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Cup Day Chaos

On Adelaide Cup Day, Monday 7th May 1917, a shocking tragedy occurred at Brookside North, now known as Tranmere. William Nicholas Hann, aged 48 years, was shot dead by his son. According to some newspapers, he was an industrious, hard-working man and a successful market gardener. He provided for his large family from the produce of a fine vegetable garden and orchard that he leased from Sir Josiah Symon. Unfortunately, he became an insulting, dangerous man when he was under the influence of liquor. He frequently returned home drunk, caused disturbances, and made threats against his wife and children. One report claimed that the father's conduct so incensed his son that high words were exchanged prior to the fatal shot.

The Express and Telegraph reported that the scene of the murder was a house in a small street off Fourth Street. It is a peaceful locality, and news of the affair, which soon spread throughout the neighborhood, came as a rude shock to the residents.

It appears that a disturbance occurred soon after Mr. Hann had arrived home on Monday evening. He went out at about noon that day to attend the Adelaide Cup races, and returned, inebriated, shortly before 8 p.m. At about 9 p.m. he asked his wife to get him the revolver belonging to their son George, a 21-year-old soldier who died in Egypt the previous year. Hann accompanied the demand with a threat to shoot his wife and the little children, and added that if they did not give them to him there would be "something doing."

His 17-year-old son, Alex, pleaded with his father not to carry out his threats, but evidently saw that his appeal had not had the desired effect. It was alleged that the youth then went into his room and procured a single-barreled gun. The gun went off, and Hann senior was shot in the head. Mrs Hann screamed, and neighbours came running in. The lad went outside and told Mr Nicholas Brooks that he had shot his father dead, and that the police should be notified. Mr Brooks went into the house, and Messrs. G. Wilson, R. Bowen, and J. Hart lifted the body on to the sofa.

Mounted-Constable Deane and Dr Borthwick arrived and after a brief examination, William Hann’s life was pronounced extinct. Mounted-Constable Deane subsequently found a single-barrel gun and an empty cartridge on the bed in the son’s room. Police detained the lad, whose full name was Alexander Robert Nicholas Hann, and the matter was reported to the City Coroner. The victim’s widow and 11 children, most of whom were very young, survived.

The inquest was held at the Adelaide Police Court on Wednesday morning, 9th of May. It examined the circumstances surrounding the death of William Hann, eliciting a terrible story of a terror-stricken mother and son because of the threats of a drunken father. All the circumstances of the tragedy were most pitiful, and a boy of 17 years now stands charged with the murder of his father. The City Coroner (Dr Ramsay Smith) conducted the enquiry, whilst the accused lad, an intelligent-looking little fellow, listened to the evidence with close attention. He was deeply moved, but kept control of himself in a most manly way. Mr A. C. Thomas, with Sub-Inspector Kitson and Detective-Sergeant Mitchell, represented the police, and Mr T. S. Poole appeared for Alexander.

Dr Borthwick said he was called to the house at about 10.30 p.m. on Monday to inspect William Hann’s body, which had been laid out on a sofa. There was an injury to the skull, consisting of a fracture about 3½ inches long. He found flattened pellets of lead in the brain on the opposite side to the injury, but noticed no other injuries to the body. The organs generally were healthy and death was, in his opinion, due to the injuries he had described, which might have been caused by gunshot. From the appearance of the skull and the position of the pellets he was of the opinion that the gun had been discharged on a level with the man's head from the right side, but this might be a hard matter to judge. The gun was apparently fired from at least a foot away, because there was no singeing.

Mary Martha Hann, widow of William Hann, then gave evidence. She told the inquest that on Monday her husband came home from the city in an intoxicated condition. She gave him his tea and afterwards he conversed with her son about the races. He was very angry because he had lost his money, and then demanded their son’s revolver and bullets, threatening to shoot her, the six young children, and another daughter, Rose.

Alexander pleaded with him with his arms round his neck to give up that foolish idea and settle down, but he pushed his wife and Alexander aside, and told the latter that if he interfered with him he would “slaughter him too”. He then ordered his wife to get him the revolver. Alexander went to his bedroom, and as she held her husband’s hand, a gun was fired. Alex came from his room and said, "Mother, I am going to Mr Brooks to send for the police."

