The Trial of William Bradley (text version)

Question 1: Bradley

Lieutenant Bradley how did you become involved in the incident involving Bennelong and Colbey on November 25, 1788?

Transcript of audio file:

Governor Phillip judging it necessary that a Native should

be taken by force … I was order’d on this service.

Question 2: Bradley

Wasn’t there another way that didn’t require force?

Transcript of audio file:

No endeavor to persuade them to come among us having succeeded.

Question 3: Bradley

I believe you first lured the men into coming to you. How did you do this?

Transcript of audio file:

We held two large fish up to them & had the good luck to draw two of them away from a very large party by this bait. These people came round the rocks where they left their spears & met us on the beach near the boat & at a distance from their Companions sufficient to promise success without losing any lives.

Question 4: Bradley

So they took the bait?

Transcript of audio file:

They eagerly took the fish.

Question 5: Bradley

And what happened next?

Transcript of audio file:

Four of the boats crew were kept in the boat which was winded & back’d close to the beach where the two natives & the rest of our people were, they were dancing together when the Signal was given by me, and the two poor devils were seiz’d & handed into the boat in an instant; The Natives who were very numerous all round us, on seeing us seize those two, immediately advanced with their Spears & Clubs, but we were too quick for them, being out of reach before they got to that part of the beach where the boat lay.

Question 6: Bradley

And how were Bennelong and Colbey feeling at this time?

Transcript of audio file:

The noise of the Men, Crying & screaming of the Women & Children together with the situation of the two miserable wretches in our possession was really a most distressing scene: they were much terrified, one of them particularly so, the other frequently called out to those on shore apparently very much enraged with them.

Question 7: Bradley

So what happened when you got back to Sydney Cove with the men?

Transcript of audio file:

On our landing at Sydney Cove we were met by Nanbarry, the native boy was much pleas’d & called them by name Colbey & Benallong, Colbey we have frequently heard spoken of by the Boy as a great warrior & a leading Man among them; they were taken to the Governors House where they were soon met by Abooroo, the native Girl she called them by name, the same as the boy had done & was quite frantic with Joy; they were assured by these Children that they would be well treated & hereafter allowed to return to their friends, but all that could be said or done was not sufficient to remove the pang which they naturally felt at being torn away from their Friends; or to reconcile them to their situation.

Question 8: Bradley

And finally Lieutenant Bradley, how did you feel about the whole episode?

Transcript of audio file:

It gave me great satisfaction to find by the Children that neither of them had Wife or Family who would feel their loss, or to be distress’d by their being taken away, it was by far the most unpleasant service I ever was order’d to Execute.

Question 1: Hunter

I now call Captain John Hunter to the stand. Captain Hunter, Lieutenant Bradley did not say much about why Bennelong and Colbee were taken? Can you tell the court the motive for capturing these men?

Transcript of audio file:

The want of one of the people of this country, who, from a habit of living amongst us, might have been the means of preventing much of this hostile disposition in them towards us, was much to be lamented.

Question 2: Hunter

You had tried this strategy with one of the Indigenous people before hadn’t you?

Transcript of audio file:

If poor Ara-ba-noo had lived, he would have acquired enough of our language to have understood whatever we wished him to communicate to his countrymen; he could have made them perfectly understand, that we wished to live with them on the most friendly footing, and that we wished to promote, as much as might be in our power, their comfort and happiness.

Question 3: Hunter

So you wanted to improve understanding between the European and the Aboriginal peoples?

Transcript of audio file:

The governor was desirous of having a man or two in our possession, to whom we might teach enough of our language without the danger of losing any part of their own, to render them useful to their countrymen; it had therefore for some time past been in agitation to endeavour, by force, to secure one or two.

Question 4: Hunter

Finally Captain Hunter, can you tell the Court how Bennelong and Colbey were treated on the boat on their trip back to Sydney Cove?

Transcript of audio file:

The men were lashd to the thwarts of the Boat on first being taken into her, but having got to such a distance from the Shore as to prevent the possibility of an escape, their Hands were loos’d & they were secur’d only by one leg; untill they were thus much liberated their terror was considerable.