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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855, by E.
+Keble Chatterton
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855
+
+
+Author: E. Keble Chatterton
+
+
+
+Release Date: January 21, 2006  [eBook #17563]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS
+1700-1855***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Steven Gibbs, Jeannie Howse, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team (https://www.pgdp.net/)
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrations.
+      See 17563-h.htm or 17563-h.zip:
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/7/5/6/17563/17563-h/17563-h.htm)
+      or
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/7/5/6/17563/17563-h.zip)
+
+      Two obvious typographical errors were corrected in transcribing
+      this text. For a complete list, please see the Transcriber's
+      note at the end of the file.
+
+
+
+
+
+KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS 1700-1855
+
+by
+
+E. KEBLE CHATTERTON
+Author of "Sailing Ships and Their Story," "The Romance of the Ship"
+"The Story of the British Navy," "Fore and Aft," Etc.
+
+With 33 Illustrations and Frontispiece in Colours
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER.
+Before firing on a smuggler the cruiser was bound to hoist his Revenue
+colours--both pennant and ensign--no matter whether day or night.
+(_from the original painting by Charles Dixon, R.I._)]
+
+
+
+
+London
+George Allen & Company, Ltd.
+44 & 45 Rathbone Place
+1912
+[All rights reserved]
+Printed by Ballantyne, Hanson & Co.
+At the Ballantyne Press, Edinburgh
+
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+I have in the following pages endeavoured to resist the temptation to
+weave a web of pleasant but unreliable fiction round actual
+occurrences. That which is here set forth has been derived from facts,
+and in almost every case from manuscript records. It aims at telling
+the story of an eventful and exciting period according to historical
+and not imaginative occurrence. There are extant many novels and short
+stories which have for their heroes the old-time smugglers. But the
+present volume represents an effort to look at these exploits as they
+were and not as a novelist likes to think they might have occurred.
+
+Perhaps there is hardly an Englishman who was not thrilled in his
+boyhood days by Marryat and others when they wrote of the King's
+Cutters and their foes. It is hoped that the following pages will not
+merely revive pleasant recollections but arouse a new interest in the
+adventures of a species of sailing craft that is now, like the brig
+and the fine old clipper-ship, past and done with.
+
+The reader will note that in the Appendices a considerable amount of
+interesting data has been collected. This has been rendered possible
+only with great difficulty, but it is believed that in future years
+the dimensions and details of a Revenue Cutter's construction, the
+sizes of her spars, her tonnage, guns, &c., the number of her crew
+carried, the names and dates of the fleets of cutters employed will
+have an historical value which cannot easily be assessed in the
+present age that is still familiar with sailing craft.
+
+In making researches for the preparation of this volume I have to
+express my deep sense of gratitude to the Honourable Commissioners of
+the Board of Customs for granting me permission to make use of their
+valuable records; to Mr. F.S. Parry C.B., Deputy Chairman of the Board
+for his courtesy in placing a vast amount of data in my hands, and for
+having elucidated a good many points of difficulty; and, finally, to
+Mr. Henry Atton, Librarian of the Custom House, for his great
+assistance in research.
+
+  E. KEBLE CHATTERTON.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+CHAP.                                               PAGE
+    I. INTRODUCTION                                   1
+
+   II. THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS                        14
+
+  III. THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING                       40
+
+   IV. THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS                        56
+
+    V. THE HAWKHURST GANG                            82
+
+   VI. THE REVENUE CRUISERS                          94
+
+  VII. CUTTERS AND SLOOPS                           121
+
+ VIII. PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION                      138
+
+   IX. CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT                           157
+
+    X. THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING                    182
+
+   XI. THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA                         199
+
+  XII. THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS                      215
+
+ XIII. THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY                      239
+
+  XIV. SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS                  257
+
+   XV. A TRAGIC INCIDENT                            276
+
+  XVI. ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS                       295
+
+ XVII. SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS                    320
+
+XVIII. BY SEA AND LAND                              339
+
+  XIX. ACTION AND COUNTER-ACTION                    361
+
+   XX. FORCE AND CUNNING                            379
+
+
+APPENDICES                                          403
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+PLATES
+
+REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER         _Colour frontispiece_
+
+                                                           FACING PAGE
+
+A REPRESENTATION OF YE SMUGGLERS BREAKING OPEN YE KING'S
+CUSTOM HOUSE AT POOLE                                              86
+
+MR. GALLEY AND MR. CHATER PUT BY YE SMUGGLERS ON ONE
+HORSE NEAR ROWLAND CASTLE                                          88
+
+GALLEY AND CHATER FALLING OFF THEIR HORSE AT WOODASH               88A
+
+CHATER CHAINED IN YE TURFF HOUSE AT OLD MILLS'S                    89
+
+CHATER HANGING AT THE WELL IN LADY HOLT PARK, THE         )
+BLOODY VILLAINS STANDING BY                               )
+                                                          )        90
+THE BLOODY SMUGGLERS FLINGING DOWN STONES AFTER THEY      )
+HAD FLUNG HIS DEAD BODY INTO THE WELL                     )
+
+H.M. CUTTER "WICKHAM," COMMANDED BY CAPTAIN JOHN
+FULLARTON, R.N.                                                   178
+
+H.M. CUTTER "WICKHAM"                                             179
+
+
+IN TEXT
+                                                                  PAGE
+
+"DOW SENT HIS MATE AND TEN MEN ON BOARD HER"                       72
+
+"CAME CHARGING DOWN ... STRIKING HER ON THE QUARTER"              102
+
+"A GREAT CROWD OF INFURIATED PEOPLE CAME DOWN TO THE BEACH"       187
+
+"THE 'FLORA' WITH THE 'FISGARD,' 'WASSO,' AND 'NYMPH'"            202
+
+"THE 'CAROLINE' CONTINUED HER COURSE AND PROCEEDED TO LONDON"     211
+
+HOW THE DEAL BOATMEN USED TO SMUGGLE TEA ASHORE                   213
+
+"THE 'BADGER' WAS HOISTING UP THE GALLEY IN THE RIGGING"          265
+
+"FIRE AND BE DAMNED"                                              278
+
+THE SANDWICH DEVICE                                               314
+
+THE SLOOP "LUCY" SHOWING CONCEALMENTS                             324
+
+CASK FOR SMUGGLING CIDER                                          326
+
+THE SMACK "TAM O'SHANTER" SHOWING METHOD OF CONCEALMENT           329
+
+FLAT-BOTTOMED BOAT FOUND OFF SELSEY                               332
+
+PLAN OF THE SCHOONER "GOOD INTENT" SHOWING METHOD OF
+SMUGGLING CASKS                                                   334
+
+THE SCHOONER "SPARTAN"                                            336
+
+DECK PLAN AND LONGITUDINAL PLAN OF THE "LORD RIVERS"              337
+
+"THE CRUISER'S GUNS HAD SHOT AWAY THE MIZZEN-MAST"                348
+
+"THE 'ADMIRAL HOOD' WAS HEAVING TUBS OVERBOARD"                   358
+
+"GETTING A FIRM GRIP, PUSHED HIM ... INTO THE WATER"              365
+
+"LET'S ... HAVE HIM OVER THE CLIFF"                               373
+
+"UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS TOOK ON BOARD ... FORTY BALES
+OF SILK"                                                          377
+
+"ANOTHER SHOT WAS FIRED"                                          383
+
+METHODS EMPLOYED BY SMUGGLERS FOR ANCHORING TUBS THROWN
+OVERBOARD                                                         385
+
+THE "RIVAL'S" INGENIOUS DEVICE                                    392
+
+"TAKEN COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE"                                    398
+
+
+
+
+King's Cutters & Smugglers
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+
+Outside pure Naval history it would be difficult to find any period so
+full of incident and contest as that which is covered by the exploits
+of the English Preventive Service in their efforts to deal with the
+notorious and dangerous bands of smugglers which at one time were a
+terrible menace to the trade and welfare of our nation.
+
+As we shall see from the following pages, their activities covered
+many decades, and indeed smuggling is not even to-day dead nor ever
+will be so long as there are regulations which human ingenuity can
+occasionally outwit. But the grand, adventurous epoch of the smugglers
+covers little more than a century and a half, beginning about the year
+1700 and ending about 1855 or 1860. Nevertheless, within that space of
+time there are crowded in so much adventure, so many exciting escapes,
+so many fierce encounters, such clever moves and counter-moves: there
+are so many thousands of people concerned in the events, so many
+craft employed, and so much money expended that the story of the
+smugglers possesses a right to be ranked second only to those larger
+battles between two or more nations.
+
+Everyone has, even nowadays, a sneaking regard for the smugglers of
+that bygone age, an instinct that is based partly on a curious human
+failing and partly on a keen admiration for men of dash and daring.
+There is a sympathy, somehow, with a class of men who succeeded not
+once but hundreds of times in setting the law at defiance; who, in
+spite of all the resources of the Government, were not easily beaten.
+In the novels of James, Marryat, and a host of lesser writers the
+smuggler and the Preventive man have become familiar and standard
+types, and there are very few, surely, who in the days of their youth
+have not enjoyed the breathless excitement of some story depicting the
+chasing of a contraband lugger or watched vicariously the landing of
+the tubs of spirits along the pebbly beach on a night when the moon
+never showed herself. But most of these were fiction and little else.
+Even Marryat, though he was for some time actually engaged in Revenue
+duty, is now known to have been inaccurate and loose in some of his
+stories. Those who have followed afterwards have been scarcely better.
+
+However, there is nothing in the following pages which belongs to
+fiction. Every effort has been made to set forth only actual
+historical facts, which are capable of verification, so that what is
+herein contained represents not what _might_ have happened but
+actually did take place. To write a complete history of smuggling
+would be well-nigh impossible, owing to the fact that, unhappily
+through fire and destruction, many of the records, which to-day would
+be invaluable, have long since perished. The burning down of the
+Customs House by the side of the Thames in 1814 and the inappreciation
+of the right value of certain documents by former officials have
+caused so desirable a history to be impossible to be written. Still,
+happily, there is even now a vast amount of material in existence, and
+the present Commissioners of the Board of Customs are using every
+effort to preserve for posterity a mass of data connected with this
+service.
+
+Owing to the courtesy of the Commissioners it has been my good fortune
+to make careful researches through the documents which are concerned
+with the old smuggling days, the Revenue cutters, and the Preventive
+Service generally; and it is from these pages of the past and from
+other sources that I have been enabled to put forth the story as it is
+here presented; and as such it represents an attempt to afford an
+authentic picture of an extremely interesting and an equally exciting
+period of our national history, to show the conditions of the
+smuggling industry from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century, and
+the efforts to put a stop to the same. We shall soon find that this
+period in its glamour, romance, and adventure contains a good deal of
+similarity to the great seafaring Elizabethan epoch. The ships were
+different, but the courage of the English seamen was the same. Nor
+must we forget that those rough, rude men who ran backwards and
+forwards across the English Channel in cutters, yawls, luggers, and
+sometimes open boats, stiffened with a rich ballast of tea, tobacco,
+and brandy, were some of the finest seamen in the world, and certainly
+the most skilful fore-and-aft sailors and efficient pilots to be found
+anywhere on the seas which wash the coasts of the United Kingdom. They
+were sturdy and strong of body, courageous and enterprising of nature,
+who had "used" the sea all their lives. Consequently the English
+Government wisely determined that in all cases of an encounter with
+smugglers the first aim of the Preventive officers should be to
+capture the smugglers themselves, for they could be promptly impressed
+into the service of the Navy and be put to the good of the nation
+instead of being to the latter's disadvantage.
+
+As everyone familiar with the sea is aware, the seamanship of the
+square-rigged vessel and of the fore-and-aft is very different. The
+latter makes special demands of its own which, for the present, we
+need not go into. But we may assert with perfect confidence that at
+its best the handling of the King's cutters and the smuggling craft,
+the chasing and eluding in all weathers, the strategy and tactics of
+both parties form some of the best chapters in nautical lore. The
+great risks that were run, the self-confidence and coolness displayed
+indicated quite clearly that our national seafaring spirit was not yet
+dead. To-day many descendants of these old smugglers remain our
+foremost fore-and-aft sailors, yet engaged no longer in an illicit
+trade but in the more peaceful pursuits of line fishermen, oyster
+dredging, trawling during the winter, and often shipping as yachts'
+hands during the summer.
+
+But because we are to read fact and not fiction we shall scarcely find
+the subject inferior in interest. Truth often enough is stranger, and
+some of the tricks and devices employed by the smuggling communities
+may well surprise us. And while we shall not make any vain attempt to
+whitewash a class of men who were lawless, reckless, and sometimes
+even brutal in their efforts, yet we shall not hesitate to give the
+fullest prominence to the great skill and downright cleverness of a
+singularly virile and unique kind of British manhood. In much the same
+way as a spectator looks on at a fine sporting contest between two
+able foes, we shall watch the clashing exploits of the King's men and
+the smugglers. Sometimes the one side wins, sometimes the other, but
+nearly always there is a splendidly exciting tussle before either
+party can claim victory.
+
+No one who has not examined the authentic records of this period can
+appreciate how powerful the smugglers on sea and land had become. The
+impudence and independence of some of the former were amazing. We
+shall give instances in due course, but for the present we might take
+the case of the Revenue cutter which, after giving chase to a
+smuggling vessel, came up to the latter. Shots were exchanged, but the
+smuggler turned his swivel guns on to the Government craft with such a
+hot effect that the Revenue captain deemed it prudent to give up the
+fight and hurry away as fast as possible, after which the positions
+were reversed and the smuggler _actually chased the Revenue cutter!_
+In fact during the year 1777 one of the Customs officials wrote sadly
+to the Board that there was a large lugger off the coast, and so well
+armed that she was "greatly an overmatch" for even two of the Revenue
+cruisers. It seems almost ludicrous to notice a genuine and
+unquestionable report of a smuggling vessel coming into a bay, finding
+a Revenue cruiser lying quietly at anchor, and ordering the cruiser,
+with a fine flow of oaths, immediately to cut his cable and clear out;
+otherwise the smugglers promised to sink her. The Revenue cutter's
+commander did not cut his cable, but in truth he had to get his
+anchor up pretty promptly and clear out as he was told.
+
+It was not till after the year 1815 that the Government began
+seriously to make continuous headway in its efforts to cope with the
+smuggling evil. Consider the times. Between the years 1652 and 1816
+there were years and years of wars by land or by sea. There were the
+three great Anglo-Dutch wars, the wars with France, with Spain, to say
+nothing of the trouble with America. They were indeed anxious years
+that ended only with the Battle of Waterloo, and it was not likely
+that all this would in any way put a stop to that restlessness which
+was unmistakable. Wages were low, provisions were high, and the poorer
+classes of those days had by no means all the privileges possessed
+to-day. Add to this the undoubted fact that literally for centuries
+there had lived along the south coast of England, especially in the
+neighbourhood of the old Cinque ports, a race of men who were always
+ready for some piratical or semi-piratical sea exploit. It was in
+their blood to undertake and long for such enterprises, and it only
+wanted but the opportunity to send them roving the seas as privateers,
+or running goods illegally from one coast to another. And it is not
+true that time has altogether stifled that old spirit. When a liner
+to-day has the misfortune to lose her way in a fog and pile up on rock
+or sandbank, you read of the numbers of small craft which put out to
+salvage her cargo. But not all this help comes out of hearts of
+unfathomable pity. On the contrary, your beachman has an eye to
+business. He cannot go roving nowadays; time has killed the smuggling
+in which his ancestors distinguished themselves. But none the less he
+can legally profit by another vessel's misfortune; and, as the local
+families worked in syndicate fashion when they went smuggling, so now
+they mutually arrange to get the cargo ashore and, incidentally, make
+a very handsome profit as well.
+
+We need not envy the Government the difficult and trying task that was
+theirs during the height of the smuggling era. There was quite enough to
+think of in regard to foreign affairs without wanting the additional
+worry of these contraband runners. That must be borne in mind whenever
+one feels inclined to smile at the apparently half-hearted manner in
+which the authorities seemed to deal with the evil. Neither funds nor
+seamen, nor ships nor adequate attention could be spared just then to
+deal with these pests. And it was only after the wars had at last ended
+and the Napoleonic bogey had been settled that this domestic worry could
+be dealt with in the manner it required. There were waiting many evils
+to be remedied, and this lawlessness along the coast of the country was
+one of the greatest. But it was not a matter that could be adjusted in
+a hurry, and it was not for another forty or fifty years, not, in fact,
+until various administrative changes and improvements had taken place,
+that at last the evil was practically stamped out. As one looks through
+the existing records one cannot avoid noticing that there was scarcely a
+bay or suitable landing-place along the whole English coast-line that
+did not become notorious for these smuggling "runs": there is hardly a
+cliff or piece of high ground that has not been employed for the purpose
+of giving a signal to the approaching craft as they came on through the
+night over the dark waters. There are indeed very few villages in
+proximity to the sea that have not been concerned in these smuggling
+ventures and taken active interest in the landing of bales and casks.
+The sympathy of the country-side was with the smuggling fraternity.
+Magistrates were at times terrorised, juries were too frightened to
+convict. In short, the evil had grown to such an extent that it was a
+most difficult problem for any Government to be asked to deal with,
+needing as it did a very efficient service both of craft and men afloat,
+and an equally able and incorruptible guard on land that could not be
+turned from its purpose either by fear or bribery. We shall see from the
+following chapters how these two organisations--by sea and land--worked.
+
+If we exclude fiction, the amount of literature which has been
+published on smuggling is exceedingly small. Practically the whole of
+the following pages is the outcome of personal research among
+original, authentic manuscripts and official documents. Included under
+this head may be cited the Minutes of the Board of Customs, General
+Letters of the Board to the Collectors and Controllers of the various
+Out-ports, Out-port Letters to the Board, the transcripts from
+shorthand notes of Assizes and Promiscuous Trials of Smugglers, a
+large quantity of MSS. of remarkable incidents connected with
+smuggling, miscellaneous notes collected on the subject in the Library
+of the Customs House, instructions issued at different times to
+Customs officers and commanders of cruisers, General Orders issued to
+the Coastguard, together with a valuable précis (unpublished) of the
+existing documents in the many Customs Houses along the English coast
+made in the year 1911 by the Librarian to the Board of Customs on a
+round of visits to the different ports for that purpose. These
+researches have been further supplemented by other documents in the
+British Museum and elsewhere.
+
+This volume, therefore, contains within its pages a very large amount
+of material hitherto unpublished, and, additional to the details
+gathered together regarding smuggling methods, especial attention has
+been paid to collect all possible information concerning the Revenue
+sloops and cutters so frequently alluded to in those days as cruisers.
+I have so often heard a desire expressed among those interested in the
+literature of the sea to learn all about the King's cutters, how they
+were rigged, manned, victualled, armed, and navigated, what were their
+conditions of service at sea, and so on--finally, to obtain accounts
+of their chasing of smuggling craft, accounts based on the narratives
+of eye-witnesses of the incidents, the testimony of the commanders and
+crews themselves, both captors and captives, that I have been here at
+some pains to present the most complete picture of the subject that
+has hitherto been attempted. These cutters were most interesting craft
+by reason both of themselves and the chases and fights in which they
+were engaged. The King's cutters were employed, as many people are
+aware, as well in international warfare as in the Preventive Service.
+There is an interesting letter, for instance, to be read from
+Lieutenant Henry Rowed, commanding the Admiralty cutter _Sheerness_,
+dated September 9, 1803, off Brest, in which her gallant commander
+sends a notable account to Collingwood concerning the chasing of a
+French _chasse-marée_. And cutters were also employed in connection
+with the Walcheren expedition. The hired armed cutter _Stag_ was found
+useful in 1804 as a despatch vessel.
+
+But the King's cutters in the Revenue work were not always as active
+as they might be. In one of his novels (_The Three Cutters_) Captain
+Marryat gives the reader a very plain hint that there was a good deal
+of slackness prevalent in this section of the service. Referring to
+the midshipman of the Revenue cutter _Active_, the author speaks of
+him as a lazy fellow, too inert even to mend his jacket which was out
+at elbows, and adds, "He has been turned out of half the ships in the
+service for laziness; but he was born so, and therefore it is not his
+fault. A Revenue cutter suits him--she is half her time hove-to; and
+he has no objection to boat-service, as he sits down in the
+stern-sheets, which is not fatiguing. Creeping for tubs is his
+delight, as he gets over so little ground."
+
+But Marryat was, of course, intentionally sarcastic here. That this
+lazy element was not always, and in every ship, prevalent is clear
+from the facts at hand. It is also equally clear from the repeated
+admonitions and exhortations of the Board of Customs, by the
+holding-out of handsome rewards and the threatenings of dire
+penalties, that the Revenue-cutter commanders were at any rate
+periodically negligent of their duties. They were far too fond of
+coming to a nice snug anchorage for the night or seeking shelter in
+bad weather, and generally running into harbour with a frequence that
+was unnecessary. The result was that the cutter, having left her
+station unguarded, the smugglers were able to land their kegs with
+impunity.
+
+But we need not delay our story longer, and may proceed now to
+consider the subject in greater detail.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS
+
+
+It is no part of our intention to trace the history of the levying of
+customs through different reigns and in different ages, but it is
+important to note briefly that the evading of these dues which we
+designate smuggling, is one of the oldest offences on record.
+
+The most ancient dues paid to the English sovereigns would seem to
+have been those which were levied on the exportation and importation
+of merchandise across the sea; and it is essential to emphasise at the
+outset that though nowadays when we speak of smuggling we are
+accustomed to think only of those acts concerned with imports, yet the
+word applies equally to the unlawful manner of exporting commodities.
+Before it is possible for any crime to be committed there must needs
+be at hand the opportunity to carry out this intention; and throughout
+the history of our nation--at any rate from the thirteenth
+century--that portion of England, the counties of Kent and Sussex,
+which is adjacent to the Continent, has always been at once the most
+tempted and the most inclined towards this offence. Notwithstanding
+that there are many other localities which were rendered notorious by
+generations of smugglers, yet these two between them have been
+responsible for more incidents of this nature than all the rest put
+together.
+
+What I am anxious at first to emphasise is the fact that, although
+smuggling rose to unheard-of importance as a national danger during
+the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (and this is the period to
+which we shall especially address ourselves presently as affording the
+fullest and the most interesting information on an ingenious phase of
+human energy), yet it was not a practice which suddenly rose into
+prominence during that period. Human nature is much the same under
+various kings and later centuries. Under similar circumstances men and
+women perform similar actions. Confronted with the temptation to cheat
+the Crown of its dues, you will find persons in the time of George V.
+repeating the very crimes of Edward I. The difference is not so much
+in degree of guilt as in the nature of the articles and the manner in
+which they have been smuggled. To-day it may be cigars--centuries ago
+it was wool. Although the golden age (if we may use the term) of
+smuggling has long since passed, I am by no means unconvinced that if
+the occasions of temptation recurred to carry on this trade as it was
+pursued during the eighteenth and the first half of the nineteenth
+centuries, there would not be found many who would be ready to apply
+themselves to such a task. To some extent the modern improvements in
+living, in education, and increased respect for lofty ideals would
+modify this tendency; and long years have awakened so keen a regard
+for the benefits of law and order that the nefarious practice might
+not break out immediately on a large scale. But when we speak of
+smuggling it is perhaps more correct to speak of it as a disease which
+has not been exterminated from the system, but is, as it were, a
+microbe that is kept well under control and not allowed to spread.
+
+Everyone who is familiar with English history is aware of the
+important position which was occupied by the wool trade. Because of
+the immense value to the nation of the fleece it was necessary that
+this commodity should be kept in the country and not sent abroad. If
+in the present day most of our iron and coal were to be despatched
+abroad regardless of what was required by our manufacturers it would
+not be long before the country would begin to suffer serious loss. So,
+in the thirteenth century, it was with the wool. As a check to this a
+tax was levied on that wool which was exported out of the country, and
+during the reign of Edward III. attempts were made by the threat of
+heavy penalties to prevent the Continent from becoming the receptacle
+of our chief product. But the temptation was too great, the rewards
+were too alluring for the practice to be stopped. The fleece was
+carried across from England, made into cloth, and in this state sent
+back to us. Even in those days the town of Middleburgh, which we shall
+see later to have been the source of much of the goods smuggled into
+our country in the grand period, was in the fourteenth century the
+headquarters abroad of this clandestine trade. We need not weary the
+reader with the details of the means which were periodically taken to
+stop this trade by the English kings. It is enough to state that
+practically all the ports of Sussex and Kent were busily engaged in
+the illegal business. Neither the penalties of death, nor the fixing
+of the price of wool, nor the regulating of the rate of duty availed
+in the long-run. Licences to export this article were continually
+evaded, creeks and quiet bays were the scenes where the fleece was
+shipped for France and the Low Countries. Sometimes the price of wool
+fell, sometimes it rose; sometimes the Crown received a greater amount
+of duty, at other times the royal purse suffered very severely. In the
+time of Elizabeth the encouragement of foreign weavers to make their
+homes in England was likely to do much to keep the wool in the
+country, especially as there began to be increased wealth in our land,
+and families began to spend more money on personal comforts.
+
+Even in the time of Charles I. proclamations were issued against
+exporting wool, yet the mischief still went on. In the time of
+Charles II. men readily "risked their necks for 12d. a day."[1] The
+greatest part of the wool was sent from Romney Marsh, where, after
+nightfall, it was put on board French shallops with ten or twenty men
+to guard it, all well armed. And other parts of Sussex as well as Kent
+and even Essex were also engaged in similar exportations.
+
+But it is from the time of King Charles II. that the first serious
+steps were taken to cope with the smuggling evil, and from here we
+really take our starting-point in our present inquiry. Prior to his
+time the Customs, as a subsidy of the king, were prone to much
+variability. In the time of James I., for instance, they had been
+granted to the sovereign for life, and he claimed to alter the rates
+as he chose when pressed for money. When Charles I. came to the throne
+the Commons, instead of voting them for the extent of the sovereign's
+life, granted them for one year only. At a later date in the reign of
+that unhappy king the grant was made only for a couple of months.
+These dues were known as tonnage and poundage, the former being a duty
+of 1s. 6d. to 3s. levied on every ton of wine and liquor exported and
+imported. Poundage was a similar tax of 6d. to 1s. on every pound of
+dry goods.
+
+It was not till after the Restoration that the customs were settled
+and more firmly established, a subsidy being "granted to the king of
+tonnage and poundage and other sums of money payable upon merchandise
+exported and imported." Nominally the customs were employed for
+defraying the cost of "guarding and defending the seas against all
+persons intending the disturbance of his subjects in the intercourse
+of trade, and the invading of this realm." And so, also, there was
+inaugurated a more systematic and efficient method of preventing this
+export smuggling. So far as one can find any records from the existing
+manuscripts of this early Preventive system, the chronological order
+would seem to be as follows: The first mention of any kind of marine
+service that I can trace is found in a manuscript of 1674, which shows
+the establishment of the Custom House organisation in that year for
+England and Wales. From this it is clear that there had been made a
+beginning of that system which was later to develop into that of the
+Revenue cutters. And when we recollect how extremely interested was
+Charles II. in everything pertaining to the sea and to sloop-rigged
+craft especially, it seems very natural to believe that this monarch
+inspired, or at any rate very considerably encouraged, the formation
+of a small fleet of Custom House sailing craft. Elsewhere I have
+discussed this matter at length, therefore it may suffice if attention
+is called to the fact that to Charles was due the first yacht into
+England, presented to him by the Dutch; while from his encouragement
+were born the sport of yachting and the building of English yachts. He
+was very much concerned in the rig of sloops, and loved to sail in
+such craft, and his yacht was also most probably the first vessel of
+that rig which had ever been employed by English sailors. Further
+still, he was something of a naval architect, the founder of the
+Greenwich Royal Observatory and the _Nautical Almanac_, and under his
+rule a fresh impulse was given to navigation and shipbuilding
+generally.
+
+At any rate by the year 1674 there were among the smaller sailing
+craft of England a number of sloops and smacks employed doubtless for
+fishing and coasting work. As a kind of marine police, the Custom
+House authorities determined to hire some of these to keep a watch on
+the "owlers," as the wool-smugglers were termed, so called, no doubt,
+because they had to pursue their calling always by night. Whatever
+efforts had been adopted prior to his reign probably had consisted for
+the most part, if not entirely, of a land police. But under this
+second Charles the very sensible and obvious idea of utilising a
+number of sailing craft was started. In the above MS. volume the first
+reference is to "Peter Knight, Master of ye smack for ye wages of him
+self and five men and boy, and to bear all charges except wear and
+tear ... £59." "For extraordinary wear and tear," he was to be paid
+£59. His vessel was the Margate smack. In the same volume there is
+also a reference to the "Graves End smack," and to "Thomas Symonds for
+wages and dyett [diet] for himself, master and six men ... £56, 5s.
+0d." And for the "wear and tear to be disposed as ye Commrs. direct
+... £14, 15s. 0d." There was yet a third vessel stationed a few miles
+away, the "Quinborrough smack," and a reference to "Nicholas Badcock
+for hire of ye smack, two men, and to bear all charges ... £23." These
+vessels were not known as Revenue cutters at this time, but as Custom
+House smacks. They were hired by the Commissioners of the Customs from
+private individuals to prevent the owlers from smuggling the wool from
+Kent, Essex, and Sussex. But it would seem that these smacks, even if
+they modified a little the activities of the owlers, did not succeed
+in bringing about many convictions. Romney Marsh still sent its
+contribution across to France and Holland, much as it had done for
+generations.
+
+But in 1698 the attack on the men of Kent and Sussex was strengthened
+by legislation, for by 7 & 8 William III. cap. 28, it was enacted that
+"for the better preventing the exportation of wool and correspondence
+with France ... the Lord High Admiral of England, or Commissioners for
+executing the office of Lord High Admiral for the time being, shall
+from time to time direct and appoint one ship of the Fifth Rate, and
+two ships of the Sixth Rate, and four armed sloops constantly to
+cruise off the North Foreland to the Isle of Wight, with orders for
+taking and seizing all ships, vessels, or boats which shall export any
+wool or carry or bring any prohibited goods or any suspected persons."
+It was due to William III.'s Government also that no person living
+within fifteen miles of the sea in those counties should buy any wool
+before he entered into a bond, with sureties, that all the wool he
+might buy should be sold by him to no persons within fifteen miles of
+the sea, and all growers of wool within ten miles of the sea in those
+counties were obliged within three days of shearing to account for the
+number of fleeces, and where they were lodged.
+
+Instructions were duly issued to captains of sloops, and a scheme
+drafted for surrounding the whole of the coast with sloops, the crews
+consisting of master, mate, and mariners. But from an entry in the
+Excise and Treasury Reports of 1685, it is clear that a careful regard
+even at that date was being had for the import smuggling as well. The
+reference belongs to September 24, and shows that a "boarding" boat
+was desired for going alongside vessels in the Downs, and preventing
+the running in of brandies along the coast in that vicinity. The
+charge for building such a boat is to be £25. In another MS. touching
+the Customs, there is under date of June 1695 an interesting reference
+to "a Deale yoghall to be built," and that "such a boat will be here
+of very good use." She is to be "fitt to go into ye roads for boarding
+men or other ocations when ye sloops may be at sea."
+
+So much, then, for the present as to the guarding by sea against the
+smugglers. Let us now turn to look into the means adopted by land. The
+wool-owners of Romney Marsh were still hard at their game, and the
+horses still came down to the beach ladened with the packs ready to be
+shipped. If any one were sent with warrants to arrest the delinquents,
+they were attacked, beaten, and forced to flee, followed by armed gangs
+on horseback. But it was evident that the Crown was determined not to
+let the matter rest, for a number of surveyors were appointed for
+nineteen counties and 299 riding officers as well, though they made few
+seizures, and obtained still fewer condemnations, but at great expense
+to the State. In 1703 it was believed that the owling trade, especially
+in Romney Marsh, was broken if not dead, although the smuggling by
+import was on the increase, especially as regards silks, lace, and such
+"fine" goods. At that time for the two hundred miles of coast-line
+between the Isle of Sheppey and Emsworth--practically the whole of the
+Kentish and Sussex shore--fifty officers were being employed at a
+salary of £60 per annum, with an allowance to each of another £30
+annually for a servant and horse to assist them during the night. And
+there was authority also for the employment of dragoons to aid the
+riding officers, especially in the neighbourhood of Romney Marsh; but
+there was a number of "weak and superannuated" men among the latter, who
+did not make for the efficiency of the service.
+
+We need not say much more about the wool-exportation. In spite of all
+the efforts of the Custom House smacks and the assistance of his
+Majesty's ships of war, in spite, too, of further legislation, it
+still continued. It went on merrily at any rate till the end of the
+eighteenth century, by which time the smuggling by imports had long
+since eclipsed its importance. It was the wars with France during the
+time of William and Mary which increased and rendered more easy the
+smuggling into England of silk and lace. And by means of the craft
+which imported these goods there used to be smuggled also a good deal
+of Jacobite correspondence. As Kent and Sussex had been famous for
+their export smuggling, so these counties were again to distinguish
+themselves by illicit importation. From now on till the middle of this
+eighteenth century this newer form of smuggling rose gradually to
+wondrous heights. And yet it was by no means new. In the time of
+Edward III. steps had to be taken to prevent the importation of base
+coin into the realm, and in succeeding reigns the king had been
+cheated many a time of that which ought to have come to him through
+the duties of goods entering the country.
+
+It was impossible instantly to put down a practice which had been
+pursued by so many families for so many hundreds of years. But the
+existing force was not equal to coping with the increase. As a
+consequence the daring of the smugglers knew no bounds--the more they
+succeeded the more they ventured. A small gang of ten would blossom
+forth into several hundreds of men, there would be no lack of arms nor
+clubs, and adequate arrangements would be made for cellar-storage of
+the goods when safely brought into the country. Consequently violence
+became more frequent than ever--bloodshed and all sorts of crimes
+occurred.
+
+In the year 1723 several commissions or deputations were issued by the
+Chancellor of the Exchequer to captains of his Majesty's sloops to
+make seizures, and the following year the Treasury authorised the
+construction of seven sloops for service off the coast of Scotland.
+The smugglers had in fact become so desperate, the English Channel was
+so thoroughly infested with them, and the Revenue service was so
+incapable of dealing with them in the manner that was obviously
+essential for effectiveness, that the Admiralty ordered the captains
+and commanders of His Majesty's ships to assist the Revenue officers
+all they could in order to prevent the smuggling trade, and to look
+out and seize all vessels employed in illegally exporting wool; for
+the Admiralty had been informed by the Commissioners of Customs that
+the Revenue officers frequently met with insults from French smuggling
+luggers manned by armed crews, who carried on a brisk smuggling trade
+by force and even dared the Revenue men to come aboard them.
+
+But as the Revenue service afloat was assisted now by the Navy, so the
+Revenue land guard was also aided by the Military. In 1713
+arrangements had been made that dragoons should co-operate with the
+riding officers in their operations against the owlers, and there are
+plenty of skirmishes recorded showing that the dragoons were actually
+so employed. Originally these soldiers were employed under the
+direction of the riding officers, but, as can well be expected, there
+was a good deal of jealousy and friction caused through the sharing of
+the soldiers in the rewards for seizures, and after the year 1822 this
+military assistance was not utilised to any great extent, although
+legally Army officers can still be called upon to render assistance
+against smuggling. And, in passing, one might mention that this
+co-operation afloat between the Customs men and the Navy was equally
+noticeable for a certain amount of ill-feeling, as we shall mention
+on a later page.
+
+Before the first quarter of the eighteenth century was completed,
+smuggling between England and the Continent was proceeding at a brisk
+pace, and by the middle of that century it had well-nigh reached its
+climax for fearlessness. We have already alluded to the establishment
+of hired smacks and sloops inaugurated towards the end of the
+seventeenth century. The sloop rig, as I have shown in another
+volume,[2] had probably been introduced into England from Holland soon
+after the accession of Charles II., but from that date its merits of
+handiness were so fully recognised that for yachts, for fishing craft,
+for the carrying of passengers and cargo up and down the Thames and
+along the coast as well as across to Ireland and the Continent, the
+rig was adopted very readily in place of the lug-sails. The smack was
+also a sloop-rigged vessel. We need not enter here into a discussion
+as to the comparative merits of sloops and cutters and smacks. It is
+enough if we state that when it was realised that a vessel of say 100
+tons, sloop-rigged, with her one mast, mainsail, and two headsails and
+square topsail (set forward of the mast on a yard) could be handled
+with fewer men and therefore less expense than a lugger of similar
+size; was also more suitable for manoeuvring in narrow channels,
+and for entering and leaving small harbours, the fishermen, coasters,
+and so on took to this improvement. Thus most naturally the larger
+smuggling craft were till well on into the nineteenth century sloops
+or cutters, and equally natural was it that the Revenue availed
+themselves of this rig first by hiring smacks, and, later, by building
+for themselves. These sloops, whether hired or owned, were given each
+a particular station to guard, and that plan was followed by the
+Revenue cruisers for many years to follow. Among the Exeter documents
+of the Customs Department is included an interesting document dated
+July 10, 1703, wherein the Board of Customs informs the collector at
+the port of Dartmouth of the list of vessels appointed by the
+Commissioners to cruise against owlers, the district comprised
+extending from Pembroke in the west to the Downs in the east. The
+following is the list of these vessels with their respective cruising
+territories:--
+
+  NAME OF CRUISER           LIMITS OF HER SPHERE
+
+  _Rye_                     Pembroke to Lundy Island
+  _Discovery_               Milford to Swansea
+  _Dolphin_                 Milford to Exmouth
+  _Hastings_                   "    "    "
+  _Woolwich_                Downs to Falmouth
+  _Swan_                      "   "    "
+  _Fly_                     Off Folkestone
+  _Dispatch_                 "      "
+
+This fairly well covered the region to which goods were likely to be
+run from the Continent as well as that from which the owlers were wont
+to export their wool. From an entry among the documents preserved in
+the Custom House at Newcastle, dated September 1729, we can see that
+also the north-east coast was guarded thus:--
+
+  NAME OF CRUISER           LIMITS OF HER SPHERE
+
+  _Cruiser_                 Flamborough Head to Newcastle
+  _Deal Castle_             Newcastle to Leith
+  _Spy_                     Firth of Forth to Newcastle
+
+And about the last-mentioned date the _Deal Castle_ had succeeded in
+capturing four French smuggling craft and brought them into Shields.
+
+To the other side of England the Isle of Man, which was a veritable
+contraband depôt, used to send quantities of dutiable goods, Liverpool
+being the favourite destination, and it was a more difficult matter
+here to deal with than in many other ports. On October 9, 1713, the
+Collector at Liverpool writes to the Board of Customs that he thinks a
+sloop would be of little service for that port. Some time ago they had
+one, which was not a success "by reason of ye dangerousness and
+difficulty of the harbour and ye many shoales of sand, which often
+shift in bad weather." The Manxmen were a thoroughly lawless,
+desperate species of smugglers, who stopped at nothing, and were
+especially irate towards all Revenue and public officials,
+recognising no authority other than might and a certain respect for
+the Duke of Atholl, the owner of the Isle of Man.
+
+Among the letters to Southampton there is a record dated June 14, 1729,
+which shows that a number of his Majesty's sloops were appointed by the
+Admiralty to cruise off the coasts of the kingdom to prevent the
+exporting of wool and the running of goods by the import-smugglers. For
+instance, the Admiralty sloop _Swift_ was appointed to cruise between
+Portland, Poole, and Jack-in-the-Basket off the entrance to Lymington
+Harbour, Hants, her commander being a Captain Cockayne. Similarly the
+sloop _Success_ (Captain Thomas Smith, commander) was to cruise between
+Portland and Spithead, and the _Rye_ (Captain John Edwards) between the
+Isle of Wight and Beachy Head to the eastward. It was part of the duty
+of the Revenue officers at Southampton to see that these three ships
+constantly cruised on their station, and if their commanders were found
+negligent of this duty the matter was to be reported to the Board of
+Customs. The Revenue craft were apparently not above suspicion, for in
+November of 1729 the Southampton officers of the Customs reported to
+headquarters that this very sloop, the _Swift_, every time she went
+across to Guernsey in connection with her duties of prevention, used to
+bring back quantities of wine, brandy, and other dutiable goods under
+the pretence that they were the ship's stores. The intention, however,
+was nothing less than that which dominated the actions of the smugglers
+themselves--the very class against which the _Swift_ was employed--for
+Captain Cockayne's men used to find it no very difficult matter to run
+these goods ashore clandestinely under the very eyes of the unsuspecting
+Customs officers. The Commissioners of the Customs therefore sent down
+strict instructions that the _Swift_ was to be rummaged every time she
+arrived at Southampton from Guernsey. We shall have reason presently to
+refer more especially to the Channel Isles again, but it may suffice for
+the present to state that they were in the south the counterpart of the
+Isle of Man in the north as being a depôt whence the import smugglers
+fetched their goods across to England.
+
+Additional to the Naval sloops just mentioned, there were two other
+cutters belonging to the Southampton station under the Revenue and
+not, of course, Admiralty-owned craft. These vessels were respectively
+the _Calshot_ and the _Hurst_, and it is worth noting that at the time
+we are thinking of (1729) these vessels are referred to generally as
+"yatchs" or "yachts." It was not quite seventy years since the first
+yacht--that presented to Charles II., named the _Mary_--had arrived in
+England, and it was only in 1720 that the first yacht club had been
+established, not in England, but in Cork. If we may judge from
+contemporary paintings of yachts we can visualise the _Hurst_ and
+_Calshot_ as being very tubby, bluff-bowed craft with ample beam. But
+what would especially strike us in these modern days would be the
+exceptionally long bowsprit, the forward end of which was raised
+considerably above the water than its after end, both jib and foresail
+each working on a stay.
+
+The commander of the _Calshot_ yacht was a Captain Mears, and there is
+an entry in the Southampton documents to the effect that he was paid
+the sum of £2, 12s. 6d. for piloting his vessel from Southampton to
+Guernsey and back in connection with the Preventive duties. This trip
+took him five days, his pay being half a guinea a day. It is clear
+from a record of the following year that Mears was employed by special
+arrangement, for on July 18, 1730, the Board of Customs decided that
+it was necessary that Captain John Mears, commander of the _Calshot_
+yacht at Southampton, should now be placed on the same footing as the
+other commanders of the Revenue sloops and smacks in regard to the
+matter of wear and tear. Henceforth the sum of 30s. per ton was to be
+allowed him instead of £47 per annum. Both yacht and her boats were to
+be kept in good repair, but the commander was first to give security
+to have the vessel and her boats generally in good order and
+reasonable repair, loss by violence of the sea or other unavoidable
+accidents excepted. The commander was also to find the sloop and her
+boats with all manner of necessaries and materials, so that the Crown
+was to be at no charge on that account in the future; and every
+quarter the Comptroller and Collector of the port were to certify to
+the Board as to whether the yacht and boats were in good repair.
+
+It would appear that these two vessels were not actually owned by the
+Customs but hired from Captain Mears; and less than a month before the
+above order the Surveyor-General of the Customs for Hampshire
+represented to the Board that it would be necessary to allow the
+commander of the _Hurst_ half-a-dozen muskets, two pairs of pistols,
+half-a-dozen swords or cutlasses, and these were accordingly ordered
+to be sent, together with two swivel guns, from Weymouth to Captain
+Mears "by the first coast vessel bound to" Southampton. There was
+certainly need for a strict vigilance to be kept in that
+neighbourhood, for there was a good deal of smuggling then being
+carried on along the Hampshire shore in the vicinity of Hurst Castle
+and Beaulieu.
+
+In another chapter we shall go into the important matter touching the
+flags that were worn by the vessels employed in looking after
+smuggling, but, in passing, we may call attention to a letter which
+the Board sent to Southampton at this time referring to the
+proclamation of December 18, 1702, by which no ships whatsoever were
+allowed to wear a pendant excepting those engaged in the service of
+the Royal Navy, but that the sloops employed in the several public
+offices (as, for instance, the Customs and the Excise) should wear
+Jacks, whereon was to be described the seal used in the respective
+offices. And Captain John Mears, senior, of the _Calshot_, and Captain
+John Mears, junior, of the _Hurst_, were to be informed that they must
+deliver up their pendants to the Customs' office at Southampton and
+for the future forbear wearing a pendant. Instead thereof they are to
+wear a Jack and ensign with the seal of office therein, "but the mark
+in the ensign is to be twice as large as that in the Jack; and if the
+captain should hereafter find that the not wearing a pendant will be
+any obstruction or hindrance to the service," the Board of Customs is
+to be informed.[3]
+
+We have now seen something of the sloops and cutters on the south, the
+west, and the north-east coasts. Let us take a glance at the district
+to the southward of Flamborough during this same period. From the Hull
+letter book we find that in September of 1733 the Admiralty appointed
+Captain Burrish of the _Blandford_ and Sir Roger Butler of the
+_Bonetta_ to cruise between Flamborough and Newcastle; but Captain
+Oates of the _Fly_ and Captain Rycant of the _Tryal_ were to cruise
+between Flamborough and Yarmouth. There is also a reference to the
+Revenue sloop _Humber_ employed in this neighbourhood on Preventive
+work. She was a somewhat expensive craft to keep up, as she was
+frequently needing repairs and renewals. First, she was to have a new
+cable which was to cost £20, 14s. 3-1/2d.; and it is a striking
+reminder of those days of hemp and sail that this bill was paid to the
+"ropemakers." A few months later she had to undergo repairs which
+amounted to £31, 10s. 6-1/4d., and less than six months afterwards she
+had to be given a new anchor which cost £18, 8s. 9d. Three years later
+she was given a new suit of sails which came to £25, 17s. 1d. but her
+old suit was sold for the sum of eight guineas. And finally, in 1744,
+as she had begun to cost so much for repairing, the Board determined
+to sell her.
+
+Notwithstanding that the south coast, by reason of its proximity to
+the Continent and the Channel Isles, was a convenient and popular
+objective for the smugglers running their goods from France and
+Holland, yet the Yorkshire coast was by no means neglected. From
+Dunkirk and Flushing especially goods poured into the county. There
+was a small sloop, for instance, belonging to Bridlington, which was
+accustomed to sail across the North Sea to one of the ports in
+Zealand, where a cargo was taken aboard consisting of the usual
+dutiable articles such as tea, tobacco, and gin. The return voyage was
+then made and the goods landed clandestinely at some convenient spot
+between the Spurn Lighthouse and Bridlington.
+
+Similarly, farther south than the Humber smuggling by illegal
+importation went on extensively in the early eighteenth century.
+Sometimes a Dutch vessel would arrive in Grimsby Roads and succeed in
+quietly running her goods to the shore. In the autumn of 1734 the
+master of the Dutch schuyt _The Good Luck of Camphire_, alias _The
+Brotherly Love_, had succeeded in running as many as 166
+half-ankers[4] of brandy and 50 lbs. of tea on the coast near Great
+Yarmouth, the skipper's name being Francis Coffee. He was a notorious
+smuggler. But on this occasion both he and his vessel were captured.
+
+Still, matters were not always satisfactory on board the Revenue
+sloops and smacks, for whenever, at this time, there was an encounter
+with the smugglers afloat the latter were so violent and desperate
+that the captors went about their work with their lives in their
+hands. Furthermore, it was not altogether a pleasing business to have
+to fire at fellow-countrymen, many of whom they had known from
+boyhood. Then, again, there was not the space on these sloops and
+cutters, nor the amount of deck room to be found on the men-of-war;
+and to be cooped up in these comparatively small vessels always on the
+_qui vive_, usually near the shore but able to have shore-leave all
+too rarely, was calculated to make for restlessness. Added to which a
+very considerable portion of the crews of these Revenue craft was
+composed of men who had spent years of their lives as smugglers
+themselves. Consequently it was not altogether surprising that
+mutinies and refusals to obey their commander's orders were of
+frequent occurrence. After a time it was decided that those members of
+the crew which had to be dismissed for such offences were to be handed
+over to the commander of the next man-of-war that should come along,
+and be pressed into the service of the Navy, though, it may be added,
+this was not always a welcome gift to the Naval commander compelled to
+receive a handful of recalcitrant men aboard his ship. Then, again,
+when at last a handful of smugglers had been captured it was the duty
+of the Revenue officers to prosecute them before the magistrate at
+their own expense. This was regarded as an unfair hardship, and in
+1736 the system was modified by the Treasury allowing an officer a
+third of whatever amount was recovered, the prosecution to be carried
+on at the King's expense. At the same time it was undeniable that some
+commanders of these sloops and cutters were not quite as active as
+they might be on their station. There was too ready an excuse to run
+in from the sea and too great an inclination to spend valuable time in
+port. They were accordingly now enjoined not to presume to lay up for
+the purpose of giving the ship's bottom a scrub, or for a refit,
+without previously giving the Collector and Comptroller of the port
+ten days' notice. This was not to occur unless the cruiser really
+needed such attention; but if it was essential then to prevent the
+station remaining unguarded some other smack or vessel was to be sent
+out to take her place for the time being. For the smugglers were kept
+so well informed of the movements of the Revenue ships that a
+contraband cargo of goods would soon be found approaching the shore
+during the night when the watch had been relaxed.
+
+But from an early date--at any rate as far back as 1694--the East
+India ships were notorious also for smuggling into the country a
+considerable amount of goods that ought to have paid duty. We shall
+bring forward instances presently of East Indiamen, homeward bound,
+being boarded as they come up Channel, or while waiting in the Downs
+and putting some of their cargo on board smuggling cutters and Deal
+boats, which was subsequently quietly and secretly brought into the
+country. Silks were especially popular among the smugglers in this
+connection. In those days, too, the more wealthy passengers coming
+home by these East Indiamen used to leave the ship at Spithead, where
+they came in for that purpose. These passengers would then be put
+ashore at Portsmouth, and, proceeding by coach to London, thus
+shortened their sea journey. But notwithstanding their ample means,
+many of these travellers were constantly found endeavouring to land
+dutiable articles. In short, rich and poor, high and low, there was no
+class that did not endeavour to engage in smuggling either directly or
+indirectly. Even if the party never ventured on the sea, he might be a
+very active aider and abettor in meeting the boat as it brought the
+casks ashore, or keeping a look out for the Preventive men, giving the
+latter false information, thus throwing them on the wrong scent. Or
+again, even if he did not act the part of signaller by showing warning
+lights from the cliff, he could loan his cellars, his horses, or his
+financial support. In fact there were many apparently respectable
+citizens who, by keeping in the background, were never suspected of
+having any interest in these nefarious practices, whereas they were in
+fact the instigators and the capitalists of many a successful run. And
+as such they were without doubt morally responsible for the deaths by
+murder which occurred in those incidents, when violence was used after
+the Revenue men had come on to the scene.
+
+But as to morality, was there ever a period when the national
+character was so slack and corrupt as in the eighteenth century?
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[1] "Smuggling in Sussex," by William Durrant Cooper, F.S.A., in vol.
+x. of the _Sussex Archæological Collection_, to which I am indebted.
+
+[2] _Fore and Aft: The Story of the Fore-and-Aft Rig._ London, 1911.
+
+[3] "Southampton Letters," November 6, 1730. But in 1719, the Customs
+Commissioners had, _inter alia_, agreed to provide Captain Mears with
+"a suit of colours" for the _Calshot_. This provision was, therefore,
+now cancelled in the year 1730.
+
+[4] A half-anker held 3-1/4 gallons.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING
+
+
+About the middle of the eighteenth century the smuggling of tea into
+the country had reached such extensive limits that the revenue which
+ought to have been expected from this source was sinking instead of
+rising. In fact it came to this, that of all the tea that was consumed
+in this country not one half had paid duty and the rest was smuggled.
+The bands of smugglers were well financed, were themselves hardy
+sailors and skilful pilots. They had some of the best designed and
+best built cutters and luggers of that time. They were able to
+purchase from an almost inexhaustible market, and to make a quick
+passage to the English shores. Arrived there they could rely on both
+moral and physical support; for their friends were well mounted, well
+armed, and exceedingly numerous, so that ordinarily the cargo could be
+rapidly unshipped, and either hidden or run into the country with
+despatch. Not once, but times without number the smuggling cutters had
+evaded the Revenue cruisers at sea, showing them a clean pair of
+heels. With equal frequency had the Preventive men on land been
+outwitted, bribed, or overpowered. And inasmuch as the duties on the
+smuggled articles were high, had they passed through the Customs, so,
+when smuggled, they could always fetch a big price, and the share for
+the smugglers themselves was by no means inconsiderable. But it is
+always the case that, when large profits are made by lawless, reckless
+people, these proceeds are as quickly dissipated in extravagance of
+living. It is sad to think that these seafaring men, who possessed so
+much grit and pluck, had such only been applied in a right direction,
+actually died paupers. As one reads through the pitiful petitions,
+written on odd scraps of paper in the most illiterate of hands begging
+for clemency on behalf of a convicted smuggler, one can see all too
+clearly that on the whole it was not the actual workers but the
+middle-men who, as is usually the case, made the profits. A life of
+such uncertainty and excitement, an existence full of so many
+hairbreadth escapes did not fit them for the peaceful life either of
+the fisherman or the farmer. With them money went as easily as it had
+come, and taking into account the hardness of the life, the risks that
+were undertaken, the possibility of losing their lives, or of being
+transported after conviction, it cannot be said that these men were
+any too well paid. Carelessness of danger led to recklessness;
+recklessness led on to a life that was dissolute and thriftless. And
+in spite of the fact that these tear-stained appeals were usually
+signed by all the respectable inhabitants of the seaside village--the
+rector, the local shipbuilder, Lloyds' shipping agent, the chief
+landowners and so forth--many a wife and family had to starve or
+become chargeable to the Union, while the breadwinner was spending his
+time in prison, serving as an impressed sailor on board one of his
+Majesty's ships against the enemy; or, if he had been found physically
+unfit for such service, condemned to seven or more years of
+transportation.
+
+But by the year 1745 smuggling had reached such a pitch that something
+had to be done. The country was in such a state of alarm and the
+honest traders made such bitter complaints of the disastrous effect
+which these illicit practices were having on their prosperity that, on
+the 6th of February in that year, a Parliamentary Committee was formed
+"to inquire into the causes of the most infamous practice of smuggling
+and consider the most effectual methods to prevent the said practice."
+For it was clear that in spite of all that had been done by the
+Customs and Excise, by the Admiralty and the military, they had not
+succeeded in obtaining the desired effect.
+
+And during the course of this inquiry a great deal of interesting
+evidence came out from expert witnesses, some of whom had not long
+since been the greatest smugglers in existence, but had come forward
+and received the pardon of the State. We may summarise the testimony
+obtained by this Committee as follows. The smugglers, after sailing
+away from England, used to purchase the tea abroad sometimes with
+money but at other times with wool. That was a serious matter in
+either alternative if, as was the case, the transactions were carried
+on to any large extent; for the country simply could not afford to be
+denuded either of its valuable wool--since that crippled the wool
+manufactures--or of the coin of the realm, which made for bankruptcy.
+But this was not all. England was at war with her neighbours, and the
+French only too gladly admitted the smuggling vessels into her ports,
+since these lawless and unpatriotic men were able to give information
+of the state of affairs in England. There was in the Isle of Man at
+this time no levying of Customs or other duties, so that between that
+island and France there was kept up a constant trade especially in
+teas, other East India goods and brandies, which were afterwards
+conveyed clandestinely to English ports, especially to Liverpool, as
+already we have noted, and also to Glasgow, Dumfries, as well as to
+Ireland. In the days when there were sloops at Liverpool doing duty
+for the Crown they used to set forth and do their best to stop this
+running, "but as it is a very dangerous station, a seizure is scarce
+heard of."
+
+As illustrative of the achievements of smugglers at that time let us
+mention that it was reported officially from Yarmouth that on July 11
+fifty smugglers had run a cargo of tea and brandy at Benacre in
+Suffolk, and only a fortnight later a band of sixty smugglers landed
+another contraband cargo at the same place, while a gang of forty got
+another cargo safely ashore at Kesland Haven. A week later a still
+larger band, this time consisting of seventy, passed through Benacre
+Street with a large quantity of goods, a cart and four horses. The
+smugglers at Kesland Haven had been able to bring inland their cargo
+of tea and brandy by means of fifty horses. In one month alone--and
+this at the depth of the winter when cross-channel passages could not
+be expected to be too safe for small sailing craft--nine smuggling
+cutters had sailed from the port of Rye to Guernsey; and it was
+estimated that during the last half of the year there had been run on
+to the coast of Suffolk 1835 horse-loads of tea as well as certain
+other goods, and 1689 horse-loads of wet and dry goods, to say nothing
+of a large quantity of other articles that should have paid duty.
+These were conveyed away up country by means of waggons and other
+vehicles, guarded by a formidable band of smugglers and sympathisers
+well armed. Notwithstanding that the Revenue officers were in some
+cases aware of what was going on, yet they positively dared not
+attempt any seizures. And in those instances where they had undertaken
+the risk they had been frequently beaten and left cruelly wounded
+with bleeding heads and broken limbs.
+
+One reliable witness testified that whereas it was computed that at
+this time about 4,000,000 lbs. of tea were consumed in this kingdom,
+yet only about 800,000 lbs. of this had ever paid duty, so that there
+was considerably over 3,000,000 lbs. weight of tea smuggled in.
+Therefore on this one item of tea alone the loss to the Crown must
+have been something enormous. Multiply this by the long years during
+which the smuggling went on, add also the duties which ought to have
+been paid on tobacco and spirits, even if you omit to include the
+amount which should have accrued from lace and other commodities, and
+you may begin to realise the seriousness of the smuggling evil as
+viewed by the Revenue authorities.
+
+It was noted that a great deal of this contraband stuff was fetched
+over from Flushing and from Middleburgh, a few miles farther up on the
+canal. The big merchant sailing ships brought the tea from the East to
+Holland, France, Sweden, and Denmark. But the Dutch, the French, the
+Swedes, and the Danes were not great tea drinkers, and certainly used
+it in nothing like the quantities which were consumed in England. But
+it was profitable to them to purchase this East Indian product and to
+sell it again to the smugglers who were wont to run across from
+England. It should be added, however, that the species of tea in
+question were of the cheaper qualities. It was also frankly admitted
+in evidence that many of the civil magistrates, whose duty it was to
+grant warrants for the arrest of these delinquents, were intimidated
+by the smugglers, while the officers of the Customs and Excise were
+terrorised.
+
+At this period of the smuggling era, that is to say prior to the
+middle of the eighteenth century, most of the smuggled tea was brought
+over to the south coast of England in Folkestone cutters of a size
+ranging from fifty to forty tons burthen. These vessels usually came
+within about three or four miles of the shore, when they were met by
+the smaller boats of the locality and the goods unladened. Indeed the
+trade was so successful that as many as twenty or thirty cargoes were
+run in a week, and Flushing became so important a base that not merely
+did the natives subsidise or purchase Folkestone craft, but
+ship-builders actually migrated from that English port to Flushing and
+pursued their calling in Dutch territory. As to the reward which the
+smugglers themselves made out of the transaction, the rates of payment
+varied at a later date, but about the years 1728 and 1729 the
+tea-dealers paid the men eight shillings a pound for the commodity.
+And in spite of the seizures which were made by the Revenue cutters
+and the land guard, yet these losses, admitted a witness, were a mere
+trifle to the smugglers. In fact he affirmed that sometimes one
+tea-dealer never suffered a seizure in six or seven years. We can
+therefore readily believe that the financiers netted a very handsome
+profit on the whole, and there are still standing plenty of fine
+mansions in different parts of our country which are generally
+supposed to have been erected from the proceeds of this form of
+activity.
+
+There was a kind of local intelligence bureau in most of the smuggling
+centres on the south coast, and so loyal and so watchful were these
+craftsmen that the inhabitants of the coast-line managed to let their
+_confreres_ know when the Custom House sloops had sailed out of port
+or when they hauled up for repairs and refit. As a consequence the
+smuggling craft commonly escaped capture. Animated by a natural hatred
+of all Government officials in general, especially of all those whose
+duty it was to collect taxes, dues, and any kind of tolls; disliking
+most of all the men of the Customs and Excise, and, further, being
+allied by sympathy and blood relationship to many of the smugglers
+themselves, it was almost impossible for the representatives of the
+Crown to make any steady progress in their work. We all know that when
+a number of even average law-abiding people get together, that crowd
+somehow tends towards becoming a mob. Each person, so to speak,
+forfeits his own individuality, that becomes merged into the
+personality and character of the mob, which all the time is being
+impelled to break out into something unlawful of a minor or greater
+degree. Whenever you have stood among crowds you must have noted this
+for yourself. It gets restive at the least opposition with which it is
+confronted, it boos and jeers with the smallest incitement; and,
+finally, realising the full strength of its unity, breaks out into
+some rash violence and rushes madly on, heedless of the results. Many
+murders have been in this way committed by men who ordinarily and in
+their individual capacity would shrink from such crimes. But having
+become merely one of the limbs, as it were, of the crowd they have
+moved with the latter and obeyed its impulses.
+
+It was just the same when many of the dwellers of the country-side,
+many of the fishermen, labourers, and farm-hands found themselves
+assembled on the report of a pistol shot or the cry of angry voices
+coming up from the beach below. Something was happening, some one was
+in trouble, and the darkness of the night or the gloom of the fog
+added a halo of mystery round the occasion. Men and women came out
+from their cottages, some one got hit, and then a general affray
+began. Clubs and pistols and cutlasses were busy, men were bellowing
+forth oaths, women shrieking, and the galloping of horses heard
+rapidly approaching. Amid such excitements we can readily understand
+that a good many acts of violence and deep injury occurred which
+afterwards, when the heat of the event had vaporised, were regretted.
+At the same time, notwithstanding that one is aware that the men were
+engaged in an unlawful pursuit and that they themselves fully
+appreciated their degree of guilt, yet we cannot but feel some sort of
+sympathy with a crew who, after a long and exciting passage through
+bad weather all the way across the Channel, after perhaps a breathless
+race against the Government cruisers, had finally succeeded in landing
+their tubs on the shore only to be pounced on immediately by the
+riding officers and a _posse_ of dragoons. It must have been
+heart-breaking that all their carefully laid plans, all their
+hardships and trials should end in disaster. Realising this and that
+their craft as well as their persons would be seized, it was but
+natural that they would fight like the most desperate of men. And, at
+the same time, those their relatives on shore who largely depended on
+them for their bread and butter would rush to their aid with a spirit
+and an impetuosity that could only end in one way. The pity of it all
+was that so much fine daring and enthusiasm were not being employed
+for a better cause and for more worthy results.
+
+But the smugglers found that, contrary to what one would expect, their
+greatest risk was not when landing the goods, but when bringing them
+across from the Continent. A seizure on land was, at any rate during
+the first half of the eighteenth century, comparatively rare if they
+had been able to get away from the sloops and cutters. For the
+bodyguard of armed men on horseback who promptly met and escorted the
+contraband into the country frequently did as they had planned. And
+when once the tea has arrived inland it was easily sold to people who
+bought it not in small quantities but took as much as 1000 lbs. at a
+time. In addition, there were a number of men called "duffers," who
+used to walk inland wearing coats in which a hundred-weight of tea was
+concealed between two layers of cloth stitched together. They were
+accordingly said to "quilt" so much of this commodity. These duffers,
+having set forth on their walk, would eventually arrive in London and
+dispose of the tea to hawkers who, in turn, carried it about the town
+and sold it to the consumers, who, even if they had possessed any
+scruples, could not possibly know that the leaves had been smuggled in
+without paying the Crown's levy.
+
+But it was not merely by exercising the strictest vigilance on the
+activities of the Government sloops and land officers, nor entirely by
+resort to trickery and violence, to threats and intimidation that the
+smugglers managed to keep out of the hands of justice. They even
+advanced one step further still, for there was a man named Norton
+whom they employed as their agent to defend them against prosecutions.
+This Norton at one time had actually been in the employ of the Crown
+as clerk of the late Solicitor to the Customs. And it was generally
+believed that Norton by some means--most probably by offering tempting
+bribes--obtained news from the clerks of the Customs' solicitor when a
+smuggler was likely to be arrested and a warrant was about to be
+issued. Norton was then supposed to give the smuggler an immediate
+warning and the man was able to make himself scarce. It was quite an
+easy operation, for in those days when there was no telegraph and no
+steamboat service across the Channel, all the "wanted" man had to do
+was instantly to board his cutter, set sail, and hurry across to
+France or Holland, where he was sure of a welcome, where also he could
+employ himself in arranging for cargoes to be run into England perhaps
+in the very vessel which had brought him across. There were plenty of
+his compatriots resident in Flushing, so he need not feel homesick,
+and when at last the incident had blown over he could find his way
+back to Kent or Sussex.
+
+It was reckoned that about this time there were at least 20,000 people
+in England employed in smuggling, and in some parts (as, for instance,
+the village of Hawkhurst, about which we shall have more to say
+presently) gangs of large numbers could be got together in a very
+short time. In Hawkhurst alone 500 smugglers could be collected within
+an hour. Folkestone, however, ran Hawkhurst fairly close with a
+similar notoriety. Such gangs, well armed as they were, went about
+with impunity, for notwithstanding that they were well known, yet no
+one dared to molest them.
+
+We mentioned just now that the danger to the State of this import
+smuggling was not merely that goods were brought into the country
+without payment being made to the Customs, but that inasmuch as the
+contraband goods were purchased abroad partly by wool and partly by
+actual coin England was being robbed both ways. And as the wool
+exportation declined and the import smuggling rose, so the amount of
+gold that passed out of the country seriously increased. At least
+£1,000,000 sterling were carried out of the kingdom each year to
+purchase these goods, and of this amount somewhere about £800,000 were
+paid for tea alone. At a later date the price of tea often went up,
+but the dealer still made a profit of 40s. on every 100 lbs. We
+alluded just now also to the dangers of seizure, and it is worth
+remarking that these were recognised by the smugglers as being greater
+in one district than in another. For instance, it was much more
+difficult to run goods into the counties of Kent and Sussex than into
+Suffolk, owing to the fleet at sea and the troops on the coast. And
+as to the amount of support which could be relied on it was an
+admitted fact that there was not one person in ten in the country but
+would give the smugglers assistance, and even lend them horses and
+carts. For the use of these the smugglers made payment at an increased
+rate.
+
+There was one witness before this Commission who stated that he knew
+of about sixty English cutters of from thirty to forty tons burthen
+each, and five or six vessels of the same burthen belonging to
+merchants at Flushing which were employed constantly in running goods
+across to England, and several of those who gave evidence confessed
+that they had for years been actively engaged in smuggling, but had
+taken advantage of the late Act of Indemnity. One reason alleged for
+smuggling tea was that the East India Company did not sufficiently
+supply the dealers with the low-priced kinds, whereas the Dutch did.
+And it was further contended that if the price of tea were lessened
+sixpence per lb. it would put a stop to smuggling of the commodity,
+for at this date, although other articles such as spirits and tobacco
+were brought in, yet there was far more tea run than anything else.
+But at the same time the smugglers rather liked to include a quantity
+of brandy casks among their cargo for the reason that they were heavy
+and made very good ballast. And as to the ships themselves, it was
+agreed that those of the smugglers were the best sailing
+fore-and-afters that were built in those days, and could easily
+out-sail both the King's ships and the Custom House sloops. Finally,
+it was shown that in spite of the large and tempting rewards that were
+offered by advertisement for the apprehension of those persons who had
+been concerned in smuggling, no one had come forward to give
+information for the reason that, even if he would, he dared not. And
+so fascinating was the call of smuggling, that although there were
+those who had willingly embraced the pardon granted them by the recent
+Act, forsaken this illegal trade and settled down on farms or devoted
+themselves to other occupations which were within the law, yet there
+were many others who had returned to their former practices.
+
+After accumulating this evidence, the Committee issued their first
+report on March 24, 1745, and expressed themselves of the opinion that
+the high duties charged on tea and other commodities had certainly
+been one cause of smuggling. But they also added that the exposing for
+sale of those boats and vessels which had been seized from the
+smugglers was certainly another potent reason, for these craft were
+frequently bought back by the men; they therefore recommended that all
+captured craft should be burned. Furthermore, the Commission condemned
+the custom of allowing penalties to be compounded so easily. As an
+instance of this last-mentioned custom we might call attention to
+three smugglers belonging to the county of Hampshire. There is a
+reference to them in the Southampton Letters under date of April 28,
+1730, from which it appears that Matthew Barton, John Gibort, and
+William Moadon of Fordingbridge were under prosecution for running
+goods ashore. They subsequently offered to compound for the said
+offence on the following terms: Barton to pay the sum of £35, Gibort
+to pay £25, and Moadon £15. But before allowing the matter to be
+settled straight away the Collector and Comptroller at Southampton
+were ordered to look carefully into the affair and to inquire what
+these men were generally esteemed to be worth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS
+
+
+It was not till June of 1746 that the Committee issued their second
+report, and the evidence therein contained is even more interesting to
+us than any which had hitherto been given. After the Solicitor to the
+Commissioners had shown how biassed juries frequently were towards
+prisoners brought up on charges connected with smuggling, how they
+declined to bring in a verdict against them even in spite of the
+clearest of evidence, another official (the Surveyor of the Searchers
+in the Port of London) stated that when he had received information
+that there had been a run of goods in a certain locality and had even
+received information as to the road along which they would be brought,
+he had been compelled to travel by night and carefully to avoid all
+the beaten paths. Indeed, if people whom they might meet on the road
+noticed a Custom House officer and any soldiers together, their design
+would immediately be suspected and warning would promptly be sent to
+the smugglers, who would hide their goods. He added, also, that he
+remembered on one occasion that a couple of vessels landed in the
+Isle of Thanet as much tea as could be loaded on the backs of two
+hundred horses.
+
+But it was when the ex-smugglers came to give their evidence that the
+real secrets of the trade were unfolded. Robert Hanning, who for years
+had been one of the most distinguished members of the industry,
+informed the Commission that formerly he was the principal dealer with
+the smugglers when he resided at Dunkirk. Some idea of the colossal
+business which he had carried on may be gathered from his admission
+that he had sold teas, brandies, and wines to be run into England _to
+the extent of_ £40,000 _per annum_. And let us not forget to bear in
+mind that of course this probably represented the value of the goods
+when they were put on board. What they actually realised after they
+were smuggled into the English market must have been something
+considerable.
+
+Hanning was followed by a certain Captain Joseph Cockburn, who had a
+very instructive story to tell, which must have amazed even the
+Commissioners. This gallant skipper was now commanding one of his
+Majesty's sloops, but prior to that he had been engaged in
+privateering, and before that had commanded several vessels employed
+in smuggling. From his very infancy he had been concerned in the
+practice of running goods, and his apprenticeship had been served to
+a smuggler at Rochester, who was nominally a fisherman. Consequently,
+with an accumulated knowledge obtained first as a smuggler and
+subsequently as a pursuer of smugglers, there was not much, if
+anything at all, in connection with the work which could have missed
+his attention. He proved himself a veritable encyclopædia of smuggling
+information, and even the following brief summary will show that his
+experience was something exceptional.
+
+First of all, he instanced the case of five cutters which he knew were
+constantly employed in running tea and brandy from Boulogne into Kent
+and Sussex. They imported at least six tons of tea and two thousand
+half-ankers of brandy _every week_. He estimated that the six tons of
+tea would be purchased abroad for £1920. The two thousand half-ankers
+of brandy, even if they cost but ten shillings apiece, would represent
+the sum of £1000; so altogether there was a total of nearly £3000
+being carried out of the country in specie every week by these five
+cutters alone. But he also knew of five other cutters which were
+constantly employed in fetching brandy and tea from Middleburgh and
+Flushing, and he reckoned that these ten cutters in the aggregate
+smuggled into the United Kingdom each year goods to the value of
+£303,680. Possibly there was no living person who possessed so perfect
+and exact a knowledge of the smuggling trade, so we can have little
+reason to doubt for a moment the veracity of his figures.
+
+Passing, then, to describe the methods employed by these men, he
+divided them into two classes. Firstly, there were those adopted by
+the cutters and smacks which did little else than smuggle, and,
+secondly, there were the British ships which primarily carried on a
+legitimate trade to foreign parts. As to the first class, the practice
+of these cutters and smacks was to put to sea from whatever port to
+which they belonged--London, Dover, Rye, Folkestone, or wherever it
+might be--having on board a small number of hands, their professed
+object being to fish. Having stood some distance away from the land,
+they would be met during the night by a number of smaller craft, and
+under cover of darkness would take on board from the latter large
+crews, much merchandise, and a considerable amount of money. The
+smaller craft rowed or sailed back to the beach before daylight, and
+the bigger craft, now well supplied with men, money, and merchandise,
+stood on their course for some Dutch or French port. There they
+purchased such goods as they required, disposed of those which they
+had brought, and again set sail for home. The vessel was again met at
+a convenient distance from the English shore by smaller boats if a
+favourable signal had been flashed from the land; and, using the
+darkness of the night, once more both the cargo and the supernumerary
+men were put into the boats, after which the latter ran the stuff
+ashore in casks already slung and in bales, while the smack headed for
+her harbour whence she had set out. As she had just the same small
+crew as before no suspicions were aroused, and it was presumed she had
+been out fishing.
+
+But additional to these comparatively large vessels there were smaller
+craft--open boats, yawls, and little sloops--which in fine weather
+were wont to run across from the south coast of England to Boulogne,
+Guernsey, and from the west of England to the Isle of Man. They also
+loaded up with as much cargo as they could carry, and, since they were
+able to be beached, the process of discharging their contents as soon
+as they returned was much simpler. These smaller craft also were in
+the habit of running out well clear of the land and meeting Dutch
+vessels, from which they would purchase similar kinds of goods and run
+them in by the usual methods. In these lesser craft were frequently
+carried a great many stones, anchors, and heavy weights by means of
+which the half-ankers of brandy could be sunk near the shore and
+afterwards taken up as required. The exact way in which this was done
+we shall discuss fully in a later chapter.
+
+Some of the cobbles, "hovelings," and small fishing craft that were
+accustomed to run out to big sailing merchantmen under pretence of
+shipping pilots to take them into the next port, were actually engaged
+in smuggling all sorts of goods out of these ships. Perhaps it was a
+lurking sympathy with the men engaged in a trade with which his
+earlier years had been so intimately associated that made Captain
+Cockburn suggest that it was because the Dutchmen brought such large
+quantities of fish into Billingsgate that the English fishermen found
+their work unprofitable, and were accordingly driven to devote
+themselves to smuggling. But from evidence in other documents it would
+certainly seem that Cockburn was speaking the truth and that the
+fishing industry was not a very good livelihood at that time.
+
+Then, secondly, there was the smuggling that was carried on by the
+trading sailing ships from abroad. Great quantities of goods were
+being run into the country by colliers--they were usually
+brig-rigged--by corn-ships, packet-boats from the Continent and other
+vessels trading with Holland. At least, one thousand five hundred
+vessels were engaged in this trade, "and," added Cockburn, "he
+scarcely ever knew one of them return without some prohibited or high
+duty goods." The smuggling from these vessels was done in various
+ways. There were the pilot-boats and fishing craft which frequently
+met them near the coast, as already explained. Another way was for the
+merchantmen to put into harbours, roadsteads, and rivers, where they
+lay at anchor under pretence of waiting for orders. Another method
+still, that was as simple as it was successful, consisted of landing
+their goods at outports on such holidays as the King's birthday, &c.,
+when the Revenue officers were absent. Cockburn admitted that he had
+done this himself and had run great quantities of brandies, teas, and
+Spanish liquorice even as much as nearly a ton of the latter at a
+time. But besides these two classes there was a third. The whole of
+the coasting trade in those days was of course done in sailing ships;
+and inasmuch as there were no railways for carrying merchandise there
+was a good deal more encouragement for the sailing ship owner than
+there is to-day. The methods of smuggling adopted by these coasters
+was a little more complicated, and this was done by such means as
+fraudulently obtaining permits, by cockets clandestinely obtained, by
+false entry of one sort of goods for another, and by corrupting the
+Customs' officers. To prove his case the captain gave the following
+examples, _all of which he had himself employed since the year 1738!_
+
+As regards the obtaining of permits fraudulently, he said that he had
+gone to Dunkirk, taken aboard 2040 gallons of French brandy and
+cleared for North Bergen in Norway. Of course he had no intention
+whatever of steering for that port, but in case he met any of the
+Custom House sloops as he approached the English coast, it would be
+convenient to show this clearance and so prevent his brandy being
+seized. From Dunkirk, then, he sailed across the North Sea and ran up
+the river Humber. There, by previous arrangement, one of those keels
+which are so well known in the neighbourhood of the Humber and Trent
+met him. The keel had been sent from York down the Ouse with permits
+to cover the brandy. The keel was cleared by a merchant at York, who
+obtained permits for conveying to Gainsborough a quantity of French
+brandy equal to that which Cockburn had on board his ship, though in
+fact the keel, notwithstanding that she obtained these permits, set
+forth with no brandy in her at all.
+
+It was the point where the Ouse crosses the Trent at right angles that
+had been arranged as the trysting-place, and there the keel took on
+board from Cockburn the brandy which had come from Dunkirk. Cockburn
+himself nailed the permits on to the heads of the casks, which in due
+course were taken by the keel, when the flood tide made again, to
+Gainsborough some distance up the Trent. Arrived there the casks were
+properly taken into stock and entered in the Custom House books as if
+the brandy had been actually brought down from York and had previously
+paid duty. On this one venture the garrulous skipper admitted that he
+cleared a profit by the brandy of £250 per cent., which was a
+remarkably handsome reward for so short a voyage as from Dunkirk.
+
+Port wines, he said, were purchasable at Dunkirk because these had
+been taken from English merchantmen by privateers; and since there was
+little or no market for such wines in Spain they were brought into
+Dunkirk, whither resorted the smugglers eager to buy them. He
+proceeded also to explain another method of cheating the customs.
+Large quantities of very inferior British brandy were taken on board a
+ship and clearance was obtained for some other English port, but
+instead of proceeding to the latter the vessel would run across to
+Dunkirk or Holland, where she would unload the cheap brandy, and in
+its place take on board some high-priced French brandy equal in
+quantity to the British commodity which had been put ashore at the
+French port. After this, with now a much more valuable cargo, the
+vessel would put to sea again and make for that British port for which
+originally she had cleared. And as to the practice of bribery, he
+himself had several times bought permits from the Excise officers to
+cover smuggled brandy and tea. On one occasion he had paid an officer
+fifty guineas for a permit to cover a certain quantity of tea and
+brandy about to be run into the country.
+
+Next came Captain Ebenezer Hartley, who had also formerly commanded a
+ship that was engaged in smuggling. He had known of large quantities
+of muslins and silks brought into the country on board East Indiamen.
+These goods were smuggled by throwing them through the port-holes at
+night into boats waiting below, alongside the ship, or whilst the
+Custom officer was being entertained on board with food and drink.
+Sometimes, he said, this was even done under the very eyes of the
+Revenue officer, who took no notice of it. He recalled an incident in
+an earlier part of his life when he had sailed from England to
+Holland, in which country he had filled up with twenty-six casks of
+oil. After that his orders were to cross the North Sea and meet a
+certain vessel which would await him off Aldborough. This
+last-mentioned craft would give Hartley's vessel the signal by
+lowering her jib three times.
+
+A more tragic story was related by George Bridges, a tidesman of the
+Port of London. He showed that it did not always "pay" to be diligent
+in one's duty, for he quoted the case of a Captain Mercer, in the
+employ of the Custom House, who did now and then make a seizure, but
+he "was broke for doing his duty"; and when Mercer came into Cork on
+the occasion in question, the mob set upon him so that he was
+compelled to escape into the sheriff's house. The mob then surrounded
+the house in their thousands until the sheriff interceded with them.
+They were wild with fury and threatened to pull the house down, until
+the sheriff gave them his oath that Captain Mercer should never again
+be guilty of seizing the wool which the smugglers had endeavoured to
+export. But the mob afterwards went to Passage and took hold of a
+Custom House officer named May. They brought him forth from his house,
+cut out his tongue, and cut off his ears, one of which the witness
+said he remembered seeing nailed on to the Cork Exchange. They dragged
+the man with a rope round his neck, gave him several blows, hurled him
+into the river, and finally the poor fellow died of his ill-treatment.
+Although handsome rewards were offered for the discovery of the
+offenders, yet no one ever came forward.
+
+One could quote similar instances of the vehemence of the smugglers
+from other sources. For instance, on February 2, 1748-49, the
+Collector of the Port of Penzance wrote to the Board to give them some
+idea of the people among whom he had to work. "The insolence," he
+said, "of some of the smuglers [_sic_] and wreckers in this
+neighbourhood is run to such a heighth, that tho our officers have
+from time to time secured severall Hogsheads, it has been by force
+taken from them [again], 'and the officers forced to save their
+lives.'" Writing again on the 14th December, the same correspondent
+added that "the smugglers never behaved with more insolence than at
+present, or was it ever known to be carried on with more
+audaciousness," mentioning also that the previous night the snow[5]
+_Squirrel_ of North Yarmouth had driven ashore loaded with a cargo of
+brandy. The country-folk had immediately boarded her, stripped the
+master of everything valuable, and then carried off all the brandy
+they could lay their hands on, and, in their haste, had set fire to
+the rest of the cargo, so that at the time of writing the whole ship
+was in flames. He mentioned also a couple of months later the
+difficulty he had to secure arrests of smugglers, for even when he had
+obtained warrants for the apprehension of eight most notorious men,
+the constables excused themselves from doing their duty in serving the
+warrants, and pretended that the eight men had absconded.
+
+And anyone who cares to examine the Treasury Books and Papers for this
+period will find similar cases. In July of 1743 some smugglers had
+seized the Custom House boat at Dover and coolly employed her for
+their own purposes in running tea. The Custom officers deemed matters
+to be in such a state that they begged that a man-of-war might be
+stationed on that coast to prevent smuggling. Similarly in January of
+1743-44, during a skirmish near Arundel between the preventive men
+assisted by some dragoons against a band of smugglers, the latter had
+wounded three of the soldiers and carried off an officer and two other
+dragoons on board the smugglers' cutter. This was no unique
+occurrence, for sometimes the contraband runners, when infuriated,
+captured the would-be captors, hurried them out to sea, and then,
+having bound the unfortunate victims with a bit of spare rope and
+having tied a piece of ballast to their live bodies, they would be
+hurled overboard into the sea, and the soldier or preventive man would
+never be seen or heard of again unless his lifeless body were cast
+upon the beach. At Folkestone, about this time, three men were carried
+off by the smugglers in trying to effect an arrest, and the supervisor
+at Colchester had been also carried off, but afterwards he had been
+released on promising not to mention the smugglers' names. It was bad
+enough, therefore, for the Revenue men when they had the assistance of
+the dragoons, but it was infinitely worse when they had to contend
+alone. There is an almost pathetic petition from the Folkestone
+riding-officers sent on New Year's Day 1744-45, begging for military
+assistance against the smugglers, as although there were soldiers
+stationed at Dover yet they were unobtainable, since they refused to
+march more than five miles.
+
+And it was just as bad, if not worse, about this time in the Isle of
+Man, for the latter's inhabitants consisted almost exclusively of
+smugglers and their families, some of whom had long since been
+outlawed from England and Ireland. So rich and prosperous, indeed, had
+these Manxmen become by means of smuggling that they were recognised
+with a degree of importance which was almost ludicrous. The two
+deemsters (or deputy-governors) of the island even countenanced and
+protected the men, who would often assemble together to scheme and
+drink to the damnation of His Britannic Majesty. Unhindered in their
+nefarious work, able to obtain all the cargo they required from France
+and the Channel Isles; able, too, to run their contraband into the
+west of England, they waxed exceedingly independent and wealthy. At
+Douglas they had built themselves a good quay for the shelter of their
+ships and for convenience in landing their cargoes, the only drawback
+being that the harbour dried out at low water.
+
+It happened that on the 26th of June 1750, that Captain Dow,
+commanding H.M. cruiser _Sincerity_[6] was, according to the orders
+received from the Board of Customs, on duty in Douglas Roads. A
+notorious Irish smuggling wherry came in from Ireland and ran under
+the _Sincerity's_ stern, while the smugglers "with opprobrious,
+treasonable, and abusive language abused His Majesty King George and
+all that belonged to or served under him." This, of course, was too
+much for any naval officer to endure, and Captain Dow immediately
+caused the ship to come alongside, and, after being rummaged, she was
+found to have concealed in a jar of butter-milk twenty-five English
+guineas tied up in a bag. There were also papers on board which proved
+that this money was to be expended in the purchase of brandies and
+tea, &c., and that, having obtained these articles, she was then to
+return to Ireland. The English captain therefore promptly seized both
+money and papers.
+
+On the same day that this incident occurred a Dutch dogger[7] also
+came into Douglas Roads loaded with prohibited goods from Holland. As
+soon as he had noticed her come to anchor Dow sent his boat to board
+her with his mate and six men, and to examine and see if she had the
+prohibited goods on board which were suspected. If she had, then she
+was to be seized. At the same time Dow had requested Mr. Sidebotham,
+his Majesty's officer in the Isle of Man, to cast off the
+_Sincerity's_ headfast and sternfasts from the shore. But thereupon a
+riotous and angry mob, fearing that the cruiser should be able to get
+under weigh and seize the Dutch dogger, refused to allow Sidebotham to
+let go the ropes. Armed with bludgeons, muskets, swords, and stones
+they rushed down on to the quay, and did all they could to force the
+cruiser on shore by aiming showers of stones at the cruiser's men and
+restraining Sidebotham in his endeavour to help the _Sincerity_. They
+even carried the latter away by force, and beat and bruised him in the
+most brutal manner.
+
+Captain Dow, realising that the intention of the mob was to get the
+_Sincerity_ stranded, determined to cut his cable and exhorted them in
+his Majesty's name to disperse, to which they paid not the slightest
+attention except to send more showers of stones on to the cruiser's
+decks. Seeing from afar what was happening, the mate and six men who
+had been sent to board the dogger now returned to the _Sincerity_.
+Whereupon the dogger, perceiving her chance, promptly got under way.
+As the crowd on shore still continued to pelt his ship with stones and
+had already wounded two of his crew, the cruiser's commander fired
+amongst them. For a time, at least, this dispersed them, and so Dow
+was able to get his vessel clear. He immediately proceeded to follow
+the Dutch dogger, and chased her until she had, perforce, to run
+herself on to the sands at Ramsey to the north of the island.
+Determined not to be beaten, Dow now sent his mate and ten men on
+board her, seized her, and marked her in several places with the sign
+of a broad arrow to denote her capture.
+
+[Illustration: "Dow sent his mate and ten men on board her."]
+
+But when the mate came to open the hatches several of the islanders
+who had been secreted on board, with the assistance of two boat-loads
+of armed men who had rowed off from the shore, seized the mate and
+his men, and threatened that if they resisted they would kill them.
+Being completely overpowered, the eleven naval men were compelled to
+yield and be carried ashore, where they were shut up in cellars and
+finally carried down to Castletown Castle. Meanwhile, the smugglers
+set to work on the dogger's cargo and landed it safely. A few days
+later six of the eleven were released, but the other five were
+detained until Captain Dow should refund the twenty-five guineas he
+had seized from the Irish wherry. In order to give him a fright they
+also sent word that the five men should be tried before one of their
+Courts of Judicature on the following Thursday, were he to fail to
+send the money. As the captain declined to accede to their demands,
+the five prisoners were on July 5 brought up and remanded till a month
+later. Finding it was impossible to obtain their release the commander
+of the _Sincerity_ weighed anchor and ran back to Ramsey to take in
+the six released men, and then, sailing away to Whitehaven, arrived at
+that place on the 10th of July.
+
+We need not say more. The story is sufficient to indicate the utter
+state of lawlessness which prevailed there. Peopled by outlaws and by
+the scum of France, Holland, Ireland, Scotland, and England, they were
+a pretty tough proposition. Their violence was rivalled only by their
+impudence; and fleets of wherries[8] would sail in company into
+Ireland and Scotland loaded with cargoes of cheap brandy, which had
+been brought from Holland for that purpose. As a means of checking
+these Manx smugglers it was suggested that the English Government
+should employ a number of tenders in this neighbourhood, since they
+drew less water than the sloops-of-war and so would be more useful for
+a locality that was not well supplied with deep harbours. Moreover,
+these tenders would be well able to take the ground in the harbours
+which dried out. Such craft as the latter were of about 160 tons,
+mounted twelve to fourteen carriage guns, and were manned by a
+captain, second officer, two mates, two quartermasters, a gunner, a
+boatswain, carpenter, surgeon, and forty seamen.
+
+From the south-east corner of England came reports not much better.
+Just before the close of the year 1743 the Surveyor at Margate and his
+men were out on duty along the coast one night when five of them came
+upon a gang of about twenty-five smugglers. An encounter quickly
+ensued, and as the latter were well armed they were, by their superior
+numbers, able to give the officers a severe beating, especially in the
+case of one unfortunate "whose head is in such a miserable condition
+that the Surveyor thought proper to put him under the care of a
+surgeon." Both this Surveyor and the one at Ramsgate asserted that the
+smugglers were accustomed to travel in such powerful gangs, and at the
+same time were so well armed, that it was impossible to cope with
+them, there being seldom less than thirty in a gang "who bid defiance
+to all the officers when they met them."
+
+On the 7th April 1746, the Collector and Controller of the Customs at
+Sandwich wrote to the Board:
+
+"We further beg leave to acquaint your Honours that yesterday about
+four o'clock in the afternoon a large gang of near 100 smuglers
+[_sic_] with several led horses went thro' this town into the island
+of Thanet, where we hear they landed their goods, notwithstanding that
+we took all possible care to prevent them.
+
+"_P.S._--This moment we have advice that there is a gang of 200
+smugglers more at St. Peter's in the Isle of Thanet."
+
+Seven months later in that year, at nine o'clock one November morning,
+a gang of 150 smugglers managed to land some valuable cargo from a
+couple of cutters on to the Sandwich flats. Several Revenue officers
+were despatched into the country for the purpose of meeting with some
+of the stragglers. The officers came into collision with a party of
+these men and promptly seized two horse-loads of goods consisting of
+five bags of tea and eight half-ankers of wine. But they were only
+allowed to retain this seizure for half-an-hour, inasmuch as the
+smugglers presently overpowered the Revenue men and wrested back their
+booty. The preventive men were also considerably knocked about, and
+one of them had his thumb badly dislocated. The officers declared that
+they knew none of the people, the latter being well supplied not with
+firearms but with great clubs. A fortnight later, just a few miles
+farther along the coast, a gang of 150 smugglers succeeded in landing
+their goods at Reculvers near Birchington; and ten days later still
+another gang of the same size was able to land their goods near
+Kingsgate, between the North Foreland and Margate. But it cannot be
+supposed that the Revenue officers were not aware of the approach of
+these incidents. The fact was that they were a little lacking in
+courage to face these problems on every occasion. Indeed, they were
+candid enough to admit that they dared not venture near these ruffians
+"without the utmost hazard of their lives." But the riding-officers
+were not solely to blame, for where were the Custom House sloops? How
+was it they were always absent at these critical times? Indeed, the
+Collector and Controller informed the Commissioners that not one of
+these sloops had been seen cruising between Sandwich and Reculvers for
+some months past.
+
+This complaint about the cruisers was made in March 1747, and in that
+same month another gang, two hundred strong, appeared on the coast,
+but this time, after a smart encounter, the officers secured and
+placed in the King's warehouse a ton of tea as well as other goods,
+and three horses. A day or two later a gang of smugglers threatened to
+rescue these goods back again. The property formed a miscellaneous
+collection and consisted of fifty pieces of cambric, three bags of
+coffee, some Flemish linen, tea, clothes, pistols, a blunderbuss, and
+two musquetoons. To prevent the smugglers carrying out their
+intention, however, a strong guard was formed by an amalgamation of
+all the officers from Sandwich, Ramsgate, and Broadstairs, who
+forthwith proceeded to Margate. In addition to these, it was arranged
+that Commodore Mitchell should send ashore from the Downs as many men
+as he could spare. This united front was therefore successful, and for
+once the smugglers were overmatched. And but for a piece of bad luck,
+or sheer carelessness, a couple of years later a smart capture might
+well have been brought about. It was one day in August when the
+officers had received information that a gang of twenty men and horses
+had appeared near Reculvers to receive goods from a cutter that was
+seen to be hovering near the coast. The smugglers on shore were cute
+enough to locate the officers, and by some means evidently signalled
+to the cutter, for the latter now put to sea again and the gang
+cleared off. Although for some time after this incident both officers
+and dragoons patrolled the coast in the neighbourhood no one was ever
+fortunate enough to gather information either as to the cutter or the
+people who had vanished into the country with such rapidity.
+
+And yet in spite of the very numerous sympathisers which these illicit
+importers possessed, yet of course there were some individuals who
+were as much against them as any officer of the Customs. In the
+neighbourhood of Plymouth legitimate trade had suffered a great deal
+owing to these practices. The mayor, aldermen, and merchants of
+Saltash were at last compelled to send a memorial to the Lords of the
+Treasury complaining that in the rivers adjacent to that place there
+were several creeks and inlets which were being made of considerable
+use by the smugglers for landing their goods. Especially was this the
+case up the river Tamar, and all this had been and was still "to the
+great prejudice of the fair traders and merchants." They pointed out
+that a great deal of it consisted of clandestine running from ships in
+the Sound, Hamoaze, and other anchorages round about there. Large
+quantities of French linings, wines, and brandies were being run
+ashore with impunity and speedily sold in the adjacent towns or
+conveyed some distance into Devonshire. The mayor therefore begged the
+Treasury for three additional Custom officers consisting of an
+inspector of roads and two tide-waiters to be established at Saltash,
+but the Treasury could not see their way to grant such a request.
+
+But in other parts of the country the roads were kept carefully
+watched to prevent goods being brought inland. The coaches which ran
+from Dover to London with passengers who had come across from the
+Continent were frequently stopped on the highway by the
+riding-officers and the passengers searched. Harsh as this mode of
+procedure may seem to us to-day, yet it was rendered necessary by the
+fact that a good many professional carriers of contraband goods were
+wont to travel backwards and forwards between England and abroad. Some
+years later, for example, when the Dover coach was stopped at "The
+Half-Way House," a foreigner, who was travelling by this conveyance
+and had been able to evade the Customs' search at Dover, was found to
+be carrying two gold snuff-boxes set with diamonds, four lockets also
+set with diamonds, eighteen opals, three sapphires, eight amethysts,
+six emeralds, two topazes, and one thousand two hundred
+torquoises--all of which were liable to duty.
+
+And thus the illegal practices continued all round the coast. From
+Devonshire it was reported that smuggling was on the increase--this
+was in the autumn of 1759--and that large gangs armed with loaded
+clubs openly made runs of goods on the shore, the favourite _locale_
+being Torbay, though previously the neighbourhood of Lyme had been the
+usual aim of these men who had sailed as a rule from Guernsey. All
+that the Collector could suggest was that an "impress smack" should be
+sent to that district, as he promised that the notorious offenders
+would make excellent seamen.
+
+There was an interesting incident also off the north-east coast of
+England, where matters were still about as bad as ever. We referred
+some pages back to the capture of a Dutch dogger off the Isle of Man;
+we shall now see another of these craft seized in the North Sea.
+Captain Bowen of the sloop _Prince of Wales_, hearing that the dogger
+_Young Daniel_ was running brandy on the coast near to Newcastle, put
+to sea in search of her. He came up with a number of those
+cobbles--open boats--which are peculiar to the north-east coastline,
+though at one time they were used as far south as Great Yarmouth. The
+cobbles which he was able to intercept had just been employed in
+transferring the contraband from the dogger to the shore. Bowen
+captured one of these small craft with a dozen casks aboard. Another
+was forced ashore and secured by the land officers. Meanwhile, the
+Dutchman stood out to sea so that he might be able to draw off the
+spirits from large casks into smaller ones, which were the better
+fitted for running ashore. It was found afterwards that he had large
+numbers of these lesser casks, and during that evening she put about
+and crept stealthily in towards the shore again until she approached
+within about a mile of the mouth of the Tees. Her intention was to run
+the rest of her cargo under cover of darkness, and her skipper had
+arranged for large numbers of men to be on that coast ready to receive
+and carry off these casks. But Bowen was determined to head her off
+this project. An exciting chase followed, during which--to quote an
+official report of the time--the dogger did her best "to eat the
+sloop out of the wind," that is to say sailed as close to the wind as
+she could travel in the hope of causing her adversary to drop to
+leeward. For seven hours this chase continued, but after that duration
+the _Prince of Wales_ captured the _Young Daniel_ eight leagues from
+the shore. This is not a little interesting, for inasmuch as the chase
+began when the dogger was a mile from the mouth of the river, the
+vessels must have travelled about 23 statutory miles in the time,
+which works out at less than 3-1/2 miles an hour. Not very fast, you
+may suggest, for a Revenue cutter or for the Dutchman either. But we
+have no details as to the weather, which is usually bad off that part
+of the coast in February (the month when this incident occurred), and
+we must remember that the doggers were too bluff of build to possess
+speed, and the time had not yet arrived when those much faster Revenue
+cutters with finer lines and less ample beam were to come into use.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[5] A snow was a vessel with three masts resembling the main and
+foremast of a ship with a third and small mast just abaft the
+mainmast, carrying a sail nearly similar to a ship's mizzen. The foot
+of this mast was fixed in a block of wood or step but on deck. The
+head was attached to the afterpart of the maintop. The sail was called
+a trysail, hence the mast was called a trysail-mast. (Moore's
+_Midshipman's Vocabulary_, 1805.)
+
+[6] It was the frequent custom at this time to speak of sloops as
+cruisers.
+
+[7] A dogger was a two-masted Dutch fishing-vessel usually employed in
+the North Sea off the Dogger Bank. She had two masts, and was very
+similar to a ketch in rig, but somewhat beamy and bluff-bowed.
+
+[8] These, of course, were not the light rowing-boats of the kind that
+were in use on the Thames and elsewhere. The term wherry was applied
+to various decked fishing-vessels belonging to England, Ireland, and
+the Isle of Man.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE HAWKHURST GANG
+
+
+We come now to consider the desperate character of a band of men who
+rendered themselves for all time notorious in the domestic history of
+our country by acts of unbridled violence and consummate cruelty.
+
+But before we proceed to relate as fully as our limited space will
+allow the details of these incidents, it is necessary to remind
+ourselves once again of the great, solid mass of sympathy, both active
+and passive, that was always at the back of the smugglers. Without
+this such daring runs by night could never have occurred: doubtful of
+the assistance which could be whole-heartedly given by the people on
+shore, the seafaring men would never have dared to take such enormous
+risks of life and goods. Not merely did the villagers come down to the
+shore to help to bring the goods inland, not only did they lend their
+horses and carts, but they would tacitly suffer the smugglers to hide
+casks of spirits in wells, haystacks, cellars, and other places. In
+Cornwall, for instance, fifty-five tubs of spirits were found
+concealed in a well, over the top of which a hay-stack had been
+built. This was near Falmouth, one of the most notorious of the
+smuggling localities. And there is actual record of at least one
+instance where the natives charged a rent of a shilling a tub for
+stowing away the smuggled goods. In another county a cavern had most
+ingeniously been hollowed out under a pond big enough to hold a
+hundred casks, the entrance being covered over with planks carefully
+strewed with mould. So clever and original was this idea that it was
+never discovered for many years.
+
+But the most notorious, the most formidable, and certainly the most
+abominably cruel gang of smugglers which ever achieved notice was the
+Hawkhurst contingent. The "Hawkhurst Gang," as they were known, were a
+terror to whatever law-abiding citizens existed in the counties of
+Kent and Sussex. They feared neither Custom officers nor soldiery,
+they respected neither God nor man, and in the course of attaining
+their aims they stopped at no atrocity nor brooked any interference
+from anyone. By the year 1747 smugglers had become so daring and
+committed such terrible crimes that the only course left open for
+decent people was to band together in mutual protection. The
+inhabitants of one locality joined together under the title of the
+"Goudhurst Band of Militia," their leader being a man named Sturt, a
+native of Goudhurst, who had recently obtained his discharge from the
+Army. But this union became known to the smugglers, who waylaid one
+of the militia, and by means of torture the whole of the defenders'
+plans were revealed. After a while he was released and sent back to
+inform the militia that the smugglers on a certain day would attack
+the town, murder all its inhabitants, and then burn the place to the
+ground.
+
+The day arrived and both forces were prepared. Sturt had gathered his
+band, collected fire-arms, cast balls, made cartridges, and arranged
+entrenchments, when, headed by one Thomas Kingsmill, the Hawkhurst
+gang appeared in order to make the attack. But after a smart
+engagement in which three were killed and many wounded, the smugglers
+were driven off, whilst others were captured and subsequently
+executed.
+
+Kingsmill escaped for a time, and became the leader of the famous
+attack on the Poole Custom House in October 1747. Another of the gang
+was named Perin and belonged to Chichester. Perin was really a
+carpenter by trade, but after being afflicted with a stroke of the
+palsy, he became attached to the smugglers, and used to sail with them
+to France to purchase goods that were to be smuggled, such as brandy,
+tea, and rum. Now in September of 1747 Perin went across the Channel
+in a cutter called _The Three Brothers_, loaded up with the above
+commodities, and was approaching the English coast when he was met
+with a rebuff. For Captain William Johnson, who held a deputation
+from the Customs to seize prohibited goods, got to know of Perin's
+exploit, and on the 22nd of this month, whilst cruising in the Poole
+Revenue cutter, sighted _The Three Brothers_ to the eastward of Poole.
+Whereupon the smuggler began to flee, and, running before the wind,
+fled to the N.N.W. From five in the afternoon till eleven at night the
+Revenue cutter, with every stitch of canvas set, chased her, and after
+firing several shots caused her to heave-to. Johnson then boarded her,
+and found that the tea was in canvas and oil-skin bags, but Perin and
+the crew of six had escaped in _The Three Brothers_ boat. However,
+Johnson captured the cutter with her cargo and took the same into
+Poole. The two tons of tea, thirty-nine casks of brandy and rum,
+together with a small bag of coffee, were conveyed ashore and locked
+up safely in the Poole Custom House. Such was the introduction to the
+drama that should follow.
+
+Enraged at their bad luck, the smugglers took counsel together. They
+assembled in Charlton Forest, and Perin suggested that they should go
+in a body and, well-armed, break open the Poole Custom House. So the
+next day they met at Rowland's Castle with swords and firearms, and
+were presently joined by Kingsmill and the Hawkhurst gang. Till night
+had fallen they secreted themselves in a wood, and eventually reached
+Poole at eleven o'clock at night. Two of their members were sent
+ahead to reconnoitre, and reported that a sloop-of-war lay opposite to
+the quay, so that her guns could be pointed against the doors of the
+Custom House; but afterwards it was found that, owing to the ebb-tide,
+the guns of the sloop could not be made to bear on that spot. The
+band, numbering about thirty, therefore rode down to spot, and while
+Perin and one other man looked after their horses, the rest proceeded
+to the Custom House, forced open the door with hatchets and other
+implements, rescued the tea, fastening packages of the latter on to
+their horses, with the exception only of 5 lbs. The next morning they
+passed through Fordingbridge in Hampshire, where hundreds of the
+inhabitants stood and watched the cavalcade. Now among the latter was
+a man named Daniel Chater, a shoemaker by trade. He was known to
+Diamond, one of the gang then passing, for they had both worked
+together once at harvest time. Recognising each other, Diamond
+extended his arm, shook hands, and threw him a bag of tea, for the
+booty had been divided up so that each man carried five bags of 27
+lbs.
+
+[Illustration: _A Representation of ye Smugglers breaking open ye_
+KING'S _Custom House at Poole_.]
+
+After the Poole officers discovered what had happened to their Custom
+House, there was not unnaturally a tremendous fuss, and eventually the
+King's proclamation promised a reward for the apprehension of the men
+concerned in the deed. Nothing happened for months after, but at last
+Diamond was arrested on suspicion and lodged in Chichester Gaol. We
+can well imagine the amount of village gossip to which this would give
+rise. Chater was heard to remark that he knew Diamond and saw him go
+by with the gang the very day after the Custom House had been broken
+open. When the Collector of Customs at Southampton learned this, he
+got into communication with the man, and before long Chater and Mr.
+William Galley were sent with a letter to Major Battin, a Justice of
+the Peace for Sussex. Galley was also a Custom House officer stationed
+at Southampton. The object of this mission was that Chater's evidence
+should be taken down, so that he might prove the identity of Diamond.
+
+On Sunday February 14, then, behold these two men setting out for
+Chichester. On the way they stopped at the White Hart Inn, Rowland's
+Castle, for refreshment. But the landlady suspecting that they were
+going to hurt the smugglers, with the intuition of a woman and the
+sympathy of a mother decided to send for two men named Jackson and
+Carter. For this Mrs. Paine, a widow, had two sons herself, who though
+nominally blacksmiths were in fact smugglers. Jackson and Carter came
+in, to whom the widow explained her suspicions, and these two men were
+presently followed by others of the gang. Before very long they had
+got into conversation with Galley and Chater, and plied them with
+drink, so that they completely gave away the nature of their mission,
+and after being fuddled and insulted were put to bed intoxicated.
+After a while, they were aroused by Jackson brutally digging his spurs
+on their foreheads and then thrashing them with a horse-whip. They
+were then taken out of the inn, both put on to the same horse, with
+their legs tied together below the horse's belly. They were next
+whipped as they went along, over the face, eyes, and shoulder, till
+the poor victims were unable to bear it any longer, and at last fell
+together, with their hands tied underneath the horse, heads downwards.
+In this position the horse struck the head of one or the other with
+his feet at every step. Afterwards the blackguardly tormentors sat the
+two men upright again, whipped them, and once more the men fell down,
+with heels in air. They were utterly weak, and suffering from their
+blows.
+
+[Illustration: Mr. Galley and Mr. Chater put by ye Smugglers on one
+Horse near Rowland Castle
+_A. Steele who was Admitted a Kings Evidence B. Little Harry. C.
+Iackson D. Carter E. Downer. F. Richards. 1. Mr. Galley. 2. Mr.
+Chater._]
+
+[Illustration: Galley and Chater _falling off their Horse at_ Woodash
+draggs their Heads on the Ground, while the Horse kicks them as he
+goes; the Smugglers still continuing their brutish Usage.]
+
+We need not enlarge upon the details, some of which are too outrageous
+to repeat. After a while they thought Galley was dead, and laid him
+across another horse, with a smuggler each side to prevent him
+falling. They then stopped at the Red Lion, at Rake, knocked up the
+landlord, drank pretty freely, and then taking a candle and spade dug
+a hole in a sand-pit where they buried him. But at a later date, when
+the body was exhumed, it was seen that the poor man had covered his
+eyes with his hands, so there can be little doubt but that Galley was
+buried alive.
+
+As for Chater, they delayed his death. Throughout Monday they remained
+drinking at the Red Lion, discussing what to do with him, Chater being
+meanwhile kept secured by the leg with an iron chain, three yards
+long, in a turf-house. At dead of night they agreed to go home
+separately so that the neighbours might not be suspicious of their
+absence. On Wednesday morning they again repaired to the Red Lion,
+after having left Chater in the charge of two of their number. Then,
+having discussed what should be done with Chater, some one suggested
+that a gun should be loaded with two or three bullets, and after
+having tied a long string to the trigger, each member of the gang
+should take hold of the string together, and so become equally guilty
+of the poor man's death. But this idea was unwelcomed, as it was
+thought it would put Chater too quickly out of his sufferings.
+Meanwhile, Chater was visited at various times, to receive kicks and
+severe blows, and to be sworn at in the vilest and most scurrilous
+language.
+
+[Illustration: Chater Chained in ye Turff House at Old Mills's Cobby,
+kicking him & Tapner, cutting him Cross ye Eyes & Nose, while he is
+saying the Lords Prayer. Several of ye other smugglers standing by.]
+
+One of the gang now came up to him, and uttering an oath, brandishing
+aloft a large clasp-knife, exclaimed: "Down on your knees and go to
+prayers, for with this knife I will be your butcher." Terrified at the
+menace, and expecting momentarily to die, Chater knelt down on the
+turf and began to say the Lord's Prayer. One of the villains got
+behind and kicked him, and after Chater had asked what they had done
+to Galley, the man who was confronting him drew his knife across the
+poor man's face, cut his nose through, and almost cut both his eyes
+out. And, a moment later, gashed him terribly across the forehead.
+They then proceeded to conduct him to a well. It was now the dead of
+night, and the well was about thirty feet deep, but without water,
+being surrounded with pales at the top to prevent cattle from falling
+in. They compelled him to get over, and not through these pales, and a
+rope was placed round his neck, the other end being made fast to the
+paling. They then pushed him into the well, but as the rope was short
+they then untied him, and threw him head foremost into the former,
+and, finally, to stop his groanings, hurled down rails and gate-posts
+and large stones.
+
+[Illustration: Chater hanging at the Well in LADY HOLT Park,
+the Bloody Villains Standing by.]
+
+[Illustration: The Bloody Smugglers flinging down Stones after they
+had flung his Dead Body into the Well.]
+
+I have omitted the oaths and some of the worst features of the
+incident, but the above outline is more than adequate to suggest the
+barbarism of a lot of men bent on lawlessness and revenge. Drunk with
+their own success, the gang now went about with even greater
+desperation. Everybody stood in terror of them; Custom officers were
+so frightened that they hardly dared to perform their duties, and the
+magistrates themselves were equally frightened to convict smugglers.
+Consequently the contraband gangs automatically increased to great
+numbers. But, finally, a reward of £500 was offered by the
+Commissioners of Customs for the arrest of everyone of the culprits,
+and as a result several were arrested, tried, convicted, and executed.
+The murderers were tried at a special assize for smugglers held at
+Chichester, before three judges, and the seven men were sentenced to
+death. William Jackson died in prison a few hours after sentence. He
+had been very ill before, but the shock of being sentenced to death,
+and to be hung afterwards in chains and in ignominy, rapidly hastened
+his death, and relieved the executioner of at least one portion of his
+duty. He had been one of the worst smugglers in his time, and was even
+a thief among thieves, for he would even steal his confederates'
+goods. Between the sentence and the hour for execution a man came into
+the prison to measure the seven culprits for the irons in which their
+bodies were subsequently to be hung by chains. And this distressed the
+men more than anything else, most of all Jackson, who presently
+succumbed as stated.
+
+Mills, senior, had gradually been drawn into the smuggling business,
+though previously he had been quite a respectable man. After giving up
+actual smuggling, he still allowed his house to be used as a
+store-place for the contraband goods. His son, Richard, also one of
+the seven, had been concerned in smuggling for years, and was a daring
+fellow. John Cobby, the third of the culprits, was of a weaker
+temperament, and had been brought under the influence of the
+smugglers. Benjamin Tapner was especially penitent, and "hoped all
+young people would take warning by his untimely fate, and keep good
+company, for it was bad company had been his ruin." William Carter
+complained that it was Jackson who had drawn him away from his honest
+employment to go smuggling, but John Hammond was of a more obdurate
+nature, and had always hated the King's officers.
+
+According to the testimony of the Rev. John Smyth, who visited them in
+gaol, all the prisoners received the Holy Communion at ten o'clock,
+the morning after being sentenced to death. All the prisoners except
+the two Mills admitted that they deserved the sentence, but all the
+surviving six acknowledged that they forgave everybody. On January 19,
+1748-9, they were executed. The two Mills were not hung in chains, but
+having neither friend nor relation to take them away their bodies were
+thrown into a hole near the gallows, into which also was placed
+Jackson's body. Carter's body was hung in chains on the Portsmouth
+Road, near Rake; that of Tapner on Rook's Hill, near Chichester; those
+of Cobby and Hammond on the sea coast near Selsey Bill; so that from a
+great distance they could be observed across the sea by the ships as
+they went by east and west. Later on, John, the brother of Richard
+Mills, and one of the gang, was also arrested. When the above three
+judges were travelling down to Chichester for the trial of the seven
+men, John had intended waylaying their lordships on Hind Heath, but
+his companions had refused to support him. But soon after his father's
+and brother's execution he met with a man named Richard Hawkins, whom
+he accused of having stolen two bags of tea. Hawkins denied it, and
+was brutally and unmercifully thrashed to death in the Dog and
+Partridge Inn at Slindon Common, his body being afterwards carried a
+dozen miles, thrown into a pond, with stones attached, and then sunk.
+John Mills was convicted and hanged at East Grinstead, and afterwards
+remained hanging in chains on Slindon Common. Other members of the
+gang were also arrested, tried at the same assizes as highwaymen, and
+then executed.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Later on, two of the smugglers who had given evidence against the men
+that were hanged at Chichester, gave information also, which led to
+the arrest of Kingsmill, Perin, and two others who had been concerned
+in breaking open the Poole Custom House. Kingsmill, Perin, and one
+other were hanged at Tyburn in April of 1749; the other man, however,
+was pardoned. Thus at length this dreaded Hawkhurst Gang was broken
+up.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+THE REVENUE CRUISERS
+
+
+We drew attention some time back to the assistance occasionally
+rendered by soldiers when the Riding officers were about to arrest
+smugglers. Early in the year 1740, or about the close of 1739, Thomas
+Carswell, one of the Revenue officers stationed at Rye, was murdered,
+and a corporal and three dragoons whom he had taken to his assistance
+were badly wounded, and a large quantity of tea that had been seized
+was rescued. It was after this incident that Revenue officers of this
+port--perhaps the most notorious of all the south-east smuggling
+territory--were ordered that in future when they went forth to make
+seizures they were to have with them an adequate military force, and
+to this end they were to make previous arrangements with the
+commanding-officer of the forces in that district.
+
+But in spite of the seizures which the officers on land from time to
+time effected, and notwithstanding the shortcomings of the Custom
+House cruisers in regard to speed, and the frequent negligence of
+their commanders, it still remains true that these cutters and sloops,
+at any rate until about the year 1822 (when the Coastguard service
+was instituted) continued to be the principal and the most important
+of all the machinery set in motion against the smugglers. We have seen
+this service in working order as far back as the year 1674, at any
+rate, when the fleet consisted of only hired vessels. We have also
+seen that they were employed in sufficient numbers all round the
+coast, and that the Customs authorities, not content merely to hire
+such vessels, also presently obtained some of their own. It is
+possible that the smacks were used for such service even before the
+date 1674--perhaps very soon after Charles came to the throne--but
+there are no existing records of this to make the matter certain. The
+Revenue preventive work, in so far as the cruisers were employed, was
+carried on by a mixed control, and embraced six separate and distinct
+types:--
+
+1. There were the English Custom House smacks, cutters, and sloops,
+some of which were hired vessels: others were actually owned by the
+English Customs Board.
+
+2. There were the English Excise cruisers, which were controlled by
+the English Excise Board. They appeared to be very similar to the
+craft in the first class.
+
+3. There were the Scottish Customs cruisers, under the control of the
+Scottish Customs Board. The official at the head of these was known as
+the Agent for yachts.
+
+4. There were the Scottish Excise cruisers, controlled by the Scottish
+Excise Board.
+
+5. There were the Irish Revenue cruisers, controlled by the Irish
+Customs and Excise.
+
+6. And lastly, there were these vessels of the Royal Navy which were
+employed to assist the Revenue, such vessels consisting of ships of
+the fifth-rate, sixth-rate, and especially the armed sloops.
+
+In the present volume it has been necessary, owing to the limits of
+our space, to restrict our consideration of cruisers chiefly to the
+most important of these, viz. those of the English Custom House and
+those of the Royal Navy. Under such a mixed rule it was obvious that
+many difficulties arose, and that the clashing of interests was not
+infrequent. For instance, between the English Custom House cruisers
+and the English Excise cruisers there was about as much friendship as
+there exists usually between a dog and a cat. Similarly between the
+former and the Naval cruisers there was considerable jealousy, and
+every display of that pompous, bombastic exhibition of character which
+was such a feature of the life of the eighteenth century, and the
+first years of the next.
+
+Although the Revenue cruisers were employed primarily and ordinarily
+for the purpose of protecting the revenue, yet from time to time they
+were mobilised for coast defence. On different occasions during the
+eighteenth century they were lent to the Admiralty, and well supplied
+with men and arms in readiness for actual warfare. After the third
+quarter of the eighteenth century these Revenue cruisers seem to have
+been built in greater numbers and with some improvement as to design,
+which, seeing that they had so frequently been left well astern by the
+smuggling cutters, was more than necessary. There was issued in
+November of 1780, by the Board of Customs, an interesting letter that
+shows how closely these cruisers approximated to vessels of war, even
+when they were not under the jurisdiction of the Admiralty. This
+letter was sent to the Collector and Controller at the different
+English Customs ports, and began by referring to the fact that many
+applications had been made to the Board asking permission to take out
+Letters of Marque. It will be remembered that this was a time when
+wars seemed to go on interminably, and there had been only a few brief
+intervals of peace ever since the Anglo-Dutch wars began. The
+Commissioners replied that they had no objection to the commanders of
+the cruisers providing themselves with Letters of Marque, if done at
+the latter's own expense "during present hostilities": but the Board
+declined to bear any part of the expense for any damages that might be
+sustained in an engagement where no seizure had been made and brought
+into port for a breach of the Revenue laws, so long as a commander
+should continue to hold these Letters of Marque. It was, in fact, a
+basis of no cure no pay. Each commander was, further, strictly
+enjoined not to quit his station and duty as a Revenue officer "under
+pretence of looking for captures, it being our resolution to recall
+the permission hereby granted, as soon as it shall be discovered in
+any instance to be prejudicial to our service."
+
+But this war-like and semi-war-like service was entirely subservient
+to their ordinary work. It is evident from the correspondence of the
+Customs Board of this same year, 1780, that their minds were very
+uneasy. The smugglers, far from showing any slackening, had become
+more active than ever. These men had, to quote the words of the
+Commissioners, considerably increased the size and force of their
+vessels; they had also added to their number of both men and guns.
+They had become so violent and outrageous, they had acquired so much
+audacity as to "carry on their illicit designs in sight of the Revenue
+cruisers," and "whenever they have appeared within a certain distance
+have actually fired into and threatened to sink them." In such cases
+as these, it was reported to the Board, the mariners on board these
+cruisers have frequently refused to bear down and repel their attacks,
+explaining their conduct by saying that no provision was made for
+their support in case they received injury during these encounters. To
+meet such objections as these the Board resolved to allow the sum of
+£10 per annum to every mariner employed on board their cruisers who
+should lose a hand or foot, or receive any greater injury by firearms
+"or other offensive weapons of the smugglers while in the actual
+execution of their duty so as to disable them from further service;
+and we have also resolved to pay the surgeons' bills for such of the
+mariners as may receive slighter wounds." But it was stipulated that
+no allowance was to be paid unless certificates were produced from the
+commanders of these cruisers.
+
+And before we go any further with the progress of these cutters, let
+us afford actual instances of the kind of treatment which had led the
+Board to make this allowance to its men. Three years before the above
+resolution, that is to say on April 24, 1777, Captain Mitchell was
+cruising in command of the Revenue cutter _Swallow_ in the North Sea.
+Off Robin Hood's Bay he fell in with a smuggling cutter commanded by a
+notorious contraband skipper who was known as "Smoker," or "Smoaker."
+Mitchell was evidently in sufficient awe of him to give him a wide
+berth, for the cruiser's commander in his official report actually
+recorded that "Smoker" "waved us to keep off"! However, a few days
+later, the _Swallow_, when off the Spurn, fell in with another famous
+smuggler. This was the schooner _Kent_, of about two hundred tons,
+skippered by a man known as "Stoney." Again did this gallant Revenue
+captain send in his report to the effect that "as their guns were in
+readiness, and at the same time waving us to go to the Northward, we
+were, by reason of their superior force, obliged to sheer off, but did
+our best endeavours to spoil his Market. There [_sic_] being a large
+fleet of colliers with him."
+
+But that was not to be their last meeting, for on May 2, when off
+Whitby, the _Swallow_ again fell in with the _Kent_, but (wrote
+Mitchell) the smuggler "would not let us come near him." The following
+day the two ships again saw each other, and also on May 13, when off
+Runswick Bay. On the latter occasion the _Kent_ "fired a gun for us,
+as we imagined, to keep farther from him." The same afternoon the
+_Swallow_ chased a large lugsail boat, with fourteen hands in her, and
+supposed to belong to the _Kent_. But the _Swallow_ was about as timid
+as her name, for, according to her commander, she was "obliged to
+stand out to sea, finding that by the force they had in their boat,
+and a number of people on shore, we had no chance of attacking them
+with our boat, as they let us know they were armed, by giving us a
+volley of small arms." None the less the _Swallow_ had also fourteen
+men as her complement, so one would have thought that this
+chicken-hearted commander would at least have made an effort to try
+conclusions.
+
+No doubt, the _Kent_ was a pretty tough customer, and both skipper and
+his crew likewise. But there was something wanting in Captain
+Mitchell. For consider another of the latter's exploits. It was the
+last week of September of that same year, and the scene had again the
+Yorkshire coast for its background. During the evening they espied
+what they rightly believed to be a smuggling cutter. They got as far
+as hailing her, but, as it was very dark, and the _Swallow_ did not
+know the force of the cutter, Mitchell "thought it most prudent to
+leave her," and so came to anchor in Saltburn Bay. But the smuggler
+had not done with this enterprising gentleman; so the next day the
+smuggler came into the bay, stood down under full sail, and came
+charging down on to the poor _Swallow_, striking her on the quarter,
+the smuggler swearing terrible oaths the meanwhile, that if Mitchell
+did not promptly cut his cable--it was the days of hemp, still--and
+hurry out of that anchorage, he would sink him. What happened, do you
+ask? Of course the _Swallow_ ought to have been under way, and should
+never have been lying there. She was acting contrary to the orders of
+the Board. But what must we think of a captain who calmly awaits the
+on-coming of a smuggler's attack? Why, so soon as the _Swallow_ espied
+him approaching, did he not up anchor, hoist sails, and go to meet him
+with his crew at their stations, and guns all shotted? But even after
+this gross insult to himself, his ship, and his flag, was the
+commander of a Revenue sloop to obey?
+
+[Illustration: "Came charging down ... striking her on the quarter."]
+
+Yes--it is shameful to have to record it--Mitchell did obey. True, he
+didn't cut his cable, but he soon tripped his anchor and cleared out
+as ordered. The poor _Swallow_ had been damaged both as to her tail
+and her wings, for the smugglers had injured the stern, taken a piece
+out of the boom, and carried away the topping-lift. But evidently in
+those days the Revenue service attracted into its folds men of the
+type of Mitchell. Take the case of Captain Whitehead of the Revenue
+cruiser _Eagle_. Espying a smuggling vessel, he gave chase, and
+eventually came up with her, also off Saltburn. Whitehead hailed her,
+but the smuggler's skipper replied--one cannot resist a smile--"with
+a horrid expression," and called his men to arms. The smuggler then
+fired a volley with muskets, wounding one of the _Eagle's_ crew.
+Presently they also fired their swivel-guns, "on which Captain
+Whitehead thought it prudent to get away from her as fast as he could,
+the greatest part of his people having quitted the deck."
+
+The smuggler continued to fire at the retreating cruiser, and chased
+the _Eagle_ for a whole hour after. The cutter turned out to be that
+which Mitchell had encountered on April 24, 1777, and her skipper was
+our friend "Smoker" again. This smuggling craft was described as a
+stout cutter of 130 tons, and a crew of upwards of forty men. She
+carried fourteen carriage guns, four three-pounders, as well as a
+great number of swivels. "Smoker's" real name was David Browning, and
+he was recognised by the _Eagle's_ crew from his voice, which was
+familiar to several of them. During that affray the Revenue cruiser
+received about twenty shot in her sails, about a dozen in her boat,
+and half as many in her fore-and main-mast. She also had her mizzen
+halyards shot away. From these details it would seem that she was
+dandy-rigged, that is to say, she had a mizzen or jigger in addition
+to her cutter rig, and on this jigger would be set a small lugsail as
+was the old custom.
+
+Following on Mitchell's meeting with the _Kent_, we have a record
+belonging to July of that same year--1777. This time a different
+result was to come about. For instead of acting single-handed, the
+sloops _Prince of Wales_ and the _Royal George_--both being employed
+by the Scottish Excise Board, aided by H.M.S. _Pelican_ and
+_Arethusa_--four of them--at last managed to capture this schooner.
+She was found to be armed with sixteen four-pounders and twenty
+swivel-guns, and also had a large stock of gunpowder, blunderbusses,
+and muskets. "Stoney" was taken out of her, and he was said to be an
+outlaw whose real name was George Fagg. The guns and ammunition were
+taken ashore and put in the King's warehouse at Hull, and the crew of
+thirty-nine were placed on board the _Arethusa_. Among these prisoners
+were those who had murdered a dragoon the previous year, while the
+latter was assisting a Custom officer at Whitby. The arrest of these
+men was all the more interesting for a reward of £100 for their
+capture had been long outstanding.
+
+The capture of the _Kent_ had been effected as follows: the two Excise
+cruisers were off St. Abb's Head on July 8, and hearing that the
+_Kent_ had been seen off Flamborough Head they sailed south, and off
+Filey fell in with her. On being hailed, the smuggler beat to
+quarters, shouting to the cruisers. "Fire, you ----, and be ---- to
+you." The battle at once commenced and continued smartly for an hour,
+when the _Pelican_ came up to give assistance to the two cruisers. The
+_Kent_, big as she was, now used sweeps--it was reminiscent of the
+days of Elizabethan galleasses--and drew away. However the _Pelican_
+(a frigate) overhauled her, and the _Arethusa_ which had also come up
+gave valuable aid as well. The two naval captains allowed the cruisers
+to seize the _Kent_, and to take her into Hull, but the prisoners were
+put on board the _Arethusa_ as stated. The _Kent's_ master and four of
+the men had been killed. It should be added that the day before this
+incident the _Pelican_ had also chased the _Kent_ out of Bridlington
+Bay, so the smuggler must have come further north in the meanwhile,
+thus meeting the two Scottish cruisers bound south. The hatches of the
+_Kent_ were found to be unbattened, and her cargo in great disorder.
+The latter consisted of 1974 half-ankers, and a large amount of tea
+packed in oilskin-bags to the number of 554. This schooner had been
+built at that other famous home of smugglers, Folkestone. She was
+specially rigged for fast sailing, her mainmast being 77 feet long,
+and her main-boom 57 feet. It was found that her sails were much
+damaged by shot. Her mainmast was shot through in two places, and her
+main-boom rendered quite unserviceable. Ship and tackle were appraised
+at £1405, 16s., so with the addition of her cargo she represented a
+fair prize.
+
+But "Smoker" was still at large even though "Stoney" was a prisoner.
+It was in April of 1777, when Captain Mitchell had fallen in with him
+off Robin Hood's Bay. A month later the Collector of Hull wrote up to
+the Board to say that a large lugger had been seen off Whitby, and
+well armed. She was described as "greatly an overmatch" for any of the
+Revenue cruisers, "or even for a joint attack of two of them": and
+that as long as she and the armed cutter commanded by Browning,
+_alias_ "Smoker" continued so daringly to "insult" the coasts, there
+was little prospect of success. For six months past the Revenue
+cruisers had not been able to make any seizures, because these
+smuggling craft not only brought over vast quantities themselves, but
+protected the smaller ones from the attempts of the Revenue cruisers.
+A year later, and we find that Mitchell was every bit as slack as
+before. This is made quite clear from a letter which the Collector of
+Hull was compelled on November 12 (1778) to write. In this epistle he
+informs Mitchell that either he or his mate, one of them, must remain
+on board the _Swallow_ at night, when lying in the Humber. For it
+appeared that two days earlier both were ashore. The mariner who had
+the midnight watch on board the cruiser saw a vessel, supposed to be a
+privateer, come right up the Humber into Hull Roads, sail around the
+naval tender there lying, then sail round the _Swallow_, and finally
+down the river again. Although there were twelve or fourteen men on
+the supposed privateer's deck, yet the _Swallow's_ watchman did not
+even hail her, Mitchell and his mate being ashore all the while.
+
+Such incidents as the above show that there undoubtedly was cause for
+the complaints of the Customs Board that the commanders of their
+cruisers were not doing all that might have been done towards
+suppressing the evil at hand. On the other hand, it was equally true
+that the delinquents with whom these commanders had to contest were of
+a particularly virulent and villainous type. Thus, between the
+negligence of the one side, and the enterprise of the other, his
+Majesty's revenue had to suffer very considerably. No better instance
+of the potency of this lawlessness could be afforded than by an event
+which happened in the summer of 1777. Everyone knows, of course, that
+those were the days when men had to be impressed into the service of
+the Navy, so that, when any of these hardy smugglers were captured,
+they were valuable acquisitions to the Service, and far more useful
+than many of the disease-stricken crews which so often had to be
+shipped to make up a man-of-war's complement. In the year we are
+speaking of a number of smugglers who had been captured on the North
+Sea were put on board H.M. tender _Lively_ by Captain O'Hara of the
+Impress service, the intention being to convey these men to one of his
+Majesty's ships at the Nore. The tender got under way and was
+proceeding to her destination when the smuggler-prisoners mutinied,
+overpowered the _Lively's_ crew, and carried the _Lively_ into
+Flushing.
+
+And similar examples of the impudence and violence of other North Sea
+smugglers could also be quoted. On the 7th of May 1778, Captain Bland,
+of the _Mermaid_ Revenue cruiser, was off Huntcliff Fort, when he
+sighted a smuggling shallop.[9] Bland promptly bore down, and as he
+approached hailed her. But the shallop answered by firing a broadside.
+The Revenue cruiser now prepared to engage her, whereupon the shallop
+hoisted an English pennant, which was evidently a signal for
+assistance, for a large armed cutter promptly appeared and came to the
+shallop's rescue. Seeing that he was overmatched, Bland, therefore,
+sheered off. During the same month Captain Whitehead, of the _Eagle_,
+to whom we have already referred, reported that he seldom went for a
+cruise without being fired on, and he mentioned that sometimes these
+smuggling vessels carried musket-proof breast-works--a kind of early
+armour-plating, in fact.
+
+The principal rendezvous of the smuggling craft in the North Sea was
+Robin Hood's Bay. Whenever the cruisers used to approach that bight
+the smugglers would sail out, fire upon them, and drive them along the
+coast. Before firing, the smugglers always hoisted English colours,
+and on one occasion a smuggling craft had the temerity to run
+alongside a Revenue cruiser, hail her, and in a derisive manner
+ordered the commander to send his boat aboard. We spoke just now of
+the superior sailing qualities which these smuggling craft frequently
+possessed over the Revenue cruisers, and on one occasion, in the North
+Sea, the master of a smuggling shallop, when being pursued, impudently
+lowered his lugsail--that would be his mizzen--to show that the
+cruiser could not come up and catch him. And lest that dishonourable
+incident previously mentioned, of a cruiser being ordered out of
+Saltburn Bay, may be thought a mere isolated event, let us hasten to
+add that the cruiser _Mermaid_ was lying at anchor off Dunstanburgh
+Castle, on the Northumbrian coast, when Edward Browning came alongside
+her in an armed shallop named the _Porcupine_, belonging to Sandwich.
+He insisted on the _Mermaid_ getting up her anchor and leaving that
+region: "otherwise he would do him a mischief." Indeed, were these
+facts not shown unmistakably by actual eye-witnesses to be the very
+reverse of fiction, one might indeed feel doubtful as to accepting
+them. But it is unlikely that cruiser-commanders would go out of their
+way to record incidents which injured their reputation, had these
+events never in reality occurred.
+
+Some idea of the degree of success which smuggling vessels attained
+during this eighteenth century may be gathered from the achievements
+of a cutter which was at work on the south coast. Her name was the
+_Swift_, and she belonged to Bridport. She was of 100 tons burthen,
+carried no fewer than 16 guns and a crew of fifty. During the year
+1783 she had made several runs near Torbay, and on each occasion had
+been able to land about 2000 casks of spirits, as well as 4 or 5 tons
+of tea. Afterwards the whole of this valuable cargo had been run
+inland by about 200 men, in defiance of the Revenue officers. Then
+there was the _Ranger_, a bigger craft still, of 250 tons. She carried
+an enormous crew for her size--nearly 100--and mounted 22 guns. She
+had been built at Cawsand, that village which in smuggling days
+attained so much notoriety, and stands at the end of a delightful bay
+facing the western end of Plymouth Breakwater. This vessel had a
+successful time in landing cargoes to the east of Torbay without
+paying the lawful duty. And there were many fishing-boats of from 18
+to 25 tons, belonging to Torbay, which were at this time accustomed to
+run across the Channel, load up with the usual contraband, and then
+hover about outside the limits of the land. When they were convinced
+that the coast was clear of any cruisers they would run into the bay
+and land, sink or raft their cargoes, according to circumstances.
+
+And now, leaving for the present actual skirmishes and chases in
+which the Revenue cruisers were concerned, let us look a little more
+closely into their organisation. From the report by the Commissioners
+appointed to examine the Public Accounts of the kingdom, and issued in
+1787, it is shown that the Custom House cruisers were of two classes:
+(1) Those which were owned by the Board, and (2) Those which were
+hired by contract. And as to this latter class there was a further
+subdivision into two other classes; for one section of these vessels
+was furnished by the Crown, no charge being made for the hire. But her
+outfit, her future repairs, in addition to the wages and victualling
+of the crew, and all other expenses, were paid out of the produce of
+the seizures which these cruisers effected. After this, if anything
+remained beyond these deductions, the residue was to be divided
+between the Crown and the contractor. Very often, of course, when a
+fine haul was made of a £1000 worth of cargo, there was quite a nice
+little sum for both parties to the contract, and a few other, smaller,
+seizures during the year would make the business quite a profitable
+undertaking. But when the amount of seizures was not sufficient to
+defray the expenses the deficiency was supplied by the contractor and
+Crown in equal proportions. That, then, was one of these two
+subdivisions of contracted cruisers.
+
+But in the second of these the contractor provided the vessel, for
+which he was paid the sum of 4s. 6d. a ton per lunar month. It may
+seem at first that this was poor remuneration, especially when one
+recollects that to-day, when the Government hires liners from the
+great steamship companies, the rate of payment is £1 per ton per
+month. In the case of even a 10,000-ton liner there is thus a very
+good payment for about thirty days. But in the case of a cutter of 100
+tons or less, in the eighteenth century, 4s. 6d. per ton may seem very
+small in comparison. However, we must bear in mind that although for
+this money the contractor was to find the outfit of the vessel, and be
+responsible for all repairs needed, yet the aforesaid contractor might
+make a good deal more in a lucky year. It was done on the following
+basis. From the produce of the seizures made by this subdivision of
+cruisers all remaining charges additional to those mentioned above
+were paid, but the surplus was divided between the Crown and
+contractor. Thus the latter stood to gain a large sum if only a
+moderate number of seizures had been made, and there was, by this
+method, every incentive for the hired cruisers to use their best
+endeavours to effect captures. Still, if there was a deficiency
+instead of a surplus, this was also shared by both contracting
+parties.
+
+In the year 1784 there were, reckoning all classes, 44 cruisers
+employed, and 1041 men as crews. Of these cruisers the Commander, the
+Chief Mate and Second Mate, and, in certain vessels, the Deputed
+Mariners, were all officers of the Customs. In the case of the first
+class of cruisers--those which were on the establishment--these
+officers were appointed by the Board pursuant to warrants from the
+Treasury. In the case of the second--those which were hired by
+contract--the officers were appointed by the Customs Board. The
+captain of the cruiser was paid £50 per annum, the chief mate either
+£35 or £30, and the crew were each paid £15. But, as we shall see from
+a later page, the rate of pay was considerably increased some years
+afterwards. The victualling allowance was at the rate of 9d. per diem
+for each man on board, and an allowance of 1s. each was made by the
+lunar month for fire and candle. This last-mentioned allowance was
+also modified in the course of time. Some idea as to the seriousness,
+from a financial point of view, of this cruiser fleet may be gathered
+from the statement that these 44 vessels cost the Government for a
+year's service the sum of £44,355, 16s. 1d.
+
+The largest of these forty-four cruisers was the _Repulse_, 210 tons.
+She carried 33 men and was stationed at Colchester. Her cost for this
+year (1784) was £1552, 16s. 8d. She was not one of the hired vessels,
+but on the establishment. Next in size came the _Tartar_, 194 tons,
+with 31 men, her station being Dover. She was on the establishment,
+and her annual cost was £1304, 6s. 2-1/2d. Of the same tonnage was the
+_Speedwell_, which cruised between Weymouth and Cowes. There was also
+the _Rose_, 190 tons, with 30 men, stationed at Southampton, being on
+the establishment likewise. Next to her in size came the _Diligence_,
+175 tons, with 32 men. She cruised between Poole and Weymouth. She was
+one of the hired vessels, and was in 1784 removed from Weymouth to
+have her headquarters at Cowes. The smallest of all the cruisers at
+this time was the _Nimble_, 41 tons and a crew of 30. She also was a
+hired craft. Her station was at Deal, and her annual cost was £1064,
+9s. 9d. for the year mentioned.
+
+But though there was less expenditure needed at the outset, these
+contract ships were not altogether satisfactory: or rather it was the
+method than the cruisers themselves. For if we have any knowledge at
+all of human nature, and especially of the dishonest character which
+so frequently manifested itself in the eighteenth century, we can
+readily imagine that the contractor, unless he was a scrupulously
+honourable man, would naturally succumb to the temptation to economise
+too strictly regarding the keeping the ship in the best condition of
+repair; or he might gain a little by giving her not quite a
+sufficiently numerous crew, thus saving both wages and victuals. For
+the Crown allowed a certain number of men, and paid for the complement
+which they were supposed to carry.
+
+Therefore, since this arrangement was marked by serious drawbacks, the
+contract system was discontinued, and at the beginning of 1788 fifteen
+contracts were ended, and five other cruisers' contracts were not
+renewed when they expired in that year. All the cruisers in the
+employment of the Customs Service were now placed on the
+establishment, and the practice of paying the charges and expenses out
+of the King's share of the condemned goods was rescinded. In the year
+1797 the number of Customs cruisers was 37, the commanders being
+appointed by the Treasury; and it may be not without interest to
+mention the names, tonnage, and guns of some of those which were on
+the books for that year. There was the _Vigilant_, which was described
+as a yacht, 53 tons, 6 guns, and 13 men; the _Vigilant_ cutter, 82
+tons, 8 guns. During the winter season she cruised with ten additional
+hands off the coasts of Essex, Kent, and Sussex. There was another,
+the _Diligence_, given as of 152 tons; the _Swallow_, 153 tons and 10
+guns; the _Lively_, 113 tons, 12 guns, and 30 men. The _Swift_, 52
+tons and 8 men, used to cruise between the Downs and the Long Sand (to
+the North of the North Foreland at the mouth of the Thames). Some of
+the old names under the former dual system are seen to be commemorated
+in the _Nimble_ (41 tons, 2 guns, 15 men). Her station was Deal, and
+she used to cruise between the Forelands. The _Tartar_ of this period
+was of 100 tons, had 10 guns and 23 men. But the _Greyhound_,
+probably one of the fastest cruisers, was of 200 tons, mounted 16
+guns, and carried 43 men. Her cruising ground was between Beachy Head
+and the Start, and her station at Weymouth. A much smaller craft was
+the cruiser _Busy_ (46 tons and 11 men). Her cruising was in a much
+smaller area--around Plymouth Sound and Cawsand Bay.
+
+Owing to the fact that commanders had been wont too often to run into
+port for real or imaginary repairs, the Commissioners decided that in
+future, when a cruiser put in, she was to inform the Collector and
+Controller of that port by means of her commander, and both to give
+his reasons for coming in, and to estimate the length of time he was
+likely to remain in port, before his being able to sail again.
+
+With regard to the prize-money which these cruisers were able to make;
+before the year 1790 there had been a diversity of practice in the
+method of sharing. In allotting rewards to officers for seizing
+vessels which afterwards had been taken into the Revenue Service, it
+had formerly been the practice to deduct the whole of the charges out
+of the officers' moiety of the appraised value. But from April 14,
+1790, "for the encouragement of the seizing officers," the charge was
+deducted from the total appraised value, and the seizing officers were
+to be paid a moiety of the net produce, if any. It had also been the
+custom to allow the commanders of Admiralty cruisers permission to use
+seized vessels as tenders. But from May 6, 1790, this practice was
+also discontinued by the Board, who ordered that in case any such
+vessels were so employed at the different ports, the commanders were
+to deliver them up "with their tackle, apparel, and furniture," to the
+Collector and Controller of Customs.
+
+We referred some time back to the fact that these Revenue cruisers at
+times were mobilised for war, and also that to them were granted
+Letters of Marque. In this connection there is to be noted an
+interesting warrant, under the King's sign-manual, dated June 11,
+1795, which reads:--
+
+  "Whereas the Commissioners of our Treasury have represented unto
+  us that the cutters in the service of our Revenues of Customs have
+  captured several Ships and Vessels belonging to the enemy, and
+  have recommended it unto us to issue our warrant to grant the
+  proceeds of the Prizes that have been or shall be taken by the
+  cutters in the service of our Customs, granted to the cutters
+  capturing such prizes respectively, and the expenses of the
+  proceedings, in regard thereto, among officers and crews of the
+  vessels in the search of our Customs, who made the said captures,
+  together with the head-money, in all cases where head-money is or
+  may be due by law....
+
+  "Our will and pleasure is that the proceeds of all such Prizes as
+  have been or shall be taken from the enemy in the course of the
+  present war, by the cutters in the service of our Revenue of
+  Customs, after deducting all expenses of the Letters of Marque
+  granted to the cutters capturing such Prizes respectively, and the
+  expenses of the proceedings in regard thereto, together with the
+  head-money in all cases where head-money is or may be due by law,
+  shall be distributed in the manner following; that is to say":--
+
+ The Commander                   14/32 ds.
+ Mate                             7/32 ds.
+
+ Deputed Mariner, or deputed }    3/32 ds., exclusive of their
+ mariners if more than one   }              shares as Mariners.
+
+ Other Mariners                    8/32 ds.
+
+ If there is no deputed Mariner,
+ The Commander                     1/2
+ The Mate                          1/4
+ Mariners                          1/4
+
+It may be mentioned, in passing, that a "deputed" mariner was one who
+held a deputation from the Customs Board. Another warrant, similar to
+the above, and to the same effect, was issued on July 4, of that
+memorable year 1805. In July of 1797, the Customs Commissioners drew
+attention to the third article of the "Instructions for the
+Commanders and Mates of the Cruisers employed in the service of this
+Revenue," reminding them that the commanders, mariners, and mates were
+in no case to be allowed to participate in the officers' shares of
+seizures made by the crews of the cruisers unless the first-mentioned
+had been actually present at the time when the seizure was made, or
+could afford satisfactory proof that they were necessarily absent on
+some duty. Therefore the Board now directed that, whenever the crews
+of the cruisers made a seizure, a list of the officers who were not
+actually on board or in the boats of the cruisers at that time was to
+be transmitted to the Board with the account of the seizure. Then
+follows the other instruction which has already been alluded to. In
+order that the station of the aforesaid cruisers may never be left
+unguarded by their coming into port for provisions, or to be cleaned
+and refitted, or for any other necessary purpose, the commanders were
+instructed to arrange with each other "that nothing but absolute
+necessity shall occasion their being in Port at one and the same
+time."
+
+It will be recognised that the object of this was, if possible, to
+keep the officers of the cruisers on board their vessels, and at sea,
+instead of ever running into port. For it would seem that by more than
+one of these gentlemen the work of cruising on behalf of the Revenue
+Service was regarded too much in the light of a pleasant, extended
+yachting trip, with an occasional chase and seizure of a smuggling
+craft to break the monotony of their existence and to swell their
+purses. But such a pleasant life was not that contemplated by the
+Customs authorities.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[9] "Shallop, a sort of large boat with two masts, and usually rigged
+like a schooner."--MOORE.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+CUTTERS AND SLOOPS
+
+
+We have spoken during the preceding chapters of the revenue cruisers
+sometimes as cutters and sometimes as sloops. For the reason that will
+quickly become apparent let us now endeavour to straighten out any
+confusion which may have arisen in the mind of the reader.
+
+Practically, sloops and cutters of these days were one and the same,
+with very minor differences. In a valuable French nautical volume
+published in 1783, after explaining that the cutter came to the French
+from England, the definition goes on to state that in her rigging and
+sail-plan she resembles a sloop, except that the former has her mast
+longer, and inclined further aft, and has greater sail-area. The
+cutter also has but little freeboard, and in order to carry her large
+sail-area she draws more water. This authority then goes on to mention
+that such craft as these cutters are employed by the smugglers of the
+English Channel, "and being able to carry a good deal of sail they can
+easily escape from the guardships. The English Government, for the
+same reason, maintain a good many of these craft so as to stop these
+smugglers." Our English authority, Falconer, described the cutter as
+having one mast and a straight-running bowsprit that could be run
+inboard on deck. But for this, and the fact that the cutter's
+sail-area was larger, these craft were much the same as sloops.
+Falconer also states that a sloop differs from a cutter by having a
+fixed steeving bowsprit and a jib-stay. Moore, who was also a
+contemporary, makes similar definitions in almost identical language.
+The real difference, then, was that the cutter could run her bowsprit
+inboard, but the sloop could not.
+
+Now, in the year 1785, a very interesting matter occupied the
+attention of the Board of Customs in this connection. It appeared that
+in an important trial concerning a certain vessel the defence was set
+up that this vessel had changed her character by so altering her
+"boltsprit" that it became fixed and could not be run inboard. It was
+found that all which her owners had done was to pass an iron bolt
+through the bits and heel of the bowsprit, clenching it. The defendant
+insisted that thus he had rendered it a complete standing "boltsprit,"
+and not a running one: and that, therefore, by such alteration, his
+vessel became transformed from a cutter to a sloop. And, according to
+the definitions which we have just brought forward, one would have
+thought that this was a good defence. However, the Crown thought
+otherwise, and contended that the alteration was a mere evasion of
+the Act in question, and that the vessel remained a cutter because
+such fastening could be removed at pleasure, and then the "boltsprit"
+would run in and out as it did before the alteration. The jury also
+took this view, and the cutter, which thought herself a sloop, was
+condemned. The Revenue officers and commanders of Admiralty sloops
+were accordingly warned to make a note of this. For a number of years
+the matter was evidently left at that. But in 1822 the Attorney and
+Solicitor-General, after a difficult case had been raised, gave the
+legal distinction as follows, the matter having arisen in connection
+with the licensing of a craft: "A cutter may have a standing bowsprit
+of a certain length without a licence, but the distinction between a
+sloop and a cutter should not be looked for in the rigging but in the
+build and form of the hull, and, therefore, when a carvel-built vessel
+corresponds as to her hull with the usual form of a sloop, she will
+not merely, by having a running bowsprit, become a cutter within the
+meaning of the Act of the 24 Geo. III. cap. 47, and consequently will
+not be liable to forfeiture for want of a licence." From this it will
+be seen that whereas Falconer and other nautical authorities relied on
+the fixing of the bowsprit to determine the difference, the legal
+authorities relied on a difference in hull. The point is one of great
+interest, and I believe the matter has never been raised before by
+any modern nautical writer.[10]
+
+As to what a Revenue cutter looked like, the illustrations which have
+been here reproduced will afford the reader a very good idea. And
+these can be supplemented by the following description which Marryat
+gives in _The Three Cutters_. It should be mentioned that the period
+of which he is speaking is that which we have been contemplating, the
+end of the eighteenth century.
+
+"She is a cutter," he writes, "and you may know that she belongs to
+the Preventive Service by the number of gigs and galleys which she has
+hoisted up all round her. She looks like a vessel that was about to
+sail with a cargo of boats: two on deck, one astern, one on each side
+of her. You observe that she is painted black, and all her boats are
+white. She is not such an elegant vessel as the yacht, and she is much
+more lumbered up.... Let us go on board. You observe the guns are
+iron, and painted black, and her bulwarks are painted red; it is not a
+very becoming colour, but then it lasts a long while, and the dockyard
+is not very generous on the score of paint--or lieutenants of the navy
+troubled with much spare cash. She has plenty of men, and fine men
+they are; all dressed in red flannel shirts and blue trousers; some of
+them have not taken off their canvas or tarpaulin petticoats, which
+are very useful to them, as they are in the boats night and day, and
+in all weathers. But we will at once go down into the cabin, where we
+shall find the lieutenant who commands her, a master's mate, and a
+midshipman. They have each their tumbler before them, and are drinking
+gin-toddy, hot, with sugar--capital gin, too, 'bove proof; it is from
+that small anker standing under the table. It was one that they forgot
+to return to the Custom House when they made their last seizure."
+
+In 1786, by the 26 Geo. III. c. 40, section 27, it was made lawful for
+any commander of any of his Majesty's vessels of war, or any officer
+by them authorised, to make seizures without a deputation or
+commission from the Commissioners of the Customs. Those were curious
+times when we recollect that apart altogether from the men-of-war of
+varying kinds, there were large numbers of armed smuggler-cutters,
+Custom-House cutters with letters of marque, privateers, and even
+Algerine corsairs from the Mediterranean, in the English Channel. It
+is to-day only a hundred and fifty years ago since one of these
+Algerine craft was wrecked near Penzance in the early autumn.
+
+We mentioned just now the Act of George III. which required craft to
+be licensed. This was another of the various means employed for the
+prevention of smuggling, and since the passing of this Act those
+luggers and cutters which engaged in the running of goods endeavoured
+to evade the Act's penalties by possessing themselves of foreign
+colours and foreign ship's papers. Now, as a fact, by far the greater
+part of such craft belonged to Deal, Folkestone, and other south-coast
+ports of England. Their masters were also from the same localities,
+and very few of them could speak Dutch or French. But for the purpose
+of evading the English law they got themselves made burghers of
+Ostend, and notwithstanding that their crews were for the most part
+English they designated their craft as foreign.
+
+During the year 1785 it happened that two of these pseudo-foreign
+smuggling craft were chased by an English frigate. Owing to the fact
+that the frigate had no pilot on board, one of these vessels escaped,
+but the other, after a chase lasting five hours, realised that she
+would soon be overhauled. Her master, therefore, threw overboard his
+cargo as the frigate fast approached, and in company with a number of
+his crew took to his large boat. The lugger, after no fewer than
+twenty shots had been fired at her, hove-to. On taking possession of
+the lugger and examining her papers it appeared that her master's name
+was the very English-sounding Thomas March, and yet he described
+himself as a burgher of Ostend, the vessel being owned by a merchant.
+The master's excuse was that he was a pilot-boat cruising with a
+number of pilots on board, and for this reason it was decided to give
+him the benefit of the doubt and not detain him. But the frigate's
+captain had noticed that before the lugger had hove-to during the
+evening a part of the cargo had been thrown overboard. The following
+morning, therefore, he proceeded on board a Revenue cutter, "went into
+the track where the cargo was thrown overboard," and was able to find
+just what he had expected, for he located and drew out of the sea no
+fewer than 700 half-ankers of foreign spirits.
+
+This precedent opened up an important question; for if a neutral
+vessel, or indeed any craft similarly circumstanced as the above, were
+to anchor off the English coast it was hardly possible to detect her
+in running goods, as it seldom took more than an hour to land a whole
+cargo, owing to the great assistance which was given from the people
+on the shore. For, as it was officially pointed out, as soon as one of
+these vessels was sighted 300 people could usually be relied on with
+200 or more carts and waggons to render the necessary service.
+Therefore the commanders of the cutters sought legal advice as to how
+they should act on meeting with luggers and cutters without Admiralty
+passes on the English coast but more or less protected with foreign
+papers and sailing under foreign colours.
+
+The matter was referred to the Attorney-General, who gave his opinion
+that vessels were forfeitable only in the event of their being the
+property in whole or part of his Majesty's subjects; but where the
+crew of such a vessel appeared all to be English subjects, or at any
+rate the greatest part of them, it was his opinion that there was a
+sufficient reason for seizing the vessel if she was near the English
+coast. She was then to be brought into port so that, if she could, she
+might prove that she belonged wholly to foreigners. "A British
+subject," continued the opinion, "being made a burgher of Ostend does
+not thereby cease to be a subject. Vessels hovering within four
+leagues of the British coast, with an illicit cargo, as that of this
+vessel appears to have been, are forfeited whether they are the
+property of Britons or foreigners."
+
+It was not once but on various occasions that the Customs Board
+expressed themselves as dissatisfied with the amount of success which
+their cruisers had attained in respect of the work allotted to them.
+At the beginning of the year 1782 they referred to "the enormous
+increase of smuggling, the outrages with which it is carried on, the
+mischiefs it occasions to the country, the discouragement it creates
+to all fair traders, and the prodigious loss the Revenue sustains by
+it." The Board went on to state that "diligent and vigorous exertions
+by the cruising vessels employed in the service of the Customs
+certainly might very much lessen it." The Commissioners expressed
+themselves as dissatisfied with the lack of success, and ordered that
+the officers of the Waterguard were especially to see that the
+commander and mate of every Revenue vessel or boat bringing in a
+seizure were actually on board when such seizure was made.
+
+A few days later--the date is January 16, 1788--the Board, having
+received information that great quantities of tobacco and spirits were
+about to be smuggled in from France, Flanders, Guernsey, and Alderney,
+warned the Preventive officers of the various ports, and directed the
+commanders of the Admiralty cruisers, which happened to be stationed
+near the ports, to be especially vigilant to intercept "these attempts
+of the illicit dealers, so that the Revenue may not be defrauded in
+those articles to the alarming degree it has hitherto been." And the
+officers were bluntly told that if they were to exert themselves in
+guarding the coast night and day such fraudulent practices could not
+be carried on in the shameful manner they now were. "And though the
+Riding officers may not always have it in their power to seize the
+goods from a considerable body of smugglers, yet if such officers were
+to keep a watchful eye on their motions, and were to communicate early
+information thereof to the Waterguard, they may thereby render
+essential service to the Revenue."
+
+When the soldiers assisted the Revenue officers in making seizures on
+shore it was frequently the case that the military had difficulty in
+recovering from the Revenue men that share of prize-money which was
+their due. The Collector of each port was therefore directed in future
+to retain in his hands out of the officers' shares of seizures so much
+as appeared to be due to the soldiers, and the names of the latter who
+had rendered assistance were to be inserted in the account of the
+seizures sent up to headquarters. But the jealousy of the military's
+aid somehow never altogether died out, and ten years after the above
+order there was still delay in rendering to the army men their due
+share of the seizures.
+
+The commanders of the Revenue cruisers were told to keep an especial
+watch on the homeward-bound East Indiamen to prevent "the illicit
+practices that are continually attempted to be committed from them."
+Therefore these cruisers were not only to watch these big ships
+through the limits of their own station, but also to keep as near them
+when under sail as possible, provided this can be done with safety and
+propriety. But when the East Indiamen come to anchor the cruisers are
+also to anchor near them, and compel all boats and vessels coming from
+them to bring-to in order to be examined. They are "then to proceed to
+rummage such boats and vessels. And if any goods are found therein
+they are to be seized, together with the boats in which they are
+found." The importance of this very plain instruction is explained by
+the further statement that "some of the commanders of the cruisers in
+the service of the Revenue endeavour to shun these ships, and thereby
+avoid attending them through their station."
+
+On Christmas Eve of 1784 the Customs Commissioners sent word to all
+the ports saying that they suspected that there were a good many
+vessels and boats employed in smuggling which were thus liable to
+forfeiture. Therefore, within forty-eight hours from the receipt of
+this information sent by letter, a close and vigorous search was to be
+made by the most active and trusty officers at each port into every
+bay, river, creek, and inlet within the district of each port, as well
+as all along the coast, so as to discover and seize such illegal
+vessels and boats. And if there were any boats quartered within the
+neighbourhood of each port, timely notice of the day and hour of the
+intended search was to be sent by the Collector and Controller in
+confidence to the commanding officer only, that he might hold his
+soldiers in readiness. Yet, again the Board exhorted the Revenue
+officers "to exert yourselves to the utmost of your power ... and as
+it is very probable that the places where such boats and vessels are
+kept may be known to the officers who have long resided at your port,
+you are to acquaint such officers that if they value their characters
+or employments, or have any regard to the solemn oath they took at
+their admission, we expect they will, on this occasion, give the
+fullest and most ample information of all such places, and will
+cheerfully afford every other aid and assistance in their power, to
+the end that the said vessels and boats may be discovered and seized.
+
+"And to prevent them from being launched into the water, and carried
+off by the smugglers after seizure, you are to cause one of the
+streaks (= strakes) or planks to be ripped off near the keel, taking
+care at the same time to do as little other injury to each boat as
+possible."
+
+We now come to witness the reappearance of an old friend of whom we
+last made mention in the North Sea. The year we are now to consider is
+1788, and the 15th of July. On that day H.M. cutter _Kite_ was sailing
+from Beachy Head to the westward. She passed to the southward of the
+Isle of Wight without sighting it, as the weather was thick. Later in
+the day it cleared as they got near to the Dorsetshire coast, and
+about 7.30 P.M., when they were between Peveril Point (near Swanage)
+and St. Alban's Head, and it was clearer and still not night, the
+ship's surgeon discovered a vessel some distance away on the weather
+bow. The weather had now cleared so much that the house on the top of
+St. Alban's Head was quite visible. The surgeon called the attention
+of a midshipman on board to the strange vessel. The midshipman, whose
+name was Cornelius Quinton, took a bearing, and found that the
+stranger bore W.S.W. from the cutter, and was steering E.S.E. He also
+took a bearing of Peveril Point, which bore N.1/2W., and judged the
+smuggler to be about 9 miles from Peveril Point. About 8 o'clock the
+cutter began to give chase, and this continued until 11 P.M., the
+course being now S.E. After a time the lugger hauled up a point, so
+that she was heading S.E. by S., the wind being moderate S.W. During
+the chase the lugger did her best to get away from the cutter, and set
+her main topsail. The cutter at the time was reefed, but when she saw
+the lugger's topsail going up she shook out her reefs and set her gaff
+topsail. It was some little time before the _Kite_ had made up her
+mind that she was a smuggler, for at first she was thought to be one
+of the few Revenue luggers which were employed in the service. About
+11 o'clock, then, the _Kite_ was fast overhauling her, notwithstanding
+that the lugger, by luffing up that extra point, came more on the wind
+and so increased her pace. It was at first a cloudy night--and perhaps
+that may have made the _Kite's_ skipper a little nervous, for he could
+hardly need to be reefed in a moderate breeze--but presently the sky
+cleared.
+
+As the _Kite_ approached she hoisted her signals and fired a musket
+shot. (As there is a good deal of confusion existing concerning the
+signals of the old Revenue cutters, it is worth noting that although
+it was night these signals were displayed. I make this statement on
+the unimpeachable sworn evidence of the _Kite's_ crew, so the matter
+cannot be questioned.) But in spite of these signals, which every
+seafaring man of that time knew very well meant that the pursued
+vessel was to heave-to, the lugger still held on and took no notice.
+After that the _Kite_ continued to fire several times from her swivel
+guns. Later still, as the _Kite_ came yet closer, the latter hailed
+her and requested her to lower her sails, informing her at the same
+time that she was a King's cutter. Still the lugger paid no heed, so
+the cutter now fired at her from muskets. It was only after this that
+the lugger, seeing her chance of escape was gone, gave up, lowered
+sail, wore round, and came under the _Kite's_ stern. The cutter
+hoisted out a boat, the midshipman already mentioned was sent aboard
+the lugger, and the latter's master was brought to the _Kite_, when
+whom should they find to be their prisoner but David Browning, better
+known as "Smoker," of North Sea fame? When the _Kite's_ captain asked
+for his papers "Smoker" replied that he had no papers but a bill of
+sale. He was afterwards heard to remark that if he had understood the
+log line he would not have been so near the land as he was, and
+admitted he had been bound for Flushing, having doubtless just landed
+a cargo on the beach.
+
+The lugger was found to be decked and clinker-built with a running
+bowsprit on which she set a jib. Six carriage guns were also found on
+board, mounted on her deck. Four of these guns were observed to be
+loaded, three with powder and one with shot, and they were 4-pounders.
+After the capture was made the two vessels lay for a time hove-to on
+the heaving sea under the star-specked sky. The lugger was then put in
+charge of the midshipman and a prize crew from the cutter, the
+prisoners being of course taken on board the _Kite_. Both lugger and
+cutter then let draw their sails, and set a course N.E. for the Isle
+of Wight until 2 A.M. As it then came on thick the vessels hove-to
+until daylight, when sail was made again, the lugger being sent on
+ahead to sound, so as to see how near they were approaching the Isle
+of Wight. Later on they found themselves in 12 fathoms and judged
+themselves to be near the Owers. Eventually, having steered about
+N.N.E. and sighted Chichester Church in the distance, they went about
+and stood south, the wind having veered to W.N.W., and at 3.30 P.M.
+let go anchor in Spithead. Browning in due time appeared in Court, and
+a verdict was given for the King, so that at last this celebrated
+smuggler had been caught after many an exciting chase.
+
+It was not many years after this incident that a 70-ton cutter named
+the _Charming Molly_ arrived at Portsmouth. A Customs officer went on
+board her and found a man named May, who produced the key of the
+spirit-room, saying he was master of the ship. In the spirit-room the
+Customs officer found a hogshead of gin containing 62 gallons. May was
+anxious to show that this was quite legitimate, as there were sixteen
+men aboard and the contents of this cask were for their use. The
+Customs officer now inquired if there was any more liquor on the ship,
+and May replied in the negative, at first. The officer then said he
+would search the cabin, whereupon May added that there was a small
+cask which he had picked up at sea and had kept for the crew's use.
+This cask was found in May's own state-room, and contained about three
+gallons of brandy, though it was capable of holding another gallon and
+no doubt recently had so done. However, May now said that that was the
+entire lot, and there was not a drop of anything else on board. Yet
+again the officer was not to be put off, and found in the state-room
+on the larboard side a place that was locked. May then explained that
+this locker belonged to a man named Sheriff, who was at present
+ashore, and had the key with him. However May volunteered, if the
+officer saw fit, to open it, but at the same time assured him there
+was no liquor therein. The officer insisted on having it broken open,
+when there were discovered two new liquor cases containing each twelve
+bottles of brandy, making in all eight gallons, and two stone bottles
+of brandy containing five gallons. Even now May assured the officer
+that he had no more in the ship, but after a further search the
+officer found twelve dozen bottles of wine in a locked locker in the
+cabin.
+
+We need not follow this case any further, but as a fine example of
+deliberate lying it is hard to beat. Throughout the exciting career of
+a smuggler, when chased or captured, in running goods by night or
+stealing out to get clear of the land before the sun came up, this one
+quality of coolness in action or in verbal evasion ever characterised
+him. He was so frequently and continuously face to face with a
+threatening episode that he became used to the condition.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[10] See also Appendix I.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION
+
+
+We have already frequently referred to the Riding officers who were
+attached to practically all the chief ports of England. For the
+reasons already given the south-east coast had especially to be well
+provided in this respect. And, because of the proximity to the Isle of
+Man, the Solway Firth had also to be protected efficiently by these
+officers, additional, of course, to the aid rendered by the cruisers.
+Wales, however, seems to have been left practically unprotected. In
+the year 1809 there was inaugurated what was known as the Preventive
+Waterguard in order to supplement the endeavours of the cruisers and
+Riding officers. Under this arrangement the coast of England and Wales
+was divided into three districts, each of which was under an
+Inspecting Commander, the Revenue cruisers being now included in the
+Preventive Waterguard.
+
+The three districts with the three Inspecting Commanders were as
+follows:--
+
+District 1.--Land's End to the Port of Carlisle inclusive. Inspecting
+Commander, Captain John Hopkins.
+
+District 2.--North Foreland to Land's End. Inspecting Commander,
+Captain William Blake.
+
+District 3.--North Foreland to the Port of Berwick inclusive.
+Inspecting Commander, Captain John Sayers, "whose duty it is
+constantly to watch, inspect, and report to us [the Customs Board]
+upon the conduct of the Commanders of Cruisers and the Sitters of
+Preventive Boats along the district."
+
+For it was because they required a more effectual control and
+inspection of the officers employed in preventing and detecting
+smuggling that this fresh organisation was made. Certain stations were
+also allotted to the commanders of the cruisers, within each
+district--two to each station--and the stations and limits were also
+appointed for Preventive boats. The "sitters" of the Preventive boats
+were those who sat in the stern of these open, rowed craft and acted
+in command of them. The Collector and Controller were also addressed
+in the following terms, which showed that the Board were still doing
+their utmost to rid the service of the inefficiency and negligence to
+which we have had occasion to draw attention. "You are to observe,"
+wrote the Commissioners, "that one material object of the duty imposed
+upon the Inspecting Commanders is to see that the cruisers are
+constantly and regularly on their stations, unless prevented by some
+necessary and unavoidable cause, and with their proper complements of
+men and boats, and if they are off their station or in port personally
+to examine into the occasion of their being so, and that they are
+absent from their station no longer than is essentially requisite."
+
+At the end of every year the Inspecting Commanders were to lay before
+the Board of Customs the conduct of the several officers within their
+district and the state in which smuggling then was, and "whether on
+the progress or decline, in what articles, and at what places carried
+on." For the Board was determined "to probe the conduct of the
+Preventive officers and punish them" for any laxity and negligence,
+for which faults alone they would be dismissed. And in order that the
+vigilance and faithful duty in the commanders and officers on board
+the cruisers "may not be deprived of fair and due reward" their rate
+of pay was now increased, together with some addition made to the
+allowance for victualling, "and also to provide for the certainty of
+an annual emolument to a fixed amount in respect to the commanders and
+mates, by the following regulations":--
+
+  INSPECTING CRUISERS
+
+  Commander, each per annum, £200 to be made up to £500 net.
+
+  1st Mates, each per annum, £75 to be made up to £150 net.
+
+  2nd Mates, each per annum, £50 to be made up to £75 net.
+
+But these increases were conditional on their salaries, shares of
+seizures and penalties, and all other emoluments of that description
+not having amounted to the salaries now offered. The deputed mariners
+were to have £5 or £3 each, per lunar month. Mariners who had no
+deputation were to have £3 a month, boys on the cruisers £10 per
+annum. As to victualling, the commanders and mates were to have 3s.
+each per diem, mariners 1s. 6d. each per diem. Fire and candle for
+each person were to be allowed for at the rate of 1s. 6d. per lunar
+month.
+
+Under each Inspecting Commander were to be two tenders in each
+district, and the mates who were acting as commanders of these were to
+have their existing £75 a year raised to £150 net in case their
+salaries, shares of seizures, and other emoluments of that description
+should not amount to these sums. Deputed mariners, mariners, boys,
+victualling, fire, and candle were all to be paid for just as in the
+case of the inspecting cruisers above mentioned. This was to date from
+October 10, 1809. A few months later a like improvement was made in
+the salaries of cruisers in general, for from the 5th of January 1810,
+commanders of these were to have their £100 per annum raised to £250
+net--the above conditions "in case their salaries, shares of seizures,
+&c." did not make up this amount being also here prevalent--whilst
+first mates were to be raised from £60 to £100 net. If second mates
+were carried they were to have £50 per annum, deputed mariners £5 per
+annum and £2, 10s. per lunar month. Mariners were to have £2, 10s. per
+lunar month each, boys £10 per annum. Victualling, fire, and candle to
+be as already stated.
+
+The early years of the nineteenth century showed that the evil of the
+previous hundred years was far from dead. The Collector at Plymouth,
+writing to the Board three days before Christmas of 1804, reported
+that there was a good deal of smuggling done, but that the worst
+places in his neighbourhood were two. Firstly, there was that district
+which is embraced by Bigbury, the Yealm, and Cawsand. In that locality
+the smuggling was done in vessels of from 25 to 70 tons. But in summer
+time the trade was also carried on by open spritsail boats of from
+eight to ten tons. These craft used to run across from Guernsey loaded
+with spirits in small casks. Up the river Yealm (just to the east of
+Plymouth Sound) and at Cawsand Bay the goods were wont to be run by
+being rafted together at some distance from the shore and afterwards
+"crept" up (_i.e._ by means of metal creepers or grapnels). The local
+smugglers would go out in their boats at low water during the night
+when the weather and the absence of the cruisers permitted and bring
+to land their booty. It appeared that 17,000 small casks of spirits
+were annually smuggled into Cawsand and the Yealm.
+
+Secondly, the district to the west of Plymouth embracing Polperro and
+Mevagissey. The smuggling craft which brought goods to this locality
+were fast sailers of from 80 to 100 tons. But the goods which came
+into the general district of Plymouth were not carried far inland.
+Those whose work it was to carry the goods after being landed were
+known as "porters," and were so accustomed to this heavy work that
+they could carry a cask of spirits six miles across the country at a
+good rate. When it is remembered that these casks were made
+necessarily strong of stout wood, that they contained each from 5 to
+7-3/4 gallons, making a total weight of from 70 to 100 lbs. at least,
+we can realise something of the rude physical strength possessed by
+these men.
+
+During this same year the Collector at Dartmouth also reported that
+smuggling had increased a good deal recently in the counties of Devon
+and Cornwall. The cutters and luggers from Guernsey carried their
+cargoes consisting of from 400 to 800 ankers of spirits each, with a
+few casks of port and sherry for the wealthier classes, who winked at
+the illicit trade, and some small bales of tobacco. During the summer
+the goods were landed on the north side of Cornwall, between Land's
+End and Hartland Point, and thence distributed by coasters to Wales
+and the ports of the Bristol Channel, or carried inland on the backs
+of twenty or thirty horses, protected by a strong guard. But in the
+winter the goods were landed on the shores of the Bristol Channel, the
+farmers coming down with horses and carts to fetch the goods, which
+were subsequently lodged in barns and caves. Clovelly, Bideford, Combe
+Martin, and Porlock were especially notorious in this connection.
+These goods were also regularly conveyed across Exmoor into
+Somersetshire, and other goods found a way into Barnstable. Coasters
+on a voyage from one part of England to another frequently broke their
+voyages and ran over to Guernsey to get contraband. The Island of
+Lundy was a favourite smuggling depôt in the eighteenth century. From
+Ireland a good deal of salt was smuggled into Devonshire and Cornwall,
+the high duties making the venture a very profitable one--specially
+large cargoes of this commodity being landed near to Hartland Point.
+And this Dartmouth Collector made the usual complaint that the Revenue
+cruisers of that period were easily outsailed by the smugglers.
+
+The reader will recollect those regrettable incidents on the North Sea
+belonging to the eighteenth century, when we had to chronicle the
+names of Captains Mitchell and Whitehead in that connection. Unhappily
+there were occasional repetitions of these in the early part of the
+nineteenth century on the south coast. It happened that on the 19th
+of March in the year 1807 the _Swan_ Revenue cutter, a vessel of
+considerable size (for she had a burthen of 154 tons, a crew of
+twenty-three men, and was armed with twelve 4-pounders, two
+9-pounders, and a chest of small arms) was cruising in the English
+Channel and found herself off Swanage. It should be added that at that
+time there was a kind of volunteer Preventive Guard at various places
+along the coast, which was known as the "Sea Fencibles." The Swanage
+"Fencibles" informed Mr. Comben, the cruiser's commander, that there
+were three luggers hovering off the coast, and these volunteers
+offered a number of their men to reinforce the _Swan's_ crew so that
+the luggers might be captured. To this Comben replied with a damper to
+the volunteers' enthusiasm: "If I was to take them on board and fall
+in with the enemy we could not do anything with them."
+
+So the _Swan_ sailed away from Swanage Bay to the eastward and at
+midnight made the Needles. It now fell calm, but the luggers hove in
+sight and approached by means of their sweeps. As they came on, the
+cutter, instead of preparing to receive them in the only way they
+deserved, did nothing. But one of the _Swan's_ crew, whose name,
+Edward Bartlett, deserves to be remembered for doing his duty, asked
+Comben if he should fetch the grape and canister from below. Comben
+merely replied: "There is more in the cabin than we shall want: it
+will be of no use; it is all over with us." Such was the attitude of
+one who had signed into a service for the prevention of smuggling
+craft. Instead of taking any definite action he waited despairingly
+for the enemy to come on. He then issued no orders to his crew to
+prepare to engage; he just did nothing and remained inactive under the
+white cliffs. But if their commander was a coward, at any rate his
+crew were determined to make a contest of it. They had actually to
+urge him to fight, but the luggers were right close on to the cutter
+before Comben had given the word. After that for three-quarters of an
+hour the crew fought the ship, and were at their respective quarters
+when Comben actually turned to the luggers and shouted to them: "Leave
+off firing; I have struck." During the engagement he had shown great
+signs of fear and never encouraged his crew to fight.
+
+Seeing that they were led by a coward, the _Swan's_ crew also took
+fright and thought it best to flee. They therefore jumped into the
+cutter's boats and rowed ashore, leaving their valiant commander to
+look after the _Swan_ as best he might. She was of course immediately
+captured by the luggers, and as for Comben, he was taken prisoner,
+carried to France, detained there, and did not return to England till
+after seven years, when an investigation was made into his conduct by
+the Surveyors-General of the Customs, his defence being that "his men
+had deserted him." As for the latter, they reached the shore safely
+and were again employed in the Preventive Service.
+
+It is quite clear that the Customs Board sometimes lent their cutters
+to the Admiralty; and there is a letter dated October 10, 1809, from
+the Admiralty, in which permission is given for the cutters in the
+service of that Revenue to be released from their station at Flushing
+under the command of Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Strachan, and there is
+also a Customs House minute of July 7, 1806, to the effect that the
+_Swan_ and _Hound_ Revenue cutters might be placed under the orders of
+Lord Keith in the room of the _Stag_ and _Swallow_, for use at Cowes
+and Shoreham, where these cruisers were to be stationed. And it was in
+this same year that the Board again emphasized the importance of the
+Revenue Service being supported by the Navy and Army, and that to this
+end the most effectual encouragement should be held out to both
+branches, so that they might co-operate vigorously in the suppression
+of smuggling. They further expressed themselves as of the opinion that
+"nothing will more effectually tend to encourage them to exert
+themselves than the certainty of receiving a speedy reward." And yet,
+again, were the Revenue officers enjoined "to be particularly careful
+to secure the men employed in smuggling vessels whenever it may be
+possible to effect it, as their lordships have the strongest reasons
+for believing that the apprehension of being detained and impressed
+into his Majesty's service will have a great effect in deterring the
+persons engaged in these illegal pursuits from continuing their
+pernicious habits."
+
+It was also part of the duty of the Customs officers to attend to the
+Quarantine, and the Customs Board resolved "that it is fit to direct a
+distinguishing flag to be used on board all boats employed in the
+Quarantine service." At Sandgate Creek, Portsmouth, Falmouth, Bristol,
+Milford, Hull, Liverpool and Plymouth, by the advice of the Surveyor
+for Sloops, a flag was deposited in the Custom House at every port of
+the kingdom, and it was resolved that in the above ports there should
+be two, except Plymouth, which should have three. Cruisers were also
+employed in the Quarantine Service.
+
+We have already seen something of the conditions of service and the
+pay of the cruisers' crews. He who was responsible for the upkeep and
+supervision of these cruisers was known as the Surveyor for Sloops.
+For some time the Customs Board had been deliberating as to the
+adoption of some regulations for ascertaining the qualifications of
+those who desired to be commanders and mates of the cruisers. That
+some improvement was essential must already have been made clear to
+the reader from the type of men who sometimes were placed in such
+positions of responsibility. The following regulations were therefore
+adopted in the year 1807, "which appear to the Commissioners highly
+necessary for the safe conduct of the Service, as also for the safety
+of the vessels and crews committed to their charge." They resolved
+accordingly:--
+
+"That all persons who shall be hereafter nominated to the situation of
+Commander or Mate of a Cruiser in the service of this Revenue, do
+attend the Surveyor of Sloops, &c. in London for the purpose of being
+examined on the several points submitted in the report of the said
+Surveyor, as essential for the qualification of officers of that
+description, namely, whether he understand navigation, is competent to
+lay off and ascertain courses and distances on the charts, can work a
+day's work and find the time of high and low water in any port of
+great Britain, and understand the use of a quadrant."
+
+It was also further resolved:--
+
+"That no person be admitted to either of those situations who shall
+not be certified by the said Surveyors to be fully qualified in the
+particulars above referred to, which certificate is to be laid before
+the Board for their consideration, whether in case such person does
+not possess a competent knowledge of the coast on which he is to be
+stationed, or is not sufficiently acquainted with the sailing and
+management of cutters and luggers tho' generally qualified, it may not
+be fit to direct him to repair on board some cruiser, whose station
+is contiguous to that to which he is nominated, and cruise in such
+vessel for the space of one month, or until the commander thereof
+shall certify that he is thoroughly acquainted with that part of the
+coast, and also be fully competent to take charge of a cutter, or
+lugger, as the case may be, such a certificate to be referred to the
+Surveyor for Sloops, &c. for his report previous to such commander's
+or mate's commission being ordered to be made out." And the commanders
+of the cutters who shall be ordered to instruct such persons are to be
+acquainted that they are at liberty to crave the extra expense they
+shall incur for victualling such persons for the Board's
+consideration.
+
+"And the Surveyor for Sloops, &c. is to report more particularly the
+nature and objects of enquiry as to the qualification of persons
+nominated Sitters of Boats and by what officers in the outports those
+enquiries are made and the qualification of such persons certified:
+for the Commissioners' further consideration, as to any additional
+regulations in respect of persons so nominated."
+
+It was, no doubt, because of such incidents as those which we have
+seen occurring in the Channel and North Sea that the Commissioners
+tightened up the regulations in the above manner. That these incidents
+were not confined to any particular locality let us show by the two
+following examples. The first had reference to William Horn, the
+Deputed Mariner and Acting Mate of the Revenue cutter _Greyhound_,
+whose station was at Weymouth. On the 5th of March 1806 he was in
+charge of the cutter whilst on a cruise to the westward. Off Portland
+the cutter fell in with a French lugger, which was a privateer. Horn
+gave chase, gradually overhauled her, and even came up with her. For a
+time he also engaged her, but because he subsequently gave up the
+fight, bore up and quitted her, allowing the privateer to escape, he
+was deemed guilty by the Customs Board of not having used his utmost
+endeavours to effect a capture, and was ordered to be superseded.
+
+The second incident was of a slightly more complicated nature, and
+occurred on October 20, 1805, about midnight. The two men implicated
+were a Captain Riches, who was in command of the Revenue cutter
+_Hunter_, and his mate Oliver.
+
+This vessel, whose station was Great Yarmouth, was on the night
+mentioned cruising in the North Sea. Presently the cutter sighted what
+turned out to be the Danish merchant ship, _The Three Sisters_,
+Fredric Carlssens master, from Copenhagen bound for St. Thomas's and
+St. Croix. Oliver got into the cutter's boat and boarded the Dane. He
+also demanded from the latter and took from him four cases of foreign
+Geneva, which was part of _The Three Sisters'_ cargo. In spite of
+Carlssen's opposition, Oliver put these into his boat and rowed off
+with them to the _Hunter_. Riches was obviously party to this
+transaction, and was accused "that contrary to the solemn oath taken
+at his admission into office, he did not only neglect to report to the
+Collector and Controller of Yarmouth or to the Board the misconduct of
+his Mate, in unlawfully taking from the said ship the four cases of
+Geneva in question, but did take out of them for his own use, and by
+so doing did connive at and sanction the aforesaid unproper conduct of
+his Mate." It was also brought against Riches that he had not entered
+any account of this incident into his ship's journal, or made any
+record of the mate boarding the Dane.
+
+In the end Riches was adjudged by the Board guilty of not giving
+information regarding his mate's conduct and of receiving one case of
+Geneva for his own use, but he was acquitted of connivance for want of
+evidence. He was found guilty also of not having entered the incident
+in his journal. Oliver was acquitted of having boarded the Danish ship
+for want of proof, but found guilty of having failed to keep a
+complete journal of his proceedings. But a further charge was made
+that Riches caused a case of foreign spirits, which had been taken out
+of the Danish ship, to be brought ashore from the cutter and taken to
+his home at Yarmouth without paying the duty thereon. Oliver was also
+accused of a similar crime with regard to two cases. Riches was
+acquitted for want of proof of having caused the gin to be taken to
+his house, but found guilty of having received it, knowing the duty
+had not been paid. Oliver was also found guilty, and both were
+accordingly dismissed.
+
+And there was the case of a man named Thomas Rouse, who was accused of
+having been privy to the landing of a number of large casks of spirits
+and other goods from a brig then lying off the Watch-house at
+Folkestone. This was on the night of May 20 and the early hours of May
+21, 1806. He was further accused of being either in collusion with the
+smugglers in that transaction or criminally negligent in not
+preventing the same. It was still further brought against him that he
+had not stopped and detained the master of the brig after going on
+board, although the master was actually pointed out to him by a boat's
+crew belonging to the _Nimble_ Revenue cutter. Rouse was found guilty
+of the criminal negligence and ordered to be dismissed. And, in
+addition, the chief boatmen, five boatmen, and two riding-officers of
+the Preventive Service at that port were also dismissed for failing to
+do their utmost to prevent this smuggling, which had, in fact, been
+done collusively. Those were certainly anxious times for the Customs
+Commissioners, and we cannot but feel for them in their difficulties.
+On the one hand, they had to wrestle with an evil that was national in
+its importance, while on the other they had a service that was
+anything but incorruptible, and required the utmost vigilance to cause
+it to be instant in its elementary duties.
+
+One of the reforms recommended towards the end of 1809 had reference
+to the supply of stores and the building and repairing of Custom House
+boats in London. The object aimed at was to obtain a more complete
+check on the quantities and quality of the stores required for
+cruisers and Preventive boats. And the example of the outports was
+accordingly adopted that, when articles were required for these craft
+that were of any value, the Collector and Controller of the particular
+port first sent estimates to the Board, and permission was not allowed
+until the Surveyor of Sloops had certified that the estimates were
+reasonable. Nor were the bills paid until both the commander and mate
+of the cruiser, or else the Tide Surveyor or the Sitter of the Boat,
+as the case might be, had certified that the work was properly carried
+out. And the same rule applied to the supply of cordage and to the
+carrying out of repairs.
+
+As one looks through the old records of the Custom House one finds
+that a Revenue officer who was incapable of yielding to bribery, who
+was incorruptible and vigilant in his duty, possessed both courage and
+initiative, and was favoured with even moderate luck, could certainly
+rely on a fair income from his activities. In the year we are
+speaking of, for instance, Thomas Story, one of the Revenue officers
+petitioned to be paid his share of the penalty recovered from William
+Lambert and William Taylor for smuggling, and he was accordingly
+awarded the sum of £162, 2s. It was at this time also that the
+salaries of the Collectors, Controllers, and Landing Surveyors of the
+outports were increased so that the Collectors were to receive not
+less than £150 per annum, the Controller not less than £120, and the
+Landing Surveyor not less than £100. And in addition to this, of
+course, there were their shares in any seizures that might be made.
+Sometimes, however, the Revenue officers suffered not from negligence
+but from excess of zeal, as, for instance, on that occasion when they
+espied a rowing-boat containing a couple of seafaring men approach and
+land on the beach at Eastbourne. The Revenue officials made quite
+certain that these were a couple of smugglers and seized their boat.
+But it was subsequently discovered that they were just two Portuguese
+sailors who had escaped from Dieppe and rowed all the way across the
+Channel. The Admiralty interfered in the matter and requested the
+release of the boat, which was presently made. But two other Revenue
+officers, named respectively Tahourdin and Savery, in August of 1809
+had much better luck when they were able to make a seizure that was
+highly profitable. We have already referred to the considerable
+exportation which went on from this country in specie and the national
+danger which this represented. In the present instance these two
+officials were able to seize a large quantity of coin consisting of
+guineas, half guineas, and seven shilling pieces, which were being
+illegally transported out of the kingdom. When this amount came to be
+reckoned up it totalled the sum of £10,812, 14s. 6d., so that their
+share must have run into very high figures.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT
+
+
+In an earlier chapter we quoted from Marryat a passage which showed
+that the mariners of a Revenue cutter were dressed in red flannel
+shirts and blue trousers, and also wore canvas or tarpaulin
+petticoats. The reason for the last-mentioned was appreciated by
+smuggler and Preventive men alike, and if you have ever noticed the
+Thames River Police dodging about in their small craft you will have
+noticed that at any rate the steersman has in cold weather some sort
+of apron wrapped round his legs. But in the period of which we are now
+speaking the attached apron or petticoat was very useful for keeping
+the body warm in all weather, especially when the sitter of the
+Preventive boat had to be rowed out perhaps in the teeth of a biting
+wind, for several miles at night. And the smugglers found their task
+of landing tubs through the surf a wet job, so they were equally glad
+of this additional protection.[11]
+
+The period to which Marryat referred was the end of the eighteenth
+century. As to the uniform of the Revenue officers we have the
+following evidence. Among the General Letters of the Customs Board was
+one dated June 26, 1804, from which it is seen that the commanders of
+the cruisers petitioned the Board for an alteration in their uniform
+and that also of the mates, this alteration to be made at the expense
+of the officers. The commanders suggested for their own dress:--
+
+"A silver epaulette, the button-holes worked or bound with silver
+twist or lace, side-arms, and cocked hats with cockades, and the
+buttons set on the coat three and three, the breeches and waistcoats
+as usual:
+
+"For the undress, the same as at present.
+
+"For the mates, the addition of lappels, the buttons set on two and
+two, and cocked hats with cockades."
+
+The Board consented to these alterations with the exception of the
+epaulettes, "the adoption of which we do not approve, lest the same
+should interfere with His Majesty's Naval Service." Now in reading
+this, it is important to bear in mind that between the Revenue and
+Navy there was a great deal of jealousy.[12] It went so far, at least
+on one occasion, as to cause a Naval officer to go on board a Revenue
+cutter and haul the latter's flag down. The reason these epaulettes
+were disallowed may be explained by the fact that it was only nine
+years before the above date that epaulettes had become uniform in the
+Navy, for notwithstanding that epaulettes had been worn by officers
+since 1780, yet they were not uniform until 1795, although they were
+already uniform in the French and Spanish navies.[13] Since,
+therefore, these adornments had been so recently introduced into the
+Navy, it was but natural that with so much jealousy existing this
+feature should not be introduced into the Revenue service. Just what
+"the undress, the same as at present" was I have not been able to
+discover, but in the Royal Navy of that time the undress uniform for a
+captain of three years' post consisted of a blue coat, which was
+white-lined, with blue lappels and cuffs, a fall-down collar,
+gold-laced button-holes, square at both ends, arranged regularly on
+the lappels. For a captain under three years the uniform was the same,
+except that the nine buttons were arranged on the lappels in threes.
+For master or commander it was the same, except that the button-holes
+were arranged by twos.[14]
+
+It was in January 1807 that the Customs Board took into consideration
+the appointment of several Revenue cruisers and the expediency of one
+general system for manning them according to the tonnage and
+construction of the vessel, the service and station on which she was
+to be employed. They therefore distinctly classed the different
+cruisers according to their tonnage, description, and number of men
+originally allowed and since added, whether furnished with letters of
+marque or not. And believing that it would be beneficial to the
+service that the complement of men should be fixed at the highest
+number then allotted to cutters in each respective class, they
+accordingly instructed the commanders of the different cruisers to
+increase their respective complements "with all practicable dispatch."
+
+We now come to an important point concerning which there exists some
+little uncertainty. By a letter dated July 17, 1807, Revenue officers
+were reminded that they were by law bound to hoist the Revenue colours
+and fire a gun as a signal "before they in any case fire on any
+smuggling vessel or boat."
+
+"We direct you to convene the officers of the Waterguard belonging to
+your port," write the Commissioners to the Collector and Controller at
+each station, "including the officers and crew of the cruiser
+stationed there, and strictly to enjoin them whether on board cruisers
+or boats in no instance to fire on any smuggling vessel or boat,
+either by night (whether it be dark or light), or by day, without
+first hoisting the colours and firing a gun as a signal, as directed
+by law, and to take care that on any boat being sent out armed either
+from the shore or from a cruiser, in pursuit of seizures or any other
+purpose, such boat be furnished with a proper flag." Two years later,
+on April 11, 1809, it was decided that cruisers could legally wear a
+pendant "conformable to the King's Proclamation of the 1st January
+1801," when requiring a vessel that was liable to seizure or
+examination to heave-to, or when chasing such a vessel, but "at no
+other time." It is important to bear in mind that the flags of chase
+were special emblems, and quite different from the ceremonial flags
+borne on the Customs buildings, hulks, and vessels not used actually
+in the chasing of smugglers.
+
+In addition to my own independent research on this subject I am
+indebted for being allowed to make use of some MS. notes on this
+interesting subject collected by Mr. Atton, Librarian of the Custom
+House; and in spite of the unfortunate gaps which exist in the
+historical chain, the following is the only possible attempt at a
+connected story of the Custom House flag's evolution. We have already
+explained that from the year 1674 to 1815 the Revenue Preventive work
+was under a mixed control. We have also seen that in the year 1730 the
+Board of Customs called attention to the Proclamation of December 18,
+1702, that no ships were to wear a pendant except those of the Royal
+Navy, but that the sloops employed in the several public offices
+might wear Jacks with the seal of the respective office.
+
+From a report made by the Harwich Customs in 1726 it is clear that the
+King's colours were at that date hoisted when a Revenue cruiser chased
+a suspect. But as to what the "King's Colours" were no one to-day
+knows. Among the regulations issued to the Revenue cruisers in 1816
+the commanders were informed that they were not to wear the colours
+used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same pendants and ensigns as
+were provided by the Revenue Board. By 24 George III. cap. 47, certain
+signals of chase were prescribed. Thus, if the cruiser were a Naval
+vessel she was to hoist "the proper pendant and ensign of H.M. ships."
+If a Custom House vessel she was to hoist a blue Customs ensign and
+pendant "with the marks now used." If an Excise vessel, a blue ensign
+and pendant "with the marks now used." After this had been done, and a
+gun fired (shotted or unshotted) as a warning signal, she might fire
+if the smuggler failed to heave-to. And this regulation is by the
+Customs Consolidation Act of 1876 still in force, and might to-day be
+made use of in the case of an obstinate North Sea cooper. What one
+would like to know is what were the marks in use from 1784 to 1815.
+Mr. Atton believes that these marks were as follows:--
+
+At the masthead: a blue pendant with the Union in canton and the
+Customs badge of office (a castellated structure with portcullis over
+the entrance, and two barred windows and two port-holes, one barred
+and one open, the latter doubtless to signify that through which the
+goods might enter) in the fly.
+
+At the gaff: a blue ensign similarly marked.
+
+The English Excise, the Scottish Customs, Scottish Excise, and the
+Irish Revenue signals of chase were blue pendants and ensigns
+similarly flown, but as to the badges of office one cannot be certain.
+The matter of English Customs flags has been obscured by the quotation
+in Marryat's _The King's Own_, where a smuggler is made to remark on
+seeing a Revenue vessel's flag, "Revenue stripes, by the Lord." It has
+been suggested that the bars of the castle port and portcullis in the
+seal were called "stripes" by the sailors of that day, inasmuch as
+they called the East India Company's flag of genuine stripes the
+"gridiron." But to me it seems much more likely that the following is
+the explanation for calling a Revenue cutter's flag "stripes." The
+signal flags Nos. 7 and 8, which were used by the Royal Navy in 1746
+to order a chase both consisted of stripes.[15] No. 7 consisted of
+eleven horizontal stripes, viz. six red and five white. Flag No. 8 had
+nine horizontal stripes, viz. red, white, blue repeated three times,
+the red being uppermost. I submit that in sailor's slang these
+signals would be commonly referred to as "stripes." Consequently
+whatever flags subsequently would be used to signal a chase would be
+known also as "stripes." Therefore whatever signal might be flown in
+the Revenue service when chasing would be known as "stripes" also.
+
+But by an Order in Council of the 1st of February 1817, the pendant
+and ensign were to be thus:--
+
+The pendant to have a red field having a regal crown thereon at the
+upper part next the mast. The ensign to be a red Jack with a Union
+Jack in a canton at the upper corner next the staff, and with a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack. This was to be worn by all
+vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling under the Admiralty,
+Treasury, Customs or Excise.
+
+Now during an interesting trial at the Admiralty Sessions held at the
+Old Bailey in April of 1825, concerning the chasing of a smuggler by a
+Revenue cruiser, Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N., who was commanding the
+cutter, stated in his evidence that when he came near this smuggling
+vessel the former hoisted the Revenue pendant at the masthead, which
+he described as "a red field with a crown next the mast at the upper
+part of it." He also hoisted the Revenue ensign at the peak-end, the
+"Union at the upper corner in a red field," the field of the ensign
+being also red. It had a Jack in the corner. This, then, was exactly
+in accordance with the Order in Council of 1817 mentioned above.
+
+But my own opinion relative to the firing of the _first_ gun is in
+favour of the proposition that this was not necessarily unshotted. I
+shall refer in greater detail to the actual incidents, here quoted, on
+a later page, but for our present purpose the following is strong
+proof in favour of this suggestion. During a trial in the year 1840
+(Attorney-General _v_. William Evans) it transpired that Evans had
+entered the Medway in a smack without heaving-to, and the following
+questions and answers respectively were made by counsel and Richard
+Braddy, a coastguard who at the time of the incident was on duty at
+Garrison Fort (Sheerness):--
+
+_Question._ "Is the first signal a shot always?"
