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followed Midnight. The upshot of it was that we eventually came out at the garden some time later. It was still some hours to dawn.

The garden was in a small valley with a plateau above. The drop into the garden from the plateau, although not high, was very steep and the house in which the Chinese lived was just at the foot of the drop. Immediately above, on the plateau, was a shed in which they kept their truck, implements and other things. Paddy and I got the horses up on to the plateau and tied them up some distance away. Then we came back and tried to get what shelter we could from the rain by leaning up against the shed. It was locked and there was no overhang so there we stayed—wretched, cold and wet — all we could at last discern in the east a suggestion of lightening of the blackness. Then we descended to the Chinese quarters.

In front of these, on the same level, was a small shed. I thought we would have a look at this first as there was no sign of an aboriginal camp. Later we could wake the Chinese and make some inquiries. I whispered to Paddy to open the door of the shed quietly, see if there was anyone inside, and let me know the result He did this and then whispered to me that Coorapinni was in there, asleep. I then told him to open the door, let me in, and shine the torch. He did so.

Upon entering, I saw what looked like the form of a human being under a blanket. The blanket, however, completely covered the figure. I thought that I could pick out where the head was and dropped full length flat on the figure and grabbed it by the throat with both hands. Naturally there was a violent convulsion under the blanket — having 54 stone of human being drop on one and then being grabbed by the throat is probably not the most gentle way of being wakened.

I said, " Policeman — quiet now. You savvy — quiet, lie still ". The convulsions subsided. I said, " You pullem out your right hand now, slow fella ". The hand and arm came out from under the blanket, Paddy gave me the handcuffs and I put one on the wrist. Then I said, " Pullem out nother one hand now ". The left hand came out and the other handcuff was put on that wrist. Then, holding the chain between the cuffs, I pulled back the blanket.

It was Coorapinni all right — and lying alongside his right side was a shovel spear. We knocked up the Chinese, told them the story, had a feed and a cup of tea and left for Maranboy. By then the rain had stopped and we had a pleasant ride home to Maranboy. Coorapinni walked at the side of Midnight handcuffed to the stirrup iron as the handcuffs we had were those with a length of about two feet of chain between the cuffs. He was quite happy by then, smoked my cigarettes and seemed unconcerned by his capture.

He went back to Darwin and to gaol again. When he came out I made him my tracker and he was a good one. It was always the way — the aborigine who had what it took to kill a man also had what it took to he a good tracker. Probably it is the same to-day.

One can be lucky. I was ! Firstly, with the remark of Jack Fotinos, then Paddy Laffan's having seen Coorapinni, then Coorapinni's having gone to the Chinese garden, then that he had camped in the shed instead of the aboriginal camp and last but by no means least, that I had, quite unwittingly, given him no opportunity to use the spear he had under the blanket.

But how Paddy Laffan knew it was Coorapinni under that blanket is beyond me. Still, as I said, one can be lucky.