a key for his cell in the carpenter's workshop, but was unsuccessful. Eventually, in April 1871, Comptroller General Wakeford heard from Johns of Hampton's promise. After verifying with Superintendent Lefroy that those words were spoken, Wakeford informed the current governor, Frederick Weld, who agreed that further punishment would be unfair. Johns was given a ticket of leave in May 1871. Later life The remainder of Johns' life consisted of periods of good behaviour punctuated by occasional minor misdemeanors and brief jail terms. In January 1879, he married a widow named Louisa Hearn, and they spent some time prospecting for gold near Southern Cross. In 1881, while exploring the countryside around Karridale, he discovered Moondyne Cave. Final years and death In 1893, Johns' wife Louisa died at the age of 40, and the death affected him greatly. Years after, he began acting strangely, and was eventually found to be mentally ill. He died of senile dementia in the Fremantle Lunatic Asylum (now the Fremantle Arts Centre building) on 13 August 1900, and was buried in Fremantle Cemetery. His tombstone bears the word "rhyddid", meaning "freedom" in Welsh. Cultural references Literature and film While Moondyne Joe was bushranging in 1869, an Irish political prisoner named John Boyle O'Reilly was working in a convict road party near Bunbury. Although it is very unlikely that O'Reilly knew Moondyne Joe, he must have heard many stories of his exploits. In March 1869, O'Reilly escaped and was rescued by an American ship. After his arrival in the United States, he wrote a novel about convict life called Moondyne: An Australian Tale, whose central character was called Moondyne Joe. The book is presented as fiction, and neither the character nor the plot bears much resemblance to the life of Joseph Johns. In 1913, O'Reilly's novel was made into a movie entitled Moondyne. Directed by W. J. Lincoln, it starred George Bryant, Godfrey Cass and Roy Redgrave. Randolph Stow wrote a humorous children's book, Midnite: The Story of a Wild Colonial Boy, in 1967 which told the story of an Australian bushranger based on the life and exploits of Moondyne Joe and a Queensland bushranger Captain Starlight. In 2002, Cygnet Books published The Legend of Moondyne Joe, a work of juvenile fiction written by Mark Greenwood and illustrated by Frané Lessac. The book won the award in the Children's Books category at the 2002 Western Australian Premier's Book