+
+_Answer._ "A blank cartridge we fire mostly."
+
+_Q._ "Did you fire a blank?"
+
+_A._ "No, because she was going too fast away from me."
+
+_Q._ "Did you hit her?"
+
+_A._ "No."
+
+To me it seems certain from this evidence of the coastguard that
+though the first signal was "mostly" blank, yet it was not always or
+necessarily so.
+
+It was frequently discovered that smuggling vessels lay off the coast
+some distance from the shore and unshipped their cargoes then into
+smaller craft by which they were brought to land, and this practice
+was often observed by the Naval officers at the signal stations. Thus,
+these smuggling runs might be prevented if those officers were enabled
+to apprise the Admiralty and Revenue cruisers whenever observed, so
+the Treasury put themselves in communication with the Customs Board
+with regard to so important a matter. This was in the year 1807. The
+Admiralty were requested to appoint some signals by which Naval
+officers stationed at the various signal-posts along the coasts might
+be able to convey information to his Majesty's and the Revenue
+cruisers whenever vessels were observed illegally discharging cargoes.
+The Admiralty accordingly did as requested, and these signals were
+sent on to the commanders of the cutters. This, of course, opened up a
+new matter in regard to the apportioning of prize-money, and it was
+decided that when any vessel or goods discharged therefrom should be
+seized by any of the cruisers in consequence of information given by
+signal from these stations, and the vessel and her goods afterwards
+were condemned, one-third of the amount of the King's share was to be
+paid to the officer and men at the signal-post whence such information
+was first communicated. The obvious intention of this regulation was
+to incite the men ashore to keep a smart look-out.
+
+The coast signal-stations[16] had been permanently established in the
+year 1795, and were paid off at the coming of peace but re-established
+when the war broke out again, permission being obtained from the
+owners of the land and a code of signals prepared. The establishment
+of these signal-stations had been commenced round the coast soon after
+the Revolutionary war. Those at Fairlight and Beachy Head were
+established about 1795.[17] Each station was supplied with one red
+flag, one blue pendant, and four black balls of painted canvas. When
+the Sea Fencibles, to whom we referred some time back, were
+established, the signal-stations were placed under the district
+captains. This was done in March 1798, and the same thing was done
+when the Sea Fencibles had to be re-established in 1803. The
+signal-stations at Torbay and New Romney (East Bay, Dungeness) had
+standing orders, says Captain Hudleston, to report all arrivals and
+departures direct to the Admiralty.
+
+The Customs Board advanced another step forward when, in the year
+1808, they considered whether "benefit might not arise to the service
+by establishing certain signals by which the commanders of the several
+cruisers in the service of the Revenue might be enabled to make their
+vessels known to each other, on meeting at sea, or to distinguish each
+other at a distance, and also to make such communications as might be
+most useful, as well as to detect any deception which might be
+attempted to be practised by the masters of vessels belonging to the
+enemy, or of smuggling vessels." They therefore consulted "the proper
+officers on the subject," and a code of tabular signals was drawn up
+and approved and sent to the commanders of the cruisers in a
+confidential manner. Each commander was enjoined to pay the most
+strict attention to such signals as might be made under the
+regulations, and to co-operate by every means in his power for the
+attainment of the objects in view. These commanders were also to
+apprise the Customs Board of any matter which might arise in
+consequence thereof "fit for our cognisance." These signals were also
+communicated to the commanders of the several Admiralty cruisers. And
+we must remember that although naval signalling had in a crude and
+elementary manner been in vogue in our Navy for centuries, and the
+earliest code was in existence at any rate as far back as 1340, yet it
+was not till the eighteenth century that it showed any real
+development. During the early years of the nineteenth century a great
+deal of interest was taken in the matter by such men as Mr. Goodhew,
+Sir Home Popham, Captain Marryat, and others. It was the atmosphere of
+the French and Spanish wars which gave this incentive, and because the
+subject was very much in the Naval minds at that time it was but
+natural that the Revenue service should appreciate the advantage
+which its application might bestow for the prevention of smuggling.
+
+Further means were also taken in the early nineteenth century to
+increase the efficiency of the cruisers. In 1811, in order that they
+should be kept as constantly as possible on their stations, and that
+no excuses might be made for delays, it was decided that in future the
+Inspecting Commanders of Districts be empowered to incur expenses up
+to £35 for the repairs which a cutter might need, and £5 for similar
+repairs to her boats. The commanders of the cruisers were also
+permitted to incur any expenses up to £20 for the cutter and boats
+under their command. Such expenses were to be reported to the Board,
+with information as to why this necessity had arisen, where and by
+what tradesmen the work had been done, and whether it had been
+accomplished in the most reasonable manner. At the end of the
+following year, in order still further to prevent cruisers being
+absent from their stations "at the season of the year most favourable
+for smuggling practices, and when illegal proceedings are generally
+attempted," _i.e._ in the dark days of autumn and winter and spring,
+and in order, also, to prevent several cutters being in the Port of
+London at the same time, "whereby the part of the coast within their
+respective districts would be left altogether without guard," the
+commanders of these cruisers were to give warning when it was apparent
+that extensive repairs were needed, or a general refit, or any other
+cause which compelled the craft to come up to London. Timely notice
+was to be given to the Board so that the necessity and propriety
+thereof should be inquired into. It was done also with a view to
+bringing in the cruisers from their respective stations only as best
+they might be spared consistent with the good of the service. But they
+were to come to London for such purposes only between April 5 and
+September 5 of each year. By this means there would always be a good
+service of cruisers at sea during the bad weather period, when the
+smugglers were especially active.
+
+In our quotation from _The Three Cutters_ in another chapter we gave
+the colours of the paint used on these vessels. I find an interesting
+record in the Custom House dated November 13, 1812, giving an order
+that, to avoid the injury which cruisers sustain from the use of iron
+bolts, the decks in future were to be fastened with composition bolts,
+"which would eventually prove a saving to the Revenue." After ordering
+the commanders to cause their vessels to be payed twice every year
+either with paint or bright varnish, and not to use scrapers on their
+decks except after caulking, and then only to remove the unnecessary
+pitch, the instruction goes on to stipulate the only paint colours
+which are to be employed for cruisers. These are such as were then
+allowed in the Navy, viz. black, red, white, or yellow.
+
+But apart from all the manifold difficulties and anxieties, both
+general and detailed, which arose in connection with these cruisers so
+long as they were at sea or in the shipwrights' hands, in commission
+or out of commission, there were others which applied more strictly to
+their crews. Such an incident as occurred in the year 1785 needed very
+close attention. In that year the English Ambassador at the Court of
+France had been informed by Monsieur de Vergennes that parties of
+sailors belonging to our Revenue cruisers had recently landed near
+Boulogne in pursuit of some smugglers who had taken to the shore.
+Monsieur de Vergennes added that if any British sailors or other armed
+men should be taken in such acts of violence the French Government
+would unhesitatingly sentence them immediately to be hanged.
+
+Of course the French Government were well within their rights in
+making such representations, for natural enough as no doubt it was to
+chase the smugglers when they escaped ashore, yet the trespass was
+indefensible. The Board of Customs therefore instructed their
+cruisers, as well as those of the Admiralty "whose commanders are
+furnished with commissions from this Board," to make a note of the
+matter, in order that neither they nor their men might inadvertently
+expose themselves to the severity denounced against them by the
+French laws upon acts of the like nature.
+
+In 1812 one of the mariners belonging to a cruiser happened to go
+ashore, and whilst there was seized by the press-gang for his
+Majesty's Navy. Such an occurrence as this was highly inconvenient not
+only to the man but to the Board of Customs, who resolved that
+henceforth the commanders of cruisers were not to allow any of their
+mariners shore leave unless in case of absolute necessity "until the
+protections which may be applied for shall have been received and in
+possession of such mariners."
+
+Another matter that required rectification was the practice of taking
+on board some of their friends and relatives who had no right to be
+there. Whether this was done for pleasure or profit the carrying of
+these passengers was deemed to be to the great detriment of the
+service, and the Board put a stop to it. It was not merely confined to
+the cruisers, but the boats and galleys of the Waterguard were just as
+badly abused. The one exception allowed was, that when officers of the
+Waterguard were removing from one station to another, they might use
+such a boat to convey their families with them provided it did not
+interfere with the duties of these officers. So also some of the
+commanders of the cruisers had even taken on board apprentices and
+been dishonest enough to have them borne on the books as able seamen,
+and drawn their pay as such. The Board not unnaturally deemed this
+practice highly improper, and immediately to be discontinued. No
+apprentices were to be borne on the books except the boy allowed to
+all cruisers.
+
+After a smuggling vessel's cargo had been seized and it was decided to
+send the goods to London, this was done by placing the tobacco,
+spirits, &c., in a suitable coaster and despatching her to the Thames.
+But in order to prevent her being attacked on the sea by would-be
+rescuers she was ordered to be convoyed by the Revenue cutters. The
+commander of whatever cruiser was in the neighbourhood was ordered "to
+accompany and guard" her to the Nore or Sea Reach as the case might
+be. Every quarter the cruisers were also to send a list of the
+seizures made, giving particulars of the cruiser--her name, burthen,
+number of guns, number of men, commander's name, number of days at sea
+during that quarter, how many days spent in port and why, the quantity
+of goods and nature of each seizure, the number and names of all
+smuggling vessels captured, both when and where. There was also to be
+sent the number of men who had been detained, how they had been
+disposed of, and if the men had not been detained how it was they had
+escaped.
+
+"Their Lordships are induced to call for these returns," ran the
+instruction, "in order to have before them, quarterly, a comparative
+view of the exertions of the several commanders of the Revenue
+cruisers.... They have determined, as a further inducement to
+diligence and activity in the said officers, to grant a reward of £500
+to the commander of the Revenue cruiser who, in the course of the year
+ending 1st October 1808, shall have so secured and delivered over to
+his Majesty's Naval Service the greatest number of smugglers; a reward
+of £300 to the commander who shall have secured and delivered over the
+next greatest number, and a reward of £200 to the commander who shall
+be third on the list in those respects." That was in September of
+1887.
+
+During the year ending October 1, 1810, Captain Gunthorpe, commander
+of the Excise cutter _Viper_, succeeded in handing over to his
+Majesty's Navy thirteen smugglers whom he had seized. As this was the
+highest number for that year he thus became entitled to the premium of
+£500. Captains Curling and Dobbin, two Revenue officers, were together
+concerned in transferring six men to the Navy, but inasmuch as Captain
+Patmour had been able to transfer five men during this same year it
+was he to whom the £300 were awarded. Captain Morgan of the Excise
+cutter and Captain Haddock of the Custom House cutter _Stag_ each
+transferred four men during that year.
+
+"But my Lords," states a Treasury minute of December 13, 1811,
+"understanding that the nature of the service at Deal frequently
+requires the Revenue vessels to co-operate with each other, do not
+think it equitable that such a circumstance should deprive Messrs.
+Curling and Dobbin of a fair remuneration for their diligence, and are
+therefore pleased to direct warrants likewise to be prepared granting
+to each of those gentlemen the sum of £100." In spite of the above
+numbers, however, the Treasury were not satisfied, and did not think
+that the number of men by this means transferred to the Navy had been
+at all proportionate to the encouragement which they had held out.
+They therefore altered the previous arrangement so as to embrace those
+cases only in which the exertions of the cruisers' commanders had been
+of an exceptionally distinguished nature. Thus during 1812 and the
+succeeding years, until some further provision might be made, it was
+decided that "the sum of £500 will be paid to such person commanding a
+Revenue cutter as shall in any one year transfer to the Navy the
+greatest number of smugglers, not being less than twenty." The sum of
+£300 was to be paid to the persons commanding a Revenue cutter who in
+any year should transfer the next greatest number of smugglers, not
+being less than fifteen. And £200 were to be paid to the commander who
+in one year should have transferred the third largest, not being less
+than ten. This decision was made in January of 1812, and in the
+following year it was directed that in future the rewards granted to
+the commanders of the Revenue cruisers for delivering the greatest
+number of smugglers should be made not exclusively to the commanders
+but distributed among the commander, officers, and crew according to
+the scale which has already been given on an earlier page in this
+volume. At the end of the year 1813 it was further decided that when
+vessels and boats of above four tons measurement were seized in
+ballast and afterwards broken up, not owing to their build, their
+construction, or their denomination, but simply because they had been
+engaged in smuggling, the seizing officers should become entitled to
+30s. a ton.
+
+There was also a system instituted in the year 1808 by which the
+widows of supervisors and surveyors of Riding officers and commanders
+of cruisers were allowed £30 per annum, with an additional allowance
+of £5 per annum for each child until it reached the age of fifteen.
+The widows of Riding officers, mates of cutters, and sitters of boats
+specially stationed for the prevention of smuggling were allowed £25
+per annum and £5 for each child until fifteen years old. In the case
+of the widows of mariners they were to have £15 a year and £2, 10s.
+for each child till the age of fifteen. And one finds among those thus
+rewarded Ann Sarmon, the widow, and the three children of the
+commander of the _Swan_ cutter stationed at Cowes; the one child of
+the mate of the _Tartar_ cutter of Dover; the widow of the mate of the
+_Dolphin_ of St. Ives; the widow of the Riding officer at Southampton;
+the widow and children of the commander of the cutter _Hunter_ at
+Yarmouth; and likewise of the _Hunter's_ mate.
+
+After the 10th of October 1814 the allowance for victualling the crews
+of the Revenue cruisers was augmented as follows:--For victualling
+commander and mate, 3s. a day each and 1s. 6d. per lunar month for
+fire and candle. For victualling, fire, and candle for mariners, 1s.
+10d. a day each. The daily rations to be supplied to each mariner on
+board the cruisers were to consist of 1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs.
+of bread, and two quarts of beer. If flour or vegetables were issued
+the quantity of bread was to be reduced, and if cheese were supplied
+then the amount was to be reduced in proportion to the value and not
+to the quantity of such articles. And, in order to obtain uniformity,
+a table of the rations as above was to be fixed up against the fore
+side of the mast under the deck of the cruiser, and also in some
+conspicuous place in the Custom House.
+
+Very elaborate instructions were also issued regarding the use of the
+tourniquet, which "is to stop a violent bleeding from a wounded artery
+in the limbs till it can be properly secured and tied by a surgeon."
+The medicine chest of these cruisers contained the following twenty
+articles: vomiting powders, purging powders, sweating powders, fever
+powders, calomel pills, laudanum, cough drops, stomach tincture, bark,
+scurvy drops, hartshorn, peppermint, lotion, Friar's balsam, Turner
+cerate, basilicon (for healing "sluggish ulcers"), mercurial ointment,
+blistering ointment, sticking-plaster, and lint.
+
+In short, with its fleet of cruisers well armed and well manned, well
+found in everything necessary both for ship and crew; with good wages,
+the offer of high rewards, and pensions; with other privileges second
+only to those obtainable in the Royal Navy; the Customs Board
+certainly did their best to make the floating branch of its Preventive
+service as tempting and efficient as it could possibly be. And that
+there were not more captures of smugglers was the fault at any rate
+not of those who had the administration of these cutters.
+
+[Illustration: H.M. CUTTER _WICKHAM_
+Commanded by Captain John Fullarton, R.N. From a contemporary painting
+in the possession of Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael.]
+
+A very good idea as to the appearance of a nineteenth century Revenue
+cruiser may be obtained by regarding the accompanying photographs of
+his Majesty's cutter _Wickham_. These have been courteously supplied
+to me by Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael, whose ancestor,
+Captain Fullarton, R.N., had command of this vessel. The original
+painting was made in 1806, and shows a fine, able vessel with ports
+for seven guns a-side, being painted after the manner of the
+contemporary men-of-war. To facilitate matters the central portion of
+the picture has been enlarged, and thus the rigging and details of
+the _Wickham_ can be closely examined. It will be observed that this
+cutter has beautiful bows with a fine, bold sheer, and would doubtless
+possess both speed and considerable seaworthiness essential for the
+west coast of Scotland, her station being the Island of Arran. In the
+picture before us it will be seen that she has exceptionally high
+bulwarks and appears to have an additional raised deck forward. The
+yard on which the squaresail was carried when off the wind is seen
+lowered with its foot-ropes and tackle. The mainsail is of course
+loose-footed, and the tack is seen well triced up. Two things
+especially strike us. First, the smallness of the yard to which the
+head of the gaff-topsail is laced; and secondly, the great size of the
+headsail. She has obviously stowed her working jib and foresail and
+set her balloon jib. When running before a breeze such a craft could
+set not merely all plain sail, but her squaresail, square-topsail and
+even stun'sls. Therefore, the smuggling vessel that was being chased
+must needs be pretty fleet of foot to get away.
+
+[Illustration: H.M. Cutter Wickham
+This shows an early Nineteenth Century King's Cutter (_a_) running
+before the wind with square sails and stuns'ls set, (_b_) on a wind
+with big jib set.]
+
+Campbeltown in those days was the headquarters of no fewer than seven
+large Revenue cruisers, all being commanded by naval officers. They
+were powerful vessels, generally manned by double crews, each having a
+smaller craft to act as tender, their chief duties being to intercept
+those who smuggled salt, spirits, and tea from the Isle of Man. The
+officers and men of the cutters made Campbeltown their home, and the
+houses of the commanders were usually built opposite to the buoys of
+the respective cutters. The merits of each cutter and officer were the
+subject of animated discussion in the town, and how "old Jack
+Fullarton had carried on" till all seemed to be going by the board on
+a coast bristling with sunken rocks, or how Captain Beatson had been
+caught off the Mull in the great January gale, and with what skill he
+had weathered the headland--these were questions which were the
+subjects of many a debate among the enthusiasts.
+
+This Captain John Fullarton had in early life served as a midshipman
+on a British man-of-war. On one occasion he had been sent under Lord
+Wickham to France on a certain mission in a war-vessel. The young
+officer's intelligence, superior manners, and handsome appearance so
+greatly pleased Lord Wickham, that his lordship insisted on having
+young Fullarton alone to accompany him ashore. After the mission was
+over Lord Wickham suggested procuring him some advancement in the
+service, to which Fullarton replied, "My lord, I am sincerely grateful
+for your undesired kindness, and for the interest you have been
+pleased to show in regard to my future prospects. Since, however, you
+have asked my personal views, I am bound to say I am not ambitious
+for promotion on board a man-of-war. I have a small property in
+Scotland, and if your lordship could obtain for me the command of one
+of his Majesty's cutters, with which I might spend my time usefully
+and honourably in cruising the waters around my native island of
+Arran, I should feel deeply indebted to you, and I should value such
+an appointment above all others."
+
+Soon afterwards, the cutter _Wickham_ was launched, and Mr. Fullarton
+obtained his commission as captain, the mate being Mr. Donald
+Fullarton, and most of the crew Arran men.[18]
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[11] The use of the petticoat as a seaman's article of attire dates
+back to the time of Chaucer:
+
+    "A Shipman was ther, woning fer by weste:
+    For aught I woot, he was of Dertemouthe.
+    He rood up-on a rouncy, as he couthe,
+    In a gowne of falding to the knee."
+
+"Falding" was a coarse cloth.
+
+[12] See Appendix VIII.
+
+[13] See Captain Robinson's, _The British Fleet_, p. 503.
+
+[14] _Ibid._, p. 502.
+
+[15] I am indebted to a suggestion made on p. 183, vol. i. No. 7 of
+_The Mariner's Mirror_.
+
+[16] See article by Captain R. Hudleston, R.N., in _The Mariner's
+Mirror_, vol. i. No. 7.
+
+[17] _Victoria County Hist.: Sussex_, vol. ii. p. 199.
+
+[18] For these details I am indebted to the kindness of Dr.
+Robertson-Fullarton, who has also called my attention to some
+information in an unlikely source--_The Memoirs of Norman Macleod,
+D.D._, by Donald Macleod, 1876.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING
+
+
+By an Order in Council, dated September 9, 1807, certain rewards were
+to be paid to the military for aiding any officer of the Customs in
+making or guarding any seizure of prohibited "or uncustomed goods." It
+was further directed that such rewards should be paid as soon as
+possible, for which purpose the Controllers and Collectors were to
+appraise with all due accuracy all articles seized and brought to his
+Majesty's warehouse within seven days of the articles being brought
+in. The strength of all spirits seized by the Navy or Military was
+also to be ascertained immediately on their being brought into the
+King's warehouse, so that the rewards might be immediately paid. The
+tobacco and snuff seized and condemned were ordered to be sold. But
+when these articles at such a sale did not fetch a sum equal to the
+amount of the duty chargeable, then the commodity was to be burnt.
+Great exertions were undoubtedly made by the soldiers for the
+suppression of smuggling, but care had to be taken to prevent wanton
+and improper seizures. The men of this branch of the service were
+awarded 40s. for every horse that was seized by them with smuggled
+goods.
+
+Everyone is aware of the fact that, not once but regularly, the
+smugglers used to signal to their craft at night from the shore as to
+whether the coast were clear, or whether it were better for the cutter
+or lugger to run out to sea again. From a collection of authentic
+incidents I find the following means were employed for signalling
+purposes:--
+
+1. The commonest signal at night was to wave a lantern from a hill or
+some prominent landmark, or from a house suitably situated.
+
+2. To take a flint and steel and set fire to a bundle of straw near
+the edge of a cliff.
+
+3. To burn a blue light.
+
+4. To fire a pistol.
+
+5. The above were all night-signals, but for day-work the craft could
+signal to the shore or other craft by lowering and raising a certain
+sail so many times.
+
+There were very many prosecutions for signalling to smuggling craft at
+many places along our coast. A sentence of six months' imprisonment
+was usually the result. Similarly, the Preventive officers on shore
+used to fire pistols or burn a blue light in signalling to themselves
+for assistance. The pistol-firing would then be answered by that of
+other Customs men in the neighbourhood. And with regard to the matter
+of these signals by the friends of smugglers, the Attorney-and
+Solicitor-General in 1805 gave their opinion to the effect that it was
+not even necessary for the prosecution to prove that there was at that
+time hovering off the coast a smuggling craft, or that one was found
+to have been within the limits; but the justice and jury must be
+satisfied from the circumstances and proof that the fire was lit for
+the purpose of giving a signal to some smugglers.
+
+By the summer of 1807 smuggling in England and Wales had increased to
+what the Commissioners of Customs designated an "alarming extent." An
+Act was therefore passed to ensure the more effectual prevention of
+this crime, and once again the Revenue officers were exhorted to
+perform their duty to its fullest extent, and were threatened with
+punishment in case of any dereliction in this respect, while rewards
+were held out as an inducement to zealous action. Under this new Act
+powers were given to the Army, Navy, Marines, and Militia to work in
+concert with each other for the purpose of preventing smuggling, for
+seizing smuggled goods, and all implements, horses, and persons
+employed or attempting to bring these ashore. The lack of vigilance,
+and even the collusion with smugglers, on the part of Revenue
+officials was still too real to be ignored. Between Dover and Rye,
+especially, were tobacco, snuff, spirits and tea run into the country
+to a very considerable extent. And the Government well knew that "in
+some of the towns on the coast of Kent and Sussex, amongst which are
+Hastings, Folkestone, Hythe, and Deal, but more especially the latter,
+the practice of smuggling is carried on so generally by such large
+gangs of men, that there can exist no hope of checking it but by the
+constant and most active vigilance of strong military patrols, with
+parties in readiness to come to their assistance." So wrote Mr. W.
+Huskisson, Secretary of the Treasury, to Colonel Gordon in August
+1807.
+
+The Deal smugglers went to what Mr. Huskisson called "daring lengths,"
+and for this reason the Treasury suggested that patrols should be
+established within the town of Deal, and for two or three miles east
+and west of the same. And the Treasury also very earnestly requested
+the Commander-in-chief for every possible assistance from the Army. It
+was observed, also, that so desperate were these smugglers, that even
+when they had been captured and impressed, they frequently escaped
+from the men-of-war and returned to their previous life of smuggling.
+To put a stop to this the Treasury made the suggestion that such men
+when captured should be sent to ships cruising at distant foreign
+stations. Some idea of the violence which was always ready to be used
+by the smugglers may be gathered by the incident which occurred on the
+25th of February 1805. On this day the cutter _Tartar_, in the service
+of the Customs, and the Excise cutter _Lively_ were at 10 P.M.
+cruising close to Dungeness on the look-out for smuggling craft. At
+the time mentioned they saw a large decked lugger which seemed to them
+indeed to be a smuggler. It stood on its course and eventually must
+run its nose ashore. Thereupon a boat's crew, consisting of men from
+the _Tartar_ and the _Lively_, got out their oars and rowed to the
+spot where the lugger was evidently about to land her cargo. They
+brought their boat right alongside the lugger just as the latter took
+the ground. But the lugger's crew, as soon as they saw the Revenue
+boat come up to her, promptly forsook her and scrambled on to the
+beach hurriedly. It was noticed that her name was _Diana_, and the
+Revenue officers had from the first been pretty sure that she was no
+innocent fishing-vessel, for they had espied flashes from the shore
+immediately before the _Diana_ grazed her keel on to the beach.
+
+Led by one of the two captains out of the cutters, the Revenue men got
+on board the smuggler and seized her, when she was found to contain a
+cargo of 665 casks of brandy, 118 casks of rum, and 237 casks of
+Geneva. Besides these, she had four casks, one case and one basket of
+wine, 119 bags of tobacco, and 43 lbs. of tea--truly a very fine and
+valuable cargo. But the officers had not been in possession of the
+lugger and her cargo more than three-quarters of an hour before a
+great crowd of infuriated people came down to the beach, armed with
+firearms and wicked-looking bludgeons. For the lugger's crew had
+evidently rushed to their shore friends and told them of their bad
+luck. Some members of this mob were on horseback, others on foot, but
+on they came with oaths and threats to where the lugger and her
+captors were remaining. "We're going to rescue the lugger and her
+goods," exclaimed the smugglers, as they stood round the bows of the
+_Diana_ in the darkness of the night. The Revenue men warned them that
+they had better keep off, or violence would have to be used to prevent
+such threats being carried out.
+
+[Illustration: "A great crowd of infuriated people came down to the
+beach."]
+
+But it was impossible to expect reason from an uncontrolled mob raging
+with fury and indignation. Soon the smugglers had opened fire, and
+ball was whistling through the night air. The _Diana_ was now lying on
+her side, and several muskets were levelled at the Revenue men. One of
+the latter was a man named Dawkins, and the smugglers had got so close
+that one villainous ruffian presented a piece at Dawkins' breast,
+though the latter smartly wrested it from him before any injury had
+been received. But equally quickly, another smuggler armed with a
+cutlass brought the blade down and wounded Dawkins on the thumb. A
+general engagement now proceeded as the smugglers continued to fire,
+but unfortunately the powder of the Revenue men had become wet, so
+only one of their crew was able to return the fire. Finding at length
+that they were no match for their aggressors, the crews were compelled
+to leave the lugger and retreat to some neighbouring barracks where
+the Lancashire Militia happened to be quartered, and a sergeant and
+his guard were requisitioned to strengthen them. With this squad the
+firing was more evenly returned and one of the smugglers was shot, but
+before long, unable to resist the military, the smugglers ceased
+firing and the beach was cleared of the mob.
+
+The matter was in due course reported to the Board of Customs, who
+investigated the affair and ordered a prosecution of the smugglers. No
+one had been captured, however, so they offered a reward of £200. That
+was in the year 1805; but it was not till 1813 or 1814 that
+information came into their hands, for no one would come forward to
+earn the reward. In the last-mentioned year, however, search was made
+for the wanted men, and two persons, named respectively Jeremiah
+Maxted and Thomas Gilbert, natives of Lydd, were arrested and put on
+their trial. They were certainly the two ringleaders of that night,
+and incited the crowd to a frenzy, although these two men did not
+actually themselves shoot, but they were heard to offer a guinea a man
+to any of the mob who would assist in rescuing the seized property.
+Still, in spite of the evidence that was brought against these men,
+such was the condition of things that they were found not guilty.
+
+But it was not always that the Revenue men acted with so much vigour,
+nor with so much honesty. It was towards the end of the year 1807 that
+two of the Riding officers stationed at Newhaven, Sussex, attempted to
+bribe a patrol of dragoons who were also on duty there for the
+prevention of smuggling. The object of the bribe was to induce the
+military to leave their posts for a short period, so that a cargo of
+dutiable goods, which were expected shortly to arrive, might be
+smuggled ashore without the payment of the Crown's duties. For such a
+suggestion to be made by Preventive men was in itself disgraceful, and
+showed not merely a grossly dishonest purpose but an extraordinary
+failure of a sense of duty. However, the soldiers, perhaps not
+altogether displeased at being able to give free rein to some of the
+jealousies which existed between the Revenue men and the Army, did not
+respond to the suggestion, but promptly arrested the Riding officers
+and conducted them to Newhaven. Of these two it was afterwards
+satisfactorily proved that one had actually offered the bribe to the
+patrol, but the other was acquitted of that charge. Both, however,
+were dismissed from the Customs service, while the sergeant and
+soldiers forming the patrol were rewarded, the sum of £20 being sent
+to the commanding officer of their regiment, to be divided among the
+patrol as he might think best.
+
+It was not merely the tobacco, spirits, and tea which in the early
+years of the nineteenth century were being smuggled into the country,
+although these were the principal articles. In addition to silks,
+laces, and other goods, the number of pairs of gloves which
+clandestinely came in was so great that the manufacture of English
+gloves was seriously injured.
+
+In the year 1811 so ineffectual had been the existing shore
+arrangements that an entirely new plan was inaugurated for suppressing
+smuggling. The Riding officers no doubt had a difficult and even
+dangerous duty to perform, but their conduct left much to be desired,
+and they needed to be kept up to their work. Under the new system,
+the office of Supervisor or Surveyor of Riding officers was abolished,
+and that of Inspector of Riding officers was created in its stead. The
+coast of England was divided into the following three districts:--
+
+No. I. London to Penzance.
+
+No. II. Penzance to Carlisle.
+
+No. III. London to Berwick.
+
+There were altogether seven of these Inspectors appointed, three being
+for the first district, two for the second, and two for the third. The
+first district was of course the worst, because it included the
+English Channel and especially the counties of Kent and Sussex. Hence
+the greater number of Inspectors. Hence, also, these three officers
+were given a yearly salary of £180, with a yearly allowance of £35 for
+the maintenance of a horse. The Inspectors of the other two districts
+were paid £150 each with the same £35 allowance for a horse. In
+addition, the Inspectors of all districts were allowed 10s. a day when
+upon inspections, which were not to last less than 60 days in each
+quarter in actual movement, "in order by constant and unexpected
+visitations, strictly to watch and check the conduct of the Riding
+officers within their allotted station." Under this new arrangement,
+also, the total number of Riding officers was to be 120, and these
+were divided into two classes--Superior and Inferior. Their salaries
+and allowances were as follows:--
+
+  FIRST DISTRICT
+
+  Superior Riding Officer      £90
+  Inferior   "       "          75
+  Allowance for horse           30
+
+  SECOND AND THIRD DISTRICTS
+
+  Superior Riding Officer      £80
+  Inferior   "       "          65
+  Allowance for horse           30
+
+The general principle of promotion was to be based on the amount of
+activity and zeal which were displayed, the Superior Riding officers
+being promoted from the Inferior, and the Inspectors of Districts
+being promoted from the most zealous Superior Riding officers.
+
+And there was, too, a difficulty with regard to the smugglers when
+they became prisoners. We have already remarked how ready they were to
+escape from the men-of-war. In the year 1815 there were some smugglers
+in detention on board one of the Revenue cutters. At that time the
+cutter's mate was acting as commander, and he was foolish enough to
+allow some of the smugglers' friends from the shore--themselves also
+of the same trade--to have free communication with two of the
+prisoners without anyone being present on behalf of the Customs. The
+result was that one of the men succeeded in making his escape. As a
+result of this captive smugglers were not permitted to have
+communication with their friends except in the presence of a proper
+officer. And there was a great laxity, also, in the guarding of
+smugglers sent aboard his Majesty's warships. In several cases the
+commanders actually declined to receive these men when delivered by
+the Revenue department: they didn't want the rascals captured by the
+cutters, and they were not going to take them into their ship's
+complement. This went on for a time, until the Admiralty sent down a
+peremptory order that the captains and commanders were to receive
+these smugglers, and when an opportunity arose they were to send them
+to the flagship at Portsmouth or Plymouth.
+
+As illustrative of the business-like methods with which the smugglers
+at this time pursued their calling, the following may well be brought
+forward. In the year 1814 several of the chief smuggling merchants at
+Alderney left that notorious island and settled at Cherbourg. But
+those small craft, which up till then had been wont to run across to
+the Channel Isles, began instantly to make for the French port
+instead. From Lyme and Beer in West Bay, from Portland and from the
+Isle of Wight they sailed, to load up with their illicit cargoes, and
+as soon as they arrived they found, ready awaiting them in the various
+stores near the quays, vast quantities of "tubs," as the casks were
+called, whilst so great was the demand, that several coopers were kept
+there busily employed making new ones. Loaded with spirits they were
+put on board the English craft, which soon hoisted sail and sped away
+to the English shores, though many there must have been which
+foundered in bad weather, or, swept on by the dreaded Alderney Race
+and its seven-knot tide, had an exciting time, only to be followed up
+later by the English Revenue cutters, or captured under the red cliffs
+of Devonshire in the act of taking the tubs ashore. For the Customs
+Board well knew of this change of market to Cherbourg, and lost no
+time in informing their officers at the different outports and the
+cruiser-commanders as well.
+
+A large number of the merchant-smugglers from Guernsey at the same
+time migrated to Coniris, about eight miles from Tregner, in France,
+and ten leagues east of the Isle of Bas, and twelve leagues S.S.W.
+from Guernsey. Anyone who is familiar with that treacherous coast, and
+the strength of its tides, will realise that in bad weather these
+little craft, heavily loaded as they always were on the return
+journey, must have been punished pretty severely. Some others,
+doubtless, foundered altogether and never got across to the Devonshire
+shores. Those people who had now settled down at Coniris were they who
+had previously dealt with the smugglers of Cawsand, Polperro,
+Mevagissey, and Gerrans. To these places were even sent circular
+letters inviting the English smugglers to come over to Coniris, just
+as previously they had come to fetch goods from Guernsey. And another
+batch of settlers from Guernsey made their new habitation at Roscore
+(Isle of Bas), from which place goods were smuggled into Coverack
+(near the Lizard), Kedgworth, Mount's Bay, and different places "in
+the North Channel."
+
+Spirits, besides being brought across in casks and run into the country
+by force or stealth, were also frequently at this time smuggled in
+through the agency of the French boats which brought vegetables and
+poultry. In this class of case the spirits were also in small casks, but
+the latter were concealed between false bulkheads and hidden below the
+ballast. But this method was practically a new departure, and began only
+about 1815. This was the smuggling-by-concealment manner, as distinct
+from that which was carried on by force and by stealth. We shall have a
+good deal more to say about this presently, so we need not let the
+matter detain us now. Commanders of cruisers were of course on the
+look-out for suspected craft, but they were reminded by the Board that
+they must be careful to make no seizures within three miles of the
+French and Dutch coasts. And that was why, as soon as a suspected vessel
+was sighted, and a capture was about to be made, some officer on the
+Revenue cutter was most careful immediately to take cross-bearings and
+fix his position; or if no land was in sight to reckon the number of
+leagues the ship had run since the last "fix" had been made. This matter
+naturally came out very strongly in the trials when the captured
+smugglers were being prosecuted, and it was the business of the
+defending counsel to do their best to upset the officers' reckoning, and
+prove that the suspected craft was within her proper and legitimate
+limits. Another trick which sprang up also about 1815, was that of
+having the casks of spirits fastened, the one behind the other, in line
+on a warp. One end of this rope would be passed through a hole at the
+aftermost end of the keel, where it would be made fast. As the vessel
+sailed along she would thus tow a whole string of barrels like the tail
+of a kite, but in order to keep the casks from bobbing above water,
+sinkers were fastened. Normally, of course, these casks would be kept on
+board, for the resistance of these objects was very considerable, and
+lessened the vessel's way. Any one who has trailed even a fairly thick
+warp astern from a small sailing craft must have been surprised at the
+difference it made to the speed of the vessel.
+
+But so soon as the Revenue cutter began to loom big, overboard went
+this string of casks towing merrily below the water-line. The cutter
+would run down to her, and order her to heave-to, which she could
+afford to do quite willingly. She would be boarded and rummaged, but
+the officer would to his surprise find nothing at all and be
+compelled to release her. Away would go the cruiser to chase some
+other craft, and as soon as she was out of the range of the
+commander's spy-glass, in would come the tubs again and be stowed
+dripping in the hold. This trick was played many a time with success,
+but at last the cruisers got to hear of the device and the smugglers
+were badly caught. I shall in due season illustrate this by an actual
+occurrence. What I want the reader to bear in mind is, that whilst the
+age of smuggling by violence and force took a long time to die out,
+yet it reached its zenith about the middle or the last quarter of the
+eighteenth century. Right till the end of the grand period of
+smuggling violence was certainly used, but the year 1815 inaugurated a
+period that was characterised less by force and armed resistance than
+by artfulness, ingenuity, and all the inventiveness which it is
+possible to employ on a smuggling craft. "Smugglers," says Marryat in
+one of his novels, "do not arm now--the service is too dangerous; they
+effect their purpose by cunning, not by force. Nevertheless, it
+requires that smugglers should be good seamen, smart, active fellows,
+and keen-witted, or they can do nothing.... All they ask is a heavy
+gale or a thick fog, and they trust to themselves for success." It was
+especially after the year 1816, when, as we shall see presently, the
+Admiralty reorganised the service of cruisers and the Land-guard was
+tightened up, that the smugglers distinguished themselves by their
+great skill and resource, their enterprise, and their ability to
+hoodwink the Revenue men. The wars with France and Spain had come to
+an end, and the Government, now that her external troubles allowed,
+could devote her attention to rectifying this smuggling evil. This
+increased watchfulness plus the gradual reduction of duties brought
+the practice of smuggling to such a low point that it became
+unprofitable, and the increased risks were not the equivalent of the
+decreased profits. This same principle, at least, is pursued in the
+twentieth century. No one is ever so foolish as to try and run whole
+cargoes of goods into the country without paying Customs duty. But
+those ingenious persons who smuggle spirits in foot-warmers,
+saccharine in the lining of hats, tobacco and cigars in false bottoms
+and other ways carry out their plans not by force but by ingenuity, by
+skill.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA
+
+
+Had you been alive and afloat in June of 1802 and been cruising about
+near Falmouth Bay, or taken up your position on the top of one of
+those glorious high cliffs anywhere between St. Anthony and the
+Dodman, and remembered first to take with you your spyglass, you would
+have witnessed a very interesting sight; that is to say, if you had
+been able to penetrate through the atmosphere, which was not
+consistently clear throughout the day. For part of it, at any rate,
+was hazy and foggy just as it often is in this neighbourhood at that
+time of year, but that was the very kind of conditions which the
+smuggler loved. Between those two headlands are two fine bays, named
+respectively Gerrans and Veryan, while away to the south-west the land
+runs out to sea till it ends in the Lizard. A whole history could be
+written of the smuggling which took place in these two bays, but we
+must content ourselves with the one instance before us.
+
+On this day it happened that his Majesty's frigate _Fisgard_ was
+proceeding up Channel under the command of Captain Michael Seymour,
+R.N. The time was three in the afternoon. In spite of the haziness it
+was intermittent, and an hour earlier he had been able to fix his
+position by St. Anthony, which then bore N. by W. distant six or seven
+miles. He was then sailing by the wind close-hauled lying S.S.E.1/2E.,
+in other words, standing away from the land out into mid-channel, the
+breeze being steady. By three o'clock the _Fisgard_ had only travelled
+about another six or seven miles, so that she was now about 12-1/2 miles
+from St. Anthony or just to seaward of the Lizard. It was at this time
+that the frigate sighted a smaller craft, fore-and-aft rigged and
+heading N.N.W., also on a wind, the breeze being abaft her port, or,
+as they called it in those days, the larboard-beam. This subsequently
+turned out to be the cutter _Flora_, and the course the cutter was
+taking would have brought her towards the Dodman. The haze had now
+lifted for a time, since although the _Flora_ was quite eight miles
+away she could be descried. Knowing that this cutter had no right to
+be within a line drawn between the Lizard and Prawl Point, the
+_Fisgard_ starboarded her helm and went in pursuit. But the _Flora's_
+crew were also on the look-out, though not a little displeased that
+the fog had lifted and revealed her position. When she saw that the
+_Fisgard_ was coming after her she began to make off, bore up, and
+headed due North. But presently she altered her tactics and hauled
+round on the starboard tack, which would of course bring her away
+from the land, make her travel faster because her head-sails would
+fill, and she hoped also no doubt to get clear of the Prawl-to-Lizard
+line. Before this she had been under easy sail, but now she put up all
+the canvas she could carry.
+
+But unfortunately the _Flora_ had not espied earlier in the day
+another frigate which was also in the vicinity. This was the _Wasso_,
+and the haze had hidden her movements. But now, even though the
+weather was clearing, the bigger ship had been hidden from view
+because she had been just round the corner in Mevagissey Bay. And at
+the very time that the _Flora_ was running away from the _Fisgard_ and
+travelling finely with every sail drawing nicely and getting clear of
+the cliffs, the _Wasso_ was working her way round the Dodman. As soon
+as the latter came into view she took in the situation--the cutter
+_Flora_ foaming along out to sea and the _Fisgard_ coming up quickly
+under a mountain of canvas. So now there were two frigates pursuing
+the cutter, and the _Flora's_ skipper must have cursed his bad luck
+for being caught in this trap. But that unkind haze was favouring the
+King's ships to-day, for ere the chase had continued much longer, yet
+a third frigate came in sight, whose name was the _Nymph_. This was
+too much for the _Flora_ to be chased by three ships each bigger and
+better armed than herself. The _Nymph_ headed her off, and the cutter
+seeing it was all up reluctantly hove-to. On examination she was
+found to have a cargo of gin, brandy, and tobacco, which she would
+have succeeded in running ashore had the haze not played such tricks.
+However, she had done her best for three exciting hours, for it was
+not until six on that wintry evening that she was captured by the
+_Nymph_, and if she had been able to hold on a little longer she might
+have escaped in the night and got right away and landed her cargo
+elsewhere before the sun came out. But, as it was, her skipper James
+Dunn had to take his trial, when a verdict was given in favour of the
+King, and Dunn was fined £200.
+
+[Illustration: The _Flora_ with the _Fisgard_, _Wasso_, and _Nymph_.]
+
+We must pass over the next two years and travel from one end of the
+English Channel to the other till we find ourselves again in Kentish
+waters. The year is 1804, and the 14th of June. On this summer's day
+at dawn the gun-brig _Jackal_, commanded by Captain Stewart, R.N., was
+cruising about to the Nor'ard of the Goodwins. As day broke he was
+informed that three smuggling vessels had just been espied in the
+vicinity. The latter certainly was not more than three miles from the
+land, and it was fairly certain what their intention was. When Captain
+Stewart came on deck and convinced himself of their identity he
+ordered out his boats, he himself going in one, while one of his
+officers took command of another, each boat having about half-a-dozen
+men on board.
+
+We mentioned just now how important it was in such cases as this that
+the position should be defined as accurately as possible. Immediately
+the boats had left the _Jackal_ the pilot of the latter and one of the
+crew on board took bearings from the North Foreland and found the
+_Jackal_ was about 7-3/4 miles from this landmark. They also took
+bearings of the position of the three smuggling luggers, and found
+these were about three or four miles off and bore from the _Jackal_ E.
+by S.
+
+To return to Captain Stewart and the two boats: for the first twenty
+minutes these oared craft gained on the luggers owing to the absence
+of wind, and the smugglers could do nothing. The dawn had revealed the
+presence of the _Jackal_ to the smugglers no less than the latter had
+been revealed to the gun-brig. And as soon as the illicit carriers
+realised what was about to happen they, too, began to make every
+effort to get moving. The early morning calm, however, was less
+favourable to them than to the comparatively light-oared craft which
+had put out from the _Jackal_, so the three luggers just rolled to the
+swell under the cliffs of the Foreland as their canvas and gear
+slatted idly from side to side.
+
+But presently, as the sun rose up in the sky, a little breeze came
+forth which bellowed the lug-sails and enabled the three craft to
+stand off from the land and endeavour, if possible, to get out into
+the Channel. In order to accelerate their speed the crews laid on to
+the sweeps and pulled manfully. Every sailorman knows that the tides
+in that neighbourhood are exceedingly strong, but the addition of the
+breeze did not improve matters for the _Jackal's_ two boats, although
+the luggers were getting along finely. However, the wind on a bright
+June morning is not unusually fitful and light, so the boats kept up a
+keen chase urged by their respective officers, and after three hours
+of strenuous rowing Captain Stewart's boat came up with the first of
+these named the _I.O._ But before he had come alongside her and was
+still 300 yards away, the master and pilot of this smuggler and six of
+her crew was seen to get into the lugger's small boat and row off to
+the second lugger named the _Nancy_, which they boarded. When the
+_Jackal's_ commander, therefore, came up with the _I.O._ he found only
+one man aboard her. He stopped to make some inquiries, and the
+solitary man produced some Bills of Lading and other papers to show
+that the craft was bound from Emden to Guernsey, and that their cargo
+was destined for the latter place.
+
+The reader may well smile at this barefaced and ingenuous lie. Not
+even a child could be possibly persuaded to imagine that a vessel
+found hovering about the North Foreland was really making for the
+Channel Isles from Germany. It was merely another instance of
+employing these papers if any awkward questions should be asked by
+suspecting Revenue vessels or men-of-war. What was truth, however, was
+that the _I.O._ was bound not to but from Guernsey, where she had
+loaded a goodly cargo of brandy and gin, all of which was found on
+board, and no doubt would shortly have been got ashore and placed in
+one of the caves not far from Longnose. Moreover, the men were as good
+as convicted when it was found that the spirits were in those small
+casks or tubs which were only employed by the smugglers; and indeed
+never had such a cargo of spirits to Guernsey been carried in such
+small-sized kegs, for Guernsey always received its spirits in casks of
+bold dimensions.
+
+It was further pointed out at the trial that the luggers could not
+have been bound on the voyage alleged, for they had not enough
+provisions on board. The Solicitor-General also demonstrated the fact
+that when these luggers were approached in deep water--that is, of
+course after the three hours' chase--they could not possibly have been
+making for Guernsey. The farther they stood from the shore the greater
+would be their danger, for they would be likely at any hour to fall in
+with the enemy's privateers which were known to be cruising not far
+off.
+
+But to return to the point in the narrative when we digressed. Captain
+Stewart, a quarter of an hour before finally coming up with the
+_I.O._, had fired several times to cause her to heave-to, but this
+they declined to do, and all her crew but one deserted her as stated.
+Leaving one of his own men on board her the naval officer, after
+marking her with a broad arrow to indicate she had been seized, went
+with his four remaining men in pursuit of the second lugger, which was
+rowing away with all haste, and alongside which the _I.O.'s_ boat was
+lying. But, as soon as Stewart began to approach, the men now quitted
+the lugger and rowed back to the _I.O._ He opened fire at them, but
+they still persisted, and seeing this he continued to pursue the
+second lugger, boarded her and seized her, the time being now about
+6.30 A.M.
+
+Afterwards he waited until his other boat had come up, and left her
+crew in charge of this second lugger, and then rowed off to the first
+lugger again, but once more the _I.O.'s_ people deserted her and rowed
+towards the shore. Undaunted he then went in pursuit of the third
+lugger, but as a breeze came up she managed to get away. Presently he
+was able to hail a neutral vessel who gave him a passage back, and at
+midday he rejoined the _I.O._, which was subsequently taken captive
+into Dover, and at a later date ordered to be condemned. She had
+belonged to Deal and was no doubt in the regular smuggling industry.
+
+Then there was the case of the lugger _Polly_, which occurred in
+January of 1808. Because vessels of this kind were, from their
+construction, their size, and their rig especially suitable for
+running goods, they were now compelled to have a licence before being
+allowed to navigate at all. This licence was given on condition that
+she was never to be found guilty of smuggling, nor to navigate outside
+certain limits, the object of course being to prevent her from running
+backwards and forwards across the English and Irish Channels. In the
+present instance the _Polly_ had been licensed to navigate and trade,
+to fish and to carry pilots between Bexhill and coastwise round Great
+Britain, but not to cross the Channels. To this effect her master,
+William Bennett, had entered in a bond. But on the date mentioned she
+was unfortunately actually discovered at the island of Alderney, and
+it was obvious that she was there for the purpose of loading the
+usual cargo of goods to be smuggled into England. Six days later she
+had taken on board all that she wanted, but just as she was leaving
+the Customs officer examined her licence; and as it was found that she
+was not allowed to "go foreign," and that to go to Alderney had always
+been regarded a foreign voyage, she was promptly seized. Furthermore,
+as there was no suggestion of any fishing-gear found on board it was a
+clear case, and after due trial the verdict was given for the King and
+she was condemned.
+
+There is existing an interesting application from the boat-masters and
+fishermen of Robin Hood's Bay (Yorkshire) in connection with the
+restrictions which were now enforced regarding luggers. These poor
+people were engaged in the Yarmouth herring-fishery, and prayed for
+relief from the penalties threatened by the recent Act of Parliament,
+which stipulated that luggers of a size exceeding 50 tons burthen were
+made liable to forfeiture. As their North Sea craft came under this
+category they were naturally in great distress. However the Customs
+Board pointed out that the Act allowed all vessels and boats of the
+above description and tonnage "which were rigged and fitted at the
+time of the passing thereof and intended for the purpose of fishing"
+to be licensed.
+
+Whenever those tubs of spirits were seized from a smuggling craft at
+sea they were forwarded to the King's warehouse, London, by those
+coasting vessels, whose masters were "of known respectability." And by
+a different conveyance a sample pint of every cask was to be
+transmitted to the same address. The bungs of the casks were to be
+secured with a tin-plate, and under a seal of office, each cask being
+branded with the letters "G.R.," and the quantity given at the head of
+each cask. But those spirits which were seized on land and not on sea
+were to be sold by public auction. All smuggling transactions of any
+account, and all seizures of any magnitude, and especially all those
+which were attended by any attempt to rescue, were to be reported
+separately to the Customs Board. Small casks which had contained
+seized spirits were, after condemnation, sometimes allowed to fall
+into the hands of the smugglers, who used them again for the same
+purpose. To put a stop to this it was ordered that these tubs were in
+future to be burnt or cut to pieces "as to be only fit for firewood."
+
+Even as early as 1782 considerable frauds were perpetrated by stating
+certain imports to be of one nature when they were something entirely
+different. For instance a great deal of starch had been imported under
+the denomination of flour from Ireland. The Revenue officers were
+therefore instructed to discriminate between the two articles by the
+following means. Starch "when in flour" and real flour could be
+differentiated by putting some of each into a tumbler of water. If the
+"flour" were starch it would sink to the bottom and form a hard
+substance, if it were real flour then it would turn into a paste.
+Starch was also much whiter than flour. And a good deal of spirits,
+wine, tea, and tobacco brought into vessels as ship's stores for the
+crew were also frequently smuggled ashore. Particularly was this the
+case in small vessels from Holland, France, Guernsey, Jersey, and
+Alderney.
+
+One day in the month of May, 1814, a fine West Indian ship named the
+_Caroline_ set sail from the Island of St. Thomas with a valuable
+cargo of dutiable goods, and in due time entered the English Channel.
+Before long she had run up the coast and found herself off Fairlight
+(between Hastings and Rye). The people on shore had been on the
+look-out for this ship, and as soon as the _Caroline_ hove in sight a
+boat put off to meet her. Some one threw down a line which was made
+fast to the boat, and from the latter several men clambered aboard.
+After the usual salutations they accompanied the master of the ship
+and went below to the cabin, where some time was spent in bargaining.
+To make a long story short, they arranged to purchase from the
+_Caroline_ 25 gallons of rum and some coffee, for which the West
+Indiaman's skipper was well paid, the average price of rum in that
+year being about 20s. a gallon. A cask of rum, 3 cwt. of coffee in a
+barrel and 2 cwt. in a bag were accordingly lowered over the ship's
+side into the boat and away went the little craft to the shore,
+having, as it was supposed, cheated the Customs. The _Caroline_
+continued her course and proceeded to London. The Customs authorities,
+however, had got wind of the affair and the matter was brought to a
+conclusion before one of his Majesty's judges.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Caroline_ continued her course and proceeded to
+London."]
+
+But East Indiamen were just as bad, if not a great deal worse, for it
+was their frequent practice to arrive in the Downs and sell quantities
+of tea to the men who came out from Deal in small craft. The
+commodity could then be kept either for the use of their families and
+sold to their immediate friends, or sent up to London by the "duffers"
+in the manner we spoke of in an earlier chapter. In the instances when
+spirits were smuggled into the country there was usually some
+arrangement between the publicans and the smugglers for disposing of
+the stuff. But, you may ask, how did the Deal boatmen manage to get
+the tea to their homes without being seen by the Customs officers? In
+the first place it was always difficult to prove that the men really
+were smugglers, for they would be quite wide-awake enough not to bring
+obvious bales ashore; and, secondly, the Deal men had such a
+reputation as desperate characters that no officer, unless he was
+pretty sure that a smuggling transaction was being carried on and
+could rely, too, on being well supported by other Customs men and the
+soldiers, would think of meddling in the matter. But, lastly, the men
+who came ashore from the East Indiamen had a smart little dodge of
+their own for concealing the tea.
+
+[Illustration: How the Deal Boatmen used to Smuggle Tea Ashore.]
+
+The accompanying picture is no imaginary instance, but is actually
+taken from an official document. The figure is supposed to represent
+one of these Deal boatmen, and the numerals will explain the methods
+of secreting the tea. (1) Indicates a cotton bag which was made to fit
+the crown of his hat, and herein could be carried 2 lbs. of tea. He
+would, of course, have his hat on as he came ashore, and probably it
+would be a sou'wester, so there would be nothing suspicious in that.
+(2) Cotton stays or a waistcoat tied round the body. This waistcoat
+was fitted with plenty of pockets to hold as much as possible. (3)
+This was a bustle for the lower part of the body and tied on with
+strings. (4) These were thigh-pieces also tied round and worn
+underneath the trousers. When all these concealments were filled the
+man had on his person as much as 30 lbs. of tea, so that he came
+ashore and smuggled with impunity. And if you multiply these 30 lbs.
+by several crews of these Deal boats you can guess how much loss to
+the Revenue the arrival of an East Indiamen in the Downs meant to the
+Revenue.
+
+Another old dodge, though different in kind, was employed by a
+smuggling vessel when at sea and being chased towards evening, or on
+one of those days when the atmosphere is hazy or foggy. To prevent her
+canvas being a mark against the horizon, the lugger would lower her
+sail, and her black hull was very difficult to distinguish in the
+gathering gloom. This happened once when the smuggling cutter
+_Gloire_, a vessel of 38 tons burthen belonging to Weymouth, was being
+chased about midnight in January of 1816 by the Revenue cutter _Rose_.
+The smuggler had hoped to have been able to run his goods ashore at
+Bowen Bottom, Dorset, but the _Rose_ was too smart for him, launched
+her galley, and seized her with a full cargo of half-ankers.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS
+
+
+If the reader will carry his mind back to 1787 he will recollect that
+in this year we saw a reformation in the system of the Revenue
+cruisers, and the practice of employing hired craft was discontinued.
+This reformed system went on until the year 1816, when a highly
+important change occurred in the administration of these vessels.
+
+On the 5th of April in that year all the Revenue cruisers which
+previously had been under the control of the Board of Customs now
+passed into the hands of the Admiralty. The general object was to
+adopt more effectual means for putting a stop to the smuggling, and
+these vessels were of course to be employed in co-operation with the
+ships of his Majesty's Navy afloat and the Revenue officers on shore.
+Due notice was accordingly sent from the Customs office informing the
+commanders of cruisers that they were to place themselves under the
+orders of the Admiralty in the future. But the cost of these cruisers
+was still to be borne by the Customs as before.
+
+It may seem a little curious that whereas the Board of Customs had
+controlled these vessels for about a hundred and fifty years this
+sudden change should have been made. But, primarily, any customs
+organisation must belong to the shore. The employment of cruisers was
+in its origin really an afterthought to prevent the Crown being
+cheated of its dues. In other words, the service of sloops and cutters
+was a kind of off-shoot from the service on land. It was only because
+the smuggling was so daring, because the Crown was so regularly robbed
+that some means of dealing with these robbers on sea and on even terms
+had to be devised. But, of course, with the Admiralty the case was
+quite different. For long centuries that department had to deal with
+ships and everything therewith connected. Therefore to many it seemed
+that that department which controlled the Navy should also control
+that smaller navy comprised by the Revenue cruisers.
+
+At this date we must recollect that the Battle of Waterloo had been
+won only a few months, that once and for all Napoleon had been crushed
+and broken, that at last there had come peace and an end of those wars
+which had seemed interminable. From this return of peace followed two
+facts. Firstly, the European ports were now opened afresh not merely
+to honest traders, but to the fleets of smugglers who could go about
+their work with greater safety, with less fear of being captured by
+privateers. Thus it was most probable that as the English Channel was
+now practically a clear sphere there would be a renewed activity on
+the part of these men. But, secondly, it also followed that the
+Admiralty, charged no longer with the anxiety and vigilance which a
+naval war must bring with it, was free to devote its manifold
+abilities, most especially in respect of organisation, for the benefit
+of the Revenue department. At one and the same time, then, there was
+the chance of greater smuggling activity and a more concentrated
+effort to put down this smuggling.
+
+Furthermore, inasmuch as the wars had ended the Navy needed fewer men.
+We know how it was in the case of Naval officers, many of whom found
+themselves unemployed. But it was not less bad for the seamen, many of
+whom had drifted into the service by the way we have seen--through
+being captured smuggling and then impressed. Returned once more to
+their native haunts after long separation, was it likely that having
+done so much roving, fought so many battles, sailed so many miles,
+passed through so many exciting incidents that they would quietly take
+to tilling the fields or gathering the crops? Some, no doubt, did;
+others applied themselves to some other industries for which they were
+fitted. But there were very many who went back to the occupation of
+the smuggler. They had heard the call to sea, and since fishing was in
+a bad way they must resume running illicit cargoes again. Agriculture
+and the like have few fascinations for men who have fought and roamed
+the sea most of their lives. So when some enterprising rascal with
+enough ready capital came along they were more than prepared to take
+up the practice once more.
+
+That was how the matter was viewed from their side. But the Government
+were determined that an evil which had been a great worry for at least
+a century and a half of English history should be stamped out. The
+only way was to make the smuggling unprofitable. Inasmuch as these men
+for the most part made their profits through being able to undersell
+the fair trader (because there were no Custom duties paid) the most
+obvious remedy would have been to lower the rates of import duties.
+But since that was not practicable, the only possible alternative was
+to increase the dangers and risk to which a smuggler must expose
+himself.
+
+And instantly the first step, then, must be towards establishing "such
+a system of discipline and vigilance over the Revenue cruisers and
+boats as shall give the country the benefit of their constant and
+active services." These smuggling pests must be sought out, they must
+never be allowed to escape, to laugh defiantly at the Crown's efforts,
+and they must be punished severely when captured. It was therefore
+deemed by the Treasury that there would be a greater efficiency in
+these cruisers if "put under naval watchfulness and discipline,
+controlled by such authority as the Department of the Admiralty may
+think fit."
+
+The change came about as stated, and the Admiralty retained in the
+service those officers and crews of the Revenue cruisers as by length
+of service and in other ways had shown that they were fit and
+efficient. Those, however, who had grown too old for the work were
+superannuated. Similarly, with regard to the Preventive boatmen, these
+were also taken over by the Admiralty, but here, again, only those who
+were capable were accepted, while for the others "some moderate
+provision" was made.
+
+On the last day of July in that year were sent out the regulations
+which the Admiralty had drawn up respecting the salaries, wages,
+victualling, &c., of the Revenue cruisers. These may be summarised as
+follows, and compared with rates which have been given for previous
+years. They were sent addressed in each case to the "Commander of His
+Majesty's Cruiser employed in the prevention of smuggling."
+
+And first as to payment:
+
+  (I.) CRUISERS OF THE FIRST CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of 140 tons burthen and upwards.
+
+  Commander to have         £150 per annum
+  1st Mate     "              80     "
+  2nd Mate     "              45     "
+
+ (II.) CRUISERS OF THE SECOND CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of 100 tons and upwards but under 140 tons.
+
+  Commander to have         £130 per annum
+  1st Mate    "               70     "
+  2nd Mate    "               40     "
+
+(III.) CRUISERS OF THE THIRD CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of less than 100 tons.
+
+  Commander to have         £110 per annum
+  1st Mate    "               60     "
+  (No 2nd Mate)
+
+The wages of the following persons were to remain the same in all
+classes, viz.:
+
+  Deputed Mariners       £2  8s. per lunar month
+  Seamen                  2  0      "     "
+  Boys                   10  0 per annum
+
+Muster books were ordered to be kept regularly, and the sum of 1s. 6d.
+was allowed to the commander a day for each man borne on the books and
+actually victualled, to provide for the following proportion of
+provisions:--1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs. of bread, 1/2 gallon of
+beer. The commander was also allowed 3s. a day for his own victuals,
+and a like sum for each of his mates. Allowance was made for a
+medicine chest to the extent of £3 annually. All expenses of pilotage
+were to be paid by the Navy, "but the commanders and mates are to make
+themselves acquainted with the coasts, &c., and no general pilot will
+be allowed for more than two months after a cruiser's arrival on any
+new station."
+
+And there is now a notable innovation, which marked the advent of a
+new age. Instead of the prevailing hempen cables with which these
+cruisers had been supplied and had been in use for centuries among our
+ships, these cutters were ordered to be furnished with chain cables
+"in order that the vessels may have the less occasion for going to a
+King's Port to refit or make purchases." If a man were injured or
+became sick whilst in the service so as to need surgical aid, the
+expense was to be allowed. And in order still further to make the
+cruisers independent of the shore and able to offer no excuse for
+running into harbour they were ordered never to proceed to sea without
+three weeks' provisions and water. As to the widows of mariners, they
+were to receive £10 per annum.
+
+So much, then, for the new conditions of service in these Revenue
+craft as undertaken by the Admiralty. Let us now obtain some idea of
+the duties that were attached to these officers and vessels. The
+commanders were directed by the Admiralty to make themselves familiar
+with the Acts of Parliament for the prevention of smuggling, Orders in
+Council, Proclamations, &c., and to obey the instruction of whatever
+admiral they were placed under, as also the commanders of any of his
+Majesty's ships whom they might fall in with "diverting you from the
+cruise on which you are employed."
+
+Each commander was assigned his own particular station for cruising,
+and he was never to lie in any harbour, bay, or creek unless by stress
+of weather or other unavoidable necessity. He was to keep a look-out
+for vessels of a suspicious appearance, which, in respect of size and
+build, appeared to be adapted for smuggling. Especially was he to look
+out for French craft of this description. Having arrested them he was
+to hand them over to the nearest man-of-war. He was also to keep a
+smart look-out for the smugglers' practice of sinking goods and
+afterwards creeping for them. The cruisers were to visit the various
+creeks and bays; and whenever weather permitted the commander was to
+send a boat and crew to examine such places at night. And, if
+necessary, the crew were to remain there until the cruiser came to
+fetch them back in the morning.
+
+Care was to be taken that the smugglers themselves no less than their
+craft and goods were to be captured, and the commanders of these
+cruisers were to co-operate with the Land-guard and keep in close
+touch with the Riding officers ashore as well as the Sitters of
+Preventive boats, and to agree upon a code of signals between them,
+as, for example, by making false fires at night or the hoisting of
+proper colours in the different parts of the vessel by day, so that
+the shore officers might be informed of any suspicious vessels on the
+coast. These cruisers were also to speak with all the ships with
+which they fell in, and to direct any ships subject to quarantine to
+proceed to quarantine stations. And if they came across some
+merchantman or other vessel, which they suspected of smuggling, the
+cruiser was to accompany such craft into port. And they were enjoined
+to be particularly careful to guard East India ships to their
+moorings, or until, the next station having been reached, they could
+be handed over to the next cruiser.
+
+The commanders of the cruisers were also to be on their guard against
+the practice in vogue among ships that had been to Holland and France
+with coals, for these craft were especially prone on their return to
+putting dutiable goods into light craft from London, or on the coast,
+but chiefly into cobbles or small fishing craft at sea. And even when
+it should happen that a cruiser had to be detained in port for
+repairs, the commander was to spare as many officers and seamen as
+possible and to employ these in keeping a regular watch on the high
+grounds near the sea, so as to watch what was passing, and, if
+necessary, despatch a boat and part of the cruiser's crew. The
+commanders were reminded that the cruisers were not to wear the
+colours used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same ensigns and
+pendants as provided by the Revenue Board under 24 Geo. III. c. 47,
+sect. 23.
+
+On a previous page we went into the matter of firing at the smuggling
+craft with shotted or with unshotted guns. Now among the instructions
+which were issued by the Admiralty on taking over these Revenue
+cruisers was the clear order that no officer of a cruiser or boat was
+justified in shooting at a suspected smuggling vessel until the former
+shall have first hoisted his pendant and ensign, nor unless a gun
+shall have been first fired as a signal. The date of this, of course,
+was 1816. But among the documents preserved at the Swansea Custom
+House there is an interesting letter dated July 1806, written by the
+Collector to Mr. Hobhouse, stating that a Mr. Barber, the
+sailing-master of the _Cleveland_, had been committed for trial on a
+charge of wilful murder, he having fired a shot to cause a boat to
+bring-to and thus killed a man. This, taken in conjunction with the
+testimony of the Sheerness Coastguard, to which I alluded by
+anticipation and shall mention again, seems to me fairly conclusive
+that in _practice_ at least there was no fixed rule as to whether the
+first gun were shotted or unshotted. At the same time the above quoted
+instruction from the Admiralty, although loosely worded, would seem to
+have meant that the first gun was merely to be of the nature of a
+warning signal and no shot fired in this first instance.
+
+And then, again, among these instructions cropped up the reminder that
+in times past commanders of cruisers had not been wont to keep the
+sea in bad weather--a period when the conditions were most favourable
+for smugglers--but now the Admiralty remarked that if the commander
+should be deficient in "this most essential part of your duty" he
+would be superseded. On the west coasts of England and Scotland
+especially some of the commanders had been accustomed in former years
+to pass the night in some harbour, bar, or creek instead of cruising
+on their station and counteracting the designs of the smugglers, "who
+will always prefer the night time for carrying on his operations."
+Consequently the Admiralty now strictly charged the commanders to
+cruise during the night, and no matter of private concern must serve
+as a pretext for any intermission.
+
+They were also to maintain a regular communication with the commander
+of any other vessel with which they had been instructed to cruise in
+concert. And cruisers were to be furnished with the laws relative to
+smuggling and not to exceed the powers vested in the commanders by
+law. As to any un-Customed or prohibited goods these were to be
+secured in the King's Warehouse at the next port, and care was to be
+taken that these goods remained undamaged or pilfered by the crew. And
+after the goods had been thus put ashore both the commander and mate
+were carefully to search the smuggling vessel, the boxes, and bedding
+of her crew to see if anything had been kept back.
+
+Whenever a vessel was seized at sea precautions must be taken to
+ascertain the distance from the shore "by causing two points of land
+to be set, and the bearings thereof to be noted by two or more of your
+officers and mariners who are acquainted with those points of land, so
+that each of them may be in condition to swear to the bearings from
+the note taken by him at the time, to be produced by him upon the
+trial of the vessels."
+
+Any papers found on board the smuggling craft were immediately to be
+initialled by the persons present, and no cruiser or any of her boats
+should be employed in carrying passengers or pleasure parties. The
+commander and mate were to keep separate journals of all the
+proceedings of the cruiser relating to wind and weather, bearings, and
+distances from the land, soundings, &c., every twenty-four hours so
+that the admiral could tell whether the cruisers had used every
+exertion to suppress smuggling, or had been negligent and slack in
+their duties. For this purpose the twenty-four hours were divided into
+three parts thus:--Midnight to 8 A.M., 8 A.M. to 4 P.M., and 4 P.M. to
+midnight. In each of these three divisions the commander was to fix
+his position by cross-bearings and soundings if in less than 30
+fathoms. This was to be done a little before sunrise, at noon, and a
+little before sunset, provided that if the land were not seen or the
+cruiser be chasing a vessel, this fact was to be noted in the journal,
+and the bearings and soundings were to be taken whenever the land
+should be seen. An exact copy of this journal was to be sent after the
+end of each month to the admiral under whose command the cruiser
+happened to be placed.
+
+The table on p. 228 is an example of the journal of one of these
+craft, and will show instantly the kind of record which was kept.
+
+On the 1st of January, 1817, the Preventive boats were put under the
+control of Captain Hanchett, R.N., who was known as the
+Controller-General of the Preventive Boat Service. There was an effort
+made also in this department to obtain increased efficiency. And the
+following articles were ordered to be supplied to each Preventive
+boat:--one small flat cask to hold two gallons of fresh water, one
+small water-tight harness cask to hold provisions, one chest of arms
+and ammunition, one Custom House Jack, two "spying-glasses" (one for
+the watch-house, the other for the boat), one small bucket for baling,
+one "wall piece," forty rounds of cartridges, thirty muskets or
+carbines, preference being given to carbines with musket-ball bore
+where new ones are to be purchased, twenty light pistols, balls in
+proportion to the above, bayonets, cutlasses, pouches, tucks, small
+hand hatchets for cutting away rigging, musket flints, pistol flints,
+a set of implements for cleaning arms, a set of rummaging tools, and
+a dark "lanthorn." With this full inventory these open, oared boats
+could go about their work for long spells in bays, up creeks and
+estuaries, on the prowl for the smugglers by night.
+
+JOURNAL OF HIS MAJESTY'S REVENUE CRUISER THE "VIGILANT," JOHN
+SMITH, COMMANDER, FOR THE MONTH OF JULY 18--
+
+-------+------+--------+------+--------------------+---------+--------------
+       |      |        |      |  Observation made. |         |
+Day of |      |        |      +----------+---------+         |
+  the  |      |        |      |          |Bearings |         |
+ Week  |      |        |At Sea|          |  and    |Soundings|Occurrences
+  and  |      |        | or in|  Land    |Distances|   in    |    and
+ Month | Wind.|Weather.| Port.|  Seen.   |in Miles | Fathoms |  Remarks.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+July   |E.S.E.|Moderate|At sea|Red Head  |W.N.W.   |Above 30 |Cruising in
+Monday |      |        |      |          |9 miles  |         |station spoke
+1st.,  |      |        |      |          |         |         |a vessel from
+Morning|      |        |      |          |         |         |the Baltic
+  or   |      |        |      |          |         |         |laden with
+first  |      |        |      |          |         |         |hemp, &c., but
+part   |      |        |      |Light,    |S.W. by  |         |sea running
+       |      |        |      |Bell Rock |S. 12    |         |high, did not
+       |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |board her. Saw
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |H.M. sloop
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |_Cherokee_ to
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |the N.E. at
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |9 A.M.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+Noon or|      |        |      |Fifeness  |W.N.W. 5 |    23   |Nothing
+second |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |remarkable
+ part  |      |        |      |Isle of   |S.W. by  |         |occurred.
+       |      |        |      |May       |W. 6     |         |
+       |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+Evening|      |        |      |Fifeness  |S. by E. |    12   |Lost sight of
+or     |      |        |      |          |8-1/2    |         |the _Cherokee_
+third  |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |standing off
+part   |      |        |      |          |         |         |and on in St.
+       |      |        |      |Light,    |E. by S. |         |Andrews Bay.
+       |      |        |      |Bell Rock |9 miles  |         |Sent out the
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |boat with Mr.
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |Jones, second
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |mate, to visit
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |the creeks.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+
+Whenever any vessels were seized and condemned a full, descriptive
+account was sent to London regarding their size, breadth, depth,
+burthen, age, where built, draught, scantlings, the nature of the
+wood, how fastened, whether the craft appeared strained, how many guns
+she carried, what was the probable expense of having her refitted, how
+long she would last when this had been done, whether she had the
+reputation for rowing or sailing quickly, and what was her value. If
+it was recognised that she was a serviceable vessel she was not to be
+destroyed but employed in the Preventive service.
+
+Among the names of the Revenue cutters about this time were the
+_Scorpion_, _Enchantress_, _Jacobus_, and _Rattlesnake_. There was a
+good deal of smuggling now going on in Essex, and the last-mentioned
+was employed to watch the river Blackwater in that district.
+Lieutenant Neame, R.N., was also ordered to proceed to the Blackwater
+with the lugger _Fortune_, and arrived there to take charge of the
+_Rattlesnake_. This was in September 1818; and here let us remark that
+although the Preventive Water-guard originally had charge of the
+whole coast of England, yet a few months before the above date--it
+occurred actually in July 1817--the staff between the North and South
+Forelands was withdrawn, and this part of the coast was placed under
+the charge of the Coast Blockade. Under the arrangement of 1816, when
+the cruisers had been put under the care of the Admiralty, the
+Preventive Waterguard had come under the authority of the Treasury,
+but now, in 1817, came the change mentioned. Towards the close of 1818
+this Coast Blockade, instead of being confined merely to that coast
+between the two Forelands, was extended till it reached on the one
+side Shellness by the mouth of the East Swale, and on the other right
+away down Channel to Cuckmere Haven (between Newhaven and Beachy
+Head).
+
+The history of this change may be summed up as follows. It was
+suggested in the year 1816 by Captain M'Culloch of H.M.S. _Ganymede_
+(which was one of the vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling
+between Dungeness and North Foreland) that it would be advantageous to
+land the crews of the vessels employed on the cruisers and Naval ships
+engaged in preventing smuggling. The men were to be put ashore every
+day just after sunset and so form a guard along the coast during the
+night. In the morning, just before sunrise, the men were to be put on
+board their ships once more. So the experiment was tried and was
+found to be so successful that this method of guarding the coast was
+adopted by a Treasury Minute of June 19, 1817. The district between
+the Forelands was assigned to Captain M'Culloch, who had with him the
+officers and crew of H.M.S. _Severn_. Those boats and men which had
+belonged to the Preventive service stationed between the Forelands
+were withdrawn, and the entire protection of this district was left to
+Captain M'Culloch's force. This was known as the Coast Blockade, and
+was afterwards extended as just mentioned to Sheppey and Seaford.
+
+If we may anticipate for a moment in order to preserve continuity, let
+us add that in the year 1821 this span of coast was divided into
+three, each division being subdivided into four districts. The
+divisions were under the superintendence of a senior lieutenant, a
+midshipman, one petty officer of the first class and one of the
+second. The districts, on the other hand, were under the
+superintendence of a junior lieutenant. The men were divided into
+parties of ten, each party having about a mile of coastline, and
+guard-houses were established along the coast at a distance of about
+every four miles. The seamen volunteered into the service, and, if
+found effective, of good character, but had no relatives in the
+neighbourhood, they were accepted. The object of this last condition
+was to prevent their showing any sympathy with the smugglers of the
+district. These men undertook to serve for three years, and for
+payment of wages they were borne on the books of any of his Majesty's
+ships.
+
+We can thus see how gradually the influence of the Admiralty had been
+exerted over the Preventive work which had been carried on by the
+Customs. There are then three steps. First in assisting the Revenue
+cruisers, and, lastly, by taking charge of the Land-guard. The proof
+of the wisdom of this change was seen in results, for the Revenue
+derived better protection because of the Admiralty influence. There
+was better discipline, greater activity, and a smarter look-out was
+kept. Thus it came about that in that very south-eastern district
+which had been for so long a time notorious for its nefarious trade,
+the smugglers found their calling a very difficult one. And both these
+changes in respect of cruisers and Land-guard had been made certainly
+not with the enthusiastic support of the Board of Customs, who had
+indeed expressed their doubts as to whether such a transformation were
+prudent.
+
+Some idea of the number of his Majesty's ships and vessels which were
+employed in the prevention of smuggling in the year 1819 may be
+gathered from the following list. It should, however, be mentioned
+that these did not include the numbers of Custom House cruisers which
+the Admiralty had begun to control, but were actually the Naval ships
+which aided those of the Revenue:--
+
+    Plymouth supplied 10 ships and 4 tenders
+    Portsmouth  "      8   "       3    "
+    Sheerness   "      8   "       2    "
+    Leith       "      7   "       1 tender
+    Ireland     "     12   "       1    "
+
+at a total cost of £245,519. But it should also be borne in mind that
+these ships of the Navy, or at any rate by far the greater number of
+them, would have been in commission whether employed or not in the
+prevention of smuggling, and in certain cases these ships were
+employed in the Preventive service for only a part of the year.
+Without the Revenue cutters the Navy could not possibly have dealt
+with the smugglers, and this was actually admitted in a Treasury
+Minute of January 15, 1822. The total number of Revenue cruisers
+employed in Great Britain and Ireland during the year 1819, as
+distinct from the ships of the Royal Navy, amounted to 69. The
+following year this number had increased to 70. These were apportioned
+thus:--
+
+    20 under the Commander-in-Chief at Sheerness
+    11  "             "          "   "  Portsmouth
+    14  "             "          "   "  Plymouth
+    12  "             "          "   "  Leith
+    11 were employed in Ireland
+     2 were employed by the Commissioners of Customs
+    --
+    70
+    ==
+
+To sum up then with regard to the Preventive Water-guard, let us state
+that this had been constituted in 1809 to supplement the efforts of
+the cruisers and Riding officers, the coast of England and Wales being
+divided into three parts, and placed under the control of Inspecting
+Commanders. Under this arrangement were included the Revenue cruisers
+themselves. Then in 1816 the Admiralty had taken over these cruisers
+from the Preventive Water-guard, and the following year the Coast
+Blockade had taken over that portion of the coast between the
+Forelands, to be extended in 1818 to Shellness and Seaford
+respectively.
+
+The sphere of activity on the part of the Preventive Water-guard was
+thus by the year 1819 considerably curtailed, and from the
+instructions which were now issued to the Inspecting Commanders we can
+see how the rest of the coastline other than that section just
+considered was dealt with. Each station consisted of one chief
+officer, one chief boatman, two commissioned boatmen, and four
+established boatmen. There was a six-oared boat with her rudder and
+wash-boards--"wash-streaks" they are officially called--a five-fathom
+rope as a light painter, eight good ash oars, two boat-hooks. She was
+a sailing craft, for she was provided with a fore-mast, main-mast, and
+mizzen-mast, with "haul-yards," travellers, down-hauls, sheets, &c.
+Her canvas consisted of foresail, mainsail, and mizzen with a yard for
+each. She carried also a jib, the casks for water and provisions, a
+boat's "bittacle" (= binnacle), with compass and lamp. She was further
+furnished with a couple of creeping irons for getting up the
+smugglers' kegs, a grapnel, a chest of arms and ammunition, the Custom
+House Jack and spy-glass as already mentioned.
+
+This vessel was rigged as a three-masted lugger with a jib. There is
+no mention of a bowsprit, so either one of the oars or a boat-hook
+would have to be employed for that purpose. In addition to this larger
+boat there was also on the station a light four-oared gig fitted with
+mast, yard (or "spreet"), a 7 lb. hand lead, 20 fathoms of line for
+the latter, as well as ballast bags to fill with stones or sand. If
+the established crews were inadequate during emergency extra men could
+be hired. The boats were painted twice a year, but "always to be
+completed before the bad weather sets in, and the colours to be
+assimilated as near as possible to those used by the natives and
+smugglers which frequent the coast which are least conspicuous."
+
+If any of the established boatmen intermarried with families of
+notorious smugglers the Inspecting Commander was to send information
+to the Controller-General. Furthermore, no one was to be appointed to
+any station within twenty miles of his place of birth or within twenty
+miles of the place where he had resided for six months previous to
+this appointment.
+
+The name, colour, rig, and other description of any vessel about to
+depart on a smuggling trip or expected to arrive with contraband goods
+on the coast were to be given by the Inspecting Commander both to the
+admirals commanding the men-of-war off the coast in that
+neighbourhood, to the captains and commanders of any men-of-war or
+Revenue cruisers, and also to the Inspecting Commander of the
+Preventive Water-guard on either side of him. And in order to keep the
+men up to their duties the Preventive stations were to be inspected
+often, and at certain times by day and night. The Inspecting
+Commanders were to perform their journeys on horseback and to proceed
+as much as possible by the sea-coast, so as to become well acquainted
+with the places where the smugglers resort.
+
+The officers and boatmen were ordered to reside as near their duty as
+possible and not to lodge in the houses of notorious smugglers.
+Officers and men were also to be private owners of no boats nor of
+shares in public-houses or fishing-craft. The Inspecting Commanders
+were to report the nature of the coast, the time, the manner, and the
+method in respect of the smuggling generally carried on in the
+district. If there were any shoals or rocks, not generally laid down
+or known, discovered when sounding to possess a different depth of
+water, or if anything should occur which might be useful for
+navigating the coasts of the kingdom, then cross bearings were to be
+taken and noted. These men were also to render every assistance in
+case of wrecks and to prevent goods being smuggled therefrom into the
+country. If any of these Preventive boatmen were wounded in fighting
+with a smuggler they were to be paid full wages for twenty-eight days
+or longer, and a reasonable surgeon's bill would be also paid.
+
+And to prevent any possible excuse for discontinuing a chase, the boat
+was never to leave the beach without the two-gallon keg of fresh
+water. And to prevent any obvious possibility, this boat was never to
+be left by day or night without one of the boat's crew to guard it.
+The latter was always to have ready some sort of floating buoy,
+"loaded at one end and a piece of bunting at the other," for marking
+the place where goods might be thrown overboard in a chase. The
+Inspecting Commanders were also to be on their guard against false
+information, which was often given to divert their attention from the
+real place where the smuggling was occurring.
+
+"As night is the time when smugglers generally run their cargoes, it
+is expected that the boat, or her crew, or the greater part of them
+will be out, either afloat or on land, as often as circumstances will
+permit, which must be, at least, five nights a week." They were
+ordered generally to co-operate with the Revenue cruisers and to keep
+a journal of all proceedings. When out at night time they were to
+have a candle and "lanthorn" in the boat as well as the boat's
+"bittacle," and not to rummage a vessel without the candle being
+carefully secured in the lanthorn to prevent accident by fire. All
+suspicious ships were to be rummaged, and whenever the weather would
+not permit of the boat keeping the sea, the crew and Inspecting
+Commander were to keep a look-out by land. Even as late as 1819, when
+the great wars had come to an end, it was found that the transfer of
+smugglers to the Navy had continued to be the most effectual means of
+protecting the Revenue. The sum of £20 was granted for each smuggler
+taken, and this was paid to the individual or individuals by whom or
+through whose means the smuggler was absolutely secured, and it was
+not to be paid to the crew in general. But when chasing a smuggling
+craft, whether by night or day, they were not to fire at the
+delinquents until the Custom House Jack had been displayed. The salary
+of each Inspecting Commander, it may be added, was now £200 per annum
+and £60 for the first cost and upkeep of an able horse.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY
+
+
+Just as there had been a great improvement in the reorganisation
+brought about by the advent of the Coast Blockade, so the Preventive
+service on shore generally was smartened up. That this was so is clear
+from the existing correspondence. For instance, five more Preventive
+boats were to be stationed between Shellness and Southwold, and three
+between Cuckmere Haven and Hayling Island; another boat was sent to
+Newton (Yorkshire), another to Dawlish (Devonshire), and another to
+Happisburgh (Norfolk) or, as it was then spelt, Hephisburg.
+
+Some idea of the activity of the cruisers may be seen from the number
+of smugglers which these craft had been able to capture. The reader
+will recollect that during the year ending October 1, 1810, the
+highest number of smugglers handed over to the Navy was thirteen, and
+this was done by Captain Gunthorpe of the Excise cutter _Viper_. He
+thus became entitled to the sum of £500. It will be remembered also
+that it was afterwards decided that, beginning in 1812, £500 would be
+paid only if the number captured was not less than twenty. But now
+from a Treasury Minute of October 20, 1818, we find that, although the
+former number of captures was over thirteen, it was just under twenty.
+And, here again, Captain Matthew Gunthorpe, this time commanding the
+Excise cutter _Vigilant_, and Captain Robert Hepburn of the Excise
+cutter _Regent_, in the year 1816 seized nineteen smugglers each, or a
+total of thirty-eight. As neither captain had reached the twenty and
+both were equal, it was decided to add the second and third rewards
+together (_i.e._ £300 plus £200) and to give £250 to Captain
+Gunthorpe, officers and crew, and £250 to Captain Hepburn, officers
+and crew. And there is on record at this time a memorial from one W.
+Blake, the son of W. Blake, senior. The last-mentioned had been
+commander of the cutter _Nimble_, but was drowned in 1816. His son now
+prayed for the reward of £300 to be paid to the family of the
+deceased, as he had captured sixteen smugglers.
+
+After the Admiralty had taken over the Revenue cruisers they did not
+neglect to sanction a pension system, and the following scheme was
+embraced:--Commanders of cruisers on retiring were to have from £91,
+5s. to £155, 2s. 6d. per annum, according to their length of service;
+and for any wound received they were to have an additional £91, 5s.
+per annum. First mates were pensioned after five years' service at the
+rate of £35 a year, but after thirty years' service they were to have
+£85 a year as pension. And so it was arranged for all ratings down to
+the boys. The widow of a commander killed or drowned in the service
+was allowed £65 a year.
+
+And now that we are in that period after the year 1815 we must not
+fail to bear in mind that this is the epoch when the smugglers were
+using ingenuity in preference to force. The busiest part had yet to
+come and did not occur till the third decade of the nineteenth
+century. But even from the time of the Battle of Waterloo until, say,
+about 1825 there were ten years in which the smugglers left no device
+untried which they could conceive to enable them to outdo the Revenue
+authorities. And we may now proceed to give actual instances of these
+ingenious attempts.
+
+We begin with the early part of 1816. At this time the Tide-Surveyor
+at one of the out-ports had reason to suspect that the French
+market-boats which used to sail across to England were in the habit of
+bringing also a good deal of silks and other prohibited goods. At last
+he went on board one of these craft and immediately after she had
+arrived he caused the whole of her cargo to be put ashore. He then
+searched her thoroughly from deck to keelson, but he found nothing at
+all. However, he was determined not to give up his quest, and had part
+of her ceiling examined minutely, and was then surprised to note that
+some fresh nails had apparently been driven. He therefore caused the
+ceiling to be ripped off, when he discovered that a large variety of
+contraband goods had been neatly stowed between the ship's timbers.
+
+It was only a few months later in that same year that another Revenue
+officer boarded a Dutch schuyt which was bound from Amsterdam to
+London. Her cargo consisted of 500 bundles of bulrushes, but on making
+his examination these innocent articles were found to conceal between
+the rushes forty-five boxes of glass in illegal packages, and also
+some other prohibited goods which had been shipped from the United
+Kingdom for exportation and were intended to have been again
+clandestinely relanded.
+
+The reader will remember our mentioning the name of Captain M'Culloch
+just now in connection with the Coast Blockade. Writing on the 2nd of
+April, 1817, from on board H.M.S. _Ganymede_ lying in the Downs, this
+gallant officer stated that, although it was known that the smugglers
+had constructed places ashore for the concealment of contraband goods
+under the Sand Hills near to No. 1 and No. 2 batteries at Deal, yet
+these hiding-places were so ingeniously formed that they had baffled
+the most rigid search. However, his plan of landing crews from his
+Majesty's ships to guard this district (in the manner previously
+described) had already begun to show good results. For two midshipmen,
+named respectively Peate and Newton, commanding the shore parties in
+that neighbourhood, had succeeded in locating five of those places of
+concealment.
+
+"This discovery," continued the despatch, "I am assured will be a most
+severe blow to the smugglers, as they were enabled to remove their
+cargoes into them in a few minutes, and hitherto no person besides
+themselves could form any idea of the manner in which their
+store-holes were built. They are generally 4 feet deep, of a square
+form and built of a 2-inch plank, with the scuttle in the top, into
+which a trough filled with shingle is fitted instead of a cover to
+prevent their being found out by pricking; and I understand they were
+built above two years ago. I have ordered them to be destroyed, and
+parties are employed in searching for such concealments along the
+other parts of the beach." Thus, thanks to the Navy, the smugglers had
+been given a serious repulse in the most notorious district.
+
+Then there was also the danger of collusive smuggling. For instance,
+when a smuggler had been frustrated from successfully landing a cargo
+of spirits from a small foreign vessel or boat he might go and give
+information to a Custom officer so that he might have the goods seized
+by the latter, the arrangement being that the smuggler should be paid
+a fair portion of the reward which the officer should receive for the
+seizure. Inasmuch as the officers' rewards were by no means
+inconsiderable this method might fully indemnify the smuggler against
+any loss.
+
+Just before Christmas of 1819 the Custom officers at Weymouth seized
+on board a vessel named _The Three Brothers_ sixteen half-ankers and
+seven small kegs or flaggons of foreign spirits. These were found to
+be concealed under a platform of about nine feet in length fitted on
+either side of the keelson, and of sufficient height for one cask. Its
+breadth was such as to allow of two casks and a flaggon. When full
+this secret hiding-place would contain about thirty casks in all. The
+whole concealment was covered with stone and iron ballast. The
+platform was fitted with false bulkheads and filled up with large
+stones so as to avoid suspicion, the entrance to which was made (after
+removal of the ballast) from the bottom of the forecastle through two
+bulkheads about two feet apart.
+
+Another instance was that of a consignment of four cases which had
+come over from France. These cases contained plaster figures and
+appeared to be hollow. However, the Custom officers had their
+suspicions and decided to perforate the plaster at the bottom with an
+auger. After making still larger holes there were extracted from
+inside the following amazing list of articles:--Two clock movements,
+six pieces of bronze, thirty-two pieces of porcelain, and two small
+paintings.
+
+A certain other French craft was boarded by the Revenue officers who,
+on measuring her range of deck and also under it including the
+bulkheads, found a greater difference than the rake would fairly
+account for. They were naturally highly suspicious and proceeded to
+take down part of the bulkhead aft, when they discovered that this
+bulkhead was not single but double, being between the cabin and the
+hold. This bulkhead was made of solid oak planking and was 2 feet 10
+inches thick. It was securely nailed, and the cavity thus made
+extended from one side of the hull to the other, giving a breadth of 7
+feet 2 inches, its length being about 2 feet 2 inches, and the height
+3 feet 6 inches. It will thus be readily imagined that a good quantity
+of spirits, wine, and plums from France could easily therein be
+contained and brought ashore when opportunity presented itself.
+
+At another port a vessel was actually discovered to have false bows.
+One might wonder how it was that the officer ever found this out, but
+he was smart enough to measure the deck on the port side, after which
+he measured the ship below. He found a difference of over a foot, and
+so he undertook a thorough search of the ship. He first proceeded to
+investigate the forepeak, but he was unable to discover any entrance.
+He therefore went to the hold, examined the bulkhead, and observed
+that the nails of the cleats on the starboard side had been drawn. He
+proceeded to force off the cleats, whereupon one of the boards of the
+bulkhead fell down, and a quantity of East India silk handkerchiefs
+came tumbling out. Needless to say, this proved a serious matter for
+the vessel's skipper.
+
+Sometimes too, cases used to come over from France containing carton
+boxes of artificial flowers. These boxes, it was found, were fitted
+with false bottoms affording a space of not more than a quarter of an
+inch between the real bottom and the false. But into this space was
+squeezed either a silk gauze dress or some parcels "very nicely
+stitched in," containing dressed ostrich feathers. The flowers were
+usually stitched down to the bottom of the boxes to prevent damage, so
+it was difficult to detect that there was any false bottom at all.
+However, after this practice had been in vogue for some time it was
+discovered by the Revenue officers and the matter made generally known
+among the officials at all the ports, so that they could be on the
+alert for such ingenuity.
+
+Sometimes when a Revenue officer was on her station she would come
+across a sailing craft, which would be found to have quite a
+considerable number of spirits in small casks together with a number
+of other prohibited goods. If the master of such a craft were told by
+the cruiser's officer that they would have to be seized as they were
+evidently about to be smuggled, the master would reply that they were
+nothing of the kind, but that whilst they were on the fishing grounds
+working their nets they happened to bring these casks up from the
+sinkers and warp which had kept them below water; or they had found
+these casks floating on the sea, and had no doubt been either lost or
+intentionally thrown overboard by some smuggling vessel while being
+chased by a Revenue cruiser. It became a very difficult matter to
+ascertain under such circumstances whether the master were speaking
+the truth or the reverse, for it was not altogether rare for the kegs
+to be picked up by fishermen in the manner indicated. So the only way
+out of this dilemma was for the commanders of the cruisers to bring
+such craft as the above to the nearest Custom House, where the master
+could be brought ashore and subjected to a cross-examination as to
+where they found these casks and what they proposed doing with them.
+
+A seizure was made at Deal about the year 1818 consisting of
+thirty-three packages of China crape and silk. These had been very
+artfully concealed in the ballast bags of a lugger called the _Fame_,
+belonging to London. One package was found in each bag completely
+covered up with shingles or small stones, so that even if a suspicious
+officer were to feel the outside of these bags he would be inclined to
+believe that they contained nothing but ballast, and if he opened them
+he would think there was nothing else but stones, for the goods were
+carefully squeezed into the centre of the bags and surrounded with a
+good thickness of shingle. Another dodge which was discovered at
+Shoreham on a vessel which had come from Dieppe was to have the iron
+ballast cast in such a form that it was not solid but hollow inside.
+By this means a good deal of dutiable stuff could be put inside the
+iron and then sealed up again. There was a ship, also, named the
+_Isis_, of Rye, which fell into disgrace in endeavouring to cheat the
+Customs. She was a smack of 26-16/94 tons burthen, her master being
+William Boxhall. It was while she was lying at her home port that one
+of the Revenue officers discovered a concealment under her ballast,
+the entrance to which was obtained by unshipping two bulkhead boards
+forward. There was one concealment on each side of the keel, and each
+contained enough space to hold from twenty to twenty-four ankers of
+spirits.
+
+Along the Kentish coast a good deal of smuggling used to go on by
+means of galleys which were rowed by six, ten, and even twelve oars.
+As these were navigated by foreigners and sailed under foreign papers,
+the Customs officers were a little puzzled as to what exactly could be
+done. Could such craft be seized even when found with no cargoes on
+board, when they were either hauled up the beach or were discovered
+hovering off the coast? After applying to the Board of Customs for
+guidance they were referred to the Act,[19] which provided that any
+boat, wherry, pinnace, barge, or galley that was built so as to row
+with more than four oars, if found within the counties of Middlesex,
+Surrey, Kent, or Essex, or on the river Thames, or within the limits
+of the Port of London, Sandwich, or Ipswich, or the creeks thereto
+belonging, should be forfeited together with her tackle. The object of
+this was clearly to prevent the shortest cross-Channel route being
+traversed from Holland or France by big, seaworthy but open,
+multiple-oared craft, with enough men to row them and enough space to
+carry cargo that would make the smuggling journey worth while.
+
+The following fraud was detected at one of the out-ports in 1819. An
+entry had been made of twenty-seven barrels of pitch which had been
+imported in a ship from Dantzic. But the Revenue officers discovered
+that these casks were peculiarly constructed. Externally each cask
+resembled an ordinary tar-barrel. But inside there was enclosed
+another cask properly made to fit. Between the cask and the outside
+barrel pitch had been run in at the bung so that the enclosure
+appeared at first to be one solid body of pitch. But after the affair
+was properly looked into it was found that the inner cask was filled
+with such dutiable articles as plate glass and East India china.
+
+Sometimes tubs of spirits were packed up in sacks and packs of wool
+and thus conveyed from the coast into the interior of the country; and
+in the seizing of some goods at Guernsey it was found that tea had
+been packed into cases to resemble packages of wine which had come out
+of a French vessel belonging to St. Malo. Nor was the owner of a
+certain boat found at Folkestone any novice at this high-class art. Of
+course those were the days when keels of iron and lead were not so
+popular as they are to-day, but inside ballast was almost universal,
+being a relic of the mediæval days when so much valuable inside space
+was wasted in ships. In this Folkestone boat half-a-dozen large stones
+were used as ballast, which was a very natural thing for such a craft.
+But when these stones came to be examined they were found to have been
+hollowed out and to have been fitted with tin cases which were filled
+with spirits. One cannot acquit the owner of any fraudulent intent,
+but one certainly can admire both his ingenuity and the great patience
+which must have been necessary to have hollowed a cavity from such an
+unyielding material as stone. This was equalled only by the cargo from
+Guernsey. Four sacks said to contain potatoes from the Channel Isles
+were opened by the Revenue officers at a certain port, and, on being
+examined, it was found that these were not potatoes at all. They were
+so many rolls of tobacco which had been fashioned to resemble the size
+and form of the vegetable, and then covered artfully over with a thin
+skin and finally clayed over so cleverly that they had every
+appearance of the potatoes they pretended to be.
+
+But the Channel Isles were still notorious. In twelve sacks of flour
+imported from Jersey were found hidden in the middle twelve bales of
+tobacco weighing 28 lbs. each. A few weeks later three boxes of prunes
+also from Jersey were opened, when it was discovered that the prunes
+were not more than three inches deep at the top and three inches deep
+at the bottom. But between there was a space in which were
+concealed--in each box--a paper parcel of silk, some scarves and
+gloves, &c. But in order to make the total weight of the box
+approximate to that which would have existed had it been full of
+prunes a square piece of lead was placed above and another underneath
+these dutiable articles.
+
+But to me the most ingenious method of all was that which was employed
+in 1820 for smuggling tobacco. The offending ship was one of the
+vessels employed in the transport service, and the man who thought of
+the device was not far from being a genius. He first of all obtained
+the quantity of tobacco which he proposed--no doubt with the
+assistance of more than one confederate--to smuggle ashore. He then
+proceeded to divide this into two, each of which formed one strand.
+Afterwards he made these strands into a rope, every bit of it being
+tobacco. But then he took a three-strand hawser and laid this over the
+tobacco, so that when the hawser was finished no one could suspect the
+tobacco without first cutting or unlaying the rope. I have not been
+able to discover how this trick was ever suspected. Nothing less than
+an accident or the information of a spy could possibly lead to
+detection in such a clever case.
+
+There were all sorts of varieties of concealments now practised since
+the "scientific" period of smuggling had come in. And since those
+wicked old days have passed, and with them a good many of the
+old-fashioned types of craft, it may be well that examples of these
+misdirected efforts should be collected herewith. There was a smack,
+for instance, which was found to have under her ballast a large trunk
+that was divided into four separate compartments each about 15 feet
+long and could contain twelve half-ankers. One end of the trunk was
+fixed against the bulkhead of the cabin, and extended the whole length
+of the hold opening at the forward end close to the keelson by
+unshipping two pieces of the bulkhead.
+
+Another instance of the employment of false bows to a craft was found
+on searching the fishing smack _Flower_, of Rye, whose master's name
+was William Head. It was observed that this false section would hold
+as much as forty to fifty half-ankers, the entrance being on the port
+side of the false bow, where a square piece took out, being fastened
+by a couple of screws, the heads of which were concealed by wooden
+bungs imitating treenails. The _Flower_ was further discovered to have
+a false stern, the entrance to this being by means of the upper board
+of this stern on the port side in the cabin. She was a vessel 39 feet
+2-1/2 inches long, 12 feet 1-1/2 inches beam, 5 feet 9-1/2 inches
+deep, and of 23-1/2 tons burthen, being fitted with a standing
+bowsprit and sloop-rigged. An almost identical set of concealments was
+found in the smack _Albion_ at Sandwich, a vessel of over 42 tons
+burthen. The entrance to her false stern was through a small locker on
+the port and starboard sides. She was further fitted with a false
+stern-post and false timbers.
+
+A considerable amount of ingenuity must have been exercised in the
+case of an open four-oared boat which was seized at Dover together
+with twelve ankers of spirits. The device was as follows:--Across the
+bow end of the boat was the usual thwart on which an oarsman sat. At
+the after end where the stroke sat was another thwart. Under each of
+these thwarts was an ordinary stanchion for supporting the thwart. But
+each of these two stanchions had been made hollow. Thus, through each
+a rope could be inserted, and inasmuch as the keel had also been
+pierced it was possible to pass one rope through at the bow-thwart
+and another at the stern-thwart, these ropes penetrating the boat
+from thwart to keel. The inboard ends of these two ropes were
+carelessly lashed round the thwarts or covered with gear, so there was
+no untoward appearance. But at the other ends of the ropes were
+fastened the twelve ankers, which were thus towed along under the keel
+of the craft, and not trailing out astern as was sometimes done in the
+case of bigger boats. Thus because the whole body of the boat covered
+the floating casks it was very unlikely that their presence would be
+suspected.
+
+The smack _Strawberry_ of Deal, on being searched, was found to have a
+false bottom, capable of containing a considerable quantity of goods.
+This bottom was constructed by two leaden cases fixed on the timbers
+the whole length of the hold, one on each side of the keelson, and
+ceiled over with the usual ceiling, having the ballast placed over it.
+The cases opened on each side of the hold by taking out a plank from
+the temporary ceiling. In the case of the lugger _Fox_ (as usual
+belonging to Rye), a vessel over 16 tons, John Souden, master, there
+were found to be double bottoms underneath the bed cabins, the
+entrance being made from underneath the cabins, and then unshipping a
+small piece of board about a foot square, each concealment being able
+to hold from fifty to sixty pieces of bandana silks.
+
+Another smuggling device in vogue during this ingenious period had to
+be employed in such places as Ramsgate harbour, where it would have
+been utterly impossible to have employed ordinary methods. It
+resembled very much the method employed at Dover, mentioned just now.
+A rowing-boat would come into the harbour, apparently with nothing in
+her nor anything towing astern. But there were fifteen or so
+half-ankers underneath her hull, spirits of course being contained in
+these casks. Now the latter were all fastened to a long iron bar, the
+ropes to the boat being fastened to this bar. Consequently, after the
+boat had reached her corner of Ramsgate harbour, all she had to do was
+to let go the ropes and the iron bar would keep the kegs on the sandy
+bottom and prevent them from disclosing their identity by floating. At
+low water the smugglers could have gone to get them up again, for they
+would not move far even with the ebb tide. Unfortunately, however, the
+Revenue Tide Surveyor at this port preceded the smugglers, and by
+creeping for the bar and tubs with grapnels succeeded in locating what
+he wanted.
+
+On another occasion at one of the out-ports, or rather along the
+neighbouring beach, thirty-three gallons of spirits, contained in
+nineteen small casks, were recovered in a startling manner. Going
+along the beach were noticed among the chalk rocks and stones of the
+neighbourhood some other objects. These were the casks, but they had
+been so cleverly covered over with a cement of chalk, to which was
+fastened seaweed in the most natural manner, that seeing them there
+among the rocks of the shore they would never have been discovered by
+the Revenue men, had not it been (as one may guess) for a hint given
+by an informer. Otherwise there they would have remained until the
+smugglers found it convenient to come and fetch them.
+
+We called attention just now to the concealing of tobacco in rope.
+This device evidently became a fine art, and had succeeded on many an
+occasion. At any rate in Flushing tobacco was openly on sale in the
+shops ready for smuggling into England already made up into ropes. You
+could get anything as big as a hawser and as small as a sail-tyer done
+up so ingeniously as to deceive almost any one. In fact on washing
+these slightly with a little rum they had every appearance of hempen
+rope.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[19] 8 George I. cap. 18.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS
+
+
+Rowing about on the night of Lady Day, 1813, a six-oared boat, which
+had been launched from the Custom House cutter _Lion_, was on the
+prowl in that bay which extends all the way from Dungeness to
+Folkestone. When the watchers in this craft were off Hythe, and only
+about a quarter of a mile from the shore, they saw coming along over
+the dark waters a lugsail boat with foresail and mizzen making towards
+Dymnchurch, which is just to the west of Hythe. It was about an hour
+before midnight, and as this suspicious craft did not come near to the
+_Lion's_ boat the latter rowed towards her and hailed her.
+
+"What boat is that?" they asked.
+
+"A Folkestone boat," came back the answer.
+
+Thereupon John Wellar, a deputed mariner in the Customs boat, shouted
+to the lugger to heave-to, for he guessed what the game was.
+
+"Heave-to!" roared the lugger's master. "We'll see you d----d first!"
+
+But the rowing-boat was not to be put off with mere insults, and
+quickly pulled up alongside the craft. One of the men in the Customs
+boat then stood up and looked into the lugger and remarked that she
+was full of kegs. Wellar therefore immediately jumped into her,
+followed by three or four of his men, and seized her. On board he
+found three men, and them also he secured. He further discovered 144
+half-ankers of spirits, consisting of brandy and gin from across the
+Channel, which were subsequently taken to the Custom House at Dover. A
+little more than a year later, Robert Baker, the lugger's master, was
+brought before the judge and fined £100.
+
+There was an interesting incident which occurred a few years later in
+the eastern corner of England, which led to trouble for a man named
+Henry Palmer of Harwich. This man was master and owner of a yawl named
+the _Daisy_, which belonged to Ipswich. About midday on the 22nd of
+March 1817, one of the Preventive officers, named Dennis Grubb,
+observed the _Daisy_ sailing up the Orwell, which flows from Ipswich
+past Harwich and out into the North Sea. Grubb was in a six-oared
+galley, and about three-quarters of a mile below Levington Creek,
+which is on the starboard hand about a third of the way up the river
+between Harwich and Ipswich. With Grubb was another man, and on seeing
+the _Daisy_ they began rowing towards her. Whether Grubb had any
+reason for suspecting her more than any other craft, whether he had
+received warning from an informer, cannot be stated. But what is true
+is that he was determined to have her examined.
+
+However, notwithstanding that Palmer must have known perfectly well
+that this was a preventive boat, and that he was in duty bound to stop
+when hailed, it was obvious that, as soon as the galley came near, the
+_Daisy_ instantly went about on the other tack and stood away from the
+boat. The latter in turn pulled after the yawl and was again
+approaching when the _Daisy_ once more tacked and ran away. But at
+last the galley came up, and just as Grubb was in the act of stepping
+aboard, Palmer coolly remarked that he had some tubs aboard, following
+this up by the explanation that he had got them on the trawling
+ground. This was too obvious a lie to be believed for a moment.
+
+Grubb accordingly inquired how it was that Palmer had come past
+Harwich since the latter was his home, to which he answered that he
+was bound for Ipswich, as there his vessel was registered. But
+inasmuch as there were two of the Revenue cutters as well as a
+guardship lying at the entrance to the river, how was it that he had
+not stopped to hand the tubs over to them? For either the Customs
+cutter _Griper_, or the Excise cutter _Badger_, would have been the
+ordinary receptacle, instead of waiting till a Preventive galley
+overtook the _Daisy_. When Grubb asked how Palmer had come by all
+these tubs he said that he had caught them in his trawl, whereupon
+the preventive man examined the net and found it damp but certainly
+not wet, as it would have been had Palmer's version been the truth.
+Furthermore, if these tubs had been caught in the trawl there would
+have been a number of holes torn, but Grubb found there to be no
+holes. There were no fewer than forty-eight of these tubs found on the
+_Daisy_--all half-ankers, and fitted with slings ready for
+landing--and inasmuch as it was clear that the net had not been lately
+used Palmer was obviously lying. The iron which, had it been dragged
+along the sea-bed, would have been polished bright with the sand, was
+actually not bright but rusty, thus proving that it had not been
+recently used.
+
+Grubb therefore felt justified in arresting the yawl, and taking her
+and her tubs to the Custom House. Later on he made a thorough search
+of her, and found a creeping-iron which had five prongs and a long
+shank. The reader is well aware that such an implement was used by the
+smugglers but never found on board a genuine fishing-craft. For
+getting up sunken tubs it was essential, and for that purpose it was
+evidently on board the _Daisy_. Moreover, it was found to be both wet
+and polished bright as to its prongs, and there was still some wet mud
+sticking thereto.
+
+The case, of course, duly came on to be tried, and the
+Attorney-General suggested that at that time, in nine cases out of
+every ten, the tubs of smuggled spirits were not brought directly to
+port but sunk at different places in the sea, located by landmarks and
+buoys, fishing-boats being sent out later on to get them by these
+creepers, and to bring them in by small quantities as opportunity
+permitted. Palmer's defence was that they had found the tubs just
+outside Harwich harbour, opposite to Landguard Fort, at about seven
+o'clock the previous evening. But it was a somewhat strange fact that
+though this fishing-vessel should have been out all night not a single
+fish was found on board. And when Palmer was asked how it was that if
+he had found these tubs, and had intended to hand them over to the
+Customs authorities, he had been so careful to stow them all below and
+not leave them on deck to be visible to the _Griper_ and _Badger_ as
+he passed? His reply, that he had put the tubs below lest a puff of
+wind might blow them overboard, somehow did not convince the judge,
+and the verdict went against him.
+
+A curious instance of an abuse of office was seen in the occurrence
+which centred round a certain Mr. Thomas Moore Slade. Mr. Slade was
+Agent Victualler for the Chatham Victualling Office, and from his
+connection with that department he had the power of employing some of
+his Majesty's vessels belonging to the department. This gentleman got
+to know that a splendid collection of pictures was about to be
+dispersed in France. They were of great value both artistically and
+intrinsically, and had belonged to the late Duke of Orleans. Slade
+therefore, quite unjustifiably, determined to make use of one of the
+craft under his charge for the purpose of fetching these pictures into
+the country, and thus cheating the Government of its dues, which would
+have been very heavy in this transaction.
+
+The way he went about it was to direct a man named Thomas Cheney, who
+commanded the sloop _Grace_ (belonging to the King's Victualling
+Office), to get under way and proceed a certain distance from Chatham.
+After he had come out of the Medway and had reached the Nore he was to
+open a letter which Slade had given him, wherein he would find his
+instructions. The _Grace_ in due course hoisted sails and anchor and
+found herself out by the Nore. On opening the letter, Cheney was
+surprised to find he was directed to proceed to Calais. He informed
+the crew, who were very indignant, as they had all thought they were
+bound for Deptford. So that night they put back to Sheerness and let
+go anchor. The following day, with a reluctant company on board, they
+started off again and reached Ramsgate, where they lay all night. On
+the third day they crossed the Channel and got into Calais Roads,
+anchored, and remained there all night.
+
+It should be added that Slade had taken the precaution to put on
+board this sloop before she left England a Mr. Thomas Aldridge, an
+expert judge of pictures, his exact description for this voyage being
+as supercargo, a term which signifies an officer in a trading vessel
+whose duty it is to manage the sales and superintend all the
+commercial concerns of the voyage. Having arrived, then, off Calais,
+Cheney, Aldridge, and some of the crew proceeded ashore and, guided by
+the art expert, went to a certain Monsieur Dessein, who kept an hotel
+in that town. From him they obtained a large number of cases
+containing the Orleans collection, and brought them off to the
+_Grace_. Altogether there were no less than fifteen of these cases,
+and although the _Grace_ was a vessel of some thirty-two tons burthen,
+yet the weight of these paintings was sufficiently great to lower her
+water-line a good six inches.
+
+After this valuable cargo had been got aboard and stowed, a gale of
+wind sprang up and detained them for a few days, but at length they
+cleared from the French coast and steered for the Downs. From there
+they rounded the North Foreland, and after running up the Thames
+entered the Medway and let go at Gillingham until it was dark. But as
+soon as night had fallen they got going once more, and ran alongside
+the Victualling Wharf at Chatham. The pictures were brought up from
+the sloop and taken ashore by means of a crane, and then quietly
+carried into Mr. Slade's house. By this he had thus saved the cost
+both of carriage and of duty, the pictures being afterwards sold for a
+very large sum. However, this dishonest business at length leaked out,
+an action was brought against Slade, and a verdict was given for the
+King and for six pictures of the single value of twenty guineas.
+
+On the evening of a November day in the year 1819, the Revenue cutter
+_Badger_, under the command of Captain Mercer, was cruising in the
+English Channel between Dungeness and Boulogne. About seven o'clock it
+was reported to the commander that about a quarter of a mile away
+there was a lugger steering about N.W. by W. towards the English
+coast. The _Badger_ thereupon gave chase, but as she drew nearer and
+nearer the lugger altered her course many times. Carrying a smart
+press of canvas, the _Badger_, which was one of the fastest vessels
+employed in the Revenue, came up rapidly. As usual she fired her
+warning gun for the lugger to heave-to, but all the notice taken by
+the chased ship was to go about on the other tack and endeavour still
+to escape. But presently the cutter, running with the wind on her
+quarter and doing her eight knots to the lugger's four or five, came
+up to her foe so quickly as to run right past her. But before the
+_Badger_ luffed up she hailed the lugger (whose name was afterwards
+found to be the _Iris_ of Boulogne) and ordered her to heave-to.
+
+"I be hove-to," answered back one of the lugger's crew in unmistakable
+English.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Badger_ was hoisting up the galley in the
+rigging."]
+
+Meanwhile the _Badger_ was hoisting up the galley in the rigging
+preparatory to launching, and the crew stood by ready to get in. As
+soon as the _Badger_ had shot past, down went her helm and she came
+alongside the _Iris_ as the galley was dropped into the leaden waters.
+But just at that moment the _Badger's_ people overheard some men on
+the lugger exclaim, "Now's your time," whereupon the crew of the
+lugger also launched their boat, forsook the _Iris_, and began to row
+off as fast as they could. The _Badger_ called to them--among whom was
+a man named Albert Hugnet--ordering them under pain of being shot to
+come alongside the cutter. They replied that they were coming, but
+that they could not find their thole-pins, saying that they had only
+two oars on one side and one oar on the other. This was said in
+English, and was obviously a mere excuse to gain time. Meanwhile the
+cutter's galley and men had come alongside the lugger, in which they
+found 110 half-ankers, containing 382 gallons of brandy, and 157
+half-ankers of Geneva, 55 bags of tea, and 19 bags containing 355 lbs.
+of manufactured tobacco.
+
+As the men of the _Iris_ showed no signs of coming back, the
+prize-crew on the lugger hailed the _Badger_, giving information that
+the smugglers were escaping. "Lie close," came the command, so the
+cutter trimmed her sheets and went in pursuit, and fired some shots in
+the direction of the retreating boat. But it was no use, for the boat
+was quickly lost from sight among the waves and disappeared entirely.
+There was some sea on at the time, so no one among the Revenue men
+envied the _Iris's_ crew their task of rowing across to Boulogne, a
+distance of somewhere about twenty-seven miles, in that weather and
+athwart very strong tides, with the certainty of having a worse time
+as the Ridens and the neighbourhood of Boulogne was approached. In
+fact the chief mate of the cutter remarked, some time after, though he
+had seen these tub-boats go across the sea in all weathers, and were
+splendidly seaworthy, yet he considered it was not very wise of the
+_Iris's_ crew to risk it on such a night as that.
+
+Convinced, then, that the men were making for France, the lugger, with
+her prize crew on board, presently sailed up after the cutter, hoping
+to come across their captives. But neither cutter nor lugger could
+find the men, and concluded, no doubt, that the tub-boat had
+foundered. But, at a later date, Albert Hugnet was arrested, and in
+the following June was brought to trial and punished. It then came out
+that the whole boat-load had escaped with their lives. For Andres
+Finshaw was called as evidence for the defence. He had been one of the
+lugger's crew, and showed that after rowing away that night they had
+not fetched across to the French coast, but having the good luck to
+find a French fishing-craft only a quarter of a mile away, they were
+taken aboard her and thus returned to France.
+
+It was also brought out very clearly by the other side that when first
+seen the _Iris_ was within nine miles of the English coast, and
+afterwards the _Badger_ steered N.W. by W. towards the south of
+Dungeness, and after five and a half miles saw the Dungeness light and
+the South Foreland light, took cross-bearings of these, and having
+marked them off on the chart, fixed their position as about three
+miles from the coast. Thus when the lugger was first encountered the
+latter was about nine miles from the land.
+
+The date of that incident, then, was the 12th of November, and Hugnet
+was not then captured. We may now pass over the next four weeks till
+we come to the 10th of December in that same year. At eight o'clock in
+the morning the Revenue cutter _Eagle_ was cruising off the coast of
+Kent when she observed a lugger bearing about N.W. by N. from them.
+The lugger was under all sail and heading S.E. for Boulogne, having
+come out from East Dungeness Bay. The weather was thick, it was
+snowing, and no land was in sight, Dungeness being the nearest portion
+of the English coast.
+
+It did not take long for the _Eagle's_ commander to guess what was
+happening, especially when that bay was so notorious, and the cutter
+began to give chase, the wind being roughly N.W. But as the _Eagle_
+pursued, the lugger, as was the approved custom, hauled up and came on
+a wind, hoping to get away and outpace the cutter. But in this the
+smugglers were not successful, and eventually the _Eagle_ overhauled
+her. The cutter's galley was now launched, and after having been for
+three-quarters of an hour rowed quickly by the aid of her eight men,
+the lugger was reached and hailed. The usual warning signal was fired
+from a musket in the boat and colours shown. The lugger, however,
+declined to heave-to as requested.
+
+"If you don't heave-to," roared the chief mate of the _Eagle_, as he
+looked towards the helmsman, "we'll fire right into you." On this the
+lugger lowered her sails, the galley bumped alongside, and the chief
+mate and crew, pistols in hand, leapt aboard. "Where are you from?"
+asked the chief mate. The answer came in French, which the latter did
+not understand, but he thought they said they were bound from Bordeaux
+to Calais. If so, it was an obvious and foolish lie. Mr. Gray--for
+that was the mate's name--then inquired how many men were aboard, and
+the answer returned that there were seven. Gray then called the
+lugger's men aft, and separated the English from the foreign, and
+found there were five French and two English. The two latter, said the
+Frenchman (who was none other than Albert Hugnet, whom we spoke of
+just now), were just passengers. A few minutes later, the skipper
+contradicted himself and said there were not seven but nine, all told.
+Gray then proceeded to look for the other two, and jumped down forward
+into the forepeak. As the place was dark he put his cutlass in first
+and rummaged about. In a moment the cutlass brought up against
+something soft. Gray had struck a man, hiding there, on the legs and
+thighs.
+
+He was called upon by the cutter's mate to come out, and instantly
+obeyed, fearing no doubt that the cutlass would assail him again if he
+didn't. As he emerged he was followed by another man, and another, and
+yet another; in fact from that dark hole there came out a procession
+of seven, all of whom were found to be Englishmen. It was noticeable
+that most, if not all, were dressed in short jackets and petticoat
+trousers. They were clearly sailors, and not landsmen--passengers or
+anything else. In plain language they were out-and-out smugglers. What
+was especially to be noted was the fact that their trousers were quite
+wet right up to their middles. In some cases their jackets were also
+wet up to their elbows. All this clearly pointed to the fact that they
+had not long since put off from the shore, where they had succeeded in
+landing a contraband cargo by wading from the lugger to the beach; and
+such a thick atmosphere as there was on the previous night must have
+made it highly convenient for them. Nevertheless, even for these
+weather-hardened seamen, it cannot have been altogether pleasant
+penned up in sopping clothes in a dark forepeak with an unseen cutlass
+waving about in their midst and seizure pending.
+
+These men also Gray ordered to go aft, and put them together so that
+he might see how many altogether were English and how many French. It
+was found that there were nine of them English and five French. Taking
+possession of the helm, Gray let the sails draw and ran down to the
+_Eagle_, telling his prisoners he was going to get further
+instructions from his commander. There were no tubs found on the
+lugger, which was as might be expected, but there was a solitary hoop
+which had evidently come off whilst these tubs were being hauled out,
+and there were also found two pairs of slings which were universally
+employed for getting the half-ankers ashore. These slings were made of
+small line, and were passed round the circumference of the cask at its
+"bow" and "stern," sufficient line being left so that there were two
+lines, one to pass over each of a man's shoulders. These two lines
+could be joined to other two on another cask, and so each smuggler
+could land with one tub on his back and another on his chest, in much
+the same way as you see a sandwich-man carrying boards in the street.
+
+On examining this lugger there was no bilge-water found in the
+forepeak, so those seven shivering men could not have made the excuse
+that the vessel was damp in that portion. To cut a long story short,
+the lugger was eventually taken into Harwich, having been discovered
+seventeen miles from the French coast and eleven from the English
+shore. Assuming the lugger had travelled at about four knots an hour,
+this would mean that she had started off from the English beach on her
+return journey about 5 A.M., the previous hours of the night having
+doubtless been spent in unloading the tubs somewhere between
+Folkestone and Dungeness or perhaps Rye. Thus Hugnet, having at last
+been caught, had to stand his trial for both this and the occurrence
+of the previous month. And a verdict in each case having been returned
+against him, his activities in running backwards and forwards across
+the English Channel were, for a time at least, considerably modified.
+
+These tub-boats, which we have had cause to mention more than once,
+were usually not towed but carried on the lugger's deck. A tub-boat
+got its name from the fact that when the lugger was too big to run her
+nose on the beach the tubs were landed in these boats. For that reason
+they were made very deep, with plenty of high freeboard, and were
+accordingly wonderfully good sea-boats, though they were somewhat
+heavy to row even without their spirituous cargoes.
+
+As one looks through the gaol-books and other smuggling records, one
+finds that there was a kind of hereditary custom that this running of
+contraband goods should pass on from father to son for generations.
+Thus there are constant repetitions, in different ages, of men bearing
+the same surname engaged in smuggling and becoming wonderfully
+notorious in this art. Among such family names must be mentioned that
+of Rattenbury. The man of whom we are about to speak was flourishing
+during the second decade of the nineteenth century, and his christian
+name was John. In November 1820--it is significant how often this dark
+month crops up in the history of smuggling, when the weather was not
+likely to tempt those Revenue cruisers' commanders, who preferred the
+snug shelter of some creek or harbour--John Rattenbury happened to
+find himself at Weymouth. Into that port also came a vessel named the
+_Lyme Packet_, which was accustomed to trade between Lyme and
+Guernsey. But on this occasion the ship had just received the
+misfortune of carrying away her bowsprit--possibly in the Portland
+Race--and her master, John Cawley, decided to run into Weymouth for
+repairs.
+
+Whilst these were being taken in hand what should be more natural than
+that the _Lyme Packet's_ master should drift into a local
+public-house? Having brought up comfortably in that haven of rest, he
+was promptly discovered by his old friend Rattenbury, who had also
+made for the same house of refreshment. The usual greetings took
+place, and Rattenbury inquired how it was that Cawley came to be
+there, and an explanation of the accident followed. According to the
+skipper's own version, they got into conversation, and, over a glass
+of grog, Rattenbury volunteered the remark that if Cawley would be
+willing to sail across to Cherbourg to fetch a cargo of spirits he
+would pay him at a rate that would make it much more profitable than
+trading between Lyme and Guernsey. In fact he was willing to pay
+Cawley as much as twelve shillings a cask, adding that in one voyage
+this skipper, who happened also to be owner, would make more money
+thereby than in the regular course of trade in a twelvemonth.
+
+Such a proposition was more than a tempting one, and Cawley gave the
+matter his attention. Unable to resist the idea, he acquiesced, it
+being agreed that Rattenbury should accompany him to France, where
+they would take in a cargo of spirits, Cawley to be paid his twelve
+shillings for every cask they were able to bring across. So, as soon
+as the bowsprit was repaired and set in its place, the _Lyme Packet_
+cast off her warps and ran out of Weymouth harbour. She made direct
+for Cherbourg, where they anchored in the roadstead. Rattenbury now
+went ashore and returned accompanied by 227 casks of spirits made up
+in half-ankers. These were put on board and the voyage back to England
+commenced, the intention being to make for West Bay and land the goods
+somewhere near Sidmouth. Having arrived off the Devonshire coast,
+Rattenbury took the _Lyme Packet's_ boat and rowed himself ashore,
+landing at Beer Head, his object being to get assistance from the men
+of Sidmouth for landing his goods. It was then about 1 A.M. The
+captain of the _Lyme Packet_ kept his ship standing off and on during
+the night, and hovered about that part of the coast till daybreak. But
+as Rattenbury had not returned by the time the daylight had come back,
+Cawley became more than a little nervous and feared lest he might be
+detected. Before very long--the exact time was 6.30 A.M.--Robert
+Aleward, a mariner on the Revenue cutter _Scourge_, on turning his eye
+into a certain direction not more than three miles away, espied this
+_Lyme Packet_, informed his commander, and a chase was promptly begun.
+Cawley, too, saw that the _Lyme Packet_ had been observed, and began
+to make preparations accordingly.
+
+He let draw his sheets, got the _Lyme Packet_ to foot it as fast as
+she could, and as the three intervening miles became shorter and
+shorter he busied himself by throwing his casks of spirits overboard
+as quickly as he and his crew knew how. The distant sail he had
+noticed in the early morning had all too truly turned out to be the
+Revenue cutter, but he hoped yet to escape or at any rate to be found
+with nothing contraband on board. It was no good, however, for the
+cruiser soon came up, and as fast as the _Lyme Packet_ had dropped
+over the half-ankers, so quickly did the _Scourge's_ men pick them up
+again in the cutter's boats. Having come up alongside, the cutter's
+commander, Captain M'Lean, went on board, seized Cawley and his ship
+as prisoners, and eventually took both into Exmouth.
+
+Judicial proceedings followed with a verdict for the King, so that
+what with a broken bowsprit and the loss of time, cargo, ship, and
+liberty the voyage had in nowise been profitable to Cawley.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+A TRAGIC INCIDENT
+
+
+And now we must turn to an occurrence that was rather more tragic than
+the last, though the smugglers had only themselves to blame.
+
+The reader is already aware of the practice existing at this time of
+actually rowing contraband across from France to England in large
+boats pulling four or more oars. As one who have myself rowed a craft
+most of the way from Calais to Dover in a flat calm, I cannot
+altogether envy the smugglers their job. However, on May 11, 1818,
+Captain Hawtayne, commanding H.M.S. _Florida_, was cruising in the
+English Channel on the look-out for contraband craft. Evidently he had
+received certain information, for at eight o'clock that evening he
+ordered Mr. Keith Stewart, master's mate, to man one of the ship's
+boats and to intercept any boat that might leave the French coast that
+looked at all of a suspicious nature.
+
+This order was duly obeyed. A galley was observed some time before,
+which had no doubt aroused Captain Hawtayne's suspicions. This galley
+had been seen to come out of Calais harbour and to be rowed towards
+the westward. But she must have spotted the _Florida_, for she very
+shortly put back. But before long Mr. Stewart's boat fell in with
+another craft--a long white galley named the _St. Thomas_. This was
+now about 1 A.M., and for a time the _St. Thomas_ had the impudence to
+pretend she was a French police boat. When descried she was about five
+or six miles to the N.N.W. of Cape Blanc Nez, and was steering to the
+westward. The night was dark, for the moon had disappeared behind a
+cloud as Mr. Stewart's boat came up alongside and hailed the strange
+craft. He began by asking what boat she was. The steersman replied by
+inquiring what boat Mr. Stewart's was. The latter answered that it was
+the King's boat.
+
+At that time the _St. Thomas's_ sails were up, and now Mr. Stewart
+ordered the steersman to lower them. He made no answer, but, turning
+round to his crew exhorted them to pull quickly, saying, "Give way, my
+boys, give way." Thereupon the smugglers cheered and pulled as hard as
+they could. Mr. Stewart again ordered the steersman to lower sail,
+adding that should he fail to do so he would fire at him. But this did
+not awe the _St. Thomas_. "Fire and be damned," answered the
+steersman. "If you fire, I will fire. We are as well armed as you
+are." Stewart held his hand and did not fire, but ordered his men to
+pull closer. Coming alongside, he addressed the steersman, saying it
+was absolutely essential that he should examine the _St. Thomas_ and
+that he knew they were Englishmen, adding that he was unwilling that
+there should be any bloodshed by firing into the boat.
+
+[Illustration: "Fire and be damned."]
+
+With this the _Florida_'s boat pulled up on the other's quarter, and
+the bowmen hooked on with the boat-hook. The _St. Thomas's_ steersman
+knocked the boat-hook away and threatened to shoot the bowman if he
+did not let go. For a short time thereafter the boats separated and
+drifted apart. But a second time his Majesty's boat pulled up
+alongside, and Mr. Stewart jumped forward into the bows and ordered
+one of his own men to stand by ready to accompany him on board. The
+steersman of the other, however, was determined, and resisted
+Stewart's attempt, at the same time presenting a pistol and
+threatening to shoot the officer if he advanced one step further.
+
+On that the men of _St. Thomas_ ceased rowing, drew in their oars, and
+rushed aft to where the steersman was standing in the stern. Matters
+began to look ugly, and being convinced that these men were bent on
+desperate resistance, Mr. Stewart was compelled to fire with his
+pistol at the steersman, who immediately fell. Stewart instantly leapt
+aboard, but was nearly jostled into the sea by two of the enemy. He
+ordered the whole of this crew to go forward, but they declined to
+obey, and followed this up by threatening that if they still refused
+he would have to use his sword and cut them down. The only member of
+his own crew who had already got aboard as well was his coxswain, and
+owing either to himself or the action of the coxswain in stepping from
+one boat to the other, the two craft had drifted apart, and for a time
+there was considerable risk that the men, who were obvious smugglers,
+would fall on these two. But the naval officer had already cut down
+two of their number with his sword, and after that the rest went
+forward and were obedient. The _St. Thomas_ was rather a large craft
+of her kind. Additional to her sails, she rowed five on one side, six
+on the other, and also had a steersman, the additional oarsman being
+no doubt placed according to the tide so that his work might in some
+measure counteract the great leeway which is made by small vessels
+crossing the strong tidal stream of the English Channel.
+
+As all was now quiet on board, Mr. Stewart searched her and found she
+was laden with kegs, which, said the crew, were filled with tea and
+tobacco, these kegs being as usual already slung for putting ashore or
+sinking. Later on it was found that out of this crew no less than six
+were English, besides one man who had been born at Flushing of English
+parentage, though he called himself a Dutchman. The rest were all
+foreigners. No one can read such an incident as this without
+regretting that they should have ever led to slaughter. It is a
+serious thing to take any man's life when there is no warfare, and it
+is still more dismal if that man is of the same nationality as the one
+who deals death. If the whole of the _St. Thomas's_ crew had been
+killed there could have been no blame on Mr. Stewart, for he was only
+carrying out his orders and acting in self-defence. The smugglers were
+fully aware they were in the wrong, and they were responsible for any
+consequences that might accrue. The officer had given them ample
+warning, and he had only used severe measures when absolutely
+compelled.
+
+But there is a more satisfactory side to this regrettable incident,
+which one is only too glad to be able to record. The man who had been
+so badly wounded desired to speak to Mr. Stewart, and when the latter
+had approached him he turned to him and said:
+
+"You've killed me; sir, I'm dying."
+
+Mr. Stewart saw that this was perfectly true, and that the man was in
+no sense exaggerating.
+
+"Well, I'm sorry for it," he said, "but it was your own fault."
+
+"Yes," answered the dying man, "I know that, but I hope you won't make
+things worse than they are. I freely forgive you."
+
+This was the steersman who had so strenuously opposed the boarding of
+the _St. Thomas_. We can quite sympathise with the feelings of Mr.
+Stewart, and be thankful that those lawless days of violence have long
+since passed. If you talk with any of the Revenue officers still
+living who were employed in arresting, lying in wait for, receiving
+information concerning, and sometimes having a smart fight with the
+smugglers, you will be told how altogether hateful it was to have to
+perform such a duty. It is such incidents as the above which knock all
+romance out of the smuggling incidents. An encounter with fisticuffs,
+a few hard blows, and an arrest after a smart chase or a daring
+artifice, whilst not lessening the guilt of smuggling, cannot take
+away our interest. Our sympathies all the time are with the Revenue
+men, because they have on their side right, and in the long-run right
+must eventually conquer might. But, as against this, the poorer
+classes in those days were depressed in ignorance with low ideals, and
+lacking many of the privileges which no thinking man to-day would
+refuse them. And because they were so daring and so persistent,
+because they had so much to lose and (comparatively speaking) so
+little really to gain, we extend to them a portion of our sympathy and
+a large measure of our interest. They were entirely in the wrong, but
+they had the right stuff in them for making the best kind of English
+sailormen, the men who helped to win our country's battles, and to
+make her what she is to-day as the owner of a proud position in the
+world of nations.
+
+Ten of these twelve men were taken as prisoners to the _Florida_, and
+the _St. Thomas_ with her cargo still aboard were towed by the
+_Florida_ into Yarmouth Roads, and there delivered to the Collector of
+Customs. She was found to be a 54-foot galley--a tremendous length for
+an oared craft--with no deck, and rigged with three lugsails and jib,
+her size working out at about 11 tons burthen. On delivering the cargo
+at Yarmouth it was found that there were altogether 207 kegs. The ten
+uninjured prisoners were taken before the Yarmouth magistrates, and
+the two whom the officer had cut down were sent on shore immediately
+the _Florida_ arrived in that port. The English steersman, to whose
+case we call special attention, died, two others were fined £100 each,
+two were sent to gaol, and one, who was the son of the man who died,
+was liberated, as it was shown that he had only been a passenger. The
+man who had been born of English parents at Flushing was also set
+free, as the magistrates had not sufficient proof that he was a
+British subject.
+
+A few months prior to the above occurrence Lieutenant John Wood Rouse
+was in command of his Majesty's schooner _Pioneer_. On the 11th of
+January 1817 he was cruising between Dungeness and Point St. Quintin,
+when his attention was drawn to a lugger whose name we may state by
+anticipation was the _Wasp_. She appeared to be making for the English
+coast on a N.W. bearing, and was distant about six miles. In order to
+cut her off and prevent her from making the shore Lieutenant Rouse
+sent one of his men named Case with a galley to cross her bows. At the
+same time he also despatched another of his boats under the care of a
+Mr. Walton to make directly for the lugger. This occurred about 10
+A.M., and the chase continued till about 3.45 P.M., when the schooner
+came alongside the lugger that had, by this time, been seized by Mr.
+Case. Lieutenant Rouse was then careful to take bearings of the land,
+and fixed his position so that there should be no dispute as to
+whether the lugger were seized within the legal limits.
+
+On capturing the lugger, only two persons were found on board, and
+these were at once transferred to the _Pioneer_. To show what liars
+these smugglers could become, one of these two said he was a
+Frenchman, but his name was the very British-sounding William
+Stevenson. The other said he was a Dutchman. Stevenson could speak
+not a word of French, but he understood English perfectly, and said
+that part of the cargo was intended for England and part for Ireland,
+which happened to be the truth, as we shall see presently. He also
+added that of the crew of eight three were Dutchmen and five English,
+for he had by now forgotten his own alleged nationality.
+
+Prior to the arrival of Mr. Case's boat the lugger had hoisted out her
+tub-boat and rowed away as fast as the waves would let her, with all
+the crew except these two. She was found to have a cargo of tobacco
+and tea, as well as Geneva, all being made up into suitable dimensions
+for landing. On examining the ship's papers it was indicated that she
+was bound for Bilbao in Spain. But these papers had evidently been
+obtained in readiness for such an occurrence as the advent of the
+schooner. When it is mentioned that this lugger was only a large
+galley with absolutely no deck whatever, and capable of being rowed by
+ten men, it was hardly credible that she would be the kind of craft to
+sail round Ushant and across the Bay of Biscay. "Was she calculated to
+carry a cargo to Spain?" asked counsel at the trial two years later.
+"I will risk my experience as a sailor," answered one of the
+witnesses, "that I would not have risked my life in a boat of that
+description."
+
+But, unfortunately for the smugglers, there was discovered on board a
+tin box which absolutely gave their case away. In this tin box was
+found an instructive memorandum which it requires no very great
+ingenuity to decipher, and ran something as follows:--
+
+  "For B. Valden.
+
+  From Tusca Tower to Blackwater Hill, allowing half a point for the
+      tide.
+
+  For W. Martensons Glyn.
+
+  From Tusca N.E. until Tara Hill bears N.W.
+
+    10 pieces of chocolate 10 gulders.
+    10 pieces of gays[20] 10 ditto.
+
+  A proportion of G., say one-third, and let it be strong as
+      possible. A vessel coming in the daytime should come to anchor
+      outside the banks.
+  At Clocker Head, Bryan King.
+  At the Mountain Fort, Henry Curran.
+  And Racklen, Alexander M'Donald."
+
+Now anyone on consulting a chart or map of the south-west and west of
+the British Isles can easily see that the above was just a crude form
+of sailing directions to guide the ship to land the goods at various
+places in Ireland, especially when the box also contained a paper to
+the following effect:--
+
+  "The Land's End to Tusca 135 miles N.N.E.
+   A berth off Scilly 150 N.E.3/4N."
+
+The ship was to take such goods as mentioned to the above individuals,
+and here were the landmarks and courses and the division of the goods.
+"A proportion of G," of course, referred to the amount of Geneva, but
+the gentleman for whom it was intended did not get it "as strong as
+possible." Not one of these places mentioned was within hundreds of
+miles of Bilbao, but all the seamarks were to guide the mariners to
+Ireland. Tara Hill, Tuscar Rock and so on were certainly not Spanish.
+But these instructions were by no means uncommon. They were
+technically known among smugglers as "spot-notes," that is to say,
+indications of the spots where the goods were to be landed. When
+Stevenson found that his captors had become possessed of these papers
+he was considerably confused and embarrassed, even going so far as to
+ask for them to be given back to him--a request which was naturally
+declined.
+
+The lugger was taken captive into Dover, and Stevenson, being an
+Englishman, was committed to gaol in the Dover town prison, from which
+he succeeded in escaping. The Dutchman was let off, as he was a
+foreigner. The men who had rowed away in the tub-boat escaped to
+France, having taken with them out of the galley one parcel of
+bandanna handkerchiefs. The rule in these cases was to fine the
+culprit £100 if he was a landsman; but if he was a sailor he was
+impressed into the Navy for a period of five years.
+
+There must be many a reader who is familiar with some of those
+delightful creeks of Devonshire and Cornwall, and has been struck with
+the natural facilities which are offered to anyone with a leaning for
+smuggling. Among these there will rise to the imagination that
+beautiful inlet on whose left bank stands Salcombe. Towards the end of
+June in the year 1818 William Webber, one of the Riding officers,
+received information that some spirits had been successfully run
+ashore at the mouth of this harbour, "a place," remarked a legal
+luminary of that time, "which is very often made the spot for landing"
+this class of goods.
+
+Webber therefore obtained the assistance of a private in the 15th
+Regiment, and early in the evening, as he had been informed that the
+goods were not yet carried away, but still were lying deposited
+somewhere near the beach, proceeded to the spot. He and the hussar
+arrived at the place about nine o'clock on this June evening and
+managed to conceal themselves behind a hedge. They had not very long
+to wait before they heard the sound of some men talking, and a man
+named James Thomas was observed to remark:
+
+"We couldn't have had a better time for smuggling if we had lain abed
+and prayed for it."
+
+Through the openings in the hedge Webber and the hussar could see the
+outline of the delinquent, and the voice was more than familiar to the
+Riding officer. We can readily appreciate Thomas's ecstasy when we
+remark that it had now become rather dark and a sea-haze such as
+frequently comes up in fine weather after a hot day was beginning to
+spread itself around. For some time longer the two men continued to
+remain in their hiding-place, and then heard that Thomas and his
+accomplice had become joined by a number of other people. The sound of
+horses' hoofs being led down to the beach was also distinctly heard,
+and there were many signs of accelerated activity going on. Presently
+there came upon the ears of the Riding officers the noise which
+proceeds from the rattling of casks, and from some convenient
+hiding-place, where they had remained, these were at last brought
+forth, slings were prepared, and then the load was placed on the backs
+of the several horses.
+
+At this point, deeming that the time had come to interfere, the Riding
+officer and the hussar crept out from their place of concealment and
+advanced towards the band of smugglers. But, alert as hares, the
+latter, so soon as they realised their own danger, took to their
+heels and ran helter-skelter away. Thomas, however, was too wrath to
+hasten, and began to curse his men. He began by complaining that the
+kegs which had been brought forth were wonderfully "slack," that is to
+say they were not as full as they might have been, hinting that
+someone had been helping himself to their contents of spirits. "If you
+had brought these a little sooner," referring doubtless to both horses
+and casks, "we should have been three miles on our way home."
+
+But scarcely had he finished his sentence than the last of his band
+had fled, leaving him behind with both horses and casks. He was
+promptly arrested and eleven months later prosecuted by the
+Attorney-General.
+
+Because the smugglers were so frequently assisted in their work by
+those night signals to which we alluded some time back it had been
+made a penal offence to show a light for the purpose of signalling
+within six miles of the coast. Arising out of such an offence, John
+Newton and another found themselves prosecuted for an incident that
+occurred about the middle of December 1819. The comparative seclusion
+of that big bight which extends from the Bill of Portland to the
+promontory well known to many readers as Hope's or Pope's Nose, was
+much favoured by the smuggling fraternity. This West Bay was well out
+of the English Channel and the track of most of his Majesty's ships,
+and there were plenty of hills and high ground from which to show
+friendly signals to their comrades. Rattenbury and Cawley, as we
+related, had in vain tried to land their cargo hereabouts, though
+there were many others who, before the Revenue cutters became smarter
+at their duty, had been able to run considerable quantities of
+dutiable goods in the vicinity of Sidmouth and Lyme.
+
+On the afternoon of this winter's day two small sailing craft had been
+noticed by the Preventive shore officers to be tacking about near the
+land, but did not appear to be engaged in fishing. It was therefore
+reasonably supposed they were about to run some contraband ashore
+after dark. A Mr. Samuel Stagg and a Mr. Joseph Pratt, stationed at
+Sidmouth in the Preventive service, were all the time keeping a smart
+look-out on these boats, and somewhere about five o'clock in the
+evening launched their oared-cutter and rowed off towards them. After
+a chase they came alongside the first, which was named the _Nimble_,
+and boarded her. They found therein three men consisting of John
+Newton, John Bartlett, and Thomas Westlake; but as they searched her
+and found no trace of any casks or packages of tobacco, the Preventive
+men left her to row after the other craft. It was now, of course,
+quite dark, and there was blowing a nice sailing breeze. Scarcely had
+they started to row away before the _Nimble_ hoisted sail and by
+means of flint and steel began to make fire-signals, and kept on so
+doing for the next half hour. This was, of course, a signal for the
+second boat, and as soon as the latter observed these signs she also
+made sail and hurried away into the darkness of the bay. It was
+impossible for the officers to get up to her, for they would stand
+every chance of losing themselves in the vast expanse of West Bay, and
+the craft might take it into her head to run down Channel perhaps into
+Cornwall or eastwards round to Portland, where goods often were
+landed. Therefore deeming one craft in arrest to be worth two sailing
+about in West Bay, they went back and seized the _Nimble_. The three
+men, whose names we have given, were taken ashore, tried, and found
+guilty. But as illustrative of the times it is worth noting that John
+Bartlett had before this occurrence actually been engaged for some
+time as one of the crew of that Revenue cutter about which we spoke
+some time back in this very bay. And so, now, "for having on the high
+seas, within six miles of the coast, made a certain light on board a
+boat for the purpose of giving a signal to a certain person or
+persons," he was, in company with his two colleagues, condemned.
+
+That the age of lawless mobs was by no means past, may be seen from
+the incident which now follows. It had been thought that the Act which
+had been passed, forbidding any boat built to row with more than four
+oars, would have put a considerable check to activities of the
+smugglers. But these boats not only continued to be built, but also to
+be navigated and used for the contraband purposes. The Revenue
+officers of the district of Christchurch, Hants, had reason in April
+of 1821 to believe that a boat was being constructed in their
+neighbourhood of such dimensions and capable of being rowed with such
+a number of oars as made her liable to seizure. Therefore, taking with
+them a couple of dragoons, two of these Revenue officers proceeded on
+their way to the district near Milton, which is, roughly speaking, the
+centre of that bay which is bounded on one side by Christchurch Head,
+and on the other by Hurst Point. They had not arrived long at their
+destination before it was found that about thirty men had concealed
+themselves in an adjoining wood. The officers had found the boat they
+were looking for in a meadow, and were about to seize it.
+
+It was found to be covered over with sails, having been hidden in the
+meadow for safety's sake, for since it was made to row seven aside it
+was clearly liable to forfeiture. One of the two officers now went off
+to fetch assistance, and whilst he was away two of the smugglers came
+forth and fraternising with the two dragoons, offered them some brandy
+which they drank. In a short while both soldiers had taken such a
+quantity of the spirits that they became utterly intoxicated and
+helpless. One of the two smugglers then gave a whistle, and about
+thirty men issued forth from the wood, some of them in various forms
+of disguise. One had a deer's skin over his face, others had their
+faces and hands coloured with blue clay and other means. These men
+angrily demanded from the solitary officer the sails which he had
+removed from the boat, but their requests were met by refusal. The mob
+then seized hold of the sails, and a tussle followed, whereupon the
+officer threatened to shoot them. He managed to retain hold of one
+sail, while the mob held the other and took it away.
+
+About three o'clock in the afternoon the other officer returned with
+the Lymington Preventive officer, two Custom House men, and three
+dragoons. They found the intoxicated soldiers, one of whom was lying
+prostrate on the field, while the other was ludicrously and vainly
+endeavouring to mount his horse. The seven men now united, and got a
+rope by which they began to remove the boat from its hiding-place,
+when a great many more people came on to the scene in great
+indignation. As many as fifty, at least, were now assembled, and
+threats and oaths were bandied about. During this excitement some of
+the crowd cut the rope, while a man named Thomas Vye jumped into the
+boat, and rather than see her fall into the hands of the enemy,
+endeavoured to stave her in.
+
+The remainder of the story is but brief. For, at last, the seven men
+succeeded in pulling the boat away in spite of all the crowd's
+efforts, and dragged it even across a couple of fields, where there
+was a road. Here a conveyance was waiting ready, and thus the boat was
+taken away, and at a later date Vye was duly prosecuted by the Crown
+for his share in the proceedings.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[20] "Gays" was evidently trade slang to denote bandanna silk
+handkerchiefs, which were frequently smuggled, and some of which were
+found on board.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS
+
+
+By an Order in Council of May 5, 1821, it was directed that henceforth
+all sums which were awarded for arrests on shore of any person
+concerned in smuggling should be paid in the following proportions. He
+who made the arrest was to have three-quarters of the reward, which
+was to be divided into equal proportions if there were more than one
+person. If there were any officer or officers present at the time of
+arrest, these were to have one quarter of the reward. The officer
+commanding the party was to have two shares, each of the other
+officers having one share. The reward payable for a smuggler convicted
+and transferred to the Navy amounted to £20. And here let it be added
+that the persons liable to arrest in regard to smuggling were: (1)
+Those found on smuggling vessels; (2) Those found unloading or
+assisting to unload such craft; (3) Those found to be carrying away
+the landed goods or concerned in hiding the same. But before
+conviction it was essential to prove that the seized spirits were
+foreign; that the vessel had come from foreign parts; that the party
+who detained the smugglers was a Customs Officer; and that the
+offenders were taken before a proper magistrate.
+
+We now come to the year 1821, when the Commissioners of Inquiry made
+an important report touching the Revenue service. They suggested that
+the Riding Officers were not valuable in proportion to their cost, and
+so it came about that the Inspectors and superior officers, as well as
+a large number of the inferior classes, were dispensed with, but a
+small percentage of the lowest class was retained as a Preventive
+Mounted Guard, the annual cost of this being only the modest sum of
+£5000. This Preventive Guard was to be employed in watching for any
+gatherings of smugglers, and whenever any goods might be landed and
+carried up into the country, they were to be followed up by the
+members of this guard. They were also to maintain a communication
+between the different stations.
+
+Up to the year 1821, from those early days of the seventeenth century
+and earlier, the Revenue cruisers were the most important of all the
+means employed for suppressing smuggling. But the same inquiry which
+had made its recommendations regarding the Riding Officers also
+reported that the efficacy of the vessels employed in protecting the
+Revenue was not proportionate to the expense incurred in their
+maintenance. They advised, therefore, that their numbers should be
+reduced, and that whereas they had in 1816 come under the care of the
+Admiralty, they should now be restored to the control of the Customs.
+But the officers and crews of these cruisers were still to be selected
+by the Admiralty. And thus in the year 1822 these recommendations were
+carried into effect, and a new order inaugurated.
+
+It was by a Treasury Minute of February 15, 1822, that it was directed
+that the whole of the force employed for the prevention of smuggling
+"on the coast of this kingdom," was to be consolidated and
+transferred, and placed under the direction of the Customs Board. This
+force was to consist of the cruisers, Preventive Water-guard, and
+Riding Officers. And henceforth the commanders of cruisers were to
+receive their orders from the Controller-General of the Coastguard,
+who was to be responsible to the Board of Customs. The one exception
+to this change was that the Coast Blockade on the coast of Kent and
+Sussex, which had shown itself so satisfactory that it was left
+unaltered. The Preventive Water-guard became the Coastguard, and
+this--rather than the cruisers--should form the chief force for
+prevention of smuggling, the Riding Officers, or Preventive Mounted
+Guard, being merely auxiliary by land, and the cruisers merely
+auxiliary by sea. To what extent the number of cruisers were reduced
+can be estimated by stating that whereas there were forty-seven of
+these Revenue craft employed in England in 1821, there were only
+thirty-three two years later, these consisting of the _Mermaid_,
+_Stag_, _Badger_, _Ranger_, _Sylvia_, _Scout_, _Fox_, _Lively_,
+_Hawk_, _Cameleon_, _Hound_, _Rose_, _Scourge_, _Repulse_, _Eagle_,
+_Tartar_, _Adder_, _Lion_, _Dove_, _Lapwing_, _Greyhound_, _Swallow_,
+_Active_, _Harpy_, _Royal George_, _Fancy_, _Cheerful_, _Newcharter_,
+_Fly_, _Seaflower_, _Nimble_, _Sprightly_, _Dolphin_.
+
+The first-class cruisers were of 140 tons and upwards, the second
+class of from 100 to 140 tons, and the third class were under 100
+tons. In 1824 the cruisers on the Irish coast and the Scotch coast
+were also transferred to the Customs Board, and from that date the
+entire Coastguard service, with the exception of the Coast Blockade,
+was directed, as stated, by the Controller-General.
+
+In the year 1829, the instructions were issued to the Coastguard.
+Afloat, these applied to the commanders, mates, gunners, stewards,
+carpenters, mariners, and boys of the cruisers. Ashore, they were
+applicable to the Chief Officers, Chief Boatmen, Mounted Guard,
+Commissioned Boatmen, and Boatmen, both sections being under their
+respective commanders. Each member of the Mounted Guard was provided
+with a good horse and sword, with an iron scabbard of the Light
+Cavalry pattern, as well as a couple of pistols and ammunition. The
+cruiser commanders were again enjoined to keep the sea in bad weather
+and at night, nor were they permitted to come to harbour except when
+really necessary.
+
+In 1831 came the next change, when the Coastguard took the place of
+the Coast Blockade, which had done excellent duty for so many years in
+Kent and Sussex. The aim was to make the Coastguard service national
+rather than departmental. To promote the greatest efficiency it was
+become naval rather than civil. It was to be for the benefit of the
+country as a nation, than for the protecting merely of its revenues.
+Thus there was a kind of somersault performed; and the whole of the
+original idea capsized. Whereas the Preventive service had been
+instituted for the benefit of the Customs, and then, as an
+after-thought, became employed for protection against the enemy across
+the Channel, so now it was to be exactly the other way on. The Revenue
+was to be subservient to the greater and national factor.
+
+In this same 1831, the number of cruisers had risen to thirty-five in
+England, but many of them had tenders. There were altogether
+twenty-one of these latter and smaller craft, their tonnage varying
+from twenty-five to sixty. And the next year the Mounted Guard was
+reorganised and the Riding Officers disappeared. With the cordon of
+cruisers afloat, and the more efficient Coastguard service ashore,
+there was a double belt round our coasts, which could be relied upon
+both for national and Revenue services. By this time, too, steam was
+invading the domain of the ship, and in 1839, besides the
+old-fashioned sailing cutters and tenders, there was a steamer named
+the _Vulcan_, of 200 tons, taken into the service, her duty being to
+cruise about and search for suspicious vessels. In some parts of the
+country, also, there was assistance still rendered by the Mounted
+Guard for watching the roads leading inland from the beach to prevent
+goods being brought up.
+
+With this increased efficiency it was but natural that a change should
+come over the character of the smuggling. Force was fast going out of
+date. Except for a number of rather startling occasions, but on the
+whole of exceptional occurrence, violence had gone out of fashion. But
+because of the increased vigilance along the coast the smuggler was
+hard put to devise new methods of running his goods into the country
+without being surprised by the officials. Most, if not all, of the old
+syndicates of French and Englishmen, who made smuggling a roaring
+trade, had died out. The armed cutters had long since given way to the
+luggers as the smuggling craft. Stealth had taken the place of
+violence, concealments and sunken goods were favoured rather than
+those daring and outrageous incursions which had been in the past wont
+to take place.
+
+And yet, just as a long-standing illness cannot be cured at once, but
+keeps recurring, so there were periods when the smuggling disease kept
+breaking out and seemed to get worse. Such a period was that between
+1825 and 1843, but it was pointed out to the Treasury that so long as
+the high duties continued, "Your Lordships must look only to the
+efficiency of the Coastguard for the continued absence of successful
+enterprises, and that smuggling would immediately revive upon the
+slightest symptom of relaxation on the part of the Commissioners of
+Customs." The service was therefore glad to encourage Naval
+Lieutenants to serve as Chief Officers of the Coastguard.
+
+Among the general instructions issued to the Coastguard of the United
+Kingdom in 1841, were definite orders to the commanders of cruisers.
+Thus, if ever a cruiser ran aground the commander was to report it,
+with full particulars of the case and extent of damage. During the
+summer season the Inspecting Commanders were to take opportunities for
+trying the comparative speeds of these cruisers. Whenever cruisers
+should meet at sea, in any roadstead or in any harbour, they were to
+hoist their ensigns and pendants as an acknowledgment that each had
+seen the other; and when both had thus hoisted their colours they
+might immediately be hauled down. This was also to be done when one
+cruiser should pass another at anchor.
+
+Cruisers were again reminded that they were to wear only the ensigns
+and pendants appointed for the Revenue service, and not such as are
+used in the Royal Navy. Nor were salutes to be fired by cruisers
+except on particular and extraordinary occasions. It was further
+ordered that no alteration was to be made in the hull, masts, yards,
+sails, or any fitments of the cruisers, without the sanction of the
+Controller-General. To prevent unnecessary expense on fitting out or
+refitting of any of the cruisers, the use of leather was to be
+restricted to the following: the leathering of the main pendants,
+runners in the wake of the boats when in tackles, the collar of the
+mainstay, the nip of the main-sheet block strops, leathering the
+bowsprint traveller, the spanshackle for the bowsprit, topmast iron,
+the four reef-earings three feet from the knot. All old copper,
+copper-sheathing, nails, lead, iron and other old materials which were
+of any value, were to be collected and allowed for by the tradesmen
+who perform the repairs. New sails were to be tried as soon as
+received in order to ascertain their fitness. Both boats and cruisers
+were also to be painted twice a year, above the water-line, this to be
+done by the crews themselves.
+
+A general pilot was allowed for two months when a cruiser arrived on a
+new station, and an occasional pilot was permissible in cases of
+necessity, but only licensed pilots were to be employed. General
+pilots were paid 6s. a day as well as the usual rations of provisions.
+The cruisers were provided with charts of the coast off which they
+were employed. Naval officers holding appointments as Inspecting
+Commanders of cruisers, Chief Officers of stations and Mates of
+cruisers were ordered to wear the greatcoat established by any
+Admiralty regulation in force for the time being, with epaulettes,
+cap, and side-arms, according to their ranks. Commanders of cruisers,
+if not naval officers, were to wear a blue lappel-coat, buttoned back
+with nine Coastguard uniform buttons and notched button-holes, plain
+blue stand-up collar with gold lace loop and button on each side
+thereof--the loop to be five inches long, and the lace three-quarters
+of an inch in breadth. There were also to be three buttons and notched
+button-holes on each cuff and pocket, as well as three buttons in the
+folds of each skirt.
+
+The waistcoat was to be white or blue kerseymere, with uniform
+buttons, white or blue pantaloons or trousers, with boots, a blue
+cloth cap similar in shape to those worn in the Royal Navy, with two
+bands of gold lace three-quarters of an inch broad, one at the top and
+the other at the bottom of the headpiece. The sword was to have a
+plain lace knot and fringe tassel, with a black leather belt. White
+trousers were worn on all occasions of inspection and other special
+occasions between April 23 and October 14. Blue trousers were to be
+worn for the other months.
+
+In 1849 the Select Committee on the Board of Customs expressed the
+opinion that the number of cruisers might be reduced, and the
+Landguard practically abolished; but it was deemed advisable that
+these protections being removed, the coastline of defence ought to be
+strengthened by securing the services of Naval Lieutenants who had
+retired from the Navy on half-pay. So the number of cruisers and
+tenders which in 1844 had reached seventy-six, and in 1849 were
+fifty-two, had now sunk to fifty in the year 1850. In 1854, on the
+outbreak of war with Russia, 3000 men were drafted into the Navy from
+the Coastguard, their places being filled by pensioners. During the
+war considerable service was also rendered by the Revenue cruisers, by
+capturing the Russian ships in the Northern Seas, for we must
+recollect that, just as in the wars with France, there were two
+centres to be dealt with, viz., in the north and south. The war with
+Russia, as regards the sea service, was prosecuted both in the Narrow
+Seas and in the Black Sea, and the Russian trade was badly cut up. As
+many as eleven Russian ships were captured by means of these British
+cutters, and no less than eight of these prizes were condemned. The
+fact is worthy of being borne in mind when considering the history of
+these craft which have long since passed from performing active
+service.
+
+The next modification came in 1856, when it was resolved to transfer
+the control of the Coastguard to the Admiralty; for in spite of the
+great change which had been brought about in 1831, all the Coastguard
+officers and men while being appointed by the Admiralty, were none the
+less controlled by the Customs. However, this condition was now
+altered, but in the teeth of opposition on the part of the Customs,
+who represented to the Treasury that considerable inconvenience would
+result from this innovation. But on the 1st of October 1856, the
+control of the Coastguard was transferred to the Admiralty, as it had
+been foreshadowed. And with that we see practically the last stage in
+the important development which had been going on for some years past.
+It was practically the finale of the tendency towards making the
+service naval rather than civil.
+
+For the moment, I am seeking to put the reader in possession of a
+general idea of the administrative features of the service, which is
+our subject, during the period between 1822-1856. At the
+last-mentioned date our period devoted to cutters and smugglers
+practically ends. But before proceeding to deal with the actual
+incidents and exciting adventures embraced by this period, it may be
+convenient just to mention that these changes were followed in 1869,
+when the services of civilians employed in any capacity in the
+Coastguard were altogether dispensed with, and since then the general
+basis of the Coastguard development has been for the better defence of
+our coasts, so as to be vigilant against any disembarkation by a
+foreign power, at the same time providing to a certain extent for the
+manning of the ships of the Royal Navy when required. Thus, the old
+organisation, with which the Customs Board was so closely and for so
+long a time connected, changed its character when its sphere became
+national rather than particular. Its duty henceforth was primarily for
+the protection of the country than for the prevention of smuggling.
+But between 1822--when the Admiralty yielded up their responsibilities
+to the Customs Board--and the year 1856, when again the control was
+returned to the Admiralty, no material alterations were made in the
+methods of preventing smuggling, the most important event during that
+period--apart altogether from the actual smuggling incidents--was the
+change which had been brought about in 1831.
+
+During the different reigns and centuries in which the smuggling evil
+had been at work, all sorts of anti-smuggling acts had been passed. We
+can well understand that a certain amount of hasty, panic-driven
+legislation had from time to time been created according to the sudden
+increase of contraband running. But all these laws had become so
+numerous, and their accumulation had made matters so intricate, that
+the time had come for some process of unravelling, straightening out,
+and summarising. The systematising and clarification were affected by
+the Act of January 5, 1826 (6 Geo. IV. cap. 108). And one of the most
+important features of this was to the effect that any vessel belonging
+wholly or in part to his Majesty's subjects, found within four leagues
+of the coast of the United Kingdom, with prohibited goods on board,
+and not proceeding on her voyage, was to be forfeited. Any vessel or
+boat, not square-rigged, belonging wholly or in part to his Majesty's
+subjects, and found in the British (as it was then frequently
+designated) Channel or Irish Channel, or elsewhere within 100 leagues
+of the coast, with spirits or tobacco in casks or packages of less
+size than 40 gallons; or tea, tobacco, or snuff, in any package
+containing less than 450 lbs. in weight--this craft was to be
+forfeited. And vessels (not square-rigged), if found unlicensed, were
+also to be forfeited. But whale-boats, fishing-boats, pilot's boats,
+purely inland boats, and boats belonging to square-rigged ships were
+exempt.
+
+But, of course, smuggling was still very far from being dead, and the
+Revenue cruisers had always to be on the alert. Some idea of the
+sphere of activity belonging to these may be gathered from the
+following list of cruiser stations existing in the early 'twenties.
+The English cruiser stations consisted of: Deptford, Chatham,
+Sheerness, Portsmouth, Cowes, Weymouth, Exmouth, Plymouth, Fowey,
+Falmouth, Penzance, Milford, Berwick, Grimsby, Boston, North
+Yarmouth, Harwich, Gravesend, Dover, Poole, Brixham, Ilfracombe,
+Douglas (Isle of Man), Alderney, Dover, Seaford, Dartmouth, Holyhead,
+Southend (in the port of Leigh). In Scotland there were: Leith,
+Montrose, Stranraer, Stornoway, Aberdeen, Cromarty, Campbeltown,
+Greenock. In Ireland there were: Kingstown, Larne, Killibegs,
+Westport, Galway, Cork, and Dunmore East.
+
+It was to such places as the above that the cruisers repaired for
+their provisions. When smugglers had been captured and taken on board
+these cruisers they were allowed not to fare as well as the crew, but
+to have only two-thirds of the victuals permitted to the mariners. In
+1825 additional instructions were issued relating to the victualling
+of his Majesty's Revenue Cruisers, and in future every man per diem
+was to have:--
+
+One pound of biscuit, 1/3 of a pint of rum (wine measure), until the
+establishment of the imperial measure, when 1/4 of a pint was to be
+allowed, the imperial gallon being one-fifth greater than the wine
+gallon. Each man was also to have 1 lb. beef, 1/2 lb. flour, or in
+lieu thereof 1/2 pint of oatmeal, 1/4 lb. suet, or 1-1/2 oz. of sugar
+or 1/4 oz. of tea, also 1 lb. of cabbage or 2 oz. of Scotch barley.
+They were to be provided with pure West India rum, of at least twelve
+months old. Further regulations were also taken as to the nature of
+the men's grog. "As it is considered extremely prejudicial to the
+health of the crew to suffer the allowance of spirits to be drank raw,
+the Commanders are to cause the same to be served out to them mixed
+with water, in the proportion of three parts water and one part
+spirits, to be so mixed and served out in presence of one of the
+mates, the boatswain, gunner, or carpenter, and one or two of the
+mariners."
+
+Smugglers detained on board were not to have spirits. Before
+proceeding to sea each cruiser was to have on board not less than two
+months' supply of salt beef, spirits; suet or sugar and tea in lieu,
+as well as Scotch barley. With reference to the other articles of
+food, they were to carry as large a proportion as could be stowed
+away, with the exception of fresh beef and cabbages. But two years
+prior to this, that is to say on April 5, 1823, the Board of Customs
+had reduced the victualling allowances, so that Commander and mates
+and superintendents of Quarantine received 2s. 6d. a day each;
+mariners 1s. 3d.; and mariners of lazarettes (hospitals 1s. for
+quarantine) 1s. 3d. a day.
+
+As to the methods of the smugglers, these continued to become more and
+more ingenious, though there was a good deal of repetition of
+successful tricks until the Revenue officers had learnt these secrets,
+when some other device had to be thought out and employed. Take the
+case of a craft called the _Wig Box_, belonging to John Punnett. She
+was seized at Folkestone in the spring of 1822 by a midshipman of the
+Coast Blockade. There were found on her six gallons of spirits, which
+were concealed in the following most ingenious manner. She was quite a
+small vessel, but her three oars, her two masts, her bowsprit, and her
+bumpkin, had all been made hollow. Inside these hollows tin tubes had
+been fitted to contain the above spirits, and there can be little
+doubt but that a good many other small craft had successfully employed
+these means until the day when the _Wig Box_ had the misfortune to be
+found out. There is still preserved in the London Custom House a
+hollow wooden fend-off which was slung when a ship was alongside a
+quay. No one for a long time ever thought of suspecting that this
+innocent-looking article could be full of tobacco, lying as it was
+under the very eyes of the Customs officers of the port. And in 1820
+three other boats were seized in one port alone, having concealed
+prohibited goods in a square foremast and outrigger, each spar being
+hollowed out from head to foot and the ends afterwards neatly plugged
+and painted. Another boat was seized and brought into Dover with
+hollow yards to her lugsails, and a hollow keel composed of tin but
+painted to look like wood, capable of holding large quantities of
+spirits.
+
+But there was a very notorious vessel named the _Asp_, belonging to
+Rye, her master's name being John Clark, her size being just under 24
+tons. In 1822 she was seized and found to have a false bow, access to
+which was by means of two scuttles, one on each side of the stem.
+These scuttles were fitted with bed-screws fixed through false timbers
+into the real timbers, and covered with pieces of cork resembling
+treenails. The concealment afforded space for no fewer than fifty flat
+tubs besides dry goods. But in 1824 another vessel of the same name
+and port, described as a smack, was also arrested at Rye, and found to
+have both tobacco and silk goods concealed. This was effected by means
+of a false bottom to the ship, which extended as far aft as the
+ballast bulkhead. The entrance to the concealment was by means of a
+couple of scuttles on each side of her false keelson, these scuttles
+being screwed down in such a manner as also to be imperceptible. Also
+on either side of her cabin there were other hiding-places underneath
+the berths, and so constructed that they deceived more than one
+Revenue officer who came aboard to rummage her. The latter had bored
+holes through the lining, so as to try the distance of that lining
+from the supposed side of the vessel. Finding this distance not to
+exceed the fair allowance for the vessel's scuttling, the officers had
+gone ashore quite satisfied. From the number of gimlet-holes in the
+lining it was clear that the officers had been imposed upon
+considerably. But what these officers had taken for the side of the
+ship was only an intermediary planking, the actual concealment being
+between that and the vessel's side.
+
+To get to the entrance of these concealments, the bedding had to be
+taken out, which they had no doubt omitted to do. But if they had done
+this they would have been able properly to get to the lining, when two
+small pieces of wood about an inch square let into the plank made
+themselves apparent. And these, if removed with the point of a knife
+or chisel, brought small pieces of cork (circular in shape) to become
+visible. As soon as these corks were removed, the heads of bed-screws
+were observable, and these being unscrewed allowed two boards running
+the whole lengths of the berths to be taken up, by which means were
+revealed the concealments capable of containing a considerable
+quantity of dry goods.
+
+Somewhat reminiscent of this ship was the French vessel, _St.
+Antoine_, which was seized at Shoreham. She had come from Dieppe, and
+her master was named A. Fache. The after part of her cabin was fitted
+with two cupboards which had shelves that took down, the back of which
+was supposed to be the lining of the transom. But on taking the same
+up, timbers showed themselves. On examining the planks closely, it
+was noticed that they overlapped each other, the timbers being made to
+act as fastenings. On striking the lower end of the false timbers on
+one side, it moved round on a bolt, and one plank with a timber was
+made to shift on each side of the false stern-post, forming a
+stern-frame with the other. Below the cupboards down to the run of the
+vessel the same principle was followed. The entrance to this was by
+taking down the seats and lockers in the cabin, and a false stern-post
+appeared to be fastened with a forelock and ring, but by unfastening
+the same, the false stern-post and middle plank could be taken down.
+
+Two ingenious instances of the sinking of contraband goods were found
+out about the year 1823, and both occurred within that notorious
+south-east corner of England. The first of these belongs to Sandwich,
+where three half-ankers of foreign spirits were seized floating, being
+hidden in a sack, a bag of shingle weighing 30 lbs. being used to act
+as a sinker. Attached to the sack were an inflated bladder and about
+three fathoms of twine, together with a small bunch of feathers to act
+as a buoy to mark the spot. When this arrangement was put into use it
+was found that the bladder kept the sack floating one foot below the
+surface of the water. The feathers were to mark the spot where the
+sack, on being thrown overboard, might bring up in case any accident
+had occurred to the bladder. At spring tides the rush of the water
+over the Sandwich flats causes a good deal of froth which floats on
+the surface. The reader must often have observed such an instance on
+many occasions by the sea. The exact colour is a kind of dirty yellow,
+and this colour being practically identical with that of the bladder,
+it would be next to impossible to tell the difference between froth
+and bladder at any distance, and certainly no officer of the Revenue
+would look for such things unless he had definite knowledge
+beforehand.
+
+[Illustration: The Sandwich Device.
+In the sack were three half-ankers. A bag of shingle acted as sinker,
+and the bladder kept the sack floating.]
+
+The second occurrence took place at Rye. A seizure was made of twelve
+tubs of spirits which had been sunk by affixing to the head of each a
+circular piece of sheet lead which just fitted into the brim of the
+cask, and was there kept in its place by four nails. The weight of the
+lead was 9 lbs., and the tubs, being lashed longitudinally together,
+rolled in a tideway unfettered, being anchored by the usual lines and
+heavy stones. The leads sank the casks to the bottom in 2-1/2 fathoms
+of water, but at that depth they in specific gravity so nearly
+approximated to their equal bulk of fluid displaced that they could
+scarcely be felt on the finger. The leads were cast in moulds to the
+size required, and could be repeatedly used for the same purpose, and
+it was thought that the smuggling vessels, after coming across the
+Channel and depositing their cargoes, would on a later voyage be given
+back these pieces of lead to be affixed to other casks.
+
+A clinker-built boat of about 26 tons burthen named the _St.
+François_, the master of which was named Jean Baptiste La Motte, of
+and from Gravelines, crossed the North Sea and passed through the
+Forth and Clyde Canal in the year 1823 to Glasgow. Nominally she had a
+cargo of apples and walnuts, her crew consisting of six men besides
+the master. She was able to land part of her cargo of "apples" at
+Whitby and the rest at Glasgow, and afterwards, repassing safely
+through the canal again, returned to Gravelines. But some time after
+her departure from Scotland it was discovered that she had brought no
+fruit at all, but that what appeared to be apples were so many
+portions of lace made up into small boxes of the size of apples and
+ingeniously painted to resemble that fruit.
+
+As showing that, even as late as the year 1824, the last of the armed
+cutters had not been yet seen, we may call attention to the
+information which was sent to the London Custom House through the
+Dublin Customs. The news was to the effect that in February of that
+year there was in the harbour of Flushing, getting ready for sea,
+whither she would proceed in three or four days, a cutter laden with
+tobacco, brandy, Hollands, and tea. She was called the _Zellow_, which
+was a fictitious name, and was a vessel of 160 tons with a crew of
+forty men, copper-bottomed and pierced for fourteen guns. She was
+painted black, with white mouldings round the stern. Her boom also was
+black, so were her gaff and masthead. The officers were warned to keep
+a look-out for her, and informed that she had a large strengthening
+fish on the upper side of the boom, twenty cloths in the head, and
+twenty-eight in the foot of the mainsail. It was reported that she was
+bound for Ballyherbert, Mountain Foot, and Clogher Head in Ireland,
+but if prevented from landing there she was consigned to Ormsby of
+Sligo and Burke of Connemara. In the event of her failing there also
+she had on board two "spotsmen" or pilots for the coast of Kerry and
+Cork. There was also a lugger at the same time about to proceed from
+Flushing to Wexford. This vessel was of from 90 to 100 tons, was
+painted black, with two white mouldings and a white counter. She
+carried on her deck a large boat which was painted white also.
+
+Tobacco was discovered concealed in rather a curious manner on another
+vessel. She had come from St. John, New Brunswick, with a cargo of
+timber, and the planks had been hollowed out and filled with tobacco,
+but it was so cleverly done that it was a long time before it was
+detected. All sorts of vessels and of many rigs were fitted with
+places of concealment, and there was even a 50-ton cutter named the
+_Alborough_, belonging to London, employed in this business, which had
+formerly been a private yacht, but was now more profitably engaged
+running goods from Nieuport in Belgium to Hull. The descriptions of
+some of these craft sent to the various outports, so that a smart
+look-out for them might be kept up, are certainly valuable to us, as
+they preserve a record of a type of craft that has altered so much
+during the past century as almost to be forgotten. The description of
+the sloop _Jane_, for instance, belonging to Dumbarton in 1824, is
+worth noting by those who are interested in the ships of yesterday.
+Sloop-rigged, and carvel built, she had white mouldings over a yellow
+streak, and her bulwark was painted green inside. Her cross-jack
+yards,[21] as they are called, her bowsprit-boom, her gaff and
+studding-sail boom were all painted white, and she had three black
+hoops on the mast under the hounds. Her sails were all white, but her
+square topsail and topgallant-yards were black. The _Jane_ was a
+90-tonner.
+
+The reader will remember considering some time back an open boat which
+was fitted with hollow stanchions under the thwarts, so that through
+these stanchions ropes might pass through into the water below. I have
+come across a record of a smack registered in the port of London under
+the singularly inappropriate name of the _Good Intent_. She was
+obviously built or altered with the sole intention of being employed
+in smuggling. I need say nothing of her other concealments under the
+cabin berths and so on, as they were practically similar to those on
+the _Asp_. But it was rather exceptional to find on so big a craft as
+the _Good Intent_ a false stanchion immediately abaft the fore
+scuttle. Through this stanchion ran a leaden pipe about two inches in
+diameter, and this went through the keelson and garboard strake, so
+that by this means a rope could be led through and into the vessel,
+while at the other end a raft of tubs could be towed through the
+water. By hauling tightly on to this line the kegs could be kept
+beautifully concealed under the bilge of the vessel, so that even in
+very clear water it would not be easy to suspect the presence of these
+tubs. The other end of this pipe came up through the ship until it was
+flush with the deck, and where this joined the latter a square piece
+of lead was tarred and pitched so as scarcely to be perceived.
+
+There must indeed have been a tremendous amount of thought, as well as
+the expenditure of a great deal of time and money, in creating these
+methods of concealment, but since they dared not now to use force it
+was all they could do.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[21] The cro'jack yard was really the lower yard of a full-rigged ship
+on the mizzen-mast, to the arms of which the clews or lower corners of
+the mizzen-topsail were extended. But as sloops were fore-and-aft
+craft it is a little doubtful what is here meant. Either it may refer
+to the barren yard below the square topsail carried by the sloops of
+those days--the clews actually were extended to this yard's arms--or
+the word may have been the equivalent of what we nowadays call
+cross-trees.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS
+
+
+Second cousin to the method of filling oars and spars with spirits was
+that adopted by a number of people whose homes and lives were
+connected with the sea-shore. They would have a number of shrimping
+nets on board, the usual wooden handles being fitted at one end of
+these nets. But these handles had been purposely made hollow, so that
+round tin cases could be fitted in. The spirits then filled these long
+cavities, and whether they caught many shrimps or not was of little
+account, for dozens of men could wade ashore with these nets and
+handles on their backs and proceed to their homes without raising a
+particle of suspicion. It was well worth doing, for it was calculated
+that as much as 2-1/2 gallons of spirit could be poured into each of
+these hollow poles.
+
+Collier-brigs were very fond of smuggling, and among others mention
+might be made of the _Venus_ of Rye, an 80-ton brig which between
+January and September one year worked three highly profitable voyages,
+for besides her ordinary cargo she carried each time 800 casks of
+spirits, these being placed underneath the coals. There was also the
+brig _Severn_ of Bristol, which could carry about five keels of coal,
+but seldom carried more than four, the rest of the space of course
+being made up with contraband. In 1824 she worked five voyages, and on
+each occasion she carried, besides her legitimate cargo, as much as
+eight tons of tobacco under her coals. And there was a Danish-built
+sloop named the _Blue-eyed Lass_ belonging to Shields, with a burthen
+of 60 odd tons, also employed in the coal trade. She was a very
+suspicious vessel, and was bought subsequently by the people of Rye to
+carry on similar work to the other smuggling craft. All sorts of
+warnings were sent to the Customs Board giving them information that
+_The Rose in June_ (needless to say of Rye) was about to have
+additional concealments added. She was of 37 tons burthen, and had
+previously been employed as a packet boat. They were also warned that
+George Harrington, a noted smuggler resident at Eastbourne, intended
+during the winter months to carry on the contraband trade, and to land
+somewhere between Southampton and Weymouth. He had made arrangements
+with a large number of men belonging to Poole and the neighbouring
+country, and had obtained a suitable French lugger.
+
+In 1826 the smacks _Fox_ and _Lovely Lass_ of Portsmouth were seized
+at that port with kegs of spirits secreted under their bottoms in a
+thin contemporary casing, as shown in the accompanying diagram. The
+ingenious part of this trick was that there was no means of
+communication into the concealment from the interior of the vessel.
+Thus any officer coming aboard to search would have little or no
+reason to suspect her. But it was necessary every time this vessel
+returned from abroad with her contraband for her to be laid ashore,
+and at low water the kegs could be got at externally. To begin with
+there were pieces of plank two inches thick fastened to the timbers by
+large nails. Then, between the planks and the vessel's bottom the tubs
+were concealed. The arrangement was exceeding simple yet wonderfully
+clever. Practically this method consisted of filling up the hollow
+below the turn of the bilge. It would certainly not improve the
+vessel's speed, but it would give her an efficacious means of stowing
+her cargo of spirits out of the way. And it was because of such
+incidents as this last mentioned that orders were sent to all ports
+for the local craft and others to be examined frequently _ashore_ no
+less than afloat, in order that any false bottom might be detected.
+And the officers were to be careful and see that the name of the ship
+and her master painted on a ship corresponded with the names in her
+papers. Even open boats were found fitted with double bottoms, as for
+instance the _Mary_, belonging to Dover. She was only 14 feet long
+with 5 feet 9-1/2 inches beam, but she had both a double bottom and
+double sides, in which were contained thirty tin cases to hold 29
+gallons of spirits. Her depth from gunwale to the top of her
+ceiling[22] originally was 2 feet 8-1/2 inches. But the depth from the
+gunwale to the false bottom was 2 feet 5-3/4 inches. The concealment
+ran from the stem to the transom, the entrance being made by four
+cuttles very ingeniously and neatly fitted, with four nails fore and
+aft through the timbers to secure them from moving--one on each side
+of the keelson, about a foot forward of the keelson under the fore
+thwart. Even Thames barges were fitted with concealments; in fact
+there was not a species of craft from a barque to a dinghy that was
+not thus modified for smuggling.
+
+The name of the barge was the _Alfred_ of London, and she was captured
+off Birchington one December day in 1828. She pretended that she was
+bound from Arundel with a cargo of wood hoops, but when she was
+boarded she had evidently been across to "the other side"; for there
+was found 1045 tubs of gin and brandy aboard her when she was
+captured, together with her crew, by a boat sent from the cruiser
+_Vigilant_. The discovery was made by finding an obstruction about
+three feet deep from the top of the coamings, which induced the
+Revenue officer to clear away the bundles of hoops under the fore and
+main hatchways. He then discovered a concealment covered over with
+sand, and on cutting through a plank two inches thick the contraband
+was discovered.
+
+The accompanying diagram shows the sloop _Lucy_ of Fowey, William
+Strugnell master. On the 14th of December 1828 she was seized at
+Chichester after having come from Portsmouth in ballast. She was found
+to be fitted with the concealment shown in the plan, and altogether
+there were 100 half-ankers thus stowed away, 50 being placed on each
+side of her false bottom. She was just over 35 tons burthen, and drew
+four feet of water, being sloop rigged, as many of the barges in those
+days were without the little mizzen which is so familiar to our eyes
+to-day.
+
+[Illustration: The Sloop _Lucy_ showing Concealments.]
+
+Cases of eggs sent from Jersey were fitted with false sides in which
+silks were smuggled; trawlers engaged in sinking tubs of spirits; a
+dog-kennel was washed ashore from a vessel that foundered off
+Dungeness, and on being examined this kennel was found to be fitted
+with a false top to hold 30 lbs. of tobacco; an Irish smack belonging
+to Cork was specially fitted for the contraband trade, having
+previously actually been employed as a Coastguard watch-boat. There
+was a vessel named _Grace_ manned by three brothers--all notorious
+smugglers--belonging to Coverack (Cornwall). This vessel used to put
+to sea by appointment to meet a French vessel, and having from her
+shipped the contraband the _Grace_ would presently run the goods
+ashore somewhere between Land's End and Newport, South Wales; in fact,
+all kinds of smuggling still went on even after the first quarter of
+that wonderful nineteenth century.
+
+About the year 1831 five casks imported from Jersey was alleged to
+contain cider, but on being examined they were found to contain
+something else as well. The accompanying sketch represents the plan of
+one of these. From this it will be seen that the central space was
+employed for holding the cider, but the ends were full of tobacco
+being contained in two tin cases. In this diagram No. 1 represents the
+bung, No. 2 shows the aperture on each side through which the tobacco
+was thrust into the tin cases which are marked by No. 3, the cider
+being contained in the central portion marked 4. Thus the usual method
+of gauging a cask's contents was rendered useless, for unless a bent
+or turned rod were employed it was impossible to detect the presence
+of these side casks for the tobacco.
+
+[Illustration: Cask for Smuggling Cider.]
+
+One may feel a little incredulous at some of the extraordinary yarns
+which one hears occasionally from living people concerning the doings
+of smugglers. A good deal has doubtless arisen as the result of a too
+vivid imagination, but, as we have shown from innumerable instances,
+there is quite enough that is actual fact without having recourse to
+invention. I know of a certain port in our kingdom where there existed
+a legend to the effect that in olden days the smugglers had no need to
+bring the tubs in with them, but that if they only left them outside
+when the young flood was making, those tubs would find their own way
+in to one particular secluded spot in that harbour. A number of
+amateur enthusiasts debated the point quite recently, and a wager was
+made that such a thing was not possible. But on choosing a winter's
+day, and throwing a number of barrels into the water outside the
+entrance, it was found that the trend of the tide was always to bring
+them into that corner. But, you will instantly say, wouldn't the
+Coastguard in the smuggling days have seen the barrels as they came
+along the top of the water?
+
+The answer is certainly in the affirmative. But the smugglers used to
+do in the "scientific" period as follows, and this I have found in a
+document dated 1833, at which time the device was quite new, at least
+to the Customs officials. Let us suppose that the vessel had made a
+safe passage from France, Holland, or wherever she had obtained the
+tubs of spirits. She had eluded the cruisers and arrived off the
+harbour entrance at night just as the flood tide was making. Overboard
+go her tubs, and away she herself goes to get out of the sphere of
+suspicion. These tubs numbered say sixty-three, and were firmly lashed
+together in a shape very similar to a pile of shot--pyramid fashion.
+The tops of the tubs were all painted white, but the raft was green.
+Below this pyramid of tubs were attached two grapnel anchors, and the
+whole contrivance could float in anything above seven feet of water.
+It was so designed that the whole of the tubs came in on the tide
+below water, only three being partially visible, and their white
+colour made them difficult to be seen among the little waves. But as
+soon as they came to the spot where there were only seven feet of
+water the two grapnels came into action and held the tubs moored like
+a ship. And as the tide rose, so it completely obliterated them. Some
+one was of course on the look-out for his spirits, and when the tide
+had dropped it was easy enough to wade out and bring the tubs ashore,
+or else "sweep" them ashore with a long rope that dragged along the
+bottom of the harbour.
+
+During the year 1834 smuggling was again on the increase, especially
+on the south and east coasts, and it took time for the officers to
+learn all these new-fangled tricks which were so frequently employed.
+Scarcely had the intricacies of one device been learnt than the
+smugglers had given up that idea and taken to something more ingenious
+still. Some time back we called attention to the way in which the Deal
+boatmen used to walk ashore with smuggled tea. About the year 1834 a
+popular method of smuggling tea, lace, and such convenient goods was
+to wear a waistcoat or stays which contained eighteen rows well
+stuffed with 8 lbs. weight of tea. The same man would also wear a pair
+of drawers made of stout cotton secured with strong drawing strings
+and stuffed with about 16 lbs. of tea. Two men were captured with nine
+parcels of lace secreted about their bodies, a favourite place being
+to wind it round the shins. Attempts were also made to smuggle spun or
+roll tobacco from New York by concealing them in barrels of pitch,
+rosin, bales of cotton, and so on. In the case of a ship named the
+_Josephine_, from New York, the Revenue officers found in one barrel
+of pitch an inner package containing about 100 lbs. of manufactured
+tobacco.
+
+[Illustration: The Smack _Tam O'Shanter_ showing Method of Concealment
+(see Text).]
+
+The accompanying plan of the smack _Tam O'Shanter_ (belonging to
+Plymouth), which was seized by the Padstow Coastguard, will show how
+spirits were sometimes concealed. This was a vessel of 72 tons with a
+fore bulkhead and a false bulkhead some distance aft of that. This
+intervening space, as will be seen, was filled up with barrels. Her
+hold was filled with a cargo of coals, and then aft of this came the
+cabin with berths on either side, as shown. But under these berths
+were concealments for stowing quite a number of tubs, as already
+explained.
+
+A variation of the plan, previously mentioned, for smuggling by means
+of concealments in casks was that which was favoured by foreign ships
+which traded between the Continent and the north-east coasts of
+England and Scotland. In this case the casks which held the supplies
+of drinking water were fitted with false sides and false ends. The
+inner casks thus held the fresh water, but the outer casks were full
+of spirits. After the introduction of steam, one of the first if not
+the very first instance of steamship smuggling by concealment was that
+occurring in 1836, when a vessel was found to have had her
+paddle-boxes so lined that they could carry quite a large quantity of
+tobacco and other goods.
+
+Another of those instances of ships fitted up specially for smuggling
+was found in the French smack _Auguste_, which is well worth
+considering. She was, when arrested, bound from Gravelines, and could
+carry about fifty tubs of spirits or, instead, a large amount of silk
+and lace. Under the ladder in the forepeak there was a potato locker
+extending from side to side, and under this, extending above a foot or
+more before it, was the concealment. Further forward were some loose
+planks forming a hatch, under which was the coal-hole. This appeared
+to go as far as the bulkhead behind the ladder, and had the
+concealment been full, it could never have been found, but in walking
+over where the coals were, that part of the concealment which extended
+beyond the locker which was empty sounded hollow: whereupon the
+officers pulled up one of the planks and discovered the hiding-place.
+
+It was decided in 1837 that, in order to save the expense of breaking
+up a condemned smuggling vessel, in future the ballast, mast, pumps,
+bulkheads, platforms, and cabins should be taken out from the vessel:
+and that the hull should then be cut into pieces not exceeding six
+feet long. Such pieces were then to be sawn in a fore-and-aft
+direction so as to cut across the beams and thwarts and render the
+hull utterly useless. The accompanying sketch well illustrates the
+ingenuity which was displayed at this time by the men who were bent on
+running goods. What is here represented is a flat-bottomed boat, which
+perhaps might never have been discovered had it not been driven ashore
+near to Selsey Bill during the gales of the early part of 1837. The
+manner in which this craft was employed was to tow her for a short
+distance and then to cast her adrift. She was fitted with rowlocks for
+four oars, but apparently these had never been used. Three large holes
+were bored in her bottom, for the purpose which we shall presently
+explain.
+
+[Illustration: Flat-Bottomed Boat found off Selsey.
+The sketch shows longitudinal plan, the method of covering with net,
+and midship section.]
+
+Built very roughly, with half-inch deal, and covered over with a thin
+coat of white paint, she had a grommet at both bow and stern. She
+measured only 16 feet long and 4 feet wide, with a depth of 2 feet 2
+inches. It will be noticed that she had no thwarts. Her timbers were
+of bent ash secured with common French nails, and alongside the
+gunwales were holes for lacing a net to go over the top of this boat.
+Her side was made of three deal planks, the net being made of line,
+and of the same size as the line out of which the tub-slings were
+always made. The holes in her floor were made for the water to get in
+and keep her below the surface, and the net, spreading from gunwale to
+gunwale, prevented her cargo of tubs from being washed out. It was in
+order to have ample and unfettered room for the tubs that no thwarts
+were placed. She would be towed astern of a smack or lugger under the
+water, and having arrived at the appointed spot the towrope would be
+let go, and the grapnels attached to both grommets at bow and stern
+would cause her to bring up when in sufficiently shallow water. Later
+on, at low tide, the smugglers' friends could go out in their boats
+with a weighted line or hawser and sweep along the bottom of the sea,
+and soon locate her and tow her right in to the beach.
+
+In order to prevent certain obvious excuses being made by dishonest
+persons, all British subjects were distinctly forbidden to pick up
+spirits found in these illegal half-ankers, only officers of the Royal
+Navy, the Customs, and the Excise being permitted so to do. But it was
+not always that the Revenue cruisers were employed in catching
+smugglers. We have pointed out that their duties also included
+Quarantine work. In the spring of 1837 it was represented to the
+Treasury that there was much urgent distress prevailing in certain
+districts of the Highlands and Western Islands of Scotland owing to
+the failure of the last harvest. Sir John Hill was therefore directed
+to proceed to Scotland and take such steps as might be necessary for
+the immediate supply of seed, corn, and potatoes, and the officers and
+commanders of the Revenue cruisers were directed to afford him every
+assistance.
+
+[Illustration: Plan of the Schooner _Good Intent_ showing Method of
+Smuggling Casks.]
+
+In the previous chapter attention was called to the singular
+inappropriateness of calling a smuggling vessel the _Good Intent_.
+That was a smack belonging to the year 1824, which was found at Rye.
+But this name seems to have had a certain amount of popularity among
+these ingenious gentlemen, for there was a smuggling schooner named
+the _Good Intent_ which was seized in the year 1837. How cleverly and
+effectively she was fitted up for a smuggling voyage can be
+ascertained by considering the accompanying longitudinal plan. She had
+a burthen of 72 tons, and was captured by the Revenue cruiser _Sylvia_
+in Mount's Bay on the 14th of March. The plan denotes her principal
+features, including her sail-room and general store right aft.
+Immediately forward of this was the first concealment on the port side
+only. Entrance was gained by means of a slide which was nailed up, and
+here many casks could easily be stored. Next to this came the after
+bulkhead, but forward of this was also a false bulkhead, the distance
+between the real and the false being 2-1/2 feet, and affording a space
+to contain 138 kegs.
+
+Under the cabin were coals, and around the coals under the cabin deck
+were placed some kegs. The fore bulkhead had also a false bulkhead 2
+feet 5 inches apart, and this space held as many as 148 kegs. Under
+the deck of the forepeak were also 21 kegs. The length of these kegs
+was 17 inches, and they were nearly a foot in diameter. Each cask
+contained 4-1/2 gallons of French brandy. This vessel was found to
+have merely limestone ballast in her hold, but her illicit cargo was
+more valuable to her than if she had been fully laden with the
+commodity which she usually and legitimately traded in. Later in the
+same year, and by the same cruiser _Sylvia_, this time off Land's End,
+the Jersey schooner _Spartan_, a vessel of 36-1/2 tons, was seized, as
+she was found to be fitted up with similar concealments (see sketch).
+
+[Illustration: The Schooner _Spartan_.
+
+  1. Hollow beam.
+  2. Opening for entering No. 3.
+  3. Place of concealment.]
+
+One day about the middle of the last century a 16-ton Grimsby
+fishing-smack named _Lord Rivers_ left her native port and journeyed
+south. Her owner and master was in a dismal frame of mind, and
+complained to his mate that things were pretty bad, and he was
+becoming remarkably poor. The fishing was not prospering so far as he
+was concerned, and so after thinking the matter over he was proposing
+to take the ship over to Boulogne and get a cargo of between thirty
+and forty gallons of spirits. His mate heard what he had to say and
+agreed to go with him. So to Boulogne they proceeded, where they
+purchased the spirits from a dealer, who brought the spirits on board,
+not in casks but in skins and bladders, making about fifty in all.
+These were deposited in the smack's hold, and she then cleared out of
+harbour and went to the fishing-grounds, where, to make matters appear
+all right, she remained twenty-four hours, for the purpose of
+obtaining some oysters by dredging. Whilst on the fishing-grounds the
+spirits were stowed in a neat concealment at the stern of the vessel
+on both sides abaft the hatchway. Before long the smack got going and
+ran into Dover with the oysters and her spirits, lowered her sails,
+and made everything snug. In due course the bladders of spirits were
+got out of the hold in small numbers, and placed in baskets and
+covered over with a sufficiently thick layer of oysters to prevent
+their presence being detected. These baskets were taken to a
+neighbouring tap-room, the landlord of which bought as much as he
+wanted, and a local poulterer bought the rest of the spirits and
+oysters as well.
