Transcription Page 17

No 49/47

Commissioner Crown Lands Office
Gipps Land, 6th April 1847

Sir,
In my letter No 46/47 of the
31st ultimo I had the honor to observe
that I considered the statement [Crossed out: of]
made by Sergt. McLelland of the
Native Police, and Trooper Cowan,
relative to the woman we were in
search of proving to be a black Lubra,
should be received with caution until
an opportunity offered of enquiring
further into the matter, as their
statements were so much at variance
with the statements of Trooper Bowden,
Tack-a-wadden and the Melbourne
Blacks who accompanied two
Warragals to Melbourne and back -

Since the date of that letter
I have communicated with a
great number of Warragals. (about fifty
of whom are encamped close
to my quarters.) Their testimony
is

To
His Honor
C. J. La Trobe Esqr
&c &c &c

[Annotation: top]

No 47/701
No 1
19th Apl 1847
The Crn Com of ye Dt of Gps Ld
Arnxs copy of instrns whh he
has issued to ye prty whh he has
sent in 3 divns in search of ye White
woman

[Annotations: left]

Copd CH
3/5/47

Copy of a letter
from Segt Windridge
is also enclosed

a copy

 

Transcription Page 18

is in accordance with the statements
herewith transmitted of Trooper Bowden
&c - and is to the effect that
Bungeliene, (who is now near the
outlet of the Lakes with his black
Lubra) left the white woman in
the mountains with his brother
and son, and that the Warraguls
would not give her up-

Although from former ex-
perience of the want of veracity
among the wild Blacks, some
doubt must hang over every
statement they make; yet, con-
sidering the evidence, however small,
of the existence of a white woman
among them, is not met by
any evidence of an opposite
tendency, I have availed myself
of the services of the Whites and
Blacks whom Your Honor authorised
to return to Gipps Land for the
purpose of renewing the search - and
placed them under the immediate
orders of Sergt. Windridge. I have
divided the party into three crews,
two of which are to proceed today
to