During Mudie's absence from Castle Forbes around November 1833, six convicts had revolted, robbing his stores and taking some of his possessions before escaping into the bush. None of the six escaped justice, however; three were executed in Sydney, two were executed at Castle Forbes, and one was exiled to Norfolk Island (a small island off the east coast of Australia). Despite the fact that justice had been served and the matter had been cleared, John Hubert Plunkett and Frederick Hely were dispatched by Governor Bourke to investigate the treatment of the servants at Castle Forbes. While no charges were elicited on Mudie or Larnach, they both were criticised greatly for the amount of rations they supplied to their workers, and the overall treatment of the convicts stationed there. Plunkett and Hely went further, however, and decided to take action against Larnach and Mudie by preparing a protest. After overcoming several complications involving Governor Bourke's refusal to send the protest to London, Plunkett and Hely printed "Vindication of James Mudie and John Larnach, from Certain Reflections … Relative to the Treatment by Them of Their Convict Servants", a protest against Larnach and Mudie, and the way they treated the workers at Castle Forbes, which they sent directly to the Colonial Office.