O'Connell to Macquarie:
death of Maclaine

"My last Letter to you was in February
last when the melancholly [sic] Duty of acquainting
you with the lamented fate of poor John
M^cLaine devolved on me. – Poor John was
wild but he possessed a noble Heart, and
a braver Spirit never was in the heart
of a Soldier. – He fell a victim to his
contempt of Life, in marching at the head
of a Party thro' a thickly wooded Country,
exposed to the Fire [of] a dastardly hidden Enemy,
he would remain on Horseback, contrary to
the advice of the men under his command;
he thereby became a sure mark and was
shot dead from the Jungle. – It will be
some Consolation you [to] know that his fate
was very much lamented by officers and men.
General Brownrig expressed to me in strong
terms his regret at the untimely fate of
this Gallant Youth. – You will also I am
sure be glad to hear that contrary to my
expectations when I last wrote to you, poor
John did not die in Debt. – I transmit you
a copy of the statement of his account which I
forwarded to the Secretary at War.

The Balance was transmitted from the
Colonial Treasury and can be claimed by
his Mother or Brother"

M.C. O'Connell

True Copy,
L.M.

Provenance:
Extract from a letter by the commanding officer of the 73rd Regiment in Sri Lanka, Colonel Maurice O'Connell to Governor Lachlan Macquarie in Sydney, NSW [dated 18 August 1818].
Original held in Scottish National Archives, Edinburgh. GD 174: Lochbuie Papers. [Microfilm copy available as part of Australian Joint Copying Project M Series: Reel No.406].

Manuscript Transcripts
Transcript prepared by Robin Walsh
Macquarie University Library, Sydney, Australia. © 2003

Copyright © Macquarie University 2011