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diff --git a/old/53112-0.txt b/old/53112-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d7c97c3..0000000 --- a/old/53112-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,9305 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Half-hours with the Highwaymen, by Charles G. Harper - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: Half-hours with the Highwaymen - Picturesque Biographies and Traditions of the "Knights of the Road" - -Author: Charles G. Harper - -Illustrator: Paul Hardy - -Release Date: October 11, 2016 [EBook #53112] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HALF-HOURS WITH THE HIGHWAYMEN *** - - - - -Produced by deaurider, Christian Boissonnas and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Note: - -This book was published in two volumes, of which this is the second. -The first volume was released as Project Gutenberg ebook #53111, -available at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/53111. - - - - - HALF-HOURS WITH - THE HIGHWAYMEN - - - - -WORKS BY CHARLES G. HARPER - - - =The Portsmouth Road=, and its Tributaries: To-day and in Days of - Old. - - =The Dover Road=: Annals of an Ancient Turnpike. - - =The Bath Road=: History, Fashion, and Frivolity on an Old - Highway. - - =The Exeter Road=: The Story of the West of England Highway. - - =The Great North Road=: The Old Mail Road to Scotland. Two Vols. - - =The Norwich Road=: An East Anglian Highway. - - =The Holyhead Road=: The Mail-Coach Road to Dublin. Two Vols. - - =The Cambridge, Ely, and King's Lynn Road=: The Great Fenland - Highway. - - =The Newmarket, Bury, Thetford, and Cromer Road=: Sport and - History on an East Anglian Turnpike. - - =The Oxford, Gloucester, and Milford Haven Road=: The Ready Way - to South Wales. Two Vols. - - =The Brighton Road=: Speed, Sport, and History on the Classic - Highway. - - =The Hastings Road= and the "Happy Springs of Tunbridge." - - =Cycle Rides Round London.= - - =A Practical Handbook of Drawing for Modern Methods of - Reproduction.= - - =Stage-Coach and Mail in Days of Yore.= Two Vols. - - =The Ingoldsby Country=: Literary Landmarks of "The Ingoldsby - Legends." - - =The Hardy Country=: Literary Landmarks of the Wessex Novels. - - =The Dorset Coast.= - - =The South Devon Coast.= - - =The North Devon Coast.= - - =The Old Inns of Old England.= Two Vols. - - =Love in the Harbour=: a Longshore Comedy. - - =Rural Nooks Round London= (Middlesex and Surrey). - - =The Manchester and Glasgow Road=; This way to Gretna Green. Two - Vols. - - =Haunted Houses=: Tales of the Supernatural. - - =The Somerset Coast.= [_In the Press._] - - - - -[Illustration: SIXTEEN-STRING JACK.] - - - - - HALF-HOURS WITH - THE HIGHWAYMEN - - _PICTURESQUE BIOGRAPHIES AND - TRADITIONS OF THE "KNIGHTS - OF THE ROAD"_ - - BY CHARLES G. HARPER - - VOL. II - - [Illustration: [++] Man and woman talking.] - - _Illustrated by Paul Hardy and by the Author, and - from Old Prints_ - - - LONDON - - CHAPMAN & HALL, LIMITED - 1908 - - - _All rights reserved_ - - - - - PRINTED AND BOUND BY - HAZELL, WATSON AND VINEY, LD., - LONDON AND AYLESBURY. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - NEVISON: "SWIFT NICKS" 1 - - JOHN COTTINGTON, _alias_ "MULLED SACK" 26 - - THOMAS RUMBOLD 35 - - "CAPTAIN" JAMES WHITNEY 41 - - TWM SHON CATTI 65 - - JOHN WITHERS AND WILLIAM EDWARDS 75 - - PATRICK O'BRIAN 81 - - JACK BIRD 86 - - WILL OGDEN, JACK BRADSHAW, AND TOM REYNOLDS 98 - - JACK OVET 105 - - JOHN HALL, RICHARD LOW, AND STEPHEN BUNCE 110 - - "MR." AVERY AND DICK ADAMS 121 - - JONATHAN WILD 126 - - NICHOLAS HORNER 148 - - WALTER TRACEY 158 - - NED WICKS 166 - - DICK TURPIN 173 - - WILLIAM PARSONS, THE BARONET'S SON 241 - - WILLIAM PAGE 249 - - ISAAC DARKIN, _alias_ DUMAS 264 - - JAMES MACLAINE, THE "GENTLEMAN" HIGHWAYMAN 271 - - JOHN POULTER, _alias_ BAXTER 301 - - PAUL LEWIS 316 - - THE WESTONS 320 - - JACK RANN: "SIXTEEN-STRING JACK" 340 - - ROBERT FERGUSON—"GALLOPING DICK" 353 - - JERRY ABERSHAW 361 - - JOHN AND WILLIAM BEATSON 370 - - ROBERT SNOOKS 376 - - HUFFUM WHITE 384 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - SEPARATE PLATES - - PAGE - - SIXTEEN-STRING JACK _Frontispiece_ - - NEVISON'S RIDE TO YORK 11 - - "SWIFT NICKS" BEFORE CHARLES THE SECOND 17 - - "MULLED SACK" ROBS THE ARMY PAY WAGGON 33 - - WHITNEY HUGGED BY THE BEAR 42 - - WHITNEY AND THE USURER 53 - - TWM SHON CATTI AND THE HIGHWAYMAN 73 - - JACK BIRD FIGHTS THE CHAPLAIN 95 - - THE ROBBERY AT THE HACKNEY BAKER'S 115 - - JONATHAN WILD ON THE WAY TO EXECUTION 147 - - HORNER MEETS HIS MATCH 154 - - TURPIN AND HIS GANG IN THEIR CAVE IN EPPING FOREST 177 - - TURPIN HOLDS THE LANDLADY OVER THE FIRE 189 - - TURPIN MEETS TOM KING 1201 - - TURPIN IN HIS CAVE 212 - - WILLIAM PARSONS 242 - - WILLIAM PAGE 252 - - MACLAINE, THE LADIES' HERO 275 - - JAMES MACLAINE 276 - - MACLAINE AND PLUNKETT ROBBING THE EARL OF EGLINTON ON - HOUNSLOW HEATH 289 - - MACLAINE IN THE DOCK 292 - - NEWGATE'S LAMENTATION; OR, THE LADIES' FAREWELL TO MACLAINE 299 - - PAUL LEWIS 316 - - - THE WESTONS ESCAPING FROM NEWGATE 337 - - "SIXTEEN-STRING JACK" AND ELLEN ROCHE IN THE DOCK 348 - - "GALLOPING DICK" 354 - - JERRY ABERSHAW ON PUTNEY HEATH 365 - - SNOOKS ADDRESSING THE CROWD AT HIS EXECUTION 381 - - HUFFUM WHITE ESCAPING FROM THE HULKS 384 - - - ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEXT - - Nevison's Leg-irons, in York Museum 23 - - Jonathan Wild in the Condemned Cell 136 - - Satirical Invitation-card to Execution of Jonathan Wild 139 - - Turpin's Baptismal Register, Hempstead 174 - - Bold Dick Turpin 197 - - Tom King 206 - - Dick Turpin 207 - - Tom King 209 - - Tom King 211 - - Dick Turpin 215 - - Sir Ralph Rookwood and Simon Sharpscent 219 - - Turpin's Cell in York Castle 222 - - Ralph Ostler 225 - - Turpin's Waist-girdle, Wrist-shackles, and Leg-irons 226 - - Maid of the Inn 229 - - Highwaymen carousing 229 - - Innkeeper 231 - - Turpin's Stone 237 - - Portmanteau, formerly belonging to Turpin, discovered at - Clerkenwell 240 - - William Parsons 247 - - James Maclaine 272 - - Jack Rann 345 - - Snooks's Grave 383 - - - - -[Illustration: HALF-HOURS WITH THE HIGHWAYMEN] - - -NEVISON: "SWIFT NICKS" - - -When Harrison Ainsworth wrote _Rookwood_, that fantastic romance of -highway robbery and the impossible exploits of the Rookwood family, he -did a singular injustice to a most distinguished seventeenth-century -highwayman, John Nevison by name, and transferred the glory of his -wonderful ride to York to Dick Turpin, who never owned a "Black -Bess," and who never did anything of the kind. Turpin, by virtue of -Ainsworth's glowing pages, has become a popular hero and stands full in -the limelight, while the real gallant figure is only dimly seen in the -cold shade of neglect. - -John or "William" Nevison, by some accounts, was born at Pontefract, -in 1639, of "honest and reasonably-estated parents." Sometimes we -find him styled Nevison, at other times he is "alias Clerk" in the -proclamations issued, offering rewards for his arrest. Occasionally, -in the chap-books, we find John Nevison and William Nevison treated -as two separate and distinct persons, no doubt because the recorded -adventures of this truly eminent man were so widely distributed over -the country, that it was difficult to believe them the doings of one -person. But there seems to be no reasonable doubt that one and the -same man was the hero of all these doings, as also of the famous Ride -to York. Of course it is now by far too late to snatch from Turpin the -false glory bestowed upon him. A hundred romances, a century of popular -plays, have for ever in the popular mind identified him with the Ride -to York, and with all manner of achievements and graces that were never -his. Lies are brazen and immortal; truth is modest; and the Great -Turpin Myth is too fully established to be thoroughly scotched. - -But let us to the career of Nevison, as told in the pages of what few -authorities exist. He seems to have been a precocious boy: precocious -in things evil. Indeed we must needs regard him as a _wunderkind_ -in that sort, for between the ages of thirteen and fourteen, and -when still at school, he is reported to have been the "ringleader in -rudeness and debauchery." He stole a silver spoon from his father, who -delegated the thrashing so richly deserved to the schoolmaster, who -seems to have "laid on" in the thorough manner suggested to Macduff. A -vivid picture presents itself to us, of William (or John) occupying a -sleepless night, rubbing the parts and meditating revenge. As a result -of his deliberations, he arose before peep of day and, cautiously -taking his father's keys, stole to the domestic cashbox and helped -himself to the ten pounds he found there. Then, taking a saddle and -bridle from his father's stable, he hastened to the paddock where the -schoolmaster had a horse out to graze. Saddling it, he made off for -London, which he reached in four days. He dared not sell the horse, for -by that means he might have been traced, so he killed the unfortunate -animal when within one or two miles of London. - -Buying a new suit of clothes and changing his name, he soon found -employment with a brewer. In that situation he remained nearly three -years, and then left suddenly for the Continent, incidentally with -£200 belonging to the brewer. Holland was the country he honoured -with his presence, and there he found a fellow-mind in the person -of a young Dutch woman who, robbing her father of all the money and -jewels she could lay hands upon, eloped with him. They were soon -arrested, but Nevison broke prison, and with some difficulty, made his -way into Flanders, and enlisted in the troops stationed there under -command of the Duke of York. It is not to be supposed that such a -restless temperament as his would allow him long to remain subject to -restrictions and the word of command, and accordingly he deserted, made -across to England, and, purchasing a horse and arms, and "resolving for -the Road," blossomed out as a full-blown highwayman. As his original -biographer prettily puts it, he embarked upon "a pleasant life at the -hazard of his neck, rather than toil out a long remainder of unhappy -days in want and poverty, which he was always averse to." Who, for -that matter, is not? Let us sigh for the days that were, the days that -are no more, when such adventures as the highwaymen sought were to be -found on every highway. A short life, so long as it was a merry, was -sufficient for these fine fellows, who desired nothing so little as -a gnarled and crabbed age, and nothing so much as a life filled with -excitement, wine, and the smiles of the fair. Those smiles were apt to -be purchased, and generally purchased dear, but in that respect the -highwaymen were never disposed to be critical. - -Nevison's success, immediate and complete, proclaimed his fitness for -the career himself had with due thought and deliberation chosen. At -first he kept his own counsel and haunted the roads alone. Sometimes he -went by the name of Johnson. - -At this early stage he met one evening on the high road two farmers, -who told him it was dangerous to go forward, themselves having only a -few minutes before been robbed of forty pounds by three highwaymen, -scarce more than half a mile off. - -"Turn back with me," he said, "and show me the way they went, and, my -life to a farthing if I do not make them return your money." - -They accordingly rode back with him until they had come within sight -of the three robbers, when Nevison, ordering the two farmers to stand -behind, rode up and spoke to the foremost of the three. - -"Sir," said he, "by your garb and the colour of your horse, you should -be one of those I look after, and, if so, my business is to tell you -that you borrowed of two friends of mine forty pounds, which they -desired me to demand of you, and which, before we part, you must -restore." - -Two of the men then made haste to ride off. - -"How?" quoth the remaining highwayman. "Forty pounds; d—n me, is the -fellow mad?" - -"So mad," replied Nevison, "that your life shall answer me, if you do -not give me better satisfaction." - -With that Nevison drew his pistol and suddenly clapped it to the man's -chest; at the same time seizing his horse's reins, in such a manner -that he could not draw either sword or pistols. - -"My life is at your mercy," he confessed. - -"No," said Nevison, "'tis not that I seek, but the money you have -robbed those two men of. You must refund it." - -With the best grace he could, the highwayman parted with what he had, -saying his companions had the rest. - -Nevison then, making him dismount, and taking his pistols, desired the -countrymen to secure him, while he pursued the others. In the gathering -twilight, as he galloped up, they, thinking it was their friend, drew -rein. - -"Jack," said one to him, "why did you stop to argue with that fellow?" - -"No, gentlemen," said Nevison, "you are mistaken in your man; though, -by token of his horse that I ride and his arms I carry, he hath sent me -to you, to ransom his life. The ransom, sirs, is nothing less than your -shares of the prize of the day, which if you presently surrender, you -may go about your business. If not, I must have a little dispute with -you, at sword and pistol." - -One of them then let fly at him, but his aim missing, Nevison's bullet -in reply took him in the right shoulder. He then called for quarter and -came to a parley, which ended in the two surrendering not only their -share of the two travellers' money, but a total amount of a hundred and -fifty guineas. Nevison thereupon returned to the farmers and, handing -them their money, went his way with the balance of one hundred and ten -guineas. - -This, it will at once be conceded, was by no means professional -conduct; and was indeed, we may say, a serious breach of the highway -law, by which thieves should at any rate stand by one another, shoulder -to shoulder against the world. - -Nevison, however, like a true philosopher and a false comrade, improved -any occasion to his own advantage, without scruple. You figure him -thus, rather of a saturnine humour, with an ugly grin on his face, -instead of a frank smile; but probably you would be quite wrong in so -doing. At any rate, the ladies appear to have loved him, for we learn -that, "in all his pranks, he was very favourable to the female sex, who -generally gave him the character of a civil, obliging robber." He -was also charitable to the poor, and, being a true Royalist, he never -attempted anything against those of that party. - -After many adventures, our William, or John, as the case may be, one -day secured no less a sum than £450 by a fortunate meeting on the road -with a rich grazier who had just sold, and been paid for, some cattle. -He resolved to let the road lie fallow, as it were, for a while, and to -seek, in a temporary retirement in his native place, that repose which -comes doubly welcome after a period of strenuous professional endeavour. - -He was joyfully received by his father, who still was living in the -old town of Pontefract, although some seven or eight years had passed -since his son had levanted and disappeared utterly from the parental -ken. He had long given up all hopes of seeing his boy again; and now -he was returned, a young man of twenty-one years of age, and with a -respectable sum of money; the savings of a frugal and industrious life -in London, according to his own account. - -Here is an idyllic picture: the highwayman returned home, soothing the -declining days of his father, and living as quietly and soberly as -though he had never emptied a pocket on the King's highway! - -After the death of his father, he left the quiet existence at -Pontefract, and opened the second part of his career upon the road. He -now so far departed from his former practice as to become the moving -spirit in a numerous band whose headquarters were long situated at -Newark. They particularly affected Yorkshire, and inspired the drovers -and graziers who used the Great North Road with dread. - -At times, however, he would range southward again, by himself, and -one of these expeditions resulted in the marvellous feat that made -him famous at the time, and should have kept him so for all time. His -well-earned laurels, unhappily, have been snatched by a heedless hand -from his brow, and placed on the unworthy head of Turpin. Such are the -strange vagaries of fame! - -Nevison's all-eclipsing exploit originated in a -four-o'clock-in-the-morning robbery upon Gad's Hill, near Rochester. - -For some reason, Nevison appears to have been particularly afraid of -being recognised by the traveller whom he stopped and relieved of his -purse on that May morning, and he immediately, for the establishment of -an _alibi_, conceived the idea of riding such a distance that day as to -make it appear humanly impossible he could have been near Rochester at -that hour. He proposed to ride to no less distant a place than the city -of York, two hundred and thirty miles away from that "high old robbing -hill." To the modern commentator, writing with even pulse, it would -seem that, unless that traveller's purse had been very well lined, -the proceeds of the robbery would not be nearly worth this tremendous -effort, after the taking of it. - -It would seem that in being so rash as to rob a traveller in the -dawning of that May day, he had indeed been so unfortunate as to happen -upon some one who knew him; and there was nothing else but to put as -many miles as he could between the dawn and the setting of the sun. -So behold him, mounted upon his "blood bay" mare, galloping away for -Gravesend. He crossed the Thames to Tilbury, and so went, by way of -Horndon and Billericay, to Chelmsford, where he halted an hour and -gave his gallant steed some balls. Thence through Braintree, Bocking, -Wethersfield, Fenny Stanton, Godmanchester, and Huntingdon, where he -halted another half-hour; and so, straight down the Great North Road -(but avoiding the towns) to York. Of course he must needs have had -several remounts on the way. It is unthinkable that one horse could -have performed such a journey. But Nevison was no lone unfriended -knight of the road, and, in his extensive operations, had excellent -friends in different parts of the country, who could help him on -occasion to a good horse. - -[Illustration: NEVISON'S RIDE TO YORK.] - -Arrived at York, he halted only to put up his horse, and to remove the -travel-stains and signs of haste from his person, and then made his -way to the nearest bowling-green, where it chanced that so important a -personage as the Lord Mayor was playing bowls with some friends. - -Nevison took an early opportunity of asking the time, and was told -it was just a quarter to eight. Having done this, and thus fixed the -time and the incident in the Lord Mayor's mind, he was satisfied, -and after-events proved the wisdom of his flight; for he was shortly -afterwards arrested on another charge of highway robbery, and, among -those who were present, in an effort to identify him with other -charges, was none other than the early morning traveller upon Gad's -Hill. - -The _alibi_ on that count was triumphantly established. Nevison called -his York acquaintances, and the Lord Mayor was appealed to. That -civic dignitary readily deposed to the fact that this falsely-accused -gentleman was on the York bowling-green on the evening of that day: and -in the end, Nevison was acquitted on all charges. - -But the highwaymen of that age had a good deal of the braggart in their -composition. They could not do a clever thing without taking the world -into their confidence; and so, heedless of the danger to his career, -Nevison told the story of the ride to delighted ears. Instead of being -arrested on what was practically a confession, he became the hero of -the hour. The tale even reached the ears of Charles the Second, who -had him presented, and, loving a clever rogue as he did (and possibly -with some fellow-feeling, in the recollection of how himself had been a -harassed fugitive), pardoned him, and christened him "Swift Nicks." - -Elsewhere, we read that the robbery took place at Barnet, and that -it was thence Nevison rode to York. The traveller, it seems in this -version, had set out from the "Blossoms" inn, Lawrence Lane, in the -city of London, and lost five hundred and sixty guineas on this -monumental occasion. - -According to one account, this was "in or about" May 1676; but it -is difficult to fix the dates of many of the seventeenth-century -highwaymen's doings within a few years, and this would certainly -appear to be an error, for it can be proved that he bore the nickname -"Swift Nicks" years before. For example, we find in December 1668 a -proclamation offering £20 reward for the arrest of several specified -highwaymen, including Swift Nicks; and another in the _London Gazette_ -of November 18th, 1669, in which "Swift Nix" is again mentioned. This -proclamation is in itself an interesting and valuable sidelight upon -the social conditions of that age: - - WHITEHALL, _Nov. 17th._ - - His Majesty having been informed that divers lewd and disorderly - persons have committed great and heinous Robberies, Murders, - and Burglaries, imboldened thereto either out of hope to escape - the hand of Justice, or by the carelessness and negligence in - keeping due Watches and Wards, and the pursuit of them by Hue and - cry, or the concealment of them and their Horses by Inn-keepers, - Ostlers, and others, and that some which have been indicted for - these offences, and others not indicted but guilty of the same, - continue their wicked practices in spoiling his good subjects, of - which number are said to be Lewis, alias Lodowick, alias Claude - de Val, alias Brown, Swift Nix, alias Clerk, Humble Ashenhurst, - Martin Bringhurst, John Spencer, William Stavely, William - Stanesby, Thomas Stanley, Nicholas Greenbury, William Talbot, - Richard Wild, William Connel, Nicholas James, and Herman Atkins, - are notoriously known to be such, and of one party and knot, - etc. His Majesty minding to preserve all His loving Subjects in - their Lives and Estates from all Rapine and Violence, was thus - pleased to order His Proclamation to be issued out, Commanding - all His Subjects and Officers of Justice to use their endeavours - for the apprehension of the said persons, and all others who have - been, or shall be guilty of the offences aforesaid, that they may - be proceeded against according to Law and Justice, declaring His - Will and Pleasure, - - That all Justices take Order, that due Watches and Wards be - kept by Horse and Foot for the apprehension of such offenders; - Commanding all Vintners, keepers of Common Ordinaries, Gaming - Houses, Inn-keepers, Horse-keepers, and other persons where - such persons shall be or resort, to apprehend or cause them to - be apprehended, etc., or otherwise themselves to be proceeded - against as far as by due course of Law they may, declaring that - whosoever shall before the 20th of _June_ next, apprehend or - cause to be apprehended any of the said persons above-named, and - brought into custody, and prosecute them to a Conviction, shall - have a reward of Twenty pounds for every such offender, and for - every other notorious Robber, Burglar, or Murderer, the sum of - Ten pounds within 15 days after their Conviction, to be paid by - the respective Sheriff of the County where such conviction shall - be had, upon the Certificate of the Judge, or under the hands of - two or more Justices of the Peace before whom they were convicted. - -And so forth. This official proclamation clashes discordantly with -the kindly, forgiving character of the King's interview with Nevison. -Of course, there would naturally be all the difference between a -proclamation and a private act of clemency; and not even in those days, -when a King might do strange things, was it possible, or thinkable, to -give a highwayman liberty to rob as he pleased. We may, perhaps, not -without justification, surmise that this highwayman's continued and -notorious activity wore out the easy-going monarch's patience. - -[Illustration: "SWIFT NICKS" BEFORE CHARLES THE SECOND.] - -Nevison was arrested on one occasion and lodged in Wakefield prison, -but he broke out, and was again holding up the lieges. At another time -he was released on giving a promise that he would volunteer to serve in -our newly acquired colony, Tangier; but he promptly deserted. Once he -was thrown into Leicester gaol, heavily ironed, and strictly guarded; -so well-advised were the authorities of his slippery character. Among -those who visited him in his cell was a friend