+
+[Illustration: Deck Plan and Longitudinal Plan of the _Lord Rivers_
+(see Text).]
+
+But the local Coastguard had for a long time been suspicious of this
+vessel, and evidently this was not her first voyage in the smuggling
+trade. He had watched and followed the man who took the bladders
+ashore, and now came on board to see what he could find. The deck plan
+will clearly convey to the reader the way in which the smack was
+fitted up with concealments. The letters A and A indicate two portions
+of the deck planking, each portion being about a couple of feet long.
+These were movable, and fitted into their places with a piece of
+spun-yarn laid into the seams, and over this was laid some putty
+blackened on the top. At first sight they appeared to be part of the
+solid planking of the deck, but on obtaining a chisel they were easily
+removed. There was now revealed the entrance to a space on each side
+of the rudder-case in the false stern capable of containing thirty or
+forty gallons of spirits. This in itself was conclusive, but when the
+Coastguard also found that the putty in the seams was soft and fresh,
+and that a strong smell of spirits emanated from this cavity, it was
+deemed that there was more than adequate reason for arresting the
+smack even though the hold was quite empty.
+
+Thus the _Lord Rivers_ came to a bad end.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[22] The ceiling of a ship signified the inside planks.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+BY SEA AND LAND
+
+
+Having now seen the evolution of the smuggling methods from brute
+force and superiority of ships and crews to the point where the
+landing of dutiable goods became a fine art, and having been able to
+obtain an idea of the manifold changes which occurred in the
+administration of the Preventive service between the years 1674 and
+1856, we may now resume our narrative of the interesting encounters
+which occurred between the smugglers on the one hand and the
+Preventive force on the other. Up to the year 1822 we have dealt with
+the different incidents which used to go on around our coast, and we
+shall now be in a position to appreciate to their full the notable
+exploits of cruisers and smugglers in that late period between the
+years 1822 and 1856. This covers the epoch when improved architecture
+in regard to the craft employed, greater vigilance on the part of the
+cruisers, and a keener artfulness in the smugglers themselves were at
+work. Consequently some of these contests represent the best incidents
+in the whole history of smuggling.
+
+But it was not always that the Revenue cruisers and Preventive boats
+were in the right. There were occasions when the commanders suffered
+from too much zeal, though certainly these were quite exceptional.
+There is the case of the _Drencher_ which well illustrates this. She
+was a Dutch vessel which had been on her voyage to Italy, and was now
+returning home up the English Channel with a cargo of oil, bound for
+Amsterdam. Being somewhat square and ample of form, with the
+characteristic bluff bows much beloved by her countrymen, and being
+also very foul on her bottom through long voyaging, she was only a
+dull sailer.[23] And such being the case, when she fell in with head
+winds her skipper and part-owner, Peter Crook, decided to let go
+anchor under Dungeness, where many a sailing craft then, as to-day,
+has taken shelter in similar circumstances.
+
+Whilst she was at anchor waiting for a favourable slant, one of the
+numerous fishing-boats which are always to be seen hereabouts came
+alongside the _Drencher_[24] and asked the skipper if he required any
+assistance. Crook replied that if the wind was still ahead, and he was
+compelled to remain there till the next day, he would want some fuel
+for his stove. The fisherman sold some of his catch to the Dutchman,
+and then went on his way.
+
+But soon after this a boat in the Preventive service, commanded by a
+Mr. MacTavish, a midshipman, came alongside and boarded the
+_Drencher_. The midshipman inquired what the Dutchman had had to do
+with the fishing-boat, and Crook answered that he had done nothing
+except to purchase some fish. But this did not satisfy Mr. MacTavish,
+who proceeded now to examine what was on board. Of course he found
+some casks of spirits, and asked Crook how they came to be there, to
+which Crook answered that they had been found floating in a former
+voyage and he had picked them up. This looked doubtful, but it was
+quite probable, for often the weights of stones from sunken tubs broke
+adrift and the tubs floated up to the surface. Especially was this the
+case after bad weather.
+
+We can well understand the midshipman's suspicions, and need not be
+surprised to learn that he felt justified in seizing the ship because
+of these tubs found on board. He had the anchor broken out, the sails
+hoisted, and took her first into Dover, and afterwards from Dover to
+Ramsgate, where most of her cargo was unloaded. But after a time she
+was ordered to be released and allowed to proceed to Holland, and
+later still her skipper brought an action against MacTavish for
+having been wrongfully detained for thirty days, for which demurrage
+he claimed four guineas a day, besides damage to her cable and other
+things, amounting in all to £208.
+
+The reader will recollect that in another chapter we saw a couple of
+sailing craft dodging about suspiciously in West Bay, one of which
+began to fire signals to the other in order to warn her of the
+Preventive boat: and we saw that the crew of three men in the
+offending craft were arrested and found guilty. One of these men, it
+will be remembered, was John Bartlett, who had at one time been a boy
+on a Revenue cutter. From the incident which led to his arrest in 1819
+let us pass to the 14th of September 1823. The scene is again West
+Bay, and the old passion is still strong in Bartlett notwithstanding
+his sentence. A little to the west of Bridport (Dorset) is Seatown,
+and just beyond that comes Golden Cape. On the night of the above date
+one of the Seatown Revenue officers about 1 A.M. noticed flashes
+coming from the cliff between Seatown and Golden Cape. He proceeded to
+the cliff, which at high-water runs straight up out of the sea. It was
+a dark night with no moon, a little breeze, and only slight surf on
+the shore--ideal conditions for any craft bent on smuggling.
+
+On the cliff the officer, named Joseph Davey, espied a man. He hailed
+him, thinking it was some one else, and asked him if he were Joey
+Foss. "Yes," came back the answer, but when the officer seized him he
+discovered it was not Foss but the notorious John Bartlett. Up came
+another Revenue man named Thomas Nines to assist Davey, but in a few
+minutes Bartlett gave a loud whistle, whereupon Nines looked out
+seaward and exclaimed, "There's a boat."
+
+"I sees him," answered Davey as the craft was approaching the shore.
+By this time, also, there were ten or twelve men coming towards the
+officers, and Bartlett managed to run down to the shore, shouting
+"Keep off!" "Keep off!" as loudly as he could. The officers ran too,
+but the boat turned round and put off to sea again. In the course of a
+few minutes there rose up a large fire on the cliff, about a hundred
+yards from where the officers were. It was another signal of warning
+to the boat. For Bartlett, having got away from the officers, had
+doubtless lit this, since it flared up near to where he was seen to
+run. The officers remained on the coast until daylight, and then
+launching their boat rowed a little way from the shore, and found a
+new buoy moored just by the spot where the lugger had been observed to
+turn round when hailed and warned. It was clear, on examination, that
+the buoy had not been in the water many hours, and after "creeping"
+along the sea bottom hereabouts they brought up sixty kegs, which were
+also quite new, and had evidently only been sunk when Bartlett sung
+out his warning. The latter was again arrested, and found guilty when
+subsequently tried. So again Bartlett had to retire from smuggling.
+
+It happened only a few weeks before this incident that a seaman named
+Willis was on shore with his officer. Willis belonged to H.M.S.
+_Severn_, which was moored off Dover for the prevention of smuggling.
+The officer was a naval midshipman named Hope, stationed ashore.
+Whilst on their duty they began to notice a man, whose name was
+William Clarke, near Chalk Fall, carrying a basket of nets and fishing
+lines. For a time both Willis and Hope took shelter under the Chalk
+Cliff as it was raining, but presently Willis separated from his
+officer to go to his appointed station. It occurred to him that Clarke
+appeared to be unnecessarily stout, and he was sure that he was trying
+to smuggle something. Willis went up to him and said he intended to
+search him, to which Clarke replied, "Certainly." He admitted he had
+some liquor there, but he hoped Willis would take no notice of it. The
+seaman insisted that he must take notice, for if it turned out to be
+foreign spirits he must seize it: whereupon Clarke flung down a couple
+of half-crowns and asked him to say nothing about it.
+
+Willis again protested that he must see what the man had beneath his
+gabardine. But at this Clarke took a knife from his pocket and cut a
+large bladder which he had under his clothes, containing half a
+gallon of spirits, and a spirituous liquor poured out on to the
+ground. Willis put his finger to it and found that it was foreign
+brandy. But the amusing legal aspect of this incident was that this
+foreign liquor could not be seized, nor could the man be prosecuted
+for having it, and it could not be condemned. But Clarke had indeed
+destroyed that which he had so early brought safely home. This was
+just one instance of the good work which the Coast Blockade was
+performing, Willis and other seamen being landed every night from
+H.M.S. _Severn_ to act as guard at different points along the coast.
+
+In the annals of smugglers and cruisers there are few more notable
+incidents than that which occurred on the 13th of January 1823, in the
+English Channel. On this day the Revenue cutter _Badger_ was cruising
+off the French coast under the command of Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N.
+He was an officer of the Excise, but the cutter at that time was in
+the service of the Customs, her station being from the South Foreland
+to Dungeness. About 7.30 A.M. the officer of the watch came below and
+told him something, whereupon Nazar hurried on deck and observed a
+suspicious sail on the starboard tack, the wind being E.S.E. The
+_Badger_ was at that time about nine or ten miles off the French
+coast, somewhere abreast of Etaples, and about six or seven leagues
+from the English shore. The craft which was seen was, to use the
+lieutenant's own language, "a cutter yawl-rigged," which I understand
+to signify a cutter with a small lug-sail mizzen, as was often found
+on smugglers. At any rate, he had every reason to believe that this
+was a smuggling craft, and he immediately made sail after her. At that
+hour it was just daybreak, and the smuggler was about three or four
+miles off--to the eastward--and to windward, but was evidently running
+with sheets eased off in a westerly direction.
+
+But when the smuggler saw the _Badger_ was giving chase he also
+altered his course. It was a fine, clear, frosty morning, and the
+_Badger_ quickly sent up his gaff topsail and began to overhaul the
+other, so that by nine o'clock the two vessels were only a mile apart.
+The _Badger_ now hoisted his Revenue pendant at the masthead,
+consisting of a red field with a regal crown at the upper part next
+the mast, and he also hoisted the Revenue ensign (that is to say "a
+red Jack with a Union Jack in a canton at the upper corner and a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack") at his peak. These signals
+instantly denoted that the ship was a Revenue cruiser. Lieutenant
+Nazar also ordered an unshotted gun to be fired as a further signal
+that the smuggler was to heave-to, but the stranger paid no attention
+and hoisted no colours. Ten minutes later, as it was perceived that
+his signals were disregarded, the _Badger's_ commander ordered a shot
+to be fired at her, and this was immediately returned by the smuggler
+with one of her stern guns. From this time a running fire was kept up
+for nearly three hours, but shortly before midday, whilst the cutter
+was still chasing her and holding on the same course as the other, the
+_Badger_ came on at such a pace that she ran aboard the smuggler's
+starboard quarter whilst both ships were still blazing away at each
+other.
+
+The smuggler's crew then cried out for quarter in English. This was
+granted by the _Badger's_ commander, who had a boat lowered, but
+whilst in the act of so doing the treacherous smuggling craft
+recommenced firing. It was a cowardly thing to do, for Reymas, their
+own captain, had particularly asked the _Badger's_ commander to
+forgive them and overlook what they had done, whilst other members of
+the crew cried out to the same effect. This had caused a cessation of
+fire for about five minutes, and was only reopened by the smugglers'
+treachery. One of the _Badger's_ mariners named William Cullum, was in
+consequence shot dead by a musket aimed at him by one of the
+smugglers. Cullum was standing by the windlass at the time, and died
+instantly.
+
+[Illustration: "The Cruiser's Guns had shot away the Mizzen-Mast."]
+
+The _Badger_, therefore, again began to fire into the other ship, but
+in about another five minutes the smuggler again called for quarter,
+and this was again granted. The cruiser sent her boat aboard her, and
+brought off the smuggler's crew, amounting to twenty-three men, though
+two others had been killed in the affray. The _Badger's_ chief mate,
+on boarding the smuggler, sent away the latter's crew in their own
+boat, and seven of these men were found to be wounded, of whom one
+died the following morning. The name of the vessel was seen to be the
+_Vree Gebroeders_. She was of 119 tons burthen, and had the previous
+day started out from Flushing with a cargo of 42 gallons of brandy,
+186 gallons of Geneva--these all being in the 3-1/2 gallon
+half-ankers. But there was also a good deal of other cargo, consisting
+of 856 bales of tobacco which contained 51,000 lbs., thirteen boxes of
+tea, and six bags of sugar. All these goods were made up in
+illegal-sized packages and she had nothing on board except what was
+contraband. The chests of tea were found all ready slung for landing
+with small ropes.
+
+The _Vree Gebroeders_ was provisioned for three months, and was armed
+with four carronades, 9-pounders, and two swivel muskets, bayonets,
+and other arms of different kinds. Her destination had been for
+Ireland. When the chief mate of the _Badger_ boarded her he found that
+the cruiser's guns had shot away the mizzen-mast, but the smuggler's
+skipper remarked to the chief mate that the spare topmast on deck
+would serve for a mizzen and that the square-sail boom would make an
+outrigger, and that the trysail would be found below, but so far, he
+said, this sail had never been bent. Later on the chief mate found
+also the deck-log of the _Vree Gebroeders_, which had been kept on two
+slates, and it was a noticeable fact that these were kept in English.
+They read thus:--
+
+    +-------------------------------+
+    |   N.W. by N.                  |
+    |   Remarks, Monday 13th.       |
+    |   N.W. by W. At 6.30 Ostend   |
+    |   Light bore S.E. distant     |
+    |   12 miles.                   |
+    |   At 4 a.m. Calais Light      |
+    |   bore E. by S.               |
+    +-------------------------------+
+
+So when the _Badger_ first sighted this craft the latter had made her
+last entry in the log, only three and a half hours before. It was
+significant that English charts were also found among the ship's
+papers, though her manifest, her certificate, her bill of lading, and
+other certificates were all in Dutch. The books found included
+Hamilton Moore's _Navigation_, another similar work by Norie, the
+_British Channel Pilot_, and _Navigation of the North Seas_. There was
+also found a Dutch ensign and a Dutch Jack on board, but there was
+even an English Prayer-book.
+
+The prisoners remained on board the _Badger_ until next day, when they
+were transferred to H.M.S. _Severn_. The _Vree Gebroeders_ was taken
+into Dover, and was valued, together with her cargo, at the handsome
+sum of £11,000, which would have been a fine amount of prize money;
+but in spite of the clear evidence at the trial, the jury were so
+prejudiced in favour of the smugglers that they found the prisoners
+not guilty, their contention being that the ship and cargo were wholly
+foreign, and that more than half of the crew were foreigners.
+
+It had been an unfortunate affair. Besides the death of Cullum and the
+two smugglers killed and the seven smugglers wounded, Lieutenant
+Nazer, James Harper, William Poppedwell, Daniel Hannibel, and James
+Giles were all wounded on the _Badger_, Nazer being wounded on the
+left shoulder by a musket ball. The smuggler's crew had made ludicrous
+efforts to pretend they were Dutch. Dutch names were assumed, but
+witnesses at the trial were able to assign to them their proper
+appellations, and it was significant that the crew spoke English
+without a foreign accent. Her commander insisted his name was Reymas,
+but his real name was Joseph Wills, and he had been foremost in the
+calling for quarter. Another of the crew, who pretended his name was
+Jan Schmidt, was found to be an Englishman named John Smith. The
+vessel herself had been built by a Kentishman, living at Flushing, the
+previous year.
+
+And here is another of those occasions when there was displayed an
+excess of zeal, though under the circumstances who would blame the
+Preventive officer for what he did? In February of 1824, a man named
+Field and his crew of three came out from Rye--that hotbed of
+smugglers--and intended to proceed to the well-known trawling ground
+about fifteen miles to the S.W. of Rye, abreast of Fairlight, but
+about five or six miles out from that shore. Unfortunately it fell
+very calm, so that it took them some time to reach the trawling
+ground, and even when with the assistance of the tide they did arrive
+there, the wind was so scant that it was useless to shoot the trawl in
+the water. Naturally, therefore, it was a long time before they had
+obtained their cargo of flat fish, and when a little breeze sprang up
+they had to get back to Rye, as their provisions had run short.
+
+On their way back, when they were only about four or five miles from
+their harbour, they fell in with a small open sailing-boat named the
+_Rose_, containing four or five men. Field's bigger craft was hailed
+by the _Rose_ and asked to be taken in tow, as they also had run short
+of provisions, and were anxious to get back to harbour at once.
+Field's boat took one of their crew on board, whilst the rest remained
+in the _Rose_ and were towed astern. It was now about four or five in
+the morning, and they had not proceeded more than another couple of
+miles before they were hailed again, but this time by a boat under the
+command of a Preventive officer named Lipscomb, who had been sent by
+Lieutenant Gammon, R.N., from the revenue cruiser _Cameleon_. The
+cutter's boat bumped alongside Field's craft, which was called the
+_Diamond_. After making fast, Lipscomb and his boat's crew jumped
+aboard, and announced that they suspected the _Diamond_ was fitted
+with concealments, and he wished to examine her. But after rummaging
+the ship nothing suspicious was found. Lipscomb then explained that he
+had been ordered by Lieutenant Gammon to take the _Diamond_ and to
+bring her alongside the _Cameleon_ and then to order Field and his
+crew to go aboard the cruiser as prisoners.
+
+This, of course, did not lead to harmony on board. Lipscomb attempted
+to seize hold of the tiller, so as to steer the vessel back to
+Hastings Roads, where the cruiser was lying. But Field turned to him
+and said--
+
+"I don't know about your having the helm. You don't know where the
+cutter is any more than I do."
+
+With that, Field pushed the man aside, grasped hold of the tiller, and
+shoved it hard up, and bearing away, ran the vessel out seawards. But
+after keeping on this course for twenty minutes they fell in with the
+_Cameleon_, and the two vessels came near to each other. The cruiser's
+commander shouted to Lipscomb, and ordered him to get into the
+cruiser's galley, which had been towing astern of the _Diamond_ all
+this time, and to row to the cruiser. This was done, and then Lipscomb
+received his orders. He was to return to the trawler and seize the
+hands and bring them to the _Cameleon_. So the galley returned again
+and brought the _Diamond's_ crew as ordered. It was now 7 A.M., and
+they were kept as prisoners on the cutter till 9 A.M. the following
+day. Lipscomb and his boat's crew of four now took charge of the
+_Diamond_, and began to trim sheets, and before long the two craft got
+separated.
+
+When Field proceeded on board the _Cameleon_ he took with him his
+ship's papers at the lieutenant's orders. He then ventured to ask how
+it was that his smack had been detained, to which Gammon replied that
+he had received information from the Collector of Customs at Rye.
+Field, however, was incredulous. "I rather doubt your word," he said,
+whereupon the officer took out of his pocket a letter, doubled the
+page down one or two lines, and showed the doubting skipper that it
+was as the lieutenant had stated. Gammon then went below and took
+Field's papers with him, and there they remained till the following
+morning.
+
+The _Cameleon_ went jogging along, and having arrived abreast of
+Hastings, Gammon sent one of his crew ashore in the cutter's boat, and
+later on fetched him back. The object, no doubt, was to send the
+_Diamond's_ papers ashore to be examined as to their veracity, though
+nothing was said to Field on the subject. It is clear that the reply
+from the authorities came back that the papers were found in order,
+and that Field was not known as a smuggler; for after the man who had
+been sent ashore returned, the _Cameleon_ made sail, and stood out to
+sea for a distance of eighteen miles. She had lost sight of the
+_Diamond_ and her prize crew, and it was not till about breakfast time
+the following day that the cruiser found the smack again. When at
+length the two craft did come together, Lipscomb was called on board
+the cruiser and summoned below to Gammon. What exactly the
+conversation was never came out, but from subsequent events it is
+fairly clear that Gammon asked what opinion Lipscomb had been able to
+form of the _Diamond_, and that the latter had to admit she was a
+genuine trawler; for soon after, the lieutenant sent the steward for
+Field and one of his men to go below. The two men did as they were
+ordered.
+
+"Good morning," said the cruiser's commander as they came into the
+cabin, "here are your papers, Field."
+
+Field hesitated for a moment; then answered--
+
+"I don't know, sir, as to taking them. I'm not altogether satisfied
+about being detained so long. And had I been aboard the smack, and you
+had refused to let me have the tiller," he continued, getting angrier
+every moment, "I would have shot you as sure as you had been a man."
+
+"You may do as you please," came the commander's cool reply, "about
+taking them, but if you do not choose to take them, I shall take you
+away to Portsmouth and give you up to the Port Admiral, and let him do
+with you as he thinks proper."
+
+Thinking therefore that it were better to be discreet and hold his
+tongue, Field took the papers, went up again on deck, collected his
+men, went back to his smack, and the incident ended--for the present.
+But the Revenue men had clearly made an error this time, and had acted
+_ultra vires_. About a year later Field, as a master and part-owner of
+the _Diamond_, brought an action against Gammon for assault and
+detention, and was awarded a verdict and £5 damages.
+
+It is curious to find what sympathy the smugglers sometimes received
+in a section of society where one would hardly have expected this to
+exist. There are at least three instances of men of position and
+wealth showing their feelings undisguisedly in favour of these lawless
+men. There was a Lieut.-Colonel Chichester, who was called upon for
+explanations as to his conduct in this respect; there was the case
+also of the naval officer commanding H.M. sloop _Pylades_ being
+convicted and dismissed the service for protecting smugglers, and,
+most interesting of all, was the incident which centred round Sir
+William Courtenay.
+
+The facts of this case may be summarised as follows. On Sunday
+afternoon, the 17th of February 1833, the Revenue cutter _Lively_ was
+cruising at the back of the Goodwins, when about three o'clock she
+descried a vessel about five or six miles off which somehow aroused
+suspicions. The name of the latter was eventually found to be the
+_Admiral Hood_. At this time the sloop was about midway between
+England and France, her commander being Lieutenant James Sharnbler,
+R.N. The _Admiral Hood_ was a small dandy-rigged fore-and-after, that
+is to say, she was a cutter with a small mizzen on which she would set
+a lugsail. The _Lively_ gave chase, and gradually began to gain on the
+other. When the _Admiral Hood_ was within about a mile of the
+_Lively_, the former hauled across the latter, and when she had got
+on the _Lively's_ weather-bow the Revenue craft immediately tacked,
+whereupon the _Admiral Hood_ put about again and headed for the French
+coast. After vainly attempting to cause her to heave-to by the usual
+Revenue signals, the _Lively_ was compelled to fire on her, and one
+shot was so well placed that it went clean through the dandy's sail,
+and thinking that this was quite near enough the _Admiral Hood_
+hove-to.
+
+But just prior to this, Lieutenant Sharnbler had ordered an officer
+and two men to take spyglasses and watch her. At this time they were
+about fifteen or sixteen miles away from the North Foreland. One of
+the men looking through his glass observed that the _Admiral Hood_ was
+heaving tubs overboard, and it was then that the first musket was
+fired for her to heave-to, but as the tubs were still thrown overboard
+for the next three-quarters of an hour, the long gun and the muskets
+were directed towards her. The two vessels had sailed on parallel
+lines for a good hour's chase before the firing began, and the chase
+went on till about a quarter to five, the tide at this time ebbing to
+the westward and a fine strong sailing breeze. There was no doubt at
+all now that she was a smuggler, for one of the _Lively's_ crew
+distinctly saw a man standing in the _Admiral Hood's_ hatchway taking
+tubs and depositing them on deck, whilst some one else was taking them
+from the deck and heaving them overboard, the tubs being painted a
+dark green so as to resemble the colour of the waves. As the _Lively_
+came ramping on, she found numbers of these tubs in the wake of the
+_Admiral Hood_, and lowered a boat to pick them up, and about
+twenty-two were found a hundred yards from the smuggler, and the
+_Lively_ also threw out a mark-buoy to locate two other tubs which
+they passed. And, inasmuch as there was no other vessel within six
+miles distance, the _Admiral Hood_ beyond a shadow of doubt was
+carrying contraband.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Admiral Hood_ was heaving tubs overboard."]
+
+After the vessel was at length hove-to, she was seized and ultimately
+taken into Rochester, and information was duly laid against the
+persons who had been engaged in this smuggling adventure. But it is
+here that Sir William Courtenay comes into the story. This gentleman,
+who had his seat at Powderham Castle, Devon, came forward and swore
+positively that the tubs, which the _Lively_ was supposed to have
+picked up, had been seen floating off the coast. He himself was
+staying on a visit to Canterbury, and on that Sunday afternoon
+happened to be sailing about off the Kentish coast, and sighted the
+_Lively_ about two o'clock. He kept her in sight, he said, until four
+o'clock. He also saw the _Admiral Hood_, and witnessed her being
+chased by the _Lively_, but he had seen the tubs for most of the day,
+as they had come up with the tide from the westward. With his own
+eyes, and not through a spy-glass, he witnessed the _Admiral Hood_
+being captured by the cruiser, and followed up this evidence by
+remarking that "the tubs I saw picked up did not come out of the _Lord
+Hood_. I say so sterling and plump."
+
+This was exactly the reverse of the testimony as given by the crew of
+the _Lively_, so it was evident that some one was lying. But to make a
+long story short, it was afterwards found that Sir William was not
+only _not_ afloat that afternoon, did not see the tubs, did not see
+the two crafts, but was miles away from the scene, and at the time of
+the chase was in church. He was accordingly brought for trial, found
+guilty, and sentenced to be imprisoned for three calendar months, and
+after the expiration of this, he was to be "transported to such a
+place beyond the seas as his Majesty may direct, for the term of seven
+years."
+
+He was convicted on unmistakable testimony of having committed
+perjury; in fact, Mr. Justice Parke, in giving judgment at the time,
+remarked that it was the clearest evidence in a perjury case that had
+ever fallen to his lot to try. As to the motive, it was thought that
+it was done solely with a desire to obtain a certain amount of
+popularity among the smugglers. Sir William saw that the case would go
+against the latter unless some one could give evidence for their side.
+Therefore, abusing his own position and standing, he came forward and
+perjured himself. It is a curious case, but in the history of crime
+there is more than one instance of personal pride and vanity being at
+the root of wrong-doing.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[23] How slow she was may be guessed by the fact that she took seven
+hours to go from Dover to the Downs even under the expert handling of
+MacTavish's crew.
+
+[24] She was officially described as a dogger.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+ACTION AND COUNTER-ACTION
+
+
+It is conscience that makes cowards of us all, and this may be said of
+smugglers no less than of law-abiding citizens. A trial was going on
+in connection with a certain incident which had occurred in Cawsand
+Bay, Plymouth Sound. It was alleged that, on the night of November 17,
+1831, a man named Phillips had been shot in the knee whilst in a boat,
+trying with the aid of some other men to get up an anchor. The chief
+officer of the Preventive service at Cawsand was accused by Phillips
+of having thus injured him, and the case in the course of time was
+brought into court. Among the witnesses was one whom counsel believed
+to be not wholly unconnected with smuggling. Whether or not this was
+true we need not worry ourselves, but the following questions and
+answers are well worth recording.
+
+Cawsand was a notorious smuggling locality, and its secluded bay, with
+plenty of deep water almost up to the beach, made it highly suitable
+for sinking tubs well below the surface of the water. And then there
+must have been very few people ashore who had never been concerned in
+this contraband trade. In such villages as this you might usually
+rely on the local innkeeper knowing as much as anyone in the
+neighbourhood on the subject of smuggling. Such a man, then, from
+Cawsand, illiterate, but wideawake, went into the witness-box for
+counsel to cross-examine, and the following dialogue carries its own
+conviction:--
+
+_Question._ "You are an innkeeper and sailor, if I understand you
+rightly?"
+
+_Answer._ "Yes!"
+
+_Q._ "Is that all?"
+
+_A._ "Mariner and innkeeper."
+
+_Q._ "Is that all the trades you follow?"
+
+_A._ "Fishing sometimes."
+
+_Q._ "What do you fish for?"
+
+_A._ "Different sorts of fish."
+
+_Q._ "Did you ever fish for half-ankers?"
+
+_A._ "Half-ankers?"
+
+_Q._ "Casks of spirits--is that part of your fishing-tackle?"
+
+_A._ "No, I was never convicted of no such thing."
+
+_Q._ "I am not asking you that. You know what I mean. I ask whether it
+is part of your profession."
+
+_A._ "No, it was not."
+
+_Q._ "You never do such things?"
+
+_A._ "What should I do it for?"
+
+_Q._ "I cannot tell you. I ask you whether you do it, not what you do
+it for."
+
+_A._ "I may choose to resolve whether I tell you or not."
+
+_Q._ "I will not press you if your conscience is tender. You will not
+tell me whether you do a little stroke in the Fair trade upon the
+coast? You will not answer me that question?"
+
+_A._ "I am telling the truth."
+
+_Q._ "Will you answer that question?"
+
+_A._ "No."
+
+_Q._ "Are you or are you not frequently in practice as a smuggler?"
+
+_A._ "No!"
+
+And that was all that could be got out of a man who probably could
+have told some of the best smuggling yarns in Cornwall. The
+inhabitants so thoroughly loathed the Preventive men that, to quote
+the words of the man who was chief officer there at the time we are
+speaking of, "the hatred of the Cawsand smugglers is ... so great that
+they scarcely ever omit an opportunity of showing it either by insult
+or otherwise."
+
+There was a kind of renaissance of smuggling about the third decade of
+the nineteenth century, and this was brought on partly owing to the
+fact that the vigilance along our coasts was not quite so smart as it
+might have been. But there were plenty of men doing their duty to the
+service, as may be seen from the account of Matthew Morrissey, a
+boatman in the Coastguard Service at Littlehampton. About eleven
+o'clock on the evening of April 5, 1833, he saw a vessel named the
+_Nelson_, which had come into harbour that day. On boarding her,
+together with another boatman, he found a crew of two men and a boy.
+The skipper told him they were from Bognor in ballast. Morrissey went
+below, got a light, and searched all over the after-cabin, the hold,
+and even overhauled the ballast, but found nothing. He then got into
+the Coastguard boat, took his boat-hook, and after feeling along the
+vessel's bottom, discovered that it was not as it ought to have been.
+
+"I'm not satisfied," remarked the Coastguard to her skipper, Henry
+Roberts, "I shall haul you ashore."
+
+One of the crew replied that he was "very welcome," and the Coastguard
+then sent his companion ashore to fetch the chief boatman. The
+Coastguard himself then again went aboard the _Nelson_, whereupon the
+crew became a little restless and went forward. Presently they
+announced that they would go ashore, so they went forward again, got
+hold of the warp, and were going to haul on shore by it when the
+Coastguard observed, "Now, recollect I am an officer in his Majesty's
+Revenue duty, and the vessel is safely moored and in my charge; and if
+you obstruct me in my duty you will abide by the consequences." He
+took the warp out of their hands, and continued to walk up and down
+one side of the deck while the crew walked the other. This went on for
+about twenty minutes, when Henry Roberts came up just as the
+Coastguard was turning round, and getting a firm grip, pushed him
+savagely aft and over the vessel's quarter into the water. Heavily
+laden though the Coastguard was with a heavy monkey-jacket, petticoat
+canvas trousers over his others, and with his arms as well, he had
+great difficulty in swimming, but at last managed to get to the shore.
+The chief boatman and the other man were now arriving, and it was
+found that the _Nelson's_ crew had vanished. The vessel was eventually
+examined, and found to have a false bottom containing thirty-two tubs
+of liquor and twenty-eight flagons of foreign brandy. Roberts was
+later on arrested, found guilty, and transported for seven years.
+
+[Illustration: "Getting a firm grip, pushed him ... into the water."]
+
+A few pages back we witnessed an incident off Hastings. On the 5th of
+January 1832, a much more serious encounter took place. Lieutenant
+Baker, R.N., was cruising at that time in the Revenue cutter _Ranger_
+off the Sussex coast, when between nine and ten in the evening he saw
+a suspicious fire on the Castle Hill at Hastings. Believing that it
+was a smuggler's signal, he despatched his four-oared galley, with
+directions to row between Eccles Barn and the Martello Tower, No. 39.
+At the same time the _Ranger_ continued to cruise off the land so as
+to be in communication with the galley. About 1 A.M. a report was
+heard from the Hastings direction, and a significant blue light was
+seen burning. Baker therefore took his cutter nearer in-shore towards
+the spot where this light had been seen. He immediately fell in with
+his galley, which had shown the blue light, and in her he found about
+two hundred casks of different sizes containing foreign spirits, and
+also five men who had been detained by the galley.
+
+The men of course were taken on board the cruiser, and as the morning
+advanced, the _Ranger_ again stood into the shore so that the
+lieutenant might land the spirits at the Custom House. Then getting
+into his galley with part of his crew, the tubs were towed astern in
+the cutter's smaller boat. But on reaching the beach, he found no
+fewer than four hundred persons assembled with the apparent intention
+of preventing the removal of the spirits to the Custom House, and
+especially notorious among this gang were two men, named respectively
+John Pankhurst and Henry Stevens. The galley was greeted with a shower
+of stones, and some of the Revenue men therein were struck, and had to
+keep quite close to the water's edge. Stevens and Pankhurst came and
+deposited themselves on the boat's gunwale, and resisted the removal
+of the tubs. Two carts now came down to the beach, but the mob refused
+to allow them to be loaded, and stones were flying in various
+directions, one man being badly hurt. Lieutenant Baker also received a
+violent blow from a large stone thrown by Pankhurst.
+
+But gradually the carts were loaded in spite of the opposition, and
+just as the last vehicle had been filled, Pankhurst loosened the
+bridle-back of the cart which was at the back of the vehicle to secure
+the spirits, and had not the Revenue officers and men been very smart
+in surrounding the cart and protecting the goods, there would have
+been a rescue of the casks. Ultimately, the carts proceeded towards
+the Custom House pursued by the raging mob, and even after the goods
+had been all got in there was a good deal of pelting with stones and
+considerable damage done. Yet again, when these prisoners, Pankhurst
+and Stevens, were brought up for trial, the jury failed to do their
+duty and convict. But the Lord Chief Justice of that time remarked
+that he would not allow Stevens and Pankhurst to be discharged until
+they had entered into their recognisances to keep the peace in £20
+each.
+
+But next to the abominable cruelties perpetrated by the Hawkhurst gang
+related in an earlier chapter, I have found no incident so utterly
+brutal and savage as the following. I have to ask the reader to turn
+his imagination away from Sussex, and centre it on a very beautiful
+spot in Dorsetshire, where the cliffs and sea are separated by only a
+narrow beach. On the evening of the 28th of June 1832, Thomas Barrett,
+one of the boatmen belonging to the West Lulworth Coastguard, was on
+duty and proceeding along the top of the cliff towards Durdle, when he
+saw a boat moving about from the eastward. It was now nearly 10 P.M.
+He ran along the cliff, and then down to the beach, where he saw that
+this boat had just landed and was now shoving off again. But four men
+were standing by the water, at the very spot whence the boat had
+immediately before pushed off. One of these men was James Davis, who
+had on a long frock and a covered hat painted black.
+
+Barrett asked this little knot of men what their business was, and why
+they were there at that time of night, to which Davis replied that
+they had "come from Weymouth, pleasuring!" Barrett observed that to
+come from Weymouth (which was several miles to the westward) by the
+east was a "rum" way. Davis then denied that they had come from the
+eastward at all, but this was soon stopped by Barrett remarking that
+if they had any nonsense they would get the worst of it. After this
+the four men went up the cliff, having loudly abused him before
+proceeding. On examining the spot where the boat had touched, the
+Coastguard found twenty-nine tubs full of brandy lying on the beach
+close to the water's edge, tied together in pairs, as was the custom
+for landing. He therefore deemed it advisable to burn a blue light,
+and fired several shots into the air for assistance.
+
+Three boatmen belonging to the station saw and heard, and they came
+out to his aid. But by this time the country-side was also on the
+alert, and the signals had brought an angry crowd of fifty men, who
+sympathised with the smugglers. These appeared on the top of the
+cliff, so the four coastguards ran from the tubs (on the beach) to the
+cliff to prevent this mob from coming down and rescuing the tubs. But
+as the four men advanced to the top of the cliff, they hailed the mob
+and asked who they were, announcing that they had seized the tubs. The
+crowd made answer that the coastguards should not have the tubs, and
+proceeded to fire at the quartette and to hurl down stones. A distance
+of only about twenty yards separated the two forces, and the chief
+boatman ordered his three men to fire up at them, and for
+three-quarters of an hour this affray continued.
+
+It was just then that the coastguards heard cries coming from the top
+of the cliff--cries as of some one in great pain. But soon after the
+mob left the cliff and went away; so the coastguards went down to the
+beach again to secure and make safe the tubs, where they found that
+Lieutenant Stocker was arriving at the beach in a boat from a
+neighbouring station. He ordered Barrett to put the tubs in the boat
+and then to lay a little distance from the shore. But after Barrett
+had done this and was about thirty yards away, the lieutenant ordered
+him to come ashore again, because the men on the beach were bringing
+down Lieutenant Knight, who was groaning and in great pain.
+
+What had happened to the latter must now be told. After the signals
+mentioned had been observed, a man named Duke and Lieutenant Knight,
+R.N., had also proceeded along the top of the cliff. It was a
+beautiful starlight night, with scarcely any wind, perfectly still and
+no moon visible. There was just the sea and the night and the cliffs.
+But before they had gone far they encountered that mob we have just
+spoken of at the top of the cliff. Whilst the four coastguards were
+exchanging fire from below, Lieutenant Knight and Duke came upon the
+crowd from their rear. Two men against fifty armed with great sticks 6
+feet long could not do much. As the mob turned towards them,
+Lieutenant Knight promised them that if they should make use of those
+murderous-looking sticks they should have the contents of his pistol.
+
+But the mob, without waiting, dealt the first blows, so Duke and his
+officer defended themselves with their cutlasses. At first there were
+only a dozen men against them, and these the two managed to beat off.
+But other men then came up and formed a circle round Knight and Duke,
+so the two stood back to back and faced the savage mob. The latter
+made fierce blows at the men, which were warded off by the cutlasses
+in the men's left hands, two pistols being in the right hand of each.
+The naval men fired these, but it was of little good, though they
+fought like true British sailors. Those 6-foot sticks could reach well
+out, and both Knight and Duke were felled to the ground.
+
+Then, like human panthers let loose on their prey, this brutal,
+lawless mob with uncontrolled cruelty let loose the strings of their
+pent-up passion. They kept these men on the ground and dealt with them
+shamefully. Duke was being dragged along by his belt, and the crowd
+beat him sorely as he heard his lieutenant exclaim, "Oh, you brutes!"
+The next thing which Duke heard the fierce mob to say was, "Let's kill
+the ---- and have him over the cliff." Now the cliff at that spot is
+100 feet high. Four men then were preparing to carry out this
+command--two were at his legs and two at his hands--when Duke
+indignantly declared, "If Jem was here, he wouldn't let you do it."
+
+It reads almost like fiction to have this dramatic halt in the murder
+scene. For just as Duke was about to be hurled headlong over the side,
+a man came forward and pressed the blackguards back on hearing these
+words. For a time it was all that the new-comer could do to restrain
+the brutes from hitting the poor fellow, while the men who still had
+hold of his limbs swore that they would have Duke over the cliff. But
+after being dealt a severe blow on the forehead, they put him down on
+to the ground and left him bleeding. One of the gang, seeing this,
+observed complacently, "He bleeds well, but breathes short. It will
+soon be over with him." And with that they left him.
+
+[Illustration: "Let's ... have him over the cliff."]
+
+The man who had come forward so miraculously and so dramatically to
+save Duke's life was James Cowland, and the reason he had so acted was
+out of gratitude to Duke, who had taken his part in a certain incident
+twelve months ago. And this is the sole redeeming feature in a glut of
+brutality. It must have required no small amount of pluck and energy
+for Cowland to have done even so much amid the wild fanaticism which
+was raging, and smuggler and ruffian though he was, it is only fair to
+emphasize and praise his action for risking his own life to save that
+of a man by whom he had already benefited.
+
+But Cowland did nothing more for his friend than that, and after the
+crowd had indulged themselves on the two men they went off to their
+homes. Duke then, suffering and bleeding, weak and stunned, crawled to
+the place where he had been first attacked--a little higher up the
+cliff--and there he saw Knight's petticoat trousers, but there was no
+sign of his officer himself.
+
+After that he gradually made his way down to the beach, and at the
+foot of the cliff he came upon Knight lying on his back immediately
+below where the struggle with the smugglers had taken place. Duke sat
+down by his side, and the officer, opening his eyes, recognised his
+man and asked, "Is that you?" But that was all he said. Duke then went
+to tell the coastguards and Lieutenant Stocker on the beach, who
+fetched the dying man, put him into Lipscomb's boat, and promptly
+rowed him to his home at Lulworth, where he died the next day. It is
+difficult to write calmly of such an occurrence as this: it is
+impossible that in such circumstances one can extend the slightest
+sympathy with a race of men who probably had a hard struggle for
+existence, especially when the fishing or the harvests were bad. The
+most one can do is to attribute such unreasoning and unwarranted
+cruelty to the ignorance and the coarseness which had been bred in
+undisciplined lives. Out of that seething, vicious mob there was only
+one man who had a scrap of humanity, and even he could not prevent his
+fellows from one of the worst crimes in the long roll of smugglers'
+delinquencies.
+
+The days of smugglers were, of course, coincident with the period of
+the stage-coach. In the year 1833 there was a man named Thomas Allen,
+who was master and part-owner of a coasting vessel named the _Good
+Intent_, which used to trade between Dover and London. In February of
+that year Thomas Becker, who happened to be the guard of the night
+coaches running between Dover and London, came with a man named
+Tomsett to Allen, and suggested that the latter should join them in a
+smuggling transaction, telling him that they knew how to put a good
+deal of money into his pocket. At first Allen hesitated and declined,
+but the proposal was again renewed a few days later, when Allen again
+declined, as it was too risky a business. But at length, as "trade was
+very bad," both he and a man named Sutton, one of his crew, agreed to
+come into the scheme. What happened was as follows:--
+
+The _Good Intent_ left Dover on February 23, went as far as the Downs
+about two miles from the coast, and under cover of darkness took on
+board from a French vessel, which was there waiting by appointment,
+about forty bales of silk. In order to be ready to deal with these,
+the _Good Intent_ had been provided with sufficient empty crates and
+boxes. The silks were put into these, they were addressed to some
+persons in Birmingham, and, after being landed at one of the London
+quays as if they had come from Dover, they were sent across to the
+Paddington Canal, and duly arrived at their destination. Allen's share
+of that transaction amounted to about £80. He had done so well that he
+repeated the same practice in April and May; but in June some tea
+which he brought in was seized, and although he was not prosecuted yet
+it gave him a fright. But after being entreated by the two tempters,
+he repeated his first incident, took forty more bales on board, and
+arrived at the Port of London. But the Custom House officials had got
+wind of this, and when the _Good Intent_ arrived she was searched. In
+this case the goods had not been put into crates, but were concealed
+in the ballast, the idea being not to land them in London but to
+bring them back under the ballast to Dover.
+
+[Illustration: "Under cover of darkness took on board ... forty bales
+of silk."]
+
+The first remark the Customs officer made was, "There is a great deal
+more ballast here than is necessary for such a ship," and promptly
+began moving the same. Of course the goods were discovered, and of
+course Allen pretended he knew nothing about the forty bales being
+there concealed. They were seized and condemned.
+
+Becker got to hear of this disaster and that a warrant was out for his
+own arrest, so he quickly hopped across to Calais. An officer was sent
+both to Deal and to Dover to find Tomsett, but found him not, so he
+crossed over to Calais, and among the first people whom he saw on
+Calais pier were Tomsett and Becker walking about together. The
+officer had no wish to be seen by Becker, but the latter saw him, and
+came up and asked him how he was and what he was doing there. The
+officer made the best excuse he could, and stated that he had got on
+board the steam-packet and been brought off by mistake.
+
+"Oh, I am here in consequence of that rascal Allen having peached
+against us," volunteered Becker, and then went on to say that he was
+as innocent as the child unborn. However, the judge, at a later date,
+thought otherwise, and imposed a penalty of £4750, though the full
+penalty really amounted to the enormous sum of £71,000.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+FORCE AND CUNNING
+
+
+A smuggling vessel was usually provided with what was called a
+tub-rail--that is to say, a rail which ran round the vessel just below
+the gunwale on the inside. When a vessel was about to arrive at her
+destination to sink her tubs, the proceeding was as follows. The tubs
+were all made fast to a long warp, and this warp with its tubs was
+placed outside the vessel's bulwarks, running all round the ship from
+the stern to the bows and back again the other side. This warp was
+kept fastened to the tub-rail by five or seven lines called
+stop-ropes. Consequently all the smugglers had to do was to cut these
+stop-ropes, and the tubs and warp would drop into the water, the stone
+weights immediately sinking the casks.
+
+Bearing this in mind, let us see the Revenue cutter _Tartar_, on the
+night between the 3rd and 4th of April 1839, cruising off Kimeridge,
+between St. Alban's Head and Weymouth, and a little to the east of
+where Lieutenant Knight was murdered, as we saw in the last chapter.
+About 1.40 A.M. Lieutenant George Davies, R.N., the _Tartar's_
+commander, was below sleeping with his clothes and boots on, when he
+heard the officer of the watch call for him. Instantly he went on deck
+and saw a smuggling vessel. She was then about thirty yards away and
+within a mile of the shore. Her name was afterwards found to be the
+French sloop _Diane_.
+
+It was rather a warm, thick night, such as one sometimes gets in April
+when the weather has begun to get finer. By the time that the
+cruiser's commander had come up on deck, both the cutter and the
+_Diane_ were hove-to, and the vessels were close alongside. When first
+sighted by the boatswain the smuggler was standing out from the land.
+The _Tartar's_ boat was now launched into the water, and the bo'sun
+and two men pulled off in her and boarded the _Diane_, and then came
+back to fetch Lieutenant Davies. The instant the latter boarded the
+_Diane_, he saw one of the latter's crew throwing something overboard.
+He stooped down to pick something up, when Davies rushed forward and
+caught him round the body as something fell into the water, and a
+tub-hoop, new, wet, and green, was taken from him. Davies called to
+his bo'sun to bring a lantern, so that he might identify the seized
+man and then proceed to search the vessel.
+
+A tub-rail and stop-rope were found on board, and, on going below, the
+hold was found to be strewn with chips of tub-hoops and pieces of
+stones for sinking. The upper deck was similarly strewn, while by the
+hatchway were found sinker-slings. These sinkers in actual employment
+were accustomed to be suspended and hitched round the warp at about
+every sixth tub. The _Diane's_ master was asked where his boat was
+since none was found aboard, but there was no satisfactory answer.
+Tub-boards for fixing on deck so as to prevent the tubs from rolling
+overboard were also found, so altogether there was sufficient reason
+for seizing the vessel, which was now done. She was taken into
+Weymouth and her crew brought before a magistrate. And in that port
+the tub-boat was also found, for the smugglers had doubtless sent most
+of their cargo ashore in her whilst the _Diane_ was cruising about
+between there and St. Alban's Head. It was significant that only three
+men were found on board, whereas smuggling vessels of this size (about
+twenty to thirty tons) usually carried eight or nine, the explanation
+being that the others had been sent out with the tub-boat. But the
+rest of the cargo had evidently been hurriedly thrown overboard when
+the _Tartar_ appeared, and because these casks were thrown over so
+quickly, fifty-nine of them had come to the surface and were
+subsequently recovered. But besides these, 154 casks were also found
+on one sling at the bottom of the sea close to where the _Diane_ had
+been arrested, for at the time when this occurrence had taken place
+the _Tartar's_ men had been careful at once to take cross bearings
+and so fix their position.
+
+One of the most interesting of these smuggling events was that which
+occurred in the Medway. About eight o'clock on the evening of March
+27, 1839, a smack called the _Mary_ came running into the river from
+outside. At this time it was blowing very hard from the N.E., and the
+tide was ebbing, so that of course wind would be against tide and a
+certain amount of sea on. But it was noticed by the coastguard at
+Garrison Point, which commands the entrance to this river, that the
+_Mary_ had got far too much sail up--whole mainsail as well as
+gaff-topsail. Considering it was a fair wind and there was a good deal
+of it, there was far more canvas than was necessary, even allowing for
+the tide.
+
+It was a rule that all vessels entering the Medway should bring-to off
+Garrison Point, and allow themselves to be boarded and searched, if
+required by certain signals. In order to compel the _Mary_ so to do,
+the coastguard at this point fired a shot and rowed off to meet her.
+But the smack held on. She was steering straight for the Isle of
+Grain, and showed no intention of starboarding her helm so as to get
+on a proper course up the Medway. Another shot was fired, and yet she
+held on. Now there were some of her Majesty's ships lying near the
+Grain, which is on the starboard hand as you pass up the river, viz.
+the _Dædalus_ and the _Alfred_. These vessels were of course swung
+with the tide, and between the _Dædalus_ and the Isle of Grain the
+smack manoeuvred.
+
+[Illustration: "Another shot was fired."]
+
+A third shot now came whizzing by from the boat that was rowing hard
+against the tide, and the smack came round between the _Alfred_ and
+_Dædalus_. The coastguard then boarded the _Mary_, and the master said
+he was from Brightlingsea. He pretended that he thought the firing was
+not from the coastguard, but from a ship at the Little Nore, which is
+the channel that runs up to Garrison Point from the Nore Lightship.
+This was curious, for the _Mary_ had been in the habit of going up the
+Medway, and hitherto had always hove-to off Garrison Point for the
+coastguard to come aboard. Her skipper excused his action by stating
+that he was frightened of heaving-to as he might have carried away his
+mast and gone ashore, if he had hauled up and gybed.
+
+But it was pointed out that it was a foolish and unsafe course for the
+_Mary_ to steer between the _Dædalus_ and the Grain Island, especially
+as it was a dark night without any moon, and blowing very hard. But on
+going aboard, the coastguard was not surprised to detect a strong
+smell of gin, as if spirits had quite recently been removed from the
+smack. And after making a search there was nothing found on board
+except that she was in a great state of confusion. None the less it
+was deemed advisable to place a couple of officers on board her to
+accompany her up to Rochester. This was on the Friday night, and she
+arrived at Rochester the same day.
+
+On the Sunday it occurred to the officers to search for the spirits
+which they were sure the _Mary_ had on board, so they proceeded to
+that spot by the _Dædalus_ where the _Mary_ had luffed round and met
+the coastguard boat. After sweeping for half-an-hour they found 115
+tubs slung together to a rope in the usual manner. At each end of the
+rope was an anchor, and between these anchors was a number of tubs,
+and in between each pair of tubs were stones. So the _Mary_ had gone
+into that little bight in order that she might throw her tubs
+overboard, which would be sunk by the stones, and the two anchors
+would prevent them from being drifted away by the tide. The warp, it
+was thought, had been in the first instance fastened to the tub-rail
+in the manner we have already described, and at the third gun the
+stop-ropes were cut, and the whole cargo went with a splash into the
+water, and the vessel sailed over the tubs as they sank to the muddy
+bottom.
+
+[Illustration: Methods employed by Smugglers for Anchoring tubs thrown
+Overboard.]
+
+The usual way to get these tubs up was of course by means of grapnels,
+or, as they were called, "creepers." But the spot chosen by the _Mary_
+was quite close to the moorings of the _Dædalus_, so that method would
+only have fouled the warship's cables. Therefore the following
+ingenious device was used. A large heavy rope was taken, and at each
+end was attached a boat. The rope swept along the river-bed as the
+boats rowed in the same direction stretching out the rope. Before
+long the bight of this rope found the obstructing tubs, stones, warp,
+and anchor, and that having occurred, the two boats rowed close
+together, and a heavy iron ring was dropped over the two ends of the
+rope, and thus sank and gripped the rope at the point where it met
+with the obstruction. All that now remained, therefore, was to pull
+this double rope till the obstruction came up from the bottom of the
+water. And in this manner the articles which the _Mary_ had cast
+overboard were recovered.
+
+She was obviously a smuggler, as besides this discovery she was found
+to be fitted with concealments, and fourteen tholes were found on
+board "muffled" with canvas and spun yarn, so as to be able to row
+silently. Her skipper, William Evans, was duly prosecuted and found
+guilty; and it was during the course of this trial that the
+interesting dialogue occurred between counsel and the coastguard as to
+whether the first warning gun fired was always shotted or not. As we
+have already discussed this point, we need not let it detain us now.
+
+The year 1849 was interesting, as it witnessed the seizing of one of
+the earliest steamcraft on a charge of smuggling. Very late in the day
+of May 15 the steam-tug _Royal Charter_, employed in towing vessels in
+and out of Portsmouth harbour, had been taken to Spithead without the
+permission of her owner, and information was given to the coastguard.
+About midnight she was first discovered steaming towards the port with
+a small boat attached to her stern, being then about half a mile from
+the harbour. Chase was then made and the vessel hailed and ordered to
+heave-to. She replied that she would round-to directly, but in fact
+she held on and steamed at full speed, notwithstanding that several
+shots were fired at her. As she entered Portsmouth harbour she was
+pursued by the Customs boat, who asked them to shut off steam and be
+examined. Of course full speed in those days meant nothing very
+wonderful, and it was not long before she was boarded. She had a crew
+of three, and there were ten men in the boat towing astern, most of
+whom were found to have been previously convicted of smuggling. It
+seems strange to find a steamboat pursuing the old tactics of the
+sailing smacks, but in her wake there were found 150 half-ankers
+within about 300 yards of her and where she had passed. The vessel and
+boat were seized, and the men taken before the magistrates and
+convicted.
+
+But the following is an instance of steam being employed against
+smugglers. One Sunday towards the end of October 1849, about nine
+o'clock in the morning, the local receiver of duties informed the tide
+surveyor at St. Heliers, Jersey, that there was a cutter which (from
+information received) he was convinced was loaded with brandy. This
+cutter was in one of the bays to the N.W. of the island. But as the
+wind was then blowing from the W.N.W. and a very heavy surf was
+rolling in, the consent of the harbour-master was obtained to use the
+steam-tug _Polka_ to go round in search of her, the understanding
+being that she was to be paid for if a seizure were made. The wind and
+sea were so boisterous that the Revenue boat could not have been used.
+
+Steamer and officers therefore proceeded round the coast till they
+reached Plemont Bay, about twenty miles from St. Helier, and there
+they found a small cutter lying at anchor close under the cliff, but
+with no one on board. The steamer lowered a boat and found the cutter
+to be the _Lion_ of Jersey, five tons, with four hogsheads and seven
+quarter casks of brandy. The officers then weighed anchor, and by
+sailing and towing got her round to St. Helier harbour, where she was
+dismantled, and the brandy and her materials lodged at the Custom
+House. This little craft had come from Dielette in France, and as
+Plemont Bay was a very secluded locality, she would have run her goods
+there with perfect success, had she not been discovered while her crew
+were on shore, whither they had probably gone for the purpose of
+making arrangements for getting the cargo landed.
+
+But by the middle of the nineteenth century so thoroughly had the
+authorities gripped the smuggling evil that these men were actually
+sometimes afraid to take advantage of what fortune literally handed
+out to them. The schooner _Walter_ of Falmouth was bound on a voyage
+from Liverpool to Chichester with a cargo of guano on May 30, 1850.
+Her crew consisted of Stephen Sawle, master, Benjamin Bowden, mate,
+Samuel Banister, seaman, and George Andrews, boy. On this day she was
+off Lundy Island, when Andrews espied a couple of casks floating ahead
+of the schooner and called to the master and mate, who were below at
+tea. They immediately came up on deck, and the master looked at the
+kegs through his glass, saying that he thought they were provisions.
+
+The three men then got out the ship's boat, rowed after the casks and
+slung them into the boat, and brought them on board. In doing so the
+mate happened to spill one of them, which contained brandy. This gave
+the skipper something of a fright, and he directed the mate and seaman
+to throw the casks overboard. They both told him they thought he was a
+great fool if he did so. He gave the same orders a second time and
+then went below, but after he had remained there for some time, he
+said to his crew, "If you will all swear that you will not tell
+anybody, I will risk it." They all solemnly promised, the master
+swearing the mate, the seaman, and the boy on the ship's Bible that
+they would not tell the owner or any living creature.
+
+Presently the mate and Banister removed the hatches and handed up
+about two tiers of guano, sent the casks of brandy below and placed
+bags on their top. After the master had been below a couple of hours,
+he asked whether the casks were out of sight. The mate and Banister
+replied that they were, whereupon the master took a candle, examined
+the hold, and afterwards the sleeping-berths, but he could not see
+anything of the brandy. He then went to the boy and said, "Mind you
+don't let Mr. Coplin [the owner] know anything about this business,
+for the world."
+
+The vessel arrived at Falmouth on Sunday morning, the 2nd of June, and
+brought up off the Market Strand. At six in the morning the boy went
+ashore and returned about midnight. The mate was on board and
+addressed him thus, "You knew very well what was going on and ought to
+have been on board before this." For at that time both the master and
+Banister were ashore. On Monday the boy went down to the hold and saw
+the brandy was gone, and the same night about half-an-hour before
+midnight the mate and Banister brought four gallons of the brandy to
+where the boy was lodging, as his share. The youngster complained that
+it was very little, to which Banister replied that one of the casks
+had leaked amongst the cargo of guano or he would have had more.
+
+Ostensibly the schooner had put into Falmouth for repairs. Later on
+the Custom House officers got to hear of it, but it was then the month
+of July, and the schooner had since sailed and proceeded to Liverpool.
+
+On the 1st of October of this same year a highly ingenious device was
+discovered through a hitch, which unfortunately ruined the smugglers'
+chances. In its broad conception it was but a modification of an idea
+which we have already explained. In its application, however, it was
+unique and original. At half-past six on this morning a
+fore-and-aft-rigged vessel was observed to be sailing into Chichester
+harbour. When first discovered, she was about a mile from Hayling
+Island. She was boarded, as smuggled goods were supposed to have been
+taken by her from a raft at sea. Manned by a master and a crew of two,
+all English, she was well known in that neighbourhood. She was
+registered at Portsmouth as the _Rival_.
+
+Her cargo was found to consist of a few oysters and thirteen tubs of
+spirits, but these were attached to the stern in a most ingenious
+manner. By her stern-post was an iron pipe, and through this pipe ran
+a chain, one end of which was secured at the top, close to the tiller,
+the other end running right down into the water below the ship.
+Attached to the chain in the water were thirteen tubs wrapped in
+canvas. The theory was this. As the vessel sailed along, the chain
+would be hauled as tight as it would go, so that the casks were kept
+under the vessel's stern and below water. Now, having arrived in
+Chichester harbour, the helmsman had suddenly let go the chain, but
+the latter had unhappily jammed in the pipe, and the tubs were thus
+dragged with a large scope of chain. The coastguard in coming
+alongside used his boat-hook underneath, and thus caught hold of the
+chain and tubs. The vessel was now soon laid ashore, and when her
+bottom was examined, the whole device was discovered. It had only
+quite recently been added, but the crew were notorious smugglers, so
+they got themselves into trouble in spite of their ingenuity.
+
+[Illustration: The _Rival's_ Ingenious Device (see text).]
+
+And now let us bring this list of smuggling adventures to an end with
+the activities of a very ubiquitous French sloop named the _Georges_,
+which came into prominent notice in the year 1850. Her port of
+departure was Cherbourg, and she was wont to run her goods across to
+the south coast of England with the greatest impudence. In piecing
+together this narrative of her adventures, it has been no easy task to
+follow her movements, for she appeared and disappeared, then was seen
+somewhere else perhaps a hundred miles away in a very short time.
+
+It appears that on April 19 the _Georges_, whose master's name was
+Gosselin, cleared from Cherbourg, and two days later was sighted by
+the commander of the Revenue cutter _Cameleon_ off Bembridge Ledge,
+about one o'clock in the afternoon, about eight or nine miles E.S.E.
+After she had come up she was boarded by the _Cameleon_, and was found
+to have one passenger, whom the _Cameleon's_ commander described as an
+Englishman "of a most suspicious appearance." But after being searched
+she was found perfectly "clean" and free from any appearance of tubs
+or smell of spirits. The Revenue cutter's commander therefore formed
+the opinion that the _Georges_ was fitted with some concealments
+somewhere. In order to discover these, it would be essential for the
+craft to be hauled ashore. He therefore did not detain her, but, as
+she was bound for Portsmouth, put an officer and a couple of men
+aboard her till she should arrive at that port. One thing which had
+aroused suspicions was the finding on board of exceptionally large
+fend-offs. These were just the kind which were used by smuggling ships
+accustomed to be met at sea by smaller craft, into which the casks
+were transferred and then rowed ashore. And what was more suspicious
+still was the fact that these fend-offs were found wet; so they had
+most probably been used recently in a seaway when some tub-boats had
+been alongside the _Georges_.
+
+Somehow or other, when she arrived at Portsmouth, although the matter
+was duly reported, it was not thought necessary to haul her ashore,
+but she was carefully examined afloat. The English passenger found
+aboard gave the name of Mitchell, but he was suspected of being
+Robinson, a notorious Bognor smuggler. And it was now further believed
+that the _Georges_ had sunk her "crop" of tubs somewhere near the
+Owers (just south of Selsey Bill), as on the morning of the day when
+the _Cameleon_ sighted her a vessel answering her description was seen
+in that vicinity.
+
+On that occasion, then, the _Georges_ could not be detained, and we
+next hear of her on May 3, when again she set forth from Cherbourg.
+She had no doubt taken on board a fine cargo, for she had a burthen of
+thirty-one tons, and this she managed in some mysterious manner to
+land in England. There can be no doubt that she did succeed in
+hoodwinking the Revenue service for a time, but it is probable that
+she employed largely the method of sinking the tubs, which were
+afterwards recovered in the manner already familiar to the reader. At
+any rate, Lieutenant Owen, R.N., writing on May 9 from the Ryde
+coastguard station to Captain Langtry, R.N., his inspecting commander,
+reported that this _Georges_ had arrived off Ryde pier that morning at
+seven o'clock. She had five Frenchmen on board besides Gosselin. It
+was found that her tub-boat was a new one, and when she arrived this
+was on deck, but it had since been hoisted out, and Gosselin, having
+been brought ashore, crossed by the Ryde steamer to Portsmouth at 9
+A.M.
+
+What business he transacted in Portsmouth cannot be stated definitely,
+but it is no foolish guess to suggest that he went to inform his friends
+at what spot in the neighbourhood of the Isle of Wight he had deposited
+the casks of spirits a few hours previously. However, Gosselin did not
+waste much time ashore, for he had returned, got up anchor and sails,
+and was off Bembridge Ledge by five in the afternoon, at which time the
+_Georges_ was sighted by Captain Hughes, commanding the Revenue cutter
+_Petrel_. The _Georges_ was boarded and searched, and there was a strong
+smell of brandy noticed, and it was clear that her tub-boat had been
+recently used. Somewhere--somehow--she had recently got rid of her
+"crop," but where and when could not be ascertained. The _Georges'_
+master protested that he was very anxious to get back to Cherbourg as
+quickly as possible; and as there was nothing definite found on board
+this foreign craft, Captain Hughes decided to release her.
+
+That was on May 9, then. But exactly a week later this same _Georges_
+came running into Torbay. On arrival here she was found to have no
+tub-boat, although in her inventory she was said to have a boat 21
+feet long and 9 feet broad. Some of her crew were also absent, which
+looked still further suspicious. Still more, she was found to have
+battens secured along her bulwarks for the purpose of lashing tubs
+thereto. This made it quite certain that she was employed in the
+smuggling industry, and yet again there was no definite reason for
+arresting this foreign ship. We pass over the rest of May and June
+till we come to the last day of July. On that date the lieutenant in
+charge of the coastguard at Lyme (West Bay) reported that he had
+received information from Lieutenant Davies of the Beer station that a
+landing of contraband goods was likely to be attempted on the
+Branscombe station, which is just to the west of Beer Head. It was
+probable that this would take place on either the 1st or 2nd of
+August, and at night. Orders were therefore given that a vigilant
+look-out should be kept in this neighbourhood. Nothing occurred on
+the first of these dates, but about twenty minutes past eleven on the
+night of August 2 reports and flashes of pistols were heard and seen
+on the Sidmouth station as far as Beer Head.
+
+These were observed by Lieutenant Smith and his crew, who were in
+hiding; but, unfortunately, just as one of the coastguards was moving
+from his hiding-place he was discovered by a friend of the smugglers,
+who instantly blazed off a fire on the highest point of the cliff.
+However, Lieutenant Smith did not waste much time, and quickly had a
+boat launched. They pulled along the shore for a distance of a mile
+and a half from the beach, and continued so to do until 2.30 A.M., but
+no vessel or boat could be seen anywhere. But as he believed a landing
+was taking place not far away, he sent information east and west along
+the coast. As a matter of fact a landing did occur not far away, but
+it was not discovered. An excise officer, however, when driving along
+the Lyme road, actually fell in with two carts of tubs escorted by
+fifteen men. This was somewhere about midnight. He then turned off the
+road and proceeded to Sidmouth as fast as he could, in order to get
+assistance, as he was unarmed. From there the chief officer
+accompanied him, having previously left instructions for the
+coastguard crew to scour the country the following morning. But the
+excise and chief officer after minutely searching the cross-roads
+found nothing, and lost track of the carts and fifteen men.
+
+[Illustration: "Taken completely by surprise."]
+
+That time there had been no capture, and the smugglers had got clean
+away. But the following night Lieutenant Smith went afloat with his
+men soon after dark, and about half-past ten observed a signal blazed
+off just as on the previous evening. Knowing that this was a warning
+that the smuggling vessel should not approach the shore, Smith pulled
+straight out to sea, hoping, with luck, to fall in with the smuggling
+craft. Happily, before long he discovered her in the darkness. She
+appeared to be cutter-rigged, and he promptly gave chase. At a
+distance of only two miles from the shore he got up to her, for the
+night was so dark that the cutter did not see the boat until it got
+right alongside, whereupon the smugglers suddenly slipped a number of
+heavy articles from her gunwale. Taken completely by surprise, and
+very confused by the sudden arrival of the coastguard's boat,
+Lieutenant Smith was able to get on board their ship and arrest her.
+It was now about 11.15 P.M.
+
+But, having noticed these heavy splashes in the water, the lieutenant
+was smart enough instantly to mark the place with a buoy, and then was
+able to devote his attention entirely to his capture. He soon found
+that this was the _Georges_ of Cherbourg. She was manned by three
+Frenchmen, and there were still hanging from the gunwale on either
+quarter a number of heavy stones slung together, such as were employed
+for sinking the tubs. There can be no doubt that the _Georges'_
+intention had been to come near enough to the shore to send her tubs
+to the beach in her tub-boat, as she had almost certainly done the
+night before. But hearing the coastguard galley approaching, and being
+nervous of what they could not see, the tubs were being cast into the
+sea to prevent seizure.
+
+Although no tubs were found _on board_, yet it was significant that
+the tub-boat was not on board, having evidently been already sent
+ashore with a number of casks. There was a small 12-feet dinghy
+suspended in the rigging, but she was obviously not the boat which the
+_Georges_ was accustomed to use for running goods. Lieutenant Smith
+for a time stood off and on the shore, and then ran along the coast
+until it was day, hoping to fall in with the tub-boat. Just as he had
+captured the _Georges_ another coastguard boat, this time from the
+Beer station, came alongside, and so the officer sent this little
+craft away with four hands to search diligently up and down the coast,
+and to inform the coastguards that the tub-boat had escaped. When it
+was light, Smith took the _Georges_ into Lyme Cobb, and her crew and
+master were arrested. She had evidently changed her skipper since the
+time when she was seen off the Hampshire shore, for the name of her
+present master was Clement Armel. They were landed, taken before the
+magistrates, and remanded. But subsequently they were tried, and
+sentenced to six months' hard labour each in Dorchester gaol, but
+after serving two months of this were released by order of the
+Treasury.
+
+On the 5th of August the boats from Lieutenant Smith's station at
+Branscombe went out to the spot where the _Georges_ had been captured
+and the mark-buoy with a grapnel at the end of it had been thrown.
+There they crept for a time and found nothing. But it had been heavy
+weather, and probably the tubs had gone adrift without sinkers to
+them. At any rate no landing was reported along the shore, so it was
+doubtful if the tub-boat had managed to get to land. As to the
+_Georges_ herself, she was found to be almost a new vessel. She was
+described as a handsome craft, "and very much the appearance of a
+yacht, and carries a white burgee at her masthead with a red cross in
+it, similar to vessels belonging to the Yacht Club."
+
+The reference to the "Yacht Club" signifies the Royal Yacht Squadron,
+which was originally called the Royal Yacht Club. In those days the
+number of yachts was very few compared with the fleets afloat to-day.
+Some of the Royal Yacht Club's cutters were faster than any smuggler
+or Revenue craft, and it was quite a good idea for a smuggler built
+with yacht-like lines to fly the club's flag if he was anxious to
+deceive the cruisers and coastguards by day. Some years before this
+incident there was found on board a smuggling lugger named the
+_Maria_, which was captured by the Revenue cruiser _Prince of Wales_
+about the year 1830, a broad red pendant marked with a crown over the
+letters "R.Y.C.," and an anchor similar to those used by the Royal
+Yacht Club. One of the _Maria's_ crew admitted that they had it on
+board because they thought it might have been serviceable to their
+plans. The point is not without interest, and, as far as I know, has
+never before been raised.
+
+But to conclude our narrative of the _Georges_. As it was pointed out
+that she was such a fine vessel, and that Lyme Cobb (as many a
+seafaring man to-day knows full well) was very unsafe in a gale of
+wind, it was suggested that she should be removed to Weymouth "by part
+of one of the cutters' crews that occasionally call in here." So on
+the 7th of September in that year she was fetched away to Weymouth by
+Lieutenant Sicklemore, R.N. She and her boat were valued at £240, but
+she was found to be of such a beautiful model that she was neither
+destroyed nor sold, but taken into the Revenue service as a cutter to
+prevent the trade in which she had been so actively employed.
+
+And so we could continue with these smuggling yarns; but the extent of
+our limits has been reached, so we must draw to a close. If the
+smuggling epoch was marred by acts of brutality, if its ships still
+needed to have those improvements in design and equipment which have
+to-day reached such a high mark of distinction, if its men were men
+not altogether admirable characters, at any rate their seamanship and
+their daring, their ingenuity and their exploits, cannot but incite us
+to the keenest interest in an exceptional kind of contest.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDICES
+
+
+APPENDIX I
+
+SLOOPS OR CUTTERS
+
+
+The reputed difference between a sloop and cutter in the eighteenth
+century is well illustrated by the following, which is taken from the
+Excise Trials, vol. xxx., 1st July 1795 to 17th December 1795, p. 95.
+
+In Attorney-General _v._ Julyan and others there was an action to
+condemn the vessel _Mary_ of Fowey, brought under the provisions of
+sec. 4, c. 47, 24 Geo. III., as amended by sec. 6, c. 50, 34 Geo. III.
+There were several counts, including one with regard to the vessel
+being fitted with "arms for resistance," but the case turned on the
+question whether she was cutter-rigged or sloop-rigged. Counsel for
+the prosecution defined a cutter as "a thing constructed for swift
+sailing, which, with a view to effect that purpose, is to sink
+prodigiously at her stern, and her head to be very much out of water
+... built so that she should measure a great deal more than she would
+contain."
+
+Such a definition, however satisfactory it may have been to the legal
+mind, was one that must have vastly amused any seafaring man. The
+judge, quoting expert evidence, explained the difference between a
+cutter and a sloop as follows:--A standing or running bowsprit is
+common to either a sloop or a cutter, and a traveller, he said, was an
+invariable portion of a cutter's rig, so also was a jib-tack. The
+jib-sheet, he ruled, differed however; that of a cutter was twice as
+large as that of a sloop and was differently set. It had no stay. A
+sloop's jib-sheet was set with a fixed stay. Furthermore, in a cutter
+the tack of the jib was hooked to a traveller, and there was a large
+thimble fastened to a block which came across the head of the sail.
+There were two blocks at the mast-head, one on each side. "A rope
+passes through the three blocks by which it is drawn up to the
+halliards." The jib of a cutter "lets down and draws in a very short
+time." A cutter usually had channels and mortice-holes to fix legs to
+prevent oversetting.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX II
+
+LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1784
+
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+Name.            |Number of|Where       |                                 |
+                 |Crew.    |Stationed.  |  Remarks.                       |
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+_Lively_ and }   |   14    | London     | These vessels were the property |
+_Vigilant_   }   |         |            |  of the Crown. The _Lively_     |
+                 |         |            |  cruised in the winter          |
+                 |         |            |  half-year, but in the summer   |
+                 |         |            |  her crew did duty on board     |
+                 |         |            |  the _Vigilant_.                |
+_Defence_        |   16    |Gravesend   | On the Establishment.           |
+_Success_        |   23    |Rochester   |     "       "                   |
+_Otter_          |   13    |Rochester   | Moored in Standgate Creek to    |
+                 |         |            |  guard the Quarantine.          |
+_Active_         |   18    |Eaversham   | On the Establishment.           |
+_Sprightly_      |   30    |Sandwich    | Employed by Contract from May   |
+                 |         |            |  27, 1784.                      |
+_Greyhound_      |   17    |Sandwich    | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  January 27, 1784.              |
+_Scourge_        |   30    |Deal        | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  January 27, 1784.              |
+_Nimble_         |   30    |Deal        | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  April 23, 1784.                |
+_Tartar_         |   31    |Dover       | On the Establishment.           |
+_Assistance_     |   28    |Dover       | Employed by Contract.           |
+_Alert_          |   16    |Dover       | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  April 22, 1784.                |
+_Stag_           |   24    |Rye         | On the Establishment.           |
+_Hound_          | 30 & 24 |Rye         | Contract. Crew reduced to 24    |
+                 |         |            |  on October 9, 1784.            |
+_Surprise_       |   28    |Newhaven    | Contract. Crew reduced to 24    |
+                 |         |            |  on October 9, 1784.            |
+_Enterprise_     |   18    |Shoreham    | Establishment in 1784, but      |
+                 |         |            |  afterwards on Contract.        |
+_Falcon_         | 18 & 28 |Chichester  | Establishment.                  |
+_Roebuck_        |   21    |Portsmouth  |       "                         |
+_Antelope_       |   11    |Portsmouth  |       "                         |
+_Rose_           |   30    |Southampton |       "                         |
+_Speedwell_      |   31    |{ Weymouth  |{ She was on Contract at         |
+                 |         |{ Cowes     |{  Weymouth but was removed to   |
+                 |         |            |{  Cowes on June 10, 1784.       |
+_Swan_           |   23    | Cowes      |  Contract from March 6, 1784    |
+_Laurel_         |   20    | Poole      |      "        "       "         |
+_Diligence_      |   32    |{ Poole     |} Contract. Removed from Poole   |
+                 |         |{ Weymouth  |}  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.   |
+_Alarm_          |   26    | Exeter     | Contract. Removed from Poole    |
+                 |         |            |  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.    |
+_Spider_         |   28    | Dartmouth  | Contract. Removed from Poole    |
+                 |         |            |  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.    |
+_Ranger_         |   21    | Plymouth   | Establishment.                  |
+_Wasp_           |   20    | Plymouth   | Contract.                       |
+_Squirrel_       |   20    | Looe       |    "                            |
+_Hawke_          |18 & 26  | Falmouth   |    "                            |
+_Lark_           |   20    | Falmouth   |    "                            |
+_Lurcher_        |   30    | Penryn     |    "                            |
+_Tamer_          |   25    | Scilly     |    "                            |
+_Brilliant_      |   30    | St. Ives   |    "                            |
+_Dolphin_        |   26    | St. Ives   |    "                            |
+_Brisk_          |   19    | Milford    |    "                            |
+_Repulse_        |   33    | Colchester | Establishment.                  |
+_Argus_          |   24    | Harwich    |      "                          |
+_Bee_            |   16    | Harwich    | Contract.                       |
+_Hunter_         |   25    | Yarmouth.  | Establishment.                  |
+_Experiment_     |   18    | Boston     |      "                          |
+_Swallow_        |   24    | Hull       |      "                          |
+_Mermaid_        |   24    | Newcastle  |      "                          |
+_Eagle_          |   24    | Newcastle  |      "                          |
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX III
+
+
+LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1797
+(_up to June 27_)
+
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+       Vessel.     |         Commander.           | Tonnage.| Guns.| Men. |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+_Vigilant_ Yacht   |{ Richard Dozell              |{   53   |   6  |  13  |
+_Vigilant_ Cutter  |{                             |{   82   |   8  |10adl.|
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Diligence_        | William Dobbin               |   152   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Swallow_          | Thomas Amos                  |   153   |  10  |  32  |
+_Lively_           | Du Bois Smith                |   113   |  12  |  30  |
+_Defence_          | Geo. Farr (Acting)           |    76   |   6  |  18  |
+_Ant_              | Thomas Morris                |    58   |   4  |  15  |
+_Fly_              | Thomas Gibbs                 |    52   |   4  |  15  |
+_Success_          | William Broadbank            |    74   |   6  |  24  |
+_Otter_            | John Matthews                |    68   |  --  |  13  |
+_Active_           | Thomas Lesser                |    75   |   8  |  18  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Swift_            | J. Westbeech (Tide Surveyor) |    52   |  --  |   8  |
+_Nimble_           | William Clothier (Acting)    |    41   |   2  |  15  |
+_Tartar_           | B.J. Worthington             |   100   |  10  |  23  |
+_Stag_             | John Haddock                 |   153   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+       Vessel.     |      Extent of Cruising Station.      |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+_Vigilant_ Yacht   | To attend the Honourable Board.       |
+_Vigilant_ Cutter  | In the winter season the cutter with  |
+                   |   ten additional hands cruised on the |
+                   |   coasts of Essex, Ken, and Sussex    |
+_Diligence_        | Milford to Solway Firth, or as the    |
+                   |   Board should direct.                |
+_Swallow_          | As the Board should direct.           |
+_Lively_           |  "       "        "                   |
+_Defence_          | Gravesend to Dungeness.               |
+_Ant_              | Gravesend to the Nore.                |
+_Fly_              |     "       "     "                   |
+_Success_          | Rochester to North Sand Head.         |
+_Otter_            | Rochester to the Buoy of the Woolpack.|
+_Active_           | Mouth of Medway to N. Foreland,       |
+                   |   round the Longsand and up the       |
+                   |   Swin to Leigh.                      |
+_Swift_            | Downs to the Longsand.                |
+_Nimble_           | Between the Forelands.                |
+_Tartar_           | The Gore to Beachy Head.              |
+_Stag_             | Dover to Brighton, but extended on    |
+                   |  special circumstances.               |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+       Vessel.     |         Commander.           | Tonnage.| Guns.| Men. |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+_Hound_            | J.R. Hawkins                 |   111   |  12  |  30  |
+_Falcon_           | Charles Newland              |   131   |  12  |  33  |
+_Roebuck_          | John Stiles                  |   104   |  12  |  27  |
+_Antelope_         | John Case                    |    97   |  10  |  26  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Rose_             | William Yeates               |   114   |  12  |  32  |
+_Swan_             |                              |[Building at this date]|
+_Greyhound_        | Richard Wilkinson            |   200   |  16  |  43  |
+_Alarm_            | Andrew Dealey                |   130   |  12  |  36  |
+_Ranger_           | Nathaniel Cane               |    80   |   8  |  25  |
+_Busy_             | Alexr. Fraser (mate)         |    46   |  --  |  11  |
+_Hinde_            | Gabriel Bray                 |   160   |  12  |  41  |
+_Dolphin_          | Richard Johns (Junr.)        |   139   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Racer_            | James Wood (mate)            |    40   |  --  |   9  |
+_Speedwell_        | John Hopkins                 |[Building at this date]|
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Endeavour_        | Thomas Peregrine             |    34   |  --  |  11  |
+_Repulse_          | G.G.H. Munnings              |   143   |  14  |  43  |
+_Argus_            | John Saunders                |   135   |  14  |  32  |
+_Hunter_           | Thomas Ritches               |   143   |  14  |  32  |
+_Bee_              | A. Somerscalls (mate)        |    28   |  --  |   9  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Eagle_            | George Whitehead             |[Building at this date]|
+_Mermaid_          | John Carr                    |   112   |  10  |  30  |
+_Viper_            | John Hudson (mate)           |    28   |  --  |   9  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+       Vessel.     |     Extent of Cruising Station.       |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+_Hound_            | N. Foreland to Isle of Wight.         |
+_Falcon_           | Beachy Head to Isle of Wight.         |
+_Roebuck_          | Round the Isle of Wight.              |
+_Antelope_         | Round the Isle of Wight, and from     |
+                   |   Needles to Swanage.                 |
+_Rose_             | From Lool to Lyme.                    |
+_Swan_             | Beachy Head to Lyme.                  |
+_Greyhound_        | Beachy Head to the Start.             |
+_Alarm_            | Between Portland and the Start.       |
+_Ranger_           | Land's End to Cape Cornwall.          |
+_Busy_             | Plymouth Sound and Lawsand Bay.       |
+_Hinde_            | Portland to St. Ives and Scilly.      |
+_Dolphin_          | St. Ives to Padstow, round Scilly;    |
+                   |   Land's End to Helford.              |
+_Racer_            | Chepstow to Ilfracombe.               |
+_Speedwell_        | Holyhead, Bristol Channel, and to     |
+                   |   the Land's End.                     |
+_Endeavour_        | The whole port of Milford.            |
+_Repulse_          | North Yarmouth to Portsmouth.         |
+_Argus_            | Buoy of the Middle[25] to Lowestoft.  |
+_Hunter_           | Harwich to Cromer.                    |
+_Bee_              | Humber, York, and Lincoln, and to     |
+                   |   guard Quarantine.                   |
+_Eagle_            | Tynemouth to Yarmouth.                |
+_Mermaid_          | Berwick to the Spurn.                 |
+_Viper_            | Isle of Anglesea to St. Bee's Head    |
+                   |   occasionally.                       |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+
+[25] _i.e._ doubtless the channel better known as Swin Middle, leading
+into the estuary of the Thames.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX IV
+
+
+LIST OF REVENUE CRUISERS BUILT BETWEEN JULY 18, 1822 AND OCTOBER 1,
+1838
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Fly_ (late _New Charter_)  | July 18, 1822 |  44 | Thos. White     |
+_Lion_                      |    "       "  |  82 | Th. Inman       |
+_Arrow_ (late _Seaflower_)  |    "       "  |  43 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Cameleon_ (lost)           |    "       "  |  85 | Wm. Hedgcock    |
+_Dolphin_                   |    "       "  |  68 | J.B. Good       |
+_Ranger_                    |    "       "  |  71 | Chas. Golder    |
+_Tartar_                    |    "       "  |  82 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Repulse_                   |    "       "  |  82 | W. Good & Son   |
+_Nimble_                    |    "       "  |  65 | Rd. Graves      |
+_Sprightly_                 |    "       "  |  63 | Chas. Miller    |
+_Sealark_                   | Oct. 10, 1823 |  42 | Th. White       |
+_Scout_                     | Aug. 15,   "  |  84 | Th. White       |
+_Fox_                       | Oct. 10,   "  |  85 | Th. White       |
+_Endeavour_                 | July 16,   "  |  45 | N. Harvey       |
+_Adder_ (sold)              | Oct. 10,   "  |  73 | T. White        |
+_Vigilant_                  | Feb. 10, 1824 |  99 | T. White        |
+_Kite_                      | Mar. 21, 1825 | 164 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Hound_ (lost)              |    "       "  | 169 | T. White        |
+_Experiment_                |April 16, 1825 |  43 | T. White        |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Fly_ (late _New Charter_)  |Cowes     | 5 × 6  |  7 × 4 |   --   |   --   |
+_Lion_                      |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Arrow_ (late _Seaflower_)  |Hastings  | 4 × 6  |  9 × 3 |    9   |   --   |
+_Cameleon_ (lost)           |Dover     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Dolphin_                   |Bridport  | 5 × 3  |  9 × 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Ranger_                    |Folkestone| 4 × 6  |  9 × 6 |    8   |   --   |
+_Tartar_                    |Hastings  | 5 × 2  | 10 × 2 |    8   |    4   |
+_Repulse_                   |Ealing    |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Nimble_                    |Sandgate  | 5 × 0  | 10 × 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Sprightly_                 |Cowes     | 5 × 6  |  8 × 6 |    7   |    4   |
+_Sealark_                   |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Scout_                     |Cowes     | 5 × 11 |  8 × 4 |    8   |    4   |
+_Fox_                       |Cowes     | 6 × 6  | 10 × 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Endeavour_                 |Rye       | 5 × 6  |  9 × 6 |   --   |   --   |
+_Adder_ (sold)              |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Vigilant_                  |Cowes     | 6 × 8  |  9 × 4 |    9   |    4   |
+_Kite_                      |Hastings  | 6 × 8  | 12 × 10|   11   |   --   |
+_Hound_ (lost)              |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Experiment_                |Cowes     | 5 × 0  |  7 × 4 |   --   |   --   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Racer_                     | Aug. 10, 1825 |  53 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Viper_ (late _Mermaid_)    |   "  23,   "  |  43 | T. White        |
+_Stag_                      | Feb. 20, 1827 | 130 | T. White        |
+_Diligence_ (lost)          |   "   4, 1828 | 171 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Bee_                       | Aug. 18,   "  |  69 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Stork_                     | Jan.  5, 1830 | 160 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Liverpool_ (now            | July  1,   "  |  28 | T. White        |
+  _Speedwell_)              |               |     |                 |
+_Victoria_                  | Aug. 31, 1831 |  22 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Chance_                    |April  2, 1832 |  58 | T. White        |
+_Squirrel_                  | Jun  21,   "  |  36 | T. White        |
+_Amphitrite_                | July  4,   "  |  30 | Th. Inman       |
+_Victoria_                  |April  2,   "  | 114 | Th. Inman       |
+_King George_               | Aug.  3,   "  |  36 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Wickham_                   |April  2,   "  | 150 | T. White        |
+_Adelaide_                  |   "        "  | 143 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Dolphin_                   |   "        "  |  84 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Liverpool_ (tender to      | Aug. 10    "  |  36 | T. White        |
+  _Kite_)                   |               |     |                 |
+_Hornet_                    | July  6,   "  | 143 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Prince George_             | Nov.  3,   "  |  70 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Providence_                | Dec. 10,   "  |  20 | N. & E. Edwards |
+_Margaret_                  |   "        "  |  22 | T. Inman        |
+_Asp_                       |April 22, 1833 |  32 | T. White        |
+_Lady of the Lake_          |   "  25,   "  |  22 | T. Inman        |
+_Hind_                      | May  25,   "  |  41 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Caroline_                  | Jan. 31, 1834 |  36 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Frances_                   | Feb.  3,   "  |  40 | T. White        |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Racer_                     |Hastings  | 4 × 4  |  9 × 8 |    8   |    4   |
+_Viper_ (late _Mermaid_)    |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Stag_                      |Cowes     | 6 × 9  | 10 × 9 |   10   |   --   |
+_Diligence_ (lost)          |Hastings  | 6 × 9  | 12 × 4 |   12   |   --   |
+_Bee_                       |Hastings  | 6 × 0  | 10 × 0 |   --   |   --   |
+_Stork_                     |Hastings  | 7 × 4  | 12 × 6 |   11   |    6   |
+_Liverpool_ (now            |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+  _Speedwell_)              |          |        |        |        |        |
+_Victoria_                  |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Chance_                    |Cowes     | 6 × 6  |  9 × 6 |9½ to 10|   --   |
+_Squirrel_                  |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Amphitrite_                |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Victoria_                  |Lymington | 6 × 6  | 11 × 0 |   11   |   --   |
+_King George_               |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Wickham_                   |Cowes     | 7 × 3  | 11 × 3 |   11   |    4   |
+_Adelaide_                  |Hastings  | 7 × 1½ | 12 × 2½|   10   |    6   |
+_Dolphin_                   |Hastings  | 7 × 0  | 10 × 3 |    9   |    6   |
+_Liverpool_ (tender to      |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+  _Kite_)                   |          |        |        |        |        |
+_Hornet_                    |Hastings  | 7 × 0  | 12 × 0 |7.6 to 8|   --   |
+_Prince George_             |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Providence_                |Scilly    |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Margaret_                  |Lymington | 5 × 2  |  8 × 4 |    9   |   --   |
+_Asp_                       |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Lady of the Lake_          |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Hind_                      |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Caroline_                  |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Frances_                   |Cowes     | 4 × 6  |  7 × 8 |    8   |    4   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Royal George_              | Mar. 27,   "  | 149 | T. Inman        |
+_Maria_                     |Sept. 10,   "  |  36 | T. Inman        |
+_Vulcan_ (steamer)          | Oct. 30,   "  | 325 | T. White        |
+_Hamilton_                  | Jan. 11, 1835 |  59 | T. White        |
+_Cameleon_                  | Feb. 21,   "  |  89 | T. Inman        |
+_Kingstown_                 | May   4,   "  |  21 | T. Inman        |
+_Bat_                       | Nov. 20,   "  |  37 | T. White        |
+_Tiger_                     | Mar.  8, 1836 |  18 | T. Inman        |
+_Onyx_                      |Sept.  1,   "  |  36 | T. White        |
+_Flying Fish_               |   "        "  |  41 | T. White        |
+_Gertrude_                  | Oct. 26, 1836 |  37 | T. White        |
+_Royal Charlotte_           |   "  27,   "  | 130 | T. White        |
+_Active_                    |   "  29,   "  | 101 | T. Inman        |
+_Vixen_                     | Feb. 11, 1837 |  56 | T. White        |
+_Ferret_                    | Mar. 18,   "  |  39 | T. Inman        |
+_Desmond_                   | June 10,   "  |  68 | T. Inman        |
+_Harpy_                     | Oct. 10,   "  | 145 | T. White        |
+_Asp_                       | Feb. 20, 1838 |  46 | T. Inman        |
+_Rose_                      |   "        "  |  53 | T. Inman        |
+_Adder_                     |   "        "  |  53 | T. White        |
+_Neptune_                   | June 19, 1838 |  42 | T. White        |
+_Kingstown_                 | Oct.  1,   "  |  35 | Pinney & Adams  |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Royal George_              |Lymington |  6 × 8 | 11 × 3 |   11   |    2   |
+_Maria_                     |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Vulcan_ (steamer)          |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Hamilton_                  |Cowes     |  5 × 6 |  9 × 6 |    9   |    4   |
+_Cameleon_                  |Lymington |  6 × 6 | 10 × 6 |   10   |   --   |
+_Kingstown_                 |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Bat_                       |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Tiger_                     |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Onyx_                      |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Flying Fish_               |Cowes     |  5 × 3 |  8 × 3 |    8   |    4   |
+_Gertrude_                  |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Royal Charlotte_           |Cowes     |  6 × 5 | 10 × 9 |   10   |    6   |
+_Active_                    |Lymington |  6 × 2 | 11 × 1 |   10   |    6   |
+_Vixen_                     |Cowes     |  5 × 3 |  8 × 4 |   10   |   --   |
+_Ferret_                    |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Desmond_                   |Lymington |  4 × 9 |  8 × 6 |    9   |   --   |
+_Harpy_                     |Cowes     |  6 × 7 | 11 × 3 |   11   |   --   |
+_Asp_                       |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Rose_                      |Lymington |  5 × 6 |  9 × 3 |   10   |   --   |
+_Adder_                     |Cowes     |  5 × 2 |  8 × 3 |  [Never Tried]  |
+_Neptune_                   |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Kingstown_                 |Poole     |  6 × 4 |  9 × 4 |   --   |   --   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+_N.B._--There is no information to show how the rate of sailing was
+assessed. We know not (a) whether the vessel was sailing on a wind or
+off; whether close-hauled or with the wind abeam; (b) whether the
+distance was taken from a measured mile reckoned between two fixed
+objects ashore; (c) what sail was set; whether reefed or not; (d)
+whether the speed was estimated by means of the old-fashioned log.
+
+It is probable that the last mentioned was the method employed, but in
+any one of these cases the rate given can only be approximate unless
+we know the force and angle of the wind at each trial trip. The
+non-nautical reader may be reminded in considering the rates given
+above that a knot is equivalent to 1000 fathoms or, more exactly, 6086
+English feet.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX V
+
+SPECIFICATION FOR BUILDING A CUTTER FOR THE REVENUE SERVICE OF
+THIRTY-FIVE TONS
+
+(_As built in the year 1838_)
+
+
+  LENGTH.--From Stem to Sternpost, 44 feet. Keel for tonnage, 41
+      feet.
+
+  BREADTH.--Extreme from outside the Plank, 14 feet 5 inches.
+
+  DEPTH.--From the upper-part of the Main Hatch-Beam to the Ceiling
+      alongside the Keelson, 7 feet 8 inches.
+
+  KEEL.--The Keel to be of good sound Elm, in not more than two
+      pieces, with Hook and Butt Scarphs 6 feet long, sided 6-1/2
+      inches. Depth aft 12 inches, forward 14 inches, with a false
+      Keel.
+
+  STEM.--To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+      defects, sided 5-1/2 inches, and to be sufficiently thick at
+      the head to admit of a hole for the Main Stay.
+
+  STERN POST.--To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+      defects, sided 5-1/2 inches.
+
+  DEAD WOOD.--The Dead Wood both forward and aft to be of Oak, clear
+      of Sap and all defects, except the two lower pieces which may
+      be Elm, and secured by a Knee well bolted through the
+      Sternpost, and Dead Wood aft, and Stem and Dead Wood forward.
+
+  FLOORS AND FUTTOCKS.--To be sided 5-1/2 and not more than 6 inches
+      apart. The lower Futtocks sided 5-1/2 inches, second Futtocks
+      5, third Futtocks 5, and Toptimbers 4-1/2, Stantions 4 inches.
+      The heels of the lower Futtocks to meet on the Keel, all the
+      Timber to be well grown and seasoned, clear of Sap and other
+      defects;--of English Oak.
+
+  KEELSON.--The Keelson to run well forward and aft, of sound Oak,
+      clear of Sap, sided 7 inches and moulded 9 inches Midships. The
+      ends moulded 7 inches and sided 6 inches. To be bolted through
+      the floors and Keel with 3/4 inch Copper Bolts well clenched on
+      a ring, under the Keel.
+
+  STANTIONS.--Stantions sided 4 inches at the Gunwale and 3-1/2
+      inches at the Head, and so spaced as to form 4 ports, each side
+      20 inches in the clear, and the port lids hung with composition
+      hooks and hinges to roughtree rail and one Stantion between
+      each port, or more if necessary.
+
+  COUNTER-TIMBERS.--To be sided from 4-1/2 to 4 inches and the
+      Transoms well kneed.
+
+  BREAST-HOOKS.--To have 3 Breast-Hooks, one under the Bowsprit sided
+      4 inches, the others sided 4-1/2 inches, all of the best
+      English Oak, with arms not less than 3 feet long, clear of Sap
+      and other defects; the two lower ones to be bolted with Copper
+      Bolts. The Throat Bolt to be 3/4 inch diameter, to go through
+      the stem and clenched, and three in each arm of 5/8, all well
+      clenched on a ring.
+
+  BEAMS.--The Beams to be good sound Oak, clear of all defects, to
+      round up 5-1/2 inches. The Beam before and the Beam abaft the
+      Mast to be sided 6 inches, and moulded 6 inches, and not more
+      than 4 feet apart, and to have two Wood lodging Knees to each,
+      also one Iron hanging Knee to each; the remainder of the Beams
+      to be sided 5 inches, and moulded 5 inches, and regularly
+      spaced, and not more than three feet from Centre to Centre,
+      with two 1 inch dowels in each end, instead of dovetailing into
+      the shelf-piece, with a 5/8 inch bolt through each dowel, and
+      an inch and quarter hole bored in the end of all the Beams 10
+      inches in, and another from the under side to meet it, then
+      seared with a hot Iron to admit Air.
+
+  CARLINGS AND LEDGERS.--To have 2 fore and aft Carlings between each
+      Beam 4 inches by 3-1/2, and a Ledge 3-1/2 by 3 inches between
+      the Beams where required. The Mast Carlings to be good English
+      Oak, 4 inches thick, and 10 inches broad.
+
+  WALES AND BOTTOM PLANK.--The Wales to be of English well-seasoned
+      Oak, 3 inches thick, clear of all defects, with one strake of
+      2-1/2 inches thick next under the Wales, and one bilge strake
+      of 2-1/2 inch each side. The remainder of the Bottom to be full
+      2 inches thick when worked, all of sound English Oak, except
+      the Garboard and one next to it which may be of Elm; Plank to
+      work 16 feet long with 6 feet shifts, and two strakes between
+      each Butt: the first strake above the Wales to be 2 inches
+      thick, the remainder 2 inches, paint strake 2 inches.
+
+  SPIRKETTING.--The Spirketting to be 2 inches thick.
+
+  WATERWAYS.--The Waterways to be of English Oak, 3 inches thick,
+      clear of Sap and strakes, and not less than 6 inches broad in
+      any part.
+
+  PLANSHEER.--The Plansheer of good English Oak, full 2 inches thick
+      when worked, and to form the lower Port Sills.
+
+  SHELF PIECES.--The Shelf Pieces to be fitted to the Timbers instead
+      of working it over the Clamp, as heretofore, to be of good
+      sound English Oak, 6 inches broad, 3-1/2 inches thick, and
+      bolted with 5/8 inch bolts, two feet apart, well clenched.
+
+  CLAMPS.--The Clamps to be of good sound Oak, 8 inches broad and 2
+      inches thick, fitted up to the under side of the Shelf Pieces.
+
+  CEILING.--To have two strakes of 2 inch Oak on the Floor and lower
+      Futtock Heads, both sides, and the Ceiling to be of 1-1/4 inch
+      Oak, all English, as high as one foot above the lower Deck; the
+      remainder as high as the clamp, to be of Red Pine, clear of Sap
+      and other defects, 3/4 inch thick.
+
+  CHANNELS.--The Main Channels to be of the best English Oak, of
+      sufficient breadth, to convey the rigging clear of the Weather
+      Cloth Rail, and 3-1/2 inches thick with 4 substantial
+      Chainplates with Iron bound Dead-eyes complete, on each side.
+      The two lower bolts in each plate to be 1 inch in diameter. No
+      Bolt in the Chainplate through the Channel as usual. The
+      Chainplates to be let their thickness into the edge of the
+      Channel, and an Iron plate 3 inches broad, and 3/8 inch thick,
+      secured over all by Small Bolts 4-1/2 inches long.
+
+  PORTS.--To have 4 Ports on each side properly spaced, and the Port
+      Lids hung with Copper Hooks and Hinges.
+
+  BULWARK.--The Bulwark to be of Baltic Red Pine 1 inch thick, to be
+      worked in narrow strakes about 5 inches broad. The edges
+      grooved and tongued together, and not lined as usual, except
+      from forward to bow port.
+
+  ROUGHTREE RAIL.--To be of good clean, straight grained Oak 4-1/2
+      inches broad, and 2-1/4 deep, to be fitted with a sufficient
+      number of Iron Stantions 2-6/8 inches long, with Oak Rail 2
+      inches square for Weather Cloths. The Roughtree Rail to be 2
+      feet high from Deck.
+
+  DECK.--The Upper Deck to be of the best Baltic Red Pine, full 2
+      inches thick when worked, clear of Sap, strakes, &c., and not
+      more than 5 inches broad each plank. The plank under, and
+      between the Bitts Knees, to be English Oak 2-1/2 inches thick,
+      the whole to be fastened with Copper Nails of sufficient
+      length.
+
+  BITTS.--The Bowsprit Bitts to run down to the Ceiling, with a Bolt
+      in the Keel of each, and so placed that the Bowsprit may be run
+      aft clear of the Mast Larboard Side. Size of the Bitts at the
+      head fore and aft 7 inches, thwartships 6 inches, and to be the
+      same size at lower part of Deck, with a regular taper to heel.
+      The Windlass Bitts to be sided 7 inches, and left broad and
+      high enough above the Deck to admit of a Patent Pinion Cog, and
+      Multiplying Wheels to be fitted to Windlass, with Crank,
+      Handles, &c. To have good and sufficient Knees to all the
+      Bitts. The Bowsprit Bitt Knees sided 6 inches, Windlass Bitt
+      Knees sided 5 inches.
+
+  WINDLASS.--The Barrel of the Windlass to be of good sound English
+      Oak, clear of all defects, diameter in the middle 10 inches,
+      and fitted with Patent Iron Palls, with two hoops on each end,
+      and seasoned Elm Whelps 2-1/2 inches thick, hollowed in the
+      middle for Chain Cable 14 inches long, taking care that it
+      leads far from the Hawse Holes, to have 6 Iron Plates let into
+      the Angles of the Whelps. The Iron Spindle to be 2 inches
+      Diameter, and to let into the Barrel of the Windlass 12 inches,
+      and to be fitted with Pinion, Cog, and Multiplying Wheels and
+      Crank Handles, to have two Windlass ends not more than a foot
+      long each; care must be taken not to cut the Handspike holes
+      where the Chain Cable works.
+
+  SCUPPERS.--To have 2 oval Lead Scuppers, each side, 3 by 1-3/4 inch
+      in the clear.
+
+  EYE PLATES.--To have two stout Iron Eye Plates, both sides forward
+      for Bowsprit, Shrouds, &c. with two Bolts in each, and three
+      Plates both sides for Runners and Tackles aft, the Eyes to
+      reach up to the top of Roughtree Rail, and to have a good
+      strong Iron Hanging Knee each side to the Beams abreast the
+      Runners.
+
+  HATCHWAYS.--The Main Hatchway to be 4 feet broad and 3 feet fore
+      and aft in the clear. The Combins 3 inches thick and 11 inches
+      broad, let down on Carlings 3 inches thick and 4-1/2 inches
+      broad.
+
+  SKYLIGHTS.--To be fitted with two Skylights with Plate Glass and
+      Copper Guard, Commanders to be 3 feet long and 2 feet broad;
+      Mates Skylight 2 feet square, with Plate Glass, Copper Bars 3/8
+      diameter.
+
+  ILLUMINATORS.--To have 10 oblong 4 inch Illuminators let into the
+      Deck where most required, and a 5 inch Patent one over the
+      Water Closet.
+
+  WINCH.--To have a Patent Winch round the Mast, and the Mast to be
+      wedged in the partners.
+
+  PUMPS.--To be fitted with two Metal Bilge Pumps 3-1/2 inch chamber
+      and everything complete; also one Metal Pump amidships with 6
+      inch chamber, and two sets of Brass Boxes, and everything
+      requisite; also a Wash Deck Pump fitted aft.
+
+  RUDDER.--To have a good and sufficient Rudder with two sets of
+      Metal Pintles and Braces, and one Iron Pintle and Brace at the
+      head of the Sternpost above the Deck, and to be fitted with two
+      good Tillers.
+
+  COMPANION.--To be fitted with a Companion and Bittacle complete.
+
+  HAWSEPIPES.--To have two stout cast Iron Hawsepipes for Chain Cable
+      4 inches in the clear, also two Cast Iron Pipes in the Deck
+      with Bell Mouth, to conduct the Chain Cable below.
+
+  LOWER DECK.--The Lower Deck Beams to be regularly spaced and not
+      more than 4 feet apart, the Deck to be 1-1/4 inches thick, of
+      good Red Pine, the Midships part 3 feet broad, to be fastened
+      to the Beams, also some of the side plank, the remainder made
+      into Hatches, the edges bolted together with 1/2 inch Iron, the
+      Deck and Cabin Floor abaft, Main Hatch to be 1 inch thick, and
+      made into Hatches where required.
+
+  MAGAZINE.--To have a Magazine abaft, properly fitted and lined on
+      the inside with 5 lb. Lead, and Double Doors with Copper Hinges
+      and Lock to the outside Door.
+
+  BREAD ROOM.--To have Bread Rooms and Flour Bins lined with Tin as
+      usual.
+
+  GALLEY.--The Galley under the Fire Hearth to be coppered with 32
+      oz. Sheet Copper 5 feet square, and the under part of the Upper
+      Deck, Beams, &c.; over the Boilers 4 feet square, to be leaded
+      with 6 lb. Lead.
+
+  LOCKERS AND BINS.--To be fitted with Store Bins and Lockers from
+      the Bows to the Cabin Bulkheads between Decks.
+
+  BULKHEADS.--To have Bulkheads between Decks for Commander's Cabin,
+      State Room, and all other Bulkheads, as is customary for a
+      Revenue Cruiser of the 3rd class, with all Drawers, Cupboards,
+      Bed-places, Tables, Wash-stands, &c. complete. The Cabin
+      Bulkheads to be framed in Panels, all Hinges to be Brass with
+      Brass Pins.
+
+  BULKHEADS, HOLD.--To have Bulkheads in the Hold, for Coals, Stores,
+      Casks, Chain Cables, &c., and an opening of one inch left
+      between each Plank to give air, except the Coal-hole which must
+      be close.
+
+  LADDERS.--To have a Main Hatch, Fore Hatch, and Cabin Ladder
+      complete.
+
+  CLEATS.--To be fitted complete, with all Cleats, Cavels, Snatch
+      Cleats with Shieves, Brass coated Belaying Cleats, and Racks
+      with Belaying Pins, &c., and an Iron Crutch on Taffrail for the
+      Boom.
+
+  FASTENINGS.--The whole of the Plank to be fastened with good well
+      seasoned Treenails, and one 1/2 inch Copper Bolt in every Butt
+      from the Keel up to the Wales, to go through and clench on a
+      Ring on the Ceiling, and the Treenails drove through the
+      Ceiling, wedged on the inside and caulked outside.
+
+  RING AND EYE BOLTS.--To be fitted with all necessary Ring and Eye
+      Bolts, as customary for a Revenue Cruiser.
+
+  LEGS.--To have 2 substantial Oak Legs properly fitted.
+
+  PAINT.--The whole of the Wood Work inside and out to have three
+      coats of the best Paint, well put on.
+
+  HULL.--The Hull to be completed in every respect as a Revenue
+      Cruiser of the 3rd Class, and all Materials found by the
+      Contractor, except Copper Sheathing for the Bottom and
+      Water-Closets, with all Shipwrights', Caulkers', Joiners',
+      Blacksmiths', Copper-smiths', Braziers', Glaziers', Plumbers'
+      and Painters' work.
+
+  CATHEAD.--To have an Iron Cathead with two Shieves strong enough to
+      cat the Anchor, and fitted both sides.
+
+  COCK.--To have a Stop Cock fitted forward under the Lower Deck, to
+      let in Water occasionally.
+
+  WATER-CLOSET.--To have a Patent Water-Closet of Danton's fitted
+      below, and a Round-house on Deck, aft Starboard side complete,
+      with a Pantry for meat, the Larboard side to correspond with
+      the Round-house, and a Poop Deck between both, nailed with
+      Copper Nails; also a seat of ease on the Larboard side forward
+      for the Crew, with Lead Pipe to water edge; the whole of the
+      Locks throughout to be Brass and Brass Works.
+
+  AIR OPENINGS.--An inch opening to be left all fore and aft under
+      the Clamp both sides, also in the Ceiling between the Lower
+      Deck Beams, and another in the upper part of the Bins, and one
+      inch auger hole bored between the Timbers in the run aft and
+      forward where lists cannot be left out, also a hole of one inch
+      in all the Timbers, fore and aft, to admit air, and those holes
+      seared with a hot iron; all Chocks for securing the frame
+      Timbers together are to be split out before the bottom Plank is
+      worked.
+
+  The Cutter to remain in frame for one Month before closed in, then
+      when the outside Plank is worked and all the Sap taken off the
+      Timbers, and before the Ceiling is worked, to give the Timbers
+      a good coat of Stockholm Tar.
+
+  Should there be any omission or want of more full statement in this
+      Specification, the Contractor is to understand that the Hull of
+      the said Vessel is to be fitted and completed fit for Sea in
+      every respect as is usual for a Revenue Vessel of her Class,
+      the Board finding the Copper Sheathing and Water-Closet.
+
+  DEFECTS TO BE AMENDED.--Any defects discovered in the Timbers or
+      Plank, &c., by the Officer or Overseer appointed by the
+      Honourable Board of Customs to survey and inspect the same, or
+      insufficient workmanship performed to the said Cutter during
+      her building, the said defect or deficiency both in the one and
+      in the other, shall upon notice thereof to the Contractor be
+      forthwith amended, and the said Overseer shall not at any time
+      have any molestation or obstruction therein.
+
+_Note._--For a 150-ton Revenue Cutter the following dimensions were
+employed:--
+
+     Length.--(Stem to Sternpost) 72 feet. Keel for Tonnage, 68 feet.
+     Breadth.--(Extreme) 22 feet 10 inches.
+     Depth.--10 feet 3 inches.
+     Beams to be 7 inches.
+     Deck to be 2 inches thick.
+     Four Oak Legs to be supplied
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VI
+
+DIMENSIONS OF SPARS OF REVENUE CUTTERS
+
+
+The following list shows the length and thickness of mast, boom,
+bowsprit, gaff, topmast, and spread-yard [_i.e._ the yard on which the
+square-sail was set] as used in the Revenue Cutters of different sizes
+from 150 to 40 tons. The dimensions given below were those in vogue in
+the year 1838.
+
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+Spar.         | 150 Tons.| 130 Tons.| 100 Tons.|  90 Tons.|  80 Tons.|
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+              | ft. ins. | ft. ins. | ft. ins. | ft. ins. | ft. ins. |
+Mast          | 75 × 20  | 72 × 18  | 68 × 17  | 65 × 16½ | 63 × 15¾ |
+Boom          | 61 × 13¼ | 59 × 13  | 54 × 12  | 51 × 11½ | 49 × 10¾ |
+Bowsprit      | 55 × 16¾ | 53 × 15½ | 49 × 14  | 47 × 13¼ | 44 × 12½ |
+Gaff          | 45 ×  8¾ | 40 ×  8½ | 38 ×  7¾ | 33 ×  7½ | 32 ×  7¼ |
+Topmast       | 52 ×  9¾ | 48 ×  8½ | 45 ×  7¾ | 42 ×  7½ | 40 ×  7¼ |
+Spread-Yard   | 58 ×  9¼ | 56 ×  8½ | 48 ×  8¼ | 47 ×  7¾ | 46 ×  7½ |
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+Spar.         | 70 Tons. | 60 Tons. | 50 Tons. |  40 Tons.|
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+              | ft. ins. | ft. ins. | ft. ins. | ft. ins. |
+Mast          | 60 × 15  | 56 × 14  | 55 × 13½ | 50 × 12  |
+Boom          | 47 × 10½ | 45 × 10  | 43 ×  8¾ | 42 ×  8½ |
+Bowsprit      | 43 × 12  | 38 × 11¼ | 37 × 10¾ | 32 × 10  |
+Gaff          | 31 ×  7  | 28 ×  6¾ | 30 ×  6½ | 26 ×  6  |
+Topmast       | 39 ×  7  | 35 ×  6¾ | 35 ×  6½ | 30 ×  6  |
+Spread-Yard   | 44 ×  7  | 42 ×  6¾ | 38 ×  6¼ | 32 ×  6  |
+--------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VII
+
+
+LIST OF THE CRUISERS IN THE REVENUE COASTGUARD OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
+IN THE YEAR 1844
+
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+ Name of Cruiser       | Number   | Name of Cruiser      | Number   |
+                       | of Crew. |                      | of Crew. |
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+_Shamrock_             |   45     | _Badger_             |   16     |
+_Kite_                 |   34     | _Skylark_            |   16     |
+_Swift_                |   34     | _Petrel_             |   16     |
+_Prince of Wales_      |   34     | _Racer_              |   15     |
+_Wickham_              |   33     | _Hamilton_           |   23     |
+_Greyhound_            |   33     | _Chance_             |   16     |
+_Prince Albert_        |   33     | _Harriett_           |   14     |
+_Royal George_         |   33     | _Rose_               |   14     |
+_Mermaid_              |   33     | _Adder_              |   14     |
+_Adelaide_             |   30     | _Rob Roy_            |   14     |
+_Wellington_           |   33     | _Eliza_              |   13     |
+_Harpy_                |   30     | _Jane_               |   13     |
+_Royal Charlotte_      |   29     | _Experiment_         |   10     |
+_Stag_                 |   29     | _Albatross_          |   13     |
+_Defence_              |   29     | _Asp_                |   10     |
+_Eagle_                |   29     | _Frances_            |   10     |
+_Lapwing_              |   29     | _Arrow_              |   10     |
+_Sylvia_               |   29     | _Viper_              |   10     |
+_Victoria_             |   27     | _Neptune_            |   10     |
+_Lively_               |   23     | _Sealark_            |   10     |
+_Vigilant_             |   23     | _Hind_               |   10     |
+_Active_               |   23     | _Liverpool_          |   10     |
+_Cameleon_             |   21     | _Maria_              |   12     |
+_Fox_                  |   21     | _Sylph_              |    8     |
+_Dolphin_              |   21     | _Gertrude_           |    8     |
+_Scout_                |   21     | _Governor_           |    8     |
+_Tartar_               |   21     | _Nelson_             |    7     |
+_Hawke_                |   21     | _Princess Royal_     |    7     |
+_Ranger_               |   20     | _Ann_                |    7     |
+_Nimble_               |   17     | _Fairy_              |    7     |
+_Desmond_              |   17     | _Ferret_             |    7     |
+_Sprightly_            |   17     | _Lady of the Lake_   |    5     |
+_Lion_                 |   16     | _Vulcan_ (steamer)   |   31     |
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+
+_Note_.--The size of the above varied from 25 tons to 164 tons. But
+the ss. _Vulcan_ was of 325 tons.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VIII
+
+
+No better instance of the strained relationship existing between the
+Royal Navy and the Revenue Service could be found than the following.
+It will be seen that the animosity had begun at any rate before the
+end of the seventeenth century and was very far from dead in the
+nineteenth.
+
+The first incident centres round Captain John Rutter, commander of
+"one of the smacks or sloops in the service of the Customs about the
+Isle of Wight." He stated that on April 24, 1699, about eight o'clock
+in the evening, he went on board to search the ship _Portland_ at
+Spithead, the latter having arrived from France with a cargo of wine.
+At the same time there put off the long boat from Admiral Hopson's
+_Resolution_ demanding four hogsheads and four tierces, which (said
+Rutter) "I denied, but however they took it out by force and carried
+it on board." Rutter then went on to the _Resolution_ and there found
+the wine lying on deck. The Admiral sent for him aft, and said that he
+would see the wine forthcoming, for he would write to the
+Commissioners of Customs.
+
+Some time afterwards Rutter was ashore at Portsmouth in company with
+Captain Foulks, who was one of the officers stationed on land. The
+latter informed Rutter that he was a rogue for having informed against
+the Admiral. Foulks drew his sword, and, had he not been prevented,
+would have murdered Rutter. Apparently Admiral Hopson never forgave
+Rutter. For, some months later, Rutter was riding off Portsmouth
+"with my Pendent and Colours flying, rejoicing for the happy arrival
+of His Maty." Hopson was being rowed ashore, and when near "my yacht
+ordered my pendent to be taken down. I being absent, my men would not
+do it without my order, whereon he sent his boat on board and one of
+his men took it down. I coming on board to goe upon my duty ordered it
+to be hoysted again and imediately he sent his boat with one of his
+Lieutenants to take it down again with a verball order which I refused
+to lett him do, but by strength overpowered me and my company and took
+it down by force, and beat us to ye degree yat I know not whether it
+may not hazard some men's lives, which I acknowledge I did not wear it
+in contempt, and if he had sent another time I would readily have
+obeyed his Order. Now I humbly conceive that it was merely out of
+malice as I can prove by his own mouth."
+
+Arising out of this incident, a letter was sent from the Admiralty to
+the Portsmouth Custom House and signed by "J. Burchett." The latter
+opined that it was not a fault for the Custom House smacks to wear a
+pendant, but pointed out that the Proclamation of 1699 obliged the
+Custom House smacks to wear such a pendant as was distinct from the
+King's "as well as their Jacks and Ensigns." Furthermore he suggested
+that it had always been customary to strike such pendant when in sight
+of an Admiral's flag, especially if demanded.
+
+The second incident occurred on February 4, 1806. The commanding
+officer of H.M. Armed vessel _Sentinel_ was lying in Shields harbour.
+He sent word to a man named Stephen Mitchell, who caused the watch of
+the Revenue cutter _Eagle_ to hoist the _Eagle's_ pendant half-mast.
+Mitchell naturally replied that he dared not do so without his
+captain's orders. Mitchell, therefore, sent to his captain, George
+Whitehead, but before the latter's arrival the pendant was hauled
+down and carried on board the _Sentinel_ with threats that Whitehead
+should be prosecuted for wearing a pendant. Whitehead accordingly
+wrote to the Collector and Controller of the Customs at Newcastle to
+lodge a complaint. The latter, in turn, wrote to Lieut. W. Chester,
+R.N., commanding this _Sentinel_ gun-brig asking for an explanation.
+The naval officer replied by referring them to Articles 6 and 7 of the
+Admiralty Instructions regarding ships or vessels in the service of
+any public office, by which it was ordered that they should wear the
+same Ensign and Jack as ships having Letters of Marque, except that in
+the body of the Jack or Ensign there should be likewise described the
+seal of the office they belonged to. All vessels employed in the
+service of any public office were forbidden to wear pendants contrary
+to what was allowed, and officers of ships-of-war were permitted to
+seize any illegal colours. Chester contended that the _Eagle_ was
+hailed and requested to lower her colours half-mast, as an officer of
+the Navy was being interred at South Shields, and all the other
+vessels in the harbour "had their colours half staff down" except the
+_Eagle_. Because the latter refused, Chester requested her mate to
+come on board the _Sentinel_, as the former wished to explain why the
+colours should be lowered. An officer was thereupon sent on board the
+_Eagle_ to haul them down. Chester demanded an apology for the
+disrespect to the deceased officer.
+
+And one could easily quote other similar instances between H.M.S.
+_Princess_ and the Revenue cutter _Diligence_: and H.M. gun-brig
+_Teazer_ and the Revenue cruiser _Hardwicke_.
+
+
+  Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO.
+  Edinburgh & London
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+Typographical errors corrected in text:
+
+   Page 94: seizurss replaced by seizures.
+
+   Page 99: "waved us to keep of" replaced with "waved us to keep off"
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS
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+<h1 class="pg">The Project Gutenberg eBook, King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855, by E.
+Keble Chatterton</h1>
+<pre>
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at <a href = "http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre>
+<p>Title: King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855</p>
+<p>Author: E. Keble Chatterton</p>
+<p>Release Date: January 21, 2006  [eBook #17563]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS 1700-1855***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h3 class="pg">E-text prepared by Steven Gibbs, Jeannie Howse,<br />
+               and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br />
+               (http://www.pgdp.net/)</h3>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<div class="tr">
+<p class="noin">Two obvious typographical errors were corrected in transcribing
+      this text. For a complete list, please see the <a href="#trannote">Transcriber's
+      note</a> at the end of the file.</p>
+</div>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<div class="img"><a name="frontis" id="frontis"></a>
+<a href="images/frontis.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/frontis.jpg" width="53%" alt="Revenue Cruiser chasing Smuggling Lugger" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;"><span class="sc">Revenue Cruiser chasing Smuggling Lugger.</span><br />
+Before firing on a smuggler the cruiser was bound to hoist his Revenue
+colours&mdash;both pennant and ensign&mdash;no matter whether day or night.<br />
+(<i>from the original painting by Charles Dixon, R.I.</i>)<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<h1>KING'S CUTTERS<br />
+AND SMUGGLERS<br />
+1700-1855</h1>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h4>BY</h4>
+
+<br />
+<h2>E. KEBLE CHATTERTON</h2>
+<h5>AUTHOR OF "SAILING SHIPS AND THEIR STORY," "THE ROMANCE OF THE SHIP"<br />
+"THE STORY OF THE BRITISH NAVY," "FORE AND AFT," ETC.</h5>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h4><i>WITH 33 ILLUSTRATIONS AND FRONTISPIECE IN COLOURS</i></h4>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h5>LONDON<br />
+GEORGE ALLEN &amp; COMPANY, LTD.<br />
+44 &amp; 45 RATHBONE PLACE<br />
+1912</h5>
+<br />
+<h5>[All rights reserved]</h5>
+
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<h5>Printed by <span class="sc">Ballantyne, Hanson &amp; Co.</span><br />
+At the Ballantyne Press, Edinburgh</h5>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</a></span><br />
+<h3>PREFACE</h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>I have in the following pages endeavoured to resist the temptation to
+weave a web of pleasant but unreliable fiction round actual
+occurrences. That which is here set forth has been derived from facts,
+and in almost every case from manuscript records. It aims at telling
+the story of an eventful and exciting period according to historical
+and not imaginative occurrence. There are extant many novels and short
+stories which have for their heroes the old-time smugglers. But the
+present volume represents an effort to look at these exploits as they
+were and not as a novelist likes to think they might have occurred.</p>
+
+<p>Perhaps there is hardly an Englishman who was not thrilled in his
+boyhood days by Marryat and others when they wrote of the King's
+Cutters and their foes. It is hoped that the following pages will not
+merely revive pleasant recollections but arouse a new interest in the
+adventures of a species of sailing craft that is now, like the brig
+and the fine old clipper-ship, past and done with.</p>
+
+<p>The reader will note that in the Appendices a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi">[Pg vi]</a></span>considerable amount of
+interesting data has been collected. This has been rendered possible
+only with great difficulty, but it is believed that in future years
+the dimensions and details of a Revenue Cutter's construction, the
+sizes of her spars, her tonnage, guns, &amp;c., the number of her crew
+carried, the names and dates of the fleets of cutters employed will
+have an historical value which cannot easily be assessed in the
+present age that is still familiar with sailing craft.</p>
+
+<p>In making researches for the preparation of this volume I have to
+express my deep sense of gratitude to the Honourable Commissioners of
+the Board of Customs for granting me permission to make use of their
+valuable records; to Mr. F.S. Parry C.B., Deputy Chairman of the Board
+for his courtesy in placing a vast amount of data in my hands, and for
+having elucidated a good many points of difficulty; and, finally, to
+Mr. Henry Atton, Librarian of the Custom House, for his great
+assistance in research.</p>
+
+<p class="right">E. KEBLE CHATTERTON.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="toc" id="toc"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CONTENTS</h3>
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="65%" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span style="font-size: 90%;">CHAP.</span></td>
+  <td class="tdr"><span style="font-size: 90%;">PAGE</span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr" width="10%"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">I.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc" width="80%">Introduction</td>
+  <td class="tdr" width="10%">1</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">II.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Earliest Smugglers</td>
+  <td class="tdr">14</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">III.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Growth of Smuggling</td>
+  <td class="tdr">40</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">IV.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Smugglers' Methods</td>
+  <td class="tdr">56</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">V.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Hawkhurst Gang</td>
+  <td class="tdr">82</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">VI.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Revenue Cruisers</td>
+  <td class="tdr">94</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">VII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Cutters and Sloops</td>
+  <td class="tdr">121</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">VIII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Preventive Organisation</td>
+  <td class="tdr">138</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">IX.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Cutters' Equipment</td>
+  <td class="tdr">157</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">X.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Increase in Smuggling</td>
+  <td class="tdr">182</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">XI.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Smugglers at Sea</td>
+  <td class="tdr">199</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">XII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Work of the Cutters</td>
+  <td class="tdr">215</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">XIII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Period of Ingenuity</td>
+  <td class="tdr">239</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">XIV.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Some Interesting Encounters</td>
+  <td class="tdr">257</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">XV.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">A Tragic Incident</td>
+  <td class="tdr">276</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">XVI.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Administrative Reforms</td>
+  <td class="tdr">295</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">XVII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Smuggling by Concealments</td>
+  <td class="tdr">320</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">XVIII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">By Sea and Land</td>
+  <td class="tdr">339</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">XIX.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Action and Counter-Action</td>
+  <td class="tdr">361</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">XX.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Force and Cunning</td>
+  <td class="tdr">379</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" colspan="2" style="padding-left: 2em;"><br /><a href="#APPENDICES">APPENDICES</a></td>
+  <td class="tdr">403</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="toi" id="toi"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[Pg ix]</a></span><br />
+<h3>ILLUSTRATIONS</h3>
+<br />
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="85%" summary="List of Illustrations">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc" colspan="3" style="line-height: 3em; font-size: 110%; font-weight: bold;">PLATES</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" width="80%">Revenue Cruiser chasing Smuggling Lugger</td>
+  <td class="tdr" colspan="2"><a href="#frontis"><i>Colour frontispiece</i></a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdr" colspan="2" style="font-size: 75%;">FACING PAGE</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">A Representation of ye Smugglers breaking open ye
+    King's Custom House at Poole</td>
+  <td class="tdr" width="10%"><a href="#imagep086">86</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Mr. Galley and Mr. Chater put by ye Smugglers
+    on one Horse near Rowland Castle</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep088">88</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Galley and Chater falling off their Horse at Woodash</td>
+  <td style="text-align: right; padding-right: .5em;"><a href="#imagep088a">88<span style="font-size: 75%;">A</span></a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Chater Chained in ye Turff House at Old Mills's</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep089">89</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Chater hanging at the Well in Lady Holt Park, the Bloody Villains Standing by</td>
+  <td class="tdr" rowspan="2" style="vertical-align: middle;"><a href="#imagep090">90</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The Bloody Smugglers flinging down Stones after they had flung his Dead Body into the Well</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">H.M. Cutter "Wickham," commanded by Captain John Fullarton, R.N.</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep178">178</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">H.M. Cutter "Wickham"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep179">179</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc" colspan="3" style="line-height: 3em; font-size: 110%; font-weight: bold;">IN TEXT</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr" colspan="3" style="font-size: 75%;">PAGE</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Dow sent his Mate and ten Men on board her"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep072">72</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Came charging down ... striking her on the Quarter"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep102">102</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"A great Crowd of infuriated People came down to the Beach"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep187">187</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"The 'Flora' with the 'Fisgard,' 'Wasso,' and 'Nymph'"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep202">202</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2"><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[Pg x]</a></span>"The 'Caroline' continued her Course and proceeded
+to London"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep211">211</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">How the Deal Boatmen used to Smuggle Tea Ashore</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep213">213</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"The 'Badger' was Hoisting up the Galley in the
+Rigging"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep265">265</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Fire and be Damned"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep278">278</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The Sandwich Device</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep314">314</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The Sloop "Lucy" Showing Concealments</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep324">324</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Cask for Smuggling Cider</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep326">326</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The Smack "Tam O'Shanter" showing Method of Concealment</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep329">329</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Flat-bottomed Boat found off Selsey</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep332">332</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Plan of the Schooner "Good Intent" showing Method of Smuggling Casks</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep334">334</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The Schooner "Spartan"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep336">336</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Deck Plan and Longitudinal Plan of the "Lord Rivers"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep337">337</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"The Cruiser's Guns had shot away the Mizzen-Mast"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep348">348</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"The 'Admiral Hood' was heaving Tubs Overboard"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep358">358</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Getting a Firm Grip, pushed him ... into the Water"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep365">365</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Let's ... have him over the Cliff"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep373">373</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Under Cover of Darkness took on Board ... Forty Bales of Silk"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep377">377</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Another Shot was Fired"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep383">383</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">Methods employed by Smugglers for Anchoring Tubs thrown Overboard</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep385">385</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">The "Rival's" Ingenious Device</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep392">392</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdlsc" colspan="2">"Taken Completely by Surprise"</td>
+  <td class="tdr"><a href="#imagep398">398</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span><br />
+<h2>King's Cutters &amp; Smugglers</h2>
+
+<h3>CHAPTER I<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>INTRODUCTION</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Outside pure Naval history it would be difficult to find any period so
+full of incident and contest as that which is covered by the exploits
+of the English Preventive Service in their efforts to deal with the
+notorious and dangerous bands of smugglers which at one time were a
+terrible menace to the trade and welfare of our nation.</p>
+
+<p>As we shall see from the following pages, their activities covered
+many decades, and indeed smuggling is not even to-day dead nor ever
+will be so long as there are regulations which human ingenuity can
+occasionally outwit. But the grand, adventurous epoch of the smugglers
+covers little more than a century and a half, beginning about the year
+1700 and ending about 1855 or 1860. Nevertheless, within that space of
+time there are crowded in so much adventure, so many exciting escapes,
+so many fierce encounters, such clever moves and counter-moves: there
+are so many <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span>thousands of people concerned in the events, so many
+craft employed, and so much money expended that the story of the
+smugglers possesses a right to be ranked second only to those larger
+battles between two or more nations.</p>
+
+<p>Everyone has, even nowadays, a sneaking regard for the smugglers of
+that bygone age, an instinct that is based partly on a curious human
+failing and partly on a keen admiration for men of dash and daring.
+There is a sympathy, somehow, with a class of men who succeeded not
+once but hundreds of times in setting the law at defiance; who, in
+spite of all the resources of the Government, were not easily beaten.
+In the novels of James, Marryat, and a host of lesser writers the
+smuggler and the Preventive man have become familiar and standard
+types, and there are very few, surely, who in the days of their youth
+have not enjoyed the breathless excitement of some story depicting the
+chasing of a contraband lugger or watched vicariously the landing of
+the tubs of spirits along the pebbly beach on a night when the moon
+never showed herself. But most of these were fiction and little else.
+Even Marryat, though he was for some time actually engaged in Revenue
+duty, is now known to have been inaccurate and loose in some of his
+stories. Those who have followed afterwards have been scarcely better.</p>
+
+<p>However, there is nothing in the following <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span>pages which belongs to
+fiction. Every effort has been made to set forth only actual
+historical facts, which are capable of verification, so that what is
+herein contained represents not what <i>might</i> have happened but
+actually did take place. To write a complete history of smuggling
+would be well-nigh impossible, owing to the fact that, unhappily
+through fire and destruction, many of the records, which to-day would
+be invaluable, have long since perished. The burning down of the
+Customs House by the side of the Thames in 1814 and the inappreciation
+of the right value of certain documents by former officials have
+caused so desirable a history to be impossible to be written. Still,
+happily, there is even now a vast amount of material in existence, and
+the present Commissioners of the Board of Customs are using every
+effort to preserve for posterity a mass of data connected with this
+service.</p>
+
+<p>Owing to the courtesy of the Commissioners it has been my good fortune
+to make careful researches through the documents which are concerned
+with the old smuggling days, the Revenue cutters, and the Preventive
+Service generally; and it is from these pages of the past and from
+other sources that I have been enabled to put forth the story as it is
+here presented; and as such it represents an attempt to afford an
+authentic picture of an extremely interesting and an equally exciting
+period of our national history, to show <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span>the conditions of the
+smuggling industry from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century, and
+the efforts to put a stop to the same. We shall soon find that this
+period in its glamour, romance, and adventure contains a good deal of
+similarity to the great seafaring Elizabethan epoch. The ships were
+different, but the courage of the English seamen was the same. Nor
+must we forget that those rough, rude men who ran backwards and
+forwards across the English Channel in cutters, yawls, luggers, and
+sometimes open boats, stiffened with a rich ballast of tea, tobacco,
+and brandy, were some of the finest seamen in the world, and certainly
+the most skilful fore-and-aft sailors and efficient pilots to be found
+anywhere on the seas which wash the coasts of the United Kingdom. They
+were sturdy and strong of body, courageous and enterprising of nature,
+who had "used" the sea all their lives. Consequently the English
+Government wisely determined that in all cases of an encounter with
+smugglers the first aim of the Preventive officers should be to
+capture the smugglers themselves, for they could be promptly impressed
+into the service of the Navy and be put to the good of the nation
+instead of being to the latter's disadvantage.</p>
+
+<p>As everyone familiar with the sea is aware, the seamanship of the
+square-rigged vessel and of the fore-and-aft is very different. The
+latter makes special demands of its own which, for the present, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span>we
+need not go into. But we may assert with perfect confidence that at
+its best the handling of the King's cutters and the smuggling craft,
+the chasing and eluding in all weathers, the strategy and tactics of
+both parties form some of the best chapters in nautical lore. The
+great risks that were run, the self-confidence and coolness displayed
+indicated quite clearly that our national seafaring spirit was not yet
+dead. To-day many descendants of these old smugglers remain our
+foremost fore-and-aft sailors, yet engaged no longer in an illicit
+trade but in the more peaceful pursuits of line fishermen, oyster
+dredging, trawling during the winter, and often shipping as yachts'
+hands during the summer.</p>
+
+<p>But because we are to read fact and not fiction we shall scarcely find
+the subject inferior in interest. Truth often enough is stranger, and
+some of the tricks and devices employed by the smuggling communities
+may well surprise us. And while we shall not make any vain attempt to
+whitewash a class of men who were lawless, reckless, and sometimes
+even brutal in their efforts, yet we shall not hesitate to give the
+fullest prominence to the great skill and downright cleverness of a
+singularly virile and unique kind of British manhood. In much the same
+way as a spectator looks on at a fine sporting contest between two
+able foes, we shall watch the clashing exploits of the King's men and
+the smugglers. Sometimes the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span>one side wins, sometimes the other, but
+nearly always there is a splendidly exciting tussle before either
+party can claim victory.</p>
+
+<p>No one who has not examined the authentic records of this period can
+appreciate how powerful the smugglers on sea and land had become. The
+impudence and independence of some of the former were amazing. We
+shall give instances in due course, but for the present we might take
+the case of the Revenue cutter which, after giving chase to a
+smuggling vessel, came up to the latter. Shots were exchanged, but the
+smuggler turned his swivel guns on to the Government craft with such a
+hot effect that the Revenue captain deemed it prudent to give up the
+fight and hurry away as fast as possible, after which the positions
+were reversed and the smuggler <i>actually chased the Revenue cutter!</i>
+In fact during the year 1777 one of the Customs officials wrote sadly
+to the Board that there was a large lugger off the coast, and so well
+armed that she was "greatly an overmatch" for even two of the Revenue
+cruisers. It seems almost ludicrous to notice a genuine and
+unquestionable report of a smuggling vessel coming into a bay, finding
+a Revenue cruiser lying quietly at anchor, and ordering the cruiser,
+with a fine flow of oaths, immediately to cut his cable and clear out;
+otherwise the smugglers promised to sink her. The Revenue cutter's
+commander did not cut his cable, but in truth he had to get <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span>his
+anchor up pretty promptly and clear out as he was told.</p>
+
+<p>It was not till after the year 1815 that the Government began
+seriously to make continuous headway in its efforts to cope with the
+smuggling evil. Consider the times. Between the years 1652 and 1816
+there were years and years of wars by land or by sea. There were the
+three great Anglo-Dutch wars, the wars with France, with Spain, to say
+nothing of the trouble with America. They were indeed anxious years
+that ended only with the Battle of Waterloo, and it was not likely
+that all this would in any way put a stop to that restlessness which
+was unmistakable. Wages were low, provisions were high, and the poorer
+classes of those days had by no means all the privileges possessed
+to-day. Add to this the undoubted fact that literally for centuries
+there had lived along the south coast of England, especially in the
+neighbourhood of the old Cinque ports, a race of men who were always
+ready for some piratical or semi-piratical sea exploit. It was in
+their blood to undertake and long for such enterprises, and it only
+wanted but the opportunity to send them roving the seas as privateers,
+or running goods illegally from one coast to another. And it is not
+true that time has altogether stifled that old spirit. When a liner
+to-day has the misfortune to lose her way in a fog and pile up on rock
+or sandbank, you read of the numbers of small craft <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>which put out to
+salvage her cargo. But not all this help comes out of hearts of
+unfathomable pity. On the contrary, your beachman has an eye to
+business. He cannot go roving nowadays; time has killed the smuggling
+in which his ancestors distinguished themselves. But none the less he
+can legally profit by another vessel's misfortune; and, as the local
+families worked in syndicate fashion when they went smuggling, so now
+they mutually arrange to get the cargo ashore and, incidentally, make
+a very handsome profit as well.</p>
+
+<p>We need not envy the Government the difficult and trying task that was
+theirs during the height of the smuggling era. There was quite enough
+to think of in regard to foreign affairs without wanting the
+additional worry of these contraband runners. That must be borne in
+mind whenever one feels inclined to smile at the apparently
+half-hearted manner in which the authorities seemed to deal with the
+evil. Neither funds nor seamen, nor ships nor adequate attention could
+be spared just then to deal with these pests. And it was only after
+the wars had at last ended and the Napoleonic bogey had been settled
+that this domestic worry could be dealt with in the manner it
+required. There were waiting many evils to be remedied, and this
+lawlessness along the coast of the country was one of the greatest.
+But it was not a matter that could be adjusted <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span>in a hurry, and it was
+not for another forty or fifty years, not, in fact, until various
+administrative changes and improvements had taken place, that at last
+the evil was practically stamped out. As one looks through the
+existing records one cannot avoid noticing that there was scarcely a
+bay or suitable landing-place along the whole English coast-line that
+did not become notorious for these smuggling "runs": there is hardly a
+cliff or piece of high ground that has not been employed for the
+purpose of giving a signal to the approaching craft as they came on
+through the night over the dark waters. There are indeed very few
+villages in proximity to the sea that have not been concerned in these
+smuggling ventures and taken active interest in the landing of bales
+and casks. The sympathy of the country-side was with the smuggling
+fraternity. Magistrates were at times terrorised, juries were too
+frightened to convict. In short, the evil had grown to such an extent
+that it was a most difficult problem for any Government to be asked to
+deal with, needing as it did a very efficient service both of craft
+and men afloat, and an equally able and incorruptible guard on land
+that could not be turned from its purpose either by fear or bribery.
+We shall see from the following chapters how these two
+organisations&mdash;by sea and land&mdash;worked.</p>
+
+<p>If we exclude fiction, the amount of literature <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span>which has been
+published on smuggling is exceedingly small. Practically the whole of
+the following pages is the outcome of personal research among
+original, authentic manuscripts and official documents. Included under
+this head may be cited the Minutes of the Board of Customs, General
+Letters of the Board to the Collectors and Controllers of the various
+Out-ports, Out-port Letters to the Board, the transcripts from
+shorthand notes of Assizes and Promiscuous Trials of Smugglers, a
+large quantity of MSS. of remarkable incidents connected with
+smuggling, miscellaneous notes collected on the subject in the Library
+of the Customs House, instructions issued at different times to
+Customs officers and commanders of cruisers, General Orders issued to
+the Coastguard, together with a valuable pr&eacute;cis (unpublished) of the
+existing documents in the many Customs Houses along the English coast
+made in the year 1911 by the Librarian to the Board of Customs on a
+round of visits to the different ports for that purpose. These
+researches have been further supplemented by other documents in the
+British Museum and elsewhere.</p>
+
+<p>This volume, therefore, contains within its pages a very large amount
+of material hitherto unpublished, and, additional to the details
+gathered together regarding smuggling methods, especial attention has
+been paid to collect all possible <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span>information concerning the Revenue
+sloops and cutters so frequently alluded to in those days as cruisers.
+I have so often heard a desire expressed among those interested in the
+literature of the sea to learn all about the King's cutters, how they
+were rigged, manned, victualled, armed, and navigated, what were their
+conditions of service at sea, and so on&mdash;finally, to obtain accounts
+of their chasing of smuggling craft, accounts based on the narratives
+of eye-witnesses of the incidents, the testimony of the commanders and
+crews themselves, both captors and captives, that I have been here at
+some pains to present the most complete picture of the subject that
+has hitherto been attempted. These cutters were most interesting craft
+by reason both of themselves and the chases and fights in which they
+were engaged. The King's cutters were employed, as many people are
+aware, as well in international warfare as in the Preventive Service.
+There is an interesting letter, for instance, to be read from
+Lieutenant Henry Rowed, commanding the Admiralty cutter <i>Sheerness</i>,
+dated September 9, 1803, off Brest, in which her gallant commander
+sends a notable account to Collingwood concerning the chasing of a
+French <i>chasse-mar&eacute;e</i>. And cutters were also employed in connection
+with the Walcheren expedition. The hired armed cutter <i>Stag</i> was found
+useful in 1804 as a despatch vessel.</p>
+
+<p>But the King's cutters in the Revenue work <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span>were not always as active
+as they might be. In one of his novels (<i>The Three Cutters</i>) Captain
+Marryat gives the reader a very plain hint that there was a good deal
+of slackness prevalent in this section of the service. Referring to
+the midshipman of the Revenue cutter <i>Active</i>, the author speaks of
+him as a lazy fellow, too inert even to mend his jacket which was out
+at elbows, and adds, "He has been turned out of half the ships in the
+service for laziness; but he was born so, and therefore it is not his
+fault. A Revenue cutter suits him&mdash;she is half her time hove-to; and
+he has no objection to boat-service, as he sits down in the
+stern-sheets, which is not fatiguing. Creeping for tubs is his
+delight, as he gets over so little ground."</p>
+
+<p>But Marryat was, of course, intentionally sarcastic here. That this
+lazy element was not always, and in every ship, prevalent is clear
+from the facts at hand. It is also equally clear from the repeated
+admonitions and exhortations of the Board of Customs, by the
+holding-out of handsome rewards and the threatenings of dire
+penalties, that the Revenue-cutter commanders were at any rate
+periodically negligent of their duties. They were far too fond of
+coming to a nice snug anchorage for the night or seeking shelter in
+bad weather, and generally running into harbour with a frequence that
+was unnecessary. The result was that the cutter, having left her
+station unguarded, the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span>smugglers were able to land their kegs with
+impunity.</p>
+
+<p>But we need not delay our story longer, and may proceed now to
+consider the subject in greater detail.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER II<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>It is no part of our intention to trace the history of the levying of
+customs through different reigns and in different ages, but it is
+important to note briefly that the evading of these dues which we
+designate smuggling, is one of the oldest offences on record.</p>
+
+<p>The most ancient dues paid to the English sovereigns would seem to
+have been those which were levied on the exportation and importation
+of merchandise across the sea; and it is essential to emphasise at the
+outset that though nowadays when we speak of smuggling we are
+accustomed to think only of those acts concerned with imports, yet the
+word applies equally to the unlawful manner of exporting commodities.
+Before it is possible for any crime to be committed there must needs
+be at hand the opportunity to carry out this intention; and throughout
+the history of our nation&mdash;at any rate from the thirteenth
+century&mdash;that portion of England, the counties of Kent and Sussex,
+which is adjacent to the Continent, has always been at once the most
+tempted and the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span>most inclined towards this offence. Notwithstanding
+that there are many other localities which were rendered notorious by
+generations of smugglers, yet these two between them have been
+responsible for more incidents of this nature than all the rest put
+together.</p>
+
+<p>What I am anxious at first to emphasise is the fact that, although
+smuggling rose to unheard-of importance as a national danger during
+the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (and this is the period to
+which we shall especially address ourselves presently as affording the
+fullest and the most interesting information on an ingenious phase of
+human energy), yet it was not a practice which suddenly rose into
+prominence during that period. Human nature is much the same under
+various kings and later centuries. Under similar circumstances men and
+women perform similar actions. Confronted with the temptation to cheat
+the Crown of its dues, you will find persons in the time of George V.
+repeating the very crimes of Edward I. The difference is not so much
+in degree of guilt as in the nature of the articles and the manner in
+which they have been smuggled. To-day it may be cigars&mdash;centuries ago
+it was wool. Although the golden age (if we may use the term) of
+smuggling has long since passed, I am by no means unconvinced that if
+the occasions of temptation recurred to carry on this trade as it was
+pursued during the eighteenth and the first half of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span>nineteenth
+centuries, there would not be found many who would be ready to apply
+themselves to such a task. To some extent the modern improvements in
+living, in education, and increased respect for lofty ideals would
+modify this tendency; and long years have awakened so keen a regard
+for the benefits of law and order that the nefarious practice might
+not break out immediately on a large scale. But when we speak of
+smuggling it is perhaps more correct to speak of it as a disease which
+has not been exterminated from the system, but is, as it were, a
+microbe that is kept well under control and not allowed to spread.</p>
+
+<p>Everyone who is familiar with English history is aware of the
+important position which was occupied by the wool trade. Because of
+the immense value to the nation of the fleece it was necessary that
+this commodity should be kept in the country and not sent abroad. If
+in the present day most of our iron and coal were to be despatched
+abroad regardless of what was required by our manufacturers it would
+not be long before the country would begin to suffer serious loss. So,
+in the thirteenth century, it was with the wool. As a check to this a
+tax was levied on that wool which was exported out of the country, and
+during the reign of Edward III. attempts were made by the threat of
+heavy penalties to prevent the Continent from becoming the receptacle
+of our chief product. But the temptation was too great, the rewards
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span>were too alluring for the practice to be stopped. The fleece was
+carried across from England, made into cloth, and in this state sent
+back to us. Even in those days the town of Middleburgh, which we shall
+see later to have been the source of much of the goods smuggled into
+our country in the grand period, was in the fourteenth century the
+headquarters abroad of this clandestine trade. We need not weary the
+reader with the details of the means which were periodically taken to
+stop this trade by the English kings. It is enough to state that
+practically all the ports of Sussex and Kent were busily engaged in
+the illegal business. Neither the penalties of death, nor the fixing
+of the price of wool, nor the regulating of the rate of duty availed
+in the long-run. Licences to export this article were continually
+evaded, creeks and quiet bays were the scenes where the fleece was
+shipped for France and the Low Countries. Sometimes the price of wool
+fell, sometimes it rose; sometimes the Crown received a greater amount
+of duty, at other times the royal purse suffered very severely. In the
+time of Elizabeth the encouragement of foreign weavers to make their
+homes in England was likely to do much to keep the wool in the
+country, especially as there began to be increased wealth in our land,
+and families began to spend more money on personal comforts.</p>
+
+<p>Even in the time of Charles I. proclamations were issued against
+exporting wool, yet the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>mischief still went on. In the time of
+Charles II. men readily "risked their necks for 12d. a day."<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> The
+greatest part of the wool was sent from Romney Marsh, where, after
+nightfall, it was put on board French shallops with ten or twenty men
+to guard it, all well armed. And other parts of Sussex as well as Kent
+and even Essex were also engaged in similar exportations.</p>
+
+<p>But it is from the time of King Charles II. that the first serious
+steps were taken to cope with the smuggling evil, and from here we
+really take our starting-point in our present inquiry. Prior to his
+time the Customs, as a subsidy of the king, were prone to much
+variability. In the time of James I., for instance, they had been
+granted to the sovereign for life, and he claimed to alter the rates
+as he chose when pressed for money. When Charles I. came to the throne
+the Commons, instead of voting them for the extent of the sovereign's
+life, granted them for one year only. At a later date in the reign of
+that unhappy king the grant was made only for a couple of months.
+These dues were known as tonnage and poundage, the former being a duty
+of 1s. 6d. to 3s. levied on every ton of wine and liquor exported and
+imported. Poundage was a similar tax of 6d. to 1s. on every pound of
+dry goods.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span>It was not till after the Restoration that the customs were settled
+and more firmly established, a subsidy being "granted to the king of
+tonnage and poundage and other sums of money payable upon merchandise
+exported and imported." Nominally the customs were employed for
+defraying the cost of "guarding and defending the seas against all
+persons intending the disturbance of his subjects in the intercourse
+of trade, and the invading of this realm." And so, also, there was
+inaugurated a more systematic and efficient method of preventing this
+export smuggling. So far as one can find any records from the existing
+manuscripts of this early Preventive system, the chronological order
+would seem to be as follows: The first mention of any kind of marine
+service that I can trace is found in a manuscript of 1674, which shows
+the establishment of the Custom House organisation in that year for
+England and Wales. From this it is clear that there had been made a
+beginning of that system which was later to develop into that of the
+Revenue cutters. And when we recollect how extremely interested was
+Charles II. in everything pertaining to the sea and to sloop-rigged
+craft especially, it seems very natural to believe that this monarch
+inspired, or at any rate very considerably encouraged, the formation
+of a small fleet of Custom House sailing craft. Elsewhere I have
+discussed this matter at length, therefore it may suffice if attention
+is <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span>called to the fact that to Charles was due the first yacht into
+England, presented to him by the Dutch; while from his encouragement
+were born the sport of yachting and the building of English yachts. He
+was very much concerned in the rig of sloops, and loved to sail in
+such craft, and his yacht was also most probably the first vessel of
+that rig which had ever been employed by English sailors. Further
+still, he was something of a naval architect, the founder of the
+Greenwich Royal Observatory and the <i>Nautical Almanac</i>, and under his
+rule a fresh impulse was given to navigation and shipbuilding
+generally.</p>
+
+<p>At any rate by the year 1674 there were among the smaller sailing
+craft of England a number of sloops and smacks employed doubtless for
+fishing and coasting work. As a kind of marine police, the Custom
+House authorities determined to hire some of these to keep a watch on
+the "owlers," as the wool-smugglers were termed, so called, no doubt,
+because they had to pursue their calling always by night. Whatever
+efforts had been adopted prior to his reign probably had consisted for
+the most part, if not entirely, of a land police. But under this
+second Charles the very sensible and obvious idea of utilising a
+number of sailing craft was started. In the above MS. volume the first
+reference is to "Peter Knight, Master of ye smack for ye wages of him
+self and five men and boy, and to bear all charges except <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span>wear and
+tear ... &pound;59." "For extraordinary wear and tear," he was to be paid
+&pound;59. His vessel was the Margate smack. In the same volume there is
+also a reference to the "Graves End smack," and to "Thomas Symonds for
+wages and dyett [diet] for himself, master and six men ... &pound;56, 5s.
+0d." And for the "wear and tear to be disposed as ye Commrs. direct
+... &pound;14, 15s. 0d." There was yet a third vessel stationed a few miles
+away, the "Quinborrough smack," and a reference to "Nicholas Badcock
+for hire of ye smack, two men, and to bear all charges ... &pound;23." These
+vessels were not known as Revenue cutters at this time, but as Custom
+House smacks. They were hired by the Commissioners of the Customs from
+private individuals to prevent the owlers from smuggling the wool from
+Kent, Essex, and Sussex. But it would seem that these smacks, even if
+they modified a little the activities of the owlers, did not succeed
+in bringing about many convictions. Romney Marsh still sent its
+contribution across to France and Holland, much as it had done for
+generations.</p>
+
+<p>But in 1698 the attack on the men of Kent and Sussex was strengthened
+by legislation, for by 7 &amp; 8 William III. cap. 28, it was enacted that
+"for the better preventing the exportation of wool and correspondence
+with France ... the Lord High Admiral of England, or Commissioners for
+executing the office of Lord High Admiral for <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>the time being, shall
+from time to time direct and appoint one ship of the Fifth Rate, and
+two ships of the Sixth Rate, and four armed sloops constantly to
+cruise off the North Foreland to the Isle of Wight, with orders for
+taking and seizing all ships, vessels, or boats which shall export any
+wool or carry or bring any prohibited goods or any suspected persons."
+It was due to William III.'s Government also that no person living
+within fifteen miles of the sea in those counties should buy any wool
+before he entered into a bond, with sureties, that all the wool he
+might buy should be sold by him to no persons within fifteen miles of
+the sea, and all growers of wool within ten miles of the sea in those
+counties were obliged within three days of shearing to account for the
+number of fleeces, and where they were lodged.</p>
+
+<p>Instructions were duly issued to captains of sloops, and a scheme
+drafted for surrounding the whole of the coast with sloops, the crews
+consisting of master, mate, and mariners. But from an entry in the
+Excise and Treasury Reports of 1685, it is clear that a careful regard
+even at that date was being had for the import smuggling as well. The
+reference belongs to September 24, and shows that a "boarding" boat
+was desired for going alongside vessels in the Downs, and preventing
+the running in of brandies along the coast in that vicinity. The
+charge for building such a boat is <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span>to be &pound;25. In another MS. touching
+the Customs, there is under date of June 1695 an interesting reference
+to "a Deale yoghall to be built," and that "such a boat will be here
+of very good use." She is to be "fitt to go into ye roads for boarding
+men or other ocations when ye sloops may be at sea."</p>
+
+<p>So much, then, for the present as to the guarding by sea against the
+smugglers. Let us now turn to look into the means adopted by land. The
+wool-owners of Romney Marsh were still hard at their game, and the
+horses still came down to the beach ladened with the packs ready to be
+shipped. If any one were sent with warrants to arrest the delinquents,
+they were attacked, beaten, and forced to flee, followed by armed
+gangs on horseback. But it was evident that the Crown was determined
+not to let the matter rest, for a number of surveyors were appointed
+for nineteen counties and 299 riding officers as well, though they
+made few seizures, and obtained still fewer condemnations, but at
+great expense to the State. In 1703 it was believed that the owling
+trade, especially in Romney Marsh, was broken if not dead, although
+the smuggling by import was on the increase, especially as regards
+silks, lace, and such "fine" goods. At that time for the two hundred
+miles of coast-line between the Isle of Sheppey and
+Emsworth&mdash;practically the whole of the Kentish and Sussex shore&mdash;fifty
+officers were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>being employed at a salary of &pound;60 per annum, with an
+allowance to each of another &pound;30 annually for a servant and horse to
+assist them during the night. And there was authority also for the
+employment of dragoons to aid the riding officers, especially in the
+neighbourhood of Romney Marsh; but there was a number of "weak and
+superannuated" men among the latter, who did not make for the
+efficiency of the service.</p>
+
+<p>We need not say much more about the wool-exportation. In spite of all
+the efforts of the Custom House smacks and the assistance of his
+Majesty's ships of war, in spite, too, of further legislation, it
+still continued. It went on merrily at any rate till the end of the
+eighteenth century, by which time the smuggling by imports had long
+since eclipsed its importance. It was the wars with France during the
+time of William and Mary which increased and rendered more easy the
+smuggling into England of silk and lace. And by means of the craft
+which imported these goods there used to be smuggled also a good deal
+of Jacobite correspondence. As Kent and Sussex had been famous for
+their export smuggling, so these counties were again to distinguish
+themselves by illicit importation. From now on till the middle of this
+eighteenth century this newer form of smuggling rose gradually to
+wondrous heights. And yet it was by no means new. In the time of
+Edward III. steps had to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span>be taken to prevent the importation of base
+coin into the realm, and in succeeding reigns the king had been
+cheated many a time of that which ought to have come to him through
+the duties of goods entering the country.</p>
+
+<p>It was impossible instantly to put down a practice which had been
+pursued by so many families for so many hundreds of years. But the
+existing force was not equal to coping with the increase. As a
+consequence the daring of the smugglers knew no bounds&mdash;the more they
+succeeded the more they ventured. A small gang of ten would blossom
+forth into several hundreds of men, there would be no lack of arms nor
+clubs, and adequate arrangements would be made for cellar-storage of
+the goods when safely brought into the country. Consequently violence
+became more frequent than ever&mdash;bloodshed and all sorts of crimes
+occurred.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1723 several commissions or deputations were issued by the
+Chancellor of the Exchequer to captains of his Majesty's sloops to
+make seizures, and the following year the Treasury authorised the
+construction of seven sloops for service off the coast of Scotland.
+The smugglers had in fact become so desperate, the English Channel was
+so thoroughly infested with them, and the Revenue service was so
+incapable of dealing with them in the manner that was obviously
+essential for effectiveness, that the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span>Admiralty ordered the captains
+and commanders of His Majesty's ships to assist the Revenue officers
+all they could in order to prevent the smuggling trade, and to look
+out and seize all vessels employed in illegally exporting wool; for
+the Admiralty had been informed by the Commissioners of Customs that
+the Revenue officers frequently met with insults from French smuggling
+luggers manned by armed crews, who carried on a brisk smuggling trade
+by force and even dared the Revenue men to come aboard them.</p>
+
+<p>But as the Revenue service afloat was assisted now by the Navy, so the
+Revenue land guard was also aided by the Military. In 1713
+arrangements had been made that dragoons should co-operate with the
+riding officers in their operations against the owlers, and there are
+plenty of skirmishes recorded showing that the dragoons were actually
+so employed. Originally these soldiers were employed under the
+direction of the riding officers, but, as can well be expected, there
+was a good deal of jealousy and friction caused through the sharing of
+the soldiers in the rewards for seizures, and after the year 1822 this
+military assistance was not utilised to any great extent, although
+legally Army officers can still be called upon to render assistance
+against smuggling. And, in passing, one might mention that this
+co-operation afloat between the Customs men and the Navy was equally
+noticeable for a certain amount <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span>of ill-feeling, as we shall mention
+on a later page.</p>
+
+<p>Before the first quarter of the eighteenth century was completed,
+smuggling between England and the Continent was proceeding at a brisk
+pace, and by the middle of that century it had well-nigh reached its
+climax for fearlessness. We have already alluded to the establishment
+of hired smacks and sloops inaugurated towards the end of the
+seventeenth century. The sloop rig, as I have shown in another
+volume,<a name="FNanchor_2_2" id="FNanchor_2_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_2_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> had probably been introduced into England from Holland soon
+after the accession of Charles II., but from that date its merits of
+handiness were so fully recognised that for yachts, for fishing craft,
+for the carrying of passengers and cargo up and down the Thames and
+along the coast as well as across to Ireland and the Continent, the
+rig was adopted very readily in place of the lug-sails. The smack was
+also a sloop-rigged vessel. We need not enter here into a discussion
+as to the comparative merits of sloops and cutters and smacks. It is
+enough if we state that when it was realised that a vessel of say 100
+tons, sloop-rigged, with her one mast, mainsail, and two headsails and
+square topsail (set forward of the mast on a yard) could be handled
+with fewer men and therefore less expense than a lugger of similar
+size; was also <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>more suitable for man&oelig;uvring in narrow channels,
+and for entering and leaving small harbours, the fishermen, coasters,
+and so on took to this improvement. Thus most naturally the larger
+smuggling craft were till well on into the nineteenth century sloops
+or cutters, and equally natural was it that the Revenue availed
+themselves of this rig first by hiring smacks, and, later, by building
+for themselves. These sloops, whether hired or owned, were given each
+a particular station to guard, and that plan was followed by the
+Revenue cruisers for many years to follow. Among the Exeter documents
+of the Customs Department is included an interesting document dated
+July 10, 1703, wherein the Board of Customs informs the collector at
+the port of Dartmouth of the list of vessels appointed by the
+Commissioners to cruise against owlers, the district comprised
+extending from Pembroke in the west to the Downs in the east. The
+following is the list of these vessels with their respective cruising
+territories:&mdash;</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" width="60%" summary="Vessels' cruising territories">
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" width="40%" style="padding-left: 2em; font-size: 80%;">NAME OF CRUISER</td>
+  <td class="tdl" width="60%" style="padding-left: 2em; font-size: 80%;">LIMITS OF HER SPHERE</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Rye</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Pembroke to Lundy Island</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Discovery</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Milford to Swansea</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Milford to Exmouth</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Hastings</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Milford to Exmouth</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Woolwich</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Downs to Falmouth</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Swan</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Downs to Falmouth</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Fly</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Off Folkestone</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Dispatch</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Off Folkestone</td>
+ </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span>This fairly well covered the region to which goods were likely to be
+run from the Continent as well as that from which the owlers were wont
+to export their wool. From an entry among the documents preserved in
+the Custom House at Newcastle, dated September 1729, we can see that
+also the north-east coast was guarded thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" width="60%" summary="Vessels' cruising territories">
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" width="40%" style="padding-left: 2em; font-size: 80%;">NAME OF CRUISER</td>
+  <td class="tdl" width="60%" style="padding-left: 2em; font-size: 80%;">LIMITS OF HER SPHERE</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Cruiser</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Flamborough Head to Newcastle</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Deal Castle</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Newcastle to Leith</td>
+ </tr>
+ <tr>
+  <td class="tdl"><i>Spy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl">Firth of Forth to Newcastle</td>
+ </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>And about the last-mentioned date the <i>Deal Castle</i> had succeeded in
+capturing four French smuggling craft and brought them into Shields.</p>
+
+<p>To the other side of England the Isle of Man, which was a veritable
+contraband dep&ocirc;t, used to send quantities of dutiable goods, Liverpool
+being the favourite destination, and it was a more difficult matter
+here to deal with than in many other ports. On October 9, 1713, the
+Collector at Liverpool writes to the Board of Customs that he thinks a
+sloop would be of little service for that port. Some time ago they had
+one, which was not a success "by reason of ye dangerousness and
+difficulty of the harbour and ye many shoales of sand, which often
+shift in bad weather." The Manxmen were a thoroughly lawless,
+desperate species of smugglers, who stopped at nothing, and were
+especially irate towards all Revenue and public <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span>officials,
+recognising no authority other than might and a certain respect for
+the Duke of Atholl, the owner of the Isle of Man.</p>
+
+<p>Among the letters to Southampton there is a record dated June 14,
+1729, which shows that a number of his Majesty's sloops were appointed
+by the Admiralty to cruise off the coasts of the kingdom to prevent
+the exporting of wool and the running of goods by the
+import-smugglers. For instance, the Admiralty sloop <i>Swift</i> was
+appointed to cruise between Portland, Poole, and Jack-in-the-Basket
+off the entrance to Lymington Harbour, Hants, her commander being a
+Captain Cockayne. Similarly the sloop <i>Success</i> (Captain Thomas Smith,
+commander) was to cruise between Portland and Spithead, and the <i>Rye</i>
+(Captain John Edwards) between the Isle of Wight and Beachy Head to
+the eastward. It was part of the duty of the Revenue officers at
+Southampton to see that these three ships constantly cruised on their
+station, and if their commanders were found negligent of this duty the
+matter was to be reported to the Board of Customs. The Revenue craft
+were apparently not above suspicion, for in November of 1729 the
+Southampton officers of the Customs reported to headquarters that this
+very sloop, the <i>Swift</i>, every time she went across to Guernsey in
+connection with her duties of prevention, used to bring back
+quantities of wine, brandy, and other dutiable <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span>goods under the
+pretence that they were the ship's stores. The intention, however, was
+nothing less than that which dominated the actions of the smugglers
+themselves&mdash;the very class against which the <i>Swift</i> was employed&mdash;for
+Captain Cockayne's men used to find it no very difficult matter to run
+these goods ashore clandestinely under the very eyes of the
+unsuspecting Customs officers. The Commissioners of the Customs
+therefore sent down strict instructions that the <i>Swift</i> was to be
+rummaged every time she arrived at Southampton from Guernsey. We shall
+have reason presently to refer more especially to the Channel Isles
+again, but it may suffice for the present to state that they were in
+the south the counterpart of the Isle of Man in the north as being a
+dep&ocirc;t whence the import smugglers fetched their goods across to
+England.</p>
+
+<p>Additional to the Naval sloops just mentioned, there were two other
+cutters belonging to the Southampton station under the Revenue and
+not, of course, Admiralty-owned craft. These vessels were respectively
+the <i>Calshot</i> and the <i>Hurst</i>, and it is worth noting that at the time
+we are thinking of (1729) these vessels are referred to generally as
+"yatchs" or "yachts." It was not quite seventy years since the first
+yacht&mdash;that presented to Charles II., named the <i>Mary</i>&mdash;had arrived in
+England, and it was only in 1720 that the first yacht club had been
+established, not in England, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span>but in Cork. If we may judge from
+contemporary paintings of yachts we can visualise the <i>Hurst</i> and
+<i>Calshot</i> as being very tubby, bluff-bowed craft with ample beam. But
+what would especially strike us in these modern days would be the
+exceptionally long bowsprit, the forward end of which was raised
+considerably above the water than its after end, both jib and foresail
+each working on a stay.</p>
+
+<p>The commander of the <i>Calshot</i> yacht was a Captain Mears, and there is
+an entry in the Southampton documents to the effect that he was paid
+the sum of &pound;2, 12s. 6d. for piloting his vessel from Southampton to
+Guernsey and back in connection with the Preventive duties. This trip
+took him five days, his pay being half a guinea a day. It is clear
+from a record of the following year that Mears was employed by special
+arrangement, for on July 18, 1730, the Board of Customs decided that
+it was necessary that Captain John Mears, commander of the <i>Calshot</i>
+yacht at Southampton, should now be placed on the same footing as the
+other commanders of the Revenue sloops and smacks in regard to the
+matter of wear and tear. Henceforth the sum of 30s. per ton was to be
+allowed him instead of &pound;47 per annum. Both yacht and her boats were to
+be kept in good repair, but the commander was first to give security
+to have the vessel and her boats generally in good order and
+reasonable repair, loss by violence of the sea <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span>or other unavoidable
+accidents excepted. The commander was also to find the sloop and her
+boats with all manner of necessaries and materials, so that the Crown
+was to be at no charge on that account in the future; and every
+quarter the Comptroller and Collector of the port were to certify to
+the Board as to whether the yacht and boats were in good repair.</p>
+
+<p>It would appear that these two vessels were not actually owned by the
+Customs but hired from Captain Mears; and less than a month before the
+above order the Surveyor-General of the Customs for Hampshire
+represented to the Board that it would be necessary to allow the
+commander of the <i>Hurst</i> half-a-dozen muskets, two pairs of pistols,
+half-a-dozen swords or cutlasses, and these were accordingly ordered
+to be sent, together with two swivel guns, from Weymouth to Captain
+Mears "by the first coast vessel bound to" Southampton. There was
+certainly need for a strict vigilance to be kept in that
+neighbourhood, for there was a good deal of smuggling then being
+carried on along the Hampshire shore in the vicinity of Hurst Castle
+and Beaulieu.</p>
+
+<p>In another chapter we shall go into the important matter touching the
+flags that were worn by the vessels employed in looking after
+smuggling, but, in passing, we may call attention to a letter which
+the Board sent to Southampton at this time referring to the
+proclamation of December 18, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span>1702, by which no ships whatsoever were
+allowed to wear a pendant excepting those engaged in the service of
+the Royal Navy, but that the sloops employed in the several public
+offices (as, for instance, the Customs and the Excise) should wear
+Jacks, whereon was to be described the seal used in the respective
+offices. And Captain John Mears, senior, of the <i>Calshot</i>, and Captain
+John Mears, junior, of the <i>Hurst</i>, were to be informed that they must
+deliver up their pendants to the Customs' office at Southampton and
+for the future forbear wearing a pendant. Instead thereof they are to
+wear a Jack and ensign with the seal of office therein, "but the mark
+in the ensign is to be twice as large as that in the Jack; and if the
+captain should hereafter find that the not wearing a pendant will be
+any obstruction or hindrance to the service," the Board of Customs is
+to be informed.<a name="FNanchor_3_3" id="FNanchor_3_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_3_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a></p>
+
+<p>We have now seen something of the sloops and cutters on the south, the
+west, and the north-east coasts. Let us take a glance at the district
+to the southward of Flamborough during this same period. From the Hull
+letter book we find that in September of 1733 the Admiralty appointed
+Captain Burrish of the <i>Blandford</i> and Sir Roger Butler of the
+<i>Bonetta</i> to cruise between <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span>Flamborough and Newcastle; but Captain
+Oates of the <i>Fly</i> and Captain Rycant of the <i>Tryal</i> were to cruise
+between Flamborough and Yarmouth. There is also a reference to the
+Revenue sloop <i>Humber</i> employed in this neighbourhood on Preventive
+work. She was a somewhat expensive craft to keep up, as she was
+frequently needing repairs and renewals. First, she was to have a new
+cable which was to cost &pound;20, 14s. 3-1/2d.; and it is a striking
+reminder of those days of hemp and sail that this bill was paid to the
+"ropemakers." A few months later she had to undergo repairs which
+amounted to &pound;31, 10s. 6-1/4d., and less than six months afterwards she
+had to be given a new anchor which cost &pound;18, 8s. 9d. Three years later
+she was given a new suit of sails which came to &pound;25, 17s. 1d. but her
+old suit was sold for the sum of eight guineas. And finally, in 1744,
+as she had begun to cost so much for repairing, the Board determined
+to sell her.</p>
+
+<p>Notwithstanding that the south coast, by reason of its proximity to
+the Continent and the Channel Isles, was a convenient and popular
+objective for the smugglers running their goods from France and
+Holland, yet the Yorkshire coast was by no means neglected. From
+Dunkirk and Flushing especially goods poured into the county. There
+was a small sloop, for instance, belonging to Bridlington, which was
+accustomed to sail across the North Sea to one of the ports in
+Zealand, where <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span>a cargo was taken aboard consisting of the usual
+dutiable articles such as tea, tobacco, and gin. The return voyage was
+then made and the goods landed clandestinely at some convenient spot
+between the Spurn Lighthouse and Bridlington.</p>
+
+<p>Similarly, farther south than the Humber smuggling by illegal
+importation went on extensively in the early eighteenth century.
+Sometimes a Dutch vessel would arrive in Grimsby Roads and succeed in
+quietly running her goods to the shore. In the autumn of 1734 the
+master of the Dutch schuyt <i>The Good Luck of Camphire</i>, alias <i>The
+Brotherly Love</i>, had succeeded in running as many as 166
+half-ankers<a name="FNanchor_4_4" id="FNanchor_4_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_4_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a> of brandy and 50 lbs. of tea on the coast near Great
+Yarmouth, the skipper's name being Francis Coffee. He was a notorious
+smuggler. But on this occasion both he and his vessel were captured.</p>
+
+<p>Still, matters were not always satisfactory on board the Revenue
+sloops and smacks, for whenever, at this time, there was an encounter
+with the smugglers afloat the latter were so violent and desperate
+that the captors went about their work with their lives in their
+hands. Furthermore, it was not altogether a pleasing business to have
+to fire at fellow-countrymen, many of whom they had known from
+boyhood. Then, again, there was not the space on these sloops and
+cutters, nor the amount of deck room to be <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span>found on the men-of-war;
+and to be cooped up in these comparatively small vessels always on the
+<i>qui vive</i>, usually near the shore but able to have shore-leave all
+too rarely, was calculated to make for restlessness. Added to which a
+very considerable portion of the crews of these Revenue craft was
+composed of men who had spent years of their lives as smugglers
+themselves. Consequently it was not altogether surprising that
+mutinies and refusals to obey their commander's orders were of
+frequent occurrence. After a time it was decided that those members of
+the crew which had to be dismissed for such offences were to be handed
+over to the commander of the next man-of-war that should come along,
+and be pressed into the service of the Navy, though, it may be added,
+this was not always a welcome gift to the Naval commander compelled to
+receive a handful of recalcitrant men aboard his ship. Then, again,
+when at last a handful of smugglers had been captured it was the duty
+of the Revenue officers to prosecute them before the magistrate at
+their own expense. This was regarded as an unfair hardship, and in
+1736 the system was modified by the Treasury allowing an officer a
+third of whatever amount was recovered, the prosecution to be carried
+on at the King's expense. At the same time it was undeniable that some
+commanders of these sloops and cutters were not quite as active as
+they might be on their station. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span>There was too ready an excuse to run
+in from the sea and too great an inclination to spend valuable time in
+port. They were accordingly now enjoined not to presume to lay up for
+the purpose of giving the ship's bottom a scrub, or for a refit,
+without previously giving the Collector and Comptroller of the port
+ten days' notice. This was not to occur unless the cruiser really
+needed such attention; but if it was essential then to prevent the
+station remaining unguarded some other smack or vessel was to be sent
+out to take her place for the time being. For the smugglers were kept
+so well informed of the movements of the Revenue ships that a
+contraband cargo of goods would soon be found approaching the shore
+during the night when the watch had been relaxed.</p>
+
+<p>But from an early date&mdash;at any rate as far back as 1694&mdash;the East
+India ships were notorious also for smuggling into the country a
+considerable amount of goods that ought to have paid duty. We shall
+bring forward instances presently of East Indiamen, homeward bound,
+being boarded as they come up Channel, or while waiting in the Downs
+and putting some of their cargo on board smuggling cutters and Deal
+boats, which was subsequently quietly and secretly brought into the
+country. Silks were especially popular among the smugglers in this
+connection. In those days, too, the more wealthy passengers coming
+home by these East Indiamen used to leave the ship at <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span>Spithead, where
+they came in for that purpose. These passengers would then be put
+ashore at Portsmouth, and, proceeding by coach to London, thus
+shortened their sea journey. But notwithstanding their ample means,
+many of these travellers were constantly found endeavouring to land
+dutiable articles. In short, rich and poor, high and low, there was no
+class that did not endeavour to engage in smuggling either directly or
+indirectly. Even if the party never ventured on the sea, he might be a
+very active aider and abettor in meeting the boat as it brought the
+casks ashore, or keeping a look out for the Preventive men, giving the
+latter false information, thus throwing them on the wrong scent. Or
+again, even if he did not act the part of signaller by showing warning
+lights from the cliff, he could loan his cellars, his horses, or his
+financial support. In fact there were many apparently respectable
+citizens who, by keeping in the background, were never suspected of
+having any interest in these nefarious practices, whereas they were in
+fact the instigators and the capitalists of many a successful run. And
+as such they were without doubt morally responsible for the deaths by
+murder which occurred in those incidents, when violence was used after
+the Revenue men had come on to the scene.</p>
+
+<p>But as to morality, was there ever a period when the national
+character was so slack and corrupt as in the eighteenth century?</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> "Smuggling in Sussex," by William Durrant Cooper, F.S.A.,
+in vol. x. of the <i>Sussex Arch&aelig;ological Collection</i>, to which I am
+indebted.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_2_2" id="Footnote_2_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_2_2"><span class="label">[2]</span></a> <i>Fore and Aft: The Story of the Fore-and-Aft Rig.</i>
+London, 1911.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_3_3" id="Footnote_3_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_3_3"><span class="label">[3]</span></a> "Southampton Letters," November 6, 1730. But in 1719, the
+Customs Commissioners had, <i>inter alia</i>, agreed to provide Captain
+Mears with "a suit of colours" for the <i>Calshot</i>. This provision was,
+therefore, now cancelled in the year 1730.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_4_4" id="Footnote_4_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_4_4"><span class="label">[4]</span></a> A half-anker held 3-1/4 gallons.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER III<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>About the middle of the eighteenth century the smuggling of tea into
+the country had reached such extensive limits that the revenue which
+ought to have been expected from this source was sinking instead of
+rising. In fact it came to this, that of all the tea that was consumed
+in this country not one half had paid duty and the rest was smuggled.
+The bands of smugglers were well financed, were themselves hardy
+sailors and skilful pilots. They had some of the best designed and
+best built cutters and luggers of that time. They were able to
+purchase from an almost inexhaustible market, and to make a quick
+passage to the English shores. Arrived there they could rely on both
+moral and physical support; for their friends were well mounted, well
+armed, and exceedingly numerous, so that ordinarily the cargo could be
+rapidly unshipped, and either hidden or run into the country with
+despatch. Not once, but times without number the smuggling cutters had
+evaded the Revenue cruisers at sea, showing them a clean pair of
+heels. With equal frequency had the Preventive men on land been
+outwitted, bribed, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span>or overpowered. And inasmuch as the duties on the
+smuggled articles were high, had they passed through the Customs, so,
+when smuggled, they could always fetch a big price, and the share for
+the smugglers themselves was by no means inconsiderable. But it is
+always the case that, when large profits are made by lawless, reckless
+people, these proceeds are as quickly dissipated in extravagance of
+living. It is sad to think that these seafaring men, who possessed so
+much grit and pluck, had such only been applied in a right direction,
+actually died paupers. As one reads through the pitiful petitions,
+written on odd scraps of paper in the most illiterate of hands begging
+for clemency on behalf of a convicted smuggler, one can see all too
+clearly that on the whole it was not the actual workers but the
+middle-men who, as is usually the case, made the profits. A life of
+such uncertainty and excitement, an existence full of so many
+hairbreadth escapes did not fit them for the peaceful life either of
+the fisherman or the farmer. With them money went as easily as it had
+come, and taking into account the hardness of the life, the risks that
+were undertaken, the possibility of losing their lives, or of being
+transported after conviction, it cannot be said that these men were
+any too well paid. Carelessness of danger led to recklessness;
+recklessness led on to a life that was dissolute and thriftless. And
+in spite of the fact that these tear-stained appeals were usually
+signed <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span>by all the respectable inhabitants of the seaside village&mdash;the
+rector, the local shipbuilder, Lloyds' shipping agent, the chief
+landowners and so forth&mdash;many a wife and family had to starve or
+become chargeable to the Union, while the breadwinner was spending his
+time in prison, serving as an impressed sailor on board one of his
+Majesty's ships against the enemy; or, if he had been found physically
+unfit for such service, condemned to seven or more years of
+transportation.</p>
+
+<p>But by the year 1745 smuggling had reached such a pitch that something
+had to be done. The country was in such a state of alarm and the
+honest traders made such bitter complaints of the disastrous effect
+which these illicit practices were having on their prosperity that, on
+the 6th of February in that year, a Parliamentary Committee was formed
+"to inquire into the causes of the most infamous practice of smuggling
+and consider the most effectual methods to prevent the said practice."
+For it was clear that in spite of all that had been done by the
+Customs and Excise, by the Admiralty and the military, they had not
+succeeded in obtaining the desired effect.</p>
+
+<p>And during the course of this inquiry a great deal of interesting
+evidence came out from expert witnesses, some of whom had not long
+since been the greatest smugglers in existence, but had come forward
+and received the pardon of the State. We may summarise the testimony
+obtained by <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span>this Committee as follows. The smugglers, after sailing
+away from England, used to purchase the tea abroad sometimes with
+money but at other times with wool. That was a serious matter in
+either alternative if, as was the case, the transactions were carried
+on to any large extent; for the country simply could not afford to be
+denuded either of its valuable wool&mdash;since that crippled the wool
+manufactures&mdash;or of the coin of the realm, which made for bankruptcy.
+But this was not all. England was at war with her neighbours, and the
+French only too gladly admitted the smuggling vessels into her ports,
+since these lawless and unpatriotic men were able to give information
+of the state of affairs in England. There was in the Isle of Man at
+this time no levying of Customs or other duties, so that between that
+island and France there was kept up a constant trade especially in
+teas, other East India goods and brandies, which were afterwards
+conveyed clandestinely to English ports, especially to Liverpool, as
+already we have noted, and also to Glasgow, Dumfries, as well as to
+Ireland. In the days when there were sloops at Liverpool doing duty
+for the Crown they used to set forth and do their best to stop this
+running, "but as it is a very dangerous station, a seizure is scarce
+heard of."</p>
+
+<p>As illustrative of the achievements of smugglers at that time let us
+mention that it was reported <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span>officially from Yarmouth that on July 11
+fifty smugglers had run a cargo of tea and brandy at Benacre in
+Suffolk, and only a fortnight later a band of sixty smugglers landed
+another contraband cargo at the same place, while a gang of forty got
+another cargo safely ashore at Kesland Haven. A week later a still
+larger band, this time consisting of seventy, passed through Benacre
+Street with a large quantity of goods, a cart and four horses. The
+smugglers at Kesland Haven had been able to bring inland their cargo
+of tea and brandy by means of fifty horses. In one month alone&mdash;and
+this at the depth of the winter when cross-channel passages could not
+be expected to be too safe for small sailing craft&mdash;nine smuggling
+cutters had sailed from the port of Rye to Guernsey; and it was
+estimated that during the last half of the year there had been run on
+to the coast of Suffolk 1835 horse-loads of tea as well as certain
+other goods, and 1689 horse-loads of wet and dry goods, to say nothing
+of a large quantity of other articles that should have paid duty.
+These were conveyed away up country by means of waggons and other
+vehicles, guarded by a formidable band of smugglers and sympathisers
+well armed. Notwithstanding that the Revenue officers were in some
+cases aware of what was going on, yet they positively dared not
+attempt any seizures. And in those instances where they had undertaken
+the risk they had been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span>frequently beaten and left cruelly wounded
+with bleeding heads and broken limbs.</p>
+
+<p>One reliable witness testified that whereas it was computed that at
+this time about 4,000,000 lbs. of tea were consumed in this kingdom,
+yet only about 800,000 lbs. of this had ever paid duty, so that there
+was considerably over 3,000,000 lbs. weight of tea smuggled in.
+Therefore on this one item of tea alone the loss to the Crown must
+have been something enormous. Multiply this by the long years during
+which the smuggling went on, add also the duties which ought to have
+been paid on tobacco and spirits, even if you omit to include the
+amount which should have accrued from lace and other commodities, and
+you may begin to realise the seriousness of the smuggling evil as
+viewed by the Revenue authorities.</p>
+
+<p>It was noted that a great deal of this contraband stuff was fetched
+over from Flushing and from Middleburgh, a few miles farther up on the
+canal. The big merchant sailing ships brought the tea from the East to
+Holland, France, Sweden, and Denmark. But the Dutch, the French, the
+Swedes, and the Danes were not great tea drinkers, and certainly used
+it in nothing like the quantities which were consumed in England. But
+it was profitable to them to purchase this East Indian product and to
+sell it again to the smugglers who were wont to run across from
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span>England. It should be added, however, that the species of tea in
+question were of the cheaper qualities. It was also frankly admitted
+in evidence that many of the civil magistrates, whose duty it was to
+grant warrants for the arrest of these delinquents, were intimidated
+by the smugglers, while the officers of the Customs and Excise were
+terrorised.</p>
+
+<p>At this period of the smuggling era, that is to say prior to the
+middle of the eighteenth century, most of the smuggled tea was brought
+over to the south coast of England in Folkestone cutters of a size
+ranging from fifty to forty tons burthen. These vessels usually came
+within about three or four miles of the shore, when they were met by
+the smaller boats of the locality and the goods unladened. Indeed the
+trade was so successful that as many as twenty or thirty cargoes were
+run in a week, and Flushing became so important a base that not merely
+did the natives subsidise or purchase Folkestone craft, but
+ship-builders actually migrated from that English port to Flushing and
+pursued their calling in Dutch territory. As to the reward which the
+smugglers themselves made out of the transaction, the rates of payment
+varied at a later date, but about the years 1728 and 1729 the
+tea-dealers paid the men eight shillings a pound for the commodity.
+And in spite of the seizures which were made by the Revenue cutters
+and the land guard, yet these <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span>losses, admitted a witness, were a mere
+trifle to the smugglers. In fact he affirmed that sometimes one
+tea-dealer never suffered a seizure in six or seven years. We can
+therefore readily believe that the financiers netted a very handsome
+profit on the whole, and there are still standing plenty of fine
+mansions in different parts of our country which are generally
+supposed to have been erected from the proceeds of this form of
+activity.</p>
+
+<p>There was a kind of local intelligence bureau in most of the smuggling
+centres on the south coast, and so loyal and so watchful were these
+craftsmen that the inhabitants of the coast-line managed to let their
+<i>confreres</i> know when the Custom House sloops had sailed out of port
+or when they hauled up for repairs and refit. As a consequence the
+smuggling craft commonly escaped capture. Animated by a natural hatred
+of all Government officials in general, especially of all those whose
+duty it was to collect taxes, dues, and any kind of tolls; disliking
+most of all the men of the Customs and Excise, and, further, being
+allied by sympathy and blood relationship to many of the smugglers
+themselves, it was almost impossible for the representatives of the
+Crown to make any steady progress in their work. We all know that when
+a number of even average law-abiding people get together, that crowd
+somehow tends towards becoming a mob. Each person, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span>so to speak,
+forfeits his own individuality, that becomes merged into the
+personality and character of the mob, which all the time is being
+impelled to break out into something unlawful of a minor or greater
+degree. Whenever you have stood among crowds you must have noted this
+for yourself. It gets restive at the least opposition with which it is
+confronted, it boos and jeers with the smallest incitement; and,
+finally, realising the full strength of its unity, breaks out into
+some rash violence and rushes madly on, heedless of the results. Many
+murders have been in this way committed by men who ordinarily and in
+their individual capacity would shrink from such crimes. But having
+become merely one of the limbs, as it were, of the crowd they have
+moved with the latter and obeyed its impulses.</p>
+
+<p>It was just the same when many of the dwellers of the country-side,
+many of the fishermen, labourers, and farm-hands found themselves
+assembled on the report of a pistol shot or the cry of angry voices
+coming up from the beach below. Something was happening, some one was
+in trouble, and the darkness of the night or the gloom of the fog
+added a halo of mystery round the occasion. Men and women came out
+from their cottages, some one got hit, and then a general affray
+began. Clubs and pistols and cutlasses were busy, men were bellowing
+forth oaths, women shrieking, and the galloping of horses heard
+rapidly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span>approaching. Amid such excitements we can readily understand
+that a good many acts of violence and deep injury occurred which
+afterwards, when the heat of the event had vaporised, were regretted.
+At the same time, notwithstanding that one is aware that the men were
+engaged in an unlawful pursuit and that they themselves fully
+appreciated their degree of guilt, yet we cannot but feel some sort of
+sympathy with a crew who, after a long and exciting passage through
+bad weather all the way across the Channel, after perhaps a breathless
+race against the Government cruisers, had finally succeeded in landing
+their tubs on the shore only to be pounced on immediately by the
+riding officers and a <i>posse</i> of dragoons. It must have been
+heart-breaking that all their carefully laid plans, all their
+hardships and trials should end in disaster. Realising this and that
+their craft as well as their persons would be seized, it was but
+natural that they would fight like the most desperate of men. And, at
+the same time, those their relatives on shore who largely depended on
+them for their bread and butter would rush to their aid with a spirit
+and an impetuosity that could only end in one way. The pity of it all
+was that so much fine daring and enthusiasm were not being employed
+for a better cause and for more worthy results.</p>
+
+<p>But the smugglers found that, contrary to what one would expect, their
+greatest risk was not <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span>when landing the goods, but when bringing them
+across from the Continent. A seizure on land was, at any rate during
+the first half of the eighteenth century, comparatively rare if they
+had been able to get away from the sloops and cutters. For the
+bodyguard of armed men on horseback who promptly met and escorted the
+contraband into the country frequently did as they had planned. And
+when once the tea has arrived inland it was easily sold to people who
+bought it not in small quantities but took as much as 1000 lbs. at a
+time. In addition, there were a number of men called "duffers," who
+used to walk inland wearing coats in which a hundred-weight of tea was
+concealed between two layers of cloth stitched together. They were
+accordingly said to "quilt" so much of this commodity. These duffers,
+having set forth on their walk, would eventually arrive in London and
+dispose of the tea to hawkers who, in turn, carried it about the town
+and sold it to the consumers, who, even if they had possessed any
+scruples, could not possibly know that the leaves had been smuggled in
+without paying the Crown's levy.</p>
+
+<p>But it was not merely by exercising the strictest vigilance on the
+activities of the Government sloops and land officers, nor entirely by
+resort to trickery and violence, to threats and intimidation that the
+smugglers managed to keep out of the hands of justice. They even
+advanced one step <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span>further still, for there was a man named Norton
+whom they employed as their agent to defend them against prosecutions.
+This Norton at one time had actually been in the employ of the Crown
+as clerk of the late Solicitor to the Customs. And it was generally
+believed that Norton by some means&mdash;most probably by offering tempting
+bribes&mdash;obtained news from the clerks of the Customs' solicitor when a
+smuggler was likely to be arrested and a warrant was about to be
+issued. Norton was then supposed to give the smuggler an immediate
+warning and the man was able to make himself scarce. It was quite an
+easy operation, for in those days when there was no telegraph and no
+steamboat service across the Channel, all the "wanted" man had to do
+was instantly to board his cutter, set sail, and hurry across to
+France or Holland, where he was sure of a welcome, where also he could
+employ himself in arranging for cargoes to be run into England perhaps
+in the very vessel which had brought him across. There were plenty of
+his compatriots resident in Flushing, so he need not feel homesick,
+and when at last the incident had blown over he could find his way
+back to Kent or Sussex.</p>
+
+<p>It was reckoned that about this time there were at least 20,000 people
+in England employed in smuggling, and in some parts (as, for instance,
+the village of Hawkhurst, about which we shall have more to say
+presently) gangs of large <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span>numbers could be got together in a very
+short time. In Hawkhurst alone 500 smugglers could be collected within
+an hour. Folkestone, however, ran Hawkhurst fairly close with a
+similar notoriety. Such gangs, well armed as they were, went about
+with impunity, for notwithstanding that they were well known, yet no
+one dared to molest them.</p>
+
+<p>We mentioned just now that the danger to the State of this import
+smuggling was not merely that goods were brought into the country
+without payment being made to the Customs, but that inasmuch as the
+contraband goods were purchased abroad partly by wool and partly by
+actual coin England was being robbed both ways. And as the wool
+exportation declined and the import smuggling rose, so the amount of
+gold that passed out of the country seriously increased. At least
+&pound;1,000,000 sterling were carried out of the kingdom each year to
+purchase these goods, and of this amount somewhere about &pound;800,000 were
+paid for tea alone. At a later date the price of tea often went up,
+but the dealer still made a profit of 40s. on every 100 lbs. We
+alluded just now also to the dangers of seizure, and it is worth
+remarking that these were recognised by the smugglers as being greater
+in one district than in another. For instance, it was much more
+difficult to run goods into the counties of Kent and Sussex than into
+Suffolk, owing to the fleet at sea and the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span>troops on the coast. And
+as to the amount of support which could be relied on it was an
+admitted fact that there was not one person in ten in the country but
+would give the smugglers assistance, and even lend them horses and
+carts. For the use of these the smugglers made payment at an increased
+rate.</p>
+
+<p>There was one witness before this Commission who stated that he knew
+of about sixty English cutters of from thirty to forty tons burthen
+each, and five or six vessels of the same burthen belonging to
+merchants at Flushing which were employed constantly in running goods
+across to England, and several of those who gave evidence confessed
+that they had for years been actively engaged in smuggling, but had
+taken advantage of the late Act of Indemnity. One reason alleged for
+smuggling tea was that the East India Company did not sufficiently
+supply the dealers with the low-priced kinds, whereas the Dutch did.
+And it was further contended that if the price of tea were lessened
+sixpence per lb. it would put a stop to smuggling of the commodity,
+for at this date, although other articles such as spirits and tobacco
+were brought in, yet there was far more tea run than anything else.
