Paul Heinrich Matthias Foelsche (1831-1914),
police inspector, was born on 30 March 1831 at Moorburg, near Hamburg, Germany, son of Matthias Foelsche. At 18 he enlisted in a German Hussar Regiment and at 25 migrated to South Australia. In November 1856 he was appointed trooper third class in the Mounted
Police. He was transferred to
Strathalbyn where on 5 January 1860 he married Charlotte Georgina Smith. He devoted much time to firearms and as an expert in colouring stocks and barrels his
services were in great demand by local volunteer corps. While at
Strathalbyn he was appointed sub-inspector in charge of the newly-formed Northern Territory Mounted
Police. In January 1870 he arrived in the Northern Territory where he spent his remaining years apart from brief visits to
Adelaide in 1884 and China in 1897.
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After establishing a modest
home in Palmerston (
Darwin) Foelsche sent for his wife and two daughters. He adapted
well to the difficult environment and set an example to the settlers. He remained cheerful and optimistic when others were complaining of hardship and sacrifice. As 'the very best man that could have been selected for the position at that time' he became a great force in the community. He was an excellent conversationalist, speaking and understanding English as
well as his German and was very popular. He became 'a perfect encyclopedia on Northern Territory affairs and people'. He also won repute as a dentist and had a large collection of the best dental instruments.
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As a policeman Foelsche was a 'veritable sleuthhound of the law', with a natural detective instinct and mental powers that made him dreaded by criminals. His knowledge of the law was such that he was said to be the best lawyer outside the South Australian Bar. He had a keen intellect, studious habits and a retentive memory. When stationed at
Strathalbyn he was often selected for special duty where exceptional tact and discretion were required.
Police Commissioner George
Hamilton (1812-1883) considered him one of the most capable men in the
police force, and Lord
Kintore, governor of South Australia, described him as intelligent and efficient. In pursuit of his
police duties Foelsche was unrelenting and displayed exceptional energy and courage when he led the search for native murderers. His cunning stratagems invariably led to the apprehension of suspects. Soon after he arrived in the Northern Territory he realized the difficulty in administering justice to the natives and made a systematic study of Aboriginal customs and language. On 2 August 1881 his authoritative paper, 'Notes on the Aborigines of North Australia', was read to the Royal Society of South Australia.
Here is one case typical of the punitive expeditions. On 30 June 1875 at the
Roper River, a telegraph worker from
Daly Waters had been killed, and his two mates badly wounded, probably by Mangarrayi men. As a consequence, Aboriginals along the length of the river were slaughtered by a massive party of
police and civilians for four weeks solid in August 1875. Although the orders came from Inspector Paul Foelsche, the government’s attack dog in
Darwin, an operation of such size and cost, with a blaze of publicity, would have required approval from the government of Premier Sir James Penn Boucaut. Foelsche issued these cryptic, but sinister, instructions: “I cannot give you orders to shoot all natives you come across, but circum-stances may occur for which I cannot provide definite instructions.
Roper River blacks had to be “punished”. Foelsche wanted to go with them, but it was a large party, he said, with “too many tale-tellers”. He boasted in a letter to a friend,
John Lewis, that he had sent his second-in-command, Corporal George Montagu, down to the Roper to “have a picnic with the natives”. Even the normally enthusiastic Northern Territory Times was sickened by “the indiscriminate ‘hunting’ of the natives there”, adding “there ought to be a show of reason in the measure of vengeance dealt out to them. Seven days earlier, the paper’s response to the death of a prospector in Arnhem Land had not been so mild: “Shoot those you cannot get at and hang those that you do catch on the nearest tree as an example to the rest.”
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Three years later, in January 1878 (when Boucaut was again premier), Foelsche dispatched a punitive party to
Pine Creek, under Constable William Stretton, after a teamster was murdered. Seventeen Aboriginals were shot by Stretton’s men and an unknown number were shot by a civilian party. In another revealing letter to Lewis, Foelsche referred to this as “our Ni%ger Hunt”. He said he should have gone himself, but “could not have done better than [Stretton] did, so I am satisfied and so is the public here”. In a further letter he observed: “By the majority of the
population here, the Aborigines are looked upon as beasts, destitute of reason and are treated as such.” Like the earlier
Roper River expedition, those at
Pine Creek were
well publicised in the Territory press, suggesting that Foelsche again had official approval.
Foelsche was a useful botanical collector and correspondent for Ferdinand Mueller, who named in his honour Euc. Foelscheana, a
well-known Northern Territory tree. In the territory a mountain, river, headland and street in
Darwin bear his name. A notable Freemason, he helped to found the Port
Darwin Lodge which was named after him. He retired from the
police force in January 1904, and was awarded the Imperial Service Order. In his last two years he was confined to his chair and suffered much pain before he died on 31 January 1914.
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