in the disguise of a -doctor. This person, affecting to be struck with horror at the sight -of him, declared he was infected with the plague; and added that, so -far as the prisoner himself was concerned, he might die and be d——d -for a rogue, and welcome; but a more serious thing was that, unless he -were removed to a larger room, not only would he die, but he would also -spread the infection over the entire prison. - -Nevison was very speedily removed to another room, and the gaoler, -implored by his wife, went no further than the door. The physician, -meanwhile, came twice or thrice a day to see the patient, and at last -declared his case to be hopeless. The highwayman's body was then -artfully painted over with blue spots, and he was given a powerful -sleeping draught. The physician was shocked, the next time he called, -to find him dead. An inquest was hurriedly held: the jury keeping a -considerable distance away, with vinegar-saturated handkerchiefs to -noses. "Dead of the plague," they declared; and hurried home to make -their wills. - -The friends of the dead highwayman proved to the local world the -strength and fearlessness of their friendship by claiming the body, and -were allowed to coffin it and remove it. The coffin was duly interred, -but not Nevison, for he stepped out at the first opportunity, and that -very night, in the character of his own ghost, was robbing wayfarers, -doubly terrified at this "supernatural" reappearance. - -It was not long before the whole story leaked out. Then ensued perhaps -the busiest period of his career. The drovers and farmers of Yorkshire -were put under regular contribution by him and his gang: the carriers -paid a recognised toll, in the form of a quarterly allowance, which at -one and the same time cleared the road for them, and offered protection -against any other highway marauders. Indeed, Nevison was in this -respect almost a counterpart of those old German barons of the Rhine -who levied dues on travellers, or in default hanged or imprisoned them. -The parallel goes no greater distance than that, for those picturesque -nobles were anything but the idols of the people; while Nevison was -sufficiently popular to have become the hero of a rural ballad, still -occasionally to be heard in the neighbourhood of his haunts at -Knaresborough, Ferrybridge, York, or Newark. Here are two verses of -it, not perhaps distinguished by wealth of fancy or resourcefulness of -rhyme: - - Did you ever hear tell of that hero, - Bold Nevison, that was his name? - He rode about like a bold hero, - And with that he gained great fame. - - He maintained himself like a gentleman, - Besides, he was good to the poor; - He rode about like a great hero, - And he gained himself favour therefor. - -A curious pamphlet survives, entitled _Bloody News from Yorkshire_, -dated 1674, and telling how Nevison and twenty of his men attacked -fifteen butchers, who were riding to Northallerton Fair, and engaged in -a furious battle with them. - -As an interlude to these more serious affairs, there is the story of -how Nevison alone, going on a southerly expedition, met a company of -canting beggars, mumpers, and idle vagrants, and proposed to join their -"merry" life. Their leader welcomed his proposal, and indicated their -course of life. "Do we not come into the world arrant beggars, without -a rag upon us? And do we not all go out of the world like beggars, -saving only an old sheet over us? Very well, then: shall we be ashamed -to walk up and down the world like beggars, with old blankets pinned -about us? No, no: that would be a shame to us indeed. Have we not -the whole kingdom to walk in, at our pleasure? Are we afraid of the -approach of quarter-day? Do we walk in fear of sheriffs, sergeants, and -catchpoles? Who ever knew an arrant beggar arrested for debt? Is not -our meat dressed in every man's kitchen? Does not every man's cellar -afford us beer? And the best men's purses keep a penny for us to spend." - -As a preliminary to electing him of their band, they asked him if he -had any _loure_ in his _bung_. Seeing his ignorance of their cant -phrases, they said the question was, "Had he any money in his purse?" - -"Eighteenpence," said he, "and you're welcome to it." - -This modest sum was, by unanimous vote, allocated for the purpose of a -general booze, in celebration of his admission. The ceremony, the "gage -of booze," as the historian of these things terms it, consisted in -pouring a quart of beer over the head of the initiate, and the captain -saying, "I do, by virtue of this sovereign liquor, install thee in the -Roage, and make thee a free denizen of our ragged regiment, so that -henceforth it shall be lawful for thee to cant, and to carry a doxy, or -mort, along with thee, only observing these rules: first, that thou art -not to wander up and down all countries, but to keep to that quarter -which is allotted to thee; and, secondly, thou art to give way to any -of us that have borne all the offices of the wallet before; and, upon -holding up a finger, to avoid any town or country village where thou -seest we are foraging for victuals for our army that march along with -us. Observing these two rules, we take thee into our protection, and -adopt thee a brother of our numerous society." - -Having ended his oration, the captain bade Nevison rise, when he was -congratulated by all the company hanging about him, like so many dogs -about a bear, and making a hideous noise. The chief, silencing them, -continued: "Now that thou art entered into our fraternity, thou must -not scruple to act any villainies, whether it be to cut a purse, steal -a cloak-bag or portmanteau, convey all manner of things, whether a -chicken, sucking-pig, duck, goose, hen, or steal a shirt from the -hedge; for he that will be a _quier cove_ (a professed rogue) must -observe these rules. And because thou art but a novice in begging, -and understandest not the mysteries of the canting language, thou -shalt have a doxy to be thy companion, by whom thou mayest receive -instructions." - -Thereupon, he singled out a girl of about fourteen years of age, which -tickled his fancy very much; but he must presently be married to her, -after the fashion of their _patrico_, the priest of the beggars. The -ceremony consisted of taking a hen, and having cut off the head, laying -the dead body on the ground; placing him on one side and his doxy on -the other. This being done, the "priest," standing by, with a loud -voice bade them live together till death did them part. Then, shaking -hands and kissing each other, the ceremony of the wedding was over, and -the whole group appeared intoxicated with joy. They could hardly, at -any rate, be intoxicated with booze, if eighteenpence had been all they -had to spend on liquor, and a quart of that wasted. - -Night approaching, they all resorted to a neighbouring barn, where they -slept: Nevison slipping out secretly before morning, and continuing his -journey. - -Butchers and Nevison were antipathetic, and he and his gang had levied -much tribute in Yorkshire upon their kind. In 1684, two butchers, -brothers, Fletcher by name, tried to capture him near Howley Hall, -Morley. - -He shot one dead, and escaped. The spot is still marked by a stone near -Howley Farm. Not long after this he was arrested at the "Three Houses" -inn, at Sandal, near Wakefield. - -He was at the time, and for long after, a popular hero. The butchers, -the graziers, the farmers, the carriers might owe him a grudge, but the -peasantry dwelt upon his real or his fancied generosity to the poor, -and ballads about him always commanded a ready sale. According to a -very popular example, entitled _Nevison's Garland_, he pleaded "Not -Guilty": - - And when then he came to the Bench, - "Guilty or not Guilty," they to him did cry, - "Not Guilty," then Nevison said, - "I'm clear e'er since the same Day, - That the King did my Pardon Grant, - I ne'er did rob anyone, nor kill - But that Fletcher in all my life, - 'Twas in my Defence, I say still." - -To commit murder in endeavouring to escape arrest was ever regarded by -the highwaymen as a venial sin: a view not shared by the law, and he -was found guilty, sentenced to death, and hanged within a week from -his trial. He suffered at Knavesmire, York, May 4th, 1685, in the -forty-fifth year of his age. - -[Illustration: NEVISON'S LEG-IRONS, IN YORK MUSEUM.] - -"He was something stupid at the gallows," says the old chronicler -("probably drunk," adds a later commentator), "yet he confess'd -everything." - -The older Nevison ballads, which had some little literary merit, as -well as quaintness, to recommend them, have given place to vilely -re-written verses that have not the merit of truth or of rhyme. This is -how a typical example goes: - - Oh! the Twenty-first day of last month, - Proved an unfortunate day; - Captain Milton was riding to London, - And by mischance he rode out of his way. - - He call'd at a house by the roadside, - It was the sign of the Magpie, - Where Nevison had been drinking, - And the captain soon did he espy. - - Then a constable very soon was sent for, - And a constable very soon came; - With three or four more in attendance, - With pistols charged in the King's name. - - They demanded the name of this hero, - "My name it is Johnson," said he, - When the captain laid hold of his shoulder, - Saying "Nevison, thou goeth with me." - - Oh! then in this very same speech, - They hastened him fast away, - To a place called Swinnington Bridge, - A place where he used for to stay. - - They call'd for a quart of good liquor, - It was the sign of the Black Horse, - Where there was all sorts of attendance, - But for Nevison it was the worst. - - He called for a pen, ink, and paper, - And these were the words that he said, - "I will write for some boots, shoes, and stockings, - For of them I have very great need." - - 'Tis now before my lord judge, - Oh! guilty or not do you plead; - He smiled into the judge and jury, - And these were the words that he said: - - "I've now robbed a gentleman of two pence, - I've neither done murder nor kill'd, - But guilty I've been all my life time, - So, gentlemen, do as you will. - - "It's when that I rode on the highway, - I've always had money in great store; - And whatever I took from the rich - I freely gave it to the poor. - - "But my peace I have made with my Maker, - And with you I'm quite ready to go; - So here's adieu! to this world and its vanities, - For I'm ready to suffer the law." - - - - -JOHN COTTINGTON, _alias_ "MULLED SACK" - - -John Cottington, commonly known as "Mulled Sack," was the son of a -drunken haberdasher in Cheapside, who wasted his substance to such an -extent in drinking with fellow-tradesmen of like tastes, that he died -in poverty and was buried by the parish. He seems to have been in every -way an improvident person, for it is recorded that he left fifteen -daughters and four sons. John, our present hero, was the youngest of -these. At eight years of age he was bound apprentice by the overseers -of the poor of the parish of St. Mary-le-Bow to a chimney-sweep, and -served his master in the chimney-sweeping for five years. He then ran -away, for he was by this time thirteen years of age, and considered -himself grown up, and as fully informed in the art and mystery of -chimney-sweeping as his instructor. - -He soon acquired the nickname by which he is best known, from his -fondness for mulled sack, morning, noon, and night. His earlier -activities were exercised in that inferior branch of robbery known -as pocket-picking, which does not, however, demand less skill and -nerve (perhaps, indeed, it requires more) than was necessary in the -nobler art of collecting upon the roads. He was one of the most expert -cly-fakers and bung-snatchers in London, frequenting Cheapside and -Ludgate Hill by preference; and is said to have been so successful that -he stole "almost enough to have built St. Paul's Cathedral." This is, -of course, an amiable, but extravagant exaggeration; but the exploits -of all heroes, in all ages, have been similarly magnified, and why not -those of "Mulled Sack"? - -Among the most robust and uncompromising of the Royalists, he remained -in England to war with the usurpers in his own way, while the Cavaliers -had fled across the Channel. His warfare was happy, inasmuch as it -emptied the pockets of the Commonwealth leaders, while it filled those -of himself and his confederates. If he could not meet the enemies of -the monarchy on the field, he could, and did, slip a sly hand into -their pockets, and lighten them by many a gold watch and a guinea. -One of his greatest achievements was the robbing of Lady Fairfax as -she—wife of the famous general—was stepping from her carriage into the -church of St. Martin, Ludgate, come to hear a famous preacher of that -age. - -"Mulled Sack" was that day dressed as a gentleman. He did not -often affect the part, being a homespun fellow, and subdued from -essaying fine flights by those easy experiences of swarming up the -chimney-flues. But on this day he was unrecognisable for himself, in -quiet, but rich dress. His associates were working with him, and had -removed the pin out of the axle of her ladyship's coach, so that the -heavy vehicle fell as it neared the church door. "Mulled Sack" pressed -forward politely, to help her alight, and at the moment of her setting -foot to pavement cut her watch-chain with a sharp pair of scissors, -and gently removing the watch itself—a handsome gold one, set with -diamonds—escorted her to the church door, raised his hat as gracefully -as he could, and then disappeared in the crowd. - -It was not until, wearied with an inordinately long sermon, she sought -to discover the time, that she missed the watch. - -"Mulled Sack" was less fortunate in an attempt he made to pick the -august pocket of the Lord Protector, His Highness, Oliver, by the -Grace of God—Oliver Cromwell, none other—as he was leaving the House -of Parliament. He was caught in the attempt, and came near to being -hanged for it. This put him so sadly out of conceit with the art to -which he had given his best time, that he determined to forsake it for -the sister craft of highway robbery, where a man was under no craven -necessity to sneak, and crawl, and cringe, but boldly confronted -his quarry, and with an oath, or with a jest—entirely according to -temperament—rode up and demanded or "requested," or even, as was the -fashion among the most flamboyantly politeful, "begged the favour of," -the traveller's purse. - -He at first worked the roads in company with one Tom Cheney, with -whom, robbing upon Hounslow Heath, he encountered Colonel Hewson, a -warrior of those times who had by his military genius raised himself -from the humble station of a cobbler. The Colonel was upon the Heath -with his regiment, riding some considerable distance away, but still -within sight of his men, when the two highwaymen robbed him. A troop -instantly gave chase; Cheney desperately defended himself, against -eighteen, and was then overpowered and captured, but "Mulled Sack," -flying like the wind upon his trusty horse, escaped. Cheney was -severely wounded in the affray, and begged that his trial might be -postponed on that account, but, as it was feared he might die of his -wounds, and so escape hanging after all, he was hurriedly—and no doubt -also illegally—condemned on the spot, and hanged there that same -evening. - -A certain Captain Horne was the next partner "Mulled Sack" took, and -he too was similarly unfortunate in a like affair with that already -described. An early and ignominious fate seemed to be the inevitable -lot of those who worked with our heroic pickpocket turned highwayman, -and either because the survivors grew shy of him in consequence, or -because he thought it best to play a lone hand, he ever afterwards -pursued a solitary career. - -It was a successful career, so long as it was continued, and affords -an example to the young of the substantial advantages to be derived -from an industrious disposition, enthusiasm in the profession of one's -adoption, and that thoroughness in leaving no stone unturned which -should bring even only a moderately-equipped young man to the front -rank of his profession. "Mulled Sack" left no unturned stone, no pocket -(that was likely to contain anything worth having) unpicked, and no -promising wayfarer unchallenged within the marches of the districts he -affected. And what was the result of this early and late application -to to business? Why, nothing less than the proud admission made by -his admiring biographer, that "he constantly wore a watchmaker's and -jeweller's shop in his pocket, and could at any time command a thousand -pounds." How few are those who, in our own slack times, could say as -much! - -He wore the watches and jewellery he had taken on his rides just as old -soldiers display the medals won in their arduous campaigns, and they -implied not only the energy of the business man, but the pluck of the -soldier on the battlefield. As the soldier fights for his medals, so -"Mulled Sack" warred for his—or, rather, other people's—watches. - -His greatest deed as a highwayman is that told by Johnson, of his -waylaying the Army pay-waggon on Shotover Hill. Fully advised of the -approach of this treasure-laden wain, he lurked on the scrubby side -of that ill-omened hill over-looking Oxford—it was ever a place for -robbers—and, just as the waggon started to toil painfully up, rose -from his ambuscade with pistols presented to the head of the waggoner -and to those of the three soldiers acting as escort. - -[Illustration: "MULLED SACK" ROBS THE ARMY PAY-WAGGON.] - -It seems that there were also two or three passengers in the waggon, -but "Mulled Sack" was as generous as the liquor whence he obtained his -name, for he "told them he had no design upon them." - -"'This,' says he, 'that I have taken, is as much mine as theirs who own -it, being all extorted from the Publick by the rapacious Members of our -Commonwealth to enrich themselves, maintain their Janizaries, and keep -honest people in subjection.'" - -The escort, never for a moment thinking it possible that one highwayman -would have the daring to act thus, and dreading the onset of others, -bolted like rabbits. - -The Republican treasure thus secured by the enterprising "Mulled Sack" -totalled £4000, and by so much the expectant garrison of Gloucester, -for whom it was intended, for a while went short. Cottington was at -this time but twenty years of age. Youth will be served! - -It is sad to record a vulgar declension in the practice of "Mulled -Sack." He stooped to shed blood, and murdered, as well as robbed -a gentleman. With the guilt of Cain heavy on him, he fled to the -Continent, and, by some specious pretence gaining access to the Court -held by the fugitive Charles the Second, stole a quantity of valuable -plate. Returning to England, a little later, he fell into the hands of -the sheriff's officers who were keenly awaiting his reappearance, and -he was executed at Smithfield Rounds in 1656, for the crime of murder, -aged forty-five. - -[Illustration: [++] MAN BEING HANGED.] - - - - -THOMAS RUMBOLD - - -Thomas Rumbold, born about 1643, at Ipswich, was the son of the usual -"poor but honest" parents, and was early apprenticed to a bricklayer -in that town. But highly coloured stories of the wonders of London -fired his imagination and set him to run away from home before little -more than a quarter of his time had been served. He entered upon -another kind of apprenticeship in London: nothing less than a voluntary -pupilage with a thieves' fraternity; but very shortly left that also -and set up for himself as a highwayman. He would seem to have had a -career of about twenty-six years in this craft, before the gallows -claimed him; so it is quite evident he had found his true vocation. -A complete account of his transactions would doubtless make a goodly -volume, but they are not recorded at proper length. The earlier years -of his highway career seem to be completely lost, and the painstaking -Smith, instead of showing us how he advanced from small and timid -successes to larger and bolder issues, is obliged to plunge into the -midst of his life and begin with an adventure which, if it is not -indeed entirely apocryphal, can only have been the extravagant and -stupid whim of a very impudent and ingenious fellow, long used to -wayside escapades. - -Rumbold travelled, says Smith, from London towards Canterbury, along -the Dover Road, with the intention of waylaying no less a personage -than Dr. Sancroft, the Archbishop, who was coming to London, as Rumbold -had been advised, in his travelling chariot. Between Rochester and -Sittingbourne he espied the carriage and its attendant servants in the -distance, and, tying his horse to a tree, and spreading a tablecloth on -the grass of a field open to the road, he sat himself down and began -playing hazard with dice-box and dice, all by himself, for some heaps -of gold and silver he placed conspicuously on the cloth. Presently the -Archbishop's carriage creaked and rumbled ponderously by, in the manner -of the clumsy vehicles of that time; and His Grace, curiously observing -a man acting so strangely as to play hazard by himself, sent a servant -to see what could be the meaning of it. - -The servant, coming near, could hear Rumbold swearing at every cast of -the dice, about his losses, and asked him what was the meaning of it. -To this Rumbold made no reply, and the servant returned to the Right -Reverend and informed him the man must surely be out of his wits. - -Then the Archbishop himself alighted, and, looking curiously around, -and seeing none but Rumbold, asked him whom he played with. - -"D——n it, sir!" exclaimed the player, "there's five hundred pounds -gone." Then, as His Grace was about to speak again, casting the dice -once more, "There goes a hundred more." - -"Pr'ythee," exclaimed the Archbishop, "do tell me whom you play with?" - -"With the devil," replied Rumbold. - -"And how will you send the money to him?" - -"By his ambassadors, and considering your Grace as one of them -extraordinary, I shall beg the favour of you to carry it to him." He -rose, and walking to the carriage, placed six hundred guineas in it, -mounted his horse, and rode off along the way he knew the Archbishop -had to travel; and, both he and His Grace having refreshed at -Sittingbourne, in different houses of entertainment, Rumbold afterwards -took the road to London a little in advance of the carriage. - -Halting at a convenient place, and placing himself on the grass, in the -same manner as before, he again awaited the carriage, this time with -but little money spread on the cloth. - -The Archbishop again observed him, and this time really believing him -to be a mad gamester, was about to make some remark, when Rumbold -suddenly cried out joyfully, throwing the dice, "Six hundred pounds!" - -"What!" exclaimed the Archbishop, "losing again?" - -"No, by G—d!" returned Rumbold, "won six hundred pounds this time. I'll -play this hand out, and then leave off, while I'm well." - -"And whom have you won of?" - -"Of the same person that I left the six hundred pounds for with you, -before dinner." - -"And how will you get your winnings, my friend?" - -"Of his ambassador, to be sure," said Rumbold, drawing his sword. -Thereupon, he advanced to the carriage with pistols and drawn sword, -and, searching under the carriage-seat, found his own six hundred -guineas, and fourteen hundred besides; with which forty pounds weight -avoirdupois of bullion, we are gravely told, he got clear off. - -The incident is, without a doubt, one of Smith's own inventions—and not -one of the best. It serves to show us how entirely lacking in criticism -he thought his public, to set before them, without any criticism of his -own, such a tale, in which a highwayman who certainly could in real -life have been no fool, to have held his own so long on the road, is -made to act like an idiot without any advantage likely to be gained by -so doing. We see him, in this preposterous story, taking the trouble -to carry six hundred guineas with him and playing the fool needlessly, -when he might just as well have gone with empty pockets and searched -and robbed the carriage with equal success. - -More easily to be credited is his robbing of the Earl of Oxford at -Maidenhead Thicket. Rumbold was no exquisite, having, as we have -already learnt, been merely a bricklayer's apprentice before he assumed -the crape mask, and, mounting a horse and sticking a pair of pistols -in his belt, took to the road. He often assumed the appearance of a -rough country farmer; but