George Wilson Hall is the publisher of this work, but its authors are not specified. It was most likely a collaboration between Hall and the unnamed ‘traveller’ (p. 123; Mr. Blank, p. 131). The preface is signed ‘The Authors’ as plural, on page vi, and it is dated 22 February 1879, shortly after the Jerilderie bank robbery of Monday 10 February.

Ned Kelly had unsuccessfully sought to have copies of his ‘Jerilderie letter’ printed in that town.

This book is a massively important   historical document in its claim to give an impartial account of the Kelly outbreak up to the time of writing, regardless of his being on the committee for the ‘Murdered Police Memorial Fund’ (p. 104).

Hall was necessarily reliant on what he and his colleague were told by the gang and their associates when representing their view of events.

As a free download in the interest of historical research with annotations by Stuart Dawson, he does not claim to have noted every error, only to present an accurate transcription of Hall’s book. Where some statements or claims are known to be incorrect, that has been footnoted.