+But at the same time the smugglers rather liked to include a quantity
+of brandy casks among their cargo for the reason that they were heavy
+and made very good ballast. And as to the ships themselves, it was
+agreed that those of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span>smugglers were the best sailing
+fore-and-afters that were built in those days, and could easily
+out-sail both the King's ships and the Custom House sloops. Finally,
+it was shown that in spite of the large and tempting rewards that were
+offered by advertisement for the apprehension of those persons who had
+been concerned in smuggling, no one had come forward to give
+information for the reason that, even if he would, he dared not. And
+so fascinating was the call of smuggling, that although there were
+those who had willingly embraced the pardon granted them by the recent
+Act, forsaken this illegal trade and settled down on farms or devoted
+themselves to other occupations which were within the law, yet there
+were many others who had returned to their former practices.</p>
+
+<p>After accumulating this evidence, the Committee issued their first
+report on March 24, 1745, and expressed themselves of the opinion that
+the high duties charged on tea and other commodities had certainly
+been one cause of smuggling. But they also added that the exposing for
+sale of those boats and vessels which had been seized from the
+smugglers was certainly another potent reason, for these craft were
+frequently bought back by the men; they therefore recommended that all
+captured craft should be burned. Furthermore, the Commission condemned
+the custom of allowing penalties to be compounded so easily. As an
+instance of this last-mentioned custom we might call <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span>attention to
+three smugglers belonging to the county of Hampshire. There is a
+reference to them in the Southampton Letters under date of April 28,
+1730, from which it appears that Matthew Barton, John Gibort, and
+William Moadon of Fordingbridge were under prosecution for running
+goods ashore. They subsequently offered to compound for the said
+offence on the following terms: Barton to pay the sum of &pound;35, Gibort
+to pay &pound;25, and Moadon &pound;15. But before allowing the matter to be
+settled straight away the Collector and Comptroller at Southampton
+were ordered to look carefully into the affair and to inquire what
+these men were generally esteemed to be worth.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER IV<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>It was not till June of 1746 that the Committee issued their second
+report, and the evidence therein contained is even more interesting to
+us than any which had hitherto been given. After the Solicitor to the
+Commissioners had shown how biassed juries frequently were towards
+prisoners brought up on charges connected with smuggling, how they
+declined to bring in a verdict against them even in spite of the
+clearest of evidence, another official (the Surveyor of the Searchers
+in the Port of London) stated that when he had received information
+that there had been a run of goods in a certain locality and had even
+received information as to the road along which they would be brought,
+he had been compelled to travel by night and carefully to avoid all
+the beaten paths. Indeed, if people whom they might meet on the road
+noticed a Custom House officer and any soldiers together, their design
+would immediately be suspected and warning would promptly be sent to
+the smugglers, who would hide their goods. He added, also, that he
+remembered on one occasion that a couple of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span>vessels landed in the
+Isle of Thanet as much tea as could be loaded on the backs of two
+hundred horses.</p>
+
+<p>But it was when the ex-smugglers came to give their evidence that the
+real secrets of the trade were unfolded. Robert Hanning, who for years
+had been one of the most distinguished members of the industry,
+informed the Commission that formerly he was the principal dealer with
+the smugglers when he resided at Dunkirk. Some idea of the colossal
+business which he had carried on may be gathered from his admission
+that he had sold teas, brandies, and wines to be run into England <i>to
+the extent of</i> &pound;40,000 <i>per annum</i>. And let us not forget to bear in
+mind that of course this probably represented the value of the goods
+when they were put on board. What they actually realised after they
+were smuggled into the English market must have been something
+considerable.</p>
+
+<p>Hanning was followed by a certain Captain Joseph Cockburn, who had a
+very instructive story to tell, which must have amazed even the
+Commissioners. This gallant skipper was now commanding one of his
+Majesty's sloops, but prior to that he had been engaged in
+privateering, and before that had commanded several vessels employed
+in smuggling. From his very infancy he had been concerned in the
+practice of running goods, and his apprenticeship had been served to
+a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span>smuggler at Rochester, who was nominally a fisherman. Consequently,
+with an accumulated knowledge obtained first as a smuggler and
+subsequently as a pursuer of smugglers, there was not much, if
+anything at all, in connection with the work which could have missed
+his attention. He proved himself a veritable encyclop&aelig;dia of smuggling
+information, and even the following brief summary will show that his
+experience was something exceptional.</p>
+
+<p>First of all, he instanced the case of five cutters which he knew were
+constantly employed in running tea and brandy from Boulogne into Kent
+and Sussex. They imported at least six tons of tea and two thousand
+half-ankers of brandy <i>every week</i>. He estimated that the six tons of
+tea would be purchased abroad for &pound;1920. The two thousand half-ankers
+of brandy, even if they cost but ten shillings apiece, would represent
+the sum of &pound;1000; so altogether there was a total of nearly &pound;3000
+being carried out of the country in specie every week by these five
+cutters alone. But he also knew of five other cutters which were
+constantly employed in fetching brandy and tea from Middleburgh and
+Flushing, and he reckoned that these ten cutters in the aggregate
+smuggled into the United Kingdom each year goods to the value of
+&pound;303,680. Possibly there was no living person who possessed so perfect
+and exact a knowledge of the smuggling trade, so we can have <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span>little
+reason to doubt for a moment the veracity of his figures.</p>
+
+<p>Passing, then, to describe the methods employed by these men, he
+divided them into two classes. Firstly, there were those adopted by
+the cutters and smacks which did little else than smuggle, and,
+secondly, there were the British ships which primarily carried on a
+legitimate trade to foreign parts. As to the first class, the practice
+of these cutters and smacks was to put to sea from whatever port to
+which they belonged&mdash;London, Dover, Rye, Folkestone, or wherever it
+might be&mdash;having on board a small number of hands, their professed
+object being to fish. Having stood some distance away from the land,
+they would be met during the night by a number of smaller craft, and
+under cover of darkness would take on board from the latter large
+crews, much merchandise, and a considerable amount of money. The
+smaller craft rowed or sailed back to the beach before daylight, and
+the bigger craft, now well supplied with men, money, and merchandise,
+stood on their course for some Dutch or French port. There they
+purchased such goods as they required, disposed of those which they
+had brought, and again set sail for home. The vessel was again met at
+a convenient distance from the English shore by smaller boats if a
+favourable signal had been flashed from the land; and, using the
+darkness of the night, once more both the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span>cargo and the supernumerary
+men were put into the boats, after which the latter ran the stuff
+ashore in casks already slung and in bales, while the smack headed for
+her harbour whence she had set out. As she had just the same small
+crew as before no suspicions were aroused, and it was presumed she had
+been out fishing.</p>
+
+<p>But additional to these comparatively large vessels there were smaller
+craft&mdash;open boats, yawls, and little sloops&mdash;which in fine weather
+were wont to run across from the south coast of England to Boulogne,
+Guernsey, and from the west of England to the Isle of Man. They also
+loaded up with as much cargo as they could carry, and, since they were
+able to be beached, the process of discharging their contents as soon
+as they returned was much simpler. These smaller craft also were in
+the habit of running out well clear of the land and meeting Dutch
+vessels, from which they would purchase similar kinds of goods and run
+them in by the usual methods. In these lesser craft were frequently
+carried a great many stones, anchors, and heavy weights by means of
+which the half-ankers of brandy could be sunk near the shore and
+afterwards taken up as required. The exact way in which this was done
+we shall discuss fully in a later chapter.</p>
+
+<p>Some of the cobbles, "hovelings," and small fishing craft that were
+accustomed to run out to big sailing merchantmen under pretence of
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span>shipping pilots to take them into the next port, were actually engaged
+in smuggling all sorts of goods out of these ships. Perhaps it was a
+lurking sympathy with the men engaged in a trade with which his
+earlier years had been so intimately associated that made Captain
+Cockburn suggest that it was because the Dutchmen brought such large
+quantities of fish into Billingsgate that the English fishermen found
+their work unprofitable, and were accordingly driven to devote
+themselves to smuggling. But from evidence in other documents it would
+certainly seem that Cockburn was speaking the truth and that the
+fishing industry was not a very good livelihood at that time.</p>
+
+<p>Then, secondly, there was the smuggling that was carried on by the
+trading sailing ships from abroad. Great quantities of goods were
+being run into the country by colliers&mdash;they were usually
+brig-rigged&mdash;by corn-ships, packet-boats from the Continent and other
+vessels trading with Holland. At least, one thousand five hundred
+vessels were engaged in this trade, "and," added Cockburn, "he
+scarcely ever knew one of them return without some prohibited or high
+duty goods." The smuggling from these vessels was done in various
+ways. There were the pilot-boats and fishing craft which frequently
+met them near the coast, as already explained. Another way was for the
+merchantmen to put into harbours, roadsteads, and rivers, where they
+lay at anchor under pretence of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span>waiting for orders. Another method
+still, that was as simple as it was successful, consisted of landing
+their goods at outports on such holidays as the King's birthday, &amp;c.,
+when the Revenue officers were absent. Cockburn admitted that he had
+done this himself and had run great quantities of brandies, teas, and
+Spanish liquorice even as much as nearly a ton of the latter at a
+time. But besides these two classes there was a third. The whole of
+the coasting trade in those days was of course done in sailing ships;
+and inasmuch as there were no railways for carrying merchandise there
+was a good deal more encouragement for the sailing ship owner than
+there is to-day. The methods of smuggling adopted by these coasters
+was a little more complicated, and this was done by such means as
+fraudulently obtaining permits, by cockets clandestinely obtained, by
+false entry of one sort of goods for another, and by corrupting the
+Customs' officers. To prove his case the captain gave the following
+examples, <i>all of which he had himself employed since the year 1738!</i></p>
+
+<p>As regards the obtaining of permits fraudulently, he said that he had
+gone to Dunkirk, taken aboard 2040 gallons of French brandy and
+cleared for North Bergen in Norway. Of course he had no intention
+whatever of steering for that port, but in case he met any of the
+Custom House sloops as he approached the English coast, it would be
+convenient to show this clearance and so prevent <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span>his brandy being
+seized. From Dunkirk, then, he sailed across the North Sea and ran up
+the river Humber. There, by previous arrangement, one of those keels
+which are so well known in the neighbourhood of the Humber and Trent
+met him. The keel had been sent from York down the Ouse with permits
+to cover the brandy. The keel was cleared by a merchant at York, who
+obtained permits for conveying to Gainsborough a quantity of French
+brandy equal to that which Cockburn had on board his ship, though in
+fact the keel, notwithstanding that she obtained these permits, set
+forth with no brandy in her at all.</p>
+
+<p>It was the point where the Ouse crosses the Trent at right angles that
+had been arranged as the trysting-place, and there the keel took on
+board from Cockburn the brandy which had come from Dunkirk. Cockburn
+himself nailed the permits on to the heads of the casks, which in due
+course were taken by the keel, when the flood tide made again, to
+Gainsborough some distance up the Trent. Arrived there the casks were
+properly taken into stock and entered in the Custom House books as if
+the brandy had been actually brought down from York and had previously
+paid duty. On this one venture the garrulous skipper admitted that he
+cleared a profit by the brandy of &pound;250 per cent., which was a
+remarkably handsome reward for so short a voyage as from Dunkirk.</p>
+
+<p>Port wines, he said, were purchasable at <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span>Dunkirk because these had
+been taken from English merchantmen by privateers; and since there was
+little or no market for such wines in Spain they were brought into
+Dunkirk, whither resorted the smugglers eager to buy them. He
+proceeded also to explain another method of cheating the customs.
+Large quantities of very inferior British brandy were taken on board a
+ship and clearance was obtained for some other English port, but
+instead of proceeding to the latter the vessel would run across to
+Dunkirk or Holland, where she would unload the cheap brandy, and in
+its place take on board some high-priced French brandy equal in
+quantity to the British commodity which had been put ashore at the
+French port. After this, with now a much more valuable cargo, the
+vessel would put to sea again and make for that British port for which
+originally she had cleared. And as to the practice of bribery, he
+himself had several times bought permits from the Excise officers to
+cover smuggled brandy and tea. On one occasion he had paid an officer
+fifty guineas for a permit to cover a certain quantity of tea and
+brandy about to be run into the country.</p>
+
+<p>Next came Captain Ebenezer Hartley, who had also formerly commanded a
+ship that was engaged in smuggling. He had known of large quantities
+of muslins and silks brought into the country on board East Indiamen.
+These goods were smuggled by throwing them through the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span>port-holes at
+night into boats waiting below, alongside the ship, or whilst the
+Custom officer was being entertained on board with food and drink.
+Sometimes, he said, this was even done under the very eyes of the
+Revenue officer, who took no notice of it. He recalled an incident in
+an earlier part of his life when he had sailed from England to
+Holland, in which country he had filled up with twenty-six casks of
+oil. After that his orders were to cross the North Sea and meet a
+certain vessel which would await him off Aldborough. This
+last-mentioned craft would give Hartley's vessel the signal by
+lowering her jib three times.</p>
+
+<p>A more tragic story was related by George Bridges, a tidesman of the
+Port of London. He showed that it did not always "pay" to be diligent
+in one's duty, for he quoted the case of a Captain Mercer, in the
+employ of the Custom House, who did now and then make a seizure, but
+he "was broke for doing his duty"; and when Mercer came into Cork on
+the occasion in question, the mob set upon him so that he was
+compelled to escape into the sheriff's house. The mob then surrounded
+the house in their thousands until the sheriff interceded with them.
+They were wild with fury and threatened to pull the house down, until
+the sheriff gave them his oath that Captain Mercer should never again
+be guilty of seizing the wool which the smugglers had endeavoured to
+export. But the mob afterwards went to Passage and took hold of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span>a
+Custom House officer named May. They brought him forth from his house,
+cut out his tongue, and cut off his ears, one of which the witness
+said he remembered seeing nailed on to the Cork Exchange. They dragged
+the man with a rope round his neck, gave him several blows, hurled him
+into the river, and finally the poor fellow died of his ill-treatment.
+Although handsome rewards were offered for the discovery of the
+offenders, yet no one ever came forward.</p>
+
+<p>One could quote similar instances of the vehemence of the smugglers
+from other sources. For instance, on February 2, 1748-49, the
+Collector of the Port of Penzance wrote to the Board to give them some
+idea of the people among whom he had to work. "The insolence," he
+said, "of some of the smuglers [<i>sic</i>] and wreckers in this
+neighbourhood is run to such a heighth, that tho our officers have
+from time to time secured severall Hogsheads, it has been by force
+taken from them [again], 'and the officers forced to save their
+lives.'" Writing again on the 14th December, the same correspondent
+added that "the smugglers never behaved with more insolence than at
+present, or was it ever known to be carried on with more
+audaciousness," mentioning also that the previous night the snow<a name="FNanchor_5_5" id="FNanchor_5_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_5_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a>
+<i>Squirrel</i> of North Yarmouth had driven ashore loaded with a cargo of
+brandy. The country-folk <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span>had immediately boarded her, stripped the
+master of everything valuable, and then carried off all the brandy
+they could lay their hands on, and, in their haste, had set fire to
+the rest of the cargo, so that at the time of writing the whole ship
+was in flames. He mentioned also a couple of months later the
+difficulty he had to secure arrests of smugglers, for even when he had
+obtained warrants for the apprehension of eight most notorious men,
+the constables excused themselves from doing their duty in serving the
+warrants, and pretended that the eight men had absconded.</p>
+
+<p>And anyone who cares to examine the Treasury Books and Papers for this
+period will find similar cases. In July of 1743 some smugglers had
+seized the Custom House boat at Dover and coolly employed her for
+their own purposes in running tea. The Custom officers deemed matters
+to be in such a state that they begged that a man-of-war might be
+stationed on that coast to prevent smuggling. Similarly in January of
+1743-44, during a skirmish near Arundel between the preventive men
+assisted by some dragoons against a band of smugglers, the latter had
+wounded three of the soldiers and carried off an officer and two other
+dragoons on board the smugglers' cutter. This was no unique
+occurrence, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span>for sometimes the contraband runners, when infuriated,
+captured the would-be captors, hurried them out to sea, and then,
+having bound the unfortunate victims with a bit of spare rope and
+having tied a piece of ballast to their live bodies, they would be
+hurled overboard into the sea, and the soldier or preventive man would
+never be seen or heard of again unless his lifeless body were cast
+upon the beach. At Folkestone, about this time, three men were carried
+off by the smugglers in trying to effect an arrest, and the supervisor
+at Colchester had been also carried off, but afterwards he had been
+released on promising not to mention the smugglers' names. It was bad
+enough, therefore, for the Revenue men when they had the assistance of
+the dragoons, but it was infinitely worse when they had to contend
+alone. There is an almost pathetic petition from the Folkestone
+riding-officers sent on New Year's Day 1744-45, begging for military
+assistance against the smugglers, as although there were soldiers
+stationed at Dover yet they were unobtainable, since they refused to
+march more than five miles.</p>
+
+<p>And it was just as bad, if not worse, about this time in the Isle of
+Man, for the latter's inhabitants consisted almost exclusively of
+smugglers and their families, some of whom had long since been
+outlawed from England and Ireland. So rich and prosperous, indeed, had
+these Manxmen become by means of smuggling that they <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span>were recognised
+with a degree of importance which was almost ludicrous. The two
+deemsters (or deputy-governors) of the island even countenanced and
+protected the men, who would often assemble together to scheme and
+drink to the damnation of His Britannic Majesty. Unhindered in their
+nefarious work, able to obtain all the cargo they required from France
+and the Channel Isles; able, too, to run their contraband into the
+west of England, they waxed exceedingly independent and wealthy. At
+Douglas they had built themselves a good quay for the shelter of their
+ships and for convenience in landing their cargoes, the only drawback
+being that the harbour dried out at low water.</p>
+
+<p>It happened that on the 26th of June 1750, that Captain Dow,
+commanding H.M. cruiser <i>Sincerity</i><a name="FNanchor_6_6" id="FNanchor_6_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_6_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a> was, according to the orders
+received from the Board of Customs, on duty in Douglas Roads. A
+notorious Irish smuggling wherry came in from Ireland and ran under
+the <i>Sincerity's</i> stern, while the smugglers "with opprobrious,
+treasonable, and abusive language abused His Majesty King George and
+all that belonged to or served under him." This, of course, was too
+much for any naval officer to endure, and Captain Dow immediately
+caused the ship to come alongside, and, after being rummaged, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span>she was
+found to have concealed in a jar of butter-milk twenty-five English
+guineas tied up in a bag. There were also papers on board which proved
+that this money was to be expended in the purchase of brandies and
+tea, &amp;c., and that, having obtained these articles, she was then to
+return to Ireland. The English captain therefore promptly seized both
+money and papers.</p>
+
+<p>On the same day that this incident occurred a Dutch dogger<a name="FNanchor_7_7" id="FNanchor_7_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_7_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a> also
+came into Douglas Roads loaded with prohibited goods from Holland. As
+soon as he had noticed her come to anchor Dow sent his boat to board
+her with his mate and six men, and to examine and see if she had the
+prohibited goods on board which were suspected. If she had, then she
+was to be seized. At the same time Dow had requested Mr. Sidebotham,
+his Majesty's officer in the Isle of Man, to cast off the
+<i>Sincerity's</i> headfast and sternfasts from the shore. But thereupon a
+riotous and angry mob, fearing that the cruiser should be able to get
+under weigh and seize the Dutch dogger, refused to allow Sidebotham to
+let go the ropes. Armed with bludgeons, muskets, swords, and stones
+they rushed down on to the quay, and did all they could to force the
+cruiser on shore by aiming showers of stones at the cruiser's men <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span>and
+restraining Sidebotham in his endeavour to help the <i>Sincerity</i>. They
+even carried the latter away by force, and beat and bruised him in the
+most brutal manner.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Dow, realising that the intention of the mob was to get the
+<i>Sincerity</i> stranded, determined to cut his cable and exhorted them in
+his Majesty's name to disperse, to which they paid not the slightest
+attention except to send more showers of stones on to the cruiser's
+decks. Seeing from afar what was happening, the mate and six men who
+had been sent to board the dogger now returned to the <i>Sincerity</i>.
+Whereupon the dogger, perceiving her chance, promptly got under way.
+As the crowd on shore still continued to pelt his ship with stones and
+had already wounded two of his crew, the cruiser's commander fired
+amongst them. For a time, at least, this dispersed them, and so Dow
+was able to get his vessel clear. He immediately proceeded to follow
+the Dutch dogger, and chased her until she had, perforce, to run
+herself on to the sands at Ramsey to the north of the island.
+Determined not to be beaten, Dow now sent his mate and ten men on
+board her, seized her, and marked her in several places with the sign
+of a broad arrow to denote her capture.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep072" id="imagep072"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep072.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep072.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;Dow sent his mate and ten men on board her.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Dow sent his mate and ten men on board her."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>But when the mate came to open the hatches several of the islanders
+who had been secreted on board, with the assistance of two boat-loads
+of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span>armed men who had rowed off from the shore, seized the mate and
+his men, and threatened that if they resisted they would kill them.
+Being completely overpowered, the eleven naval men were compelled to
+yield and be carried ashore, where they were shut up in cellars and
+finally carried down to Castletown Castle. Meanwhile, the smugglers
+set to work on the dogger's cargo and landed it safely. A few days
+later six of the eleven were released, but the other five were
+detained until Captain Dow should refund the twenty-five guineas he
+had seized from the Irish wherry. In order to give him a fright they
+also sent word that the five men should be tried <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span>before one of their
+Courts of Judicature on the following Thursday, were he to fail to
+send the money. As the captain declined to accede to their demands,
+the five prisoners were on July 5 brought up and remanded till a month
+later. Finding it was impossible to obtain their release the commander
+of the <i>Sincerity</i> weighed anchor and ran back to Ramsey to take in
+the six released men, and then, sailing away to Whitehaven, arrived at
+that place on the 10th of July.</p>
+
+<p>We need not say more. The story is sufficient to indicate the utter
+state of lawlessness which prevailed there. Peopled by outlaws and by
+the scum of France, Holland, Ireland, Scotland, and England, they were
+a pretty tough proposition. Their violence was rivalled only by their
+impudence; and fleets of wherries<a name="FNanchor_8_8" id="FNanchor_8_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_8_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a> would sail in company into
+Ireland and Scotland loaded with cargoes of cheap brandy, which had
+been brought from Holland for that purpose. As a means of checking
+these Manx smugglers it was suggested that the English Government
+should employ a number of tenders in this neighbourhood, since they
+drew less water than the sloops-of-war and so would be more useful for
+a locality that was not well supplied with deep harbours. Moreover,
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span>these tenders would be well able to take the ground in the harbours
+which dried out. Such craft as the latter were of about 160 tons,
+mounted twelve to fourteen carriage guns, and were manned by a
+captain, second officer, two mates, two quartermasters, a gunner, a
+boatswain, carpenter, surgeon, and forty seamen.</p>
+
+<p>From the south-east corner of England came reports not much better.
+Just before the close of the year 1743 the Surveyor at Margate and his
+men were out on duty along the coast one night when five of them came
+upon a gang of about twenty-five smugglers. An encounter quickly
+ensued, and as the latter were well armed they were, by their superior
+numbers, able to give the officers a severe beating, especially in the
+case of one unfortunate "whose head is in such a miserable condition
+that the Surveyor thought proper to put him under the care of a
+surgeon." Both this Surveyor and the one at Ramsgate asserted that the
+smugglers were accustomed to travel in such powerful gangs, and at the
+same time were so well armed, that it was impossible to cope with
+them, there being seldom less than thirty in a gang "who bid defiance
+to all the officers when they met them."</p>
+
+<p>On the 7th April 1746, the Collector and Controller of the Customs at
+Sandwich wrote to the Board:</p>
+
+<p>"We further beg leave to acquaint your <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span>Honours that yesterday about
+four o'clock in the afternoon a large gang of near 100 smuglers
+[<i>sic</i>] with several led horses went thro' this town into the island
+of Thanet, where we hear they landed their goods, notwithstanding that
+we took all possible care to prevent them.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>P.S.</i>&mdash;This moment we have advice that there is a gang of 200
+smugglers more at St. Peter's in the Isle of Thanet."</p>
+
+<p>Seven months later in that year, at nine o'clock one November morning,
+a gang of 150 smugglers managed to land some valuable cargo from a
+couple of cutters on to the Sandwich flats. Several Revenue officers
+were despatched into the country for the purpose of meeting with some
+of the stragglers. The officers came into collision with a party of
+these men and promptly seized two horse-loads of goods consisting of
+five bags of tea and eight half-ankers of wine. But they were only
+allowed to retain this seizure for half-an-hour, inasmuch as the
+smugglers presently overpowered the Revenue men and wrested back their
+booty. The preventive men were also considerably knocked about, and
+one of them had his thumb badly dislocated. The officers declared that
+they knew none of the people, the latter being well supplied not with
+firearms but with great clubs. A fortnight later, just a few miles
+farther along the coast, a gang of 150 smugglers succeeded in landing
+their goods at Reculvers <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span>near Birchington; and ten days later still
+another gang of the same size was able to land their goods near
+Kingsgate, between the North Foreland and Margate. But it cannot be
+supposed that the Revenue officers were not aware of the approach of
+these incidents. The fact was that they were a little lacking in
+courage to face these problems on every occasion. Indeed, they were
+candid enough to admit that they dared not venture near these ruffians
+"without the utmost hazard of their lives." But the riding-officers
+were not solely to blame, for where were the Custom House sloops? How
+was it they were always absent at these critical times? Indeed, the
+Collector and Controller informed the Commissioners that not one of
+these sloops had been seen cruising between Sandwich and Reculvers for
+some months past.</p>
+
+<p>This complaint about the cruisers was made in March 1747, and in that
+same month another gang, two hundred strong, appeared on the coast,
+but this time, after a smart encounter, the officers secured and
+placed in the King's warehouse a ton of tea as well as other goods,
+and three horses. A day or two later a gang of smugglers threatened to
+rescue these goods back again. The property formed a miscellaneous
+collection and consisted of fifty pieces of cambric, three bags of
+coffee, some Flemish linen, tea, clothes, pistols, a blunderbuss, and
+two musquetoons. To prevent the smugglers <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span>carrying out their
+intention, however, a strong guard was formed by an amalgamation of
+all the officers from Sandwich, Ramsgate, and Broadstairs, who
+forthwith proceeded to Margate. In addition to these, it was arranged
+that Commodore Mitchell should send ashore from the Downs as many men
+as he could spare. This united front was therefore successful, and for
+once the smugglers were overmatched. And but for a piece of bad luck,
+or sheer carelessness, a couple of years later a smart capture might
+well have been brought about. It was one day in August when the
+officers had received information that a gang of twenty men and horses
+had appeared near Reculvers to receive goods from a cutter that was
+seen to be hovering near the coast. The smugglers on shore were cute
+enough to locate the officers, and by some means evidently signalled
+to the cutter, for the latter now put to sea again and the gang
+cleared off. Although for some time after this incident both officers
+and dragoons patrolled the coast in the neighbourhood no one was ever
+fortunate enough to gather information either as to the cutter or the
+people who had vanished into the country with such rapidity.</p>
+
+<p>And yet in spite of the very numerous sympathisers which these illicit
+importers possessed, yet of course there were some individuals who
+were as much against them as any officer of the Customs. In the
+neighbourhood of Plymouth legitimate trade <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span>had suffered a great deal
+owing to these practices. The mayor, aldermen, and merchants of
+Saltash were at last compelled to send a memorial to the Lords of the
+Treasury complaining that in the rivers adjacent to that place there
+were several creeks and inlets which were being made of considerable
+use by the smugglers for landing their goods. Especially was this the
+case up the river Tamar, and all this had been and was still "to the
+great prejudice of the fair traders and merchants." They pointed out
+that a great deal of it consisted of clandestine running from ships in
+the Sound, Hamoaze, and other anchorages round about there. Large
+quantities of French linings, wines, and brandies were being run
+ashore with impunity and speedily sold in the adjacent towns or
+conveyed some distance into Devonshire. The mayor therefore begged the
+Treasury for three additional Custom officers consisting of an
+inspector of roads and two tide-waiters to be established at Saltash,
+but the Treasury could not see their way to grant such a request.</p>
+
+<p>But in other parts of the country the roads were kept carefully
+watched to prevent goods being brought inland. The coaches which ran
+from Dover to London with passengers who had come across from the
+Continent were frequently stopped on the highway by the
+riding-officers and the passengers searched. Harsh as this mode of
+procedure may seem to us to-day, yet it was rendered <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span>necessary by the
+fact that a good many professional carriers of contraband goods were
+wont to travel backwards and forwards between England and abroad. Some
+years later, for example, when the Dover coach was stopped at "The
+Half-Way House," a foreigner, who was travelling by this conveyance
+and had been able to evade the Customs' search at Dover, was found to
+be carrying two gold snuff-boxes set with diamonds, four lockets also
+set with diamonds, eighteen opals, three sapphires, eight amethysts,
+six emeralds, two topazes, and one thousand two hundred
+torquoises&mdash;all of which were liable to duty.</p>
+
+<p>And thus the illegal practices continued all round the coast. From
+Devonshire it was reported that smuggling was on the increase&mdash;this
+was in the autumn of 1759&mdash;and that large gangs armed with loaded
+clubs openly made runs of goods on the shore, the favourite <i>locale</i>
+being Torbay, though previously the neighbourhood of Lyme had been the
+usual aim of these men who had sailed as a rule from Guernsey. All
+that the Collector could suggest was that an "impress smack" should be
+sent to that district, as he promised that the notorious offenders
+would make excellent seamen.</p>
+
+<p>There was an interesting incident also off the north-east coast of
+England, where matters were still about as bad as ever. We referred
+some pages back to the capture of a Dutch dogger off <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span>the Isle of Man;
+we shall now see another of these craft seized in the North Sea.
+Captain Bowen of the sloop <i>Prince of Wales</i>, hearing that the dogger
+<i>Young Daniel</i> was running brandy on the coast near to Newcastle, put
+to sea in search of her. He came up with a number of those
+cobbles&mdash;open boats&mdash;which are peculiar to the north-east coastline,
+though at one time they were used as far south as Great Yarmouth. The
+cobbles which he was able to intercept had just been employed in
+transferring the contraband from the dogger to the shore. Bowen
+captured one of these small craft with a dozen casks aboard. Another
+was forced ashore and secured by the land officers. Meanwhile, the
+Dutchman stood out to sea so that he might be able to draw off the
+spirits from large casks into smaller ones, which were the better
+fitted for running ashore. It was found afterwards that he had large
+numbers of these lesser casks, and during that evening she put about
+and crept stealthily in towards the shore again until she approached
+within about a mile of the mouth of the Tees. Her intention was to run
+the rest of her cargo under cover of darkness, and her skipper had
+arranged for large numbers of men to be on that coast ready to receive
+and carry off these casks. But Bowen was determined to head her off
+this project. An exciting chase followed, during which&mdash;to quote an
+official report of the time&mdash;the dogger did her <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span>best "to eat the
+sloop out of the wind," that is to say sailed as close to the wind as
+she could travel in the hope of causing her adversary to drop to
+leeward. For seven hours this chase continued, but after that duration
+the <i>Prince of Wales</i> captured the <i>Young Daniel</i> eight leagues from
+the shore. This is not a little interesting, for inasmuch as the chase
+began when the dogger was a mile from the mouth of the river, the
+vessels must have travelled about 23 statutory miles in the time,
+which works out at less than 3-1/2 miles an hour. Not very fast, you
+may suggest, for a Revenue cutter or for the Dutchman either. But we
+have no details as to the weather, which is usually bad off that part
+of the coast in February (the month when this incident occurred), and
+we must remember that the doggers were too bluff of build to possess
+speed, and the time had not yet arrived when those much faster Revenue
+cutters with finer lines and less ample beam were to come into use.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_5_5" id="Footnote_5_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_5_5"><span class="label">[5]</span></a> A snow was a vessel with three masts resembling the main
+and foremast of a ship with a third and small mast just abaft the
+mainmast, carrying a sail nearly similar to a ship's mizzen. The foot
+of this mast was fixed in a block of wood or step but on deck. The
+head was attached to the afterpart of the maintop. The sail was called
+a trysail, hence the mast was called a trysail-mast. (Moore's
+<i>Midshipman's Vocabulary</i>, 1805.)</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_6_6" id="Footnote_6_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_6_6"><span class="label">[6]</span></a> It was the frequent custom at this time to speak of
+sloops as cruisers.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_7_7" id="Footnote_7_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_7_7"><span class="label">[7]</span></a> A dogger was a two-masted Dutch fishing-vessel usually
+employed in the North Sea off the Dogger Bank. She had two masts, and
+was very similar to a ketch in rig, but somewhat beamy and
+bluff-bowed.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_8_8" id="Footnote_8_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_8_8"><span class="label">[8]</span></a> These, of course, were not the light rowing-boats of the
+kind that were in use on the Thames and elsewhere. The term wherry was
+applied to various decked fishing-vessels belonging to England,
+Ireland, and the Isle of Man.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER V<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE HAWKHURST GANG</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>We come now to consider the desperate character of a band of men who
+rendered themselves for all time notorious in the domestic history of
+our country by acts of unbridled violence and consummate cruelty.</p>
+
+<p>But before we proceed to relate as fully as our limited space will
+allow the details of these incidents, it is necessary to remind
+ourselves once again of the great, solid mass of sympathy, both active
+and passive, that was always at the back of the smugglers. Without
+this such daring runs by night could never have occurred: doubtful of
+the assistance which could be whole-heartedly given by the people on
+shore, the seafaring men would never have dared to take such enormous
+risks of life and goods. Not merely did the villagers come down to the
+shore to help to bring the goods inland, not only did they lend their
+horses and carts, but they would tacitly suffer the smugglers to hide
+casks of spirits in wells, haystacks, cellars, and other places. In
+Cornwall, for instance, fifty-five tubs of spirits were found
+concealed in a well, over the top of which a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span>hay-stack had been
+built. This was near Falmouth, one of the most notorious of the
+smuggling localities. And there is actual record of at least one
+instance where the natives charged a rent of a shilling a tub for
+stowing away the smuggled goods. In another county a cavern had most
+ingeniously been hollowed out under a pond big enough to hold a
+hundred casks, the entrance being covered over with planks carefully
+strewed with mould. So clever and original was this idea that it was
+never discovered for many years.</p>
+
+<p>But the most notorious, the most formidable, and certainly the most
+abominably cruel gang of smugglers which ever achieved notice was the
+Hawkhurst contingent. The "Hawkhurst Gang," as they were known, were a
+terror to whatever law-abiding citizens existed in the counties of
+Kent and Sussex. They feared neither Custom officers nor soldiery,
+they respected neither God nor man, and in the course of attaining
+their aims they stopped at no atrocity nor brooked any interference
+from anyone. By the year 1747 smugglers had become so daring and
+committed such terrible crimes that the only course left open for
+decent people was to band together in mutual protection. The
+inhabitants of one locality joined together under the title of the
+"Goudhurst Band of Militia," their leader being a man named Sturt, a
+native of Goudhurst, who had recently obtained his discharge from the
+Army. But this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span>union became known to the smugglers, who waylaid one
+of the militia, and by means of torture the whole of the defenders'
+plans were revealed. After a while he was released and sent back to
+inform the militia that the smugglers on a certain day would attack
+the town, murder all its inhabitants, and then burn the place to the
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>The day arrived and both forces were prepared. Sturt had gathered his
+band, collected fire-arms, cast balls, made cartridges, and arranged
+entrenchments, when, headed by one Thomas Kingsmill, the Hawkhurst
+gang appeared in order to make the attack. But after a smart
+engagement in which three were killed and many wounded, the smugglers
+were driven off, whilst others were captured and subsequently
+executed.</p>
+
+<p>Kingsmill escaped for a time, and became the leader of the famous
+attack on the Poole Custom House in October 1747. Another of the gang
+was named Perin and belonged to Chichester. Perin was really a
+carpenter by trade, but after being afflicted with a stroke of the
+palsy, he became attached to the smugglers, and used to sail with them
+to France to purchase goods that were to be smuggled, such as brandy,
+tea, and rum. Now in September of 1747 Perin went across the Channel
+in a cutter called <i>The Three Brothers</i>, loaded up with the above
+commodities, and was approaching the English coast when he was met
+with a rebuff. For Captain William Johnson, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span>who held a deputation
+from the Customs to seize prohibited goods, got to know of Perin's
+exploit, and on the 22nd of this month, whilst cruising in the Poole
+Revenue cutter, sighted <i>The Three Brothers</i> to the eastward of Poole.
+Whereupon the smuggler began to flee, and, running before the wind,
+fled to the N.N.W. From five in the afternoon till eleven at night the
+Revenue cutter, with every stitch of canvas set, chased her, and after
+firing several shots caused her to heave-to. Johnson then boarded her,
+and found that the tea was in canvas and oil-skin bags, but Perin and
+the crew of six had escaped in <i>The Three Brothers</i> boat. However,
+Johnson captured the cutter with her cargo and took the same into
+Poole. The two tons of tea, thirty-nine casks of brandy and rum,
+together with a small bag of coffee, were conveyed ashore and locked
+up safely in the Poole Custom House. Such was the introduction to the
+drama that should follow.</p>
+
+<p>Enraged at their bad luck, the smugglers took counsel together. They
+assembled in Charlton Forest, and Perin suggested that they should go
+in a body and, well-armed, break open the Poole Custom House. So the
+next day they met at Rowland's Castle with swords and firearms, and
+were presently joined by Kingsmill and the Hawkhurst gang. Till night
+had fallen they secreted themselves in a wood, and eventually reached
+Poole at eleven o'clock at night. Two of their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span>members were sent
+ahead to reconnoitre, and reported that a sloop-of-war lay opposite to
+the quay, so that her guns could be pointed against the doors of the
+Custom House; but afterwards it was found that, owing to the ebb-tide,
+the guns of the sloop could not be made to bear on that spot. The
+band, numbering about thirty, therefore rode down to spot, and while
+Perin and one other man looked after their horses, the rest proceeded
+to the Custom House, forced open the door with hatchets and other
+implements, rescued the tea, fastening packages of the latter on to
+their horses, with the exception only of 5 lbs. The next morning they
+passed through Fordingbridge in Hampshire, where hundreds of the
+inhabitants stood and watched the cavalcade. Now among the latter was
+a man named Daniel Chater, a shoemaker by trade. He was known to
+Diamond, one of the gang then passing, for they had both worked
+together once at harvest time. Recognising each other, Diamond
+extended his arm, shook hands, and threw him a bag of tea, for the
+booty had been divided up so that each man carried five bags of 27
+lbs.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep086" id="imagep086"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep086.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep086.jpg" width="100%" alt="A Representation of ye Smugglers..." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;"><i>A Representation of ye Smugglers breaking open ye</i>
+<span class="sc">King's</span> <i>Custom House at Poole</i>.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>After the Poole officers discovered what had happened to their Custom
+House, there was not unnaturally a tremendous fuss, and eventually the
+King's proclamation promised a reward for the apprehension of the men
+concerned in the deed. Nothing happened for months after, but at last
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span>Diamond was arrested on suspicion and lodged in Chichester Gaol. We
+can well imagine the amount of village gossip to which this would give
+rise. Chater was heard to remark that he knew Diamond and saw him go
+by with the gang the very day after the Custom House had been broken
+open. When the Collector of Customs at Southampton learned this, he
+got into communication with the man, and before long Chater and Mr.
+William Galley were sent with a letter to Major Battin, a Justice of
+the Peace for Sussex. Galley was also a Custom House officer stationed
+at Southampton. The object of this mission was that Chater's evidence
+should be taken down, so that he might prove the identity of Diamond.</p>
+
+<p>On Sunday February 14, then, behold these two men setting out for
+Chichester. On the way they stopped at the White Hart Inn, Rowland's
+Castle, for refreshment. But the landlady suspecting that they were
+going to hurt the smugglers, with the intuition of a woman and the
+sympathy of a mother decided to send for two men named Jackson and
+Carter. For this Mrs. Paine, a widow, had two sons herself, who though
+nominally blacksmiths were in fact smugglers. Jackson and Carter came
+in, to whom the widow explained her suspicions, and these two men were
+presently followed by others of the gang. Before very long they had
+got into conversation with Galley and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span>Chater, and plied them with
+drink, so that they completely gave away the nature of their mission,
+and after being fuddled and insulted were put to bed intoxicated.
+After a while, they were aroused by Jackson brutally digging his spurs
+on their foreheads and then thrashing them with a horse-whip. They
+were then taken out of the inn, both put on to the same horse, with
+their legs tied together below the horse's belly. They were next
+whipped as they went along, over the face, eyes, and shoulder, till
+the poor victims were unable to bear it any longer, and at last fell
+together, with their hands tied underneath the horse, heads downwards.
+In this position the horse struck the head of one or the other with
+his feet at every step. Afterwards the blackguardly tormentors sat the
+two men upright again, whipped them, and once more the men fell down,
+with heels in air. They were utterly weak, and suffering from their
+blows.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep088" id="imagep088"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep088.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep088.jpg" width="100%" alt="Mr. Galley and Mr. Chater put by ye Smugglers on one Horse near Rowland Castle" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;">Mr. Galley and Mr. Chater put by ye Smugglers on one
+Horse near Rowland Castle.<br />
+<i>A. Steele who was Admitted a Kings Evidence B. Little Harry. C.
+Iackson D. Carter E. Downer. F. Richards. 1. Mr. Galley. 2. Mr.
+Chater.</i><span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep088a" id="imagep088a"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep088a.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep088a.jpg" width="100%" alt="Galley and Chater falling off their Horse at Woodash" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;">Galley and Chater <i>falling off their Horse at</i> Woodash
+draggs their Heads on the Ground, while the Horse kicks them as he
+goes; the Smugglers still continuing their brutish Usage.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We need not enlarge upon the details, some of which are too outrageous
+to repeat. After a while they thought Galley was dead, and laid him
+across another horse, with a smuggler each side to prevent him
+falling. They then stopped at the Red Lion, at Rake, knocked up the
+landlord, drank pretty freely, and then taking a candle and spade dug
+a hole in a sand-pit where they buried him. But at a later date, when
+the body was exhumed, it was seen that the poor man had covered his
+eyes <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span>with his hands, so there can be little doubt but that Galley was
+buried alive.</p>
+
+<p>As for Chater, they delayed his death. Throughout Monday they remained
+drinking at the Red Lion, discussing what to do with him, Chater being
+meanwhile kept secured by the leg with an iron chain, three yards
+long, in a turf-house. At dead of night they agreed to go home
+separately so that the neighbours might not be suspicious of their
+absence. On Wednesday morning they again repaired to the Red Lion,
+after having left Chater in the charge of two of their number. Then,
+having discussed what should be done with Chater, some one suggested
+that a gun should be loaded with two or three bullets, and after
+having tied a long string to the trigger, each member of the gang
+should take hold of the string together, and so become equally guilty
+of the poor man's death. But this idea was unwelcomed, as it was
+thought it would put Chater too quickly out of his sufferings.
+Meanwhile, Chater was visited at various times, to receive kicks and
+severe blows, and to be sworn at in the vilest and most scurrilous
+language.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep089" id="imagep089"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep089.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep089.jpg" width="50%" alt="Chater Chained in ye Turff House at Old Mills's Cobby" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%;">Chater Chained in ye Turff House at Old Mills's Cobby,
+kicking him &amp; Tapner, cutting him Cross ye Eyes &amp; Nose, while he is
+saying the Lords Prayer. Several of ye other smugglers standing by.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>One of the gang now came up to him, and uttering an oath, brandishing
+aloft a large clasp-knife, exclaimed: "Down on your knees and go to
+prayers, for with this knife I will be your butcher." Terrified at the
+menace, and expecting momentarily to die, Chater knelt down on the
+turf and began to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span>say the Lord's Prayer. One of the villains got
+behind and kicked him, and after Chater had asked what they had done
+to Galley, the man who was confronting him drew his knife across the
+poor man's face, cut his nose through, and almost cut both his eyes
+out. And, a moment later, gashed him terribly across the forehead.
+They then proceeded to conduct him to a well. It was now the dead of
+night, and the well was about thirty feet deep, but without water,
+being surrounded with pales at the top to prevent cattle from falling
+in. They compelled him to get over, and not through these pales, and a
+rope was placed round his neck, the other end being made fast to the
+paling. They then pushed him into the well, but as the rope was short
+they then untied him, and threw him head foremost into the former,
+and, finally, to stop his groanings, hurled down rails and gate-posts
+and large stones.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep090" id="imagep090"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep090a.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep090a.jpg" width="65%" alt="Chater hanging at the Well" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Chater hanging at the Well in <span class="sc">Lady Holt</span> Park,
+the Bloody Villains Standing by.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep090b" id="imagep090b"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep090b.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep090b.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Bloody Smugglers flinging down Stones after they
+had flung his Dead Body into the Well." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The Bloody Smugglers flinging down Stones after they
+had flung his Dead Body into the Well.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>I have omitted the oaths and some of the worst features of the
+incident, but the above outline is more than adequate to suggest the
+barbarism of a lot of men bent on lawlessness and revenge. Drunk with
+their own success, the gang now went about with even greater
+desperation. Everybody stood in terror of them; Custom officers were
+so frightened that they hardly dared to perform their duties, and the
+magistrates themselves were equally frightened to convict smugglers.
+Consequently the contraband gangs automatically increased to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span>great
+numbers. But, finally, a reward of &pound;500 was offered by the
+Commissioners of Customs for the arrest of everyone of the culprits,
+and as a result several were arrested, tried, convicted, and executed.
+The murderers were tried at a special assize for smugglers held at
+Chichester, before three judges, and the seven men were sentenced to
+death. William Jackson died in prison a few hours after sentence. He
+had been very ill before, but the shock of being sentenced to death,
+and to be hung afterwards in chains and in ignominy, rapidly hastened
+his death, and relieved the executioner of at least one portion of his
+duty. He had been one of the worst smugglers in his time, and was even
+a thief among thieves, for he would even steal his confederates'
+goods. Between the sentence and the hour for execution a man came into
+the prison to measure the seven culprits for the irons in which their
+bodies were subsequently to be hung by chains. And this distressed the
+men more than anything else, most of all Jackson, who presently
+succumbed as stated.</p>
+
+<p>Mills, senior, had gradually been drawn into the smuggling business,
+though previously he had been quite a respectable man. After giving up
+actual smuggling, he still allowed his house to be used as a
+store-place for the contraband goods. His son, Richard, also one of
+the seven, had been concerned in smuggling for years, and was a daring
+fellow. John Cobby, the third of the culprits, was of a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span>weaker
+temperament, and had been brought under the influence of the
+smugglers. Benjamin Tapner was especially penitent, and "hoped all
+young people would take warning by his untimely fate, and keep good
+company, for it was bad company had been his ruin." William Carter
+complained that it was Jackson who had drawn him away from his honest
+employment to go smuggling, but John Hammond was of a more obdurate
+nature, and had always hated the King's officers.</p>
+
+<p>According to the testimony of the Rev. John Smyth, who visited them in
+gaol, all the prisoners received the Holy Communion at ten o'clock,
+the morning after being sentenced to death. All the prisoners except
+the two Mills admitted that they deserved the sentence, but all the
+surviving six acknowledged that they forgave everybody. On January 19,
+1748-9, they were executed. The two Mills were not hung in chains, but
+having neither friend nor relation to take them away their bodies were
+thrown into a hole near the gallows, into which also was placed
+Jackson's body. Carter's body was hung in chains on the Portsmouth
+Road, near Rake; that of Tapner on Rook's Hill, near Chichester; those
+of Cobby and Hammond on the sea coast near Selsey Bill; so that from a
+great distance they could be observed across the sea by the ships as
+they went by east and west. Later on, John, the brother of Richard
+Mills, and one of the gang, was also arrested. When the above three
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span>judges were travelling down to Chichester for the trial of the seven
+men, John had intended waylaying their lordships on Hind Heath, but
+his companions had refused to support him. But soon after his father's
+and brother's execution he met with a man named Richard Hawkins, whom
+he accused of having stolen two bags of tea. Hawkins denied it, and
+was brutally and unmercifully thrashed to death in the Dog and
+Partridge Inn at Slindon Common, his body being afterwards carried a
+dozen miles, thrown into a pond, with stones attached, and then sunk.
+John Mills was convicted and hanged at East Grinstead, and afterwards
+remained hanging in chains on Slindon Common. Other members of the
+gang were also arrested, tried at the same assizes as highwaymen, and
+then executed.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 15%;' />
+
+<p>Later on, two of the smugglers who had given evidence against the men
+that were hanged at Chichester, gave information also, which led to
+the arrest of Kingsmill, Perin, and two others who had been concerned
+in breaking open the Poole Custom House. Kingsmill, Perin, and one
+other were hanged at Tyburn in April of 1749; the other man, however,
+was pardoned. Thus at length this dreaded Hawkhurst Gang was broken
+up.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER VI<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE REVENUE CRUISERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>We drew attention some time back to the assistance occasionally
+rendered by soldiers when the Riding officers were about to arrest
+smugglers. Early in the year 1740, or about the close of 1739, Thomas
+Carswell, one of the Revenue officers stationed at Rye, was murdered,
+and a corporal and three dragoons whom he had taken to his assistance
+were badly wounded, and a large quantity of tea that had been seized
+was rescued. It was after this incident that Revenue officers of this
+port&mdash;perhaps the most notorious of all the south-east smuggling
+territory&mdash;were ordered that in future when they went forth to make
+seizures they were to have with them an adequate military force, and
+to this end they were to make previous arrangements with the
+commanding-officer of the forces in that district.</p>
+
+<p>But in spite of the seizures which the officers on land from time to
+time effected, and notwithstanding the shortcomings of the Custom
+House cruisers in regard to speed, and the frequent negligence of
+their commanders, it still remains true that these cutters and sloops,
+at any rate until <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span>about the year 1822 (when the Coastguard service
+was instituted) continued to be the principal and the most important
+of all the machinery set in motion against the smugglers. We have seen
+this service in working order as far back as the year 1674, at any
+rate, when the fleet consisted of only hired vessels. We have also
+seen that they were employed in sufficient numbers all round the
+coast, and that the Customs authorities, not content merely to hire
+such vessels, also presently obtained some of their own. It is
+possible that the smacks were used for such service even before the
+date 1674&mdash;perhaps very soon after Charles came to the throne&mdash;but
+there are no existing records of this to make the matter certain. The
+Revenue preventive work, in so far as the cruisers were employed, was
+carried on by a mixed control, and embraced six separate and distinct
+types:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>1. There were the English Custom House smacks, cutters, and sloops,
+some of which were hired vessels: others were actually owned by the
+English Customs Board.</p>
+
+<p>2. There were the English Excise cruisers, which were controlled by
+the English Excise Board. They appeared to be very similar to the
+craft in the first class.</p>
+
+<p>3. There were the Scottish Customs cruisers, under the control of the
+Scottish Customs Board. The official at the head of these was known as
+the Agent for yachts.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span>4. There were the Scottish Excise cruisers, controlled by the Scottish
+Excise Board.</p>
+
+<p>5. There were the Irish Revenue cruisers, controlled by the Irish
+Customs and Excise.</p>
+
+<p>6. And lastly, there were these vessels of the Royal Navy which were
+employed to assist the Revenue, such vessels consisting of ships of
+the fifth-rate, sixth-rate, and especially the armed sloops.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>In the present volume it has been necessary, owing to the limits of
+our space, to restrict our consideration of cruisers chiefly to the
+most important of these, viz. those of the English Custom House and
+those of the Royal Navy. Under such a mixed rule it was obvious that
+many difficulties arose, and that the clashing of interests was not
+infrequent. For instance, between the English Custom House cruisers
+and the English Excise cruisers there was about as much friendship as
+there exists usually between a dog and a cat. Similarly between the
+former and the Naval cruisers there was considerable jealousy, and
+every display of that pompous, bombastic exhibition of character which
+was such a feature of the life of the eighteenth century, and the
+first years of the next.</p>
+
+<p>Although the Revenue cruisers were employed primarily and ordinarily
+for the purpose of protecting the revenue, yet from time to time they
+were mobilised for coast defence. On different occasions during the
+eighteenth century they were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span>lent to the Admiralty, and well supplied
+with men and arms in readiness for actual warfare. After the third
+quarter of the eighteenth century these Revenue cruisers seem to have
+been built in greater numbers and with some improvement as to design,
+which, seeing that they had so frequently been left well astern by the
+smuggling cutters, was more than necessary. There was issued in
+November of 1780, by the Board of Customs, an interesting letter that
+shows how closely these cruisers approximated to vessels of war, even
+when they were not under the jurisdiction of the Admiralty. This
+letter was sent to the Collector and Controller at the different
+English Customs ports, and began by referring to the fact that many
+applications had been made to the Board asking permission to take out
+Letters of Marque. It will be remembered that this was a time when
+wars seemed to go on interminably, and there had been only a few brief
+intervals of peace ever since the Anglo-Dutch wars began. The
+Commissioners replied that they had no objection to the commanders of
+the cruisers providing themselves with Letters of Marque, if done at
+the latter's own expense "during present hostilities": but the Board
+declined to bear any part of the expense for any damages that might be
+sustained in an engagement where no seizure had been made and brought
+into port for a breach of the Revenue laws, so long as a commander
+should continue to hold these Letters of Marque. It was, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span>in fact, a
+basis of no cure no pay. Each commander was, further, strictly
+enjoined not to quit his station and duty as a Revenue officer "under
+pretence of looking for captures, it being our resolution to recall
+the permission hereby granted, as soon as it shall be discovered in
+any instance to be prejudicial to our service."</p>
+
+<p>But this war-like and semi-war-like service was entirely subservient
+to their ordinary work. It is evident from the correspondence of the
+Customs Board of this same year, 1780, that their minds were very
+uneasy. The smugglers, far from showing any slackening, had become
+more active than ever. These men had, to quote the words of the
+Commissioners, considerably increased the size and force of their
+vessels; they had also added to their number of both men and guns.
+They had become so violent and outrageous, they had acquired so much
+audacity as to "carry on their illicit designs in sight of the Revenue
+cruisers," and "whenever they have appeared within a certain distance
+have actually fired into and threatened to sink them." In such cases
+as these, it was reported to the Board, the mariners on board these
+cruisers have frequently refused to bear down and repel their attacks,
+explaining their conduct by saying that no provision was made for
+their support in case they received injury during these encounters. To
+meet such objections as these the Board resolved to allow the sum of
+&pound;10 per annum to every mariner <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span>employed on board their cruisers who
+should lose a hand or foot, or receive any greater injury by firearms
+"or other offensive weapons of the smugglers while in the actual
+execution of their duty so as to disable them from further service;
+and we have also resolved to pay the surgeons' bills for such of the
+mariners as may receive slighter wounds." But it was stipulated that
+no allowance was to be paid unless certificates were produced from the
+commanders of these cruisers.</p>
+
+<p>And before we go any further with the progress of these cutters, let
+us afford actual instances of the kind of treatment which had led the
+Board to make this allowance to its men. Three years before the above
+resolution, that is to say on April 24, 1777, Captain Mitchell was
+cruising in command of the Revenue cutter <i>Swallow</i> in the North Sea.
+Off Robin Hood's Bay he fell in with a smuggling cutter commanded by a
+notorious contraband skipper who was known as "Smoker," or "Smoaker."
+Mitchell was evidently in sufficient awe of him to give him a wide
+berth, for the cruiser's commander in his official report actually
+recorded that "Smoker" "waved us to keep off"! However, a few days
+later, the <i>Swallow</i>, when off the Spurn, fell in with another famous
+smuggler. This was the schooner <i>Kent</i>, of about two hundred tons,
+skippered by a man known as "Stoney." Again did this gallant Revenue
+captain send in his report to the effect that "as their guns were in
+readiness, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span>at the same time waving us to go to the Northward, we
+were, by reason of their superior force, obliged to sheer off, but did
+our best endeavours to spoil his Market. There [<i>sic</i>] being a large
+fleet of colliers with him."</p>
+
+<p>But that was not to be their last meeting, for on May 2, when off
+Whitby, the <i>Swallow</i> again fell in with the <i>Kent</i>, but (wrote
+Mitchell) the smuggler "would not let us come near him." The following
+day the two ships again saw each other, and also on May 13, when off
+Runswick Bay. On the latter occasion the <i>Kent</i> "fired a gun for us,
+as we imagined, to keep farther from him." The same afternoon the
+<i>Swallow</i> chased a large lugsail boat, with fourteen hands in her, and
+supposed to belong to the <i>Kent</i>. But the <i>Swallow</i> was about as timid
+as her name, for, according to her commander, she was "obliged to
+stand out to sea, finding that by the force they had in their boat,
+and a number of people on shore, we had no chance of attacking them
+with our boat, as they let us know they were armed, by giving us a
+volley of small arms." None the less the <i>Swallow</i> had also fourteen
+men as her complement, so one would have thought that this
+chicken-hearted commander would at least have made an effort to try
+conclusions.</p>
+
+<p>No doubt, the <i>Kent</i> was a pretty tough customer, and both skipper and
+his crew likewise. But there was something wanting in Captain
+Mitchell. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span>For consider another of the latter's exploits. It was the
+last week of September of that same year, and the scene had again the
+Yorkshire coast for its background. During the evening they espied
+what they rightly believed to be a smuggling cutter. They got as far
+as hailing her, but, as it was very dark, and the <i>Swallow</i> did not
+know the force of the cutter, Mitchell "thought it most prudent to
+leave her," and so came to anchor in Saltburn Bay. But the smuggler
+had not done with this enterprising gentleman; so the next day the
+smuggler came into the bay, stood down under full sail, and came
+charging down on to the poor <i>Swallow</i>, striking her on the quarter,
+the smuggler swearing terrible oaths the meanwhile, that if Mitchell
+did not promptly cut his cable&mdash;it was the days of hemp, still&mdash;and
+hurry out of that anchorage, he would sink him. What happened, do you
+ask? Of course the <i>Swallow</i> ought to have been under way, and should
+never have been lying there. She was acting contrary to the orders of
+the Board. But what must we think of a captain who calmly awaits the
+on-coming of a smuggler's attack? Why, so soon as the <i>Swallow</i> espied
+him approaching, did he not up anchor, hoist sails, and go to meet him
+with his crew at their stations, and guns all shotted? But even after
+this gross insult to himself, his ship, and his flag, was the
+commander of a Revenue sloop to obey?</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep102" id="imagep102"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep102.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep102.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;Came charging down ... striking her on the quarter.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Came charging down ... striking her on the quarter."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Yes&mdash;it is shameful to have to record <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span>it&mdash;Mitchell did obey. True, he
+didn't cut his cable, but he soon tripped his anchor and cleared out
+as ordered. The poor <i>Swallow</i> had been damaged both as to her tail
+and her wings, for the smugglers had injured the stern, taken a piece
+out of the boom, and carried away the topping-lift. But evidently in
+those days the Revenue service attracted into its folds men of the
+type of Mitchell. Take the case of Captain Whitehead of the Revenue
+cruiser <i>Eagle</i>. Espying a smuggling vessel, he gave chase, and
+eventually came up with her, also off Saltburn. Whitehead hailed her,
+but the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span>smuggler's skipper replied&mdash;one cannot resist a smile&mdash;"with
+a horrid expression," and called his men to arms. The smuggler then
+fired a volley with muskets, wounding one of the <i>Eagle's</i> crew.
+Presently they also fired their swivel-guns, "on which Captain
+Whitehead thought it prudent to get away from her as fast as he could,
+the greatest part of his people having quitted the deck."</p>
+
+<p>The smuggler continued to fire at the retreating cruiser, and chased
+the <i>Eagle</i> for a whole hour after. The cutter turned out to be that
+which Mitchell had encountered on April 24, 1777, and her skipper was
+our friend "Smoker" again. This smuggling craft was described as a
+stout cutter of 130 tons, and a crew of upwards of forty men. She
+carried fourteen carriage guns, four three-pounders, as well as a
+great number of swivels. "Smoker's" real name was David Browning, and
+he was recognised by the <i>Eagle's</i> crew from his voice, which was
+familiar to several of them. During that affray the Revenue cruiser
+received about twenty shot in her sails, about a dozen in her boat,
+and half as many in her fore-and main-mast. She also had her mizzen
+halyards shot away. From these details it would seem that she was
+dandy-rigged, that is to say, she had a mizzen or jigger in addition
+to her cutter rig, and on this jigger would be set a small lugsail as
+was the old custom.</p>
+
+<p>Following on Mitchell's meeting with the <i>Kent</i>, we have a record
+belonging to July of that same <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span>year&mdash;1777. This time a different
+result was to come about. For instead of acting single-handed, the
+sloops <i>Prince of Wales</i> and the <i>Royal George</i>&mdash;both being employed
+by the Scottish Excise Board, aided by H.M.S. <i>Pelican</i> and
+<i>Arethusa</i>&mdash;four of them&mdash;at last managed to capture this schooner.
+She was found to be armed with sixteen four-pounders and twenty
+swivel-guns, and also had a large stock of gunpowder, blunderbusses,
+and muskets. "Stoney" was taken out of her, and he was said to be an
+outlaw whose real name was George Fagg. The guns and ammunition were
+taken ashore and put in the King's warehouse at Hull, and the crew of
+thirty-nine were placed on board the <i>Arethusa</i>. Among these prisoners
+were those who had murdered a dragoon the previous year, while the
+latter was assisting a Custom officer at Whitby. The arrest of these
+men was all the more interesting for a reward of &pound;100 for their
+capture had been long outstanding.</p>
+
+<p>The capture of the <i>Kent</i> had been effected as follows: the two Excise
+cruisers were off St. Abb's Head on July 8, and hearing that the
+<i>Kent</i> had been seen off Flamborough Head they sailed south, and off
+Filey fell in with her. On being hailed, the smuggler beat to
+quarters, shouting to the cruisers. "Fire, you &mdash;&mdash;, and be &mdash;&mdash; to
+you." The battle at once commenced and continued smartly for an hour,
+when the <i>Pelican</i> came up to give assistance to the two cruisers. The
+<i>Kent</i>, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span>big as she was, now used sweeps&mdash;it was reminiscent of the
+days of Elizabethan galleasses&mdash;and drew away. However the <i>Pelican</i>
+(a frigate) overhauled her, and the <i>Arethusa</i> which had also come up
+gave valuable aid as well. The two naval captains allowed the cruisers
+to seize the <i>Kent</i>, and to take her into Hull, but the prisoners were
+put on board the <i>Arethusa</i> as stated. The <i>Kent's</i> master and four of
+the men had been killed. It should be added that the day before this
+incident the <i>Pelican</i> had also chased the <i>Kent</i> out of Bridlington
+Bay, so the smuggler must have come further north in the meanwhile,
+thus meeting the two Scottish cruisers bound south. The hatches of the
+<i>Kent</i> were found to be unbattened, and her cargo in great disorder.
+The latter consisted of 1974 half-ankers, and a large amount of tea
+packed in oilskin-bags to the number of 554. This schooner had been
+built at that other famous home of smugglers, Folkestone. She was
+specially rigged for fast sailing, her mainmast being 77 feet long,
+and her main-boom 57 feet. It was found that her sails were much
+damaged by shot. Her mainmast was shot through in two places, and her
+main-boom rendered quite unserviceable. Ship and tackle were appraised
+at &pound;1405, 16s., so with the addition of her cargo she represented a
+fair prize.</p>
+
+<p>But "Smoker" was still at large even though "Stoney" was a prisoner.
+It was in April of 1777, when Captain Mitchell had fallen in with him
+off <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span>Robin Hood's Bay. A month later the Collector of Hull wrote up to
+the Board to say that a large lugger had been seen off Whitby, and
+well armed. She was described as "greatly an overmatch" for any of the
+Revenue cruisers, "or even for a joint attack of two of them": and
+that as long as she and the armed cutter commanded by Browning,
+<i>alias</i> "Smoker" continued so daringly to "insult" the coasts, there
+was little prospect of success. For six months past the Revenue
+cruisers had not been able to make any seizures, because these
+smuggling craft not only brought over vast quantities themselves, but
+protected the smaller ones from the attempts of the Revenue cruisers.
+A year later, and we find that Mitchell was every bit as slack as
+before. This is made quite clear from a letter which the Collector of
+Hull was compelled on November 12 (1778) to write. In this epistle he
+informs Mitchell that either he or his mate, one of them, must remain
+on board the <i>Swallow</i> at night, when lying in the Humber. For it
+appeared that two days earlier both were ashore. The mariner who had
+the midnight watch on board the cruiser saw a vessel, supposed to be a
+privateer, come right up the Humber into Hull Roads, sail around the
+naval tender there lying, then sail round the <i>Swallow</i>, and finally
+down the river again. Although there were twelve or fourteen men on
+the supposed privateer's deck, yet the <i>Swallow's</i> watchman did not
+even hail her, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span>Mitchell and his mate being ashore all the while.</p>
+
+<p>Such incidents as the above show that there undoubtedly was cause for
+the complaints of the Customs Board that the commanders of their
+cruisers were not doing all that might have been done towards
+suppressing the evil at hand. On the other hand, it was equally true
+that the delinquents with whom these commanders had to contest were of
+a particularly virulent and villainous type. Thus, between the
+negligence of the one side, and the enterprise of the other, his
+Majesty's revenue had to suffer very considerably. No better instance
+of the potency of this lawlessness could be afforded than by an event
+which happened in the summer of 1777. Everyone knows, of course, that
+those were the days when men had to be impressed into the service of
+the Navy, so that, when any of these hardy smugglers were captured,
+they were valuable acquisitions to the Service, and far more useful
+than many of the disease-stricken crews which so often had to be
+shipped to make up a man-of-war's complement. In the year we are
+speaking of a number of smugglers who had been captured on the North
+Sea were put on board H.M. tender <i>Lively</i> by Captain O'Hara of the
+Impress service, the intention being to convey these men to one of his
+Majesty's ships at the Nore. The tender got under way and was
+proceeding to her destination when <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span>the smuggler-prisoners mutinied,
+overpowered the <i>Lively's</i> crew, and carried the <i>Lively</i> into
+Flushing.</p>
+
+<p>And similar examples of the impudence and violence of other North Sea
+smugglers could also be quoted. On the 7th of May 1778, Captain Bland,
+of the <i>Mermaid</i> Revenue cruiser, was off Huntcliff Fort, when he
+sighted a smuggling shallop.<a name="FNanchor_9_9" id="FNanchor_9_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_9_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a> Bland promptly bore down, and as he
+approached hailed her. But the shallop answered by firing a broadside.
+The Revenue cruiser now prepared to engage her, whereupon the shallop
+hoisted an English pennant, which was evidently a signal for
+assistance, for a large armed cutter promptly appeared and came to the
+shallop's rescue. Seeing that he was overmatched, Bland, therefore,
+sheered off. During the same month Captain Whitehead, of the <i>Eagle</i>,
+to whom we have already referred, reported that he seldom went for a
+cruise without being fired on, and he mentioned that sometimes these
+smuggling vessels carried musket-proof breast-works&mdash;a kind of early
+armour-plating, in fact.</p>
+
+<p>The principal rendezvous of the smuggling craft in the North Sea was
+Robin Hood's Bay. Whenever the cruisers used to approach that bight
+the smugglers would sail out, fire upon them, and drive them along the
+coast. Before firing, the smugglers always hoisted English colours,
+and on one occasion a smuggling craft had the temerity <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>to run
+alongside a Revenue cruiser, hail her, and in a derisive manner
+ordered the commander to send his boat aboard. We spoke just now of
+the superior sailing qualities which these smuggling craft frequently
+possessed over the Revenue cruisers, and on one occasion, in the North
+Sea, the master of a smuggling shallop, when being pursued, impudently
+lowered his lugsail&mdash;that would be his mizzen&mdash;to show that the
+cruiser could not come up and catch him. And lest that dishonourable
+incident previously mentioned, of a cruiser being ordered out of
+Saltburn Bay, may be thought a mere isolated event, let us hasten to
+add that the cruiser <i>Mermaid</i> was lying at anchor off Dunstanburgh
+Castle, on the Northumbrian coast, when Edward Browning came alongside
+her in an armed shallop named the <i>Porcupine</i>, belonging to Sandwich.
+He insisted on the <i>Mermaid</i> getting up her anchor and leaving that
+region: "otherwise he would do him a mischief." Indeed, were these
+facts not shown unmistakably by actual eye-witnesses to be the very
+reverse of fiction, one might indeed feel doubtful as to accepting
+them. But it is unlikely that cruiser-commanders would go out of their
+way to record incidents which injured their reputation, had these
+events never in reality occurred.</p>
+
+<p>Some idea of the degree of success which smuggling vessels attained
+during this eighteenth <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span>century may be gathered from the achievements
+of a cutter which was at work on the south coast. Her name was the
+<i>Swift</i>, and she belonged to Bridport. She was of 100 tons burthen,
+carried no fewer than 16 guns and a crew of fifty. During the year
+1783 she had made several runs near Torbay, and on each occasion had
+been able to land about 2000 casks of spirits, as well as 4 or 5 tons
+of tea. Afterwards the whole of this valuable cargo had been run
+inland by about 200 men, in defiance of the Revenue officers. Then
+there was the <i>Ranger</i>, a bigger craft still, of 250 tons. She carried
+an enormous crew for her size&mdash;nearly 100&mdash;and mounted 22 guns. She
+had been built at Cawsand, that village which in smuggling days
+attained so much notoriety, and stands at the end of a delightful bay
+facing the western end of Plymouth Breakwater. This vessel had a
+successful time in landing cargoes to the east of Torbay without
+paying the lawful duty. And there were many fishing-boats of from 18
+to 25 tons, belonging to Torbay, which were at this time accustomed to
+run across the Channel, load up with the usual contraband, and then
+hover about outside the limits of the land. When they were convinced
+that the coast was clear of any cruisers they would run into the bay
+and land, sink or raft their cargoes, according to circumstances.</p>
+
+<p>And now, leaving for the present actual <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span>skirmishes and chases in
+which the Revenue cruisers were concerned, let us look a little more
+closely into their organisation. From the report by the Commissioners
+appointed to examine the Public Accounts of the kingdom, and issued in
+1787, it is shown that the Custom House cruisers were of two classes:
+(1) Those which were owned by the Board, and (2) Those which were
+hired by contract. And as to this latter class there was a further
+subdivision into two other classes; for one section of these vessels
+was furnished by the Crown, no charge being made for the hire. But her
+outfit, her future repairs, in addition to the wages and victualling
+of the crew, and all other expenses, were paid out of the produce of
+the seizures which these cruisers effected. After this, if anything
+remained beyond these deductions, the residue was to be divided
+between the Crown and the contractor. Very often, of course, when a
+fine haul was made of a &pound;1000 worth of cargo, there was quite a nice
+little sum for both parties to the contract, and a few other, smaller,
+seizures during the year would make the business quite a profitable
+undertaking. But when the amount of seizures was not sufficient to
+defray the expenses the deficiency was supplied by the contractor and
+Crown in equal proportions. That, then, was one of these two
+subdivisions of contracted cruisers.</p>
+
+<p>But in the second of these the contractor provided the vessel, for
+which he was paid the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span>sum of 4s. 6d. a ton per lunar month. It may
+seem at first that this was poor remuneration, especially when one
+recollects that to-day, when the Government hires liners from the
+great steamship companies, the rate of payment is &pound;1 per ton per
+month. In the case of even a 10,000-ton liner there is thus a very
+good payment for about thirty days. But in the case of a cutter of 100
+tons or less, in the eighteenth century, 4s. 6d. per ton may seem very
+small in comparison. However, we must bear in mind that although for
+this money the contractor was to find the outfit of the vessel, and be
+responsible for all repairs needed, yet the aforesaid contractor might
+make a good deal more in a lucky year. It was done on the following
+basis. From the produce of the seizures made by this subdivision of
+cruisers all remaining charges additional to those mentioned above
+were paid, but the surplus was divided between the Crown and
+contractor. Thus the latter stood to gain a large sum if only a
+moderate number of seizures had been made, and there was, by this
+method, every incentive for the hired cruisers to use their best
+endeavours to effect captures. Still, if there was a deficiency
+instead of a surplus, this was also shared by both contracting
+parties.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1784 there were, reckoning all classes, 44 cruisers
+employed, and 1041 men as crews. Of these cruisers the Commander, the
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span>Chief Mate and Second Mate, and, in certain vessels, the Deputed
+Mariners, were all officers of the Customs. In the case of the first
+class of cruisers&mdash;those which were on the establishment&mdash;these
+officers were appointed by the Board pursuant to warrants from the
+Treasury. In the case of the second&mdash;those which were hired by
+contract&mdash;the officers were appointed by the Customs Board. The
+captain of the cruiser was paid &pound;50 per annum, the chief mate either
+&pound;35 or &pound;30, and the crew were each paid &pound;15. But, as we shall see from
+a later page, the rate of pay was considerably increased some years
+afterwards. The victualling allowance was at the rate of 9d. per diem
+for each man on board, and an allowance of 1s. each was made by the
+lunar month for fire and candle. This last-mentioned allowance was
+also modified in the course of time. Some idea as to the seriousness,
+from a financial point of view, of this cruiser fleet may be gathered
+from the statement that these 44 vessels cost the Government for a
+year's service the sum of &pound;44,355, 16s. 1d.</p>
+
+<p>The largest of these forty-four cruisers was the <i>Repulse</i>, 210 tons.
+She carried 33 men and was stationed at Colchester. Her cost for this
+year (1784) was &pound;1552, 16s. 8d. She was not one of the hired vessels,
+but on the establishment. Next in size came the <i>Tartar</i>, 194 tons,
+with 31 men, her station being Dover. She was on the establishment,
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span>and her annual cost was &pound;1304, 6s. 2-1/2d. Of the same tonnage was the
+<i>Speedwell</i>, which cruised between Weymouth and Cowes. There was also
+the <i>Rose</i>, 190 tons, with 30 men, stationed at Southampton, being on
+the establishment likewise. Next to her in size came the <i>Diligence</i>,
+175 tons, with 32 men. She cruised between Poole and Weymouth. She was
+one of the hired vessels, and was in 1784 removed from Weymouth to
+have her headquarters at Cowes. The smallest of all the cruisers at
+this time was the <i>Nimble</i>, 41 tons and a crew of 30. She also was a
+hired craft. Her station was at Deal, and her annual cost was &pound;1064,
+9s. 9d. for the year mentioned.</p>
+
+<p>But though there was less expenditure needed at the outset, these
+contract ships were not altogether satisfactory: or rather it was the
+method than the cruisers themselves. For if we have any knowledge at
+all of human nature, and especially of the dishonest character which
+so frequently manifested itself in the eighteenth century, we can
+readily imagine that the contractor, unless he was a scrupulously
+honourable man, would naturally succumb to the temptation to economise
+too strictly regarding the keeping the ship in the best condition of
+repair; or he might gain a little by giving her not quite a
+sufficiently numerous crew, thus saving both wages and victuals. For
+the Crown allowed a certain number of men, and paid for the complement
+which they were supposed to carry.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span>Therefore, since this arrangement was marked by serious drawbacks, the
+contract system was discontinued, and at the beginning of 1788 fifteen
+contracts were ended, and five other cruisers' contracts were not
+renewed when they expired in that year. All the cruisers in the
+employment of the Customs Service were now placed on the
+establishment, and the practice of paying the charges and expenses out
+of the King's share of the condemned goods was rescinded. In the year
+1797 the number of Customs cruisers was 37, the commanders being
+appointed by the Treasury; and it may be not without interest to
+mention the names, tonnage, and guns of some of those which were on
+the books for that year. There was the <i>Vigilant</i>, which was described
+as a yacht, 53 tons, 6 guns, and 13 men; the <i>Vigilant</i> cutter, 82
+tons, 8 guns. During the winter season she cruised with ten additional
+hands off the coasts of Essex, Kent, and Sussex. There was another,
+the <i>Diligence</i>, given as of 152 tons; the <i>Swallow</i>, 153 tons and 10
+guns; the <i>Lively</i>, 113 tons, 12 guns, and 30 men. The <i>Swift</i>, 52
+tons and 8 men, used to cruise between the Downs and the Long Sand (to
+the North of the North Foreland at the mouth of the Thames). Some of
+the old names under the former dual system are seen to be commemorated
+in the <i>Nimble</i> (41 tons, 2 guns, 15 men). Her station was Deal, and
+she used to cruise between the Forelands. The <i>Tartar</i> of this period
+was of 100 tons, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span>had 10 guns and 23 men. But the <i>Greyhound</i>,
+probably one of the fastest cruisers, was of 200 tons, mounted 16
+guns, and carried 43 men. Her cruising ground was between Beachy Head
+and the Start, and her station at Weymouth. A much smaller craft was
+the cruiser <i>Busy</i> (46 tons and 11 men). Her cruising was in a much
+smaller area&mdash;around Plymouth Sound and Cawsand Bay.</p>
+
+<p>Owing to the fact that commanders had been wont too often to run into
+port for real or imaginary repairs, the Commissioners decided that in
+future, when a cruiser put in, she was to inform the Collector and
+Controller of that port by means of her commander, and both to give
+his reasons for coming in, and to estimate the length of time he was
+likely to remain in port, before his being able to sail again.</p>
+
+<p>With regard to the prize-money which these cruisers were able to make;
+before the year 1790 there had been a diversity of practice in the
+method of sharing. In allotting rewards to officers for seizing
+vessels which afterwards had been taken into the Revenue Service, it
+had formerly been the practice to deduct the whole of the charges out
+of the officers' moiety of the appraised value. But from April 14,
+1790, "for the encouragement of the seizing officers," the charge was
+deducted from the total appraised value, and the seizing officers were
+to be paid a moiety of the net produce, if <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span>any. It had also been the
+custom to allow the commanders of Admiralty cruisers permission to use
+seized vessels as tenders. But from May 6, 1790, this practice was
+also discontinued by the Board, who ordered that in case any such
+vessels were so employed at the different ports, the commanders were
+to deliver them up "with their tackle, apparel, and furniture," to the
+Collector and Controller of Customs.</p>
+
+<p>We referred some time back to the fact that these Revenue cruisers at
+times were mobilised for war, and also that to them were granted
+Letters of Marque. In this connection there is to be noted an
+interesting warrant, under the King's sign-manual, dated June 11,
+1795, which reads:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><p>"Whereas the Commissioners of our Treasury have represented unto
+us that the cutters in the service of our Revenues of Customs have
+captured several Ships and Vessels belonging to the enemy, and
+have recommended it unto us to issue our warrant to grant the
+proceeds of the Prizes that have been or shall be taken by the
+cutters in the service of our Customs, granted to the cutters
+capturing such prizes respectively, and the expenses of the
+proceedings, in regard thereto, among officers and crews of the
+vessels in the search of our Customs, who made the said captures,
+together with the head-money, in all <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span>cases where head-money is or
+may be due by law....</p>
+
+<p>"Our will and pleasure is that the proceeds of all such Prizes as
+have been or shall be taken from the enemy in the course of the
+present war, by the cutters in the service of our Revenue of
+Customs, after deducting all expenses of the Letters of Marque
+granted to the cutters capturing such Prizes respectively, and the
+expenses of the proceedings in regard thereto, together with the
+head-money in all cases where head-money is or may be due by law,
+shall be distributed in the manner following; that is to say":&mdash;</p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="80%" summary="Head-Money Distribution">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" width="60%">The Commander</td>
+  <td class="tdl" width="40%">14/32 ds.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdl">7/32 ds.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Deputed Mariner, or deputed mariners if more than one</td>
+  <td class="tdl">3/32 ds., exclusive of their shares as Mariners.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Other Mariners</td>
+  <td class="tdl">8/32 ds.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td colspan="2" style="line-height: .5em;">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">If there is no deputed Mariner,</td>
+  <td class="tdl">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">The Commander<br />The Mate<br />Mariners</td>
+  <td class="tdl">1/2<br />1/4<br />1/4</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>It may be mentioned, in passing, that a "deputed" mariner was one who
+held a deputation from the Customs Board. Another warrant, similar to
+the above, and to the same effect, was issued on July 4, of that
+memorable year 1805. In July of 1797, the Customs Commissioners drew
+attention to the third article of the "Instructions for the
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span>Commanders and Mates of the Cruisers employed in the service of this
+Revenue," reminding them that the commanders, mariners, and mates were
+in no case to be allowed to participate in the officers' shares of
+seizures made by the crews of the cruisers unless the first-mentioned
+had been actually present at the time when the seizure was made, or
+could afford satisfactory proof that they were necessarily absent on
+some duty. Therefore the Board now directed that, whenever the crews
+of the cruisers made a seizure, a list of the officers who were not
+actually on board or in the boats of the cruisers at that time was to
+be transmitted to the Board with the account of the seizure. Then
+follows the other instruction which has already been alluded to. In
+order that the station of the aforesaid cruisers may never be left
+unguarded by their coming into port for provisions, or to be cleaned
+and refitted, or for any other necessary purpose, the commanders were
+instructed to arrange with each other "that nothing but absolute
+necessity shall occasion their being in Port at one and the same
+time."</p>
+
+<p>It will be recognised that the object of this was, if possible, to
+keep the officers of the cruisers on board their vessels, and at sea,
+instead of ever running into port. For it would seem that by more than
+one of these gentlemen the work of cruising on behalf of the Revenue
+Service was regarded too much in the light of a pleasant, extended
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span>yachting trip, with an occasional chase and seizure of a smuggling
+craft to break the monotony of their existence and to swell their
+purses. But such a pleasant life was not that contemplated by the
+Customs authorities.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_9_9" id="Footnote_9_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_9_9"><span class="label">[9]</span></a> "Shallop, a sort of large boat with two masts, and
+usually rigged like a schooner."&mdash;<span class="sc">Moore</span>.</p></div>
+
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER VII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>CUTTERS AND SLOOPS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>We have spoken during the preceding chapters of the revenue cruisers
+sometimes as cutters and sometimes as sloops. For the reason that will
+quickly become apparent let us now endeavour to straighten out any
+confusion which may have arisen in the mind of the reader.</p>
+
+<p>Practically, sloops and cutters of these days were one and the same,
+with very minor differences. In a valuable French nautical volume
+published in 1783, after explaining that the cutter came to the French
+from England, the definition goes on to state that in her rigging and
+sail-plan she resembles a sloop, except that the former has her mast
+longer, and inclined further aft, and has greater sail-area. The
+cutter also has but little freeboard, and in order to carry her large
+sail-area she draws more water. This authority then goes on to mention
+that such craft as these cutters are employed by the smugglers of the
+English Channel, "and being able to carry a good deal of sail they can
+easily escape from the guardships. The English Government, for the
+same reason, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span>maintain a good many of these craft so as to stop these
+smugglers." Our English authority, Falconer, described the cutter as
+having one mast and a straight-running bowsprit that could be run
+inboard on deck. But for this, and the fact that the cutter's
+sail-area was larger, these craft were much the same as sloops.
+Falconer also states that a sloop differs from a cutter by having a
+fixed steeving bowsprit and a jib-stay. Moore, who was also a
+contemporary, makes similar definitions in almost identical language.
+The real difference, then, was that the cutter could run her bowsprit
+inboard, but the sloop could not.</p>
+
+<p>Now, in the year 1785, a very interesting matter occupied the
+attention of the Board of Customs in this connection. It appeared that
+in an important trial concerning a certain vessel the defence was set
+up that this vessel had changed her character by so altering her
+"boltsprit" that it became fixed and could not be run inboard. It was
+found that all which her owners had done was to pass an iron bolt
+through the bits and heel of the bowsprit, clenching it. The defendant
+insisted that thus he had rendered it a complete standing "boltsprit,"
+and not a running one: and that, therefore, by such alteration, his
+vessel became transformed from a cutter to a sloop. And, according to
+the definitions which we have just brought forward, one would have
+thought that this was a good defence. However, the Crown thought
+otherwise, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span>and contended that the alteration was a mere evasion of
+the Act in question, and that the vessel remained a cutter because
+such fastening could be removed at pleasure, and then the "boltsprit"
+would run in and out as it did before the alteration. The jury also
+took this view, and the cutter, which thought herself a sloop, was
+condemned. The Revenue officers and commanders of Admiralty sloops
+were accordingly warned to make a note of this. For a number of years
+the matter was evidently left at that. But in 1822 the Attorney and
+Solicitor-General, after a difficult case had been raised, gave the
+legal distinction as follows, the matter having arisen in connection
+with the licensing of a craft: "A cutter may have a standing bowsprit
+of a certain length without a licence, but the distinction between a
+sloop and a cutter should not be looked for in the rigging but in the
+build and form of the hull, and, therefore, when a carvel-built vessel
+corresponds as to her hull with the usual form of a sloop, she will
+not merely, by having a running bowsprit, become a cutter within the
+meaning of the Act of the 24 Geo. III. cap. 47, and consequently will
+not be liable to forfeiture for want of a licence." From this it will
+be seen that whereas Falconer and other nautical authorities relied on
+the fixing of the bowsprit to determine the difference, the legal
+authorities relied on a difference in hull. The point is one of great
+interest, and I believe <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span>the matter has never been raised before by
+any modern nautical writer.<a name="FNanchor_10_10" id="FNanchor_10_10"></a><a href="#Footnote_10_10" class="fnanchor">[10]</a></p>
+
+<p>As to what a Revenue cutter looked like, the illustrations which have
+been here reproduced will afford the reader a very good idea. And
+these can be supplemented by the following description which Marryat
+gives in <i>The Three Cutters</i>. It should be mentioned that the period
+of which he is speaking is that which we have been contemplating, the
+end of the eighteenth century.</p>
+
+<p>"She is a cutter," he writes, "and you may know that she belongs to
+the Preventive Service by the number of gigs and galleys which she has
+hoisted up all round her. She looks like a vessel that was about to
+sail with a cargo of boats: two on deck, one astern, one on each side
+of her. You observe that she is painted black, and all her boats are
+white. She is not such an elegant vessel as the yacht, and she is much
+more lumbered up.... Let us go on board. You observe the guns are
+iron, and painted black, and her bulwarks are painted red; it is not a
+very becoming colour, but then it lasts a long while, and the dockyard
+is not very generous on the score of paint&mdash;or lieutenants of the navy
+troubled with much spare cash. She has plenty of men, and fine men
+they are; all dressed in red flannel shirts and blue trousers; some of
+them have not taken off their canvas or <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span>tarpaulin petticoats, which
+are very useful to them, as they are in the boats night and day, and
+in all weathers. But we will at once go down into the cabin, where we
+shall find the lieutenant who commands her, a master's mate, and a
+midshipman. They have each their tumbler before them, and are drinking
+gin-toddy, hot, with sugar&mdash;capital gin, too, 'bove proof; it is from
+that small anker standing under the table. It was one that they forgot
+to return to the Custom House when they made their last seizure."</p>
+
+<p>In 1786, by the 26 Geo. III. c. 40, section 27, it was made lawful for
+any commander of any of his Majesty's vessels of war, or any officer
+by them authorised, to make seizures without a deputation or
+commission from the Commissioners of the Customs. Those were curious
+times when we recollect that apart altogether from the men-of-war of
+varying kinds, there were large numbers of armed smuggler-cutters,
+Custom-House cutters with letters of marque, privateers, and even
+Algerine corsairs from the Mediterranean, in the English Channel. It
+is to-day only a hundred and fifty years ago since one of these
+Algerine craft was wrecked near Penzance in the early autumn.</p>
+
+<p>We mentioned just now the Act of George III. which required craft to
+be licensed. This was another of the various means employed for the
+prevention of smuggling, and since the passing of this Act those
+luggers and cutters which engaged <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span>in the running of goods endeavoured
+to evade the Act's penalties by possessing themselves of foreign
+colours and foreign ship's papers. Now, as a fact, by far the greater
+part of such craft belonged to Deal, Folkestone, and other south-coast
+ports of England. Their masters were also from the same localities,
+and very few of them could speak Dutch or French. But for the purpose
+of evading the English law they got themselves made burghers of
+Ostend, and notwithstanding that their crews were for the most part
+English they designated their craft as foreign.</p>
+
+<p>During the year 1785 it happened that two of these pseudo-foreign
+smuggling craft were chased by an English frigate. Owing to the fact
+that the frigate had no pilot on board, one of these vessels escaped,
+but the other, after a chase lasting five hours, realised that she
+would soon be overhauled. Her master, therefore, threw overboard his
+cargo as the frigate fast approached, and in company with a number of
+his crew took to his large boat. The lugger, after no fewer than
+twenty shots had been fired at her, hove-to. On taking possession of
+the lugger and examining her papers it appeared that her master's name
+was the very English-sounding Thomas March, and yet he described
+himself as a burgher of Ostend, the vessel being owned by a merchant.
+The master's excuse was that he was a pilot-boat cruising with a
+number of pilots on board, and for this reason it <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span>was decided to give
+him the benefit of the doubt and not detain him. But the frigate's
+captain had noticed that before the lugger had hove-to during the
+evening a part of the cargo had been thrown overboard. The following
+morning, therefore, he proceeded on board a Revenue cutter, "went into
+the track where the cargo was thrown overboard," and was able to find
+just what he had expected, for he located and drew out of the sea no
+fewer than 700 half-ankers of foreign spirits.</p>
+
+<p>This precedent opened up an important question; for if a neutral
+vessel, or indeed any craft similarly circumstanced as the above, were
+to anchor off the English coast it was hardly possible to detect her
+in running goods, as it seldom took more than an hour to land a whole
+cargo, owing to the great assistance which was given from the people
+on the shore. For, as it was officially pointed out, as soon as one of
+these vessels was sighted 300 people could usually be relied on with
+200 or more carts and waggons to render the necessary service.
+Therefore the commanders of the cutters sought legal advice as to how
+they should act on meeting with luggers and cutters without Admiralty
+passes on the English coast but more or less protected with foreign
+papers and sailing under foreign colours.</p>
+
+<p>The matter was referred to the Attorney-General, who gave his opinion
+that vessels were forfeitable only in the event of their being the
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span>property in whole or part of his Majesty's subjects; but where the
+crew of such a vessel appeared all to be English subjects, or at any
+rate the greatest part of them, it was his opinion that there was a
+sufficient reason for seizing the vessel if she was near the English
+coast. She was then to be brought into port so that, if she could, she
+might prove that she belonged wholly to foreigners. "A British
+subject," continued the opinion, "being made a burgher of Ostend does
+not thereby cease to be a subject. Vessels hovering within four
+leagues of the British coast, with an illicit cargo, as that of this
+vessel appears to have been, are forfeited whether they are the
+property of Britons or foreigners."</p>
+
+<p>It was not once but on various occasions that the Customs Board
+expressed themselves as dissatisfied with the amount of success which
+their cruisers had attained in respect of the work allotted to them.
+At the beginning of the year 1782 they referred to "the enormous
+increase of smuggling, the outrages with which it is carried on, the
+mischiefs it occasions to the country, the discouragement it creates
+to all fair traders, and the prodigious loss the Revenue sustains by
+it." The Board went on to state that "diligent and vigorous exertions
+by the cruising vessels employed in the service of the Customs
+certainly might very much lessen it." The Commissioners expressed
+themselves as dissatisfied with the lack of success, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span>ordered that
+the officers of the Waterguard were especially to see that the
+commander and mate of every Revenue vessel or boat bringing in a
+seizure were actually on board when such seizure was made.</p>
+
+<p>A few days later&mdash;the date is January 16, 1788&mdash;the Board, having
+received information that great quantities of tobacco and spirits were
+about to be smuggled in from France, Flanders, Guernsey, and Alderney,
+warned the Preventive officers of the various ports, and directed the
+commanders of the Admiralty cruisers, which happened to be stationed
+near the ports, to be especially vigilant to intercept "these attempts
+of the illicit dealers, so that the Revenue may not be defrauded in
+those articles to the alarming degree it has hitherto been." And the
+officers were bluntly told that if they were to exert themselves in
+guarding the coast night and day such fraudulent practices could not
+be carried on in the shameful manner they now were. "And though the
+Riding officers may not always have it in their power to seize the
+goods from a considerable body of smugglers, yet if such officers were
+to keep a watchful eye on their motions, and were to communicate early
+information thereof to the Waterguard, they may thereby render
+essential service to the Revenue."</p>
+
+<p>When the soldiers assisted the Revenue officers in making seizures on
+shore it was frequently the case that the military had difficulty in
+recovering <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span>from the Revenue men that share of prize-money which was
+their due. The Collector of each port was therefore directed in future
+to retain in his hands out of the officers' shares of seizures so much
+as appeared to be due to the soldiers, and the names of the latter who
+had rendered assistance were to be inserted in the account of the
+seizures sent up to headquarters. But the jealousy of the military's
+aid somehow never altogether died out, and ten years after the above
+order there was still delay in rendering to the army men their due
+share of the seizures.</p>
+
+<p>The commanders of the Revenue cruisers were told to keep an especial
+watch on the homeward-bound East Indiamen to prevent "the illicit
+practices that are continually attempted to be committed from them."
+Therefore these cruisers were not only to watch these big ships
+through the limits of their own station, but also to keep as near them
+when under sail as possible, provided this can be done with safety and
+propriety. But when the East Indiamen come to anchor the cruisers are
+also to anchor near them, and compel all boats and vessels coming from
+them to bring-to in order to be examined. They are "then to proceed to
+rummage such boats and vessels. And if any goods are found therein
+they are to be seized, together with the boats in which they are
+found." The importance of this very plain instruction is explained by
+the further statement that "some of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span>the commanders of the cruisers in
+the service of the Revenue endeavour to shun these ships, and thereby
+avoid attending them through their station."</p>
+
+<p>On Christmas Eve of 1784 the Customs Commissioners sent word to all
+the ports saying that they suspected that there were a good many
+vessels and boats employed in smuggling which were thus liable to
+forfeiture. Therefore, within forty-eight hours from the receipt of
+this information sent by letter, a close and vigorous search was to be
+made by the most active and trusty officers at each port into every
+bay, river, creek, and inlet within the district of each port, as well
+as all along the coast, so as to discover and seize such illegal
+vessels and boats. And if there were any boats quartered within the
+neighbourhood of each port, timely notice of the day and hour of the
+intended search was to be sent by the Collector and Controller in
+confidence to the commanding officer only, that he might hold his
+soldiers in readiness. Yet, again the Board exhorted the Revenue
+officers "to exert yourselves to the utmost of your power ... and as
+it is very probable that the places where such boats and vessels are
+kept may be known to the officers who have long resided at your port,
+you are to acquaint such officers that if they value their characters
+or employments, or have any regard to the solemn oath they took at
+their admission, we expect they will, on this occasion, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span>give the
+fullest and most ample information of all such places, and will
+cheerfully afford every other aid and assistance in their power, to
+the end that the said vessels and boats may be discovered and seized.</p>
+
+<p>"And to prevent them from being launched into the water, and carried
+off by the smugglers after seizure, you are to cause one of the
+streaks (= strakes) or planks to be ripped off near the keel, taking
+care at the same time to do as little other injury to each boat as
+possible."</p>
+
+<p>We now come to witness the reappearance of an old friend of whom we
+last made mention in the North Sea. The year we are now to consider is
+1788, and the 15th of July. On that day H.M. cutter <i>Kite</i> was sailing
+from Beachy Head to the westward. She passed to the southward of the
+Isle of Wight without sighting it, as the weather was thick. Later in
+the day it cleared as they got near to the Dorsetshire coast, and
+about 7.30 P.M., when they were between Peveril Point (near Swanage)
+and St. Alban's Head, and it was clearer and still not night, the
+ship's surgeon discovered a vessel some distance away on the weather
+bow. The weather had now cleared so much that the house on the top of
+St. Alban's Head was quite visible. The surgeon called the attention
+of a midshipman on board to the strange vessel. The midshipman, whose
+name was Cornelius Quinton, took a bearing, and found <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span>that the
+stranger bore W.S.W. from the cutter, and was steering E.S.E. He also
+took a bearing of Peveril Point, which bore N.&frac12;W., and judged the
+smuggler to be about 9 miles from Peveril Point. About 8 o'clock the
+cutter began to give chase, and this continued until 11 P.M., the
+course being now S.E. After a time the lugger hauled up a point, so
+that she was heading S.E. by S., the wind being moderate S.W. During
+the chase the lugger did her best to get away from the cutter, and set
+her main topsail. The cutter at the time was reefed, but when she saw
+the lugger's topsail going up she shook out her reefs and set her gaff
+topsail. It was some little time before the <i>Kite</i> had made up her
+mind that she was a smuggler, for at first she was thought to be one
+of the few Revenue luggers which were employed in the service. About
+11 o'clock, then, the <i>Kite</i> was fast overhauling her, notwithstanding
+that the lugger, by luffing up that extra point, came more on the wind
+and so increased her pace. It was at first a cloudy night&mdash;and perhaps
+that may have made the <i>Kite's</i> skipper a little nervous, for he could
+hardly need to be reefed in a moderate breeze&mdash;but presently the sky
+cleared.</p>
+
+<p>As the <i>Kite</i> approached she hoisted her signals and fired a musket
+shot. (As there is a good deal of confusion existing concerning the
+signals of the old Revenue cutters, it is worth noting that although
+it was night these signals were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span>displayed. I make this statement on
+the unimpeachable sworn evidence of the <i>Kite's</i> crew, so the matter
+cannot be questioned.) But in spite of these signals, which every
+seafaring man of that time knew very well meant that the pursued
+vessel was to heave-to, the lugger still held on and took no notice.
+After that the <i>Kite</i> continued to fire several times from her swivel
+guns. Later still, as the <i>Kite</i> came yet closer, the latter hailed
+her and requested her to lower her sails, informing her at the same
+time that she was a King's cutter. Still the lugger paid no heed, so
+the cutter now fired at her from muskets. It was only after this that
+the lugger, seeing her chance of escape was gone, gave up, lowered
+sail, wore round, and came under the <i>Kite's</i> stern. The cutter
+hoisted out a boat, the midshipman already mentioned was sent aboard
+the lugger, and the latter's master was brought to the <i>Kite</i>, when
+whom should they find to be their prisoner but David Browning, better
+known as "Smoker," of North Sea fame? When the <i>Kite's</i> captain asked
+for his papers "Smoker" replied that he had no papers but a bill of
+sale. He was afterwards heard to remark that if he had understood the
+log line he would not have been so near the land as he was, and
+admitted he had been bound for Flushing, having doubtless just landed
+a cargo on the beach.</p>
+
+<p>The lugger was found to be decked and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span>clinker-built with a running
+bowsprit on which she set a jib. Six carriage guns were also found on
+board, mounted on her deck. Four of these guns were observed to be
+loaded, three with powder and one with shot, and they were 4-pounders.
+After the capture was made the two vessels lay for a time hove-to on
+the heaving sea under the star-specked sky. The lugger was then put in
+charge of the midshipman and a prize crew from the cutter, the
+prisoners being of course taken on board the <i>Kite</i>. Both lugger and
+cutter then let draw their sails, and set a course N.E. for the Isle
+of Wight until 2 A.M. As it then came on thick the vessels hove-to
+until daylight, when sail was made again, the lugger being sent on
+ahead to sound, so as to see how near they were approaching the Isle
+of Wight. Later on they found themselves in 12 fathoms and judged
+themselves to be near the Owers. Eventually, having steered about
+N.N.E. and sighted Chichester Church in the distance, they went about
+and stood south, the wind having veered to W.N.W., and at 3.30 P.M.
+let go anchor in Spithead. Browning in due time appeared in Court, and
+a verdict was given for the King, so that at last this celebrated
+smuggler had been caught after many an exciting chase.</p>
+
+<p>It was not many years after this incident that a 70-ton cutter named
+the <i>Charming Molly</i> arrived at Portsmouth. A Customs officer went on
+board her and found a man named May, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span>who produced the key of the
+spirit-room, saying he was master of the ship. In the spirit-room the
+Customs officer found a hogshead of gin containing 62 gallons. May was
+anxious to show that this was quite legitimate, as there were sixteen
+men aboard and the contents of this cask were for their use. The
+Customs officer now inquired if there was any more liquor on the ship,
+and May replied in the negative, at first. The officer then said he
+would search the cabin, whereupon May added that there was a small
+cask which he had picked up at sea and had kept for the crew's use.
+This cask was found in May's own state-room, and contained about three
+gallons of brandy, though it was capable of holding another gallon and
+no doubt recently had so done. However, May now said that that was the
+entire lot, and there was not a drop of anything else on board. Yet
+again the officer was not to be put off, and found in the state-room
+on the larboard side a place that was locked. May then explained that
+this locker belonged to a man named Sheriff, who was at present
+ashore, and had the key with him. However May volunteered, if the
+officer saw fit, to open it, but at the same time assured him there
+was no liquor therein. The officer insisted on having it broken open,
+when there were discovered two new liquor cases containing each twelve
+bottles of brandy, making in all eight gallons, and two stone bottles
+of brandy <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span>containing five gallons. Even now May assured the officer
+that he had no more in the ship, but after a further search the
+officer found twelve dozen bottles of wine in a locked locker in the
+cabin.</p>
+
+<p>We need not follow this case any further, but as a fine example of
+deliberate lying it is hard to beat. Throughout the exciting career of
+a smuggler, when chased or captured, in running goods by night or
+stealing out to get clear of the land before the sun came up, this one
+quality of coolness in action or in verbal evasion ever characterised
+him. He was so frequently and continuously face to face with a
+threatening episode that he became used to the condition.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_10_10" id="Footnote_10_10"></a><a href="#FNanchor_10_10"><span class="label">[10]</span></a> See also Appendix I.</p></div>
+
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER VIII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>We have already frequently referred to the Riding officers who were
+attached to practically all the chief ports of England. For the
+reasons already given the south-east coast had especially to be well
+provided in this respect. And, because of the proximity to the Isle of
+Man, the Solway Firth had also to be protected efficiently by these
+officers, additional, of course, to the aid rendered by the cruisers.
+Wales, however, seems to have been left practically unprotected. In
+the year 1809 there was inaugurated what was known as the Preventive
+Waterguard in order to supplement the endeavours of the cruisers and
+Riding officers. Under this arrangement the coast of England and Wales
+was divided into three districts, each of which was under an
+Inspecting Commander, the Revenue cruisers being now included in the
+Preventive Waterguard.</p>
+
+<p>The three districts with the three Inspecting Commanders were as
+follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>District 1.&mdash;Land's End to the Port of Carlisle inclusive. Inspecting
+Commander, Captain John Hopkins.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span>District 2.&mdash;North Foreland to Land's End. Inspecting Commander,
+Captain William Blake.</p>
+
+<p>District 3.&mdash;North Foreland to the Port of Berwick inclusive.
+Inspecting Commander, Captain John Sayers, "whose duty it is
+constantly to watch, inspect, and report to us [the Customs Board]
+upon the conduct of the Commanders of Cruisers and the Sitters of
+Preventive Boats along the district."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>For it was because they required a more effectual control and
+inspection of the officers employed in preventing and detecting
+smuggling that this fresh organisation was made. Certain stations were
+also allotted to the commanders of the cruisers, within each
+district&mdash;two to each station&mdash;and the stations and limits were also
+appointed for Preventive boats. The "sitters" of the Preventive boats
+were those who sat in the stern of these open, rowed craft and acted
+in command of them. The Collector and Controller were also addressed
+in the following terms, which showed that the Board were still doing
+their utmost to rid the service of the inefficiency and negligence to
+which we have had occasion to draw attention. "You are to observe,"
+wrote the Commissioners, "that one material object of the duty imposed
+upon the Inspecting Commanders is to see that the cruisers are
+constantly and regularly on their stations, unless prevented by some
+necessary and unavoidable cause, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span>with their proper complements of
+men and boats, and if they are off their station or in port personally
+to examine into the occasion of their being so, and that they are
+absent from their station no longer than is essentially requisite."</p>
+
+<p>At the end of every year the Inspecting Commanders were to lay before
+the Board of Customs the conduct of the several officers within their
+district and the state in which smuggling then was, and "whether on
+the progress or decline, in what articles, and at what places carried
+on." For the Board was determined "to probe the conduct of the
+Preventive officers and punish them" for any laxity and negligence,
+for which faults alone they would be dismissed. And in order that the
+vigilance and faithful duty in the commanders and officers on board
+the cruisers "may not be deprived of fair and due reward" their rate
+of pay was now increased, together with some addition made to the
+allowance for victualling, "and also to provide for the certainty of
+an annual emolument to a fixed amount in respect to the commanders and
+mates, by the following regulations":&mdash;</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div style="margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%;">
+<p class="noin" style="margin-left: 10%;"><span class="sc">Inspecting Cruisers</span></p>
+
+<p>Commander, each per annum, &pound;200 to be made up to &pound;500 net.</p>
+
+<p>1st Mates, each per annum, &pound;75 to be made up to &pound;150 net.</p>
+
+<p>2nd Mates, each per annum, &pound;50 to be made up to &pound;75 net.</p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span>But these increases were conditional on their salaries, shares of
+seizures and penalties, and all other emoluments of that description
+not having amounted to the salaries now offered. The deputed mariners
+were to have &pound;5 or &pound;3 each, per lunar month. Mariners who had no
+deputation were to have &pound;3 a month, boys on the cruisers &pound;10 per
+annum. As to victualling, the commanders and mates were to have 3s.
+each per diem, mariners 1s. 6d. each per diem. Fire and candle for
+each person were to be allowed for at the rate of 1s. 6d. per lunar
+month.</p>
+
+<p>Under each Inspecting Commander were to be two tenders in each
+district, and the mates who were acting as commanders of these were to
+have their existing &pound;75 a year raised to &pound;150 net in case their
+salaries, shares of seizures, and other emoluments of that description
+should not amount to these sums. Deputed mariners, mariners, boys,
+victualling, fire, and candle were all to be paid for just as in the
+case of the inspecting cruisers above mentioned. This was to date from
+October 10, 1809. A few months later a like improvement was made in
+the salaries of cruisers in general, for from the 5th of January 1810,
+commanders of these were to have their &pound;100 per annum raised to &pound;250
+net&mdash;the above conditions "in case their salaries, shares of seizures,
+&amp;c." did not make up this amount being also here prevalent&mdash;whilst
+first mates were to be raised <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span>from &pound;60 to &pound;100 net. If second mates
+were carried they were to have &pound;50 per annum, deputed mariners &pound;5 per
+annum and &pound;2, 10s. per lunar month. Mariners were to have &pound;2, 10s. per
+lunar month each, boys &pound;10 per annum. Victualling, fire, and candle to
+be as already stated.</p>
+
+<p>The early years of the nineteenth century showed that the evil of the
+previous hundred years was far from dead. The Collector at Plymouth,
+writing to the Board three days before Christmas of 1804, reported
+that there was a good deal of smuggling done, but that the worst
+places in his neighbourhood were two. Firstly, there was that district
+which is embraced by Bigbury, the Yealm, and Cawsand. In that locality
+the smuggling was done in vessels of from 25 to 70 tons. But in summer
+time the trade was also carried on by open spritsail boats of from
+eight to ten tons. These craft used to run across from Guernsey loaded
+with spirits in small casks. Up the river Yealm (just to the east of
+Plymouth Sound) and at Cawsand Bay the goods were wont to be run by
+being rafted together at some distance from the shore and afterwards
+"crept" up (<i>i.e.</i> by means of metal creepers or grapnels). The local
+smugglers would go out in their boats at low water during the night
+when the weather and the absence of the cruisers permitted and bring
+to land their booty. It appeared that 17,000 small casks of spirits
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span>were annually smuggled into Cawsand and the Yealm.</p>
+
+<p>Secondly, the district to the west of Plymouth embracing Polperro and
+Mevagissey. The smuggling craft which brought goods to this locality
+were fast sailers of from 80 to 100 tons. But the goods which came
+into the general district of Plymouth were not carried far inland.
+Those whose work it was to carry the goods after being landed were
+known as "porters," and were so accustomed to this heavy work that
+they could carry a cask of spirits six miles across the country at a
+good rate. When it is remembered that these casks were made
+necessarily strong of stout wood, that they contained each from 5 to
+7-3/4 gallons, making a total weight of from 70 to 100 lbs. at least,
+we can realise something of the rude physical strength possessed by
+these men.</p>
+
+<p>During this same year the Collector at Dartmouth also reported that
+smuggling had increased a good deal recently in the counties of Devon
+and Cornwall. The cutters and luggers from Guernsey carried their
+cargoes consisting of from 400 to 800 ankers of spirits each, with a
+few casks of port and sherry for the wealthier classes, who winked at
+the illicit trade, and some small bales of tobacco. During the summer
+the goods were landed on the north side of Cornwall, between Land's
+End and Hartland Point, and thence distributed by coasters to Wales
+and the ports of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span>Bristol Channel, or carried inland on the backs
+of twenty or thirty horses, protected by a strong guard. But in the
+winter the goods were landed on the shores of the Bristol Channel, the
+farmers coming down with horses and carts to fetch the goods, which
+were subsequently lodged in barns and caves. Clovelly, Bideford, Combe
+Martin, and Porlock were especially notorious in this connection.
+These goods were also regularly conveyed across Exmoor into
+Somersetshire, and other goods found a way into Barnstable. Coasters
+on a voyage from one part of England to another frequently broke their
+voyages and ran over to Guernsey to get contraband. The Island of
+Lundy was a favourite smuggling dep&ocirc;t in the eighteenth century. From
+Ireland a good deal of salt was smuggled into Devonshire and Cornwall,
+the high duties making the venture a very profitable one&mdash;specially
+large cargoes of this commodity being landed near to Hartland Point.
+And this Dartmouth Collector made the usual complaint that the Revenue
+cruisers of that period were easily outsailed by the smugglers.</p>
+
+<p>The reader will recollect those regrettable incidents on the North Sea
+belonging to the eighteenth century, when we had to chronicle the
+names of Captains Mitchell and Whitehead in that connection. Unhappily
+there were occasional repetitions of these in the early part of the
+nineteenth century on the south coast. It <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span>happened that on the 19th
+of March in the year 1807 the <i>Swan</i> Revenue cutter, a vessel of
+considerable size (for she had a burthen of 154 tons, a crew of
+twenty-three men, and was armed with twelve 4-pounders, two
+9-pounders, and a chest of small arms) was cruising in the English
+Channel and found herself off Swanage. It should be added that at that
+time there was a kind of volunteer Preventive Guard at various places
+along the coast, which was known as the "Sea Fencibles." The Swanage
+"Fencibles" informed Mr. Comben, the cruiser's commander, that there
+were three luggers hovering off the coast, and these volunteers
+offered a number of their men to reinforce the <i>Swan's</i> crew so that
+the luggers might be captured. To this Comben replied with a damper to
+the volunteers' enthusiasm: "If I was to take them on board and fall
+in with the enemy we could not do anything with them."</p>
+
+<p>So the <i>Swan</i> sailed away from Swanage Bay to the eastward and at
+midnight made the Needles. It now fell calm, but the luggers hove in
+sight and approached by means of their sweeps. As they came on, the
+cutter, instead of preparing to receive them in the only way they
+deserved, did nothing. But one of the <i>Swan's</i> crew, whose name,
+Edward Bartlett, deserves to be remembered for doing his duty, asked
+Comben if he should fetch the grape and canister from below. Comben
+merely replied: "There is more in the cabin than <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span>we shall want: it
+will be of no use; it is all over with us." Such was the attitude of
+one who had signed into a service for the prevention of smuggling
+craft. Instead of taking any definite action he waited despairingly
+for the enemy to come on. He then issued no orders to his crew to
+prepare to engage; he just did nothing and remained inactive under the
+white cliffs. But if their commander was a coward, at any rate his
+crew were determined to make a contest of it. They had actually to
+urge him to fight, but the luggers were right close on to the cutter
+before Comben had given the word. After that for three-quarters of an
+hour the crew fought the ship, and were at their respective quarters
+when Comben actually turned to the luggers and shouted to them: "Leave
+off firing; I have struck." During the engagement he had shown great
+signs of fear and never encouraged his crew to fight.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing that they were led by a coward, the <i>Swan's</i> crew also took
+fright and thought it best to flee. They therefore jumped into the
+cutter's boats and rowed ashore, leaving their valiant commander to
+look after the <i>Swan</i> as best he might. She was of course immediately
+captured by the luggers, and as for Comben, he was taken prisoner,
+carried to France, detained there, and did not return to England till
+after seven years, when an investigation was made into his conduct by
+the Surveyors-General of the Customs, his defence being that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span>"his men
+had deserted him." As for the latter, they reached the shore safely
+and were again employed in the Preventive Service.</p>
+
+<p>It is quite clear that the Customs Board sometimes lent their cutters
+to the Admiralty; and there is a letter dated October 10, 1809, from
+the Admiralty, in which permission is given for the cutters in the
+service of that Revenue to be released from their station at Flushing
+under the command of Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Strachan, and there is
+also a Customs House minute of July 7, 1806, to the effect that the
+<i>Swan</i> and <i>Hound</i> Revenue cutters might be placed under the orders of
+Lord Keith in the room of the <i>Stag</i> and <i>Swallow</i>, for use at Cowes
+and Shoreham, where these cruisers were to be stationed. And it was in
+this same year that the Board again emphasized the importance of the
+Revenue Service being supported by the Navy and Army, and that to this
+end the most effectual encouragement should be held out to both
+branches, so that they might co-operate vigorously in the suppression
+of smuggling. They further expressed themselves as of the opinion that
+"nothing will more effectually tend to encourage them to exert
+themselves than the certainty of receiving a speedy reward." And yet,
+again, were the Revenue officers enjoined "to be particularly careful
+to secure the men employed in smuggling vessels whenever it may be
+possible to effect it, as their lordships have the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span>strongest reasons
+for believing that the apprehension of being detained and impressed
+into his Majesty's service will have a great effect in deterring the
+persons engaged in these illegal pursuits from continuing their
+pernicious habits."</p>
+
+<p>It was also part of the duty of the Customs officers to attend to the
+Quarantine, and the Customs Board resolved "that it is fit to direct a
+distinguishing flag to be used on board all boats employed in the
+Quarantine service." At Sandgate Creek, Portsmouth, Falmouth, Bristol,
+Milford, Hull, Liverpool and Plymouth, by the advice of the Surveyor
+for Sloops, a flag was deposited in the Custom House at every port of
+the kingdom, and it was resolved that in the above ports there should
+be two, except Plymouth, which should have three. Cruisers were also
+employed in the Quarantine Service.</p>
+
+<p>We have already seen something of the conditions of service and the
+pay of the cruisers' crews. He who was responsible for the upkeep and
+supervision of these cruisers was known as the Surveyor for Sloops.
+For some time the Customs Board had been deliberating as to the
+adoption of some regulations for ascertaining the qualifications of
+those who desired to be commanders and mates of the cruisers. That
+some improvement was essential must already have been made clear to
+the reader from the type of men who sometimes were placed in such
+positions of responsibility. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span>following regulations were therefore
+adopted in the year 1807, "which appear to the Commissioners highly
+necessary for the safe conduct of the Service, as also for the safety
+of the vessels and crews committed to their charge." They resolved
+accordingly:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>"That all persons who shall be hereafter nominated to the situation of
+Commander or Mate of a Cruiser in the service of this Revenue, do
+attend the Surveyor of Sloops, &amp;c. in London for the purpose of being
+examined on the several points submitted in the report of the said
+Surveyor, as essential for the qualification of officers of that
+description, namely, whether he understand navigation, is competent to
+lay off and ascertain courses and distances on the charts, can work a
+day's work and find the time of high and low water in any port of
+great Britain, and understand the use of a quadrant."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>It was also further resolved:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>"That no person be admitted to either of those situations who shall
+not be certified by the said Surveyors to be fully qualified in the
+particulars above referred to, which certificate is to be laid before
+the Board for their consideration, whether in case such person does
+not possess a competent knowledge of the coast on which he is to be
+stationed, or is not sufficiently acquainted with the sailing and
+management of cutters and luggers tho' generally qualified, it may not
+be fit to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span>direct him to repair on board some cruiser, whose station
+is contiguous to that to which he is nominated, and cruise in such
+vessel for the space of one month, or until the commander thereof
+shall certify that he is thoroughly acquainted with that part of the
+coast, and also be fully competent to take charge of a cutter, or
+lugger, as the case may be, such a certificate to be referred to the
+Surveyor for Sloops, &amp;c. for his report previous to such commander's
+or mate's commission being ordered to be made out." And the commanders
+of the cutters who shall be ordered to instruct such persons are to be
+acquainted that they are at liberty to crave the extra expense they
+shall incur for victualling such persons for the Board's
+consideration.</p>
+
+<p>"And the Surveyor for Sloops, &amp;c. is to report more particularly the
+nature and objects of enquiry as to the qualification of persons
+nominated Sitters of Boats and by what officers in the outports those
+enquiries are made and the qualification of such persons certified:
+for the Commissioners' further consideration, as to any additional
+regulations in respect of persons so nominated."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>It was, no doubt, because of such incidents as those which we have
+seen occurring in the Channel and North Sea that the Commissioners
+tightened up the regulations in the above manner. That these incidents
+were not confined to any particular locality let us show by the two
+following examples. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span>The first had reference to William Horn, the
+Deputed Mariner and Acting Mate of the Revenue cutter <i>Greyhound</i>,
+whose station was at Weymouth. On the 5th of March 1806 he was in
+charge of the cutter whilst on a cruise to the westward. Off Portland
+the cutter fell in with a French lugger, which was a privateer. Horn
+gave chase, gradually overhauled her, and even came up with her. For a
+time he also engaged her, but because he subsequently gave up the
+fight, bore up and quitted her, allowing the privateer to escape, he
+was deemed guilty by the Customs Board of not having used his utmost
+endeavours to effect a capture, and was ordered to be superseded.</p>
+
+<p>The second incident was of a slightly more complicated nature, and
+occurred on October 20, 1805, about midnight. The two men implicated
+were a Captain Riches, who was in command of the Revenue cutter
+<i>Hunter</i>, and his mate Oliver.</p>
+
+<p>This vessel, whose station was Great Yarmouth, was on the night
+mentioned cruising in the North Sea. Presently the cutter sighted what
+turned out to be the Danish merchant ship, <i>The Three Sisters</i>,
+Fredric Carlssens master, from Copenhagen bound for St. Thomas's and
+St. Croix. Oliver got into the cutter's boat and boarded the Dane. He
+also demanded from the latter and took from him four cases of foreign
+Geneva, which was part of <i>The Three Sisters'</i> cargo. In spite of
+Carlssen's opposition, Oliver put these into his <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span>boat and rowed off
+with them to the <i>Hunter</i>. Riches was obviously party to this
+transaction, and was accused "that contrary to the solemn oath taken
+at his admission into office, he did not only neglect to report to the
+Collector and Controller of Yarmouth or to the Board the misconduct of
+his Mate, in unlawfully taking from the said ship the four cases of
+Geneva in question, but did take out of them for his own use, and by
+so doing did connive at and sanction the aforesaid unproper conduct of
+his Mate." It was also brought against Riches that he had not entered
+any account of this incident into his ship's journal, or made any
+record of the mate boarding the Dane.</p>
+
+<p>In the end Riches was adjudged by the Board guilty of not giving
+information regarding his mate's conduct and of receiving one case of
+Geneva for his own use, but he was acquitted of connivance for want of
+evidence. He was found guilty also of not having entered the incident
+in his journal. Oliver was acquitted of having boarded the Danish ship
+for want of proof, but found guilty of having failed to keep a
+complete journal of his proceedings. But a further charge was made
+that Riches caused a case of foreign spirits, which had been taken out
+of the Danish ship, to be brought ashore from the cutter and taken to
+his home at Yarmouth without paying the duty thereon. Oliver was also
+accused of a similar crime with regard to two cases. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span>Riches was
+acquitted for want of proof of having caused the gin to be taken to
+his house, but found guilty of having received it, knowing the duty
+had not been paid. Oliver was also found guilty, and both were
+accordingly dismissed.</p>
+
+<p>And there was the case of a man named Thomas Rouse, who was accused of
+having been privy to the landing of a number of large casks of spirits
+and other goods from a brig then lying off the Watch-house at
+Folkestone. This was on the night of May 20 and the early hours of May
+21, 1806. He was further accused of being either in collusion with the
+smugglers in that transaction or criminally negligent in not
+preventing the same. It was still further brought against him that he
+had not stopped and detained the master of the brig after going on
+board, although the master was actually pointed out to him by a boat's
+crew belonging to the <i>Nimble</i> Revenue cutter. Rouse was found guilty
+of the criminal negligence and ordered to be dismissed. And, in
+addition, the chief boatmen, five boatmen, and two riding-officers of
+the Preventive Service at that port were also dismissed for failing to
+do their utmost to prevent this smuggling, which had, in fact, been
+done collusively. Those were certainly anxious times for the Customs
+Commissioners, and we cannot but feel for them in their difficulties.
+On the one hand, they had to wrestle with an evil that was national in
+its <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span>importance, while on the other they had a service that was
+anything but incorruptible, and required the utmost vigilance to cause
+it to be instant in its elementary duties.</p>
+
+<p>One of the reforms recommended towards the end of 1809 had reference
+to the supply of stores and the building and repairing of Custom House
+boats in London. The object aimed at was to obtain a more complete
+check on the quantities and quality of the stores required for
+cruisers and Preventive boats. And the example of the outports was
+accordingly adopted that, when articles were required for these craft
+that were of any value, the Collector and Controller of the particular
+port first sent estimates to the Board, and permission was not allowed
+until the Surveyor of Sloops had certified that the estimates were
+reasonable. Nor were the bills paid until both the commander and mate
+of the cruiser, or else the Tide Surveyor or the Sitter of the Boat,
+as the case might be, had certified that the work was properly carried
+out. And the same rule applied to the supply of cordage and to the
+carrying out of repairs.</p>
+
+<p>As one looks through the old records of the Custom House one finds
+that a Revenue officer who was incapable of yielding to bribery, who
+was incorruptible and vigilant in his duty, possessed both courage and
+initiative, and was favoured with even moderate luck, could certainly
+rely on <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span>a fair income from his activities. In the year we are
+speaking of, for instance, Thomas Story, one of the Revenue officers
+petitioned to be paid his share of the penalty recovered from William
+Lambert and William Taylor for smuggling, and he was accordingly
+awarded the sum of &pound;162, 2s. It was at this time also that the
+salaries of the Collectors, Controllers, and Landing Surveyors of the
+outports were increased so that the Collectors were to receive not
+less than &pound;150 per annum, the Controller not less than &pound;120, and the
+Landing Surveyor not less than &pound;100. And in addition to this, of
+course, there were their shares in any seizures that might be made.
+Sometimes, however, the Revenue officers suffered not from negligence
+but from excess of zeal, as, for instance, on that occasion when they
+espied a rowing-boat containing a couple of seafaring men approach and
+land on the beach at Eastbourne. The Revenue officials made quite
+certain that these were a couple of smugglers and seized their boat.
+But it was subsequently discovered that they were just two Portuguese
+sailors who had escaped from Dieppe and rowed all the way across the
+Channel. The Admiralty interfered in the matter and requested the
+release of the boat, which was presently made. But two other Revenue
+officers, named respectively Tahourdin and Savery, in August of 1809
+had much better luck when they were able to make a seizure that was
+highly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span>profitable. We have already referred to the considerable
+exportation which went on from this country in specie and the national
+danger which this represented. In the present instance these two
+officials were able to seize a large quantity of coin consisting of
+guineas, half guineas, and seven shilling pieces, which were being
+illegally transported out of the kingdom. When this amount came to be
+reckoned up it totalled the sum of &pound;10,812, 14s. 6d., so that their
+share must have run into very high figures.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER IX<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>In an earlier chapter we quoted from Marryat a passage which showed
+that the mariners of a Revenue cutter were dressed in red flannel
+shirts and blue trousers, and also wore canvas or tarpaulin
+petticoats. The reason for the last-mentioned was appreciated by
+smuggler and Preventive men alike, and if you have ever noticed the
+Thames River Police dodging about in their small craft you will have
+noticed that at any rate the steersman has in cold weather some sort
+of apron wrapped round his legs. But in the period of which we are now
+speaking the attached apron or petticoat was very useful for keeping
+the body warm in all weather, especially when the sitter of the
+Preventive boat had to be rowed out perhaps in the teeth of a biting
+wind, for several miles at night. And the smugglers found their task
+of landing tubs through the surf a wet job, so they were equally glad
+of this additional protection.<a name="FNanchor_11_11" id="FNanchor_11_11"></a><a href="#Footnote_11_11" class="fnanchor">[11]</a></p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span>The period to which Marryat referred was the end of the eighteenth
+century. As to the uniform of the Revenue officers we have the
+following evidence. Among the General Letters of the Customs Board was
+one dated June 26, 1804, from which it is seen that the commanders of
+the cruisers petitioned the Board for an alteration in their uniform
+and that also of the mates, this alteration to be made at the expense
+of the officers. The commanders suggested for their own dress:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>"A silver epaulette, the button-holes worked or bound with silver
+twist or lace, side-arms, and cocked hats with cockades, and the
+buttons set on the coat three and three, the breeches and waistcoats
+as usual:</p>
+
+<p>"For the undress, the same as at present.</p>
+
+<p>"For the mates, the addition of lappels, the buttons set on two and
+two, and cocked hats with cockades."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The Board consented to these alterations with the exception of the
+epaulettes, "the adoption of which we do not approve, lest the same
+should interfere with His Majesty's Naval Service." Now in reading
+this, it is important to bear in mind that between the Revenue and
+Navy there was a great deal of jealousy.<a name="FNanchor_12_12" id="FNanchor_12_12"></a><a href="#Footnote_12_12" class="fnanchor">[12]</a> It went so far, at least
+on one occasion, as to cause a Naval officer to go on board a Revenue
+cutter and haul the latter's <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span>flag down. The reason these epaulettes
+were disallowed may be explained by the fact that it was only nine
+years before the above date that epaulettes had become uniform in the
+Navy, for notwithstanding that epaulettes had been worn by officers
+since 1780, yet they were not uniform until 1795, although they were
+already uniform in the French and Spanish navies.<a name="FNanchor_13_13" id="FNanchor_13_13"></a><a href="#Footnote_13_13" class="fnanchor">[13]</a> Since,
+therefore, these adornments had been so recently introduced into the
+Navy, it was but natural that with so much jealousy existing this
+feature should not be introduced into the Revenue service. Just what
+"the undress, the same as at present" was I have not been able to
+discover, but in the Royal Navy of that time the undress uniform for a
+captain of three years' post consisted of a blue coat, which was
+white-lined, with blue lappels and cuffs, a fall-down collar,
+gold-laced button-holes, square at both ends, arranged regularly on
+the lappels. For a captain under three years the uniform was the same,
+except that the nine buttons were arranged on the lappels in threes.
+For master or commander it was the same, except that the button-holes
+were arranged by twos.<a name="FNanchor_14_14" id="FNanchor_14_14"></a><a href="#Footnote_14_14" class="fnanchor">[14]</a></p>
+
+<p>It was in January 1807 that the Customs Board took into consideration
+the appointment of several Revenue cruisers and the expediency of one
+general system for manning them according <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span>to the tonnage and
+construction of the vessel, the service and station on which she was
+to be employed. They therefore distinctly classed the different
+cruisers according to their tonnage, description, and number of men
+originally allowed and since added, whether furnished with letters of
+marque or not. And believing that it would be beneficial to the
+service that the complement of men should be fixed at the highest
+number then allotted to cutters in each respective class, they
+accordingly instructed the commanders of the different cruisers to
+increase their respective complements "with all practicable dispatch."</p>
+
+<p>We now come to an important point concerning which there exists some
+little uncertainty. By a letter dated July 17, 1807, Revenue officers
+were reminded that they were by law bound to hoist the Revenue colours
+and fire a gun as a signal "before they in any case fire on any
+smuggling vessel or boat."</p>
+
+<p>"We direct you to convene the officers of the Waterguard belonging to
+your port," write the Commissioners to the Collector and Controller at
+each station, "including the officers and crew of the cruiser
+stationed there, and strictly to enjoin them whether on board cruisers
+or boats in no instance to fire on any smuggling vessel or boat,
+either by night (whether it be dark or light), or by day, without
+first hoisting the colours and firing a gun as a signal, as directed
+by law, and to take care <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span>that on any boat being sent out armed either
+from the shore or from a cruiser, in pursuit of seizures or any other
+purpose, such boat be furnished with a proper flag." Two years later,
+on April 11, 1809, it was decided that cruisers could legally wear a
+pendant "conformable to the King's Proclamation of the 1st January
+1801," when requiring a vessel that was liable to seizure or
+examination to heave-to, or when chasing such a vessel, but "at no
+other time." It is important to bear in mind that the flags of chase
+were special emblems, and quite different from the ceremonial flags
+borne on the Customs buildings, hulks, and vessels not used actually
+in the chasing of smugglers.</p>
+
+<p>In addition to my own independent research on this subject I am
+indebted for being allowed to make use of some MS. notes on this
+interesting subject collected by Mr. Atton, Librarian of the Custom
+House; and in spite of the unfortunate gaps which exist in the
+historical chain, the following is the only possible attempt at a
+connected story of the Custom House flag's evolution. We have already
+explained that from the year 1674 to 1815 the Revenue Preventive work
+was under a mixed control. We have also seen that in the year 1730 the
+Board of Customs called attention to the Proclamation of December 18,
+1702, that no ships were to wear a pendant except those of the Royal
+Navy, but that the sloops employed <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span>in the several public offices
+might wear Jacks with the seal of the respective office.</p>
+
+<p>From a report made by the Harwich Customs in 1726 it is clear that the
+King's colours were at that date hoisted when a Revenue cruiser chased
+a suspect. But as to what the "King's Colours" were no one to-day
+knows. Among the regulations issued to the Revenue cruisers in 1816
+the commanders were informed that they were not to wear the colours
+used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same pendants and ensigns as
+were provided by the Revenue Board. By 24 George III. cap. 47, certain
+signals of chase were prescribed. Thus, if the cruiser were a Naval
+vessel she was to hoist "the proper pendant and ensign of H.M. ships."
+If a Custom House vessel she was to hoist a blue Customs ensign and
+pendant "with the marks now used." If an Excise vessel, a blue ensign
+and pendant "with the marks now used." After this had been done, and a
+gun fired (shotted or unshotted) as a warning signal, she might fire
+if the smuggler failed to heave-to. And this regulation is by the
+Customs Consolidation Act of 1876 still in force, and might to-day be
+made use of in the case of an obstinate North Sea cooper. What one
+would like to know is what were the marks in use from 1784 to 1815.
+Mr. Atton believes that these marks were as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>At the masthead: a blue pendant with the Union in canton and the
+Customs badge of office <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span>(a castellated structure with portcullis over
+the entrance, and two barred windows and two port-holes, one barred
+and one open, the latter doubtless to signify that through which the
+goods might enter) in the fly.</p>
+
+<p>At the gaff: a blue ensign similarly marked.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The English Excise, the Scottish Customs, Scottish Excise, and the
+Irish Revenue signals of chase were blue pendants and ensigns
+similarly flown, but as to the badges of office one cannot be certain.
+The matter of English Customs flags has been obscured by the quotation
+in Marryat's <i>The King's Own</i>, where a smuggler is made to remark on
+seeing a Revenue vessel's flag, "Revenue stripes, by the Lord." It has
+been suggested that the bars of the castle port and portcullis in the
+seal were called "stripes" by the sailors of that day, inasmuch as
+they called the East India Company's flag of genuine stripes the
+"gridiron." But to me it seems much more likely that the following is
+the explanation for calling a Revenue cutter's flag "stripes." The
+signal flags Nos. 7 and 8, which were used by the Royal Navy in 1746
+to order a chase both consisted of stripes.<a name="FNanchor_15_15" id="FNanchor_15_15"></a><a href="#Footnote_15_15" class="fnanchor">[15]</a> No. 7 consisted of
+eleven horizontal stripes, viz. six red and five white. Flag No. 8 had
+nine horizontal stripes, viz. red, white, blue repeated three times,
+the red being uppermost. I submit that in sailor's slang these
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span>signals would be commonly referred to as "stripes." Consequently
+whatever flags subsequently would be used to signal a chase would be
+known also as "stripes." Therefore whatever signal might be flown in
+the Revenue service when chasing would be known as "stripes" also.</p>
+
+<p>But by an Order in Council of the 1st of February 1817, the pendant
+and ensign were to be thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>The pendant to have a red field having a regal crown thereon at the
+upper part next the mast. The ensign to be a red Jack with a Union
+Jack in a canton at the upper corner next the staff, and with a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack. This was to be worn by all
+vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling under the Admiralty,
+Treasury, Customs or Excise.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Now during an interesting trial at the Admiralty Sessions held at the
+Old Bailey in April of 1825, concerning the chasing of a smuggler by a
+Revenue cruiser, Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N., who was commanding the
+cutter, stated in his evidence that when he came near this smuggling
+vessel the former hoisted the Revenue pendant at the masthead, which
+he described as "a red field with a crown next the mast at the upper
+part of it." He also hoisted the Revenue ensign at the peak-end, the
+"Union at the upper corner in a red field," the field of the ensign
+being also red. It had a Jack in the corner. This, then, was exactly
+in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span>accordance with the Order in Council of 1817 mentioned above.</p>
+
+<p>But my own opinion relative to the firing of the <i>first</i> gun is in
+favour of the proposition that this was not necessarily unshotted. I
+shall refer in greater detail to the actual incidents, here quoted, on
+a later page, but for our present purpose the following is strong
+proof in favour of this suggestion. During a trial in the year 1840
+(Attorney-General <i>v</i>. William Evans) it transpired that Evans had
+entered the Medway in a smack without heaving-to, and the following
+questions and answers respectively were made by counsel and Richard
+Braddy, a coastguard who at the time of the incident was on duty at
+Garrison Fort (Sheerness):&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p><i>Question.</i> "Is the first signal a shot always?"</p>
+
+<p><i>Answer.</i> "A blank cartridge we fire mostly."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Did you fire a blank?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No, because she was going too fast away from me."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Did you hit her?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>To me it seems certain from this evidence of the coastguard that
+though the first signal was "mostly" blank, yet it was not always or
+necessarily so.</p>
+
+<p>It was frequently discovered that smuggling vessels lay off the coast
+some distance from the shore and unshipped their cargoes then into
+smaller craft by which they were brought to land, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span>this practice
+was often observed by the Naval officers at the signal stations. Thus,
+these smuggling runs might be prevented if those officers were enabled
+to apprise the Admiralty and Revenue cruisers whenever observed, so
+the Treasury put themselves in communication with the Customs Board
+with regard to so important a matter. This was in the year 1807. The
+Admiralty were requested to appoint some signals by which Naval
+officers stationed at the various signal-posts along the coasts might
+be able to convey information to his Majesty's and the Revenue
+cruisers whenever vessels were observed illegally discharging cargoes.
+The Admiralty accordingly did as requested, and these signals were
+sent on to the commanders of the cutters. This, of course, opened up a
+new matter in regard to the apportioning of prize-money, and it was
+decided that when any vessel or goods discharged therefrom should be
+seized by any of the cruisers in consequence of information given by
+signal from these stations, and the vessel and her goods afterwards
+were condemned, one-third of the amount of the King's share was to be
+paid to the officer and men at the signal-post whence such information
+was first communicated. The obvious intention of this regulation was
+to incite the men ashore to keep a smart look-out.</p>
+
+<p>The coast signal-stations<a name="FNanchor_16_16" id="FNanchor_16_16"></a><a href="#Footnote_16_16" class="fnanchor">[16]</a> had been permanently <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span>established in the
+year 1795, and were paid off at the coming of peace but re-established
+when the war broke out again, permission being obtained from the
+owners of the land and a code of signals prepared. The establishment
+of these signal-stations had been commenced round the coast soon after
+the Revolutionary war. Those at Fairlight and Beachy Head were
+established about 1795.<a name="FNanchor_17_17" id="FNanchor_17_17"></a><a href="#Footnote_17_17" class="fnanchor">[17]</a> Each station was supplied with one red
+flag, one blue pendant, and four black balls of painted canvas. When
+the Sea Fencibles, to whom we referred some time back, were
+established, the signal-stations were placed under the district
+captains. This was done in March 1798, and the same thing was done
+when the Sea Fencibles had to be re-established in 1803. The
+signal-stations at Torbay and New Romney (East Bay, Dungeness) had
+standing orders, says Captain Hudleston, to report all arrivals and
+departures direct to the Admiralty.</p>
+
+<p>The Customs Board advanced another step forward when, in the year
+1808, they considered whether "benefit might not arise to the service
+by establishing certain signals by which the commanders of the several
+cruisers in the service of the Revenue might be enabled to make their
+vessels known to each other, on meeting at sea, or to distinguish each
+other at a distance, and also to make such communications as might be
+most useful, as well <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span>as to detect any deception which might be
+attempted to be practised by the masters of vessels belonging to the
+enemy, or of smuggling vessels." They therefore consulted "the proper
+officers on the subject," and a code of tabular signals was drawn up
+and approved and sent to the commanders of the cruisers in a
+confidential manner. Each commander was enjoined to pay the most
+strict attention to such signals as might be made under the
+regulations, and to co-operate by every means in his power for the
+attainment of the objects in view. These commanders were also to
+apprise the Customs Board of any matter which might arise in
+consequence thereof "fit for our cognisance." These signals were also
+communicated to the commanders of the several Admiralty cruisers. And
+we must remember that although naval signalling had in a crude and
+elementary manner been in vogue in our Navy for centuries, and the
+earliest code was in existence at any rate as far back as 1340, yet it
+was not till the eighteenth century that it showed any real
+development. During the early years of the nineteenth century a great
+deal of interest was taken in the matter by such men as Mr. Goodhew,
+Sir Home Popham, Captain Marryat, and others. It was the atmosphere of
+the French and Spanish wars which gave this incentive, and because the
+subject was very much in the Naval minds at that time it was but
+natural that the Revenue service should <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span>appreciate the advantage
+which its application might bestow for the prevention of smuggling.</p>
+
+<p>Further means were also taken in the early nineteenth century to
+increase the efficiency of the cruisers. In 1811, in order that they
+should be kept as constantly as possible on their stations, and that
+no excuses might be made for delays, it was decided that in future the
+Inspecting Commanders of Districts be empowered to incur expenses up
+to &pound;35 for the repairs which a cutter might need, and &pound;5 for similar
+repairs to her boats. The commanders of the cruisers were also
+permitted to incur any expenses up to &pound;20 for the cutter and boats
+under their command. Such expenses were to be reported to the Board,
+with information as to why this necessity had arisen, where and by
+what tradesmen the work had been done, and whether it had been
+accomplished in the most reasonable manner. At the end of the
+following year, in order still further to prevent cruisers being
+absent from their stations "at the season of the year most favourable
+for smuggling practices, and when illegal proceedings are generally
+attempted," <i>i.e.</i> in the dark days of autumn and winter and spring,
+and in order, also, to prevent several cutters being in the Port of
+London at the same time, "whereby the part of the coast within their
+respective districts would be left altogether without guard," the
+commanders of these cruisers were to give warning when it was apparent
+that extensive repairs were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span>needed, or a general refit, or any other
+cause which compelled the craft to come up to London. Timely notice
+was to be given to the Board so that the necessity and propriety
+thereof should be inquired into. It was done also with a view to
+bringing in the cruisers from their respective stations only as best
+they might be spared consistent with the good of the service. But they
+were to come to London for such purposes only between April 5 and
+September 5 of each year. By this means there would always be a good
+service of cruisers at sea during the bad weather period, when the
+smugglers were especially active.</p>
+
+<p>In our quotation from <i>The Three Cutters</i> in another chapter we gave
+the colours of the paint used on these vessels. I find an interesting
+record in the Custom House dated November 13, 1812, giving an order
+that, to avoid the injury which cruisers sustain from the use of iron
+bolts, the decks in future were to be fastened with composition bolts,
+"which would eventually prove a saving to the Revenue." After ordering
+the commanders to cause their vessels to be payed twice every year
+either with paint or bright varnish, and not to use scrapers on their
+decks except after caulking, and then only to remove the unnecessary
+pitch, the instruction goes on to stipulate the only paint colours
+which are to be employed for cruisers. These are such as were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span>then
+allowed in the Navy, viz. black, red, white, or yellow.</p>
+
+<p>But apart from all the manifold difficulties and anxieties, both
+general and detailed, which arose in connection with these cruisers so
+long as they were at sea or in the shipwrights' hands, in commission
+or out of commission, there were others which applied more strictly to
+their crews. Such an incident as occurred in the year 1785 needed very
+close attention. In that year the English Ambassador at the Court of
+France had been informed by Monsieur de Vergennes that parties of
+sailors belonging to our Revenue cruisers had recently landed near
+Boulogne in pursuit of some smugglers who had taken to the shore.
+Monsieur de Vergennes added that if any British sailors or other armed
+men should be taken in such acts of violence the French Government
+would unhesitatingly sentence them immediately to be hanged.</p>
+
+<p>Of course the French Government were well within their rights in
+making such representations, for natural enough as no doubt it was to
+chase the smugglers when they escaped ashore, yet the trespass was
+indefensible. The Board of Customs therefore instructed their
+cruisers, as well as those of the Admiralty "whose commanders are
+furnished with commissions from this Board," to make a note of the
+matter, in order that neither they nor their men might inadvertently
+expose <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span>themselves to the severity denounced against them by the
+French laws upon acts of the like nature.</p>
+
+<p>In 1812 one of the mariners belonging to a cruiser happened to go
+ashore, and whilst there was seized by the press-gang for his
+Majesty's Navy. Such an occurrence as this was highly inconvenient not
+only to the man but to the Board of Customs, who resolved that
+henceforth the commanders of cruisers were not to allow any of their
+mariners shore leave unless in case of absolute necessity "until the
+protections which may be applied for shall have been received and in
+possession of such mariners."</p>
+
+<p>Another matter that required rectification was the practice of taking
+on board some of their friends and relatives who had no right to be
+there. Whether this was done for pleasure or profit the carrying of
+these passengers was deemed to be to the great detriment of the
+service, and the Board put a stop to it. It was not merely confined to
+the cruisers, but the boats and galleys of the Waterguard were just as
+badly abused. The one exception allowed was, that when officers of the
+Waterguard were removing from one station to another, they might use
+such a boat to convey their families with them provided it did not
+interfere with the duties of these officers. So also some of the
+commanders of the cruisers had even taken on board apprentices and
+been dishonest enough to have them borne on the books as able <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span>seamen,
+and drawn their pay as such. The Board not unnaturally deemed this
+practice highly improper, and immediately to be discontinued. No
+apprentices were to be borne on the books except the boy allowed to
+all cruisers.</p>
+
+<p>After a smuggling vessel's cargo had been seized and it was decided to
+send the goods to London, this was done by placing the tobacco,
+spirits, &amp;c., in a suitable coaster and despatching her to the Thames.
+But in order to prevent her being attacked on the sea by would-be
+rescuers she was ordered to be convoyed by the Revenue cutters. The
+commander of whatever cruiser was in the neighbourhood was ordered "to
+accompany and guard" her to the Nore or Sea Reach as the case might
+be. Every quarter the cruisers were also to send a list of the
+seizures made, giving particulars of the cruiser&mdash;her name, burthen,
+number of guns, number of men, commander's name, number of days at sea
+during that quarter, how many days spent in port and why, the quantity
+of goods and nature of each seizure, the number and names of all
+smuggling vessels captured, both when and where. There was also to be
+sent the number of men who had been detained, how they had been
+disposed of, and if the men had not been detained how it was they had
+escaped.</p>
+
+<p>"Their Lordships are induced to call for these returns," ran the
+instruction, "in order to have <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span>before them, quarterly, a comparative
+view of the exertions of the several commanders of the Revenue
+cruisers.... They have determined, as a further inducement to
+diligence and activity in the said officers, to grant a reward of &pound;500
+to the commander of the Revenue cruiser who, in the course of the year
+ending 1st October 1808, shall have so secured and delivered over to
+his Majesty's Naval Service the greatest number of smugglers; a reward
+of &pound;300 to the commander who shall have secured and delivered over the
+next greatest number, and a reward of &pound;200 to the commander who shall
+be third on the list in those respects." That was in September of
+1887.</p>
+
+<p>During the year ending October 1, 1810, Captain Gunthorpe, commander
+of the Excise cutter <i>Viper</i>, succeeded in handing over to his
+Majesty's Navy thirteen smugglers whom he had seized. As this was the
+highest number for that year he thus became entitled to the premium of
+&pound;500. Captains Curling and Dobbin, two Revenue officers, were together
+concerned in transferring six men to the Navy, but inasmuch as Captain
+Patmour had been able to transfer five men during this same year it
+was he to whom the &pound;300 were awarded. Captain Morgan of the Excise
+cutter and Captain Haddock of the Custom House cutter <i>Stag</i> each
+transferred four men during that year.</p>
+
+<p>"But my Lords," states a Treasury minute of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span>December 13, 1811,
+"understanding that the nature of the service at Deal frequently
+requires the Revenue vessels to co-operate with each other, do not
+think it equitable that such a circumstance should deprive Messrs.
+Curling and Dobbin of a fair remuneration for their diligence, and are
+therefore pleased to direct warrants likewise to be prepared granting
+to each of those gentlemen the sum of &pound;100." In spite of the above
+numbers, however, the Treasury were not satisfied, and did not think
+that the number of men by this means transferred to the Navy had been
+at all proportionate to the encouragement which they had held out.
+They therefore altered the previous arrangement so as to embrace those
+cases only in which the exertions of the cruisers' commanders had been
+of an exceptionally distinguished nature. Thus during 1812 and the
+succeeding years, until some further provision might be made, it was
+decided that "the sum of &pound;500 will be paid to such person commanding a
+Revenue cutter as shall in any one year transfer to the Navy the
+greatest number of smugglers, not being less than twenty." The sum of
+&pound;300 was to be paid to the persons commanding a Revenue cutter who in
+any year should transfer the next greatest number of smugglers, not
+being less than fifteen. And &pound;200 were to be paid to the commander who
+in one year should have transferred the third largest, not being less
+than ten. This decision was made in January <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span>of 1812, and in the
+following year it was directed that in future the rewards granted to
+the commanders of the Revenue cruisers for delivering the greatest
+number of smugglers should be made not exclusively to the commanders
+but distributed among the commander, officers, and crew according to
+the scale which has already been given on an earlier page in this
+volume. At the end of the year 1813 it was further decided that when
+vessels and boats of above four tons measurement were seized in
+ballast and afterwards broken up, not owing to their build, their
+construction, or their denomination, but simply because they had been
+engaged in smuggling, the seizing officers should become entitled to
+30s. a ton.</p>
+
+<p>There was also a system instituted in the year 1808 by which the
+widows of supervisors and surveyors of Riding officers and commanders
+of cruisers were allowed &pound;30 per annum, with an additional allowance
+of &pound;5 per annum for each child until it reached the age of fifteen.
+The widows of Riding officers, mates of cutters, and sitters of boats
+specially stationed for the prevention of smuggling were allowed &pound;25
+per annum and &pound;5 for each child until fifteen years old. In the case
+of the widows of mariners they were to have &pound;15 a year and &pound;2, 10s.
+for each child till the age of fifteen. And one finds among those thus
+rewarded Ann Sarmon, the widow, and the three children of the
+commander of the <i>Swan</i> cutter <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span>stationed at Cowes; the one child of
+the mate of the <i>Tartar</i> cutter of Dover; the widow of the mate of the
+<i>Dolphin</i> of St. Ives; the widow of the Riding officer at Southampton;
+the widow and children of the commander of the cutter <i>Hunter</i> at
+Yarmouth; and likewise of the <i>Hunter's</i> mate.</p>
+
+<p>After the 10th of October 1814 the allowance for victualling the crews
+of the Revenue cruisers was augmented as follows:&mdash;For victualling
+commander and mate, 3s. a day each and 1s. 6d. per lunar month for
+fire and candle. For victualling, fire, and candle for mariners, 1s.
+10d. a day each. The daily rations to be supplied to each mariner on
+board the cruisers were to consist of 1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs.
+of bread, and two quarts of beer. If flour or vegetables were issued
+the quantity of bread was to be reduced, and if cheese were supplied
+then the amount was to be reduced in proportion to the value and not
+to the quantity of such articles. And, in order to obtain uniformity,
+a table of the rations as above was to be fixed up against the fore
+side of the mast under the deck of the cruiser, and also in some
+conspicuous place in the Custom House.</p>
+
+<p>Very elaborate instructions were also issued regarding the use of the
+tourniquet, which "is to stop a violent bleeding from a wounded artery
+in the limbs till it can be properly secured and tied by a surgeon."
+The medicine chest of these cruisers contained the following twenty
+articles: vomiting <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span>powders, purging powders, sweating powders, fever
+powders, calomel pills, laudanum, cough drops, stomach tincture, bark,
+scurvy drops, hartshorn, peppermint, lotion, Friar's balsam, Turner
+cerate, basilicon (for healing "sluggish ulcers"), mercurial ointment,
+blistering ointment, sticking-plaster, and lint.</p>
+
+<p>In short, with its fleet of cruisers well armed and well manned, well
+found in everything necessary both for ship and crew; with good wages,
+the offer of high rewards, and pensions; with other privileges second
+only to those obtainable in the Royal Navy; the Customs Board
+certainly did their best to make the floating branch of its Preventive
+service as tempting and efficient as it could possibly be. And that
+there were not more captures of smugglers was the fault at any rate
+not of those who had the administration of these cutters.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep178" id="imagep178"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep178.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep178.jpg" width="50%" alt="H.M. Cutter Wickham" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;"><span class="sc">H.M. Cutter <i>Wickham</i></span><br />
+Commanded by Captain John Fullarton, R.N. <br />From a contemporary painting
+in the possession of Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>A very good idea as to the appearance of a nineteenth century Revenue
+cruiser may be obtained by regarding the accompanying photographs of
+his Majesty's cutter <i>Wickham</i>. These have been courteously supplied
+to me by Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael, whose ancestor,
+Captain Fullarton, R.N., had command of this vessel. The original
+painting was made in 1806, and shows a fine, able vessel with ports
+for seven guns a-side, being painted after the manner of the
+contemporary men-of-war. To facilitate matters the central portion of
+the picture has been enlarged, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span>and thus the rigging and details of
+the <i>Wickham</i> can be closely examined. It will be observed that this
+cutter has beautiful bows with a fine, bold sheer, and would doubtless
+possess both speed and considerable seaworthiness essential for the
+west coast of Scotland, her station being the Island of Arran. In the
+picture before us it will be seen that she has exceptionally high
+bulwarks and appears to have an additional raised deck forward. The
+yard on which the squaresail was carried when off the wind is seen
+lowered with its foot-ropes and tackle. The mainsail is of course
+loose-footed, and the tack is seen well triced up. Two things
+especially strike us. First, the smallness of the yard to which the
+head of the gaff-topsail is laced; and secondly, the great size of the
+headsail. She has obviously stowed her working jib and foresail and
+set her balloon jib. When running before a breeze such a craft could
+set not merely all plain sail, but her squaresail, square-topsail and
+even stun'sls. Therefore, the smuggling vessel that was being chased
+must needs be pretty fleet of foot to get away.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep179" id="imagep179"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep179.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep179.jpg" width="100%" alt="H.M. Cutter Wickham" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;"><span class="sc">H.M. Cutter <i>Wickham</i></span><br />
+This shows an early Nineteenth Century King's Cutter (<i>a</i>) running
+before the wind with square sails and stuns'ls set, (<i>b</i>) on a wind
+with big jib set.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Campbeltown in those days was the headquarters of no fewer than seven
+large Revenue cruisers, all being commanded by naval officers. They
+were powerful vessels, generally manned by double crews, each having a
+smaller craft to act as tender, their chief duties being to intercept
+those who smuggled salt, spirits, and tea from <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span>the Isle of Man. The
+officers and men of the cutters made Campbeltown their home, and the
+houses of the commanders were usually built opposite to the buoys of
+the respective cutters. The merits of each cutter and officer were the
+subject of animated discussion in the town, and how "old Jack
+Fullarton had carried on" till all seemed to be going by the board on
+a coast bristling with sunken rocks, or how Captain Beatson had been
+caught off the Mull in the great January gale, and with what skill he
+had weathered the headland&mdash;these were questions which were the
+subjects of many a debate among the enthusiasts.</p>
+
+<p>This Captain John Fullarton had in early life served as a midshipman
+on a British man-of-war. On one occasion he had been sent under Lord
+Wickham to France on a certain mission in a war-vessel. The young
+officer's intelligence, superior manners, and handsome appearance so
+greatly pleased Lord Wickham, that his lordship insisted on having
+young Fullarton alone to accompany him ashore. After the mission was
+over Lord Wickham suggested procuring him some advancement in the
+service, to which Fullarton replied, "My lord, I am sincerely grateful
+for your undesired kindness, and for the interest you have been
+pleased to show in regard to my future prospects. Since, however, you
+have asked my personal views, I am bound to say I <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span>am not ambitious
+for promotion on board a man-of-war. I have a small property in
+Scotland, and if your lordship could obtain for me the command of one
+of his Majesty's cutters, with which I might spend my time usefully
+and honourably in cruising the waters around my native island of
+Arran, I should feel deeply indebted to you, and I should value such
+an appointment above all others."</p>
+
+<p>Soon afterwards, the cutter <i>Wickham</i> was launched, and Mr. Fullarton
+obtained his commission as captain, the mate being Mr. Donald
+Fullarton, and most of the crew Arran men.<a name="FNanchor_18_18" id="FNanchor_18_18"></a><a href="#Footnote_18_18" class="fnanchor">[18]</a></p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_11_11" id="Footnote_11_11"></a><a href="#FNanchor_11_11"><span class="label">[11]</span></a> The use of the petticoat as a seaman's article of attire
+dates back to the time of Chaucer:</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"A Shipman was ther, woning fer by weste:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">For aught I woot, he was of Dertemouthe.<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">He rood up-on a rouncy, as he couthe,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">In a gowne of falding to the knee."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>"Falding" was a coarse cloth.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_12_12" id="Footnote_12_12"></a><a href="#FNanchor_12_12"><span class="label">[12]</span></a> See Appendix VIII.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_13_13" id="Footnote_13_13"></a><a href="#FNanchor_13_13"><span class="label">[13]</span></a> See Captain Robinson's, <i>The British Fleet</i>, p. 503.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_14_14" id="Footnote_14_14"></a><a href="#FNanchor_14_14"><span class="label">[14]</span></a> <i>Ibid.</i>, p. 502.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_15_15" id="Footnote_15_15"></a><a href="#FNanchor_15_15"><span class="label">[15]</span></a> I am indebted to a suggestion made on p. 183, vol. i.
+No. 7 of <i>The Mariner's Mirror</i>.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_16_16" id="Footnote_16_16"></a><a href="#FNanchor_16_16"><span class="label">[16]</span></a> See article by Captain R. Hudleston, R.N., in <i>The
+Mariner's Mirror</i>, vol. i. No. 7.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_17_17" id="Footnote_17_17"></a><a href="#FNanchor_17_17"><span class="label">[17]</span></a> <i>Victoria County Hist.: Sussex</i>, vol. ii. p. 199.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_18_18" id="Footnote_18_18"></a><a href="#FNanchor_18_18"><span class="label">[18]</span></a> For these details I am indebted to the kindness of Dr.
+Robertson-Fullarton, who has also called my attention to some
+information in an unlikely source&mdash;<i>The Memoirs of Norman Macleod,
+D.D.</i>, by Donald Macleod, 1876.</p></div>
+
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER X<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>By an Order in Council, dated September 9, 1807, certain rewards were
+to be paid to the military for aiding any officer of the Customs in
+making or guarding any seizure of prohibited "or uncustomed goods." It
+was further directed that such rewards should be paid as soon as
+possible, for which purpose the Controllers and Collectors were to
+appraise with all due accuracy all articles seized and brought to his
+Majesty's warehouse within seven days of the articles being brought
+in. The strength of all spirits seized by the Navy or Military was
+also to be ascertained immediately on their being brought into the
+King's warehouse, so that the rewards might be immediately paid. The
+tobacco and snuff seized and condemned were ordered to be sold. But
+when these articles at such a sale did not fetch a sum equal to the
+amount of the duty chargeable, then the commodity was to be burnt.
+Great exertions were undoubtedly made by the soldiers for the
+suppression of smuggling, but care had to be taken to prevent wanton
+and improper seizures. The men of this branch of the service were
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span>awarded 40s. for every horse that was seized by them with smuggled
+goods.</p>
+
+<p>Everyone is aware of the fact that, not once but regularly, the
+smugglers used to signal to their craft at night from the shore as to
+whether the coast were clear, or whether it were better for the cutter
+or lugger to run out to sea again. From a collection of authentic
+incidents I find the following means were employed for signalling
+purposes:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>1. The commonest signal at night was to wave a lantern from a hill or
+some prominent landmark, or from a house suitably situated.</p>
+
+<p>2. To take a flint and steel and set fire to a bundle of straw near
+the edge of a cliff.</p>
+
+<p>3. To burn a blue light.</p>
+
+<p>4. To fire a pistol.</p>
+
+<p>5. The above were all night-signals, but for day-work the craft could
+signal to the shore or other craft by lowering and raising a certain
+sail so many times.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>There were very many prosecutions for signalling to smuggling craft at
+many places along our coast. A sentence of six months' imprisonment
+was usually the result. Similarly, the Preventive officers on shore
+used to fire pistols or burn a blue light in signalling to themselves
+for assistance. The pistol-firing would then be answered by that of
+other Customs men in the neighbourhood. And with regard to the matter
+of these signals by the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</a></span>friends of smugglers, the Attorney-and
+Solicitor-General in 1805 gave their opinion to the effect that it was
+not even necessary for the prosecution to prove that there was at that
+time hovering off the coast a smuggling craft, or that one was found
+to have been within the limits; but the justice and jury must be
+satisfied from the circumstances and proof that the fire was lit for
+the purpose of giving a signal to some smugglers.</p>
+
+<p>By the summer of 1807 smuggling in England and Wales had increased to
+what the Commissioners of Customs designated an "alarming extent." An
+Act was therefore passed to ensure the more effectual prevention of
+this crime, and once again the Revenue officers were exhorted to
+perform their duty to its fullest extent, and were threatened with
+punishment in case of any dereliction in this respect, while rewards
+were held out as an inducement to zealous action. Under this new Act
+powers were given to the Army, Navy, Marines, and Militia to work in
+concert with each other for the purpose of preventing smuggling, for
+seizing smuggled goods, and all implements, horses, and persons
+employed or attempting to bring these ashore. The lack of vigilance,
+and even the collusion with smugglers, on the part of Revenue
+officials was still too real to be ignored. Between Dover and Rye,
+especially, were tobacco, snuff, spirits and tea run into the country
+to a very considerable extent. And the Government <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</a></span>well knew that "in
+some of the towns on the coast of Kent and Sussex, amongst which are
+Hastings, Folkestone, Hythe, and Deal, but more especially the latter,
+the practice of smuggling is carried on so generally by such large
+gangs of men, that there can exist no hope of checking it but by the
+constant and most active vigilance of strong military patrols, with
+parties in readiness to come to their assistance." So wrote Mr. W.
+Huskisson, Secretary of the Treasury, to Colonel Gordon in August
+1807.</p>
+
+<p>The Deal smugglers went to what Mr. Huskisson called "daring lengths,"
+and for this reason the Treasury suggested that patrols should be
+established within the town of Deal, and for two or three miles east
+and west of the same. And the Treasury also very earnestly requested
+the Commander-in-chief for every possible assistance from the Army. It
+was observed, also, that so desperate were these smugglers, that even
+when they had been captured and impressed, they frequently escaped
+from the men-of-war and returned to their previous life of smuggling.
+To put a stop to this the Treasury made the suggestion that such men
+when captured should be sent to ships cruising at distant foreign
+stations. Some idea of the violence which was always ready to be used
+by the smugglers may be gathered by the incident which occurred on the
+25th of February 1805. On this day the cutter <i>Tartar</i>, in the service
+of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[Pg 186]</a></span>Customs, and the Excise cutter <i>Lively</i> were at 10 P.M.
+cruising close to Dungeness on the look-out for smuggling craft. At
+the time mentioned they saw a large decked lugger which seemed to them
+indeed to be a smuggler. It stood on its course and eventually must
+run its nose ashore. Thereupon a boat's crew, consisting of men from
+the <i>Tartar</i> and the <i>Lively</i>, got out their oars and rowed to the
+spot where the lugger was evidently about to land her cargo. They
+brought their boat right alongside the lugger just as the latter took
+the ground. But the lugger's crew, as soon as they saw the Revenue
+boat come up to her, promptly forsook her and scrambled on to the
+beach hurriedly. It was noticed that her name was <i>Diana</i>, and the
+Revenue officers had from the first been pretty sure that she was no
+innocent fishing-vessel, for they had espied flashes from the shore
+immediately before the <i>Diana</i> grazed her keel on to the beach.</p>
+
+<p>Led by one of the two captains out of the cutters, the Revenue men got
+on board the smuggler and seized her, when she was found to contain a
+cargo of 665 casks of brandy, 118 casks of rum, and 237 casks of
+Geneva. Besides these, she had four casks, one case and one basket of
+wine, 119 bags of tobacco, and 43 lbs. of tea&mdash;truly a very fine and
+valuable cargo. But the officers had not been in possession of the
+lugger and her cargo more than three-quarters of an hour before a
+great crowd of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[Pg 187]</a></span>infuriated people came down to the beach, armed with
+firearms and wicked-looking bludgeons. For the lugger's crew had
+evidently rushed to their shore friends and told them of their bad
+luck. Some members of this mob were on horseback, others on foot, but
+on they came with oaths and threats to where the lugger and her
+captors were remaining. "We're going to rescue the lugger and her
+goods," exclaimed the smugglers, as they stood round the bows of the
+<i>Diana</i> in the darkness of the night. The Revenue men warned them that
+they had better keep off, or violence would have to be used to prevent
+such threats being carried out.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep187" id="imagep187"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep187.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep187.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;A great crowd of infuriated people came down to the
+beach.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"A great crowd of infuriated people came down to the
+beach."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>But it was impossible to expect reason from an uncontrolled mob raging
+with fury and indignation. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[Pg 188]</a></span>Soon the smugglers had opened fire, and
+ball was whistling through the night air. The <i>Diana</i> was now lying on
+her side, and several muskets were levelled at the Revenue men. One of
+the latter was a man named Dawkins, and the smugglers had got so close
+that one villainous ruffian presented a piece at Dawkins' breast,
+though the latter smartly wrested it from him before any injury had
+been received. But equally quickly, another smuggler armed with a
+cutlass brought the blade down and wounded Dawkins on the thumb. A
+general engagement now proceeded as the smugglers continued to fire,
+but unfortunately the powder of the Revenue men had become wet, so
+only one of their crew was able to return the fire. Finding at length
+that they were no match for their aggressors, the crews were compelled
+to leave the lugger and retreat to some neighbouring barracks where
+the Lancashire Militia happened to be quartered, and a sergeant and
+his guard were requisitioned to strengthen them. With this squad the
+firing was more evenly returned and one of the smugglers was shot, but
+before long, unable to resist the military, the smugglers ceased
+firing and the beach was cleared of the mob.</p>
+
+<p>The matter was in due course reported to the Board of Customs, who
+investigated the affair and ordered a prosecution of the smugglers. No
+one had been captured, however, so they offered a reward of &pound;200. That
+was in the year 1805; <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[Pg 189]</a></span>but it was not till 1813 or 1814 that
+information came into their hands, for no one would come forward to
+earn the reward. In the last-mentioned year, however, search was made
+for the wanted men, and two persons, named respectively Jeremiah
+Maxted and Thomas Gilbert, natives of Lydd, were arrested and put on
+their trial. They were certainly the two ringleaders of that night,
+and incited the crowd to a frenzy, although these two men did not
+actually themselves shoot, but they were heard to offer a guinea a man
+to any of the mob who would assist in rescuing the seized property.
+Still, in spite of the evidence that was brought against these men,
+such was the condition of things that they were found not guilty.</p>
+
+<p>But it was not always that the Revenue men acted with so much vigour,
+nor with so much honesty. It was towards the end of the year 1807 that
+two of the Riding officers stationed at Newhaven, Sussex, attempted to
+bribe a patrol of dragoons who were also on duty there for the
+prevention of smuggling. The object of the bribe was to induce the
+military to leave their posts for a short period, so that a cargo of
+dutiable goods, which were expected shortly to arrive, might be
+smuggled ashore without the payment of the Crown's duties. For such a
+suggestion to be made by Preventive men was in itself disgraceful, and
+showed not merely a grossly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[Pg 190]</a></span>dishonest purpose but an extraordinary
+failure of a sense of duty. However, the soldiers, perhaps not
+altogether displeased at being able to give free rein to some of the
+jealousies which existed between the Revenue men and the Army, did not
+respond to the suggestion, but promptly arrested the Riding officers
+and conducted them to Newhaven. Of these two it was afterwards
+satisfactorily proved that one had actually offered the bribe to the
+patrol, but the other was acquitted of that charge. Both, however,
+were dismissed from the Customs service, while the sergeant and
+soldiers forming the patrol were rewarded, the sum of &pound;20 being sent
+to the commanding officer of their regiment, to be divided among the
+patrol as he might think best.</p>
+
+<p>It was not merely the tobacco, spirits, and tea which in the early
+years of the nineteenth century were being smuggled into the country,
+although these were the principal articles. In addition to silks,
+laces, and other goods, the number of pairs of gloves which
+clandestinely came in was so great that the manufacture of English
+gloves was seriously injured.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1811 so ineffectual had been the existing shore
+arrangements that an entirely new plan was inaugurated for suppressing
+smuggling. The Riding officers no doubt had a difficult and even
+dangerous duty to perform, but their conduct left much to be desired,
+and they needed to be <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[Pg 191]</a></span>kept up to their work. Under the new system,
+the office of Supervisor or Surveyor of Riding officers was abolished,
+and that of Inspector of Riding officers was created in its stead. The
+coast of England was divided into the following three districts:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p>No. I. London to Penzance.</p>
+
+<p>No. II. Penzance to Carlisle.</p>
+
+<p>No. III. London to Berwick.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>There were altogether seven of these Inspectors appointed, three being
+for the first district, two for the second, and two for the third. The
+first district was of course the worst, because it included the
+English Channel and especially the counties of Kent and Sussex. Hence
+the greater number of Inspectors. Hence, also, these three officers
+were given a yearly salary of &pound;180, with a yearly allowance of &pound;35 for
+the maintenance of a horse. The Inspectors of the other two districts
+were paid &pound;150 each with the same &pound;35 allowance for a horse. In
+addition, the Inspectors of all districts were allowed 10s. a day when
+upon inspections, which were not to last less than 60 days in each
+quarter in actual movement, "in order by constant and unexpected
+visitations, strictly to watch and check the conduct of the Riding
+officers within their allotted station." Under this new arrangement,
+also, the total number of Riding officers was to be 120, and these
+were divided into two classes&mdash;Superior and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[Pg 192]</a></span>Inferior. Their salaries
+and allowances were as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="40%" summary="Salaries and Allowances">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdcsc" colspan="2" style="line-height: 2em;">First District</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" width="50%">Superior Riding Officer</td>
+  <td class="tdr" width="50%">&pound;90</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Inferior Riding Officer</td>
+  <td class="tdr">75</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Allowance for horse</td>
+  <td class="tdr">30</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td colspan="2" style="line-height: 1em;">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdcsc" colspan="2" style="line-height: 2em;">Second And Third Districts</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Superior Riding Officer</td>
+  <td class="tdr">&pound;80</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Inferior Riding Officer</td>
+  <td class="tdr">65</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Allowance for horse</td>
+  <td class="tdr">30</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>The general principle of promotion was to be based on the amount of
+activity and zeal which were displayed, the Superior Riding officers
+being promoted from the Inferior, and the Inspectors of Districts
+being promoted from the most zealous Superior Riding officers.</p>
+
+<p>And there was, too, a difficulty with regard to the smugglers when
+they became prisoners. We have already remarked how ready they were to
+escape from the men-of-war. In the year 1815 there were some smugglers
+in detention on board one of the Revenue cutters. At that time the
+cutter's mate was acting as commander, and he was foolish enough to
+allow some of the smugglers' friends from the shore&mdash;themselves also
+of the same trade&mdash;to have free communication with two of the
+prisoners without anyone being present on behalf of the Customs. The
+result was that one of the men succeeded in making his escape. As a
+result of this captive smugglers were not permitted <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[Pg 193]</a></span>to have
+communication with their friends except in the presence of a proper
+officer. And there was a great laxity, also, in the guarding of
+smugglers sent aboard his Majesty's warships. In several cases the
+commanders actually declined to receive these men when delivered by
+the Revenue department: they didn't want the rascals captured by the
+cutters, and they were not going to take them into their ship's
+complement. This went on for a time, until the Admiralty sent down a
+peremptory order that the captains and commanders were to receive
+these smugglers, and when an opportunity arose they were to send them
+to the flagship at Portsmouth or Plymouth.</p>
+
+<p>As illustrative of the business-like methods with which the smugglers
+at this time pursued their calling, the following may well be brought
+forward. In the year 1814 several of the chief smuggling merchants at
+Alderney left that notorious island and settled at Cherbourg. But
+those small craft, which up till then had been wont to run across to
+the Channel Isles, began instantly to make for the French port
+instead. From Lyme and Beer in West Bay, from Portland and from the
+Isle of Wight they sailed, to load up with their illicit cargoes, and
+as soon as they arrived they found, ready awaiting them in the various
+stores near the quays, vast quantities of "tubs," as the casks were
+called, whilst so great was the demand, that several coopers were kept
+there busily <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[Pg 194]</a></span>employed making new ones. Loaded with spirits they were
+put on board the English craft, which soon hoisted sail and sped away
+to the English shores, though many there must have been which
+foundered in bad weather, or, swept on by the dreaded Alderney Race
+and its seven-knot tide, had an exciting time, only to be followed up
+later by the English Revenue cutters, or captured under the red cliffs
+of Devonshire in the act of taking the tubs ashore. For the Customs
+Board well knew of this change of market to Cherbourg, and lost no
+time in informing their officers at the different outports and the
+cruiser-commanders as well.</p>
+
+<p>A large number of the merchant-smugglers from Guernsey at the same
+time migrated to Coniris, about eight miles from Tregner, in France,
+and ten leagues east of the Isle of Bas, and twelve leagues S.S.W.
+from Guernsey. Anyone who is familiar with that treacherous coast, and
+the strength of its tides, will realise that in bad weather these
+little craft, heavily loaded as they always were on the return
+journey, must have been punished pretty severely. Some others,
+doubtless, foundered altogether and never got across to the Devonshire
+shores. Those people who had now settled down at Coniris were they who
+had previously dealt with the smugglers of Cawsand, Polperro,
+Mevagissey, and Gerrans. To these places were even sent circular
+letters inviting the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[Pg 195]</a></span>English smugglers to come over to Coniris, just
+as previously they had come to fetch goods from Guernsey. And another
+batch of settlers from Guernsey made their new habitation at Roscore
+(Isle of Bas), from which place goods were smuggled into Coverack
+(near the Lizard), Kedgworth, Mount's Bay, and different places "in
+the North Channel."</p>
+
+<p>Spirits, besides being brought across in casks and run into the
+country by force or stealth, were also frequently at this time
+smuggled in through the agency of the French boats which brought
+vegetables and poultry. In this class of case the spirits were also in
+small casks, but the latter were concealed between false bulkheads and
+hidden below the ballast. But this method was practically a new
+departure, and began only about 1815. This was the
+smuggling-by-concealment manner, as distinct from that which was
+carried on by force and by stealth. We shall have a good deal more to
+say about this presently, so we need not let the matter detain us now.
+Commanders of cruisers were of course on the look-out for suspected
+craft, but they were reminded by the Board that they must be careful
+to make no seizures within three miles of the French and Dutch coasts.
+And that was why, as soon as a suspected vessel was sighted, and a
+capture was about to be made, some officer on the Revenue cutter was
+most careful immediately to take cross-bearings and fix his position;
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[Pg 196]</a></span>or if no land was in sight to reckon the number of leagues the ship
+had run since the last "fix" had been made. This matter naturally came
+out very strongly in the trials when the captured smugglers were being
+prosecuted, and it was the business of the defending counsel to do
+their best to upset the officers' reckoning, and prove that the
+suspected craft was within her proper and legitimate limits. Another
+trick which sprang up also about 1815, was that of having the casks of
+spirits fastened, the one behind the other, in line on a warp. One end
+of this rope would be passed through a hole at the aftermost end of
+the keel, where it would be made fast. As the vessel sailed along she
+would thus tow a whole string of barrels like the tail of a kite, but
+in order to keep the casks from bobbing above water, sinkers were
+fastened. Normally, of course, these casks would be kept on board, for
+the resistance of these objects was very considerable, and lessened
+the vessel's way. Any one who has trailed even a fairly thick warp
+astern from a small sailing craft must have been surprised at the
+difference it made to the speed of the vessel.</p>
+
+<p>But so soon as the Revenue cutter began to loom big, overboard went
+this string of casks towing merrily below the water-line. The cutter
+would run down to her, and order her to heave-to, which she could
+afford to do quite willingly. She would be boarded and rummaged, but
+the officer would to his surprise find nothing at all and be
+compelled <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[Pg 197]</a></span>to release her. Away would go the cruiser to chase some
+other craft, and as soon as she was out of the range of the
+commander's spy-glass, in would come the tubs again and be stowed
+dripping in the hold. This trick was played many a time with success,
+but at last the cruisers got to hear of the device and the smugglers
+were badly caught. I shall in due season illustrate this by an actual
+occurrence. What I want the reader to bear in mind is, that whilst the
+age of smuggling by violence and force took a long time to die out,
+yet it reached its zenith about the middle or the last quarter of the
+eighteenth century. Right till the end of the grand period of
+smuggling violence was certainly used, but the year 1815 inaugurated a
+period that was characterised less by force and armed resistance than
+by artfulness, ingenuity, and all the inventiveness which it is
+possible to employ on a smuggling craft. "Smugglers," says Marryat in
+one of his novels, "do not arm now&mdash;the service is too dangerous; they
+effect their purpose by cunning, not by force. Nevertheless, it
+requires that smugglers should be good seamen, smart, active fellows,
+and keen-witted, or they can do nothing.... All they ask is a heavy
+gale or a thick fog, and they trust to themselves for success." It was
+especially after the year 1816, when, as we shall see presently, the
+Admiralty reorganised the service of cruisers and the Land-guard was
+tightened up, that the smugglers distinguished themselves by <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[Pg 198]</a></span>their
+great skill and resource, their enterprise, and their ability to
+hoodwink the Revenue men. The wars with France and Spain had come to
+an end, and the Government, now that her external troubles allowed,
+could devote her attention to rectifying this smuggling evil. This
+increased watchfulness plus the gradual reduction of duties brought
+the practice of smuggling to such a low point that it became
+unprofitable, and the increased risks were not the equivalent of the
+decreased profits. This same principle, at least, is pursued in the
+twentieth century. No one is ever so foolish as to try and run whole
+cargoes of goods into the country without paying Customs duty. But
+those ingenious persons who smuggle spirits in foot-warmers,
+saccharine in the lining of hats, tobacco and cigars in false bottoms
+and other ways carry out their plans not by force but by ingenuity, by
+skill.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[Pg 199]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XI<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Had you been alive and afloat in June of 1802 and been cruising about
+near Falmouth Bay, or taken up your position on the top of one of
+those glorious high cliffs anywhere between St. Anthony and the
+Dodman, and remembered first to take with you your spyglass, you would
+have witnessed a very interesting sight; that is to say, if you had
+been able to penetrate through the atmosphere, which was not
+consistently clear throughout the day. For part of it, at any rate,
+was hazy and foggy just as it often is in this neighbourhood at that
+time of year, but that was the very kind of conditions which the
+smuggler loved. Between those two headlands are two fine bays, named
+respectively Gerrans and Veryan, while away to the south-west the land
+runs out to sea till it ends in the Lizard. A whole history could be
+written of the smuggling which took place in these two bays, but we
+must content ourselves with the one instance before us.</p>
+
+<p>On this day it happened that his Majesty's frigate <i>Fisgard</i> was
+proceeding up Channel under the command of Captain Michael Seymour,
+R.N. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[Pg 200]</a></span>The time was three in the afternoon. In spite of the haziness it
+was intermittent, and an hour earlier he had been able to fix his
+position by St. Anthony, which then bore N. by W. distant six or seven
+miles. He was then sailing by the wind close-hauled lying S.S.E.&frac12;E.,
+in other words, standing away from the land out into mid-channel, the
+breeze being steady. By three o'clock the <i>Fisgard</i> had only travelled
+about another six or seven miles, so that she was now about 12&frac12; miles
+from St. Anthony or just to seaward of the Lizard. It was at this time
+that the frigate sighted a smaller craft, fore-and-aft rigged and
+heading N.N.W., also on a wind, the breeze being abaft her port, or,
+as they called it in those days, the larboard-beam. This subsequently
+turned out to be the cutter <i>Flora</i>, and the course the cutter was
+taking would have brought her towards the Dodman. The haze had now
+lifted for a time, since although the <i>Flora</i> was quite eight miles
+away she could be descried. Knowing that this cutter had no right to
+be within a line drawn between the Lizard and Prawl Point, the
+<i>Fisgard</i> starboarded her helm and went in pursuit. But the <i>Flora's</i>
+crew were also on the look-out, though not a little displeased that
+the fog had lifted and revealed her position. When she saw that the
+<i>Fisgard</i> was coming after her she began to make off, bore up, and
+headed due North. But presently she altered her tactics and hauled
+round on the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[Pg 201]</a></span>starboard tack, which would of course bring her away
+from the land, make her travel faster because her head-sails would
+fill, and she hoped also no doubt to get clear of the Prawl-to-Lizard
+line. Before this she had been under easy sail, but now she put up all
+the canvas she could carry.</p>
+
+<p>But unfortunately the <i>Flora</i> had not espied earlier in the day
+another frigate which was also in the vicinity. This was the <i>Wasso</i>,
+and the haze had hidden her movements. But now, even though the
+weather was clearing, the bigger ship had been hidden from view
+because she had been just round the corner in Mevagissey Bay. And at
+the very time that the <i>Flora</i> was running away from the <i>Fisgard</i> and
+travelling finely with every sail drawing nicely and getting clear of
+the cliffs, the <i>Wasso</i> was working her way round the Dodman. As soon
+as the latter came into view she took in the situation&mdash;the cutter
+<i>Flora</i> foaming along out to sea and the <i>Fisgard</i> coming up quickly
+under a mountain of canvas. So now there were two frigates pursuing
+the cutter, and the <i>Flora's</i> skipper must have cursed his bad luck
+for being caught in this trap. But that unkind haze was favouring the
+King's ships to-day, for ere the chase had continued much longer, yet
+a third frigate came in sight, whose name was the <i>Nymph</i>. This was
+too much for the <i>Flora</i> to be chased by three ships each bigger and
+better armed than herself. The <i>Nymph</i> headed her off, and the cutter
+seeing it <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[Pg 202]</a></span>was all up reluctantly hove-to. On examination she was
+found to have a cargo of gin, brandy, and tobacco, which she would
+have succeeded in running ashore had the haze not played such tricks.
+However, she had done her best for three exciting hours, for it was
+not until six on that wintry evening that she was captured by the
+<i>Nymph</i>, and if she had been able to hold on a little longer she might
+have escaped in the night and got right away and landed her cargo
+elsewhere before the sun came out. But, as it was, her skipper James
+Dunn had to take his trial, when a verdict was given in favour of the
+King, and Dunn was fined &pound;200.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep202" id="imagep202"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep202.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep202.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Flora with the Fisgard, Wasso, and Nymph." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The <i>Flora</i> with the <i>Fisgard</i>, <i>Wasso</i>, and <i>Nymph</i>.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We must pass over the next two years and travel from one end of the
+English Channel to the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[Pg 203]</a></span>other till we find ourselves again in Kentish
+waters. The year is 1804, and the 14th of June. On this summer's day
+at dawn the gun-brig <i>Jackal</i>, commanded by Captain Stewart, R.N., was
+cruising about to the Nor'ard of the Goodwins. As day broke he was
+informed that three smuggling vessels had just been espied in the
+vicinity. The latter certainly was not more than three miles from the
+land, and it was fairly certain what their intention was. When Captain
+Stewart came on deck and convinced himself of their identity he
+ordered out his boats, he himself going in one, while one of his
+officers took command of another, each boat having about half-a-dozen
+men on board.</p>
+
+<p>We mentioned just now how important it was in such cases as this that
+the position should be defined as accurately as possible. Immediately
+the boats had left the <i>Jackal</i> the pilot of the latter and one of the
+crew on board took bearings from the North Foreland and found the
+<i>Jackal</i> was about 7-3/4 miles from this landmark. They also took
+bearings of the position of the three smuggling luggers, and found
+these were about three or four miles off and bore from the <i>Jackal</i> E.
+by S.</p>
+
+<p>To return to Captain Stewart and the two boats: for the first twenty
+minutes these oared craft gained on the luggers owing to the absence
+of wind, and the smugglers could do nothing. The dawn had revealed the
+presence of the <i>Jackal</i> to the smugglers no less than the latter had
+been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[Pg 204]</a></span>revealed to the gun-brig. And as soon as the illicit carriers
+realised what was about to happen they, too, began to make every
+effort to get moving. The early morning calm, however, was less
+favourable to them than to the comparatively light-oared craft which
+had put out from the <i>Jackal</i>, so the three luggers just rolled to the
+swell under the cliffs of the Foreland as their canvas and gear
+slatted idly from side to side.</p>
+
+<p>But presently, as the sun rose up in the sky, a little breeze came
+forth which bellowed the lug-sails and enabled the three craft to
+stand off from the land and endeavour, if possible, to get out into
+the Channel. In order to accelerate their speed the crews laid on to
+the sweeps and pulled manfully. Every sailorman knows that the tides
+in that neighbourhood are exceedingly strong, but the addition of the
+breeze did not improve matters for the <i>Jackal's</i> two boats, although
+the luggers were getting along finely. However, the wind on a bright
+June morning is not unusually fitful and light, so the boats kept up a
+keen chase urged by their respective officers, and after three hours
+of strenuous rowing Captain Stewart's boat came up with the first of
+these named the <i>I.O.</i> But before he had come alongside her and was
+still 300 yards away, the master and pilot of this smuggler and six of
+her crew was seen to get into the lugger's small boat and row off to
+the second lugger named the <i>Nancy</i>, which they boarded. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[Pg 205]</a></span>When the
+<i>Jackal's</i> commander, therefore, came up with the <i>I.O.</i> he found only
+one man aboard her. He stopped to make some inquiries, and the
+solitary man produced some Bills of Lading and other papers to show
+that the craft was bound from Emden to Guernsey, and that their cargo
+was destined for the latter place.</p>
+
+<p>The reader may well smile at this barefaced and ingenuous lie. Not
+even a child could be possibly persuaded to imagine that a vessel
+found hovering about the North Foreland was really making for the
+Channel Isles from Germany. It was merely another instance of
+employing these papers if any awkward questions should be asked by
+suspecting Revenue vessels or men-of-war. What was truth, however, was
+that the <i>I.O.</i> was bound not to but from Guernsey, where she had
+loaded a goodly cargo of brandy and gin, all of which was found on
+board, and no doubt would shortly have been got ashore and placed in
+one of the caves not far from Longnose. Moreover, the men were as good
+as convicted when it was found that the spirits were in those small
+casks or tubs which were only employed by the smugglers; and indeed
+never had such a cargo of spirits to Guernsey been carried in such
+small-sized kegs, for Guernsey always received its spirits in casks of
+bold dimensions.</p>
+
+<p>It was further pointed out at the trial that the luggers could not
+have been bound on the voyage <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[Pg 206]</a></span>alleged, for they had not enough
+provisions on board. The Solicitor-General also demonstrated the fact
+that when these luggers were approached in deep water&mdash;that is, of
+course after the three hours' chase&mdash;they could not possibly have been
+making for Guernsey. The farther they stood from the shore the greater
+would be their danger, for they would be likely at any hour to fall in
+with the enemy's privateers which were known to be cruising not far
+off.</p>
+
+<p>But to return to the point in the narrative when we digressed. Captain
+Stewart, a quarter of an hour before finally coming up with the
+<i>I.O.</i>, had fired several times to cause her to heave-to, but this
+they declined to do, and all her crew but one deserted her as stated.
+Leaving one of his own men on board her the naval officer, after
+marking her with a broad arrow to indicate she had been seized, went
+with his four remaining men in pursuit of the second lugger, which was
+rowing away with all haste, and alongside which the <i>I.O.'s</i> boat was
+lying. But, as soon as Stewart began to approach, the men now quitted
+the lugger and rowed back to the <i>I.O.</i> He opened fire at them, but
+they still persisted, and seeing this he continued to pursue the
+second lugger, boarded her and seized her, the time being now about
+6.30 A.M.</p>
+
+<p>Afterwards he waited until his other boat had come up, and left her
+crew in charge of this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[Pg 207]</a></span>second lugger, and then rowed off to the first
+lugger again, but once more the <i>I.O.'s</i> people deserted her and rowed
+towards the shore. Undaunted he then went in pursuit of the third
+lugger, but as a breeze came up she managed to get away. Presently he
+was able to hail a neutral vessel who gave him a passage back, and at
+midday he rejoined the <i>I.O.</i>, which was subsequently taken captive
+into Dover, and at a later date ordered to be condemned. She had
+belonged to Deal and was no doubt in the regular smuggling industry.</p>
+
+<p>Then there was the case of the lugger <i>Polly</i>, which occurred in
+January of 1808. Because vessels of this kind were, from their
+construction, their size, and their rig especially suitable for
+running goods, they were now compelled to have a licence before being
+allowed to navigate at all. This licence was given on condition that
+she was never to be found guilty of smuggling, nor to navigate outside
+certain limits, the object of course being to prevent her from running
+backwards and forwards across the English and Irish Channels. In the
+present instance the <i>Polly</i> had been licensed to navigate and trade,
+to fish and to carry pilots between Bexhill and coastwise round Great
+Britain, but not to cross the Channels. To this effect her master,
+William Bennett, had entered in a bond. But on the date mentioned she
+was unfortunately actually discovered at the island of Alderney, and
+it was obvious that she was there for the purpose <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[Pg 208]</a></span>of loading the
+usual cargo of goods to be smuggled into England. Six days later she
+had taken on board all that she wanted, but just as she was leaving
+the Customs officer examined her licence; and as it was found that she
+was not allowed to "go foreign," and that to go to Alderney had always
+been regarded a foreign voyage, she was promptly seized. Furthermore,
+as there was no suggestion of any fishing-gear found on board it was a
+clear case, and after due trial the verdict was given for the King and
+she was condemned.</p>
+
+<p>There is existing an interesting application from the boat-masters and
+fishermen of Robin Hood's Bay (Yorkshire) in connection with the
+restrictions which were now enforced regarding luggers. These poor
+people were engaged in the Yarmouth herring-fishery, and prayed for
+relief from the penalties threatened by the recent Act of Parliament,
+which stipulated that luggers of a size exceeding 50 tons burthen were
+made liable to forfeiture. As their North Sea craft came under this
+category they were naturally in great distress. However the Customs
+Board pointed out that the Act allowed all vessels and boats of the
+above description and tonnage "which were rigged and fitted at the
+time of the passing thereof and intended for the purpose of fishing"
+to be licensed.</p>
+
+<p>Whenever those tubs of spirits were seized from a smuggling craft at
+sea they were forwarded <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[Pg 209]</a></span>to the King's warehouse, London, by those
+coasting vessels, whose masters were "of known respectability." And by
+a different conveyance a sample pint of every cask was to be
+transmitted to the same address. The bungs of the casks were to be
+secured with a tin-plate, and under a seal of office, each cask being
+branded with the letters "G.R.," and the quantity given at the head of
+each cask. But those spirits which were seized on land and not on sea
+were to be sold by public auction. All smuggling transactions of any
+account, and all seizures of any magnitude, and especially all those
+which were attended by any attempt to rescue, were to be reported
+separately to the Customs Board. Small casks which had contained
+seized spirits were, after condemnation, sometimes allowed to fall
+into the hands of the smugglers, who used them again for the same
+purpose. To put a stop to this it was ordered that these tubs were in
+future to be burnt or cut to pieces "as to be only fit for firewood."</p>
+
+<p>Even as early as 1782 considerable frauds were perpetrated by stating
+certain imports to be of one nature when they were something entirely
+different. For instance a great deal of starch had been imported under
+the denomination of flour from Ireland. The Revenue officers were
+therefore instructed to discriminate between the two articles by the
+following means. Starch "when <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[Pg 210]</a></span>in flour" and real flour could be
+differentiated by putting some of each into a tumbler of water. If the
+"flour" were starch it would sink to the bottom and form a hard
+substance, if it were real flour then it would turn into a paste.
+Starch was also much whiter than flour. And a good deal of spirits,
+wine, tea, and tobacco brought into vessels as ship's stores for the
+crew were also frequently smuggled ashore. Particularly was this the
+case in small vessels from Holland, France, Guernsey, Jersey, and
+Alderney.</p>
+
+<p>One day in the month of May, 1814, a fine West Indian ship named the
+<i>Caroline</i> set sail from the Island of St. Thomas with a valuable
+cargo of dutiable goods, and in due time entered the English Channel.
+Before long she had run up the coast and found herself off Fairlight
+(between Hastings and Rye). The people on shore had been on the
+look-out for this ship, and as soon as the <i>Caroline</i> hove in sight a
+boat put off to meet her. Some one threw down a line which was made
+fast to the boat, and from the latter several men clambered aboard.
+After the usual salutations they accompanied the master of the ship
+and went below to the cabin, where some time was spent in bargaining.
+To make a long story short, they arranged to purchase from the
+<i>Caroline</i> 25 gallons of rum and some coffee, for which the West
+Indiaman's skipper was well paid, the average price of rum in that
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[Pg 211]</a></span>year being about 20s. a gallon. A cask of rum, 3 cwt. of coffee in a
+barrel and 2 cwt. in a bag were accordingly lowered over the ship's
+side into the boat and away went the little craft to the shore,
+having, as it was supposed, cheated the Customs. The <i>Caroline</i>
+continued her course and proceeded to London. The Customs authorities,
+however, had got wind of the affair and the matter was brought to a
+conclusion before one of his Majesty's judges.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep211" id="imagep211"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep211.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep211.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;The Caroline continued her course and proceeded to
+London.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"The <i>Caroline</i> continued her course and proceeded to
+London."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>But East Indiamen were just as bad, if not a great deal worse, for it
+was their frequent practice to arrive in the Downs and sell quantities
+of tea to the men who came out from Deal in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[Pg 212]</a></span>small craft. The
+commodity could then be kept either for the use of their families and
+sold to their immediate friends, or sent up to London by the "duffers"
+in the manner we spoke of in an earlier chapter. In the instances when
+spirits were smuggled into the country there was usually some
+arrangement between the publicans and the smugglers for disposing of
+the stuff. But, you may ask, how did the Deal boatmen manage to get
+the tea to their homes without being seen by the Customs officers? In
+the first place it was always difficult to prove that the men really
+were smugglers, for they would be quite wide-awake enough not to bring
+obvious bales ashore; and, secondly, the Deal men had such a
+reputation as desperate characters that no officer, unless he was
+pretty sure that a smuggling transaction was being carried on and
+could rely, too, on being well supported by other Customs men and the
+soldiers, would think of meddling in the matter. But, lastly, the men
+who came ashore from the East Indiamen had a smart little dodge of
+their own for concealing the tea.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep213" id="imagep213"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep213.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep213.jpg" width="65%" alt="How the Deal Boatmen used to Smuggle Tea Ashore." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">How the Deal Boatmen used to Smuggle Tea Ashore.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The accompanying picture is no imaginary instance, but is actually
+taken from an official document. The figure is supposed to represent
+one of these Deal boatmen, and the numerals will explain the methods
+of secreting the tea. (1) Indicates a cotton bag which was made to fit
+the crown of his hat, and herein could be <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[Pg 213]</a></span>carried 2 lbs. of tea. He
+would, of course, have his hat on as he came ashore, and probably it
+would be a sou'wester, so there would be nothing suspicious in that.
+(2) Cotton stays or a waistcoat tied round the body. This waistcoat
+was fitted with plenty of pockets to hold as much as possible. (3)
+This was a bustle for the lower part of the body and tied on with
+strings. (4) These were thigh-pieces also tied round and worn
+underneath the trousers. When all these concealments were filled the
+man had on his person as much as 30 lbs. of tea, so that he came
+ashore <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[Pg 214]</a></span>and smuggled with impunity. And if you multiply these 30 lbs.
+by several crews of these Deal boats you can guess how much loss to
+the Revenue the arrival of an East Indiamen in the Downs meant to the
+Revenue.</p>
+
+<p>Another old dodge, though different in kind, was employed by a
+smuggling vessel when at sea and being chased towards evening, or on
+one of those days when the atmosphere is hazy or foggy. To prevent her
+canvas being a mark against the horizon, the lugger would lower her
+sail, and her black hull was very difficult to distinguish in the
+gathering gloom. This happened once when the smuggling cutter
+<i>Gloire</i>, a vessel of 38 tons burthen belonging to Weymouth, was being
+chased about midnight in January of 1816 by the Revenue cutter <i>Rose</i>.
+The smuggler had hoped to have been able to run his goods ashore at
+Bowen Bottom, Dorset, but the <i>Rose</i> was too smart for him, launched
+her galley, and seized her with a full cargo of half-ankers.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[Pg 215]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>If the reader will carry his mind back to 1787 he will recollect that
+in this year we saw a reformation in the system of the Revenue
+cruisers, and the practice of employing hired craft was discontinued.
+This reformed system went on until the year 1816, when a highly
+important change occurred in the administration of these vessels.</p>
+
+<p>On the 5th of April in that year all the Revenue cruisers which
+previously had been under the control of the Board of Customs now
+passed into the hands of the Admiralty. The general object was to
+adopt more effectual means for putting a stop to the smuggling, and
+these vessels were of course to be employed in co-operation with the
+ships of his Majesty's Navy afloat and the Revenue officers on shore.
+Due notice was accordingly sent from the Customs office informing the
+commanders of cruisers that they were to place themselves under the
+orders of the Admiralty in the future. But the cost of these cruisers
+was still to be borne by the Customs as before.</p>
+
+<p>It may seem a little curious that whereas the Board of Customs had
+controlled these vessels for <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[Pg 216]</a></span>about a hundred and fifty years this
+sudden change should have been made. But, primarily, any customs
+organisation must belong to the shore. The employment of cruisers was
+in its origin really an afterthought to prevent the Crown being
+cheated of its dues. In other words, the service of sloops and cutters
+was a kind of off-shoot from the service on land. It was only because
+the smuggling was so daring, because the Crown was so regularly robbed
+that some means of dealing with these robbers on sea and on even terms
+had to be devised. But, of course, with the Admiralty the case was
+quite different. For long centuries that department had to deal with
+ships and everything therewith connected. Therefore to many it seemed
+that that department which controlled the Navy should also control
+that smaller navy comprised by the Revenue cruisers.</p>
+
+<p>At this date we must recollect that the Battle of Waterloo had been
+won only a few months, that once and for all Napoleon had been crushed
+and broken, that at last there had come peace and an end of those wars
+which had seemed interminable. From this return of peace followed two
+facts. Firstly, the European ports were now opened afresh not merely
+to honest traders, but to the fleets of smugglers who could go about
+their work with greater safety, with less fear of being captured by
+privateers. Thus it was most probable that as the English Channel was
+now <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[Pg 217]</a></span>practically a clear sphere there would be a renewed activity on
+the part of these men. But, secondly, it also followed that the
+Admiralty, charged no longer with the anxiety and vigilance which a
+naval war must bring with it, was free to devote its manifold
+abilities, most especially in respect of organisation, for the benefit
+of the Revenue department. At one and the same time, then, there was
+the chance of greater smuggling activity and a more concentrated
+effort to put down this smuggling.</p>
+
+<p>Furthermore, inasmuch as the wars had ended the Navy needed fewer men.