he was, at the same time, always a man of -expedient. To say of him that he had ostlers and chambermaids in his -pay, to give him information of likely travellers, is but to repeat the -practice of every eminent hand in the high-toby craft. On the occasion -which led to his great exploit here, he had been lurking for some -well-laden travellers, who, luckily for them, took some other route, -and he was just on the point of riding moodily off when two horsemen -rode up the hill. As they drew near he perceived that they were the -Earl of Oxford and a servant. That nobleman knew Rumbold (how the -acquaintance had been made we are not told), and so it was necessary -for the highwayman to assume some sort of disguise. Here we perceive -Rumbold's readiness of resource. He threw his long hair over his face, -and, holding it in his teeth, rode up in this extraordinary guise and -demanded the Earl's purse, with threats to shoot both if it was not -immediately forth-coming. - -That nobleman was Aubrey De Vere, twentieth and last Earl, the -descendant of the old "fighting Veres" and colonel of the Oxford -Blues, a regiment named after him, and not after the city of Oxford. -Despite all these things, which might have made for valiance, he -surrendered like the veriest woman, and submitted to the indignity of -being searched. Rumbold rifled him, and at first found only dice and -cards, until, coming to his breeches pockets, he turned out a "nest -of goldfinches"; that is to say, a heap of guineas. Saying he would -take them home and cage them, Rumbold recommended the Earl to return -to his regiment and attend to his duty, giving him eighteenpence as an -encouragement. - -From these examples, it will readily be seen that Maidenhead Thicket -did not obtain its ill repute without due cause. - -A number of incredible stories of Rumbold are told, both by Smith and -Johnson, who seem to have made up for the little real information -we have of his more than twenty years' career by writing absolutely -unconvincing fiction around him. He was at last executed at Tyburn in -1689. - - - - -"CAPTAIN" JAMES WHITNEY - - -There is much uncertainty about the parentage and the career of James -Whitney. The small quarto tract entitled _The Jacobite Robber_, which -professes to give a life of Whitney by one who was acquainted with him, -says he was born "in Hertfordshire, of mean, contemptible parentage, -about two years after the Restauration of King Charles." Smith -particularises Stevenage as the place in Hertfordshire, and Johnson, -who copies almost everything in Smith, also adopts Stevenage. Waylen, -on the other hand, who wrote a singularly good and well-informed book -on the highwaymen of Wiltshire, believed Whitney to have been a son -of the Reverend James Whitney, of Donhead St. Andrews, and says the -highwayman practised largely on Salisbury Plain. - -The majority, believing in the Hertfordshire origin of Whitney, fortify -their statements by very full and particular accounts of how he was -apprenticed to a butcher at Hitchin. We have here an interpolated story -of how he and his master went to Romford to purchase calves (Essex -calves were so famous that a native of Essex nowadays is still an -"Essex calf"). The owner of one particularly fine calf they greatly -desired to purchase required too much for it. He happened to be also -the keeper of an alehouse, as well as a stock-raiser. While the butcher -and Whitney were refreshing themselves in the house and the butcher -was grumbling because he could not buy the calf at what he considered -a fair price, Whitney thought of an easier way, and whispered to his -master that it would be foolish to give good money for the calf when it -could be had for nothing. The butcher and Whitney thereupon exchanged -knowing winks, and agreed to steal the calf that very night. - -Unhappily for them, a man with a performing bear had in the meanwhile -arrived, and the landlord, removing the calf from the stable where it -had been placed, installed the bear in its place. - -At last, night having fallen, master-butcher and apprentice paid their -reckoning and prepared to go. Leaving the house, they loitered about -until all was quiet, and then, the two approaching the outhouse where -the calf had been, Whitney went in to fetch it. The bear was resting -its wearied limbs when Whitney's touch roused it. He was astonished -in the dark to feel the calf's hair was so long, and was still more -astonished when he felt the animal rear itself up on its hind legs and -put its arms lovingly round him. Meanwhile the butcher, wondering what -could keep Whitney so long, began softly through the doorway to bid him -be quick. - -[Illustration: WHITNEY HUGGED BY THE BEAR.] - -Whitney cried out that he could not get away, and he believed the -devil himself had hold of him. - -"If it _is_ the old boy," rejoined his master, with a chuckle, "bring -him out. I should like to see what kind of an animal he is." - -But Whitney's evident terror and distress soon brought him to the -rescue, and the bear was made to release her prey. - -Before Whitney had served his full time with the butcher, his master -cashiered him for idleness. After some little intervening time he -became landlord of a small inn at Cheshunt. He was ever, says the -author of _The Jacobite Robber_, a passionate admirer of good eating -and drinking, especially at other people's expense. The inn, says our -author, was the "Bell" or the "White Bear," he would not be sure which. -If the "Bell," it was a sign he should presently make a noise over -all England; if the "White Bear," a token that the landlord was of as -savage a nature as any wild beast. - -As a matter of fact, it appears to have been the "George"; but what -significance may be extracted from that I do not know. - -The inn did not pay its way on legitimate trading, and the people of -Cheshunt wondered how Whitney could keep the pot boiling. Yet they -need not have wondered, while they could see and hear, three or four -times a week, a knot of roaring gentlemen, who sang, drank, swore, and -revelled, the landlord himself joining in, until it seemed as if the -place were thronged with old Lucifer and his club-footed emissaries. -These guests were, in fact, highwaymen, as any one might have -perceived, from their extravagant living and the unseasonable hours -they kept. - -At first Whitney had no hand in his customers' doings. As the quaint -author of the tract already referred to says: - -"It seems the conscientious Mr. Whitney, for all he was a well-wisher -to the mathematicks and a friend to the tribe, did not at first care -to expose his own dear person on the road; not that any one can justly -tax him at the same time with cowardice, or want of valour (for had -he been as plentifully stock'd with grace as he was with valour, he -had never taken that employment upon him); but he prudently considered -with himself that at present he ran no Risque of hanging for harbouring -such people, and besides made a comfortable penny of them: Whereas, -should he trade for himself, and scour the Highways to the Tune of -_Dammee, Stand and Deliver_, he must certainly at one time or another -make a Pilgrimage to _Tybourn_, and swinging in a Rope he had a Mortal -Aversion to, because his Prophetical Grand-Mother had formerly told him -it was a dry sort of a death. - -"But at last an Old Experienced Brother of the Pad won him over to his -Party, for, finding our Inn-keeper to be notably stored with all those -ingredients and qualifications that are requisite to fit a Man for -such a Vocation, he was resolved to leave no method unattempted till -he had made an absolute conquest of him. In order to effect this, he -represents to him the meanness and servile condition of his present -calling, how he was obliged to stand cap in hand to every pitiful -Rascal that came to spend Six-pence in his house; that with all his -care and diligence he only got a little poor contemptible Pittance, -scarce sufficient to pay his Brewer and Baker, but on the other hand, -if he would be adopted into their society, he would find Money come -flowing in like a Spring Tide upon him; he would live delicately, eat -and drink of the Best, and in short, get more in an hour than now he -did by Nicking, and Frothing and wrong Reckonings for a whole Twelve -Month together. That, as for the Gallows, a Man of Courage and Bravery -ought never to be afraid of it, and, should the worst come to the -worst, better Gentleman by far than himself had made a Journey to the -other World in their Shoes and Stockings." - -Thus admonished, Whitney stripped off the inn-keeper's apron, sold off -his inn, and took to the road, where he distinguished himself among -the foremost highway gentry of his time. As his biographer is fain to -acknowledge, he proved to have "inherited all the Courage, Boldness, -and Dexterity of the famous Claude Du Vall and the Golden Farmer, and -the rest of his other noble Predecessors of the Pad." - -This admiring authority then proceeds to give us an account of -Whitney's first action, and tells how "he encountered a Jolly Red-fac'd -Son of the Church bravely Mounted, with a large Canonical Rose in his -Ecclesiastical Hat and his Gown fluttering in the Wind. He looked as -if he had been hung round with Bladders. Him, within two miles of St. -Albans, he accosts after this manner, 'Reverend Sir, the Gentlemen of -your Coat having, in all conscience, enough preached up the edifying -Doctrine of Passive Obedience and Non-Resistance, and now I am fully -resolved to try the experiment, whether you Believe your own Doctrine, -and whether you are able to Practise it. Therefore, worthy sir, in the -name of the above-mentioned Passive Obedience and Non-Resistance, make -no opposition, I beseech you, but deliver up the filthy Lucre you carry -about you.' - -"Now you must know that this rosy-gilled Levite had the wicked sum of -six-score and ten guineas clos'd up in the waistband of his breeches, -designed as a present to a worthy gentleman that lately helped him -to a fat living (for you must not call it Symony for all the world, -but christen it by the name of Gratitude, and so forth) but Captain -Whitney, who, it seems, did not understand any of these softening -distinctions, soon eased him of his Mammon, but not without a great -deal of expostulation on the Levite's part, and, what was more -barbarous, stript him of his spick-and-span new sacerdotal habit, sent -his Horse home before him, to prepare his family, and having bound him -to his good behaviour, left him all alone to his contemplations in an -adjoining wood." - -He then met a poor clergyman in threadbare gown, riding a sorry -Rosinante, whose poor ribs in a starved body looked like the bars of a -bird-cage. What would the typical outlaw, from the days of Robin Hood, -onwards, have done in such a rencounter? Why, he would have given the -poor divine the new robe and some money; and this Whitney did; handing -him four or five bags of the best, saying: "Here is that will buy you -a dozen or so of clean bands!" "Thus," says the biographer, "our brave -Captain dispensed charities with one hand and plundered with the other." - -One day, patrolling Bagshot Heath, he met a gentleman, and desired his -purse and watch. - -"Sir," said the gentleman, "'tis well you spoke first, for I was just -going to say the same thing to you." - -"Why then," quoth Whitney, "are you a gentleman-thief?" - -"Yes," replied the stranger, "but I have had very bad success to-day, -for I have been riding up and down all this morning, without meeting -with any prize." - -Whitney, upon hearing this doleful tale, wished him better luck, and -took his leave. - -That night, Whitney and this strange traveller chanced to stay at -the same inn, but Whitney had so changed his dress in the meanwhile, -and altered his manner, that he was not recognised. He heard his -acquaintance of that morning telling another guest how smartly he had -outwitted a highwayman that day, and had saved a hundred pounds by his -ready wit; and this revelation of how easily he had been hoodwinked -made him determined, if it were at all possible, to take his revenge on -the morrow. Meanwhile, he listened to the conversation. - -The guest, who had been told of the adventure, replied that he also -had a considerable sum upon him, and that he would like, if it were -agreeable, to travel next day in company with so ready-witted a -traveller. - -Accordingly, the next morning they set forth together, and Whitney -followed, a quarter of an hour later. He soon overtook them, and then, -wheeling suddenly about, demanded their purses. - -"We were going to say the same to you, sir," replied the ready-witted -one. - -"Were you so?" asked our hero; "and are you of my profession, then?" - -"Yes," they both chorused. - -"If you are," said Whitney, "I suppose you remember the old proverb, -'Two of a trade can never agree'; so you must not expect any favour on -that score. But to be plain, gentlemen, the trick will do no longer: I -know you very well, and must have your hundred pounds, sir; and your -'considerable sum,' sir," turning to the other; "let it be what it -will, or I shall make bold to send a brace of bullets through each of -your heads. You, Mr. Highwayman, should have kept your secret a little -longer, and not have boasted so soon of having outwitted a thief. -There is now nothing for you to do but to deliver or die!" - -These terrible words threw them into a sad state of consternation. They -were unwilling enough to lose their money, but even more unwilling to -forfeit their lives; therefore, of two evils they promptly chose the -least, and resigned their wealth. - -Whitney then met on Hounslow Heath, one Mr. Hull, a notorious usurer, -who lived in the Strand. He could hardly have chosen a wretch more in -love with money, and therefore less willing to part with it. When the -dreadful words, "Stand and deliver!" were spoken, he trembled like a -paralytic and began arguing that he was a very poor man, had a large -family of children, and would be utterly ruined if the highwayman were -so hard-hearted as to take his money. Besides, it was a most illegal, -also dangerous, action, to steal; to say nothing of the moral obliquity -of those who did so. - -"You dog in a doublet," exclaimed the now angered Whitney, "do you -pretend to preach morality to an honester man than yourself. You make -a prey of all mankind, and grind to death with eight and ten per cent. -This once, however, sir, I shall oblige you to lend me what you have, -without bond, consequently without interest: so make no more words." - -The usurer thereupon reluctantly produced eighteen guineas, and handed -them over with an ill grace, scowling darkly at the highwayman, and -telling him he hoped one day to have the pleasure of seeing him riding -up Holborn Hill, backwards. - -It was a foolish thing to remind a gentleman of the road that he would -probably some day be an occupant of the cart, travelling to Tyburn. -Whitney had already turned to go when these words fell upon his ear; -but he now turned back, thoroughly enraged. - -"Now, you old rogue," said he, "let me see what a figure a man makes -when he rides backwards, and let me have the pleasure, at least, of -beholding you first in that posture." - -With that, he pulled Hull off his horse, and then setting him on the -animal's back again, face to tail, tied his legs together, and then -gave the horse two or three cuts, so that it cantered smartly away and -never stopped until Hounslow was reached; where the people, who knew -the money-lender well and liked him little, had a hearty laugh at his -expense before they untied him. - -Whitney always affected to appear generous and noble. Meeting one day -with a gentleman named Long, on Newmarket Heath, and having robbed -him of a hundred pounds in silver, which he found in the traveller's -portmanteau, tied up in a great bag, the gentleman told him he had a -great way yet to go, and, as he was unknown upon the road, was likely -to suffer great inconvenience and hardship, if he had not at least some -small sum. Would he not give him back a trifle, to meet his travelling -expenses? - -[Illustration: WHITNEY AND THE USURER.] - -Whitney opened the bag of silver, and held it out at arm's length -towards him, saying: "Here, take what you have occasion for." - -Mr. Long then put in his hand, and took out a handful, as much as he -could hold; to which Whitney made no sort of objection, but only said, -with a laugh: "I thought you would have had more conscience." - -Smith tells a long story of how Whitney and his band one day met a -well-known preacher, a Mr. Wawen, lecturer at Greenwich Church, and, -easing him of his purse, made him preach a sermon on the subject of -thieving. A very similar story is told of Sir Gosselin (?Joscelin) -Denville and his outlaws, who in the reign of Edward the Second did -surprising things all over England, not least among them the waylaying -and robbing of a Dominican monk, Bernard Sympson by name, in a wood -between Henley-on-Thames and Marlow, and afterwards compelling him -to preach a sermon to like effect. Captain Dudley is said to have -done the same; and indeed, whether it were the slitting of a weasand -("_couper gorge, par ma foy_," as Pistol might say), the taking of -a purse, or the kissing a pretty woman, the highwaymen of old were -all-round experts. But that they should have so insatiable a taste for -"firstly, secondly, and thirdly, and then finally, dear brethren," I -will not believe. Some ancient traditional highway robber once did so -much, no doubt, and the freak has been duly fathered on others of later -generations: just as the antique jests at the expense of College dons -at Oxford and Cambridge are furbished up anew to fit the present age. - -The Reverend Mr. Wawen responded as well as he could manage to -Whitney's invitation, and, whether it be genuine or a sheer invention -of Alexander Smith's, it is certainly ingenious, and much better -reading than that said to have been preached by the Dominican monk, -some three hundred and fifty years earlier. - -"Gentlemen," began the lecturer from Greenwich church, "my text is -THEFT; which, not to be divided into sentences or syllables, being but -one word, which itself is only a monosyllable, necessity therefore -obliges me to divide it into letters, which I find to be these five, T. -H. E. F. T., Theft. Now T, my beloved, is Theological; H is Historical; -E is Exegetical; F is Figurative; and T is Tropological. - -"Now the theological part of my text is in two portions, firstly, in -this world, and secondly, in the world to come. In this world, the -effects it works are T, tribulation; H, hatred; E, envy; F, fear; and -T, torment. For what greater tribulation can befall a man than to be -debarred from sweet liberty, by a close confinement in a nasty prison, -which must needs be a perfect representation of the Iron Age, since -nothing is heard there but the jingling of shackles, bolts, grates, and -keys; these last, my beloved, as large as that put up for a weathercock -on St. Peter's steeple in Cornhill. - -"However, I must own that you highwaymen may be a sort of Christians -whilst under this tribulation, because ye are a kind of martyrs, -and suffer really for the truth. Again, ye have the hatred of all -honest people, as well as the envy of gaolers if you go under their -jurisdiction without money in your pockets. I am sure all of your -profession are very sensible that a gaoler expects, not only to distil -money out of your irregularities, but also to grow fat by your curses; -wherefore his ears are stopped to the cries of others, as God's are to -his, and good reason too; for, lay the life of a man in one scale, and -his fees in the other, he would lose the first to obtain the second. - -"Next, ye are always in as much fear of being apprehended as poor -tradesmen in debt are of the Serjeant, who goes muffled like a thief -too, and always carries the marks of one, for he steals upon a man -cowardly, plucks him by the throat, and makes him stand till he fleeces -him. Only the thief is more valiant and the honester man of the two. - -"And then, when ye are apprehended, nothing but torment ensues; for -when ye are once clapt up in gaol, as I have hinted before, you soon -come under the hangman's clutches, and he hangs you up, like so many -dogs, for using those scaring words, 'Stand and deliver!' - -"The effect which theft works in the world to come is eternal, and -there is no helping it. I shall therefore proceed to the historical -part of my text, which will prove, from ancient history, that the art -of Theft is of some antiquity, inasmuch as that Paris stole Helen, -Theseus stole Ariadne, and Jason stole Medea. However, antiquity ought -to be no plea for vice, since laws, both Divine and human, forbid base -actions, especially theft. For history again informs us that Sciron -was thrown headlong into the sea for thieving: Cacus was killed by -Hercules: Sisyphus was cut in pieces; Brunellus was hanged for stealing -the ring of Angelicus; and the Emperor Frederick the Third condemned -all thieves to the galleys. - -"The Exegetical part of my text is a sort of commentary on what was -first said, when I set forth that your transgressions were a breach of -both divine and humane ordinances, which are utterly repugnant to all -manner of theft; wherefore, if ye are resolved to pursue these courses -still, note, my respect is such to you, although you have robbed me, -that if you can but keep yourselves from being ever taken, I'll engage -to keep you always from being hanged. - -"The figurative part of my text is still to be set forth. Though I call -you 'gentlemen,' yet in my heart I think ye to be all rogues; but I -mollify my spleen by a _Charientismus_, which is a figure or form of -speech mitigating hard matters with pleasant words. Thus, a certain -man being apprehended, and brought before Alexander the Great, King -of Macedon, for railing against him, and being demanded by Alexander -why he and his company had so done, he made answer: 'Had not the wine -been all drunk, we had spoken much worse.' Whereby he signified that -those words proceeded rather from wine than malice, by which free and -pleasant confession he assuaged Alexander's great displeasure, and -obtained remission. - -"But now, coming to the Tropological part of my text, which signifies -drawing a word from its proper and genuine signification to another -sense, as, in calling you most famous thieves; I desire your most -serious attention, and that you will embrace this exhortation of St. -Paul the apostle. 