Notable South Australians/Capt. James Croker Ferguson, J.P.
Capt. James Croker Ferguson, J.P.,
ONE of the most expert riflemen in the colony; arrived in Adelaide in 1848, with a commission from H. M. Government as Landing Waiter of Customs in South Australia. In consequence of deaths or removals from the Service during the time of the exodus to the Victorian gold fields he rose rapidly, and in 1855 attained the position of Assistant Landing Surveyor, an appointment within one step of that which he now holds, viz.. Landing Surveyor and Deputy Collector of Customs. Old residents at Nuriootpa, Angas Park, and Tanunda well remember the raids made by him on the illicit distilleries once so numerous in those districts, and the seizures of stills, etc., for which he received the thanks of the Government. Captain Ferguson's services as a volunteer officer date back to the Crimean War, when the scare in this colony was at its height, and he was appointed to the command of a troop of cavalry formed at the Seedbeds. Volunteering was then expensive, as officers and men had to find their horses, uniforms, and accoutrements, the only concession by the Government being the loan of some heavy cavalry swords and breech-loading rifles. This corps comprised among its members many well-known men; it speedily became popular and took a conspicuous part in the reviews and sham fights of its seven years' existence. Eventually the whole volunteer force was disbanded, but many members of the old troop, including their late captain, in conjunction with Captain Scott, Lieut. Gray, Mr. Skipper, and other enthusiastic riflemen, got up a semi-military rifle club called "The S. A. Rifle Association," which existed for several years and formed the parent of the present R.V.F. In 1866, another war scare arose, and volunteers were called for; troops of cavalry were raised, and Captain Ferguson was again offered and accepted a command in B troop, and the squadron was named "The Duke of Edinburgh's light Dragoons" by H.R.H., who was then on a visit to the colony. About eighteen months after accepting his commission Capt. Ferguson was thrown from his horse and had his arms and wrists broken. He was thereby incapacitated from using a sword, but yet not prevented from using a rifle. He retired from the cavalry, but not before he had fired for and won the £50 brigade prize, the £10 prize for the best shot in the troop, and the £300 prize Challenge Cup, given by Sir W. W. Hughes. The volunteers were again disbanded, and quiet reigned until a new war scare came, when the present V.M.F. was raised by the Government, and an auxiliary force (the Rifle Volunteers) also established, Capt. Ferguson being unanimously appointed to take a command in the No. 1 Adelaide Company. The pains he took to instruct them in rifle-shooting was attended with excellent results, 36 out of the 40 men comprising the company becoming marksmen, but finding that his Civil Service duties prevented his devoting sufficient time to volunteer matters, he resigned his commission, and was transferred to the Reserve Force of the V.M.F. as Captain, an appointment he still holds. For many years he has held office in the D. Grand Lodge of Freemasons, English Constitution, and is one of the few who declined to secede from the old flag or join the proposed new Constitution of South Australia, preferring to serve as District Grand Secretary under the parent institution.