in 1913, he was tried in adelaide for breaking and entering, including theft, and sentenced to 18 months in prison. a later court visit for vagrancy in june 1915 showed he was now in melbourne. in both instances he listed his profession as cinematographer, a craft he repeatedly contended to have picked up on his travels to hollywood; in one statement, he indicated that he worked for the  vitagraph company of america, beginning in 1910.