Kangaroo Court

[Neville Briggs]

I heard the other day a very interesting explanation of the origin of the term ' kangaroo court ', what do you reckon it might be ?

[r.magnay]

not too sure what you heard Neville, but I was suprised to learn that it is actually suspected of being an Americanism dating back to the Californian gold rush.....am I close?

[Neville Briggs]

Yes

[r.magnay]

...good, I must be smarter than I thought....and everyone else thought to I don't doubt!...

[Neville Briggs]

I heard it in relation to a discussion about a recent book . The book is about a man who was the Mayor of Orange in NSW in about the 1870s or 1880s. When I get the time I'll post the details if anyone is interested.

[Maureen K Clifford]

and here I was thinking it was a shoe

[Vic Jefferies]

As I remember at the time of the American Gold Rush a great many Australian larrikins went to San Francisco and eventually formed themselves into gangs which roamed the streets committing all sorts of crimes the most heinous of which was setting fire to buildings. Vigilante groups were formed to combat the Australian crime spree and those caught were summarily hanged. Hence the term Kangaroo Court!

[r.magnay]

....a shoe?...

[Dave Smith]

A court shoe Ross sumfing them sheilers wear.

TTFN

[Neville Briggs]

The book I referred to was launched at Orange NSW, in August. I heard the author discussing it on the ABC radio.

The book is called Mistaken Identity .The trials of Joe Windred. by Stephen Dando-Collins.

I though it might appeal to some of the bush poets interested in colonial Australian history.

I had never heard of Joe Windred. He went to the California goldfields and was twice arrested and convicted of crimes that it seems he didn't commit. As Vic has pointed out the Australians were hated in California because it was common wisdom that they were taking American wealth back to Australia, so Windred and I think one of his mates were tried by a very irregular vigilante style court process and jailed. That sort of trial became known as the kangaroo court because it had been convened to deal with Australians.

Windred escaped jail in America and returned to Australia where he became very wealthy through finding gold near Bathurst.

Amongst his accomplishments were;

He helped build San Quentin Penitentiary in San Francisco ( as a convict )
He was a champion boxer.
He once rode his racehorse to pursue and catch a bushranger.
He saved several children in a runaway dray.
He struck gold in a big way at Bathurst.
He was twice, the Mayor of Orange in NSW.

Sounds like an interesting bloke, I might get hold of the book and have a read.