Biography

The deceased was in the camp of Mr. "Dixie" Scott, together with a man named J. M'Donough and Mr and Mrs. Scott, each of whom was sitting down. Suddenly, they received such a shock that they were thrown to the ground where they lay for about 10 minutes. Kelly, who was not killed outright, was the first to stand up. Although he could not speak, he made signs that he was in need of a drink. A water bag was handed to him and he took a drink and then died. The lightning struck through the end of the camp, which was composed of hessian, cutting a large piece of the latter material clean out. It was close to this that Kelly was sitting and it was miraculous that M'Donough, who was sitting only a couple of feet away, was not also killed, or at least more seriously injured. Kelly, who was a strong, healthy man, had not been long resident at Burtville, and was engaged in a tribute on a mine with Messrs. Scott and M'Donough. Messrs. Scott and M'Donough and Mrs. Scott, although they felt the effects of the shock for a while, were not seriously indisposed as a consequence. The deceased had been formerly at Yundamindera and Morgans.