'Let him that stole, steal no more.' Or else the -letters of my text point towards a tragical conclusion; for T, 'take -care;' H, 'hanging;' E, 'ends not'; F, 'felony;' T, 'at Tyburn.'" - -The parson having ended his sermon, which some of Whitney's gang took -down in shorthand, they were so well pleased with what he had preached, -that they were contented to pay him tithes; so, counting over the money -they had taken from him, and finding it to be just ten pounds, they -gave him ten shillings for his pains, and then rode away to seek whom -they might next devour. - -He then met Lord L—— shortly afterwards, near London, and robbed him -single-handed. Knowing that his lordship moved in close attendance -upon the King, William the Third, and perhaps being keenly conscious -that the many serious robberies committed by himself and his men were -drawing the net uncomfortably close around them, he made an offer to -compound with the authorities. He said if the King would give him an -indemnity for past offences, he would bring in thirty of his gang, for -military service in Flanders. So saying, he whistled, and, quite in the -Roderick Dhu style, twenty or thirty mounted bandits at once appeared. - -Whitney, having thus given proofs of his words, continued that, if the -King refused his offer, His Majesty might send a troop of Dutchmen to -apprehend him and his, but they would find it a hard task to take any, -and that he and his men would stand on their defence, and bid them -defiance. - -There is little or nothing of the "Jacobite Robber" in the stories told -of Whitney; but it seems to have been fully recognised that he was -a somewhat belated adherent of James the Second. He gathered around -him a gang that varied in numbers according to circumstances, but was -occasionally about thirty strong. These he was enabled by his superior -courage and resource to captain; and with the imposing mounted force -they presented, he laid many important and wealthy personages under -contribution near London. It was doubtless his gang that stopped and -robbed the great Duke of Marlborough of five hundred guineas near -London Colney, on the night of August 23rd, 1692, and as a Jacobite, -Whitney would be particularly pleased at the doing of it. It is almost -equally certain that the numerous other rich hauls about that time on -the St. Albans road were the handiwork of Whitney's party. On December -6th, 1692, there was a pitched battle between Whitney's force and a -troop of dragoon patrols, near Barnet. One dragoon was killed, and -several wounded, and Whitney is most circumstantially said to have then -been captured; but as an even more circumstantial account tells us, -with a wealth of detail, how he was finally captured in Bishopsgate -Street, on December 31st, this cannot be altogether correct. - -Was it, we wonder, his professed Jacobite views that made many -travellers so good-humoured with him as they are said to have been when -he lightened their pockets? A fellowship in political views does not in -our own days necessarily make a stranger free of our purse. Whitney, -for example, meeting Sir Richard B—— between Stafford and Newport, -accosted him with a "How now? whither away?" - -"To London," replied the knight; whereupon Whitney troubled him for £4. - -Then, much to our surprise, we read of Sir Richard, who appears to have -known Whitney very well by sight, saying, "Captain, I'll give you a -breakfast, with a fowl or two." It would have come more naturally to -read that he offered to give him in charge! - -Whitney politely declined, but said he would drink to the knight's -health then and there; and, halting a passing waggon, broached a cask -out of it on the spot. - -In spite of a conflict of testimony, it seems to be clearly established -that Whitney was finally captured on December 31st, 1692. He appears -to have at some earlier time been taken, after a desperate fight -with a "bagonet," and lodged in Newgate, whence he broke out with -a four-pound weight on each leg. On this last occasion he made a -determined resistance at the door of the house in which he was beset, -fighting for over an hour with the officers and the mob. Most of his -gang were afterwards captured; including a livery-stable keeper, a -goldsmith, and a man-milliner. - -Whitney appears to have been a man of medium height, to have had a -scarred face, and to have lost one thumb: sliced off, probably, in one -of his encounters with the patrols. - -He endeavoured to purchase his liberty by "offering to discover his -accomplices, and those that give notice where and when money is -conveyed on the road in coaches and waggons." This offer was not -accepted, and the order went forth that he was to be hanged at the -Maypole in the Strand. Then he shifted his ground to include more -startling secrets that he was ready to divulge, "if he may have his -pardon." Jacobite plots were the commonplaces of that day. King James -was not greatly liked by even the most ardent Jacobite, but King -William was detested, and even those who had placed William on the -throne did so merely as a political expedient. Thus the personally -unpopular King was for ever harassed with plots hatched to assassinate -him; and when Whitney hinted, not obscurely, that he could tell -terrible tales if he would, it was thought advisable to have the -highwayman out in a sedan-chair and to take him to Kensington, -under escort, that he might be examined, touching these plots. But -it was soon discovered that he really knew nothing and that his idle -"confessions" and "revelations" had no basis in fact. - -He was not content to remain in Newgate in worn and shabby clothes. - -"He had his taylor," says Luttrell, "make him a rich embroidered suit, -with perug and hat, worth £100; but the keeper refused to let him wear -them, because they would disguise him from being known." - -That somewhat obscure phrase seems to mean that Whitney intended, under -cover of his fine new suit, to make a dash for liberty. - -His execution was finally fixed for February 1st, 1693, at Porter's -Block, Smithfield. He made a very proper and a singularly restrained -and well-chosen speech at the fatal spot: - -"I have been a very great offender, both against God and my country, by -transgressing all laws, human and divine. I believe there is not one -here present but has often heard my name before my confinement, and -have seen a large catalogue of my crimes, which have been made public -since. Why should I then pretend to vindicate a life stained with deeds -of violence? The sentence passed on me is just, and I can see the -footsteps of Providence, which I had before profanely laughed at, in -my apprehension and conviction. I hope the sense which I have of these -things has enabled me to make my peace with Heaven, the only thing -that is now of any concern to me. Join in your prayers with me, my dear -countrymen, that God will not forsake me in my last moments." - -"He seem to dye very penitent," says the original chronicler of these -things: "and was an hour and a halfe in the cart before being turned -off." - - - - -TWM SHON CATTI - - -A singular character, half mythical, and his exploits almost wholly so, -is Twm Shon Catti; a prankish creature whom, nevertheless, the people -of Carmarthenshire and Cardiganshire will not willingly let die. - -Twm, it need hardly be said, was a Welshman. His name, duly translated -from Cymraeg into English, means "Tom John Kate," _i.e._ "Tom, the son -of Kate." Who was his other parent remains a matter of uncertainty, but -he is thought to have been a local magnate, Sir John Wynne of Gwydir. -Kate, his mother, was a country girl, of Tregaron, and Twm himself was -born apparently about the third quarter of the seventeenth century; -that is to say, if the half sprite and half human being of the legends -can be said to belong to any easily-ascertained span of years. Some of -his exploits certainly seem to belong to a later period. - -But however that may be, he is yet the hero of a very wide countryside, -in which any peasant is still able to give a very fair biography of him -to the passing stranger, and is also quite competent to show him Twm's -cave, in Dinas Hill, or "Llidiard-y-Ffin," overlooking the river Towy, -near Ystrad Ffin. Composed in equal parts of Will-o'-Wisp, Dick Turpin -(the idealised Turpin of legend, not the cowardly brute of cold-drawn -fact), and Robin Hood, his career is one of marvels. Horse-thief, -highwayman at one time and out-witter of highwaymen at another, special -providence to the deserving, and scourge of the wicked, he always -comes successfully out of encounters and difficulties. If for that -peculiarity alone, he might reasonably be held mythical. - -Starting in life as a farmer's boy, he afterwards found a place in the -service of the local lord of the manor, in which his Puck-like pranks -were first developed. As the secret of his birth was more or less an -open one, these escapades were not often visited with the punishment -another would almost certainly have incurred; and, besides, he was -generally looked upon as a "natural": as one, that is to say, who is -not more than half-witted. Thus, when he would steal the parson's horse -in Llandovery and sell it to a squire some twenty miles off, he proved -the truth of that old law which says one man may with impunity steal a -horse, while another may not safely even look over the fence. - -It all depends upon the man. In Twm's case, such an exploit was not -the criminal business that would have brought an ordinary man to the -gallows, but merely an escapade serving, like Prince Hal and Poins' -fooling of Falstaff with the men in buckram, as "argument for a week, -laughter for a month, and a good jest for ever." - -At the rather uncertain period in which Twm flourished there also -flourished a highwayman in the locality, who, from his daring and -savage disposition, was known as "Dio the Devil." This terrific person -had carried off the young and beautiful wife of Sir John Devereux, lord -of Ystrad Ffin, and Twm was successful in rescuing her. The obvious -reward for this service was, bearing Twm's almost gentle origin in -mind, to receive him in his house on equal terms: or, as some accounts -have it, he entered the service of Sir John as jester. But whether he -went as such, or not, he certainly acted the part very thoroughly, and -kept the establishment always well entertained. - -Twm was a perfect centaur of a horseman, and Sir John Devereux was -almost as good in the saddle. Twm's custom was to back himself in -heavy wagers to perform extraordinary feats of horsemanship, and -then proceed, by hair-raising doings, to win the bets. Not only the -physical, but the mental agility of these things took strangers at an -utterly dumbfoundered disadvantage; but the most astonishing of all was -the one now to be related. An English guest who was staying with Sir -John happened also to be a remarkable horseman, and had the advantage -his Welsh host had not, of owning a thoroughbred. The talk ran high -one day on the subject of horses and equitation, and the whimsical -Twm promptly wagered twenty pounds he would put his horse to a jump -where the Englishman dare not follow. Conversant with the not very fine -specimens of horses to be found in his host's stable, the Englishman -with contempt accepted the bet, quite easy in his mind that he must win. - -A "numerous and distinguished company," as a modern chronicler of -fashionable doings might say, assembled on the mountain-side on the -appointed day, to see the challenger take this as yet unknown leap, and -the stranger follow if he dared. They knew their Twm well enough to -be quite convinced he had some mad project in view, to discomfit the -Englishman; and what Welshman was there who would not have travelled -far, and at much discomfort, to witness the humiliation of the "Saxon." - -Twm was last upon the to-be-contested field, and a great shout of -laughter went up as he was seen riding along upon a wretched horse, -in the last stage of decrepitude. The Englishman did not quite know -whether to feel insulted or amused, but Twm, once arrived on the scene, -did not linger. Quickly he took a thick cloth and bound it over the -head of his horse; and then, bidding the Englishman follow him, put his -mount at a rift in the mountain-side some hundreds of feet deep. Over -leapt the horse, and was in another half a minute lying dead, shattered -in its fall on the rocks below. - -Even those of his countrymen who knew the resourcefulness of their -hero, and had backed him heavily, now lost heart; but in another -minute up rose the head and shoulders of Twm above the edge, and he -presently leapt among them unhurt, to receive his winnings from the -astounded Englishman. He had adroitly slipped from the horse's back -at the moment of his taking off, and leapt into the bushes that grew -out of the face of the cliff. The horse itself merely met its end in a -different manner from that already ordained for it that day, when it -was to have been slaughtered, as being past work. - -His friend and patron, Sir John Devereux, perceiving how well able -Twm was to take care of himself, and being under the necessity of -despatching a considerable amount of money in gold to London, and -obliged at the same time to remain at home, he entrusted him with the -commission. He would have given Twm an escort of one or two servants, -but that worthy, shrewdly remarking that it would be as much worth -their while as that of a highwayman to rob him, declined all company, -and, in the oldest clothes he could find, set out alone on a shaggy -Welsh pony. He had gone two-thirds of his journey without adventure, -and put up one night, contentedly enough, at what is described as the -"Hop Pole," a "lonely inn on the bleak downs near Marlborough"—although -there really seems never to have been a house of that name near: -perhaps "Shepherd's Shore," or the "Waggon and Horses" at Beckhampton -would serve better. When he retired for the night, and was lying still -and wakeful, he overheard the landlady and a strange man discussing -him. The landlady was saying she did not suppose a traveller like our -Twm, "dressed like a scarecrow and mounted on a piece of animated -carrion, for which the rooks cawed as he rode along," was worth robbing. - -"I don't know so much about that," he heard the other—obviously a -highwayman—reply. "Very often these miserable-looking people you see -on the roads disguise their wealth in this way, and are in reality -carrying a great deal of money about with them: sometimes half a year's -rent of a considerable estate. This fellow seems to be one of that -kind. We shall see to-morrow." - -Twm remembered having seen a plaguey ill-looking fellow in the house, -and lay long awake, wondering what he should be at, and pleased that, -anyhow, he was not to be interfered with that night. But he felt sure -of being followed as soon as ever he left the house, and bethought -him, there and then, of an ingenious plan. Before their very eyes next -morning, he rummaged in the peak of his saddle, as if to arrange it -more comfortably, and in so doing managed to disclose some gold to -their covetous gaze. Then he was soon off; not travelling very fast, as -may be supposed, on his laden pony. So soon as he was out of sight of -the inn, he hopped off and transferred the money from the saddle to his -pockets. Then he resumed his way. - -Presently, as he had expected, he heard the highwayman thundering -along in his rear. When the pursuer came well in sight, Twm hurriedly -dismounted again, and, unloosening the saddle, flung it as far as he -was able into a pond that spread by the wayside. Dismounting himself, -the highwayman, leaving Twm for the moment, plunged knee-deep into the -pond for the treasure, as he supposed, and Twm leapt nimbly on his -thoroughbred horse: no highwayman of tradition ever riding a horse that -was not thoroughbred, whatever the sorry jades the real ones had often -to bestride. - -When Twm cantered happily into Marlborough on the highwayman's steed, -and told his story, the townspeople, who it appears had suffered much -from the knights of the road, welcomed him as a hero, and entertained -him at the Town Hall. If he had not been in a hurry, they might perhaps -have presented him with the freedom of the borough. Perhaps they did so -on his return. He sold his horse for a good round sum, for he thought -it dangerous to ride up to London on so fine a mount. Therefore, armed -with one pistol, he resumed the journey on foot, and to my mind it -seems either a testimony to the honesty or the lack of enterprise among -the burgesses of Marlborough, that some one or other of them did not -follow him into the secluded glades of Savernake Forest, through which -his road lay, and do for him. - -But he neared London without other encounters, until he came upon -Hounslow Heath. Here the tale of the confiding highwayman and the -apparently stupid countryman, often told, but always fresh, had its -origin. Twm was duly pulled up on the Heath by a robber, who appears -to have been none other than Tom Dorbel, famous in his day. Dorbel was -bristling with an armoury of pistols. Our ingenious Twm, affecting to -be seized with the abject terror of a country lout, earnestly begged -the ruffian, before he robbed him, to put half-a-dozen bullets through -his coat, so that his master might easily see how good a fight he had -made of it, before yielding his treasure. He took off his coat for the -purpose, and the highwayman very obligingly complied with this very -reasonable request. - -Twm capered about like the idiot he pretended to be. "That wass ferry -coot of you—yess, inteet," he said; "and if you wass put another look -you, through my hat, it wass pe petter still, whateffer." - -The highwayman, wondering what special kind of lunatic he had happened -upon, fired his last pistol through the hat as desired, when "Now," -said Twm, himself producing a pistol, "it iss my turn. Out with your -coin, or I will put a pig hole through your pody." And Twm not only -saved his master's coin, but robbed the highwayman as well. - -[Illustration: TWM SHON CATTI AND THE HIGHWAYMAN.] - - - - -JOHN WITHERS AND WILLIAM EDWARDS - - -John Withers, one of the most ferocious of those highwaymen who did -not scruple to add murder to their crimes, was born in the last -quarter of the seventeenth century, at Lichfield. He was the son of a -butcher, in so small a way of business that his father could not find -employment for him; and so, in order to get a start in life, he set -off for London. Arrived there, he was drawn by his natural bent into -the company of criminals, and, throwing in his lot with them, was soon -arrested and found guilty on charges of larceny, with violence. He -escaped punishment by accepting the offer, generally made at that time, -of enlisting in the army, and was sent out to the Flanders expedition. -Here, perhaps, we see an explanation of the well-known expression, -"Our armies swore terribly in Flanders." If it was composed largely of -reprieved criminals, there can be no doubt that its language could not -have been choice, nor its conduct exemplary. "My blackguards," the Duke -of Wellington styled his men, who fought so well and endured so greatly -in the Peninsula; for even so lately as that period the rank-and-file -were composed of the offscourings of society; but they must have been -well-mannered gentlemen, compared with the soldiers of a century -earlier. - -Sacrilege presently engaged the attention of Withers in Flanders. -Entering a church in Ghent during high mass, and observing the people -placing money in a box that stood in front of a figure of the Virgin, -he awaited a favourable opportunity, picked the lock, and filled his -pockets with the contents. "Unfortunately," says his sympathetic -biographer, "in haste to carry off his plunder, some of the money fell -upon the pavement, ringing out sharply in the stillness of the church; -so that he was detected in the act." - -Taken before the venerable Cardinal, and examined, he was about to -be taken off in custody; when, falling upon his knees, with uplifted -hands he begged the Cardinal to listen to him. He then declared with -ready lies, that, brought up as a heretic, and falling into evil ways -that had brought him to want and misery, he had seen the folly of his -life, and offered prayers before the effigy of the Virgin Mary. While -he was thus praying, he continued, the figure pointed to the box, as -if it were giving him leave to take what was necessary to supply his -wants. In consequence of this singular interposition on his behalf, he -concluded he had made up his mind to become a Roman Catholic, but at -the moment of this decision he had been arrested. - -This singular narrative was heard by the Cardinal with much surprise, -and at the close of it he exclaimed, fervently, "A miracle indeed!" -All who had heard it also shared the same opinion and "it being justly -concluded that none had a better right to dispose of the money than the -Virgin herself, to whom it was devoted," Withers was carried in solemn -procession, as a convert singularly honoured, and placed before the -high altar while an Ave Maria was sung. - -It is not, it may be added, necessary to believe this precious story in -its entirety. Withers was, of course, as we shall see, capable of worse -than this, and the probability is that the actual theft was committed -by him; but we can hardly believe the Roman Catholic clergy quite such -fools as they figure here. - -At Antwerp, Withers made a second essay in sacrilege. There he stole a -great silver crucifix. But he felt that there was really no career for -him in these enterprises, and so, deserting from the army, he crossed -to England, and took up the profession of highwayman. - -It would be of little interest to follow Withers in all his highway -doings, but the adventure of himself and two companions with an actor -on the road is perhaps worth repeating. They espied one morning a -gentleman walking alone and displaying all the gestures of passion, -distraction, and fury to excess; casting his eyes to heaven, stretching -forth his arms imploringly, or folding them moodily upon his breast. -Near by was a pond. - -"Make haste!" exclaimed Withers to his companions, "'tis even as we -thought; the poor gentleman is just going to kill himself for love." -Then, rushing towards him, two of them taking an arm each, Withers -addressed him earnestly: "Pray, sir, consider what you do! what a -sad thing it would be to drown yourself here. Be better advised and -consider, before it is too late." - -The actor was indignant. "What a plague is all this for?" he asked. "I -am not going to hang, stab, or drown myself. I am not in love, but only -a player, learning a part." - -"A player, are you?" rejoined Withers. "If I had thought that, you -should have drowned yourself, or hanged yourself indeed, before we had -taken the pains to follow you up and down. But, to make amends for our -trouble, the least you can do will be to give us what money you have." - -So saying, they bound his hands and legs together, emptied his pockets -of ten shillings, and took away a silver-hilted sword he carried. - -It is, in this connection, curious to observe the animus displayed -against the stage. It is met largely in the satire of the time, and not -merely in the literature inspired by the Puritans, but even in those -by no means puritanical books and plays in which the highwaymen figure -as heroes. Thus, in the play, the _Prince of Priggs_, written around -the career of Captain Hind, but not intended to be staged, we find the -prologue chiefly concerned with a sneer at those "apes and parrots," -silenced under the sour rule of the Commonwealth: - - Since that the Apes and Parrots of the Stage, - Are silenc'd by the Clamours of the Age; - Like Conies forc'd to feed on bran and grass, - (The true Desciples of _Pithagoras_) - Whose Copper-Lace,[1] and Copper-Noses once - Made them to think themselves great _Prester-Johns_: - You'l (sure) have cause to praise, and thank that man, - Can make each thief a compleat _Roscian_: - Then much good doe't you (Sirs) fall to and eat, - You ne're had cheaper (perhaps) better meat. - -[1] _i.e._ imitation gold-lace. - -The last adventure of Withers was that in which he and a companion, -William Edwards by name, near Beaconsfield beset a nobleman and his -servant. Withers' horse was shot in the resistance they made, and, -mounting behind his friend, they took to flight. But the horse with -two riders was no match for the others, not so heavily burdened; and, -being hard pressed along the road, the two fugitives dismounted and -ran across country in the direction of London. Sleeping in the hedges -overnight, the next morning they continued their flight. Meeting, -one mile on the London side of Uxbridge, with a penny postman, they -robbed him of eight shillings; and Withers, to prevent their being -identified, drew a large butcher's knife he carried, and barbarously -cut his throat. They then ripped up his body, filled his stomach with -stones, and flung him into the little stream that here flows across the -road. The burial registers of Hillingdon church bear witness to this -and to another murder they appear to have committed at, or near, the -same place; "1702, November 13. Will Harrison, Postman, murdered near -the Great Bridge between Hillingdon and Uxbridge. November 28. Edward -Symonds, Drover, murdered at the same time, and about the same place, -and by the same hands." - -Withers and Edwards were arrested the following January in Norfolk, -for a highway robbery committed there, and were tried and executed at -Thetford, April 16th, 1703. - - - - -PATRICK O'BRIAN - - -"Patrick O'Brian," says Captain Alexander Smith, "was a native of -Ireland." Perhaps we might, without undue stress of mind, have -guessed as much. It seems that his parents were very indigent natives -of Loughrea, and so Patrick left his native land for England, and -presently enlisted in the Coldstream Guards. But he was not a good -soldier; or, at any rate, if good in that profession, infinitely better -in the practice of all kinds of vice. He was resolved not to want -money, if there were any to be obtained, no matter the means to it; but -began cautiously by running into debt at public-houses and shops; and -then followed up that first step by borrowing from every acquaintance, -until that source was dried up. - -When all these means to existence were exhausted, O'Brian went upon -the road. The first person whom he met was, strange to say, another -unmitigated scoundrel: none other, in fact, than the Reverend William -Clewer, vicar of Croydon, who here demands a