Richard Worldon in Trouble with the Law!

(The following written and transcribed by Marcia McIntyre)

On 17 January, 1871 at about 9 pm, Richard Worldon went to the residence of the Sheather

family at Native Dog Creek, on the Nangus Run, near Gundagai.  He had being trying to get

a wild cow into Sheather’s yard but could not, so stayed the night at Sheathers.  Emma

Head, the wife of Michael Head, was living in a bark hut on Native Dog Creek and was there

on the night of 17 January, with her two children, the eldest being three years of age. 

Emma’s husband, Michael Head, was away from home, working as a fencer at Yabtree

Station.  Mrs Head went to bed between 8 and 9 pm and before doing so, fastened the door of

the hut with a peg, and also put a prop against it.  Between 11 and 12 pm, she head the dog

growl and thought it was a native cat, but afterwards something shook her and the peg dropped out of the door. 

She rose from her bed in the inner room and was passing through the doorway into the

sitting room when a man caught hold of her by her arms, pushed her back on the bed and

“tried to get the better of her”.  She screamed and struggled to rise, but he pushed her down

several times.   The intruder only spoke once, when he said “hold your tongue”, but Emma,

though she knew the voice as one that she had heard before, could not then tell who spoke. 

When struggling with this man she noticed that his breath smelt as if he had been drinking

ale or beer, and that he had a thick beard.  Her assailant stayed about ten minutes more then

went away. As he was leaving the hut he knocked the door down and stumbled.  It was a

clear starlight night and Mrs Head, who had followed him, saw that he was a good sized,

broad made man, of the same build as Richard Worldon, dressed in a striped shirt and

moleskin trousers, and without a hat or boots.  She did not see his face. 

 Mrs Head called out to the man “I know you, you villain, and I’ll make you suffer for this”. 

The man then ran down the creek towards Sheather’s place, which is about a quarter of a mile from her hut.

Mrs Head then took her two children with her, and without putting on her clothes, went

straight to Sheather’s house.  She screamed when she got to the top of the hill and when she

came within about ten yards of the house, Richard Worldon came out, and after calling out

“who is there” several times, said “Is that you, Mrs Head” and asked her if she was hurt.  Mrs

Head could not speak at first, and sat down.  Afterwards she said “You ought to know very

well what is the matter, you are the man.”  Richard Worldon said “Ah” and she then asked

him had he been drinking.  He swore he had not, and witness then asked him to let her smell

his breath, which he did.  It smelt like the breath of the man who had attacked her, and

Worldon was dressed as he had been, in moleskin trousers and a striped shirt.  He had

neither hat nor boots on.  Mrs Head then asked where Sheather’s boys were and Worldon

said that Ted was at Junee and George was in bed.   After being at Sheather’s house for

about three hours, trying to get satisfaction, speaking to Mary Sheather and her mother

(who supported Richard and did not seem very sympathetic towards Emma) she then went

home, dressed herself and went to Mr Bushell’s house.  She told Mr Bushell what happened,

and asked him to send for her husband Michael.

The upshot of all this was that Richard Worldon was charged with attempted rape and the

committal hearing was heard at Gundagai on 31 January, 1871 before the police magistrate

and Mr J.B. Elworthy, J.P.  Richard was represented by Richard Perkins, a local solicitor.

Evidence was given on 31 January by Michael Head, Emma’s husband, George Sheather and

his sister Mary Sheather.  The Sheathers supported Richard and Mary Sheather stated that

when Emma Head first came to the Sheather’s house she accused Mary’s brother Ted

Sheather of assaulting her.  When she was told that Ted was in Junee, she then said “Then it

was you, Dick, I’ll swear by the feel of your whiskers”.  Mary Sheather also said that Emma

Head’s nightdress was torn in the back and sleeve and that Mrs Head and her family were

not on very good terms with the Sheather family. 

At the hearing, Richard was committed for trial, bail being allowed on his entering into his

own recognizances for 80 shillings and finding two sureties of 40 shillings each for his

appearance.[1]   I have not yet found the report of the subsequent trial for Richard, although I

searched the Gundagai Times for about two months after the committal hearing, so donot

know at this stage whether he was found guilty of this offence or not.  If he was, he must not

have spent very long in gaol, as his wife Mary nee Fuller was pregnant with their daughter

Catherine in 1871 and Richard and Mary went on to have a further eight children after 1871.

Richard Worldon was drowned in the flooded Murrumbidgee River at Kimo, near Gundagai,

on 27 June, 1891, aged 55 years, whilst trying to rescue sheep belonging to his employer,

James Robinson.  His death certificate records that his parents were James Baker Worldon

and Catherine Rall, the informant being his brother, (really his half-brother)  James Baker

Worldon II. 

Marcia McIntyre’s maternal grandfather, Edward Pickering True, was one of the heroes of

this flood, performing many rescues.  Edward was awarded a silver medal from the Royal

Humane Society of Australasia.

When I got clear I could see nobody, but was swept down about 300 yards on to a dead tree

which I stuck to, and whilst there I saw Waldron drown in front of me.  I sang out to Waldron

to try and get something else beside the smooth gum tree he was holding, but he made no

reply, but I heard him saying as he came up, “Oh my God; Oh my God’………..WORLDON’S

BODY RECOVERED – The body of poor Worldon was found on Wednesday, about 300

yards from where the other was found, covered with mud and debris, bearing a very natural

appearance except a slight scratch on the forehead.  The case is a very sad one, as the

deceased left a widow and nine children, most of them being very young.  Worldon had been

a long time on Kimo and earned the confidence of his employer and the respect of the public.[2]

Richard and his wife Mary are buried in the Nangus Cemetery (about 15 km west of

Gundagai). Their graves have a headstone on which the fact of Richard’s drowning is

recorded.   Richard’s name is spelt “Waldron” on the headstone, although it is “Worldon” on

his death certificate.  Mary Worldon (nee Fuller) died 11 March, 1928, aged 81 years.