The Coroner asked Mary Hann if it was possible for a shot to be fired from Alexander's room. She replied that there was an open doorway between the rooms, and a shot could have been fired from the bedroom in the direction of the deceased. Mr Thomas added that Alexander always kept his gun and cartridges in the far corner of his bedroom. Mr Poole stated that Mary Hann was afraid of her husband on Monday night and the family had lived in danger for years. He said Hann intended to cut her throat from ear to ear, slash the children up afterwards, and write a letter with their blood to his daughter Rose. There were six children sleeping in another room, the eldest being 9 years of age, and the youngest 16 months.

Mary felt certain her husband intended to carry out his threat that night. When the gun went off, Hann was in the act of getting up from his chair, saying as he rose that he would smash open the box containing the revolver and bullets. Nicholas Brooks, vineyard foreman, of Magill, said Alexander Hann rushed up to him in his yard at about 9 o'clock on Monday evening, and said, "Send for the police, Mr Brooks, I have shot my father, I shot him dead." Alexander then ran back to the house, and the witness sent for the police. He had known William Hann for about five years, and on several occasions had seen him the worse for drink. Three weeks before the tragedy, Alexander came to him in an excited condition and said, "For God's sake, Mr Brooks, send for the police. My father is going to murder the lot of us."

Mounted-Constable F. R. Dean, of Magill, described the scene when he visited Hann's house. He found the gun, produced in court, lying on a bed in Alexander's room with a spent cartridge beside it. He arrested Alexander, who made no statement. The Coroner committed Alexander Hann for trial for murder at the next Criminal Sessions. Bail was allowed in the accused's own recognisance for £50 and one surety of £50. At the court case on Wednesday 11th July, before the Chief Justice (Sir George Murray) and jury, Alexander Robert Nicholas Hann was charged with having murdered his father, William Nicholas Hann, on May 7 last. The Crown prosecutor (Mr A. H. Shierlaw), with Mr C. L. Jessop, appeared for the Crown, and Sir Josiah Symon, with Mr T.S. Poole, defended the boy, who pleaded not guilty.

According to the opening address, the father was a victim to drink. On the evening of the day in question he returned home in a drunken state. His wife gave him his tea, and after the meal he was quarrelsome, angry and threatening. He demanded his dead son’s revolver, which had been locked away in a box, with the key entrusted to Alex. The details of his request seemed peculiar, but it might have been connected to the loss of his son, George. A year before this incident, his son had been accidentally shot by a member of his own battalion. Killed by ‘friendly fire’ during a training exercise, it is likely that his revolver and bullets were never used against the enemy. William Hann was unable to attend the burial in Egypt, and it was unlikely he would ever see his son’s grave. In this context, one can understand, but not condone, the demand that came next.

Hann said to his wife, "Mum, there is something I am going to have. I demand George's revolver and bullets, and if I don't get them there will be something doing. George took them to Egypt to kill Germans. They didn't do their work there. They will do it here. Every bullet will count. I will shoot you and the little kids, and go to Evandale and shoot Rose". William Hann was just about to rise when the gun was fired and he was mortally wounded.

Sir Josiah Symon then commenced his examination of Mary Hann’s evidence, attempting to steer the court towards a lenient outcome. He was not your average lawyer. In his understanding of the law and in his skill as an advocate, Symon towered over his contemporaries. His ability to marshal arguments and lead the Bench imperceptibly towards the conclusion he wanted was remarkably effective. His attention to detail and eloquent pleading to the jury in criminal cases made the death penalty largely obsolete for more than a generation.

Sir Josiah Symon asked Mary—Had you lived in constant fear of him? —For years, she replied.
Your husband was a powerful wiry man? —Yes.
Could Alex have tackled him? —No.
Could Alex have done anything else to quieten his father? —No, he could not.
You gave Alex the key in the father’s presence? —Yes.
So you threw the whole responsibility for the family’s safety on Alex’s shoulders? —Yes.