+We know how it was in the case of Naval officers, many of whom found
+themselves unemployed. But it was not less bad for the seamen, many of
+whom had drifted into the service by the way we have seen&mdash;through
+being captured smuggling and then impressed. Returned once more to
+their native haunts after long separation, was it likely that having
+done so much roving, fought so many battles, sailed so many miles,
+passed through so many exciting incidents that they would quietly take
+to tilling the fields or gathering the crops? Some, no doubt, did;
+others applied themselves to some other industries for which they were
+fitted. But there were very many who went back to the occupation of
+the smuggler. They had heard the call to sea, and since fishing was in
+a bad way they must resume running illicit cargoes again. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[Pg 218]</a></span>Agriculture
+and the like have few fascinations for men who have fought and roamed
+the sea most of their lives. So when some enterprising rascal with
+enough ready capital came along they were more than prepared to take
+up the practice once more.</p>
+
+<p>That was how the matter was viewed from their side. But the Government
+were determined that an evil which had been a great worry for at least
+a century and a half of English history should be stamped out. The
+only way was to make the smuggling unprofitable. Inasmuch as these men
+for the most part made their profits through being able to undersell
+the fair trader (because there were no Custom duties paid) the most
+obvious remedy would have been to lower the rates of import duties.
+But since that was not practicable, the only possible alternative was
+to increase the dangers and risk to which a smuggler must expose
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>And instantly the first step, then, must be towards establishing "such
+a system of discipline and vigilance over the Revenue cruisers and
+boats as shall give the country the benefit of their constant and
+active services." These smuggling pests must be sought out, they must
+never be allowed to escape, to laugh defiantly at the Crown's efforts,
+and they must be punished severely when captured. It was therefore
+deemed by the Treasury that there would be a greater efficiency <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[Pg 219]</a></span>in
+these cruisers if "put under naval watchfulness and discipline,
+controlled by such authority as the Department of the Admiralty may
+think fit."</p>
+
+<p>The change came about as stated, and the Admiralty retained in the
+service those officers and crews of the Revenue cruisers as by length
+of service and in other ways had shown that they were fit and
+efficient. Those, however, who had grown too old for the work were
+superannuated. Similarly, with regard to the Preventive boatmen, these
+were also taken over by the Admiralty, but here, again, only those who
+were capable were accepted, while for the others "some moderate
+provision" was made.</p>
+
+<p>On the last day of July in that year were sent out the regulations
+which the Admiralty had drawn up respecting the salaries, wages,
+victualling, &amp;c., of the Revenue cruisers. These may be summarised as
+follows, and compared with rates which have been given for previous
+years. They were sent addressed in each case to the "Commander of His
+Majesty's Cruiser employed in the prevention of smuggling."</p>
+
+<p>And first as to payment:</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="65%" summary="Salaries and Allowances">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc" colspan="2" style="line-height: 2em;">(I.) <span class="sc">Cruisers of
+    the First Class</span>, <i>i.e.</i> of 140 tons burthen and upwards.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl" width="50%">Commander to have</td>
+  <td class="tdr" width="50%">&pound;150 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">1st Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdr">80 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">2nd Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdr">45 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td colspan="2" style="line-height: 1em;">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc" colspan="2" style="line-height: 2em;">(II.) <span class="sc">Cruisers of the Second Class</span>, <i>i.e.</i> of 100 tons and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[Pg 220]</a></span>
+    upwards but under 140 tons.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Commander to have</td>
+  <td class="tdr">&pound;130 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">1st Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdr">70 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">2nd Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdr">40 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td colspan="2" style="line-height: 1em;">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc" colspan="2" style="line-height: 2em;">(III.) <span class="sc">Cruisers of the Third Class</span>, <i>i.e.</i> of less
+    than 100 tons.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Commander to have</td>
+  <td class="tdr">&pound;110 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">1st Mate</td>
+  <td class="tdr">60 per annum</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">(No 2nd Mate)</td>
+  <td class="tdr">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>The wages of the following persons were to remain the same in all
+classes, viz.:</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="65%" summary="Salaries and Allowances">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Deputed Mariners</td>
+  <td class="tdr">&pound;2&nbsp; 8s. per lunar month</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Seamen</td>
+  <td class="tdr">2&nbsp; 0 per lunar month</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl">Boys</td>
+  <td class="tdr">10&nbsp; 0 per lunar month</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>Muster books were ordered to be kept regularly, and the sum of 1s. 6d.
+was allowed to the commander a day for each man borne on the books and
+actually victualled, to provide for the following proportion of
+provisions:&mdash;1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs. of bread, 1/2 gallon of
+beer. The commander was also allowed 3s. a day for his own victuals,
+and a like sum for each of his mates. Allowance was made for a
+medicine chest to the extent of &pound;3 annually. All expenses of pilotage
+were to be paid by the Navy, "but the commanders and mates are to make
+themselves acquainted with the coasts, &amp;c., and no general pilot will
+be allowed for more than two months after a cruiser's arrival on any
+new station."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[Pg 221]</a></span>And there is now a notable innovation, which marked the advent of a
+new age. Instead of the prevailing hempen cables with which these
+cruisers had been supplied and had been in use for centuries among our
+ships, these cutters were ordered to be furnished with chain cables
+"in order that the vessels may have the less occasion for going to a
+King's Port to refit or make purchases." If a man were injured or
+became sick whilst in the service so as to need surgical aid, the
+expense was to be allowed. And in order still further to make the
+cruisers independent of the shore and able to offer no excuse for
+running into harbour they were ordered never to proceed to sea without
+three weeks' provisions and water. As to the widows of mariners, they
+were to receive &pound;10 per annum.</p>
+
+<p>So much, then, for the new conditions of service in these Revenue
+craft as undertaken by the Admiralty. Let us now obtain some idea of
+the duties that were attached to these officers and vessels. The
+commanders were directed by the Admiralty to make themselves familiar
+with the Acts of Parliament for the prevention of smuggling, Orders in
+Council, Proclamations, &amp;c., and to obey the instruction of whatever
+admiral they were placed under, as also the commanders of any of his
+Majesty's ships whom they might fall in with "diverting you from the
+cruise on which you are employed."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[Pg 222]</a></span>Each commander was assigned his own particular station for cruising,
+and he was never to lie in any harbour, bay, or creek unless by stress
+of weather or other unavoidable necessity. He was to keep a look-out
+for vessels of a suspicious appearance, which, in respect of size and
+build, appeared to be adapted for smuggling. Especially was he to look
+out for French craft of this description. Having arrested them he was
+to hand them over to the nearest man-of-war. He was also to keep a
+smart look-out for the smugglers' practice of sinking goods and
+afterwards creeping for them. The cruisers were to visit the various
+creeks and bays; and whenever weather permitted the commander was to
+send a boat and crew to examine such places at night. And, if
+necessary, the crew were to remain there until the cruiser came to
+fetch them back in the morning.</p>
+
+<p>Care was to be taken that the smugglers themselves no less than their
+craft and goods were to be captured, and the commanders of these
+cruisers were to co-operate with the Land-guard and keep in close
+touch with the Riding officers ashore as well as the Sitters of
+Preventive boats, and to agree upon a code of signals between them,
+as, for example, by making false fires at night or the hoisting of
+proper colours in the different parts of the vessel by day, so that
+the shore officers might be informed of any suspicious vessels on the
+coast. These cruisers were also to speak with all the ships <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[Pg 223]</a></span>with
+which they fell in, and to direct any ships subject to quarantine to
+proceed to quarantine stations. And if they came across some
+merchantman or other vessel, which they suspected of smuggling, the
+cruiser was to accompany such craft into port. And they were enjoined
+to be particularly careful to guard East India ships to their
+moorings, or until, the next station having been reached, they could
+be handed over to the next cruiser.</p>
+
+<p>The commanders of the cruisers were also to be on their guard against
+the practice in vogue among ships that had been to Holland and France
+with coals, for these craft were especially prone on their return to
+putting dutiable goods into light craft from London, or on the coast,
+but chiefly into cobbles or small fishing craft at sea. And even when
+it should happen that a cruiser had to be detained in port for
+repairs, the commander was to spare as many officers and seamen as
+possible and to employ these in keeping a regular watch on the high
+grounds near the sea, so as to watch what was passing, and, if
+necessary, despatch a boat and part of the cruiser's crew. The
+commanders were reminded that the cruisers were not to wear the
+colours used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same ensigns and
+pendants as provided by the Revenue Board under 24 Geo. III. c. 47,
+sect. 23.</p>
+
+<p>On a previous page we went into the matter <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[Pg 224]</a></span>of firing at the smuggling
+craft with shotted or with unshotted guns. Now among the instructions
+which were issued by the Admiralty on taking over these Revenue
+cruisers was the clear order that no officer of a cruiser or boat was
+justified in shooting at a suspected smuggling vessel until the former
+shall have first hoisted his pendant and ensign, nor unless a gun
+shall have been first fired as a signal. The date of this, of course,
+was 1816. But among the documents preserved at the Swansea Custom
+House there is an interesting letter dated July 1806, written by the
+Collector to Mr. Hobhouse, stating that a Mr. Barber, the
+sailing-master of the <i>Cleveland</i>, had been committed for trial on a
+charge of wilful murder, he having fired a shot to cause a boat to
+bring-to and thus killed a man. This, taken in conjunction with the
+testimony of the Sheerness Coastguard, to which I alluded by
+anticipation and shall mention again, seems to me fairly conclusive
+that in <i>practice</i> at least there was no fixed rule as to whether the
+first gun were shotted or unshotted. At the same time the above quoted
+instruction from the Admiralty, although loosely worded, would seem to
+have meant that the first gun was merely to be of the nature of a
+warning signal and no shot fired in this first instance.</p>
+
+<p>And then, again, among these instructions cropped up the reminder that
+in times past commanders of cruisers had not been wont to keep <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[Pg 225]</a></span>the
+sea in bad weather&mdash;a period when the conditions were most favourable
+for smugglers&mdash;but now the Admiralty remarked that if the commander
+should be deficient in "this most essential part of your duty" he
+would be superseded. On the west coasts of England and Scotland
+especially some of the commanders had been accustomed in former years
+to pass the night in some harbour, bar, or creek instead of cruising
+on their station and counteracting the designs of the smugglers, "who
+will always prefer the night time for carrying on his operations."
+Consequently the Admiralty now strictly charged the commanders to
+cruise during the night, and no matter of private concern must serve
+as a pretext for any intermission.</p>
+
+<p>They were also to maintain a regular communication with the commander
+of any other vessel with which they had been instructed to cruise in
+concert. And cruisers were to be furnished with the laws relative to
+smuggling and not to exceed the powers vested in the commanders by
+law. As to any un-Customed or prohibited goods these were to be
+secured in the King's Warehouse at the next port, and care was to be
+taken that these goods remained undamaged or pilfered by the crew. And
+after the goods had been thus put ashore both the commander and mate
+were carefully to search the smuggling vessel, the boxes, and bedding
+of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[Pg 226]</a></span>her crew to see if anything had been kept back.</p>
+
+<p>Whenever a vessel was seized at sea precautions must be taken to
+ascertain the distance from the shore "by causing two points of land
+to be set, and the bearings thereof to be noted by two or more of your
+officers and mariners who are acquainted with those points of land, so
+that each of them may be in condition to swear to the bearings from
+the note taken by him at the time, to be produced by him upon the
+trial of the vessels."</p>
+
+<p>Any papers found on board the smuggling craft were immediately to be
+initialled by the persons present, and no cruiser or any of her boats
+should be employed in carrying passengers or pleasure parties. The
+commander and mate were to keep separate journals of all the
+proceedings of the cruiser relating to wind and weather, bearings, and
+distances from the land, soundings, &amp;c., every twenty-four hours so
+that the admiral could tell whether the cruisers had used every
+exertion to suppress smuggling, or had been negligent and slack in
+their duties. For this purpose the twenty-four hours were divided into
+three parts thus:&mdash;Midnight to 8 A.M., 8 A.M. to 4 P.M., and 4 P.M. to
+midnight. In each of these three divisions the commander was to fix
+his position by cross-bearings and soundings if in less than 30
+fathoms. This was to be done a little before sunrise, at noon, and a
+little before sunset, provided that if the land <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[Pg 227]</a></span>were not seen or the
+cruiser be chasing a vessel, this fact was to be noted in the journal,
+and the bearings and soundings were to be taken whenever the land
+should be seen. An exact copy of this journal was to be sent after the
+end of each month to the admiral under whose command the cruiser
+happened to be placed.</p>
+
+<p>The table on p. 228 is an example of the journal of one of these
+craft, and will show instantly the kind of record which was kept.</p>
+
+<p>On the 1st of January, 1817, the Preventive boats were put under the
+control of Captain Hanchett, R.N., who was known as the
+Controller-General of the Preventive Boat Service. There was an effort
+made also in this department to obtain increased efficiency. And the
+following articles were ordered to be supplied to each Preventive
+boat:&mdash;one small flat cask to hold two gallons of fresh water, one
+small water-tight harness cask to hold provisions, one chest of arms
+and ammunition, one Custom House Jack, two "spying-glasses" (one for
+the watch-house, the other for the boat), one small bucket for baling,
+one "wall piece," forty rounds of cartridges, thirty muskets or
+carbines, preference being given to carbines with musket-ball bore
+where new ones are to be purchased, twenty light pistols, balls in
+proportion to the above, bayonets, cutlasses, pouches, tucks, small
+hand hatchets for cutting away rigging, musket flints, pistol flints,
+a set of implements for cleaning arms, a set of rummaging tools, and
+a dark "lanthorn." With this full inventory these open, oared boats
+could go about their work for long spells in bays, up creeks and
+estuaries, on the prowl for the smugglers by night.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<p class="cen"><span class="sc">Journal of His Majesty's Revenue Cruiser the "Vigilant," John
+Smith, Commander, <br />for the Month of July 18&mdash;</span><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[Pg 228]</a></span></p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="100%" summary="Journal of His Majesty's Revenue Cruiser the Vigilant" style="border: solid 1.5pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="12%">Day of the Week and Month.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="12%">Wind.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="12%">Weather.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="12%">At Sea <br />or in Port.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" colspan="2">Observation made.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="10%">Soundings in Fathoms.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" rowspan="2" width="20%">Occurrences and Remarks.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" width="12%">Land Seen.</td>
+  <td class="tdcscsm" width="10%">Bearings and Distances in Miles</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">July Monday 1st., Morning or first part</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">E.S.E.</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Moderate</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">At sea</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">Red Head</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">W.N.W. 9 miles</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Above 30</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Cruising in station spoke a vessel from
+    the Baltic laden with hemp, &amp;c., but sea running high, did not board her. Saw
+    H.M. sloop <i>Cherokee</i> to the N.E. at 9 A.M.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl3">Light, Bell Rock</td>
+  <td class="tdl3">S.W. by S. 12 miles</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Noon or second part</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">Fifeness</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">W.N.W. 5 miles</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Nothing remarkable occurred.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl3">Isle of May</td>
+  <td class="tdl3">S.W. by W. 6 miles</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Evening or third part</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">Fifeness</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">S. by E. 8½ miles</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl1" rowspan="2">Lost sight of the <i>Cherokee</i> standing off and on in St.
+    Andrews Bay. Sent out the boat with Mr. Jones, second mate, to visit the creeks.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl3">Light, Bell Rock</td>
+  <td class="tdl3">E. by S. 9 miles</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>Whenever any vessels were seized and condemned a full, descriptive <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[Pg 229]</a></span>
+account was sent to London regarding their size, breadth, depth,
+burthen, age, where built, draught, scantlings, the nature of the
+wood, how fastened, whether the craft appeared strained, how many guns
+she carried, what was the probable expense of having her refitted, how
+long she would last when this had been done, whether she had the
+reputation for rowing or sailing quickly, and what was her value. If
+it was recognised that she was a serviceable vessel she was not to be
+destroyed but employed in the Preventive service.</p>
+
+<p>Among the names of the Revenue cutters about this time were the
+<i>Scorpion</i>, <i>Enchantress</i>, <i>Jacobus</i>, and <i>Rattlesnake</i>. There was a
+good deal of smuggling now going on in Essex, and the last-mentioned
+was employed to watch the river Blackwater in that district.
+Lieutenant Neame, R.N., was also ordered to proceed to the Blackwater
+with the lugger <i>Fortune</i>, and arrived there to take charge of the
+<i>Rattlesnake</i>. This was in September 1818; and here let us remark that
+although the Preventive Water-guard originally <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[Pg 230]</a></span>had charge of the
+whole coast of England, yet a few months before the above date&mdash;it
+occurred actually in July 1817&mdash;the staff between the North and South
+Forelands was withdrawn, and this part of the coast was placed under
+the charge of the Coast Blockade. Under the arrangement of 1816, when
+the cruisers had been put under the care of the Admiralty, the
+Preventive Waterguard had come under the authority of the Treasury,
+but now, in 1817, came the change mentioned. Towards the close of 1818
+this Coast Blockade, instead of being confined merely to that coast
+between the two Forelands, was extended till it reached on the one
+side Shellness by the mouth of the East Swale, and on the other right
+away down Channel to Cuckmere Haven (between Newhaven and Beachy
+Head).</p>
+
+<p>The history of this change may be summed up as follows. It was
+suggested in the year 1816 by Captain M'Culloch of H.M.S. <i>Ganymede</i>
+(which was one of the vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling
+between Dungeness and North Foreland) that it would be advantageous to
+land the crews of the vessels employed on the cruisers and Naval ships
+engaged in preventing smuggling. The men were to be put ashore every
+day just after sunset and so form a guard along the coast during the
+night. In the morning, just before sunrise, the men were to be put on
+board their ships once more. So the experiment <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[Pg 231]</a></span>was tried and was
+found to be so successful that this method of guarding the coast was
+adopted by a Treasury Minute of June 19, 1817. The district between
+the Forelands was assigned to Captain M'Culloch, who had with him the
+officers and crew of H.M.S. <i>Severn</i>. Those boats and men which had
+belonged to the Preventive service stationed between the Forelands
+were withdrawn, and the entire protection of this district was left to
+Captain M'Culloch's force. This was known as the Coast Blockade, and
+was afterwards extended as just mentioned to Sheppey and Seaford.</p>
+
+<p>If we may anticipate for a moment in order to preserve continuity, let
+us add that in the year 1821 this span of coast was divided into
+three, each division being subdivided into four districts. The
+divisions were under the superintendence of a senior lieutenant, a
+midshipman, one petty officer of the first class and one of the
+second. The districts, on the other hand, were under the
+superintendence of a junior lieutenant. The men were divided into
+parties of ten, each party having about a mile of coastline, and
+guard-houses were established along the coast at a distance of about
+every four miles. The seamen volunteered into the service, and, if
+found effective, of good character, but had no relatives in the
+neighbourhood, they were accepted. The object of this last condition
+was to prevent their showing any sympathy with <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[Pg 232]</a></span>the smugglers of the
+district. These men undertook to serve for three years, and for
+payment of wages they were borne on the books of any of his Majesty's
+ships.</p>
+
+<p>We can thus see how gradually the influence of the Admiralty had been
+exerted over the Preventive work which had been carried on by the
+Customs. There are then three steps. First in assisting the Revenue
+cruisers, and, lastly, by taking charge of the Land-guard. The proof
+of the wisdom of this change was seen in results, for the Revenue
+derived better protection because of the Admiralty influence. There
+was better discipline, greater activity, and a smarter look-out was
+kept. Thus it came about that in that very south-eastern district
+which had been for so long a time notorious for its nefarious trade,
+the smugglers found their calling a very difficult one. And both these
+changes in respect of cruisers and Land-guard had been made certainly
+not with the enthusiastic support of the Board of Customs, who had
+indeed expressed their doubts as to whether such a transformation were
+prudent.</p>
+
+<p>Some idea of the number of his Majesty's ships and vessels which were
+employed in the prevention of smuggling in the year 1819 may be
+gathered from the following list. It should, however, be mentioned
+that these did not include the numbers of Custom House cruisers which
+the Admiralty had begun to control, but were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[Pg 233]</a></span>actually the Naval ships
+which aided those of the Revenue:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="noin" style="margin-left: 5em;">
+Plymouth supplied 10 ships and 4 tenders<br />
+Portsmouth supplied 8 ships and 3 tenders<br />
+Sheerness supplied 8 ships and 2 tenders<br />
+Leith supplied 7 ships and 1 tender<br />
+Ireland supplied 12 ships and 1 tender</p>
+
+<p class="noin">at a total cost of &pound;245,519. But it should also be borne in mind that
+these ships of the Navy, or at any rate by far the greater number of
+them, would have been in commission whether employed or not in the
+prevention of smuggling, and in certain cases these ships were
+employed in the Preventive service for only a part of the year.
+Without the Revenue cutters the Navy could not possibly have dealt
+with the smugglers, and this was actually admitted in a Treasury
+Minute of January 15, 1822. The total number of Revenue cruisers
+employed in Great Britain and Ireland during the year 1819, as
+distinct from the ships of the Royal Navy, amounted to 69. The
+following year this number had increased to 70. These were apportioned
+thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div style="margin-left: 5em;">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="50%" summary="Revenue Cruisers">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1" width="5%">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;" width="95%">under the Commander-in-Chief at Sheerness</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">under the Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">under the Commander-in-Chief at Plymouth</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">under the Commander-in-Chief at Leith</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">were employed in Ireland</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">were employed in Ireland</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black;">2</td>
+  <td class="tdl" style="padding-left: .2em;">were employed by the Commissioners of Customs</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdr1" style="border-bottom: 3px double black;">70</td>
+  <td>&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[Pg 234]</a></span>To sum up then with regard to the Preventive Water-guard, let us state
+that this had been constituted in 1809 to supplement the efforts of
+the cruisers and Riding officers, the coast of England and Wales being
+divided into three parts, and placed under the control of Inspecting
+Commanders. Under this arrangement were included the Revenue cruisers
+themselves. Then in 1816 the Admiralty had taken over these cruisers
+from the Preventive Water-guard, and the following year the Coast
+Blockade had taken over that portion of the coast between the
+Forelands, to be extended in 1818 to Shellness and Seaford
+respectively.</p>
+
+<p>The sphere of activity on the part of the Preventive Water-guard was
+thus by the year 1819 considerably curtailed, and from the
+instructions which were now issued to the Inspecting Commanders we can
+see how the rest of the coastline other than that section just
+considered was dealt with. Each station consisted of one chief
+officer, one chief boatman, two commissioned boatmen, and four
+established boatmen. There was a six-oared boat with her rudder and
+wash-boards&mdash;"wash-streaks" they are officially called&mdash;a five-fathom
+rope as a light painter, eight good ash oars, two boat-hooks. She was
+a sailing craft, for she was provided with a fore-mast, main-mast, and
+mizzen-mast, with "haul-yards," travellers, down-hauls, sheets, &amp;c.
+Her canvas consisted of foresail, mainsail, and mizzen with a yard for
+each. She <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[Pg 235]</a></span>carried also a jib, the casks for water and provisions, a
+boat's "bittacle" (= binnacle), with compass and lamp. She was further
+furnished with a couple of creeping irons for getting up the
+smugglers' kegs, a grapnel, a chest of arms and ammunition, the Custom
+House Jack and spy-glass as already mentioned.</p>
+
+<p>This vessel was rigged as a three-masted lugger with a jib. There is
+no mention of a bowsprit, so either one of the oars or a boat-hook
+would have to be employed for that purpose. In addition to this larger
+boat there was also on the station a light four-oared gig fitted with
+mast, yard (or "spreet"), a 7 lb. hand lead, 20 fathoms of line for
+the latter, as well as ballast bags to fill with stones or sand. If
+the established crews were inadequate during emergency extra men could
+be hired. The boats were painted twice a year, but "always to be
+completed before the bad weather sets in, and the colours to be
+assimilated as near as possible to those used by the natives and
+smugglers which frequent the coast which are least conspicuous."</p>
+
+<p>If any of the established boatmen intermarried with families of
+notorious smugglers the Inspecting Commander was to send information
+to the Controller-General. Furthermore, no one was to be appointed to
+any station within twenty miles of his place of birth or within twenty
+miles of the place where he had resided for six months previous to
+this appointment.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[Pg 236]</a></span>The name, colour, rig, and other description of any vessel about to
+depart on a smuggling trip or expected to arrive with contraband goods
+on the coast were to be given by the Inspecting Commander both to the
+admirals commanding the men-of-war off the coast in that
+neighbourhood, to the captains and commanders of any men-of-war or
+Revenue cruisers, and also to the Inspecting Commander of the
+Preventive Water-guard on either side of him. And in order to keep the
+men up to their duties the Preventive stations were to be inspected
+often, and at certain times by day and night. The Inspecting
+Commanders were to perform their journeys on horseback and to proceed
+as much as possible by the sea-coast, so as to become well acquainted
+with the places where the smugglers resort.</p>
+
+<p>The officers and boatmen were ordered to reside as near their duty as
+possible and not to lodge in the houses of notorious smugglers.
+Officers and men were also to be private owners of no boats nor of
+shares in public-houses or fishing-craft. The Inspecting Commanders
+were to report the nature of the coast, the time, the manner, and the
+method in respect of the smuggling generally carried on in the
+district. If there were any shoals or rocks, not generally laid down
+or known, discovered when sounding to possess a different depth of
+water, or if anything should occur which might be useful for
+navigating the coasts of the kingdom, then cross <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[Pg 237]</a></span>bearings were to be
+taken and noted. These men were also to render every assistance in
+case of wrecks and to prevent goods being smuggled therefrom into the
+country. If any of these Preventive boatmen were wounded in fighting
+with a smuggler they were to be paid full wages for twenty-eight days
+or longer, and a reasonable surgeon's bill would be also paid.</p>
+
+<p>And to prevent any possible excuse for discontinuing a chase, the boat
+was never to leave the beach without the two-gallon keg of fresh
+water. And to prevent any obvious possibility, this boat was never to
+be left by day or night without one of the boat's crew to guard it.
+The latter was always to have ready some sort of floating buoy,
+"loaded at one end and a piece of bunting at the other," for marking
+the place where goods might be thrown overboard in a chase. The
+Inspecting Commanders were also to be on their guard against false
+information, which was often given to divert their attention from the
+real place where the smuggling was occurring.</p>
+
+<p>"As night is the time when smugglers generally run their cargoes, it
+is expected that the boat, or her crew, or the greater part of them
+will be out, either afloat or on land, as often as circumstances will
+permit, which must be, at least, five nights a week." They were
+ordered generally to co-operate with the Revenue cruisers and to keep
+a journal of all proceedings. When out at night <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[Pg 238]</a></span>time they were to
+have a candle and "lanthorn" in the boat as well as the boat's
+"bittacle," and not to rummage a vessel without the candle being
+carefully secured in the lanthorn to prevent accident by fire. All
+suspicious ships were to be rummaged, and whenever the weather would
+not permit of the boat keeping the sea, the crew and Inspecting
+Commander were to keep a look-out by land. Even as late as 1819, when
+the great wars had come to an end, it was found that the transfer of
+smugglers to the Navy had continued to be the most effectual means of
+protecting the Revenue. The sum of &pound;20 was granted for each smuggler
+taken, and this was paid to the individual or individuals by whom or
+through whose means the smuggler was absolutely secured, and it was
+not to be paid to the crew in general. But when chasing a smuggling
+craft, whether by night or day, they were not to fire at the
+delinquents until the Custom House Jack had been displayed. The salary
+of each Inspecting Commander, it may be added, was now &pound;200 per annum
+and &pound;60 for the first cost and upkeep of an able horse.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[Pg 239]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Just as there had been a great improvement in the reorganisation
+brought about by the advent of the Coast Blockade, so the Preventive
+service on shore generally was smartened up. That this was so is clear
+from the existing correspondence. For instance, five more Preventive
+boats were to be stationed between Shellness and Southwold, and three
+between Cuckmere Haven and Hayling Island; another boat was sent to
+Newton (Yorkshire), another to Dawlish (Devonshire), and another to
+Happisburgh (Norfolk) or, as it was then spelt, Hephisburg.</p>
+
+<p>Some idea of the activity of the cruisers may be seen from the number
+of smugglers which these craft had been able to capture. The reader
+will recollect that during the year ending October 1, 1810, the
+highest number of smugglers handed over to the Navy was thirteen, and
+this was done by Captain Gunthorpe of the Excise cutter <i>Viper</i>. He
+thus became entitled to the sum of &pound;500. It will be remembered also
+that it was afterwards decided that, beginning in 1812, &pound;500 would be
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[Pg 240]</a></span>paid only if the number captured was not less than twenty. But now
+from a Treasury Minute of October 20, 1818, we find that, although the
+former number of captures was over thirteen, it was just under twenty.
+And, here again, Captain Matthew Gunthorpe, this time commanding the
+Excise cutter <i>Vigilant</i>, and Captain Robert Hepburn of the Excise
+cutter <i>Regent</i>, in the year 1816 seized nineteen smugglers each, or a
+total of thirty-eight. As neither captain had reached the twenty and
+both were equal, it was decided to add the second and third rewards
+together (<i>i.e.</i> &pound;300 plus &pound;200) and to give &pound;250 to Captain
+Gunthorpe, officers and crew, and &pound;250 to Captain Hepburn, officers
+and crew. And there is on record at this time a memorial from one W.
+Blake, the son of W. Blake, senior. The last-mentioned had been
+commander of the cutter <i>Nimble</i>, but was drowned in 1816. His son now
+prayed for the reward of &pound;300 to be paid to the family of the
+deceased, as he had captured sixteen smugglers.</p>
+
+<p>After the Admiralty had taken over the Revenue cruisers they did not
+neglect to sanction a pension system, and the following scheme was
+embraced:&mdash;Commanders of cruisers on retiring were to have from &pound;91,
+5s. to &pound;155, 2s. 6d. per annum, according to their length of service;
+and for any wound received they were to have an additional &pound;91, 5s.
+per annum. First mates were pensioned after five years' service at the
+rate of &pound;35 a year, but after <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[Pg 241]</a></span>thirty years' service they were to have
+&pound;85 a year as pension. And so it was arranged for all ratings down to
+the boys. The widow of a commander killed or drowned in the service
+was allowed &pound;65 a year.</p>
+
+<p>And now that we are in that period after the year 1815 we must not
+fail to bear in mind that this is the epoch when the smugglers were
+using ingenuity in preference to force. The busiest part had yet to
+come and did not occur till the third decade of the nineteenth
+century. But even from the time of the Battle of Waterloo until, say,
+about 1825 there were ten years in which the smugglers left no device
+untried which they could conceive to enable them to outdo the Revenue
+authorities. And we may now proceed to give actual instances of these
+ingenious attempts.</p>
+
+<p>We begin with the early part of 1816. At this time the Tide-Surveyor
+at one of the out-ports had reason to suspect that the French
+market-boats which used to sail across to England were in the habit of
+bringing also a good deal of silks and other prohibited goods. At last
+he went on board one of these craft and immediately after she had
+arrived he caused the whole of her cargo to be put ashore. He then
+searched her thoroughly from deck to keelson, but he found nothing at
+all. However, he was determined not to give up his quest, and had part
+of her ceiling examined minutely, and was then surprised to note that
+some fresh nails had <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[Pg 242]</a></span>apparently been driven. He therefore caused the
+ceiling to be ripped off, when he discovered that a large variety of
+contraband goods had been neatly stowed between the ship's timbers.</p>
+
+<p>It was only a few months later in that same year that another Revenue
+officer boarded a Dutch schuyt which was bound from Amsterdam to
+London. Her cargo consisted of 500 bundles of bulrushes, but on making
+his examination these innocent articles were found to conceal between
+the rushes forty-five boxes of glass in illegal packages, and also
+some other prohibited goods which had been shipped from the United
+Kingdom for exportation and were intended to have been again
+clandestinely relanded.</p>
+
+<p>The reader will remember our mentioning the name of Captain M'Culloch
+just now in connection with the Coast Blockade. Writing on the 2nd of
+April, 1817, from on board H.M.S. <i>Ganymede</i> lying in the Downs, this
+gallant officer stated that, although it was known that the smugglers
+had constructed places ashore for the concealment of contraband goods
+under the Sand Hills near to No. 1 and No. 2 batteries at Deal, yet
+these hiding-places were so ingeniously formed that they had baffled
+the most rigid search. However, his plan of landing crews from his
+Majesty's ships to guard this district (in the manner previously
+described) had already begun to show good results. For two midshipmen,
+named respectively Peate and Newton, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[Pg 243]</a></span>commanding the shore parties in
+that neighbourhood, had succeeded in locating five of those places of
+concealment.</p>
+
+<p>"This discovery," continued the despatch, "I am assured will be a most
+severe blow to the smugglers, as they were enabled to remove their
+cargoes into them in a few minutes, and hitherto no person besides
+themselves could form any idea of the manner in which their
+store-holes were built. They are generally 4 feet deep, of a square
+form and built of a 2-inch plank, with the scuttle in the top, into
+which a trough filled with shingle is fitted instead of a cover to
+prevent their being found out by pricking; and I understand they were
+built above two years ago. I have ordered them to be destroyed, and
+parties are employed in searching for such concealments along the
+other parts of the beach." Thus, thanks to the Navy, the smugglers had
+been given a serious repulse in the most notorious district.</p>
+
+<p>Then there was also the danger of collusive smuggling. For instance,
+when a smuggler had been frustrated from successfully landing a cargo
+of spirits from a small foreign vessel or boat he might go and give
+information to a Custom officer so that he might have the goods seized
+by the latter, the arrangement being that the smuggler should be paid
+a fair portion of the reward which the officer should receive for the
+seizure. Inasmuch as the officers' rewards were by no means
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[Pg 244]</a></span>inconsiderable this method might fully indemnify the smuggler against
+any loss.</p>
+
+<p>Just before Christmas of 1819 the Custom officers at Weymouth seized
+on board a vessel named <i>The Three Brothers</i> sixteen half-ankers and
+seven small kegs or flaggons of foreign spirits. These were found to
+be concealed under a platform of about nine feet in length fitted on
+either side of the keelson, and of sufficient height for one cask. Its
+breadth was such as to allow of two casks and a flaggon. When full
+this secret hiding-place would contain about thirty casks in all. The
+whole concealment was covered with stone and iron ballast. The
+platform was fitted with false bulkheads and filled up with large
+stones so as to avoid suspicion, the entrance to which was made (after
+removal of the ballast) from the bottom of the forecastle through two
+bulkheads about two feet apart.</p>
+
+<p>Another instance was that of a consignment of four cases which had
+come over from France. These cases contained plaster figures and
+appeared to be hollow. However, the Custom officers had their
+suspicions and decided to perforate the plaster at the bottom with an
+auger. After making still larger holes there were extracted from
+inside the following amazing list of articles:&mdash;Two clock movements,
+six pieces of bronze, thirty-two pieces of porcelain, and two small
+paintings.</p>
+
+<p>A certain other French craft was boarded by <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[Pg 245]</a></span>the Revenue officers who,
+on measuring her range of deck and also under it including the
+bulkheads, found a greater difference than the rake would fairly
+account for. They were naturally highly suspicious and proceeded to
+take down part of the bulkhead aft, when they discovered that this
+bulkhead was not single but double, being between the cabin and the
+hold. This bulkhead was made of solid oak planking and was 2 feet 10
+inches thick. It was securely nailed, and the cavity thus made
+extended from one side of the hull to the other, giving a breadth of 7
+feet 2 inches, its length being about 2 feet 2 inches, and the height
+3 feet 6 inches. It will thus be readily imagined that a good quantity
+of spirits, wine, and plums from France could easily therein be
+contained and brought ashore when opportunity presented itself.</p>
+
+<p>At another port a vessel was actually discovered to have false bows.
+One might wonder how it was that the officer ever found this out, but
+he was smart enough to measure the deck on the port side, after which
+he measured the ship below. He found a difference of over a foot, and
+so he undertook a thorough search of the ship. He first proceeded to
+investigate the forepeak, but he was unable to discover any entrance.
+He therefore went to the hold, examined the bulkhead, and observed
+that the nails of the cleats on the starboard side had been drawn. He
+proceeded to force off the cleats, whereupon one of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[Pg 246]</a></span>boards of the
+bulkhead fell down, and a quantity of East India silk handkerchiefs
+came tumbling out. Needless to say, this proved a serious matter for
+the vessel's skipper.</p>
+
+<p>Sometimes too, cases used to come over from France containing carton
+boxes of artificial flowers. These boxes, it was found, were fitted
+with false bottoms affording a space of not more than a quarter of an
+inch between the real bottom and the false. But into this space was
+squeezed either a silk gauze dress or some parcels "very nicely
+stitched in," containing dressed ostrich feathers. The flowers were
+usually stitched down to the bottom of the boxes to prevent damage, so
+it was difficult to detect that there was any false bottom at all.
+However, after this practice had been in vogue for some time it was
+discovered by the Revenue officers and the matter made generally known
+among the officials at all the ports, so that they could be on the
+alert for such ingenuity.</p>
+
+<p>Sometimes when a Revenue officer was on her station she would come
+across a sailing craft, which would be found to have quite a
+considerable number of spirits in small casks together with a number
+of other prohibited goods. If the master of such a craft were told by
+the cruiser's officer that they would have to be seized as they were
+evidently about to be smuggled, the master would reply that they were
+nothing of the kind, but <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[Pg 247]</a></span>that whilst they were on the fishing grounds
+working their nets they happened to bring these casks up from the
+sinkers and warp which had kept them below water; or they had found
+these casks floating on the sea, and had no doubt been either lost or
+intentionally thrown overboard by some smuggling vessel while being
+chased by a Revenue cruiser. It became a very difficult matter to
+ascertain under such circumstances whether the master were speaking
+the truth or the reverse, for it was not altogether rare for the kegs
+to be picked up by fishermen in the manner indicated. So the only way
+out of this dilemma was for the commanders of the cruisers to bring
+such craft as the above to the nearest Custom House, where the master
+could be brought ashore and subjected to a cross-examination as to
+where they found these casks and what they proposed doing with them.</p>
+
+<p>A seizure was made at Deal about the year 1818 consisting of
+thirty-three packages of China crape and silk. These had been very
+artfully concealed in the ballast bags of a lugger called the <i>Fame</i>,
+belonging to London. One package was found in each bag completely
+covered up with shingles or small stones, so that even if a suspicious
+officer were to feel the outside of these bags he would be inclined to
+believe that they contained nothing but ballast, and if he opened them
+he would think there was nothing else but stones, for the goods were
+carefully squeezed into <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[Pg 248]</a></span>the centre of the bags and surrounded with a
+good thickness of shingle. Another dodge which was discovered at
+Shoreham on a vessel which had come from Dieppe was to have the iron
+ballast cast in such a form that it was not solid but hollow inside.
+By this means a good deal of dutiable stuff could be put inside the
+iron and then sealed up again. There was a ship, also, named the
+<i>Isis</i>, of Rye, which fell into disgrace in endeavouring to cheat the
+Customs. She was a smack of 26-16/94 tons burthen, her master being
+William Boxhall. It was while she was lying at her home port that one
+of the Revenue officers discovered a concealment under her ballast,
+the entrance to which was obtained by unshipping two bulkhead boards
+forward. There was one concealment on each side of the keel, and each
+contained enough space to hold from twenty to twenty-four ankers of
+spirits.</p>
+
+<p>Along the Kentish coast a good deal of smuggling used to go on by
+means of galleys which were rowed by six, ten, and even twelve oars.
+As these were navigated by foreigners and sailed under foreign papers,
+the Customs officers were a little puzzled as to what exactly could be
+done. Could such craft be seized even when found with no cargoes on
+board, when they were either hauled up the beach or were discovered
+hovering off the coast? After applying to the Board of Customs for
+guidance they were referred to the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[Pg 249]</a></span>Act,<a name="FNanchor_19_19" id="FNanchor_19_19"></a><a href="#Footnote_19_19" class="fnanchor">[19]</a> which provided that any
+boat, wherry, pinnace, barge, or galley that was built so as to row
+with more than four oars, if found within the counties of Middlesex,
+Surrey, Kent, or Essex, or on the river Thames, or within the limits
+of the Port of London, Sandwich, or Ipswich, or the creeks thereto
+belonging, should be forfeited together with her tackle. The object of
+this was clearly to prevent the shortest cross-Channel route being
+traversed from Holland or France by big, seaworthy but open,
+multiple-oared craft, with enough men to row them and enough space to
+carry cargo that would make the smuggling journey worth while.</p>
+
+<p>The following fraud was detected at one of the out-ports in 1819. An
+entry had been made of twenty-seven barrels of pitch which had been
+imported in a ship from Dantzic. But the Revenue officers discovered
+that these casks were peculiarly constructed. Externally each cask
+resembled an ordinary tar-barrel. But inside there was enclosed
+another cask properly made to fit. Between the cask and the outside
+barrel pitch had been run in at the bung so that the enclosure
+appeared at first to be one solid body of pitch. But after the affair
+was properly looked into it was found that the inner cask was filled
+with such dutiable articles as plate glass and East India china.</p>
+
+<p>Sometimes tubs of spirits were packed up in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[Pg 250]</a></span>sacks and packs of wool
+and thus conveyed from the coast into the interior of the country; and
+in the seizing of some goods at Guernsey it was found that tea had
+been packed into cases to resemble packages of wine which had come out
+of a French vessel belonging to St. Malo. Nor was the owner of a
+certain boat found at Folkestone any novice at this high-class art. Of
+course those were the days when keels of iron and lead were not so
+popular as they are to-day, but inside ballast was almost universal,
+being a relic of the medi&aelig;val days when so much valuable inside space
+was wasted in ships. In this Folkestone boat half-a-dozen large stones
+were used as ballast, which was a very natural thing for such a craft.
+But when these stones came to be examined they were found to have been
+hollowed out and to have been fitted with tin cases which were filled
+with spirits. One cannot acquit the owner of any fraudulent intent,
+but one certainly can admire both his ingenuity and the great patience
+which must have been necessary to have hollowed a cavity from such an
+unyielding material as stone. This was equalled only by the cargo from
+Guernsey. Four sacks said to contain potatoes from the Channel Isles
+were opened by the Revenue officers at a certain port, and, on being
+examined, it was found that these were not potatoes at all. They were
+so many rolls of tobacco which had been fashioned to resemble the size
+and form of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[Pg 251]</a></span>vegetable, and then covered artfully over with a thin
+skin and finally clayed over so cleverly that they had every
+appearance of the potatoes they pretended to be.</p>
+
+<p>But the Channel Isles were still notorious. In twelve sacks of flour
+imported from Jersey were found hidden in the middle twelve bales of
+tobacco weighing 28 lbs. each. A few weeks later three boxes of prunes
+also from Jersey were opened, when it was discovered that the prunes
+were not more than three inches deep at the top and three inches deep
+at the bottom. But between there was a space in which were
+concealed&mdash;in each box&mdash;a paper parcel of silk, some scarves and
+gloves, &amp;c. But in order to make the total weight of the box
+approximate to that which would have existed had it been full of
+prunes a square piece of lead was placed above and another underneath
+these dutiable articles.</p>
+
+<p>But to me the most ingenious method of all was that which was employed
+in 1820 for smuggling tobacco. The offending ship was one of the
+vessels employed in the transport service, and the man who thought of
+the device was not far from being a genius. He first of all obtained
+the quantity of tobacco which he proposed&mdash;no doubt with the
+assistance of more than one confederate&mdash;to smuggle ashore. He then
+proceeded to divide this into two, each of which formed one strand.
+Afterwards he made these <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[Pg 252]</a></span>strands into a rope, every bit of it being
+tobacco. But then he took a three-strand hawser and laid this over the
+tobacco, so that when the hawser was finished no one could suspect the
+tobacco without first cutting or unlaying the rope. I have not been
+able to discover how this trick was ever suspected. Nothing less than
+an accident or the information of a spy could possibly lead to
+detection in such a clever case.</p>
+
+<p>There were all sorts of varieties of concealments now practised since
+the "scientific" period of smuggling had come in. And since those
+wicked old days have passed, and with them a good many of the
+old-fashioned types of craft, it may be well that examples of these
+misdirected efforts should be collected herewith. There was a smack,
+for instance, which was found to have under her ballast a large trunk
+that was divided into four separate compartments each about 15 feet
+long and could contain twelve half-ankers. One end of the trunk was
+fixed against the bulkhead of the cabin, and extended the whole length
+of the hold opening at the forward end close to the keelson by
+unshipping two pieces of the bulkhead.</p>
+
+<p>Another instance of the employment of false bows to a craft was found
+on searching the fishing smack <i>Flower</i>, of Rye, whose master's name
+was William Head. It was observed that this false section would hold
+as much as forty to fifty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253">[Pg 253]</a></span>half-ankers, the entrance being on the port
+side of the false bow, where a square piece took out, being fastened
+by a couple of screws, the heads of which were concealed by wooden
+bungs imitating treenails. The <i>Flower</i> was further discovered to have
+a false stern, the entrance to this being by means of the upper board
+of this stern on the port side in the cabin. She was a vessel 39 feet
+2-1/2 inches long, 12 feet 1-1/2 inches beam, 5 feet 9-1/2 inches
+deep, and of 23-1/2 tons burthen, being fitted with a standing
+bowsprit and sloop-rigged. An almost identical set of concealments was
+found in the smack <i>Albion</i> at Sandwich, a vessel of over 42 tons
+burthen. The entrance to her false stern was through a small locker on
+the port and starboard sides. She was further fitted with a false
+stern-post and false timbers.</p>
+
+<p>A considerable amount of ingenuity must have been exercised in the
+case of an open four-oared boat which was seized at Dover together
+with twelve ankers of spirits. The device was as follows:&mdash;Across the
+bow end of the boat was the usual thwart on which an oarsman sat. At
+the after end where the stroke sat was another thwart. Under each of
+these thwarts was an ordinary stanchion for supporting the thwart. But
+each of these two stanchions had been made hollow. Thus, through each
+a rope could be inserted, and inasmuch as the keel had also been
+pierced it was possible to pass one rope through at the bow-thwart
+and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[Pg 254]</a></span>another at the stern-thwart, these ropes penetrating the boat
+from thwart to keel. The inboard ends of these two ropes were
+carelessly lashed round the thwarts or covered with gear, so there was
+no untoward appearance. But at the other ends of the ropes were
+fastened the twelve ankers, which were thus towed along under the keel
+of the craft, and not trailing out astern as was sometimes done in the
+case of bigger boats. Thus because the whole body of the boat covered
+the floating casks it was very unlikely that their presence would be
+suspected.</p>
+
+<p>The smack <i>Strawberry</i> of Deal, on being searched, was found to have a
+false bottom, capable of containing a considerable quantity of goods.
+This bottom was constructed by two leaden cases fixed on the timbers
+the whole length of the hold, one on each side of the keelson, and
+ceiled over with the usual ceiling, having the ballast placed over it.
+The cases opened on each side of the hold by taking out a plank from
+the temporary ceiling. In the case of the lugger <i>Fox</i> (as usual
+belonging to Rye), a vessel over 16 tons, John Souden, master, there
+were found to be double bottoms underneath the bed cabins, the
+entrance being made from underneath the cabins, and then unshipping a
+small piece of board about a foot square, each concealment being able
+to hold from fifty to sixty pieces of bandana silks.</p>
+
+<p>Another smuggling device in vogue during this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[Pg 255]</a></span>ingenious period had to
+be employed in such places as Ramsgate harbour, where it would have
+been utterly impossible to have employed ordinary methods. It
+resembled very much the method employed at Dover, mentioned just now.
+A rowing-boat would come into the harbour, apparently with nothing in
+her nor anything towing astern. But there were fifteen or so
+half-ankers underneath her hull, spirits of course being contained in
+these casks. Now the latter were all fastened to a long iron bar, the
+ropes to the boat being fastened to this bar. Consequently, after the
+boat had reached her corner of Ramsgate harbour, all she had to do was
+to let go the ropes and the iron bar would keep the kegs on the sandy
+bottom and prevent them from disclosing their identity by floating. At
+low water the smugglers could have gone to get them up again, for they
+would not move far even with the ebb tide. Unfortunately, however, the
+Revenue Tide Surveyor at this port preceded the smugglers, and by
+creeping for the bar and tubs with grapnels succeeded in locating what
+he wanted.</p>
+
+<p>On another occasion at one of the out-ports, or rather along the
+neighbouring beach, thirty-three gallons of spirits, contained in
+nineteen small casks, were recovered in a startling manner. Going
+along the beach were noticed among the chalk rocks and stones of the
+neighbourhood some other objects. These were the casks, but they had
+been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[Pg 256]</a></span>so cleverly covered over with a cement of chalk, to which was
+fastened seaweed in the most natural manner, that seeing them there
+among the rocks of the shore they would never have been discovered by
+the Revenue men, had not it been (as one may guess) for a hint given
+by an informer. Otherwise there they would have remained until the
+smugglers found it convenient to come and fetch them.</p>
+
+<p>We called attention just now to the concealing of tobacco in rope.
+This device evidently became a fine art, and had succeeded on many an
+occasion. At any rate in Flushing tobacco was openly on sale in the
+shops ready for smuggling into England already made up into ropes. You
+could get anything as big as a hawser and as small as a sail-tyer done
+up so ingeniously as to deceive almost any one. In fact on washing
+these slightly with a little rum they had every appearance of hempen
+rope.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_19_19" id="Footnote_19_19"></a><a href="#FNanchor_19_19"><span class="label">[19]</span></a> 8 George I. cap. 18.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[Pg 257]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIV<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Rowing about on the night of Lady Day, 1813, a six-oared boat, which
+had been launched from the Custom House cutter <i>Lion</i>, was on the
+prowl in that bay which extends all the way from Dungeness to
+Folkestone. When the watchers in this craft were off Hythe, and only
+about a quarter of a mile from the shore, they saw coming along over
+the dark waters a lugsail boat with foresail and mizzen making towards
+Dymnchurch, which is just to the west of Hythe. It was about an hour
+before midnight, and as this suspicious craft did not come near to the
+<i>Lion's</i> boat the latter rowed towards her and hailed her.</p>
+
+<p>"What boat is that?" they asked.</p>
+
+<p>"A Folkestone boat," came back the answer.</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon John Wellar, a deputed mariner in the Customs boat, shouted
+to the lugger to heave-to, for he guessed what the game was.</p>
+
+<p>"Heave-to!" roared the lugger's master. "We'll see you d&mdash;&mdash;d first!"</p>
+
+<p>But the rowing-boat was not to be put off with mere insults, and
+quickly pulled up alongside the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[Pg 258]</a></span>craft. One of the men in the Customs
+boat then stood up and looked into the lugger and remarked that she
+was full of kegs. Wellar therefore immediately jumped into her,
+followed by three or four of his men, and seized her. On board he
+found three men, and them also he secured. He further discovered 144
+half-ankers of spirits, consisting of brandy and gin from across the
+Channel, which were subsequently taken to the Custom House at Dover. A
+little more than a year later, Robert Baker, the lugger's master, was
+brought before the judge and fined &pound;100.</p>
+
+<p>There was an interesting incident which occurred a few years later in
+the eastern corner of England, which led to trouble for a man named
+Henry Palmer of Harwich. This man was master and owner of a yawl named
+the <i>Daisy</i>, which belonged to Ipswich. About midday on the 22nd of
+March 1817, one of the Preventive officers, named Dennis Grubb,
+observed the <i>Daisy</i> sailing up the Orwell, which flows from Ipswich
+past Harwich and out into the North Sea. Grubb was in a six-oared
+galley, and about three-quarters of a mile below Levington Creek,
+which is on the starboard hand about a third of the way up the river
+between Harwich and Ipswich. With Grubb was another man, and on seeing
+the <i>Daisy</i> they began rowing towards her. Whether Grubb had any
+reason for suspecting her more than any other craft, whether he had
+received warning from an informer, cannot <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259">[Pg 259]</a></span>be stated. But what is true
+is that he was determined to have her examined.</p>
+
+<p>However, notwithstanding that Palmer must have known perfectly well
+that this was a preventive boat, and that he was in duty bound to stop
+when hailed, it was obvious that, as soon as the galley came near, the
+<i>Daisy</i> instantly went about on the other tack and stood away from the
+boat. The latter in turn pulled after the yawl and was again
+approaching when the <i>Daisy</i> once more tacked and ran away. But at
+last the galley came up, and just as Grubb was in the act of stepping
+aboard, Palmer coolly remarked that he had some tubs aboard, following
+this up by the explanation that he had got them on the trawling
+ground. This was too obvious a lie to be believed for a moment.</p>
+
+<p>Grubb accordingly inquired how it was that Palmer had come past
+Harwich since the latter was his home, to which he answered that he
+was bound for Ipswich, as there his vessel was registered. But
+inasmuch as there were two of the Revenue cutters as well as a
+guardship lying at the entrance to the river, how was it that he had
+not stopped to hand the tubs over to them? For either the Customs
+cutter <i>Griper</i>, or the Excise cutter <i>Badger</i>, would have been the
+ordinary receptacle, instead of waiting till a Preventive galley
+overtook the <i>Daisy</i>. When Grubb asked how Palmer had come by all
+these tubs he said that he had <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[Pg 260]</a></span>caught them in his trawl, whereupon
+the preventive man examined the net and found it damp but certainly
+not wet, as it would have been had Palmer's version been the truth.
+Furthermore, if these tubs had been caught in the trawl there would
+have been a number of holes torn, but Grubb found there to be no
+holes. There were no fewer than forty-eight of these tubs found on the
+<i>Daisy</i>&mdash;all half-ankers, and fitted with slings ready for
+landing&mdash;and inasmuch as it was clear that the net had not been lately
+used Palmer was obviously lying. The iron which, had it been dragged
+along the sea-bed, would have been polished bright with the sand, was
+actually not bright but rusty, thus proving that it had not been
+recently used.</p>
+
+<p>Grubb therefore felt justified in arresting the yawl, and taking her
+and her tubs to the Custom House. Later on he made a thorough search
+of her, and found a creeping-iron which had five prongs and a long
+shank. The reader is well aware that such an implement was used by the
+smugglers but never found on board a genuine fishing-craft. For
+getting up sunken tubs it was essential, and for that purpose it was
+evidently on board the <i>Daisy</i>. Moreover, it was found to be both wet
+and polished bright as to its prongs, and there was still some wet mud
+sticking thereto.</p>
+
+<p>The case, of course, duly came on to be tried, and the
+Attorney-General suggested that at that time, in nine cases out of
+every ten, the tubs of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[Pg 261]</a></span>smuggled spirits were not brought directly to
+port but sunk at different places in the sea, located by landmarks and
+buoys, fishing-boats being sent out later on to get them by these
+creepers, and to bring them in by small quantities as opportunity
+permitted. Palmer's defence was that they had found the tubs just
+outside Harwich harbour, opposite to Landguard Fort, at about seven
+o'clock the previous evening. But it was a somewhat strange fact that
+though this fishing-vessel should have been out all night not a single
+fish was found on board. And when Palmer was asked how it was that if
+he had found these tubs, and had intended to hand them over to the
+Customs authorities, he had been so careful to stow them all below and
+not leave them on deck to be visible to the <i>Griper</i> and <i>Badger</i> as
+he passed? His reply, that he had put the tubs below lest a puff of
+wind might blow them overboard, somehow did not convince the judge,
+and the verdict went against him.</p>
+
+<p>A curious instance of an abuse of office was seen in the occurrence
+which centred round a certain Mr. Thomas Moore Slade. Mr. Slade was
+Agent Victualler for the Chatham Victualling Office, and from his
+connection with that department he had the power of employing some of
+his Majesty's vessels belonging to the department. This gentleman got
+to know that a splendid collection of pictures was about to be
+dispersed in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[Pg 262]</a></span>France. They were of great value both artistically and
+intrinsically, and had belonged to the late Duke of Orleans. Slade
+therefore, quite unjustifiably, determined to make use of one of the
+craft under his charge for the purpose of fetching these pictures into
+the country, and thus cheating the Government of its dues, which would
+have been very heavy in this transaction.</p>
+
+<p>The way he went about it was to direct a man named Thomas Cheney, who
+commanded the sloop <i>Grace</i> (belonging to the King's Victualling
+Office), to get under way and proceed a certain distance from Chatham.
+After he had come out of the Medway and had reached the Nore he was to
+open a letter which Slade had given him, wherein he would find his
+instructions. The <i>Grace</i> in due course hoisted sails and anchor and
+found herself out by the Nore. On opening the letter, Cheney was
+surprised to find he was directed to proceed to Calais. He informed
+the crew, who were very indignant, as they had all thought they were
+bound for Deptford. So that night they put back to Sheerness and let
+go anchor. The following day, with a reluctant company on board, they
+started off again and reached Ramsgate, where they lay all night. On
+the third day they crossed the Channel and got into Calais Roads,
+anchored, and remained there all night.</p>
+
+<p>It should be added that Slade had taken the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[Pg 263]</a></span>precaution to put on
+board this sloop before she left England a Mr. Thomas Aldridge, an
+expert judge of pictures, his exact description for this voyage being
+as supercargo, a term which signifies an officer in a trading vessel
+whose duty it is to manage the sales and superintend all the
+commercial concerns of the voyage. Having arrived, then, off Calais,
+Cheney, Aldridge, and some of the crew proceeded ashore and, guided by
+the art expert, went to a certain Monsieur Dessein, who kept an hotel
+in that town. From him they obtained a large number of cases
+containing the Orleans collection, and brought them off to the
+<i>Grace</i>. Altogether there were no less than fifteen of these cases,
+and although the <i>Grace</i> was a vessel of some thirty-two tons burthen,
+yet the weight of these paintings was sufficiently great to lower her
+water-line a good six inches.</p>
+
+<p>After this valuable cargo had been got aboard and stowed, a gale of
+wind sprang up and detained them for a few days, but at length they
+cleared from the French coast and steered for the Downs. From there
+they rounded the North Foreland, and after running up the Thames
+entered the Medway and let go at Gillingham until it was dark. But as
+soon as night had fallen they got going once more, and ran alongside
+the Victualling Wharf at Chatham. The pictures were brought up from
+the sloop and taken ashore by means of a crane, and then quietly
+carried into Mr. Slade's house. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[Pg 264]</a></span>By this he had thus saved the cost
+both of carriage and of duty, the pictures being afterwards sold for a
+very large sum. However, this dishonest business at length leaked out,
+an action was brought against Slade, and a verdict was given for the
+King and for six pictures of the single value of twenty guineas.</p>
+
+<p>On the evening of a November day in the year 1819, the Revenue cutter
+<i>Badger</i>, under the command of Captain Mercer, was cruising in the
+English Channel between Dungeness and Boulogne. About seven o'clock it
+was reported to the commander that about a quarter of a mile away
+there was a lugger steering about N.W. by W. towards the English
+coast. The <i>Badger</i> thereupon gave chase, but as she drew nearer and
+nearer the lugger altered her course many times. Carrying a smart
+press of canvas, the <i>Badger</i>, which was one of the fastest vessels
+employed in the Revenue, came up rapidly. As usual she fired her
+warning gun for the lugger to heave-to, but all the notice taken by
+the chased ship was to go about on the other tack and endeavour still
+to escape. But presently the cutter, running with the wind on her
+quarter and doing her eight knots to the lugger's four or five, came
+up to her foe so quickly as to run right past her. But before the
+<i>Badger</i> luffed up she hailed the lugger (whose name was afterwards
+found to be the <i>Iris</i> of Boulogne) and ordered her to heave-to.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[Pg 265]</a></span>"I be hove-to," answered back one of the lugger's crew in unmistakable
+English.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep265" id="imagep265"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep265.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep265.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;The Badger was hoisting up the galley in the rigging.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"The <i>Badger</i> was hoisting up the galley in the rigging."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the <i>Badger</i> was hoisting up the galley in the rigging
+preparatory to launching, and the crew stood by ready to get in. As
+soon as the <i>Badger</i> had shot past, down went her helm and she came
+alongside the <i>Iris</i> as the galley was dropped into the leaden waters.
+But just at that moment the <i>Badger's</i> people overheard some men on
+the lugger exclaim, "Now's your time," whereupon the crew of the
+lugger also launched their boat, forsook the <i>Iris</i>, and began to row
+off as fast as they could. The <i>Badger</i> called to them&mdash;among whom was
+a man named Albert Hugnet&mdash;ordering them under pain of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[Pg 266]</a></span>being shot to
+come alongside the cutter. They replied that they were coming, but
+that they could not find their thole-pins, saying that they had only
+two oars on one side and one oar on the other. This was said in
+English, and was obviously a mere excuse to gain time. Meanwhile the
+cutter's galley and men had come alongside the lugger, in which they
+found 110 half-ankers, containing 382 gallons of brandy, and 157
+half-ankers of Geneva, 55 bags of tea, and 19 bags containing 355 lbs.
+of manufactured tobacco.</p>
+
+<p>As the men of the <i>Iris</i> showed no signs of coming back, the
+prize-crew on the lugger hailed the <i>Badger</i>, giving information that
+the smugglers were escaping. "Lie close," came the command, so the
+cutter trimmed her sheets and went in pursuit, and fired some shots in
+the direction of the retreating boat. But it was no use, for the boat
+was quickly lost from sight among the waves and disappeared entirely.
+There was some sea on at the time, so no one among the Revenue men
+envied the <i>Iris's</i> crew their task of rowing across to Boulogne, a
+distance of somewhere about twenty-seven miles, in that weather and
+athwart very strong tides, with the certainty of having a worse time
+as the Ridens and the neighbourhood of Boulogne was approached. In
+fact the chief mate of the cutter remarked, some time after, though he
+had seen these tub-boats go across the sea in all weathers, and were
+splendidly seaworthy, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[Pg 267]</a></span>yet he considered it was not very wise of the
+<i>Iris's</i> crew to risk it on such a night as that.</p>
+
+<p>Convinced, then, that the men were making for France, the lugger, with
+her prize crew on board, presently sailed up after the cutter, hoping
+to come across their captives. But neither cutter nor lugger could
+find the men, and concluded, no doubt, that the tub-boat had
+foundered. But, at a later date, Albert Hugnet was arrested, and in
+the following June was brought to trial and punished. It then came out
+that the whole boat-load had escaped with their lives. For Andres
+Finshaw was called as evidence for the defence. He had been one of the
+lugger's crew, and showed that after rowing away that night they had
+not fetched across to the French coast, but having the good luck to
+find a French fishing-craft only a quarter of a mile away, they were
+taken aboard her and thus returned to France.</p>
+
+<p>It was also brought out very clearly by the other side that when first
+seen the <i>Iris</i> was within nine miles of the English coast, and
+afterwards the <i>Badger</i> steered N.W. by W. towards the south of
+Dungeness, and after five and a half miles saw the Dungeness light and
+the South Foreland light, took cross-bearings of these, and having
+marked them off on the chart, fixed their position as about three
+miles from the coast. Thus when the lugger was first encountered the
+latter was about nine miles from the land.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[Pg 268]</a></span>The date of that incident, then, was the 12th of November, and Hugnet
+was not then captured. We may now pass over the next four weeks till
+we come to the 10th of December in that same year. At eight o'clock in
+the morning the Revenue cutter <i>Eagle</i> was cruising off the coast of
+Kent when she observed a lugger bearing about N.W. by N. from them.
+The lugger was under all sail and heading S.E. for Boulogne, having
+come out from East Dungeness Bay. The weather was thick, it was
+snowing, and no land was in sight, Dungeness being the nearest portion
+of the English coast.</p>
+
+<p>It did not take long for the <i>Eagle's</i> commander to guess what was
+happening, especially when that bay was so notorious, and the cutter
+began to give chase, the wind being roughly N.W. But as the <i>Eagle</i>
+pursued, the lugger, as was the approved custom, hauled up and came on
+a wind, hoping to get away and outpace the cutter. But in this the
+smugglers were not successful, and eventually the <i>Eagle</i> overhauled
+her. The cutter's galley was now launched, and after having been for
+three-quarters of an hour rowed quickly by the aid of her eight men,
+the lugger was reached and hailed. The usual warning signal was fired
+from a musket in the boat and colours shown. The lugger, however,
+declined to heave-to as requested.</p>
+
+<p>"If you don't heave-to," roared the chief mate of the <i>Eagle</i>, as he
+looked towards the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[Pg 269]</a></span>helmsman, "we'll fire right into you." On this the
+lugger lowered her sails, the galley bumped alongside, and the chief
+mate and crew, pistols in hand, leapt aboard. "Where are you from?"
+asked the chief mate. The answer came in French, which the latter did
+not understand, but he thought they said they were bound from Bordeaux
+to Calais. If so, it was an obvious and foolish lie. Mr. Gray&mdash;for
+that was the mate's name&mdash;then inquired how many men were aboard, and
+the answer returned that there were seven. Gray then called the
+lugger's men aft, and separated the English from the foreign, and
+found there were five French and two English. The two latter, said the
+Frenchman (who was none other than Albert Hugnet, whom we spoke of
+just now), were just passengers. A few minutes later, the skipper
+contradicted himself and said there were not seven but nine, all told.
+Gray then proceeded to look for the other two, and jumped down forward
+into the forepeak. As the place was dark he put his cutlass in first
+and rummaged about. In a moment the cutlass brought up against
+something soft. Gray had struck a man, hiding there, on the legs and
+thighs.</p>
+
+<p>He was called upon by the cutter's mate to come out, and instantly
+obeyed, fearing no doubt that the cutlass would assail him again if he
+didn't. As he emerged he was followed by another man, and another, and
+yet another; in fact from that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[Pg 270]</a></span>dark hole there came out a procession
+of seven, all of whom were found to be Englishmen. It was noticeable
+that most, if not all, were dressed in short jackets and petticoat
+trousers. They were clearly sailors, and not landsmen&mdash;passengers or
+anything else. In plain language they were out-and-out smugglers. What
+was especially to be noted was the fact that their trousers were quite
+wet right up to their middles. In some cases their jackets were also
+wet up to their elbows. All this clearly pointed to the fact that they
+had not long since put off from the shore, where they had succeeded in
+landing a contraband cargo by wading from the lugger to the beach; and
+such a thick atmosphere as there was on the previous night must have
+made it highly convenient for them. Nevertheless, even for these
+weather-hardened seamen, it cannot have been altogether pleasant
+penned up in sopping clothes in a dark forepeak with an unseen cutlass
+waving about in their midst and seizure pending.</p>
+
+<p>These men also Gray ordered to go aft, and put them together so that
+he might see how many altogether were English and how many French. It
+was found that there were nine of them English and five French. Taking
+possession of the helm, Gray let the sails draw and ran down to the
+<i>Eagle</i>, telling his prisoners he was going to get further
+instructions from his commander. There were no tubs found on the
+lugger, which <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[Pg 271]</a></span>was as might be expected, but there was a solitary hoop
+which had evidently come off whilst these tubs were being hauled out,
+and there were also found two pairs of slings which were universally
+employed for getting the half-ankers ashore. These slings were made of
+small line, and were passed round the circumference of the cask at its
+"bow" and "stern," sufficient line being left so that there were two
+lines, one to pass over each of a man's shoulders. These two lines
+could be joined to other two on another cask, and so each smuggler
+could land with one tub on his back and another on his chest, in much
+the same way as you see a sandwich-man carrying boards in the street.</p>
+
+<p>On examining this lugger there was no bilge-water found in the
+forepeak, so those seven shivering men could not have made the excuse
+that the vessel was damp in that portion. To cut a long story short,
+the lugger was eventually taken into Harwich, having been discovered
+seventeen miles from the French coast and eleven from the English
+shore. Assuming the lugger had travelled at about four knots an hour,
+this would mean that she had started off from the English beach on her
+return journey about 5 A.M., the previous hours of the night having
+doubtless been spent in unloading the tubs somewhere between
+Folkestone and Dungeness or perhaps Rye. Thus Hugnet, having at last
+been caught, had to stand his trial for both this and the occurrence
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[Pg 272]</a></span>of the previous month. And a verdict in each case having been returned
+against him, his activities in running backwards and forwards across
+the English Channel were, for a time at least, considerably modified.</p>
+
+<p>These tub-boats, which we have had cause to mention more than once,
+were usually not towed but carried on the lugger's deck. A tub-boat
+got its name from the fact that when the lugger was too big to run her
+nose on the beach the tubs were landed in these boats. For that reason
+they were made very deep, with plenty of high freeboard, and were
+accordingly wonderfully good sea-boats, though they were somewhat
+heavy to row even without their spirituous cargoes.</p>
+
+<p>As one looks through the gaol-books and other smuggling records, one
+finds that there was a kind of hereditary custom that this running of
+contraband goods should pass on from father to son for generations.
+Thus there are constant repetitions, in different ages, of men bearing
+the same surname engaged in smuggling and becoming wonderfully
+notorious in this art. Among such family names must be mentioned that
+of Rattenbury. The man of whom we are about to speak was flourishing
+during the second decade of the nineteenth century, and his christian
+name was John. In November 1820&mdash;it is significant how often this dark
+month crops up in the history of smuggling, when the weather was not
+likely <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[Pg 273]</a></span>to tempt those Revenue cruisers' commanders, who preferred the
+snug shelter of some creek or harbour&mdash;John Rattenbury happened to
+find himself at Weymouth. Into that port also came a vessel named the
+<i>Lyme Packet</i>, which was accustomed to trade between Lyme and
+Guernsey. But on this occasion the ship had just received the
+misfortune of carrying away her bowsprit&mdash;possibly in the Portland
+Race&mdash;and her master, John Cawley, decided to run into Weymouth for
+repairs.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst these were being taken in hand what should be more natural than
+that the <i>Lyme Packet's</i> master should drift into a local
+public-house? Having brought up comfortably in that haven of rest, he
+was promptly discovered by his old friend Rattenbury, who had also
+made for the same house of refreshment. The usual greetings took
+place, and Rattenbury inquired how it was that Cawley came to be
+there, and an explanation of the accident followed. According to the
+skipper's own version, they got into conversation, and, over a glass
+of grog, Rattenbury volunteered the remark that if Cawley would be
+willing to sail across to Cherbourg to fetch a cargo of spirits he
+would pay him at a rate that would make it much more profitable than
+trading between Lyme and Guernsey. In fact he was willing to pay
+Cawley as much as twelve shillings a cask, adding that in one voyage
+this skipper, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[Pg 274]</a></span>who happened also to be owner, would make more money
+thereby than in the regular course of trade in a twelvemonth.</p>
+
+<p>Such a proposition was more than a tempting one, and Cawley gave the
+matter his attention. Unable to resist the idea, he acquiesced, it
+being agreed that Rattenbury should accompany him to France, where
+they would take in a cargo of spirits, Cawley to be paid his twelve
+shillings for every cask they were able to bring across. So, as soon
+as the bowsprit was repaired and set in its place, the <i>Lyme Packet</i>
+cast off her warps and ran out of Weymouth harbour. She made direct
+for Cherbourg, where they anchored in the roadstead. Rattenbury now
+went ashore and returned accompanied by 227 casks of spirits made up
+in half-ankers. These were put on board and the voyage back to England
+commenced, the intention being to make for West Bay and land the goods
+somewhere near Sidmouth. Having arrived off the Devonshire coast,
+Rattenbury took the <i>Lyme Packet's</i> boat and rowed himself ashore,
+landing at Beer Head, his object being to get assistance from the men
+of Sidmouth for landing his goods. It was then about 1 A.M. The
+captain of the <i>Lyme Packet</i> kept his ship standing off and on during
+the night, and hovered about that part of the coast till daybreak. But
+as Rattenbury had not returned by the time the daylight had come back,
+Cawley became more than a little <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[Pg 275]</a></span>nervous and feared lest he might be
+detected. Before very long&mdash;the exact time was 6.30 A.M.&mdash;Robert
+Aleward, a mariner on the Revenue cutter <i>Scourge</i>, on turning his eye
+into a certain direction not more than three miles away, espied this
+<i>Lyme Packet</i>, informed his commander, and a chase was promptly begun.
+Cawley, too, saw that the <i>Lyme Packet</i> had been observed, and began
+to make preparations accordingly.</p>
+
+<p>He let draw his sheets, got the <i>Lyme Packet</i> to foot it as fast as
+she could, and as the three intervening miles became shorter and
+shorter he busied himself by throwing his casks of spirits overboard
+as quickly as he and his crew knew how. The distant sail he had
+noticed in the early morning had all too truly turned out to be the
+Revenue cutter, but he hoped yet to escape or at any rate to be found
+with nothing contraband on board. It was no good, however, for the
+cruiser soon came up, and as fast as the <i>Lyme Packet</i> had dropped
+over the half-ankers, so quickly did the <i>Scourge's</i> men pick them up
+again in the cutter's boats. Having come up alongside, the cutter's
+commander, Captain M'Lean, went on board, seized Cawley and his ship
+as prisoners, and eventually took both into Exmouth.</p>
+
+<p>Judicial proceedings followed with a verdict for the King, so that
+what with a broken bowsprit and the loss of time, cargo, ship, and
+liberty the voyage had in nowise been profitable to Cawley.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[Pg 276]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XV<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>A TRAGIC INCIDENT</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>And now we must turn to an occurrence that was rather more tragic than
+the last, though the smugglers had only themselves to blame.</p>
+
+<p>The reader is already aware of the practice existing at this time of
+actually rowing contraband across from France to England in large
+boats pulling four or more oars. As one who have myself rowed a craft
+most of the way from Calais to Dover in a flat calm, I cannot
+altogether envy the smugglers their job. However, on May 11, 1818,
+Captain Hawtayne, commanding H.M.S. <i>Florida</i>, was cruising in the
+English Channel on the look-out for contraband craft. Evidently he had
+received certain information, for at eight o'clock that evening he
+ordered Mr. Keith Stewart, master's mate, to man one of the ship's
+boats and to intercept any boat that might leave the French coast that
+looked at all of a suspicious nature.</p>
+
+<p>This order was duly obeyed. A galley was observed some time before,
+which had no doubt aroused Captain Hawtayne's suspicions. This galley
+had been seen to come out of Calais harbour and to be rowed towards
+the westward. But she <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[Pg 277]</a></span>must have spotted the <i>Florida</i>, for she very
+shortly put back. But before long Mr. Stewart's boat fell in with
+another craft&mdash;a long white galley named the <i>St. Thomas</i>. This was
+now about 1 A.M., and for a time the <i>St. Thomas</i> had the impudence to
+pretend she was a French police boat. When descried she was about five
+or six miles to the N.N.W. of Cape Blanc Nez, and was steering to the
+westward. The night was dark, for the moon had disappeared behind a
+cloud as Mr. Stewart's boat came up alongside and hailed the strange
+craft. He began by asking what boat she was. The steersman replied by
+inquiring what boat Mr. Stewart's was. The latter answered that it was
+the King's boat.</p>
+
+<p>At that time the <i>St. Thomas's</i> sails were up, and now Mr. Stewart
+ordered the steersman to lower them. He made no answer, but, turning
+round to his crew exhorted them to pull quickly, saying, "Give way, my
+boys, give way." Thereupon the smugglers cheered and pulled as hard as
+they could. Mr. Stewart again ordered the steersman to lower sail,
+adding that should he fail to do so he would fire at him. But this did
+not awe the <i>St. Thomas</i>. "Fire and be damned," answered the
+steersman. "If you fire, I will fire. We are as well armed as you
+are." Stewart held his hand and did not fire, but ordered his men to
+pull closer. Coming alongside, he addressed the steersman, saying it
+was absolutely essential that he should <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[Pg 278]</a></span>examine the <i>St. Thomas</i> and
+that he knew they were Englishmen, adding that he was unwilling that
+there should be any bloodshed by firing into the boat.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep278" id="imagep278"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep278.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep278.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;Fire and be damned.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Fire and be damned."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>With this the <i>Florida</i>'s boat pulled up on the other's quarter, and
+the bowmen hooked on with the boat-hook. The <i>St. Thomas's</i> steersman
+knocked the boat-hook away and threatened to shoot the bowman if he
+did not let go. For a short time thereafter the boats separated and
+drifted apart. But a second time his Majesty's boat pulled up
+alongside, and Mr. Stewart jumped forward into the bows and ordered
+one of his own men to stand by ready to accompany him on board. The
+steersman of the other, however, was determined, and resisted
+Stewart's attempt, at the same time presenting a pistol and
+threatening to shoot the officer if he advanced one step further.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[Pg 279]</a></span>On that the men of <i>St. Thomas</i> ceased rowing, drew in their oars, and
+rushed aft to where the steersman was standing in the stern. Matters
+began to look ugly, and being convinced that these men were bent on
+desperate resistance, Mr. Stewart was compelled to fire with his
+pistol at the steersman, who immediately fell. Stewart instantly leapt
+aboard, but was nearly jostled into the sea by two of the enemy. He
+ordered the whole of this crew to go forward, but they declined to
+obey, and followed this up by threatening that if they still refused
+he would have to use his sword and cut them down. The only member of
+his own crew who had already got aboard as well was his coxswain, and
+owing either to himself or the action of the coxswain in stepping from
+one boat to the other, the two craft had drifted apart, and for a time
+there was considerable risk that the men, who were obvious smugglers,
+would fall on these two. But the naval officer had already cut down
+two of their number with his sword, and after that the rest went
+forward and were obedient. The <i>St. Thomas</i> was rather a large craft
+of her kind. Additional to her sails, she rowed five on one side, six
+on the other, and also had a steersman, the additional oarsman being
+no doubt placed according to the tide so that his work might in some
+measure counteract the great leeway which is made by small vessels
+crossing the strong tidal stream of the English Channel.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[Pg 280]</a></span>As all was now quiet on board, Mr. Stewart searched her and found she
+was laden with kegs, which, said the crew, were filled with tea and
+tobacco, these kegs being as usual already slung for putting ashore or
+sinking. Later on it was found that out of this crew no less than six
+were English, besides one man who had been born at Flushing of English
+parentage, though he called himself a Dutchman. The rest were all
+foreigners. No one can read such an incident as this without
+regretting that they should have ever led to slaughter. It is a
+serious thing to take any man's life when there is no warfare, and it
+is still more dismal if that man is of the same nationality as the one
+who deals death. If the whole of the <i>St. Thomas's</i> crew had been
+killed there could have been no blame on Mr. Stewart, for he was only
+carrying out his orders and acting in self-defence. The smugglers were
+fully aware they were in the wrong, and they were responsible for any
+consequences that might accrue. The officer had given them ample
+warning, and he had only used severe measures when absolutely
+compelled.</p>
+
+<p>But there is a more satisfactory side to this regrettable incident,
+which one is only too glad to be able to record. The man who had been
+so badly wounded desired to speak to Mr. Stewart, and when the latter
+had approached him he turned to him and said:</p>
+
+<p>"You've killed me; sir, I'm dying."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[Pg 281]</a></span>Mr. Stewart saw that this was perfectly true, and that the man was in
+no sense exaggerating.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I'm sorry for it," he said, "but it was your own fault."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered the dying man, "I know that, but I hope you won't make
+things worse than they are. I freely forgive you."</p>
+
+<p>This was the steersman who had so strenuously opposed the boarding of
+the <i>St. Thomas</i>. We can quite sympathise with the feelings of Mr.
+Stewart, and be thankful that those lawless days of violence have long
+since passed. If you talk with any of the Revenue officers still
+living who were employed in arresting, lying in wait for, receiving
+information concerning, and sometimes having a smart fight with the
+smugglers, you will be told how altogether hateful it was to have to
+perform such a duty. It is such incidents as the above which knock all
+romance out of the smuggling incidents. An encounter with fisticuffs,
+a few hard blows, and an arrest after a smart chase or a daring
+artifice, whilst not lessening the guilt of smuggling, cannot take
+away our interest. Our sympathies all the time are with the Revenue
+men, because they have on their side right, and in the long-run right
+must eventually conquer might. But, as against this, the poorer
+classes in those days were depressed in ignorance with low ideals, and
+lacking many of the privileges which no thinking man to-day would
+refuse them. And because they were so daring <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[Pg 282]</a></span>and so persistent,
+because they had so much to lose and (comparatively speaking) so
+little really to gain, we extend to them a portion of our sympathy and
+a large measure of our interest. They were entirely in the wrong, but
+they had the right stuff in them for making the best kind of English
+sailormen, the men who helped to win our country's battles, and to
+make her what she is to-day as the owner of a proud position in the
+world of nations.</p>
+
+<p>Ten of these twelve men were taken as prisoners to the <i>Florida</i>, and
+the <i>St. Thomas</i> with her cargo still aboard were towed by the
+<i>Florida</i> into Yarmouth Roads, and there delivered to the Collector of
+Customs. She was found to be a 54-foot galley&mdash;a tremendous length for
+an oared craft&mdash;with no deck, and rigged with three lugsails and jib,
+her size working out at about 11 tons burthen. On delivering the cargo
+at Yarmouth it was found that there were altogether 207 kegs. The ten
+uninjured prisoners were taken before the Yarmouth magistrates, and
+the two whom the officer had cut down were sent on shore immediately
+the <i>Florida</i> arrived in that port. The English steersman, to whose
+case we call special attention, died, two others were fined &pound;100 each,
+two were sent to gaol, and one, who was the son of the man who died,
+was liberated, as it was shown that he had only been a passenger. The
+man who had been born of English parents at Flushing was also <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[Pg 283]</a></span>set
+free, as the magistrates had not sufficient proof that he was a
+British subject.</p>
+
+<p>A few months prior to the above occurrence Lieutenant John Wood Rouse
+was in command of his Majesty's schooner <i>Pioneer</i>. On the 11th of
+January 1817 he was cruising between Dungeness and Point St. Quintin,
+when his attention was drawn to a lugger whose name we may state by
+anticipation was the <i>Wasp</i>. She appeared to be making for the English
+coast on a N.W. bearing, and was distant about six miles. In order to
+cut her off and prevent her from making the shore Lieutenant Rouse
+sent one of his men named Case with a galley to cross her bows. At the
+same time he also despatched another of his boats under the care of a
+Mr. Walton to make directly for the lugger. This occurred about 10
+A.M., and the chase continued till about 3.45 P.M., when the schooner
+came alongside the lugger that had, by this time, been seized by Mr.
+Case. Lieutenant Rouse was then careful to take bearings of the land,
+and fixed his position so that there should be no dispute as to
+whether the lugger were seized within the legal limits.</p>
+
+<p>On capturing the lugger, only two persons were found on board, and
+these were at once transferred to the <i>Pioneer</i>. To show what liars
+these smugglers could become, one of these two said he was a
+Frenchman, but his name was the very British-sounding William
+Stevenson. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[Pg 284]</a></span>The other said he was a Dutchman. Stevenson could speak
+not a word of French, but he understood English perfectly, and said
+that part of the cargo was intended for England and part for Ireland,
+which happened to be the truth, as we shall see presently. He also
+added that of the crew of eight three were Dutchmen and five English,
+for he had by now forgotten his own alleged nationality.</p>
+
+<p>Prior to the arrival of Mr. Case's boat the lugger had hoisted out her
+tub-boat and rowed away as fast as the waves would let her, with all
+the crew except these two. She was found to have a cargo of tobacco
+and tea, as well as Geneva, all being made up into suitable dimensions
+for landing. On examining the ship's papers it was indicated that she
+was bound for Bilbao in Spain. But these papers had evidently been
+obtained in readiness for such an occurrence as the advent of the
+schooner. When it is mentioned that this lugger was only a large
+galley with absolutely no deck whatever, and capable of being rowed by
+ten men, it was hardly credible that she would be the kind of craft to
+sail round Ushant and across the Bay of Biscay. "Was she calculated to
+carry a cargo to Spain?" asked counsel at the trial two years later.
+"I will risk my experience as a sailor," answered one of the
+witnesses, "that I would not have risked my life in a boat of that
+description."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[Pg 285]</a></span>But, unfortunately for the smugglers, there was discovered on board a
+tin box which absolutely gave their case away. In this tin box was
+found an instructive memorandum which it requires no very great
+ingenuity to decipher, and ran something as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div style="margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%;">
+<p class="hang">"For B. Valden.</p>
+<p class="hang">From Tusca Tower to Blackwater Hill, allowing half a point for the tide.</p>
+<p class="hang">For W. Martensons Glyn.</p>
+<p class="hang">From Tusca N.E. until Tara Hill bears N.W.</p>
+<p class="noin">10 pieces of chocolate 10 gulders.<br />
+10 pieces of gays<a name="FNanchor_20_20" id="FNanchor_20_20"></a><a href="#Footnote_20_20" class="fnanchor">[20]</a> 10 ditto.</p>
+
+<p class="hang">A proportion of G., say one-third, and let it be strong as
+possible. A vessel coming in the daytime should come to anchor
+outside the banks.</p>
+<p class="hang">At Clocker Head, Bryan King.</p>
+<p class="hang">At the Mountain Fort, Henry Curran.</p>
+<p class="hang">And Racklen, Alexander M'Donald."</p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>Now anyone on consulting a chart or map of the south-west and west of
+the British Isles can easily see that the above was just a crude form
+of sailing directions to guide the ship to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[Pg 286]</a></span>land the goods at various
+places in Ireland, especially when the box also contained a paper to
+the following effect:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><p>"The Land's End to Tusca 135 miles N.N.E. A berth off Scilly 150
+N.E.&frac34;N."</p></div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p>The ship was to take such goods as mentioned to the above individuals,
+and here were the landmarks and courses and the division of the goods.
+"A proportion of G," of course, referred to the amount of Geneva, but
+the gentleman for whom it was intended did not get it "as strong as
+possible." Not one of these places mentioned was within hundreds of
+miles of Bilbao, but all the seamarks were to guide the mariners to
+Ireland. Tara Hill, Tuscar Rock and so on were certainly not Spanish.
+But these instructions were by no means uncommon. They were
+technically known among smugglers as "spot-notes," that is to say,
+indications of the spots where the goods were to be landed. When
+Stevenson found that his captors had become possessed of these papers
+he was considerably confused and embarrassed, even going so far as to
+ask for them to be given back to him&mdash;a request which was naturally
+declined.</p>
+
+<p>The lugger was taken captive into Dover, and Stevenson, being an
+Englishman, was committed to gaol in the Dover town prison, from which
+he succeeded in escaping. The Dutchman was let <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[Pg 287]</a></span>off, as he was a
+foreigner. The men who had rowed away in the tub-boat escaped to
+France, having taken with them out of the galley one parcel of
+bandanna handkerchiefs. The rule in these cases was to fine the
+culprit &pound;100 if he was a landsman; but if he was a sailor he was
+impressed into the Navy for a period of five years.</p>
+
+<p>There must be many a reader who is familiar with some of those
+delightful creeks of Devonshire and Cornwall, and has been struck with
+the natural facilities which are offered to anyone with a leaning for
+smuggling. Among these there will rise to the imagination that
+beautiful inlet on whose left bank stands Salcombe. Towards the end of
+June in the year 1818 William Webber, one of the Riding officers,
+received information that some spirits had been successfully run
+ashore at the mouth of this harbour, "a place," remarked a legal
+luminary of that time, "which is very often made the spot for landing"
+this class of goods.</p>
+
+<p>Webber therefore obtained the assistance of a private in the 15th
+Regiment, and early in the evening, as he had been informed that the
+goods were not yet carried away, but still were lying deposited
+somewhere near the beach, proceeded to the spot. He and the hussar
+arrived at the place about nine o'clock on this June evening and
+managed to conceal themselves behind a hedge. They had not very long
+to wait before they heard <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[Pg 288]</a></span>the sound of some men talking, and a man
+named James Thomas was observed to remark:</p>
+
+<p>"We couldn't have had a better time for smuggling if we had lain abed
+and prayed for it."</p>
+
+<p>Through the openings in the hedge Webber and the hussar could see the
+outline of the delinquent, and the voice was more than familiar to the
+Riding officer. We can readily appreciate Thomas's ecstasy when we
+remark that it had now become rather dark and a sea-haze such as
+frequently comes up in fine weather after a hot day was beginning to
+spread itself around. For some time longer the two men continued to
+remain in their hiding-place, and then heard that Thomas and his
+accomplice had become joined by a number of other people. The sound of
+horses' hoofs being led down to the beach was also distinctly heard,
+and there were many signs of accelerated activity going on. Presently
+there came upon the ears of the Riding officers the noise which
+proceeds from the rattling of casks, and from some convenient
+hiding-place, where they had remained, these were at last brought
+forth, slings were prepared, and then the load was placed on the backs
+of the several horses.</p>
+
+<p>At this point, deeming that the time had come to interfere, the Riding
+officer and the hussar crept out from their place of concealment and
+advanced towards the band of smugglers. But, alert as hares, the
+latter, so soon as they realised <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[Pg 289]</a></span>their own danger, took to their
+heels and ran helter-skelter away. Thomas, however, was too wrath to
+hasten, and began to curse his men. He began by complaining that the
+kegs which had been brought forth were wonderfully "slack," that is to
+say they were not as full as they might have been, hinting that
+someone had been helping himself to their contents of spirits. "If you
+had brought these a little sooner," referring doubtless to both horses
+and casks, "we should have been three miles on our way home."</p>
+
+<p>But scarcely had he finished his sentence than the last of his band
+had fled, leaving him behind with both horses and casks. He was
+promptly arrested and eleven months later prosecuted by the
+Attorney-General.</p>
+
+<p>Because the smugglers were so frequently assisted in their work by
+those night signals to which we alluded some time back it had been
+made a penal offence to show a light for the purpose of signalling
+within six miles of the coast. Arising out of such an offence, John
+Newton and another found themselves prosecuted for an incident that
+occurred about the middle of December 1819. The comparative seclusion
+of that big bight which extends from the Bill of Portland to the
+promontory well known to many readers as Hope's or Pope's Nose, was
+much favoured by the smuggling fraternity. This West Bay was well out
+of the English Channel and the track of most of his <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[Pg 290]</a></span>Majesty's ships,
+and there were plenty of hills and high ground from which to show
+friendly signals to their comrades. Rattenbury and Cawley, as we
+related, had in vain tried to land their cargo hereabouts, though
+there were many others who, before the Revenue cutters became smarter
+at their duty, had been able to run considerable quantities of
+dutiable goods in the vicinity of Sidmouth and Lyme.</p>
+
+<p>On the afternoon of this winter's day two small sailing craft had been
+noticed by the Preventive shore officers to be tacking about near the
+land, but did not appear to be engaged in fishing. It was therefore
+reasonably supposed they were about to run some contraband ashore
+after dark. A Mr. Samuel Stagg and a Mr. Joseph Pratt, stationed at
+Sidmouth in the Preventive service, were all the time keeping a smart
+look-out on these boats, and somewhere about five o'clock in the
+evening launched their oared-cutter and rowed off towards them. After
+a chase they came alongside the first, which was named the <i>Nimble</i>,
+and boarded her. They found therein three men consisting of John
+Newton, John Bartlett, and Thomas Westlake; but as they searched her
+and found no trace of any casks or packages of tobacco, the Preventive
+men left her to row after the other craft. It was now, of course,
+quite dark, and there was blowing a nice sailing breeze. Scarcely had
+they started to row away before the <i>Nimble</i> hoisted sail and by
+means <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[Pg 291]</a></span>of flint and steel began to make fire-signals, and kept on so
+doing for the next half hour. This was, of course, a signal for the
+second boat, and as soon as the latter observed these signs she also
+made sail and hurried away into the darkness of the bay. It was
+impossible for the officers to get up to her, for they would stand
+every chance of losing themselves in the vast expanse of West Bay, and
+the craft might take it into her head to run down Channel perhaps into
+Cornwall or eastwards round to Portland, where goods often were
+landed. Therefore deeming one craft in arrest to be worth two sailing
+about in West Bay, they went back and seized the <i>Nimble</i>. The three
+men, whose names we have given, were taken ashore, tried, and found
+guilty. But as illustrative of the times it is worth noting that John
+Bartlett had before this occurrence actually been engaged for some
+time as one of the crew of that Revenue cutter about which we spoke
+some time back in this very bay. And so, now, "for having on the high
+seas, within six miles of the coast, made a certain light on board a
+boat for the purpose of giving a signal to a certain person or
+persons," he was, in company with his two colleagues, condemned.</p>
+
+<p>That the age of lawless mobs was by no means past, may be seen from
+the incident which now follows. It had been thought that the Act which
+had been passed, forbidding any boat built to row with more than four
+oars, would have put <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[Pg 292]</a></span>a considerable check to activities of the
+smugglers. But these boats not only continued to be built, but also to
+be navigated and used for the contraband purposes. The Revenue
+officers of the district of Christchurch, Hants, had reason in April
+of 1821 to believe that a boat was being constructed in their
+neighbourhood of such dimensions and capable of being rowed with such
+a number of oars as made her liable to seizure. Therefore, taking with
+them a couple of dragoons, two of these Revenue officers proceeded on
+their way to the district near Milton, which is, roughly speaking, the
+centre of that bay which is bounded on one side by Christchurch Head,
+and on the other by Hurst Point. They had not arrived long at their
+destination before it was found that about thirty men had concealed
+themselves in an adjoining wood. The officers had found the boat they
+were looking for in a meadow, and were about to seize it.</p>
+
+<p>It was found to be covered over with sails, having been hidden in the
+meadow for safety's sake, for since it was made to row seven aside it
+was clearly liable to forfeiture. One of the two officers now went off
+to fetch assistance, and whilst he was away two of the smugglers came
+forth and fraternising with the two dragoons, offered them some brandy
+which they drank. In a short while both soldiers had taken such a
+quantity of the spirits that they became utterly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[Pg 293]</a></span>intoxicated and
+helpless. One of the two smugglers then gave a whistle, and about
+thirty men issued forth from the wood, some of them in various forms
+of disguise. One had a deer's skin over his face, others had their
+faces and hands coloured with blue clay and other means. These men
+angrily demanded from the solitary officer the sails which he had
+removed from the boat, but their requests were met by refusal. The mob
+then seized hold of the sails, and a tussle followed, whereupon the
+officer threatened to shoot them. He managed to retain hold of one
+sail, while the mob held the other and took it away.</p>
+
+<p>About three o'clock in the afternoon the other officer returned with
+the Lymington Preventive officer, two Custom House men, and three
+dragoons. They found the intoxicated soldiers, one of whom was lying
+prostrate on the field, while the other was ludicrously and vainly
+endeavouring to mount his horse. The seven men now united, and got a
+rope by which they began to remove the boat from its hiding-place,
+when a great many more people came on to the scene in great
+indignation. As many as fifty, at least, were now assembled, and
+threats and oaths were bandied about. During this excitement some of
+the crowd cut the rope, while a man named Thomas Vye jumped into the
+boat, and rather than see her fall into the hands of the enemy,
+endeavoured to stave her in.</p>
+
+<p>The remainder of the story is but brief. For, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[Pg 294]</a></span>at last, the seven men
+succeeded in pulling the boat away in spite of all the crowd's
+efforts, and dragged it even across a couple of fields, where there
+was a road. Here a conveyance was waiting ready, and thus the boat was
+taken away, and at a later date Vye was duly prosecuted by the Crown
+for his share in the proceedings.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_20_20" id="Footnote_20_20"></a><a href="#FNanchor_20_20"><span class="label">[20]</span></a> "Gays" was evidently trade slang to denote bandanna silk
+handkerchiefs, which were frequently smuggled, and some of which were
+found on board.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[Pg 295]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVI<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>By an Order in Council of May 5, 1821, it was directed that henceforth
+all sums which were awarded for arrests on shore of any person
+concerned in smuggling should be paid in the following proportions. He
+who made the arrest was to have three-quarters of the reward, which
+was to be divided into equal proportions if there were more than one
+person. If there were any officer or officers present at the time of
+arrest, these were to have one quarter of the reward. The officer
+commanding the party was to have two shares, each of the other
+officers having one share. The reward payable for a smuggler convicted
+and transferred to the Navy amounted to &pound;20. And here let it be added
+that the persons liable to arrest in regard to smuggling were: (1)
+Those found on smuggling vessels; (2) Those found unloading or
+assisting to unload such craft; (3) Those found to be carrying away
+the landed goods or concerned in hiding the same. But before
+conviction it was essential to prove that the seized spirits were
+foreign; that the vessel had come from foreign parts; that the party
+who <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[Pg 296]</a></span>detained the smugglers was a Customs Officer; and that the
+offenders were taken before a proper magistrate.</p>
+
+<p>We now come to the year 1821, when the Commissioners of Inquiry made
+an important report touching the Revenue service. They suggested that
+the Riding Officers were not valuable in proportion to their cost, and
+so it came about that the Inspectors and superior officers, as well as
+a large number of the inferior classes, were dispensed with, but a
+small percentage of the lowest class was retained as a Preventive
+Mounted Guard, the annual cost of this being only the modest sum of
+&pound;5000. This Preventive Guard was to be employed in watching for any
+gatherings of smugglers, and whenever any goods might be landed and
+carried up into the country, they were to be followed up by the
+members of this guard. They were also to maintain a communication
+between the different stations.</p>
+
+<p>Up to the year 1821, from those early days of the seventeenth century
+and earlier, the Revenue cruisers were the most important of all the
+means employed for suppressing smuggling. But the same inquiry which
+had made its recommendations regarding the Riding Officers also
+reported that the efficacy of the vessels employed in protecting the
+Revenue was not proportionate to the expense incurred in their
+maintenance. They advised, therefore, that their numbers should be
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[Pg 297]</a></span>reduced, and that whereas they had in 1816 come under the care of the
+Admiralty, they should now be restored to the control of the Customs.
+But the officers and crews of these cruisers were still to be selected
+by the Admiralty. And thus in the year 1822 these recommendations were
+carried into effect, and a new order inaugurated.</p>
+
+<p>It was by a Treasury Minute of February 15, 1822, that it was directed
+that the whole of the force employed for the prevention of smuggling
+"on the coast of this kingdom," was to be consolidated and
+transferred, and placed under the direction of the Customs Board. This
+force was to consist of the cruisers, Preventive Water-guard, and
+Riding Officers. And henceforth the commanders of cruisers were to
+receive their orders from the Controller-General of the Coastguard,
+who was to be responsible to the Board of Customs. The one exception
+to this change was that the Coast Blockade on the coast of Kent and
+Sussex, which had shown itself so satisfactory that it was left
+unaltered. The Preventive Water-guard became the Coastguard, and
+this&mdash;rather than the cruisers&mdash;should form the chief force for
+prevention of smuggling, the Riding Officers, or Preventive Mounted
+Guard, being merely auxiliary by land, and the cruisers merely
+auxiliary by sea. To what extent the number of cruisers were reduced
+can be estimated by stating that whereas there were forty-seven of
+these Revenue craft employed in England <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[Pg 298]</a></span>in 1821, there were only
+thirty-three two years later, these consisting of the <i>Mermaid</i>,
+<i>Stag</i>, <i>Badger</i>, <i>Ranger</i>, <i>Sylvia</i>, <i>Scout</i>, <i>Fox</i>, <i>Lively</i>,
+<i>Hawk</i>, <i>Cameleon</i>, <i>Hound</i>, <i>Rose</i>, <i>Scourge</i>, <i>Repulse</i>, <i>Eagle</i>,
+<i>Tartar</i>, <i>Adder</i>, <i>Lion</i>, <i>Dove</i>, <i>Lapwing</i>, <i>Greyhound</i>, <i>Swallow</i>,
+<i>Active</i>, <i>Harpy</i>, <i>Royal George</i>, <i>Fancy</i>, <i>Cheerful</i>, <i>Newcharter</i>,
+<i>Fly</i>, <i>Seaflower</i>, <i>Nimble</i>, <i>Sprightly</i>, <i>Dolphin</i>.</p>
+
+<p>The first-class cruisers were of 140 tons and upwards, the second
+class of from 100 to 140 tons, and the third class were under 100
+tons. In 1824 the cruisers on the Irish coast and the Scotch coast
+were also transferred to the Customs Board, and from that date the
+entire Coastguard service, with the exception of the Coast Blockade,
+was directed, as stated, by the Controller-General.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1829, the instructions were issued to the Coastguard.
+Afloat, these applied to the commanders, mates, gunners, stewards,
+carpenters, mariners, and boys of the cruisers. Ashore, they were
+applicable to the Chief Officers, Chief Boatmen, Mounted Guard,
+Commissioned Boatmen, and Boatmen, both sections being under their
+respective commanders. Each member of the Mounted Guard was provided
+with a good horse and sword, with an iron scabbard of the Light
+Cavalry pattern, as well as a couple of pistols and ammunition. The
+cruiser commanders were again enjoined to keep the sea in bad weather
+and at night, nor were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[Pg 299]</a></span>they permitted to come to harbour except when
+really necessary.</p>
+
+<p>In 1831 came the next change, when the Coastguard took the place of
+the Coast Blockade, which had done excellent duty for so many years in
+Kent and Sussex. The aim was to make the Coastguard service national
+rather than departmental. To promote the greatest efficiency it was
+become naval rather than civil. It was to be for the benefit of the
+country as a nation, than for the protecting merely of its revenues.
+Thus there was a kind of somersault performed; and the whole of the
+original idea capsized. Whereas the Preventive service had been
+instituted for the benefit of the Customs, and then, as an
+after-thought, became employed for protection against the enemy across
+the Channel, so now it was to be exactly the other way on. The Revenue
+was to be subservient to the greater and national factor.</p>
+
+<p>In this same 1831, the number of cruisers had risen to thirty-five in
+England, but many of them had tenders. There were altogether
+twenty-one of these latter and smaller craft, their tonnage varying
+from twenty-five to sixty. And the next year the Mounted Guard was
+reorganised and the Riding Officers disappeared. With the cordon of
+cruisers afloat, and the more efficient Coastguard service ashore,
+there was a double belt round our coasts, which could be relied upon
+both for national and Revenue services. By this time, too, steam <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[Pg 300]</a></span>was
+invading the domain of the ship, and in 1839, besides the
+old-fashioned sailing cutters and tenders, there was a steamer named
+the <i>Vulcan</i>, of 200 tons, taken into the service, her duty being to
+cruise about and search for suspicious vessels. In some parts of the
+country, also, there was assistance still rendered by the Mounted
+Guard for watching the roads leading inland from the beach to prevent
+goods being brought up.</p>
+
+<p>With this increased efficiency it was but natural that a change should
+come over the character of the smuggling. Force was fast going out of
+date. Except for a number of rather startling occasions, but on the
+whole of exceptional occurrence, violence had gone out of fashion. But
+because of the increased vigilance along the coast the smuggler was
+hard put to devise new methods of running his goods into the country
+without being surprised by the officials. Most, if not all, of the old
+syndicates of French and Englishmen, who made smuggling a roaring
+trade, had died out. The armed cutters had long since given way to the
+luggers as the smuggling craft. Stealth had taken the place of
+violence, concealments and sunken goods were favoured rather than
+those daring and outrageous incursions which had been in the past wont
+to take place.</p>
+
+<p>And yet, just as a long-standing illness cannot be cured at once, but
+keeps recurring, so there were periods when the smuggling disease kept
+breaking <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[Pg 301]</a></span>out and seemed to get worse. Such a period was that between
+1825 and 1843, but it was pointed out to the Treasury that so long as
+the high duties continued, "Your Lordships must look only to the
+efficiency of the Coastguard for the continued absence of successful
+enterprises, and that smuggling would immediately revive upon the
+slightest symptom of relaxation on the part of the Commissioners of
+Customs." The service was therefore glad to encourage Naval
+Lieutenants to serve as Chief Officers of the Coastguard.</p>
+
+<p>Among the general instructions issued to the Coastguard of the United
+Kingdom in 1841, were definite orders to the commanders of cruisers.
+Thus, if ever a cruiser ran aground the commander was to report it,
+with full particulars of the case and extent of damage. During the
+summer season the Inspecting Commanders were to take opportunities for
+trying the comparative speeds of these cruisers. Whenever cruisers
+should meet at sea, in any roadstead or in any harbour, they were to
+hoist their ensigns and pendants as an acknowledgment that each had
+seen the other; and when both had thus hoisted their colours they
+might immediately be hauled down. This was also to be done when one
+cruiser should pass another at anchor.</p>
+
+<p>Cruisers were again reminded that they were to wear only the ensigns
+and pendants appointed for the Revenue service, and not such as are
+used in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[Pg 302]</a></span>the Royal Navy. Nor were salutes to be fired by cruisers
+except on particular and extraordinary occasions. It was further
+ordered that no alteration was to be made in the hull, masts, yards,
+sails, or any fitments of the cruisers, without the sanction of the
+Controller-General. To prevent unnecessary expense on fitting out or
+refitting of any of the cruisers, the use of leather was to be
+restricted to the following: the leathering of the main pendants,
+runners in the wake of the boats when in tackles, the collar of the
+mainstay, the nip of the main-sheet block strops, leathering the
+bowsprint traveller, the spanshackle for the bowsprit, topmast iron,
+the four reef-earings three feet from the knot. All old copper,
+copper-sheathing, nails, lead, iron and other old materials which were
+of any value, were to be collected and allowed for by the tradesmen
+who perform the repairs. New sails were to be tried as soon as
+received in order to ascertain their fitness. Both boats and cruisers
+were also to be painted twice a year, above the water-line, this to be
+done by the crews themselves.</p>
+
+<p>A general pilot was allowed for two months when a cruiser arrived on a
+new station, and an occasional pilot was permissible in cases of
+necessity, but only licensed pilots were to be employed. General
+pilots were paid 6s. a day as well as the usual rations of provisions.
+The cruisers were provided with charts of the coast off which they
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[Pg 303]</a></span>were employed. Naval officers holding appointments as Inspecting
+Commanders of cruisers, Chief Officers of stations and Mates of
+cruisers were ordered to wear the greatcoat established by any
+Admiralty regulation in force for the time being, with epaulettes,
+cap, and side-arms, according to their ranks. Commanders of cruisers,
+if not naval officers, were to wear a blue lappel-coat, buttoned back
+with nine Coastguard uniform buttons and notched button-holes, plain
+blue stand-up collar with gold lace loop and button on each side
+thereof&mdash;the loop to be five inches long, and the lace three-quarters
+of an inch in breadth. There were also to be three buttons and notched
+button-holes on each cuff and pocket, as well as three buttons in the
+folds of each skirt.</p>
+
+<p>The waistcoat was to be white or blue kerseymere, with uniform
+buttons, white or blue pantaloons or trousers, with boots, a blue
+cloth cap similar in shape to those worn in the Royal Navy, with two
+bands of gold lace three-quarters of an inch broad, one at the top and
+the other at the bottom of the headpiece. The sword was to have a
+plain lace knot and fringe tassel, with a black leather belt. White
+trousers were worn on all occasions of inspection and other special
+occasions between April 23 and October 14. Blue trousers were to be
+worn for the other months.</p>
+
+<p>In 1849 the Select Committee on the Board of Customs expressed the
+opinion that the number <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[Pg 304]</a></span>of cruisers might be reduced, and the
+Landguard practically abolished; but it was deemed advisable that
+these protections being removed, the coastline of defence ought to be
+strengthened by securing the services of Naval Lieutenants who had
+retired from the Navy on half-pay. So the number of cruisers and
+tenders which in 1844 had reached seventy-six, and in 1849 were
+fifty-two, had now sunk to fifty in the year 1850. In 1854, on the
+outbreak of war with Russia, 3000 men were drafted into the Navy from
+the Coastguard, their places being filled by pensioners. During the
+war considerable service was also rendered by the Revenue cruisers, by
+capturing the Russian ships in the Northern Seas, for we must
+recollect that, just as in the wars with France, there were two
+centres to be dealt with, viz., in the north and south. The war with
+Russia, as regards the sea service, was prosecuted both in the Narrow
+Seas and in the Black Sea, and the Russian trade was badly cut up. As
+many as eleven Russian ships were captured by means of these British
+cutters, and no less than eight of these prizes were condemned. The
+fact is worthy of being borne in mind when considering the history of
+these craft which have long since passed from performing active
+service.</p>
+
+<p>The next modification came in 1856, when it was resolved to transfer
+the control of the Coastguard to the Admiralty; for in spite of the
+great <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[Pg 305]</a></span>change which had been brought about in 1831, all the Coastguard
+officers and men while being appointed by the Admiralty, were none the
+less controlled by the Customs. However, this condition was now
+altered, but in the teeth of opposition on the part of the Customs,
+who represented to the Treasury that considerable inconvenience would
+result from this innovation. But on the 1st of October 1856, the
+control of the Coastguard was transferred to the Admiralty, as it had
+been foreshadowed. And with that we see practically the last stage in
+the important development which had been going on for some years past.
+It was practically the finale of the tendency towards making the
+service naval rather than civil.</p>
+
+<p>For the moment, I am seeking to put the reader in possession of a
+general idea of the administrative features of the service, which is
+our subject, during the period between 1822-1856. At the
+last-mentioned date our period devoted to cutters and smugglers
+practically ends. But before proceeding to deal with the actual
+incidents and exciting adventures embraced by this period, it may be
+convenient just to mention that these changes were followed in 1869,
+when the services of civilians employed in any capacity in the
+Coastguard were altogether dispensed with, and since then the general
+basis of the Coastguard development has been for the better defence of
+our coasts, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[Pg 306]</a></span>so as to be vigilant against any disembarkation by a
+foreign power, at the same time providing to a certain extent for the
+manning of the ships of the Royal Navy when required. Thus, the old
+organisation, with which the Customs Board was so closely and for so
+long a time connected, changed its character when its sphere became
+national rather than particular. Its duty henceforth was primarily for
+the protection of the country than for the prevention of smuggling.
+But between 1822&mdash;when the Admiralty yielded up their responsibilities
+to the Customs Board&mdash;and the year 1856, when again the control was
+returned to the Admiralty, no material alterations were made in the
+methods of preventing smuggling, the most important event during that
+period&mdash;apart altogether from the actual smuggling incidents&mdash;was the
+change which had been brought about in 1831.</p>
+
+<p>During the different reigns and centuries in which the smuggling evil
+had been at work, all sorts of anti-smuggling acts had been passed. We
+can well understand that a certain amount of hasty, panic-driven
+legislation had from time to time been created according to the sudden
+increase of contraband running. But all these laws had become so
+numerous, and their accumulation had made matters so intricate, that
+the time had come for some process of unravelling, straightening out,
+and summarising. The systematising and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[Pg 307]</a></span>clarification were affected by
+the Act of January 5, 1826 (6 Geo. IV. cap. 108). And one of the most
+important features of this was to the effect that any vessel belonging
+wholly or in part to his Majesty's subjects, found within four leagues
+of the coast of the United Kingdom, with prohibited goods on board,
+and not proceeding on her voyage, was to be forfeited. Any vessel or
+boat, not square-rigged, belonging wholly or in part to his Majesty's
+subjects, and found in the British (as it was then frequently
+designated) Channel or Irish Channel, or elsewhere within 100 leagues
+of the coast, with spirits or tobacco in casks or packages of less
+size than 40 gallons; or tea, tobacco, or snuff, in any package
+containing less than 450 lbs. in weight&mdash;this craft was to be
+forfeited. And vessels (not square-rigged), if found unlicensed, were
+also to be forfeited. But whale-boats, fishing-boats, pilot's boats,
+purely inland boats, and boats belonging to square-rigged ships were
+exempt.</p>
+
+<p>But, of course, smuggling was still very far from being dead, and the
+Revenue cruisers had always to be on the alert. Some idea of the
+sphere of activity belonging to these may be gathered from the
+following list of cruiser stations existing in the early 'twenties.
+The English cruiser stations consisted of: Deptford, Chatham,
+Sheerness, Portsmouth, Cowes, Weymouth, Exmouth, Plymouth, Fowey,
+Falmouth, Penzance, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[Pg 308]</a></span>Milford, Berwick, Grimsby, Boston, North
+Yarmouth, Harwich, Gravesend, Dover, Poole, Brixham, Ilfracombe,
+Douglas (Isle of Man), Alderney, Dover, Seaford, Dartmouth, Holyhead,
+Southend (in the port of Leigh). In Scotland there were: Leith,
+Montrose, Stranraer, Stornoway, Aberdeen, Cromarty, Campbeltown,
+Greenock. In Ireland there were: Kingstown, Larne, Killibegs,
+Westport, Galway, Cork, and Dunmore East.</p>
+
+<p>It was to such places as the above that the cruisers repaired for
+their provisions. When smugglers had been captured and taken on board
+these cruisers they were allowed not to fare as well as the crew, but
+to have only two-thirds of the victuals permitted to the mariners. In
+1825 additional instructions were issued relating to the victualling
+of his Majesty's Revenue Cruisers, and in future every man per diem
+was to have:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>One pound of biscuit, 1/3 of a pint of rum (wine measure), until the
+establishment of the imperial measure, when 1/4 of a pint was to be
+allowed, the imperial gallon being one-fifth greater than the wine
+gallon. Each man was also to have 1 lb. beef, 1/2 lb. flour, or in
+lieu thereof 1/2 pint of oatmeal, 1/4 lb. suet, or 1-1/2 oz. of sugar
+or 1/4 oz. of tea, also 1 lb. of cabbage or 2 oz. of Scotch barley.
+They were to be provided with pure West India rum, of at least twelve
+months old. Further regulations were also taken as to the nature of
+the men's grog. "As it is <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[Pg 309]</a></span>considered extremely prejudicial to the
+health of the crew to suffer the allowance of spirits to be drank raw,
+the Commanders are to cause the same to be served out to them mixed
+with water, in the proportion of three parts water and one part
+spirits, to be so mixed and served out in presence of one of the
+mates, the boatswain, gunner, or carpenter, and one or two of the
+mariners."</p>
+
+<p>Smugglers detained on board were not to have spirits. Before
+proceeding to sea each cruiser was to have on board not less than two
+months' supply of salt beef, spirits; suet or sugar and tea in lieu,
+as well as Scotch barley. With reference to the other articles of
+food, they were to carry as large a proportion as could be stowed
+away, with the exception of fresh beef and cabbages. But two years
+prior to this, that is to say on April 5, 1823, the Board of Customs
+had reduced the victualling allowances, so that Commander and mates
+and superintendents of Quarantine received 2s. 6d. a day each;
+mariners 1s. 3d.; and mariners of lazarettes (hospitals 1s. for
+quarantine) 1s. 3d. a day.</p>
+
+<p>As to the methods of the smugglers, these continued to become more and
+more ingenious, though there was a good deal of repetition of
+successful tricks until the Revenue officers had learnt these secrets,
+when some other device had to be thought out and employed. Take the
+case <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[Pg 310]</a></span>of a craft called the <i>Wig Box</i>, belonging to John Punnett. She
+was seized at Folkestone in the spring of 1822 by a midshipman of the
+Coast Blockade. There were found on her six gallons of spirits, which
+were concealed in the following most ingenious manner. She was quite a
+small vessel, but her three oars, her two masts, her bowsprit, and her
+bumpkin, had all been made hollow. Inside these hollows tin tubes had
+been fitted to contain the above spirits, and there can be little
+doubt but that a good many other small craft had successfully employed
+these means until the day when the <i>Wig Box</i> had the misfortune to be
+found out. There is still preserved in the London Custom House a
+hollow wooden fend-off which was slung when a ship was alongside a
+quay. No one for a long time ever thought of suspecting that this
+innocent-looking article could be full of tobacco, lying as it was
+under the very eyes of the Customs officers of the port. And in 1820
+three other boats were seized in one port alone, having concealed
+prohibited goods in a square foremast and outrigger, each spar being
+hollowed out from head to foot and the ends afterwards neatly plugged
+and painted. Another boat was seized and brought into Dover with
+hollow yards to her lugsails, and a hollow keel composed of tin but
+painted to look like wood, capable of holding large quantities of
+spirits.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[Pg 311]</a></span>But there was a very notorious vessel named the <i>Asp</i>, belonging to
+Rye, her master's name being John Clark, her size being just under 24
+tons. In 1822 she was seized and found to have a false bow, access to
+which was by means of two scuttles, one on each side of the stem.
+These scuttles were fitted with bed-screws fixed through false timbers
+into the real timbers, and covered with pieces of cork resembling
+treenails. The concealment afforded space for no fewer than fifty flat
+tubs besides dry goods. But in 1824 another vessel of the same name
+and port, described as a smack, was also arrested at Rye, and found to
+have both tobacco and silk goods concealed. This was effected by means
+of a false bottom to the ship, which extended as far aft as the
+ballast bulkhead. The entrance to the concealment was by means of a
+couple of scuttles on each side of her false keelson, these scuttles
+being screwed down in such a manner as also to be imperceptible. Also
+on either side of her cabin there were other hiding-places underneath
+the berths, and so constructed that they deceived more than one
+Revenue officer who came aboard to rummage her. The latter had bored
+holes through the lining, so as to try the distance of that lining
+from the supposed side of the vessel. Finding this distance not to
+exceed the fair allowance for the vessel's scuttling, the officers had
+gone ashore quite satisfied. From <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[Pg 312]</a></span>the number of gimlet-holes in the
+lining it was clear that the officers had been imposed upon
+considerably. But what these officers had taken for the side of the
+ship was only an intermediary planking, the actual concealment being
+between that and the vessel's side.</p>
+
+<p>To get to the entrance of these concealments, the bedding had to be
+taken out, which they had no doubt omitted to do. But if they had done
+this they would have been able properly to get to the lining, when two
+small pieces of wood about an inch square let into the plank made
+themselves apparent. And these, if removed with the point of a knife
+or chisel, brought small pieces of cork (circular in shape) to become
+visible. As soon as these corks were removed, the heads of bed-screws
+were observable, and these being unscrewed allowed two boards running
+the whole lengths of the berths to be taken up, by which means were
+revealed the concealments capable of containing a considerable
+quantity of dry goods.</p>
+
+<p>Somewhat reminiscent of this ship was the French vessel, <i>St.
+Antoine</i>, which was seized at Shoreham. She had come from Dieppe, and
+her master was named A. Fache. The after part of her cabin was fitted
+with two cupboards which had shelves that took down, the back of which
+was supposed to be the lining of the transom. But on taking the same
+up, timbers showed themselves. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[Pg 313]</a></span>On examining the planks closely, it
+was noticed that they overlapped each other, the timbers being made to
+act as fastenings. On striking the lower end of the false timbers on
+one side, it moved round on a bolt, and one plank with a timber was
+made to shift on each side of the false stern-post, forming a
+stern-frame with the other. Below the cupboards down to the run of the
+vessel the same principle was followed. The entrance to this was by
+taking down the seats and lockers in the cabin, and a false stern-post
+appeared to be fastened with a forelock and ring, but by unfastening
+the same, the false stern-post and middle plank could be taken down.</p>
+
+<p>Two ingenious instances of the sinking of contraband goods were found
+out about the year 1823, and both occurred within that notorious
+south-east corner of England. The first of these belongs to Sandwich,
+where three half-ankers of foreign spirits were seized floating, being
+hidden in a sack, a bag of shingle weighing 30 lbs. being used to act
+as a sinker. Attached to the sack were an inflated bladder and about
+three fathoms of twine, together with a small bunch of feathers to act
+as a buoy to mark the spot. When this arrangement was put into use it
+was found that the bladder kept the sack floating one foot below the
+surface of the water. The feathers were to mark the spot where the
+sack, on being thrown overboard, might bring up in case any accident
+had <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[Pg 314]</a></span>occurred to the bladder. At spring tides the rush of the water
+over the Sandwich flats causes a good deal of froth which floats on
+the surface. The reader must often have observed such an instance on
+many occasions by the sea. The exact colour is a kind of dirty yellow,
+and this colour being practically identical with that of the bladder,
+it would be next to impossible to tell the difference between froth
+and bladder at any distance, and certainly no officer of the Revenue
+would look for such things unless he had definite knowledge
+beforehand.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep314" id="imagep314"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep314.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep314.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Sandwich Device." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The Sandwich Device.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>In the sack were three half-ankers. A bag of shingle acted as sinker,
+and the bladder kept the sack floating.]</p>
+
+<p>The second occurrence took place at Rye. A seizure was made of twelve
+tubs of spirits which <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[Pg 315]</a></span>had been sunk by affixing to the head of each a
+circular piece of sheet lead which just fitted into the brim of the
+cask, and was there kept in its place by four nails. The weight of the
+lead was 9 lbs., and the tubs, being lashed longitudinally together,
+rolled in a tideway unfettered, being anchored by the usual lines and
+heavy stones. The leads sank the casks to the bottom in 2-1/2 fathoms
+of water, but at that depth they in specific gravity so nearly
+approximated to their equal bulk of fluid displaced that they could
+scarcely be felt on the finger. The leads were cast in moulds to the
+size required, and could be repeatedly used for the same purpose, and
+it was thought that the smuggling vessels, after coming across the
+Channel and depositing their cargoes, would on a later voyage be given
+back these pieces of lead to be affixed to other casks.</p>
+
+<p>A clinker-built boat of about 26 tons burthen named the <i>St.
+Fran&ccedil;ois</i>, the master of which was named Jean Baptiste La Motte, of
+and from Gravelines, crossed the North Sea and passed through the
+Forth and Clyde Canal in the year 1823 to Glasgow. Nominally she had a
+cargo of apples and walnuts, her crew consisting of six men besides
+the master. She was able to land part of her cargo of "apples" at
+Whitby and the rest at Glasgow, and afterwards, repassing safely
+through the canal again, returned to Gravelines. But some time after
+her departure from Scotland it was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_316" id="Page_316">[Pg 316]</a></span>discovered that she had brought no
+fruit at all, but that what appeared to be apples were so many
+portions of lace made up into small boxes of the size of apples and
+ingeniously painted to resemble that fruit.</p>
+
+<p>As showing that, even as late as the year 1824, the last of the armed
+cutters had not been yet seen, we may call attention to the
+information which was sent to the London Custom House through the
+Dublin Customs. The news was to the effect that in February of that
+year there was in the harbour of Flushing, getting ready for sea,
+whither she would proceed in three or four days, a cutter laden with
+tobacco, brandy, Hollands, and tea. She was called the <i>Zellow</i>, which
+was a fictitious name, and was a vessel of 160 tons with a crew of
+forty men, copper-bottomed and pierced for fourteen guns. She was
+painted black, with white mouldings round the stern. Her boom also was
+black, so were her gaff and masthead. The officers were warned to keep
+a look-out for her, and informed that she had a large strengthening
+fish on the upper side of the boom, twenty cloths in the head, and
+twenty-eight in the foot of the mainsail. It was reported that she was
+bound for Ballyherbert, Mountain Foot, and Clogher Head in Ireland,
+but if prevented from landing there she was consigned to Ormsby of
+Sligo and Burke of Connemara. In the event of her failing there also
+she had on board two "spotsmen" or pilots for <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_317" id="Page_317">[Pg 317]</a></span>the coast of Kerry and
+Cork. There was also a lugger at the same time about to proceed from
+Flushing to Wexford. This vessel was of from 90 to 100 tons, was
+painted black, with two white mouldings and a white counter. She
+carried on her deck a large boat which was painted white also.</p>
+
+<p>Tobacco was discovered concealed in rather a curious manner on another
+vessel. She had come from St. John, New Brunswick, with a cargo of
+timber, and the planks had been hollowed out and filled with tobacco,
+but it was so cleverly done that it was a long time before it was
+detected. All sorts of vessels and of many rigs were fitted with
+places of concealment, and there was even a 50-ton cutter named the
+<i>Alborough</i>, belonging to London, employed in this business, which had
+formerly been a private yacht, but was now more profitably engaged
+running goods from Nieuport in Belgium to Hull. The descriptions of
+some of these craft sent to the various outports, so that a smart
+look-out for them might be kept up, are certainly valuable to us, as
+they preserve a record of a type of craft that has altered so much
+during the past century as almost to be forgotten. The description of
+the sloop <i>Jane</i>, for instance, belonging to Dumbarton in 1824, is
+worth noting by those who are interested in the ships of yesterday.
+Sloop-rigged, and carvel built, she had white mouldings <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_318" id="Page_318">[Pg 318]</a></span>over a yellow
+streak, and her bulwark was painted green inside. Her cross-jack
+yards,<a name="FNanchor_21_21" id="FNanchor_21_21"></a><a href="#Footnote_21_21" class="fnanchor">[21]</a> as they are called, her bowsprit-boom, her gaff and
+studding-sail boom were all painted white, and she had three black
+hoops on the mast under the hounds. Her sails were all white, but her
+square topsail and topgallant-yards were black. The <i>Jane</i> was a
+90-tonner.</p>
+
+<p>The reader will remember considering some time back an open boat which
+was fitted with hollow stanchions under the thwarts, so that through
+these stanchions ropes might pass through into the water below. I have
+come across a record of a smack registered in the port of London under
+the singularly inappropriate name of the <i>Good Intent</i>. She was
+obviously built or altered with the sole intention of being employed
+in smuggling. I need say nothing of her other concealments under the
+cabin berths and so on, as they were practically similar to those on
+the <i>Asp</i>. But it was rather exceptional to find on so big a craft as
+the <i>Good Intent</i> a false stanchion immediately abaft the fore
+scuttle. Through this stanchion ran a leaden pipe about two inches in
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_319" id="Page_319">[Pg 319]</a></span>diameter, and this went through the keelson and garboard strake, so
+that by this means a rope could be led through and into the vessel,
+while at the other end a raft of tubs could be towed through the
+water. By hauling tightly on to this line the kegs could be kept
+beautifully concealed under the bilge of the vessel, so that even in
+very clear water it would not be easy to suspect the presence of these
+tubs. The other end of this pipe came up through the ship until it was
+flush with the deck, and where this joined the latter a square piece
+of lead was tarred and pitched so as scarcely to be perceived.</p>
+
+<p>There must indeed have been a tremendous amount of thought, as well as
+the expenditure of a great deal of time and money, in creating these
+methods of concealment, but since they dared not now to use force it
+was all they could do.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_21_21" id="Footnote_21_21"></a><a href="#FNanchor_21_21"><span class="label">[21]</span></a> The cro'jack yard was really the lower yard of a
+full-rigged ship on the mizzen-mast, to the arms of which the clews or
+lower corners of the mizzen-topsail were extended. But as sloops were
+fore-and-aft craft it is a little doubtful what is here meant. Either
+it may refer to the barren yard below the square topsail carried by
+the sloops of those days&mdash;the clews actually were extended to this
+yard's arms&mdash;or the word may have been the equivalent of what we
+nowadays call cross-trees.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_320" id="Page_320">[Pg 320]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Second cousin to the method of filling oars and spars with spirits was
+that adopted by a number of people whose homes and lives were
+connected with the sea-shore. They would have a number of shrimping
+nets on board, the usual wooden handles being fitted at one end of
+these nets. But these handles had been purposely made hollow, so that
+round tin cases could be fitted in. The spirits then filled these long
+cavities, and whether they caught many shrimps or not was of little
+account, for dozens of men could wade ashore with these nets and
+handles on their backs and proceed to their homes without raising a
+particle of suspicion. It was well worth doing, for it was calculated
+that as much as 2-1/2 gallons of spirit could be poured into each of
+these hollow poles.</p>
+
+<p>Collier-brigs were very fond of smuggling, and among others mention
+might be made of the <i>Venus</i> of Rye, an 80-ton brig which between
+January and September one year worked three highly profitable voyages,
+for besides her ordinary cargo she carried each time 800 casks of
+spirits, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_321" id="Page_321">[Pg 321]</a></span>these being placed underneath the coals. There was also the
+brig <i>Severn</i> of Bristol, which could carry about five keels of coal,
+but seldom carried more than four, the rest of the space of course
+being made up with contraband. In 1824 she worked five voyages, and on
+each occasion she carried, besides her legitimate cargo, as much as
+eight tons of tobacco under her coals. And there was a Danish-built
+sloop named the <i>Blue-eyed Lass</i> belonging to Shields, with a burthen
+of 60 odd tons, also employed in the coal trade. She was a very
+suspicious vessel, and was bought subsequently by the people of Rye to
+carry on similar work to the other smuggling craft. All sorts of
+warnings were sent to the Customs Board giving them information that
+<i>The Rose in June</i> (needless to say of Rye) was about to have
+additional concealments added. She was of 37 tons burthen, and had
+previously been employed as a packet boat. They were also warned that
+George Harrington, a noted smuggler resident at Eastbourne, intended
+during the winter months to carry on the contraband trade, and to land
+somewhere between Southampton and Weymouth. He had made arrangements
+with a large number of men belonging to Poole and the neighbouring
+country, and had obtained a suitable French lugger.</p>
+
+<p>In 1826 the smacks <i>Fox</i> and <i>Lovely Lass</i> of Portsmouth were seized
+at that port with kegs <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_322" id="Page_322">[Pg 322]</a></span>of spirits secreted under their bottoms in a
+thin contemporary casing, as shown in the accompanying diagram. The
+ingenious part of this trick was that there was no means of
+communication into the concealment from the interior of the vessel.
+Thus any officer coming aboard to search would have little or no
+reason to suspect her. But it was necessary every time this vessel
+returned from abroad with her contraband for her to be laid ashore,
+and at low water the kegs could be got at externally. To begin with
+there were pieces of plank two inches thick fastened to the timbers by
+large nails. Then, between the planks and the vessel's bottom the tubs
+were concealed. The arrangement was exceeding simple yet wonderfully
+clever. Practically this method consisted of filling up the hollow
+below the turn of the bilge. It would certainly not improve the
+vessel's speed, but it would give her an efficacious means of stowing
+her cargo of spirits out of the way. And it was because of such
+incidents as this last mentioned that orders were sent to all ports
+for the local craft and others to be examined frequently <i>ashore</i> no
+less than afloat, in order that any false bottom might be detected.
+And the officers were to be careful and see that the name of the ship
+and her master painted on a ship corresponded with the names in her
+papers. Even open boats were found fitted with double bottoms, as for
+instance the <i>Mary</i>, belonging to Dover. She was only 14 feet long
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_323" id="Page_323">[Pg 323]</a></span>with 5 feet 9-1/2 inches beam, but she had both a double bottom and
+double sides, in which were contained thirty tin cases to hold 29
+gallons of spirits. Her depth from gunwale to the top of her
+ceiling<a name="FNanchor_22_22" id="FNanchor_22_22"></a><a href="#Footnote_22_22" class="fnanchor">[22]</a> originally was 2 feet 8-1/2 inches. But the depth from the
+gunwale to the false bottom was 2 feet 5-3/4 inches. The concealment
+ran from the stem to the transom, the entrance being made by four
+cuttles very ingeniously and neatly fitted, with four nails fore and
+aft through the timbers to secure them from moving&mdash;one on each side
+of the keelson, about a foot forward of the keelson under the fore
+thwart. Even Thames barges were fitted with concealments; in fact
+there was not a species of craft from a barque to a dinghy that was
+not thus modified for smuggling.</p>
+
+<p>The name of the barge was the <i>Alfred</i> of London, and she was captured
+off Birchington one December day in 1828. She pretended that she was
+bound from Arundel with a cargo of wood hoops, but when she was
+boarded she had evidently been across to "the other side"; for there
+was found 1045 tubs of gin and brandy aboard her when she was
+captured, together with her crew, by a boat sent from the cruiser
+<i>Vigilant</i>. The discovery was made by finding an obstruction about
+three feet deep from the top of the coamings, which induced the
+Revenue officer to clear away the bundles of hoops under the fore and
+main hatchways. He <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_324" id="Page_324">[Pg 324]</a></span>then discovered a concealment covered over with
+sand, and on cutting through a plank two inches thick the contraband
+was discovered.</p>
+
+<p>The accompanying diagram shows the sloop <i>Lucy</i> of Fowey, William
+Strugnell master. On the 14th of December 1828 she was seized at
+Chichester after having come from Portsmouth in ballast. She was found
+to be fitted with the concealment shown in the plan, and altogether
+there were 100 half-ankers thus stowed away, 50 being placed on each
+side of her false bottom. She was just over 35 tons burthen, and drew
+four feet of water, being sloop rigged, as many of the barges in those
+days were without the little mizzen which is so familiar to our eyes
+to-day.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep324" id="imagep324"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep324.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep324.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Sloop Lucy showing Concealments." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The Sloop <i>Lucy</i> showing Concealments.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Cases of eggs sent from Jersey were fitted with false sides in which
+silks were smuggled; trawlers <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_325" id="Page_325">[Pg 325]</a></span>engaged in sinking tubs of spirits; a
+dog-kennel was washed ashore from a vessel that foundered off
+Dungeness, and on being examined this kennel was found to be fitted
+with a false top to hold 30 lbs. of tobacco; an Irish smack belonging
+to Cork was specially fitted for the contraband trade, having
+previously actually been employed as a Coastguard watch-boat. There
+was a vessel named <i>Grace</i> manned by three brothers&mdash;all notorious
+smugglers&mdash;belonging to Coverack (Cornwall). This vessel used to put
+to sea by appointment to meet a French vessel, and having from her
+shipped the contraband the <i>Grace</i> would presently run the goods
+ashore somewhere between Land's End and Newport, South Wales; in fact,
+all kinds of smuggling still went on even after the first quarter of
+that wonderful nineteenth century.</p>
+
+<p>About the year 1831 five casks imported from Jersey was alleged to
+contain cider, but on being examined they were found to contain
+something else as well. The accompanying sketch represents the plan of
+one of these. From this it will be seen that the central space was
+employed for holding the cider, but the ends were full of tobacco
+being contained in two tin cases. In this diagram No. 1 represents the
+bung, No. 2 shows the aperture on each side through which the tobacco
+was thrust into the tin cases which are marked by No. 3, the cider
+being contained in the central portion marked 4. Thus the usual method
+of gauging a cask's <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_326" id="Page_326">[Pg 326]</a></span>contents was rendered useless, for unless a bent
+or turned rod were employed it was impossible to detect the presence
+of these side casks for the tobacco.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep326" id="imagep326"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep326.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep326.jpg" width="50%" alt="Cask for Smuggling Cider." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Cask for Smuggling Cider.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>One may feel a little incredulous at some of the extraordinary yarns
+which one hears occasionally from living people concerning the doings
+of smugglers. A good deal has doubtless arisen as the result of a too
+vivid imagination, but, as we have shown from innumerable instances,
+there is quite enough that is actual fact without having recourse to
+invention. I know of a certain port in our kingdom where there existed
+a legend to the effect that in olden days the smugglers had no need to
+bring the tubs in with them, but that if they only left them outside
+when the young flood was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_327" id="Page_327">[Pg 327]</a></span>making, those tubs would find their own way
+in to one particular secluded spot in that harbour. A number of
+amateur enthusiasts debated the point quite recently, and a wager was
+made that such a thing was not possible. But on choosing a winter's
+day, and throwing a number of barrels into the water outside the
+entrance, it was found that the trend of the tide was always to bring
+them into that corner. But, you will instantly say, wouldn't the
+Coastguard in the smuggling days have seen the barrels as they came
+along the top of the water?</p>
+
+<p>The answer is certainly in the affirmative. But the smugglers used to
+do in the "scientific" period as follows, and this I have found in a
+document dated 1833, at which time the device was quite new, at least
+to the Customs officials. Let us suppose that the vessel had made a
+safe passage from France, Holland, or wherever she had obtained the
+tubs of spirits. She had eluded the cruisers and arrived off the
+harbour entrance at night just as the flood tide was making. Overboard
+go her tubs, and away she herself goes to get out of the sphere of
+suspicion. These tubs numbered say sixty-three, and were firmly lashed
+together in a shape very similar to a pile of shot&mdash;pyramid fashion.
+The tops of the tubs were all painted white, but the raft was green.
+Below this pyramid of tubs were attached two grapnel anchors, and the
+whole contrivance could float in anything <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_328" id="Page_328">[Pg 328]</a></span>above seven feet of water.
+It was so designed that the whole of the tubs came in on the tide
+below water, only three being partially visible, and their white
+colour made them difficult to be seen among the little waves. But as
+soon as they came to the spot where there were only seven feet of
+water the two grapnels came into action and held the tubs moored like
+a ship. And as the tide rose, so it completely obliterated them. Some
+one was of course on the look-out for his spirits, and when the tide
+had dropped it was easy enough to wade out and bring the tubs ashore,
+or else "sweep" them ashore with a long rope that dragged along the
+bottom of the harbour.</p>
+
+<p>During the year 1834 smuggling was again on the increase, especially
+on the south and east coasts, and it took time for the officers to
+learn all these new-fangled tricks which were so frequently employed.
+Scarcely had the intricacies of one device been learnt than the
+smugglers had given up that idea and taken to something more ingenious
+still. Some time back we called attention to the way in which the Deal
+boatmen used to walk ashore with smuggled tea. About the year 1834 a
+popular method of smuggling tea, lace, and such convenient goods was
+to wear a waistcoat or stays which contained eighteen rows well
+stuffed with 8 lbs. weight of tea. The same man would also wear a pair
+of drawers made of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_329" id="Page_329">[Pg 329]</a></span>stout cotton secured with strong drawing strings
+and stuffed with about 16 lbs. of tea. Two men were captured with nine
+parcels of lace secreted about their bodies, a favourite place being
+to wind it round the shins. Attempts were also made to smuggle spun or
+roll tobacco from New York by concealing them in barrels of pitch,
+rosin, bales of cotton, and so on. In the case of a ship named the
+<i>Josephine</i>, from New York, the Revenue officers found in one barrel
+of pitch an inner package containing about 100 lbs. of manufactured
+tobacco.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep329" id="imagep329"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep329.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep329.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Smack Tam O'Shanter showing Method of Concealment
+(see Text)." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The Smack <i>Tam O'Shanter</i> showing Method of Concealment
+(see Text).<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The accompanying plan of the smack <i>Tam O'Shanter</i> (belonging to
+Plymouth), which was seized by the Padstow Coastguard, will show how
+spirits were sometimes concealed. This was a vessel of 72 tons with a
+fore bulkhead and a false bulkhead some distance aft of that. This
+intervening space, as will be seen, was filled up with barrels. Her
+hold was filled with a cargo <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_330" id="Page_330">[Pg 330]</a></span>of coals, and then aft of this came the
+cabin with berths on either side, as shown. But under these berths
+were concealments for stowing quite a number of tubs, as already
+explained.</p>
+
+<p>A variation of the plan, previously mentioned, for smuggling by means
+of concealments in casks was that which was favoured by foreign ships
+which traded between the Continent and the north-east coasts of
+England and Scotland. In this case the casks which held the supplies
+of drinking water were fitted with false sides and false ends. The
+inner casks thus held the fresh water, but the outer casks were full
+of spirits. After the introduction of steam, one of the first if not
+the very first instance of steamship smuggling by concealment was that
+occurring in 1836, when a vessel was found to have had her
+paddle-boxes so lined that they could carry quite a large quantity of
+tobacco and other goods.</p>
+
+<p>Another of those instances of ships fitted up specially for smuggling
+was found in the French smack <i>Auguste</i>, which is well worth
+considering. She was, when arrested, bound from Gravelines, and could
+carry about fifty tubs of spirits or, instead, a large amount of silk
+and lace. Under the ladder in the forepeak there was a potato locker
+extending from side to side, and under this, extending above a foot or
+more before it, was the concealment. Further forward were some loose
+planks forming a hatch, under which was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_331" id="Page_331">[Pg 331]</a></span>the coal-hole. This appeared
+to go as far as the bulkhead behind the ladder, and had the
+concealment been full, it could never have been found, but in walking
+over where the coals were, that part of the concealment which extended
+beyond the locker which was empty sounded hollow: whereupon the
+officers pulled up one of the planks and discovered the hiding-place.</p>
+
+<p>It was decided in 1837 that, in order to save the expense of breaking
+up a condemned smuggling vessel, in future the ballast, mast, pumps,
+bulkheads, platforms, and cabins should be taken out from the vessel:
+and that the hull should then be cut into pieces not exceeding six
+feet long. Such pieces were then to be sawn in a fore-and-aft
+direction so as to cut across the beams and thwarts and render the
+hull utterly useless. The accompanying sketch well illustrates the
+ingenuity which was displayed at this time by the men who were bent on
+running goods. What is here represented is a flat-bottomed boat, which
+perhaps might never have been discovered had it not been driven ashore
+near to Selsey Bill during the gales of the early part of 1837. The
+manner in which this craft was employed was to tow her for a short
+distance and then to cast her adrift. She was fitted with rowlocks for
+four oars, but apparently these had never been used. Three large holes
+were bored in her bottom, for the purpose which we shall presently
+explain.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep332" id="imagep332"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep332.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep332.jpg" width="65%" alt="Flat-Bottomed Boat found off Selsey." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Flat-Bottomed Boat found off Selsey.<br />
+The sketch shows longitudinal plan, the method of covering with net,
+and midship section.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_332" id="Page_332">[Pg 332]</a></span>Built very roughly, with half-inch deal, and covered over with a thin
+coat of white paint, she had a grommet at both bow and stern. She
+measured only 16 feet long and 4 feet wide, with a depth of 2 feet 2
+inches. It will be noticed that she had no thwarts. Her timbers were
+of bent ash secured with common French nails, and alongside the
+gunwales were holes for lacing a net to go over the top of this boat.
+Her side was made of three deal planks, the net being made of line,
+and of the same size as the line out of which the tub-slings were
+always made. The holes in her floor <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_333" id="Page_333">[Pg 333]</a></span>were made for the water to get in
+and keep her below the surface, and the net, spreading from gunwale to
+gunwale, prevented her cargo of tubs from being washed out. It was in
+order to have ample and unfettered room for the tubs that no thwarts
+were placed. She would be towed astern of a smack or lugger under the
+water, and having arrived at the appointed spot the towrope would be
+let go, and the grapnels attached to both grommets at bow and stern
+would cause her to bring up when in sufficiently shallow water. Later
+on, at low tide, the smugglers' friends could go out in their boats
+with a weighted line or hawser and sweep along the bottom of the sea,
+and soon locate her and tow her right in to the beach.</p>
+
+<p>In order to prevent certain obvious excuses being made by dishonest
+persons, all British subjects were distinctly forbidden to pick up
+spirits found in these illegal half-ankers, only officers of the Royal
+Navy, the Customs, and the Excise being permitted so to do. But it was
+not always that the Revenue cruisers were employed in catching
+smugglers. We have pointed out that their duties also included
+Quarantine work. In the spring of 1837 it was represented to the
+Treasury that there was much urgent distress prevailing in certain
+districts of the Highlands and Western Islands of Scotland owing to
+the failure of the last harvest. Sir John Hill was therefore directed
+to proceed to Scotland and take such <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_334" id="Page_334">[Pg 334]</a></span>steps as might be necessary for
+the immediate supply of seed, corn, and potatoes, and the officers and
+commanders of the Revenue cruisers were directed to afford him every
+assistance.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep334" id="imagep334"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep334.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep334.jpg" width="65%" alt="Plan of the Schooner Good Intent showing Method of
+Smuggling Casks." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Plan of the Schooner <i>Good Intent</i> showing Method of
+Smuggling Casks.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>In the previous chapter attention was called to the singular
+inappropriateness of calling a smuggling vessel the <i>Good Intent</i>.
+That was a smack belonging to the year 1824, which was found at Rye.
+But this name seems to have had a certain amount of popularity among
+these ingenious gentlemen, for there was a smuggling schooner named
+the <i>Good Intent</i> which was seized in the year 1837. How cleverly and
+effectively she was fitted up for a smuggling voyage can be
+ascertained by considering the accompanying longitudinal plan. She had
+a burthen of 72 tons, and was captured by the Revenue cruiser <i>Sylvia</i>
+in Mount's Bay on the 14th of March. The plan <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_335" id="Page_335">[Pg 335]</a></span>denotes her principal
+features, including her sail-room and general store right aft.
+Immediately forward of this was the first concealment on the port side
+only. Entrance was gained by means of a slide which was nailed up, and
+here many casks could easily be stored. Next to this came the after
+bulkhead, but forward of this was also a false bulkhead, the distance
+between the real and the false being 2-1/2 feet, and affording a space
+to contain 138 kegs.</p>
+
+<p>Under the cabin were coals, and around the coals under the cabin deck
+were placed some kegs. The fore bulkhead had also a false bulkhead 2
+feet 5 inches apart, and this space held as many as 148 kegs. Under
+the deck of the forepeak were also 21 kegs. The length of these kegs
+was 17 inches, and they were nearly a foot in diameter. Each cask
+contained 4-1/2 gallons of French brandy. This vessel was found to
+have merely limestone ballast in her hold, but her illicit cargo was
+more valuable to her than if she had been fully laden with the
+commodity which she usually and legitimately traded in. Later in the
+same year, and by the same cruiser <i>Sylvia</i>, this time off Land's End,
+the Jersey schooner <i>Spartan</i>, a vessel of 36-1/2 tons, was seized, as
+she was found to be fitted up with similar concealments (see sketch).</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep336" id="imagep336"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep336.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep336.jpg" width="65%" alt="The Schooner Spartan." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The Schooner <i>Spartan</i>.<br />
+1. Hollow beam.<br />
+2. Opening for entering No. 3.<br />
+3. Place of concealment.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>One day about the middle of the last century a 16-ton Grimsby
+fishing-smack named <i>Lord</i> <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_336" id="Page_336">[Pg 336]</a></span><i>Rivers</i> left her native port and journeyed
+south. Her owner and master was in a dismal frame of mind, and
+complained to his mate that things were pretty bad, and he was
+becoming remarkably poor. The fishing was not prospering so far as he
+was concerned, and so after thinking the matter over he was proposing
+to take the ship over to Boulogne and get a cargo of between thirty
+and forty gallons of spirits. His mate heard what he had to say and
+agreed to go with him. So to Boulogne they proceeded, where they
+purchased the spirits from a dealer, who brought the spirits on board,
+not in casks but in skins and bladders, making about fifty in all.
+These were deposited in the smack's hold, and she then cleared out of
+harbour and went to the fishing-grounds, where, to make matters appear
+all right, she remained twenty-four hours, for the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_337" id="Page_337">[Pg 337]</a></span>purpose of
+obtaining some oysters by dredging. Whilst on the fishing-grounds the
+spirits were stowed in a neat concealment at the stern of the vessel
+on both sides abaft the hatchway. Before long the smack got going and
+ran into Dover with the oysters and her spirits, lowered her sails,
+and made everything snug. In due course the bladders of spirits were
+got out of the hold in small numbers, and placed in baskets and
+covered over with a sufficiently thick layer of oysters to prevent
+their presence being detected. These baskets were taken to a
+neighbouring tap-room, the landlord of which bought as much as he
+wanted, and a local poulterer bought the rest of the spirits and
+oysters as well.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep337" id="imagep337"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep337.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep337.jpg" width="65%" alt="Deck Plan and Longitudinal Plan of the Lord Rivers" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Deck Plan and Longitudinal Plan of the <i>Lord Rivers</i> (see Text).<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_338" id="Page_338">[Pg 338]</a></span>But the local Coastguard had for a long time been suspicious of this
+vessel, and evidently this was not her first voyage in the smuggling
+trade. He had watched and followed the man who took the bladders
+ashore, and now came on board to see what he could find. The deck plan
+will clearly convey to the reader the way in which the smack was
+fitted up with concealments. The letters A and A indicate two portions
+of the deck planking, each portion being about a couple of feet long.
+These were movable, and fitted into their places with a piece of
+spun-yarn laid into the seams, and over this was laid some putty
+blackened on the top. At first sight they appeared to be part of the
+solid planking of the deck, but on obtaining a chisel they were easily
+removed. There was now revealed the entrance to a space on each side
+of the rudder-case in the false stern capable of containing thirty or
+forty gallons of spirits. This in itself was conclusive, but when the
+Coastguard also found that the putty in the seams was soft and fresh,
+and that a strong smell of spirits emanated from this cavity, it was
+deemed that there was more than adequate reason for arresting the
+smack even though the hold was quite empty.</p>
+
+<p>Thus the <i>Lord Rivers</i> came to a bad end.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_22_22" id="Footnote_22_22"></a><a href="#FNanchor_22_22"><span class="label">[22]</span></a> The ceiling of a ship signified the inside planks.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XVIII" id="CHAPTER_XVIII"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_339" id="Page_339">[Pg 339]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVIII<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>BY SEA AND LAND</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>Having now seen the evolution of the smuggling methods from brute
+force and superiority of ships and crews to the point where the
+landing of dutiable goods became a fine art, and having been able to
+obtain an idea of the manifold changes which occurred in the
+administration of the Preventive service between the years 1674 and
+1856, we may now resume our narrative of the interesting encounters
+which occurred between the smugglers on the one hand and the
+Preventive force on the other. Up to the year 1822 we have dealt with
+the different incidents which used to go on around our coast, and we
+shall now be in a position to appreciate to their full the notable
+exploits of cruisers and smugglers in that late period between the
+years 1822 and 1856. This covers the epoch when improved architecture
+in regard to the craft employed, greater vigilance on the part of the
+cruisers, and a keener artfulness in the smugglers themselves were at
+work. Consequently some of these contests represent the best incidents
+in the whole history of smuggling.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_340" id="Page_340">[Pg 340]</a></span>But it was not always that the Revenue cruisers and Preventive boats
+were in the right. There were occasions when the commanders suffered
+from too much zeal, though certainly these were quite exceptional.
+There is the case of the <i>Drencher</i> which well illustrates this. She
+was a Dutch vessel which had been on her voyage to Italy, and was now
+returning home up the English Channel with a cargo of oil, bound for
+Amsterdam. Being somewhat square and ample of form, with the
+characteristic bluff bows much beloved by her countrymen, and being
+also very foul on her bottom through long voyaging, she was only a
+dull sailer.<a name="FNanchor_23_23" id="FNanchor_23_23"></a><a href="#Footnote_23_23" class="fnanchor">[23]</a> And such being the case, when she fell in with head
+winds her skipper and part-owner, Peter Crook, decided to let go
+anchor under Dungeness, where many a sailing craft then, as to-day,
+has taken shelter in similar circumstances.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst she was at anchor waiting for a favourable slant, one of the
+numerous fishing-boats which are always to be seen hereabouts came
+alongside the <i>Drencher</i><a name="FNanchor_24_24" id="FNanchor_24_24"></a><a href="#Footnote_24_24" class="fnanchor">[24]</a> and asked the skipper if he required any
+assistance. Crook replied that if the wind was still ahead, and he was
+compelled to remain there till the next day, he would want <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_341" id="Page_341">[Pg 341]</a></span>some fuel
+for his stove. The fisherman sold some of his catch to the Dutchman,
+and then went on his way.</p>
+
+<p>But soon after this a boat in the Preventive service, commanded by a
+Mr. MacTavish, a midshipman, came alongside and boarded the
+<i>Drencher</i>. The midshipman inquired what the Dutchman had had to do
+with the fishing-boat, and Crook answered that he had done nothing
+except to purchase some fish. But this did not satisfy Mr. MacTavish,
+who proceeded now to examine what was on board. Of course he found
+some casks of spirits, and asked Crook how they came to be there, to
+which Crook answered that they had been found floating in a former
+voyage and he had picked them up. This looked doubtful, but it was
+quite probable, for often the weights of stones from sunken tubs broke
+adrift and the tubs floated up to the surface. Especially was this the
+case after bad weather.</p>
+
+<p>We can well understand the midshipman's suspicions, and need not be
+surprised to learn that he felt justified in seizing the ship because
+of these tubs found on board. He had the anchor broken out, the sails
+hoisted, and took her first into Dover, and afterwards from Dover to
+Ramsgate, where most of her cargo was unloaded. But after a time she
+was ordered to be released and allowed to proceed to Holland, and
+later still her skipper brought an action against MacTavish <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_342" id="Page_342">[Pg 342]</a></span>for
+having been wrongfully detained for thirty days, for which demurrage
+he claimed four guineas a day, besides damage to her cable and other
+things, amounting in all to &pound;208.</p>
+
+<p>The reader will recollect that in another chapter we saw a couple of
+sailing craft dodging about suspiciously in West Bay, one of which
+began to fire signals to the other in order to warn her of the
+Preventive boat: and we saw that the crew of three men in the
+offending craft were arrested and found guilty. One of these men, it
+will be remembered, was John Bartlett, who had at one time been a boy
+on a Revenue cutter. From the incident which led to his arrest in 1819
+let us pass to the 14th of September 1823. The scene is again West
+Bay, and the old passion is still strong in Bartlett notwithstanding
+his sentence. A little to the west of Bridport (Dorset) is Seatown,
+and just beyond that comes Golden Cape. On the night of the above date
+one of the Seatown Revenue officers about 1 A.M. noticed flashes
+coming from the cliff between Seatown and Golden Cape. He proceeded to
+the cliff, which at high-water runs straight up out of the sea. It was
+a dark night with no moon, a little breeze, and only slight surf on
+the shore&mdash;ideal conditions for any craft bent on smuggling.</p>
+
+<p>On the cliff the officer, named Joseph Davey, espied a man. He hailed
+him, thinking it was some one else, and asked him if he were Joey
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_343" id="Page_343">[Pg 343]</a></span>Foss. "Yes," came back the answer, but when the officer seized him he
+discovered it was not Foss but the notorious John Bartlett. Up came
+another Revenue man named Thomas Nines to assist Davey, but in a few
+minutes Bartlett gave a loud whistle, whereupon Nines looked out
+seaward and exclaimed, "There's a boat."</p>
+
+<p>"I sees him," answered Davey as the craft was approaching the shore.
+By this time, also, there were ten or twelve men coming towards the
+officers, and Bartlett managed to run down to the shore, shouting
+"Keep off!" "Keep off!" as loudly as he could. The officers ran too,
+but the boat turned round and put off to sea again. In the course of a
+few minutes there rose up a large fire on the cliff, about a hundred
+yards from where the officers were. It was another signal of warning
+to the boat. For Bartlett, having got away from the officers, had
+doubtless lit this, since it flared up near to where he was seen to
+run. The officers remained on the coast until daylight, and then
+launching their boat rowed a little way from the shore, and found a
+new buoy moored just by the spot where the lugger had been observed to
+turn round when hailed and warned. It was clear, on examination, that
+the buoy had not been in the water many hours, and after "creeping"
+along the sea bottom hereabouts they brought up sixty kegs, which were
+also quite new, and had evidently only been sunk when Bartlett sung
+out <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_344" id="Page_344">[Pg 344]</a></span>his warning. The latter was again arrested, and found guilty when
+subsequently tried. So again Bartlett had to retire from smuggling.</p>
+
+<p>It happened only a few weeks before this incident that a seaman named
+Willis was on shore with his officer. Willis belonged to H.M.S.
+<i>Severn</i>, which was moored off Dover for the prevention of smuggling.
+The officer was a naval midshipman named Hope, stationed ashore.
+Whilst on their duty they began to notice a man, whose name was
+William Clarke, near Chalk Fall, carrying a basket of nets and fishing
+lines. For a time both Willis and Hope took shelter under the Chalk
+Cliff as it was raining, but presently Willis separated from his
+officer to go to his appointed station. It occurred to him that Clarke
+appeared to be unnecessarily stout, and he was sure that he was trying
+to smuggle something. Willis went up to him and said he intended to
+search him, to which Clarke replied, "Certainly." He admitted he had
+some liquor there, but he hoped Willis would take no notice of it. The
+seaman insisted that he must take notice, for if it turned out to be
+foreign spirits he must seize it: whereupon Clarke flung down a couple
+of half-crowns and asked him to say nothing about it.</p>
+
+<p>Willis again protested that he must see what the man had beneath his
+gabardine. But at this Clarke took a knife from his pocket and cut a
+large bladder which he had under his clothes, containing <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_345" id="Page_345">[Pg 345]</a></span>half a
+gallon of spirits, and a spirituous liquor poured out on to the
+ground. Willis put his finger to it and found that it was foreign
+brandy. But the amusing legal aspect of this incident was that this
+foreign liquor could not be seized, nor could the man be prosecuted
+for having it, and it could not be condemned. But Clarke had indeed
+destroyed that which he had so early brought safely home. This was
+just one instance of the good work which the Coast Blockade was
+performing, Willis and other seamen being landed every night from
+H.M.S. <i>Severn</i> to act as guard at different points along the coast.</p>
+
+<p>In the annals of smugglers and cruisers there are few more notable
+incidents than that which occurred on the 13th of January 1823, in the
+English Channel. On this day the Revenue cutter <i>Badger</i> was cruising
+off the French coast under the command of Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N.
+He was an officer of the Excise, but the cutter at that time was in
+the service of the Customs, her station being from the South Foreland
+to Dungeness. About 7.30 A.M. the officer of the watch came below and
+told him something, whereupon Nazar hurried on deck and observed a
+suspicious sail on the starboard tack, the wind being E.S.E. The
+<i>Badger</i> was at that time about nine or ten miles off the French
+coast, somewhere abreast of Etaples, and about six or seven leagues
+from the English shore. The craft which was seen was, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_346" id="Page_346">[Pg 346]</a></span>to use the
+lieutenant's own language, "a cutter yawl-rigged," which I understand
+to signify a cutter with a small lug-sail mizzen, as was often found
+on smugglers. At any rate, he had every reason to believe that this
+was a smuggling craft, and he immediately made sail after her. At that
+hour it was just daybreak, and the smuggler was about three or four
+miles off&mdash;to the eastward&mdash;and to windward, but was evidently running
+with sheets eased off in a westerly direction.</p>
+
+<p>But when the smuggler saw the <i>Badger</i> was giving chase he also
+altered his course. It was a fine, clear, frosty morning, and the
+<i>Badger</i> quickly sent up his gaff topsail and began to overhaul the
+other, so that by nine o'clock the two vessels were only a mile apart.
+The <i>Badger</i> now hoisted his Revenue pendant at the masthead,
+consisting of a red field with a regal crown at the upper part next
+the mast, and he also hoisted the Revenue ensign (that is to say "a
+red Jack with a Union Jack in a canton at the upper corner and a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack") at his peak. These signals
+instantly denoted that the ship was a Revenue cruiser. Lieutenant
+Nazar also ordered an unshotted gun to be fired as a further signal
+that the smuggler was to heave-to, but the stranger paid no attention
+and hoisted no colours. Ten minutes later, as it was perceived that
+his signals were disregarded, the <i>Badger's</i> commander ordered a shot
+to be fired at her, and this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_347" id="Page_347">[Pg 347]</a></span>was immediately returned by the smuggler
+with one of her stern guns. From this time a running fire was kept up
+for nearly three hours, but shortly before midday, whilst the cutter
+was still chasing her and holding on the same course as the other, the
+<i>Badger</i> came on at such a pace that she ran aboard the smuggler's
+starboard quarter whilst both ships were still blazing away at each
+other.</p>
+
+<p>The smuggler's crew then cried out for quarter in English. This was
+granted by the <i>Badger's</i> commander, who had a boat lowered, but
+whilst in the act of so doing the treacherous smuggling craft
+recommenced firing. It was a cowardly thing to do, for Reymas, their
+own captain, had particularly asked the <i>Badger's</i> commander to
+forgive them and overlook what they had done, whilst other members of
+the crew cried out to the same effect. This had caused a cessation of
+fire for about five minutes, and was only reopened by the smugglers'
+treachery. One of the <i>Badger's</i> mariners named William Cullum, was in
+consequence shot dead by a musket aimed at him by one of the
+smugglers. Cullum was standing by the windlass at the time, and died
+instantly.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep348" id="imagep348"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep348.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep348.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;The Cruiser's Guns had shot away the Mizzen-Mast.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"The Cruiser's Guns had shot away the Mizzen-Mast."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The <i>Badger</i>, therefore, again began to fire into the other ship, but
+in about another five minutes the smuggler again called for quarter,
+and this was again granted. The cruiser sent her boat aboard her, and
+brought off the smuggler's crew, amounting to twenty-three men, though
+two others <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_348" id="Page_348">[Pg 348]</a></span>had been killed in the affray. The <i>Badger's</i> chief mate,
+on boarding the smuggler, sent away the latter's crew in their own
+boat, and seven of these men were found to be wounded, of whom one
+died the following morning. The name of the vessel was seen to be the
+<i>Vree Gebroeders</i>. She was of 119 tons burthen, and had the previous
+day started out from Flushing with a cargo of 42 gallons of brandy,
+186 gallons of Geneva&mdash;these all being in the 3-1/2 gallon
+half-ankers. But there was also a good deal of other cargo, consisting
+of 856 bales of tobacco which contained 51,000 lbs., thirteen boxes of
+tea, and six bags of sugar. All these goods were made up in
+illegal-sized packages <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_349" id="Page_349">[Pg 349]</a></span>and she had nothing on board except what was
+contraband. The chests of tea were found all ready slung for landing
+with small ropes.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Vree Gebroeders</i> was provisioned for three months, and was armed
+with four carronades, 9-pounders, and two swivel muskets, bayonets,
+and other arms of different kinds. Her destination had been for
+Ireland. When the chief mate of the <i>Badger</i> boarded her he found that
+the cruiser's guns had shot away the mizzen-mast, but the smuggler's
+skipper remarked to the chief mate that the spare topmast on deck
+would serve for a mizzen and that the square-sail boom would make an
+outrigger, and that the trysail would be found below, but so far, he
+said, this sail had never been bent. Later on the chief mate found
+also the deck-log of the <i>Vree Gebroeders</i>, which had been kept on two
+slates, and it was a noticeable fact that these were kept in English.
+They read thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="slate">
+<p class="noin">N.W. by N.<br />
+Remarks, Monday 13th.<br />
+N.W. by W. At 6.30 Ostend<br />
+Light bore S.E. distant<br />
+12 miles.<br />
+At 4 a.m. Calais Light<br />
+bore E. by S.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>So when the <i>Badger</i> first sighted this craft the latter had made her
+last entry in the log, only <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_350" id="Page_350">[Pg 350]</a></span>three and a half hours before. It was
+significant that English charts were also found among the ship's
+papers, though her manifest, her certificate, her bill of lading, and
+other certificates were all in Dutch. The books found included
+Hamilton Moore's <i>Navigation</i>, another similar work by Norie, the
+<i>British Channel Pilot</i>, and <i>Navigation of the North Seas</i>. There was
+also found a Dutch ensign and a Dutch Jack on board, but there was
+even an English Prayer-book.</p>
+
+<p>The prisoners remained on board the <i>Badger</i> until next day, when they
+were transferred to H.M.S. <i>Severn</i>. The <i>Vree Gebroeders</i> was taken
+into Dover, and was valued, together with her cargo, at the handsome
+sum of &pound;11,000, which would have been a fine amount of prize money;
+but in spite of the clear evidence at the trial, the jury were so
+prejudiced in favour of the smugglers that they found the prisoners
+not guilty, their contention being that the ship and cargo were wholly
+foreign, and that more than half of the crew were foreigners.</p>
+
+<p>It had been an unfortunate affair. Besides the death of Cullum and the
+two smugglers killed and the seven smugglers wounded, Lieutenant
+Nazer, James Harper, William Poppedwell, Daniel Hannibel, and James
+Giles were all wounded on the <i>Badger</i>, Nazer being wounded on the
+left shoulder by a musket ball. The smuggler's crew had made ludicrous
+efforts to pretend they were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_351" id="Page_351">[Pg 351]</a></span>Dutch. Dutch names were assumed, but
+witnesses at the trial were able to assign to them their proper
+appellations, and it was significant that the crew spoke English
+without a foreign accent. Her commander insisted his name was Reymas,
+but his real name was Joseph Wills, and he had been foremost in the
+calling for quarter. Another of the crew, who pretended his name was
+Jan Schmidt, was found to be an Englishman named John Smith. The
+vessel herself had been built by a Kentishman, living at Flushing, the
+previous year.</p>
+
+<p>And here is another of those occasions when there was displayed an
+excess of zeal, though under the circumstances who would blame the
+Preventive officer for what he did? In February of 1824, a man named
+Field and his crew of three came out from Rye&mdash;that hotbed of
+smugglers&mdash;and intended to proceed to the well-known trawling ground
+about fifteen miles to the S.W. of Rye, abreast of Fairlight, but
+about five or six miles out from that shore. Unfortunately it fell
+very calm, so that it took them some time to reach the trawling
+ground, and even when with the assistance of the tide they did arrive
+there, the wind was so scant that it was useless to shoot the trawl in
+the water. Naturally, therefore, it was a long time before they had
+obtained their cargo of flat fish, and when a little breeze sprang up
+they had to get back to Rye, as their provisions had run short.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_352" id="Page_352">[Pg 352]</a></span>On their way back, when they were only about four or five miles from
+their harbour, they fell in with a small open sailing-boat named the
+<i>Rose</i>, containing four or five men. Field's bigger craft was hailed
+by the <i>Rose</i> and asked to be taken in tow, as they also had run short
+of provisions, and were anxious to get back to harbour at once.
+Field's boat took one of their crew on board, whilst the rest remained
+in the <i>Rose</i> and were towed astern. It was now about four or five in
+the morning, and they had not proceeded more than another couple of
+miles before they were hailed again, but this time by a boat under the
+command of a Preventive officer named Lipscomb, who had been sent by
+Lieutenant Gammon, R.N., from the revenue cruiser <i>Cameleon</i>. The
+cutter's boat bumped alongside Field's craft, which was called the
+<i>Diamond</i>. After making fast, Lipscomb and his boat's crew jumped
+aboard, and announced that they suspected the <i>Diamond</i> was fitted
+with concealments, and he wished to examine her. But after rummaging
+the ship nothing suspicious was found. Lipscomb then explained that he
+had been ordered by Lieutenant Gammon to take the <i>Diamond</i> and to
+bring her alongside the <i>Cameleon</i> and then to order Field and his
+crew to go aboard the cruiser as prisoners.</p>
+
+<p>This, of course, did not lead to harmony on board. Lipscomb attempted
+to seize hold of the tiller, so as to steer the vessel back to
+Hastings <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_353" id="Page_353">[Pg 353]</a></span>Roads, where the cruiser was lying. But Field turned to him
+and said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know about your having the helm. You don't know where the
+cutter is any more than I do."</p>
+
+<p>With that, Field pushed the man aside, grasped hold of the tiller, and
+shoved it hard up, and bearing away, ran the vessel out seawards. But
+after keeping on this course for twenty minutes they fell in with the
+<i>Cameleon</i>, and the two vessels came near to each other. The cruiser's
+commander shouted to Lipscomb, and ordered him to get into the
+cruiser's galley, which had been towing astern of the <i>Diamond</i> all
+this time, and to row to the cruiser. This was done, and then Lipscomb
+received his orders. He was to return to the trawler and seize the
+hands and bring them to the <i>Cameleon</i>. So the galley returned again
+and brought the <i>Diamond's</i> crew as ordered. It was now 7 A.M., and
+they were kept as prisoners on the cutter till 9 A.M. the following
+day. Lipscomb and his boat's crew of four now took charge of the
+<i>Diamond</i>, and began to trim sheets, and before long the two craft got
+separated.</p>
+
+<p>When Field proceeded on board the <i>Cameleon</i> he took with him his
+ship's papers at the lieutenant's orders. He then ventured to ask how
+it was that his smack had been detained, to which Gammon replied that
+he had received information from the Collector of Customs at Rye.
+Field, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_354" id="Page_354">[Pg 354]</a></span>however, was incredulous. "I rather doubt your word," he said,
+whereupon the officer took out of his pocket a letter, doubled the
+page down one or two lines, and showed the doubting skipper that it
+was as the lieutenant had stated. Gammon then went below and took
+Field's papers with him, and there they remained till the following
+morning.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Cameleon</i> went jogging along, and having arrived abreast of
+Hastings, Gammon sent one of his crew ashore in the cutter's boat, and
+later on fetched him back. The object, no doubt, was to send the
+<i>Diamond's</i> papers ashore to be examined as to their veracity, though
+nothing was said to Field on the subject. It is clear that the reply
+from the authorities came back that the papers were found in order,
+and that Field was not known as a smuggler; for after the man who had
+been sent ashore returned, the <i>Cameleon</i> made sail, and stood out to
+sea for a distance of eighteen miles. She had lost sight of the
+<i>Diamond</i> and her prize crew, and it was not till about breakfast time
+the following day that the cruiser found the smack again. When at
+length the two craft did come together, Lipscomb was called on board
+the cruiser and summoned below to Gammon. What exactly the
+conversation was never came out, but from subsequent events it is
+fairly clear that Gammon asked what opinion Lipscomb had been able to
+form of the <i>Diamond</i>, and that the latter had to admit she was a
+genuine trawler; for <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_355" id="Page_355">[Pg 355]</a></span>soon after, the lieutenant sent the steward for
+Field and one of his men to go below. The two men did as they were
+ordered.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning," said the cruiser's commander as they came into the
+cabin, "here are your papers, Field."</p>
+
+<p>Field hesitated for a moment; then answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, sir, as to taking them. I'm not altogether satisfied
+about being detained so long. And had I been aboard the smack, and you
+had refused to let me have the tiller," he continued, getting angrier
+every moment, "I would have shot you as sure as you had been a man."</p>
+
+<p>"You may do as you please," came the commander's cool reply, "about
+taking them, but if you do not choose to take them, I shall take you
+away to Portsmouth and give you up to the Port Admiral, and let him do
+with you as he thinks proper."</p>
+
+<p>Thinking therefore that it were better to be discreet and hold his
+tongue, Field took the papers, went up again on deck, collected his
+men, went back to his smack, and the incident ended&mdash;for the present.
+But the Revenue men had clearly made an error this time, and had acted
+<i>ultra vires</i>. About a year later Field, as a master and part-owner of
+the <i>Diamond</i>, brought an action against Gammon for assault and
+detention, and was awarded a verdict and &pound;5 damages.</p>
+
+<p>It is curious to find what sympathy the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_356" id="Page_356">[Pg 356]</a></span>smugglers sometimes received
+in a section of society where one would hardly have expected this to
+exist. There are at least three instances of men of position and
+wealth showing their feelings undisguisedly in favour of these lawless
+men. There was a Lieut.-Colonel Chichester, who was called upon for
+explanations as to his conduct in this respect; there was the case
+also of the naval officer commanding H.M. sloop <i>Pylades</i> being
+convicted and dismissed the service for protecting smugglers, and,
+most interesting of all, was the incident which centred round Sir
+William Courtenay.</p>
+
+<p>The facts of this case may be summarised as follows. On Sunday
+afternoon, the 17th of February 1833, the Revenue cutter <i>Lively</i> was
+cruising at the back of the Goodwins, when about three o'clock she
+descried a vessel about five or six miles off which somehow aroused
+suspicions. The name of the latter was eventually found to be the
+<i>Admiral Hood</i>. At this time the sloop was about midway between
+England and France, her commander being Lieutenant James Sharnbler,
+R.N. The <i>Admiral Hood</i> was a small dandy-rigged fore-and-after, that
+is to say, she was a cutter with a small mizzen on which she would set
+a lugsail. The <i>Lively</i> gave chase, and gradually began to gain on the
+other. When the <i>Admiral Hood</i> was within about a mile of the
+<i>Lively</i>, the former hauled across the latter, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_357" id="Page_357">[Pg 357]</a></span>when she had got
+on the <i>Lively's</i> weather-bow the Revenue craft immediately tacked,
+whereupon the <i>Admiral Hood</i> put about again and headed for the French
+coast. After vainly attempting to cause her to heave-to by the usual
+Revenue signals, the <i>Lively</i> was compelled to fire on her, and one
+shot was so well placed that it went clean through the dandy's sail,
+and thinking that this was quite near enough the <i>Admiral Hood</i>
+hove-to.</p>
+
+<p>But just prior to this, Lieutenant Sharnbler had ordered an officer
+and two men to take spyglasses and watch her. At this time they were
+about fifteen or sixteen miles away from the North Foreland. One of
+the men looking through his glass observed that the <i>Admiral Hood</i> was
+heaving tubs overboard, and it was then that the first musket was
+fired for her to heave-to, but as the tubs were still thrown overboard
+for the next three-quarters of an hour, the long gun and the muskets
+were directed towards her. The two vessels had sailed on parallel
+lines for a good hour's chase before the firing began, and the chase
+went on till about a quarter to five, the tide at this time ebbing to
+the westward and a fine strong sailing breeze. There was no doubt at
+all now that she was a smuggler, for one of the <i>Lively's</i> crew
+distinctly saw a man standing in the <i>Admiral Hood's</i> hatchway taking
+tubs and depositing them on deck, whilst some one else was taking them
+from the deck and heaving them overboard, the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_358" id="Page_358">[Pg 358]</a></span>tubs being painted a
+dark green so as to resemble the colour of the waves. As the <i>Lively</i>
+came ramping on, she found numbers of these tubs in the wake of the
+<i>Admiral Hood</i>, and lowered a boat to pick them up, and about
+twenty-two were found a hundred yards from the smuggler, and the
+<i>Lively</i> also threw out a mark-buoy to locate two other tubs which
+they passed. And, inasmuch as there was no other vessel within six
+miles distance, the <i>Admiral Hood</i> beyond a shadow of doubt was
+carrying contraband.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep358" id="imagep358"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep358.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep358.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;The Admiral Hood was heaving tubs overboard.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"The <i>Admiral Hood</i> was heaving tubs overboard."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>After the vessel was at length hove-to, she was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_359" id="Page_359">[Pg 359]</a></span>seized and ultimately
+taken into Rochester, and information was duly laid against the
+persons who had been engaged in this smuggling adventure. But it is
+here that Sir William Courtenay comes into the story. This gentleman,
+who had his seat at Powderham Castle, Devon, came forward and swore
+positively that the tubs, which the <i>Lively</i> was supposed to have
+picked up, had been seen floating off the coast. He himself was
+staying on a visit to Canterbury, and on that Sunday afternoon
+happened to be sailing about off the Kentish coast, and sighted the
+<i>Lively</i> about two o'clock. He kept her in sight, he said, until four
+o'clock. He also saw the <i>Admiral Hood</i>, and witnessed her being
+chased by the <i>Lively</i>, but he had seen the tubs for most of the day,
+as they had come up with the tide from the westward. With his own
+eyes, and not through a spy-glass, he witnessed the <i>Admiral Hood</i>
+being captured by the cruiser, and followed up this evidence by
+remarking that "the tubs I saw picked up did not come out of the <i>Lord
+Hood</i>. I say so sterling and plump."</p>
+
+<p>This was exactly the reverse of the testimony as given by the crew of
+the <i>Lively</i>, so it was evident that some one was lying. But to make a
+long story short, it was afterwards found that Sir William was not
+only <i>not</i> afloat that afternoon, did not see the tubs, did not see
+the two crafts, but was miles away from the scene, and at the time of
+the chase was in church. He was accordingly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_360" id="Page_360">[Pg 360]</a></span>brought for trial, found
+guilty, and sentenced to be imprisoned for three calendar months, and
+after the expiration of this, he was to be "transported to such a
+place beyond the seas as his Majesty may direct, for the term of seven
+years."</p>
+
+<p>He was convicted on unmistakable testimony of having committed
+perjury; in fact, Mr. Justice Parke, in giving judgment at the time,
+remarked that it was the clearest evidence in a perjury case that had
+ever fallen to his lot to try. As to the motive, it was thought that
+it was done solely with a desire to obtain a certain amount of
+popularity among the smugglers. Sir William saw that the case would go
+against the latter unless some one could give evidence for their side.
+Therefore, abusing his own position and standing, he came forward and
+perjured himself. It is a curious case, but in the history of crime
+there is more than one instance of personal pride and vanity being at
+the root of wrong-doing.</p>
+
+<br />
+<hr style="width: 15%;" />
+
+<h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_23_23" id="Footnote_23_23"></a><a href="#FNanchor_23_23"><span class="label">[23]</span></a> How slow she was may be guessed by the fact that she
+took seven hours to go from Dover to the Downs even under the expert
+handling of MacTavish's crew.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noin"><a name="Footnote_24_24" id="Footnote_24_24"></a><a href="#FNanchor_24_24"><span class="label">[24]</span></a> She was officially described as a dogger.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XIX" id="CHAPTER_XIX"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_361" id="Page_361">[Pg 361]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIX<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>ACTION AND COUNTER-ACTION</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>It is conscience that makes cowards of us all, and this may be said of
+smugglers no less than of law-abiding citizens. A trial was going on
+in connection with a certain incident which had occurred in Cawsand
+Bay, Plymouth Sound. It was alleged that, on the night of November 17,
+1831, a man named Phillips had been shot in the knee whilst in a boat,
+trying with the aid of some other men to get up an anchor. The chief
+officer of the Preventive service at Cawsand was accused by Phillips
+of having thus injured him, and the case in the course of time was
+brought into court. Among the witnesses was one whom counsel believed
+to be not wholly unconnected with smuggling. Whether or not this was
+true we need not worry ourselves, but the following questions and
+answers are well worth recording.</p>
+
+<p>Cawsand was a notorious smuggling locality, and its secluded bay, with
+plenty of deep water almost up to the beach, made it highly suitable
+for sinking tubs well below the surface of the water. And then there
+must have been very few people ashore who had never been concerned in
+this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_362" id="Page_362">[Pg 362]</a></span>contraband trade. In such villages as this you might usually
+rely on the local innkeeper knowing as much as anyone in the
+neighbourhood on the subject of smuggling. Such a man, then, from
+Cawsand, illiterate, but wideawake, went into the witness-box for
+counsel to cross-examine, and the following dialogue carries its own
+conviction:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p><i>Question.</i> "You are an innkeeper and sailor, if I understand you
+rightly?"</p>
+
+<p><i>Answer.</i> "Yes!"</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Is that all?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "Mariner and innkeeper."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Is that all the trades you follow?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "Fishing sometimes."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "What do you fish for?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "Different sorts of fish."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Did you ever fish for half-ankers?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "Half-ankers?"</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Casks of spirits&mdash;is that part of your fishing-tackle?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No, I was never convicted of no such thing."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "I am not asking you that. You know what I mean. I ask whether it
+is part of your profession."</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No, it was not."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "You never do such things?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "What should I do it for?"</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "I cannot tell you. I ask you whether you do it, not what you do
+it for."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_363" id="Page_363">[Pg 363]</a></span><i>A.</i> "I may choose to resolve whether I tell you or not."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "I will not press you if your conscience is tender. You will not
+tell me whether you do a little stroke in the Fair trade upon the
+coast? You will not answer me that question?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "I am telling the truth."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Will you answer that question?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No."</p>
+
+<p><i>Q.</i> "Are you or are you not frequently in practice as a smuggler?"</p>
+
+<p><i>A.</i> "No!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>And that was all that could be got out of a man who probably could
+have told some of the best smuggling yarns in Cornwall. The
+inhabitants so thoroughly loathed the Preventive men that, to quote
+the words of the man who was chief officer there at the time we are
+speaking of, "the hatred of the Cawsand smugglers is ... so great that
+they scarcely ever omit an opportunity of showing it either by insult
+or otherwise."</p>
+
+<p>There was a kind of renaissance of smuggling about the third decade of
+the nineteenth century, and this was brought on partly owing to the
+fact that the vigilance along our coasts was not quite so smart as it
+might have been. But there were plenty of men doing their duty to the
+service, as may be seen from the account of Matthew Morrissey, a
+boatman in the Coastguard Service at Littlehampton. About eleven
+o'clock on the evening of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_364" id="Page_364">[Pg 364]</a></span>April 5, 1833, he saw a vessel named the
+<i>Nelson</i>, which had come into harbour that day. On boarding her,
+together with another boatman, he found a crew of two men and a boy.
+The skipper told him they were from Bognor in ballast. Morrissey went
+below, got a light, and searched all over the after-cabin, the hold,
+and even overhauled the ballast, but found nothing. He then got into
+the Coastguard boat, took his boat-hook, and after feeling along the
+vessel's bottom, discovered that it was not as it ought to have been.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm not satisfied," remarked the Coastguard to her skipper, Henry
+Roberts, "I shall haul you ashore."</p>
+
+<p>One of the crew replied that he was "very welcome," and the Coastguard
+then sent his companion ashore to fetch the chief boatman. The
+Coastguard himself then again went aboard the <i>Nelson</i>, whereupon the
+crew became a little restless and went forward. Presently they
+announced that they would go ashore, so they went forward again, got
+hold of the warp, and were going to haul on shore by it when the
+Coastguard observed, "Now, recollect I am an officer in his Majesty's
+Revenue duty, and the vessel is safely moored and in my charge; and if
+you obstruct me in my duty you will abide by the consequences." He
+took the warp out of their hands, and continued to walk up and down
+one side of the deck while the crew walked the other. This went on for
+about twenty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_365" id="Page_365">[Pg 365]</a></span>minutes, when Henry Roberts came up just as the
+Coastguard was turning round, and getting a firm grip, pushed him
+savagely aft and over the vessel's quarter into the water. Heavily
+laden though the Coastguard was with a heavy monkey-jacket, petticoat
+canvas trousers over his others, and with his arms as well, he had
+great difficulty in swimming, but at last managed to get to the shore.
+The chief boatman and the other man were now arriving, and it was
+found that the <i>Nelson's</i> crew had vanished. The vessel was eventually
+examined, and found to have a false bottom containing thirty-two tubs
+of liquor and twenty-eight flagons of foreign brandy. Roberts was
+later on arrested, found guilty, and transported for seven years.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep365" id="imagep365"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep365.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep365.jpg" width="60%" alt="&quot;Getting a firm grip, pushed him ... into the water.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Getting a firm grip, pushed him ... into the water."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>A few pages back we witnessed an incident off Hastings. On the 5th of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_366" id="Page_366">[Pg 366]</a></span>
+January 1832, a much more serious encounter took place. Lieutenant
+Baker, R.N., was cruising at that time in the Revenue cutter <i>Ranger</i>
+off the Sussex coast, when between nine and ten in the evening he saw
+a suspicious fire on the Castle Hill at Hastings. Believing that it
+was a smuggler's signal, he despatched his four-oared galley, with
+directions to row between Eccles Barn and the Martello Tower, No. 39.
+At the same time the <i>Ranger</i> continued to cruise off the land so as
+to be in communication with the galley. About 1 A.M. a report was
+heard from the Hastings direction, and a significant blue light was
+seen burning. Baker therefore took his cutter nearer in-shore towards
+the spot where this light had been seen. He immediately fell in with
+his galley, which had shown the blue light, and in her he found about
+two hundred casks of different sizes containing foreign spirits, and
+also five men who had been detained by the galley.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_367" id="Page_367">[Pg 367]</a></span>The men of course were taken on board the cruiser, and as the morning
+advanced, the <i>Ranger</i> again stood into the shore so that the
+lieutenant might land the spirits at the Custom House. Then getting
+into his galley with part of his crew, the tubs were towed astern in
+the cutter's smaller boat. But on reaching the beach, he found no
+fewer than four hundred persons assembled with the apparent intention
+of preventing the removal of the spirits to the Custom House, and
+especially notorious among this gang were two men, named respectively
+John Pankhurst and Henry Stevens. The galley was greeted with a shower
+of stones, and some of the Revenue men therein were struck, and had to
+keep quite close to the water's edge. Stevens and Pankhurst came and
+deposited themselves on the boat's gunwale, and resisted the removal
+of the tubs. Two carts now came down to the beach, but the mob refused
+to allow them to be loaded, and stones were flying in various
+directions, one man being badly hurt. Lieutenant Baker also received a
+violent blow from a large stone thrown by Pankhurst.</p>
+
+<p>But gradually the carts were loaded in spite of the opposition, and
+just as the last vehicle had been filled, Pankhurst loosened the
+bridle-back of the cart which was at the back of the vehicle to secure
+the spirits, and had not the Revenue officers and men been very smart
+in surrounding the cart and protecting the goods, there would have
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_368" id="Page_368">[Pg 368]</a></span>been a rescue of the casks. Ultimately, the carts proceeded towards
+the Custom House pursued by the raging mob, and even after the goods
+had been all got in there was a good deal of pelting with stones and
+considerable damage done. Yet again, when these prisoners, Pankhurst
+and Stevens, were brought up for trial, the jury failed to do their
+duty and convict. But the Lord Chief Justice of that time remarked
+that he would not allow Stevens and Pankhurst to be discharged until
+they had entered into their recognisances to keep the peace in &pound;20
+each.</p>
+
+<p>But next to the abominable cruelties perpetrated by the Hawkhurst gang
+related in an earlier chapter, I have found no incident so utterly
+brutal and savage as the following. I have to ask the reader to turn
+his imagination away from Sussex, and centre it on a very beautiful
+spot in Dorsetshire, where the cliffs and sea are separated by only a
+narrow beach. On the evening of the 28th of June 1832, Thomas Barrett,
+one of the boatmen belonging to the West Lulworth Coastguard, was on
+duty and proceeding along the top of the cliff towards Durdle, when he
+saw a boat moving about from the eastward. It was now nearly 10 P.M.
+He ran along the cliff, and then down to the beach, where he saw that
+this boat had just landed and was now shoving off again. But four men
+were standing by the water, at the very spot whence the boat had
+immediately before <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_369" id="Page_369">[Pg 369]</a></span>pushed off. One of these men was James Davis, who
+had on a long frock and a covered hat painted black.</p>
+
+<p>Barrett asked this little knot of men what their business was, and why
+they were there at that time of night, to which Davis replied that
+they had "come from Weymouth, pleasuring!" Barrett observed that to
+come from Weymouth (which was several miles to the westward) by the
+east was a "rum" way. Davis then denied that they had come from the
+eastward at all, but this was soon stopped by Barrett remarking that
+if they had any nonsense they would get the worst of it. After this
+the four men went up the cliff, having loudly abused him before
+proceeding. On examining the spot where the boat had touched, the
+Coastguard found twenty-nine tubs full of brandy lying on the beach
+close to the water's edge, tied together in pairs, as was the custom
+for landing. He therefore deemed it advisable to burn a blue light,
+and fired several shots into the air for assistance.</p>
+
+<p>Three boatmen belonging to the station saw and heard, and they came
+out to his aid. But by this time the country-side was also on the
+alert, and the signals had brought an angry crowd of fifty men, who
+sympathised with the smugglers. These appeared on the top of the
+cliff, so the four coastguards ran from the tubs (on the beach) to the
+cliff to prevent this mob from coming <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_370" id="Page_370">[Pg 370]</a></span>down and rescuing the tubs. But
+as the four men advanced to the top of the cliff, they hailed the mob
+and asked who they were, announcing that they had seized the tubs. The
+crowd made answer that the coastguards should not have the tubs, and
+proceeded to fire at the quartette and to hurl down stones. A distance
+of only about twenty yards separated the two forces, and the chief
+boatman ordered his three men to fire up at them, and for
+three-quarters of an hour this affray continued.</p>
+
+<p>It was just then that the coastguards heard cries coming from the top
+of the cliff&mdash;cries as of some one in great pain. But soon after the
+mob left the cliff and went away; so the coastguards went down to the
+beach again to secure and make safe the tubs, where they found that
+Lieutenant Stocker was arriving at the beach in a boat from a
+neighbouring station. He ordered Barrett to put the tubs in the boat
+and then to lay a little distance from the shore. But after Barrett
+had done this and was about thirty yards away, the lieutenant ordered
+him to come ashore again, because the men on the beach were bringing
+down Lieutenant Knight, who was groaning and in great pain.</p>
+
+<p>What had happened to the latter must now be told. After the signals
+mentioned had been observed, a man named Duke and Lieutenant Knight,
+R.N., had also proceeded along the top <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_371" id="Page_371">[Pg 371]</a></span>of the cliff. It was a
+beautiful starlight night, with scarcely any wind, perfectly still and
+no moon visible. There was just the sea and the night and the cliffs.
+But before they had gone far they encountered that mob we have just
+spoken of at the top of the cliff. Whilst the four coastguards were
+exchanging fire from below, Lieutenant Knight and Duke came upon the
+crowd from their rear. Two men against fifty armed with great sticks 6
+feet long could not do much. As the mob turned towards them,
+Lieutenant Knight promised them that if they should make use of those
+murderous-looking sticks they should have the contents of his pistol.</p>
+
+<p>But the mob, without waiting, dealt the first blows, so Duke and his
+officer defended themselves with their cutlasses. At first there were
+only a dozen men against them, and these the two managed to beat off.
+But other men then came up and formed a circle round Knight and Duke,
+so the two stood back to back and faced the savage mob. The latter
+made fierce blows at the men, which were warded off by the cutlasses
+in the men's left hands, two pistols being in the right hand of each.
+The naval men fired these, but it was of little good, though they
+fought like true British sailors. Those 6-foot sticks could reach well
+out, and both Knight and Duke were felled to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Then, like human panthers let loose on their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_372" id="Page_372">[Pg 372]</a></span>prey, this brutal,
+lawless mob with uncontrolled cruelty let loose the strings of their
+pent-up passion. They kept these men on the ground and dealt with them
+shamefully. Duke was being dragged along by his belt, and the crowd
+beat him sorely as he heard his lieutenant exclaim, "Oh, you brutes!"
+The next thing which Duke heard the fierce mob to say was, "Let's kill
+the &mdash;&mdash; and have him over the cliff." Now the cliff at that spot is
+100 feet high. Four men then were preparing to carry out this
+command&mdash;two were at his legs and two at his hands&mdash;when Duke
+indignantly declared, "If Jem was here, he wouldn't let you do it."</p>
+
+<p>It reads almost like fiction to have this dramatic halt in the murder
+scene. For just as Duke was about to be hurled headlong over the side,
+a man came forward and pressed the blackguards back on hearing these
+words. For a time it was all that the new-comer could do to restrain
+the brutes from hitting the poor fellow, while the men who still had
+hold of his limbs swore that they would have Duke over the cliff. But
+after being dealt a severe blow on the forehead, they put him down on
+to the ground and left him bleeding. One of the gang, seeing this,
+observed complacently, "He bleeds well, but breathes short. It will
+soon be over with him." And with that they left him.</p>
+
+<br />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_373" id="Page_373">[Pg 373]</a></span>
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep373" id="imagep373"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep373.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep373.jpg" width="50%" alt="&quot;Let's ... have him over the cliff.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Let's ... have him over the cliff."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The man who had come forward so miraculously <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_374" id="Page_374">[Pg 374]</a></span>and so dramatically to
+save Duke's life was James Cowland, and the reason he had so acted was
+out of gratitude to Duke, who had taken his part in a certain incident
+twelve months ago. And this is the sole redeeming feature in a glut of
+brutality. It must have required no small amount of pluck and energy
+for Cowland to have done even so much amid the wild fanaticism which
+was raging, and smuggler and ruffian though he was, it is only fair to
+emphasize and praise his action for risking his own life to save that
+of a man by whom he had already benefited.</p>
+
+<p>But Cowland did nothing more for his friend than that, and after the
+crowd had indulged themselves on the two men they went off to their
+homes. Duke then, suffering and bleeding, weak and stunned, crawled to
+the place where he had been first attacked&mdash;a little higher up the
+cliff&mdash;and there he saw Knight's petticoat trousers, but there was no
+sign of his officer himself.</p>
+
+<p>After that he gradually made his way down to the beach, and at the
+foot of the cliff he came upon Knight lying on his back immediately
+below where the struggle with the smugglers had taken place. Duke sat
+down by his side, and the officer, opening his eyes, recognised his
+man and asked, "Is that you?" But that was all he said. Duke then went
+to tell the coastguards and Lieutenant Stocker on the beach, who
+fetched the dying man, put him into Lipscomb's boat, and promptly
+rowed him to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_375" id="Page_375">[Pg 375]</a></span>his home at Lulworth, where he died the next day. It is
+difficult to write calmly of such an occurrence as this: it is
+impossible that in such circumstances one can extend the slightest
+sympathy with a race of men who probably had a hard struggle for
+existence, especially when the fishing or the harvests were bad. The
+most one can do is to attribute such unreasoning and unwarranted
+cruelty to the ignorance and the coarseness which had been bred in
+undisciplined lives. Out of that seething, vicious mob there was only
+one man who had a scrap of humanity, and even he could not prevent his
+fellows from one of the worst crimes in the long roll of smugglers'
+delinquencies.</p>
+
+<p>The days of smugglers were, of course, coincident with the period of
+the stage-coach. In the year 1833 there was a man named Thomas Allen,
+who was master and part-owner of a coasting vessel named the <i>Good
+Intent</i>, which used to trade between Dover and London. In February of
+that year Thomas Becker, who happened to be the guard of the night
+coaches running between Dover and London, came with a man named
+Tomsett to Allen, and suggested that the latter should join them in a
+smuggling transaction, telling him that they knew how to put a good
+deal of money into his pocket. At first Allen hesitated and declined,
+but the proposal was again renewed a few days later, when Allen again
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_376" id="Page_376">[Pg 376]</a></span>declined, as it was too risky a business. But at length, as "trade was
+very bad," both he and a man named Sutton, one of his crew, agreed to
+come into the scheme. What happened was as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Good Intent</i> left Dover on February 23, went as far as the Downs
+about two miles from the coast, and under cover of darkness took on
+board from a French vessel, which was there waiting by appointment,
+about forty bales of silk. In order to be ready to deal with these,
+the <i>Good Intent</i> had been provided with sufficient empty crates and
+boxes. The silks were put into these, they were addressed to some
+persons in Birmingham, and, after being landed at one of the London
+quays as if they had come from Dover, they were sent across to the
+Paddington Canal, and duly arrived at their destination. Allen's share
+of that transaction amounted to about &pound;80. He had done so well that he
+repeated the same practice in April and May; but in June some tea
+which he brought in was seized, and although he was not prosecuted yet
+it gave him a fright. But after being entreated by the two tempters,
+he repeated his first incident, took forty more bales on board, and
+arrived at the Port of London. But the Custom House officials had got
+wind of this, and when the <i>Good Intent</i> arrived she was searched. In
+this case the goods had not been put into crates, but were concealed
+in the ballast, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_377" id="Page_377">[Pg 377]</a></span>the idea being not to land them in London but to
+bring them back under the ballast to Dover.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep377" id="imagep377"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep377.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep377.jpg" width="55%" alt="&quot;Under cover of darkness took on board ... forty bales of silk.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Under cover of darkness took on board ... forty bales of silk."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The first remark the Customs officer made was, "There is a great deal
+more ballast here than is necessary for such a ship," and promptly
+began moving the same. Of course the goods were discovered, and of
+course Allen pretended he knew <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_378" id="Page_378">[Pg 378]</a></span>nothing about the forty bales being
+there concealed. They were seized and condemned.</p>
+
+<p>Becker got to hear of this disaster and that a warrant was out for his
+own arrest, so he quickly hopped across to Calais. An officer was sent
+both to Deal and to Dover to find Tomsett, but found him not, so he
+crossed over to Calais, and among the first people whom he saw on
+Calais pier were Tomsett and Becker walking about together. The
+officer had no wish to be seen by Becker, but the latter saw him, and
+came up and asked him how he was and what he was doing there. The
+officer made the best excuse he could, and stated that he had got on
+board the steam-packet and been brought off by mistake.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I am here in consequence of that rascal Allen having peached
+against us," volunteered Becker, and then went on to say that he was
+as innocent as the child unborn. However, the judge, at a later date,
+thought otherwise, and imposed a penalty of &pound;4750, though the full
+penalty really amounted to the enormous sum of &pound;71,000.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="CHAPTER_XX" id="CHAPTER_XX"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_379" id="Page_379">[Pg 379]</a></span><br />
+<h3>CHAPTER XX<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+
+<h4>FORCE AND CUNNING</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>A smuggling vessel was usually provided with what was called a
+tub-rail&mdash;that is to say, a rail which ran round the vessel just below
+the gunwale on the inside. When a vessel was about to arrive at her
+destination to sink her tubs, the proceeding was as follows. The tubs
+were all made fast to a long warp, and this warp with its tubs was
+placed outside the vessel's bulwarks, running all round the ship from
+the stern to the bows and back again the other side. This warp was
+kept fastened to the tub-rail by five or seven lines called
+stop-ropes. Consequently all the smugglers had to do was to cut these
+stop-ropes, and the tubs and warp would drop into the water, the stone
+weights immediately sinking the casks.</p>
+
+<p>Bearing this in mind, let us see the Revenue cutter <i>Tartar</i>, on the
+night between the 3rd and 4th of April 1839, cruising off Kimeridge,
+between St. Alban's Head and Weymouth, and a little to the east of
+where Lieutenant Knight was murdered, as we saw in the last chapter.
