CHAPTER XX. Force and Cunning

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.

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.

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.

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.

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