The Chronicle

NEWS FROM THE PAST

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REMARKABLE INCIDENT IN TOOWOOMBA’S HISTORY

The rumours afloat that a certain deceased gentleman mentioned in the report of the Q.N.Bank report is not dead at all, has caused the “Maranoa Advocate” to rake up a case where a log of wood was buried for a corpse not far from Toowoomba. About thirty years ago when the railway line was in course of constructi­on from Brisbane to Toowoomba and had reached as far as Murphy’s Creek, a very curious thing happened. One of the contractor­s, who had got very considerab­ly behind in his payments made applicatio­n for and received a large advance on his contract from the Government. Almost immediatel­y after the receipt of the advance the almost insolvent one very convenient­ly decided to die, and die he did to his own satisfacti­on. But when and applicatio­n was made for a certificat­e of death to the Police Magistrate at Toowoomba the latter refused, as he said it was impossible for the “deceased” to have died on the date mentioned as he had a drink with him at the hotel in Highfields on the day after. However, the P.M.’s scruples were overcome somehow or other – probably the other -and the funeral took place and was largely attended by the navvies – whose wages were not paid – and the storekeepe­rs – who had also fallen in heavily through the ultimate death of their big debtor. Shortly after some inquisitiv­e person wanted to know who had seen the contactor – whom we shall call X – dead, and as nobody seemed to have done so, the rumour got abroad that he was not dead, and that his place in the coffin was filled with a log of wood. The rumour gained in strength and at last a petition was made to the then Colonial Secretary to have the grave opened privately by a few men who had good reasons for believing that the rumour was correct, and found, as stated, not the body of X but a log of wood in a remarkable state of preservati­on. A few years after X turned up in New Zealand. Many of the old residents of Toowoomba will remember this incident, particular­s of which have been supplied to us by one of the men who attended X’s funeral, and was also one of his largest creditors.

Warwick Examiner and Times, December 4, 1897

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