little paragraph entirely -to himself. - -William Clewer, who was collated to the living of Croydon in 1660, -was notorious, we are told, for his singular love of litigation, -unparalleled extortions, and criminal and disgraceful conduct. His -character became so bad, and his ways of life so notorious, that he was -eventually ejected in 1684. He must have been, indeed, pre-eminently -bad, to have been ejected in that easy-going age. Dispossessed of his -living, on these substantial grounds, he at last died, in 1702, and was -buried in St. Bride's, Fleet Street. - -We are indebted to Smith for the account of the meeting of O'Brian and -this shining light of the clerical profession: - -"O'Brian, meeting with Dr. Clewer, who was try'd once and burnt in the -hand at the Old Bailey for stealing a silver cup, coming along the road -from Acton, he demanded his money; but the reverend doctor having not a -farthing about him, O'Brian was for taking his gown. At this our divine -was much dissatisfied; but, perceiving his enemy would plunder him, -quoth he: 'Pray, sir, let me have a chance for my gown'; so, pulling -a pack of cards out of his pocket, he further said: 'We'll have, if -you please, one game of all-fours for it, and if you win it, take it -and wear it.' This challenge was readily accepted by the footpad; but, -being more cunning than his antagonist at slipping and palming the -cards, he won the game, and the doctor went contentedly home without -his canonicals." - -On one memorable occasion, O'Brian happened, in his lurkings upon the -road, to stop a man who proved to be an acrobat, and who, when Patrick -bade him "stand and deliver!" instantly jumped over his head. The -ignorant and superstitious Irishman thought he had chanced upon the -devil himself, come to sport with him before his time, and while he was -trembling and crossing himself, the acrobat, rolling along the road in -a series of somersaults and cartwheels, got clear away. - -These adventures appear to have been mere tentative experiments, for we -learn that O'Brian then deserted from the army and commenced highwayman -in earnest. He one day stopped the carriage of none other than Nell -Gwynne and addressed her thus: "Madam, I am a gentleman. I have done a -great many signal services to the fair sex, and have, in return, been -all my life maintained by them. Now, as I know you to be a charitable -woman, I make bold to ask you for a little money; though I never had -the honour of serving you in particular. However, if any opportunity -shall ever fall in my way, you may depend upon it I will not be -ungrateful." - -Nell, we are told, made this mercenary knight-errant a present of ten -guineas. - -It was the same with O'Brian as with every other wicked man, says -Smith; he was eager to lead others into the evil path himself had -chosen. In particular, he induced a young man named Wilt to become a -highwayman; and Wilt was unfortunate enough to be apprehended in his -first experiment and to be hanged for it. - -O'Brian was also arrested, and hanged at Gloucester. After his body -had swung the usual time, it was cut down and his friends were allowed -to carry it off. When it was taken indoors, it was observed to move -slightly, strange to say; upon which a surgeon was hurriedly called; -and, what with being bled and his limbs being exercised, O'Brian was -presently restored to life. - -This marvellous recovery was kept a strict secret for a time, and -it was hoped the experience would have a salutary effect, the more -especially as his friends were willing to contribute towards his -support in some retired employment. He agreed to reform his life, and, -indeed, while the memory of the bitterness of death was fresh upon him, -kept his promise; but as that dreadful impression wore off by degrees, -he returned to his former ways. Abandoning an honest life, he procured -a horse (Smith says he purchased one, but we may be allowed our doubts -upon that matter) "and other necessaries": _i.e._ pistols, powder and -ball, and sword, and again visited the road. - -This was about one year after his execution and supposed death, and -the travelling public of the districts he had principally affected had -long grown tired of congratulating themselves upon his disappearance, -and were quite accustomed to thinking of him as a memory. It was, -therefore, a bad shock to the gentleman whom he had last robbed, and -for plundering whom he had been, to all appearance, satisfactorily -turned off, when he was the first person to be stopped by O'Brian in -this second series of his adventures. - -His consternation, we are told, and may readily believe, was great. -"Wher—why?" he asked, with chattering teeth, "I ther—thought you had -been hanged a twelvemonth ago." - -"So I was," rejoined O'Brian, "and therefore you ought to imagine -that what you see now is only my ghost. However, lest you should be -so uncivil as to hang my ghost too, I think the best way is to secure -you." So saying, he discharged a pistol through the gentleman's head, -and, alighting from his horse, in a fury hewed the body to pieces with -his hanger. - -Later, he committed a fearful atrocity in Wiltshire, which, although -fully detailed in contemporary literature, cannot be set forth here. -He carried off at the same time no less a sum of money than £2,500; -but was fortunately brought to justice after a further two years of -miscellaneous plundering, chiefly through the evidence of an accomplice -lying under sentence of death in Bedford gaol. He was taken at his -lodgings in Little Suffolk Street, by the Haymarket, and then sent down -to Salisbury, to be tried for his Wiltshire enormity. Once lodged in -gaol there, he confessed a series of crimes, for which he was executed -on April 30th, 1689, aged thirty-one. - - - - -JACK BIRD - - -Jack Bird was humbly born and as humbly educated. When it is added -that he was born in the second half of the seventeenth century, it -will rightly be supposed that his education did not include any of the -sciences, and that it probably did not go far beyond teaching him to -write his own name. He had no use for even that small accomplishment, -for he was apprenticed to a baker, and before his indentures were -expired had run away and 'listed for a soldier in the foot-guards; -being almost immediately sent out to the Low Countries. He served under -the Duke of Monmouth at the siege of Maestricht, but found too many -masters in the army, and so deserted and made his way to Amsterdam, -where he commenced a new career by stealing a piece of silk. He was -detected in the act, taken before a magistrate, and condemned to a -term of hard labour in the "rasp-house," where he was set to rasping -log-wood, and to other severe drudgeries, for the term of twelve -months. Unaccustomed to such hard labour, Jack fainted at his tasks, -but the labour-master set it down to laziness, and to cure it, chained -him in the bottom of an empty cistern by one foot, and caused a number -of taps to be turned on, so that the cistern began rapidly to fill and -the prisoner to be obliged, as the cistern was deeper than his own -height, to work vigorously at a pump fixed in it, lest the water should -gain upon, and drown, him. An hour's experience of this ingenious -punishment rendered him quite anxious to return to the labour that had -before been too much for him. - -At the end of his term of bondage he hastened to take leave of Holland -and the Hollanders, who had proved themselves such connoisseurs in -quaint punishments. In England, justice certainly was more severe, and -hanged men who stole quite trivial things, but it did not make people -perform such hard labour, and Jack was one of those who would rather -die than work. There are many of his kind even now. - -Although hard labour was distasteful to our hero, he was by no means -satisfied to live as humbly as he had been born, and his thoughts -turned lightly to the road, as a likely place on which to pick up a -good living without over-exertion. There was the choice of footpad or -highwayman, and of course he chose the higher branch of the profession; -for a footpad had to pad the hoof and be content, after all, with -robbing the comparatively poor; while a highwayman could cut a fine -figure on horseback, plunder the best, and be at little personal -fatigue in doing so. Many foolish fellows, commencing highwayman, would -hire, or even purchase, a horse; not so Jack Bird. "Thorough" was his -motto, and he began business by stealing the mount he fancied. At the -same time he took excellent good care to go fully armed, for we read -that he provided himself with six good pistols and a broadsword. In -this fortified condition, and in the dress of a gentleman, he opened -his campaign. His first few attempts were highly successful, but -he soon learned, in a painful adventure on the Dover Road, between -Gravesend and Chatham, that fortune is fickle. There he encountered -one Joseph Pinnis, a pilot, who was returning from London, where he -had received ten or twelve pounds for piloting a Dutch ship up-river. -He had been so unfortunate as to lose both hands during an engagement -in the Dutch war, some years earlier, and it seemed to our callous -highwayman an easy task to rob him. - -Summoned to "Stand and deliver!" the pilot replied, "You see, sir, that -I have never a hand, so cannot take my money out of my pocket. Be so -kind, therefore, as to take the trouble to search me." - -The highwayman, without the slightest misgiving, complied with this -very reasonable request, and securing the pilot's purse, began to -examine its contents, when he found himself suddenly seized around the -waist by the traveller, who appeared to have enormous strength in his -arms, even though he had no hands. He succeeded in overthrowing the -highwayman, and falling upon him, beat him fearfully about the face -with his metal-shod wrists. - -Presently some other travellers approached, and, asking the cause of -the struggle, Pinnis told them: asking them to take a hand and give the -ruffian a further drubbing, and adding that he was almost out of breath -with what he had done already. - -The travellers then, informed of the whole affair, conducted Bird in -custody to a magistrate, who committed him to Maidstone gaol, where he -was tried and condemned to death, but was afterwards, for some reason -that has escaped the historian, pardoned and set at liberty, to work -more outrages upon unarmed and inoffensive folk. - -At first, however, the danger and indignity he had passed through, -of being so completely vanquished by a handless man, whom he had at -first foolishly despised, quite put him out of conceit with himself -and the road, and he resolved to abandon an employment which had at -first promised so well, only to turn out so ill. But work—real work—was -uncongenial as ever, and as he had to exist somehow, it happened that -the road called him successfully again, after all. - -The first person he encountered in his new series of adventures was a -Welsh drover, who proved to be a muscular man, and the very devil of -a fellow with that nasty weapon, the quarter-staff. "Once bit, twice -shy," murmured Jack, withdrawing swiftly out of reach. "If a villain -of a sailor without hands can overthrow me, I shall not venture my -carcase within reach of one that has hands, for fear of something -worse." So, he pulled a pistol from the armoury he carried in his belt, -and from a safe distance shot the drover through the head. He then -searched the body and found, to his disgust, only eighteenpence. But -he summoned what philosophy he could over this disappointment, and, -cynically remarking that "'Tis a price worth killing a man for, any -time," rode off without the least remorse. - -On another occasion he met the original "Poor Robin," the -almanac-writer and humorous prognosticator; and as he did not disdain -to exact contributions from the poor, as well as the rich (although -"Poor Robin" probably was by no means so poor as his name would imply), -he desired the calendar-maker to halt and surrender. As this was the -first time Poor Robin had heard such language, and as he had received -no hint of this occasion from the stars, he stood and stared, as if -himself had been planet-struck. - -"Come now," said Jack, "this is no child's play: I am in earnest." - -Robin pleaded the poverty to which, he said, his nickname bore witness. - -"That," returned Bird, "is a miserable, threadbare excuse, and will not -save your bacon." - -"But," pleaded the almanac-maker, "as author of those calendars that -yearly come out in my name, I have canonised a great many gentlemen -of your profession; look in them for their names, and let this be my -protection." - -But all in vain; Bird ransacked his pockets, and from them extracted -fifteen shillings, took a new hat from his head, and requested him, as -he had now given him cause, to canonise him also. - -"Ay!" exclaimed Poor Robin grimly, "that will I, when you have suffered -martyrdom at Tyburn, which will not be long hence." - -"Poor Robin's" publications, it may be said, in this connection, are -well worth examination. In an age when Lilly, Perkins, and a host of -others issued prophetic almanacs, divining future events from the -stars, and were extensively believed in, "Poor Robin's" almanac, year -by year, made much fun out of those pretensions; fun that sometimes -reads curiously modern. Seventeenth-century humour is, as a rule, as -flat to the modern taste as champagne opened and left to stand, but -much of "Poor Robin's" wit and humour still sparkles. While Perkins, -with a provoking solemnity, would give a chronological table of events -from the Year One and would proceed by degrees from "Adam, created 1, -B.C., 3962," and would continue by way of "Methuselah, born 687, B.C., -2306," to "The Tyrant Oliver began his government, December 16th, -1653"; "Poor Robin" would devote his attention largely to the days -when highwaymen were hanged, and would draw farcical conclusions from -planetary dispositions. Thus we find him saying: - -"Now the effects of the conjunction of Saturn and Mars will much -operate: such conjunctions are always attended with remarkable -accidents. There was one in the year 1672, and the German Princess -rode up Holborn Hill; another in 1673, and Du Vail visited the -three-legged tenement at Hyde Park Corner. I might instance in divers -other examples, but these shall suffice." - -The so-called "German Princess" was an adventuress, really a native of -Canterbury, and a daughter of one of the choristers in the Cathedral -there, named Moders. She was hanged at Tyburn, in 1678 (not in 1672), -and so was Du Vall (not at Hyde Park Corner, and not in 1673). - -In his burlesque monthly forecasts of the weather and public events, he -evidently reflects upon his serious contemporaries, whose predictions -would occasionally go wrong, and who, like our modern "Old Moore," -would in consequence grow less cocksure and more cautious, and would -then more or less cleverly tell readers to "expect" something or other, -together with such eminently safe remarks for February and March as, -"Wind and rainstorms are to be looked for by the farmer." - -In February 1664, for example, "Poor Robin," in burlesque of this kind -of thing, warns his readers to "expect some showers of rain, either -this month or the next, or the next after that, or else we shall have a -very dry spring.... The twenty-seventh day of this month died Cardinal -Mazarine, and if you would know the reason why he died, then, I answer, -it was because he could live no longer." - -Under June, he declares that, "If the frost nips the fruit trees, there -will be no apples." In July, "Fleas will grow troublesome, and will -lie with you without leave," and elsewhere we find that "Tyburn shall -be a great eye-sore to Highway men and cut-purses," and that "The -leafless tree betwixt London and Paddington will this month bear fruit, -but it will be only Medlers, and they are stark naught until they are -rotten." The which extracts fully illustrate the allusions in the short -life of Jack Bird. - -Made bold by a long series of successes, Bird procured a good horse -and determined never again to stoop to robbing for mere shillings. A -meeting with the Earl of ——, rolling along in his carriage, accompanied -by his chaplain, and attended by two servants, gave him his first -opportunity of putting this excellent determination into practice. - -"You must stop, my lord!" exclaimed Bird, threatening him with one -pistol, and the coachman with the other. - -"The devil I must!" said his lordship; "who the——"—here the chaplain -gave a loud cough, and the word was lost in the throaty rasp he -produced—"what the——" ("ahem!" from the chaplain) "are you then, -fellow, that you bid me pull up on the roadway for you, you——?" - -"An honest collector of tolls, your lordship," said Bird: "your purse -this instant!" - -"So! that is the way of it?" replied his lordship. "I am very little -anxious about the small sum I have about me, but I intend you shall -fight for it." - -Bird then flew into a passion, and swore terribly, after the low -fashion then proverbially prevalent among our soldiers in the Low -Countries. He waved his pistols excitedly. - -"Don't lose your temper," said my lord. "When I said 'fight,' I meant -boxing, and not shooting, and I will fight you fairly for all the money -I have, against nothing." - -"That is an honourable challenge, my lord," replied Bird, "provided -none of your servants be near us." - -His lordship then commanded them to withdraw to a distance. The -chaplain, however, could not endure the thought of the Earl fighting -while he was but an idle spectator, and requested the honour of being -his patron's champion. - -Matters were arranged: the divine stripped off his gown, and in another -half a minute the scene resounded with the thuds and grunts of the -combatants, as they planted blows home on each other's faces and -bodies. In less than a quarter of an hour the chaplain was knocked out -of time, with only breath enough remaining to exclaim, "I'll fight no -more!" Bird was unquestioned victor. "Now, my lord," said he, turning -to the carriage, "if it please your lordship, I will take a turn with -you." - -"Not I!" earnestly replied the Earl, "for if you can beat my chaplain, -you will surely beat me, for we have tried it out before." So saying, -he handed the highwayman the sum of twenty guineas he was carrying. - -[Illustration: JACK BIRD FIGHTS THE CHAPLAIN.] - -Bird's career was closed by a foolish act. He, in company with a woman, -knocked down and robbed a man in Drury Lane. The woman was seized on -the spot, but Bird escaped. Going, however, to visit her in prison, -he himself was arrested; and, being found guilty, he was executed at -Tyburn, March 12th, 1690, aged forty-two. - - - - -WILL OGDEN, JACK BRADSHAW, AND TOM REYNOLDS - - -Will Ogden, who was born in Walnut Tree Alley, Tooley Street, -Southwark, now claims our attention. He was a waterman by trade and -a highwayman by inclination, so that he presently exchanged the -river for the road. But he did not blossom out all at once as a -fully-equipped highwayman. He passed a kind of transition period of -about two years in the plundering of ships lying in the Pool, between -Southwark and Billingsgate, and in the rifling of waterside shops. In -these activities he was associated with one Tom Reynolds, a native of -Cross Key Alley, Barnaby Street, and admiral of a sludge-barge. Being -apprehended in the burglary of a watch-maker's shop, they were lodged -in Newgate, and tried and convicted at the Old Bailey; but received a -pardon, on what grounds does not appear. - -This ended their burgling experiences, and they then agreed to go upon -the road, in the humbler, padding form of the highwayman's trade. - -Early in their experiences, Ogden one evening met a parson walking -home by the light of the moon, and approached him in the character of -a distressed seaman walking the highway to the nearest port, where he -might chance to get a ship. His dismal story excited the compassion of -the parson, who gave him sixpence and passed on. - -He had not proceeded far when Ogden, who had hurried round in advance -of him by a side lane, approached him again, and renewed his story. - -"You are the most impudent beggar I ever met," exclaimed the parson; -but Ogden told him he was in very great want, and that the sixpence he -had received would not carry him very far. The parson then gave him -half-a-crown, which Ogden gratefully accepted, adding: "These are very -sad times, and there's horrid robbing abroad; so, if you have any more -money about you, you may as well let me have it, as another who don't -deserve it so much, and may perhaps even ill-use you, and, binding you -hand and foot, make you lie in the cold all night. If you'll give me -your money, I'll take care of you, and conduct you safely home." - -An offer of this kind, so delicately and yet so significantly framed, -had only to be made to be accepted by any prudent man, who did not feel -himself equal to knocking that impudent humorist on the head; and so -the parson made a virtue of necessity, and, as cheerfully as he could, -handed him all his money; about forty shillings. - -Ogden then remarked, "I see you have a watch, sir; you may as well let -me have that too." Whereupon the watch also changed hands. - -As they were thus plodding along two or three men, accomplices of the -ingenious Ogden, came out of the wayside bushes; but Ogden calling out -their pass-words, "The moon shines bright," they let them proceed. A -little further on, the same incident was repeated, by which the parson -could clearly see that, had he not met with the gentle and persuasive -Ogden, he might in all likelihood have fallen into far worse hands, and -have been ill-used and tied up, even as he had been warned. - -The clergyman was at last brought safely to his own door, and so -greatly appreciated this safe-conduct—though at the loss of some forty -shillings and a watch—that he invited Ogden in; but that person was -as cautious as ingenious, and declined. He thought the clergyman was -laying a trap for him; but he said he had no objection to taking a -drink outside. The good parson then brought a bottle of wine, and, -drinking to Ogden, gave him the bottle and the glass to help himself, -upon which he ran off with both. - -A little later, Ogden met a well-known dandy of that time, Beau -Medlicott by name. He commanded the Beau to stand and empty his -pockets, but instead of doing so, he drew his sword and made some -half-hearted passes with it. Ogden thereupon drew his pistols, and the -Beau was obliged to yield to superior armament. But Ogden might have -left that fashionable person alone, for he had little about him. Like -the more or less famous music-hall character, "La-di-da," of whom he -must surely have been the ancestor, he was scarcely worth robbing. Of -what was that music-hall celebrity possessed? - - He'd a penny papah collah round his throat, la-di-da; - A penny papah flowah in his coat, la-di-da; - In his mouth a penny pick, in his hand a penny stick, - And a penny in his pocket, la-di-da, la-di-da, - And a penny in his pocket, la-di-da! - -The contents of Beau Medlicott's pockets were pitiful enough to draw -tears of rage from any self-respecting highwayman: consisting only of -two half-crowns; and one of them was a brass counterfeit! - -Ogden very rightly gave that cheap toff a good thrashing. - -Reynolds does not appear in the stories just narrated; but in addition -to another ally, Bradshaw by name, said to have been a grandson of that -Serjeant Bradshaw who was one of the regicides, he now appears lurking -in the woods on Shooter's Hill, one night in 1714, for whatever fortune -might be pleased to send them. It was poor sport that evening, for only -a servant-girl, one Cecilia Fowley, came along the road, carrying her -box; but these low-down footpads despised nothing, and were ready to -rob any one. - -It was not worth the while of the three, they thought, to rush out -of their lurking-place for the sake of one servant-girl, and so they -deputed Bradshaw for the job. He accordingly sprang into the road, -seized the box, and broke it into fragments. It contained the girl's -clothes, "and fifteen shillings, being all her wages for three months' -service." (Servants were cheap then, it seems.) - -Turning over these things, Bradshaw turned out a hammer, which the girl -seized, and suddenly dealt him a blow with it upon the temple, followed -by another with the claw of the hammer upon his neck, which tore his -throat open. He fell down in the road, and died there. - -At