+About 1.40 A.M. Lieutenant George Davies, R.N., the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_380" id="Page_380">[Pg 380]</a></span><i>Tartar's</i>
+commander, was below sleeping with his clothes and boots on, when he
+heard the officer of the watch call for him. Instantly he went on deck
+and saw a smuggling vessel. She was then about thirty yards away and
+within a mile of the shore. Her name was afterwards found to be the
+French sloop <i>Diane</i>.</p>
+
+<p>It was rather a warm, thick night, such as one sometimes gets in April
+when the weather has begun to get finer. By the time that the
+cruiser's commander had come up on deck, both the cutter and the
+<i>Diane</i> were hove-to, and the vessels were close alongside. When first
+sighted by the boatswain the smuggler was standing out from the land.
+The <i>Tartar's</i> boat was now launched into the water, and the bo'sun
+and two men pulled off in her and boarded the <i>Diane</i>, and then came
+back to fetch Lieutenant Davies. The instant the latter boarded the
+<i>Diane</i>, he saw one of the latter's crew throwing something overboard.
+He stooped down to pick something up, when Davies rushed forward and
+caught him round the body as something fell into the water, and a
+tub-hoop, new, wet, and green, was taken from him. Davies called to
+his bo'sun to bring a lantern, so that he might identify the seized
+man and then proceed to search the vessel.</p>
+
+<p>A tub-rail and stop-rope were found on board, and, on going below, the
+hold was found to be strewn with chips of tub-hoops and pieces of
+stones <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_381" id="Page_381">[Pg 381]</a></span>for sinking. The upper deck was similarly strewn, while by the
+hatchway were found sinker-slings. These sinkers in actual employment
+were accustomed to be suspended and hitched round the warp at about
+every sixth tub. The <i>Diane's</i> master was asked where his boat was
+since none was found aboard, but there was no satisfactory answer.
+Tub-boards for fixing on deck so as to prevent the tubs from rolling
+overboard were also found, so altogether there was sufficient reason
+for seizing the vessel, which was now done. She was taken into
+Weymouth and her crew brought before a magistrate. And in that port
+the tub-boat was also found, for the smugglers had doubtless sent most
+of their cargo ashore in her whilst the <i>Diane</i> was cruising about
+between there and St. Alban's Head. It was significant that only three
+men were found on board, whereas smuggling vessels of this size (about
+twenty to thirty tons) usually carried eight or nine, the explanation
+being that the others had been sent out with the tub-boat. But the
+rest of the cargo had evidently been hurriedly thrown overboard when
+the <i>Tartar</i> appeared, and because these casks were thrown over so
+quickly, fifty-nine of them had come to the surface and were
+subsequently recovered. But besides these, 154 casks were also found
+on one sling at the bottom of the sea close to where the <i>Diane</i> had
+been arrested, for at the time when this occurrence had taken place
+the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_382" id="Page_382">[Pg 382]</a></span><i>Tartar's</i> men had been careful at once to take cross bearings
+and so fix their position.</p>
+
+<p>One of the most interesting of these smuggling events was that which
+occurred in the Medway. About eight o'clock on the evening of March
+27, 1839, a smack called the <i>Mary</i> came running into the river from
+outside. At this time it was blowing very hard from the N.E., and the
+tide was ebbing, so that of course wind would be against tide and a
+certain amount of sea on. But it was noticed by the coastguard at
+Garrison Point, which commands the entrance to this river, that the
+<i>Mary</i> had got far too much sail up&mdash;whole mainsail as well as
+gaff-topsail. Considering it was a fair wind and there was a good deal
+of it, there was far more canvas than was necessary, even allowing for
+the tide.</p>
+
+<p>It was a rule that all vessels entering the Medway should bring-to off
+Garrison Point, and allow themselves to be boarded and searched, if
+required by certain signals. In order to compel the <i>Mary</i> so to do,
+the coastguard at this point fired a shot and rowed off to meet her.
+But the smack held on. She was steering straight for the Isle of
+Grain, and showed no intention of starboarding her helm so as to get
+on a proper course up the Medway. Another shot was fired, and yet she
+held on. Now there were some of her Majesty's ships lying near the
+Grain, which is on the starboard hand as you pass up the river, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_383" id="Page_383">[Pg 383]</a></span>viz.
+the <i>D&aelig;dalus</i> and the <i>Alfred</i>. These vessels were of course swung
+with the tide, and between the <i>D&aelig;dalus</i> and the Isle of Grain the
+smack man&oelig;uvred.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep383" id="imagep383"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep383.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep383.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;Another shot was fired.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Another shot was fired."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>A third shot now came whizzing by from the boat that was rowing hard
+against the tide, and the smack came round between the <i>Alfred</i> and
+<i>D&aelig;dalus</i>. The coastguard then boarded the <i>Mary</i>, and the master said
+he was from Brightlingsea. He pretended that he thought the firing was
+not from the coastguard, but from a ship at the Little Nore, which is
+the channel that runs up to Garrison Point from the Nore Lightship.
+This was curious, for the <i>Mary</i> had been in the habit of going up the
+Medway, and hitherto had always hove-to off Garrison Point for the
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_384" id="Page_384">[Pg 384]</a></span>coastguard to come aboard. Her skipper excused his action by stating
+that he was frightened of heaving-to as he might have carried away his
+mast and gone ashore, if he had hauled up and gybed.</p>
+
+<p>But it was pointed out that it was a foolish and unsafe course for the
+<i>Mary</i> to steer between the <i>D&aelig;dalus</i> and the Grain Island, especially
+as it was a dark night without any moon, and blowing very hard. But on
+going aboard, the coastguard was not surprised to detect a strong
+smell of gin, as if spirits had quite recently been removed from the
+smack. And after making a search there was nothing found on board
+except that she was in a great state of confusion. None the less it
+was deemed advisable to place a couple of officers on board her to
+accompany her up to Rochester. This was on the Friday night, and she
+arrived at Rochester the same day.</p>
+
+<p>On the Sunday it occurred to the officers to search for the spirits
+which they were sure the <i>Mary</i> had on board, so they proceeded to
+that spot by the <i>D&aelig;dalus</i> where the <i>Mary</i> had luffed round and met
+the coastguard boat. After sweeping for half-an-hour they found 115
+tubs slung together to a rope in the usual manner. At each end of the
+rope was an anchor, and between these anchors was a number of tubs,
+and in between each pair of tubs were stones. So the <i>Mary</i> had gone
+into that little bight in order <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_385" id="Page_385">[Pg 385]</a></span>that she might throw her tubs
+overboard, which would be sunk by the stones, and the two anchors
+would prevent them from being drifted away by the tide. The warp, it
+was thought, had been in the first instance fastened to the tub-rail
+in the manner we have already described, and at the third gun the
+stop-ropes were cut, and the whole cargo went with a splash into the
+water, and the vessel sailed over the tubs as they sank to the muddy
+bottom.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep385" id="imagep385"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep385.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep385.jpg" width="75%" alt="Methods employed by Smugglers for Anchoring tubs thrown Overboard." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">Methods employed by Smugglers for Anchoring tubs thrown Overboard.<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The usual way to get these tubs up was of course by means of grapnels,
+or, as they were called, "creepers." But the spot chosen by the <i>Mary</i>
+was quite close to the moorings of the <i>D&aelig;dalus</i>, so that method would
+only have fouled the warship's cables. Therefore the following
+ingenious device was used. A large heavy rope was taken, and at each
+end was attached a boat. The rope swept along the river-bed as the
+boats <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_386" id="Page_386">[Pg 386]</a></span>rowed in the same direction stretching out the rope. Before
+long the bight of this rope found the obstructing tubs, stones, warp,
+and anchor, and that having occurred, the two boats rowed close
+together, and a heavy iron ring was dropped over the two ends of the
+rope, and thus sank and gripped the rope at the point where it met
+with the obstruction. All that now remained, therefore, was to pull
+this double rope till the obstruction came up from the bottom of the
+water. And in this manner the articles which the <i>Mary</i> had cast
+overboard were recovered.</p>
+
+<p>She was obviously a smuggler, as besides this discovery she was found
+to be fitted with concealments, and fourteen tholes were found on
+board "muffled" with canvas and spun yarn, so as to be able to row
+silently. Her skipper, William Evans, was duly prosecuted and found
+guilty; and it was during the course of this trial that the
+interesting dialogue occurred between counsel and the coastguard as to
+whether the first warning gun fired was always shotted or not. As we
+have already discussed this point, we need not let it detain us now.</p>
+
+<p>The year 1849 was interesting, as it witnessed the seizing of one of
+the earliest steamcraft on a charge of smuggling. Very late in the day
+of May 15 the steam-tug <i>Royal Charter</i>, employed in towing vessels in
+and out of Portsmouth harbour, had been taken to Spithead without <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_387" id="Page_387">[Pg 387]</a></span>the
+permission of her owner, and information was given to the coastguard.
+About midnight she was first discovered steaming towards the port with
+a small boat attached to her stern, being then about half a mile from
+the harbour. Chase was then made and the vessel hailed and ordered to
+heave-to. She replied that she would round-to directly, but in fact
+she held on and steamed at full speed, notwithstanding that several
+shots were fired at her. As she entered Portsmouth harbour she was
+pursued by the Customs boat, who asked them to shut off steam and be
+examined. Of course full speed in those days meant nothing very
+wonderful, and it was not long before she was boarded. She had a crew
+of three, and there were ten men in the boat towing astern, most of
+whom were found to have been previously convicted of smuggling. It
+seems strange to find a steamboat pursuing the old tactics of the
+sailing smacks, but in her wake there were found 150 half-ankers
+within about 300 yards of her and where she had passed. The vessel and
+boat were seized, and the men taken before the magistrates and
+convicted.</p>
+
+<p>But the following is an instance of steam being employed against
+smugglers. One Sunday towards the end of October 1849, about nine
+o'clock in the morning, the local receiver of duties informed the tide
+surveyor at St. Heliers, Jersey, that there was a cutter which (from
+information <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_388" id="Page_388">[Pg 388]</a></span>received) he was convinced was loaded with brandy. This
+cutter was in one of the bays to the N.W. of the island. But as the
+wind was then blowing from the W.N.W. and a very heavy surf was
+rolling in, the consent of the harbour-master was obtained to use the
+steam-tug <i>Polka</i> to go round in search of her, the understanding
+being that she was to be paid for if a seizure were made. The wind and
+sea were so boisterous that the Revenue boat could not have been used.</p>
+
+<p>Steamer and officers therefore proceeded round the coast till they
+reached Plemont Bay, about twenty miles from St. Helier, and there
+they found a small cutter lying at anchor close under the cliff, but
+with no one on board. The steamer lowered a boat and found the cutter
+to be the <i>Lion</i> of Jersey, five tons, with four hogsheads and seven
+quarter casks of brandy. The officers then weighed anchor, and by
+sailing and towing got her round to St. Helier harbour, where she was
+dismantled, and the brandy and her materials lodged at the Custom
+House. This little craft had come from Dielette in France, and as
+Plemont Bay was a very secluded locality, she would have run her goods
+there with perfect success, had she not been discovered while her crew
+were on shore, whither they had probably gone for the purpose of
+making arrangements for getting the cargo landed.</p>
+
+<p>But by the middle of the nineteenth century so <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_389" id="Page_389">[Pg 389]</a></span>thoroughly had the
+authorities gripped the smuggling evil that these men were actually
+sometimes afraid to take advantage of what fortune literally handed
+out to them. The schooner <i>Walter</i> of Falmouth was bound on a voyage
+from Liverpool to Chichester with a cargo of guano on May 30, 1850.
+Her crew consisted of Stephen Sawle, master, Benjamin Bowden, mate,
+Samuel Banister, seaman, and George Andrews, boy. On this day she was
+off Lundy Island, when Andrews espied a couple of casks floating ahead
+of the schooner and called to the master and mate, who were below at
+tea. They immediately came up on deck, and the master looked at the
+kegs through his glass, saying that he thought they were provisions.</p>
+
+<p>The three men then got out the ship's boat, rowed after the casks and
+slung them into the boat, and brought them on board. In doing so the
+mate happened to spill one of them, which contained brandy. This gave
+the skipper something of a fright, and he directed the mate and seaman
+to throw the casks overboard. They both told him they thought he was a
+great fool if he did so. He gave the same orders a second time and
+then went below, but after he had remained there for some time, he
+said to his crew, "If you will all swear that you will not tell
+anybody, I will risk it." They all solemnly promised, the master
+swearing the mate, the seaman, and the boy on the ship's <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_390" id="Page_390">[Pg 390]</a></span>Bible that
+they would not tell the owner or any living creature.</p>
+
+<p>Presently the mate and Banister removed the hatches and handed up
+about two tiers of guano, sent the casks of brandy below and placed
+bags on their top. After the master had been below a couple of hours,
+he asked whether the casks were out of sight. The mate and Banister
+replied that they were, whereupon the master took a candle, examined
+the hold, and afterwards the sleeping-berths, but he could not see
+anything of the brandy. He then went to the boy and said, "Mind you
+don't let Mr. Coplin [the owner] know anything about this business,
+for the world."</p>
+
+<p>The vessel arrived at Falmouth on Sunday morning, the 2nd of June, and
+brought up off the Market Strand. At six in the morning the boy went
+ashore and returned about midnight. The mate was on board and
+addressed him thus, "You knew very well what was going on and ought to
+have been on board before this." For at that time both the master and
+Banister were ashore. On Monday the boy went down to the hold and saw
+the brandy was gone, and the same night about half-an-hour before
+midnight the mate and Banister brought four gallons of the brandy to
+where the boy was lodging, as his share. The youngster complained that
+it was very little, to which Banister replied that one of the casks
+had leaked amongst the cargo of guano or he would have had more.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_391" id="Page_391">[Pg 391]</a></span>Ostensibly the schooner had put into Falmouth for repairs. Later on
+the Custom House officers got to hear of it, but it was then the month
+of July, and the schooner had since sailed and proceeded to Liverpool.</p>
+
+<p>On the 1st of October of this same year a highly ingenious device was
+discovered through a hitch, which unfortunately ruined the smugglers'
+chances. In its broad conception it was but a modification of an idea
+which we have already explained. In its application, however, it was
+unique and original. At half-past six on this morning a
+fore-and-aft-rigged vessel was observed to be sailing into Chichester
+harbour. When first discovered, she was about a mile from Hayling
+Island. She was boarded, as smuggled goods were supposed to have been
+taken by her from a raft at sea. Manned by a master and a crew of two,
+all English, she was well known in that neighbourhood. She was
+registered at Portsmouth as the <i>Rival</i>.</p>
+
+<p>Her cargo was found to consist of a few oysters and thirteen tubs of
+spirits, but these were attached to the stern in a most ingenious
+manner. By her stern-post was an iron pipe, and through this pipe ran
+a chain, one end of which was secured at the top, close to the tiller,
+the other end running right down into the water below the ship.
+Attached to the chain in the water were thirteen tubs wrapped in
+canvas. The theory was this. As the vessel sailed along, the chain
+would be hauled as tight as it <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_392" id="Page_392">[Pg 392]</a></span>would go, so that the casks were kept
+under the vessel's stern and below water. Now, having arrived in
+Chichester harbour, the helmsman had suddenly let go the chain, but
+the latter had unhappily jammed in the pipe, and the tubs were thus
+dragged with a large scope of chain. The coastguard in coming
+alongside used his boat-hook underneath, and thus caught hold of the
+chain and tubs. The vessel was now soon laid ashore, and when her
+bottom was examined, the whole device was discovered. It had only
+quite recently been added, but the crew were notorious smugglers, so
+they got themselves into trouble in spite of their ingenuity.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep392" id="imagep392"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep392.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep392.jpg" width="70%" alt="The Rival's Ingenious Device." /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">The <i>Rival's</i> Ingenious Device (see text).<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_393" id="Page_393">[Pg 393]</a></span>And now let us bring this list of smuggling adventures to an end with
+the activities of a very ubiquitous French sloop named the <i>Georges</i>,
+which came into prominent notice in the year 1850. Her port of
+departure was Cherbourg, and she was wont to run her goods across to
+the south coast of England with the greatest impudence. In piecing
+together this narrative of her adventures, it has been no easy task to
+follow her movements, for she appeared and disappeared, then was seen
+somewhere else perhaps a hundred miles away in a very short time.</p>
+
+<p>It appears that on April 19 the <i>Georges</i>, whose master's name was
+Gosselin, cleared from Cherbourg, and two days later was sighted by
+the commander of the Revenue cutter <i>Cameleon</i> off Bembridge Ledge,
+about one o'clock in the afternoon, about eight or nine miles E.S.E.
+After she had come up she was boarded by the <i>Cameleon</i>, and was found
+to have one passenger, whom the <i>Cameleon's</i> commander described as an
+Englishman "of a most suspicious appearance." But after being searched
+she was found perfectly "clean" and free from any appearance of tubs
+or smell of spirits. The Revenue cutter's commander therefore formed
+the opinion that the <i>Georges</i> was fitted with some concealments
+somewhere. In order to discover these, it would be essential for the
+craft to be hauled ashore. He therefore did not detain her, but, as
+she was bound for Portsmouth, put an officer and a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_394" id="Page_394">[Pg 394]</a></span>couple of men
+aboard her till she should arrive at that port. One thing which had
+aroused suspicions was the finding on board of exceptionally large
+fend-offs. These were just the kind which were used by smuggling ships
+accustomed to be met at sea by smaller craft, into which the casks
+were transferred and then rowed ashore. And what was more suspicious
+still was the fact that these fend-offs were found wet; so they had
+most probably been used recently in a seaway when some tub-boats had
+been alongside the <i>Georges</i>.</p>
+
+<p>Somehow or other, when she arrived at Portsmouth, although the matter
+was duly reported, it was not thought necessary to haul her ashore,
+but she was carefully examined afloat. The English passenger found
+aboard gave the name of Mitchell, but he was suspected of being
+Robinson, a notorious Bognor smuggler. And it was now further believed
+that the <i>Georges</i> had sunk her "crop" of tubs somewhere near the
+Owers (just south of Selsey Bill), as on the morning of the day when
+the <i>Cameleon</i> sighted her a vessel answering her description was seen
+in that vicinity.</p>
+
+<p>On that occasion, then, the <i>Georges</i> could not be detained, and we
+next hear of her on May 3, when again she set forth from Cherbourg.
+She had no doubt taken on board a fine cargo, for she had a burthen of
+thirty-one tons, and this she managed in some mysterious manner to
+land in England. There can be no doubt that she did <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_395" id="Page_395">[Pg 395]</a></span>succeed in
+hoodwinking the Revenue service for a time, but it is probable that
+she employed largely the method of sinking the tubs, which were
+afterwards recovered in the manner already familiar to the reader. At
+any rate, Lieutenant Owen, R.N., writing on May 9 from the Ryde
+coastguard station to Captain Langtry, R.N., his inspecting commander,
+reported that this <i>Georges</i> had arrived off Ryde pier that morning at
+seven o'clock. She had five Frenchmen on board besides Gosselin. It
+was found that her tub-boat was a new one, and when she arrived this
+was on deck, but it had since been hoisted out, and Gosselin, having
+been brought ashore, crossed by the Ryde steamer to Portsmouth at 9
+A.M.</p>
+
+<p>What business he transacted in Portsmouth cannot be stated definitely,
+but it is no foolish guess to suggest that he went to inform his
+friends at what spot in the neighbourhood of the Isle of Wight he had
+deposited the casks of spirits a few hours previously. However,
+Gosselin did not waste much time ashore, for he had returned, got up
+anchor and sails, and was off Bembridge Ledge by five in the
+afternoon, at which time the <i>Georges</i> was sighted by Captain Hughes,
+commanding the Revenue cutter <i>Petrel</i>. The <i>Georges</i> was boarded and
+searched, and there was a strong smell of brandy noticed, and it was
+clear that her tub-boat had been recently used.
+Somewhere&mdash;somehow&mdash;she had recently got rid <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_396" id="Page_396">[Pg 396]</a></span>of her "crop," but where
+and when could not be ascertained. The <i>Georges'</i> master protested
+that he was very anxious to get back to Cherbourg as quickly as
+possible; and as there was nothing definite found on board this
+foreign craft, Captain Hughes decided to release her.</p>
+
+<p>That was on May 9, then. But exactly a week later this same <i>Georges</i>
+came running into Torbay. On arrival here she was found to have no
+tub-boat, although in her inventory she was said to have a boat 21
+feet long and 9 feet broad. Some of her crew were also absent, which
+looked still further suspicious. Still more, she was found to have
+battens secured along her bulwarks for the purpose of lashing tubs
+thereto. This made it quite certain that she was employed in the
+smuggling industry, and yet again there was no definite reason for
+arresting this foreign ship. We pass over the rest of May and June
+till we come to the last day of July. On that date the lieutenant in
+charge of the coastguard at Lyme (West Bay) reported that he had
+received information from Lieutenant Davies of the Beer station that a
+landing of contraband goods was likely to be attempted on the
+Branscombe station, which is just to the west of Beer Head. It was
+probable that this would take place on either the 1st or 2nd of
+August, and at night. Orders were therefore given that a vigilant
+look-out should be kept in this neighbourhood. Nothing occurred on
+the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_397" id="Page_397">[Pg 397]</a></span>first of these dates, but about twenty minutes past eleven on the
+night of August 2 reports and flashes of pistols were heard and seen
+on the Sidmouth station as far as Beer Head.</p>
+
+<p>These were observed by Lieutenant Smith and his crew, who were in
+hiding; but, unfortunately, just as one of the coastguards was moving
+from his hiding-place he was discovered by a friend of the smugglers,
+who instantly blazed off a fire on the highest point of the cliff.
+However, Lieutenant Smith did not waste much time, and quickly had a
+boat launched. They pulled along the shore for a distance of a mile
+and a half from the beach, and continued so to do until 2.30 A.M., but
+no vessel or boat could be seen anywhere. But as he believed a landing
+was taking place not far away, he sent information east and west along
+the coast. As a matter of fact a landing did occur not far away, but
+it was not discovered. An excise officer, however, when driving along
+the Lyme road, actually fell in with two carts of tubs escorted by
+fifteen men. This was somewhere about midnight. He then turned off the
+road and proceeded to Sidmouth as fast as he could, in order to get
+assistance, as he was unarmed. From there the chief officer
+accompanied him, having previously left instructions for the
+coastguard crew to scour the country the following morning. But the
+excise and chief officer after minutely searching the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_398" id="Page_398">[Pg 398]</a></span>cross-roads
+found nothing, and lost track of the carts and fifteen men.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="img"><a name="imagep398" id="imagep398"></a>
+<a href="images/imagep398.jpg">
+<img border="0" src="images/imagep398.jpg" width="65%" alt="&quot;Taken completely by surprise.&quot;" /></a><br />
+<p class="cen" style="margin-top: .2em;">"Taken completely by surprise."<span class="totoi"><a href="#toi">ToList</a></span></p>
+</div>
+
+<p>That time there had been no capture, and the smugglers had got clean
+away. But the following night Lieutenant Smith went afloat with his
+men soon after dark, and about half-past ten observed a signal blazed
+off just as on the previous evening. Knowing that this was a warning
+that the smuggling vessel should not approach the shore, Smith pulled
+straight out to sea, hoping, with luck, to fall in with the smuggling
+craft. Happily, before long he discovered her in the darkness. She
+appeared to be cutter-rigged, and he promptly gave chase. At a
+distance of only two miles from the shore he got <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_399" id="Page_399">[Pg 399]</a></span>up to her, for the
+night was so dark that the cutter did not see the boat until it got
+right alongside, whereupon the smugglers suddenly slipped a number of
+heavy articles from her gunwale. Taken completely by surprise, and
+very confused by the sudden arrival of the coastguard's boat,
+Lieutenant Smith was able to get on board their ship and arrest her.
+It was now about 11.15 P.M.</p>
+
+<p>But, having noticed these heavy splashes in the water, the lieutenant
+was smart enough instantly to mark the place with a buoy, and then was
+able to devote his attention entirely to his capture. He soon found
+that this was the <i>Georges</i> of Cherbourg. She was manned by three
+Frenchmen, and there were still hanging from the gunwale on either
+quarter a number of heavy stones slung together, such as were employed
+for sinking the tubs. There can be no doubt that the <i>Georges'</i>
+intention had been to come near enough to the shore to send her tubs
+to the beach in her tub-boat, as she had almost certainly done the
+night before. But hearing the coastguard galley approaching, and being
+nervous of what they could not see, the tubs were being cast into the
+sea to prevent seizure.</p>
+
+<p>Although no tubs were found <i>on board</i>, yet it was significant that
+the tub-boat was not on board, having evidently been already sent
+ashore with a number of casks. There was a small 12-feet <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_400" id="Page_400">[Pg 400]</a></span>dinghy
+suspended in the rigging, but she was obviously not the boat which the
+<i>Georges</i> was accustomed to use for running goods. Lieutenant Smith
+for a time stood off and on the shore, and then ran along the coast
+until it was day, hoping to fall in with the tub-boat. Just as he had
+captured the <i>Georges</i> another coastguard boat, this time from the
+Beer station, came alongside, and so the officer sent this little
+craft away with four hands to search diligently up and down the coast,
+and to inform the coastguards that the tub-boat had escaped. When it
+was light, Smith took the <i>Georges</i> into Lyme Cobb, and her crew and
+master were arrested. She had evidently changed her skipper since the
+time when she was seen off the Hampshire shore, for the name of her
+present master was Clement Armel. They were landed, taken before the
+magistrates, and remanded. But subsequently they were tried, and
+sentenced to six months' hard labour each in Dorchester gaol, but
+after serving two months of this were released by order of the
+Treasury.</p>
+
+<p>On the 5th of August the boats from Lieutenant Smith's station at
+Branscombe went out to the spot where the <i>Georges</i> had been captured
+and the mark-buoy with a grapnel at the end of it had been thrown.
+There they crept for a time and found nothing. But it had been heavy
+weather, and probably the tubs had gone adrift without sinkers to
+them. At any <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_401" id="Page_401">[Pg 401]</a></span>rate no landing was reported along the shore, so it was
+doubtful if the tub-boat had managed to get to land. As to the
+<i>Georges</i> herself, she was found to be almost a new vessel. She was
+described as a handsome craft, "and very much the appearance of a
+yacht, and carries a white burgee at her masthead with a red cross in
+it, similar to vessels belonging to the Yacht Club."</p>
+
+<p>The reference to the "Yacht Club" signifies the Royal Yacht Squadron,
+which was originally called the Royal Yacht Club. In those days the
+number of yachts was very few compared with the fleets afloat to-day.
+Some of the Royal Yacht Club's cutters were faster than any smuggler
+or Revenue craft, and it was quite a good idea for a smuggler built
+with yacht-like lines to fly the club's flag if he was anxious to
+deceive the cruisers and coastguards by day. Some years before this
+incident there was found on board a smuggling lugger named the
+<i>Maria</i>, which was captured by the Revenue cruiser <i>Prince of Wales</i>
+about the year 1830, a broad red pendant marked with a crown over the
+letters "R.Y.C.," and an anchor similar to those used by the Royal
+Yacht Club. One of the <i>Maria's</i> crew admitted that they had it on
+board because they thought it might have been serviceable to their
+plans. The point is not without interest, and, as far as I know, has
+never before been raised.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_402" id="Page_402">[Pg 402]</a></span>But to conclude our narrative of the <i>Georges</i>. As it was pointed out
+that she was such a fine vessel, and that Lyme Cobb (as many a
+seafaring man to-day knows full well) was very unsafe in a gale of
+wind, it was suggested that she should be removed to Weymouth "by part
+of one of the cutters' crews that occasionally call in here." So on
+the 7th of September in that year she was fetched away to Weymouth by
+Lieutenant Sicklemore, R.N. She and her boat were valued at &pound;240, but
+she was found to be of such a beautiful model that she was neither
+destroyed nor sold, but taken into the Revenue service as a cutter to
+prevent the trade in which she had been so actively employed.</p>
+
+<p>And so we could continue with these smuggling yarns; but the extent of
+our limits has been reached, so we must draw to a close. If the
+smuggling epoch was marred by acts of brutality, if its ships still
+needed to have those improvements in design and equipment which have
+to-day reached such a high mark of distinction, if its men were men
+not altogether admirable characters, at any rate their seamanship and
+their daring, their ingenuity and their exploits, cannot but incite us
+to the keenest interest in an exceptional kind of contest.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="APPENDICES" id="APPENDICES"></a><hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_403" id="Page_403">[Pg 403]</a></span><br />
+
+<h2>APPENDICES</h2>
+
+<h3>APPENDIX I</h3>
+
+<h4>SLOOPS OR CUTTERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>The reputed difference between a sloop and cutter in the eighteenth
+century is well illustrated by the following, which is taken from the
+Excise Trials, vol. xxx., 1st July 1795 to 17th December 1795, p. 95.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">In Attorney-General <i>v.</i> Julyan and others there was an action to
+condemn the vessel <i>Mary</i> of Fowey, brought under the provisions of
+sec. 4, c. 47, 24 Geo. III., as amended by sec. 6, c. 50, 34 Geo. III.
+There were several counts, including one with regard to the vessel
+being fitted with "arms for resistance," but the case turned on the
+question whether she was cutter-rigged or sloop-rigged. Counsel for
+the prosecution defined a cutter as "a thing constructed for swift
+sailing, which, with a view to effect that purpose, is to sink
+prodigiously at her stern, and her head to be very much out of water
+... built so that she should measure a great deal more than she would
+contain."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Such a definition, however satisfactory it may have been to the legal
+mind, was one that must have vastly amused any seafaring man. The
+judge, quoting expert evidence, explained the difference between a
+cutter and a sloop as follows:&mdash;A standing or running bowsprit is
+common to either a sloop or a cutter, and a traveller, he said, was an
+invariable portion of a cutter's rig, so also was a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_404" id="Page_404">[Pg 404]</a></span>jib-tack. The
+jib-sheet, he ruled, differed however; that of a cutter was twice as
+large as that of a sloop and was differently set. It had no stay. A
+sloop's jib-sheet was set with a fixed stay. Furthermore, in a cutter
+the tack of the jib was hooked to a traveller, and there was a large
+thimble fastened to a block which came across the head of the sail.
+There were two blocks at the mast-head, one on each side. "A rope
+passes through the three blocks by which it is drawn up to the
+halliards." The jib of a cutter "lets down and draws in a very short
+time." A cutter usually had channels and mortice-holes to fix legs to
+prevent oversetting.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_405" id="Page_405">[Pg 405]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_II" id="APPENDIX_II"></a>APPENDIX II</h3>
+
+<h4>LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1784</h4>
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="90%" summary="APPENDIX II" style="border: solid 1pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="20%">Name.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%">Number of Crew.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%">Where Stationed.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="60%">Remarks.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl2"><i>Lively</i> and <i>Vigilant</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc3">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">London</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">These vessels were the property of the Crown. The <i>Lively</i>
+    cruised in the winter half-year, but in the summer her crew did duty on board
+    the <i>Vigilant</i>.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Defence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gravesend</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">On the Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Success</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rochester</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">On the Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Otter</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">13</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rochester</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Moored in Standgate Creek to guard the Quarantine.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Active</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Eaversham</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">On the Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Sprightly</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sandwich</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract from May 27, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Greyhound</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">17</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sandwich</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract from January 27, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Scourge</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Deal</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract from January 27, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Nimble</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Deal</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract from April 23, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Tartar</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">31</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dover</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">On the Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Assistance</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">28</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dover</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Alert</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dover</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Employed by Contract from April 22, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Stag</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rye</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">On the Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hound</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30 &amp; 24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rye</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract. Crew reduced to 24 on October 9, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Surprise</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">28</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Newhaven</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract. Crew reduced to 24 on October 9, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Enterprise</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Shoreham</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment in 1784, but afterwards on Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Falcon</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18 &amp; 28</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Chichester</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Roebuck</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Portsmouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Antelope</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Portsmouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Rose</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Southampton</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Speedwell</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">31</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Weymouth<br />Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">She was on Contract at Weymouth but was removed to Cowes on June 10, 1784.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_406" id="Page_406">[Pg 406]</a></span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Swan</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract from March 6, 1784</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Laurel</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Poole</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract from March 6, 1784</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Diligence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Poole<br />Weymouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract. Removed from Poole to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Alarm</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">26</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Exeter</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract. Removed from Poole to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Spider</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">28</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dartmouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract. Removed from Poole to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Ranger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Plymouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Wasp</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Plymouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Squirrel</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Looe</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hawke</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18 &amp; 26</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Falmouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Lark</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Falmouth</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Lurcher</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Penryn</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Tamer</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">25</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Scilly</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Brilliant</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">St. Ives</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">26</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">St. Ives</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Brisk</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">19</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Milford</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Repulse</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Colchester</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Argus</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Harwich</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Bee</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Harwich</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Contract.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hunter</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">25</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Yarmouth.</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Experiment</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Boston</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Swallow</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hull</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Mermaid</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Newcastle</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black;"><i>Eagle</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black;">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black;">Newcastle</td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Establishment.</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_407" id="Page_407">[Pg 407]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_III" id="APPENDIX_III"></a>APPENDIX III</h3>
+
+<h4>LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1797<br />
+(<i>up to June 27</i>)</h4>
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" summary="APPENDIX III" style="border: solid 1pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="15%">Vessel.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="25%">Commander.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="8%">Tonnage.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="5%">Guns.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="7%">Men.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="40%">Extent of Cruising Station.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl2"><i>Vigilant</i> Yacht<br /><i>Vigilant</i> Cutter</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">Richard Dozell</td>
+  <td class="tdc3">53<br />82</td>
+  <td class="tdc3">6<br />8</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">13<br />10adl.</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">To attend the Honourable Board.<br />
+    In the winter season the cutter with ten additional hands cruised on the
+    coasts of Essex, Ken, and Sussex</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Diligence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">William Dobbin</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">152</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Milford to Solway Firth, or as the Board should direct.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Swallow</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Amos</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">153</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">As the Board should direct.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Lively</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Du Bois Smith</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">113</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">As the Board should direct.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Defence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Geo. Farr (Acting)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">76</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gravesend to Dungeness.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Ant</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Morris</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">58</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">15</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gravesend to the Nore.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Fly</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Gibbs</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">52</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">15</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gravesend to the Nore.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Success</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4"> William Broadbank</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">74</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">24</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rochester to North Sand Head.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Otter</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Matthews</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">68</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">13</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rochester to the Buoy of the Woolpack.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Active</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Lesser</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">75</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mouth of Medway to N. Foreland, round the Longsand and up the Swin to Leigh.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Swift</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">J. Westbeech (Tide Surveyor)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">52</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Downs to the Longsand.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Nimble</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">William Clothier (Acting)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">41</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">2</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">15</td>
+  <td class="tdl4"> Between the Forelands.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Tartar</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">B.J. Worthington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">100</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">The Gore to Beachy Head.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Stag</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Haddock</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">153</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dover to Brighton, but extended on special circumstances.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hound</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">J.R. Hawkins</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">111</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">N. Foreland to Isle of Wight.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_408" id="Page_408">[Pg 408]</a></span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Falcon</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Charles Newland</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">131</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Beachy Head to Isle of Wight.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Roebuck</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Stiles</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">104</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">27</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Round the Isle of Wight.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Antelope</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Case</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">97</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">26</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Round the Isle of Wight, and from Needles to Swanage.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Rose</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">William Yeates</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">114</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">From Lool to Lyme.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Swan</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" colspan="3">[Building at this date]</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Beachy Head to Lyme.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Greyhound</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Richard Wilkinson</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">200</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">43</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Beachy Head to the Start.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Alarm</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Andrew Dealey</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">130</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Between Portland and the Start.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Ranger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Nathaniel Cane</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">80</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">25</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Land's End to Cape Cornwall.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Busy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Alexr. Fraser (mate)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">46</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Plymouth Sound and Lawsand Bay.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hinde</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gabriel Bray</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">160</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">41</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Portland to St. Ives and Scilly.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Richard Johns (Junr.)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">139</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">St. Ives to Padstow, round Scilly; Land's End to Helford.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Racer</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">James Wood (mate)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">40</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Chepstow to Ilfracombe.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Speedwell</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Hopkins</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" colspan="3">[Building at this date]</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Holyhead, Bristol Channel, and to the Land's End.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Endeavour</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Peregrine</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">34</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">The whole port of Milford.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Repulse</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">G.G.H. Munnings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">143</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">43</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">North Yarmouth to Portsmouth.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Argus</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Saunders</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">135</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Buoy of the Middle<a name="FNanchor_25_25" id="FNanchor_25_25"></a><a href="#Footnote_25_25" class="fnanchor">[25]</a> to Lowestoft.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hunter</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thomas Ritches</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">143</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Harwich to Cromer.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Bee</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">A. Somerscalls (mate)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">28</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Humber, York, and Lincoln, and to guard Quarantine.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Eagle</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">George Whitehead</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" colspan="3">[Building at this date]</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Tynemouth to Yarmouth.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Mermaid</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">John Carr</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">112</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Berwick to the Spurn.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;"><i>Viper</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">John Hudson (mate)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">28</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">9</td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Isle of Anglesea to St. Bee's Head occasionally.</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_25_25" id="Footnote_25_25"></a><a href="#FNanchor_25_25"><span class="label">[25]</span></a> <i>i.e.</i> doubtless the channel better known as Swin
+Middle, leading into the estuary of the Thames.</p></div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_409" id="Page_409">[Pg 409]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_IV" id="APPENDIX_IV"></a>APPENDIX IV</h3>
+
+<h4>LIST OF REVENUE CRUISERS BUILT BETWEEN JULY 18, 1822 AND OCTOBER 1, 1838</h4>
+<br />
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" summary="APPENDIX IV" style="border: solid 1pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="20%" style="font-size: 90%;" rowspan="2">Name of Cruiser.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="12%" style="font-size: 90%;" rowspan="2">When Built.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="7%" style="font-size: 90%;" rowspan="2">Tonnage.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="15%" style="font-size: 90%;" rowspan="2">Builders.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%" style="font-size: 90%;" rowspan="2">Where Built.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" style="font-size: 90%;" colspan="2">Draft.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" style="font-size: 90%;" colspan="2" rowspan="2">Rate of sailing per hour in knots and fathoms.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="12%" style="font-size: 90%;">Forward.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="12%" style="font-size: 90%;">Aft.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl2">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdc3">ft. ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdc3">ft. ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdc" width="6%" style="border-left: 1px solid black; border-top: 1px solid black;">knots</td>
+  <td class="tdc" width="6%" style="border-right: 1px solid black; border-top: 1px solid black;">fathoms</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Fly</i> (late <i>New Charter</i>)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">44</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Thos. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Lion</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">82</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Arrow</i> (late <i>Seaflower</i>)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">43</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Cameleon</i> (lost)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">85</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Wm. Hedgcock</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dover</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">68</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">J.B. Good</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Bridport</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Ranger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">71</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Chas. Golder</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Folkestone</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Tartar</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">82</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 2</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 2</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Repulse</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">82</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">W. Good &amp; Son</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ealing</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Nimble</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">65</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rd. Graves</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sandgate</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Sprightly</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 18, 1822</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">63</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Chas. Miller</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">7</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Sealark</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 10, 1823</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">42</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Scout</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 15, 1823</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">84</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 11</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Fox</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 10, 1823</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">85</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Endeavour</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 16, 1823</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">45</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">N. Harvey</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Rye</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Adder</i> (sold)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 10, 1823</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">73</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Vigilant</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 10, 1824</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">99</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Kite</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mar. 21, 1825</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">164</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12 &times; 10</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hound</i> (lost)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mar. 21, 1825</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">169</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Experiment</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 16, 1825</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">43</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Racer</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 10, 1825</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">53</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_410" id="Page_410">[Pg 410]</a></span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Viper</i> (late <i>Mermaid</i>)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 23, 1825</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">43</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Stag</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 20, 1827</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">130</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 9</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 9</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Diligence</i> (lost)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 4, 1828</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">171</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 9</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">12</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Bee</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 18, 1828</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">69</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Stork</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Jan. 5, 1830</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">160</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Liverpool</i> (now <i>Speedwell</i>)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 1, 1830</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">28</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Victoria</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 31, 1831</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">22</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Chance</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 2, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">58</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9 &frac12; to 10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Squirrel</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Jun 21, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Amphitrite</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 4, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Victoria</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 2, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">114</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Th. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>King George</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 3, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Wickham</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 2, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">150</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Adelaide</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 2, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">143</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 1 &frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12 &times; 2 &frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 2, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">84</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Liverpool</i> (tender to <i>Kite</i>)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Aug. 10, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hornet</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">July 6, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">143</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12 &times; 0</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">7.6 to 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Prince George</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Nov. 3, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">70</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Providence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dec. 10, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">N. &amp; E. Edwards</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Scilly</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Margaret</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Dec. 10, 1832</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">22</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 2</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Asp</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 22, 1833</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">32</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Lady of the Lake</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">April 25, 1833</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">22</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hind</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">May 25, 1833</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">41</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Caroline</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Jan. 31, 1834</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Ransom &amp; Ridley</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Hastings</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Frances</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 3, 1834</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">40</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7 &times; 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Royal George</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mar. 27, 1834</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">149</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 8</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">2<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_411" id="Page_411">[Pg 411]</a></span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Maria</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sept. 10, 1834</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Vulcan</i> (steamer)</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 30, 1834</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">325</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Hamilton</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Jan. 11, 1835</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">59</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Cameleon</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 21, 1835</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">89</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Kingstown</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">May 4, 1835</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Bat</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Nov. 20, 1835</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">37</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Tiger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mar. 8, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">18</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Onyx</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sept. 1, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">36</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Flying Fish</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Sept. 1, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">41</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">8</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">4</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Gertrude</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 26, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">37</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Royal Charlotte</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 27, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">130</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 5</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10 &times; 9</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Active</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 29, 1836</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">101</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 2</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11 &times; 1</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Vixen</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 11, 1837</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">56</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Ferret</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mar. 18, 1837</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">39</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Desmond</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">June 10, 1837</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">68</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">4 &times; 9</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">9</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Harpy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Oct. 10, 1837</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">145</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">6 &times; 7</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">11 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">11</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Asp</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 20, 1838</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">46</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Rose</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 20, 1838</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">53</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. Inman</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Lymington</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 6</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">9 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">10</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Adder</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Feb. 20, 1838</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">53</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5 &times; 2</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8 &times; 3</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" colspan="2">[Never Tried]</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4"><i>Neptune</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4">June 19, 1838</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">42</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">T. White</td>
+  <td class="tdl4">Cowes</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc4">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc5">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;"><i>Kingstown</i></td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Oct.  1, 1838</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">35</td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Pinney &amp; Adams</td>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Poole</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">6 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">9 &times; 4</td>
+  <td class="tdc5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">&mdash;</td>
+  <td class="tdc6" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">&mdash;</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p class="noin"><i>N.B.</i>&mdash;There is no information to show how the rate of sailing was
+assessed. We know not (&#945;) whether the vessel was sailing on a wind or
+off; whether close-hauled or with the wind abeam; (&#946;) whether the
+distance was taken from a measured mile reckoned between two fixed
+objects ashore; (&#947;) what sail was set; whether reefed or not; (&#948;)
+whether the speed was estimated by means of the old-fashioned log.</p>
+
+<p class="noin">It is probable that the last mentioned was the method employed, but in
+any one of these cases the rate given can only be approximate unless
+we know the force and angle of the wind at each trial trip. The
+non-nautical reader may be reminded in considering the rates given
+above that a knot is equivalent to 1000 fathoms or, more exactly, 6086
+English feet.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_412" id="Page_412">[Pg 412]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_V" id="APPENDIX_V"></a>APPENDIX V</h3>
+
+<h4>SPECIFICATION FOR BUILDING A CUTTER FOR THE REVENUE SERVICE OF
+THIRTY-FIVE TONS<br />
+(<i>As built in the year 1838</i>)</h4>
+<br />
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Length</span>.&mdash;From Stem to Sternpost, 44 feet. Keel for tonnage, 41
+feet.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Breadth</span>.&mdash;Extreme from outside the Plank, 14 feet 5 inches.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Depth</span>.&mdash;From the upper-part of the Main Hatch-Beam to the Ceiling
+alongside the Keelson, 7 feet 8 inches.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Keel</span>.&mdash;The Keel to be of good sound Elm, in not more than two
+pieces, with Hook and Butt Scarphs 6 feet long, sided 6-1/2
+inches. Depth aft 12 inches, forward 14 inches, with a false
+Keel.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Stem</span>.&mdash;To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+defects, sided 5-1/2 inches, and to be sufficiently thick at
+the head to admit of a hole for the Main Stay.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Stern Post</span>.&mdash;To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+defects, sided 5-1/2 inches.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Dead Wood</span>.&mdash;The Dead Wood both forward and aft to be of Oak, clear
+of Sap and all defects, except the two lower pieces which may
+be Elm, and secured by a Knee well bolted through the
+Sternpost, and Dead Wood aft, and Stem and Dead Wood forward.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Floors and Futtocks</span>.&mdash;To be sided 5-1/2 and not more than 6 inches
+apart. The lower Futtocks sided 5-1/2 inches, second Futtocks
+5, third Futtocks 5, and Toptimbers 4-1/2, Stantions 4 inches.
+The heels of the lower Futtocks to meet on the Keel, all the
+Timber to be well grown and seasoned, clear of Sap and other
+defects;&mdash;of English Oak.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_413" id="Page_413">[Pg 413]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Keelson</span>.&mdash;The Keelson to run well forward and aft, of sound Oak,
+clear of Sap, sided 7 inches and moulded 9 inches Midships. The
+ends moulded 7 inches and sided 6 inches. To be bolted through
+the floors and Keel with 3/4 inch Copper Bolts well clenched on
+a ring, under the Keel.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Stantions</span>.&mdash;Stantions sided 4 inches at the Gunwale and 3-1/2
+inches at the Head, and so spaced as to form 4 ports, each side
+20 inches in the clear, and the port lids hung with composition
+hooks and hinges to roughtree rail and one Stantion between
+each port, or more if necessary.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Counter-Timbers</span>.&mdash;To be sided from 4-1/2 to 4 inches and the
+Transoms well kneed.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Breast-Hooks</span>.&mdash;To have 3 Breast-Hooks, one under the Bowsprit sided
+4 inches, the others sided 4-1/2 inches, all of the best
+English Oak, with arms not less than 3 feet long, clear of Sap
+and other defects; the two lower ones to be bolted with Copper
+Bolts. The Throat Bolt to be 3/4 inch diameter, to go through
+the stem and clenched, and three in each arm of 5/8, all well
+clenched on a ring.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Beams</span>.&mdash;The Beams to be good sound Oak, clear of all defects, to
+round up 5-1/2 inches. The Beam before and the Beam abaft the
+Mast to be sided 6 inches, and moulded 6 inches, and not more
+than 4 feet apart, and to have two Wood lodging Knees to each,
+also one Iron hanging Knee to each; the remainder of the Beams
+to be sided 5 inches, and moulded 5 inches, and regularly
+spaced, and not more than three feet from Centre to Centre,
+with two 1 inch dowels in each end, instead of dovetailing into
+the shelf-piece, with a 5/8 inch bolt through each dowel, and
+an inch and quarter hole bored in the end of all the Beams 10
+inches in, and another from the under side to meet it, then
+seared with a hot Iron to admit Air.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Carlings and Ledgers</span>.&mdash;To have 2 fore and aft Carlings between each
+Beam 4 inches by 3-1/2, and a Ledge 3-1/2 by 3 inches between
+the Beams where required. The Mast Carlings to be good English
+Oak, 4 inches thick, and 10 inches broad.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_414" id="Page_414">[Pg 414]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Wales and Bottom Plank</span>.&mdash;The Wales to be of English well-seasoned
+Oak, 3 inches thick, clear of all defects, with one strake of
+2-1/2 inches thick next under the Wales, and one bilge strake
+of 2-1/2 inch each side. The remainder of the Bottom to be full
+2 inches thick when worked, all of sound English Oak, except
+the Garboard and one next to it which may be of Elm; Plank to
+work 16 feet long with 6 feet shifts, and two strakes between
+each Butt: the first strake above the Wales to be 2 inches
+thick, the remainder 2 inches, paint strake 2 inches.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Spirketting</span>.&mdash;The Spirketting to be 2 inches thick.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Waterways</span>.&mdash;The Waterways to be of English Oak, 3 inches thick,
+clear of Sap and strakes, and not less than 6 inches broad in
+any part.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Plansheer</span>.&mdash;The Plansheer of good English Oak, full 2 inches thick
+when worked, and to form the lower Port Sills.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Shelf Pieces</span>.&mdash;The Shelf Pieces to be fitted to the Timbers instead
+of working it over the Clamp, as heretofore, to be of good
+sound English Oak, 6 inches broad, 3-1/2 inches thick, and
+bolted with 5/8 inch bolts, two feet apart, well clenched.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Clamps</span>.&mdash;The Clamps to be of good sound Oak, 8 inches broad and 2
+inches thick, fitted up to the under side of the Shelf Pieces.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Ceiling</span>.&mdash;To have two strakes of 2 inch Oak on the Floor and lower
+Futtock Heads, both sides, and the Ceiling to be of 1-1/4 inch
+Oak, all English, as high as one foot above the lower Deck; the
+remainder as high as the clamp, to be of Red Pine, clear of Sap
+and other defects, 3/4 inch thick.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Channels</span>.&mdash;The Main Channels to be of the best English Oak, of
+sufficient breadth, to convey the rigging clear of the Weather
+Cloth Rail, and 3-1/2 inches thick with 4 substantial
+Chainplates with Iron bound Dead-eyes complete, on each side.
+The two lower bolts in each plate to be 1 inch in diameter. No
+Bolt in the Chainplate through the Channel as usual. The
+Chainplates to be let their thickness into the edge of the
+Channel, and an Iron plate 3 inches broad, and 3/8 inch thick,
+secured over all by Small Bolts 4-1/2 inches long.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_415" id="Page_415">[Pg 415]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Ports</span>.&mdash;To have 4 Ports on each side properly spaced, and the Port
+Lids hung with Copper Hooks and Hinges.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Bulwark</span>.&mdash;The Bulwark to be of Baltic Red Pine 1 inch thick, to be
+worked in narrow strakes about 5 inches broad. The edges
+grooved and tongued together, and not lined as usual, except
+from forward to bow port.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Roughtree Rail</span>.&mdash;To be of good clean, straight grained Oak 4-1/2
+inches broad, and 2-1/4 deep, to be fitted with a sufficient
+number of Iron Stantions 2-6/8 inches long, with Oak Rail 2
+inches square for Weather Cloths. The Roughtree Rail to be 2
+feet high from Deck.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Deck</span>.&mdash;The Upper Deck to be of the best Baltic Red Pine, full 2
+inches thick when worked, clear of Sap, strakes, &amp;c., and not
+more than 5 inches broad each plank. The plank under, and
+between the Bitts Knees, to be English Oak 2-1/2 inches thick,
+the whole to be fastened with Copper Nails of sufficient
+length.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Bitts</span>.&mdash;The Bowsprit Bitts to run down to the Ceiling, with a Bolt
+in the Keel of each, and so placed that the Bowsprit may be run
+aft clear of the Mast Larboard Side. Size of the Bitts at the
+head fore and aft 7 inches, thwartships 6 inches, and to be the
+same size at lower part of Deck, with a regular taper to heel.
+The Windlass Bitts to be sided 7 inches, and left broad and
+high enough above the Deck to admit of a Patent Pinion Cog, and
+Multiplying Wheels to be fitted to Windlass, with Crank,
+Handles, &amp;c. To have good and sufficient Knees to all the
+Bitts. The Bowsprit Bitt Knees sided 6 inches, Windlass Bitt
+Knees sided 5 inches.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_416" id="Page_416">[Pg 416]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Windlass</span>.&mdash;The Barrel of the Windlass to be of good sound English
+Oak, clear of all defects, diameter in the middle 10 inches,
+and fitted with Patent Iron Palls, with two hoops on each end,
+and seasoned Elm Whelps 2-1/2 inches thick, hollowed in the
+middle for Chain Cable 14 inches long, taking care that it
+leads far from the Hawse Holes, to have 6 Iron Plates let into
+the Angles of the Whelps. The Iron Spindle to be 2 inches
+Diameter, and to let into the Barrel of the Windlass 12 inches,
+and to be fitted with Pinion, Cog, and Multiplying Wheels and
+Crank Handles, to have two Windlass ends not more than a foot
+long each; care must be taken not to cut the Handspike holes
+where the Chain Cable works.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Scuppers</span>.&mdash;To have 2 oval Lead Scuppers, each side, 3 by 1-3/4 inch
+in the clear.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Eye Plates</span>.&mdash;To have two stout Iron Eye Plates, both sides forward
+for Bowsprit, Shrouds, &amp;c. with two Bolts in each, and three
+Plates both sides for Runners and Tackles aft, the Eyes to
+reach up to the top of Roughtree Rail, and to have a good
+strong Iron Hanging Knee each side to the Beams abreast the
+Runners.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Hatchways</span>.&mdash;The Main Hatchway to be 4 feet broad and 3 feet fore
+and aft in the clear. The Combins 3 inches thick and 11 inches
+broad, let down on Carlings 3 inches thick and 4-1/2 inches
+broad.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Skylights</span>.&mdash;To be fitted with two Skylights with Plate Glass and
+Copper Guard, Commanders to be 3 feet long and 2 feet broad;
+Mates Skylight 2 feet square, with Plate Glass, Copper Bars 3/8
+diameter.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Illuminators</span>.&mdash;To have 10 oblong 4 inch Illuminators let into the
+Deck where most required, and a 5 inch Patent one over the
+Water Closet.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Winch</span>.&mdash;To have a Patent Winch round the Mast, and the Mast to be
+wedged in the partners.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_417" id="Page_417">[Pg 417]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Pumps</span>.&mdash;To be fitted with two Metal Bilge Pumps 3-1/2 inch chamber
+and everything complete; also one Metal Pump amidships with 6
+inch chamber, and two sets of Brass Boxes, and everything
+requisite; also a Wash Deck Pump fitted aft.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Rudder</span>.&mdash;To have a good and sufficient Rudder with two sets of
+Metal Pintles and Braces, and one Iron Pintle and Brace at the
+head of the Sternpost above the Deck, and to be fitted with two
+good Tillers.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Companion</span>.&mdash;To be fitted with a Companion and Bittacle complete.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Hawsepipes</span>.&mdash;To have two stout cast Iron Hawsepipes for Chain Cable
+4 inches in the clear, also two Cast Iron Pipes in the Deck
+with Bell Mouth, to conduct the Chain Cable below.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Lower Deck</span>.&mdash;The Lower Deck Beams to be regularly spaced and not
+more than 4 feet apart, the Deck to be 1-1/4 inches thick, of
+good Red Pine, the Midships part 3 feet broad, to be fastened
+to the Beams, also some of the side plank, the remainder made
+into Hatches, the edges bolted together with 1/2 inch Iron, the
+Deck and Cabin Floor abaft, Main Hatch to be 1 inch thick, and
+made into Hatches where required.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Magazine</span>.&mdash;To have a Magazine abaft, properly fitted and lined on
+the inside with 5 lb. Lead, and Double Doors with Copper Hinges
+and Lock to the outside Door.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Bread Room</span>.&mdash;To have Bread Rooms and Flour Bins lined with Tin as
+usual.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Galley</span>.&mdash;The Galley under the Fire Hearth to be coppered with 32
+oz. Sheet Copper 5 feet square, and the under part of the Upper
+Deck, Beams, &amp;c.; over the Boilers 4 feet square, to be leaded
+with 6 lb. Lead.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Lockers and Bins</span>.&mdash;To be fitted with Store Bins and Lockers from
+the Bows to the Cabin Bulkheads between Decks.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_418" id="Page_418">[Pg 418]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Bulkheads</span>.&mdash;To have Bulkheads between Decks for Commander's Cabin,
+State Room, and all other Bulkheads, as is customary for a
+Revenue Cruiser of the 3rd class, with all Drawers, Cupboards,
+Bed-places, Tables, Wash-stands, &amp;c. complete. The Cabin
+Bulkheads to be framed in Panels, all Hinges to be Brass with
+Brass Pins.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Bulkheads, Hold</span>.&mdash;To have Bulkheads in the Hold, for Coals, Stores,
+Casks, Chain Cables, &amp;c., and an opening of one inch left
+between each Plank to give air, except the Coal-hole which must
+be close.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Ladders</span>.&mdash;To have a Main Hatch, Fore Hatch, and Cabin Ladder
+complete.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Cleats</span>.&mdash;To be fitted complete, with all Cleats, Cavels, Snatch
+Cleats with Shieves, Brass coated Belaying Cleats, and Racks
+with Belaying Pins, &amp;c., and an Iron Crutch on Taffrail for the
+Boom.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Fastenings</span>.&mdash;The whole of the Plank to be fastened with good well
+seasoned Treenails, and one 1/2 inch Copper Bolt in every Butt
+from the Keel up to the Wales, to go through and clench on a
+Ring on the Ceiling, and the Treenails drove through the
+Ceiling, wedged on the inside and caulked outside.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Ring and Eye Bolts</span>.&mdash;To be fitted with all necessary Ring and Eye
+Bolts, as customary for a Revenue Cruiser.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Legs</span>.&mdash;To have 2 substantial Oak Legs properly fitted.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Paint</span>.&mdash;The whole of the Wood Work inside and out to have three
+coats of the best Paint, well put on.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Hull</span>.&mdash;The Hull to be completed in every respect as a Revenue
+Cruiser of the 3rd Class, and all Materials found by the
+Contractor, except Copper Sheathing for the Bottom and
+Water-Closets, with all Shipwrights', Caulkers', Joiners',
+Blacksmiths', Copper-smiths', Braziers', Glaziers', Plumbers'
+and Painters' work.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_419" id="Page_419">[Pg 419]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Cathead</span>.&mdash;To have an Iron Cathead with two Shieves strong enough to
+cat the Anchor, and fitted both sides.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Cock</span>.&mdash;To have a Stop Cock fitted forward under the Lower Deck, to let
+in Water occasionally.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Water-closet</span>.&mdash;To have a Patent Water-Closet of Danton's fitted
+below, and a Round-house on Deck, aft Starboard side complete,
+with a Pantry for meat, the Larboard side to correspond with
+the Round-house, and a Poop Deck between both, nailed with
+Copper Nails; also a seat of ease on the Larboard side forward
+for the Crew, with Lead Pipe to water edge; the whole of the
+Locks throughout to be Brass and Brass Works.</p>
+
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Air Openings</span>.&mdash;An inch opening to be left all fore and aft under
+the Clamp both sides, also in the Ceiling between the Lower
+Deck Beams, and another in the upper part of the Bins, and one
+inch auger hole bored between the Timbers in the run aft and
+forward where lists cannot be left out, also a hole of one inch
+in all the Timbers, fore and aft, to admit air, and those holes
+seared with a hot iron; all Chocks for securing the frame
+Timbers together are to be split out before the bottom Plank is
+worked.</p>
+
+<p>The Cutter to remain in frame for one Month before closed in, then
+when the outside Plank is worked and all the Sap taken off the
+Timbers, and before the Ceiling is worked, to give the Timbers
+a good coat of Stockholm Tar.</p>
+
+<p>Should there be any omission or want of more full statement in this
+Specification, the Contractor is to understand that the Hull of
+the said Vessel is to be fitted and completed fit for Sea in
+every respect as is usual for a Revenue Vessel of her Class,
+the Board finding the Copper Sheathing and Water-Closet.</p>
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_420" id="Page_420">[Pg 420]</a></span>
+<p class="hang"><span class="sc">Defects to be Amended</span>.&mdash;Any defects discovered in the Timbers or
+Plank, &amp;c., by the Officer or Overseer appointed by the
+Honourable Board of Customs to survey and inspect the same, or
+insufficient workmanship performed to the said Cutter during
+her building, the said defect or deficiency both in the one and
+in the other, shall upon notice thereof to the Contractor be
+forthwith amended, and the said Overseer shall not at any time
+have any molestation or obstruction therein.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Note.</i>&mdash;For a 150-ton Revenue Cutter the following dimensions were
+employed:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="noin" style="margin-left: 10%;">Length.&mdash;(Stem to Sternpost) 72 feet. Keel for Tonnage, 68 feet.<br />
+Breadth.&mdash;(Extreme) 22 feet 10 inches.<br />
+Depth.&mdash;10 feet 3 inches.<br />
+Beams to be 7 inches.<br />
+Deck to be 2 inches thick.<br />
+Four Oak Legs to be supplied</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_421" id="Page_421">[Pg 421]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_VI" id="APPENDIX_VI"></a>APPENDIX VI</h3>
+
+<h4>DIMENSIONS OF SPARS OF REVENUE CUTTERS</h4>
+<br />
+
+<p>The following list shows the length and thickness of mast, boom,
+bowsprit, gaff, topmast, and spread-yard [<i>i.e.</i> the yard on which the
+square-sail was set] as used in the Revenue Cutters of different sizes
+from 150 to 40 tons. The dimensions given below were those in vogue in
+the year 1838.</p>
+
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" summary="APPENDIX VI" style="border: solid 1pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="15%" style="line-height: 2em;">Spar.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="9%" style="line-height: 2em;">150 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%" style="line-height: 2em;">130 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="9%" style="line-height: 2em;">100 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%" style="line-height: 2em;">90 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="9%" style="line-height: 2em;">80 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%" style="line-height: 2em;">70 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="9%" style="line-height: 2em;">60 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="10%" style="line-height: 2em;">50 Tons.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="9%" style="line-height: 2em;">40 Tons.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">ft. &nbsp; &nbsp; ins.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4">Mast</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">75 &times; 20</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">72 &times; 18</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">68 &times; 17</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">65 &times; 16&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">63 &times; 15&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">60 &times; 15</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">56 &times; 14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">55 &times; 13&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">50 &times; 12</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4">Boom</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">61 &times; 13&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">59 &times; 13</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">54 &times; 12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">51 &times; 11&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">49 &times; 10&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">47 &times; 10&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">45 &times; 10</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">43 &times; 8&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">42 &times; 8&frac12;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4">Bowsprit</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">55 &times; 16&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">53 &times; 15&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">49 &times; 14</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">47 &times; 13&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">44 &times; 12&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">43 &times; 12</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">38 &times; 11&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">37 &times; 10&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32 &times; 10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4">Gaff</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">45 &times; 8&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">40 &times; 8&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">38 &times; 7&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">33 &times; 7&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">32 &times; 7&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">31 &times; 7</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">28 &times; 6&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">30 &times; 6&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">26 &times; 6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4">Topmast</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">52 &times; 9&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">48 &times; 8&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">45 &times; 7&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">42 &times; 7&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">40 &times; 7&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">39 &times; 7</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">35 &times; 6&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">35 &times; 6&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5">30 &times; 6</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">Spread-Yard</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">58 &times; 9&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">56 &times; 8&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">48 &times; 8&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">47 &times; 7&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">46 &times; 7&frac12;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">44 &times; 7</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">42 &times; 6&frac34;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">38 &times; 6&frac14;</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">32 &times; 6</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_422" id="Page_422">[Pg 422]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_VII" id="APPENDIX_VII"></a>APPENDIX VII</h3>
+
+<h4>LIST OF THE CRUISERS IN THE REVENUE COASTGUARD OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
+IN THE YEAR 1844</h4>
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="65%" summary="APPENDIX VII" style="border: solid 1pt black;">
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="35%" style="line-height: 2em;">Name of Cruiser.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="15%" style="line-height: 2em;">Number.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="35%" style="line-height: 2em;">Name of Cruiser.</td>
+  <td class="tdc2" width="15%" style="line-height: 2em;">Number.</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;"><i>Shamrock</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">45</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-top: 1px solid black;"><i>Badger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-top: 1px solid black;">16</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Kite</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">34</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Skylark</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Swift</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">34</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Petrel</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Prince of Wales</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">34</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Racer</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">15</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Wickham</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Hamilton</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Greyhound</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Chance</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">16</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Prince Albert</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Harriett</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Royal George</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Rose</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Mermaid</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Adder</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Adelaide</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Rob Roy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">14</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Wellington</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">33</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Eliza</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">13</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Harpy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">30</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Jane</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">13</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Royal Charlotte</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Experiment</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Stag</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Albatross</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">13</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Defence</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Asp</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Eagle</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Frances</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Lapwing</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Arrow</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Sylvia</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">29</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Viper</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Victoria</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">27</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Neptune</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Lively</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Sealark</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Vigilant</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Hind</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Active</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">23</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Liverpool</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">10</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Cameleon</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Maria</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">12</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Fox</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Sylph</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Dolphin</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Gertrude</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Scout</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Governor</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">8</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Tartar</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Nelson</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Hawke</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">21</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Princess Royal</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Ranger</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">20</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Ann</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Nimble</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">17</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Fairy</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Desmond</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">17</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Ferret</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">7</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Sprightly</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">17</td>
+  <td class="tdl5"><i>Lady of the Lake</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4">5</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;"><i>Lion</i></td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">16</td>
+  <td class="tdl5" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;"><i>Vulcan</i> (steamer)</td>
+  <td class="tdc4" style="border-bottom: 1px solid black; padding-bottom: .75em;">31</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+
+<p style="margin-left: 10%;"><i>Note</i>.&mdash;The size of the above varied from 25 tons to 164 tons. But
+the ss. <i>Vulcan</i> was of 325 tons.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_423" id="Page_423">[Pg 423]</a></span><br />
+<h3><a name="APPENDIX_VIII" id="APPENDIX_VIII"></a>APPENDIX VIII</h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>No better instance of the strained relationship existing between the
+Royal Navy and the Revenue Service could be found than the following.
+It will be seen that the animosity had begun at any rate before the
+end of the seventeenth century and was very far from dead in the
+nineteenth.</p>
+
+<p>The first incident centres round Captain John Rutter, commander of
+"one of the smacks or sloops in the service of the Customs about the
+Isle of Wight." He stated that on April 24, 1699, about eight o'clock
+in the evening, he went on board to search the ship <i>Portland</i> at
+Spithead, the latter having arrived from France with a cargo of wine.
+At the same time there put off the long boat from Admiral Hopson's
+<i>Resolution</i> demanding four hogsheads and four tierces, which (said
+Rutter) "I denied, but however they took it out by force and carried
+it on board." Rutter then went on to the <i>Resolution</i> and there found
+the wine lying on deck. The Admiral sent for him aft, and said that he
+would see the wine forthcoming, for he would write to the
+Commissioners of Customs.</p>
+
+<p>Some time afterwards Rutter was ashore at Portsmouth in company with
+Captain Foulks, who was one of the officers stationed on land. The
+latter informed Rutter that he was a rogue for having informed against
+the Admiral. Foulks drew his sword, and, had he not been prevented,
+would have murdered Rutter. Apparently Admiral Hopson never forgave
+Rutter. For, some months later, Rutter was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_424" id="Page_424">[Pg 424]</a></span>riding off Portsmouth
+"with my Pendent and Colours flying, rejoicing for the happy arrival
+of His Maty." Hopson was being rowed ashore, and when near "my yacht
+ordered my pendent to be taken down. I being absent, my men would not
+do it without my order, whereon he sent his boat on board and one of
+his men took it down. I coming on board to goe upon my duty ordered it
+to be hoysted again and imediately he sent his boat with one of his
+Lieutenants to take it down again with a verball order which I refused
+to lett him do, but by strength overpowered me and my company and took
+it down by force, and beat us to ye degree yat I know not whether it
+may not hazard some men's lives, which I acknowledge I did not wear it
+in contempt, and if he had sent another time I would readily have
+obeyed his Order. Now I humbly conceive that it was merely out of
+malice as I can prove by his own mouth."</p>
+
+<p>Arising out of this incident, a letter was sent from the Admiralty to
+the Portsmouth Custom House and signed by "J. Burchett." The latter
+opined that it was not a fault for the Custom House smacks to wear a
+pendant, but pointed out that the Proclamation of 1699 obliged the
+Custom House smacks to wear such a pendant as was distinct from the
+King's "as well as their Jacks and Ensigns." Furthermore he suggested
+that it had always been customary to strike such pendant when in sight
+of an Admiral's flag, especially if demanded.</p>
+
+<p>The second incident occurred on February 4, 1806. The commanding
+officer of H.M. Armed vessel <i>Sentinel</i> was lying in Shields harbour.
+He sent word to a man named Stephen Mitchell, who caused the watch of
+the Revenue cutter <i>Eagle</i> to hoist the <i>Eagle's</i> pendant half-mast.
+Mitchell naturally replied that he dared not do so without his
+captain's orders. Mitchell, therefore, sent to his captain, George
+Whitehead, but before the latter's arrival the pendant was hauled
+down <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_425" id="Page_425">[Pg 425]</a></span>and carried on board the <i>Sentinel</i> with threats that Whitehead
+should be prosecuted for wearing a pendant. Whitehead accordingly
+wrote to the Collector and Controller of the Customs at Newcastle to
+lodge a complaint. The latter, in turn, wrote to Lieut. W. Chester,
+R.N., commanding this <i>Sentinel</i> gun-brig asking for an explanation.
+The naval officer replied by referring them to Articles 6 and 7 of the
+Admiralty Instructions regarding ships or vessels in the service of
+any public office, by which it was ordered that they should wear the
+same Ensign and Jack as ships having Letters of Marque, except that in
+the body of the Jack or Ensign there should be likewise described the
+seal of the office they belonged to. All vessels employed in the
+service of any public office were forbidden to wear pendants contrary
+to what was allowed, and officers of ships-of-war were permitted to
+seize any illegal colours. Chester contended that the <i>Eagle</i> was
+hailed and requested to lower her colours half-mast, as an officer of
+the Navy was being interred at South Shields, and all the other
+vessels in the harbour "had their colours half staff down" except the
+<i>Eagle</i>. Because the latter refused, Chester requested her mate to
+come on board the <i>Sentinel</i>, as the former wished to explain why the
+colours should be lowered. An officer was thereupon sent on board the
+<i>Eagle</i> to haul them down. Chester demanded an apology for the
+disrespect to the deceased officer.</p>
+
+<p>And one could easily quote other similar instances between H.M.S.
+<i>Princess</i> and the Revenue cutter <i>Diligence</i>: and H.M. gun-brig
+<i>Teazer</i> and the Revenue cruiser <i>Hardwicke</i>.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h5>Printed by <span class="sc">Ballantyne, Hanson &amp; Co.</span><br />
+Edinburgh &amp; London</h5>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<p>&nbsp;<a name="trannote"></a></p>
+
+<div class="tr">
+<p class="cen">Typographical errors corrected in text:</p>
+<br />
+<p class="noin">Page 94: seizurss replaced by seizures.<br />
+Page 99: "waved us to keep of" replaced with "waved us to keep off"</p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS 1700-1855***</p>
+<p>******* This file should be named 17563-h.txt or 17563-h.zip *******</p>
+<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br />
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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855, by E.
+Keble Chatterton
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855
+
+
+Author: E. Keble Chatterton
+
+
+
+Release Date: January 21, 2006  [eBook #17563]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS
+1700-1855***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Steven Gibbs, Jeannie Howse, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team (https://www.pgdp.net/)
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrations.
+      See 17563-h.htm or 17563-h.zip:
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/7/5/6/17563/17563-h/17563-h.htm)
+      or
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/7/5/6/17563/17563-h.zip)
+
+      Two obvious typographical errors were corrected in transcribing
+      this text. For a complete list, please see the Transcriber's
+      note at the end of the file.
+
+
+
+
+
+KING'S CUTTERS AND SMUGGLERS 1700-1855
+
+by
+
+E. KEBLE CHATTERTON
+Author of "Sailing Ships and Their Story," "The Romance of the Ship"
+"The Story of the British Navy," "Fore and Aft," Etc.
+
+With 33 Illustrations and Frontispiece in Colours
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER.
+Before firing on a smuggler the cruiser was bound to hoist his Revenue
+colours--both pennant and ensign--no matter whether day or night.
+(_from the original painting by Charles Dixon, R.I._)]
+
+
+
+
+London
+George Allen & Company, Ltd.
+44 & 45 Rathbone Place
+1912
+[All rights reserved]
+Printed by Ballantyne, Hanson & Co.
+At the Ballantyne Press, Edinburgh
+
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+I have in the following pages endeavoured to resist the temptation to
+weave a web of pleasant but unreliable fiction round actual
+occurrences. That which is here set forth has been derived from facts,
+and in almost every case from manuscript records. It aims at telling
+the story of an eventful and exciting period according to historical
+and not imaginative occurrence. There are extant many novels and short
+stories which have for their heroes the old-time smugglers. But the
+present volume represents an effort to look at these exploits as they
+were and not as a novelist likes to think they might have occurred.
+
+Perhaps there is hardly an Englishman who was not thrilled in his
+boyhood days by Marryat and others when they wrote of the King's
+Cutters and their foes. It is hoped that the following pages will not
+merely revive pleasant recollections but arouse a new interest in the
+adventures of a species of sailing craft that is now, like the brig
+and the fine old clipper-ship, past and done with.
+
+The reader will note that in the Appendices a considerable amount of
+interesting data has been collected. This has been rendered possible
+only with great difficulty, but it is believed that in future years
+the dimensions and details of a Revenue Cutter's construction, the
+sizes of her spars, her tonnage, guns, &c., the number of her crew
+carried, the names and dates of the fleets of cutters employed will
+have an historical value which cannot easily be assessed in the
+present age that is still familiar with sailing craft.
+
+In making researches for the preparation of this volume I have to
+express my deep sense of gratitude to the Honourable Commissioners of
+the Board of Customs for granting me permission to make use of their
+valuable records; to Mr. F.S. Parry C.B., Deputy Chairman of the Board
+for his courtesy in placing a vast amount of data in my hands, and for
+having elucidated a good many points of difficulty; and, finally, to
+Mr. Henry Atton, Librarian of the Custom House, for his great
+assistance in research.
+
+  E. KEBLE CHATTERTON.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+CHAP.                                               PAGE
+    I. INTRODUCTION                                   1
+
+   II. THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS                        14
+
+  III. THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING                       40
+
+   IV. THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS                        56
+
+    V. THE HAWKHURST GANG                            82
+
+   VI. THE REVENUE CRUISERS                          94
+
+  VII. CUTTERS AND SLOOPS                           121
+
+ VIII. PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION                      138
+
+   IX. CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT                           157
+
+    X. THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING                    182
+
+   XI. THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA                         199
+
+  XII. THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS                      215
+
+ XIII. THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY                      239
+
+  XIV. SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS                  257
+
+   XV. A TRAGIC INCIDENT                            276
+
+  XVI. ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS                       295
+
+ XVII. SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS                    320
+
+XVIII. BY SEA AND LAND                              339
+
+  XIX. ACTION AND COUNTER-ACTION                    361
+
+   XX. FORCE AND CUNNING                            379
+
+
+APPENDICES                                          403
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+PLATES
+
+REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER         _Colour frontispiece_
+
+                                                           FACING PAGE
+
+A REPRESENTATION OF YE SMUGGLERS BREAKING OPEN YE KING'S
+CUSTOM HOUSE AT POOLE                                              86
+
+MR. GALLEY AND MR. CHATER PUT BY YE SMUGGLERS ON ONE
+HORSE NEAR ROWLAND CASTLE                                          88
+
+GALLEY AND CHATER FALLING OFF THEIR HORSE AT WOODASH               88A
+
+CHATER CHAINED IN YE TURFF HOUSE AT OLD MILLS'S                    89
+
+CHATER HANGING AT THE WELL IN LADY HOLT PARK, THE         )
+BLOODY VILLAINS STANDING BY                               )
+                                                          )        90
+THE BLOODY SMUGGLERS FLINGING DOWN STONES AFTER THEY      )
+HAD FLUNG HIS DEAD BODY INTO THE WELL                     )
+
+H.M. CUTTER "WICKHAM," COMMANDED BY CAPTAIN JOHN
+FULLARTON, R.N.                                                   178
+
+H.M. CUTTER "WICKHAM"                                             179
+
+
+IN TEXT
+                                                                  PAGE
+
+"DOW SENT HIS MATE AND TEN MEN ON BOARD HER"                       72
+
+"CAME CHARGING DOWN ... STRIKING HER ON THE QUARTER"              102
+
+"A GREAT CROWD OF INFURIATED PEOPLE CAME DOWN TO THE BEACH"       187
+
+"THE 'FLORA' WITH THE 'FISGARD,' 'WASSO,' AND 'NYMPH'"            202
+
+"THE 'CAROLINE' CONTINUED HER COURSE AND PROCEEDED TO LONDON"     211
+
+HOW THE DEAL BOATMEN USED TO SMUGGLE TEA ASHORE                   213
+
+"THE 'BADGER' WAS HOISTING UP THE GALLEY IN THE RIGGING"          265
+
+"FIRE AND BE DAMNED"                                              278
+
+THE SANDWICH DEVICE                                               314
+
+THE SLOOP "LUCY" SHOWING CONCEALMENTS                             324
+
+CASK FOR SMUGGLING CIDER                                          326
+
+THE SMACK "TAM O'SHANTER" SHOWING METHOD OF CONCEALMENT           329
+
+FLAT-BOTTOMED BOAT FOUND OFF SELSEY                               332
+
+PLAN OF THE SCHOONER "GOOD INTENT" SHOWING METHOD OF
+SMUGGLING CASKS                                                   334
+
+THE SCHOONER "SPARTAN"                                            336
+
+DECK PLAN AND LONGITUDINAL PLAN OF THE "LORD RIVERS"              337
+
+"THE CRUISER'S GUNS HAD SHOT AWAY THE MIZZEN-MAST"                348
+
+"THE 'ADMIRAL HOOD' WAS HEAVING TUBS OVERBOARD"                   358
+
+"GETTING A FIRM GRIP, PUSHED HIM ... INTO THE WATER"              365
+
+"LET'S ... HAVE HIM OVER THE CLIFF"                               373
+
+"UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS TOOK ON BOARD ... FORTY BALES
+OF SILK"                                                          377
+
+"ANOTHER SHOT WAS FIRED"                                          383
+
+METHODS EMPLOYED BY SMUGGLERS FOR ANCHORING TUBS THROWN
+OVERBOARD                                                         385
+
+THE "RIVAL'S" INGENIOUS DEVICE                                    392
+
+"TAKEN COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE"                                    398
+
+
+
+
+King's Cutters & Smugglers
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+
+Outside pure Naval history it would be difficult to find any period so
+full of incident and contest as that which is covered by the exploits
+of the English Preventive Service in their efforts to deal with the
+notorious and dangerous bands of smugglers which at one time were a
+terrible menace to the trade and welfare of our nation.
+
+As we shall see from the following pages, their activities covered
+many decades, and indeed smuggling is not even to-day dead nor ever
+will be so long as there are regulations which human ingenuity can
+occasionally outwit. But the grand, adventurous epoch of the smugglers
+covers little more than a century and a half, beginning about the year
+1700 and ending about 1855 or 1860. Nevertheless, within that space of
+time there are crowded in so much adventure, so many exciting escapes,
+so many fierce encounters, such clever moves and counter-moves: there
+are so many thousands of people concerned in the events, so many
+craft employed, and so much money expended that the story of the
+smugglers possesses a right to be ranked second only to those larger
+battles between two or more nations.
+
+Everyone has, even nowadays, a sneaking regard for the smugglers of
+that bygone age, an instinct that is based partly on a curious human
+failing and partly on a keen admiration for men of dash and daring.
+There is a sympathy, somehow, with a class of men who succeeded not
+once but hundreds of times in setting the law at defiance; who, in
+spite of all the resources of the Government, were not easily beaten.
+In the novels of James, Marryat, and a host of lesser writers the
+smuggler and the Preventive man have become familiar and standard
+types, and there are very few, surely, who in the days of their youth
+have not enjoyed the breathless excitement of some story depicting the
+chasing of a contraband lugger or watched vicariously the landing of
+the tubs of spirits along the pebbly beach on a night when the moon
+never showed herself. But most of these were fiction and little else.
+Even Marryat, though he was for some time actually engaged in Revenue
+duty, is now known to have been inaccurate and loose in some of his
+stories. Those who have followed afterwards have been scarcely better.
+
+However, there is nothing in the following pages which belongs to
+fiction. Every effort has been made to set forth only actual
+historical facts, which are capable of verification, so that what is
+herein contained represents not what _might_ have happened but
+actually did take place. To write a complete history of smuggling
+would be well-nigh impossible, owing to the fact that, unhappily
+through fire and destruction, many of the records, which to-day would
+be invaluable, have long since perished. The burning down of the
+Customs House by the side of the Thames in 1814 and the inappreciation
+of the right value of certain documents by former officials have
+caused so desirable a history to be impossible to be written. Still,
+happily, there is even now a vast amount of material in existence, and
+the present Commissioners of the Board of Customs are using every
+effort to preserve for posterity a mass of data connected with this
+service.
+
+Owing to the courtesy of the Commissioners it has been my good fortune
+to make careful researches through the documents which are concerned
+with the old smuggling days, the Revenue cutters, and the Preventive
+Service generally; and it is from these pages of the past and from
+other sources that I have been enabled to put forth the story as it is
+here presented; and as such it represents an attempt to afford an
+authentic picture of an extremely interesting and an equally exciting
+period of our national history, to show the conditions of the
+smuggling industry from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century, and
+the efforts to put a stop to the same. We shall soon find that this
+period in its glamour, romance, and adventure contains a good deal of
+similarity to the great seafaring Elizabethan epoch. The ships were
+different, but the courage of the English seamen was the same. Nor
+must we forget that those rough, rude men who ran backwards and
+forwards across the English Channel in cutters, yawls, luggers, and
+sometimes open boats, stiffened with a rich ballast of tea, tobacco,
+and brandy, were some of the finest seamen in the world, and certainly
+the most skilful fore-and-aft sailors and efficient pilots to be found
+anywhere on the seas which wash the coasts of the United Kingdom. They
+were sturdy and strong of body, courageous and enterprising of nature,
+who had "used" the sea all their lives. Consequently the English
+Government wisely determined that in all cases of an encounter with
+smugglers the first aim of the Preventive officers should be to
+capture the smugglers themselves, for they could be promptly impressed
+into the service of the Navy and be put to the good of the nation
+instead of being to the latter's disadvantage.
+
+As everyone familiar with the sea is aware, the seamanship of the
+square-rigged vessel and of the fore-and-aft is very different. The
+latter makes special demands of its own which, for the present, we
+need not go into. But we may assert with perfect confidence that at
+its best the handling of the King's cutters and the smuggling craft,
+the chasing and eluding in all weathers, the strategy and tactics of
+both parties form some of the best chapters in nautical lore. The
+great risks that were run, the self-confidence and coolness displayed
+indicated quite clearly that our national seafaring spirit was not yet
+dead. To-day many descendants of these old smugglers remain our
+foremost fore-and-aft sailors, yet engaged no longer in an illicit
+trade but in the more peaceful pursuits of line fishermen, oyster
+dredging, trawling during the winter, and often shipping as yachts'
+hands during the summer.
+
+But because we are to read fact and not fiction we shall scarcely find
+the subject inferior in interest. Truth often enough is stranger, and
+some of the tricks and devices employed by the smuggling communities
+may well surprise us. And while we shall not make any vain attempt to
+whitewash a class of men who were lawless, reckless, and sometimes
+even brutal in their efforts, yet we shall not hesitate to give the
+fullest prominence to the great skill and downright cleverness of a
+singularly virile and unique kind of British manhood. In much the same
+way as a spectator looks on at a fine sporting contest between two
+able foes, we shall watch the clashing exploits of the King's men and
+the smugglers. Sometimes the one side wins, sometimes the other, but
+nearly always there is a splendidly exciting tussle before either
+party can claim victory.
+
+No one who has not examined the authentic records of this period can
+appreciate how powerful the smugglers on sea and land had become. The
+impudence and independence of some of the former were amazing. We
+shall give instances in due course, but for the present we might take
+the case of the Revenue cutter which, after giving chase to a
+smuggling vessel, came up to the latter. Shots were exchanged, but the
+smuggler turned his swivel guns on to the Government craft with such a
+hot effect that the Revenue captain deemed it prudent to give up the
+fight and hurry away as fast as possible, after which the positions
+were reversed and the smuggler _actually chased the Revenue cutter!_
+In fact during the year 1777 one of the Customs officials wrote sadly
+to the Board that there was a large lugger off the coast, and so well
+armed that she was "greatly an overmatch" for even two of the Revenue
+cruisers. It seems almost ludicrous to notice a genuine and
+unquestionable report of a smuggling vessel coming into a bay, finding
+a Revenue cruiser lying quietly at anchor, and ordering the cruiser,
+with a fine flow of oaths, immediately to cut his cable and clear out;
+otherwise the smugglers promised to sink her. The Revenue cutter's
+commander did not cut his cable, but in truth he had to get his
+anchor up pretty promptly and clear out as he was told.
+
+It was not till after the year 1815 that the Government began
+seriously to make continuous headway in its efforts to cope with the
+smuggling evil. Consider the times. Between the years 1652 and 1816
+there were years and years of wars by land or by sea. There were the
+three great Anglo-Dutch wars, the wars with France, with Spain, to say
+nothing of the trouble with America. They were indeed anxious years
+that ended only with the Battle of Waterloo, and it was not likely
+that all this would in any way put a stop to that restlessness which
+was unmistakable. Wages were low, provisions were high, and the poorer
+classes of those days had by no means all the privileges possessed
+to-day. Add to this the undoubted fact that literally for centuries
+there had lived along the south coast of England, especially in the
+neighbourhood of the old Cinque ports, a race of men who were always
+ready for some piratical or semi-piratical sea exploit. It was in
+their blood to undertake and long for such enterprises, and it only
+wanted but the opportunity to send them roving the seas as privateers,
+or running goods illegally from one coast to another. And it is not
+true that time has altogether stifled that old spirit. When a liner
+to-day has the misfortune to lose her way in a fog and pile up on rock
+or sandbank, you read of the numbers of small craft which put out to
+salvage her cargo. But not all this help comes out of hearts of
+unfathomable pity. On the contrary, your beachman has an eye to
+business. He cannot go roving nowadays; time has killed the smuggling
+in which his ancestors distinguished themselves. But none the less he
+can legally profit by another vessel's misfortune; and, as the local
+families worked in syndicate fashion when they went smuggling, so now
+they mutually arrange to get the cargo ashore and, incidentally, make
+a very handsome profit as well.
+
+We need not envy the Government the difficult and trying task that was
+theirs during the height of the smuggling era. There was quite enough to
+think of in regard to foreign affairs without wanting the additional
+worry of these contraband runners. That must be borne in mind whenever
+one feels inclined to smile at the apparently half-hearted manner in
+which the authorities seemed to deal with the evil. Neither funds nor
+seamen, nor ships nor adequate attention could be spared just then to
+deal with these pests. And it was only after the wars had at last ended
+and the Napoleonic bogey had been settled that this domestic worry could
+be dealt with in the manner it required. There were waiting many evils
+to be remedied, and this lawlessness along the coast of the country was
+one of the greatest. But it was not a matter that could be adjusted in
+a hurry, and it was not for another forty or fifty years, not, in fact,
+until various administrative changes and improvements had taken place,
+that at last the evil was practically stamped out. As one looks through
+the existing records one cannot avoid noticing that there was scarcely a
+bay or suitable landing-place along the whole English coast-line that
+did not become notorious for these smuggling "runs": there is hardly a
+cliff or piece of high ground that has not been employed for the purpose
+of giving a signal to the approaching craft as they came on through the
+night over the dark waters. There are indeed very few villages in
+proximity to the sea that have not been concerned in these smuggling
+ventures and taken active interest in the landing of bales and casks.
+The sympathy of the country-side was with the smuggling fraternity.
+Magistrates were at times terrorised, juries were too frightened to
+convict. In short, the evil had grown to such an extent that it was a
+most difficult problem for any Government to be asked to deal with,
+needing as it did a very efficient service both of craft and men afloat,
+and an equally able and incorruptible guard on land that could not be
+turned from its purpose either by fear or bribery. We shall see from the
+following chapters how these two organisations--by sea and land--worked.
+
+If we exclude fiction, the amount of literature which has been
+published on smuggling is exceedingly small. Practically the whole of
+the following pages is the outcome of personal research among
+original, authentic manuscripts and official documents. Included under
+this head may be cited the Minutes of the Board of Customs, General
+Letters of the Board to the Collectors and Controllers of the various
+Out-ports, Out-port Letters to the Board, the transcripts from
+shorthand notes of Assizes and Promiscuous Trials of Smugglers, a
+large quantity of MSS. of remarkable incidents connected with
+smuggling, miscellaneous notes collected on the subject in the Library
+of the Customs House, instructions issued at different times to
+Customs officers and commanders of cruisers, General Orders issued to
+the Coastguard, together with a valuable precis (unpublished) of the
+existing documents in the many Customs Houses along the English coast
+made in the year 1911 by the Librarian to the Board of Customs on a
+round of visits to the different ports for that purpose. These
+researches have been further supplemented by other documents in the
+British Museum and elsewhere.
+
+This volume, therefore, contains within its pages a very large amount
+of material hitherto unpublished, and, additional to the details
+gathered together regarding smuggling methods, especial attention has
+been paid to collect all possible information concerning the Revenue
+sloops and cutters so frequently alluded to in those days as cruisers.
+I have so often heard a desire expressed among those interested in the
+literature of the sea to learn all about the King's cutters, how they
+were rigged, manned, victualled, armed, and navigated, what were their
+conditions of service at sea, and so on--finally, to obtain accounts
+of their chasing of smuggling craft, accounts based on the narratives
+of eye-witnesses of the incidents, the testimony of the commanders and
+crews themselves, both captors and captives, that I have been here at
+some pains to present the most complete picture of the subject that
+has hitherto been attempted. These cutters were most interesting craft
+by reason both of themselves and the chases and fights in which they
+were engaged. The King's cutters were employed, as many people are
+aware, as well in international warfare as in the Preventive Service.
+There is an interesting letter, for instance, to be read from
+Lieutenant Henry Rowed, commanding the Admiralty cutter _Sheerness_,
+dated September 9, 1803, off Brest, in which her gallant commander
+sends a notable account to Collingwood concerning the chasing of a
+French _chasse-maree_. And cutters were also employed in connection
+with the Walcheren expedition. The hired armed cutter _Stag_ was found
+useful in 1804 as a despatch vessel.
+
+But the King's cutters in the Revenue work were not always as active
+as they might be. In one of his novels (_The Three Cutters_) Captain
+Marryat gives the reader a very plain hint that there was a good deal
+of slackness prevalent in this section of the service. Referring to
+the midshipman of the Revenue cutter _Active_, the author speaks of
+him as a lazy fellow, too inert even to mend his jacket which was out
+at elbows, and adds, "He has been turned out of half the ships in the
+service for laziness; but he was born so, and therefore it is not his
+fault. A Revenue cutter suits him--she is half her time hove-to; and
+he has no objection to boat-service, as he sits down in the
+stern-sheets, which is not fatiguing. Creeping for tubs is his
+delight, as he gets over so little ground."
+
+But Marryat was, of course, intentionally sarcastic here. That this
+lazy element was not always, and in every ship, prevalent is clear
+from the facts at hand. It is also equally clear from the repeated
+admonitions and exhortations of the Board of Customs, by the
+holding-out of handsome rewards and the threatenings of dire
+penalties, that the Revenue-cutter commanders were at any rate
+periodically negligent of their duties. They were far too fond of
+coming to a nice snug anchorage for the night or seeking shelter in
+bad weather, and generally running into harbour with a frequence that
+was unnecessary. The result was that the cutter, having left her
+station unguarded, the smugglers were able to land their kegs with
+impunity.
+
+But we need not delay our story longer, and may proceed now to
+consider the subject in greater detail.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS
+
+
+It is no part of our intention to trace the history of the levying of
+customs through different reigns and in different ages, but it is
+important to note briefly that the evading of these dues which we
+designate smuggling, is one of the oldest offences on record.
+
+The most ancient dues paid to the English sovereigns would seem to
+have been those which were levied on the exportation and importation
+of merchandise across the sea; and it is essential to emphasise at the
+outset that though nowadays when we speak of smuggling we are
+accustomed to think only of those acts concerned with imports, yet the
+word applies equally to the unlawful manner of exporting commodities.
+Before it is possible for any crime to be committed there must needs
+be at hand the opportunity to carry out this intention; and throughout
+the history of our nation--at any rate from the thirteenth
+century--that portion of England, the counties of Kent and Sussex,
+which is adjacent to the Continent, has always been at once the most
+tempted and the most inclined towards this offence. Notwithstanding
+that there are many other localities which were rendered notorious by
+generations of smugglers, yet these two between them have been
+responsible for more incidents of this nature than all the rest put
+together.
+
+What I am anxious at first to emphasise is the fact that, although
+smuggling rose to unheard-of importance as a national danger during
+the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (and this is the period to
+which we shall especially address ourselves presently as affording the
+fullest and the most interesting information on an ingenious phase of
+human energy), yet it was not a practice which suddenly rose into
+prominence during that period. Human nature is much the same under
+various kings and later centuries. Under similar circumstances men and
+women perform similar actions. Confronted with the temptation to cheat
+the Crown of its dues, you will find persons in the time of George V.
+repeating the very crimes of Edward I. The difference is not so much
+in degree of guilt as in the nature of the articles and the manner in
+which they have been smuggled. To-day it may be cigars--centuries ago
+it was wool. Although the golden age (if we may use the term) of
+smuggling has long since passed, I am by no means unconvinced that if
+the occasions of temptation recurred to carry on this trade as it was
+pursued during the eighteenth and the first half of the nineteenth
+centuries, there would not be found many who would be ready to apply
+themselves to such a task. To some extent the modern improvements in
+living, in education, and increased respect for lofty ideals would
+modify this tendency; and long years have awakened so keen a regard
+for the benefits of law and order that the nefarious practice might
+not break out immediately on a large scale. But when we speak of
+smuggling it is perhaps more correct to speak of it as a disease which
+has not been exterminated from the system, but is, as it were, a
+microbe that is kept well under control and not allowed to spread.
+
+Everyone who is familiar with English history is aware of the
+important position which was occupied by the wool trade. Because of
+the immense value to the nation of the fleece it was necessary that
+this commodity should be kept in the country and not sent abroad. If
+in the present day most of our iron and coal were to be despatched
+abroad regardless of what was required by our manufacturers it would
+not be long before the country would begin to suffer serious loss. So,
+in the thirteenth century, it was with the wool. As a check to this a
+tax was levied on that wool which was exported out of the country, and
+during the reign of Edward III. attempts were made by the threat of
+heavy penalties to prevent the Continent from becoming the receptacle
+of our chief product. But the temptation was too great, the rewards
+were too alluring for the practice to be stopped. The fleece was
+carried across from England, made into cloth, and in this state sent
+back to us. Even in those days the town of Middleburgh, which we shall
+see later to have been the source of much of the goods smuggled into
+our country in the grand period, was in the fourteenth century the
+headquarters abroad of this clandestine trade. We need not weary the
+reader with the details of the means which were periodically taken to
+stop this trade by the English kings. It is enough to state that
+practically all the ports of Sussex and Kent were busily engaged in
+the illegal business. Neither the penalties of death, nor the fixing
+of the price of wool, nor the regulating of the rate of duty availed
+in the long-run. Licences to export this article were continually
+evaded, creeks and quiet bays were the scenes where the fleece was
+shipped for France and the Low Countries. Sometimes the price of wool
+fell, sometimes it rose; sometimes the Crown received a greater amount
+of duty, at other times the royal purse suffered very severely. In the
+time of Elizabeth the encouragement of foreign weavers to make their
+homes in England was likely to do much to keep the wool in the
+country, especially as there began to be increased wealth in our land,
+and families began to spend more money on personal comforts.
+
+Even in the time of Charles I. proclamations were issued against
+exporting wool, yet the mischief still went on. In the time of
+Charles II. men readily "risked their necks for 12d. a day."[1] The
+greatest part of the wool was sent from Romney Marsh, where, after
+nightfall, it was put on board French shallops with ten or twenty men
+to guard it, all well armed. And other parts of Sussex as well as Kent
+and even Essex were also engaged in similar exportations.
+
+But it is from the time of King Charles II. that the first serious
+steps were taken to cope with the smuggling evil, and from here we
+really take our starting-point in our present inquiry. Prior to his
+time the Customs, as a subsidy of the king, were prone to much
+variability. In the time of James I., for instance, they had been
+granted to the sovereign for life, and he claimed to alter the rates
+as he chose when pressed for money. When Charles I. came to the throne
+the Commons, instead of voting them for the extent of the sovereign's
+life, granted them for one year only. At a later date in the reign of
+that unhappy king the grant was made only for a couple of months.
+These dues were known as tonnage and poundage, the former being a duty
+of 1s. 6d. to 3s. levied on every ton of wine and liquor exported and
+imported. Poundage was a similar tax of 6d. to 1s. on every pound of
+dry goods.
+
+It was not till after the Restoration that the customs were settled
+and more firmly established, a subsidy being "granted to the king of
+tonnage and poundage and other sums of money payable upon merchandise
+exported and imported." Nominally the customs were employed for
+defraying the cost of "guarding and defending the seas against all
+persons intending the disturbance of his subjects in the intercourse
+of trade, and the invading of this realm." And so, also, there was
+inaugurated a more systematic and efficient method of preventing this
+export smuggling. So far as one can find any records from the existing
+manuscripts of this early Preventive system, the chronological order
+would seem to be as follows: The first mention of any kind of marine
+service that I can trace is found in a manuscript of 1674, which shows
+the establishment of the Custom House organisation in that year for
+England and Wales. From this it is clear that there had been made a
+beginning of that system which was later to develop into that of the
+Revenue cutters. And when we recollect how extremely interested was
+Charles II. in everything pertaining to the sea and to sloop-rigged
+craft especially, it seems very natural to believe that this monarch
+inspired, or at any rate very considerably encouraged, the formation
+of a small fleet of Custom House sailing craft. Elsewhere I have
+discussed this matter at length, therefore it may suffice if attention
+is called to the fact that to Charles was due the first yacht into
+England, presented to him by the Dutch; while from his encouragement
+were born the sport of yachting and the building of English yachts. He
+was very much concerned in the rig of sloops, and loved to sail in
+such craft, and his yacht was also most probably the first vessel of
+that rig which had ever been employed by English sailors. Further
+still, he was something of a naval architect, the founder of the
+Greenwich Royal Observatory and the _Nautical Almanac_, and under his
+rule a fresh impulse was given to navigation and shipbuilding
+generally.
+
+At any rate by the year 1674 there were among the smaller sailing
+craft of England a number of sloops and smacks employed doubtless for
+fishing and coasting work. As a kind of marine police, the Custom
+House authorities determined to hire some of these to keep a watch on
+the "owlers," as the wool-smugglers were termed, so called, no doubt,
+because they had to pursue their calling always by night. Whatever
+efforts had been adopted prior to his reign probably had consisted for
+the most part, if not entirely, of a land police. But under this
+second Charles the very sensible and obvious idea of utilising a
+number of sailing craft was started. In the above MS. volume the first
+reference is to "Peter Knight, Master of ye smack for ye wages of him
+self and five men and boy, and to bear all charges except wear and
+tear ... L59." "For extraordinary wear and tear," he was to be paid
+L59. His vessel was the Margate smack. In the same volume there is
+also a reference to the "Graves End smack," and to "Thomas Symonds for
+wages and dyett [diet] for himself, master and six men ... L56, 5s.
+0d." And for the "wear and tear to be disposed as ye Commrs. direct
+... L14, 15s. 0d." There was yet a third vessel stationed a few miles
+away, the "Quinborrough smack," and a reference to "Nicholas Badcock
+for hire of ye smack, two men, and to bear all charges ... L23." These
+vessels were not known as Revenue cutters at this time, but as Custom
+House smacks. They were hired by the Commissioners of the Customs from
+private individuals to prevent the owlers from smuggling the wool from
+Kent, Essex, and Sussex. But it would seem that these smacks, even if
+they modified a little the activities of the owlers, did not succeed
+in bringing about many convictions. Romney Marsh still sent its
+contribution across to France and Holland, much as it had done for
+generations.
+
+But in 1698 the attack on the men of Kent and Sussex was strengthened
+by legislation, for by 7 & 8 William III. cap. 28, it was enacted that
+"for the better preventing the exportation of wool and correspondence
+with France ... the Lord High Admiral of England, or Commissioners for
+executing the office of Lord High Admiral for the time being, shall
+from time to time direct and appoint one ship of the Fifth Rate, and
+two ships of the Sixth Rate, and four armed sloops constantly to
+cruise off the North Foreland to the Isle of Wight, with orders for
+taking and seizing all ships, vessels, or boats which shall export any
+wool or carry or bring any prohibited goods or any suspected persons."
+It was due to William III.'s Government also that no person living
+within fifteen miles of the sea in those counties should buy any wool
+before he entered into a bond, with sureties, that all the wool he
+might buy should be sold by him to no persons within fifteen miles of
+the sea, and all growers of wool within ten miles of the sea in those
+counties were obliged within three days of shearing to account for the
+number of fleeces, and where they were lodged.
+
+Instructions were duly issued to captains of sloops, and a scheme
+drafted for surrounding the whole of the coast with sloops, the crews
+consisting of master, mate, and mariners. But from an entry in the
+Excise and Treasury Reports of 1685, it is clear that a careful regard
+even at that date was being had for the import smuggling as well. The
+reference belongs to September 24, and shows that a "boarding" boat
+was desired for going alongside vessels in the Downs, and preventing
+the running in of brandies along the coast in that vicinity. The
+charge for building such a boat is to be L25. In another MS. touching
+the Customs, there is under date of June 1695 an interesting reference
+to "a Deale yoghall to be built," and that "such a boat will be here
+of very good use." She is to be "fitt to go into ye roads for boarding
+men or other ocations when ye sloops may be at sea."
+
+So much, then, for the present as to the guarding by sea against the
+smugglers. Let us now turn to look into the means adopted by land. The
+wool-owners of Romney Marsh were still hard at their game, and the
+horses still came down to the beach ladened with the packs ready to be
+shipped. If any one were sent with warrants to arrest the delinquents,
+they were attacked, beaten, and forced to flee, followed by armed gangs
+on horseback. But it was evident that the Crown was determined not to
+let the matter rest, for a number of surveyors were appointed for
+nineteen counties and 299 riding officers as well, though they made few
+seizures, and obtained still fewer condemnations, but at great expense
+to the State. In 1703 it was believed that the owling trade, especially
+in Romney Marsh, was broken if not dead, although the smuggling by
+import was on the increase, especially as regards silks, lace, and such
+"fine" goods. At that time for the two hundred miles of coast-line
+between the Isle of Sheppey and Emsworth--practically the whole of the
+Kentish and Sussex shore--fifty officers were being employed at a
+salary of L60 per annum, with an allowance to each of another L30
+annually for a servant and horse to assist them during the night. And
+there was authority also for the employment of dragoons to aid the
+riding officers, especially in the neighbourhood of Romney Marsh; but
+there was a number of "weak and superannuated" men among the latter, who
+did not make for the efficiency of the service.
+
+We need not say much more about the wool-exportation. In spite of all
+the efforts of the Custom House smacks and the assistance of his
+Majesty's ships of war, in spite, too, of further legislation, it
+still continued. It went on merrily at any rate till the end of the
+eighteenth century, by which time the smuggling by imports had long
+since eclipsed its importance. It was the wars with France during the
+time of William and Mary which increased and rendered more easy the
+smuggling into England of silk and lace. And by means of the craft
+which imported these goods there used to be smuggled also a good deal
+of Jacobite correspondence. As Kent and Sussex had been famous for
+their export smuggling, so these counties were again to distinguish
+themselves by illicit importation. From now on till the middle of this
+eighteenth century this newer form of smuggling rose gradually to
+wondrous heights. And yet it was by no means new. In the time of
+Edward III. steps had to be taken to prevent the importation of base
+coin into the realm, and in succeeding reigns the king had been
+cheated many a time of that which ought to have come to him through
+the duties of goods entering the country.
+
+It was impossible instantly to put down a practice which had been
+pursued by so many families for so many hundreds of years. But the
+existing force was not equal to coping with the increase. As a
+consequence the daring of the smugglers knew no bounds--the more they
+succeeded the more they ventured. A small gang of ten would blossom
+forth into several hundreds of men, there would be no lack of arms nor
+clubs, and adequate arrangements would be made for cellar-storage of
+the goods when safely brought into the country. Consequently violence
+became more frequent than ever--bloodshed and all sorts of crimes
+occurred.
+
+In the year 1723 several commissions or deputations were issued by the
+Chancellor of the Exchequer to captains of his Majesty's sloops to
+make seizures, and the following year the Treasury authorised the
+construction of seven sloops for service off the coast of Scotland.
+The smugglers had in fact become so desperate, the English Channel was
+so thoroughly infested with them, and the Revenue service was so
+incapable of dealing with them in the manner that was obviously
+essential for effectiveness, that the Admiralty ordered the captains
+and commanders of His Majesty's ships to assist the Revenue officers
+all they could in order to prevent the smuggling trade, and to look
+out and seize all vessels employed in illegally exporting wool; for
+the Admiralty had been informed by the Commissioners of Customs that
+the Revenue officers frequently met with insults from French smuggling
+luggers manned by armed crews, who carried on a brisk smuggling trade
+by force and even dared the Revenue men to come aboard them.
+
+But as the Revenue service afloat was assisted now by the Navy, so the
+Revenue land guard was also aided by the Military. In 1713
+arrangements had been made that dragoons should co-operate with the
+riding officers in their operations against the owlers, and there are
+plenty of skirmishes recorded showing that the dragoons were actually
+so employed. Originally these soldiers were employed under the
+direction of the riding officers, but, as can well be expected, there
+was a good deal of jealousy and friction caused through the sharing of
+the soldiers in the rewards for seizures, and after the year 1822 this
+military assistance was not utilised to any great extent, although
+legally Army officers can still be called upon to render assistance
+against smuggling. And, in passing, one might mention that this
+co-operation afloat between the Customs men and the Navy was equally
+noticeable for a certain amount of ill-feeling, as we shall mention
+on a later page.
+
+Before the first quarter of the eighteenth century was completed,
+smuggling between England and the Continent was proceeding at a brisk
+pace, and by the middle of that century it had well-nigh reached its
+climax for fearlessness. We have already alluded to the establishment
+of hired smacks and sloops inaugurated towards the end of the
+seventeenth century. The sloop rig, as I have shown in another
+volume,[2] had probably been introduced into England from Holland soon
+after the accession of Charles II., but from that date its merits of
+handiness were so fully recognised that for yachts, for fishing craft,
+for the carrying of passengers and cargo up and down the Thames and
+along the coast as well as across to Ireland and the Continent, the
+rig was adopted very readily in place of the lug-sails. The smack was
+also a sloop-rigged vessel. We need not enter here into a discussion
+as to the comparative merits of sloops and cutters and smacks. It is
+enough if we state that when it was realised that a vessel of say 100
+tons, sloop-rigged, with her one mast, mainsail, and two headsails and
+square topsail (set forward of the mast on a yard) could be handled
+with fewer men and therefore less expense than a lugger of similar
+size; was also more suitable for manoeuvring in narrow channels,
+and for entering and leaving small harbours, the fishermen, coasters,
+and so on took to this improvement. Thus most naturally the larger
+smuggling craft were till well on into the nineteenth century sloops
+or cutters, and equally natural was it that the Revenue availed
+themselves of this rig first by hiring smacks, and, later, by building
+for themselves. These sloops, whether hired or owned, were given each
+a particular station to guard, and that plan was followed by the
+Revenue cruisers for many years to follow. Among the Exeter documents
+of the Customs Department is included an interesting document dated
+July 10, 1703, wherein the Board of Customs informs the collector at
+the port of Dartmouth of the list of vessels appointed by the
+Commissioners to cruise against owlers, the district comprised
+extending from Pembroke in the west to the Downs in the east. The
+following is the list of these vessels with their respective cruising
+territories:--
+
+  NAME OF CRUISER           LIMITS OF HER SPHERE
+
+  _Rye_                     Pembroke to Lundy Island
+  _Discovery_               Milford to Swansea
+  _Dolphin_                 Milford to Exmouth
+  _Hastings_                   "    "    "
+  _Woolwich_                Downs to Falmouth
+  _Swan_                      "   "    "
+  _Fly_                     Off Folkestone
+  _Dispatch_                 "      "
+
+This fairly well covered the region to which goods were likely to be
+run from the Continent as well as that from which the owlers were wont
+to export their wool. From an entry among the documents preserved in
+the Custom House at Newcastle, dated September 1729, we can see that
+also the north-east coast was guarded thus:--
+
+  NAME OF CRUISER           LIMITS OF HER SPHERE
+
+  _Cruiser_                 Flamborough Head to Newcastle
+  _Deal Castle_             Newcastle to Leith
+  _Spy_                     Firth of Forth to Newcastle
+
+And about the last-mentioned date the _Deal Castle_ had succeeded in
+capturing four French smuggling craft and brought them into Shields.
+
+To the other side of England the Isle of Man, which was a veritable
+contraband depot, used to send quantities of dutiable goods, Liverpool
+being the favourite destination, and it was a more difficult matter
+here to deal with than in many other ports. On October 9, 1713, the
+Collector at Liverpool writes to the Board of Customs that he thinks a
+sloop would be of little service for that port. Some time ago they had
+one, which was not a success "by reason of ye dangerousness and
+difficulty of the harbour and ye many shoales of sand, which often
+shift in bad weather." The Manxmen were a thoroughly lawless,
+desperate species of smugglers, who stopped at nothing, and were
+especially irate towards all Revenue and public officials,
+recognising no authority other than might and a certain respect for
+the Duke of Atholl, the owner of the Isle of Man.
+
+Among the letters to Southampton there is a record dated June 14, 1729,
+which shows that a number of his Majesty's sloops were appointed by the
+Admiralty to cruise off the coasts of the kingdom to prevent the
+exporting of wool and the running of goods by the import-smugglers. For
+instance, the Admiralty sloop _Swift_ was appointed to cruise between
+Portland, Poole, and Jack-in-the-Basket off the entrance to Lymington
+Harbour, Hants, her commander being a Captain Cockayne. Similarly the
+sloop _Success_ (Captain Thomas Smith, commander) was to cruise between
+Portland and Spithead, and the _Rye_ (Captain John Edwards) between the
+Isle of Wight and Beachy Head to the eastward. It was part of the duty
+of the Revenue officers at Southampton to see that these three ships
+constantly cruised on their station, and if their commanders were found
+negligent of this duty the matter was to be reported to the Board of
+Customs. The Revenue craft were apparently not above suspicion, for in
+November of 1729 the Southampton officers of the Customs reported to
+headquarters that this very sloop, the _Swift_, every time she went
+across to Guernsey in connection with her duties of prevention, used to
+bring back quantities of wine, brandy, and other dutiable goods under
+the pretence that they were the ship's stores. The intention, however,
+was nothing less than that which dominated the actions of the smugglers
+themselves--the very class against which the _Swift_ was employed--for
+Captain Cockayne's men used to find it no very difficult matter to run
+these goods ashore clandestinely under the very eyes of the unsuspecting
+Customs officers. The Commissioners of the Customs therefore sent down
+strict instructions that the _Swift_ was to be rummaged every time she
+arrived at Southampton from Guernsey. We shall have reason presently to
+refer more especially to the Channel Isles again, but it may suffice for
+the present to state that they were in the south the counterpart of the
+Isle of Man in the north as being a depot whence the import smugglers
+fetched their goods across to England.
+
+Additional to the Naval sloops just mentioned, there were two other
+cutters belonging to the Southampton station under the Revenue and
+not, of course, Admiralty-owned craft. These vessels were respectively
+the _Calshot_ and the _Hurst_, and it is worth noting that at the time
+we are thinking of (1729) these vessels are referred to generally as
+"yatchs" or "yachts." It was not quite seventy years since the first
+yacht--that presented to Charles II., named the _Mary_--had arrived in
+England, and it was only in 1720 that the first yacht club had been
+established, not in England, but in Cork. If we may judge from
+contemporary paintings of yachts we can visualise the _Hurst_ and
+_Calshot_ as being very tubby, bluff-bowed craft with ample beam. But
+what would especially strike us in these modern days would be the
+exceptionally long bowsprit, the forward end of which was raised
+considerably above the water than its after end, both jib and foresail
+each working on a stay.
+
+The commander of the _Calshot_ yacht was a Captain Mears, and there is
+an entry in the Southampton documents to the effect that he was paid
+the sum of L2, 12s. 6d. for piloting his vessel from Southampton to
+Guernsey and back in connection with the Preventive duties. This trip
+took him five days, his pay being half a guinea a day. It is clear
+from a record of the following year that Mears was employed by special
+arrangement, for on July 18, 1730, the Board of Customs decided that
+it was necessary that Captain John Mears, commander of the _Calshot_
+yacht at Southampton, should now be placed on the same footing as the
+other commanders of the Revenue sloops and smacks in regard to the
+matter of wear and tear. Henceforth the sum of 30s. per ton was to be
+allowed him instead of L47 per annum. Both yacht and her boats were to
+be kept in good repair, but the commander was first to give security
+to have the vessel and her boats generally in good order and
+reasonable repair, loss by violence of the sea or other unavoidable
+accidents excepted. The commander was also to find the sloop and her
+boats with all manner of necessaries and materials, so that the Crown
+was to be at no charge on that account in the future; and every
+quarter the Comptroller and Collector of the port were to certify to
+the Board as to whether the yacht and boats were in good repair.
+
+It would appear that these two vessels were not actually owned by the
+Customs but hired from Captain Mears; and less than a month before the
+above order the Surveyor-General of the Customs for Hampshire
+represented to the Board that it would be necessary to allow the
+commander of the _Hurst_ half-a-dozen muskets, two pairs of pistols,
+half-a-dozen swords or cutlasses, and these were accordingly ordered
+to be sent, together with two swivel guns, from Weymouth to Captain
+Mears "by the first coast vessel bound to" Southampton. There was
+certainly need for a strict vigilance to be kept in that
+neighbourhood, for there was a good deal of smuggling then being
+carried on along the Hampshire shore in the vicinity of Hurst Castle
+and Beaulieu.
+
+In another chapter we shall go into the important matter touching the
+flags that were worn by the vessels employed in looking after
+smuggling, but, in passing, we may call attention to a letter which
+the Board sent to Southampton at this time referring to the
+proclamation of December 18, 1702, by which no ships whatsoever were
+allowed to wear a pendant excepting those engaged in the service of
+the Royal Navy, but that the sloops employed in the several public
+offices (as, for instance, the Customs and the Excise) should wear
+Jacks, whereon was to be described the seal used in the respective
+offices. And Captain John Mears, senior, of the _Calshot_, and Captain
+John Mears, junior, of the _Hurst_, were to be informed that they must
+deliver up their pendants to the Customs' office at Southampton and
+for the future forbear wearing a pendant. Instead thereof they are to
+wear a Jack and ensign with the seal of office therein, "but the mark
+in the ensign is to be twice as large as that in the Jack; and if the
+captain should hereafter find that the not wearing a pendant will be
+any obstruction or hindrance to the service," the Board of Customs is
+to be informed.[3]
+
+We have now seen something of the sloops and cutters on the south, the
+west, and the north-east coasts. Let us take a glance at the district
+to the southward of Flamborough during this same period. From the Hull
+letter book we find that in September of 1733 the Admiralty appointed
+Captain Burrish of the _Blandford_ and Sir Roger Butler of the
+_Bonetta_ to cruise between Flamborough and Newcastle; but Captain
+Oates of the _Fly_ and Captain Rycant of the _Tryal_ were to cruise
+between Flamborough and Yarmouth. There is also a reference to the
+Revenue sloop _Humber_ employed in this neighbourhood on Preventive
+work. She was a somewhat expensive craft to keep up, as she was
+frequently needing repairs and renewals. First, she was to have a new
+cable which was to cost L20, 14s. 3-1/2d.; and it is a striking
+reminder of those days of hemp and sail that this bill was paid to the
+"ropemakers." A few months later she had to undergo repairs which
+amounted to L31, 10s. 6-1/4d., and less than six months afterwards she
+had to be given a new anchor which cost L18, 8s. 9d. Three years later
+she was given a new suit of sails which came to L25, 17s. 1d. but her
+old suit was sold for the sum of eight guineas. And finally, in 1744,
+as she had begun to cost so much for repairing, the Board determined
+to sell her.
+
+Notwithstanding that the south coast, by reason of its proximity to
+the Continent and the Channel Isles, was a convenient and popular
+objective for the smugglers running their goods from France and
+Holland, yet the Yorkshire coast was by no means neglected. From
+Dunkirk and Flushing especially goods poured into the county. There
+was a small sloop, for instance, belonging to Bridlington, which was
+accustomed to sail across the North Sea to one of the ports in
+Zealand, where a cargo was taken aboard consisting of the usual
+dutiable articles such as tea, tobacco, and gin. The return voyage was
+then made and the goods landed clandestinely at some convenient spot
+between the Spurn Lighthouse and Bridlington.
+
+Similarly, farther south than the Humber smuggling by illegal
+importation went on extensively in the early eighteenth century.
+Sometimes a Dutch vessel would arrive in Grimsby Roads and succeed in
+quietly running her goods to the shore. In the autumn of 1734 the
+master of the Dutch schuyt _The Good Luck of Camphire_, alias _The
+Brotherly Love_, had succeeded in running as many as 166
+half-ankers[4] of brandy and 50 lbs. of tea on the coast near Great
+Yarmouth, the skipper's name being Francis Coffee. He was a notorious
+smuggler. But on this occasion both he and his vessel were captured.
+
+Still, matters were not always satisfactory on board the Revenue
+sloops and smacks, for whenever, at this time, there was an encounter
+with the smugglers afloat the latter were so violent and desperate
+that the captors went about their work with their lives in their
+hands. Furthermore, it was not altogether a pleasing business to have
+to fire at fellow-countrymen, many of whom they had known from
+boyhood. Then, again, there was not the space on these sloops and
+cutters, nor the amount of deck room to be found on the men-of-war;
+and to be cooped up in these comparatively small vessels always on the
+_qui vive_, usually near the shore but able to have shore-leave all
+too rarely, was calculated to make for restlessness. Added to which a
+very considerable portion of the crews of these Revenue craft was
+composed of men who had spent years of their lives as smugglers
+themselves. Consequently it was not altogether surprising that
+mutinies and refusals to obey their commander's orders were of
+frequent occurrence. After a time it was decided that those members of
+the crew which had to be dismissed for such offences were to be handed
+over to the commander of the next man-of-war that should come along,
+and be pressed into the service of the Navy, though, it may be added,
+this was not always a welcome gift to the Naval commander compelled to
+receive a handful of recalcitrant men aboard his ship. Then, again,
+when at last a handful of smugglers had been captured it was the duty
+of the Revenue officers to prosecute them before the magistrate at
+their own expense. This was regarded as an unfair hardship, and in
+1736 the system was modified by the Treasury allowing an officer a
+third of whatever amount was recovered, the prosecution to be carried
+on at the King's expense. At the same time it was undeniable that some
+commanders of these sloops and cutters were not quite as active as
+they might be on their station. There was too ready an excuse to run
+in from the sea and too great an inclination to spend valuable time in
+port. They were accordingly now enjoined not to presume to lay up for
+the purpose of giving the ship's bottom a scrub, or for a refit,
+without previously giving the Collector and Comptroller of the port
+ten days' notice. This was not to occur unless the cruiser really
+needed such attention; but if it was essential then to prevent the
+station remaining unguarded some other smack or vessel was to be sent
+out to take her place for the time being. For the smugglers were kept
+so well informed of the movements of the Revenue ships that a
+contraband cargo of goods would soon be found approaching the shore
+during the night when the watch had been relaxed.
+
+But from an early date--at any rate as far back as 1694--the East
+India ships were notorious also for smuggling into the country a
+considerable amount of goods that ought to have paid duty. We shall
+bring forward instances presently of East Indiamen, homeward bound,
+being boarded as they come up Channel, or while waiting in the Downs
+and putting some of their cargo on board smuggling cutters and Deal
+boats, which was subsequently quietly and secretly brought into the
+country. Silks were especially popular among the smugglers in this
+connection. In those days, too, the more wealthy passengers coming
+home by these East Indiamen used to leave the ship at Spithead, where
+they came in for that purpose. These passengers would then be put
+ashore at Portsmouth, and, proceeding by coach to London, thus
+shortened their sea journey. But notwithstanding their ample means,
+many of these travellers were constantly found endeavouring to land
+dutiable articles. In short, rich and poor, high and low, there was no
+class that did not endeavour to engage in smuggling either directly or
+indirectly. Even if the party never ventured on the sea, he might be a
+very active aider and abettor in meeting the boat as it brought the
+casks ashore, or keeping a look out for the Preventive men, giving the
+latter false information, thus throwing them on the wrong scent. Or
+again, even if he did not act the part of signaller by showing warning
+lights from the cliff, he could loan his cellars, his horses, or his
+financial support. In fact there were many apparently respectable
+citizens who, by keeping in the background, were never suspected of
+having any interest in these nefarious practices, whereas they were in
+fact the instigators and the capitalists of many a successful run. And
+as such they were without doubt morally responsible for the deaths by
+murder which occurred in those incidents, when violence was used after
+the Revenue men had come on to the scene.
+
+But as to morality, was there ever a period when the national
+character was so slack and corrupt as in the eighteenth century?
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[1] "Smuggling in Sussex," by William Durrant Cooper, F.S.A., in vol.
+x. of the _Sussex Archaeological Collection_, to which I am indebted.
+
+[2] _Fore and Aft: The Story of the Fore-and-Aft Rig._ London, 1911.
+
+[3] "Southampton Letters," November 6, 1730. But in 1719, the Customs
+Commissioners had, _inter alia_, agreed to provide Captain Mears with
+"a suit of colours" for the _Calshot_. This provision was, therefore,
+now cancelled in the year 1730.
+
+[4] A half-anker held 3-1/4 gallons.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING
+
+
+About the middle of the eighteenth century the smuggling of tea into
+the country had reached such extensive limits that the revenue which
+ought to have been expected from this source was sinking instead of
+rising. In fact it came to this, that of all the tea that was consumed
+in this country not one half had paid duty and the rest was smuggled.
+The bands of smugglers were well financed, were themselves hardy
+sailors and skilful pilots. They had some of the best designed and
+best built cutters and luggers of that time. They were able to
+purchase from an almost inexhaustible market, and to make a quick
+passage to the English shores. Arrived there they could rely on both
+moral and physical support; for their friends were well mounted, well
+armed, and exceedingly numerous, so that ordinarily the cargo could be
+rapidly unshipped, and either hidden or run into the country with
+despatch. Not once, but times without number the smuggling cutters had
+evaded the Revenue cruisers at sea, showing them a clean pair of
+heels. With equal frequency had the Preventive men on land been
+outwitted, bribed, or overpowered. And inasmuch as the duties on the
+smuggled articles were high, had they passed through the Customs, so,
+when smuggled, they could always fetch a big price, and the share for
+the smugglers themselves was by no means inconsiderable. But it is
+always the case that, when large profits are made by lawless, reckless
+people, these proceeds are as quickly dissipated in extravagance of
+living. It is sad to think that these seafaring men, who possessed so
+much grit and pluck, had such only been applied in a right direction,
+actually died paupers. As one reads through the pitiful petitions,
+written on odd scraps of paper in the most illiterate of hands begging
+for clemency on behalf of a convicted smuggler, one can see all too
+clearly that on the whole it was not the actual workers but the
+middle-men who, as is usually the case, made the profits. A life of
+such uncertainty and excitement, an existence full of so many
+hairbreadth escapes did not fit them for the peaceful life either of
+the fisherman or the farmer. With them money went as easily as it had
+come, and taking into account the hardness of the life, the risks that
+were undertaken, the possibility of losing their lives, or of being
+transported after conviction, it cannot be said that these men were
+any too well paid. Carelessness of danger led to recklessness;
+recklessness led on to a life that was dissolute and thriftless. And
+in spite of the fact that these tear-stained appeals were usually
+signed by all the respectable inhabitants of the seaside village--the
+rector, the local shipbuilder, Lloyds' shipping agent, the chief
+landowners and so forth--many a wife and family had to starve or
+become chargeable to the Union, while the breadwinner was spending his
+time in prison, serving as an impressed sailor on board one of his
+Majesty's ships against the enemy; or, if he had been found physically
+unfit for such service, condemned to seven or more years of
+transportation.
+
+But by the year 1745 smuggling had reached such a pitch that something
+had to be done. The country was in such a state of alarm and the
+honest traders made such bitter complaints of the disastrous effect
+which these illicit practices were having on their prosperity that, on
+the 6th of February in that year, a Parliamentary Committee was formed
+"to inquire into the causes of the most infamous practice of smuggling
+and consider the most effectual methods to prevent the said practice."
+For it was clear that in spite of all that had been done by the
+Customs and Excise, by the Admiralty and the military, they had not
+succeeded in obtaining the desired effect.
+
+And during the course of this inquiry a great deal of interesting
+evidence came out from expert witnesses, some of whom had not long
+since been the greatest smugglers in existence, but had come forward
+and received the pardon of the State. We may summarise the testimony
+obtained by this Committee as follows. The smugglers, after sailing
+away from England, used to purchase the tea abroad sometimes with
+money but at other times with wool. That was a serious matter in
+either alternative if, as was the case, the transactions were carried
+on to any large extent; for the country simply could not afford to be
+denuded either of its valuable wool--since that crippled the wool
+manufactures--or of the coin of the realm, which made for bankruptcy.
+But this was not all. England was at war with her neighbours, and the
+French only too gladly admitted the smuggling vessels into her ports,
+since these lawless and unpatriotic men were able to give information
+of the state of affairs in England. There was in the Isle of Man at
+this time no levying of Customs or other duties, so that between that
+island and France there was kept up a constant trade especially in
+teas, other East India goods and brandies, which were afterwards
+conveyed clandestinely to English ports, especially to Liverpool, as
+already we have noted, and also to Glasgow, Dumfries, as well as to
+Ireland. In the days when there were sloops at Liverpool doing duty
+for the Crown they used to set forth and do their best to stop this
+running, "but as it is a very dangerous station, a seizure is scarce
+heard of."
+
+As illustrative of the achievements of smugglers at that time let us
+mention that it was reported officially from Yarmouth that on July 11
+fifty smugglers had run a cargo of tea and brandy at Benacre in
+Suffolk, and only a fortnight later a band of sixty smugglers landed
+another contraband cargo at the same place, while a gang of forty got
+another cargo safely ashore at Kesland Haven. A week later a still
+larger band, this time consisting of seventy, passed through Benacre
+Street with a large quantity of goods, a cart and four horses. The
+smugglers at Kesland Haven had been able to bring inland their cargo
+of tea and brandy by means of fifty horses. In one month alone--and
+this at the depth of the winter when cross-channel passages could not
+be expected to be too safe for small sailing craft--nine smuggling
+cutters had sailed from the port of Rye to Guernsey; and it was
+estimated that during the last half of the year there had been run on
+to the coast of Suffolk 1835 horse-loads of tea as well as certain
+other goods, and 1689 horse-loads of wet and dry goods, to say nothing
+of a large quantity of other articles that should have paid duty.
+These were conveyed away up country by means of waggons and other
+vehicles, guarded by a formidable band of smugglers and sympathisers
+well armed. Notwithstanding that the Revenue officers were in some
+cases aware of what was going on, yet they positively dared not
+attempt any seizures. And in those instances where they had undertaken
+the risk they had been frequently beaten and left cruelly wounded
+with bleeding heads and broken limbs.
+
+One reliable witness testified that whereas it was computed that at
+this time about 4,000,000 lbs. of tea were consumed in this kingdom,
+yet only about 800,000 lbs. of this had ever paid duty, so that there
+was considerably over 3,000,000 lbs. weight of tea smuggled in.
+Therefore on this one item of tea alone the loss to the Crown must
+have been something enormous. Multiply this by the long years during
+which the smuggling went on, add also the duties which ought to have
+been paid on tobacco and spirits, even if you omit to include the
+amount which should have accrued from lace and other commodities, and
+you may begin to realise the seriousness of the smuggling evil as
+viewed by the Revenue authorities.
+
+It was noted that a great deal of this contraband stuff was fetched
+over from Flushing and from Middleburgh, a few miles farther up on the
+canal. The big merchant sailing ships brought the tea from the East to
+Holland, France, Sweden, and Denmark. But the Dutch, the French, the
+Swedes, and the Danes were not great tea drinkers, and certainly used
+it in nothing like the quantities which were consumed in England. But
+it was profitable to them to purchase this East Indian product and to
+sell it again to the smugglers who were wont to run across from
+England. It should be added, however, that the species of tea in
+question were of the cheaper qualities. It was also frankly admitted
+in evidence that many of the civil magistrates, whose duty it was to
+grant warrants for the arrest of these delinquents, were intimidated
+by the smugglers, while the officers of the Customs and Excise were
+terrorised.
+
+At this period of the smuggling era, that is to say prior to the
+middle of the eighteenth century, most of the smuggled tea was brought
+over to the south coast of England in Folkestone cutters of a size
+ranging from fifty to forty tons burthen. These vessels usually came
+within about three or four miles of the shore, when they were met by
+the smaller boats of the locality and the goods unladened. Indeed the
+trade was so successful that as many as twenty or thirty cargoes were
+run in a week, and Flushing became so important a base that not merely
+did the natives subsidise or purchase Folkestone craft, but
+ship-builders actually migrated from that English port to Flushing and
+pursued their calling in Dutch territory. As to the reward which the
+smugglers themselves made out of the transaction, the rates of payment
+varied at a later date, but about the years 1728 and 1729 the
+tea-dealers paid the men eight shillings a pound for the commodity.
+And in spite of the seizures which were made by the Revenue cutters
+and the land guard, yet these losses, admitted a witness, were a mere
+trifle to the smugglers. In fact he affirmed that sometimes one
+tea-dealer never suffered a seizure in six or seven years. We can
+therefore readily believe that the financiers netted a very handsome
+profit on the whole, and there are still standing plenty of fine
+mansions in different parts of our country which are generally
+supposed to have been erected from the proceeds of this form of
+activity.
+
+There was a kind of local intelligence bureau in most of the smuggling
+centres on the south coast, and so loyal and so watchful were these
+craftsmen that the inhabitants of the coast-line managed to let their
+_confreres_ know when the Custom House sloops had sailed out of port
+or when they hauled up for repairs and refit. As a consequence the
+smuggling craft commonly escaped capture. Animated by a natural hatred
+of all Government officials in general, especially of all those whose
+duty it was to collect taxes, dues, and any kind of tolls; disliking
+most of all the men of the Customs and Excise, and, further, being
+allied by sympathy and blood relationship to many of the smugglers
+themselves, it was almost impossible for the representatives of the
+Crown to make any steady progress in their work. We all know that when
+a number of even average law-abiding people get together, that crowd
+somehow tends towards becoming a mob. Each person, so to speak,
+forfeits his own individuality, that becomes merged into the
+personality and character of the mob, which all the time is being
+impelled to break out into something unlawful of a minor or greater
+degree. Whenever you have stood among crowds you must have noted this
+for yourself. It gets restive at the least opposition with which it is
+confronted, it boos and jeers with the smallest incitement; and,
+finally, realising the full strength of its unity, breaks out into
+some rash violence and rushes madly on, heedless of the results. Many
+murders have been in this way committed by men who ordinarily and in
+their individual capacity would shrink from such crimes. But having
+become merely one of the limbs, as it were, of the crowd they have
+moved with the latter and obeyed its impulses.
+
+It was just the same when many of the dwellers of the country-side,
+many of the fishermen, labourers, and farm-hands found themselves
+assembled on the report of a pistol shot or the cry of angry voices
+coming up from the beach below. Something was happening, some one was
+in trouble, and the darkness of the night or the gloom of the fog
+added a halo of mystery round the occasion. Men and women came out
+from their cottages, some one got hit, and then a general affray
+began. Clubs and pistols and cutlasses were busy, men were bellowing
+forth oaths, women shrieking, and the galloping of horses heard
+rapidly approaching. Amid such excitements we can readily understand
+that a good many acts of violence and deep injury occurred which
+afterwards, when the heat of the event had vaporised, were regretted.
+At the same time, notwithstanding that one is aware that the men were
+engaged in an unlawful pursuit and that they themselves fully
+appreciated their degree of guilt, yet we cannot but feel some sort of
+sympathy with a crew who, after a long and exciting passage through
+bad weather all the way across the Channel, after perhaps a breathless
+race against the Government cruisers, had finally succeeded in landing
+their tubs on the shore only to be pounced on immediately by the
+riding officers and a _posse_ of dragoons. It must have been
+heart-breaking that all their carefully laid plans, all their
+hardships and trials should end in disaster. Realising this and that
+their craft as well as their persons would be seized, it was but
+natural that they would fight like the most desperate of men. And, at
+the same time, those their relatives on shore who largely depended on
+them for their bread and butter would rush to their aid with a spirit
+and an impetuosity that could only end in one way. The pity of it all
+was that so much fine daring and enthusiasm were not being employed
+for a better cause and for more worthy results.
+
+But the smugglers found that, contrary to what one would expect, their
+greatest risk was not when landing the goods, but when bringing them
+across from the Continent. A seizure on land was, at any rate during
+the first half of the eighteenth century, comparatively rare if they
+had been able to get away from the sloops and cutters. For the
+bodyguard of armed men on horseback who promptly met and escorted the
+contraband into the country frequently did as they had planned. And
+when once the tea has arrived inland it was easily sold to people who
+bought it not in small quantities but took as much as 1000 lbs. at a
+time. In addition, there were a number of men called "duffers," who
+used to walk inland wearing coats in which a hundred-weight of tea was
+concealed between two layers of cloth stitched together. They were
+accordingly said to "quilt" so much of this commodity. These duffers,
+having set forth on their walk, would eventually arrive in London and
+dispose of the tea to hawkers who, in turn, carried it about the town
+and sold it to the consumers, who, even if they had possessed any
+scruples, could not possibly know that the leaves had been smuggled in
+without paying the Crown's levy.
+
+But it was not merely by exercising the strictest vigilance on the
+activities of the Government sloops and land officers, nor entirely by
+resort to trickery and violence, to threats and intimidation that the
+smugglers managed to keep out of the hands of justice. They even
+advanced one step further still, for there was a man named Norton
+whom they employed as their agent to defend them against prosecutions.
+This Norton at one time had actually been in the employ of the Crown
+as clerk of the late Solicitor to the Customs. And it was generally
+believed that Norton by some means--most probably by offering tempting
+bribes--obtained news from the clerks of the Customs' solicitor when a
+smuggler was likely to be arrested and a warrant was about to be
+issued. Norton was then supposed to give the smuggler an immediate
+warning and the man was able to make himself scarce. It was quite an
+easy operation, for in those days when there was no telegraph and no
+steamboat service across the Channel, all the "wanted" man had to do
+was instantly to board his cutter, set sail, and hurry across to
+France or Holland, where he was sure of a welcome, where also he could
+employ himself in arranging for cargoes to be run into England perhaps
+in the very vessel which had brought him across. There were plenty of
+his compatriots resident in Flushing, so he need not feel homesick,
+and when at last the incident had blown over he could find his way
+back to Kent or Sussex.
+
+It was reckoned that about this time there were at least 20,000 people
+in England employed in smuggling, and in some parts (as, for instance,
+the village of Hawkhurst, about which we shall have more to say
+presently) gangs of large numbers could be got together in a very
+short time. In Hawkhurst alone 500 smugglers could be collected within
+an hour. Folkestone, however, ran Hawkhurst fairly close with a
+similar notoriety. Such gangs, well armed as they were, went about
+with impunity, for notwithstanding that they were well known, yet no
+one dared to molest them.
+
+We mentioned just now that the danger to the State of this import
+smuggling was not merely that goods were brought into the country
+without payment being made to the Customs, but that inasmuch as the
+contraband goods were purchased abroad partly by wool and partly by
+actual coin England was being robbed both ways. And as the wool
+exportation declined and the import smuggling rose, so the amount of
+gold that passed out of the country seriously increased. At least
+L1,000,000 sterling were carried out of the kingdom each year to
+purchase these goods, and of this amount somewhere about L800,000 were
+paid for tea alone. At a later date the price of tea often went up,
+but the dealer still made a profit of 40s. on every 100 lbs. We
+alluded just now also to the dangers of seizure, and it is worth
+remarking that these were recognised by the smugglers as being greater
+in one district than in another. For instance, it was much more
+difficult to run goods into the counties of Kent and Sussex than into
+Suffolk, owing to the fleet at sea and the troops on the coast. And
+as to the amount of support which could be relied on it was an
+admitted fact that there was not one person in ten in the country but
+would give the smugglers assistance, and even lend them horses and
+carts. For the use of these the smugglers made payment at an increased
+rate.
+
+There was one witness before this Commission who stated that he knew
+of about sixty English cutters of from thirty to forty tons burthen
+each, and five or six vessels of the same burthen belonging to
+merchants at Flushing which were employed constantly in running goods
+across to England, and several of those who gave evidence confessed
+that they had for years been actively engaged in smuggling, but had
+taken advantage of the late Act of Indemnity. One reason alleged for
+smuggling tea was that the East India Company did not sufficiently
+supply the dealers with the low-priced kinds, whereas the Dutch did.
+And it was further contended that if the price of tea were lessened
+sixpence per lb. it would put a stop to smuggling of the commodity,
+for at this date, although other articles such as spirits and tobacco
+were brought in, yet there was far more tea run than anything else.
+But at the same time the smugglers rather liked to include a quantity
+of brandy casks among their cargo for the reason that they were heavy
+and made very good ballast. And as to the ships themselves, it was
+agreed that those of the smugglers were the best sailing
+fore-and-afters that were built in those days, and could easily
+out-sail both the King's ships and the Custom House sloops. Finally,
+it was shown that in spite of the large and tempting rewards that were
+offered by advertisement for the apprehension of those persons who had
+been concerned in smuggling, no one had come forward to give
+information for the reason that, even if he would, he dared not. And
+so fascinating was the call of smuggling, that although there were
+those who had willingly embraced the pardon granted them by the recent
+Act, forsaken this illegal trade and settled down on farms or devoted
+themselves to other occupations which were within the law, yet there
+were many others who had returned to their former practices.
+
+After accumulating this evidence, the Committee issued their first
+report on March 24, 1745, and expressed themselves of the opinion that
+the high duties charged on tea and other commodities had certainly
+been one cause of smuggling. But they also added that the exposing for
+sale of those boats and vessels which had been seized from the
+smugglers was certainly another potent reason, for these craft were
+frequently bought back by the men; they therefore recommended that all
+captured craft should be burned. Furthermore, the Commission condemned
+the custom of allowing penalties to be compounded so easily. As an
+instance of this last-mentioned custom we might call attention to
+three smugglers belonging to the county of Hampshire. There is a
+reference to them in the Southampton Letters under date of April 28,
+1730, from which it appears that Matthew Barton, John Gibort, and
+William Moadon of Fordingbridge were under prosecution for running
+goods ashore. They subsequently offered to compound for the said
+offence on the following terms: Barton to pay the sum of L35, Gibort
+to pay L25, and Moadon L15. But before allowing the matter to be
+settled straight away the Collector and Comptroller at Southampton
+were ordered to look carefully into the affair and to inquire what
+these men were generally esteemed to be worth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS
+
+
+It was not till June of 1746 that the Committee issued their second
+report, and the evidence therein contained is even more interesting to
+us than any which had hitherto been given. After the Solicitor to the
+Commissioners had shown how biassed juries frequently were towards
+prisoners brought up on charges connected with smuggling, how they
+declined to bring in a verdict against them even in spite of the
+clearest of evidence, another official (the Surveyor of the Searchers
+in the Port of London) stated that when he had received information
+that there had been a run of goods in a certain locality and had even
+received information as to the road along which they would be brought,
+he had been compelled to travel by night and carefully to avoid all
+the beaten paths. Indeed, if people whom they might meet on the road
+noticed a Custom House officer and any soldiers together, their design
+would immediately be suspected and warning would promptly be sent to
+the smugglers, who would hide their goods. He added, also, that he
+remembered on one occasion that a couple of vessels landed in the
+Isle of Thanet as much tea as could be loaded on the backs of two
+hundred horses.
+
+But it was when the ex-smugglers came to give their evidence that the
+real secrets of the trade were unfolded. Robert Hanning, who for years
+had been one of the most distinguished members of the industry,
+informed the Commission that formerly he was the principal dealer with
+the smugglers when he resided at Dunkirk. Some idea of the colossal
+business which he had carried on may be gathered from his admission
+that he had sold teas, brandies, and wines to be run into England _to
+the extent of_ L40,000 _per annum_. And let us not forget to bear in
+mind that of course this probably represented the value of the goods
+when they were put on board. What they actually realised after they
+were smuggled into the English market must have been something
+considerable.
+
+Hanning was followed by a certain Captain Joseph Cockburn, who had a
+very instructive story to tell, which must have amazed even the
+Commissioners. This gallant skipper was now commanding one of his
+Majesty's sloops, but prior to that he had been engaged in
+privateering, and before that had commanded several vessels employed
+in smuggling. From his very infancy he had been concerned in the
+practice of running goods, and his apprenticeship had been served to
+a smuggler at Rochester, who was nominally a fisherman. Consequently,
+with an accumulated knowledge obtained first as a smuggler and
+subsequently as a pursuer of smugglers, there was not much, if
+anything at all, in connection with the work which could have missed
+his attention. He proved himself a veritable encyclopaedia of smuggling
+information, and even the following brief summary will show that his
+experience was something exceptional.
+
+First of all, he instanced the case of five cutters which he knew were
+constantly employed in running tea and brandy from Boulogne into Kent
+and Sussex. They imported at least six tons of tea and two thousand
+half-ankers of brandy _every week_. He estimated that the six tons of
+tea would be purchased abroad for L1920. The two thousand half-ankers
+of brandy, even if they cost but ten shillings apiece, would represent
+the sum of L1000; so altogether there was a total of nearly L3000
+being carried out of the country in specie every week by these five
+cutters alone. But he also knew of five other cutters which were
+constantly employed in fetching brandy and tea from Middleburgh and
+Flushing, and he reckoned that these ten cutters in the aggregate
+smuggled into the United Kingdom each year goods to the value of
+L303,680. Possibly there was no living person who possessed so perfect
+and exact a knowledge of the smuggling trade, so we can have little
+reason to doubt for a moment the veracity of his figures.
+
+Passing, then, to describe the methods employed by these men, he
+divided them into two classes. Firstly, there were those adopted by
+the cutters and smacks which did little else than smuggle, and,
+secondly, there were the British ships which primarily carried on a
+legitimate trade to foreign parts. As to the first class, the practice
+of these cutters and smacks was to put to sea from whatever port to
+which they belonged--London, Dover, Rye, Folkestone, or wherever it
+might be--having on board a small number of hands, their professed
+object being to fish. Having stood some distance away from the land,
+they would be met during the night by a number of smaller craft, and
+under cover of darkness would take on board from the latter large
+crews, much merchandise, and a considerable amount of money. The
+smaller craft rowed or sailed back to the beach before daylight, and
+the bigger craft, now well supplied with men, money, and merchandise,
+stood on their course for some Dutch or French port. There they
+purchased such goods as they required, disposed of those which they
+had brought, and again set sail for home. The vessel was again met at
+a convenient distance from the English shore by smaller boats if a
+favourable signal had been flashed from the land; and, using the
+darkness of the night, once more both the cargo and the supernumerary
+men were put into the boats, after which the latter ran the stuff
+ashore in casks already slung and in bales, while the smack headed for
+her harbour whence she had set out. As she had just the same small
+crew as before no suspicions were aroused, and it was presumed she had
+been out fishing.
+
+But additional to these comparatively large vessels there were smaller
+craft--open boats, yawls, and little sloops--which in fine weather
+were wont to run across from the south coast of England to Boulogne,
+Guernsey, and from the west of England to the Isle of Man. They also
+loaded up with as much cargo as they could carry, and, since they were
+able to be beached, the process of discharging their contents as soon
+as they returned was much simpler. These smaller craft also were in
+the habit of running out well clear of the land and meeting Dutch
+vessels, from which they would purchase similar kinds of goods and run
+them in by the usual methods. In these lesser craft were frequently
+carried a great many stones, anchors, and heavy weights by means of
+which the half-ankers of brandy could be sunk near the shore and
+afterwards taken up as required. The exact way in which this was done
+we shall discuss fully in a later chapter.
+
+Some of the cobbles, "hovelings," and small fishing craft that were
+accustomed to run out to big sailing merchantmen under pretence of
+shipping pilots to take them into the next port, were actually engaged
+in smuggling all sorts of goods out of these ships. Perhaps it was a
+lurking sympathy with the men engaged in a trade with which his
+earlier years had been so intimately associated that made Captain
+Cockburn suggest that it was because the Dutchmen brought such large
+quantities of fish into Billingsgate that the English fishermen found
+their work unprofitable, and were accordingly driven to devote
+themselves to smuggling. But from evidence in other documents it would
+certainly seem that Cockburn was speaking the truth and that the
+fishing industry was not a very good livelihood at that time.
+
+Then, secondly, there was the smuggling that was carried on by the
+trading sailing ships from abroad. Great quantities of goods were
+being run into the country by colliers--they were usually
+brig-rigged--by corn-ships, packet-boats from the Continent and other
+vessels trading with Holland. At least, one thousand five hundred
+vessels were engaged in this trade, "and," added Cockburn, "he
+scarcely ever knew one of them return without some prohibited or high
+duty goods." The smuggling from these vessels was done in various
+ways. There were the pilot-boats and fishing craft which frequently
+met them near the coast, as already explained. Another way was for the
+merchantmen to put into harbours, roadsteads, and rivers, where they
+lay at anchor under pretence of waiting for orders. Another method
+still, that was as simple as it was successful, consisted of landing
+their goods at outports on such holidays as the King's birthday, &c.,
+when the Revenue officers were absent. Cockburn admitted that he had
+done this himself and had run great quantities of brandies, teas, and
+Spanish liquorice even as much as nearly a ton of the latter at a
+time. But besides these two classes there was a third. The whole of
+the coasting trade in those days was of course done in sailing ships;
+and inasmuch as there were no railways for carrying merchandise there
+was a good deal more encouragement for the sailing ship owner than
+there is to-day. The methods of smuggling adopted by these coasters
+was a little more complicated, and this was done by such means as
+fraudulently obtaining permits, by cockets clandestinely obtained, by
+false entry of one sort of goods for another, and by corrupting the
+Customs' officers. To prove his case the captain gave the following
+examples, _all of which he had himself employed since the year 1738!_
+
+As regards the obtaining of permits fraudulently, he said that he had
+gone to Dunkirk, taken aboard 2040 gallons of French brandy and
+cleared for North Bergen in Norway. Of course he had no intention
+whatever of steering for that port, but in case he met any of the
+Custom House sloops as he approached the English coast, it would be
+convenient to show this clearance and so prevent his brandy being
+seized. From Dunkirk, then, he sailed across the North Sea and ran up
+the river Humber. There, by previous arrangement, one of those keels
+which are so well known in the neighbourhood of the Humber and Trent
+met him. The keel had been sent from York down the Ouse with permits
+to cover the brandy. The keel was cleared by a merchant at York, who
+obtained permits for conveying to Gainsborough a quantity of French
+brandy equal to that which Cockburn had on board his ship, though in
+fact the keel, notwithstanding that she obtained these permits, set
+forth with no brandy in her at all.
+
+It was the point where the Ouse crosses the Trent at right angles that
+had been arranged as the trysting-place, and there the keel took on
+board from Cockburn the brandy which had come from Dunkirk. Cockburn
+himself nailed the permits on to the heads of the casks, which in due
+course were taken by the keel, when the flood tide made again, to
+Gainsborough some distance up the Trent. Arrived there the casks were
+properly taken into stock and entered in the Custom House books as if
+the brandy had been actually brought down from York and had previously
+paid duty. On this one venture the garrulous skipper admitted that he
+cleared a profit by the brandy of L250 per cent., which was a
+remarkably handsome reward for so short a voyage as from Dunkirk.
+
+Port wines, he said, were purchasable at Dunkirk because these had
+been taken from English merchantmen by privateers; and since there was
+little or no market for such wines in Spain they were brought into
+Dunkirk, whither resorted the smugglers eager to buy them. He
+proceeded also to explain another method of cheating the customs.
+Large quantities of very inferior British brandy were taken on board a
+ship and clearance was obtained for some other English port, but
+instead of proceeding to the latter the vessel would run across to
+Dunkirk or Holland, where she would unload the cheap brandy, and in
+its place take on board some high-priced French brandy equal in
+quantity to the British commodity which had been put ashore at the
+French port. After this, with now a much more valuable cargo, the
+vessel would put to sea again and make for that British port for which
+originally she had cleared. And as to the practice of bribery, he
+himself had several times bought permits from the Excise officers to
+cover smuggled brandy and tea. On one occasion he had paid an officer
+fifty guineas for a permit to cover a certain quantity of tea and
+brandy about to be run into the country.
+
+Next came Captain Ebenezer Hartley, who had also formerly commanded a
+ship that was engaged in smuggling. He had known of large quantities
+of muslins and silks brought into the country on board East Indiamen.
+These goods were smuggled by throwing them through the port-holes at
+night into boats waiting below, alongside the ship, or whilst the
+Custom officer was being entertained on board with food and drink.
+Sometimes, he said, this was even done under the very eyes of the
+Revenue officer, who took no notice of it. He recalled an incident in
+an earlier part of his life when he had sailed from England to
+Holland, in which country he had filled up with twenty-six casks of
+oil. After that his orders were to cross the North Sea and meet a
+certain vessel which would await him off Aldborough. This
+last-mentioned craft would give Hartley's vessel the signal by
+lowering her jib three times.
+
+A more tragic story was related by George Bridges, a tidesman of the
+Port of London. He showed that it did not always "pay" to be diligent
+in one's duty, for he quoted the case of a Captain Mercer, in the
+employ of the Custom House, who did now and then make a seizure, but
+he "was broke for doing his duty"; and when Mercer came into Cork on
+the occasion in question, the mob set upon him so that he was
+compelled to escape into the sheriff's house. The mob then surrounded
+the house in their thousands until the sheriff interceded with them.
+They were wild with fury and threatened to pull the house down, until
+the sheriff gave them his oath that Captain Mercer should never again
+be guilty of seizing the wool which the smugglers had endeavoured to
+export. But the mob afterwards went to Passage and took hold of a
+Custom House officer named May. They brought him forth from his house,
+cut out his tongue, and cut off his ears, one of which the witness
+said he remembered seeing nailed on to the Cork Exchange. They dragged
+the man with a rope round his neck, gave him several blows, hurled him
+into the river, and finally the poor fellow died of his ill-treatment.
+Although handsome rewards were offered for the discovery of the
+offenders, yet no one ever came forward.
+
+One could quote similar instances of the vehemence of the smugglers
+from other sources. For instance, on February 2, 1748-49, the
+Collector of the Port of Penzance wrote to the Board to give them some
+idea of the people among whom he had to work. "The insolence," he
+said, "of some of the smuglers [_sic_] and wreckers in this
+neighbourhood is run to such a heighth, that tho our officers have
+from time to time secured severall Hogsheads, it has been by force
+taken from them [again], 'and the officers forced to save their
+lives.'" Writing again on the 14th December, the same correspondent
+added that "the smugglers never behaved with more insolence than at
+present, or was it ever known to be carried on with more
+audaciousness," mentioning also that the previous night the snow[5]
+_Squirrel_ of North Yarmouth had driven ashore loaded with a cargo of
+brandy. The country-folk had immediately boarded her, stripped the
+master of everything valuable, and then carried off all the brandy
+they could lay their hands on, and, in their haste, had set fire to
+the rest of the cargo, so that at the time of writing the whole ship
+was in flames. He mentioned also a couple of months later the
+difficulty he had to secure arrests of smugglers, for even when he had
+obtained warrants for the apprehension of eight most notorious men,
+the constables excused themselves from doing their duty in serving the
+warrants, and pretended that the eight men had absconded.
+
+And anyone who cares to examine the Treasury Books and Papers for this
+period will find similar cases. In July of 1743 some smugglers had
+seized the Custom House boat at Dover and coolly employed her for
+their own purposes in running tea. The Custom officers deemed matters
+to be in such a state that they begged that a man-of-war might be
+stationed on that coast to prevent smuggling. Similarly in January of
+1743-44, during a skirmish near Arundel between the preventive men
+assisted by some dragoons against a band of smugglers, the latter had
+wounded three of the soldiers and carried off an officer and two other
+dragoons on board the smugglers' cutter. This was no unique
+occurrence, for sometimes the contraband runners, when infuriated,
+captured the would-be captors, hurried them out to sea, and then,
+having bound the unfortunate victims with a bit of spare rope and
+having tied a piece of ballast to their live bodies, they would be
+hurled overboard into the sea, and the soldier or preventive man would
+never be seen or heard of again unless his lifeless body were cast
+upon the beach. At Folkestone, about this time, three men were carried
+off by the smugglers in trying to effect an arrest, and the supervisor
+at Colchester had been also carried off, but afterwards he had been
+released on promising not to mention the smugglers' names. It was bad
+enough, therefore, for the Revenue men when they had the assistance of
+the dragoons, but it was infinitely worse when they had to contend
+alone. There is an almost pathetic petition from the Folkestone
+riding-officers sent on New Year's Day 1744-45, begging for military
+assistance against the smugglers, as although there were soldiers
+stationed at Dover yet they were unobtainable, since they refused to
+march more than five miles.
+
+And it was just as bad, if not worse, about this time in the Isle of
+Man, for the latter's inhabitants consisted almost exclusively of
+smugglers and their families, some of whom had long since been
+outlawed from England and Ireland. So rich and prosperous, indeed, had
+these Manxmen become by means of smuggling that they were recognised
+with a degree of importance which was almost ludicrous. The two
+deemsters (or deputy-governors) of the island even countenanced and
+protected the men, who would often assemble together to scheme and
+drink to the damnation of His Britannic Majesty. Unhindered in their
+nefarious work, able to obtain all the cargo they required from France
+and the Channel Isles; able, too, to run their contraband into the
+west of England, they waxed exceedingly independent and wealthy. At
+Douglas they had built themselves a good quay for the shelter of their
+ships and for convenience in landing their cargoes, the only drawback
+being that the harbour dried out at low water.
+
+It happened that on the 26th of June 1750, that Captain Dow,
+commanding H.M. cruiser _Sincerity_[6] was, according to the orders
+received from the Board of Customs, on duty in Douglas Roads. A
+notorious Irish smuggling wherry came in from Ireland and ran under
+the _Sincerity's_ stern, while the smugglers "with opprobrious,
+treasonable, and abusive language abused His Majesty King George and
+all that belonged to or served under him." This, of course, was too
+much for any naval officer to endure, and Captain Dow immediately
+caused the ship to come alongside, and, after being rummaged, she was
+found to have concealed in a jar of butter-milk twenty-five English
+guineas tied up in a bag. There were also papers on board which proved
+that this money was to be expended in the purchase of brandies and
+tea, &c., and that, having obtained these articles, she was then to
+return to Ireland. The English captain therefore promptly seized both
+money and papers.
+
+On the same day that this incident occurred a Dutch dogger[7] also
+came into Douglas Roads loaded with prohibited goods from Holland. As
+soon as he had noticed her come to anchor Dow sent his boat to board
+her with his mate and six men, and to examine and see if she had the
+prohibited goods on board which were suspected. If she had, then she
+was to be seized. At the same time Dow had requested Mr. Sidebotham,
+his Majesty's officer in the Isle of Man, to cast off the
+_Sincerity's_ headfast and sternfasts from the shore. But thereupon a
+riotous and angry mob, fearing that the cruiser should be able to get
+under weigh and seize the Dutch dogger, refused to allow Sidebotham to
+let go the ropes. Armed with bludgeons, muskets, swords, and stones
+they rushed down on to the quay, and did all they could to force the
+cruiser on shore by aiming showers of stones at the cruiser's men and
+restraining Sidebotham in his endeavour to help the _Sincerity_. They
+even carried the latter away by force, and beat and bruised him in the
+most brutal manner.
+
+Captain Dow, realising that the intention of the mob was to get the
+_Sincerity_ stranded, determined to cut his cable and exhorted them in
+his Majesty's name to disperse, to which they paid not the slightest
+attention except to send more showers of stones on to the cruiser's
+decks. Seeing from afar what was happening, the mate and six men who
+had been sent to board the dogger now returned to the _Sincerity_.
+Whereupon the dogger, perceiving her chance, promptly got under way.
+As the crowd on shore still continued to pelt his ship with stones and
+had already wounded two of his crew, the cruiser's commander fired
+amongst them. For a time, at least, this dispersed them, and so Dow
+was able to get his vessel clear. He immediately proceeded to follow
+the Dutch dogger, and chased her until she had, perforce, to run
+herself on to the sands at Ramsey to the north of the island.
+Determined not to be beaten, Dow now sent his mate and ten men on
+board her, seized her, and marked her in several places with the sign
+of a broad arrow to denote her capture.
+
+[Illustration: "Dow sent his mate and ten men on board her."]
+
+But when the mate came to open the hatches several of the islanders
+who had been secreted on board, with the assistance of two boat-loads
+of armed men who had rowed off from the shore, seized the mate and
+his men, and threatened that if they resisted they would kill them.
+Being completely overpowered, the eleven naval men were compelled to
+yield and be carried ashore, where they were shut up in cellars and
+finally carried down to Castletown Castle. Meanwhile, the smugglers
+set to work on the dogger's cargo and landed it safely. A few days
+later six of the eleven were released, but the other five were
+detained until Captain Dow should refund the twenty-five guineas he
+had seized from the Irish wherry. In order to give him a fright they
+also sent word that the five men should be tried before one of their
+Courts of Judicature on the following Thursday, were he to fail to
+send the money. As the captain declined to accede to their demands,
+the five prisoners were on July 5 brought up and remanded till a month
+later. Finding it was impossible to obtain their release the commander
+of the _Sincerity_ weighed anchor and ran back to Ramsey to take in
+the six released men, and then, sailing away to Whitehaven, arrived at
+that place on the 10th of July.
+
+We need not say more. The story is sufficient to indicate the utter
+state of lawlessness which prevailed there. Peopled by outlaws and by
+the scum of France, Holland, Ireland, Scotland, and England, they were
+a pretty tough proposition. Their violence was rivalled only by their
+impudence; and fleets of wherries[8] would sail in company into
+Ireland and Scotland loaded with cargoes of cheap brandy, which had
+been brought from Holland for that purpose. As a means of checking
+these Manx smugglers it was suggested that the English Government
+should employ a number of tenders in this neighbourhood, since they
+drew less water than the sloops-of-war and so would be more useful for
+a locality that was not well supplied with deep harbours. Moreover,
+these tenders would be well able to take the ground in the harbours
+which dried out. Such craft as the latter were of about 160 tons,
+mounted twelve to fourteen carriage guns, and were manned by a
+captain, second officer, two mates, two quartermasters, a gunner, a
+boatswain, carpenter, surgeon, and forty seamen.
+
+From the south-east corner of England came reports not much better.
+Just before the close of the year 1743 the Surveyor at Margate and his
+men were out on duty along the coast one night when five of them came
+upon a gang of about twenty-five smugglers. An encounter quickly
+ensued, and as the latter were well armed they were, by their superior
+numbers, able to give the officers a severe beating, especially in the
+case of one unfortunate "whose head is in such a miserable condition
+that the Surveyor thought proper to put him under the care of a
+surgeon." Both this Surveyor and the one at Ramsgate asserted that the
+smugglers were accustomed to travel in such powerful gangs, and at the
+same time were so well armed, that it was impossible to cope with
+them, there being seldom less than thirty in a gang "who bid defiance
+to all the officers when they met them."
+
+On the 7th April 1746, the Collector and Controller of the Customs at
+Sandwich wrote to the Board:
+
+"We further beg leave to acquaint your Honours that yesterday about
+four o'clock in the afternoon a large gang of near 100 smuglers
+[_sic_] with several led horses went thro' this town into the island
+of Thanet, where we hear they landed their goods, notwithstanding that
+we took all possible care to prevent them.
+
+"_P.S._--This moment we have advice that there is a gang of 200
+smugglers more at St. Peter's in the Isle of Thanet."
+
+Seven months later in that year, at nine o'clock one November morning,
+a gang of 150 smugglers managed to land some valuable cargo from a
+couple of cutters on to the Sandwich flats. Several Revenue officers
+were despatched into the country for the purpose of meeting with some
+of the stragglers. The officers came into collision with a party of
+these men and promptly seized two horse-loads of goods consisting of
+five bags of tea and eight half-ankers of wine. But they were only
+allowed to retain this seizure for half-an-hour, inasmuch as the
+smugglers presently overpowered the Revenue men and wrested back their
+booty. The preventive men were also considerably knocked about, and
+one of them had his thumb badly dislocated. The officers declared that
+they knew none of the people, the latter being well supplied not with
+firearms but with great clubs. A fortnight later, just a few miles
+farther along the coast, a gang of 150 smugglers succeeded in landing
+their goods at Reculvers near Birchington; and ten days later still
+another gang of the same size was able to land their goods near
+Kingsgate, between the North Foreland and Margate. But it cannot be
+supposed that the Revenue officers were not aware of the approach of
+these incidents. The fact was that they were a little lacking in
+courage to face these problems on every occasion. Indeed, they were
+candid enough to admit that they dared not venture near these ruffians
+"without the utmost hazard of their lives." But the riding-officers
+were not solely to blame, for where were the Custom House sloops? How
+was it they were always absent at these critical times? Indeed, the
+Collector and Controller informed the Commissioners that not one of
+these sloops had been seen cruising between Sandwich and Reculvers for
+some months past.
+
+This complaint about the cruisers was made in March 1747, and in that
+same month another gang, two hundred strong, appeared on the coast,
+but this time, after a smart encounter, the officers secured and
+placed in the King's warehouse a ton of tea as well as other goods,
+and three horses. A day or two later a gang of smugglers threatened to
+rescue these goods back again. The property formed a miscellaneous
+collection and consisted of fifty pieces of cambric, three bags of
+coffee, some Flemish linen, tea, clothes, pistols, a blunderbuss, and
+two musquetoons. To prevent the smugglers carrying out their
+intention, however, a strong guard was formed by an amalgamation of
+all the officers from Sandwich, Ramsgate, and Broadstairs, who
+forthwith proceeded to Margate. In addition to these, it was arranged
+that Commodore Mitchell should send ashore from the Downs as many men
+as he could spare. This united front was therefore successful, and for
+once the smugglers were overmatched. And but for a piece of bad luck,
+or sheer carelessness, a couple of years later a smart capture might
+well have been brought about. It was one day in August when the
+officers had received information that a gang of twenty men and horses
+had appeared near Reculvers to receive goods from a cutter that was
+seen to be hovering near the coast. The smugglers on shore were cute
+enough to locate the officers, and by some means evidently signalled
+to the cutter, for the latter now put to sea again and the gang
+cleared off. Although for some time after this incident both officers
+and dragoons patrolled the coast in the neighbourhood no one was ever
+fortunate enough to gather information either as to the cutter or the
+people who had vanished into the country with such rapidity.
+
+And yet in spite of the very numerous sympathisers which these illicit
+importers possessed, yet of course there were some individuals who
+were as much against them as any officer of the Customs. In the
+neighbourhood of Plymouth legitimate trade had suffered a great deal
+owing to these practices. The mayor, aldermen, and merchants of
+Saltash were at last compelled to send a memorial to the Lords of the
+Treasury complaining that in the rivers adjacent to that place there
+were several creeks and inlets which were being made of considerable
+use by the smugglers for landing their goods. Especially was this the
+case up the river Tamar, and all this had been and was still "to the
+great prejudice of the fair traders and merchants." They pointed out
+that a great deal of it consisted of clandestine running from ships in
+the Sound, Hamoaze, and other anchorages round about there. Large
+quantities of French linings, wines, and brandies were being run
+ashore with impunity and speedily sold in the adjacent towns or
+conveyed some distance into Devonshire. The mayor therefore begged the
+Treasury for three additional Custom officers consisting of an
+inspector of roads and two tide-waiters to be established at Saltash,
+but the Treasury could not see their way to grant such a request.
+
+But in other parts of the country the roads were kept carefully
+watched to prevent goods being brought inland. The coaches which ran
+from Dover to London with passengers who had come across from the
+Continent were frequently stopped on the highway by the
+riding-officers and the passengers searched. Harsh as this mode of
+procedure may seem to us to-day, yet it was rendered necessary by the
+fact that a good many professional carriers of contraband goods were
+wont to travel backwards and forwards between England and abroad. Some
+years later, for example, when the Dover coach was stopped at "The
+Half-Way House," a foreigner, who was travelling by this conveyance
+and had been able to evade the Customs' search at Dover, was found to
+be carrying two gold snuff-boxes set with diamonds, four lockets also
+set with diamonds, eighteen opals, three sapphires, eight amethysts,
+six emeralds, two topazes, and one thousand two hundred
+torquoises--all of which were liable to duty.
+
+And thus the illegal practices continued all round the coast. From
+Devonshire it was reported that smuggling was on the increase--this
+was in the autumn of 1759--and that large gangs armed with loaded
+clubs openly made runs of goods on the shore, the favourite _locale_
+being Torbay, though previously the neighbourhood of Lyme had been the
+usual aim of these men who had sailed as a rule from Guernsey. All
+that the Collector could suggest was that an "impress smack" should be
+sent to that district, as he promised that the notorious offenders
+would make excellent seamen.
+
+There was an interesting incident also off the north-east coast of
+England, where matters were still about as bad as ever. We referred
+some pages back to the capture of a Dutch dogger off the Isle of Man;
+we shall now see another of these craft seized in the North Sea.
+Captain Bowen of the sloop _Prince of Wales_, hearing that the dogger
+_Young Daniel_ was running brandy on the coast near to Newcastle, put
+to sea in search of her. He came up with a number of those
+cobbles--open boats--which are peculiar to the north-east coastline,
+though at one time they were used as far south as Great Yarmouth. The
+cobbles which he was able to intercept had just been employed in
+transferring the contraband from the dogger to the shore. Bowen
+captured one of these small craft with a dozen casks aboard. Another
+was forced ashore and secured by the land officers. Meanwhile, the
+Dutchman stood out to sea so that he might be able to draw off the
+spirits from large casks into smaller ones, which were the better
+fitted for running ashore. It was found afterwards that he had large
+numbers of these lesser casks, and during that evening she put about
+and crept stealthily in towards the shore again until she approached
+within about a mile of the mouth of the Tees. Her intention was to run
+the rest of her cargo under cover of darkness, and her skipper had
+arranged for large numbers of men to be on that coast ready to receive
+and carry off these casks. But Bowen was determined to head her off
+this project. An exciting chase followed, during which--to quote an
+official report of the time--the dogger did her best "to eat the
+sloop out of the wind," that is to say sailed as close to the wind as
+she could travel in the hope of causing her adversary to drop to
+leeward. For seven hours this chase continued, but after that duration
+the _Prince of Wales_ captured the _Young Daniel_ eight leagues from
+the shore. This is not a little interesting, for inasmuch as the chase
+began when the dogger was a mile from the mouth of the river, the
+vessels must have travelled about 23 statutory miles in the time,
+which works out at less than 3-1/2 miles an hour. Not very fast, you
+may suggest, for a Revenue cutter or for the Dutchman either. But we
+have no details as to the weather, which is usually bad off that part
+of the coast in February (the month when this incident occurred), and
+we must remember that the doggers were too bluff of build to possess
+speed, and the time had not yet arrived when those much faster Revenue
+cutters with finer lines and less ample beam were to come into use.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[5] A snow was a vessel with three masts resembling the main and
+foremast of a ship with a third and small mast just abaft the
+mainmast, carrying a sail nearly similar to a ship's mizzen. The foot
+of this mast was fixed in a block of wood or step but on deck. The
+head was attached to the afterpart of the maintop. The sail was called
+a trysail, hence the mast was called a trysail-mast. (Moore's
+_Midshipman's Vocabulary_, 1805.)
+
+[6] It was the frequent custom at this time to speak of sloops as
+cruisers.
+
+[7] A dogger was a two-masted Dutch fishing-vessel usually employed in
+the North Sea off the Dogger Bank. She had two masts, and was very
+similar to a ketch in rig, but somewhat beamy and bluff-bowed.
+
+[8] These, of course, were not the light rowing-boats of the kind that
+were in use on the Thames and elsewhere. The term wherry was applied
+to various decked fishing-vessels belonging to England, Ireland, and
+the Isle of Man.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE HAWKHURST GANG
+
+
+We come now to consider the desperate character of a band of men who
+rendered themselves for all time notorious in the domestic history of
+our country by acts of unbridled violence and consummate cruelty.
+
+But before we proceed to relate as fully as our limited space will
+allow the details of these incidents, it is necessary to remind
+ourselves once again of the great, solid mass of sympathy, both active
+and passive, that was always at the back of the smugglers. Without
+this such daring runs by night could never have occurred: doubtful of
+the assistance which could be whole-heartedly given by the people on
+shore, the seafaring men would never have dared to take such enormous
+risks of life and goods. Not merely did the villagers come down to the
+shore to help to bring the goods inland, not only did they lend their
+horses and carts, but they would tacitly suffer the smugglers to hide
+casks of spirits in wells, haystacks, cellars, and other places. In
+Cornwall, for instance, fifty-five tubs of spirits were found
+concealed in a well, over the top of which a hay-stack had been
+built. This was near Falmouth, one of the most notorious of the
+smuggling localities. And there is actual record of at least one
+instance where the natives charged a rent of a shilling a tub for
+stowing away the smuggled goods. In another county a cavern had most
+ingeniously been hollowed out under a pond big enough to hold a
+hundred casks, the entrance being covered over with planks carefully
+strewed with mould. So clever and original was this idea that it was
+never discovered for many years.
+
+But the most notorious, the most formidable, and certainly the most
+abominably cruel gang of smugglers which ever achieved notice was the
+Hawkhurst contingent. The "Hawkhurst Gang," as they were known, were a
+terror to whatever law-abiding citizens existed in the counties of
+Kent and Sussex. They feared neither Custom officers nor soldiery,
+they respected neither God nor man, and in the course of attaining
+their aims they stopped at no atrocity nor brooked any interference
+from anyone. By the year 1747 smugglers had become so daring and
+committed such terrible crimes that the only course left open for
+decent people was to band together in mutual protection. The
+inhabitants of one locality joined together under the title of the
+"Goudhurst Band of Militia," their leader being a man named Sturt, a
+native of Goudhurst, who had recently obtained his discharge from the
+Army. But this union became known to the smugglers, who waylaid one
+of the militia, and by means of torture the whole of the defenders'
+plans were revealed. After a while he was released and sent back to
+inform the militia that the smugglers on a certain day would attack
+the town, murder all its inhabitants, and then burn the place to the
+ground.
+
+The day arrived and both forces were prepared. Sturt had gathered his
+band, collected fire-arms, cast balls, made cartridges, and arranged
+entrenchments, when, headed by one Thomas Kingsmill, the Hawkhurst
+gang appeared in order to make the attack. But after a smart
+engagement in which three were killed and many wounded, the smugglers
+were driven off, whilst others were captured and subsequently
+executed.
+
+Kingsmill escaped for a time, and became the leader of the famous
+attack on the Poole Custom House in October 1747. Another of the gang
+was named Perin and belonged to Chichester. Perin was really a
+carpenter by trade, but after being afflicted with a stroke of the
+palsy, he became attached to the smugglers, and used to sail with them
+to France to purchase goods that were to be smuggled, such as brandy,
+tea, and rum. Now in September of 1747 Perin went across the Channel
+in a cutter called _The Three Brothers_, loaded up with the above
+commodities, and was approaching the English coast when he was met
+with a rebuff. For Captain William Johnson, who held a deputation
+from the Customs to seize prohibited goods, got to know of Perin's
+exploit, and on the 22nd of this month, whilst cruising in the Poole
+Revenue cutter, sighted _The Three Brothers_ to the eastward of Poole.
+Whereupon the smuggler began to flee, and, running before the wind,
+fled to the N.N.W. From five in the afternoon till eleven at night the
+Revenue cutter, with every stitch of canvas set, chased her, and after
+firing several shots caused her to heave-to. Johnson then boarded her,
+and found that the tea was in canvas and oil-skin bags, but Perin and
+the crew of six had escaped in _The Three Brothers_ boat. However,
+Johnson captured the cutter with her cargo and took the same into
+Poole. The two tons of tea, thirty-nine casks of brandy and rum,
+together with a small bag of coffee, were conveyed ashore and locked
+up safely in the Poole Custom House. Such was the introduction to the
+drama that should follow.
+
+Enraged at their bad luck, the smugglers took counsel together. They
+assembled in Charlton Forest, and Perin suggested that they should go
+in a body and, well-armed, break open the Poole Custom House. So the
+next day they met at Rowland's Castle with swords and firearms, and
+were presently joined by Kingsmill and the Hawkhurst gang. Till night
+had fallen they secreted themselves in a wood, and eventually reached
+Poole at eleven o'clock at night. Two of their members were sent
+ahead to reconnoitre, and reported that a sloop-of-war lay opposite to
+the quay, so that her guns could be pointed against the doors of the
+Custom House; but afterwards it was found that, owing to the ebb-tide,
+the guns of the sloop could not be made to bear on that spot. The
+band, numbering about thirty, therefore rode down to spot, and while
+Perin and one other man looked after their horses, the rest proceeded
+to the Custom House, forced open the door with hatchets and other
+implements, rescued the tea, fastening packages of the latter on to
+their horses, with the exception only of 5 lbs. The next morning they
+passed through Fordingbridge in Hampshire, where hundreds of the
+inhabitants stood and watched the cavalcade. Now among the latter was
+a man named Daniel Chater, a shoemaker by trade. He was known to
+Diamond, one of the gang then passing, for they had both worked
+together once at harvest time. Recognising each other, Diamond
+extended his arm, shook hands, and threw him a bag of tea, for the
+booty had been divided up so that each man carried five bags of 27
+lbs.
+
+[Illustration: _A Representation of ye Smugglers breaking open ye_
+KING'S _Custom House at Poole_.]
+
+After the Poole officers discovered what had happened to their Custom
+House, there was not unnaturally a tremendous fuss, and eventually the
+King's proclamation promised a reward for the apprehension of the men
+concerned in the deed. Nothing happened for months after, but at last
+Diamond was arrested on suspicion and lodged in Chichester Gaol. We
+can well imagine the amount of village gossip to which this would give
+rise. Chater was heard to remark that he knew Diamond and saw him go
+by with the gang the very day after the Custom House had been broken
+open. When the Collector of Customs at Southampton learned this, he
+got into communication with the man, and before long Chater and Mr.
+William Galley were sent with a letter to Major Battin, a Justice of
+the Peace for Sussex. Galley was also a Custom House officer stationed
+at Southampton. The object of this mission was that Chater's evidence
+should be taken down, so that he might prove the identity of Diamond.
+
+On Sunday February 14, then, behold these two men setting out for
+Chichester. On the way they stopped at the White Hart Inn, Rowland's
+Castle, for refreshment. But the landlady suspecting that they were
+going to hurt the smugglers, with the intuition of a woman and the
+sympathy of a mother decided to send for two men named Jackson and
+Carter. For this Mrs. Paine, a widow, had two sons herself, who though
+nominally blacksmiths were in fact smugglers. Jackson and Carter came
+in, to whom the widow explained her suspicions, and these two men were
+presently followed by others of the gang. Before very long they had
+got into conversation with Galley and Chater, and plied them with
+drink, so that they completely gave away the nature of their mission,
+and after being fuddled and insulted were put to bed intoxicated.
+After a while, they were aroused by Jackson brutally digging his spurs
+on their foreheads and then thrashing them with a horse-whip. They
+were then taken out of the inn, both put on to the same horse, with
+their legs tied together below the horse's belly. They were next
+whipped as they went along, over the face, eyes, and shoulder, till
+the poor victims were unable to bear it any longer, and at last fell
+together, with their hands tied underneath the horse, heads downwards.
+In this position the horse struck the head of one or the other with
+his feet at every step. Afterwards the blackguardly tormentors sat the
+two men upright again, whipped them, and once more the men fell down,
+with heels in air. They were utterly weak, and suffering from their
+blows.
+
+[Illustration: Mr. Galley and Mr. Chater put by ye Smugglers on one
+Horse near Rowland Castle
+_A. Steele who was Admitted a Kings Evidence B. Little Harry. C.
+Iackson D. Carter E. Downer. F. Richards. 1. Mr. Galley. 2. Mr.
+Chater._]
+
+[Illustration: Galley and Chater _falling off their Horse at_ Woodash
+draggs their Heads on the Ground, while the Horse kicks them as he
+goes; the Smugglers still continuing their brutish Usage.]
+
+We need not enlarge upon the details, some of which are too outrageous
+to repeat. After a while they thought Galley was dead, and laid him
+across another horse, with a smuggler each side to prevent him
+falling. They then stopped at the Red Lion, at Rake, knocked up the
+landlord, drank pretty freely, and then taking a candle and spade dug
+a hole in a sand-pit where they buried him. But at a later date, when
+the body was exhumed, it was seen that the poor man had covered his
+eyes with his hands, so there can be little doubt but that Galley was
+buried alive.
+
+As for Chater, they delayed his death. Throughout Monday they remained
+drinking at the Red Lion, discussing what to do with him, Chater being
+meanwhile kept secured by the leg with an iron chain, three yards
+long, in a turf-house. At dead of night they agreed to go home
+separately so that the neighbours might not be suspicious of their
+absence. On Wednesday morning they again repaired to the Red Lion,
+after having left Chater in the charge of two of their number. Then,
+having discussed what should be done with Chater, some one suggested
+that a gun should be loaded with two or three bullets, and after
+having tied a long string to the trigger, each member of the gang
+should take hold of the string together, and so become equally guilty
+of the poor man's death. But this idea was unwelcomed, as it was
+thought it would put Chater too quickly out of his sufferings.
+Meanwhile, Chater was visited at various times, to receive kicks and
+severe blows, and to be sworn at in the vilest and most scurrilous
+language.
+
+[Illustration: Chater Chained in ye Turff House at Old Mills's Cobby,
+kicking him & Tapner, cutting him Cross ye Eyes & Nose, while he is
+saying the Lords Prayer. Several of ye other smugglers standing by.]
+
+One of the gang now came up to him, and uttering an oath, brandishing
+aloft a large clasp-knife, exclaimed: "Down on your knees and go to
+prayers, for with this knife I will be your butcher." Terrified at the
+menace, and expecting momentarily to die, Chater knelt down on the
+turf and began to say the Lord's Prayer. One of the villains got
+behind and kicked him, and after Chater had asked what they had done
+to Galley, the man who was confronting him drew his knife across the
+poor man's face, cut his nose through, and almost cut both his eyes
+out. And, a moment later, gashed him terribly across the forehead.
+They then proceeded to conduct him to a well. It was now the dead of
+night, and the well was about thirty feet deep, but without water,
+being surrounded with pales at the top to prevent cattle from falling
+in. They compelled him to get over, and not through these pales, and a
+rope was placed round his neck, the other end being made fast to the
+paling. They then pushed him into the well, but as the rope was short
+they then untied him, and threw him head foremost into the former,
+and, finally, to stop his groanings, hurled down rails and gate-posts
+and large stones.
+
+[Illustration: Chater hanging at the Well in LADY HOLT Park,
+the Bloody Villains Standing by.]
+
+[Illustration: The Bloody Smugglers flinging down Stones after they
+had flung his Dead Body into the Well.]
+
+I have omitted the oaths and some of the worst features of the
+incident, but the above outline is more than adequate to suggest the
+barbarism of a lot of men bent on lawlessness and revenge. Drunk with
+their own success, the gang now went about with even greater
+desperation. Everybody stood in terror of them; Custom officers were
+so frightened that they hardly dared to perform their duties, and the
+magistrates themselves were equally frightened to convict smugglers.
+Consequently the contraband gangs automatically increased to great
+numbers. But, finally, a reward of L500 was offered by the
+Commissioners of Customs for the arrest of everyone of the culprits,
+and as a result several were arrested, tried, convicted, and executed.
+The murderers were tried at a special assize for smugglers held at
+Chichester, before three judges, and the seven men were sentenced to
+death. William Jackson died in prison a few hours after sentence. He
+had been very ill before, but the shock of being sentenced to death,
+and to be hung afterwards in chains and in ignominy, rapidly hastened
+his death, and relieved the executioner of at least one portion of his
+duty. He had been one of the worst smugglers in his time, and was even
+a thief among thieves, for he would even steal his confederates'
+goods. Between the sentence and the hour for execution a man came into
+the prison to measure the seven culprits for the irons in which their
+bodies were subsequently to be hung by chains. And this distressed the
+men more than anything else, most of all Jackson, who presently
+succumbed as stated.
+
+Mills, senior, had gradually been drawn into the smuggling business,
+though previously he had been quite a respectable man. After giving up
+actual smuggling, he still allowed his house to be used as a
+store-place for the contraband goods. His son, Richard, also one of
+the seven, had been concerned in smuggling for years, and was a daring
+fellow. John Cobby, the third of the culprits, was of a weaker
+temperament, and had been brought under the influence of the
+smugglers. Benjamin Tapner was especially penitent, and "hoped all
+young people would take warning by his untimely fate, and keep good
+company, for it was bad company had been his ruin." William Carter
+complained that it was Jackson who had drawn him away from his honest
+employment to go smuggling, but John Hammond was of a more obdurate
+nature, and had always hated the King's officers.
+
+According to the testimony of the Rev. John Smyth, who visited them in
+gaol, all the prisoners received the Holy Communion at ten o'clock,
+the morning after being sentenced to death. All the prisoners except
+the two Mills admitted that they deserved the sentence, but all the
+surviving six acknowledged that they forgave everybody. On January 19,
+1748-9, they were executed. The two Mills were not hung in chains, but
+having neither friend nor relation to take them away their bodies were
+thrown into a hole near the gallows, into which also was placed
+Jackson's body. Carter's body was hung in chains on the Portsmouth
+Road, near Rake; that of Tapner on Rook's Hill, near Chichester; those
+of Cobby and Hammond on the sea coast near Selsey Bill; so that from a
+great distance they could be observed across the sea by the ships as
+they went by east and west. Later on, John, the brother of Richard
+Mills, and one of the gang, was also arrested. When the above three
+judges were travelling down to Chichester for the trial of the seven
+men, John had intended waylaying their lordships on Hind Heath, but
+his companions had refused to support him. But soon after his father's
+and brother's execution he met with a man named Richard Hawkins, whom
+he accused of having stolen two bags of tea. Hawkins denied it, and
+was brutally and unmercifully thrashed to death in the Dog and
+Partridge Inn at Slindon Common, his body being afterwards carried a
+dozen miles, thrown into a pond, with stones attached, and then sunk.
+John Mills was convicted and hanged at East Grinstead, and afterwards
+remained hanging in chains on Slindon Common. Other members of the
+gang were also arrested, tried at the same assizes as highwaymen, and
+then executed.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Later on, two of the smugglers who had given evidence against the men
+that were hanged at Chichester, gave information also, which led to
+the arrest of Kingsmill, Perin, and two others who had been concerned
+in breaking open the Poole Custom House. Kingsmill, Perin, and one
+other were hanged at Tyburn in April of 1749; the other man, however,
+was pardoned. Thus at length this dreaded Hawkhurst Gang was broken
+up.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+THE REVENUE CRUISERS
+
+
+We drew attention some time back to the assistance occasionally
+rendered by soldiers when the Riding officers were about to arrest
+smugglers. Early in the year 1740, or about the close of 1739, Thomas
+Carswell, one of the Revenue officers stationed at Rye, was murdered,
+and a corporal and three dragoons whom he had taken to his assistance
+were badly wounded, and a large quantity of tea that had been seized
+was rescued. It was after this incident that Revenue officers of this
+port--perhaps the most notorious of all the south-east smuggling
+territory--were ordered that in future when they went forth to make
+seizures they were to have with them an adequate military force, and
+to this end they were to make previous arrangements with the
+commanding-officer of the forces in that district.
+
+But in spite of the seizures which the officers on land from time to
+time effected, and notwithstanding the shortcomings of the Custom
+House cruisers in regard to speed, and the frequent negligence of
+their commanders, it still remains true that these cutters and sloops,
+at any rate until about the year 1822 (when the Coastguard service
+was instituted) continued to be the principal and the most important
+of all the machinery set in motion against the smugglers. We have seen
+this service in working order as far back as the year 1674, at any
+rate, when the fleet consisted of only hired vessels. We have also
+seen that they were employed in sufficient numbers all round the
+coast, and that the Customs authorities, not content merely to hire
+such vessels, also presently obtained some of their own. It is
+possible that the smacks were used for such service even before the
+date 1674--perhaps very soon after Charles came to the throne--but
+there are no existing records of this to make the matter certain. The
+Revenue preventive work, in so far as the cruisers were employed, was
+carried on by a mixed control, and embraced six separate and distinct
+types:--
+
+1. There were the English Custom House smacks, cutters, and sloops,
+some of which were hired vessels: others were actually owned by the
+English Customs Board.
+
+2. There were the English Excise cruisers, which were controlled by
+the English Excise Board. They appeared to be very similar to the
+craft in the first class.
+
+3. There were the Scottish Customs cruisers, under the control of the
+Scottish Customs Board. The official at the head of these was known as
+the Agent for yachts.
+
+4. There were the Scottish Excise cruisers, controlled by the Scottish
+Excise Board.
+
+5. There were the Irish Revenue cruisers, controlled by the Irish
+Customs and Excise.
+
+6. And lastly, there were these vessels of the Royal Navy which were
+employed to assist the Revenue, such vessels consisting of ships of
+the fifth-rate, sixth-rate, and especially the armed sloops.
+
+In the present volume it has been necessary, owing to the limits of
+our space, to restrict our consideration of cruisers chiefly to the
+most important of these, viz. those of the English Custom House and
+those of the Royal Navy. Under such a mixed rule it was obvious that
+many difficulties arose, and that the clashing of interests was not
+infrequent. For instance, between the English Custom House cruisers
+and the English Excise cruisers there was about as much friendship as
+there exists usually between a dog and a cat. Similarly between the
+former and the Naval cruisers there was considerable jealousy, and
+every display of that pompous, bombastic exhibition of character which
+was such a feature of the life of the eighteenth century, and the
+first years of the next.
+
+Although the Revenue cruisers were employed primarily and ordinarily
+for the purpose of protecting the revenue, yet from time to time they
+were mobilised for coast defence. On different occasions during the
+eighteenth century they were lent to the Admiralty, and well supplied
+with men and arms in readiness for actual warfare. After the third
+quarter of the eighteenth century these Revenue cruisers seem to have
+been built in greater numbers and with some improvement as to design,
+which, seeing that they had so frequently been left well astern by the
+smuggling cutters, was more than necessary. There was issued in
+November of 1780, by the Board of Customs, an interesting letter that
+shows how closely these cruisers approximated to vessels of war, even
+when they were not under the jurisdiction of the Admiralty. This
+letter was sent to the Collector and Controller at the different
+English Customs ports, and began by referring to the fact that many
+applications had been made to the Board asking permission to take out
+Letters of Marque. It will be remembered that this was a time when
+wars seemed to go on interminably, and there had been only a few brief
+intervals of peace ever since the Anglo-Dutch wars began. The
+Commissioners replied that they had no objection to the commanders of
+the cruisers providing themselves with Letters of Marque, if done at
+the latter's own expense "during present hostilities": but the Board
+declined to bear any part of the expense for any damages that might be
+sustained in an engagement where no seizure had been made and brought
+into port for a breach of the Revenue laws, so long as a commander
+should continue to hold these Letters of Marque. It was, in fact, a
+basis of no cure no pay. Each commander was, further, strictly
+enjoined not to quit his station and duty as a Revenue officer "under
+pretence of looking for captures, it being our resolution to recall
+the permission hereby granted, as soon as it shall be discovered in
+any instance to be prejudicial to our service."
+
+But this war-like and semi-war-like service was entirely subservient
+to their ordinary work. It is evident from the correspondence of the
+Customs Board of this same year, 1780, that their minds were very
+uneasy. The smugglers, far from showing any slackening, had become
+more active than ever. These men had, to quote the words of the
+Commissioners, considerably increased the size and force of their
+vessels; they had also added to their number of both men and guns.
+They had become so violent and outrageous, they had acquired so much
+audacity as to "carry on their illicit designs in sight of the Revenue
+cruisers," and "whenever they have appeared within a certain distance
+have actually fired into and threatened to sink them." In such cases
+as these, it was reported to the Board, the mariners on board these
+cruisers have frequently refused to bear down and repel their attacks,
+explaining their conduct by saying that no provision was made for
+their support in case they received injury during these encounters. To
+meet such objections as these the Board resolved to allow the sum of
+L10 per annum to every mariner employed on board their cruisers who
+should lose a hand or foot, or receive any greater injury by firearms
+"or other offensive weapons of the smugglers while in the actual
+execution of their duty so as to disable them from further service;
+and we have also resolved to pay the surgeons' bills for such of the
+mariners as may receive slighter wounds." But it was stipulated that
+no allowance was to be paid unless certificates were produced from the
+commanders of these cruisers.
+
+And before we go any further with the progress of these cutters, let
+us afford actual instances of the kind of treatment which had led the
+Board to make this allowance to its men. Three years before the above
+resolution, that is to say on April 24, 1777, Captain Mitchell was
+cruising in command of the Revenue cutter _Swallow_ in the North Sea.
+Off Robin Hood's Bay he fell in with a smuggling cutter commanded by a
+notorious contraband skipper who was known as "Smoker," or "Smoaker."
+Mitchell was evidently in sufficient awe of him to give him a wide
+berth, for the cruiser's commander in his official report actually
+recorded that "Smoker" "waved us to keep off"! However, a few days
+later, the _Swallow_, when off the Spurn, fell in with another famous
+smuggler. This was the schooner _Kent_, of about two hundred tons,
+skippered by a man known as "Stoney." Again did this gallant Revenue
+captain send in his report to the effect that "as their guns were in
+readiness, and at the same time waving us to go to the Northward, we
+were, by reason of their superior force, obliged to sheer off, but did
+our best endeavours to spoil his Market. There [_sic_] being a large
+fleet of colliers with him."
