Burke Manuscript

Burke Manuscript: Page 160

Transcript

“Poison, have ye?” said Murphy gaily, “Then begad Fleetwood take off your boots and die like a gentleman”. That was the Irish gentleman’s idea of the seriousness of the act, and the solemnity of the occasion. He died, was inquested, and presumably, was found by twelve intelligent men, guilty of self murder, for following upon that, and, whether according to the statute in hat case made and provided, or not, his remains were carted to the borders of the beautiful cemetery on the Avon, then not so pretty as now, and in the dead of night, under the supervision of a character then well known in Christchurch Jack Price the policeman, his coffin such as it was, was dropped into a hole outside the cemetery boundary or fence, almost full of water. Such was the end of the romance. Perhaps at that time the act to which you refer was still in force, at all events, the usual formalities of Christian burial were dispensed with. It may be interesting to add that one of the mourners was none other than the one much talked of Martin Cash, the Vandieman’s land bush ranger, who was then in Christchurch, and realised a competency by making the neighbourhood of Salisbury Street much talked of and right occasionally hideous of fights and brawls. The industrious and energetic ex Bushranger, finding things becoming rather hot, called in his bank deposits, and departed for his old home and cronies.