maum, of Hobart Town, sustained the loss of three stacks of wheat by fire at his farm at Clarence Plains, owing to the act of an incendiary.