+
+But that was not to be their last meeting, for on May 2, when off
+Whitby, the _Swallow_ again fell in with the _Kent_, but (wrote
+Mitchell) the smuggler "would not let us come near him." The following
+day the two ships again saw each other, and also on May 13, when off
+Runswick Bay. On the latter occasion the _Kent_ "fired a gun for us,
+as we imagined, to keep farther from him." The same afternoon the
+_Swallow_ chased a large lugsail boat, with fourteen hands in her, and
+supposed to belong to the _Kent_. But the _Swallow_ was about as timid
+as her name, for, according to her commander, she was "obliged to
+stand out to sea, finding that by the force they had in their boat,
+and a number of people on shore, we had no chance of attacking them
+with our boat, as they let us know they were armed, by giving us a
+volley of small arms." None the less the _Swallow_ had also fourteen
+men as her complement, so one would have thought that this
+chicken-hearted commander would at least have made an effort to try
+conclusions.
+
+No doubt, the _Kent_ was a pretty tough customer, and both skipper and
+his crew likewise. But there was something wanting in Captain
+Mitchell. For consider another of the latter's exploits. It was the
+last week of September of that same year, and the scene had again the
+Yorkshire coast for its background. During the evening they espied
+what they rightly believed to be a smuggling cutter. They got as far
+as hailing her, but, as it was very dark, and the _Swallow_ did not
+know the force of the cutter, Mitchell "thought it most prudent to
+leave her," and so came to anchor in Saltburn Bay. But the smuggler
+had not done with this enterprising gentleman; so the next day the
+smuggler came into the bay, stood down under full sail, and came
+charging down on to the poor _Swallow_, striking her on the quarter,
+the smuggler swearing terrible oaths the meanwhile, that if Mitchell
+did not promptly cut his cable--it was the days of hemp, still--and
+hurry out of that anchorage, he would sink him. What happened, do you
+ask? Of course the _Swallow_ ought to have been under way, and should
+never have been lying there. She was acting contrary to the orders of
+the Board. But what must we think of a captain who calmly awaits the
+on-coming of a smuggler's attack? Why, so soon as the _Swallow_ espied
+him approaching, did he not up anchor, hoist sails, and go to meet him
+with his crew at their stations, and guns all shotted? But even after
+this gross insult to himself, his ship, and his flag, was the
+commander of a Revenue sloop to obey?
+
+[Illustration: "Came charging down ... striking her on the quarter."]
+
+Yes--it is shameful to have to record it--Mitchell did obey. True, he
+didn't cut his cable, but he soon tripped his anchor and cleared out
+as ordered. The poor _Swallow_ had been damaged both as to her tail
+and her wings, for the smugglers had injured the stern, taken a piece
+out of the boom, and carried away the topping-lift. But evidently in
+those days the Revenue service attracted into its folds men of the
+type of Mitchell. Take the case of Captain Whitehead of the Revenue
+cruiser _Eagle_. Espying a smuggling vessel, he gave chase, and
+eventually came up with her, also off Saltburn. Whitehead hailed her,
+but the smuggler's skipper replied--one cannot resist a smile--"with
+a horrid expression," and called his men to arms. The smuggler then
+fired a volley with muskets, wounding one of the _Eagle's_ crew.
+Presently they also fired their swivel-guns, "on which Captain
+Whitehead thought it prudent to get away from her as fast as he could,
+the greatest part of his people having quitted the deck."
+
+The smuggler continued to fire at the retreating cruiser, and chased
+the _Eagle_ for a whole hour after. The cutter turned out to be that
+which Mitchell had encountered on April 24, 1777, and her skipper was
+our friend "Smoker" again. This smuggling craft was described as a
+stout cutter of 130 tons, and a crew of upwards of forty men. She
+carried fourteen carriage guns, four three-pounders, as well as a
+great number of swivels. "Smoker's" real name was David Browning, and
+he was recognised by the _Eagle's_ crew from his voice, which was
+familiar to several of them. During that affray the Revenue cruiser
+received about twenty shot in her sails, about a dozen in her boat,
+and half as many in her fore-and main-mast. She also had her mizzen
+halyards shot away. From these details it would seem that she was
+dandy-rigged, that is to say, she had a mizzen or jigger in addition
+to her cutter rig, and on this jigger would be set a small lugsail as
+was the old custom.
+
+Following on Mitchell's meeting with the _Kent_, we have a record
+belonging to July of that same year--1777. This time a different
+result was to come about. For instead of acting single-handed, the
+sloops _Prince of Wales_ and the _Royal George_--both being employed
+by the Scottish Excise Board, aided by H.M.S. _Pelican_ and
+_Arethusa_--four of them--at last managed to capture this schooner.
+She was found to be armed with sixteen four-pounders and twenty
+swivel-guns, and also had a large stock of gunpowder, blunderbusses,
+and muskets. "Stoney" was taken out of her, and he was said to be an
+outlaw whose real name was George Fagg. The guns and ammunition were
+taken ashore and put in the King's warehouse at Hull, and the crew of
+thirty-nine were placed on board the _Arethusa_. Among these prisoners
+were those who had murdered a dragoon the previous year, while the
+latter was assisting a Custom officer at Whitby. The arrest of these
+men was all the more interesting for a reward of L100 for their
+capture had been long outstanding.
+
+The capture of the _Kent_ had been effected as follows: the two Excise
+cruisers were off St. Abb's Head on July 8, and hearing that the
+_Kent_ had been seen off Flamborough Head they sailed south, and off
+Filey fell in with her. On being hailed, the smuggler beat to
+quarters, shouting to the cruisers. "Fire, you ----, and be ---- to
+you." The battle at once commenced and continued smartly for an hour,
+when the _Pelican_ came up to give assistance to the two cruisers. The
+_Kent_, big as she was, now used sweeps--it was reminiscent of the
+days of Elizabethan galleasses--and drew away. However the _Pelican_
+(a frigate) overhauled her, and the _Arethusa_ which had also come up
+gave valuable aid as well. The two naval captains allowed the cruisers
+to seize the _Kent_, and to take her into Hull, but the prisoners were
+put on board the _Arethusa_ as stated. The _Kent's_ master and four of
+the men had been killed. It should be added that the day before this
+incident the _Pelican_ had also chased the _Kent_ out of Bridlington
+Bay, so the smuggler must have come further north in the meanwhile,
+thus meeting the two Scottish cruisers bound south. The hatches of the
+_Kent_ were found to be unbattened, and her cargo in great disorder.
+The latter consisted of 1974 half-ankers, and a large amount of tea
+packed in oilskin-bags to the number of 554. This schooner had been
+built at that other famous home of smugglers, Folkestone. She was
+specially rigged for fast sailing, her mainmast being 77 feet long,
+and her main-boom 57 feet. It was found that her sails were much
+damaged by shot. Her mainmast was shot through in two places, and her
+main-boom rendered quite unserviceable. Ship and tackle were appraised
+at L1405, 16s., so with the addition of her cargo she represented a
+fair prize.
+
+But "Smoker" was still at large even though "Stoney" was a prisoner.
+It was in April of 1777, when Captain Mitchell had fallen in with him
+off Robin Hood's Bay. A month later the Collector of Hull wrote up to
+the Board to say that a large lugger had been seen off Whitby, and
+well armed. She was described as "greatly an overmatch" for any of the
+Revenue cruisers, "or even for a joint attack of two of them": and
+that as long as she and the armed cutter commanded by Browning,
+_alias_ "Smoker" continued so daringly to "insult" the coasts, there
+was little prospect of success. For six months past the Revenue
+cruisers had not been able to make any seizures, because these
+smuggling craft not only brought over vast quantities themselves, but
+protected the smaller ones from the attempts of the Revenue cruisers.
+A year later, and we find that Mitchell was every bit as slack as
+before. This is made quite clear from a letter which the Collector of
+Hull was compelled on November 12 (1778) to write. In this epistle he
+informs Mitchell that either he or his mate, one of them, must remain
+on board the _Swallow_ at night, when lying in the Humber. For it
+appeared that two days earlier both were ashore. The mariner who had
+the midnight watch on board the cruiser saw a vessel, supposed to be a
+privateer, come right up the Humber into Hull Roads, sail around the
+naval tender there lying, then sail round the _Swallow_, and finally
+down the river again. Although there were twelve or fourteen men on
+the supposed privateer's deck, yet the _Swallow's_ watchman did not
+even hail her, Mitchell and his mate being ashore all the while.
+
+Such incidents as the above show that there undoubtedly was cause for
+the complaints of the Customs Board that the commanders of their
+cruisers were not doing all that might have been done towards
+suppressing the evil at hand. On the other hand, it was equally true
+that the delinquents with whom these commanders had to contest were of
+a particularly virulent and villainous type. Thus, between the
+negligence of the one side, and the enterprise of the other, his
+Majesty's revenue had to suffer very considerably. No better instance
+of the potency of this lawlessness could be afforded than by an event
+which happened in the summer of 1777. Everyone knows, of course, that
+those were the days when men had to be impressed into the service of
+the Navy, so that, when any of these hardy smugglers were captured,
+they were valuable acquisitions to the Service, and far more useful
+than many of the disease-stricken crews which so often had to be
+shipped to make up a man-of-war's complement. In the year we are
+speaking of a number of smugglers who had been captured on the North
+Sea were put on board H.M. tender _Lively_ by Captain O'Hara of the
+Impress service, the intention being to convey these men to one of his
+Majesty's ships at the Nore. The tender got under way and was
+proceeding to her destination when the smuggler-prisoners mutinied,
+overpowered the _Lively's_ crew, and carried the _Lively_ into
+Flushing.
+
+And similar examples of the impudence and violence of other North Sea
+smugglers could also be quoted. On the 7th of May 1778, Captain Bland,
+of the _Mermaid_ Revenue cruiser, was off Huntcliff Fort, when he
+sighted a smuggling shallop.[9] Bland promptly bore down, and as he
+approached hailed her. But the shallop answered by firing a broadside.
+The Revenue cruiser now prepared to engage her, whereupon the shallop
+hoisted an English pennant, which was evidently a signal for
+assistance, for a large armed cutter promptly appeared and came to the
+shallop's rescue. Seeing that he was overmatched, Bland, therefore,
+sheered off. During the same month Captain Whitehead, of the _Eagle_,
+to whom we have already referred, reported that he seldom went for a
+cruise without being fired on, and he mentioned that sometimes these
+smuggling vessels carried musket-proof breast-works--a kind of early
+armour-plating, in fact.
+
+The principal rendezvous of the smuggling craft in the North Sea was
+Robin Hood's Bay. Whenever the cruisers used to approach that bight
+the smugglers would sail out, fire upon them, and drive them along the
+coast. Before firing, the smugglers always hoisted English colours,
+and on one occasion a smuggling craft had the temerity to run
+alongside a Revenue cruiser, hail her, and in a derisive manner
+ordered the commander to send his boat aboard. We spoke just now of
+the superior sailing qualities which these smuggling craft frequently
+possessed over the Revenue cruisers, and on one occasion, in the North
+Sea, the master of a smuggling shallop, when being pursued, impudently
+lowered his lugsail--that would be his mizzen--to show that the
+cruiser could not come up and catch him. And lest that dishonourable
+incident previously mentioned, of a cruiser being ordered out of
+Saltburn Bay, may be thought a mere isolated event, let us hasten to
+add that the cruiser _Mermaid_ was lying at anchor off Dunstanburgh
+Castle, on the Northumbrian coast, when Edward Browning came alongside
+her in an armed shallop named the _Porcupine_, belonging to Sandwich.
+He insisted on the _Mermaid_ getting up her anchor and leaving that
+region: "otherwise he would do him a mischief." Indeed, were these
+facts not shown unmistakably by actual eye-witnesses to be the very
+reverse of fiction, one might indeed feel doubtful as to accepting
+them. But it is unlikely that cruiser-commanders would go out of their
+way to record incidents which injured their reputation, had these
+events never in reality occurred.
+
+Some idea of the degree of success which smuggling vessels attained
+during this eighteenth century may be gathered from the achievements
+of a cutter which was at work on the south coast. Her name was the
+_Swift_, and she belonged to Bridport. She was of 100 tons burthen,
+carried no fewer than 16 guns and a crew of fifty. During the year
+1783 she had made several runs near Torbay, and on each occasion had
+been able to land about 2000 casks of spirits, as well as 4 or 5 tons
+of tea. Afterwards the whole of this valuable cargo had been run
+inland by about 200 men, in defiance of the Revenue officers. Then
+there was the _Ranger_, a bigger craft still, of 250 tons. She carried
+an enormous crew for her size--nearly 100--and mounted 22 guns. She
+had been built at Cawsand, that village which in smuggling days
+attained so much notoriety, and stands at the end of a delightful bay
+facing the western end of Plymouth Breakwater. This vessel had a
+successful time in landing cargoes to the east of Torbay without
+paying the lawful duty. And there were many fishing-boats of from 18
+to 25 tons, belonging to Torbay, which were at this time accustomed to
+run across the Channel, load up with the usual contraband, and then
+hover about outside the limits of the land. When they were convinced
+that the coast was clear of any cruisers they would run into the bay
+and land, sink or raft their cargoes, according to circumstances.
+
+And now, leaving for the present actual skirmishes and chases in
+which the Revenue cruisers were concerned, let us look a little more
+closely into their organisation. From the report by the Commissioners
+appointed to examine the Public Accounts of the kingdom, and issued in
+1787, it is shown that the Custom House cruisers were of two classes:
+(1) Those which were owned by the Board, and (2) Those which were
+hired by contract. And as to this latter class there was a further
+subdivision into two other classes; for one section of these vessels
+was furnished by the Crown, no charge being made for the hire. But her
+outfit, her future repairs, in addition to the wages and victualling
+of the crew, and all other expenses, were paid out of the produce of
+the seizures which these cruisers effected. After this, if anything
+remained beyond these deductions, the residue was to be divided
+between the Crown and the contractor. Very often, of course, when a
+fine haul was made of a L1000 worth of cargo, there was quite a nice
+little sum for both parties to the contract, and a few other, smaller,
+seizures during the year would make the business quite a profitable
+undertaking. But when the amount of seizures was not sufficient to
+defray the expenses the deficiency was supplied by the contractor and
+Crown in equal proportions. That, then, was one of these two
+subdivisions of contracted cruisers.
+
+But in the second of these the contractor provided the vessel, for
+which he was paid the sum of 4s. 6d. a ton per lunar month. It may
+seem at first that this was poor remuneration, especially when one
+recollects that to-day, when the Government hires liners from the
+great steamship companies, the rate of payment is L1 per ton per
+month. In the case of even a 10,000-ton liner there is thus a very
+good payment for about thirty days. But in the case of a cutter of 100
+tons or less, in the eighteenth century, 4s. 6d. per ton may seem very
+small in comparison. However, we must bear in mind that although for
+this money the contractor was to find the outfit of the vessel, and be
+responsible for all repairs needed, yet the aforesaid contractor might
+make a good deal more in a lucky year. It was done on the following
+basis. From the produce of the seizures made by this subdivision of
+cruisers all remaining charges additional to those mentioned above
+were paid, but the surplus was divided between the Crown and
+contractor. Thus the latter stood to gain a large sum if only a
+moderate number of seizures had been made, and there was, by this
+method, every incentive for the hired cruisers to use their best
+endeavours to effect captures. Still, if there was a deficiency
+instead of a surplus, this was also shared by both contracting
+parties.
+
+In the year 1784 there were, reckoning all classes, 44 cruisers
+employed, and 1041 men as crews. Of these cruisers the Commander, the
+Chief Mate and Second Mate, and, in certain vessels, the Deputed
+Mariners, were all officers of the Customs. In the case of the first
+class of cruisers--those which were on the establishment--these
+officers were appointed by the Board pursuant to warrants from the
+Treasury. In the case of the second--those which were hired by
+contract--the officers were appointed by the Customs Board. The
+captain of the cruiser was paid L50 per annum, the chief mate either
+L35 or L30, and the crew were each paid L15. But, as we shall see from
+a later page, the rate of pay was considerably increased some years
+afterwards. The victualling allowance was at the rate of 9d. per diem
+for each man on board, and an allowance of 1s. each was made by the
+lunar month for fire and candle. This last-mentioned allowance was
+also modified in the course of time. Some idea as to the seriousness,
+from a financial point of view, of this cruiser fleet may be gathered
+from the statement that these 44 vessels cost the Government for a
+year's service the sum of L44,355, 16s. 1d.
+
+The largest of these forty-four cruisers was the _Repulse_, 210 tons.
+She carried 33 men and was stationed at Colchester. Her cost for this
+year (1784) was L1552, 16s. 8d. She was not one of the hired vessels,
+but on the establishment. Next in size came the _Tartar_, 194 tons,
+with 31 men, her station being Dover. She was on the establishment,
+and her annual cost was L1304, 6s. 2-1/2d. Of the same tonnage was the
+_Speedwell_, which cruised between Weymouth and Cowes. There was also
+the _Rose_, 190 tons, with 30 men, stationed at Southampton, being on
+the establishment likewise. Next to her in size came the _Diligence_,
+175 tons, with 32 men. She cruised between Poole and Weymouth. She was
+one of the hired vessels, and was in 1784 removed from Weymouth to
+have her headquarters at Cowes. The smallest of all the cruisers at
+this time was the _Nimble_, 41 tons and a crew of 30. She also was a
+hired craft. Her station was at Deal, and her annual cost was L1064,
+9s. 9d. for the year mentioned.
+
+But though there was less expenditure needed at the outset, these
+contract ships were not altogether satisfactory: or rather it was the
+method than the cruisers themselves. For if we have any knowledge at
+all of human nature, and especially of the dishonest character which
+so frequently manifested itself in the eighteenth century, we can
+readily imagine that the contractor, unless he was a scrupulously
+honourable man, would naturally succumb to the temptation to economise
+too strictly regarding the keeping the ship in the best condition of
+repair; or he might gain a little by giving her not quite a
+sufficiently numerous crew, thus saving both wages and victuals. For
+the Crown allowed a certain number of men, and paid for the complement
+which they were supposed to carry.
+
+Therefore, since this arrangement was marked by serious drawbacks, the
+contract system was discontinued, and at the beginning of 1788 fifteen
+contracts were ended, and five other cruisers' contracts were not
+renewed when they expired in that year. All the cruisers in the
+employment of the Customs Service were now placed on the
+establishment, and the practice of paying the charges and expenses out
+of the King's share of the condemned goods was rescinded. In the year
+1797 the number of Customs cruisers was 37, the commanders being
+appointed by the Treasury; and it may be not without interest to
+mention the names, tonnage, and guns of some of those which were on
+the books for that year. There was the _Vigilant_, which was described
+as a yacht, 53 tons, 6 guns, and 13 men; the _Vigilant_ cutter, 82
+tons, 8 guns. During the winter season she cruised with ten additional
+hands off the coasts of Essex, Kent, and Sussex. There was another,
+the _Diligence_, given as of 152 tons; the _Swallow_, 153 tons and 10
+guns; the _Lively_, 113 tons, 12 guns, and 30 men. The _Swift_, 52
+tons and 8 men, used to cruise between the Downs and the Long Sand (to
+the North of the North Foreland at the mouth of the Thames). Some of
+the old names under the former dual system are seen to be commemorated
+in the _Nimble_ (41 tons, 2 guns, 15 men). Her station was Deal, and
+she used to cruise between the Forelands. The _Tartar_ of this period
+was of 100 tons, had 10 guns and 23 men. But the _Greyhound_,
+probably one of the fastest cruisers, was of 200 tons, mounted 16
+guns, and carried 43 men. Her cruising ground was between Beachy Head
+and the Start, and her station at Weymouth. A much smaller craft was
+the cruiser _Busy_ (46 tons and 11 men). Her cruising was in a much
+smaller area--around Plymouth Sound and Cawsand Bay.
+
+Owing to the fact that commanders had been wont too often to run into
+port for real or imaginary repairs, the Commissioners decided that in
+future, when a cruiser put in, she was to inform the Collector and
+Controller of that port by means of her commander, and both to give
+his reasons for coming in, and to estimate the length of time he was
+likely to remain in port, before his being able to sail again.
+
+With regard to the prize-money which these cruisers were able to make;
+before the year 1790 there had been a diversity of practice in the
+method of sharing. In allotting rewards to officers for seizing
+vessels which afterwards had been taken into the Revenue Service, it
+had formerly been the practice to deduct the whole of the charges out
+of the officers' moiety of the appraised value. But from April 14,
+1790, "for the encouragement of the seizing officers," the charge was
+deducted from the total appraised value, and the seizing officers were
+to be paid a moiety of the net produce, if any. It had also been the
+custom to allow the commanders of Admiralty cruisers permission to use
+seized vessels as tenders. But from May 6, 1790, this practice was
+also discontinued by the Board, who ordered that in case any such
+vessels were so employed at the different ports, the commanders were
+to deliver them up "with their tackle, apparel, and furniture," to the
+Collector and Controller of Customs.
+
+We referred some time back to the fact that these Revenue cruisers at
+times were mobilised for war, and also that to them were granted
+Letters of Marque. In this connection there is to be noted an
+interesting warrant, under the King's sign-manual, dated June 11,
+1795, which reads:--
+
+  "Whereas the Commissioners of our Treasury have represented unto
+  us that the cutters in the service of our Revenues of Customs have
+  captured several Ships and Vessels belonging to the enemy, and
+  have recommended it unto us to issue our warrant to grant the
+  proceeds of the Prizes that have been or shall be taken by the
+  cutters in the service of our Customs, granted to the cutters
+  capturing such prizes respectively, and the expenses of the
+  proceedings, in regard thereto, among officers and crews of the
+  vessels in the search of our Customs, who made the said captures,
+  together with the head-money, in all cases where head-money is or
+  may be due by law....
+
+  "Our will and pleasure is that the proceeds of all such Prizes as
+  have been or shall be taken from the enemy in the course of the
+  present war, by the cutters in the service of our Revenue of
+  Customs, after deducting all expenses of the Letters of Marque
+  granted to the cutters capturing such Prizes respectively, and the
+  expenses of the proceedings in regard thereto, together with the
+  head-money in all cases where head-money is or may be due by law,
+  shall be distributed in the manner following; that is to say":--
+
+ The Commander                   14/32 ds.
+ Mate                             7/32 ds.
+
+ Deputed Mariner, or deputed }    3/32 ds., exclusive of their
+ mariners if more than one   }              shares as Mariners.
+
+ Other Mariners                    8/32 ds.
+
+ If there is no deputed Mariner,
+ The Commander                     1/2
+ The Mate                          1/4
+ Mariners                          1/4
+
+It may be mentioned, in passing, that a "deputed" mariner was one who
+held a deputation from the Customs Board. Another warrant, similar to
+the above, and to the same effect, was issued on July 4, of that
+memorable year 1805. In July of 1797, the Customs Commissioners drew
+attention to the third article of the "Instructions for the
+Commanders and Mates of the Cruisers employed in the service of this
+Revenue," reminding them that the commanders, mariners, and mates were
+in no case to be allowed to participate in the officers' shares of
+seizures made by the crews of the cruisers unless the first-mentioned
+had been actually present at the time when the seizure was made, or
+could afford satisfactory proof that they were necessarily absent on
+some duty. Therefore the Board now directed that, whenever the crews
+of the cruisers made a seizure, a list of the officers who were not
+actually on board or in the boats of the cruisers at that time was to
+be transmitted to the Board with the account of the seizure. Then
+follows the other instruction which has already been alluded to. In
+order that the station of the aforesaid cruisers may never be left
+unguarded by their coming into port for provisions, or to be cleaned
+and refitted, or for any other necessary purpose, the commanders were
+instructed to arrange with each other "that nothing but absolute
+necessity shall occasion their being in Port at one and the same
+time."
+
+It will be recognised that the object of this was, if possible, to
+keep the officers of the cruisers on board their vessels, and at sea,
+instead of ever running into port. For it would seem that by more than
+one of these gentlemen the work of cruising on behalf of the Revenue
+Service was regarded too much in the light of a pleasant, extended
+yachting trip, with an occasional chase and seizure of a smuggling
+craft to break the monotony of their existence and to swell their
+purses. But such a pleasant life was not that contemplated by the
+Customs authorities.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[9] "Shallop, a sort of large boat with two masts, and usually rigged
+like a schooner."--MOORE.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+CUTTERS AND SLOOPS
+
+
+We have spoken during the preceding chapters of the revenue cruisers
+sometimes as cutters and sometimes as sloops. For the reason that will
+quickly become apparent let us now endeavour to straighten out any
+confusion which may have arisen in the mind of the reader.
+
+Practically, sloops and cutters of these days were one and the same,
+with very minor differences. In a valuable French nautical volume
+published in 1783, after explaining that the cutter came to the French
+from England, the definition goes on to state that in her rigging and
+sail-plan she resembles a sloop, except that the former has her mast
+longer, and inclined further aft, and has greater sail-area. The
+cutter also has but little freeboard, and in order to carry her large
+sail-area she draws more water. This authority then goes on to mention
+that such craft as these cutters are employed by the smugglers of the
+English Channel, "and being able to carry a good deal of sail they can
+easily escape from the guardships. The English Government, for the
+same reason, maintain a good many of these craft so as to stop these
+smugglers." Our English authority, Falconer, described the cutter as
+having one mast and a straight-running bowsprit that could be run
+inboard on deck. But for this, and the fact that the cutter's
+sail-area was larger, these craft were much the same as sloops.
+Falconer also states that a sloop differs from a cutter by having a
+fixed steeving bowsprit and a jib-stay. Moore, who was also a
+contemporary, makes similar definitions in almost identical language.
+The real difference, then, was that the cutter could run her bowsprit
+inboard, but the sloop could not.
+
+Now, in the year 1785, a very interesting matter occupied the
+attention of the Board of Customs in this connection. It appeared that
+in an important trial concerning a certain vessel the defence was set
+up that this vessel had changed her character by so altering her
+"boltsprit" that it became fixed and could not be run inboard. It was
+found that all which her owners had done was to pass an iron bolt
+through the bits and heel of the bowsprit, clenching it. The defendant
+insisted that thus he had rendered it a complete standing "boltsprit,"
+and not a running one: and that, therefore, by such alteration, his
+vessel became transformed from a cutter to a sloop. And, according to
+the definitions which we have just brought forward, one would have
+thought that this was a good defence. However, the Crown thought
+otherwise, and contended that the alteration was a mere evasion of
+the Act in question, and that the vessel remained a cutter because
+such fastening could be removed at pleasure, and then the "boltsprit"
+would run in and out as it did before the alteration. The jury also
+took this view, and the cutter, which thought herself a sloop, was
+condemned. The Revenue officers and commanders of Admiralty sloops
+were accordingly warned to make a note of this. For a number of years
+the matter was evidently left at that. But in 1822 the Attorney and
+Solicitor-General, after a difficult case had been raised, gave the
+legal distinction as follows, the matter having arisen in connection
+with the licensing of a craft: "A cutter may have a standing bowsprit
+of a certain length without a licence, but the distinction between a
+sloop and a cutter should not be looked for in the rigging but in the
+build and form of the hull, and, therefore, when a carvel-built vessel
+corresponds as to her hull with the usual form of a sloop, she will
+not merely, by having a running bowsprit, become a cutter within the
+meaning of the Act of the 24 Geo. III. cap. 47, and consequently will
+not be liable to forfeiture for want of a licence." From this it will
+be seen that whereas Falconer and other nautical authorities relied on
+the fixing of the bowsprit to determine the difference, the legal
+authorities relied on a difference in hull. The point is one of great
+interest, and I believe the matter has never been raised before by
+any modern nautical writer.[10]
+
+As to what a Revenue cutter looked like, the illustrations which have
+been here reproduced will afford the reader a very good idea. And
+these can be supplemented by the following description which Marryat
+gives in _The Three Cutters_. It should be mentioned that the period
+of which he is speaking is that which we have been contemplating, the
+end of the eighteenth century.
+
+"She is a cutter," he writes, "and you may know that she belongs to
+the Preventive Service by the number of gigs and galleys which she has
+hoisted up all round her. She looks like a vessel that was about to
+sail with a cargo of boats: two on deck, one astern, one on each side
+of her. You observe that she is painted black, and all her boats are
+white. She is not such an elegant vessel as the yacht, and she is much
+more lumbered up.... Let us go on board. You observe the guns are
+iron, and painted black, and her bulwarks are painted red; it is not a
+very becoming colour, but then it lasts a long while, and the dockyard
+is not very generous on the score of paint--or lieutenants of the navy
+troubled with much spare cash. She has plenty of men, and fine men
+they are; all dressed in red flannel shirts and blue trousers; some of
+them have not taken off their canvas or tarpaulin petticoats, which
+are very useful to them, as they are in the boats night and day, and
+in all weathers. But we will at once go down into the cabin, where we
+shall find the lieutenant who commands her, a master's mate, and a
+midshipman. They have each their tumbler before them, and are drinking
+gin-toddy, hot, with sugar--capital gin, too, 'bove proof; it is from
+that small anker standing under the table. It was one that they forgot
+to return to the Custom House when they made their last seizure."
+
+In 1786, by the 26 Geo. III. c. 40, section 27, it was made lawful for
+any commander of any of his Majesty's vessels of war, or any officer
+by them authorised, to make seizures without a deputation or
+commission from the Commissioners of the Customs. Those were curious
+times when we recollect that apart altogether from the men-of-war of
+varying kinds, there were large numbers of armed smuggler-cutters,
+Custom-House cutters with letters of marque, privateers, and even
+Algerine corsairs from the Mediterranean, in the English Channel. It
+is to-day only a hundred and fifty years ago since one of these
+Algerine craft was wrecked near Penzance in the early autumn.
+
+We mentioned just now the Act of George III. which required craft to
+be licensed. This was another of the various means employed for the
+prevention of smuggling, and since the passing of this Act those
+luggers and cutters which engaged in the running of goods endeavoured
+to evade the Act's penalties by possessing themselves of foreign
+colours and foreign ship's papers. Now, as a fact, by far the greater
+part of such craft belonged to Deal, Folkestone, and other south-coast
+ports of England. Their masters were also from the same localities,
+and very few of them could speak Dutch or French. But for the purpose
+of evading the English law they got themselves made burghers of
+Ostend, and notwithstanding that their crews were for the most part
+English they designated their craft as foreign.
+
+During the year 1785 it happened that two of these pseudo-foreign
+smuggling craft were chased by an English frigate. Owing to the fact
+that the frigate had no pilot on board, one of these vessels escaped,
+but the other, after a chase lasting five hours, realised that she
+would soon be overhauled. Her master, therefore, threw overboard his
+cargo as the frigate fast approached, and in company with a number of
+his crew took to his large boat. The lugger, after no fewer than
+twenty shots had been fired at her, hove-to. On taking possession of
+the lugger and examining her papers it appeared that her master's name
+was the very English-sounding Thomas March, and yet he described
+himself as a burgher of Ostend, the vessel being owned by a merchant.
+The master's excuse was that he was a pilot-boat cruising with a
+number of pilots on board, and for this reason it was decided to give
+him the benefit of the doubt and not detain him. But the frigate's
+captain had noticed that before the lugger had hove-to during the
+evening a part of the cargo had been thrown overboard. The following
+morning, therefore, he proceeded on board a Revenue cutter, "went into
+the track where the cargo was thrown overboard," and was able to find
+just what he had expected, for he located and drew out of the sea no
+fewer than 700 half-ankers of foreign spirits.
+
+This precedent opened up an important question; for if a neutral
+vessel, or indeed any craft similarly circumstanced as the above, were
+to anchor off the English coast it was hardly possible to detect her
+in running goods, as it seldom took more than an hour to land a whole
+cargo, owing to the great assistance which was given from the people
+on the shore. For, as it was officially pointed out, as soon as one of
+these vessels was sighted 300 people could usually be relied on with
+200 or more carts and waggons to render the necessary service.
+Therefore the commanders of the cutters sought legal advice as to how
+they should act on meeting with luggers and cutters without Admiralty
+passes on the English coast but more or less protected with foreign
+papers and sailing under foreign colours.
+
+The matter was referred to the Attorney-General, who gave his opinion
+that vessels were forfeitable only in the event of their being the
+property in whole or part of his Majesty's subjects; but where the
+crew of such a vessel appeared all to be English subjects, or at any
+rate the greatest part of them, it was his opinion that there was a
+sufficient reason for seizing the vessel if she was near the English
+coast. She was then to be brought into port so that, if she could, she
+might prove that she belonged wholly to foreigners. "A British
+subject," continued the opinion, "being made a burgher of Ostend does
+not thereby cease to be a subject. Vessels hovering within four
+leagues of the British coast, with an illicit cargo, as that of this
+vessel appears to have been, are forfeited whether they are the
+property of Britons or foreigners."
+
+It was not once but on various occasions that the Customs Board
+expressed themselves as dissatisfied with the amount of success which
+their cruisers had attained in respect of the work allotted to them.
+At the beginning of the year 1782 they referred to "the enormous
+increase of smuggling, the outrages with which it is carried on, the
+mischiefs it occasions to the country, the discouragement it creates
+to all fair traders, and the prodigious loss the Revenue sustains by
+it." The Board went on to state that "diligent and vigorous exertions
+by the cruising vessels employed in the service of the Customs
+certainly might very much lessen it." The Commissioners expressed
+themselves as dissatisfied with the lack of success, and ordered that
+the officers of the Waterguard were especially to see that the
+commander and mate of every Revenue vessel or boat bringing in a
+seizure were actually on board when such seizure was made.
+
+A few days later--the date is January 16, 1788--the Board, having
+received information that great quantities of tobacco and spirits were
+about to be smuggled in from France, Flanders, Guernsey, and Alderney,
+warned the Preventive officers of the various ports, and directed the
+commanders of the Admiralty cruisers, which happened to be stationed
+near the ports, to be especially vigilant to intercept "these attempts
+of the illicit dealers, so that the Revenue may not be defrauded in
+those articles to the alarming degree it has hitherto been." And the
+officers were bluntly told that if they were to exert themselves in
+guarding the coast night and day such fraudulent practices could not
+be carried on in the shameful manner they now were. "And though the
+Riding officers may not always have it in their power to seize the
+goods from a considerable body of smugglers, yet if such officers were
+to keep a watchful eye on their motions, and were to communicate early
+information thereof to the Waterguard, they may thereby render
+essential service to the Revenue."
+
+When the soldiers assisted the Revenue officers in making seizures on
+shore it was frequently the case that the military had difficulty in
+recovering from the Revenue men that share of prize-money which was
+their due. The Collector of each port was therefore directed in future
+to retain in his hands out of the officers' shares of seizures so much
+as appeared to be due to the soldiers, and the names of the latter who
+had rendered assistance were to be inserted in the account of the
+seizures sent up to headquarters. But the jealousy of the military's
+aid somehow never altogether died out, and ten years after the above
+order there was still delay in rendering to the army men their due
+share of the seizures.
+
+The commanders of the Revenue cruisers were told to keep an especial
+watch on the homeward-bound East Indiamen to prevent "the illicit
+practices that are continually attempted to be committed from them."
+Therefore these cruisers were not only to watch these big ships
+through the limits of their own station, but also to keep as near them
+when under sail as possible, provided this can be done with safety and
+propriety. But when the East Indiamen come to anchor the cruisers are
+also to anchor near them, and compel all boats and vessels coming from
+them to bring-to in order to be examined. They are "then to proceed to
+rummage such boats and vessels. And if any goods are found therein
+they are to be seized, together with the boats in which they are
+found." The importance of this very plain instruction is explained by
+the further statement that "some of the commanders of the cruisers in
+the service of the Revenue endeavour to shun these ships, and thereby
+avoid attending them through their station."
+
+On Christmas Eve of 1784 the Customs Commissioners sent word to all
+the ports saying that they suspected that there were a good many
+vessels and boats employed in smuggling which were thus liable to
+forfeiture. Therefore, within forty-eight hours from the receipt of
+this information sent by letter, a close and vigorous search was to be
+made by the most active and trusty officers at each port into every
+bay, river, creek, and inlet within the district of each port, as well
+as all along the coast, so as to discover and seize such illegal
+vessels and boats. And if there were any boats quartered within the
+neighbourhood of each port, timely notice of the day and hour of the
+intended search was to be sent by the Collector and Controller in
+confidence to the commanding officer only, that he might hold his
+soldiers in readiness. Yet, again the Board exhorted the Revenue
+officers "to exert yourselves to the utmost of your power ... and as
+it is very probable that the places where such boats and vessels are
+kept may be known to the officers who have long resided at your port,
+you are to acquaint such officers that if they value their characters
+or employments, or have any regard to the solemn oath they took at
+their admission, we expect they will, on this occasion, give the
+fullest and most ample information of all such places, and will
+cheerfully afford every other aid and assistance in their power, to
+the end that the said vessels and boats may be discovered and seized.
+
+"And to prevent them from being launched into the water, and carried
+off by the smugglers after seizure, you are to cause one of the
+streaks (= strakes) or planks to be ripped off near the keel, taking
+care at the same time to do as little other injury to each boat as
+possible."
+
+We now come to witness the reappearance of an old friend of whom we
+last made mention in the North Sea. The year we are now to consider is
+1788, and the 15th of July. On that day H.M. cutter _Kite_ was sailing
+from Beachy Head to the westward. She passed to the southward of the
+Isle of Wight without sighting it, as the weather was thick. Later in
+the day it cleared as they got near to the Dorsetshire coast, and
+about 7.30 P.M., when they were between Peveril Point (near Swanage)
+and St. Alban's Head, and it was clearer and still not night, the
+ship's surgeon discovered a vessel some distance away on the weather
+bow. The weather had now cleared so much that the house on the top of
+St. Alban's Head was quite visible. The surgeon called the attention
+of a midshipman on board to the strange vessel. The midshipman, whose
+name was Cornelius Quinton, took a bearing, and found that the
+stranger bore W.S.W. from the cutter, and was steering E.S.E. He also
+took a bearing of Peveril Point, which bore N.1/2W., and judged the
+smuggler to be about 9 miles from Peveril Point. About 8 o'clock the
+cutter began to give chase, and this continued until 11 P.M., the
+course being now S.E. After a time the lugger hauled up a point, so
+that she was heading S.E. by S., the wind being moderate S.W. During
+the chase the lugger did her best to get away from the cutter, and set
+her main topsail. The cutter at the time was reefed, but when she saw
+the lugger's topsail going up she shook out her reefs and set her gaff
+topsail. It was some little time before the _Kite_ had made up her
+mind that she was a smuggler, for at first she was thought to be one
+of the few Revenue luggers which were employed in the service. About
+11 o'clock, then, the _Kite_ was fast overhauling her, notwithstanding
+that the lugger, by luffing up that extra point, came more on the wind
+and so increased her pace. It was at first a cloudy night--and perhaps
+that may have made the _Kite's_ skipper a little nervous, for he could
+hardly need to be reefed in a moderate breeze--but presently the sky
+cleared.
+
+As the _Kite_ approached she hoisted her signals and fired a musket
+shot. (As there is a good deal of confusion existing concerning the
+signals of the old Revenue cutters, it is worth noting that although
+it was night these signals were displayed. I make this statement on
+the unimpeachable sworn evidence of the _Kite's_ crew, so the matter
+cannot be questioned.) But in spite of these signals, which every
+seafaring man of that time knew very well meant that the pursued
+vessel was to heave-to, the lugger still held on and took no notice.
+After that the _Kite_ continued to fire several times from her swivel
+guns. Later still, as the _Kite_ came yet closer, the latter hailed
+her and requested her to lower her sails, informing her at the same
+time that she was a King's cutter. Still the lugger paid no heed, so
+the cutter now fired at her from muskets. It was only after this that
+the lugger, seeing her chance of escape was gone, gave up, lowered
+sail, wore round, and came under the _Kite's_ stern. The cutter
+hoisted out a boat, the midshipman already mentioned was sent aboard
+the lugger, and the latter's master was brought to the _Kite_, when
+whom should they find to be their prisoner but David Browning, better
+known as "Smoker," of North Sea fame? When the _Kite's_ captain asked
+for his papers "Smoker" replied that he had no papers but a bill of
+sale. He was afterwards heard to remark that if he had understood the
+log line he would not have been so near the land as he was, and
+admitted he had been bound for Flushing, having doubtless just landed
+a cargo on the beach.
+
+The lugger was found to be decked and clinker-built with a running
+bowsprit on which she set a jib. Six carriage guns were also found on
+board, mounted on her deck. Four of these guns were observed to be
+loaded, three with powder and one with shot, and they were 4-pounders.
+After the capture was made the two vessels lay for a time hove-to on
+the heaving sea under the star-specked sky. The lugger was then put in
+charge of the midshipman and a prize crew from the cutter, the
+prisoners being of course taken on board the _Kite_. Both lugger and
+cutter then let draw their sails, and set a course N.E. for the Isle
+of Wight until 2 A.M. As it then came on thick the vessels hove-to
+until daylight, when sail was made again, the lugger being sent on
+ahead to sound, so as to see how near they were approaching the Isle
+of Wight. Later on they found themselves in 12 fathoms and judged
+themselves to be near the Owers. Eventually, having steered about
+N.N.E. and sighted Chichester Church in the distance, they went about
+and stood south, the wind having veered to W.N.W., and at 3.30 P.M.
+let go anchor in Spithead. Browning in due time appeared in Court, and
+a verdict was given for the King, so that at last this celebrated
+smuggler had been caught after many an exciting chase.
+
+It was not many years after this incident that a 70-ton cutter named
+the _Charming Molly_ arrived at Portsmouth. A Customs officer went on
+board her and found a man named May, who produced the key of the
+spirit-room, saying he was master of the ship. In the spirit-room the
+Customs officer found a hogshead of gin containing 62 gallons. May was
+anxious to show that this was quite legitimate, as there were sixteen
+men aboard and the contents of this cask were for their use. The
+Customs officer now inquired if there was any more liquor on the ship,
+and May replied in the negative, at first. The officer then said he
+would search the cabin, whereupon May added that there was a small
+cask which he had picked up at sea and had kept for the crew's use.
+This cask was found in May's own state-room, and contained about three
+gallons of brandy, though it was capable of holding another gallon and
+no doubt recently had so done. However, May now said that that was the
+entire lot, and there was not a drop of anything else on board. Yet
+again the officer was not to be put off, and found in the state-room
+on the larboard side a place that was locked. May then explained that
+this locker belonged to a man named Sheriff, who was at present
+ashore, and had the key with him. However May volunteered, if the
+officer saw fit, to open it, but at the same time assured him there
+was no liquor therein. The officer insisted on having it broken open,
+when there were discovered two new liquor cases containing each twelve
+bottles of brandy, making in all eight gallons, and two stone bottles
+of brandy containing five gallons. Even now May assured the officer
+that he had no more in the ship, but after a further search the
+officer found twelve dozen bottles of wine in a locked locker in the
+cabin.
+
+We need not follow this case any further, but as a fine example of
+deliberate lying it is hard to beat. Throughout the exciting career of
+a smuggler, when chased or captured, in running goods by night or
+stealing out to get clear of the land before the sun came up, this one
+quality of coolness in action or in verbal evasion ever characterised
+him. He was so frequently and continuously face to face with a
+threatening episode that he became used to the condition.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[10] See also Appendix I.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION
+
+
+We have already frequently referred to the Riding officers who were
+attached to practically all the chief ports of England. For the
+reasons already given the south-east coast had especially to be well
+provided in this respect. And, because of the proximity to the Isle of
+Man, the Solway Firth had also to be protected efficiently by these
+officers, additional, of course, to the aid rendered by the cruisers.
+Wales, however, seems to have been left practically unprotected. In
+the year 1809 there was inaugurated what was known as the Preventive
+Waterguard in order to supplement the endeavours of the cruisers and
+Riding officers. Under this arrangement the coast of England and Wales
+was divided into three districts, each of which was under an
+Inspecting Commander, the Revenue cruisers being now included in the
+Preventive Waterguard.
+
+The three districts with the three Inspecting Commanders were as
+follows:--
+
+District 1.--Land's End to the Port of Carlisle inclusive. Inspecting
+Commander, Captain John Hopkins.
+
+District 2.--North Foreland to Land's End. Inspecting Commander,
+Captain William Blake.
+
+District 3.--North Foreland to the Port of Berwick inclusive.
+Inspecting Commander, Captain John Sayers, "whose duty it is
+constantly to watch, inspect, and report to us [the Customs Board]
+upon the conduct of the Commanders of Cruisers and the Sitters of
+Preventive Boats along the district."
+
+For it was because they required a more effectual control and
+inspection of the officers employed in preventing and detecting
+smuggling that this fresh organisation was made. Certain stations were
+also allotted to the commanders of the cruisers, within each
+district--two to each station--and the stations and limits were also
+appointed for Preventive boats. The "sitters" of the Preventive boats
+were those who sat in the stern of these open, rowed craft and acted
+in command of them. The Collector and Controller were also addressed
+in the following terms, which showed that the Board were still doing
+their utmost to rid the service of the inefficiency and negligence to
+which we have had occasion to draw attention. "You are to observe,"
+wrote the Commissioners, "that one material object of the duty imposed
+upon the Inspecting Commanders is to see that the cruisers are
+constantly and regularly on their stations, unless prevented by some
+necessary and unavoidable cause, and with their proper complements of
+men and boats, and if they are off their station or in port personally
+to examine into the occasion of their being so, and that they are
+absent from their station no longer than is essentially requisite."
+
+At the end of every year the Inspecting Commanders were to lay before
+the Board of Customs the conduct of the several officers within their
+district and the state in which smuggling then was, and "whether on
+the progress or decline, in what articles, and at what places carried
+on." For the Board was determined "to probe the conduct of the
+Preventive officers and punish them" for any laxity and negligence,
+for which faults alone they would be dismissed. And in order that the
+vigilance and faithful duty in the commanders and officers on board
+the cruisers "may not be deprived of fair and due reward" their rate
+of pay was now increased, together with some addition made to the
+allowance for victualling, "and also to provide for the certainty of
+an annual emolument to a fixed amount in respect to the commanders and
+mates, by the following regulations":--
+
+  INSPECTING CRUISERS
+
+  Commander, each per annum, L200 to be made up to L500 net.
+
+  1st Mates, each per annum, L75 to be made up to L150 net.
+
+  2nd Mates, each per annum, L50 to be made up to L75 net.
+
+But these increases were conditional on their salaries, shares of
+seizures and penalties, and all other emoluments of that description
+not having amounted to the salaries now offered. The deputed mariners
+were to have L5 or L3 each, per lunar month. Mariners who had no
+deputation were to have L3 a month, boys on the cruisers L10 per
+annum. As to victualling, the commanders and mates were to have 3s.
+each per diem, mariners 1s. 6d. each per diem. Fire and candle for
+each person were to be allowed for at the rate of 1s. 6d. per lunar
+month.
+
+Under each Inspecting Commander were to be two tenders in each
+district, and the mates who were acting as commanders of these were to
+have their existing L75 a year raised to L150 net in case their
+salaries, shares of seizures, and other emoluments of that description
+should not amount to these sums. Deputed mariners, mariners, boys,
+victualling, fire, and candle were all to be paid for just as in the
+case of the inspecting cruisers above mentioned. This was to date from
+October 10, 1809. A few months later a like improvement was made in
+the salaries of cruisers in general, for from the 5th of January 1810,
+commanders of these were to have their L100 per annum raised to L250
+net--the above conditions "in case their salaries, shares of seizures,
+&c." did not make up this amount being also here prevalent--whilst
+first mates were to be raised from L60 to L100 net. If second mates
+were carried they were to have L50 per annum, deputed mariners L5 per
+annum and L2, 10s. per lunar month. Mariners were to have L2, 10s. per
+lunar month each, boys L10 per annum. Victualling, fire, and candle to
+be as already stated.
+
+The early years of the nineteenth century showed that the evil of the
+previous hundred years was far from dead. The Collector at Plymouth,
+writing to the Board three days before Christmas of 1804, reported
+that there was a good deal of smuggling done, but that the worst
+places in his neighbourhood were two. Firstly, there was that district
+which is embraced by Bigbury, the Yealm, and Cawsand. In that locality
+the smuggling was done in vessels of from 25 to 70 tons. But in summer
+time the trade was also carried on by open spritsail boats of from
+eight to ten tons. These craft used to run across from Guernsey loaded
+with spirits in small casks. Up the river Yealm (just to the east of
+Plymouth Sound) and at Cawsand Bay the goods were wont to be run by
+being rafted together at some distance from the shore and afterwards
+"crept" up (_i.e._ by means of metal creepers or grapnels). The local
+smugglers would go out in their boats at low water during the night
+when the weather and the absence of the cruisers permitted and bring
+to land their booty. It appeared that 17,000 small casks of spirits
+were annually smuggled into Cawsand and the Yealm.
+
+Secondly, the district to the west of Plymouth embracing Polperro and
+Mevagissey. The smuggling craft which brought goods to this locality
+were fast sailers of from 80 to 100 tons. But the goods which came
+into the general district of Plymouth were not carried far inland.
+Those whose work it was to carry the goods after being landed were
+known as "porters," and were so accustomed to this heavy work that
+they could carry a cask of spirits six miles across the country at a
+good rate. When it is remembered that these casks were made
+necessarily strong of stout wood, that they contained each from 5 to
+7-3/4 gallons, making a total weight of from 70 to 100 lbs. at least,
+we can realise something of the rude physical strength possessed by
+these men.
+
+During this same year the Collector at Dartmouth also reported that
+smuggling had increased a good deal recently in the counties of Devon
+and Cornwall. The cutters and luggers from Guernsey carried their
+cargoes consisting of from 400 to 800 ankers of spirits each, with a
+few casks of port and sherry for the wealthier classes, who winked at
+the illicit trade, and some small bales of tobacco. During the summer
+the goods were landed on the north side of Cornwall, between Land's
+End and Hartland Point, and thence distributed by coasters to Wales
+and the ports of the Bristol Channel, or carried inland on the backs
+of twenty or thirty horses, protected by a strong guard. But in the
+winter the goods were landed on the shores of the Bristol Channel, the
+farmers coming down with horses and carts to fetch the goods, which
+were subsequently lodged in barns and caves. Clovelly, Bideford, Combe
+Martin, and Porlock were especially notorious in this connection.
+These goods were also regularly conveyed across Exmoor into
+Somersetshire, and other goods found a way into Barnstable. Coasters
+on a voyage from one part of England to another frequently broke their
+voyages and ran over to Guernsey to get contraband. The Island of
+Lundy was a favourite smuggling depot in the eighteenth century. From
+Ireland a good deal of salt was smuggled into Devonshire and Cornwall,
+the high duties making the venture a very profitable one--specially
+large cargoes of this commodity being landed near to Hartland Point.
+And this Dartmouth Collector made the usual complaint that the Revenue
+cruisers of that period were easily outsailed by the smugglers.
+
+The reader will recollect those regrettable incidents on the North Sea
+belonging to the eighteenth century, when we had to chronicle the
+names of Captains Mitchell and Whitehead in that connection. Unhappily
+there were occasional repetitions of these in the early part of the
+nineteenth century on the south coast. It happened that on the 19th
+of March in the year 1807 the _Swan_ Revenue cutter, a vessel of
+considerable size (for she had a burthen of 154 tons, a crew of
+twenty-three men, and was armed with twelve 4-pounders, two
+9-pounders, and a chest of small arms) was cruising in the English
+Channel and found herself off Swanage. It should be added that at that
+time there was a kind of volunteer Preventive Guard at various places
+along the coast, which was known as the "Sea Fencibles." The Swanage
+"Fencibles" informed Mr. Comben, the cruiser's commander, that there
+were three luggers hovering off the coast, and these volunteers
+offered a number of their men to reinforce the _Swan's_ crew so that
+the luggers might be captured. To this Comben replied with a damper to
+the volunteers' enthusiasm: "If I was to take them on board and fall
+in with the enemy we could not do anything with them."
+
+So the _Swan_ sailed away from Swanage Bay to the eastward and at
+midnight made the Needles. It now fell calm, but the luggers hove in
+sight and approached by means of their sweeps. As they came on, the
+cutter, instead of preparing to receive them in the only way they
+deserved, did nothing. But one of the _Swan's_ crew, whose name,
+Edward Bartlett, deserves to be remembered for doing his duty, asked
+Comben if he should fetch the grape and canister from below. Comben
+merely replied: "There is more in the cabin than we shall want: it
+will be of no use; it is all over with us." Such was the attitude of
+one who had signed into a service for the prevention of smuggling
+craft. Instead of taking any definite action he waited despairingly
+for the enemy to come on. He then issued no orders to his crew to
+prepare to engage; he just did nothing and remained inactive under the
+white cliffs. But if their commander was a coward, at any rate his
+crew were determined to make a contest of it. They had actually to
+urge him to fight, but the luggers were right close on to the cutter
+before Comben had given the word. After that for three-quarters of an
+hour the crew fought the ship, and were at their respective quarters
+when Comben actually turned to the luggers and shouted to them: "Leave
+off firing; I have struck." During the engagement he had shown great
+signs of fear and never encouraged his crew to fight.
+
+Seeing that they were led by a coward, the _Swan's_ crew also took
+fright and thought it best to flee. They therefore jumped into the
+cutter's boats and rowed ashore, leaving their valiant commander to
+look after the _Swan_ as best he might. She was of course immediately
+captured by the luggers, and as for Comben, he was taken prisoner,
+carried to France, detained there, and did not return to England till
+after seven years, when an investigation was made into his conduct by
+the Surveyors-General of the Customs, his defence being that "his men
+had deserted him." As for the latter, they reached the shore safely
+and were again employed in the Preventive Service.
+
+It is quite clear that the Customs Board sometimes lent their cutters
+to the Admiralty; and there is a letter dated October 10, 1809, from
+the Admiralty, in which permission is given for the cutters in the
+service of that Revenue to be released from their station at Flushing
+under the command of Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Strachan, and there is
+also a Customs House minute of July 7, 1806, to the effect that the
+_Swan_ and _Hound_ Revenue cutters might be placed under the orders of
+Lord Keith in the room of the _Stag_ and _Swallow_, for use at Cowes
+and Shoreham, where these cruisers were to be stationed. And it was in
+this same year that the Board again emphasized the importance of the
+Revenue Service being supported by the Navy and Army, and that to this
+end the most effectual encouragement should be held out to both
+branches, so that they might co-operate vigorously in the suppression
+of smuggling. They further expressed themselves as of the opinion that
+"nothing will more effectually tend to encourage them to exert
+themselves than the certainty of receiving a speedy reward." And yet,
+again, were the Revenue officers enjoined "to be particularly careful
+to secure the men employed in smuggling vessels whenever it may be
+possible to effect it, as their lordships have the strongest reasons
+for believing that the apprehension of being detained and impressed
+into his Majesty's service will have a great effect in deterring the
+persons engaged in these illegal pursuits from continuing their
+pernicious habits."
+
+It was also part of the duty of the Customs officers to attend to the
+Quarantine, and the Customs Board resolved "that it is fit to direct a
+distinguishing flag to be used on board all boats employed in the
+Quarantine service." At Sandgate Creek, Portsmouth, Falmouth, Bristol,
+Milford, Hull, Liverpool and Plymouth, by the advice of the Surveyor
+for Sloops, a flag was deposited in the Custom House at every port of
+the kingdom, and it was resolved that in the above ports there should
+be two, except Plymouth, which should have three. Cruisers were also
+employed in the Quarantine Service.
+
+We have already seen something of the conditions of service and the
+pay of the cruisers' crews. He who was responsible for the upkeep and
+supervision of these cruisers was known as the Surveyor for Sloops.
+For some time the Customs Board had been deliberating as to the
+adoption of some regulations for ascertaining the qualifications of
+those who desired to be commanders and mates of the cruisers. That
+some improvement was essential must already have been made clear to
+the reader from the type of men who sometimes were placed in such
+positions of responsibility. The following regulations were therefore
+adopted in the year 1807, "which appear to the Commissioners highly
+necessary for the safe conduct of the Service, as also for the safety
+of the vessels and crews committed to their charge." They resolved
+accordingly:--
+
+"That all persons who shall be hereafter nominated to the situation of
+Commander or Mate of a Cruiser in the service of this Revenue, do
+attend the Surveyor of Sloops, &c. in London for the purpose of being
+examined on the several points submitted in the report of the said
+Surveyor, as essential for the qualification of officers of that
+description, namely, whether he understand navigation, is competent to
+lay off and ascertain courses and distances on the charts, can work a
+day's work and find the time of high and low water in any port of
+great Britain, and understand the use of a quadrant."
+
+It was also further resolved:--
+
+"That no person be admitted to either of those situations who shall
+not be certified by the said Surveyors to be fully qualified in the
+particulars above referred to, which certificate is to be laid before
+the Board for their consideration, whether in case such person does
+not possess a competent knowledge of the coast on which he is to be
+stationed, or is not sufficiently acquainted with the sailing and
+management of cutters and luggers tho' generally qualified, it may not
+be fit to direct him to repair on board some cruiser, whose station
+is contiguous to that to which he is nominated, and cruise in such
+vessel for the space of one month, or until the commander thereof
+shall certify that he is thoroughly acquainted with that part of the
+coast, and also be fully competent to take charge of a cutter, or
+lugger, as the case may be, such a certificate to be referred to the
+Surveyor for Sloops, &c. for his report previous to such commander's
+or mate's commission being ordered to be made out." And the commanders
+of the cutters who shall be ordered to instruct such persons are to be
+acquainted that they are at liberty to crave the extra expense they
+shall incur for victualling such persons for the Board's
+consideration.
+
+"And the Surveyor for Sloops, &c. is to report more particularly the
+nature and objects of enquiry as to the qualification of persons
+nominated Sitters of Boats and by what officers in the outports those
+enquiries are made and the qualification of such persons certified:
+for the Commissioners' further consideration, as to any additional
+regulations in respect of persons so nominated."
+
+It was, no doubt, because of such incidents as those which we have
+seen occurring in the Channel and North Sea that the Commissioners
+tightened up the regulations in the above manner. That these incidents
+were not confined to any particular locality let us show by the two
+following examples. The first had reference to William Horn, the
+Deputed Mariner and Acting Mate of the Revenue cutter _Greyhound_,
+whose station was at Weymouth. On the 5th of March 1806 he was in
+charge of the cutter whilst on a cruise to the westward. Off Portland
+the cutter fell in with a French lugger, which was a privateer. Horn
+gave chase, gradually overhauled her, and even came up with her. For a
+time he also engaged her, but because he subsequently gave up the
+fight, bore up and quitted her, allowing the privateer to escape, he
+was deemed guilty by the Customs Board of not having used his utmost
+endeavours to effect a capture, and was ordered to be superseded.
+
+The second incident was of a slightly more complicated nature, and
+occurred on October 20, 1805, about midnight. The two men implicated
+were a Captain Riches, who was in command of the Revenue cutter
+_Hunter_, and his mate Oliver.
+
+This vessel, whose station was Great Yarmouth, was on the night
+mentioned cruising in the North Sea. Presently the cutter sighted what
+turned out to be the Danish merchant ship, _The Three Sisters_,
+Fredric Carlssens master, from Copenhagen bound for St. Thomas's and
+St. Croix. Oliver got into the cutter's boat and boarded the Dane. He
+also demanded from the latter and took from him four cases of foreign
+Geneva, which was part of _The Three Sisters'_ cargo. In spite of
+Carlssen's opposition, Oliver put these into his boat and rowed off
+with them to the _Hunter_. Riches was obviously party to this
+transaction, and was accused "that contrary to the solemn oath taken
+at his admission into office, he did not only neglect to report to the
+Collector and Controller of Yarmouth or to the Board the misconduct of
+his Mate, in unlawfully taking from the said ship the four cases of
+Geneva in question, but did take out of them for his own use, and by
+so doing did connive at and sanction the aforesaid unproper conduct of
+his Mate." It was also brought against Riches that he had not entered
+any account of this incident into his ship's journal, or made any
+record of the mate boarding the Dane.
+
+In the end Riches was adjudged by the Board guilty of not giving
+information regarding his mate's conduct and of receiving one case of
+Geneva for his own use, but he was acquitted of connivance for want of
+evidence. He was found guilty also of not having entered the incident
+in his journal. Oliver was acquitted of having boarded the Danish ship
+for want of proof, but found guilty of having failed to keep a
+complete journal of his proceedings. But a further charge was made
+that Riches caused a case of foreign spirits, which had been taken out
+of the Danish ship, to be brought ashore from the cutter and taken to
+his home at Yarmouth without paying the duty thereon. Oliver was also
+accused of a similar crime with regard to two cases. Riches was
+acquitted for want of proof of having caused the gin to be taken to
+his house, but found guilty of having received it, knowing the duty
+had not been paid. Oliver was also found guilty, and both were
+accordingly dismissed.
+
+And there was the case of a man named Thomas Rouse, who was accused of
+having been privy to the landing of a number of large casks of spirits
+and other goods from a brig then lying off the Watch-house at
+Folkestone. This was on the night of May 20 and the early hours of May
+21, 1806. He was further accused of being either in collusion with the
+smugglers in that transaction or criminally negligent in not
+preventing the same. It was still further brought against him that he
+had not stopped and detained the master of the brig after going on
+board, although the master was actually pointed out to him by a boat's
+crew belonging to the _Nimble_ Revenue cutter. Rouse was found guilty
+of the criminal negligence and ordered to be dismissed. And, in
+addition, the chief boatmen, five boatmen, and two riding-officers of
+the Preventive Service at that port were also dismissed for failing to
+do their utmost to prevent this smuggling, which had, in fact, been
+done collusively. Those were certainly anxious times for the Customs
+Commissioners, and we cannot but feel for them in their difficulties.
+On the one hand, they had to wrestle with an evil that was national in
+its importance, while on the other they had a service that was
+anything but incorruptible, and required the utmost vigilance to cause
+it to be instant in its elementary duties.
+
+One of the reforms recommended towards the end of 1809 had reference
+to the supply of stores and the building and repairing of Custom House
+boats in London. The object aimed at was to obtain a more complete
+check on the quantities and quality of the stores required for
+cruisers and Preventive boats. And the example of the outports was
+accordingly adopted that, when articles were required for these craft
+that were of any value, the Collector and Controller of the particular
+port first sent estimates to the Board, and permission was not allowed
+until the Surveyor of Sloops had certified that the estimates were
+reasonable. Nor were the bills paid until both the commander and mate
+of the cruiser, or else the Tide Surveyor or the Sitter of the Boat,
+as the case might be, had certified that the work was properly carried
+out. And the same rule applied to the supply of cordage and to the
+carrying out of repairs.
+
+As one looks through the old records of the Custom House one finds
+that a Revenue officer who was incapable of yielding to bribery, who
+was incorruptible and vigilant in his duty, possessed both courage and
+initiative, and was favoured with even moderate luck, could certainly
+rely on a fair income from his activities. In the year we are
+speaking of, for instance, Thomas Story, one of the Revenue officers
+petitioned to be paid his share of the penalty recovered from William
+Lambert and William Taylor for smuggling, and he was accordingly
+awarded the sum of L162, 2s. It was at this time also that the
+salaries of the Collectors, Controllers, and Landing Surveyors of the
+outports were increased so that the Collectors were to receive not
+less than L150 per annum, the Controller not less than L120, and the
+Landing Surveyor not less than L100. And in addition to this, of
+course, there were their shares in any seizures that might be made.
+Sometimes, however, the Revenue officers suffered not from negligence
+but from excess of zeal, as, for instance, on that occasion when they
+espied a rowing-boat containing a couple of seafaring men approach and
+land on the beach at Eastbourne. The Revenue officials made quite
+certain that these were a couple of smugglers and seized their boat.
+But it was subsequently discovered that they were just two Portuguese
+sailors who had escaped from Dieppe and rowed all the way across the
+Channel. The Admiralty interfered in the matter and requested the
+release of the boat, which was presently made. But two other Revenue
+officers, named respectively Tahourdin and Savery, in August of 1809
+had much better luck when they were able to make a seizure that was
+highly profitable. We have already referred to the considerable
+exportation which went on from this country in specie and the national
+danger which this represented. In the present instance these two
+officials were able to seize a large quantity of coin consisting of
+guineas, half guineas, and seven shilling pieces, which were being
+illegally transported out of the kingdom. When this amount came to be
+reckoned up it totalled the sum of L10,812, 14s. 6d., so that their
+share must have run into very high figures.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT
+
+
+In an earlier chapter we quoted from Marryat a passage which showed
+that the mariners of a Revenue cutter were dressed in red flannel
+shirts and blue trousers, and also wore canvas or tarpaulin
+petticoats. The reason for the last-mentioned was appreciated by
+smuggler and Preventive men alike, and if you have ever noticed the
+Thames River Police dodging about in their small craft you will have
+noticed that at any rate the steersman has in cold weather some sort
+of apron wrapped round his legs. But in the period of which we are now
+speaking the attached apron or petticoat was very useful for keeping
+the body warm in all weather, especially when the sitter of the
+Preventive boat had to be rowed out perhaps in the teeth of a biting
+wind, for several miles at night. And the smugglers found their task
+of landing tubs through the surf a wet job, so they were equally glad
+of this additional protection.[11]
+
+The period to which Marryat referred was the end of the eighteenth
+century. As to the uniform of the Revenue officers we have the
+following evidence. Among the General Letters of the Customs Board was
+one dated June 26, 1804, from which it is seen that the commanders of
+the cruisers petitioned the Board for an alteration in their uniform
+and that also of the mates, this alteration to be made at the expense
+of the officers. The commanders suggested for their own dress:--
+
+"A silver epaulette, the button-holes worked or bound with silver
+twist or lace, side-arms, and cocked hats with cockades, and the
+buttons set on the coat three and three, the breeches and waistcoats
+as usual:
+
+"For the undress, the same as at present.
+
+"For the mates, the addition of lappels, the buttons set on two and
+two, and cocked hats with cockades."
+
+The Board consented to these alterations with the exception of the
+epaulettes, "the adoption of which we do not approve, lest the same
+should interfere with His Majesty's Naval Service." Now in reading
+this, it is important to bear in mind that between the Revenue and
+Navy there was a great deal of jealousy.[12] It went so far, at least
+on one occasion, as to cause a Naval officer to go on board a Revenue
+cutter and haul the latter's flag down. The reason these epaulettes
+were disallowed may be explained by the fact that it was only nine
+years before the above date that epaulettes had become uniform in the
+Navy, for notwithstanding that epaulettes had been worn by officers
+since 1780, yet they were not uniform until 1795, although they were
+already uniform in the French and Spanish navies.[13] Since,
+therefore, these adornments had been so recently introduced into the
+Navy, it was but natural that with so much jealousy existing this
+feature should not be introduced into the Revenue service. Just what
+"the undress, the same as at present" was I have not been able to
+discover, but in the Royal Navy of that time the undress uniform for a
+captain of three years' post consisted of a blue coat, which was
+white-lined, with blue lappels and cuffs, a fall-down collar,
+gold-laced button-holes, square at both ends, arranged regularly on
+the lappels. For a captain under three years the uniform was the same,
+except that the nine buttons were arranged on the lappels in threes.
+For master or commander it was the same, except that the button-holes
+were arranged by twos.[14]
+
+It was in January 1807 that the Customs Board took into consideration
+the appointment of several Revenue cruisers and the expediency of one
+general system for manning them according to the tonnage and
+construction of the vessel, the service and station on which she was
+to be employed. They therefore distinctly classed the different
+cruisers according to their tonnage, description, and number of men
+originally allowed and since added, whether furnished with letters of
+marque or not. And believing that it would be beneficial to the
+service that the complement of men should be fixed at the highest
+number then allotted to cutters in each respective class, they
+accordingly instructed the commanders of the different cruisers to
+increase their respective complements "with all practicable dispatch."
+
+We now come to an important point concerning which there exists some
+little uncertainty. By a letter dated July 17, 1807, Revenue officers
+were reminded that they were by law bound to hoist the Revenue colours
+and fire a gun as a signal "before they in any case fire on any
+smuggling vessel or boat."
+
+"We direct you to convene the officers of the Waterguard belonging to
+your port," write the Commissioners to the Collector and Controller at
+each station, "including the officers and crew of the cruiser
+stationed there, and strictly to enjoin them whether on board cruisers
+or boats in no instance to fire on any smuggling vessel or boat,
+either by night (whether it be dark or light), or by day, without
+first hoisting the colours and firing a gun as a signal, as directed
+by law, and to take care that on any boat being sent out armed either
+from the shore or from a cruiser, in pursuit of seizures or any other
+purpose, such boat be furnished with a proper flag." Two years later,
+on April 11, 1809, it was decided that cruisers could legally wear a
+pendant "conformable to the King's Proclamation of the 1st January
+1801," when requiring a vessel that was liable to seizure or
+examination to heave-to, or when chasing such a vessel, but "at no
+other time." It is important to bear in mind that the flags of chase
+were special emblems, and quite different from the ceremonial flags
+borne on the Customs buildings, hulks, and vessels not used actually
+in the chasing of smugglers.
+
+In addition to my own independent research on this subject I am
+indebted for being allowed to make use of some MS. notes on this
+interesting subject collected by Mr. Atton, Librarian of the Custom
+House; and in spite of the unfortunate gaps which exist in the
+historical chain, the following is the only possible attempt at a
+connected story of the Custom House flag's evolution. We have already
+explained that from the year 1674 to 1815 the Revenue Preventive work
+was under a mixed control. We have also seen that in the year 1730 the
+Board of Customs called attention to the Proclamation of December 18,
+1702, that no ships were to wear a pendant except those of the Royal
+Navy, but that the sloops employed in the several public offices
+might wear Jacks with the seal of the respective office.
+
+From a report made by the Harwich Customs in 1726 it is clear that the
+King's colours were at that date hoisted when a Revenue cruiser chased
+a suspect. But as to what the "King's Colours" were no one to-day
+knows. Among the regulations issued to the Revenue cruisers in 1816
+the commanders were informed that they were not to wear the colours
+used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same pendants and ensigns as
+were provided by the Revenue Board. By 24 George III. cap. 47, certain
+signals of chase were prescribed. Thus, if the cruiser were a Naval
+vessel she was to hoist "the proper pendant and ensign of H.M. ships."
+If a Custom House vessel she was to hoist a blue Customs ensign and
+pendant "with the marks now used." If an Excise vessel, a blue ensign
+and pendant "with the marks now used." After this had been done, and a
+gun fired (shotted or unshotted) as a warning signal, she might fire
+if the smuggler failed to heave-to. And this regulation is by the
+Customs Consolidation Act of 1876 still in force, and might to-day be
+made use of in the case of an obstinate North Sea cooper. What one
+would like to know is what were the marks in use from 1784 to 1815.
+Mr. Atton believes that these marks were as follows:--
+
+At the masthead: a blue pendant with the Union in canton and the
+Customs badge of office (a castellated structure with portcullis over
+the entrance, and two barred windows and two port-holes, one barred
+and one open, the latter doubtless to signify that through which the
+goods might enter) in the fly.
+
+At the gaff: a blue ensign similarly marked.
+
+The English Excise, the Scottish Customs, Scottish Excise, and the
+Irish Revenue signals of chase were blue pendants and ensigns
+similarly flown, but as to the badges of office one cannot be certain.
+The matter of English Customs flags has been obscured by the quotation
+in Marryat's _The King's Own_, where a smuggler is made to remark on
+seeing a Revenue vessel's flag, "Revenue stripes, by the Lord." It has
+been suggested that the bars of the castle port and portcullis in the
+seal were called "stripes" by the sailors of that day, inasmuch as
+they called the East India Company's flag of genuine stripes the
+"gridiron." But to me it seems much more likely that the following is
+the explanation for calling a Revenue cutter's flag "stripes." The
+signal flags Nos. 7 and 8, which were used by the Royal Navy in 1746
+to order a chase both consisted of stripes.[15] No. 7 consisted of
+eleven horizontal stripes, viz. six red and five white. Flag No. 8 had
+nine horizontal stripes, viz. red, white, blue repeated three times,
+the red being uppermost. I submit that in sailor's slang these
+signals would be commonly referred to as "stripes." Consequently
+whatever flags subsequently would be used to signal a chase would be
+known also as "stripes." Therefore whatever signal might be flown in
+the Revenue service when chasing would be known as "stripes" also.
+
+But by an Order in Council of the 1st of February 1817, the pendant
+and ensign were to be thus:--
+
+The pendant to have a red field having a regal crown thereon at the
+upper part next the mast. The ensign to be a red Jack with a Union
+Jack in a canton at the upper corner next the staff, and with a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack. This was to be worn by all
+vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling under the Admiralty,
+Treasury, Customs or Excise.
+
+Now during an interesting trial at the Admiralty Sessions held at the
+Old Bailey in April of 1825, concerning the chasing of a smuggler by a
+Revenue cruiser, Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N., who was commanding the
+cutter, stated in his evidence that when he came near this smuggling
+vessel the former hoisted the Revenue pendant at the masthead, which
+he described as "a red field with a crown next the mast at the upper
+part of it." He also hoisted the Revenue ensign at the peak-end, the
+"Union at the upper corner in a red field," the field of the ensign
+being also red. It had a Jack in the corner. This, then, was exactly
+in accordance with the Order in Council of 1817 mentioned above.
+
+But my own opinion relative to the firing of the _first_ gun is in
+favour of the proposition that this was not necessarily unshotted. I
+shall refer in greater detail to the actual incidents, here quoted, on
+a later page, but for our present purpose the following is strong
+proof in favour of this suggestion. During a trial in the year 1840
+(Attorney-General _v_. William Evans) it transpired that Evans had
+entered the Medway in a smack without heaving-to, and the following
+questions and answers respectively were made by counsel and Richard
+Braddy, a coastguard who at the time of the incident was on duty at
+Garrison Fort (Sheerness):--
+
+_Question._ "Is the first signal a shot always?"
+
+_Answer._ "A blank cartridge we fire mostly."
+
+_Q._ "Did you fire a blank?"
+
+_A._ "No, because she was going too fast away from me."
+
+_Q._ "Did you hit her?"
+
+_A._ "No."
+
+To me it seems certain from this evidence of the coastguard that
+though the first signal was "mostly" blank, yet it was not always or
+necessarily so.
+
+It was frequently discovered that smuggling vessels lay off the coast
+some distance from the shore and unshipped their cargoes then into
+smaller craft by which they were brought to land, and this practice
+was often observed by the Naval officers at the signal stations. Thus,
+these smuggling runs might be prevented if those officers were enabled
+to apprise the Admiralty and Revenue cruisers whenever observed, so
+the Treasury put themselves in communication with the Customs Board
+with regard to so important a matter. This was in the year 1807. The
+Admiralty were requested to appoint some signals by which Naval
+officers stationed at the various signal-posts along the coasts might
+be able to convey information to his Majesty's and the Revenue
+cruisers whenever vessels were observed illegally discharging cargoes.
+The Admiralty accordingly did as requested, and these signals were
+sent on to the commanders of the cutters. This, of course, opened up a
+new matter in regard to the apportioning of prize-money, and it was
+decided that when any vessel or goods discharged therefrom should be
+seized by any of the cruisers in consequence of information given by
+signal from these stations, and the vessel and her goods afterwards
+were condemned, one-third of the amount of the King's share was to be
+paid to the officer and men at the signal-post whence such information
+was first communicated. The obvious intention of this regulation was
+to incite the men ashore to keep a smart look-out.
+
+The coast signal-stations[16] had been permanently established in the
+year 1795, and were paid off at the coming of peace but re-established
+when the war broke out again, permission being obtained from the
+owners of the land and a code of signals prepared. The establishment
+of these signal-stations had been commenced round the coast soon after
+the Revolutionary war. Those at Fairlight and Beachy Head were
+established about 1795.[17] Each station was supplied with one red
+flag, one blue pendant, and four black balls of painted canvas. When
+the Sea Fencibles, to whom we referred some time back, were
+established, the signal-stations were placed under the district
+captains. This was done in March 1798, and the same thing was done
+when the Sea Fencibles had to be re-established in 1803. The
+signal-stations at Torbay and New Romney (East Bay, Dungeness) had
+standing orders, says Captain Hudleston, to report all arrivals and
+departures direct to the Admiralty.
+
+The Customs Board advanced another step forward when, in the year
+1808, they considered whether "benefit might not arise to the service
+by establishing certain signals by which the commanders of the several
+cruisers in the service of the Revenue might be enabled to make their
+vessels known to each other, on meeting at sea, or to distinguish each
+other at a distance, and also to make such communications as might be
+most useful, as well as to detect any deception which might be
+attempted to be practised by the masters of vessels belonging to the
+enemy, or of smuggling vessels." They therefore consulted "the proper
+officers on the subject," and a code of tabular signals was drawn up
+and approved and sent to the commanders of the cruisers in a
+confidential manner. Each commander was enjoined to pay the most
+strict attention to such signals as might be made under the
+regulations, and to co-operate by every means in his power for the
+attainment of the objects in view. These commanders were also to
+apprise the Customs Board of any matter which might arise in
+consequence thereof "fit for our cognisance." These signals were also
+communicated to the commanders of the several Admiralty cruisers. And
+we must remember that although naval signalling had in a crude and
+elementary manner been in vogue in our Navy for centuries, and the
+earliest code was in existence at any rate as far back as 1340, yet it
+was not till the eighteenth century that it showed any real
+development. During the early years of the nineteenth century a great
+deal of interest was taken in the matter by such men as Mr. Goodhew,
+Sir Home Popham, Captain Marryat, and others. It was the atmosphere of
+the French and Spanish wars which gave this incentive, and because the
+subject was very much in the Naval minds at that time it was but
+natural that the Revenue service should appreciate the advantage
+which its application might bestow for the prevention of smuggling.
+
+Further means were also taken in the early nineteenth century to
+increase the efficiency of the cruisers. In 1811, in order that they
+should be kept as constantly as possible on their stations, and that
+no excuses might be made for delays, it was decided that in future the
+Inspecting Commanders of Districts be empowered to incur expenses up
+to L35 for the repairs which a cutter might need, and L5 for similar
+repairs to her boats. The commanders of the cruisers were also
+permitted to incur any expenses up to L20 for the cutter and boats
+under their command. Such expenses were to be reported to the Board,
+with information as to why this necessity had arisen, where and by
+what tradesmen the work had been done, and whether it had been
+accomplished in the most reasonable manner. At the end of the
+following year, in order still further to prevent cruisers being
+absent from their stations "at the season of the year most favourable
+for smuggling practices, and when illegal proceedings are generally
+attempted," _i.e._ in the dark days of autumn and winter and spring,
+and in order, also, to prevent several cutters being in the Port of
+London at the same time, "whereby the part of the coast within their
+respective districts would be left altogether without guard," the
+commanders of these cruisers were to give warning when it was apparent
+that extensive repairs were needed, or a general refit, or any other
+cause which compelled the craft to come up to London. Timely notice
+was to be given to the Board so that the necessity and propriety
+thereof should be inquired into. It was done also with a view to
+bringing in the cruisers from their respective stations only as best
+they might be spared consistent with the good of the service. But they
+were to come to London for such purposes only between April 5 and
+September 5 of each year. By this means there would always be a good
+service of cruisers at sea during the bad weather period, when the
+smugglers were especially active.
+
+In our quotation from _The Three Cutters_ in another chapter we gave
+the colours of the paint used on these vessels. I find an interesting
+record in the Custom House dated November 13, 1812, giving an order
+that, to avoid the injury which cruisers sustain from the use of iron
+bolts, the decks in future were to be fastened with composition bolts,
+"which would eventually prove a saving to the Revenue." After ordering
+the commanders to cause their vessels to be payed twice every year
+either with paint or bright varnish, and not to use scrapers on their
+decks except after caulking, and then only to remove the unnecessary
+pitch, the instruction goes on to stipulate the only paint colours
+which are to be employed for cruisers. These are such as were then
+allowed in the Navy, viz. black, red, white, or yellow.
+
+But apart from all the manifold difficulties and anxieties, both
+general and detailed, which arose in connection with these cruisers so
+long as they were at sea or in the shipwrights' hands, in commission
+or out of commission, there were others which applied more strictly to
+their crews. Such an incident as occurred in the year 1785 needed very
+close attention. In that year the English Ambassador at the Court of
+France had been informed by Monsieur de Vergennes that parties of
+sailors belonging to our Revenue cruisers had recently landed near
+Boulogne in pursuit of some smugglers who had taken to the shore.
+Monsieur de Vergennes added that if any British sailors or other armed
+men should be taken in such acts of violence the French Government
+would unhesitatingly sentence them immediately to be hanged.
+
+Of course the French Government were well within their rights in
+making such representations, for natural enough as no doubt it was to
+chase the smugglers when they escaped ashore, yet the trespass was
+indefensible. The Board of Customs therefore instructed their
+cruisers, as well as those of the Admiralty "whose commanders are
+furnished with commissions from this Board," to make a note of the
+matter, in order that neither they nor their men might inadvertently
+expose themselves to the severity denounced against them by the
+French laws upon acts of the like nature.
+
+In 1812 one of the mariners belonging to a cruiser happened to go
+ashore, and whilst there was seized by the press-gang for his
+Majesty's Navy. Such an occurrence as this was highly inconvenient not
+only to the man but to the Board of Customs, who resolved that
+henceforth the commanders of cruisers were not to allow any of their
+mariners shore leave unless in case of absolute necessity "until the
+protections which may be applied for shall have been received and in
+possession of such mariners."
+
+Another matter that required rectification was the practice of taking
+on board some of their friends and relatives who had no right to be
+there. Whether this was done for pleasure or profit the carrying of
+these passengers was deemed to be to the great detriment of the
+service, and the Board put a stop to it. It was not merely confined to
+the cruisers, but the boats and galleys of the Waterguard were just as
+badly abused. The one exception allowed was, that when officers of the
+Waterguard were removing from one station to another, they might use
+such a boat to convey their families with them provided it did not
+interfere with the duties of these officers. So also some of the
+commanders of the cruisers had even taken on board apprentices and
+been dishonest enough to have them borne on the books as able seamen,
+and drawn their pay as such. The Board not unnaturally deemed this
+practice highly improper, and immediately to be discontinued. No
+apprentices were to be borne on the books except the boy allowed to
+all cruisers.
+
+After a smuggling vessel's cargo had been seized and it was decided to
+send the goods to London, this was done by placing the tobacco,
+spirits, &c., in a suitable coaster and despatching her to the Thames.
+But in order to prevent her being attacked on the sea by would-be
+rescuers she was ordered to be convoyed by the Revenue cutters. The
+commander of whatever cruiser was in the neighbourhood was ordered "to
+accompany and guard" her to the Nore or Sea Reach as the case might
+be. Every quarter the cruisers were also to send a list of the
+seizures made, giving particulars of the cruiser--her name, burthen,
+number of guns, number of men, commander's name, number of days at sea
+during that quarter, how many days spent in port and why, the quantity
+of goods and nature of each seizure, the number and names of all
+smuggling vessels captured, both when and where. There was also to be
+sent the number of men who had been detained, how they had been
+disposed of, and if the men had not been detained how it was they had
+escaped.
+
+"Their Lordships are induced to call for these returns," ran the
+instruction, "in order to have before them, quarterly, a comparative
+view of the exertions of the several commanders of the Revenue
+cruisers.... They have determined, as a further inducement to
+diligence and activity in the said officers, to grant a reward of L500
+to the commander of the Revenue cruiser who, in the course of the year
+ending 1st October 1808, shall have so secured and delivered over to
+his Majesty's Naval Service the greatest number of smugglers; a reward
+of L300 to the commander who shall have secured and delivered over the
+next greatest number, and a reward of L200 to the commander who shall
+be third on the list in those respects." That was in September of
+1887.
+
+During the year ending October 1, 1810, Captain Gunthorpe, commander
+of the Excise cutter _Viper_, succeeded in handing over to his
+Majesty's Navy thirteen smugglers whom he had seized. As this was the
+highest number for that year he thus became entitled to the premium of
+L500. Captains Curling and Dobbin, two Revenue officers, were together
+concerned in transferring six men to the Navy, but inasmuch as Captain
+Patmour had been able to transfer five men during this same year it
+was he to whom the L300 were awarded. Captain Morgan of the Excise
+cutter and Captain Haddock of the Custom House cutter _Stag_ each
+transferred four men during that year.
+
+"But my Lords," states a Treasury minute of December 13, 1811,
+"understanding that the nature of the service at Deal frequently
+requires the Revenue vessels to co-operate with each other, do not
+think it equitable that such a circumstance should deprive Messrs.
+Curling and Dobbin of a fair remuneration for their diligence, and are
+therefore pleased to direct warrants likewise to be prepared granting
+to each of those gentlemen the sum of L100." In spite of the above
+numbers, however, the Treasury were not satisfied, and did not think
+that the number of men by this means transferred to the Navy had been
+at all proportionate to the encouragement which they had held out.
+They therefore altered the previous arrangement so as to embrace those
+cases only in which the exertions of the cruisers' commanders had been
+of an exceptionally distinguished nature. Thus during 1812 and the
+succeeding years, until some further provision might be made, it was
+decided that "the sum of L500 will be paid to such person commanding a
+Revenue cutter as shall in any one year transfer to the Navy the
+greatest number of smugglers, not being less than twenty." The sum of
+L300 was to be paid to the persons commanding a Revenue cutter who in
+any year should transfer the next greatest number of smugglers, not
+being less than fifteen. And L200 were to be paid to the commander who
+in one year should have transferred the third largest, not being less
+than ten. This decision was made in January of 1812, and in the
+following year it was directed that in future the rewards granted to
+the commanders of the Revenue cruisers for delivering the greatest
+number of smugglers should be made not exclusively to the commanders
+but distributed among the commander, officers, and crew according to
+the scale which has already been given on an earlier page in this
+volume. At the end of the year 1813 it was further decided that when
+vessels and boats of above four tons measurement were seized in
+ballast and afterwards broken up, not owing to their build, their
+construction, or their denomination, but simply because they had been
+engaged in smuggling, the seizing officers should become entitled to
+30s. a ton.
+
+There was also a system instituted in the year 1808 by which the
+widows of supervisors and surveyors of Riding officers and commanders
+of cruisers were allowed L30 per annum, with an additional allowance
+of L5 per annum for each child until it reached the age of fifteen.
+The widows of Riding officers, mates of cutters, and sitters of boats
+specially stationed for the prevention of smuggling were allowed L25
+per annum and L5 for each child until fifteen years old. In the case
+of the widows of mariners they were to have L15 a year and L2, 10s.
+for each child till the age of fifteen. And one finds among those thus
+rewarded Ann Sarmon, the widow, and the three children of the
+commander of the _Swan_ cutter stationed at Cowes; the one child of
+the mate of the _Tartar_ cutter of Dover; the widow of the mate of the
+_Dolphin_ of St. Ives; the widow of the Riding officer at Southampton;
+the widow and children of the commander of the cutter _Hunter_ at
+Yarmouth; and likewise of the _Hunter's_ mate.
+
+After the 10th of October 1814 the allowance for victualling the crews
+of the Revenue cruisers was augmented as follows:--For victualling
+commander and mate, 3s. a day each and 1s. 6d. per lunar month for
+fire and candle. For victualling, fire, and candle for mariners, 1s.
+10d. a day each. The daily rations to be supplied to each mariner on
+board the cruisers were to consist of 1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs.
+of bread, and two quarts of beer. If flour or vegetables were issued
+the quantity of bread was to be reduced, and if cheese were supplied
+then the amount was to be reduced in proportion to the value and not
+to the quantity of such articles. And, in order to obtain uniformity,
+a table of the rations as above was to be fixed up against the fore
+side of the mast under the deck of the cruiser, and also in some
+conspicuous place in the Custom House.
+
+Very elaborate instructions were also issued regarding the use of the
+tourniquet, which "is to stop a violent bleeding from a wounded artery
+in the limbs till it can be properly secured and tied by a surgeon."
+The medicine chest of these cruisers contained the following twenty
+articles: vomiting powders, purging powders, sweating powders, fever
+powders, calomel pills, laudanum, cough drops, stomach tincture, bark,
+scurvy drops, hartshorn, peppermint, lotion, Friar's balsam, Turner
+cerate, basilicon (for healing "sluggish ulcers"), mercurial ointment,
+blistering ointment, sticking-plaster, and lint.
+
+In short, with its fleet of cruisers well armed and well manned, well
+found in everything necessary both for ship and crew; with good wages,
+the offer of high rewards, and pensions; with other privileges second
+only to those obtainable in the Royal Navy; the Customs Board
+certainly did their best to make the floating branch of its Preventive
+service as tempting and efficient as it could possibly be. And that
+there were not more captures of smugglers was the fault at any rate
+not of those who had the administration of these cutters.
+
+[Illustration: H.M. CUTTER _WICKHAM_
+Commanded by Captain John Fullarton, R.N. From a contemporary painting
+in the possession of Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael.]
+
+A very good idea as to the appearance of a nineteenth century Revenue
+cruiser may be obtained by regarding the accompanying photographs of
+his Majesty's cutter _Wickham_. These have been courteously supplied
+to me by Dr. Robertson-Fullarton of Kilmichael, whose ancestor,
+Captain Fullarton, R.N., had command of this vessel. The original
+painting was made in 1806, and shows a fine, able vessel with ports
+for seven guns a-side, being painted after the manner of the
+contemporary men-of-war. To facilitate matters the central portion of
+the picture has been enlarged, and thus the rigging and details of
+the _Wickham_ can be closely examined. It will be observed that this
+cutter has beautiful bows with a fine, bold sheer, and would doubtless
+possess both speed and considerable seaworthiness essential for the
+west coast of Scotland, her station being the Island of Arran. In the
+picture before us it will be seen that she has exceptionally high
+bulwarks and appears to have an additional raised deck forward. The
+yard on which the squaresail was carried when off the wind is seen
+lowered with its foot-ropes and tackle. The mainsail is of course
+loose-footed, and the tack is seen well triced up. Two things
+especially strike us. First, the smallness of the yard to which the
+head of the gaff-topsail is laced; and secondly, the great size of the
+headsail. She has obviously stowed her working jib and foresail and
+set her balloon jib. When running before a breeze such a craft could
+set not merely all plain sail, but her squaresail, square-topsail and
+even stun'sls. Therefore, the smuggling vessel that was being chased
+must needs be pretty fleet of foot to get away.
+
+[Illustration: H.M. Cutter Wickham
+This shows an early Nineteenth Century King's Cutter (_a_) running
+before the wind with square sails and stuns'ls set, (_b_) on a wind
+with big jib set.]
+
+Campbeltown in those days was the headquarters of no fewer than seven
+large Revenue cruisers, all being commanded by naval officers. They
+were powerful vessels, generally manned by double crews, each having a
+smaller craft to act as tender, their chief duties being to intercept
+those who smuggled salt, spirits, and tea from the Isle of Man. The
+officers and men of the cutters made Campbeltown their home, and the
+houses of the commanders were usually built opposite to the buoys of
+the respective cutters. The merits of each cutter and officer were the
+subject of animated discussion in the town, and how "old Jack
+Fullarton had carried on" till all seemed to be going by the board on
+a coast bristling with sunken rocks, or how Captain Beatson had been
+caught off the Mull in the great January gale, and with what skill he
+had weathered the headland--these were questions which were the
+subjects of many a debate among the enthusiasts.
+
+This Captain John Fullarton had in early life served as a midshipman
+on a British man-of-war. On one occasion he had been sent under Lord
+Wickham to France on a certain mission in a war-vessel. The young
+officer's intelligence, superior manners, and handsome appearance so
+greatly pleased Lord Wickham, that his lordship insisted on having
+young Fullarton alone to accompany him ashore. After the mission was
+over Lord Wickham suggested procuring him some advancement in the
+service, to which Fullarton replied, "My lord, I am sincerely grateful
+for your undesired kindness, and for the interest you have been
+pleased to show in regard to my future prospects. Since, however, you
+have asked my personal views, I am bound to say I am not ambitious
+for promotion on board a man-of-war. I have a small property in
+Scotland, and if your lordship could obtain for me the command of one
+of his Majesty's cutters, with which I might spend my time usefully
+and honourably in cruising the waters around my native island of
+Arran, I should feel deeply indebted to you, and I should value such
+an appointment above all others."
+
+Soon afterwards, the cutter _Wickham_ was launched, and Mr. Fullarton
+obtained his commission as captain, the mate being Mr. Donald
+Fullarton, and most of the crew Arran men.[18]
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[11] The use of the petticoat as a seaman's article of attire dates
+back to the time of Chaucer:
+
+    "A Shipman was ther, woning fer by weste:
+    For aught I woot, he was of Dertemouthe.
+    He rood up-on a rouncy, as he couthe,
+    In a gowne of falding to the knee."
+
+"Falding" was a coarse cloth.
+
+[12] See Appendix VIII.
+
+[13] See Captain Robinson's, _The British Fleet_, p. 503.
+
+[14] _Ibid._, p. 502.
+
+[15] I am indebted to a suggestion made on p. 183, vol. i. No. 7 of
+_The Mariner's Mirror_.
+
+[16] See article by Captain R. Hudleston, R.N., in _The Mariner's
+Mirror_, vol. i. No. 7.
+
+[17] _Victoria County Hist.: Sussex_, vol. ii. p. 199.
+
+[18] For these details I am indebted to the kindness of Dr.
+Robertson-Fullarton, who has also called my attention to some
+information in an unlikely source--_The Memoirs of Norman Macleod,
+D.D._, by Donald Macleod, 1876.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING
+
+
+By an Order in Council, dated September 9, 1807, certain rewards were
+to be paid to the military for aiding any officer of the Customs in
+making or guarding any seizure of prohibited "or uncustomed goods." It
+was further directed that such rewards should be paid as soon as
+possible, for which purpose the Controllers and Collectors were to
+appraise with all due accuracy all articles seized and brought to his
+Majesty's warehouse within seven days of the articles being brought
+in. The strength of all spirits seized by the Navy or Military was
+also to be ascertained immediately on their being brought into the
+King's warehouse, so that the rewards might be immediately paid. The
+tobacco and snuff seized and condemned were ordered to be sold. But
+when these articles at such a sale did not fetch a sum equal to the
+amount of the duty chargeable, then the commodity was to be burnt.
+Great exertions were undoubtedly made by the soldiers for the
+suppression of smuggling, but care had to be taken to prevent wanton
+and improper seizures. The men of this branch of the service were
+awarded 40s. for every horse that was seized by them with smuggled
+goods.
+
+Everyone is aware of the fact that, not once but regularly, the
+smugglers used to signal to their craft at night from the shore as to
+whether the coast were clear, or whether it were better for the cutter
+or lugger to run out to sea again. From a collection of authentic
+incidents I find the following means were employed for signalling
+purposes:--
+
+1. The commonest signal at night was to wave a lantern from a hill or
+some prominent landmark, or from a house suitably situated.
+
+2. To take a flint and steel and set fire to a bundle of straw near
+the edge of a cliff.
+
+3. To burn a blue light.
+
+4. To fire a pistol.
+
+5. The above were all night-signals, but for day-work the craft could
+signal to the shore or other craft by lowering and raising a certain
+sail so many times.
+
+There were very many prosecutions for signalling to smuggling craft at
+many places along our coast. A sentence of six months' imprisonment
+was usually the result. Similarly, the Preventive officers on shore
+used to fire pistols or burn a blue light in signalling to themselves
+for assistance. The pistol-firing would then be answered by that of
+other Customs men in the neighbourhood. And with regard to the matter
+of these signals by the friends of smugglers, the Attorney-and
+Solicitor-General in 1805 gave their opinion to the effect that it was
+not even necessary for the prosecution to prove that there was at that
+time hovering off the coast a smuggling craft, or that one was found
+to have been within the limits; but the justice and jury must be
+satisfied from the circumstances and proof that the fire was lit for
+the purpose of giving a signal to some smugglers.
+
+By the summer of 1807 smuggling in England and Wales had increased to
+what the Commissioners of Customs designated an "alarming extent." An
+Act was therefore passed to ensure the more effectual prevention of
+this crime, and once again the Revenue officers were exhorted to
+perform their duty to its fullest extent, and were threatened with
+punishment in case of any dereliction in this respect, while rewards
+were held out as an inducement to zealous action. Under this new Act
+powers were given to the Army, Navy, Marines, and Militia to work in
+concert with each other for the purpose of preventing smuggling, for
+seizing smuggled goods, and all implements, horses, and persons
+employed or attempting to bring these ashore. The lack of vigilance,
+and even the collusion with smugglers, on the part of Revenue
+officials was still too real to be ignored. Between Dover and Rye,
+especially, were tobacco, snuff, spirits and tea run into the country
+to a very considerable extent. And the Government well knew that "in
+some of the towns on the coast of Kent and Sussex, amongst which are
+Hastings, Folkestone, Hythe, and Deal, but more especially the latter,
+the practice of smuggling is carried on so generally by such large
+gangs of men, that there can exist no hope of checking it but by the
+constant and most active vigilance of strong military patrols, with
+parties in readiness to come to their assistance." So wrote Mr. W.
+Huskisson, Secretary of the Treasury, to Colonel Gordon in August
+1807.
+
+The Deal smugglers went to what Mr. Huskisson called "daring lengths,"
+and for this reason the Treasury suggested that patrols should be
+established within the town of Deal, and for two or three miles east
+and west of the same. And the Treasury also very earnestly requested
+the Commander-in-chief for every possible assistance from the Army. It
+was observed, also, that so desperate were these smugglers, that even
+when they had been captured and impressed, they frequently escaped
+from the men-of-war and returned to their previous life of smuggling.
+To put a stop to this the Treasury made the suggestion that such men
+when captured should be sent to ships cruising at distant foreign
+stations. Some idea of the violence which was always ready to be used
+by the smugglers may be gathered by the incident which occurred on the
+25th of February 1805. On this day the cutter _Tartar_, in the service
+of the Customs, and the Excise cutter _Lively_ were at 10 P.M.
+cruising close to Dungeness on the look-out for smuggling craft. At
+the time mentioned they saw a large decked lugger which seemed to them
+indeed to be a smuggler. It stood on its course and eventually must
+run its nose ashore. Thereupon a boat's crew, consisting of men from
+the _Tartar_ and the _Lively_, got out their oars and rowed to the
+spot where the lugger was evidently about to land her cargo. They
+brought their boat right alongside the lugger just as the latter took
+the ground. But the lugger's crew, as soon as they saw the Revenue
+boat come up to her, promptly forsook her and scrambled on to the
+beach hurriedly. It was noticed that her name was _Diana_, and the
+Revenue officers had from the first been pretty sure that she was no
+innocent fishing-vessel, for they had espied flashes from the shore
+immediately before the _Diana_ grazed her keel on to the beach.
+
+Led by one of the two captains out of the cutters, the Revenue men got
+on board the smuggler and seized her, when she was found to contain a
+cargo of 665 casks of brandy, 118 casks of rum, and 237 casks of
+Geneva. Besides these, she had four casks, one case and one basket of
+wine, 119 bags of tobacco, and 43 lbs. of tea--truly a very fine and
+valuable cargo. But the officers had not been in possession of the
+lugger and her cargo more than three-quarters of an hour before a
+great crowd of infuriated people came down to the beach, armed with
+firearms and wicked-looking bludgeons. For the lugger's crew had
+evidently rushed to their shore friends and told them of their bad
+luck. Some members of this mob were on horseback, others on foot, but
+on they came with oaths and threats to where the lugger and her
+captors were remaining. "We're going to rescue the lugger and her
+goods," exclaimed the smugglers, as they stood round the bows of the
+_Diana_ in the darkness of the night. The Revenue men warned them that
+they had better keep off, or violence would have to be used to prevent
+such threats being carried out.
+
+[Illustration: "A great crowd of infuriated people came down to the
+beach."]
+
+But it was impossible to expect reason from an uncontrolled mob raging
+with fury and indignation. Soon the smugglers had opened fire, and
+ball was whistling through the night air. The _Diana_ was now lying on
+her side, and several muskets were levelled at the Revenue men. One of
+the latter was a man named Dawkins, and the smugglers had got so close
+that one villainous ruffian presented a piece at Dawkins' breast,
+though the latter smartly wrested it from him before any injury had
+been received. But equally quickly, another smuggler armed with a
+cutlass brought the blade down and wounded Dawkins on the thumb. A
+general engagement now proceeded as the smugglers continued to fire,
+but unfortunately the powder of the Revenue men had become wet, so
+only one of their crew was able to return the fire. Finding at length
+that they were no match for their aggressors, the crews were compelled
+to leave the lugger and retreat to some neighbouring barracks where
+the Lancashire Militia happened to be quartered, and a sergeant and
+his guard were requisitioned to strengthen them. With this squad the
+firing was more evenly returned and one of the smugglers was shot, but
+before long, unable to resist the military, the smugglers ceased
+firing and the beach was cleared of the mob.
+
+The matter was in due course reported to the Board of Customs, who
+investigated the affair and ordered a prosecution of the smugglers. No
+one had been captured, however, so they offered a reward of L200. That
+was in the year 1805; but it was not till 1813 or 1814 that
+information came into their hands, for no one would come forward to
+earn the reward. In the last-mentioned year, however, search was made
+for the wanted men, and two persons, named respectively Jeremiah
+Maxted and Thomas Gilbert, natives of Lydd, were arrested and put on
+their trial. They were certainly the two ringleaders of that night,
+and incited the crowd to a frenzy, although these two men did not
+actually themselves shoot, but they were heard to offer a guinea a man
+to any of the mob who would assist in rescuing the seized property.
+Still, in spite of the evidence that was brought against these men,
+such was the condition of things that they were found not guilty.
+
+But it was not always that the Revenue men acted with so much vigour,
+nor with so much honesty. It was towards the end of the year 1807 that
+two of the Riding officers stationed at Newhaven, Sussex, attempted to
+bribe a patrol of dragoons who were also on duty there for the
+prevention of smuggling. The object of the bribe was to induce the
+military to leave their posts for a short period, so that a cargo of
+dutiable goods, which were expected shortly to arrive, might be
+smuggled ashore without the payment of the Crown's duties. For such a
+suggestion to be made by Preventive men was in itself disgraceful, and
+showed not merely a grossly dishonest purpose but an extraordinary
+failure of a sense of duty. However, the soldiers, perhaps not
+altogether displeased at being able to give free rein to some of the
+jealousies which existed between the Revenue men and the Army, did not
+respond to the suggestion, but promptly arrested the Riding officers
+and conducted them to Newhaven. Of these two it was afterwards
+satisfactorily proved that one had actually offered the bribe to the
+patrol, but the other was acquitted of that charge. Both, however,
+were dismissed from the Customs service, while the sergeant and
+soldiers forming the patrol were rewarded, the sum of L20 being sent
+to the commanding officer of their regiment, to be divided among the
+patrol as he might think best.
+
+It was not merely the tobacco, spirits, and tea which in the early
+years of the nineteenth century were being smuggled into the country,
+although these were the principal articles. In addition to silks,
+laces, and other goods, the number of pairs of gloves which
+clandestinely came in was so great that the manufacture of English
+gloves was seriously injured.
+
+In the year 1811 so ineffectual had been the existing shore
+arrangements that an entirely new plan was inaugurated for suppressing
+smuggling. The Riding officers no doubt had a difficult and even
+dangerous duty to perform, but their conduct left much to be desired,
+and they needed to be kept up to their work. Under the new system,
+the office of Supervisor or Surveyor of Riding officers was abolished,
+and that of Inspector of Riding officers was created in its stead. The
+coast of England was divided into the following three districts:--
+
+No. I. London to Penzance.
+
+No. II. Penzance to Carlisle.
+
+No. III. London to Berwick.
+
+There were altogether seven of these Inspectors appointed, three being
+for the first district, two for the second, and two for the third. The
+first district was of course the worst, because it included the
+English Channel and especially the counties of Kent and Sussex. Hence
+the greater number of Inspectors. Hence, also, these three officers
+were given a yearly salary of L180, with a yearly allowance of L35 for
+the maintenance of a horse. The Inspectors of the other two districts
+were paid L150 each with the same L35 allowance for a horse. In
+addition, the Inspectors of all districts were allowed 10s. a day when
+upon inspections, which were not to last less than 60 days in each
+quarter in actual movement, "in order by constant and unexpected
+visitations, strictly to watch and check the conduct of the Riding
+officers within their allotted station." Under this new arrangement,
+also, the total number of Riding officers was to be 120, and these
+were divided into two classes--Superior and Inferior. Their salaries
+and allowances were as follows:--
+
+  FIRST DISTRICT
+
+  Superior Riding Officer      L90
+  Inferior   "       "          75
+  Allowance for horse           30
+
+  SECOND AND THIRD DISTRICTS
+
+  Superior Riding Officer      L80
+  Inferior   "       "          65
+  Allowance for horse           30
+
+The general principle of promotion was to be based on the amount of
+activity and zeal which were displayed, the Superior Riding officers
+being promoted from the Inferior, and the Inspectors of Districts
+being promoted from the most zealous Superior Riding officers.
+
+And there was, too, a difficulty with regard to the smugglers when
+they became prisoners. We have already remarked how ready they were to
+escape from the men-of-war. In the year 1815 there were some smugglers
+in detention on board one of the Revenue cutters. At that time the
+cutter's mate was acting as commander, and he was foolish enough to
+allow some of the smugglers' friends from the shore--themselves also
+of the same trade--to have free communication with two of the
+prisoners without anyone being present on behalf of the Customs. The
+result was that one of the men succeeded in making his escape. As a
+result of this captive smugglers were not permitted to have
+communication with their friends except in the presence of a proper
+officer. And there was a great laxity, also, in the guarding of
+smugglers sent aboard his Majesty's warships. In several cases the
+commanders actually declined to receive these men when delivered by
+the Revenue department: they didn't want the rascals captured by the
+cutters, and they were not going to take them into their ship's
+complement. This went on for a time, until the Admiralty sent down a
+peremptory order that the captains and commanders were to receive
+these smugglers, and when an opportunity arose they were to send them
+to the flagship at Portsmouth or Plymouth.
+
+As illustrative of the business-like methods with which the smugglers
+at this time pursued their calling, the following may well be brought
+forward. In the year 1814 several of the chief smuggling merchants at
+Alderney left that notorious island and settled at Cherbourg. But
+those small craft, which up till then had been wont to run across to
+the Channel Isles, began instantly to make for the French port
+instead. From Lyme and Beer in West Bay, from Portland and from the
+Isle of Wight they sailed, to load up with their illicit cargoes, and
+as soon as they arrived they found, ready awaiting them in the various
+stores near the quays, vast quantities of "tubs," as the casks were
+called, whilst so great was the demand, that several coopers were kept
+there busily employed making new ones. Loaded with spirits they were
+put on board the English craft, which soon hoisted sail and sped away
+to the English shores, though many there must have been which
+foundered in bad weather, or, swept on by the dreaded Alderney Race
+and its seven-knot tide, had an exciting time, only to be followed up
+later by the English Revenue cutters, or captured under the red cliffs
+of Devonshire in the act of taking the tubs ashore. For the Customs
+Board well knew of this change of market to Cherbourg, and lost no
+time in informing their officers at the different outports and the
+cruiser-commanders as well.
+
+A large number of the merchant-smugglers from Guernsey at the same
+time migrated to Coniris, about eight miles from Tregner, in France,
+and ten leagues east of the Isle of Bas, and twelve leagues S.S.W.
+from Guernsey. Anyone who is familiar with that treacherous coast, and
+the strength of its tides, will realise that in bad weather these
+little craft, heavily loaded as they always were on the return
+journey, must have been punished pretty severely. Some others,
+doubtless, foundered altogether and never got across to the Devonshire
+shores. Those people who had now settled down at Coniris were they who
+had previously dealt with the smugglers of Cawsand, Polperro,
+Mevagissey, and Gerrans. To these places were even sent circular
+letters inviting the English smugglers to come over to Coniris, just
+as previously they had come to fetch goods from Guernsey. And another
+batch of settlers from Guernsey made their new habitation at Roscore
+(Isle of Bas), from which place goods were smuggled into Coverack
+(near the Lizard), Kedgworth, Mount's Bay, and different places "in
+the North Channel."
+
+Spirits, besides being brought across in casks and run into the country
+by force or stealth, were also frequently at this time smuggled in
+through the agency of the French boats which brought vegetables and
+poultry. In this class of case the spirits were also in small casks, but
+the latter were concealed between false bulkheads and hidden below the
+ballast. But this method was practically a new departure, and began only
+about 1815. This was the smuggling-by-concealment manner, as distinct
+from that which was carried on by force and by stealth. We shall have a
+good deal more to say about this presently, so we need not let the
+matter detain us now. Commanders of cruisers were of course on the
+look-out for suspected craft, but they were reminded by the Board that
+they must be careful to make no seizures within three miles of the
+French and Dutch coasts. And that was why, as soon as a suspected vessel
+was sighted, and a capture was about to be made, some officer on the
+Revenue cutter was most careful immediately to take cross-bearings and
+fix his position; or if no land was in sight to reckon the number of
+leagues the ship had run since the last "fix" had been made. This matter
+naturally came out very strongly in the trials when the captured
+smugglers were being prosecuted, and it was the business of the
+defending counsel to do their best to upset the officers' reckoning, and
+prove that the suspected craft was within her proper and legitimate
+limits. Another trick which sprang up also about 1815, was that of
+having the casks of spirits fastened, the one behind the other, in line
+on a warp. One end of this rope would be passed through a hole at the
+aftermost end of the keel, where it would be made fast. As the vessel
+sailed along she would thus tow a whole string of barrels like the tail
+of a kite, but in order to keep the casks from bobbing above water,
+sinkers were fastened. Normally, of course, these casks would be kept on
+board, for the resistance of these objects was very considerable, and
+lessened the vessel's way. Any one who has trailed even a fairly thick
+warp astern from a small sailing craft must have been surprised at the
+difference it made to the speed of the vessel.
+
+But so soon as the Revenue cutter began to loom big, overboard went
+this string of casks towing merrily below the water-line. The cutter
+would run down to her, and order her to heave-to, which she could
+afford to do quite willingly. She would be boarded and rummaged, but
+the officer would to his surprise find nothing at all and be
+compelled to release her. Away would go the cruiser to chase some
+other craft, and as soon as she was out of the range of the
+commander's spy-glass, in would come the tubs again and be stowed
+dripping in the hold. This trick was played many a time with success,
+but at last the cruisers got to hear of the device and the smugglers
+were badly caught. I shall in due season illustrate this by an actual
+occurrence. What I want the reader to bear in mind is, that whilst the
+age of smuggling by violence and force took a long time to die out,
+yet it reached its zenith about the middle or the last quarter of the
+eighteenth century. Right till the end of the grand period of
+smuggling violence was certainly used, but the year 1815 inaugurated a
+period that was characterised less by force and armed resistance than
+by artfulness, ingenuity, and all the inventiveness which it is
+possible to employ on a smuggling craft. "Smugglers," says Marryat in
+one of his novels, "do not arm now--the service is too dangerous; they
+effect their purpose by cunning, not by force. Nevertheless, it
+requires that smugglers should be good seamen, smart, active fellows,
+and keen-witted, or they can do nothing.... All they ask is a heavy
+gale or a thick fog, and they trust to themselves for success." It was
+especially after the year 1816, when, as we shall see presently, the
+Admiralty reorganised the service of cruisers and the Land-guard was
+tightened up, that the smugglers distinguished themselves by their
+great skill and resource, their enterprise, and their ability to
+hoodwink the Revenue men. The wars with France and Spain had come to
+an end, and the Government, now that her external troubles allowed,
+could devote her attention to rectifying this smuggling evil. This
+increased watchfulness plus the gradual reduction of duties brought
+the practice of smuggling to such a low point that it became
+unprofitable, and the increased risks were not the equivalent of the
+decreased profits. This same principle, at least, is pursued in the
+twentieth century. No one is ever so foolish as to try and run whole
+cargoes of goods into the country without paying Customs duty. But
+those ingenious persons who smuggle spirits in foot-warmers,
+saccharine in the lining of hats, tobacco and cigars in false bottoms
+and other ways carry out their plans not by force but by ingenuity, by
+skill.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA
+
+
+Had you been alive and afloat in June of 1802 and been cruising about
+near Falmouth Bay, or taken up your position on the top of one of
+those glorious high cliffs anywhere between St. Anthony and the
+Dodman, and remembered first to take with you your spyglass, you would
+have witnessed a very interesting sight; that is to say, if you had
+been able to penetrate through the atmosphere, which was not
+consistently clear throughout the day. For part of it, at any rate,
+was hazy and foggy just as it often is in this neighbourhood at that
+time of year, but that was the very kind of conditions which the
+smuggler loved. Between those two headlands are two fine bays, named
+respectively Gerrans and Veryan, while away to the south-west the land
+runs out to sea till it ends in the Lizard. A whole history could be
+written of the smuggling which took place in these two bays, but we
+must content ourselves with the one instance before us.
+
+On this day it happened that his Majesty's frigate _Fisgard_ was
+proceeding up Channel under the command of Captain Michael Seymour,
+R.N. The time was three in the afternoon. In spite of the haziness it
+was intermittent, and an hour earlier he had been able to fix his
+position by St. Anthony, which then bore N. by W. distant six or seven
+miles. He was then sailing by the wind close-hauled lying S.S.E.1/2E.,
+in other words, standing away from the land out into mid-channel, the
+breeze being steady. By three o'clock the _Fisgard_ had only travelled
+about another six or seven miles, so that she was now about 12-1/2 miles
+from St. Anthony or just to seaward of the Lizard. It was at this time
+that the frigate sighted a smaller craft, fore-and-aft rigged and
+heading N.N.W., also on a wind, the breeze being abaft her port, or,
+as they called it in those days, the larboard-beam. This subsequently
+turned out to be the cutter _Flora_, and the course the cutter was
+taking would have brought her towards the Dodman. The haze had now
+lifted for a time, since although the _Flora_ was quite eight miles
+away she could be descried. Knowing that this cutter had no right to
+be within a line drawn between the Lizard and Prawl Point, the
+_Fisgard_ starboarded her helm and went in pursuit. But the _Flora's_
+crew were also on the look-out, though not a little displeased that
+the fog had lifted and revealed her position. When she saw that the
+_Fisgard_ was coming after her she began to make off, bore up, and
+headed due North. But presently she altered her tactics and hauled
+round on the starboard tack, which would of course bring her away
+from the land, make her travel faster because her head-sails would
+fill, and she hoped also no doubt to get clear of the Prawl-to-Lizard
+line. Before this she had been under easy sail, but now she put up all
+the canvas she could carry.
+
+But unfortunately the _Flora_ had not espied earlier in the day
+another frigate which was also in the vicinity. This was the _Wasso_,
+and the haze had hidden her movements. But now, even though the
+weather was clearing, the bigger ship had been hidden from view
+because she had been just round the corner in Mevagissey Bay. And at
+the very time that the _Flora_ was running away from the _Fisgard_ and
+travelling finely with every sail drawing nicely and getting clear of
+the cliffs, the _Wasso_ was working her way round the Dodman. As soon
+as the latter came into view she took in the situation--the cutter
+_Flora_ foaming along out to sea and the _Fisgard_ coming up quickly
+under a mountain of canvas. So now there were two frigates pursuing
+the cutter, and the _Flora's_ skipper must have cursed his bad luck
+for being caught in this trap. But that unkind haze was favouring the
+King's ships to-day, for ere the chase had continued much longer, yet
+a third frigate came in sight, whose name was the _Nymph_. This was
+too much for the _Flora_ to be chased by three ships each bigger and
+better armed than herself. The _Nymph_ headed her off, and the cutter
+seeing it was all up reluctantly hove-to. On examination she was
+found to have a cargo of gin, brandy, and tobacco, which she would
+have succeeded in running ashore had the haze not played such tricks.
+However, she had done her best for three exciting hours, for it was
+not until six on that wintry evening that she was captured by the
+_Nymph_, and if she had been able to hold on a little longer she might
+have escaped in the night and got right away and landed her cargo
+elsewhere before the sun came out. But, as it was, her skipper James
+Dunn had to take his trial, when a verdict was given in favour of the
+King, and Dunn was fined L200.
+
+[Illustration: The _Flora_ with the _Fisgard_, _Wasso_, and _Nymph_.]
+
+We must pass over the next two years and travel from one end of the
+English Channel to the other till we find ourselves again in Kentish
+waters. The year is 1804, and the 14th of June. On this summer's day
+at dawn the gun-brig _Jackal_, commanded by Captain Stewart, R.N., was
+cruising about to the Nor'ard of the Goodwins. As day broke he was
+informed that three smuggling vessels had just been espied in the
+vicinity. The latter certainly was not more than three miles from the
+land, and it was fairly certain what their intention was. When Captain
+Stewart came on deck and convinced himself of their identity he
+ordered out his boats, he himself going in one, while one of his
+officers took command of another, each boat having about half-a-dozen
+men on board.
+
+We mentioned just now how important it was in such cases as this that
+the position should be defined as accurately as possible. Immediately
+the boats had left the _Jackal_ the pilot of the latter and one of the
+crew on board took bearings from the North Foreland and found the
+_Jackal_ was about 7-3/4 miles from this landmark. They also took
+bearings of the position of the three smuggling luggers, and found
+these were about three or four miles off and bore from the _Jackal_ E.
+by S.
+
+To return to Captain Stewart and the two boats: for the first twenty
+minutes these oared craft gained on the luggers owing to the absence
+of wind, and the smugglers could do nothing. The dawn had revealed the
+presence of the _Jackal_ to the smugglers no less than the latter had
+been revealed to the gun-brig. And as soon as the illicit carriers
+realised what was about to happen they, too, began to make every
+effort to get moving. The early morning calm, however, was less
+favourable to them than to the comparatively light-oared craft which
+had put out from the _Jackal_, so the three luggers just rolled to the
+swell under the cliffs of the Foreland as their canvas and gear
+slatted idly from side to side.
+
+But presently, as the sun rose up in the sky, a little breeze came
+forth which bellowed the lug-sails and enabled the three craft to
+stand off from the land and endeavour, if possible, to get out into
+the Channel. In order to accelerate their speed the crews laid on to
+the sweeps and pulled manfully. Every sailorman knows that the tides
+in that neighbourhood are exceedingly strong, but the addition of the
+breeze did not improve matters for the _Jackal's_ two boats, although
+the luggers were getting along finely. However, the wind on a bright
+June morning is not unusually fitful and light, so the boats kept up a
+keen chase urged by their respective officers, and after three hours
+of strenuous rowing Captain Stewart's boat came up with the first of
+these named the _I.O._ But before he had come alongside her and was
+still 300 yards away, the master and pilot of this smuggler and six of
+her crew was seen to get into the lugger's small boat and row off to
+the second lugger named the _Nancy_, which they boarded. When the
+_Jackal's_ commander, therefore, came up with the _I.O._ he found only
+one man aboard her. He stopped to make some inquiries, and the
+solitary man produced some Bills of Lading and other papers to show
+that the craft was bound from Emden to Guernsey, and that their cargo
+was destined for the latter place.
+
+The reader may well smile at this barefaced and ingenuous lie. Not
+even a child could be possibly persuaded to imagine that a vessel
+found hovering about the North Foreland was really making for the
+Channel Isles from Germany. It was merely another instance of
+employing these papers if any awkward questions should be asked by
+suspecting Revenue vessels or men-of-war. What was truth, however, was
+that the _I.O._ was bound not to but from Guernsey, where she had
+loaded a goodly cargo of brandy and gin, all of which was found on
+board, and no doubt would shortly have been got ashore and placed in
+one of the caves not far from Longnose. Moreover, the men were as good
+as convicted when it was found that the spirits were in those small
+casks or tubs which were only employed by the smugglers; and indeed
+never had such a cargo of spirits to Guernsey been carried in such
+small-sized kegs, for Guernsey always received its spirits in casks of
+bold dimensions.
+
+It was further pointed out at the trial that the luggers could not
+have been bound on the voyage alleged, for they had not enough
+provisions on board. The Solicitor-General also demonstrated the fact
+that when these luggers were approached in deep water--that is, of
+course after the three hours' chase--they could not possibly have been
+making for Guernsey. The farther they stood from the shore the greater
+would be their danger, for they would be likely at any hour to fall in
+with the enemy's privateers which were known to be cruising not far
+off.
+
+But to return to the point in the narrative when we digressed. Captain
+Stewart, a quarter of an hour before finally coming up with the
+_I.O._, had fired several times to cause her to heave-to, but this
+they declined to do, and all her crew but one deserted her as stated.
+Leaving one of his own men on board her the naval officer, after
+marking her with a broad arrow to indicate she had been seized, went
+with his four remaining men in pursuit of the second lugger, which was
+rowing away with all haste, and alongside which the _I.O.'s_ boat was
+lying. But, as soon as Stewart began to approach, the men now quitted
+the lugger and rowed back to the _I.O._ He opened fire at them, but
+they still persisted, and seeing this he continued to pursue the
+second lugger, boarded her and seized her, the time being now about
+6.30 A.M.
+
+Afterwards he waited until his other boat had come up, and left her
+crew in charge of this second lugger, and then rowed off to the first
+lugger again, but once more the _I.O.'s_ people deserted her and rowed
+towards the shore. Undaunted he then went in pursuit of the third
+lugger, but as a breeze came up she managed to get away. Presently he
+was able to hail a neutral vessel who gave him a passage back, and at
+midday he rejoined the _I.O._, which was subsequently taken captive
+into Dover, and at a later date ordered to be condemned. She had
+belonged to Deal and was no doubt in the regular smuggling industry.
+
+Then there was the case of the lugger _Polly_, which occurred in
+January of 1808. Because vessels of this kind were, from their
+construction, their size, and their rig especially suitable for
+running goods, they were now compelled to have a licence before being
+allowed to navigate at all. This licence was given on condition that
+she was never to be found guilty of smuggling, nor to navigate outside
+certain limits, the object of course being to prevent her from running
+backwards and forwards across the English and Irish Channels. In the
+present instance the _Polly_ had been licensed to navigate and trade,
+to fish and to carry pilots between Bexhill and coastwise round Great
+Britain, but not to cross the Channels. To this effect her master,
+William Bennett, had entered in a bond. But on the date mentioned she
+was unfortunately actually discovered at the island of Alderney, and
+it was obvious that she was there for the purpose of loading the
+usual cargo of goods to be smuggled into England. Six days later she
+had taken on board all that she wanted, but just as she was leaving
+the Customs officer examined her licence; and as it was found that she
+was not allowed to "go foreign," and that to go to Alderney had always
+been regarded a foreign voyage, she was promptly seized. Furthermore,
+as there was no suggestion of any fishing-gear found on board it was a
+clear case, and after due trial the verdict was given for the King and
+she was condemned.
+
+There is existing an interesting application from the boat-masters and
+fishermen of Robin Hood's Bay (Yorkshire) in connection with the
+restrictions which were now enforced regarding luggers. These poor
+people were engaged in the Yarmouth herring-fishery, and prayed for
+relief from the penalties threatened by the recent Act of Parliament,
+which stipulated that luggers of a size exceeding 50 tons burthen were
+made liable to forfeiture. As their North Sea craft came under this
+category they were naturally in great distress. However the Customs
+Board pointed out that the Act allowed all vessels and boats of the
+above description and tonnage "which were rigged and fitted at the
+time of the passing thereof and intended for the purpose of fishing"
+to be licensed.
+
+Whenever those tubs of spirits were seized from a smuggling craft at
+sea they were forwarded to the King's warehouse, London, by those
+coasting vessels, whose masters were "of known respectability." And by
+a different conveyance a sample pint of every cask was to be
+transmitted to the same address. The bungs of the casks were to be
+secured with a tin-plate, and under a seal of office, each cask being
+branded with the letters "G.R.," and the quantity given at the head of
+each cask. But those spirits which were seized on land and not on sea
+were to be sold by public auction. All smuggling transactions of any
+account, and all seizures of any magnitude, and especially all those
+which were attended by any attempt to rescue, were to be reported
+separately to the Customs Board. Small casks which had contained
+seized spirits were, after condemnation, sometimes allowed to fall
+into the hands of the smugglers, who used them again for the same
+purpose. To put a stop to this it was ordered that these tubs were in
+future to be burnt or cut to pieces "as to be only fit for firewood."
+
+Even as early as 1782 considerable frauds were perpetrated by stating
+certain imports to be of one nature when they were something entirely
+different. For instance a great deal of starch had been imported under
+the denomination of flour from Ireland. The Revenue officers were
+therefore instructed to discriminate between the two articles by the
+following means. Starch "when in flour" and real flour could be
+differentiated by putting some of each into a tumbler of water. If the
+"flour" were starch it would sink to the bottom and form a hard
+substance, if it were real flour then it would turn into a paste.
+Starch was also much whiter than flour. And a good deal of spirits,
+wine, tea, and tobacco brought into vessels as ship's stores for the
+crew were also frequently smuggled ashore. Particularly was this the
+case in small vessels from Holland, France, Guernsey, Jersey, and
+Alderney.
+
+One day in the month of May, 1814, a fine West Indian ship named the
+_Caroline_ set sail from the Island of St. Thomas with a valuable
+cargo of dutiable goods, and in due time entered the English Channel.
+Before long she had run up the coast and found herself off Fairlight
+(between Hastings and Rye). The people on shore had been on the
+look-out for this ship, and as soon as the _Caroline_ hove in sight a
+boat put off to meet her. Some one threw down a line which was made
+fast to the boat, and from the latter several men clambered aboard.
+After the usual salutations they accompanied the master of the ship
+and went below to the cabin, where some time was spent in bargaining.
+To make a long story short, they arranged to purchase from the
+_Caroline_ 25 gallons of rum and some coffee, for which the West
+Indiaman's skipper was well paid, the average price of rum in that
+year being about 20s. a gallon. A cask of rum, 3 cwt. of coffee in a
+barrel and 2 cwt. in a bag were accordingly lowered over the ship's
+side into the boat and away went the little craft to the shore,
+having, as it was supposed, cheated the Customs. The _Caroline_
+continued her course and proceeded to London. The Customs authorities,
+however, had got wind of the affair and the matter was brought to a
+conclusion before one of his Majesty's judges.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Caroline_ continued her course and proceeded to
+London."]
+
+But East Indiamen were just as bad, if not a great deal worse, for it
+was their frequent practice to arrive in the Downs and sell quantities
+of tea to the men who came out from Deal in small craft. The
+commodity could then be kept either for the use of their families and
+sold to their immediate friends, or sent up to London by the "duffers"
+in the manner we spoke of in an earlier chapter. In the instances when
+spirits were smuggled into the country there was usually some
+arrangement between the publicans and the smugglers for disposing of
+the stuff. But, you may ask, how did the Deal boatmen manage to get
+the tea to their homes without being seen by the Customs officers? In
+the first place it was always difficult to prove that the men really
+were smugglers, for they would be quite wide-awake enough not to bring
+obvious bales ashore; and, secondly, the Deal men had such a
+reputation as desperate characters that no officer, unless he was
+pretty sure that a smuggling transaction was being carried on and
+could rely, too, on being well supported by other Customs men and the
+soldiers, would think of meddling in the matter. But, lastly, the men
+who came ashore from the East Indiamen had a smart little dodge of
+their own for concealing the tea.
+
+[Illustration: How the Deal Boatmen used to Smuggle Tea Ashore.]
+
+The accompanying picture is no imaginary instance, but is actually
+taken from an official document. The figure is supposed to represent
+one of these Deal boatmen, and the numerals will explain the methods
+of secreting the tea. (1) Indicates a cotton bag which was made to fit
+the crown of his hat, and herein could be carried 2 lbs. of tea. He
+would, of course, have his hat on as he came ashore, and probably it
+would be a sou'wester, so there would be nothing suspicious in that.
+(2) Cotton stays or a waistcoat tied round the body. This waistcoat
+was fitted with plenty of pockets to hold as much as possible. (3)
+This was a bustle for the lower part of the body and tied on with
+strings. (4) These were thigh-pieces also tied round and worn
+underneath the trousers. When all these concealments were filled the
+man had on his person as much as 30 lbs. of tea, so that he came
+ashore and smuggled with impunity. And if you multiply these 30 lbs.
+by several crews of these Deal boats you can guess how much loss to
+the Revenue the arrival of an East Indiamen in the Downs meant to the
+Revenue.
+
+Another old dodge, though different in kind, was employed by a
+smuggling vessel when at sea and being chased towards evening, or on
+one of those days when the atmosphere is hazy or foggy. To prevent her
+canvas being a mark against the horizon, the lugger would lower her
+sail, and her black hull was very difficult to distinguish in the
+gathering gloom. This happened once when the smuggling cutter
+_Gloire_, a vessel of 38 tons burthen belonging to Weymouth, was being
+chased about midnight in January of 1816 by the Revenue cutter _Rose_.
+The smuggler had hoped to have been able to run his goods ashore at
+Bowen Bottom, Dorset, but the _Rose_ was too smart for him, launched
+her galley, and seized her with a full cargo of half-ankers.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS
+
+
+If the reader will carry his mind back to 1787 he will recollect that
+in this year we saw a reformation in the system of the Revenue
+cruisers, and the practice of employing hired craft was discontinued.
+This reformed system went on until the year 1816, when a highly
+important change occurred in the administration of these vessels.
+
+On the 5th of April in that year all the Revenue cruisers which
+previously had been under the control of the Board of Customs now
+passed into the hands of the Admiralty. The general object was to
+adopt more effectual means for putting a stop to the smuggling, and
+these vessels were of course to be employed in co-operation with the
+ships of his Majesty's Navy afloat and the Revenue officers on shore.
+Due notice was accordingly sent from the Customs office informing the
+commanders of cruisers that they were to place themselves under the
+orders of the Admiralty in the future. But the cost of these cruisers
+was still to be borne by the Customs as before.
+
+It may seem a little curious that whereas the Board of Customs had
+controlled these vessels for about a hundred and fifty years this
+sudden change should have been made. But, primarily, any customs
+organisation must belong to the shore. The employment of cruisers was
+in its origin really an afterthought to prevent the Crown being
+cheated of its dues. In other words, the service of sloops and cutters
+was a kind of off-shoot from the service on land. It was only because
+the smuggling was so daring, because the Crown was so regularly robbed
+that some means of dealing with these robbers on sea and on even terms
+had to be devised. But, of course, with the Admiralty the case was
+quite different. For long centuries that department had to deal with
+ships and everything therewith connected. Therefore to many it seemed
+that that department which controlled the Navy should also control
+that smaller navy comprised by the Revenue cruisers.
+
+At this date we must recollect that the Battle of Waterloo had been
+won only a few months, that once and for all Napoleon had been crushed
+and broken, that at last there had come peace and an end of those wars
+which had seemed interminable. From this return of peace followed two
+facts. Firstly, the European ports were now opened afresh not merely
+to honest traders, but to the fleets of smugglers who could go about
+their work with greater safety, with less fear of being captured by
+privateers. Thus it was most probable that as the English Channel was
+now practically a clear sphere there would be a renewed activity on
+the part of these men. But, secondly, it also followed that the
+Admiralty, charged no longer with the anxiety and vigilance which a
+naval war must bring with it, was free to devote its manifold
+abilities, most especially in respect of organisation, for the benefit
+of the Revenue department. At one and the same time, then, there was
+the chance of greater smuggling activity and a more concentrated
+effort to put down this smuggling.
+
+Furthermore, inasmuch as the wars had ended the Navy needed fewer men.
+We know how it was in the case of Naval officers, many of whom found
+themselves unemployed. But it was not less bad for the seamen, many of
+whom had drifted into the service by the way we have seen--through
+being captured smuggling and then impressed. Returned once more to
+their native haunts after long separation, was it likely that having
+done so much roving, fought so many battles, sailed so many miles,
+passed through so many exciting incidents that they would quietly take
+to tilling the fields or gathering the crops? Some, no doubt, did;
+others applied themselves to some other industries for which they were
+fitted. But there were very many who went back to the occupation of
+the smuggler. They had heard the call to sea, and since fishing was in
+a bad way they must resume running illicit cargoes again. Agriculture
+and the like have few fascinations for men who have fought and roamed
+the sea most of their lives. So when some enterprising rascal with
+enough ready capital came along they were more than prepared to take
+up the practice once more.
+
+That was how the matter was viewed from their side. But the Government
+were determined that an evil which had been a great worry for at least
+a century and a half of English history should be stamped out. The
+only way was to make the smuggling unprofitable. Inasmuch as these men
+for the most part made their profits through being able to undersell
+the fair trader (because there were no Custom duties paid) the most
+obvious remedy would have been to lower the rates of import duties.
+But since that was not practicable, the only possible alternative was
+to increase the dangers and risk to which a smuggler must expose
+himself.
+
+And instantly the first step, then, must be towards establishing "such
+a system of discipline and vigilance over the Revenue cruisers and
+boats as shall give the country the benefit of their constant and
+active services." These smuggling pests must be sought out, they must
+never be allowed to escape, to laugh defiantly at the Crown's efforts,
+and they must be punished severely when captured. It was therefore
+deemed by the Treasury that there would be a greater efficiency in
+these cruisers if "put under naval watchfulness and discipline,
+controlled by such authority as the Department of the Admiralty may
+think fit."
+
+The change came about as stated, and the Admiralty retained in the
+service those officers and crews of the Revenue cruisers as by length
+of service and in other ways had shown that they were fit and
+efficient. Those, however, who had grown too old for the work were
+superannuated. Similarly, with regard to the Preventive boatmen, these
+were also taken over by the Admiralty, but here, again, only those who
+were capable were accepted, while for the others "some moderate
+provision" was made.
+
+On the last day of July in that year were sent out the regulations
+which the Admiralty had drawn up respecting the salaries, wages,
+victualling, &c., of the Revenue cruisers. These may be summarised as
+follows, and compared with rates which have been given for previous
+years. They were sent addressed in each case to the "Commander of His
+Majesty's Cruiser employed in the prevention of smuggling."
+
+And first as to payment:
+
+  (I.) CRUISERS OF THE FIRST CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of 140 tons burthen and upwards.
+
+  Commander to have         L150 per annum
+  1st Mate     "              80     "
+  2nd Mate     "              45     "
+
+ (II.) CRUISERS OF THE SECOND CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of 100 tons and upwards but under 140 tons.
+
+  Commander to have         L130 per annum
+  1st Mate    "               70     "
+  2nd Mate    "               40     "
+
+(III.) CRUISERS OF THE THIRD CLASS,
+       _i.e._ of less than 100 tons.
+
+  Commander to have         L110 per annum
+  1st Mate    "               60     "
+  (No 2nd Mate)
+
+The wages of the following persons were to remain the same in all
+classes, viz.:
+
+  Deputed Mariners       L2  8s. per lunar month
+  Seamen                  2  0      "     "
+  Boys                   10  0 per annum
+
+Muster books were ordered to be kept regularly, and the sum of 1s. 6d.
+was allowed to the commander a day for each man borne on the books and
+actually victualled, to provide for the following proportion of
+provisions:--1-1/2 lbs. of meat, 1-1/2 lbs. of bread, 1/2 gallon of
+beer. The commander was also allowed 3s. a day for his own victuals,
+and a like sum for each of his mates. Allowance was made for a
+medicine chest to the extent of L3 annually. All expenses of pilotage
+were to be paid by the Navy, "but the commanders and mates are to make
+themselves acquainted with the coasts, &c., and no general pilot will
+be allowed for more than two months after a cruiser's arrival on any
+new station."
+
+And there is now a notable innovation, which marked the advent of a
+new age. Instead of the prevailing hempen cables with which these
+cruisers had been supplied and had been in use for centuries among our
+ships, these cutters were ordered to be furnished with chain cables
+"in order that the vessels may have the less occasion for going to a
+King's Port to refit or make purchases." If a man were injured or
+became sick whilst in the service so as to need surgical aid, the
+expense was to be allowed. And in order still further to make the
+cruisers independent of the shore and able to offer no excuse for
+running into harbour they were ordered never to proceed to sea without
+three weeks' provisions and water. As to the widows of mariners, they
+were to receive L10 per annum.
+
+So much, then, for the new conditions of service in these Revenue
+craft as undertaken by the Admiralty. Let us now obtain some idea of
+the duties that were attached to these officers and vessels. The
+commanders were directed by the Admiralty to make themselves familiar
+with the Acts of Parliament for the prevention of smuggling, Orders in
+Council, Proclamations, &c., and to obey the instruction of whatever
+admiral they were placed under, as also the commanders of any of his
+Majesty's ships whom they might fall in with "diverting you from the
+cruise on which you are employed."
+
+Each commander was assigned his own particular station for cruising,
+and he was never to lie in any harbour, bay, or creek unless by stress
+of weather or other unavoidable necessity. He was to keep a look-out
+for vessels of a suspicious appearance, which, in respect of size and
+build, appeared to be adapted for smuggling. Especially was he to look
+out for French craft of this description. Having arrested them he was
+to hand them over to the nearest man-of-war. He was also to keep a
+smart look-out for the smugglers' practice of sinking goods and
+afterwards creeping for them. The cruisers were to visit the various
+creeks and bays; and whenever weather permitted the commander was to
+send a boat and crew to examine such places at night. And, if
+necessary, the crew were to remain there until the cruiser came to
+fetch them back in the morning.
+
+Care was to be taken that the smugglers themselves no less than their
+craft and goods were to be captured, and the commanders of these
+cruisers were to co-operate with the Land-guard and keep in close
+touch with the Riding officers ashore as well as the Sitters of
+Preventive boats, and to agree upon a code of signals between them,
+as, for example, by making false fires at night or the hoisting of
+proper colours in the different parts of the vessel by day, so that
+the shore officers might be informed of any suspicious vessels on the
+coast. These cruisers were also to speak with all the ships with
+which they fell in, and to direct any ships subject to quarantine to
+proceed to quarantine stations. And if they came across some
+merchantman or other vessel, which they suspected of smuggling, the
+cruiser was to accompany such craft into port. And they were enjoined
+to be particularly careful to guard East India ships to their
+moorings, or until, the next station having been reached, they could
+be handed over to the next cruiser.
+
+The commanders of the cruisers were also to be on their guard against
+the practice in vogue among ships that had been to Holland and France
+with coals, for these craft were especially prone on their return to
+putting dutiable goods into light craft from London, or on the coast,
+but chiefly into cobbles or small fishing craft at sea. And even when
+it should happen that a cruiser had to be detained in port for
+repairs, the commander was to spare as many officers and seamen as
+possible and to employ these in keeping a regular watch on the high
+grounds near the sea, so as to watch what was passing, and, if
+necessary, despatch a boat and part of the cruiser's crew. The
+commanders were reminded that the cruisers were not to wear the
+colours used in the Royal Navy, but to wear the same ensigns and
+pendants as provided by the Revenue Board under 24 Geo. III. c. 47,
+sect. 23.
+
+On a previous page we went into the matter of firing at the smuggling
+craft with shotted or with unshotted guns. Now among the instructions
+which were issued by the Admiralty on taking over these Revenue
+cruisers was the clear order that no officer of a cruiser or boat was
+justified in shooting at a suspected smuggling vessel until the former
+shall have first hoisted his pendant and ensign, nor unless a gun
+shall have been first fired as a signal. The date of this, of course,
+was 1816. But among the documents preserved at the Swansea Custom
+House there is an interesting letter dated July 1806, written by the
+Collector to Mr. Hobhouse, stating that a Mr. Barber, the
+sailing-master of the _Cleveland_, had been committed for trial on a
+charge of wilful murder, he having fired a shot to cause a boat to
+bring-to and thus killed a man. This, taken in conjunction with the
+testimony of the Sheerness Coastguard, to which I alluded by
+anticipation and shall mention again, seems to me fairly conclusive
+that in _practice_ at least there was no fixed rule as to whether the
+first gun were shotted or unshotted. At the same time the above quoted
+instruction from the Admiralty, although loosely worded, would seem to
+have meant that the first gun was merely to be of the nature of a
+warning signal and no shot fired in this first instance.
+
+And then, again, among these instructions cropped up the reminder that
+in times past commanders of cruisers had not been wont to keep the
+sea in bad weather--a period when the conditions were most favourable
+for smugglers--but now the Admiralty remarked that if the commander
+should be deficient in "this most essential part of your duty" he
+would be superseded. On the west coasts of England and Scotland
+especially some of the commanders had been accustomed in former years
+to pass the night in some harbour, bar, or creek instead of cruising
+on their station and counteracting the designs of the smugglers, "who
+will always prefer the night time for carrying on his operations."
+Consequently the Admiralty now strictly charged the commanders to
+cruise during the night, and no matter of private concern must serve
+as a pretext for any intermission.
+
+They were also to maintain a regular communication with the commander
+of any other vessel with which they had been instructed to cruise in
+concert. And cruisers were to be furnished with the laws relative to
+smuggling and not to exceed the powers vested in the commanders by
+law. As to any un-Customed or prohibited goods these were to be
+secured in the King's Warehouse at the next port, and care was to be
+taken that these goods remained undamaged or pilfered by the crew. And
+after the goods had been thus put ashore both the commander and mate
+were carefully to search the smuggling vessel, the boxes, and bedding
+of her crew to see if anything had been kept back.
+
+Whenever a vessel was seized at sea precautions must be taken to
+ascertain the distance from the shore "by causing two points of land
+to be set, and the bearings thereof to be noted by two or more of your
+officers and mariners who are acquainted with those points of land, so
+that each of them may be in condition to swear to the bearings from
+the note taken by him at the time, to be produced by him upon the
+trial of the vessels."
+
+Any papers found on board the smuggling craft were immediately to be
+initialled by the persons present, and no cruiser or any of her boats
+should be employed in carrying passengers or pleasure parties. The
+commander and mate were to keep separate journals of all the
+proceedings of the cruiser relating to wind and weather, bearings, and
+distances from the land, soundings, &c., every twenty-four hours so
+that the admiral could tell whether the cruisers had used every
+exertion to suppress smuggling, or had been negligent and slack in
+their duties. For this purpose the twenty-four hours were divided into
+three parts thus:--Midnight to 8 A.M., 8 A.M. to 4 P.M., and 4 P.M. to
+midnight. In each of these three divisions the commander was to fix
+his position by cross-bearings and soundings if in less than 30
+fathoms. This was to be done a little before sunrise, at noon, and a
+little before sunset, provided that if the land were not seen or the
+cruiser be chasing a vessel, this fact was to be noted in the journal,
+and the bearings and soundings were to be taken whenever the land
+should be seen. An exact copy of this journal was to be sent after the
+end of each month to the admiral under whose command the cruiser
+happened to be placed.
+
+The table on p. 228 is an example of the journal of one of these
+craft, and will show instantly the kind of record which was kept.
+
+On the 1st of January, 1817, the Preventive boats were put under the
+control of Captain Hanchett, R.N., who was known as the
+Controller-General of the Preventive Boat Service. There was an effort
+made also in this department to obtain increased efficiency. And the
+following articles were ordered to be supplied to each Preventive
+boat:--one small flat cask to hold two gallons of fresh water, one
+small water-tight harness cask to hold provisions, one chest of arms
+and ammunition, one Custom House Jack, two "spying-glasses" (one for
+the watch-house, the other for the boat), one small bucket for baling,
+one "wall piece," forty rounds of cartridges, thirty muskets or
+carbines, preference being given to carbines with musket-ball bore
+where new ones are to be purchased, twenty light pistols, balls in
+proportion to the above, bayonets, cutlasses, pouches, tucks, small
+hand hatchets for cutting away rigging, musket flints, pistol flints,
+a set of implements for cleaning arms, a set of rummaging tools, and
+a dark "lanthorn." With this full inventory these open, oared boats
+could go about their work for long spells in bays, up creeks and
+estuaries, on the prowl for the smugglers by night.
+
+JOURNAL OF HIS MAJESTY'S REVENUE CRUISER THE "VIGILANT," JOHN
+SMITH, COMMANDER, FOR THE MONTH OF JULY 18--
+
+-------+------+--------+------+--------------------+---------+--------------
+       |      |        |      |  Observation made. |         |
+Day of |      |        |      +----------+---------+         |
+  the  |      |        |      |          |Bearings |         |
+ Week  |      |        |At Sea|          |  and    |Soundings|Occurrences
+  and  |      |        | or in|  Land    |Distances|   in    |    and
+ Month | Wind.|Weather.| Port.|  Seen.   |in Miles | Fathoms |  Remarks.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+July   |E.S.E.|Moderate|At sea|Red Head  |W.N.W.   |Above 30 |Cruising in
+Monday |      |        |      |          |9 miles  |         |station spoke
+1st.,  |      |        |      |          |         |         |a vessel from
+Morning|      |        |      |          |         |         |the Baltic
+  or   |      |        |      |          |         |         |laden with
+first  |      |        |      |          |         |         |hemp, &c., but
+part   |      |        |      |Light,    |S.W. by  |         |sea running
+       |      |        |      |Bell Rock |S. 12    |         |high, did not
+       |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |board her. Saw
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |H.M. sloop
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |_Cherokee_ to
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |the N.E. at
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |9 A.M.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+Noon or|      |        |      |Fifeness  |W.N.W. 5 |    23   |Nothing
+second |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |remarkable
+ part  |      |        |      |Isle of   |S.W. by  |         |occurred.
+       |      |        |      |May       |W. 6     |         |
+       |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+Evening|      |        |      |Fifeness  |S. by E. |    12   |Lost sight of
+or     |      |        |      |          |8-1/2    |         |the _Cherokee_
+third  |      |        |      |          |miles    |         |standing off
+part   |      |        |      |          |         |         |and on in St.
+       |      |        |      |Light,    |E. by S. |         |Andrews Bay.
+       |      |        |      |Bell Rock |9 miles  |         |Sent out the
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |boat with Mr.
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |Jones, second
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |mate, to visit
+       |      |        |      |          |         |         |the creeks.
+-------+------+--------+------+----------+---------+---------+--------------
+
+Whenever any vessels were seized and condemned a full, descriptive
+account was sent to London regarding their size, breadth, depth,
+burthen, age, where built, draught, scantlings, the nature of the
+wood, how fastened, whether the craft appeared strained, how many guns
+she carried, what was the probable expense of having her refitted, how
+long she would last when this had been done, whether she had the
+reputation for rowing or sailing quickly, and what was her value. If
+it was recognised that she was a serviceable vessel she was not to be
+destroyed but employed in the Preventive service.
+
+Among the names of the Revenue cutters about this time were the
+_Scorpion_, _Enchantress_, _Jacobus_, and _Rattlesnake_. There was a
+good deal of smuggling now going on in Essex, and the last-mentioned
+was employed to watch the river Blackwater in that district.
+Lieutenant Neame, R.N., was also ordered to proceed to the Blackwater
+with the lugger _Fortune_, and arrived there to take charge of the
+_Rattlesnake_. This was in September 1818; and here let us remark that
+although the Preventive Water-guard originally had charge of the
+whole coast of England, yet a few months before the above date--it
+occurred actually in July 1817--the staff between the North and South
+Forelands was withdrawn, and this part of the coast was placed under
+the charge of the Coast Blockade. Under the arrangement of 1816, when
+the cruisers had been put under the care of the Admiralty, the
+Preventive Waterguard had come under the authority of the Treasury,
+but now, in 1817, came the change mentioned. Towards the close of 1818
+this Coast Blockade, instead of being confined merely to that coast
+between the two Forelands, was extended till it reached on the one
+side Shellness by the mouth of the East Swale, and on the other right
+away down Channel to Cuckmere Haven (between Newhaven and Beachy
+Head).
+
+The history of this change may be summed up as follows. It was
+suggested in the year 1816 by Captain M'Culloch of H.M.S. _Ganymede_
+(which was one of the vessels employed in the prevention of smuggling
+between Dungeness and North Foreland) that it would be advantageous to
+land the crews of the vessels employed on the cruisers and Naval ships
+engaged in preventing smuggling. The men were to be put ashore every
+day just after sunset and so form a guard along the coast during the
+night. In the morning, just before sunrise, the men were to be put on
+board their ships once more. So the experiment was tried and was
+found to be so successful that this method of guarding the coast was
+adopted by a Treasury Minute of June 19, 1817. The district between
+the Forelands was assigned to Captain M'Culloch, who had with him the
+officers and crew of H.M.S. _Severn_. Those boats and men which had
+belonged to the Preventive service stationed between the Forelands
+were withdrawn, and the entire protection of this district was left to
+Captain M'Culloch's force. This was known as the Coast Blockade, and
+was afterwards extended as just mentioned to Sheppey and Seaford.
+
+If we may anticipate for a moment in order to preserve continuity, let
+us add that in the year 1821 this span of coast was divided into
+three, each division being subdivided into four districts. The
+divisions were under the superintendence of a senior lieutenant, a
+midshipman, one petty officer of the first class and one of the
+second. The districts, on the other hand, were under the
+superintendence of a junior lieutenant. The men were divided into
+parties of ten, each party having about a mile of coastline, and
+guard-houses were established along the coast at a distance of about
+every four miles. The seamen volunteered into the service, and, if
+found effective, of good character, but had no relatives in the
+neighbourhood, they were accepted. The object of this last condition
+was to prevent their showing any sympathy with the smugglers of the
+district. These men undertook to serve for three years, and for
+payment of wages they were borne on the books of any of his Majesty's
+ships.
+
+We can thus see how gradually the influence of the Admiralty had been
+exerted over the Preventive work which had been carried on by the
+Customs. There are then three steps. First in assisting the Revenue
+cruisers, and, lastly, by taking charge of the Land-guard. The proof
+of the wisdom of this change was seen in results, for the Revenue
+derived better protection because of the Admiralty influence. There
+was better discipline, greater activity, and a smarter look-out was
+kept. Thus it came about that in that very south-eastern district
+which had been for so long a time notorious for its nefarious trade,
+the smugglers found their calling a very difficult one. And both these
+changes in respect of cruisers and Land-guard had been made certainly
+not with the enthusiastic support of the Board of Customs, who had
+indeed expressed their doubts as to whether such a transformation were
+prudent.
+
+Some idea of the number of his Majesty's ships and vessels which were
+employed in the prevention of smuggling in the year 1819 may be
+gathered from the following list. It should, however, be mentioned
+that these did not include the numbers of Custom House cruisers which
+the Admiralty had begun to control, but were actually the Naval ships
+which aided those of the Revenue:--
+
+    Plymouth supplied 10 ships and 4 tenders
+    Portsmouth  "      8   "       3    "
+    Sheerness   "      8   "       2    "
+    Leith       "      7   "       1 tender
+    Ireland     "     12   "       1    "
+
+at a total cost of L245,519. But it should also be borne in mind that
+these ships of the Navy, or at any rate by far the greater number of
+them, would have been in commission whether employed or not in the
+prevention of smuggling, and in certain cases these ships were
+employed in the Preventive service for only a part of the year.
+Without the Revenue cutters the Navy could not possibly have dealt
+with the smugglers, and this was actually admitted in a Treasury
+Minute of January 15, 1822. The total number of Revenue cruisers
+employed in Great Britain and Ireland during the year 1819, as
+distinct from the ships of the Royal Navy, amounted to 69. The
+following year this number had increased to 70. These were apportioned
+thus:--
+
+    20 under the Commander-in-Chief at Sheerness
+    11  "             "          "   "  Portsmouth
+    14  "             "          "   "  Plymouth
+    12  "             "          "   "  Leith
+    11 were employed in Ireland
+     2 were employed by the Commissioners of Customs
+    --
+    70
+    ==
+
+To sum up then with regard to the Preventive Water-guard, let us state
+that this had been constituted in 1809 to supplement the efforts of
+the cruisers and Riding officers, the coast of England and Wales being
+divided into three parts, and placed under the control of Inspecting
+Commanders. Under this arrangement were included the Revenue cruisers
+themselves. Then in 1816 the Admiralty had taken over these cruisers
+from the Preventive Water-guard, and the following year the Coast
+Blockade had taken over that portion of the coast between the
+Forelands, to be extended in 1818 to Shellness and Seaford
+respectively.
+
+The sphere of activity on the part of the Preventive Water-guard was
+thus by the year 1819 considerably curtailed, and from the
+instructions which were now issued to the Inspecting Commanders we can
+see how the rest of the coastline other than that section just
+considered was dealt with. Each station consisted of one chief
+officer, one chief boatman, two commissioned boatmen, and four
+established boatmen. There was a six-oared boat with her rudder and
+wash-boards--"wash-streaks" they are officially called--a five-fathom
+rope as a light painter, eight good ash oars, two boat-hooks. She was
+a sailing craft, for she was provided with a fore-mast, main-mast, and
+mizzen-mast, with "haul-yards," travellers, down-hauls, sheets, &c.
+Her canvas consisted of foresail, mainsail, and mizzen with a yard for
+each. She carried also a jib, the casks for water and provisions, a
+boat's "bittacle" (= binnacle), with compass and lamp. She was further
+furnished with a couple of creeping irons for getting up the
+smugglers' kegs, a grapnel, a chest of arms and ammunition, the Custom
+House Jack and spy-glass as already mentioned.
+
+This vessel was rigged as a three-masted lugger with a jib. There is
+no mention of a bowsprit, so either one of the oars or a boat-hook
+would have to be employed for that purpose. In addition to this larger
+boat there was also on the station a light four-oared gig fitted with
+mast, yard (or "spreet"), a 7 lb. hand lead, 20 fathoms of line for
+the latter, as well as ballast bags to fill with stones or sand. If
+the established crews were inadequate during emergency extra men could
+be hired. The boats were painted twice a year, but "always to be
+completed before the bad weather sets in, and the colours to be
+assimilated as near as possible to those used by the natives and
+smugglers which frequent the coast which are least conspicuous."
+
+If any of the established boatmen intermarried with families of
+notorious smugglers the Inspecting Commander was to send information
+to the Controller-General. Furthermore, no one was to be appointed to
+any station within twenty miles of his place of birth or within twenty
+miles of the place where he had resided for six months previous to
+this appointment.
+
+The name, colour, rig, and other description of any vessel about to
+depart on a smuggling trip or expected to arrive with contraband goods
+on the coast were to be given by the Inspecting Commander both to the
+admirals commanding the men-of-war off the coast in that
+neighbourhood, to the captains and commanders of any men-of-war or
+Revenue cruisers, and also to the Inspecting Commander of the
+Preventive Water-guard on either side of him. And in order to keep the
+men up to their duties the Preventive stations were to be inspected
+often, and at certain times by day and night. The Inspecting
+Commanders were to perform their journeys on horseback and to proceed
+as much as possible by the sea-coast, so as to become well acquainted
+with the places where the smugglers resort.
+
+The officers and boatmen were ordered to reside as near their duty as
+possible and not to lodge in the houses of notorious smugglers.
+Officers and men were also to be private owners of no boats nor of
+shares in public-houses or fishing-craft. The Inspecting Commanders
+were to report the nature of the coast, the time, the manner, and the
+method in respect of the smuggling generally carried on in the
+district. If there were any shoals or rocks, not generally laid down
+or known, discovered when sounding to possess a different depth of
+water, or if anything should occur which might be useful for
+navigating the coasts of the kingdom, then cross bearings were to be
+taken and noted. These men were also to render every assistance in
+case of wrecks and to prevent goods being smuggled therefrom into the
+country. If any of these Preventive boatmen were wounded in fighting
+with a smuggler they were to be paid full wages for twenty-eight days
+or longer, and a reasonable surgeon's bill would be also paid.
+
+And to prevent any possible excuse for discontinuing a chase, the boat
+was never to leave the beach without the two-gallon keg of fresh
+water. And to prevent any obvious possibility, this boat was never to
+be left by day or night without one of the boat's crew to guard it.
+The latter was always to have ready some sort of floating buoy,
+"loaded at one end and a piece of bunting at the other," for marking
+the place where goods might be thrown overboard in a chase. The
+Inspecting Commanders were also to be on their guard against false
+information, which was often given to divert their attention from the
+real place where the smuggling was occurring.
+
+"As night is the time when smugglers generally run their cargoes, it
+is expected that the boat, or her crew, or the greater part of them
+will be out, either afloat or on land, as often as circumstances will
+permit, which must be, at least, five nights a week." They were
+ordered generally to co-operate with the Revenue cruisers and to keep
+a journal of all proceedings. When out at night time they were to
+have a candle and "lanthorn" in the boat as well as the boat's
+"bittacle," and not to rummage a vessel without the candle being
+carefully secured in the lanthorn to prevent accident by fire. All
+suspicious ships were to be rummaged, and whenever the weather would
+not permit of the boat keeping the sea, the crew and Inspecting
+Commander were to keep a look-out by land. Even as late as 1819, when
+the great wars had come to an end, it was found that the transfer of
+smugglers to the Navy had continued to be the most effectual means of
+protecting the Revenue. The sum of L20 was granted for each smuggler
+taken, and this was paid to the individual or individuals by whom or
+through whose means the smuggler was absolutely secured, and it was
+not to be paid to the crew in general. But when chasing a smuggling
+craft, whether by night or day, they were not to fire at the
+delinquents until the Custom House Jack had been displayed. The salary
+of each Inspecting Commander, it may be added, was now L200 per annum
+and L60 for the first cost and upkeep of an able horse.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY
+
+
+Just as there had been a great improvement in the reorganisation
+brought about by the advent of the Coast Blockade, so the Preventive
+service on shore generally was smartened up. That this was so is clear
+from the existing correspondence. For instance, five more Preventive
+boats were to be stationed between Shellness and Southwold, and three
+between Cuckmere Haven and Hayling Island; another boat was sent to
+Newton (Yorkshire), another to Dawlish (Devonshire), and another to
+Happisburgh (Norfolk) or, as it was then spelt, Hephisburg.
+
+Some idea of the activity of the cruisers may be seen from the number
+of smugglers which these craft had been able to capture. The reader
+will recollect that during the year ending October 1, 1810, the
+highest number of smugglers handed over to the Navy was thirteen, and
+this was done by Captain Gunthorpe of the Excise cutter _Viper_. He
+thus became entitled to the sum of L500. It will be remembered also
+that it was afterwards decided that, beginning in 1812, L500 would be
+paid only if the number captured was not less than twenty. But now
+from a Treasury Minute of October 20, 1818, we find that, although the
+former number of captures was over thirteen, it was just under twenty.
+And, here again, Captain Matthew Gunthorpe, this time commanding the
+Excise cutter _Vigilant_, and Captain Robert Hepburn of the Excise
+cutter _Regent_, in the year 1816 seized nineteen smugglers each, or a
+total of thirty-eight. As neither captain had reached the twenty and
+both were equal, it was decided to add the second and third rewards
+together (_i.e._ L300 plus L200) and to give L250 to Captain
+Gunthorpe, officers and crew, and L250 to Captain Hepburn, officers
+and crew. And there is on record at this time a memorial from one W.
+Blake, the son of W. Blake, senior. The last-mentioned had been
+commander of the cutter _Nimble_, but was drowned in 1816. His son now
+prayed for the reward of L300 to be paid to the family of the
+deceased, as he had captured sixteen smugglers.
+
+After the Admiralty had taken over the Revenue cruisers they did not
+neglect to sanction a pension system, and the following scheme was
+embraced:--Commanders of cruisers on retiring were to have from L91,
+5s. to L155, 2s. 6d. per annum, according to their length of service;
+and for any wound received they were to have an additional L91, 5s.
+per annum. First mates were pensioned after five years' service at the
+rate of L35 a year, but after thirty years' service they were to have
+L85 a year as pension. And so it was arranged for all ratings down to
+the boys. The widow of a commander killed or drowned in the service
+was allowed L65 a year.
+
+And now that we are in that period after the year 1815 we must not
+fail to bear in mind that this is the epoch when the smugglers were
+using ingenuity in preference to force. The busiest part had yet to
+come and did not occur till the third decade of the nineteenth
+century. But even from the time of the Battle of Waterloo until, say,
+about 1825 there were ten years in which the smugglers left no device
+untried which they could conceive to enable them to outdo the Revenue
+authorities. And we may now proceed to give actual instances of these
+ingenious attempts.
+
+We begin with the early part of 1816. At this time the Tide-Surveyor
+at one of the out-ports had reason to suspect that the French
+market-boats which used to sail across to England were in the habit of
+bringing also a good deal of silks and other prohibited goods. At last
+he went on board one of these craft and immediately after she had
+arrived he caused the whole of her cargo to be put ashore. He then
+searched her thoroughly from deck to keelson, but he found nothing at
+all. However, he was determined not to give up his quest, and had part
+of her ceiling examined minutely, and was then surprised to note that
+some fresh nails had apparently been driven. He therefore caused the
+ceiling to be ripped off, when he discovered that a large variety of
+contraband goods had been neatly stowed between the ship's timbers.
+
+It was only a few months later in that same year that another Revenue
+officer boarded a Dutch schuyt which was bound from Amsterdam to
+London. Her cargo consisted of 500 bundles of bulrushes, but on making
+his examination these innocent articles were found to conceal between
+the rushes forty-five boxes of glass in illegal packages, and also
+some other prohibited goods which had been shipped from the United
+Kingdom for exportation and were intended to have been again
+clandestinely relanded.
+
+The reader will remember our mentioning the name of Captain M'Culloch
+just now in connection with the Coast Blockade. Writing on the 2nd of
+April, 1817, from on board H.M.S. _Ganymede_ lying in the Downs, this
+gallant officer stated that, although it was known that the smugglers
+had constructed places ashore for the concealment of contraband goods
+under the Sand Hills near to No. 1 and No. 2 batteries at Deal, yet
+these hiding-places were so ingeniously formed that they had baffled
+the most rigid search. However, his plan of landing crews from his
+Majesty's ships to guard this district (in the manner previously
+described) had already begun to show good results. For two midshipmen,
+named respectively Peate and Newton, commanding the shore parties in
+that neighbourhood, had succeeded in locating five of those places of
+concealment.
+
+"This discovery," continued the despatch, "I am assured will be a most
+severe blow to the smugglers, as they were enabled to remove their
+cargoes into them in a few minutes, and hitherto no person besides
+themselves could form any idea of the manner in which their
+store-holes were built. They are generally 4 feet deep, of a square
+form and built of a 2-inch plank, with the scuttle in the top, into
+which a trough filled with shingle is fitted instead of a cover to
+prevent their being found out by pricking; and I understand they were
+built above two years ago. I have ordered them to be destroyed, and
+parties are employed in searching for such concealments along the
+other parts of the beach." Thus, thanks to the Navy, the smugglers had
+been given a serious repulse in the most notorious district.
+
+Then there was also the danger of collusive smuggling. For instance,
+when a smuggler had been frustrated from successfully landing a cargo
+of spirits from a small foreign vessel or boat he might go and give
+information to a Custom officer so that he might have the goods seized
+by the latter, the arrangement being that the smuggler should be paid
+a fair portion of the reward which the officer should receive for the
+seizure. Inasmuch as the officers' rewards were by no means
+inconsiderable this method might fully indemnify the smuggler against
+any loss.
+
+Just before Christmas of 1819 the Custom officers at Weymouth seized
+on board a vessel named _The Three Brothers_ sixteen half-ankers and
+seven small kegs or flaggons of foreign spirits. These were found to
+be concealed under a platform of about nine feet in length fitted on
+either side of the keelson, and of sufficient height for one cask. Its
+breadth was such as to allow of two casks and a flaggon. When full
+this secret hiding-place would contain about thirty casks in all. The
+whole concealment was covered with stone and iron ballast. The
+platform was fitted with false bulkheads and filled up with large
+stones so as to avoid suspicion, the entrance to which was made (after
+removal of the ballast) from the bottom of the forecastle through two
+bulkheads about two feet apart.
+
+Another instance was that of a consignment of four cases which had
+come over from France. These cases contained plaster figures and
+appeared to be hollow. However, the Custom officers had their
+suspicions and decided to perforate the plaster at the bottom with an
+auger. After making still larger holes there were extracted from
+inside the following amazing list of articles:--Two clock movements,
+six pieces of bronze, thirty-two pieces of porcelain, and two small
+paintings.
+
+A certain other French craft was boarded by the Revenue officers who,
+on measuring her range of deck and also under it including the
+bulkheads, found a greater difference than the rake would fairly
+account for. They were naturally highly suspicious and proceeded to
+take down part of the bulkhead aft, when they discovered that this
+bulkhead was not single but double, being between the cabin and the
+hold. This bulkhead was made of solid oak planking and was 2 feet 10
+inches thick. It was securely nailed, and the cavity thus made
+extended from one side of the hull to the other, giving a breadth of 7
+feet 2 inches, its length being about 2 feet 2 inches, and the height
+3 feet 6 inches. It will thus be readily imagined that a good quantity
+of spirits, wine, and plums from France could easily therein be
+contained and brought ashore when opportunity presented itself.
+
+At another port a vessel was actually discovered to have false bows.
+One might wonder how it was that the officer ever found this out, but
+he was smart enough to measure the deck on the port side, after which
+he measured the ship below. He found a difference of over a foot, and
+so he undertook a thorough search of the ship. He first proceeded to
+investigate the forepeak, but he was unable to discover any entrance.
+He therefore went to the hold, examined the bulkhead, and observed
+that the nails of the cleats on the starboard side had been drawn. He
+proceeded to force off the cleats, whereupon one of the boards of the
+bulkhead fell down, and a quantity of East India silk handkerchiefs
+came tumbling out. Needless to say, this proved a serious matter for
+the vessel's skipper.
+
+Sometimes too, cases used to come over from France containing carton
+boxes of artificial flowers. These boxes, it was found, were fitted
+with false bottoms affording a space of not more than a quarter of an
+inch between the real bottom and the false. But into this space was
+squeezed either a silk gauze dress or some parcels "very nicely
+stitched in," containing dressed ostrich feathers. The flowers were
+usually stitched down to the bottom of the boxes to prevent damage, so
+it was difficult to detect that there was any false bottom at all.
+However, after this practice had been in vogue for some time it was
+discovered by the Revenue officers and the matter made generally known
+among the officials at all the ports, so that they could be on the
+alert for such ingenuity.
+
+Sometimes when a Revenue officer was on her station she would come
+across a sailing craft, which would be found to have quite a
+considerable number of spirits in small casks together with a number
+of other prohibited goods. If the master of such a craft were told by
+the cruiser's officer that they would have to be seized as they were
+evidently about to be smuggled, the master would reply that they were
+nothing of the kind, but that whilst they were on the fishing grounds
+working their nets they happened to bring these casks up from the
+sinkers and warp which had kept them below water; or they had found
+these casks floating on the sea, and had no doubt been either lost or
+intentionally thrown overboard by some smuggling vessel while being
+chased by a Revenue cruiser. It became a very difficult matter to
+ascertain under such circumstances whether the master were speaking
+the truth or the reverse, for it was not altogether rare for the kegs
+to be picked up by fishermen in the manner indicated. So the only way
+out of this dilemma was for the commanders of the cruisers to bring
+such craft as the above to the nearest Custom House, where the master
+could be brought ashore and subjected to a cross-examination as to
+where they found these casks and what they proposed doing with them.
+
+A seizure was made at Deal about the year 1818 consisting of
+thirty-three packages of China crape and silk. These had been very
+artfully concealed in the ballast bags of a lugger called the _Fame_,
+belonging to London. One package was found in each bag completely
+covered up with shingles or small stones, so that even if a suspicious
+officer were to feel the outside of these bags he would be inclined to
+believe that they contained nothing but ballast, and if he opened them
+he would think there was nothing else but stones, for the goods were
+carefully squeezed into the centre of the bags and surrounded with a
+good thickness of shingle. Another dodge which was discovered at
+Shoreham on a vessel which had come from Dieppe was to have the iron
+ballast cast in such a form that it was not solid but hollow inside.
+By this means a good deal of dutiable stuff could be put inside the
+iron and then sealed up again. There was a ship, also, named the
+_Isis_, of Rye, which fell into disgrace in endeavouring to cheat the
+Customs. She was a smack of 26-16/94 tons burthen, her master being
+William Boxhall. It was while she was lying at her home port that one
+of the Revenue officers discovered a concealment under her ballast,
+the entrance to which was obtained by unshipping two bulkhead boards
+forward. There was one concealment on each side of the keel, and each
+contained enough space to hold from twenty to twenty-four ankers of
+spirits.
+
+Along the Kentish coast a good deal of smuggling used to go on by
+means of galleys which were rowed by six, ten, and even twelve oars.
+As these were navigated by foreigners and sailed under foreign papers,
+the Customs officers were a little puzzled as to what exactly could be
+done. Could such craft be seized even when found with no cargoes on
+board, when they were either hauled up the beach or were discovered
+hovering off the coast? After applying to the Board of Customs for
+guidance they were referred to the Act,[19] which provided that any
+boat, wherry, pinnace, barge, or galley that was built so as to row
+with more than four oars, if found within the counties of Middlesex,
+Surrey, Kent, or Essex, or on the river Thames, or within the limits
+of the Port of London, Sandwich, or Ipswich, or the creeks thereto
+belonging, should be forfeited together with her tackle. The object of
+this was clearly to prevent the shortest cross-Channel route being
+traversed from Holland or France by big, seaworthy but open,
+multiple-oared craft, with enough men to row them and enough space to
+carry cargo that would make the smuggling journey worth while.
+
+The following fraud was detected at one of the out-ports in 1819. An
+entry had been made of twenty-seven barrels of pitch which had been
+imported in a ship from Dantzic. But the Revenue officers discovered
+that these casks were peculiarly constructed. Externally each cask
+resembled an ordinary tar-barrel. But inside there was enclosed
+another cask properly made to fit. Between the cask and the outside
+barrel pitch had been run in at the bung so that the enclosure
+appeared at first to be one solid body of pitch. But after the affair
+was properly looked into it was found that the inner cask was filled
+with such dutiable articles as plate glass and East India china.
+
+Sometimes tubs of spirits were packed up in sacks and packs of wool
+and thus conveyed from the coast into the interior of the country; and
+in the seizing of some goods at Guernsey it was found that tea had
+been packed into cases to resemble packages of wine which had come out
+of a French vessel belonging to St. Malo. Nor was the owner of a
+certain boat found at Folkestone any novice at this high-class art. Of
+course those were the days when keels of iron and lead were not so
+popular as they are to-day, but inside ballast was almost universal,
+being a relic of the mediaeval days when so much valuable inside space
+was wasted in ships. In this Folkestone boat half-a-dozen large stones
+were used as ballast, which was a very natural thing for such a craft.
+But when these stones came to be examined they were found to have been
+hollowed out and to have been fitted with tin cases which were filled
+with spirits. One cannot acquit the owner of any fraudulent intent,
+but one certainly can admire both his ingenuity and the great patience
+which must have been necessary to have hollowed a cavity from such an
+unyielding material as stone. This was equalled only by the cargo from
+Guernsey. Four sacks said to contain potatoes from the Channel Isles
+were opened by the Revenue officers at a certain port, and, on being
+examined, it was found that these were not potatoes at all. They were
+so many rolls of tobacco which had been fashioned to resemble the size
+and form of the vegetable, and then covered artfully over with a thin
+skin and finally clayed over so cleverly that they had every
+appearance of the potatoes they pretended to be.
+
+But the Channel Isles were still notorious. In twelve sacks of flour
+imported from Jersey were found hidden in the middle twelve bales of
+tobacco weighing 28 lbs. each. A few weeks later three boxes of prunes
+also from Jersey were opened, when it was discovered that the prunes
+were not more than three inches deep at the top and three inches deep
+at the bottom. But between there was a space in which were
+concealed--in each box--a paper parcel of silk, some scarves and
+gloves, &c. But in order to make the total weight of the box
+approximate to that which would have existed had it been full of
+prunes a square piece of lead was placed above and another underneath
+these dutiable articles.
+
+But to me the most ingenious method of all was that which was employed
+in 1820 for smuggling tobacco. The offending ship was one of the
+vessels employed in the transport service, and the man who thought of
+the device was not far from being a genius. He first of all obtained
+the quantity of tobacco which he proposed--no doubt with the
+assistance of more than one confederate--to smuggle ashore. He then
+proceeded to divide this into two, each of which formed one strand.
+Afterwards he made these strands into a rope, every bit of it being
+tobacco. But then he took a three-strand hawser and laid this over the
+tobacco, so that when the hawser was finished no one could suspect the
+tobacco without first cutting or unlaying the rope. I have not been
+able to discover how this trick was ever suspected. Nothing less than
+an accident or the information of a spy could possibly lead to
+detection in such a clever case.
+
+There were all sorts of varieties of concealments now practised since
+the "scientific" period of smuggling had come in. And since those
+wicked old days have passed, and with them a good many of the
+old-fashioned types of craft, it may be well that examples of these
+misdirected efforts should be collected herewith. There was a smack,
+for instance, which was found to have under her ballast a large trunk
+that was divided into four separate compartments each about 15 feet
+long and could contain twelve half-ankers. One end of the trunk was
+fixed against the bulkhead of the cabin, and extended the whole length
+of the hold opening at the forward end close to the keelson by
+unshipping two pieces of the bulkhead.
+
+Another instance of the employment of false bows to a craft was found
+on searching the fishing smack _Flower_, of Rye, whose master's name
+was William Head. It was observed that this false section would hold
+as much as forty to fifty half-ankers, the entrance being on the port
+side of the false bow, where a square piece took out, being fastened
+by a couple of screws, the heads of which were concealed by wooden
+bungs imitating treenails. The _Flower_ was further discovered to have
+a false stern, the entrance to this being by means of the upper board
+of this stern on the port side in the cabin. She was a vessel 39 feet
+2-1/2 inches long, 12 feet 1-1/2 inches beam, 5 feet 9-1/2 inches
+deep, and of 23-1/2 tons burthen, being fitted with a standing
+bowsprit and sloop-rigged. An almost identical set of concealments was
+found in the smack _Albion_ at Sandwich, a vessel of over 42 tons
+burthen. The entrance to her false stern was through a small locker on
+the port and starboard sides. She was further fitted with a false
+stern-post and false timbers.
+
+A considerable amount of ingenuity must have been exercised in the
+case of an open four-oared boat which was seized at Dover together
+with twelve ankers of spirits. The device was as follows:--Across the
+bow end of the boat was the usual thwart on which an oarsman sat. At
+the after end where the stroke sat was another thwart. Under each of
+these thwarts was an ordinary stanchion for supporting the thwart. But
+each of these two stanchions had been made hollow. Thus, through each
+a rope could be inserted, and inasmuch as the keel had also been
+pierced it was possible to pass one rope through at the bow-thwart
+and another at the stern-thwart, these ropes penetrating the boat
+from thwart to keel. The inboard ends of these two ropes were
+carelessly lashed round the thwarts or covered with gear, so there was
+no untoward appearance. But at the other ends of the ropes were
+fastened the twelve ankers, which were thus towed along under the keel
+of the craft, and not trailing out astern as was sometimes done in the
+case of bigger boats. Thus because the whole body of the boat covered
+the floating casks it was very unlikely that their presence would be
+suspected.
+
+The smack _Strawberry_ of Deal, on being searched, was found to have a
+false bottom, capable of containing a considerable quantity of goods.
+This bottom was constructed by two leaden cases fixed on the timbers
+the whole length of the hold, one on each side of the keelson, and
+ceiled over with the usual ceiling, having the ballast placed over it.
+The cases opened on each side of the hold by taking out a plank from
+the temporary ceiling. In the case of the lugger _Fox_ (as usual
+belonging to Rye), a vessel over 16 tons, John Souden, master, there
+were found to be double bottoms underneath the bed cabins, the
+entrance being made from underneath the cabins, and then unshipping a
+small piece of board about a foot square, each concealment being able
+to hold from fifty to sixty pieces of bandana silks.
+
+Another smuggling device in vogue during this ingenious period had to
+be employed in such places as Ramsgate harbour, where it would have
+been utterly impossible to have employed ordinary methods. It
+resembled very much the method employed at Dover, mentioned just now.
+A rowing-boat would come into the harbour, apparently with nothing in
+her nor anything towing astern. But there were fifteen or so
+half-ankers underneath her hull, spirits of course being contained in
+these casks. Now the latter were all fastened to a long iron bar, the
+ropes to the boat being fastened to this bar. Consequently, after the
+boat had reached her corner of Ramsgate harbour, all she had to do was
+to let go the ropes and the iron bar would keep the kegs on the sandy
+bottom and prevent them from disclosing their identity by floating. At
+low water the smugglers could have gone to get them up again, for they
+would not move far even with the ebb tide. Unfortunately, however, the
+Revenue Tide Surveyor at this port preceded the smugglers, and by
+creeping for the bar and tubs with grapnels succeeded in locating what
+he wanted.
+
+On another occasion at one of the out-ports, or rather along the
+neighbouring beach, thirty-three gallons of spirits, contained in
+nineteen small casks, were recovered in a startling manner. Going
+along the beach were noticed among the chalk rocks and stones of the
+neighbourhood some other objects. These were the casks, but they had
+been so cleverly covered over with a cement of chalk, to which was
+fastened seaweed in the most natural manner, that seeing them there
+among the rocks of the shore they would never have been discovered by
+the Revenue men, had not it been (as one may guess) for a hint given
+by an informer. Otherwise there they would have remained until the
+smugglers found it convenient to come and fetch them.
+
+We called attention just now to the concealing of tobacco in rope.
+This device evidently became a fine art, and had succeeded on many an
+occasion. At any rate in Flushing tobacco was openly on sale in the
+shops ready for smuggling into England already made up into ropes. You
+could get anything as big as a hawser and as small as a sail-tyer done
+up so ingeniously as to deceive almost any one. In fact on washing
+these slightly with a little rum they had every appearance of hempen
+rope.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[19] 8 George I. cap. 18.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS
+
+
+Rowing about on the night of Lady Day, 1813, a six-oared boat, which
+had been launched from the Custom House cutter _Lion_, was on the
+prowl in that bay which extends all the way from Dungeness to
+Folkestone. When the watchers in this craft were off Hythe, and only
+about a quarter of a mile from the shore, they saw coming along over
+the dark waters a lugsail boat with foresail and mizzen making towards
+Dymnchurch, which is just to the west of Hythe. It was about an hour
+before midnight, and as this suspicious craft did not come near to the
+_Lion's_ boat the latter rowed towards her and hailed her.
+
+"What boat is that?" they asked.
+
+"A Folkestone boat," came back the answer.
+
+Thereupon John Wellar, a deputed mariner in the Customs boat, shouted
+to the lugger to heave-to, for he guessed what the game was.
+
+"Heave-to!" roared the lugger's master. "We'll see you d----d first!"
+
+But the rowing-boat was not to be put off with mere insults, and
+quickly pulled up alongside the craft. One of the men in the Customs
+boat then stood up and looked into the lugger and remarked that she
+was full of kegs. Wellar therefore immediately jumped into her,
+followed by three or four of his men, and seized her. On board he
+found three men, and them also he secured. He further discovered 144
+half-ankers of spirits, consisting of brandy and gin from across the
+Channel, which were subsequently taken to the Custom House at Dover. A
+little more than a year later, Robert Baker, the lugger's master, was
+brought before the judge and fined L100.
+
+There was an interesting incident which occurred a few years later in
+the eastern corner of England, which led to trouble for a man named
+Henry Palmer of Harwich. This man was master and owner of a yawl named
+the _Daisy_, which belonged to Ipswich. About midday on the 22nd of
+March 1817, one of the Preventive officers, named Dennis Grubb,
+observed the _Daisy_ sailing up the Orwell, which flows from Ipswich
+past Harwich and out into the North Sea. Grubb was in a six-oared
+galley, and about three-quarters of a mile below Levington Creek,
+which is on the starboard hand about a third of the way up the river
+between Harwich and Ipswich. With Grubb was another man, and on seeing
+the _Daisy_ they began rowing towards her. Whether Grubb had any
+reason for suspecting her more than any other craft, whether he had
+received warning from an informer, cannot be stated. But what is true
+is that he was determined to have her examined.
+
+However, notwithstanding that Palmer must have known perfectly well
+that this was a preventive boat, and that he was in duty bound to stop
+when hailed, it was obvious that, as soon as the galley came near, the
+_Daisy_ instantly went about on the other tack and stood away from the
+boat. The latter in turn pulled after the yawl and was again
+approaching when the _Daisy_ once more tacked and ran away. But at
+last the galley came up, and just as Grubb was in the act of stepping
+aboard, Palmer coolly remarked that he had some tubs aboard, following
+this up by the explanation that he had got them on the trawling
+ground. This was too obvious a lie to be believed for a moment.
+
+Grubb accordingly inquired how it was that Palmer had come past
+Harwich since the latter was his home, to which he answered that he
+was bound for Ipswich, as there his vessel was registered. But
+inasmuch as there were two of the Revenue cutters as well as a
+guardship lying at the entrance to the river, how was it that he had
+not stopped to hand the tubs over to them? For either the Customs
+cutter _Griper_, or the Excise cutter _Badger_, would have been the
+ordinary receptacle, instead of waiting till a Preventive galley
+overtook the _Daisy_. When Grubb asked how Palmer had come by all
+these tubs he said that he had caught them in his trawl, whereupon
+the preventive man examined the net and found it damp but certainly
+not wet, as it would have been had Palmer's version been the truth.
+Furthermore, if these tubs had been caught in the trawl there would
+have been a number of holes torn, but Grubb found there to be no
+holes. There were no fewer than forty-eight of these tubs found on the
+_Daisy_--all half-ankers, and fitted with slings ready for
+landing--and inasmuch as it was clear that the net had not been lately
+used Palmer was obviously lying. The iron which, had it been dragged
+along the sea-bed, would have been polished bright with the sand, was
+actually not bright but rusty, thus proving that it had not been
+recently used.
+
+Grubb therefore felt justified in arresting the yawl, and taking her
+and her tubs to the Custom House. Later on he made a thorough search
+of her, and found a creeping-iron which had five prongs and a long
+shank. The reader is well aware that such an implement was used by the
+smugglers but never found on board a genuine fishing-craft. For
+getting up sunken tubs it was essential, and for that purpose it was
+evidently on board the _Daisy_. Moreover, it was found to be both wet
+and polished bright as to its prongs, and there was still some wet mud
+sticking thereto.
+
+The case, of course, duly came on to be tried, and the
+Attorney-General suggested that at that time, in nine cases out of
+every ten, the tubs of smuggled spirits were not brought directly to
+port but sunk at different places in the sea, located by landmarks and
+buoys, fishing-boats being sent out later on to get them by these
+creepers, and to bring them in by small quantities as opportunity
+permitted. Palmer's defence was that they had found the tubs just
+outside Harwich harbour, opposite to Landguard Fort, at about seven
+o'clock the previous evening. But it was a somewhat strange fact that
+though this fishing-vessel should have been out all night not a single
+fish was found on board. And when Palmer was asked how it was that if
+he had found these tubs, and had intended to hand them over to the
+Customs authorities, he had been so careful to stow them all below and
+not leave them on deck to be visible to the _Griper_ and _Badger_ as
+he passed? His reply, that he had put the tubs below lest a puff of
+wind might blow them overboard, somehow did not convince the judge,
+and the verdict went against him.
+
+A curious instance of an abuse of office was seen in the occurrence
+which centred round a certain Mr. Thomas Moore Slade. Mr. Slade was
+Agent Victualler for the Chatham Victualling Office, and from his
+connection with that department he had the power of employing some of
+his Majesty's vessels belonging to the department. This gentleman got
+to know that a splendid collection of pictures was about to be
+dispersed in France. They were of great value both artistically and
+intrinsically, and had belonged to the late Duke of Orleans. Slade
+therefore, quite unjustifiably, determined to make use of one of the
+craft under his charge for the purpose of fetching these pictures into
+the country, and thus cheating the Government of its dues, which would
+have been very heavy in this transaction.
+
+The way he went about it was to direct a man named Thomas Cheney, who
+commanded the sloop _Grace_ (belonging to the King's Victualling
+Office), to get under way and proceed a certain distance from Chatham.
+After he had come out of the Medway and had reached the Nore he was to
+open a letter which Slade had given him, wherein he would find his
+instructions. The _Grace_ in due course hoisted sails and anchor and
+found herself out by the Nore. On opening the letter, Cheney was
+surprised to find he was directed to proceed to Calais. He informed
+the crew, who were very indignant, as they had all thought they were
+bound for Deptford. So that night they put back to Sheerness and let
+go anchor. The following day, with a reluctant company on board, they
+started off again and reached Ramsgate, where they lay all night. On
+the third day they crossed the Channel and got into Calais Roads,
+anchored, and remained there all night.
+
+It should be added that Slade had taken the precaution to put on
+board this sloop before she left England a Mr. Thomas Aldridge, an
+expert judge of pictures, his exact description for this voyage being
+as supercargo, a term which signifies an officer in a trading vessel
+whose duty it is to manage the sales and superintend all the
+commercial concerns of the voyage. Having arrived, then, off Calais,
+Cheney, Aldridge, and some of the crew proceeded ashore and, guided by
+the art expert, went to a certain Monsieur Dessein, who kept an hotel
+in that town. From him they obtained a large number of cases
+containing the Orleans collection, and brought them off to the
+_Grace_. Altogether there were no less than fifteen of these cases,
+and although the _Grace_ was a vessel of some thirty-two tons burthen,
+yet the weight of these paintings was sufficiently great to lower her
+water-line a good six inches.
+
+After this valuable cargo had been got aboard and stowed, a gale of
+wind sprang up and detained them for a few days, but at length they
+cleared from the French coast and steered for the Downs. From there
+they rounded the North Foreland, and after running up the Thames
+entered the Medway and let go at Gillingham until it was dark. But as
+soon as night had fallen they got going once more, and ran alongside
+the Victualling Wharf at Chatham. The pictures were brought up from
+the sloop and taken ashore by means of a crane, and then quietly
+carried into Mr. Slade's house. By this he had thus saved the cost
+both of carriage and of duty, the pictures being afterwards sold for a
+very large sum. However, this dishonest business at length leaked out,
+an action was brought against Slade, and a verdict was given for the
+King and for six pictures of the single value of twenty guineas.
+
+On the evening of a November day in the year 1819, the Revenue cutter
+_Badger_, under the command of Captain Mercer, was cruising in the
+English Channel between Dungeness and Boulogne. About seven o'clock it
+was reported to the commander that about a quarter of a mile away
+there was a lugger steering about N.W. by W. towards the English
+coast. The _Badger_ thereupon gave chase, but as she drew nearer and
+nearer the lugger altered her course many times. Carrying a smart
+press of canvas, the _Badger_, which was one of the fastest vessels
+employed in the Revenue, came up rapidly. As usual she fired her
+warning gun for the lugger to heave-to, but all the notice taken by
+the chased ship was to go about on the other tack and endeavour still
+to escape. But presently the cutter, running with the wind on her
+quarter and doing her eight knots to the lugger's four or five, came
+up to her foe so quickly as to run right past her. But before the
+_Badger_ luffed up she hailed the lugger (whose name was afterwards
+found to be the _Iris_ of Boulogne) and ordered her to heave-to.
+
+"I be hove-to," answered back one of the lugger's crew in unmistakable
+English.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Badger_ was hoisting up the galley in the
+rigging."]
+
+Meanwhile the _Badger_ was hoisting up the galley in the rigging
+preparatory to launching, and the crew stood by ready to get in. As
+soon as the _Badger_ had shot past, down went her helm and she came
+alongside the _Iris_ as the galley was dropped into the leaden waters.
+But just at that moment the _Badger's_ people overheard some men on
+the lugger exclaim, "Now's your time," whereupon the crew of the
+lugger also launched their boat, forsook the _Iris_, and began to row
+off as fast as they could. The _Badger_ called to them--among whom was
+a man named Albert Hugnet--ordering them under pain of being shot to
+come alongside the cutter. They replied that they were coming, but
+that they could not find their thole-pins, saying that they had only
+two oars on one side and one oar on the other. This was said in
+English, and was obviously a mere excuse to gain time. Meanwhile the
+cutter's galley and men had come alongside the lugger, in which they
+found 110 half-ankers, containing 382 gallons of brandy, and 157
+half-ankers of Geneva, 55 bags of tea, and 19 bags containing 355 lbs.
+of manufactured tobacco.
+
+As the men of the _Iris_ showed no signs of coming back, the
+prize-crew on the lugger hailed the _Badger_, giving information that
+the smugglers were escaping. "Lie close," came the command, so the
+cutter trimmed her sheets and went in pursuit, and fired some shots in
+the direction of the retreating boat. But it was no use, for the boat
+was quickly lost from sight among the waves and disappeared entirely.
+There was some sea on at the time, so no one among the Revenue men
+envied the _Iris's_ crew their task of rowing across to Boulogne, a
+distance of somewhere about twenty-seven miles, in that weather and
+athwart very strong tides, with the certainty of having a worse time
+as the Ridens and the neighbourhood of Boulogne was approached. In
+fact the chief mate of the cutter remarked, some time after, though he
+had seen these tub-boats go across the sea in all weathers, and were
+splendidly seaworthy, yet he considered it was not very wise of the
+_Iris's_ crew to risk it on such a night as that.
+
+Convinced, then, that the men were making for France, the lugger, with
+her prize crew on board, presently sailed up after the cutter, hoping
+to come across their captives. But neither cutter nor lugger could
+find the men, and concluded, no doubt, that the tub-boat had
+foundered. But, at a later date, Albert Hugnet was arrested, and in
+the following June was brought to trial and punished. It then came out
+that the whole boat-load had escaped with their lives. For Andres
+Finshaw was called as evidence for the defence. He had been one of the
+lugger's crew, and showed that after rowing away that night they had
+not fetched across to the French coast, but having the good luck to
+find a French fishing-craft only a quarter of a mile away, they were
+taken aboard her and thus returned to France.
+
+It was also brought out very clearly by the other side that when first
+seen the _Iris_ was within nine miles of the English coast, and
+afterwards the _Badger_ steered N.W. by W. towards the south of
+Dungeness, and after five and a half miles saw the Dungeness light and
+the South Foreland light, took cross-bearings of these, and having
+marked them off on the chart, fixed their position as about three
+miles from the coast. Thus when the lugger was first encountered the
+latter was about nine miles from the land.
+
+The date of that incident, then, was the 12th of November, and Hugnet
+was not then captured. We may now pass over the next four weeks till
+we come to the 10th of December in that same year. At eight o'clock in
+the morning the Revenue cutter _Eagle_ was cruising off the coast of
+Kent when she observed a lugger bearing about N.W. by N. from them.
+The lugger was under all sail and heading S.E. for Boulogne, having
+come out from East Dungeness Bay. The weather was thick, it was
+snowing, and no land was in sight, Dungeness being the nearest portion
+of the English coast.
+
+It did not take long for the _Eagle's_ commander to guess what was
+happening, especially when that bay was so notorious, and the cutter
+began to give chase, the wind being roughly N.W. But as the _Eagle_
+pursued, the lugger, as was the approved custom, hauled up and came on
+a wind, hoping to get away and outpace the cutter. But in this the
+smugglers were not successful, and eventually the _Eagle_ overhauled
+her. The cutter's galley was now launched, and after having been for
+three-quarters of an hour rowed quickly by the aid of her eight men,
+the lugger was reached and hailed. The usual warning signal was fired
+from a musket in the boat and colours shown. The lugger, however,
+declined to heave-to as requested.
+
+"If you don't heave-to," roared the chief mate of the _Eagle_, as he
+looked towards the helmsman, "we'll fire right into you." On this the
+lugger lowered her sails, the galley bumped alongside, and the chief
+mate and crew, pistols in hand, leapt aboard. "Where are you from?"
+asked the chief mate. The answer came in French, which the latter did
+not understand, but he thought they said they were bound from Bordeaux
+to Calais. If so, it was an obvious and foolish lie. Mr. Gray--for
+that was the mate's name--then inquired how many men were aboard, and
+the answer returned that there were seven. Gray then called the
+lugger's men aft, and separated the English from the foreign, and
+found there were five French and two English. The two latter, said the
+Frenchman (who was none other than Albert Hugnet, whom we spoke of
+just now), were just passengers. A few minutes later, the skipper
+contradicted himself and said there were not seven but nine, all told.
+Gray then proceeded to look for the other two, and jumped down forward
+into the forepeak. As the place was dark he put his cutlass in first
+and rummaged about. In a moment the cutlass brought up against
+something soft. Gray had struck a man, hiding there, on the legs and
+thighs.
+
+He was called upon by the cutter's mate to come out, and instantly
+obeyed, fearing no doubt that the cutlass would assail him again if he
+didn't. As he emerged he was followed by another man, and another, and
+yet another; in fact from that dark hole there came out a procession
+of seven, all of whom were found to be Englishmen. It was noticeable
+that most, if not all, were dressed in short jackets and petticoat
+trousers. They were clearly sailors, and not landsmen--passengers or
+anything else. In plain language they were out-and-out smugglers. What
+was especially to be noted was the fact that their trousers were quite
+wet right up to their middles. In some cases their jackets were also
+wet up to their elbows. All this clearly pointed to the fact that they
+had not long since put off from the shore, where they had succeeded in
+landing a contraband cargo by wading from the lugger to the beach; and
+such a thick atmosphere as there was on the previous night must have
+made it highly convenient for them. Nevertheless, even for these
+weather-hardened seamen, it cannot have been altogether pleasant
+penned up in sopping clothes in a dark forepeak with an unseen cutlass
+waving about in their midst and seizure pending.