that moment, up came a gentleman, to whom the girl narrated the -circumstances. He searched the dead man's pockets, and found in them a -large sum of money and a whistle. Putting the whistle to his mouth, he -blew upon it—a rash enough thing to do—and thereupon Ogden and Reynolds -leapt out from the wayside coverts. Finding, however, that something -disastrous had happened, and that it was a stranger who had whistled -them, they fled. - -Odgen and Reynolds at a later date met a tallyman, who was a well-known -trader in St. Giles, and demanded his money. "Money!" he exclaimed; he -was merely a poor man, who had the greatest difficulty in earning his -daily bread. - -"Thou spawn of h—ll!" exclaimed Ogden, in a violent passion—or, at -least, an excellent imitation of it—"have pity on thee, shall I? No, -sirrah, I know thee too well, and I would almost as soon be kind to a -bailiff or an informing constable, as to you. A tallyman and a rogue -are terms of similar import. Every Friday you set up a tenter in the -Marshalsea Court, upon which you rack and stretch poor prisoners like -English broadcloth, beyond the staple of the wool, till the threads -crack; which causes them, with the least wet, to shrink, and presently -to wear threadbare. I say that you, and all your calling, are worse -rogues than ever were hanged at Tyburn." - -After this abominable abuse, Ogden went over his pockets, stripped -him naked, and bound him hand and foot, and left him in a ditch, "to -ruminate on his former villainies." By which it would seem quite -evident that tallymen shared the hatred felt for attorneys. - -Ogden and Reynolds were the particular friends of Thomas Jones and John -Richardson, the one a butler and the other a footman, in the employ -of a gentleman living at Eltham. They instructed the footman and the -butler in their own business, and it was not long before they took to -robbing on Blackheath, whenever their master was away from home. On one -of these occasions, they plundered a gentleman, and left him bound on -the heath, and, their master coming home unexpectedly, found him there, -and after the manner of a Good Samaritan, took him to his own house, -and gave him a glass of wine, to recruit his spirits. The butler no -sooner appeared, than the ill-used traveller, much to the astonishment -of himself and his master, recognised him as one of the men who had -attacked and robbed him. The guilty pair were eventually hanged at -Rochester, on April 2nd, 1714. - -Ogden and Reynolds ended at last at Kingston, on April 23rd, 1714; -Ogden himself dying with an air of complete indifference. He threw a -handful of small change among the crowd, with the remark: "Gentlemen, -here is a poor Will's farewell." - - - - -JACK OVET - - -Jack Ovet was born at Nottingham, and after serving his time as -apprentice to a shoemaker, took up that useful employment for a -livelihood. But he soon grew tired of his awl and his cobblers'-wax, -and disregarding the old saw which advises cobblers (and, no doubt, -also boot and shoe makers) to "stick to their last," deserted his last -and his bench, and took to the highway. A shoemaker newly emancipated -from his useful, but not romantic, trade does not impress us as a -figure of romance; but that is merely prejudice; and really he started -off at score, and at his first essay robbed a gentleman of twenty of -the best, without a moment's hesitation. The dispute as to whom the -guineas should belong took place on the road to London from his native -Nottingham, so you will perceive how quickly Ovet fell into his stride. -Ovet argued that the guineas were rightly his, "by the law of capture"; -thus following the theory of the poet who put the law of ownership in -property so neatly in declaring it: - - His to take who has the power, - And his to keep who can. - -"Yours, you impudent scoundrel!" bellowed the traveller; "if I had not -been taken unawares, we would have seen about that." - -Ovet, already prepared to take the ancient traditional line of -chivalric consideration, said he would fight fairly for the money. -"Here it is again, and whoever is best man, let him keep it." The -enraged traveller agreed to this proposal, and they fell to fighting -with swords, with the result that the gentleman was mortally wounded, -and Ovet went off with the purse. - -Our ex-shoemaker was a quarrelsome fellow, and soon after this killed -another man in a heated dispute, but escaped capture. Skulking in -remote places, afraid of being taken at a disadvantage, he soon found -himself short of money, and waylaid a train of pack-horses. Cutting -open their packs, he discovered a number of guineas among the goods, -and finally went off with a hundred and eighty, and three dozen silver -knives, forks, and spoons. - -One day Jack Ovet, drinking at a wayside inn, overheard a soapboiler -and a carrier consulting how the carrier could most securely carry a -hundred pounds to a friend in the country. It was finally decided to -convey the money in a barrel of soap. The carrier was highly pleased -with the notion, and laughingly remarked that if any rogue were to rob -his waggon, "the devil's cunning must be in him if he looks for any -money in the soap-barrel." - -Jack Ovet, later in the day, overtook him upon the road and commanded -him to stop, else he would shoot both him and his horses. - -"I must make bold to borrow a little money out of your waggon," he -said; "therefore, if you have any, direct me to it, that I may not lose -any time, which, you know, is always precious." - -The carrier, quite unmoved in his fancied security, replied that he -had none, and if he did not believe him, he might, if he would, search -every box and bundle in his waggon. - -Ovet then, simulating a violent passion, began to toss down every -box, parcel, and barrel in the waggon, until at last, coming to the -soap-barrel, he flung it down with all his force, so that it broke in -pieces, the money-bag appearing in midst of the soap scattered on the -road. - -Then, jumping down, he exclaimed, "Is not he that sells this soap a -cheating villain, to put this bag of lead into it, to make the barrel -weigh heavier? However, that he may not succeed in his roguery, I'll -take it and sell it in the next house I come to, for it will wet my -whistle to the tune of two or three shillings." - -So saying, he was making off, when the poor carrier cried out, "Hold, -hold, sir! that is not lead. It is a bag with a hundred pounds in it, -for which I must be accountable." - -"No, no," returned Ovet, "this can't be money; but if it is, tell the -owner that I'll be answerable for it, if he'll come to me." - -"To you! Where, then, sir, may one find you?" - -"Why, truly," rejoined Ovet, with a chuckle, "that's a question soon -asked, but not so soon answered. The best answer I can give you is -that you'll probably find me in a gaol before night, and then perhaps -you may have what I have taken, and forty pounds more." - -The highwaymen were generally susceptible creatures, and Ovet not less -so than his brethren. One day, robbing the Worcester stage-coach, -filled on that occasion with young women, he was violently smitten with -one in particular. - -"Madam," he declared, "your charms have softened my temper. Cast not -your eyes down, nor cover your face with those modest blushes; and, -believe me, what I have taken from necessity is only borrowed, and -shall be honourably restored, if you will let me know where you may be -found." - -The young woman gave him her address, and a week later, overcome by the -most violent passion, he wrote her a love-letter in which, in the most -bombastic and ridiculous style, he expressed his love. "Although I had -the cruelty to rob you of twenty guineas," he concluded, "you committed -at the same time a greater robbery, by taking my heart. Do, I implore -you, direct a favourable answer." - -But this was the discouraging reply: - - "SIR,— - - "Yours I received with as great dissatisfaction as when you - robbed me. I admire your impudence in offering yourself to me as - a husband, when I am sensible it would not be long ere you made - me a hempen widow. Perhaps some foolish girl or another may be - so bewitched as to go in white, to beg the favour of marrying you - under the gallows; but, indeed, I shall neither venture there, - nor in a church, to marry one of your profession, whose vows are - treacherous, and whose smiles, words, and actions, like small - rivulets, through a thousand turnings of loose passions, at last - arrive at the dead sea of sin. - - "Should you, therefore, dissolve your eyes into tears; were every - accent in your speech a sigh; had you all the spells and magic - charms of love, I should seal up my ears. You have already broken - your word, in not sending what you villainously took from me; - but, not valuing that, let me tell you, for fear you should have - too great a conceit of yourself, that you are the first, to my - recollection, whom I ever hated; and, sealing my hatred with the - hopes of quickly reading your dying speech, in case you die in - London, I presume to subscribe myself." - - "Yours, never to command." - -Soon after this harrowing dismissal, Jack Ovet was taken, tried, and -executed, ending in May 1708, in the thirty-second year of his age. - - - - -JOHN HALL, RICHARD LOW, AND STEPHEN BUNCE - - -John Hall, born in 1675 of poor parents in Bishop's Head Court, off -Gray's Inn Lane, was one of those late seventeenth and very early -eighteenth-century evil-doers, who anticipated the sordid career of -the modern thief, without any redeeming qualities. A chimney-sweep by -trade, he was, among other things, a highwayman, but he more often -padded the hoof upon the highway than rode along it, and he would -turn his hand, according to what he deemed the necessities of the -moment, to pocket-picking, shop-lifting, or ringing the changes, with -equal facility. At the same time, he was not altogether a fortunate -malefactor. As a pickpocket, he was frequently detected and, we learn, -"treated in the usual manner, by ducking in the horsepond," by those -who did not want the trouble of prosecuting him. Happening upon more -vindictive persons, he was arrested, time after time, and thrown into -Bridewell and often whipped. Which was the more desirable, to be -flung into a horsepond, or be whipped, it must be left to individual -tastes to decide. It depends largely, no doubt, upon the comparative -filthiness of the pond and the kind of lash in use by the brawny -warders of Bridewell. - -He was eminently versatile, but the public has ever looked with -suspicion upon versatility; and perhaps for this, among other reasons, -his name is scarcely famous: only notorious in a small way as a -jack-of-all-trades, except honest ones, and a great master in no -particular one. - -He was, it may be at once granted, industrious enough in his perverted -way, and was for always frequenting churches, fairs, markets, and -public assemblies: he had also generally a confederate at hand, to whom -he would swiftly pass on the swag, to be himself found empty-handed -when searched, and with nothing on him to prove his guilt; quite in the -modern style. - -He had, as a shoplifter, the same painfully chequered fortunes that -studded his pocket-picking career with deplorable incidents. In January -1682 he was convicted at the Old Bailey of stealing a pair of shoes, -and was whipped at the cart's tail. A little later, still smarting from -that correction, he was back at the same trade, and in the long span -of eighteen years suffered a series of duckings, whippings, and the -distressing indignities that are the common rewards of clumsy rogues, -sufficient to have cured many an one. But Jack Hall was clearly an -"habitual." The delight of sport gilded his occupation, and salved his -moral and physical hurts; and, after all, although he was a more than -commonly blundering criminal, it was in itself no mean feat in those -severe times to follow the course he steered, and yet for so long to -keep his neck out of the noose. - -After eighteen years of miscellaneous villainy, he was convicted of -breaking into the house of one Jonathan Bretail, and for this was -sentenced to be hanged. With so lengthy a record as this, he was -fortunate indeed in receiving a pardon conditional upon his being -transported within six months to the American colonies. Fortunate -colonies! But he escaped at the last moment from the convict ship, and -England therefore did not lose her Hall. - -Having tried many kinds of petty robbery with no very great or -continued success, and being too well known as a pickpocket and -shoplifter, against whom every pocket was buttoned, all tills locked, -and goods carefully secured, he struck out a new line; robbing country -waggons and stealing portmanteaus off coaches. But even here, in this -arduous branch of a thief's varied business, ill-luck malevolently -pursued him; for he was caught in the act and convicted in 1702. This -brought him a period of two years' enforced seclusion in Bridewell, and -the painful and disfiguring sentence of branding in the cheek, by which -all men might know him on sight for a convicted felon, and be warned -accordingly. This inevitable carrying his own condemnation with him -wherever he went severely handicapped him when he was again at liberty; -and it was probably for this reason that he returned to burglary, -which, conducted at night-time, might reasonably offer inducements to a -man with a scarred face. - -With Stephen Bunce, Dick Low, and others, he broke into the shop of -a baker named Clare, at Hackney, soon after midnight. They proceeded -at once to the bakehouse, where they surprised the journeyman and -apprentice at work, and, tying them neck and heels, threw them into the -kneading-trough. One stood guard over them with a drawn sword, while -the others went upstairs to rob the house. - -[Illustration: THE ROBBERY AT THE HACKNEY BAKER'S.] - -The elderly Mr. Clare was awakened from sleep and bidden disclose where -his money lay, but he stoutly refused, in spite of all their threats, -until Hall seized a little girl, the baker's granddaughter. "D——n me!" -he said, "if I won't bake the child in a pie and eat it, if the old -rogue won't be civil." - -Mr. Clare seems to have been alarmed by this extravagant threat. -Perhaps the flaming "F" for felon, or "T" for thief, on Hall's cheek, -made him appear exceptionally terrible. At any rate, Mr. Clare then -revealed his hoard of gold, which amounted to between seventy and -eighty guineas; and with that, very satisfied, the midnight band -departed. - -Although this daring raid was naturally the subject of much excited -comment, the robbers were not captured, and they were presently bold -enough to break into the house of a man named Saunders, a chairman in -the same locality. Saunders was informed that Hall was one of the -thieves, and, knowing him well by sight, he pursued him and his gang at -three o'clock in the morning, accompanied by a watchman. The gang fired -at their pursuers, and the watchman fell, wounded in the thigh. Hall -escaped altogether, and although some of his accomplices were captured, -they were acquitted, from lack of sufficient evidence. - -In 1705 Hall was again in trouble, under the alias of "Price," but was -acquitted on the charge of housebreaking then brought against him. He -was similarly fortunate in October 1706, when he was charged in company -with Arthur Chambers with being concerned in stealing a handkerchief. -Such a trivial theft would seem hardly to need collaboration. - -Later on, he was again in custody, but meanly obtained his liberty by -turning evidence against two accomplices. - -Finally, in 1707 he was arrested with his old pals, Stephen Bunce and -Dick Low, for a burglary committed at the house of Captain Guyon, near -Stepney. All three were convicted, and suffered in company at Tyburn, -on December 7th, 1707. - -Dick Low was a not very distinguished person, and indeed his name, -except in association with Hall and Bunce, is utterly unworthy of -record in these annals. He was more expert at stealing from shops and -emptying tills than in any other branch of the thieving profession, and -would have made an expert area-sneak had areas been then in existence. -Unfortunately they came in about a century later. But he was an expert -at the "running-smobble," which consisted in two or three confederates -planning to rob a shop after dark: one going in with an exaggerated -pretence of drunkenness and creating a disturbance; while the others -would enter on the excuse of seeing what the matter could be, and then, -turning out the lights, clearing out the till, and laying hands on any -light articles of value that might be within reach. One of them would -come provided with pepper, or handfuls of mud and throw it in the faces -of the shopkeeper and his assistants, when they began to cry "Stop, -thief!" - -For the rest, Dick Low was a violent, sullen brute, often, like his two -allies, in Newgate, and when there generally in the bilboes for savage -assaults on his fellow-prisoners. - -Stephen Bunce, or Bunch, began his iniquities as soon as he could -toddle, and, according to the Reverend Mr. Thomas Pureney, the Ordinary -of Newgate, was old in crime while he was yet an infant in years. -Another biographer picturesquely says he was "born a thief," which, -as his parents were the inevitably "poor but honest" folk of the -conventional type of biography, seems an extreme criticism. - -The depravity of Stephen Bunce was, however, so precocious that, as a -child, he would go and play with the children of a charcoal-man, who -lived near his native London alley, for the express purpose of filling -his pockets with the charcoal, and then selling it, for hot codlins, -to a woman who kept an apple-stall. One day, when the codlins were more -than ever tempting and the charcoal not so easily to be stolen, he -asked the woman for some apples on trust, but she refused, and Stephen -resolved upon revenge. - -On the next opportunity, pocketing a larger quantity of charcoal than -usual, he filled the holes in it with gunpowder and then stopping them -with black sealing-wax, sold the charcoal to the unsuspecting woman, -who presently replenished her fire with it, with the natural result -that her brazier was blown to pieces and herself almost frightened out -of her wits. - -Graduating in crime as he grew up, Stephen naturally worked his way -through picking and stealing at the coffee-houses to practising on the -road. "Amongst others of his notorious pranks, he often played several -comical tricks, the most remarkable whereof is this, _viz._: One day -being upon some prospect in Essex, and destitute of money, as he was -coming along a footpath from Brentwood to London, he espied over the -hedges a gentleman mounted upon a very fine gelding, valued at above -forty pounds. Bunce presently gets the length of two or three fields -before the gentleman, and going over a stile at the turning of a lane, -he there lays himself down by a ditch-side, with his ear close to the -ground, till the gentleman was come up with him. Seeing him lie in that -posture, he asked him the meaning of it. - -"Bunce, in a sort of admiration, holding up his hands, as much as -to say, 'Don't disturb me,' gave no answer for some time, and then, -rising, said, 'Sir, I have heard much talk of fairies, but could never -believe there were any till now; for, upon my word, under this spot of -ground there is such a fine harmony of melodious tunes playing, upon -all sorts of charming instruments, so ravishing to the ears, that a man -with the great transports thereof (providing they were continually to -play) could lie here for ever.' - -"The gentleman, eager to hear these fine raptures, alights from his -gelding, and lays his ear to the ground, with his face towards Bunce, -but told him he could hear nothing. - -"'Oh! sir,' replied Bunce, 'lay the other ear to it.' With that the -gentleman very attentively lays his other ear to the ground, to hear -these harmonious sounds, and his back being then towards Bunce, he -presently mounts the gelding, and rid as fast as he could away. - -"When being come within a quarter of a mile of Romford, he alights and -turns the gelding loose, thinking if the gentleman used any inn in that -town, the gelding would make to it; and it did accordingly run into the -'Red Lion.' At the same time, the ostler happened to come out, and, -seeing the gelding running in without a rider, cried out, 'O! master, -master; here's Mr. What-d'ye-call-him's gelding come without him' -(calling him by his name). - -"Bunce being just by, takes the advantage of hearing what the -gentleman's name was, and replied that he was engaged with some -gentleman at Brentwood, desiring the innkeeper to send him £10, and had -sent his gelding for pledge, as designing to be there himself in two or -three hours' time. - -"'Ay, ay,' quoth the innkeeper, a hundred pounds was at his service, if -he had sent for it, and accordingly gave Bunch £10, with which he came -up to London. - -"About four or five hours later, the gentleman came up to the inn, -puffing and blowing, in his jack-boots, asking the innkeeper if he had -seen any one with his gelding. - -"The innkeeper bid him not fret, for his man had left his gelding -there, and he had given him £10, according to his desire. - -"'Rat him for a dog,' quoth the gentleman, 'he's none of my man; but -I'm glad he's left my gelding here and raised no more money than that -upon him. However, it shall be a warning to me for ever, alighting from -my horse to hear fairies play upon musick.'" - - - - -"MR." AVERY AND DICK ADAMS - - -Then there was Avery, who appears in the chronicles as "Mr." Avery. -He had in his youth been apprenticed to a bricklayer, and followed -that trade when out of his indentures. He also followed that of a -highwayman, and it is recorded, in sub-acid manner, that he worked so -hard at it that it killed him at last, against his will: which is an -oblique way of saying that it finally brought him to Tyburn tree. - -Questing one day up and down the road, like the ravens in search of -food, he met an honest tradesman. They rode together for some time, -when Avery asked him what trade he followed. The man replied that he -was a fishmonger, and, with a polite show of interest, asked Avery's -trade. - -"Why," said the highwayman, "I am a limb of St. Peter also." - -"What!" exclaimed the other, astonished, "are you a fishmonger too? -Indeed, I don't understand your meaning, sir." - -Whereupon Avery, pulling out his pistol, coolly observed: "My meaning -may soon be comprehended, for there's not a finger upon my hand but -will catch gold or silver, without any bait at all." So, taking all -the unfortunate man possessed, and cutting the girth and bridle of his -horse, to delay any likelihood of pursuit, he rode off for London. - -On another occasion he met an exciseman on Finchley Common. The -exciseman would not deliver his money until Avery had shot his horse -dead and threatened to do the like to him. Then, daunted by Avery's -terribly high words, and almost frightened out of his wits to hear what -dreadful volleys of oaths came out of his mouth, he stopped it as soon -as he could with twelve pounds, saying: "Here, take what I have, for if -there be a devil, certainly thou art one." - -"It may be so," replied Avery, "but yet much of a devil though I am, -I see an exciseman is not so good a bait to catch him as some people -would make out." - -"No, he is not," returned the exciseman; "the hangman is the only bait -to catch such devils as you." - -It was ill work, as a rule, exchanging insults with a highway -gentleman, but Avery, content with the main thing, rode off unmoved. He -was hanged at last, at Tyburn, January 31st, 1713. - -Dick Adams, who derived from Gloucestershire and at an early age was in -the service of a respectable Duchess (their Graces, you know, were not -all what they might have been, in the way of personal character, in the -seventeenth century), at last found his way into the Life Guards, but -as his pay did not suffice to support his extravagance, he sometimes -collected upon the highway. With some of his companions of the road, -he on one occasion robbed a gentleman of a gold watch and a purse of -a hundred and twenty guineas. Now observe how the greedy are made to -suffer for their greediness! Not content with their fine booty, he must -needs covet the gentleman's coat; and so cantered after him, saying: -"Sir, you have got a very fine coat on; I must make bold to exchange -with you;" and off the coat had to come, and the traveller went angry -away. Presently however, as he was