Murder in 1845: deadly greed over just 10 pounds

From the Maitland Mercury report:
The murder of an old Scottish farmer Andrew Menzies at Hillsborough near Maitland attracted a lot of attention in December 1845.

The case brought to light the amazing forensic skills of Aboriginal trackers in those days when this science was unheard of.
The trackers’ brilliant skill to read and interpret nature went a long way to solving this murder.
The motive was not anger, hatred or revenge. It was a deep-rooted greed to possess Menzies’ few head of cattle and a few bushels of wheat, valued at 10 pounds in 1845, or roughly $820 today.
In 1845 the countryside around Maitland and between Maitland and Newcastle was very thinly settled and not always by the most honourable class of settler.

Full article by Brian Andrews available at Maitland Mercury, March 1, 2013.