+
+These men also Gray ordered to go aft, and put them together so that
+he might see how many altogether were English and how many French. It
+was found that there were nine of them English and five French. Taking
+possession of the helm, Gray let the sails draw and ran down to the
+_Eagle_, telling his prisoners he was going to get further
+instructions from his commander. There were no tubs found on the
+lugger, which was as might be expected, but there was a solitary hoop
+which had evidently come off whilst these tubs were being hauled out,
+and there were also found two pairs of slings which were universally
+employed for getting the half-ankers ashore. These slings were made of
+small line, and were passed round the circumference of the cask at its
+"bow" and "stern," sufficient line being left so that there were two
+lines, one to pass over each of a man's shoulders. These two lines
+could be joined to other two on another cask, and so each smuggler
+could land with one tub on his back and another on his chest, in much
+the same way as you see a sandwich-man carrying boards in the street.
+
+On examining this lugger there was no bilge-water found in the
+forepeak, so those seven shivering men could not have made the excuse
+that the vessel was damp in that portion. To cut a long story short,
+the lugger was eventually taken into Harwich, having been discovered
+seventeen miles from the French coast and eleven from the English
+shore. Assuming the lugger had travelled at about four knots an hour,
+this would mean that she had started off from the English beach on her
+return journey about 5 A.M., the previous hours of the night having
+doubtless been spent in unloading the tubs somewhere between
+Folkestone and Dungeness or perhaps Rye. Thus Hugnet, having at last
+been caught, had to stand his trial for both this and the occurrence
+of the previous month. And a verdict in each case having been returned
+against him, his activities in running backwards and forwards across
+the English Channel were, for a time at least, considerably modified.
+
+These tub-boats, which we have had cause to mention more than once,
+were usually not towed but carried on the lugger's deck. A tub-boat
+got its name from the fact that when the lugger was too big to run her
+nose on the beach the tubs were landed in these boats. For that reason
+they were made very deep, with plenty of high freeboard, and were
+accordingly wonderfully good sea-boats, though they were somewhat
+heavy to row even without their spirituous cargoes.
+
+As one looks through the gaol-books and other smuggling records, one
+finds that there was a kind of hereditary custom that this running of
+contraband goods should pass on from father to son for generations.
+Thus there are constant repetitions, in different ages, of men bearing
+the same surname engaged in smuggling and becoming wonderfully
+notorious in this art. Among such family names must be mentioned that
+of Rattenbury. The man of whom we are about to speak was flourishing
+during the second decade of the nineteenth century, and his christian
+name was John. In November 1820--it is significant how often this dark
+month crops up in the history of smuggling, when the weather was not
+likely to tempt those Revenue cruisers' commanders, who preferred the
+snug shelter of some creek or harbour--John Rattenbury happened to
+find himself at Weymouth. Into that port also came a vessel named the
+_Lyme Packet_, which was accustomed to trade between Lyme and
+Guernsey. But on this occasion the ship had just received the
+misfortune of carrying away her bowsprit--possibly in the Portland
+Race--and her master, John Cawley, decided to run into Weymouth for
+repairs.
+
+Whilst these were being taken in hand what should be more natural than
+that the _Lyme Packet's_ master should drift into a local
+public-house? Having brought up comfortably in that haven of rest, he
+was promptly discovered by his old friend Rattenbury, who had also
+made for the same house of refreshment. The usual greetings took
+place, and Rattenbury inquired how it was that Cawley came to be
+there, and an explanation of the accident followed. According to the
+skipper's own version, they got into conversation, and, over a glass
+of grog, Rattenbury volunteered the remark that if Cawley would be
+willing to sail across to Cherbourg to fetch a cargo of spirits he
+would pay him at a rate that would make it much more profitable than
+trading between Lyme and Guernsey. In fact he was willing to pay
+Cawley as much as twelve shillings a cask, adding that in one voyage
+this skipper, who happened also to be owner, would make more money
+thereby than in the regular course of trade in a twelvemonth.
+
+Such a proposition was more than a tempting one, and Cawley gave the
+matter his attention. Unable to resist the idea, he acquiesced, it
+being agreed that Rattenbury should accompany him to France, where
+they would take in a cargo of spirits, Cawley to be paid his twelve
+shillings for every cask they were able to bring across. So, as soon
+as the bowsprit was repaired and set in its place, the _Lyme Packet_
+cast off her warps and ran out of Weymouth harbour. She made direct
+for Cherbourg, where they anchored in the roadstead. Rattenbury now
+went ashore and returned accompanied by 227 casks of spirits made up
+in half-ankers. These were put on board and the voyage back to England
+commenced, the intention being to make for West Bay and land the goods
+somewhere near Sidmouth. Having arrived off the Devonshire coast,
+Rattenbury took the _Lyme Packet's_ boat and rowed himself ashore,
+landing at Beer Head, his object being to get assistance from the men
+of Sidmouth for landing his goods. It was then about 1 A.M. The
+captain of the _Lyme Packet_ kept his ship standing off and on during
+the night, and hovered about that part of the coast till daybreak. But
+as Rattenbury had not returned by the time the daylight had come back,
+Cawley became more than a little nervous and feared lest he might be
+detected. Before very long--the exact time was 6.30 A.M.--Robert
+Aleward, a mariner on the Revenue cutter _Scourge_, on turning his eye
+into a certain direction not more than three miles away, espied this
+_Lyme Packet_, informed his commander, and a chase was promptly begun.
+Cawley, too, saw that the _Lyme Packet_ had been observed, and began
+to make preparations accordingly.
+
+He let draw his sheets, got the _Lyme Packet_ to foot it as fast as
+she could, and as the three intervening miles became shorter and
+shorter he busied himself by throwing his casks of spirits overboard
+as quickly as he and his crew knew how. The distant sail he had
+noticed in the early morning had all too truly turned out to be the
+Revenue cutter, but he hoped yet to escape or at any rate to be found
+with nothing contraband on board. It was no good, however, for the
+cruiser soon came up, and as fast as the _Lyme Packet_ had dropped
+over the half-ankers, so quickly did the _Scourge's_ men pick them up
+again in the cutter's boats. Having come up alongside, the cutter's
+commander, Captain M'Lean, went on board, seized Cawley and his ship
+as prisoners, and eventually took both into Exmouth.
+
+Judicial proceedings followed with a verdict for the King, so that
+what with a broken bowsprit and the loss of time, cargo, ship, and
+liberty the voyage had in nowise been profitable to Cawley.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+A TRAGIC INCIDENT
+
+
+And now we must turn to an occurrence that was rather more tragic than
+the last, though the smugglers had only themselves to blame.
+
+The reader is already aware of the practice existing at this time of
+actually rowing contraband across from France to England in large
+boats pulling four or more oars. As one who have myself rowed a craft
+most of the way from Calais to Dover in a flat calm, I cannot
+altogether envy the smugglers their job. However, on May 11, 1818,
+Captain Hawtayne, commanding H.M.S. _Florida_, was cruising in the
+English Channel on the look-out for contraband craft. Evidently he had
+received certain information, for at eight o'clock that evening he
+ordered Mr. Keith Stewart, master's mate, to man one of the ship's
+boats and to intercept any boat that might leave the French coast that
+looked at all of a suspicious nature.
+
+This order was duly obeyed. A galley was observed some time before,
+which had no doubt aroused Captain Hawtayne's suspicions. This galley
+had been seen to come out of Calais harbour and to be rowed towards
+the westward. But she must have spotted the _Florida_, for she very
+shortly put back. But before long Mr. Stewart's boat fell in with
+another craft--a long white galley named the _St. Thomas_. This was
+now about 1 A.M., and for a time the _St. Thomas_ had the impudence to
+pretend she was a French police boat. When descried she was about five
+or six miles to the N.N.W. of Cape Blanc Nez, and was steering to the
+westward. The night was dark, for the moon had disappeared behind a
+cloud as Mr. Stewart's boat came up alongside and hailed the strange
+craft. He began by asking what boat she was. The steersman replied by
+inquiring what boat Mr. Stewart's was. The latter answered that it was
+the King's boat.
+
+At that time the _St. Thomas's_ sails were up, and now Mr. Stewart
+ordered the steersman to lower them. He made no answer, but, turning
+round to his crew exhorted them to pull quickly, saying, "Give way, my
+boys, give way." Thereupon the smugglers cheered and pulled as hard as
+they could. Mr. Stewart again ordered the steersman to lower sail,
+adding that should he fail to do so he would fire at him. But this did
+not awe the _St. Thomas_. "Fire and be damned," answered the
+steersman. "If you fire, I will fire. We are as well armed as you
+are." Stewart held his hand and did not fire, but ordered his men to
+pull closer. Coming alongside, he addressed the steersman, saying it
+was absolutely essential that he should examine the _St. Thomas_ and
+that he knew they were Englishmen, adding that he was unwilling that
+there should be any bloodshed by firing into the boat.
+
+[Illustration: "Fire and be damned."]
+
+With this the _Florida_'s boat pulled up on the other's quarter, and
+the bowmen hooked on with the boat-hook. The _St. Thomas's_ steersman
+knocked the boat-hook away and threatened to shoot the bowman if he
+did not let go. For a short time thereafter the boats separated and
+drifted apart. But a second time his Majesty's boat pulled up
+alongside, and Mr. Stewart jumped forward into the bows and ordered
+one of his own men to stand by ready to accompany him on board. The
+steersman of the other, however, was determined, and resisted
+Stewart's attempt, at the same time presenting a pistol and
+threatening to shoot the officer if he advanced one step further.
+
+On that the men of _St. Thomas_ ceased rowing, drew in their oars, and
+rushed aft to where the steersman was standing in the stern. Matters
+began to look ugly, and being convinced that these men were bent on
+desperate resistance, Mr. Stewart was compelled to fire with his
+pistol at the steersman, who immediately fell. Stewart instantly leapt
+aboard, but was nearly jostled into the sea by two of the enemy. He
+ordered the whole of this crew to go forward, but they declined to
+obey, and followed this up by threatening that if they still refused
+he would have to use his sword and cut them down. The only member of
+his own crew who had already got aboard as well was his coxswain, and
+owing either to himself or the action of the coxswain in stepping from
+one boat to the other, the two craft had drifted apart, and for a time
+there was considerable risk that the men, who were obvious smugglers,
+would fall on these two. But the naval officer had already cut down
+two of their number with his sword, and after that the rest went
+forward and were obedient. The _St. Thomas_ was rather a large craft
+of her kind. Additional to her sails, she rowed five on one side, six
+on the other, and also had a steersman, the additional oarsman being
+no doubt placed according to the tide so that his work might in some
+measure counteract the great leeway which is made by small vessels
+crossing the strong tidal stream of the English Channel.
+
+As all was now quiet on board, Mr. Stewart searched her and found she
+was laden with kegs, which, said the crew, were filled with tea and
+tobacco, these kegs being as usual already slung for putting ashore or
+sinking. Later on it was found that out of this crew no less than six
+were English, besides one man who had been born at Flushing of English
+parentage, though he called himself a Dutchman. The rest were all
+foreigners. No one can read such an incident as this without
+regretting that they should have ever led to slaughter. It is a
+serious thing to take any man's life when there is no warfare, and it
+is still more dismal if that man is of the same nationality as the one
+who deals death. If the whole of the _St. Thomas's_ crew had been
+killed there could have been no blame on Mr. Stewart, for he was only
+carrying out his orders and acting in self-defence. The smugglers were
+fully aware they were in the wrong, and they were responsible for any
+consequences that might accrue. The officer had given them ample
+warning, and he had only used severe measures when absolutely
+compelled.
+
+But there is a more satisfactory side to this regrettable incident,
+which one is only too glad to be able to record. The man who had been
+so badly wounded desired to speak to Mr. Stewart, and when the latter
+had approached him he turned to him and said:
+
+"You've killed me; sir, I'm dying."
+
+Mr. Stewart saw that this was perfectly true, and that the man was in
+no sense exaggerating.
+
+"Well, I'm sorry for it," he said, "but it was your own fault."
+
+"Yes," answered the dying man, "I know that, but I hope you won't make
+things worse than they are. I freely forgive you."
+
+This was the steersman who had so strenuously opposed the boarding of
+the _St. Thomas_. We can quite sympathise with the feelings of Mr.
+Stewart, and be thankful that those lawless days of violence have long
+since passed. If you talk with any of the Revenue officers still
+living who were employed in arresting, lying in wait for, receiving
+information concerning, and sometimes having a smart fight with the
+smugglers, you will be told how altogether hateful it was to have to
+perform such a duty. It is such incidents as the above which knock all
+romance out of the smuggling incidents. An encounter with fisticuffs,
+a few hard blows, and an arrest after a smart chase or a daring
+artifice, whilst not lessening the guilt of smuggling, cannot take
+away our interest. Our sympathies all the time are with the Revenue
+men, because they have on their side right, and in the long-run right
+must eventually conquer might. But, as against this, the poorer
+classes in those days were depressed in ignorance with low ideals, and
+lacking many of the privileges which no thinking man to-day would
+refuse them. And because they were so daring and so persistent,
+because they had so much to lose and (comparatively speaking) so
+little really to gain, we extend to them a portion of our sympathy and
+a large measure of our interest. They were entirely in the wrong, but
+they had the right stuff in them for making the best kind of English
+sailormen, the men who helped to win our country's battles, and to
+make her what she is to-day as the owner of a proud position in the
+world of nations.
+
+Ten of these twelve men were taken as prisoners to the _Florida_, and
+the _St. Thomas_ with her cargo still aboard were towed by the
+_Florida_ into Yarmouth Roads, and there delivered to the Collector of
+Customs. She was found to be a 54-foot galley--a tremendous length for
+an oared craft--with no deck, and rigged with three lugsails and jib,
+her size working out at about 11 tons burthen. On delivering the cargo
+at Yarmouth it was found that there were altogether 207 kegs. The ten
+uninjured prisoners were taken before the Yarmouth magistrates, and
+the two whom the officer had cut down were sent on shore immediately
+the _Florida_ arrived in that port. The English steersman, to whose
+case we call special attention, died, two others were fined L100 each,
+two were sent to gaol, and one, who was the son of the man who died,
+was liberated, as it was shown that he had only been a passenger. The
+man who had been born of English parents at Flushing was also set
+free, as the magistrates had not sufficient proof that he was a
+British subject.
+
+A few months prior to the above occurrence Lieutenant John Wood Rouse
+was in command of his Majesty's schooner _Pioneer_. On the 11th of
+January 1817 he was cruising between Dungeness and Point St. Quintin,
+when his attention was drawn to a lugger whose name we may state by
+anticipation was the _Wasp_. She appeared to be making for the English
+coast on a N.W. bearing, and was distant about six miles. In order to
+cut her off and prevent her from making the shore Lieutenant Rouse
+sent one of his men named Case with a galley to cross her bows. At the
+same time he also despatched another of his boats under the care of a
+Mr. Walton to make directly for the lugger. This occurred about 10
+A.M., and the chase continued till about 3.45 P.M., when the schooner
+came alongside the lugger that had, by this time, been seized by Mr.
+Case. Lieutenant Rouse was then careful to take bearings of the land,
+and fixed his position so that there should be no dispute as to
+whether the lugger were seized within the legal limits.
+
+On capturing the lugger, only two persons were found on board, and
+these were at once transferred to the _Pioneer_. To show what liars
+these smugglers could become, one of these two said he was a
+Frenchman, but his name was the very British-sounding William
+Stevenson. The other said he was a Dutchman. Stevenson could speak
+not a word of French, but he understood English perfectly, and said
+that part of the cargo was intended for England and part for Ireland,
+which happened to be the truth, as we shall see presently. He also
+added that of the crew of eight three were Dutchmen and five English,
+for he had by now forgotten his own alleged nationality.
+
+Prior to the arrival of Mr. Case's boat the lugger had hoisted out her
+tub-boat and rowed away as fast as the waves would let her, with all
+the crew except these two. She was found to have a cargo of tobacco
+and tea, as well as Geneva, all being made up into suitable dimensions
+for landing. On examining the ship's papers it was indicated that she
+was bound for Bilbao in Spain. But these papers had evidently been
+obtained in readiness for such an occurrence as the advent of the
+schooner. When it is mentioned that this lugger was only a large
+galley with absolutely no deck whatever, and capable of being rowed by
+ten men, it was hardly credible that she would be the kind of craft to
+sail round Ushant and across the Bay of Biscay. "Was she calculated to
+carry a cargo to Spain?" asked counsel at the trial two years later.
+"I will risk my experience as a sailor," answered one of the
+witnesses, "that I would not have risked my life in a boat of that
+description."
+
+But, unfortunately for the smugglers, there was discovered on board a
+tin box which absolutely gave their case away. In this tin box was
+found an instructive memorandum which it requires no very great
+ingenuity to decipher, and ran something as follows:--
+
+  "For B. Valden.
+
+  From Tusca Tower to Blackwater Hill, allowing half a point for the
+      tide.
+
+  For W. Martensons Glyn.
+
+  From Tusca N.E. until Tara Hill bears N.W.
+
+    10 pieces of chocolate 10 gulders.
+    10 pieces of gays[20] 10 ditto.
+
+  A proportion of G., say one-third, and let it be strong as
+      possible. A vessel coming in the daytime should come to anchor
+      outside the banks.
+  At Clocker Head, Bryan King.
+  At the Mountain Fort, Henry Curran.
+  And Racklen, Alexander M'Donald."
+
+Now anyone on consulting a chart or map of the south-west and west of
+the British Isles can easily see that the above was just a crude form
+of sailing directions to guide the ship to land the goods at various
+places in Ireland, especially when the box also contained a paper to
+the following effect:--
+
+  "The Land's End to Tusca 135 miles N.N.E.
+   A berth off Scilly 150 N.E.3/4N."
+
+The ship was to take such goods as mentioned to the above individuals,
+and here were the landmarks and courses and the division of the goods.
+"A proportion of G," of course, referred to the amount of Geneva, but
+the gentleman for whom it was intended did not get it "as strong as
+possible." Not one of these places mentioned was within hundreds of
+miles of Bilbao, but all the seamarks were to guide the mariners to
+Ireland. Tara Hill, Tuscar Rock and so on were certainly not Spanish.
+But these instructions were by no means uncommon. They were
+technically known among smugglers as "spot-notes," that is to say,
+indications of the spots where the goods were to be landed. When
+Stevenson found that his captors had become possessed of these papers
+he was considerably confused and embarrassed, even going so far as to
+ask for them to be given back to him--a request which was naturally
+declined.
+
+The lugger was taken captive into Dover, and Stevenson, being an
+Englishman, was committed to gaol in the Dover town prison, from which
+he succeeded in escaping. The Dutchman was let off, as he was a
+foreigner. The men who had rowed away in the tub-boat escaped to
+France, having taken with them out of the galley one parcel of
+bandanna handkerchiefs. The rule in these cases was to fine the
+culprit L100 if he was a landsman; but if he was a sailor he was
+impressed into the Navy for a period of five years.
+
+There must be many a reader who is familiar with some of those
+delightful creeks of Devonshire and Cornwall, and has been struck with
+the natural facilities which are offered to anyone with a leaning for
+smuggling. Among these there will rise to the imagination that
+beautiful inlet on whose left bank stands Salcombe. Towards the end of
+June in the year 1818 William Webber, one of the Riding officers,
+received information that some spirits had been successfully run
+ashore at the mouth of this harbour, "a place," remarked a legal
+luminary of that time, "which is very often made the spot for landing"
+this class of goods.
+
+Webber therefore obtained the assistance of a private in the 15th
+Regiment, and early in the evening, as he had been informed that the
+goods were not yet carried away, but still were lying deposited
+somewhere near the beach, proceeded to the spot. He and the hussar
+arrived at the place about nine o'clock on this June evening and
+managed to conceal themselves behind a hedge. They had not very long
+to wait before they heard the sound of some men talking, and a man
+named James Thomas was observed to remark:
+
+"We couldn't have had a better time for smuggling if we had lain abed
+and prayed for it."
+
+Through the openings in the hedge Webber and the hussar could see the
+outline of the delinquent, and the voice was more than familiar to the
+Riding officer. We can readily appreciate Thomas's ecstasy when we
+remark that it had now become rather dark and a sea-haze such as
+frequently comes up in fine weather after a hot day was beginning to
+spread itself around. For some time longer the two men continued to
+remain in their hiding-place, and then heard that Thomas and his
+accomplice had become joined by a number of other people. The sound of
+horses' hoofs being led down to the beach was also distinctly heard,
+and there were many signs of accelerated activity going on. Presently
+there came upon the ears of the Riding officers the noise which
+proceeds from the rattling of casks, and from some convenient
+hiding-place, where they had remained, these were at last brought
+forth, slings were prepared, and then the load was placed on the backs
+of the several horses.
+
+At this point, deeming that the time had come to interfere, the Riding
+officer and the hussar crept out from their place of concealment and
+advanced towards the band of smugglers. But, alert as hares, the
+latter, so soon as they realised their own danger, took to their
+heels and ran helter-skelter away. Thomas, however, was too wrath to
+hasten, and began to curse his men. He began by complaining that the
+kegs which had been brought forth were wonderfully "slack," that is to
+say they were not as full as they might have been, hinting that
+someone had been helping himself to their contents of spirits. "If you
+had brought these a little sooner," referring doubtless to both horses
+and casks, "we should have been three miles on our way home."
+
+But scarcely had he finished his sentence than the last of his band
+had fled, leaving him behind with both horses and casks. He was
+promptly arrested and eleven months later prosecuted by the
+Attorney-General.
+
+Because the smugglers were so frequently assisted in their work by
+those night signals to which we alluded some time back it had been
+made a penal offence to show a light for the purpose of signalling
+within six miles of the coast. Arising out of such an offence, John
+Newton and another found themselves prosecuted for an incident that
+occurred about the middle of December 1819. The comparative seclusion
+of that big bight which extends from the Bill of Portland to the
+promontory well known to many readers as Hope's or Pope's Nose, was
+much favoured by the smuggling fraternity. This West Bay was well out
+of the English Channel and the track of most of his Majesty's ships,
+and there were plenty of hills and high ground from which to show
+friendly signals to their comrades. Rattenbury and Cawley, as we
+related, had in vain tried to land their cargo hereabouts, though
+there were many others who, before the Revenue cutters became smarter
+at their duty, had been able to run considerable quantities of
+dutiable goods in the vicinity of Sidmouth and Lyme.
+
+On the afternoon of this winter's day two small sailing craft had been
+noticed by the Preventive shore officers to be tacking about near the
+land, but did not appear to be engaged in fishing. It was therefore
+reasonably supposed they were about to run some contraband ashore
+after dark. A Mr. Samuel Stagg and a Mr. Joseph Pratt, stationed at
+Sidmouth in the Preventive service, were all the time keeping a smart
+look-out on these boats, and somewhere about five o'clock in the
+evening launched their oared-cutter and rowed off towards them. After
+a chase they came alongside the first, which was named the _Nimble_,
+and boarded her. They found therein three men consisting of John
+Newton, John Bartlett, and Thomas Westlake; but as they searched her
+and found no trace of any casks or packages of tobacco, the Preventive
+men left her to row after the other craft. It was now, of course,
+quite dark, and there was blowing a nice sailing breeze. Scarcely had
+they started to row away before the _Nimble_ hoisted sail and by
+means of flint and steel began to make fire-signals, and kept on so
+doing for the next half hour. This was, of course, a signal for the
+second boat, and as soon as the latter observed these signs she also
+made sail and hurried away into the darkness of the bay. It was
+impossible for the officers to get up to her, for they would stand
+every chance of losing themselves in the vast expanse of West Bay, and
+the craft might take it into her head to run down Channel perhaps into
+Cornwall or eastwards round to Portland, where goods often were
+landed. Therefore deeming one craft in arrest to be worth two sailing
+about in West Bay, they went back and seized the _Nimble_. The three
+men, whose names we have given, were taken ashore, tried, and found
+guilty. But as illustrative of the times it is worth noting that John
+Bartlett had before this occurrence actually been engaged for some
+time as one of the crew of that Revenue cutter about which we spoke
+some time back in this very bay. And so, now, "for having on the high
+seas, within six miles of the coast, made a certain light on board a
+boat for the purpose of giving a signal to a certain person or
+persons," he was, in company with his two colleagues, condemned.
+
+That the age of lawless mobs was by no means past, may be seen from
+the incident which now follows. It had been thought that the Act which
+had been passed, forbidding any boat built to row with more than four
+oars, would have put a considerable check to activities of the
+smugglers. But these boats not only continued to be built, but also to
+be navigated and used for the contraband purposes. The Revenue
+officers of the district of Christchurch, Hants, had reason in April
+of 1821 to believe that a boat was being constructed in their
+neighbourhood of such dimensions and capable of being rowed with such
+a number of oars as made her liable to seizure. Therefore, taking with
+them a couple of dragoons, two of these Revenue officers proceeded on
+their way to the district near Milton, which is, roughly speaking, the
+centre of that bay which is bounded on one side by Christchurch Head,
+and on the other by Hurst Point. They had not arrived long at their
+destination before it was found that about thirty men had concealed
+themselves in an adjoining wood. The officers had found the boat they
+were looking for in a meadow, and were about to seize it.
+
+It was found to be covered over with sails, having been hidden in the
+meadow for safety's sake, for since it was made to row seven aside it
+was clearly liable to forfeiture. One of the two officers now went off
+to fetch assistance, and whilst he was away two of the smugglers came
+forth and fraternising with the two dragoons, offered them some brandy
+which they drank. In a short while both soldiers had taken such a
+quantity of the spirits that they became utterly intoxicated and
+helpless. One of the two smugglers then gave a whistle, and about
+thirty men issued forth from the wood, some of them in various forms
+of disguise. One had a deer's skin over his face, others had their
+faces and hands coloured with blue clay and other means. These men
+angrily demanded from the solitary officer the sails which he had
+removed from the boat, but their requests were met by refusal. The mob
+then seized hold of the sails, and a tussle followed, whereupon the
+officer threatened to shoot them. He managed to retain hold of one
+sail, while the mob held the other and took it away.
+
+About three o'clock in the afternoon the other officer returned with
+the Lymington Preventive officer, two Custom House men, and three
+dragoons. They found the intoxicated soldiers, one of whom was lying
+prostrate on the field, while the other was ludicrously and vainly
+endeavouring to mount his horse. The seven men now united, and got a
+rope by which they began to remove the boat from its hiding-place,
+when a great many more people came on to the scene in great
+indignation. As many as fifty, at least, were now assembled, and
+threats and oaths were bandied about. During this excitement some of
+the crowd cut the rope, while a man named Thomas Vye jumped into the
+boat, and rather than see her fall into the hands of the enemy,
+endeavoured to stave her in.
+
+The remainder of the story is but brief. For, at last, the seven men
+succeeded in pulling the boat away in spite of all the crowd's
+efforts, and dragged it even across a couple of fields, where there
+was a road. Here a conveyance was waiting ready, and thus the boat was
+taken away, and at a later date Vye was duly prosecuted by the Crown
+for his share in the proceedings.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[20] "Gays" was evidently trade slang to denote bandanna silk
+handkerchiefs, which were frequently smuggled, and some of which were
+found on board.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS
+
+
+By an Order in Council of May 5, 1821, it was directed that henceforth
+all sums which were awarded for arrests on shore of any person
+concerned in smuggling should be paid in the following proportions. He
+who made the arrest was to have three-quarters of the reward, which
+was to be divided into equal proportions if there were more than one
+person. If there were any officer or officers present at the time of
+arrest, these were to have one quarter of the reward. The officer
+commanding the party was to have two shares, each of the other
+officers having one share. The reward payable for a smuggler convicted
+and transferred to the Navy amounted to L20. And here let it be added
+that the persons liable to arrest in regard to smuggling were: (1)
+Those found on smuggling vessels; (2) Those found unloading or
+assisting to unload such craft; (3) Those found to be carrying away
+the landed goods or concerned in hiding the same. But before
+conviction it was essential to prove that the seized spirits were
+foreign; that the vessel had come from foreign parts; that the party
+who detained the smugglers was a Customs Officer; and that the
+offenders were taken before a proper magistrate.
+
+We now come to the year 1821, when the Commissioners of Inquiry made
+an important report touching the Revenue service. They suggested that
+the Riding Officers were not valuable in proportion to their cost, and
+so it came about that the Inspectors and superior officers, as well as
+a large number of the inferior classes, were dispensed with, but a
+small percentage of the lowest class was retained as a Preventive
+Mounted Guard, the annual cost of this being only the modest sum of
+L5000. This Preventive Guard was to be employed in watching for any
+gatherings of smugglers, and whenever any goods might be landed and
+carried up into the country, they were to be followed up by the
+members of this guard. They were also to maintain a communication
+between the different stations.
+
+Up to the year 1821, from those early days of the seventeenth century
+and earlier, the Revenue cruisers were the most important of all the
+means employed for suppressing smuggling. But the same inquiry which
+had made its recommendations regarding the Riding Officers also
+reported that the efficacy of the vessels employed in protecting the
+Revenue was not proportionate to the expense incurred in their
+maintenance. They advised, therefore, that their numbers should be
+reduced, and that whereas they had in 1816 come under the care of the
+Admiralty, they should now be restored to the control of the Customs.
+But the officers and crews of these cruisers were still to be selected
+by the Admiralty. And thus in the year 1822 these recommendations were
+carried into effect, and a new order inaugurated.
+
+It was by a Treasury Minute of February 15, 1822, that it was directed
+that the whole of the force employed for the prevention of smuggling
+"on the coast of this kingdom," was to be consolidated and
+transferred, and placed under the direction of the Customs Board. This
+force was to consist of the cruisers, Preventive Water-guard, and
+Riding Officers. And henceforth the commanders of cruisers were to
+receive their orders from the Controller-General of the Coastguard,
+who was to be responsible to the Board of Customs. The one exception
+to this change was that the Coast Blockade on the coast of Kent and
+Sussex, which had shown itself so satisfactory that it was left
+unaltered. The Preventive Water-guard became the Coastguard, and
+this--rather than the cruisers--should form the chief force for
+prevention of smuggling, the Riding Officers, or Preventive Mounted
+Guard, being merely auxiliary by land, and the cruisers merely
+auxiliary by sea. To what extent the number of cruisers were reduced
+can be estimated by stating that whereas there were forty-seven of
+these Revenue craft employed in England in 1821, there were only
+thirty-three two years later, these consisting of the _Mermaid_,
+_Stag_, _Badger_, _Ranger_, _Sylvia_, _Scout_, _Fox_, _Lively_,
+_Hawk_, _Cameleon_, _Hound_, _Rose_, _Scourge_, _Repulse_, _Eagle_,
+_Tartar_, _Adder_, _Lion_, _Dove_, _Lapwing_, _Greyhound_, _Swallow_,
+_Active_, _Harpy_, _Royal George_, _Fancy_, _Cheerful_, _Newcharter_,
+_Fly_, _Seaflower_, _Nimble_, _Sprightly_, _Dolphin_.
+
+The first-class cruisers were of 140 tons and upwards, the second
+class of from 100 to 140 tons, and the third class were under 100
+tons. In 1824 the cruisers on the Irish coast and the Scotch coast
+were also transferred to the Customs Board, and from that date the
+entire Coastguard service, with the exception of the Coast Blockade,
+was directed, as stated, by the Controller-General.
+
+In the year 1829, the instructions were issued to the Coastguard.
+Afloat, these applied to the commanders, mates, gunners, stewards,
+carpenters, mariners, and boys of the cruisers. Ashore, they were
+applicable to the Chief Officers, Chief Boatmen, Mounted Guard,
+Commissioned Boatmen, and Boatmen, both sections being under their
+respective commanders. Each member of the Mounted Guard was provided
+with a good horse and sword, with an iron scabbard of the Light
+Cavalry pattern, as well as a couple of pistols and ammunition. The
+cruiser commanders were again enjoined to keep the sea in bad weather
+and at night, nor were they permitted to come to harbour except when
+really necessary.
+
+In 1831 came the next change, when the Coastguard took the place of
+the Coast Blockade, which had done excellent duty for so many years in
+Kent and Sussex. The aim was to make the Coastguard service national
+rather than departmental. To promote the greatest efficiency it was
+become naval rather than civil. It was to be for the benefit of the
+country as a nation, than for the protecting merely of its revenues.
+Thus there was a kind of somersault performed; and the whole of the
+original idea capsized. Whereas the Preventive service had been
+instituted for the benefit of the Customs, and then, as an
+after-thought, became employed for protection against the enemy across
+the Channel, so now it was to be exactly the other way on. The Revenue
+was to be subservient to the greater and national factor.
+
+In this same 1831, the number of cruisers had risen to thirty-five in
+England, but many of them had tenders. There were altogether
+twenty-one of these latter and smaller craft, their tonnage varying
+from twenty-five to sixty. And the next year the Mounted Guard was
+reorganised and the Riding Officers disappeared. With the cordon of
+cruisers afloat, and the more efficient Coastguard service ashore,
+there was a double belt round our coasts, which could be relied upon
+both for national and Revenue services. By this time, too, steam was
+invading the domain of the ship, and in 1839, besides the
+old-fashioned sailing cutters and tenders, there was a steamer named
+the _Vulcan_, of 200 tons, taken into the service, her duty being to
+cruise about and search for suspicious vessels. In some parts of the
+country, also, there was assistance still rendered by the Mounted
+Guard for watching the roads leading inland from the beach to prevent
+goods being brought up.
+
+With this increased efficiency it was but natural that a change should
+come over the character of the smuggling. Force was fast going out of
+date. Except for a number of rather startling occasions, but on the
+whole of exceptional occurrence, violence had gone out of fashion. But
+because of the increased vigilance along the coast the smuggler was
+hard put to devise new methods of running his goods into the country
+without being surprised by the officials. Most, if not all, of the old
+syndicates of French and Englishmen, who made smuggling a roaring
+trade, had died out. The armed cutters had long since given way to the
+luggers as the smuggling craft. Stealth had taken the place of
+violence, concealments and sunken goods were favoured rather than
+those daring and outrageous incursions which had been in the past wont
+to take place.
+
+And yet, just as a long-standing illness cannot be cured at once, but
+keeps recurring, so there were periods when the smuggling disease kept
+breaking out and seemed to get worse. Such a period was that between
+1825 and 1843, but it was pointed out to the Treasury that so long as
+the high duties continued, "Your Lordships must look only to the
+efficiency of the Coastguard for the continued absence of successful
+enterprises, and that smuggling would immediately revive upon the
+slightest symptom of relaxation on the part of the Commissioners of
+Customs." The service was therefore glad to encourage Naval
+Lieutenants to serve as Chief Officers of the Coastguard.
+
+Among the general instructions issued to the Coastguard of the United
+Kingdom in 1841, were definite orders to the commanders of cruisers.
+Thus, if ever a cruiser ran aground the commander was to report it,
+with full particulars of the case and extent of damage. During the
+summer season the Inspecting Commanders were to take opportunities for
+trying the comparative speeds of these cruisers. Whenever cruisers
+should meet at sea, in any roadstead or in any harbour, they were to
+hoist their ensigns and pendants as an acknowledgment that each had
+seen the other; and when both had thus hoisted their colours they
+might immediately be hauled down. This was also to be done when one
+cruiser should pass another at anchor.
+
+Cruisers were again reminded that they were to wear only the ensigns
+and pendants appointed for the Revenue service, and not such as are
+used in the Royal Navy. Nor were salutes to be fired by cruisers
+except on particular and extraordinary occasions. It was further
+ordered that no alteration was to be made in the hull, masts, yards,
+sails, or any fitments of the cruisers, without the sanction of the
+Controller-General. To prevent unnecessary expense on fitting out or
+refitting of any of the cruisers, the use of leather was to be
+restricted to the following: the leathering of the main pendants,
+runners in the wake of the boats when in tackles, the collar of the
+mainstay, the nip of the main-sheet block strops, leathering the
+bowsprint traveller, the spanshackle for the bowsprit, topmast iron,
+the four reef-earings three feet from the knot. All old copper,
+copper-sheathing, nails, lead, iron and other old materials which were
+of any value, were to be collected and allowed for by the tradesmen
+who perform the repairs. New sails were to be tried as soon as
+received in order to ascertain their fitness. Both boats and cruisers
+were also to be painted twice a year, above the water-line, this to be
+done by the crews themselves.
+
+A general pilot was allowed for two months when a cruiser arrived on a
+new station, and an occasional pilot was permissible in cases of
+necessity, but only licensed pilots were to be employed. General
+pilots were paid 6s. a day as well as the usual rations of provisions.
+The cruisers were provided with charts of the coast off which they
+were employed. Naval officers holding appointments as Inspecting
+Commanders of cruisers, Chief Officers of stations and Mates of
+cruisers were ordered to wear the greatcoat established by any
+Admiralty regulation in force for the time being, with epaulettes,
+cap, and side-arms, according to their ranks. Commanders of cruisers,
+if not naval officers, were to wear a blue lappel-coat, buttoned back
+with nine Coastguard uniform buttons and notched button-holes, plain
+blue stand-up collar with gold lace loop and button on each side
+thereof--the loop to be five inches long, and the lace three-quarters
+of an inch in breadth. There were also to be three buttons and notched
+button-holes on each cuff and pocket, as well as three buttons in the
+folds of each skirt.
+
+The waistcoat was to be white or blue kerseymere, with uniform
+buttons, white or blue pantaloons or trousers, with boots, a blue
+cloth cap similar in shape to those worn in the Royal Navy, with two
+bands of gold lace three-quarters of an inch broad, one at the top and
+the other at the bottom of the headpiece. The sword was to have a
+plain lace knot and fringe tassel, with a black leather belt. White
+trousers were worn on all occasions of inspection and other special
+occasions between April 23 and October 14. Blue trousers were to be
+worn for the other months.
+
+In 1849 the Select Committee on the Board of Customs expressed the
+opinion that the number of cruisers might be reduced, and the
+Landguard practically abolished; but it was deemed advisable that
+these protections being removed, the coastline of defence ought to be
+strengthened by securing the services of Naval Lieutenants who had
+retired from the Navy on half-pay. So the number of cruisers and
+tenders which in 1844 had reached seventy-six, and in 1849 were
+fifty-two, had now sunk to fifty in the year 1850. In 1854, on the
+outbreak of war with Russia, 3000 men were drafted into the Navy from
+the Coastguard, their places being filled by pensioners. During the
+war considerable service was also rendered by the Revenue cruisers, by
+capturing the Russian ships in the Northern Seas, for we must
+recollect that, just as in the wars with France, there were two
+centres to be dealt with, viz., in the north and south. The war with
+Russia, as regards the sea service, was prosecuted both in the Narrow
+Seas and in the Black Sea, and the Russian trade was badly cut up. As
+many as eleven Russian ships were captured by means of these British
+cutters, and no less than eight of these prizes were condemned. The
+fact is worthy of being borne in mind when considering the history of
+these craft which have long since passed from performing active
+service.
+
+The next modification came in 1856, when it was resolved to transfer
+the control of the Coastguard to the Admiralty; for in spite of the
+great change which had been brought about in 1831, all the Coastguard
+officers and men while being appointed by the Admiralty, were none the
+less controlled by the Customs. However, this condition was now
+altered, but in the teeth of opposition on the part of the Customs,
+who represented to the Treasury that considerable inconvenience would
+result from this innovation. But on the 1st of October 1856, the
+control of the Coastguard was transferred to the Admiralty, as it had
+been foreshadowed. And with that we see practically the last stage in
+the important development which had been going on for some years past.
+It was practically the finale of the tendency towards making the
+service naval rather than civil.
+
+For the moment, I am seeking to put the reader in possession of a
+general idea of the administrative features of the service, which is
+our subject, during the period between 1822-1856. At the
+last-mentioned date our period devoted to cutters and smugglers
+practically ends. But before proceeding to deal with the actual
+incidents and exciting adventures embraced by this period, it may be
+convenient just to mention that these changes were followed in 1869,
+when the services of civilians employed in any capacity in the
+Coastguard were altogether dispensed with, and since then the general
+basis of the Coastguard development has been for the better defence of
+our coasts, so as to be vigilant against any disembarkation by a
+foreign power, at the same time providing to a certain extent for the
+manning of the ships of the Royal Navy when required. Thus, the old
+organisation, with which the Customs Board was so closely and for so
+long a time connected, changed its character when its sphere became
+national rather than particular. Its duty henceforth was primarily for
+the protection of the country than for the prevention of smuggling.
+But between 1822--when the Admiralty yielded up their responsibilities
+to the Customs Board--and the year 1856, when again the control was
+returned to the Admiralty, no material alterations were made in the
+methods of preventing smuggling, the most important event during that
+period--apart altogether from the actual smuggling incidents--was the
+change which had been brought about in 1831.
+
+During the different reigns and centuries in which the smuggling evil
+had been at work, all sorts of anti-smuggling acts had been passed. We
+can well understand that a certain amount of hasty, panic-driven
+legislation had from time to time been created according to the sudden
+increase of contraband running. But all these laws had become so
+numerous, and their accumulation had made matters so intricate, that
+the time had come for some process of unravelling, straightening out,
+and summarising. The systematising and clarification were affected by
+the Act of January 5, 1826 (6 Geo. IV. cap. 108). And one of the most
+important features of this was to the effect that any vessel belonging
+wholly or in part to his Majesty's subjects, found within four leagues
+of the coast of the United Kingdom, with prohibited goods on board,
+and not proceeding on her voyage, was to be forfeited. Any vessel or
+boat, not square-rigged, belonging wholly or in part to his Majesty's
+subjects, and found in the British (as it was then frequently
+designated) Channel or Irish Channel, or elsewhere within 100 leagues
+of the coast, with spirits or tobacco in casks or packages of less
+size than 40 gallons; or tea, tobacco, or snuff, in any package
+containing less than 450 lbs. in weight--this craft was to be
+forfeited. And vessels (not square-rigged), if found unlicensed, were
+also to be forfeited. But whale-boats, fishing-boats, pilot's boats,
+purely inland boats, and boats belonging to square-rigged ships were
+exempt.
+
+But, of course, smuggling was still very far from being dead, and the
+Revenue cruisers had always to be on the alert. Some idea of the
+sphere of activity belonging to these may be gathered from the
+following list of cruiser stations existing in the early 'twenties.
+The English cruiser stations consisted of: Deptford, Chatham,
+Sheerness, Portsmouth, Cowes, Weymouth, Exmouth, Plymouth, Fowey,
+Falmouth, Penzance, Milford, Berwick, Grimsby, Boston, North
+Yarmouth, Harwich, Gravesend, Dover, Poole, Brixham, Ilfracombe,
+Douglas (Isle of Man), Alderney, Dover, Seaford, Dartmouth, Holyhead,
+Southend (in the port of Leigh). In Scotland there were: Leith,
+Montrose, Stranraer, Stornoway, Aberdeen, Cromarty, Campbeltown,
+Greenock. In Ireland there were: Kingstown, Larne, Killibegs,
+Westport, Galway, Cork, and Dunmore East.
+
+It was to such places as the above that the cruisers repaired for
+their provisions. When smugglers had been captured and taken on board
+these cruisers they were allowed not to fare as well as the crew, but
+to have only two-thirds of the victuals permitted to the mariners. In
+1825 additional instructions were issued relating to the victualling
+of his Majesty's Revenue Cruisers, and in future every man per diem
+was to have:--
+
+One pound of biscuit, 1/3 of a pint of rum (wine measure), until the
+establishment of the imperial measure, when 1/4 of a pint was to be
+allowed, the imperial gallon being one-fifth greater than the wine
+gallon. Each man was also to have 1 lb. beef, 1/2 lb. flour, or in
+lieu thereof 1/2 pint of oatmeal, 1/4 lb. suet, or 1-1/2 oz. of sugar
+or 1/4 oz. of tea, also 1 lb. of cabbage or 2 oz. of Scotch barley.
+They were to be provided with pure West India rum, of at least twelve
+months old. Further regulations were also taken as to the nature of
+the men's grog. "As it is considered extremely prejudicial to the
+health of the crew to suffer the allowance of spirits to be drank raw,
+the Commanders are to cause the same to be served out to them mixed
+with water, in the proportion of three parts water and one part
+spirits, to be so mixed and served out in presence of one of the
+mates, the boatswain, gunner, or carpenter, and one or two of the
+mariners."
+
+Smugglers detained on board were not to have spirits. Before
+proceeding to sea each cruiser was to have on board not less than two
+months' supply of salt beef, spirits; suet or sugar and tea in lieu,
+as well as Scotch barley. With reference to the other articles of
+food, they were to carry as large a proportion as could be stowed
+away, with the exception of fresh beef and cabbages. But two years
+prior to this, that is to say on April 5, 1823, the Board of Customs
+had reduced the victualling allowances, so that Commander and mates
+and superintendents of Quarantine received 2s. 6d. a day each;
+mariners 1s. 3d.; and mariners of lazarettes (hospitals 1s. for
+quarantine) 1s. 3d. a day.
+
+As to the methods of the smugglers, these continued to become more and
+more ingenious, though there was a good deal of repetition of
+successful tricks until the Revenue officers had learnt these secrets,
+when some other device had to be thought out and employed. Take the
+case of a craft called the _Wig Box_, belonging to John Punnett. She
+was seized at Folkestone in the spring of 1822 by a midshipman of the
+Coast Blockade. There were found on her six gallons of spirits, which
+were concealed in the following most ingenious manner. She was quite a
+small vessel, but her three oars, her two masts, her bowsprit, and her
+bumpkin, had all been made hollow. Inside these hollows tin tubes had
+been fitted to contain the above spirits, and there can be little
+doubt but that a good many other small craft had successfully employed
+these means until the day when the _Wig Box_ had the misfortune to be
+found out. There is still preserved in the London Custom House a
+hollow wooden fend-off which was slung when a ship was alongside a
+quay. No one for a long time ever thought of suspecting that this
+innocent-looking article could be full of tobacco, lying as it was
+under the very eyes of the Customs officers of the port. And in 1820
+three other boats were seized in one port alone, having concealed
+prohibited goods in a square foremast and outrigger, each spar being
+hollowed out from head to foot and the ends afterwards neatly plugged
+and painted. Another boat was seized and brought into Dover with
+hollow yards to her lugsails, and a hollow keel composed of tin but
+painted to look like wood, capable of holding large quantities of
+spirits.
+
+But there was a very notorious vessel named the _Asp_, belonging to
+Rye, her master's name being John Clark, her size being just under 24
+tons. In 1822 she was seized and found to have a false bow, access to
+which was by means of two scuttles, one on each side of the stem.
+These scuttles were fitted with bed-screws fixed through false timbers
+into the real timbers, and covered with pieces of cork resembling
+treenails. The concealment afforded space for no fewer than fifty flat
+tubs besides dry goods. But in 1824 another vessel of the same name
+and port, described as a smack, was also arrested at Rye, and found to
+have both tobacco and silk goods concealed. This was effected by means
+of a false bottom to the ship, which extended as far aft as the
+ballast bulkhead. The entrance to the concealment was by means of a
+couple of scuttles on each side of her false keelson, these scuttles
+being screwed down in such a manner as also to be imperceptible. Also
+on either side of her cabin there were other hiding-places underneath
+the berths, and so constructed that they deceived more than one
+Revenue officer who came aboard to rummage her. The latter had bored
+holes through the lining, so as to try the distance of that lining
+from the supposed side of the vessel. Finding this distance not to
+exceed the fair allowance for the vessel's scuttling, the officers had
+gone ashore quite satisfied. From the number of gimlet-holes in the
+lining it was clear that the officers had been imposed upon
+considerably. But what these officers had taken for the side of the
+ship was only an intermediary planking, the actual concealment being
+between that and the vessel's side.
+
+To get to the entrance of these concealments, the bedding had to be
+taken out, which they had no doubt omitted to do. But if they had done
+this they would have been able properly to get to the lining, when two
+small pieces of wood about an inch square let into the plank made
+themselves apparent. And these, if removed with the point of a knife
+or chisel, brought small pieces of cork (circular in shape) to become
+visible. As soon as these corks were removed, the heads of bed-screws
+were observable, and these being unscrewed allowed two boards running
+the whole lengths of the berths to be taken up, by which means were
+revealed the concealments capable of containing a considerable
+quantity of dry goods.
+
+Somewhat reminiscent of this ship was the French vessel, _St.
+Antoine_, which was seized at Shoreham. She had come from Dieppe, and
+her master was named A. Fache. The after part of her cabin was fitted
+with two cupboards which had shelves that took down, the back of which
+was supposed to be the lining of the transom. But on taking the same
+up, timbers showed themselves. On examining the planks closely, it
+was noticed that they overlapped each other, the timbers being made to
+act as fastenings. On striking the lower end of the false timbers on
+one side, it moved round on a bolt, and one plank with a timber was
+made to shift on each side of the false stern-post, forming a
+stern-frame with the other. Below the cupboards down to the run of the
+vessel the same principle was followed. The entrance to this was by
+taking down the seats and lockers in the cabin, and a false stern-post
+appeared to be fastened with a forelock and ring, but by unfastening
+the same, the false stern-post and middle plank could be taken down.
+
+Two ingenious instances of the sinking of contraband goods were found
+out about the year 1823, and both occurred within that notorious
+south-east corner of England. The first of these belongs to Sandwich,
+where three half-ankers of foreign spirits were seized floating, being
+hidden in a sack, a bag of shingle weighing 30 lbs. being used to act
+as a sinker. Attached to the sack were an inflated bladder and about
+three fathoms of twine, together with a small bunch of feathers to act
+as a buoy to mark the spot. When this arrangement was put into use it
+was found that the bladder kept the sack floating one foot below the
+surface of the water. The feathers were to mark the spot where the
+sack, on being thrown overboard, might bring up in case any accident
+had occurred to the bladder. At spring tides the rush of the water
+over the Sandwich flats causes a good deal of froth which floats on
+the surface. The reader must often have observed such an instance on
+many occasions by the sea. The exact colour is a kind of dirty yellow,
+and this colour being practically identical with that of the bladder,
+it would be next to impossible to tell the difference between froth
+and bladder at any distance, and certainly no officer of the Revenue
+would look for such things unless he had definite knowledge
+beforehand.
+
+[Illustration: The Sandwich Device.
+In the sack were three half-ankers. A bag of shingle acted as sinker,
+and the bladder kept the sack floating.]
+
+The second occurrence took place at Rye. A seizure was made of twelve
+tubs of spirits which had been sunk by affixing to the head of each a
+circular piece of sheet lead which just fitted into the brim of the
+cask, and was there kept in its place by four nails. The weight of the
+lead was 9 lbs., and the tubs, being lashed longitudinally together,
+rolled in a tideway unfettered, being anchored by the usual lines and
+heavy stones. The leads sank the casks to the bottom in 2-1/2 fathoms
+of water, but at that depth they in specific gravity so nearly
+approximated to their equal bulk of fluid displaced that they could
+scarcely be felt on the finger. The leads were cast in moulds to the
+size required, and could be repeatedly used for the same purpose, and
+it was thought that the smuggling vessels, after coming across the
+Channel and depositing their cargoes, would on a later voyage be given
+back these pieces of lead to be affixed to other casks.
+
+A clinker-built boat of about 26 tons burthen named the _St.
+Francois_, the master of which was named Jean Baptiste La Motte, of
+and from Gravelines, crossed the North Sea and passed through the
+Forth and Clyde Canal in the year 1823 to Glasgow. Nominally she had a
+cargo of apples and walnuts, her crew consisting of six men besides
+the master. She was able to land part of her cargo of "apples" at
+Whitby and the rest at Glasgow, and afterwards, repassing safely
+through the canal again, returned to Gravelines. But some time after
+her departure from Scotland it was discovered that she had brought no
+fruit at all, but that what appeared to be apples were so many
+portions of lace made up into small boxes of the size of apples and
+ingeniously painted to resemble that fruit.
+
+As showing that, even as late as the year 1824, the last of the armed
+cutters had not been yet seen, we may call attention to the
+information which was sent to the London Custom House through the
+Dublin Customs. The news was to the effect that in February of that
+year there was in the harbour of Flushing, getting ready for sea,
+whither she would proceed in three or four days, a cutter laden with
+tobacco, brandy, Hollands, and tea. She was called the _Zellow_, which
+was a fictitious name, and was a vessel of 160 tons with a crew of
+forty men, copper-bottomed and pierced for fourteen guns. She was
+painted black, with white mouldings round the stern. Her boom also was
+black, so were her gaff and masthead. The officers were warned to keep
+a look-out for her, and informed that she had a large strengthening
+fish on the upper side of the boom, twenty cloths in the head, and
+twenty-eight in the foot of the mainsail. It was reported that she was
+bound for Ballyherbert, Mountain Foot, and Clogher Head in Ireland,
+but if prevented from landing there she was consigned to Ormsby of
+Sligo and Burke of Connemara. In the event of her failing there also
+she had on board two "spotsmen" or pilots for the coast of Kerry and
+Cork. There was also a lugger at the same time about to proceed from
+Flushing to Wexford. This vessel was of from 90 to 100 tons, was
+painted black, with two white mouldings and a white counter. She
+carried on her deck a large boat which was painted white also.
+
+Tobacco was discovered concealed in rather a curious manner on another
+vessel. She had come from St. John, New Brunswick, with a cargo of
+timber, and the planks had been hollowed out and filled with tobacco,
+but it was so cleverly done that it was a long time before it was
+detected. All sorts of vessels and of many rigs were fitted with
+places of concealment, and there was even a 50-ton cutter named the
+_Alborough_, belonging to London, employed in this business, which had
+formerly been a private yacht, but was now more profitably engaged
+running goods from Nieuport in Belgium to Hull. The descriptions of
+some of these craft sent to the various outports, so that a smart
+look-out for them might be kept up, are certainly valuable to us, as
+they preserve a record of a type of craft that has altered so much
+during the past century as almost to be forgotten. The description of
+the sloop _Jane_, for instance, belonging to Dumbarton in 1824, is
+worth noting by those who are interested in the ships of yesterday.
+Sloop-rigged, and carvel built, she had white mouldings over a yellow
+streak, and her bulwark was painted green inside. Her cross-jack
+yards,[21] as they are called, her bowsprit-boom, her gaff and
+studding-sail boom were all painted white, and she had three black
+hoops on the mast under the hounds. Her sails were all white, but her
+square topsail and topgallant-yards were black. The _Jane_ was a
+90-tonner.
+
+The reader will remember considering some time back an open boat which
+was fitted with hollow stanchions under the thwarts, so that through
+these stanchions ropes might pass through into the water below. I have
+come across a record of a smack registered in the port of London under
+the singularly inappropriate name of the _Good Intent_. She was
+obviously built or altered with the sole intention of being employed
+in smuggling. I need say nothing of her other concealments under the
+cabin berths and so on, as they were practically similar to those on
+the _Asp_. But it was rather exceptional to find on so big a craft as
+the _Good Intent_ a false stanchion immediately abaft the fore
+scuttle. Through this stanchion ran a leaden pipe about two inches in
+diameter, and this went through the keelson and garboard strake, so
+that by this means a rope could be led through and into the vessel,
+while at the other end a raft of tubs could be towed through the
+water. By hauling tightly on to this line the kegs could be kept
+beautifully concealed under the bilge of the vessel, so that even in
+very clear water it would not be easy to suspect the presence of these
+tubs. The other end of this pipe came up through the ship until it was
+flush with the deck, and where this joined the latter a square piece
+of lead was tarred and pitched so as scarcely to be perceived.
+
+There must indeed have been a tremendous amount of thought, as well as
+the expenditure of a great deal of time and money, in creating these
+methods of concealment, but since they dared not now to use force it
+was all they could do.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[21] The cro'jack yard was really the lower yard of a full-rigged ship
+on the mizzen-mast, to the arms of which the clews or lower corners of
+the mizzen-topsail were extended. But as sloops were fore-and-aft
+craft it is a little doubtful what is here meant. Either it may refer
+to the barren yard below the square topsail carried by the sloops of
+those days--the clews actually were extended to this yard's arms--or
+the word may have been the equivalent of what we nowadays call
+cross-trees.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS
+
+
+Second cousin to the method of filling oars and spars with spirits was
+that adopted by a number of people whose homes and lives were
+connected with the sea-shore. They would have a number of shrimping
+nets on board, the usual wooden handles being fitted at one end of
+these nets. But these handles had been purposely made hollow, so that
+round tin cases could be fitted in. The spirits then filled these long
+cavities, and whether they caught many shrimps or not was of little
+account, for dozens of men could wade ashore with these nets and
+handles on their backs and proceed to their homes without raising a
+particle of suspicion. It was well worth doing, for it was calculated
+that as much as 2-1/2 gallons of spirit could be poured into each of
+these hollow poles.
+
+Collier-brigs were very fond of smuggling, and among others mention
+might be made of the _Venus_ of Rye, an 80-ton brig which between
+January and September one year worked three highly profitable voyages,
+for besides her ordinary cargo she carried each time 800 casks of
+spirits, these being placed underneath the coals. There was also the
+brig _Severn_ of Bristol, which could carry about five keels of coal,
+but seldom carried more than four, the rest of the space of course
+being made up with contraband. In 1824 she worked five voyages, and on
+each occasion she carried, besides her legitimate cargo, as much as
+eight tons of tobacco under her coals. And there was a Danish-built
+sloop named the _Blue-eyed Lass_ belonging to Shields, with a burthen
+of 60 odd tons, also employed in the coal trade. She was a very
+suspicious vessel, and was bought subsequently by the people of Rye to
+carry on similar work to the other smuggling craft. All sorts of
+warnings were sent to the Customs Board giving them information that
+_The Rose in June_ (needless to say of Rye) was about to have
+additional concealments added. She was of 37 tons burthen, and had
+previously been employed as a packet boat. They were also warned that
+George Harrington, a noted smuggler resident at Eastbourne, intended
+during the winter months to carry on the contraband trade, and to land
+somewhere between Southampton and Weymouth. He had made arrangements
+with a large number of men belonging to Poole and the neighbouring
+country, and had obtained a suitable French lugger.
+
+In 1826 the smacks _Fox_ and _Lovely Lass_ of Portsmouth were seized
+at that port with kegs of spirits secreted under their bottoms in a
+thin contemporary casing, as shown in the accompanying diagram. The
+ingenious part of this trick was that there was no means of
+communication into the concealment from the interior of the vessel.
+Thus any officer coming aboard to search would have little or no
+reason to suspect her. But it was necessary every time this vessel
+returned from abroad with her contraband for her to be laid ashore,
+and at low water the kegs could be got at externally. To begin with
+there were pieces of plank two inches thick fastened to the timbers by
+large nails. Then, between the planks and the vessel's bottom the tubs
+were concealed. The arrangement was exceeding simple yet wonderfully
+clever. Practically this method consisted of filling up the hollow
+below the turn of the bilge. It would certainly not improve the
+vessel's speed, but it would give her an efficacious means of stowing
+her cargo of spirits out of the way. And it was because of such
+incidents as this last mentioned that orders were sent to all ports
+for the local craft and others to be examined frequently _ashore_ no
+less than afloat, in order that any false bottom might be detected.
+And the officers were to be careful and see that the name of the ship
+and her master painted on a ship corresponded with the names in her
+papers. Even open boats were found fitted with double bottoms, as for
+instance the _Mary_, belonging to Dover. She was only 14 feet long
+with 5 feet 9-1/2 inches beam, but she had both a double bottom and
+double sides, in which were contained thirty tin cases to hold 29
+gallons of spirits. Her depth from gunwale to the top of her
+ceiling[22] originally was 2 feet 8-1/2 inches. But the depth from the
+gunwale to the false bottom was 2 feet 5-3/4 inches. The concealment
+ran from the stem to the transom, the entrance being made by four
+cuttles very ingeniously and neatly fitted, with four nails fore and
+aft through the timbers to secure them from moving--one on each side
+of the keelson, about a foot forward of the keelson under the fore
+thwart. Even Thames barges were fitted with concealments; in fact
+there was not a species of craft from a barque to a dinghy that was
+not thus modified for smuggling.
+
+The name of the barge was the _Alfred_ of London, and she was captured
+off Birchington one December day in 1828. She pretended that she was
+bound from Arundel with a cargo of wood hoops, but when she was
+boarded she had evidently been across to "the other side"; for there
+was found 1045 tubs of gin and brandy aboard her when she was
+captured, together with her crew, by a boat sent from the cruiser
+_Vigilant_. The discovery was made by finding an obstruction about
+three feet deep from the top of the coamings, which induced the
+Revenue officer to clear away the bundles of hoops under the fore and
+main hatchways. He then discovered a concealment covered over with
+sand, and on cutting through a plank two inches thick the contraband
+was discovered.
+
+The accompanying diagram shows the sloop _Lucy_ of Fowey, William
+Strugnell master. On the 14th of December 1828 she was seized at
+Chichester after having come from Portsmouth in ballast. She was found
+to be fitted with the concealment shown in the plan, and altogether
+there were 100 half-ankers thus stowed away, 50 being placed on each
+side of her false bottom. She was just over 35 tons burthen, and drew
+four feet of water, being sloop rigged, as many of the barges in those
+days were without the little mizzen which is so familiar to our eyes
+to-day.
+
+[Illustration: The Sloop _Lucy_ showing Concealments.]
+
+Cases of eggs sent from Jersey were fitted with false sides in which
+silks were smuggled; trawlers engaged in sinking tubs of spirits; a
+dog-kennel was washed ashore from a vessel that foundered off
+Dungeness, and on being examined this kennel was found to be fitted
+with a false top to hold 30 lbs. of tobacco; an Irish smack belonging
+to Cork was specially fitted for the contraband trade, having
+previously actually been employed as a Coastguard watch-boat. There
+was a vessel named _Grace_ manned by three brothers--all notorious
+smugglers--belonging to Coverack (Cornwall). This vessel used to put
+to sea by appointment to meet a French vessel, and having from her
+shipped the contraband the _Grace_ would presently run the goods
+ashore somewhere between Land's End and Newport, South Wales; in fact,
+all kinds of smuggling still went on even after the first quarter of
+that wonderful nineteenth century.
+
+About the year 1831 five casks imported from Jersey was alleged to
+contain cider, but on being examined they were found to contain
+something else as well. The accompanying sketch represents the plan of
+one of these. From this it will be seen that the central space was
+employed for holding the cider, but the ends were full of tobacco
+being contained in two tin cases. In this diagram No. 1 represents the
+bung, No. 2 shows the aperture on each side through which the tobacco
+was thrust into the tin cases which are marked by No. 3, the cider
+being contained in the central portion marked 4. Thus the usual method
+of gauging a cask's contents was rendered useless, for unless a bent
+or turned rod were employed it was impossible to detect the presence
+of these side casks for the tobacco.
+
+[Illustration: Cask for Smuggling Cider.]
+
+One may feel a little incredulous at some of the extraordinary yarns
+which one hears occasionally from living people concerning the doings
+of smugglers. A good deal has doubtless arisen as the result of a too
+vivid imagination, but, as we have shown from innumerable instances,
+there is quite enough that is actual fact without having recourse to
+invention. I know of a certain port in our kingdom where there existed
+a legend to the effect that in olden days the smugglers had no need to
+bring the tubs in with them, but that if they only left them outside
+when the young flood was making, those tubs would find their own way
+in to one particular secluded spot in that harbour. A number of
+amateur enthusiasts debated the point quite recently, and a wager was
+made that such a thing was not possible. But on choosing a winter's
+day, and throwing a number of barrels into the water outside the
+entrance, it was found that the trend of the tide was always to bring
+them into that corner. But, you will instantly say, wouldn't the
+Coastguard in the smuggling days have seen the barrels as they came
+along the top of the water?
+
+The answer is certainly in the affirmative. But the smugglers used to
+do in the "scientific" period as follows, and this I have found in a
+document dated 1833, at which time the device was quite new, at least
+to the Customs officials. Let us suppose that the vessel had made a
+safe passage from France, Holland, or wherever she had obtained the
+tubs of spirits. She had eluded the cruisers and arrived off the
+harbour entrance at night just as the flood tide was making. Overboard
+go her tubs, and away she herself goes to get out of the sphere of
+suspicion. These tubs numbered say sixty-three, and were firmly lashed
+together in a shape very similar to a pile of shot--pyramid fashion.
+The tops of the tubs were all painted white, but the raft was green.
+Below this pyramid of tubs were attached two grapnel anchors, and the
+whole contrivance could float in anything above seven feet of water.
+It was so designed that the whole of the tubs came in on the tide
+below water, only three being partially visible, and their white
+colour made them difficult to be seen among the little waves. But as
+soon as they came to the spot where there were only seven feet of
+water the two grapnels came into action and held the tubs moored like
+a ship. And as the tide rose, so it completely obliterated them. Some
+one was of course on the look-out for his spirits, and when the tide
+had dropped it was easy enough to wade out and bring the tubs ashore,
+or else "sweep" them ashore with a long rope that dragged along the
+bottom of the harbour.
+
+During the year 1834 smuggling was again on the increase, especially
+on the south and east coasts, and it took time for the officers to
+learn all these new-fangled tricks which were so frequently employed.
+Scarcely had the intricacies of one device been learnt than the
+smugglers had given up that idea and taken to something more ingenious
+still. Some time back we called attention to the way in which the Deal
+boatmen used to walk ashore with smuggled tea. About the year 1834 a
+popular method of smuggling tea, lace, and such convenient goods was
+to wear a waistcoat or stays which contained eighteen rows well
+stuffed with 8 lbs. weight of tea. The same man would also wear a pair
+of drawers made of stout cotton secured with strong drawing strings
+and stuffed with about 16 lbs. of tea. Two men were captured with nine
+parcels of lace secreted about their bodies, a favourite place being
+to wind it round the shins. Attempts were also made to smuggle spun or
+roll tobacco from New York by concealing them in barrels of pitch,
+rosin, bales of cotton, and so on. In the case of a ship named the
+_Josephine_, from New York, the Revenue officers found in one barrel
+of pitch an inner package containing about 100 lbs. of manufactured
+tobacco.
+
+[Illustration: The Smack _Tam O'Shanter_ showing Method of Concealment
+(see Text).]
+
+The accompanying plan of the smack _Tam O'Shanter_ (belonging to
+Plymouth), which was seized by the Padstow Coastguard, will show how
+spirits were sometimes concealed. This was a vessel of 72 tons with a
+fore bulkhead and a false bulkhead some distance aft of that. This
+intervening space, as will be seen, was filled up with barrels. Her
+hold was filled with a cargo of coals, and then aft of this came the
+cabin with berths on either side, as shown. But under these berths
+were concealments for stowing quite a number of tubs, as already
+explained.
+
+A variation of the plan, previously mentioned, for smuggling by means
+of concealments in casks was that which was favoured by foreign ships
+which traded between the Continent and the north-east coasts of
+England and Scotland. In this case the casks which held the supplies
+of drinking water were fitted with false sides and false ends. The
+inner casks thus held the fresh water, but the outer casks were full
+of spirits. After the introduction of steam, one of the first if not
+the very first instance of steamship smuggling by concealment was that
+occurring in 1836, when a vessel was found to have had her
+paddle-boxes so lined that they could carry quite a large quantity of
+tobacco and other goods.
+
+Another of those instances of ships fitted up specially for smuggling
+was found in the French smack _Auguste_, which is well worth
+considering. She was, when arrested, bound from Gravelines, and could
+carry about fifty tubs of spirits or, instead, a large amount of silk
+and lace. Under the ladder in the forepeak there was a potato locker
+extending from side to side, and under this, extending above a foot or
+more before it, was the concealment. Further forward were some loose
+planks forming a hatch, under which was the coal-hole. This appeared
+to go as far as the bulkhead behind the ladder, and had the
+concealment been full, it could never have been found, but in walking
+over where the coals were, that part of the concealment which extended
+beyond the locker which was empty sounded hollow: whereupon the
+officers pulled up one of the planks and discovered the hiding-place.
+
+It was decided in 1837 that, in order to save the expense of breaking
+up a condemned smuggling vessel, in future the ballast, mast, pumps,
+bulkheads, platforms, and cabins should be taken out from the vessel:
+and that the hull should then be cut into pieces not exceeding six
+feet long. Such pieces were then to be sawn in a fore-and-aft
+direction so as to cut across the beams and thwarts and render the
+hull utterly useless. The accompanying sketch well illustrates the
+ingenuity which was displayed at this time by the men who were bent on
+running goods. What is here represented is a flat-bottomed boat, which
+perhaps might never have been discovered had it not been driven ashore
+near to Selsey Bill during the gales of the early part of 1837. The
+manner in which this craft was employed was to tow her for a short
+distance and then to cast her adrift. She was fitted with rowlocks for
+four oars, but apparently these had never been used. Three large holes
+were bored in her bottom, for the purpose which we shall presently
+explain.
+
+[Illustration: Flat-Bottomed Boat found off Selsey.
+The sketch shows longitudinal plan, the method of covering with net,
+and midship section.]
+
+Built very roughly, with half-inch deal, and covered over with a thin
+coat of white paint, she had a grommet at both bow and stern. She
+measured only 16 feet long and 4 feet wide, with a depth of 2 feet 2
+inches. It will be noticed that she had no thwarts. Her timbers were
+of bent ash secured with common French nails, and alongside the
+gunwales were holes for lacing a net to go over the top of this boat.
+Her side was made of three deal planks, the net being made of line,
+and of the same size as the line out of which the tub-slings were
+always made. The holes in her floor were made for the water to get in
+and keep her below the surface, and the net, spreading from gunwale to
+gunwale, prevented her cargo of tubs from being washed out. It was in
+order to have ample and unfettered room for the tubs that no thwarts
+were placed. She would be towed astern of a smack or lugger under the
+water, and having arrived at the appointed spot the towrope would be
+let go, and the grapnels attached to both grommets at bow and stern
+would cause her to bring up when in sufficiently shallow water. Later
+on, at low tide, the smugglers' friends could go out in their boats
+with a weighted line or hawser and sweep along the bottom of the sea,
+and soon locate her and tow her right in to the beach.
+
+In order to prevent certain obvious excuses being made by dishonest
+persons, all British subjects were distinctly forbidden to pick up
+spirits found in these illegal half-ankers, only officers of the Royal
+Navy, the Customs, and the Excise being permitted so to do. But it was
+not always that the Revenue cruisers were employed in catching
+smugglers. We have pointed out that their duties also included
+Quarantine work. In the spring of 1837 it was represented to the
+Treasury that there was much urgent distress prevailing in certain
+districts of the Highlands and Western Islands of Scotland owing to
+the failure of the last harvest. Sir John Hill was therefore directed
+to proceed to Scotland and take such steps as might be necessary for
+the immediate supply of seed, corn, and potatoes, and the officers and
+commanders of the Revenue cruisers were directed to afford him every
+assistance.
+
+[Illustration: Plan of the Schooner _Good Intent_ showing Method of
+Smuggling Casks.]
+
+In the previous chapter attention was called to the singular
+inappropriateness of calling a smuggling vessel the _Good Intent_.
+That was a smack belonging to the year 1824, which was found at Rye.
+But this name seems to have had a certain amount of popularity among
+these ingenious gentlemen, for there was a smuggling schooner named
+the _Good Intent_ which was seized in the year 1837. How cleverly and
+effectively she was fitted up for a smuggling voyage can be
+ascertained by considering the accompanying longitudinal plan. She had
+a burthen of 72 tons, and was captured by the Revenue cruiser _Sylvia_
+in Mount's Bay on the 14th of March. The plan denotes her principal
+features, including her sail-room and general store right aft.
+Immediately forward of this was the first concealment on the port side
+only. Entrance was gained by means of a slide which was nailed up, and
+here many casks could easily be stored. Next to this came the after
+bulkhead, but forward of this was also a false bulkhead, the distance
+between the real and the false being 2-1/2 feet, and affording a space
+to contain 138 kegs.
+
+Under the cabin were coals, and around the coals under the cabin deck
+were placed some kegs. The fore bulkhead had also a false bulkhead 2
+feet 5 inches apart, and this space held as many as 148 kegs. Under
+the deck of the forepeak were also 21 kegs. The length of these kegs
+was 17 inches, and they were nearly a foot in diameter. Each cask
+contained 4-1/2 gallons of French brandy. This vessel was found to
+have merely limestone ballast in her hold, but her illicit cargo was
+more valuable to her than if she had been fully laden with the
+commodity which she usually and legitimately traded in. Later in the
+same year, and by the same cruiser _Sylvia_, this time off Land's End,
+the Jersey schooner _Spartan_, a vessel of 36-1/2 tons, was seized, as
+she was found to be fitted up with similar concealments (see sketch).
+
+[Illustration: The Schooner _Spartan_.
+
+  1. Hollow beam.
+  2. Opening for entering No. 3.
+  3. Place of concealment.]
+
+One day about the middle of the last century a 16-ton Grimsby
+fishing-smack named _Lord Rivers_ left her native port and journeyed
+south. Her owner and master was in a dismal frame of mind, and
+complained to his mate that things were pretty bad, and he was
+becoming remarkably poor. The fishing was not prospering so far as he
+was concerned, and so after thinking the matter over he was proposing
+to take the ship over to Boulogne and get a cargo of between thirty
+and forty gallons of spirits. His mate heard what he had to say and
+agreed to go with him. So to Boulogne they proceeded, where they
+purchased the spirits from a dealer, who brought the spirits on board,
+not in casks but in skins and bladders, making about fifty in all.
+These were deposited in the smack's hold, and she then cleared out of
+harbour and went to the fishing-grounds, where, to make matters appear
+all right, she remained twenty-four hours, for the purpose of
+obtaining some oysters by dredging. Whilst on the fishing-grounds the
+spirits were stowed in a neat concealment at the stern of the vessel
+on both sides abaft the hatchway. Before long the smack got going and
+ran into Dover with the oysters and her spirits, lowered her sails,
+and made everything snug. In due course the bladders of spirits were
+got out of the hold in small numbers, and placed in baskets and
+covered over with a sufficiently thick layer of oysters to prevent
+their presence being detected. These baskets were taken to a
+neighbouring tap-room, the landlord of which bought as much as he
+wanted, and a local poulterer bought the rest of the spirits and
+oysters as well.
+
+[Illustration: Deck Plan and Longitudinal Plan of the _Lord Rivers_
+(see Text).]
+
+But the local Coastguard had for a long time been suspicious of this
+vessel, and evidently this was not her first voyage in the smuggling
+trade. He had watched and followed the man who took the bladders
+ashore, and now came on board to see what he could find. The deck plan
+will clearly convey to the reader the way in which the smack was
+fitted up with concealments. The letters A and A indicate two portions
+of the deck planking, each portion being about a couple of feet long.
+These were movable, and fitted into their places with a piece of
+spun-yarn laid into the seams, and over this was laid some putty
+blackened on the top. At first sight they appeared to be part of the
+solid planking of the deck, but on obtaining a chisel they were easily
+removed. There was now revealed the entrance to a space on each side
+of the rudder-case in the false stern capable of containing thirty or
+forty gallons of spirits. This in itself was conclusive, but when the
+Coastguard also found that the putty in the seams was soft and fresh,
+and that a strong smell of spirits emanated from this cavity, it was
+deemed that there was more than adequate reason for arresting the
+smack even though the hold was quite empty.
+
+Thus the _Lord Rivers_ came to a bad end.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[22] The ceiling of a ship signified the inside planks.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+BY SEA AND LAND
+
+
+Having now seen the evolution of the smuggling methods from brute
+force and superiority of ships and crews to the point where the
+landing of dutiable goods became a fine art, and having been able to
+obtain an idea of the manifold changes which occurred in the
+administration of the Preventive service between the years 1674 and
+1856, we may now resume our narrative of the interesting encounters
+which occurred between the smugglers on the one hand and the
+Preventive force on the other. Up to the year 1822 we have dealt with
+the different incidents which used to go on around our coast, and we
+shall now be in a position to appreciate to their full the notable
+exploits of cruisers and smugglers in that late period between the
+years 1822 and 1856. This covers the epoch when improved architecture
+in regard to the craft employed, greater vigilance on the part of the
+cruisers, and a keener artfulness in the smugglers themselves were at
+work. Consequently some of these contests represent the best incidents
+in the whole history of smuggling.
+
+But it was not always that the Revenue cruisers and Preventive boats
+were in the right. There were occasions when the commanders suffered
+from too much zeal, though certainly these were quite exceptional.
+There is the case of the _Drencher_ which well illustrates this. She
+was a Dutch vessel which had been on her voyage to Italy, and was now
+returning home up the English Channel with a cargo of oil, bound for
+Amsterdam. Being somewhat square and ample of form, with the
+characteristic bluff bows much beloved by her countrymen, and being
+also very foul on her bottom through long voyaging, she was only a
+dull sailer.[23] And such being the case, when she fell in with head
+winds her skipper and part-owner, Peter Crook, decided to let go
+anchor under Dungeness, where many a sailing craft then, as to-day,
+has taken shelter in similar circumstances.
+
+Whilst she was at anchor waiting for a favourable slant, one of the
+numerous fishing-boats which are always to be seen hereabouts came
+alongside the _Drencher_[24] and asked the skipper if he required any
+assistance. Crook replied that if the wind was still ahead, and he was
+compelled to remain there till the next day, he would want some fuel
+for his stove. The fisherman sold some of his catch to the Dutchman,
+and then went on his way.
+
+But soon after this a boat in the Preventive service, commanded by a
+Mr. MacTavish, a midshipman, came alongside and boarded the
+_Drencher_. The midshipman inquired what the Dutchman had had to do
+with the fishing-boat, and Crook answered that he had done nothing
+except to purchase some fish. But this did not satisfy Mr. MacTavish,
+who proceeded now to examine what was on board. Of course he found
+some casks of spirits, and asked Crook how they came to be there, to
+which Crook answered that they had been found floating in a former
+voyage and he had picked them up. This looked doubtful, but it was
+quite probable, for often the weights of stones from sunken tubs broke
+adrift and the tubs floated up to the surface. Especially was this the
+case after bad weather.
+
+We can well understand the midshipman's suspicions, and need not be
+surprised to learn that he felt justified in seizing the ship because
+of these tubs found on board. He had the anchor broken out, the sails
+hoisted, and took her first into Dover, and afterwards from Dover to
+Ramsgate, where most of her cargo was unloaded. But after a time she
+was ordered to be released and allowed to proceed to Holland, and
+later still her skipper brought an action against MacTavish for
+having been wrongfully detained for thirty days, for which demurrage
+he claimed four guineas a day, besides damage to her cable and other
+things, amounting in all to L208.
+
+The reader will recollect that in another chapter we saw a couple of
+sailing craft dodging about suspiciously in West Bay, one of which
+began to fire signals to the other in order to warn her of the
+Preventive boat: and we saw that the crew of three men in the
+offending craft were arrested and found guilty. One of these men, it
+will be remembered, was John Bartlett, who had at one time been a boy
+on a Revenue cutter. From the incident which led to his arrest in 1819
+let us pass to the 14th of September 1823. The scene is again West
+Bay, and the old passion is still strong in Bartlett notwithstanding
+his sentence. A little to the west of Bridport (Dorset) is Seatown,
+and just beyond that comes Golden Cape. On the night of the above date
+one of the Seatown Revenue officers about 1 A.M. noticed flashes
+coming from the cliff between Seatown and Golden Cape. He proceeded to
+the cliff, which at high-water runs straight up out of the sea. It was
+a dark night with no moon, a little breeze, and only slight surf on
+the shore--ideal conditions for any craft bent on smuggling.
+
+On the cliff the officer, named Joseph Davey, espied a man. He hailed
+him, thinking it was some one else, and asked him if he were Joey
+Foss. "Yes," came back the answer, but when the officer seized him he
+discovered it was not Foss but the notorious John Bartlett. Up came
+another Revenue man named Thomas Nines to assist Davey, but in a few
+minutes Bartlett gave a loud whistle, whereupon Nines looked out
+seaward and exclaimed, "There's a boat."
+
+"I sees him," answered Davey as the craft was approaching the shore.
+By this time, also, there were ten or twelve men coming towards the
+officers, and Bartlett managed to run down to the shore, shouting
+"Keep off!" "Keep off!" as loudly as he could. The officers ran too,
+but the boat turned round and put off to sea again. In the course of a
+few minutes there rose up a large fire on the cliff, about a hundred
+yards from where the officers were. It was another signal of warning
+to the boat. For Bartlett, having got away from the officers, had
+doubtless lit this, since it flared up near to where he was seen to
+run. The officers remained on the coast until daylight, and then
+launching their boat rowed a little way from the shore, and found a
+new buoy moored just by the spot where the lugger had been observed to
+turn round when hailed and warned. It was clear, on examination, that
+the buoy had not been in the water many hours, and after "creeping"
+along the sea bottom hereabouts they brought up sixty kegs, which were
+also quite new, and had evidently only been sunk when Bartlett sung
+out his warning. The latter was again arrested, and found guilty when
+subsequently tried. So again Bartlett had to retire from smuggling.
+
+It happened only a few weeks before this incident that a seaman named
+Willis was on shore with his officer. Willis belonged to H.M.S.
+_Severn_, which was moored off Dover for the prevention of smuggling.
+The officer was a naval midshipman named Hope, stationed ashore.
+Whilst on their duty they began to notice a man, whose name was
+William Clarke, near Chalk Fall, carrying a basket of nets and fishing
+lines. For a time both Willis and Hope took shelter under the Chalk
+Cliff as it was raining, but presently Willis separated from his
+officer to go to his appointed station. It occurred to him that Clarke
+appeared to be unnecessarily stout, and he was sure that he was trying
+to smuggle something. Willis went up to him and said he intended to
+search him, to which Clarke replied, "Certainly." He admitted he had
+some liquor there, but he hoped Willis would take no notice of it. The
+seaman insisted that he must take notice, for if it turned out to be
+foreign spirits he must seize it: whereupon Clarke flung down a couple
+of half-crowns and asked him to say nothing about it.
+
+Willis again protested that he must see what the man had beneath his
+gabardine. But at this Clarke took a knife from his pocket and cut a
+large bladder which he had under his clothes, containing half a
+gallon of spirits, and a spirituous liquor poured out on to the
+ground. Willis put his finger to it and found that it was foreign
+brandy. But the amusing legal aspect of this incident was that this
+foreign liquor could not be seized, nor could the man be prosecuted
+for having it, and it could not be condemned. But Clarke had indeed
+destroyed that which he had so early brought safely home. This was
+just one instance of the good work which the Coast Blockade was
+performing, Willis and other seamen being landed every night from
+H.M.S. _Severn_ to act as guard at different points along the coast.
+
+In the annals of smugglers and cruisers there are few more notable
+incidents than that which occurred on the 13th of January 1823, in the
+English Channel. On this day the Revenue cutter _Badger_ was cruising
+off the French coast under the command of Lieutenant Henry Nazer, R.N.
+He was an officer of the Excise, but the cutter at that time was in
+the service of the Customs, her station being from the South Foreland
+to Dungeness. About 7.30 A.M. the officer of the watch came below and
+told him something, whereupon Nazar hurried on deck and observed a
+suspicious sail on the starboard tack, the wind being E.S.E. The
+_Badger_ was at that time about nine or ten miles off the French
+coast, somewhere abreast of Etaples, and about six or seven leagues
+from the English shore. The craft which was seen was, to use the
+lieutenant's own language, "a cutter yawl-rigged," which I understand
+to signify a cutter with a small lug-sail mizzen, as was often found
+on smugglers. At any rate, he had every reason to believe that this
+was a smuggling craft, and he immediately made sail after her. At that
+hour it was just daybreak, and the smuggler was about three or four
+miles off--to the eastward--and to windward, but was evidently running
+with sheets eased off in a westerly direction.
+
+But when the smuggler saw the _Badger_ was giving chase he also
+altered his course. It was a fine, clear, frosty morning, and the
+_Badger_ quickly sent up his gaff topsail and began to overhaul the
+other, so that by nine o'clock the two vessels were only a mile apart.
+The _Badger_ now hoisted his Revenue pendant at the masthead,
+consisting of a red field with a regal crown at the upper part next
+the mast, and he also hoisted the Revenue ensign (that is to say "a
+red Jack with a Union Jack in a canton at the upper corner and a regal
+crown in the centre of the red Jack") at his peak. These signals
+instantly denoted that the ship was a Revenue cruiser. Lieutenant
+Nazar also ordered an unshotted gun to be fired as a further signal
+that the smuggler was to heave-to, but the stranger paid no attention
+and hoisted no colours. Ten minutes later, as it was perceived that
+his signals were disregarded, the _Badger's_ commander ordered a shot
+to be fired at her, and this was immediately returned by the smuggler
+with one of her stern guns. From this time a running fire was kept up
+for nearly three hours, but shortly before midday, whilst the cutter
+was still chasing her and holding on the same course as the other, the
+_Badger_ came on at such a pace that she ran aboard the smuggler's
+starboard quarter whilst both ships were still blazing away at each
+other.
+
+The smuggler's crew then cried out for quarter in English. This was
+granted by the _Badger's_ commander, who had a boat lowered, but
+whilst in the act of so doing the treacherous smuggling craft
+recommenced firing. It was a cowardly thing to do, for Reymas, their
+own captain, had particularly asked the _Badger's_ commander to
+forgive them and overlook what they had done, whilst other members of
+the crew cried out to the same effect. This had caused a cessation of
+fire for about five minutes, and was only reopened by the smugglers'
+treachery. One of the _Badger's_ mariners named William Cullum, was in
+consequence shot dead by a musket aimed at him by one of the
+smugglers. Cullum was standing by the windlass at the time, and died
+instantly.
+
+[Illustration: "The Cruiser's Guns had shot away the Mizzen-Mast."]
+
+The _Badger_, therefore, again began to fire into the other ship, but
+in about another five minutes the smuggler again called for quarter,
+and this was again granted. The cruiser sent her boat aboard her, and
+brought off the smuggler's crew, amounting to twenty-three men, though
+two others had been killed in the affray. The _Badger's_ chief mate,
+on boarding the smuggler, sent away the latter's crew in their own
+boat, and seven of these men were found to be wounded, of whom one
+died the following morning. The name of the vessel was seen to be the
+_Vree Gebroeders_. She was of 119 tons burthen, and had the previous
+day started out from Flushing with a cargo of 42 gallons of brandy,
+186 gallons of Geneva--these all being in the 3-1/2 gallon
+half-ankers. But there was also a good deal of other cargo, consisting
+of 856 bales of tobacco which contained 51,000 lbs., thirteen boxes of
+tea, and six bags of sugar. All these goods were made up in
+illegal-sized packages and she had nothing on board except what was
+contraband. The chests of tea were found all ready slung for landing
+with small ropes.
+
+The _Vree Gebroeders_ was provisioned for three months, and was armed
+with four carronades, 9-pounders, and two swivel muskets, bayonets,
+and other arms of different kinds. Her destination had been for
+Ireland. When the chief mate of the _Badger_ boarded her he found that
+the cruiser's guns had shot away the mizzen-mast, but the smuggler's
+skipper remarked to the chief mate that the spare topmast on deck
+would serve for a mizzen and that the square-sail boom would make an
+outrigger, and that the trysail would be found below, but so far, he
+said, this sail had never been bent. Later on the chief mate found
+also the deck-log of the _Vree Gebroeders_, which had been kept on two
+slates, and it was a noticeable fact that these were kept in English.
+They read thus:--
+
+    +-------------------------------+
+    |   N.W. by N.                  |
+    |   Remarks, Monday 13th.       |
+    |   N.W. by W. At 6.30 Ostend   |
+    |   Light bore S.E. distant     |
+    |   12 miles.                   |
+    |   At 4 a.m. Calais Light      |
+    |   bore E. by S.               |
+    +-------------------------------+
+
+So when the _Badger_ first sighted this craft the latter had made her
+last entry in the log, only three and a half hours before. It was
+significant that English charts were also found among the ship's
+papers, though her manifest, her certificate, her bill of lading, and
+other certificates were all in Dutch. The books found included
+Hamilton Moore's _Navigation_, another similar work by Norie, the
+_British Channel Pilot_, and _Navigation of the North Seas_. There was
+also found a Dutch ensign and a Dutch Jack on board, but there was
+even an English Prayer-book.
+
+The prisoners remained on board the _Badger_ until next day, when they
+were transferred to H.M.S. _Severn_. The _Vree Gebroeders_ was taken
+into Dover, and was valued, together with her cargo, at the handsome
+sum of L11,000, which would have been a fine amount of prize money;
+but in spite of the clear evidence at the trial, the jury were so
+prejudiced in favour of the smugglers that they found the prisoners
+not guilty, their contention being that the ship and cargo were wholly
+foreign, and that more than half of the crew were foreigners.
+
+It had been an unfortunate affair. Besides the death of Cullum and the
+two smugglers killed and the seven smugglers wounded, Lieutenant
+Nazer, James Harper, William Poppedwell, Daniel Hannibel, and James
+Giles were all wounded on the _Badger_, Nazer being wounded on the
+left shoulder by a musket ball. The smuggler's crew had made ludicrous
+efforts to pretend they were Dutch. Dutch names were assumed, but
+witnesses at the trial were able to assign to them their proper
+appellations, and it was significant that the crew spoke English
+without a foreign accent. Her commander insisted his name was Reymas,
+but his real name was Joseph Wills, and he had been foremost in the
+calling for quarter. Another of the crew, who pretended his name was
+Jan Schmidt, was found to be an Englishman named John Smith. The
+vessel herself had been built by a Kentishman, living at Flushing, the
+previous year.
+
+And here is another of those occasions when there was displayed an
+excess of zeal, though under the circumstances who would blame the
+Preventive officer for what he did? In February of 1824, a man named
+Field and his crew of three came out from Rye--that hotbed of
+smugglers--and intended to proceed to the well-known trawling ground
+about fifteen miles to the S.W. of Rye, abreast of Fairlight, but
+about five or six miles out from that shore. Unfortunately it fell
+very calm, so that it took them some time to reach the trawling
+ground, and even when with the assistance of the tide they did arrive
+there, the wind was so scant that it was useless to shoot the trawl in
+the water. Naturally, therefore, it was a long time before they had
+obtained their cargo of flat fish, and when a little breeze sprang up
+they had to get back to Rye, as their provisions had run short.
+
+On their way back, when they were only about four or five miles from
+their harbour, they fell in with a small open sailing-boat named the
+_Rose_, containing four or five men. Field's bigger craft was hailed
+by the _Rose_ and asked to be taken in tow, as they also had run short
+of provisions, and were anxious to get back to harbour at once.
+Field's boat took one of their crew on board, whilst the rest remained
+in the _Rose_ and were towed astern. It was now about four or five in
+the morning, and they had not proceeded more than another couple of
+miles before they were hailed again, but this time by a boat under the
+command of a Preventive officer named Lipscomb, who had been sent by
+Lieutenant Gammon, R.N., from the revenue cruiser _Cameleon_. The
+cutter's boat bumped alongside Field's craft, which was called the
+_Diamond_. After making fast, Lipscomb and his boat's crew jumped
+aboard, and announced that they suspected the _Diamond_ was fitted
+with concealments, and he wished to examine her. But after rummaging
+the ship nothing suspicious was found. Lipscomb then explained that he
+had been ordered by Lieutenant Gammon to take the _Diamond_ and to
+bring her alongside the _Cameleon_ and then to order Field and his
+crew to go aboard the cruiser as prisoners.
+
+This, of course, did not lead to harmony on board. Lipscomb attempted
+to seize hold of the tiller, so as to steer the vessel back to
+Hastings Roads, where the cruiser was lying. But Field turned to him
+and said--
+
+"I don't know about your having the helm. You don't know where the
+cutter is any more than I do."
+
+With that, Field pushed the man aside, grasped hold of the tiller, and
+shoved it hard up, and bearing away, ran the vessel out seawards. But
+after keeping on this course for twenty minutes they fell in with the
+_Cameleon_, and the two vessels came near to each other. The cruiser's
+commander shouted to Lipscomb, and ordered him to get into the
+cruiser's galley, which had been towing astern of the _Diamond_ all
+this time, and to row to the cruiser. This was done, and then Lipscomb
+received his orders. He was to return to the trawler and seize the
+hands and bring them to the _Cameleon_. So the galley returned again
+and brought the _Diamond's_ crew as ordered. It was now 7 A.M., and
+they were kept as prisoners on the cutter till 9 A.M. the following
+day. Lipscomb and his boat's crew of four now took charge of the
+_Diamond_, and began to trim sheets, and before long the two craft got
+separated.
+
+When Field proceeded on board the _Cameleon_ he took with him his
+ship's papers at the lieutenant's orders. He then ventured to ask how
+it was that his smack had been detained, to which Gammon replied that
+he had received information from the Collector of Customs at Rye.
+Field, however, was incredulous. "I rather doubt your word," he said,
+whereupon the officer took out of his pocket a letter, doubled the
+page down one or two lines, and showed the doubting skipper that it
+was as the lieutenant had stated. Gammon then went below and took
+Field's papers with him, and there they remained till the following
+morning.
+
+The _Cameleon_ went jogging along, and having arrived abreast of
+Hastings, Gammon sent one of his crew ashore in the cutter's boat, and
+later on fetched him back. The object, no doubt, was to send the
+_Diamond's_ papers ashore to be examined as to their veracity, though
+nothing was said to Field on the subject. It is clear that the reply
+from the authorities came back that the papers were found in order,
+and that Field was not known as a smuggler; for after the man who had
+been sent ashore returned, the _Cameleon_ made sail, and stood out to
+sea for a distance of eighteen miles. She had lost sight of the
+_Diamond_ and her prize crew, and it was not till about breakfast time
+the following day that the cruiser found the smack again. When at
+length the two craft did come together, Lipscomb was called on board
+the cruiser and summoned below to Gammon. What exactly the
+conversation was never came out, but from subsequent events it is
+fairly clear that Gammon asked what opinion Lipscomb had been able to
+form of the _Diamond_, and that the latter had to admit she was a
+genuine trawler; for soon after, the lieutenant sent the steward for
+Field and one of his men to go below. The two men did as they were
+ordered.
+
+"Good morning," said the cruiser's commander as they came into the
+cabin, "here are your papers, Field."
+
+Field hesitated for a moment; then answered--
+
+"I don't know, sir, as to taking them. I'm not altogether satisfied
+about being detained so long. And had I been aboard the smack, and you
+had refused to let me have the tiller," he continued, getting angrier
+every moment, "I would have shot you as sure as you had been a man."
+
+"You may do as you please," came the commander's cool reply, "about
+taking them, but if you do not choose to take them, I shall take you
+away to Portsmouth and give you up to the Port Admiral, and let him do
+with you as he thinks proper."
+
+Thinking therefore that it were better to be discreet and hold his
+tongue, Field took the papers, went up again on deck, collected his
+men, went back to his smack, and the incident ended--for the present.
+But the Revenue men had clearly made an error this time, and had acted
+_ultra vires_. About a year later Field, as a master and part-owner of
+the _Diamond_, brought an action against Gammon for assault and
+detention, and was awarded a verdict and L5 damages.
+
+It is curious to find what sympathy the smugglers sometimes received
+in a section of society where one would hardly have expected this to
+exist. There are at least three instances of men of position and
+wealth showing their feelings undisguisedly in favour of these lawless
+men. There was a Lieut.-Colonel Chichester, who was called upon for
+explanations as to his conduct in this respect; there was the case
+also of the naval officer commanding H.M. sloop _Pylades_ being
+convicted and dismissed the service for protecting smugglers, and,
+most interesting of all, was the incident which centred round Sir
+William Courtenay.
+
+The facts of this case may be summarised as follows. On Sunday
+afternoon, the 17th of February 1833, the Revenue cutter _Lively_ was
+cruising at the back of the Goodwins, when about three o'clock she
+descried a vessel about five or six miles off which somehow aroused
+suspicions. The name of the latter was eventually found to be the
+_Admiral Hood_. At this time the sloop was about midway between
+England and France, her commander being Lieutenant James Sharnbler,
+R.N. The _Admiral Hood_ was a small dandy-rigged fore-and-after, that
+is to say, she was a cutter with a small mizzen on which she would set
+a lugsail. The _Lively_ gave chase, and gradually began to gain on the
+other. When the _Admiral Hood_ was within about a mile of the
+_Lively_, the former hauled across the latter, and when she had got
+on the _Lively's_ weather-bow the Revenue craft immediately tacked,
+whereupon the _Admiral Hood_ put about again and headed for the French
+coast. After vainly attempting to cause her to heave-to by the usual
+Revenue signals, the _Lively_ was compelled to fire on her, and one
+shot was so well placed that it went clean through the dandy's sail,
+and thinking that this was quite near enough the _Admiral Hood_
+hove-to.
+
+But just prior to this, Lieutenant Sharnbler had ordered an officer
+and two men to take spyglasses and watch her. At this time they were
+about fifteen or sixteen miles away from the North Foreland. One of
+the men looking through his glass observed that the _Admiral Hood_ was
+heaving tubs overboard, and it was then that the first musket was
+fired for her to heave-to, but as the tubs were still thrown overboard
+for the next three-quarters of an hour, the long gun and the muskets
+were directed towards her. The two vessels had sailed on parallel
+lines for a good hour's chase before the firing began, and the chase
+went on till about a quarter to five, the tide at this time ebbing to
+the westward and a fine strong sailing breeze. There was no doubt at
+all now that she was a smuggler, for one of the _Lively's_ crew
+distinctly saw a man standing in the _Admiral Hood's_ hatchway taking
+tubs and depositing them on deck, whilst some one else was taking them
+from the deck and heaving them overboard, the tubs being painted a
+dark green so as to resemble the colour of the waves. As the _Lively_
+came ramping on, she found numbers of these tubs in the wake of the
+_Admiral Hood_, and lowered a boat to pick them up, and about
+twenty-two were found a hundred yards from the smuggler, and the
+_Lively_ also threw out a mark-buoy to locate two other tubs which
+they passed. And, inasmuch as there was no other vessel within six
+miles distance, the _Admiral Hood_ beyond a shadow of doubt was
+carrying contraband.
+
+[Illustration: "The _Admiral Hood_ was heaving tubs overboard."]
+
+After the vessel was at length hove-to, she was seized and ultimately
+taken into Rochester, and information was duly laid against the
+persons who had been engaged in this smuggling adventure. But it is
+here that Sir William Courtenay comes into the story. This gentleman,
+who had his seat at Powderham Castle, Devon, came forward and swore
+positively that the tubs, which the _Lively_ was supposed to have
+picked up, had been seen floating off the coast. He himself was
+staying on a visit to Canterbury, and on that Sunday afternoon
+happened to be sailing about off the Kentish coast, and sighted the
+_Lively_ about two o'clock. He kept her in sight, he said, until four
+o'clock. He also saw the _Admiral Hood_, and witnessed her being
+chased by the _Lively_, but he had seen the tubs for most of the day,
+as they had come up with the tide from the westward. With his own
+eyes, and not through a spy-glass, he witnessed the _Admiral Hood_
+being captured by the cruiser, and followed up this evidence by
+remarking that "the tubs I saw picked up did not come out of the _Lord
+Hood_. I say so sterling and plump."
+
+This was exactly the reverse of the testimony as given by the crew of
+the _Lively_, so it was evident that some one was lying. But to make a
+long story short, it was afterwards found that Sir William was not
+only _not_ afloat that afternoon, did not see the tubs, did not see
+the two crafts, but was miles away from the scene, and at the time of
+the chase was in church. He was accordingly brought for trial, found
+guilty, and sentenced to be imprisoned for three calendar months, and
+after the expiration of this, he was to be "transported to such a
+place beyond the seas as his Majesty may direct, for the term of seven
+years."
+
+He was convicted on unmistakable testimony of having committed
+perjury; in fact, Mr. Justice Parke, in giving judgment at the time,
+remarked that it was the clearest evidence in a perjury case that had
+ever fallen to his lot to try. As to the motive, it was thought that
+it was done solely with a desire to obtain a certain amount of
+popularity among the smugglers. Sir William saw that the case would go
+against the latter unless some one could give evidence for their side.
+Therefore, abusing his own position and standing, he came forward and
+perjured himself. It is a curious case, but in the history of crime
+there is more than one instance of personal pride and vanity being at
+the root of wrong-doing.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[23] How slow she was may be guessed by the fact that she took seven
+hours to go from Dover to the Downs even under the expert handling of
+MacTavish's crew.
+
+[24] She was officially described as a dogger.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+ACTION AND COUNTER-ACTION
+
+
+It is conscience that makes cowards of us all, and this may be said of
+smugglers no less than of law-abiding citizens. A trial was going on
+in connection with a certain incident which had occurred in Cawsand
+Bay, Plymouth Sound. It was alleged that, on the night of November 17,
+1831, a man named Phillips had been shot in the knee whilst in a boat,
+trying with the aid of some other men to get up an anchor. The chief
+officer of the Preventive service at Cawsand was accused by Phillips
+of having thus injured him, and the case in the course of time was
+brought into court. Among the witnesses was one whom counsel believed
+to be not wholly unconnected with smuggling. Whether or not this was
+true we need not worry ourselves, but the following questions and
+answers are well worth recording.
+
+Cawsand was a notorious smuggling locality, and its secluded bay, with
+plenty of deep water almost up to the beach, made it highly suitable
+for sinking tubs well below the surface of the water. And then there
+must have been very few people ashore who had never been concerned in
+this contraband trade. In such villages as this you might usually
+rely on the local innkeeper knowing as much as anyone in the
+neighbourhood on the subject of smuggling. Such a man, then, from
+Cawsand, illiterate, but wideawake, went into the witness-box for
+counsel to cross-examine, and the following dialogue carries its own
+conviction:--
+
+_Question._ "You are an innkeeper and sailor, if I understand you
+rightly?"
+
+_Answer._ "Yes!"
+
+_Q._ "Is that all?"
+
+_A._ "Mariner and innkeeper."
+
+_Q._ "Is that all the trades you follow?"
+
+_A._ "Fishing sometimes."
+
+_Q._ "What do you fish for?"
+
+_A._ "Different sorts of fish."
+
+_Q._ "Did you ever fish for half-ankers?"
+
+_A._ "Half-ankers?"
+
+_Q._ "Casks of spirits--is that part of your fishing-tackle?"
+
+_A._ "No, I was never convicted of no such thing."
+
+_Q._ "I am not asking you that. You know what I mean. I ask whether it
+is part of your profession."
+
+_A._ "No, it was not."
+
+_Q._ "You never do such things?"
+
+_A._ "What should I do it for?"
+
+_Q._ "I cannot tell you. I ask you whether you do it, not what you do
+it for."
+
+_A._ "I may choose to resolve whether I tell you or not."
+
+_Q._ "I will not press you if your conscience is tender. You will not
+tell me whether you do a little stroke in the Fair trade upon the
+coast? You will not answer me that question?"
+
+_A._ "I am telling the truth."
+
+_Q._ "Will you answer that question?"
+
+_A._ "No."
+
+_Q._ "Are you or are you not frequently in practice as a smuggler?"
+
+_A._ "No!"
+
+And that was all that could be got out of a man who probably could
+have told some of the best smuggling yarns in Cornwall. The
+inhabitants so thoroughly loathed the Preventive men that, to quote
+the words of the man who was chief officer there at the time we are
+speaking of, "the hatred of the Cawsand smugglers is ... so great that
+they scarcely ever omit an opportunity of showing it either by insult
+or otherwise."
+
+There was a kind of renaissance of smuggling about the third decade of
+the nineteenth century, and this was brought on partly owing to the
+fact that the vigilance along our coasts was not quite so smart as it
+might have been. But there were plenty of men doing their duty to the
+service, as may be seen from the account of Matthew Morrissey, a
+boatman in the Coastguard Service at Littlehampton. About eleven
+o'clock on the evening of April 5, 1833, he saw a vessel named the
+_Nelson_, which had come into harbour that day. On boarding her,
+together with another boatman, he found a crew of two men and a boy.
+The skipper told him they were from Bognor in ballast. Morrissey went
+below, got a light, and searched all over the after-cabin, the hold,
+and even overhauled the ballast, but found nothing. He then got into
+the Coastguard boat, took his boat-hook, and after feeling along the
+vessel's bottom, discovered that it was not as it ought to have been.
+
+"I'm not satisfied," remarked the Coastguard to her skipper, Henry
+Roberts, "I shall haul you ashore."
+
+One of the crew replied that he was "very welcome," and the Coastguard
+then sent his companion ashore to fetch the chief boatman. The
+Coastguard himself then again went aboard the _Nelson_, whereupon the
+crew became a little restless and went forward. Presently they
+announced that they would go ashore, so they went forward again, got
+hold of the warp, and were going to haul on shore by it when the
+Coastguard observed, "Now, recollect I am an officer in his Majesty's
+Revenue duty, and the vessel is safely moored and in my charge; and if
+you obstruct me in my duty you will abide by the consequences." He
+took the warp out of their hands, and continued to walk up and down
+one side of the deck while the crew walked the other. This went on for
+about twenty minutes, when Henry Roberts came up just as the
+Coastguard was turning round, and getting a firm grip, pushed him
+savagely aft and over the vessel's quarter into the water. Heavily
+laden though the Coastguard was with a heavy monkey-jacket, petticoat
+canvas trousers over his others, and with his arms as well, he had
+great difficulty in swimming, but at last managed to get to the shore.
+The chief boatman and the other man were now arriving, and it was
+found that the _Nelson's_ crew had vanished. The vessel was eventually
+examined, and found to have a false bottom containing thirty-two tubs
+of liquor and twenty-eight flagons of foreign brandy. Roberts was
+later on arrested, found guilty, and transported for seven years.
+
+[Illustration: "Getting a firm grip, pushed him ... into the water."]
+
+A few pages back we witnessed an incident off Hastings. On the 5th of
+January 1832, a much more serious encounter took place. Lieutenant
+Baker, R.N., was cruising at that time in the Revenue cutter _Ranger_
+off the Sussex coast, when between nine and ten in the evening he saw
+a suspicious fire on the Castle Hill at Hastings. Believing that it
+was a smuggler's signal, he despatched his four-oared galley, with
+directions to row between Eccles Barn and the Martello Tower, No. 39.
+At the same time the _Ranger_ continued to cruise off the land so as
+to be in communication with the galley. About 1 A.M. a report was
+heard from the Hastings direction, and a significant blue light was
+seen burning. Baker therefore took his cutter nearer in-shore towards
+the spot where this light had been seen. He immediately fell in with
+his galley, which had shown the blue light, and in her he found about
+two hundred casks of different sizes containing foreign spirits, and
+also five men who had been detained by the galley.
+
+The men of course were taken on board the cruiser, and as the morning
+advanced, the _Ranger_ again stood into the shore so that the
+lieutenant might land the spirits at the Custom House. Then getting
+into his galley with part of his crew, the tubs were towed astern in
+the cutter's smaller boat. But on reaching the beach, he found no
+fewer than four hundred persons assembled with the apparent intention
+of preventing the removal of the spirits to the Custom House, and
+especially notorious among this gang were two men, named respectively
+John Pankhurst and Henry Stevens. The galley was greeted with a shower
+of stones, and some of the Revenue men therein were struck, and had to
+keep quite close to the water's edge. Stevens and Pankhurst came and
+deposited themselves on the boat's gunwale, and resisted the removal
+of the tubs. Two carts now came down to the beach, but the mob refused
+to allow them to be loaded, and stones were flying in various
+directions, one man being badly hurt. Lieutenant Baker also received a
+violent blow from a large stone thrown by Pankhurst.
+
+But gradually the carts were loaded in spite of the opposition, and
+just as the last vehicle had been filled, Pankhurst loosened the
+bridle-back of the cart which was at the back of the vehicle to secure
+the spirits, and had not the Revenue officers and men been very smart
+in surrounding the cart and protecting the goods, there would have
+been a rescue of the casks. Ultimately, the carts proceeded towards
+the Custom House pursued by the raging mob, and even after the goods
+had been all got in there was a good deal of pelting with stones and
+considerable damage done. Yet again, when these prisoners, Pankhurst
+and Stevens, were brought up for trial, the jury failed to do their
+duty and convict. But the Lord Chief Justice of that time remarked
+that he would not allow Stevens and Pankhurst to be discharged until
+they had entered into their recognisances to keep the peace in L20
+each.
+
+But next to the abominable cruelties perpetrated by the Hawkhurst gang
+related in an earlier chapter, I have found no incident so utterly
+brutal and savage as the following. I have to ask the reader to turn
+his imagination away from Sussex, and centre it on a very beautiful
+spot in Dorsetshire, where the cliffs and sea are separated by only a
+narrow beach. On the evening of the 28th of June 1832, Thomas Barrett,
+one of the boatmen belonging to the West Lulworth Coastguard, was on
+duty and proceeding along the top of the cliff towards Durdle, when he
+saw a boat moving about from the eastward. It was now nearly 10 P.M.
+He ran along the cliff, and then down to the beach, where he saw that
+this boat had just landed and was now shoving off again. But four men
+were standing by the water, at the very spot whence the boat had
+immediately before pushed off. One of these men was James Davis, who
+had on a long frock and a covered hat painted black.
+
+Barrett asked this little knot of men what their business was, and why
+they were there at that time of night, to which Davis replied that
+they had "come from Weymouth, pleasuring!" Barrett observed that to
+come from Weymouth (which was several miles to the westward) by the
+east was a "rum" way. Davis then denied that they had come from the
+eastward at all, but this was soon stopped by Barrett remarking that
+if they had any nonsense they would get the worst of it. After this
+the four men went up the cliff, having loudly abused him before
+proceeding. On examining the spot where the boat had touched, the
+Coastguard found twenty-nine tubs full of brandy lying on the beach
+close to the water's edge, tied together in pairs, as was the custom
+for landing. He therefore deemed it advisable to burn a blue light,
+and fired several shots into the air for assistance.
+
+Three boatmen belonging to the station saw and heard, and they came
+out to his aid. But by this time the country-side was also on the
+alert, and the signals had brought an angry crowd of fifty men, who
+sympathised with the smugglers. These appeared on the top of the
+cliff, so the four coastguards ran from the tubs (on the beach) to the
+cliff to prevent this mob from coming down and rescuing the tubs. But
+as the four men advanced to the top of the cliff, they hailed the mob
+and asked who they were, announcing that they had seized the tubs. The
+crowd made answer that the coastguards should not have the tubs, and
+proceeded to fire at the quartette and to hurl down stones. A distance
+of only about twenty yards separated the two forces, and the chief
+boatman ordered his three men to fire up at them, and for
+three-quarters of an hour this affray continued.
+
+It was just then that the coastguards heard cries coming from the top
+of the cliff--cries as of some one in great pain. But soon after the
+mob left the cliff and went away; so the coastguards went down to the
+beach again to secure and make safe the tubs, where they found that
+Lieutenant Stocker was arriving at the beach in a boat from a
+neighbouring station. He ordered Barrett to put the tubs in the boat
+and then to lay a little distance from the shore. But after Barrett
+had done this and was about thirty yards away, the lieutenant ordered
+him to come ashore again, because the men on the beach were bringing
+down Lieutenant Knight, who was groaning and in great pain.
+
+What had happened to the latter must now be told. After the signals
+mentioned had been observed, a man named Duke and Lieutenant Knight,
+R.N., had also proceeded along the top of the cliff. It was a
+beautiful starlight night, with scarcely any wind, perfectly still and
+no moon visible. There was just the sea and the night and the cliffs.
+But before they had gone far they encountered that mob we have just
+spoken of at the top of the cliff. Whilst the four coastguards were
+exchanging fire from below, Lieutenant Knight and Duke came upon the
+crowd from their rear. Two men against fifty armed with great sticks 6
+feet long could not do much. As the mob turned towards them,
+Lieutenant Knight promised them that if they should make use of those
+murderous-looking sticks they should have the contents of his pistol.
+
+But the mob, without waiting, dealt the first blows, so Duke and his
+officer defended themselves with their cutlasses. At first there were
+only a dozen men against them, and these the two managed to beat off.
+But other men then came up and formed a circle round Knight and Duke,
+so the two stood back to back and faced the savage mob. The latter
+made fierce blows at the men, which were warded off by the cutlasses
+in the men's left hands, two pistols being in the right hand of each.
+The naval men fired these, but it was of little good, though they
+fought like true British sailors. Those 6-foot sticks could reach well
+out, and both Knight and Duke were felled to the ground.
+
+Then, like human panthers let loose on their prey, this brutal,
+lawless mob with uncontrolled cruelty let loose the strings of their
+pent-up passion. They kept these men on the ground and dealt with them
+shamefully. Duke was being dragged along by his belt, and the crowd
+beat him sorely as he heard his lieutenant exclaim, "Oh, you brutes!"
+The next thing which Duke heard the fierce mob to say was, "Let's kill
+the ---- and have him over the cliff." Now the cliff at that spot is
+100 feet high. Four men then were preparing to carry out this
+command--two were at his legs and two at his hands--when Duke
+indignantly declared, "If Jem was here, he wouldn't let you do it."
+
+It reads almost like fiction to have this dramatic halt in the murder
+scene. For just as Duke was about to be hurled headlong over the side,
+a man came forward and pressed the blackguards back on hearing these
+words. For a time it was all that the new-comer could do to restrain
+the brutes from hitting the poor fellow, while the men who still had
+hold of his limbs swore that they would have Duke over the cliff. But
+after being dealt a severe blow on the forehead, they put him down on
+to the ground and left him bleeding. One of the gang, seeing this,
+observed complacently, "He bleeds well, but breathes short. It will
+soon be over with him." And with that they left him.
+
+[Illustration: "Let's ... have him over the cliff."]
+
+The man who had come forward so miraculously and so dramatically to
+save Duke's life was James Cowland, and the reason he had so acted was
+out of gratitude to Duke, who had taken his part in a certain incident
+twelve months ago. And this is the sole redeeming feature in a glut of
+brutality. It must have required no small amount of pluck and energy
+for Cowland to have done even so much amid the wild fanaticism which
+was raging, and smuggler and ruffian though he was, it is only fair to
+emphasize and praise his action for risking his own life to save that
+of a man by whom he had already benefited.
+
+But Cowland did nothing more for his friend than that, and after the
+crowd had indulged themselves on the two men they went off to their
+homes. Duke then, suffering and bleeding, weak and stunned, crawled to
+the place where he had been first attacked--a little higher up the
+cliff--and there he saw Knight's petticoat trousers, but there was no
+sign of his officer himself.
+
+After that he gradually made his way down to the beach, and at the
+foot of the cliff he came upon Knight lying on his back immediately
+below where the struggle with the smugglers had taken place. Duke sat
+down by his side, and the officer, opening his eyes, recognised his
+man and asked, "Is that you?" But that was all he said. Duke then went
+to tell the coastguards and Lieutenant Stocker on the beach, who
+fetched the dying man, put him into Lipscomb's boat, and promptly
+rowed him to his home at Lulworth, where he died the next day. It is
+difficult to write calmly of such an occurrence as this: it is
+impossible that in such circumstances one can extend the slightest
+sympathy with a race of men who probably had a hard struggle for
+existence, especially when the fishing or the harvests were bad. The
+most one can do is to attribute such unreasoning and unwarranted
+cruelty to the ignorance and the coarseness which had been bred in
+undisciplined lives. Out of that seething, vicious mob there was only
+one man who had a scrap of humanity, and even he could not prevent his
+fellows from one of the worst crimes in the long roll of smugglers'
+delinquencies.
+
+The days of smugglers were, of course, coincident with the period of
+the stage-coach. In the year 1833 there was a man named Thomas Allen,
+who was master and part-owner of a coasting vessel named the _Good
+Intent_, which used to trade between Dover and London. In February of
+that year Thomas Becker, who happened to be the guard of the night
+coaches running between Dover and London, came with a man named
+Tomsett to Allen, and suggested that the latter should join them in a
+smuggling transaction, telling him that they knew how to put a good
+deal of money into his pocket. At first Allen hesitated and declined,
+but the proposal was again renewed a few days later, when Allen again
+declined, as it was too risky a business. But at length, as "trade was
+very bad," both he and a man named Sutton, one of his crew, agreed to
+come into the scheme. What happened was as follows:--
+
+The _Good Intent_ left Dover on February 23, went as far as the Downs
+about two miles from the coast, and under cover of darkness took on
+board from a French vessel, which was there waiting by appointment,
+about forty bales of silk. In order to be ready to deal with these,
+the _Good Intent_ had been provided with sufficient empty crates and
+boxes. The silks were put into these, they were addressed to some
+persons in Birmingham, and, after being landed at one of the London
+quays as if they had come from Dover, they were sent across to the
+Paddington Canal, and duly arrived at their destination. Allen's share
+of that transaction amounted to about L80. He had done so well that he
+repeated the same practice in April and May; but in June some tea
+which he brought in was seized, and although he was not prosecuted yet
+it gave him a fright. But after being entreated by the two tempters,
+he repeated his first incident, took forty more bales on board, and
+arrived at the Port of London. But the Custom House officials had got
+wind of this, and when the _Good Intent_ arrived she was searched. In
+this case the goods had not been put into crates, but were concealed
+in the ballast, the idea being not to land them in London but to
+bring them back under the ballast to Dover.
+
+[Illustration: "Under cover of darkness took on board ... forty bales
+of silk."]
+
+The first remark the Customs officer made was, "There is a great deal
+more ballast here than is necessary for such a ship," and promptly
+began moving the same. Of course the goods were discovered, and of
+course Allen pretended he knew nothing about the forty bales being
+there concealed. They were seized and condemned.
+
+Becker got to hear of this disaster and that a warrant was out for his
+own arrest, so he quickly hopped across to Calais. An officer was sent
+both to Deal and to Dover to find Tomsett, but found him not, so he
+crossed over to Calais, and among the first people whom he saw on
+Calais pier were Tomsett and Becker walking about together. The
+officer had no wish to be seen by Becker, but the latter saw him, and
+came up and asked him how he was and what he was doing there. The
+officer made the best excuse he could, and stated that he had got on
+board the steam-packet and been brought off by mistake.
+
+"Oh, I am here in consequence of that rascal Allen having peached
+against us," volunteered Becker, and then went on to say that he was
+as innocent as the child unborn. However, the judge, at a later date,
+thought otherwise, and imposed a penalty of L4750, though the full
+penalty really amounted to the enormous sum of L71,000.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+FORCE AND CUNNING
+
+
+A smuggling vessel was usually provided with what was called a
+tub-rail--that is to say, a rail which ran round the vessel just below
+the gunwale on the inside. When a vessel was about to arrive at her
+destination to sink her tubs, the proceeding was as follows. The tubs
+were all made fast to a long warp, and this warp with its tubs was
+placed outside the vessel's bulwarks, running all round the ship from
+the stern to the bows and back again the other side. This warp was
+kept fastened to the tub-rail by five or seven lines called
+stop-ropes. Consequently all the smugglers had to do was to cut these
+stop-ropes, and the tubs and warp would drop into the water, the stone
+weights immediately sinking the casks.
+
+Bearing this in mind, let us see the Revenue cutter _Tartar_, on the
+night between the 3rd and 4th of April 1839, cruising off Kimeridge,
+between St. Alban's Head and Weymouth, and a little to the east of
+where Lieutenant Knight was murdered, as we saw in the last chapter.
+About 1.40 A.M. Lieutenant George Davies, R.N., the _Tartar's_
+commander, was below sleeping with his clothes and boots on, when he
+heard the officer of the watch call for him. Instantly he went on deck
+and saw a smuggling vessel. She was then about thirty yards away and
+within a mile of the shore. Her name was afterwards found to be the
+French sloop _Diane_.
+
+It was rather a warm, thick night, such as one sometimes gets in April
+when the weather has begun to get finer. By the time that the
+cruiser's commander had come up on deck, both the cutter and the
+_Diane_ were hove-to, and the vessels were close alongside. When first
+sighted by the boatswain the smuggler was standing out from the land.
+The _Tartar's_ boat was now launched into the water, and the bo'sun
+and two men pulled off in her and boarded the _Diane_, and then came
+back to fetch Lieutenant Davies. The instant the latter boarded the
+_Diane_, he saw one of the latter's crew throwing something overboard.
+He stooped down to pick something up, when Davies rushed forward and
+caught him round the body as something fell into the water, and a
+tub-hoop, new, wet, and green, was taken from him. Davies called to
+his bo'sun to bring a lantern, so that he might identify the seized
+man and then proceed to search the vessel.
+
+A tub-rail and stop-rope were found on board, and, on going below, the
+hold was found to be strewn with chips of tub-hoops and pieces of
+stones for sinking. The upper deck was similarly strewn, while by the
+hatchway were found sinker-slings. These sinkers in actual employment
+were accustomed to be suspended and hitched round the warp at about
+every sixth tub. The _Diane's_ master was asked where his boat was
+since none was found aboard, but there was no satisfactory answer.
+Tub-boards for fixing on deck so as to prevent the tubs from rolling
+overboard were also found, so altogether there was sufficient reason
+for seizing the vessel, which was now done. She was taken into
+Weymouth and her crew brought before a magistrate. And in that port
+the tub-boat was also found, for the smugglers had doubtless sent most
+of their cargo ashore in her whilst the _Diane_ was cruising about
+between there and St. Alban's Head. It was significant that only three
+men were found on board, whereas smuggling vessels of this size (about
+twenty to thirty tons) usually carried eight or nine, the explanation
+being that the others had been sent out with the tub-boat. But the
+rest of the cargo had evidently been hurriedly thrown overboard when
+the _Tartar_ appeared, and because these casks were thrown over so
+quickly, fifty-nine of them had come to the surface and were
+subsequently recovered. But besides these, 154 casks were also found
+on one sling at the bottom of the sea close to where the _Diane_ had
+been arrested, for at the time when this occurrence had taken place
+the _Tartar's_ men had been careful at once to take cross bearings
+and so fix their position.
+
+One of the most interesting of these smuggling events was that which
+occurred in the Medway. About eight o'clock on the evening of March
+27, 1839, a smack called the _Mary_ came running into the river from
+outside. At this time it was blowing very hard from the N.E., and the
+tide was ebbing, so that of course wind would be against tide and a
+certain amount of sea on. But it was noticed by the coastguard at
+Garrison Point, which commands the entrance to this river, that the
+_Mary_ had got far too much sail up--whole mainsail as well as
+gaff-topsail. Considering it was a fair wind and there was a good deal
+of it, there was far more canvas than was necessary, even allowing for
+the tide.
+
+It was a rule that all vessels entering the Medway should bring-to off
+Garrison Point, and allow themselves to be boarded and searched, if
+required by certain signals. In order to compel the _Mary_ so to do,
+the coastguard at this point fired a shot and rowed off to meet her.
+But the smack held on. She was steering straight for the Isle of
+Grain, and showed no intention of starboarding her helm so as to get
+on a proper course up the Medway. Another shot was fired, and yet she
+held on. Now there were some of her Majesty's ships lying near the
+Grain, which is on the starboard hand as you pass up the river, viz.
+the _Daedalus_ and the _Alfred_. These vessels were of course swung
+with the tide, and between the _Daedalus_ and the Isle of Grain the
+smack manoeuvred.
+
+[Illustration: "Another shot was fired."]
+
+A third shot now came whizzing by from the boat that was rowing hard
+against the tide, and the smack came round between the _Alfred_ and
+_Daedalus_. The coastguard then boarded the _Mary_, and the master said
+he was from Brightlingsea. He pretended that he thought the firing was
+not from the coastguard, but from a ship at the Little Nore, which is
+the channel that runs up to Garrison Point from the Nore Lightship.
+This was curious, for the _Mary_ had been in the habit of going up the
+Medway, and hitherto had always hove-to off Garrison Point for the
+coastguard to come aboard. Her skipper excused his action by stating
+that he was frightened of heaving-to as he might have carried away his
+mast and gone ashore, if he had hauled up and gybed.
+
+But it was pointed out that it was a foolish and unsafe course for the
+_Mary_ to steer between the _Daedalus_ and the Grain Island, especially
+as it was a dark night without any moon, and blowing very hard. But on
+going aboard, the coastguard was not surprised to detect a strong
+smell of gin, as if spirits had quite recently been removed from the
+smack. And after making a search there was nothing found on board
+except that she was in a great state of confusion. None the less it
+was deemed advisable to place a couple of officers on board her to
+accompany her up to Rochester. This was on the Friday night, and she
+arrived at Rochester the same day.
+
+On the Sunday it occurred to the officers to search for the spirits
+which they were sure the _Mary_ had on board, so they proceeded to
+that spot by the _Daedalus_ where the _Mary_ had luffed round and met
+the coastguard boat. After sweeping for half-an-hour they found 115
+tubs slung together to a rope in the usual manner. At each end of the
+rope was an anchor, and between these anchors was a number of tubs,
+and in between each pair of tubs were stones. So the _Mary_ had gone
+into that little bight in order that she might throw her tubs
+overboard, which would be sunk by the stones, and the two anchors
+would prevent them from being drifted away by the tide. The warp, it
+was thought, had been in the first instance fastened to the tub-rail
+in the manner we have already described, and at the third gun the
+stop-ropes were cut, and the whole cargo went with a splash into the
+water, and the vessel sailed over the tubs as they sank to the muddy
+bottom.
+
+[Illustration: Methods employed by Smugglers for Anchoring tubs thrown
+Overboard.]
+
+The usual way to get these tubs up was of course by means of grapnels,
+or, as they were called, "creepers." But the spot chosen by the _Mary_
+was quite close to the moorings of the _Daedalus_, so that method would
+only have fouled the warship's cables. Therefore the following
+ingenious device was used. A large heavy rope was taken, and at each
+end was attached a boat. The rope swept along the river-bed as the
+boats rowed in the same direction stretching out the rope. Before
+long the bight of this rope found the obstructing tubs, stones, warp,
+and anchor, and that having occurred, the two boats rowed close
+together, and a heavy iron ring was dropped over the two ends of the
+rope, and thus sank and gripped the rope at the point where it met
+with the obstruction. All that now remained, therefore, was to pull
+this double rope till the obstruction came up from the bottom of the
+water. And in this manner the articles which the _Mary_ had cast
+overboard were recovered.
+
+She was obviously a smuggler, as besides this discovery she was found
+to be fitted with concealments, and fourteen tholes were found on
+board "muffled" with canvas and spun yarn, so as to be able to row
+silently. Her skipper, William Evans, was duly prosecuted and found
+guilty; and it was during the course of this trial that the
+interesting dialogue occurred between counsel and the coastguard as to
+whether the first warning gun fired was always shotted or not. As we
+have already discussed this point, we need not let it detain us now.
+
+The year 1849 was interesting, as it witnessed the seizing of one of
+the earliest steamcraft on a charge of smuggling. Very late in the day
+of May 15 the steam-tug _Royal Charter_, employed in towing vessels in
+and out of Portsmouth harbour, had been taken to Spithead without the
+permission of her owner, and information was given to the coastguard.
+About midnight she was first discovered steaming towards the port with
+a small boat attached to her stern, being then about half a mile from
+the harbour. Chase was then made and the vessel hailed and ordered to
+heave-to. She replied that she would round-to directly, but in fact
+she held on and steamed at full speed, notwithstanding that several
+shots were fired at her. As she entered Portsmouth harbour she was
+pursued by the Customs boat, who asked them to shut off steam and be
+examined. Of course full speed in those days meant nothing very
+wonderful, and it was not long before she was boarded. She had a crew
+of three, and there were ten men in the boat towing astern, most of
+whom were found to have been previously convicted of smuggling. It
+seems strange to find a steamboat pursuing the old tactics of the
+sailing smacks, but in her wake there were found 150 half-ankers
+within about 300 yards of her and where she had passed. The vessel and
+boat were seized, and the men taken before the magistrates and
+convicted.
+
+But the following is an instance of steam being employed against
+smugglers. One Sunday towards the end of October 1849, about nine
+o'clock in the morning, the local receiver of duties informed the tide
+surveyor at St. Heliers, Jersey, that there was a cutter which (from
+information received) he was convinced was loaded with brandy. This
+cutter was in one of the bays to the N.W. of the island. But as the
+wind was then blowing from the W.N.W. and a very heavy surf was
+rolling in, the consent of the harbour-master was obtained to use the
+steam-tug _Polka_ to go round in search of her, the understanding
+being that she was to be paid for if a seizure were made. The wind and
+sea were so boisterous that the Revenue boat could not have been used.
+
+Steamer and officers therefore proceeded round the coast till they
+reached Plemont Bay, about twenty miles from St. Helier, and there
+they found a small cutter lying at anchor close under the cliff, but
+with no one on board. The steamer lowered a boat and found the cutter
+to be the _Lion_ of Jersey, five tons, with four hogsheads and seven
+quarter casks of brandy. The officers then weighed anchor, and by
+sailing and towing got her round to St. Helier harbour, where she was
+dismantled, and the brandy and her materials lodged at the Custom
+House. This little craft had come from Dielette in France, and as
+Plemont Bay was a very secluded locality, she would have run her goods
+there with perfect success, had she not been discovered while her crew
+were on shore, whither they had probably gone for the purpose of
+making arrangements for getting the cargo landed.
+
+But by the middle of the nineteenth century so thoroughly had the
+authorities gripped the smuggling evil that these men were actually
+sometimes afraid to take advantage of what fortune literally handed
+out to them. The schooner _Walter_ of Falmouth was bound on a voyage
+from Liverpool to Chichester with a cargo of guano on May 30, 1850.
+Her crew consisted of Stephen Sawle, master, Benjamin Bowden, mate,
+Samuel Banister, seaman, and George Andrews, boy. On this day she was
+off Lundy Island, when Andrews espied a couple of casks floating ahead
+of the schooner and called to the master and mate, who were below at
+tea. They immediately came up on deck, and the master looked at the
+kegs through his glass, saying that he thought they were provisions.
+
+The three men then got out the ship's boat, rowed after the casks and
+slung them into the boat, and brought them on board. In doing so the
+mate happened to spill one of them, which contained brandy. This gave
+the skipper something of a fright, and he directed the mate and seaman
+to throw the casks overboard. They both told him they thought he was a
+great fool if he did so. He gave the same orders a second time and
+then went below, but after he had remained there for some time, he
+said to his crew, "If you will all swear that you will not tell
+anybody, I will risk it." They all solemnly promised, the master
+swearing the mate, the seaman, and the boy on the ship's Bible that
+they would not tell the owner or any living creature.
+
+Presently the mate and Banister removed the hatches and handed up
+about two tiers of guano, sent the casks of brandy below and placed
+bags on their top. After the master had been below a couple of hours,
+he asked whether the casks were out of sight. The mate and Banister
+replied that they were, whereupon the master took a candle, examined
+the hold, and afterwards the sleeping-berths, but he could not see
+anything of the brandy. He then went to the boy and said, "Mind you
+don't let Mr. Coplin [the owner] know anything about this business,
+for the world."
+
+The vessel arrived at Falmouth on Sunday morning, the 2nd of June, and
+brought up off the Market Strand. At six in the morning the boy went
+ashore and returned about midnight. The mate was on board and
+addressed him thus, "You knew very well what was going on and ought to
+have been on board before this." For at that time both the master and
+Banister were ashore. On Monday the boy went down to the hold and saw
+the brandy was gone, and the same night about half-an-hour before
+midnight the mate and Banister brought four gallons of the brandy to
+where the boy was lodging, as his share. The youngster complained that
+it was very little, to which Banister replied that one of the casks
+had leaked amongst the cargo of guano or he would have had more.
+
+Ostensibly the schooner had put into Falmouth for repairs. Later on
+the Custom House officers got to hear of it, but it was then the month
+of July, and the schooner had since sailed and proceeded to Liverpool.
+
+On the 1st of October of this same year a highly ingenious device was
+discovered through a hitch, which unfortunately ruined the smugglers'
+chances. In its broad conception it was but a modification of an idea
+which we have already explained. In its application, however, it was
+unique and original. At half-past six on this morning a
+fore-and-aft-rigged vessel was observed to be sailing into Chichester
+harbour. When first discovered, she was about a mile from Hayling
+Island. She was boarded, as smuggled goods were supposed to have been
+taken by her from a raft at sea. Manned by a master and a crew of two,
+all English, she was well known in that neighbourhood. She was
+registered at Portsmouth as the _Rival_.
+
+Her cargo was found to consist of a few oysters and thirteen tubs of
+spirits, but these were attached to the stern in a most ingenious
+manner. By her stern-post was an iron pipe, and through this pipe ran
+a chain, one end of which was secured at the top, close to the tiller,
+the other end running right down into the water below the ship.
+Attached to the chain in the water were thirteen tubs wrapped in
+canvas. The theory was this. As the vessel sailed along, the chain
+would be hauled as tight as it would go, so that the casks were kept
+under the vessel's stern and below water. Now, having arrived in
+Chichester harbour, the helmsman had suddenly let go the chain, but
+the latter had unhappily jammed in the pipe, and the tubs were thus
+dragged with a large scope of chain. The coastguard in coming
+alongside used his boat-hook underneath, and thus caught hold of the
+chain and tubs. The vessel was now soon laid ashore, and when her
+bottom was examined, the whole device was discovered. It had only
+quite recently been added, but the crew were notorious smugglers, so
+they got themselves into trouble in spite of their ingenuity.
+
+[Illustration: The _Rival's_ Ingenious Device (see text).]
+
+And now let us bring this list of smuggling adventures to an end with
+the activities of a very ubiquitous French sloop named the _Georges_,
+which came into prominent notice in the year 1850. Her port of
+departure was Cherbourg, and she was wont to run her goods across to
+the south coast of England with the greatest impudence. In piecing
+together this narrative of her adventures, it has been no easy task to
+follow her movements, for she appeared and disappeared, then was seen
+somewhere else perhaps a hundred miles away in a very short time.
+
+It appears that on April 19 the _Georges_, whose master's name was
+Gosselin, cleared from Cherbourg, and two days later was sighted by
+the commander of the Revenue cutter _Cameleon_ off Bembridge Ledge,
+about one o'clock in the afternoon, about eight or nine miles E.S.E.
+After she had come up she was boarded by the _Cameleon_, and was found
+to have one passenger, whom the _Cameleon's_ commander described as an
+Englishman "of a most suspicious appearance." But after being searched
+she was found perfectly "clean" and free from any appearance of tubs
+or smell of spirits. The Revenue cutter's commander therefore formed
+the opinion that the _Georges_ was fitted with some concealments
+somewhere. In order to discover these, it would be essential for the
+craft to be hauled ashore. He therefore did not detain her, but, as
+she was bound for Portsmouth, put an officer and a couple of men
+aboard her till she should arrive at that port. One thing which had
+aroused suspicions was the finding on board of exceptionally large
+fend-offs. These were just the kind which were used by smuggling ships
+accustomed to be met at sea by smaller craft, into which the casks
+were transferred and then rowed ashore. And what was more suspicious
+still was the fact that these fend-offs were found wet; so they had
+most probably been used recently in a seaway when some tub-boats had
+been alongside the _Georges_.
+
+Somehow or other, when she arrived at Portsmouth, although the matter
+was duly reported, it was not thought necessary to haul her ashore,
+but she was carefully examined afloat. The English passenger found
+aboard gave the name of Mitchell, but he was suspected of being
+Robinson, a notorious Bognor smuggler. And it was now further believed
+that the _Georges_ had sunk her "crop" of tubs somewhere near the
+Owers (just south of Selsey Bill), as on the morning of the day when
+the _Cameleon_ sighted her a vessel answering her description was seen
+in that vicinity.
+
+On that occasion, then, the _Georges_ could not be detained, and we
+next hear of her on May 3, when again she set forth from Cherbourg.
+She had no doubt taken on board a fine cargo, for she had a burthen of
+thirty-one tons, and this she managed in some mysterious manner to
+land in England. There can be no doubt that she did succeed in
+hoodwinking the Revenue service for a time, but it is probable that
+she employed largely the method of sinking the tubs, which were
+afterwards recovered in the manner already familiar to the reader. At
+any rate, Lieutenant Owen, R.N., writing on May 9 from the Ryde
+coastguard station to Captain Langtry, R.N., his inspecting commander,
+reported that this _Georges_ had arrived off Ryde pier that morning at
+seven o'clock. She had five Frenchmen on board besides Gosselin. It
+was found that her tub-boat was a new one, and when she arrived this
+was on deck, but it had since been hoisted out, and Gosselin, having
+been brought ashore, crossed by the Ryde steamer to Portsmouth at 9
+A.M.
+
+What business he transacted in Portsmouth cannot be stated definitely,
+but it is no foolish guess to suggest that he went to inform his friends
+at what spot in the neighbourhood of the Isle of Wight he had deposited
+the casks of spirits a few hours previously. However, Gosselin did not
+waste much time ashore, for he had returned, got up anchor and sails,
+and was off Bembridge Ledge by five in the afternoon, at which time the
+_Georges_ was sighted by Captain Hughes, commanding the Revenue cutter
+_Petrel_. The _Georges_ was boarded and searched, and there was a strong
+smell of brandy noticed, and it was clear that her tub-boat had been
+recently used. Somewhere--somehow--she had recently got rid of her
+"crop," but where and when could not be ascertained. The _Georges'_
+master protested that he was very anxious to get back to Cherbourg as
+quickly as possible; and as there was nothing definite found on board
+this foreign craft, Captain Hughes decided to release her.
+
+That was on May 9, then. But exactly a week later this same _Georges_
+came running into Torbay. On arrival here she was found to have no
+tub-boat, although in her inventory she was said to have a boat 21
+feet long and 9 feet broad. Some of her crew were also absent, which
+looked still further suspicious. Still more, she was found to have
+battens secured along her bulwarks for the purpose of lashing tubs
+thereto. This made it quite certain that she was employed in the
+smuggling industry, and yet again there was no definite reason for
+arresting this foreign ship. We pass over the rest of May and June
+till we come to the last day of July. On that date the lieutenant in
+charge of the coastguard at Lyme (West Bay) reported that he had
+received information from Lieutenant Davies of the Beer station that a
+landing of contraband goods was likely to be attempted on the
+Branscombe station, which is just to the west of Beer Head. It was
+probable that this would take place on either the 1st or 2nd of
+August, and at night. Orders were therefore given that a vigilant
+look-out should be kept in this neighbourhood. Nothing occurred on
+the first of these dates, but about twenty minutes past eleven on the
+night of August 2 reports and flashes of pistols were heard and seen
+on the Sidmouth station as far as Beer Head.
+
+These were observed by Lieutenant Smith and his crew, who were in
+hiding; but, unfortunately, just as one of the coastguards was moving
+from his hiding-place he was discovered by a friend of the smugglers,
+who instantly blazed off a fire on the highest point of the cliff.
+However, Lieutenant Smith did not waste much time, and quickly had a
+boat launched. They pulled along the shore for a distance of a mile
+and a half from the beach, and continued so to do until 2.30 A.M., but
+no vessel or boat could be seen anywhere. But as he believed a landing
+was taking place not far away, he sent information east and west along
+the coast. As a matter of fact a landing did occur not far away, but
+it was not discovered. An excise officer, however, when driving along
+the Lyme road, actually fell in with two carts of tubs escorted by
+fifteen men. This was somewhere about midnight. He then turned off the
+road and proceeded to Sidmouth as fast as he could, in order to get
+assistance, as he was unarmed. From there the chief officer
+accompanied him, having previously left instructions for the
+coastguard crew to scour the country the following morning. But the
+excise and chief officer after minutely searching the cross-roads
+found nothing, and lost track of the carts and fifteen men.
+
+[Illustration: "Taken completely by surprise."]
+
+That time there had been no capture, and the smugglers had got clean
+away. But the following night Lieutenant Smith went afloat with his
+men soon after dark, and about half-past ten observed a signal blazed
+off just as on the previous evening. Knowing that this was a warning
+that the smuggling vessel should not approach the shore, Smith pulled
+straight out to sea, hoping, with luck, to fall in with the smuggling
+craft. Happily, before long he discovered her in the darkness. She
+appeared to be cutter-rigged, and he promptly gave chase. At a
+distance of only two miles from the shore he got up to her, for the
+night was so dark that the cutter did not see the boat until it got
+right alongside, whereupon the smugglers suddenly slipped a number of
+heavy articles from her gunwale. Taken completely by surprise, and
+very confused by the sudden arrival of the coastguard's boat,
+Lieutenant Smith was able to get on board their ship and arrest her.
+It was now about 11.15 P.M.
+
+But, having noticed these heavy splashes in the water, the lieutenant
+was smart enough instantly to mark the place with a buoy, and then was
+able to devote his attention entirely to his capture. He soon found
+that this was the _Georges_ of Cherbourg. She was manned by three
+Frenchmen, and there were still hanging from the gunwale on either
+quarter a number of heavy stones slung together, such as were employed
+for sinking the tubs. There can be no doubt that the _Georges'_
+intention had been to come near enough to the shore to send her tubs
+to the beach in her tub-boat, as she had almost certainly done the
+night before. But hearing the coastguard galley approaching, and being
+nervous of what they could not see, the tubs were being cast into the
+sea to prevent seizure.
+
+Although no tubs were found _on board_, yet it was significant that
+the tub-boat was not on board, having evidently been already sent
+ashore with a number of casks. There was a small 12-feet dinghy
+suspended in the rigging, but she was obviously not the boat which the
+_Georges_ was accustomed to use for running goods. Lieutenant Smith
+for a time stood off and on the shore, and then ran along the coast
+until it was day, hoping to fall in with the tub-boat. Just as he had
+captured the _Georges_ another coastguard boat, this time from the
+Beer station, came alongside, and so the officer sent this little
+craft away with four hands to search diligently up and down the coast,
+and to inform the coastguards that the tub-boat had escaped. When it
+was light, Smith took the _Georges_ into Lyme Cobb, and her crew and
+master were arrested. She had evidently changed her skipper since the
+time when she was seen off the Hampshire shore, for the name of her
+present master was Clement Armel. They were landed, taken before the
+magistrates, and remanded. But subsequently they were tried, and
+sentenced to six months' hard labour each in Dorchester gaol, but
+after serving two months of this were released by order of the
+Treasury.
+
+On the 5th of August the boats from Lieutenant Smith's station at
+Branscombe went out to the spot where the _Georges_ had been captured
+and the mark-buoy with a grapnel at the end of it had been thrown.
+There they crept for a time and found nothing. But it had been heavy
+weather, and probably the tubs had gone adrift without sinkers to
+them. At any rate no landing was reported along the shore, so it was
+doubtful if the tub-boat had managed to get to land. As to the
+_Georges_ herself, she was found to be almost a new vessel. She was
+described as a handsome craft, "and very much the appearance of a
+yacht, and carries a white burgee at her masthead with a red cross in
+it, similar to vessels belonging to the Yacht Club."
+
+The reference to the "Yacht Club" signifies the Royal Yacht Squadron,
+which was originally called the Royal Yacht Club. In those days the
+number of yachts was very few compared with the fleets afloat to-day.
+Some of the Royal Yacht Club's cutters were faster than any smuggler
+or Revenue craft, and it was quite a good idea for a smuggler built
+with yacht-like lines to fly the club's flag if he was anxious to
+deceive the cruisers and coastguards by day. Some years before this
+incident there was found on board a smuggling lugger named the
+_Maria_, which was captured by the Revenue cruiser _Prince of Wales_
+about the year 1830, a broad red pendant marked with a crown over the
+letters "R.Y.C.," and an anchor similar to those used by the Royal
+Yacht Club. One of the _Maria's_ crew admitted that they had it on
+board because they thought it might have been serviceable to their
+plans. The point is not without interest, and, as far as I know, has
+never before been raised.
+
+But to conclude our narrative of the _Georges_. As it was pointed out
+that she was such a fine vessel, and that Lyme Cobb (as many a
+seafaring man to-day knows full well) was very unsafe in a gale of
+wind, it was suggested that she should be removed to Weymouth "by part
+of one of the cutters' crews that occasionally call in here." So on
+the 7th of September in that year she was fetched away to Weymouth by
+Lieutenant Sicklemore, R.N. She and her boat were valued at L240, but
+she was found to be of such a beautiful model that she was neither
+destroyed nor sold, but taken into the Revenue service as a cutter to
+prevent the trade in which she had been so actively employed.
+
+And so we could continue with these smuggling yarns; but the extent of
+our limits has been reached, so we must draw to a close. If the
+smuggling epoch was marred by acts of brutality, if its ships still
+needed to have those improvements in design and equipment which have
+to-day reached such a high mark of distinction, if its men were men
+not altogether admirable characters, at any rate their seamanship and
+their daring, their ingenuity and their exploits, cannot but incite us
+to the keenest interest in an exceptional kind of contest.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDICES
+
+
+APPENDIX I
+
+SLOOPS OR CUTTERS
+
+
+The reputed difference between a sloop and cutter in the eighteenth
+century is well illustrated by the following, which is taken from the
+Excise Trials, vol. xxx., 1st July 1795 to 17th December 1795, p. 95.
+
+In Attorney-General _v._ Julyan and others there was an action to
+condemn the vessel _Mary_ of Fowey, brought under the provisions of
+sec. 4, c. 47, 24 Geo. III., as amended by sec. 6, c. 50, 34 Geo. III.
+There were several counts, including one with regard to the vessel
+being fitted with "arms for resistance," but the case turned on the
+question whether she was cutter-rigged or sloop-rigged. Counsel for
+the prosecution defined a cutter as "a thing constructed for swift
+sailing, which, with a view to effect that purpose, is to sink
+prodigiously at her stern, and her head to be very much out of water
+... built so that she should measure a great deal more than she would
+contain."
+
+Such a definition, however satisfactory it may have been to the legal
+mind, was one that must have vastly amused any seafaring man. The
+judge, quoting expert evidence, explained the difference between a
+cutter and a sloop as follows:--A standing or running bowsprit is
+common to either a sloop or a cutter, and a traveller, he said, was an
+invariable portion of a cutter's rig, so also was a jib-tack. The
+jib-sheet, he ruled, differed however; that of a cutter was twice as
+large as that of a sloop and was differently set. It had no stay. A
+sloop's jib-sheet was set with a fixed stay. Furthermore, in a cutter
+the tack of the jib was hooked to a traveller, and there was a large
+thimble fastened to a block which came across the head of the sail.
+There were two blocks at the mast-head, one on each side. "A rope
+passes through the three blocks by which it is drawn up to the
+halliards." The jib of a cutter "lets down and draws in a very short
+time." A cutter usually had channels and mortice-holes to fix legs to
+prevent oversetting.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX II
+
+LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1784
+
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+Name.            |Number of|Where       |                                 |
+                 |Crew.    |Stationed.  |  Remarks.                       |
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+_Lively_ and }   |   14    | London     | These vessels were the property |
+_Vigilant_   }   |         |            |  of the Crown. The _Lively_     |
+                 |         |            |  cruised in the winter          |
+                 |         |            |  half-year, but in the summer   |
+                 |         |            |  her crew did duty on board     |
+                 |         |            |  the _Vigilant_.                |
+_Defence_        |   16    |Gravesend   | On the Establishment.           |
+_Success_        |   23    |Rochester   |     "       "                   |
+_Otter_          |   13    |Rochester   | Moored in Standgate Creek to    |
+                 |         |            |  guard the Quarantine.          |
+_Active_         |   18    |Eaversham   | On the Establishment.           |
+_Sprightly_      |   30    |Sandwich    | Employed by Contract from May   |
+                 |         |            |  27, 1784.                      |
+_Greyhound_      |   17    |Sandwich    | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  January 27, 1784.              |
+_Scourge_        |   30    |Deal        | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  January 27, 1784.              |
+_Nimble_         |   30    |Deal        | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  April 23, 1784.                |
+_Tartar_         |   31    |Dover       | On the Establishment.           |
+_Assistance_     |   28    |Dover       | Employed by Contract.           |
+_Alert_          |   16    |Dover       | Employed by Contract from       |
+                 |         |            |  April 22, 1784.                |
+_Stag_           |   24    |Rye         | On the Establishment.           |
+_Hound_          | 30 & 24 |Rye         | Contract. Crew reduced to 24    |
+                 |         |            |  on October 9, 1784.            |
+_Surprise_       |   28    |Newhaven    | Contract. Crew reduced to 24    |
+                 |         |            |  on October 9, 1784.            |
+_Enterprise_     |   18    |Shoreham    | Establishment in 1784, but      |
+                 |         |            |  afterwards on Contract.        |
+_Falcon_         | 18 & 28 |Chichester  | Establishment.                  |
+_Roebuck_        |   21    |Portsmouth  |       "                         |
+_Antelope_       |   11    |Portsmouth  |       "                         |
+_Rose_           |   30    |Southampton |       "                         |
+_Speedwell_      |   31    |{ Weymouth  |{ She was on Contract at         |
+                 |         |{ Cowes     |{  Weymouth but was removed to   |
+                 |         |            |{  Cowes on June 10, 1784.       |
+_Swan_           |   23    | Cowes      |  Contract from March 6, 1784    |
+_Laurel_         |   20    | Poole      |      "        "       "         |
+_Diligence_      |   32    |{ Poole     |} Contract. Removed from Poole   |
+                 |         |{ Weymouth  |}  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.   |
+_Alarm_          |   26    | Exeter     | Contract. Removed from Poole    |
+                 |         |            |  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.    |
+_Spider_         |   28    | Dartmouth  | Contract. Removed from Poole    |
+                 |         |            |  to Weymouth, March 2, 1784.    |
+_Ranger_         |   21    | Plymouth   | Establishment.                  |
+_Wasp_           |   20    | Plymouth   | Contract.                       |
+_Squirrel_       |   20    | Looe       |    "                            |
+_Hawke_          |18 & 26  | Falmouth   |    "                            |
+_Lark_           |   20    | Falmouth   |    "                            |
+_Lurcher_        |   30    | Penryn     |    "                            |
+_Tamer_          |   25    | Scilly     |    "                            |
+_Brilliant_      |   30    | St. Ives   |    "                            |
+_Dolphin_        |   26    | St. Ives   |    "                            |
+_Brisk_          |   19    | Milford    |    "                            |
+_Repulse_        |   33    | Colchester | Establishment.                  |
+_Argus_          |   24    | Harwich    |      "                          |
+_Bee_            |   16    | Harwich    | Contract.                       |
+_Hunter_         |   25    | Yarmouth.  | Establishment.                  |
+_Experiment_     |   18    | Boston     |      "                          |
+_Swallow_        |   24    | Hull       |      "                          |
+_Mermaid_        |   24    | Newcastle  |      "                          |
+_Eagle_          |   24    | Newcastle  |      "                          |
+-----------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX III
+
+
+LIST OF CRUISERS EMPLOYED IN THE CUSTOMS SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 1797
+(_up to June 27_)
+
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+       Vessel.     |         Commander.           | Tonnage.| Guns.| Men. |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+_Vigilant_ Yacht   |{ Richard Dozell              |{   53   |   6  |  13  |
+_Vigilant_ Cutter  |{                             |{   82   |   8  |10adl.|
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Diligence_        | William Dobbin               |   152   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Swallow_          | Thomas Amos                  |   153   |  10  |  32  |
+_Lively_           | Du Bois Smith                |   113   |  12  |  30  |
+_Defence_          | Geo. Farr (Acting)           |    76   |   6  |  18  |
+_Ant_              | Thomas Morris                |    58   |   4  |  15  |
+_Fly_              | Thomas Gibbs                 |    52   |   4  |  15  |
+_Success_          | William Broadbank            |    74   |   6  |  24  |
+_Otter_            | John Matthews                |    68   |  --  |  13  |
+_Active_           | Thomas Lesser                |    75   |   8  |  18  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Swift_            | J. Westbeech (Tide Surveyor) |    52   |  --  |   8  |
+_Nimble_           | William Clothier (Acting)    |    41   |   2  |  15  |
+_Tartar_           | B.J. Worthington             |   100   |  10  |  23  |
+_Stag_             | John Haddock                 |   153   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+       Vessel.     |      Extent of Cruising Station.      |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+_Vigilant_ Yacht   | To attend the Honourable Board.       |
+_Vigilant_ Cutter  | In the winter season the cutter with  |
+                   |   ten additional hands cruised on the |
+                   |   coasts of Essex, Ken, and Sussex    |
+_Diligence_        | Milford to Solway Firth, or as the    |
+                   |   Board should direct.                |
+_Swallow_          | As the Board should direct.           |
+_Lively_           |  "       "        "                   |
+_Defence_          | Gravesend to Dungeness.               |
+_Ant_              | Gravesend to the Nore.                |
+_Fly_              |     "       "     "                   |
+_Success_          | Rochester to North Sand Head.         |
+_Otter_            | Rochester to the Buoy of the Woolpack.|
+_Active_           | Mouth of Medway to N. Foreland,       |
+                   |   round the Longsand and up the       |
+                   |   Swin to Leigh.                      |
+_Swift_            | Downs to the Longsand.                |
+_Nimble_           | Between the Forelands.                |
+_Tartar_           | The Gore to Beachy Head.              |
+_Stag_             | Dover to Brighton, but extended on    |
+                   |  special circumstances.               |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+       Vessel.     |         Commander.           | Tonnage.| Guns.| Men. |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+_Hound_            | J.R. Hawkins                 |   111   |  12  |  30  |
+_Falcon_           | Charles Newland              |   131   |  12  |  33  |
+_Roebuck_          | John Stiles                  |   104   |  12  |  27  |
+_Antelope_         | John Case                    |    97   |  10  |  26  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Rose_             | William Yeates               |   114   |  12  |  32  |
+_Swan_             |                              |[Building at this date]|
+_Greyhound_        | Richard Wilkinson            |   200   |  16  |  43  |
+_Alarm_            | Andrew Dealey                |   130   |  12  |  36  |
+_Ranger_           | Nathaniel Cane               |    80   |   8  |  25  |
+_Busy_             | Alexr. Fraser (mate)         |    46   |  --  |  11  |
+_Hinde_            | Gabriel Bray                 |   160   |  12  |  41  |
+_Dolphin_          | Richard Johns (Junr.)        |   139   |  14  |  32  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Racer_            | James Wood (mate)            |    40   |  --  |   9  |
+_Speedwell_        | John Hopkins                 |[Building at this date]|
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Endeavour_        | Thomas Peregrine             |    34   |  --  |  11  |
+_Repulse_          | G.G.H. Munnings              |   143   |  14  |  43  |
+_Argus_            | John Saunders                |   135   |  14  |  32  |
+_Hunter_           | Thomas Ritches               |   143   |  14  |  32  |
+_Bee_              | A. Somerscalls (mate)        |    28   |  --  |   9  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+_Eagle_            | George Whitehead             |[Building at this date]|
+_Mermaid_          | John Carr                    |   112   |  10  |  30  |
+_Viper_            | John Hudson (mate)           |    28   |  --  |   9  |
+                   |                              |         |      |      |
+-------------------+------------------------------+---------+------+------+
+
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+       Vessel.     |     Extent of Cruising Station.       |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+_Hound_            | N. Foreland to Isle of Wight.         |
+_Falcon_           | Beachy Head to Isle of Wight.         |
+_Roebuck_          | Round the Isle of Wight.              |
+_Antelope_         | Round the Isle of Wight, and from     |
+                   |   Needles to Swanage.                 |
+_Rose_             | From Lool to Lyme.                    |
+_Swan_             | Beachy Head to Lyme.                  |
+_Greyhound_        | Beachy Head to the Start.             |
+_Alarm_            | Between Portland and the Start.       |
+_Ranger_           | Land's End to Cape Cornwall.          |
+_Busy_             | Plymouth Sound and Lawsand Bay.       |
+_Hinde_            | Portland to St. Ives and Scilly.      |
+_Dolphin_          | St. Ives to Padstow, round Scilly;    |
+                   |   Land's End to Helford.              |
+_Racer_            | Chepstow to Ilfracombe.               |
+_Speedwell_        | Holyhead, Bristol Channel, and to     |
+                   |   the Land's End.                     |
+_Endeavour_        | The whole port of Milford.            |
+_Repulse_          | North Yarmouth to Portsmouth.         |
+_Argus_            | Buoy of the Middle[25] to Lowestoft.  |
+_Hunter_           | Harwich to Cromer.                    |
+_Bee_              | Humber, York, and Lincoln, and to     |
+                   |   guard Quarantine.                   |
+_Eagle_            | Tynemouth to Yarmouth.                |
+_Mermaid_          | Berwick to the Spurn.                 |
+_Viper_            | Isle of Anglesea to St. Bee's Head    |
+                   |   occasionally.                       |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------+
+
+[25] _i.e._ doubtless the channel better known as Swin Middle, leading
+into the estuary of the Thames.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX IV
+
+
+LIST OF REVENUE CRUISERS BUILT BETWEEN JULY 18, 1822 AND OCTOBER 1,
+1838
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Fly_ (late _New Charter_)  | July 18, 1822 |  44 | Thos. White     |
+_Lion_                      |    "       "  |  82 | Th. Inman       |
+_Arrow_ (late _Seaflower_)  |    "       "  |  43 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Cameleon_ (lost)           |    "       "  |  85 | Wm. Hedgcock    |
+_Dolphin_                   |    "       "  |  68 | J.B. Good       |
+_Ranger_                    |    "       "  |  71 | Chas. Golder    |
+_Tartar_                    |    "       "  |  82 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Repulse_                   |    "       "  |  82 | W. Good & Son   |
+_Nimble_                    |    "       "  |  65 | Rd. Graves      |
+_Sprightly_                 |    "       "  |  63 | Chas. Miller    |
+_Sealark_                   | Oct. 10, 1823 |  42 | Th. White       |
+_Scout_                     | Aug. 15,   "  |  84 | Th. White       |
+_Fox_                       | Oct. 10,   "  |  85 | Th. White       |
+_Endeavour_                 | July 16,   "  |  45 | N. Harvey       |
+_Adder_ (sold)              | Oct. 10,   "  |  73 | T. White        |
+_Vigilant_                  | Feb. 10, 1824 |  99 | T. White        |
+_Kite_                      | Mar. 21, 1825 | 164 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Hound_ (lost)              |    "       "  | 169 | T. White        |
+_Experiment_                |April 16, 1825 |  43 | T. White        |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Fly_ (late _New Charter_)  |Cowes     | 5 x 6  |  7 x 4 |   --   |   --   |
+_Lion_                      |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Arrow_ (late _Seaflower_)  |Hastings  | 4 x 6  |  9 x 3 |    9   |   --   |
+_Cameleon_ (lost)           |Dover     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Dolphin_                   |Bridport  | 5 x 3  |  9 x 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Ranger_                    |Folkestone| 4 x 6  |  9 x 6 |    8   |   --   |
+_Tartar_                    |Hastings  | 5 x 2  | 10 x 2 |    8   |    4   |
+_Repulse_                   |Ealing    |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Nimble_                    |Sandgate  | 5 x 0  | 10 x 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Sprightly_                 |Cowes     | 5 x 6  |  8 x 6 |    7   |    4   |
+_Sealark_                   |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Scout_                     |Cowes     | 5 x 11 |  8 x 4 |    8   |    4   |
+_Fox_                       |Cowes     | 6 x 6  | 10 x 0 |   10   |   --   |
+_Endeavour_                 |Rye       | 5 x 6  |  9 x 6 |   --   |   --   |
+_Adder_ (sold)              |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Vigilant_                  |Cowes     | 6 x 8  |  9 x 4 |    9   |    4   |
+_Kite_                      |Hastings  | 6 x 8  | 12 x 10|   11   |   --   |
+_Hound_ (lost)              |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Experiment_                |Cowes     | 5 x 0  |  7 x 4 |   --   |   --   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Racer_                     | Aug. 10, 1825 |  53 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Viper_ (late _Mermaid_)    |   "  23,   "  |  43 | T. White        |
+_Stag_                      | Feb. 20, 1827 | 130 | T. White        |
+_Diligence_ (lost)          |   "   4, 1828 | 171 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Bee_                       | Aug. 18,   "  |  69 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Stork_                     | Jan.  5, 1830 | 160 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Liverpool_ (now            | July  1,   "  |  28 | T. White        |
+  _Speedwell_)              |               |     |                 |
+_Victoria_                  | Aug. 31, 1831 |  22 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Chance_                    |April  2, 1832 |  58 | T. White        |
+_Squirrel_                  | Jun  21,   "  |  36 | T. White        |
+_Amphitrite_                | July  4,   "  |  30 | Th. Inman       |
+_Victoria_                  |April  2,   "  | 114 | Th. Inman       |
+_King George_               | Aug.  3,   "  |  36 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Wickham_                   |April  2,   "  | 150 | T. White        |
+_Adelaide_                  |   "        "  | 143 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Dolphin_                   |   "        "  |  84 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Liverpool_ (tender to      | Aug. 10    "  |  36 | T. White        |
+  _Kite_)                   |               |     |                 |
+_Hornet_                    | July  6,   "  | 143 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Prince George_             | Nov.  3,   "  |  70 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Providence_                | Dec. 10,   "  |  20 | N. & E. Edwards |
+_Margaret_                  |   "        "  |  22 | T. Inman        |
+_Asp_                       |April 22, 1833 |  32 | T. White        |
+_Lady of the Lake_          |   "  25,   "  |  22 | T. Inman        |
+_Hind_                      | May  25,   "  |  41 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Caroline_                  | Jan. 31, 1834 |  36 | Ransom & Ridley |
+_Frances_                   | Feb.  3,   "  |  40 | T. White        |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Racer_                     |Hastings  | 4 x 4  |  9 x 8 |    8   |    4   |
+_Viper_ (late _Mermaid_)    |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Stag_                      |Cowes     | 6 x 9  | 10 x 9 |   10   |   --   |
+_Diligence_ (lost)          |Hastings  | 6 x 9  | 12 x 4 |   12   |   --   |
+_Bee_                       |Hastings  | 6 x 0  | 10 x 0 |   --   |   --   |
+_Stork_                     |Hastings  | 7 x 4  | 12 x 6 |   11   |    6   |
+_Liverpool_ (now            |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+  _Speedwell_)              |          |        |        |        |        |
+_Victoria_                  |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Chance_                    |Cowes     | 6 x 6  |  9 x 6 |9 1/2 to|   --   |
+                            |          |        |        | to 10  |        |
+_Squirrel_                  |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Amphitrite_                |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Victoria_                  |Lymington | 6 x 6  | 11 x 0 |   11   |   --   |
+_King George_               |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Wickham_                   |Cowes     | 7 x 3  | 11 x 3 |   11   |    4   |
+_Adelaide_                  |Hastings  |7 x 11/2| 12 x   |   10   |    6   |
+                            |          |        | 2 1/2  |        |        |
+_Dolphin_                   |Hastings  | 7 x 0  | 10 x 3 |    9   |    6   |
+_Liverpool_ (tender to      |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+  _Kite_)                   |          |        |        |        |        |
+_Hornet_                    |Hastings  | 7 x 0  | 12 x 0 |7.6 to 8|   --   |
+_Prince George_             |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Providence_                |Scilly    |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Margaret_                  |Lymington | 5 x 2  |  8 x 4 |    9   |   --   |
+_Asp_                       |Cowes     |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Lady of the Lake_          |Lymington |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Hind_                      |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Caroline_                  |Hastings  |   --   |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Frances_                   |Cowes     | 4 x 6  |  7 x 8 |    8   |    4   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  When Built.  |Ton- |    Builders.    |
+                            |               |nage.|                 |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+                            |               |     |                 |
+_Royal George_              | Mar. 27,   "  | 149 | T. Inman        |
+_Maria_                     |Sept. 10,   "  |  36 | T. Inman        |
+_Vulcan_ (steamer)          | Oct. 30,   "  | 325 | T. White        |
+_Hamilton_                  | Jan. 11, 1835 |  59 | T. White        |
+_Cameleon_                  | Feb. 21,   "  |  89 | T. Inman        |
+_Kingstown_                 | May   4,   "  |  21 | T. Inman        |
+_Bat_                       | Nov. 20,   "  |  37 | T. White        |
+_Tiger_                     | Mar.  8, 1836 |  18 | T. Inman        |
+_Onyx_                      |Sept.  1,   "  |  36 | T. White        |
+_Flying Fish_               |   "        "  |  41 | T. White        |
+_Gertrude_                  | Oct. 26, 1836 |  37 | T. White        |
+_Royal Charlotte_           |   "  27,   "  | 130 | T. White        |
+_Active_                    |   "  29,   "  | 101 | T. Inman        |
+_Vixen_                     | Feb. 11, 1837 |  56 | T. White        |
+_Ferret_                    | Mar. 18,   "  |  39 | T. Inman        |
+_Desmond_                   | June 10,   "  |  68 | T. Inman        |
+_Harpy_                     | Oct. 10,   "  | 145 | T. White        |
+_Asp_                       | Feb. 20, 1838 |  46 | T. Inman        |
+_Rose_                      |   "        "  |  53 | T. Inman        |
+_Adder_                     |   "        "  |  53 | T. White        |
+_Neptune_                   | June 19, 1838 |  42 | T. White        |
+_Kingstown_                 | Oct.  1,   "  |  35 | Pinney & Adams  |
+----------------------------+---------------+-----+-----------------+
+
+----------------------------+----------+-----------------+-----------------+
+                            |          |     Draft.      |Rate of sailing  |
+       Name of Cruiser.     |  Where   |--------+--------|per hour in knots|
+                            |  Built.  |Forward.|  Aft.  |and fathoms.     |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+                            |          |ft. ins.|ft. ins.| knots  | fathoms|
+_Royal George_              |Lymington |  6 x 8 | 11 x 3 |   11   |    2   |
+_Maria_                     |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Vulcan_ (steamer)          |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Hamilton_                  |Cowes     |  5 x 6 |  9 x 6 |    9   |    4   |
+_Cameleon_                  |Lymington |  6 x 6 | 10 x 6 |   10   |   --   |
+_Kingstown_                 |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Bat_                       |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Tiger_                     |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Onyx_                      |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Flying Fish_               |Cowes     |  5 x 3 |  8 x 3 |    8   |    4   |
+_Gertrude_                  |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Royal Charlotte_           |Cowes     |  6 x 5 | 10 x 9 |   10   |    6   |
+_Active_                    |Lymington |  6 x 2 | 11 x 1 |   10   |    6   |
+_Vixen_                     |Cowes     |  5 x 3 |  8 x 4 |   10   |   --   |
+_Ferret_                    |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Desmond_                   |Lymington |  4 x 9 |  8 x 6 |    9   |   --   |
+_Harpy_                     |Cowes     |  6 x 7 | 11 x 3 |   11   |   --   |
+_Asp_                       |Lymington |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Rose_                      |Lymington |  5 x 6 |  9 x 3 |   10   |   --   |
+_Adder_                     |Cowes     |  5 x 2 |  8 x 3 |  [Never Tried]  |
+_Neptune_                   |Cowes     |    --  |    --  |   --   |   --   |
+_Kingstown_                 |Poole     |  6 x 4 |  9 x 4 |   --   |   --   |
+----------------------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
+
+_N.B._--There is no information to show how the rate of sailing was
+assessed. We know not (a) whether the vessel was sailing on a wind or
+off; whether close-hauled or with the wind abeam; (b) whether the
+distance was taken from a measured mile reckoned between two fixed
+objects ashore; (c) what sail was set; whether reefed or not; (d)
+whether the speed was estimated by means of the old-fashioned log.
+
+It is probable that the last mentioned was the method employed, but in
+any one of these cases the rate given can only be approximate unless
+we know the force and angle of the wind at each trial trip. The
+non-nautical reader may be reminded in considering the rates given
+above that a knot is equivalent to 1000 fathoms or, more exactly, 6086
+English feet.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX V
+
+SPECIFICATION FOR BUILDING A CUTTER FOR THE REVENUE SERVICE OF
+THIRTY-FIVE TONS
+
+(_As built in the year 1838_)
+
+
+  LENGTH.--From Stem to Sternpost, 44 feet. Keel for tonnage, 41
+      feet.
+
+  BREADTH.--Extreme from outside the Plank, 14 feet 5 inches.
+
+  DEPTH.--From the upper-part of the Main Hatch-Beam to the Ceiling
+      alongside the Keelson, 7 feet 8 inches.
+
+  KEEL.--The Keel to be of good sound Elm, in not more than two
+      pieces, with Hook and Butt Scarphs 6 feet long, sided 6-1/2
+      inches. Depth aft 12 inches, forward 14 inches, with a false
+      Keel.
+
+  STEM.--To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+      defects, sided 5-1/2 inches, and to be sufficiently thick at
+      the head to admit of a hole for the Main Stay.
+
+  STERN POST.--To be of sound English Oak, clear of Sap and all other
+      defects, sided 5-1/2 inches.
+
+  DEAD WOOD.--The Dead Wood both forward and aft to be of Oak, clear
+      of Sap and all defects, except the two lower pieces which may
+      be Elm, and secured by a Knee well bolted through the
+      Sternpost, and Dead Wood aft, and Stem and Dead Wood forward.
+
+  FLOORS AND FUTTOCKS.--To be sided 5-1/2 and not more than 6 inches
+      apart. The lower Futtocks sided 5-1/2 inches, second Futtocks
+      5, third Futtocks 5, and Toptimbers 4-1/2, Stantions 4 inches.
+      The heels of the lower Futtocks to meet on the Keel, all the
+      Timber to be well grown and seasoned, clear of Sap and other
+      defects;--of English Oak.
+
+  KEELSON.--The Keelson to run well forward and aft, of sound Oak,
+      clear of Sap, sided 7 inches and moulded 9 inches Midships. The
+      ends moulded 7 inches and sided 6 inches. To be bolted through
+      the floors and Keel with 3/4 inch Copper Bolts well clenched on
+      a ring, under the Keel.
+
+  STANTIONS.--Stantions sided 4 inches at the Gunwale and 3-1/2
+      inches at the Head, and so spaced as to form 4 ports, each side
+      20 inches in the clear, and the port lids hung with composition
+      hooks and hinges to roughtree rail and one Stantion between
+      each port, or more if necessary.
+
+  COUNTER-TIMBERS.--To be sided from 4-1/2 to 4 inches and the
+      Transoms well kneed.
+
+  BREAST-HOOKS.--To have 3 Breast-Hooks, one under the Bowsprit sided
+      4 inches, the others sided 4-1/2 inches, all of the best
+      English Oak, with arms not less than 3 feet long, clear of Sap
+      and other defects; the two lower ones to be bolted with Copper
+      Bolts. The Throat Bolt to be 3/4 inch diameter, to go through
+      the stem and clenched, and three in each arm of 5/8, all well
+      clenched on a ring.
+
+  BEAMS.--The Beams to be good sound Oak, clear of all defects, to
+      round up 5-1/2 inches. The Beam before and the Beam abaft the
+      Mast to be sided 6 inches, and moulded 6 inches, and not more
+      than 4 feet apart, and to have two Wood lodging Knees to each,
+      also one Iron hanging Knee to each; the remainder of the Beams
+      to be sided 5 inches, and moulded 5 inches, and regularly
+      spaced, and not more than three feet from Centre to Centre,
+      with two 1 inch dowels in each end, instead of dovetailing into
+      the shelf-piece, with a 5/8 inch bolt through each dowel, and
+      an inch and quarter hole bored in the end of all the Beams 10
+      inches in, and another from the under side to meet it, then
+      seared with a hot Iron to admit Air.
+
+  CARLINGS AND LEDGERS.--To have 2 fore and aft Carlings between each
+      Beam 4 inches by 3-1/2, and a Ledge 3-1/2 by 3 inches between
+      the Beams where required. The Mast Carlings to be good English
+      Oak, 4 inches thick, and 10 inches broad.
+
+  WALES AND BOTTOM PLANK.--The Wales to be of English well-seasoned
+      Oak, 3 inches thick, clear of all defects, with one strake of
+      2-1/2 inches thick next under the Wales, and one bilge strake
+      of 2-1/2 inch each side. The remainder of the Bottom to be full
+      2 inches thick when worked, all of sound English Oak, except
+      the Garboard and one next to it which may be of Elm; Plank to
+      work 16 feet long with 6 feet shifts, and two strakes between
+      each Butt: the first strake above the Wales to be 2 inches
+      thick, the remainder 2 inches, paint strake 2 inches.
+
+  SPIRKETTING.--The Spirketting to be 2 inches thick.
+
+  WATERWAYS.--The Waterways to be of English Oak, 3 inches thick,
+      clear of Sap and strakes, and not less than 6 inches broad in
+      any part.
+
+  PLANSHEER.--The Plansheer of good English Oak, full 2 inches thick
+      when worked, and to form the lower Port Sills.
+
+  SHELF PIECES.--The Shelf Pieces to be fitted to the Timbers instead
+      of working it over the Clamp, as heretofore, to be of good
+      sound English Oak, 6 inches broad, 3-1/2 inches thick, and
+      bolted with 5/8 inch bolts, two feet apart, well clenched.
+
+  CLAMPS.--The Clamps to be of good sound Oak, 8 inches broad and 2
+      inches thick, fitted up to the under side of the Shelf Pieces.
+
+  CEILING.--To have two strakes of 2 inch Oak on the Floor and lower
+      Futtock Heads, both sides, and the Ceiling to be of 1-1/4 inch
+      Oak, all English, as high as one foot above the lower Deck; the
+      remainder as high as the clamp, to be of Red Pine, clear of Sap
+      and other defects, 3/4 inch thick.
+
+  CHANNELS.--The Main Channels to be of the best English Oak, of
+      sufficient breadth, to convey the rigging clear of the Weather
+      Cloth Rail, and 3-1/2 inches thick with 4 substantial
+      Chainplates with Iron bound Dead-eyes complete, on each side.
+      The two lower bolts in each plate to be 1 inch in diameter. No
+      Bolt in the Chainplate through the Channel as usual. The
+      Chainplates to be let their thickness into the edge of the
+      Channel, and an Iron plate 3 inches broad, and 3/8 inch thick,
+      secured over all by Small Bolts 4-1/2 inches long.
+
+  PORTS.--To have 4 Ports on each side properly spaced, and the Port
+      Lids hung with Copper Hooks and Hinges.
+
+  BULWARK.--The Bulwark to be of Baltic Red Pine 1 inch thick, to be
+      worked in narrow strakes about 5 inches broad. The edges
+      grooved and tongued together, and not lined as usual, except
+      from forward to bow port.
+
+  ROUGHTREE RAIL.--To be of good clean, straight grained Oak 4-1/2
+      inches broad, and 2-1/4 deep, to be fitted with a sufficient
+      number of Iron Stantions 2-6/8 inches long, with Oak Rail 2
+      inches square for Weather Cloths. The Roughtree Rail to be 2
+      feet high from Deck.
+
+  DECK.--The Upper Deck to be of the best Baltic Red Pine, full 2
+      inches thick when worked, clear of Sap, strakes, &c., and not
+      more than 5 inches broad each plank. The plank under, and
+      between the Bitts Knees, to be English Oak 2-1/2 inches thick,
+      the whole to be fastened with Copper Nails of sufficient
+      length.
+
+  BITTS.--The Bowsprit Bitts to run down to the Ceiling, with a Bolt
+      in the Keel of each, and so placed that the Bowsprit may be run
+      aft clear of the Mast Larboard Side. Size of the Bitts at the
+      head fore and aft 7 inches, thwartships 6 inches, and to be the
+      same size at lower part of Deck, with a regular taper to heel.
+      The Windlass Bitts to be sided 7 inches, and left broad and
+      high enough above the Deck to admit of a Patent Pinion Cog, and
+      Multiplying Wheels to be fitted to Windlass, with Crank,
+      Handles, &c. To have good and sufficient Knees to all the
+      Bitts. The Bowsprit Bitt Knees sided 6 inches, Windlass Bitt
+      Knees sided 5 inches.
+
+  WINDLASS.--The Barrel of the Windlass to be of good sound English
+      Oak, clear of all defects, diameter in the middle 10 inches,
+      and fitted with Patent Iron Palls, with two hoops on each end,
+      and seasoned Elm Whelps 2-1/2 inches thick, hollowed in the
+      middle for Chain Cable 14 inches long, taking care that it
+      leads far from the Hawse Holes, to have 6 Iron Plates let into
+      the Angles of the Whelps. The Iron Spindle to be 2 inches
+      Diameter, and to let into the Barrel of the Windlass 12 inches,
+      and to be fitted with Pinion, Cog, and Multiplying Wheels and
+      Crank Handles, to have two Windlass ends not more than a foot
+      long each; care must be taken not to cut the Handspike holes
+      where the Chain Cable works.
+
+  SCUPPERS.--To have 2 oval Lead Scuppers, each side, 3 by 1-3/4 inch
+      in the clear.
+
+  EYE PLATES.--To have two stout Iron Eye Plates, both sides forward
+      for Bowsprit, Shrouds, &c. with two Bolts in each, and three
+      Plates both sides for Runners and Tackles aft, the Eyes to
+      reach up to the top of Roughtree Rail, and to have a good
+      strong Iron Hanging Knee each side to the Beams abreast the
+      Runners.
+
+  HATCHWAYS.--The Main Hatchway to be 4 feet broad and 3 feet fore
+      and aft in the clear. The Combins 3 inches thick and 11 inches
+      broad, let down on Carlings 3 inches thick and 4-1/2 inches
+      broad.
+
+  SKYLIGHTS.--To be fitted with two Skylights with Plate Glass and
+      Copper Guard, Commanders to be 3 feet long and 2 feet broad;
+      Mates Skylight 2 feet square, with Plate Glass, Copper Bars 3/8
+      diameter.
+
+  ILLUMINATORS.--To have 10 oblong 4 inch Illuminators let into the
+      Deck where most required, and a 5 inch Patent one over the
+      Water Closet.
+
+  WINCH.--To have a Patent Winch round the Mast, and the Mast to be
+      wedged in the partners.
+
+  PUMPS.--To be fitted with two Metal Bilge Pumps 3-1/2 inch chamber
+      and everything complete; also one Metal Pump amidships with 6
+      inch chamber, and two sets of Brass Boxes, and everything
+      requisite; also a Wash Deck Pump fitted aft.
+
+  RUDDER.--To have a good and sufficient Rudder with two sets of
+      Metal Pintles and Braces, and one Iron Pintle and Brace at the
+      head of the Sternpost above the Deck, and to be fitted with two
+      good Tillers.
+
+  COMPANION.--To be fitted with a Companion and Bittacle complete.
+
+  HAWSEPIPES.--To have two stout cast Iron Hawsepipes for Chain Cable
+      4 inches in the clear, also two Cast Iron Pipes in the Deck
+      with Bell Mouth, to conduct the Chain Cable below.
+
+  LOWER DECK.--The Lower Deck Beams to be regularly spaced and not
+      more than 4 feet apart, the Deck to be 1-1/4 inches thick, of
+      good Red Pine, the Midships part 3 feet broad, to be fastened
+      to the Beams, also some of the side plank, the remainder made
+      into Hatches, the edges bolted together with 1/2 inch Iron, the
+      Deck and Cabin Floor abaft, Main Hatch to be 1 inch thick, and
+      made into Hatches where required.
+
+  MAGAZINE.--To have a Magazine abaft, properly fitted and lined on
+      the inside with 5 lb. Lead, and Double Doors with Copper Hinges
+      and Lock to the outside Door.
+
+  BREAD ROOM.--To have Bread Rooms and Flour Bins lined with Tin as
+      usual.
+
+  GALLEY.--The Galley under the Fire Hearth to be coppered with 32
+      oz. Sheet Copper 5 feet square, and the under part of the Upper
+      Deck, Beams, &c.; over the Boilers 4 feet square, to be leaded
+      with 6 lb. Lead.
+
+  LOCKERS AND BINS.--To be fitted with Store Bins and Lockers from
+      the Bows to the Cabin Bulkheads between Decks.
+
+  BULKHEADS.--To have Bulkheads between Decks for Commander's Cabin,
+      State Room, and all other Bulkheads, as is customary for a
+      Revenue Cruiser of the 3rd class, with all Drawers, Cupboards,
+      Bed-places, Tables, Wash-stands, &c. complete. The Cabin
+      Bulkheads to be framed in Panels, all Hinges to be Brass with
+      Brass Pins.
+
+  BULKHEADS, HOLD.--To have Bulkheads in the Hold, for Coals, Stores,
+      Casks, Chain Cables, &c., and an opening of one inch left
+      between each Plank to give air, except the Coal-hole which must
+      be close.
+
+  LADDERS.--To have a Main Hatch, Fore Hatch, and Cabin Ladder
+      complete.
+
+  CLEATS.--To be fitted complete, with all Cleats, Cavels, Snatch
+      Cleats with Shieves, Brass coated Belaying Cleats, and Racks
+      with Belaying Pins, &c., and an Iron Crutch on Taffrail for the
+      Boom.
+
+  FASTENINGS.--The whole of the Plank to be fastened with good well
+      seasoned Treenails, and one 1/2 inch Copper Bolt in every Butt
+      from the Keel up to the Wales, to go through and clench on a
+      Ring on the Ceiling, and the Treenails drove through the
+      Ceiling, wedged on the inside and caulked outside.
+
+  RING AND EYE BOLTS.--To be fitted with all necessary Ring and Eye
+      Bolts, as customary for a Revenue Cruiser.
+
+  LEGS.--To have 2 substantial Oak Legs properly fitted.
+
+  PAINT.--The whole of the Wood Work inside and out to have three
+      coats of the best Paint, well put on.
+
+  HULL.--The Hull to be completed in every respect as a Revenue
+      Cruiser of the 3rd Class, and all Materials found by the
+      Contractor, except Copper Sheathing for the Bottom and
+      Water-Closets, with all Shipwrights', Caulkers', Joiners',
+      Blacksmiths', Copper-smiths', Braziers', Glaziers', Plumbers'
+      and Painters' work.
+
+  CATHEAD.--To have an Iron Cathead with two Shieves strong enough to
+      cat the Anchor, and fitted both sides.
+
+  COCK.--To have a Stop Cock fitted forward under the Lower Deck, to
+      let in Water occasionally.
+
+  WATER-CLOSET.--To have a Patent Water-Closet of Danton's fitted
+      below, and a Round-house on Deck, aft Starboard side complete,
+      with a Pantry for meat, the Larboard side to correspond with
+      the Round-house, and a Poop Deck between both, nailed with
+      Copper Nails; also a seat of ease on the Larboard side forward
+      for the Crew, with Lead Pipe to water edge; the whole of the
+      Locks throughout to be Brass and Brass Works.
+
+  AIR OPENINGS.--An inch opening to be left all fore and aft under
+      the Clamp both sides, also in the Ceiling between the Lower
+      Deck Beams, and another in the upper part of the Bins, and one
+      inch auger hole bored between the Timbers in the run aft and
+      forward where lists cannot be left out, also a hole of one inch
+      in all the Timbers, fore and aft, to admit air, and those holes
+      seared with a hot iron; all Chocks for securing the frame
+      Timbers together are to be split out before the bottom Plank is
+      worked.
+
+  The Cutter to remain in frame for one Month before closed in, then
+      when the outside Plank is worked and all the Sap taken off the
+      Timbers, and before the Ceiling is worked, to give the Timbers
+      a good coat of Stockholm Tar.
+
+  Should there be any omission or want of more full statement in this
+      Specification, the Contractor is to understand that the Hull of
+      the said Vessel is to be fitted and completed fit for Sea in
+      every respect as is usual for a Revenue Vessel of her Class,
+      the Board finding the Copper Sheathing and Water-Closet.
+
+  DEFECTS TO BE AMENDED.--Any defects discovered in the Timbers or
+      Plank, &c., by the Officer or Overseer appointed by the
+      Honourable Board of Customs to survey and inspect the same, or
+      insufficient workmanship performed to the said Cutter during
+      her building, the said defect or deficiency both in the one and
+      in the other, shall upon notice thereof to the Contractor be
+      forthwith amended, and the said Overseer shall not at any time
+      have any molestation or obstruction therein.
+
+_Note._--For a 150-ton Revenue Cutter the following dimensions were
+employed:--
+
+     Length.--(Stem to Sternpost) 72 feet. Keel for Tonnage, 68 feet.
+     Breadth.--(Extreme) 22 feet 10 inches.
+     Depth.--10 feet 3 inches.
+     Beams to be 7 inches.
+     Deck to be 2 inches thick.
+     Four Oak Legs to be supplied
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VI
+
+DIMENSIONS OF SPARS OF REVENUE CUTTERS
+
+
+The following list shows the length and thickness of mast, boom,
+bowsprit, gaff, topmast, and spread-yard [_i.e._ the yard on which the
+square-sail was set] as used in the Revenue Cutters of different sizes
+from 150 to 40 tons. The dimensions given below were those in vogue in
+the year 1838.
+
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+Spar.      | 150 Tons| 130 Tons|100 Tons.| 90 Tons.| 80 Tons.|
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+           |ft . ins.|ft. ins. |ft. ins. |ft. ins. |ft. ins. |
+Mast       |75x20    |72x18    |68x17    |65x16 1/2|63x15 3/4|
+Boom       |61x13 1/4|59x13    |54x12    |51x11 1/2|49x10 3/4|
+Bowsprit   |55x16 3/4|53x15 1/2|49x14    |47x13 1/4|44x12 1/2|
+Gaff       |45x 8 3/4|40x 8 1/2|38x 7 3/4|33x 7 1/2|32x 7 1/4|
+Topmast    |52x 9 3/4|48x 8 1/2|45x 7 3/4|42x 7 1/2|40x 7 1/4|
+Spread-Yard|58x 9 1/4|56x 8 1/2|48x 8 1/4|47x 7 3/4|46x 7 1/2|
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+Spar.      | 70 Tons | 60 Tons | 50 Tons.| 40 Tons.|
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+           |ft. ins. |ft. ins. |ft. ins. |ft. ins. |
+Mast       |60x15    |56x14    |55x13 1/2|50x12    |
+Boom       |47x10 1/2|45x10    |43x 8 3/4|42x 8 1/2|
+Bowsprit   |43x12    |38x11 1/4|37x10 3/4|32x10    |
+Gaff       |31x 7    |28x 6 3/4|30x 6 1/2|26x 6    |
+Topmast    |39x 7    |35x 6 3/4|35x 6 1/2|30x 6    |
+Spread-Yard|44x 7    |42x 6 3/4|38x 6 1/4|32x 6    |
+-----------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VII
+
+
+LIST OF THE CRUISERS IN THE REVENUE COASTGUARD OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
+IN THE YEAR 1844
+
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+ Name of Cruiser       | Number   | Name of Cruiser      | Number   |
+                       | of Crew. |                      | of Crew. |
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+_Shamrock_             |   45     | _Badger_             |   16     |
+_Kite_                 |   34     | _Skylark_            |   16     |
+_Swift_                |   34     | _Petrel_             |   16     |
+_Prince of Wales_      |   34     | _Racer_              |   15     |
+_Wickham_              |   33     | _Hamilton_           |   23     |
+_Greyhound_            |   33     | _Chance_             |   16     |
+_Prince Albert_        |   33     | _Harriett_           |   14     |
+_Royal George_         |   33     | _Rose_               |   14     |
+_Mermaid_              |   33     | _Adder_              |   14     |
+_Adelaide_             |   30     | _Rob Roy_            |   14     |
+_Wellington_           |   33     | _Eliza_              |   13     |
+_Harpy_                |   30     | _Jane_               |   13     |
+_Royal Charlotte_      |   29     | _Experiment_         |   10     |
+_Stag_                 |   29     | _Albatross_          |   13     |
+_Defence_              |   29     | _Asp_                |   10     |
+_Eagle_                |   29     | _Frances_            |   10     |
+_Lapwing_              |   29     | _Arrow_              |   10     |
+_Sylvia_               |   29     | _Viper_              |   10     |
+_Victoria_             |   27     | _Neptune_            |   10     |
+_Lively_               |   23     | _Sealark_            |   10     |
+_Vigilant_             |   23     | _Hind_               |   10     |
+_Active_               |   23     | _Liverpool_          |   10     |
+_Cameleon_             |   21     | _Maria_              |   12     |
+_Fox_                  |   21     | _Sylph_              |    8     |
+_Dolphin_              |   21     | _Gertrude_           |    8     |
+_Scout_                |   21     | _Governor_           |    8     |
+_Tartar_               |   21     | _Nelson_             |    7     |
+_Hawke_                |   21     | _Princess Royal_     |    7     |
+_Ranger_               |   20     | _Ann_                |    7     |
+_Nimble_               |   17     | _Fairy_              |    7     |
+_Desmond_              |   17     | _Ferret_             |    7     |
+_Sprightly_            |   17     | _Lady of the Lake_   |    5     |
+_Lion_                 |   16     | _Vulcan_ (steamer)   |   31     |
+-----------------------+----------+----------------------+----------+
+
+_Note_.--The size of the above varied from 25 tons to 164 tons. But
+the ss. _Vulcan_ was of 325 tons.
+
+
+
+
+APPENDIX VIII
+
+
+No better instance of the strained relationship existing between the
+Royal Navy and the Revenue Service could be found than the following.
+It will be seen that the animosity had begun at any rate before the
+end of the seventeenth century and was very far from dead in the
+nineteenth.
+
+The first incident centres round Captain John Rutter, commander of
+"one of the smacks or sloops in the service of the Customs about the
+Isle of Wight." He stated that on April 24, 1699, about eight o'clock
+in the evening, he went on board to search the ship _Portland_ at
+Spithead, the latter having arrived from France with a cargo of wine.
+At the same time there put off the long boat from Admiral Hopson's
+_Resolution_ demanding four hogsheads and four tierces, which (said
+Rutter) "I denied, but however they took it out by force and carried
+it on board." Rutter then went on to the _Resolution_ and there found
+the wine lying on deck. The Admiral sent for him aft, and said that he
+would see the wine forthcoming, for he would write to the
+Commissioners of Customs.
+
+Some time afterwards Rutter was ashore at Portsmouth in company with
+Captain Foulks, who was one of the officers stationed on land. The
+latter informed Rutter that he was a rogue for having informed against
+the Admiral. Foulks drew his sword, and, had he not been prevented,
+would have murdered Rutter. Apparently Admiral Hopson never forgave
+Rutter. For, some months later, Rutter was riding off Portsmouth
+"with my Pendent and Colours flying, rejoicing for the happy arrival
+of His Maty." Hopson was being rowed ashore, and when near "my yacht
+ordered my pendent to be taken down. I being absent, my men would not
+do it without my order, whereon he sent his boat on board and one of
+his men took it down. I coming on board to goe upon my duty ordered it
+to be hoysted again and imediately he sent his boat with one of his
+Lieutenants to take it down again with a verball order which I refused
+to lett him do, but by strength overpowered me and my company and took
+it down by force, and beat us to ye degree yat I know not whether it
+may not hazard some men's lives, which I acknowledge I did not wear it
+in contempt, and if he had sent another time I would readily have
+obeyed his Order. Now I humbly conceive that it was merely out of
+malice as I can prove by his own mouth."
+
+Arising out of this incident, a letter was sent from the Admiralty to
+the Portsmouth Custom House and signed by "J. Burchett." The latter
+opined that it was not a fault for the Custom House smacks to wear a
+pendant, but pointed out that the Proclamation of 1699 obliged the
+Custom House smacks to wear such a pendant as was distinct from the
+King's "as well as their Jacks and Ensigns." Furthermore he suggested
+that it had always been customary to strike such pendant when in sight
+of an Admiral's flag, especially if demanded.
+
+The second incident occurred on February 4, 1806. The commanding
+officer of H.M. Armed vessel _Sentinel_ was lying in Shields harbour.
+He sent word to a man named Stephen Mitchell, who caused the watch of
+the Revenue cutter _Eagle_ to hoist the _Eagle's_ pendant half-mast.
+Mitchell naturally replied that he dared not do so without his
+captain's orders. Mitchell, therefore, sent to his captain, George
+Whitehead, but before the latter's arrival the pendant was hauled
+down and carried on board the _Sentinel_ with threats that Whitehead
+should be prosecuted for wearing a pendant. Whitehead accordingly
+wrote to the Collector and Controller of the Customs at Newcastle to
+lodge a complaint. The latter, in turn, wrote to Lieut. W. Chester,
+R.N., commanding this _Sentinel_ gun-brig asking for an explanation.
+The naval officer replied by referring them to Articles 6 and 7 of the
+Admiralty Instructions regarding ships or vessels in the service of
+any public office, by which it was ordered that they should wear the
+same Ensign and Jack as ships having Letters of Marque, except that in
+the body of the Jack or Ensign there should be likewise described the
+seal of the office they belonged to. All vessels employed in the
+service of any public office were forbidden to wear pendants contrary
+to what was allowed, and officers of ships-of-war were permitted to
+seize any illegal colours. Chester contended that the _Eagle_ was
+hailed and requested to lower her colours half-mast, as an officer of
+the Navy was being interred at South Shields, and all the other
+vessels in the harbour "had their colours half staff down" except the
+_Eagle_. Because the latter refused, Chester requested her mate to
+come on board the _Sentinel_, as the former wished to explain why the
+colours should be lowered. An officer was thereupon sent on board the
+_Eagle_ to haul them down. Chester demanded an apology for the
+disrespect to the deceased officer.
+
+And one could easily quote other similar instances between H.M.S.
+_Princess_ and the Revenue cutter _Diligence_: and H.M. gun-brig
+_Teazer_ and the Revenue cruiser _Hardwicke_.
+
+
+  Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO.
+  Edinburgh & London
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+Typographical errors corrected in text:
+
+   Page 94: seizurss replaced by seizures.
+
+   Page 99: "waved us to keep of" replaced with "waved us to keep off"
+
+
+
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