The Life and Death of the Bushranger Ben Hall

“You’ll Never Take Me Alive!" is a historical fiction with an epic sweep that begins in Dickensian England where his father, Ben Hall (senior), is convicted of stealing clothing and transported to Australia for seven years. After enduring the vagaries of the harsh penal system and being punished for trying to escape, he obtains a ticket of leave, marries an Irish convict lass and settles on the western plains of NSW to raise cattle and a brood of eight children, including Ben Hall (junior).

The early part of the story centres on Ben’s formative years and the social issues of the day as the impoverished Hall family struggle to make ends meet in a harsh environment. It also Ben’s fractious relationship with his father, which forces him to grow up quickly. After being wrongly blamed for the death of a chum, Ben betrays his father to the police who suspect him of horse theft. The fall-out over this incident sees Ben leave home at 15.

The middle portion of the book deals with Ben’s early adult life and how he came to join the bushranging fraternity. Aged 19, Ben marries Biddy Walsh and goes into partnership with his brother-in-law, Jacky Maguire, on a station they call Sandy Creek. Ben builds up the station and Biddy gives birth to a son, Henry.

Everything changes when gold is discovered on Lambing Flats. Ben and Jacky cash in on the cattle boom generated by the gold rush and begin to prosper, but it puts a strain on his marriage as Biddy feels neglected. A gang of bushrangers, led by the handsome, dashing Frank “Darkie” Gardiner, starts terrorising the area and robs Jacky’s station. This brings them into contact with Inspector Frederick Pottinger, a disgraced member of the English gentry given the task of ridding the district of bushrangers. Ben and Jacky feed and shelter the police.

Ben’s world is torn apart when Biddy elopes with one of Pottinger’s troopers. He spirals down into a black depression, starts drinking and foolishly comes into contact with “Darkie” Gardiner, which results in Ben being wrongly arrested in connection with a robbery committed by Gardiner. He is detained for a month before being acquitted of all charges.

The final part of the book deals with the exploits of Ben Hall the bushranger. Seeking revenge on Pottinger, he joins Gardiner’s gang, masterminds and pulls off one of the most daring raids in the history of the colony on the Eugowra gold escort. They escape with $14,000 in gold and notes. He is arrested, but the police cannot make the charge stick. He returns home to find that in his absence Pottinger has decided to dispense his own brand of rough justice. He burnt Sandy Creek and left Ben’s cattle to perish. Having lost everything and now been cast as a criminal, he declares “I might as well have the game as the blame.”

Gardiner flees to Queensland and Ben forms his own gang. Under Ben’s leadership they become the most prolific gang in bushranging history in only three years. Their infamy quickly spreads as newspapers report that banks, coaches, travellers, squatters and even police stations being bailed up at will and the police led a merry dance. The story develops into a battle of wits between Ben and Pottinger. His bravado, fuelled by growing publicadoration prompts questions in Parliament about who is running things out west – Ben Hall or the police?

Eventually Ben settles his score with Pottinger, but although he won the battle, he could not win the war. The squatters and police fight back and there are casualties on both sides. The Felon’s Apprehension Act is passed allowing any member of the police or public to shoot him on sight. In a final, climatic scene Ben Hall, is killed in a dawn shoot- out on May 5th, 1865 aged only 27.

Released by Random House
December 1, 2005

Prologue

The following passage is a short excerpt from the Prologue that appears at the beginning of “You’ll Never Take Me Alive!” (click hyperlink to access PDF)

© Nick Bleszynski 2005

Click here Return to Training Services