riding along in that shabby misfit, -he thought he heard something jingling in a pocket; something that -sounded very differently from the jingling of his horse's bridle. -Thrusting in his hand, he, to his astonishment, found his watch and all -his money that Adams in his hurry had forgotten to remove out of the -pockets of his own coat when this exchange, which certainly proved, -after all, to be no robbery, was made. - -We may dwell a moment upon the rage of Adams and his party, when they -came to the next hedgeside inn and sat down to examine their gains, -which had thus vanished away, like the early dews of morning. - -It is pleasant to read of honest men occasionally coming to their own -again, and of incidents of painful retribution. Such an incident as -that recorded above deserves a fellow, and we find it in the painful -adventure in which Tom Taylor was the luckless sufferer. We do not -hear much of Tom Taylor, who was, indeed, more of a pickpocket than a -highwayman. We do learn, however, that he was the son of a clergyman, -and that "he was executed along with Moll Jones." Clearly, Tom -Taylor was an undesirable and the companion of undesirables. He was -accustomed to dress himself in smart clothes and attend theatres and -public entertainments, and there—an unsuspected fine gentleman—to pick -pockets. On one such occasion he emptied a gentleman's pocket of forty -guineas, and we are told that, in a disguise, he seated himself the -next night beside the same person, who recognised him but made no sign, -having this time come prepared. He had, in fact, baited his pocket with -a handful of guineas, which set up a pleasant jingling and made poor -Tom's mouth water. Poor Tom, we say advisedly, bearing in mind the -sequel. He began presently to "dive" for those guineas and found, to -his dismay, that the gentleman had really in the truest sense, "baited" -his pocket, for it had been sewn all round with fish-hooks, and the -wretched Taylor's hand was held fast. - -Having in vain attempted to disentangle himself, he said to the -gentleman: "Sir, by a mistake, I have somehow put my hand into your -pocket, instead of into my own"; but, without taking the least notice, -that merciless person rose from his seat and made for the "Rose" -tavern, Tom helplessly along with him, his hand all the while remaining -in the pocket. Arrived there, it was no difficult matter to make him -cry "Mercy!" and to induce him to send for one of his comrades, to -bail him out, so to say. It cost the unfortunate Tom Taylor eighty -guineas to get free again. The account of these things then concludes -on the proper note of poetic justice: "Nor was the gentleman satisfied -with this, but caned him in a most unmerciful manner, and then turned -him out to the mob, who ducked him in a pond, and broke one of his -legs." - -The succeeding chapters of Tom Taylor's chequered career do not concern -us, but we learn, without surprise, that this ferocious buffeting and -bruising—to say nothing of the fish-hooks—determined him to abandon the -"diving" trade. - - - - -JONATHAN WILD - - -To cheat that arch-rogue and cunning friend and betrayer of rogues, -Jonathan Wild, out of a place in these pages would be too mean an -action. He towers above the ordinary run of bad men as a very giant in -wickedness. Although he was himself no highwayman, he was friend of and -associate with all of their trade, and as such has a right here. - -Jonathan Wild was a native of Wolverhampton, the son, according to -some, of a carpenter; but, by more trustworthy records, his father was -a wig-maker. He was born about 1682. His father apprenticed him to a -Birmingham buckle-maker. While at Birmingham he married, but, deserting -his wife and child, he made for London, and was for a short period a -gentleman's servant. Returning for a brief space to the buckle-making -trade, he soon found himself in debt, and then, by what was a natural -transition in those times, lodged in the Poultry Compter. The Compter -(it is also styled the Wood Street Compter) was something over and -above a prison for debtors and others: and was indeed nothing less than -an academy and forcing-house of villainies, where incipient scoundrels -were brought on early in season, like cucumbers under glass. It was -not singular in this, for all the prisons of that age shared the like -well-earned reputation. Something of the horrors of imprisonment for -debt, as then practised, may be judged by the fact that Wild was here -for four years; but for a portion of the time he had the advantage over -his fellow-prisoners of being appointed assistant-gaoler. Wild never at -any time lacked address and tact, and these qualities here stood him in -good stead. - -It was in this abode of despair that he first met Mary Milliner, who -was ever afterwards associated with him. She was already old in crime, -though not in years, and was his initiator into the first practical -rogueries he knew. But he was a criminal by instinct, and needed only -introductions to the world of crime. Once shown the methods in vogue, -he not only became a master in their use, but speedily improved upon -them, to the wonderment and admiration of all the cross-coves in London. - -Released at length from durance, he and Mary Milliner set up a vile -establishment in Lewkenor's Lane, and later took a low public-house, a -resort of the padding-culls of the City—the sign of the "Cock," in Cock -Alley, Cripplegate. - -Wild had also made acquaintance, while in the Wood Street Compter, of -a deep-dyed scoundrel, a certain Charles Hitchen, an ex-City marshal, -who had lost his post through irregular practices, and had become an -associate with and director of thieves, and an expert blackmailer. -Hitchen was his early instructor in the curious art of acting as -intermediary between the thieves and those persons who had been robbed -of goods, or had had their pockets picked of watches and other valuable -jewellery; but Wild was a genius in his own way, with a talent for -organisation never equalled in his line, before or since, except -perhaps by Moll Cutpurse, who flourished a century earlier. Moll, -however, was ever staunch to her friends and accomplices, but Wild was -always ready to sell his intimates and to send them to the cart, if it -were made worth his while. So their careers run parallel for only a -little distance and then widely separate. - -Wild in a very little time broke with Hitchen. He left his instructor -far behind, and did business on so Napoleonic a scale that he speedily -aroused the furious jealousy of his sometime associate, who, unable -to contain himself at the thought of Wild, once his pupil, taking -nearly all his profitable business away, published a singular pamphlet, -intended to expose the trade. This was styled "The Regulator; or, a -Discovery of Thieves, Thief-takers, and Locks": "locks" being receivers -of stolen property. It had not the desired effect of spoiling his -rival's trade; and Jonathan continued to thrive amazingly. As a broker -and go-between in nearly all the felonies of his time committed in -and immediately around London, he speedily came to the front, and he -was exceptional in that he most adroitly and astonishingly doubled -the parts of Receiver-General of stolen property and self-styled -"Thief-catcher-General of Great Britain and Ireland." - -It might at the first blush, and indeed even after long consideration, -seem impossible to pose with success at one and the same time as -the friend and the enemy of all who get their living on the cross, -but Jonathan Wild achieved the apparently impossible and flourished -exceedingly on the amazing paradox. - -The first steps in this mesh of scoundrelism that Wild drew are not -sufficiently detailed, and Fielding's "History of the Late Mr. Jonathan -Wild the Great" is rather an effort in whimsical, satirical imagination -than in sheer biography. The considerable number of chap-book "Lives" -of this arch-villain are also absolutely untrustworthy. But it is -abundantly evident that he was a man of imagination and a master at -organising, for we find him the brain-centre of all the robberies -committed at that time in and around London, himself the secret, -supreme director of them all, and at the same time the apparently -"honest broker" who, for a consideration (quite after the old manner -of Moll Cutpurse), would undertake to restore missing property. This -self-appointed "Thief-taker" had numerous contingents, to each of which -was allotted its special work. One attended churches, another visited -the theatres, yet another detachment devoted their best energies to the -art of shop-lifting, and another still took situations as domestic -servants, and in that capacity made away with their employers' plate -and jewellery. It all seems like the fantastic imagining of a novelist, -but it is sufficiently real, and the theory of mutual benefits accruing -to Wild and his gang by this unnatural alliance is quite sound. He -received the stolen property and held it to ransom, dividing (more or -less unfairly) the amounts received with his thieves, who could not, -without running great risks, sell it. All concerned benefited: the -plundered citizens repurchased their valuables cheaply, Wild took an -excellent commission, and the thieves, pickpockets, and highwaymen made -a good living without much risk. The reverse of this charming picture -of distributed benefits was the alarming increase of robberies and the -decrease of arrests and convictions; and another serious outcome of -Wild's organisation was that he absolutely commanded the lives of those -who worked with him. None with impunity offended the great man, who was -merciless in his revenge, swearing away the lives of those who dared -cross him. Among the numerous satirical old prints relating to Jonathan -Wild there is a gruesome picture of devils lighting him with flaring -torches on the red way to Hell, together with a trophy of twenty-five -hanging persons, men and women, all duly named, whom he brought to the -gallows as a result of differences of opinion in the business matters -between them, or merely for the reason that they had outlasted their -use and had become inefficient thieves, and it would pay him better -to secure their conviction. And it is to be observed that in all this -while he was well known to be a director of robberies and receiver of -stolen goods. It was scandalously notorious that, while he advertised -himself in the newspapers as "Thief-catcher-General of Great Britain -and Ireland," he was colleague of those he professed to catch. And, as -the law then stood, he could not be brought to book. Everything was -possible to the cunning and daring of Jonathan Wild, who could not -merely bring a man to trial, but could snatch him from the very jaws of -death by making the prosecutor so drunk that he was not present to give -evidence at the trial; whereupon the accused was discharged. - -In fifteen years' activities of this kind, Wild amassed enormous sums. -He established himself in a fine house in the Old Bailey, conveniently -opposite Newgate, and there lived in fine style with his Molly, the -widow of a criminal who had been hanged at Tyburn. A footman followed -him in livery; he dined in state: "His table was very splendid, he -seldom dining under five Dishes, the Reversions whereof were generally -charitably bestow'd on the Commonside felons." Jewellery and valuables -not ransomed were shipped by him to Holland, in a sloop he regularly -maintained for the purpose, bringing contraband goods on the return -voyage. - -There is this undoubted tribute to Jonathan Wild's greatness, that -Parliament was at last moved to pass an Act especially designed to -cope with his villainies, and to lay him by the heels. This was the -Act of 1718, "For the farther preventing Robberies, Burglaries, and -other Felonies, and for the more effectual transportation of Felons." A -portion of this measure constituted it a felony for any one to solicit -or to accept a reward on the pretence of restoring stolen property to -the owners, unless they prosecuted the thieves. - -But this clause was evaded without much difficulty by the astute Wild. -He merely reconstituted his business, and made it an Enquiry Office, -where no money was accepted. Clients still came in numbers to him, -seeking their lost property, for it was certain, all the while, that -he had really a guilty knowledge of at least three-quarters of the -robberies committed in London. This revised procedure was for the -owners who called upon him to be informed that he had made enquiries, -and that he had heard the articles might be recovered if a reward was -despatched to a place named. The owners would then generally, acting on -his advice, send out, by the hands of a ticket-porter (ticket-porters -were the "commissionaires" of that period) the reward agreed upon. -The porter was instructed to wait at a street-corner until a person -delivered a package into his hands, whereupon he was to hand over the -reward. The celerity attending these transactions was remarkable. - -In other instances Wild would advise his clients to advertise their -loss and to offer a reward payable to any person who should deliver the -lost property to Mr. Jonathan Wild, or at his office; and no questions -asked. Perhaps the most marvellous thing in these negotiations was the -assumed disinterestedness of Mr. Jonathan Wild himself, who, although -the most notorious evil-doer in London, posed delightfully as the -instrument of good, restoring the lost valuables of utter strangers -entirely without fee or reward, from the Christian love he bore the -human race. Fielding truly styled him "the Great Man." - -Wild's impudence increased with his success, and he is found -petitioning the Corporation for the freedom of the City to be conferred -upon him, in recognition of his great services in bringing criminals to -justice. It does not appear that the City responded. - -Wild's career first became seriously threatened early in 1724, when, -greatly alarmed for his own safety, he is found imploring the Earl -of Dartmouth to shield him from what he styles the "persecution" of -the magistrates, who, he declares, had procured thieves and other bad -characters to swear false evidence against him. The scandal of Wild's -continued existence had at last become too gross for even that age. But -his time was not yet come, and he continued as before; mindful perhaps -of the old adage, "threatened men live long." He nearly ended, however, -by a more summary process than any known to the law; and entirely -through his own bloodthirsty treatment of "Blueskin," one of his own -associates. - -Joseph Blake, better known in all the stories of the highwaymen -as "Blueskin," who was hanged at Tyburn on November 11th, 1724, -was an expert highwayman, thief, and pickpocket—or, to speak in -the professional terms then in use among these fraternities, a -"bridle-cull," a "boman," and a "diver." He had long been a busy -servant of Jonathan, and frequently worked in company with Jack -Sheppard, but he would perhaps be little known in these later times -were it not for his having come very near sending the Great Man out of -the world, and thus cheating the gallows, already growing ripe for him. - -"Blueskin," rebelling, it may be presumed, against Wild on -some question of money, was promptly arrested by that astute -Director-General of Thieves, in his character of thief-taker, and -committed to Newgate on a charge of house-breaking. It was almost -invariably fatal to quarrel, or even to have a mere difference of -opinion, with that powerful and revengeful man. Wild was in court at -the Old Bailey, to give evidence, when "Blueskin" beckoned him over to -the dock. Inclining his ear to gather what the prisoner was pretending -to whisper, Wild instantly found himself seized in "Blueskin's" -frenzied grasp, and the court with horror saw his throat cut from ear -to ear. The deed was done with a penknife, and the wound was severe -and dangerous, but Wild eventually recovered, much to the surprise -of those who saw the ferocity of the attack, and greatly to the sorrow -of the criminal classes of London, who knew right well that they were -suffered to live only as long as they were useful and profitable to -Wild, and careful to exercise a due subservience to him. - -[Illustration: JONATHAN WILD IN THE CONDEMNED CELL. - - _From an old Print._] - -Indeed, it was at first thought that Wild must certainly die, and Swift -at that moment wrote the famous _Blueskin's Ballad_, of which here are -two verses: - - Then, hopeless of life, - He drew his penknife, - And made a sad widow of Jonathan's wife. - But forty pounds paid her, her grief shall appease, - And ev'ry man round me may rob, if he please. - - Some rob in the customs, some cheat in the 'xcise, - But he who robs both is esteemèd most wise. - Churchwardens, who always have dreaded the halter, - As yet only venture to steal from the altar. - But now to get gold - They may be more bold - And rob on the highway, since honest Wild's cold; - For Blueskin's sharp penknife has set you at ease, - And ev'ry man round me may rob, if he please. - -Swift, however, was in too great a hurry: Jonathan Wild did not die -then, and the thieves were not yet released from his iniquitous -bondage. His wife was not then made a "sad widow," although she was -soon to become one; and thus earned the remarkable distinction of -having been twice a "hempen widow." - -In January of the following year, 1725, the captain of Wild's sloop, -a man named Roger Johnson, who had been arrested on a charge of -contraband trading with Holland, sent hurriedly to him. Wild, never at -a moment's loss, assembled a mob, and provoked a riot, by which the -prisoner was rescued. - -Himself arrested at his own house in the Old Bailey, on February 15th, -1725, on a charge of being concerned in the theft of fifty yards of -lace from the shop of Catherine Stetham, in Holborn, on January 22nd, -he was, after considerable delay, put upon his trial at the Old Bailey -on May 15th. The lace stolen was valued at £50. - -He was further charged with feloniously receiving of Catherine Stetham -"ten guineas on account, and under colour of helping the said Catherine -Stetham to the said lace again; and that he did not then, nor at any -time since, discover or apprehend, or cause to be apprehended and -brought to Justice, the persons that committed the said felony." - -The evidence adduced at the trial is first-hand information of Wild's -method in organising a robbery. Henry Kelly, one of the chief witnesses -against him, told how he went on that day to see a Mrs. Johnson who -then lived at the prisoner's house. He found her at home, and with her -the great Jonathan and his Molly, and they drank a quartern of gin -together. By-and-by, in came a certain woman named Peg Murphy with a -pair of brocaded clogs, which she presented to Mrs. Wild. After two or -three more quarterns of gin had passed round, Murphy and Henry Kelly -rose to leave. - -"Which way are you going?" asked Wild. - -"To my lodging in 'Seven Dials,'" replied Kelly. - -"I suppose," remarked Wild, "you go along Holborn?" - -Both Kelly and Murphy answered that they did. - -"Why, then," he said, "I'll tell you what: there's an old blind bitch -that keeps a shop within twenty yards of Holborn Bridge and sells fine -Flanders lace, and her daughter is as blind as herself. Now, if you'll -take the trouble of calling upon her, you may speak with a box of lace. -I'll go along with you, and show you the door." - -The Judge at this moment intervened with the question, "What do you -understand by 'speaking with a box of lace'?" - -Even in our own day judges are commonly found enquiring the meaning -of phrases whose significance is common knowledge which one might -reasonably suppose to be shared even on the Olympian heights of the -King's Bench and other exalted divisions of the High Court. Every one -in Jonathan Wild's day understood perfectly well that to "speak with" a -thing was to steal it, and this was duly expounded to his lordship. - -Then Kelly went on to explain how Wild, himself, and Murphy went along -Holborn Hill until they came within sight of the lace-shop, which Wild -pointed out to them. - -"You go," he said, "and I'll wait here and bring you off, in case of -any disturbance." - -[Illustration: - - _To all the Thieves, - Whores, Pick-pockets, - Family Fellons &c. - in Great Brittain & Ireland, - Gentlemen & Ladies - You are hereby desir'd to - accompany y^r worthy friend y^e - Pious Mr. I——W—d from his - Seat at Whittingtons Colledge - to y^e Tripple Tree, where he's - to make his last Exit - on, and his - Corps to be Carry'd from thence - to be decently Interr'd amongst - his Ancestors._ - -_Pray bring this Ticket with you_ - -SATIRICAL INVITATION-CARD TO EXECUTION OF JONATHAN WILD.] - -Murphy and Kelly accordingly entered, in the character of purchasers, -and turned over several kinds of lace, pretending to be very difficult -to please. This piece was too broad, that too narrow, and t'other not -fine enough. At last the old woman went upstairs to fetch a finer -piece, when Kelly took a tin box of lace and gave it to Murphy, who -hid it under her cloak. Then the old woman came down with another box -and showed them several more pieces, but the confederates made as if -they could not agree about the price, and so left the shop and joined -Wild, where they had parted from him. They told him they had "spoke"; -whereupon they all returned to his house and opened the box, in which -they found eleven pieces of lace. "Would they have ready money?" asked -Wild, "or would they wait until the advertisement for the stolen lace -came out?" - -Funds were very low at the time with Murphy and Kelly, and they asked -for ready money, Wild then giving them about four guineas. - -"I can't afford to give any more," he said, "for she's a hard-mouthed -old bitch, and I shall never get above ten guineas out of her." - -Kelly took the lion's share of the money—three guineas—and Murphy had -the remainder. - -Wild was acquitted on the first charge, of being concerned in the -actual theft, but for feloniously receiving the ten guineas the trial -was continued. - -Catherine Stetham the elder said that on January 22nd she had a box -of lace, valued at £50, stolen out of her shop. She went, that same -night, to the prisoner's house to enquire after it; but, not finding -him at home, she advertised the stolen goods, offering a reward of -fifteen guineas, and no questions to be asked. There was no reply to -her advertisement, and she went again to the prisoner's house, and -saw him there. He asked her to give a description of the persons she -suspected, which she did, as nearly as she could, and he promised to -make enquiries, and suggested she should call again in three days. - -She did so, when he said he had heard something of her lace, and -expected to hear more in a little time. Even as they were talking a man -came in and said that, by what he had learned, he believed a man named -Kelly, who had already stood his trial for passing gilded shillings, -had been concerned in stealing the lace. - -She then went away, and returned on the day the prisoner was -apprehended. She had told him that, although she had advertised a -reward of only fifteen guineas for the lace, she would be prepared to -give twenty, or even five-and-twenty, rather than lose it. - -"Don't be in such a hurry, good woman," he rejoined; "perhaps I may -help ye to it for less, and if I can, I will. The persons that have got -your lace are gone out of town; I shall set them quarrelling about it, -and then I shall get it the cheaper." - -On March 10th he sent her word that if she would go to him at Newgate, -with ten guineas in her pocket, he would he able to help her to -her lace. She went. He asked her to call a porter, but she told him -she did not know where to find one, so he sent out and obtained a -ticket-porter. The porter was given ten guineas, to call upon the -person who was said to have the lace, and he returned in a little while -with a box which was said to contain all the lace, with the exception -of one piece. - -"Now, Mr. Wild," said she, "what must I give you for your trouble?" - -"Not a farthing, madam," said he. "I don't do these things for worldly -interest, but for the benefit of poor people who have met with -misfortunes. As for the piece of lace that is missing, I would not -have ye be uneasy, for I hope to get it for you ere long; nay, and I -don't know but in a little time I may not only help ye to your ten -guineas again, but to the thief too. And if I can, much good may it -do you; and as you are