Mary then revealed to the court that her husband, when in drink, used to sleep with a carving knife under his pillow, and often threatened to cut her and the children up. She added that because of the drunken habits of her husband, Alex had been the mainstay of the family. She had had to work hard, and for seven years had gone round in a van selling green groceries. Alex was a good, affectionate, dutiful boy even to his father. He was a sergeant of cadets, and had been complimented for good conduct. Since the shooting the boy and herself had carried on the market garden.

Sir Josiah Symon continued questioning Mary—Had you ever seen your husband so enraged before?
Mary replied —No, sir, he got more desperate and violent as his habit of intoxication increased.
Could your husband have easily smashed open the box which held the revolver? — Yes, it was only a kerosene case, with hinges on the lid. It was in Alex's room.
Did you believe your husband intended to do what he threatened? —Yes.
You had a deadly fear for your life and those of your children? —I had.

Alexander Hann then read a statement, confessing that he had shot his father, as he feared that the deceased was about to kill his mother and brothers and sisters. The Chief Justice then summed up the case in his address to the jury. In the present case the evidence, he said, had proved that the accused boy had killed his father. The Jury had to decide the issue of murder or manslaughter. One question was – did the boy act from vindictive feelings toward his father? The evidence showed that when the father, mad with drink, threatened the family, the boy put his arms around his father's neck, and asked him to cease his folly. Then there were the statements of the mother that she personally, and for her children's sake, was afraid of the father in his drunken moments, and that the lad had too much evidence of the meaning of those moods.

After reading the evidence, His Honour said he had concluded that the act committed was one of justifiable homicide. The jury left the Court at 5 minutes past 3 o'clock. In a quarter of an hour they returned with the verdict of "Not guilty", and Alexander Hann was discharged.
Although Alex had been acquitted, there was little time for celebration. The family still had to pay the rent on Sir Josiah Symon’s fruit and vegetable garden and there were, of course, legal fees to cover. They had no choice but to appeal for help. Mr. H. Curtis placed a notice in The Advertiser the next day, 13th July 1917:

‘A PATHETIC CASE. APPEAL FOR PUBLIC HELP’.

“Will The Advertiser receive subscriptions on behalf of Mrs. M. Hann, the wife of the late William Nicholas Hann who was shot in a domestic trouble with his son, Alex Hann? She is renting a fruit and vegetable garden at an annual rental of £100. The lease has two years to run. I have made full enquiries relative to her financial position, and have ascertained that she has not enough to meet her liabilities because her late husband spent the income in gambling and drink. The boy, who bears a good reputation for steadiness and work, has promised me to stand by his mother and crop the garden if they can get a few pounds to live on until some returns come to hand from the produce grown. She has to provide for six small children, all of whom are under the age of 9 years. She has suffered trouble with her husband owing to his drunken bouts, and has had to live under trying circumstances the whole of her married life. Despite that, she is quite willing to work hard and meet her liabilities if only given assistance.”

Mary’s circumstances appeared to be quite grim. Without the support of a generous benefactor, the family’s future was looking perilous. Thankfully, a widower named Walter Clifford arrived on the scene and they announced their engagement on 27th May 1922. They were married in September that year, and after the turmoil of her first marriage, it it appears that Walter was able to provide some financial stability and marital comfort for the next 26 years. She passed away peacefully at her residence in Kensington Gardens, aged 78. She was survived by her loving husband, five sons, six daughters, and seven grandchildren.

Apart from a speeding fine and a minor car accident, Alex managed to stay out of the newspapers after his extraordinary acquittal. He continued market gardening and growing fruit, married in 1933, and lived with his wife Mary on Hectorville Road, Hectorville. They had three children before he enlisted in the Australian Army in 1943, working as a cook until hostilities had ceased. He died at Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory, aged 72 years.

Researched and compiled by Jonathon Dadds, from the Campbelltown Library “Digital Diggers” group.

If you have any comments or questions regarding the information in this local history article, please contact the Local History officer on 8366 9357 or hthiselton@campbelltown.sa.gov.au

References

Virtual War Memorial

  • Retrieved March 3, 2022 from https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/557285
    Retrieved March 3, 2022 from https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/304263

National Archives of Australia

Retrieved March 3, 2022 from www.naa.gov.au

Newspapers