A committee of enquiry was established to investigate the attack on William Robinson's overlanding party and the subsequent reprisals by Matthew Moorhouse, Protector of Aborigines.

Charles Sturt was the Chairman of the enquiry and Edward Eyre was one of the panel of 23 that examined Moorhouse and others regarding the attacks. Also questioned was Pangki Pangki, an Aboriginal man who had travelled with the relief party, and Pulkanta, one of the men taken prisoner.

It was the decision of the enquiry that the actions of Moorhouse and the relief party were justified under the circumstances, and that unnecessary severity had not been used. It was also decided that the Aboriginal people be allowed to return to their lands, after some instruction from Moorhouse, and finally that police stations be stationed on the Murray 'for the protection of future overland parties'.

Robinson, William, 1814-1889

Sturt, Charles, 1795-1869

Glenie, Pat The Rufus River "massacre" (or was it?) by Pat and Brian Glenie[Renmark, S. Aust.: P. and B. Glenie, 1993

Wigley, Margaret 'Ready Money' : the life of William Robinson of Hill River, South Australia and Cheviot Hills, North Canterbury Christchurch, N.Z.: Canterbury University Press, 2006

Pitt, G. H. Notes on attacks on Overlanders by natives from the Upper Murray [Notes on the conflict between the Overlanders, the drovers of sheep and cattle, and Aboriginal people from the Upper Murray, including references to the Rufus incident]

University of Adelaide Library Electronic Texts Collection: Eyre, Edward John. 'An account of the manners and customs of the Aborigines and the state of their relations with Europeans' Originally published with Journals of expeditions of discovery into Central Australia, and overland from Adelaide to King George's Sound, in the years 1840-1. http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/e/e98m/index.html