a widow and a good Christian, I desire nothing -of ye but your prayers; and for them I shall be thankful. I have a -great many enemies, and God knows what may be the consequences of this -imprisonment." - -The consequences were the most serious known to the law. Wild was -sentenced to death. No sentence in that court had ever been so popular. -When asked if he had anything to say why this judgment should not be -passed upon him, he handed a paper to the Judge, setting forth the -numbers of criminals he had been instrumental in bringing to Justice, -and in a very feeble voice said: "My lord, I hope I may, even in the -sad condition in which I stand, pretend to some little merit, in -respect of the services I have done my country, in delivering it from -some of the greatest pests with which it was ever troubled. My lord, -I have brought many a bold and daring malefactor to just punishment, -even at the hazard of my own life, my body being covered with scars -received in these undertakings. I presume, my lord, to say I have some -merit, because, at the time these things were done, they were esteemed -meritorious by the Government; and therefore I beg, my lord, some -compassion may be shown, upon the score of these services. I submit -myself wholly to His Majesty's mercy, and humbly beg a favourable -report of my case." - -But the law had too long been waiting for him, and his enormities were -too great, for any mercy to be hoped for; and he was left to die. He -did not afford an edifying spectacle in that condemned hold to which he -had consigned so many, reflecting that, as "his Time was but short in -this World," it was necessary to improve it to the best advantage "in -Eating, Drinking, Swearing, Cursing, and talking to his Visitants." His -old crony, the Reverend Thomas Pureney, the Ordinary, he flouted; and, -for the little spiritual consolation he at the last moment required, he -called in an outsider. But this did not prevent Pureney from concocting -a lying account and offering it for sale after his execution. Therein -we read, as though in Wild's own words: - -"Finding that there was no room for mercy (and how could I expect -Mercy, who never show'd any?), as soon as I came into the condemned -Hole, I began to think of making a preparation for my Soul; and the -better to bring my stubborn Heart to Repentance, I thought it more -proper to have the advice and the Council and Directions of a Man -of Learning, a Man of sound Judgment in Divinity, and therefore -Application being made to the reverend Mr. _Nicholson_, he very -Christian-like gave me his Assistance: And I hope that my Repentance -has been such as will be accepted in Heaven, into which Place, I trust -in God, my Soul will quickly be received. To part with my Wife, my -dear _Molly_, is so great an Affliction to me, that it touches me -to the Quick, and is like Daggers entering into my Heart. As she is -innocent, and I am the Guilty Man, let her not suffer in her Charracter -and Reputation for my Crimes: Consider that she is a Woman, and how -ungenerous it would be to reflect upon one whose weakness will not -permit her to defend herself so well as her Innocence will carry her. - -"And now, good People, you see to what a shameful End my Wickedness has -brought me; take warning therefore by my Example, and let my unhappy -Fate deterr you from following wicked Courses, and cause such of you to -forsake your Crimes, who are now fallen into them. Remember that though -Justice has leaden feet, yet she has Iron hands, and sooner or later -will overtake the unwary Criminal. I am now upon the point of departing -out of this World; joyn with me, therefore, in Prayer while I have -life, and pray to God to receive my poor Soul into his blessed Arms, -and to make us all happy with our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen." - -All the foregoing was the sheer invention of the egregious Pureney, and -Wild really went unrepentant to his end at Tyburn, May 24th, 1725. He -sought, by taking laudanum, to cheat the gallows of its due, but failed -in the attempt. The day of his execution was one of great rejoicings in -London, and huge crowds lined the way, pelting Wild, as he rode in the -cart, with stones and dirt. - -[Illustration: JONATHAN WILD ON THE WAY TO EXECUTION.] - - - - -NICHOLAS HORNER - - -Nicholas Horner was a younger son of the vicar of Honiton, in -Devonshire, and was born in 1687. He was wild and unmanageable almost -from infancy, and showed little promise of remaining in the humble post -of attorney's clerk, in which his father placed him, in London, when -he was seventeen or eighteen years of age. He remained, however, with -the attorney for three years, learning more in the way of drinking and -dicing at the "Devil" and the "Apollo" taverns in the Strand, than of -law in Clement's Inn. He then ran away, and remarked when he exchanged -his quill-pen, his parchments, and his stool in the lawyer's office, -for the pistols, the crape mask, and the mettlesome horse of the -highwayman, that he was only exchanging one branch of the profession -to which he had been articled for another and a higher—becoming a -"highway lawyer," a "conveyancer" and a "collector." Unfortunately for -him, he began to practise in this new branch before he had properly -made himself acquainted with the rudiments of its procedure, and was -in consequence taken in an interview with his first client, and lodged -in Winchester gaol, where he remained for three months before his -trial came on. In the meanwhile, the friends of his family, seeing how -scandalous a thing it would be if a clergyman's son were convicted -of highway robbery, and sentenced to die by the rope of the hangman, -strongly endeavoured to persuade the gentleman whom he had robbed to -fail in identifying him. But their efforts were fruitless, for he was -determined to prosecute, and the trial in due course was held, and the -prisoner found guilty and formally sentenced to death. - -His friends were more successful in the petitions they forwarded to -the Queen, herself an excellent Churchwoman, and disposed to stretch a -point that its ministers might be saved from unmerited reproach. Horner -was pardoned on condition that his friends undertook that he should -be sent out of the kingdom within three months, and that they should -undertake to keep him in exile for seven years. It was an excellent -offer, and they accepted, shipping him to India, where he remained for -the stipulated time, passing through many adventures which, although -detailed by Smith, are not concerned with the highway portion of his -career, and are not even remotely credible. - -Returning to his native shores, he found both his father and mother -dead, and received from the executors of his father's will the amount -of £500, all his father had to leave him. That sum did not last him -long. What are described as "the pleasures of town" soon brought him -again to his last guinea; and he, of course, once more took to the -road. - -"Well overtaken, friend," he said to a farmer he came up with on the -road. "Methinks you look melancholy; pray what ails you, sir? If you -are under any afflictions and crosses in the world, perhaps I may help -to relieve them." - -"Ah! my dear sir," replied the farmer, "were I to say I had any losses, -I should lie, for I have been a thriving man all my life, and want for -nothing; but indeed I have crosses enough, for I have a d—d scolding -wife at home, who, though I am the best of husbands to her, and daily -do my best to make her and my children happy, is always raving and -scolding about the house like a madwoman. I am daily almost nagged -out of my life. If there be such a thing as perpetual motion, as some -scientific men say, I'm sure it is in my wife's tongue, for it never -lies still, from morning to night. Scolding is so habitual to her that -she even scolds in her sleep. If any man could tell me how to remedy -it, I have a hundred pounds in gold and silver about me which I would -give him with all my heart, for so great a benefit which I should -receive by the taming of this confounded shrew." - -Horner, listening to this most pleasant tune of a hundred pounds, said: -"Sir, I'll just tell the ingredients with which nature first formed a -scold, and thus, the cause of the distemper being known, it will be -easier to effect a cure. You must understand, then, that nature, in -making a scold, first took of the tongues and galls of bulls, bears, -wolves, magpies, parrots, cuckoos, and nightingales, of each a like -number; the tongues and tails of vipers, adders, snails, and lizards, -six each; _aurum fulminans_, aqua fortis, and gunpowder, of each a -pound; the clappers of seventeen bells, and the pestles of thirty -apothecaries' mortars, which becoming all mixed, she calcined them in -Mount Stromboli and dissolved the ashes in water, distilled just under -London Bridge at three-quarters flow-tide, and filtered through the -leaves of Calepin's dictionary, to render the operation more verbal; -after which she distilled it again through a speaking-trumpet, and -closed up the remaining spirits in the mouth of a cannon. Then she -opened the graves of all recently-deceased pettifoggers, mountebanks, -barbers, coffeemen, newsmongers, and fishwives at Billingsgate, and -with the skin of their tongues made a bladder, covered over with -drumheads and filled with storms, tempests, whirlwinds, thunder and -lightning. Lastly, to irradiate the whole elixir, and make it more -churlish, she cut a vein under the tongue of the dog-star, drawing -thence a pound of the most choleric blood; and from which sublimating -the spirits, she mixed them with the foam of a mad dog; and then, -putting all together in the before-mentioned bladder, stitched it up -with the nerves of Socrates' wife." - -"A damned compound, indeed." said the farmer; "and surely it must be -impossible for any man to tame a shrew at this rate." - -"Not at all," replied Horner, "for when she first begins to be in her -fits, you shall perceive it by the bending of her brows; then apply to -her a plaster of good words: after that, give her a wheedling potion; -and if that will not do, take a bull's tail, and, applying the same -with a strong arm from shoulder to flank, it shall infallibly complete -the cure." - -The farmer was very well pleased with this prescription, and, giving -Horner many thanks and treating him liberally at the next inn, they -continued to ride on together. At last, coming to a convenient place, -Horner said, "Please pay me now, sir, for my advice." - -"I thought the entertainment I provided for you just now at the inn was -all the satisfaction you required," retorted the surprised farmer. - -"No, sir," said Horner, "you promised a hundred pounds if any one would -find you a remedy for your scolding wife; and a bargain is a bargain -all the world over, in the market or on the road": so presenting his -pistol at the farmer's head, "d—n me, sir," he continued, "presently -deliver your bag, or you are a dead man!" - -The farmer delivered the bag, which, if it did not contain quite a -hundred pounds, formed an excellent recompense for the time Horner had -spent in exercising his fantastic imagination upon him. - -Shortly after this exploit, Horner met a gentleman on Hounslow Heath, -saluting him with the customary demand to hand over his dibs. - -The traveller gave him six guineas, all he had, saying: "Sir, you -love money better than I do, to thus venture your neck for it"; to -which Horner rejoined, "I follow the way of the world, sir, which -now prefers money before friends, or honesty; yea, some before the -salvation of their souls; for it is the love of money that makes the -unjust judge take a bribe, the corrupt lawyer to plead an evil cause: -the physician to kill a man without fear of hanging, and the surgeon -to prolong a cure. 'Tis this that makes the tradesman tell a lie in -selling his wares; the butcher to blow his veal; the tailor to covet so -much cabbage; the miller to cheat in his corn-grinding; the baker to -give short weight, and to wear a wooden cravat for it; the shoemaker to -stretch his leather, as he does his conscience: and the gentlemen of -the pad—such as myself—to wear a Tyburn tippet, or old Storey's cap on -some country gallows. So good-day to you, sir, and thank you, and never -despise money in a naughty world." - -Horner now experienced a sad blow to his self-esteem, in an adventure -in which he was made to play a ridiculous part, and to be the butt -afterwards of his acquaintances. A lady of considerable position -and wealth was travelling from Colchester to London by stage-coach, -and happened to be the only passenger for a considerable distance. -At Braintree the coachman very politely warned her that, if she had -anything of value about her, she had better conceal it, for there were -several gay sparks about the neighbouring heath, whom he thought to be -highwaymen. Thanking him, the lady placed her gold watch, a purse full -of guineas and some valuable lace under the seat; and then disarranged -her hair, like poor Ophelia, to act the part of a lunatic. - -Presently, Horner rode up to the coach, presented a pistol, and -demanded her money. Instantly she opened the coach-door, leapt out, -and taking the highwayman by the leg, cried in a very piteous voice, -"Oh, dear cousin Tom, I am glad to see you. I hope you'll now rescue me -from this rogue of a coachman, for he's carrying me, by my rogue of a -husband's orders, to Bedlam, for a mad woman." - -"D—n me," replied Horner, "I'm none of your cousin. I don't know you, -but you must be mad, and Bedlam is the best place for you." - -"Oh! cousin Tom," said she, clinging to him, "but I will go with you, -not to Bedlam." - -"Do you know this mad creature?" asked the now distracted highwayman of -the coachman. - -"Yes," he replied, entering into the spirit of the thing; "I know the -lady very well. I am now going, by her husband's orders, to London, to -put her in a madhouse, but not into Bedlam, as she supposes." - -"Take her, then," exclaimed Horner, "even if it were to the devil." So -saying, he set spurs to his horse, and made off as fast as he could, -for fear of her continuing to claim cousinship with him. - -[Illustration: HORNER MEETS HIS MATCH.] - -This story, afterwards appearing in the _Weekly Journal, or British -Gazetteer_, of December 27th, 1718, and coming to Horner's -knowledge, he was almost beside himself with rage, at being so easily -tricked. The tale enjoyed a wide circulation, and seems to have -impressed other travellers; for when Horner soon afterwards adventured -down into the West of England, and stopped a carriage near Honiton, in -which was a lady travelling from Exeter to London, he beheld another -frantic creature with dishevelled hair, who greeted him as "cousin." - -"You hypocritical——!" he roared out; "because I was once bit this way -by one of your d—d sex, d'ye think I must always be bit so?" - -Saying this he turned over every cushion in the carriage, and found -under them sufficient for his trouble: a gold watch, and other -valuables and money, in all to the value of some two hundred pounds. - -But this was Horner's very last stroke of business. He was taken -only two hours later, in attempting to rob two gentlemen, and after -a patient trial at Exeter, was hanged there on April 3rd, 1719, aged -thirty-two. - - - - -WALTER TRACEY - - -"The adventures of this individual," says Johnson, "are neither -of interest nor importance." He then proceeds to recount them at -considerable length, sufficiently disproving his own words in the -course of his narrative. - -Tracey was heir to an estate of £900 annual value, in Norfolk. His -father, himself a man of liberal education, wished his son to share -the like advantage, and sent him to Oxford, where he hoped he would -take a degree and then enter the Church. But Walter was a gay and idle -blade; thoughtless and reckless. His character was otherwise gentle, -open, and generous: so it will be noted that if his recklessness -suited him for the profession of highwayman, his alleged mildness of -disposition was distinctly a drawback. At the least of it, he seems to -have been singularly unfitted for the Church, and, indeed, had never an -opportunity of entering it, for his wild life as a student led to his -being expelled from the University. - -Our precious, delightful humbug, Johnson, greedily telling the story -of the highwayman and omitting no scandalous detail from the task in -which he revelled, halts at this point to make an insincere moral -reflection, which he felt would be called for by some of his readers, -even in the middle of the eighteenth century, when morals and improving -discourses were alike at a heavy discount. - -"The road to vice," he remarks, with his tongue in his cheek, "is of -easy access, and, fascinating as it appears when you proceed, it closes -behind, and leaves nothing on the retrospect but ruggedness and gloom. -Tracey had entered the delusive path, and though he had the wish, -possessed not the fortitude, to retrace his steps." - -That was bad for Tracey. He and his companions, we learn, for some time -amused their parents with various artifices; "but were at last denied -any further pecuniary assistance." In this Micawberish high-falutin -style, are Tracey's experiences told. - -To fill their pockets, Tracey and his friends went upon the road. -Expelled from the University, he reformed for awhile, and made his -way through England until he arrived in Cheshire, where he took -service with a wealthy grazier. He soon became fond of the country, -and reconciled to his now humble lot, and being a youth of elegant -appearance, and possessing very pleasing and fascinating manners, his -friendship was courted by every one. He was proficient in music and -singing, and often, when the toils of the day were over, the villagers -would assemble at his master's door, and "measure their gay steps to -the sound of his violin; 'in fact, as Mr. Micawber might say,' they -danced to his fiddling." - -The country girls vied with one another for his attention; but the -grazier's daughter (or perhaps the prospect of the grazier's money) was -the object of his choice; and so firmly had he gained the esteem of his -master, that their marriage was agreed upon, and at length celebrated -with every mark of happiness and satisfaction. - -For a time he remained happy in this condition of life; especially -as his wife had brought a part of her father's property with her. He -managed farm and stock with skill and industry, and might have become -an ornament and a shining light in the Cheshire cheese-farming, only -for the vagabond blood in him. He found a respectable life insufferably -dull after his early riotous days; and was so loud in his praise of -town and its delights, that he at length disturbed the content of his -wife and his father-in-law as well, and induced them to realise all -their property, and to accompany him to London, where, he said, he -expected to procure some lucrative situation. - -Johnson, perhaps thinking this to be too great a demand upon the -credulity of his readers, feels constrained to add at this point a -criticism of his own. "It was no small proof of the influence he -had over the resolutions and actions of others, that he could thus -induce a country farmer to forget his accustomed habits, and follow -an adventurous son-in-law into scenes with which he was altogether -unacquainted." We may heartily agree with him here. - -Having disposed of their joint stock and other property, they proceeded -to London by way of Trentham, in Staffordshire, where they intended -to rest for a day or two. In the house where they stayed Tracey met -some of his old college friends, with whom he spent a jovial time. -This confirmed him in his desire to return to his former extravagant -way of living, and he seems instantly to have lost all his new-found -honesty and sense of responsibility, under the influence of this old -acquaintance. - -Early next morning he arose and, stealing his father-in-law's -pocket-book, and everything of value that lay handy, went off on his -horse, and thus, without a word of farewell, disappeared. "Thus," -remarks our author, ready with the moralising reflections we know he -really detested, "he in a moment blasted the good hopes which the -reader must have entertained of him; and his future serves only to -confirm that contempt which every honourable mind must feel for him, -after so infamous an action. Every endeavour to discover his retreat -proved ineffectual, and his wife and father-in-law never heard of him -again, until he expiated his crimes by an ignominious death." - -It appears that Tracey proceeded to Coventry, where he alighted at -an inn, in which he observed an unusual stillness. Entering the -house, and hearing sounds of quarrelling upstairs, his curiosity -led him to enquire what was amiss, and walking abruptly into one of -the rooms, surprised the innkeeper and his wife in a heated dispute. -The innkeeper, an elderly man, had married a woman much younger than -himself, and had discovered, too late, that she had really been angling -for his money, rather than for himself: hence these disagreements. - -The dispute ran high as Tracey entered. Both husband and wife were -eager to state their respective grievances, and he listened patiently. -Having heard both sides, he summed up judicially. - -"Money," he said, "has been the cause of this confusion. Without it you -may live in peace and quietness; so, for your own sakes, hand me at -once the money you possess"; handling a loaded pistol significantly the -while. He took first eighty-five guineas, and then his farewell. - -On his way south he met a young Oxonian, whom he accompanied as far as -Ware, where they passed the evening in great harmony and friendship. -Proceeding next day, Tracey frequently remarked that his companion's -valise—a prosperous-looking article—was certainly too weighty for -him. But, in constantly recurring to the subject, he aroused his -companion's suspicions that this pleasant fellow, whom he had picked up -on the road, was none other than a highwayman. He said nothing of his -suspicion, but was resolved to be even with him. Presently, remarking -that he was travelling to take up his degree of Master of Arts, he -hinted that he had with him, in his portmanteau, sixty pounds for his -expenses. - -"Have you so?" said Tracey. "That is very convenient for me at this -time, for I want to borrow just such a sum, and you could not lend it -to a better person than myself." - -So, without more ado, he helped himself to the valise, untying it from -the other's horse and strapping it on his own. - -The student poured forth the most lamentable entreaties, and begged -Tracey not to thus deprive him of what was to establish his future -prospects in life. The money, he declared, was all borrowed, and if it -were sto—— er! _borrowed_ from him at this juncture, he had not the -least prospect of ever being able to repay it. - -All these tears and protestations moved Tracey only so far as to give -him his own purse, containing some four pounds, to carry him on for a -few days. He then disappeared down a bye-road with the valise, and the -student saw him no more, and perhaps had no wish to see him again; for, -as Tracey discovered when he halted at the next hedge-row alehouse and -unstrapped the valise, the sixty pounds was purely imaginary, and its -contents were nothing but two old shirts, half a dozen dirty collars, -a ragged and threadbare student's gown, a pair of stockings minus the -feet, a pair of shoes with but one heel between them, a comb, some -needles and thread, and a ham. The picturesque force of the sucking -highwayman's language when he discovered these treasures, and how -simply he had been taken in, must have considerably astonished the -landlord of that wayside tavern. - -The biographers of Ben Jonson mention his once being robbed by Tracey -in very humorous style. Tracey met the poet, whom he knew well by -sight, on a road in Buckinghamshire, and demanded his purse. To this -"Rare Ben," as his epitaph in Westminster Abbey styles him, answered in -the following impromptu: - - "Fly, villain! hence, or by thy coat of steel, - I'll make thy heart my leaden bullet feel; - And send that thricely thievish soul of thine - To Hell, to be the Devil's valentine." - -Upon which Tracey is supposed to have replied: - - "Art thou great Ben? or the revivèd ghost - Of famous Shakespeare? or some drunken host, - Who, being tipsy with thy muddy beer, - Dost think thy rhymes will daunt my soul with fear? - - "Nay, know, base slave, that I am one of those - Can take a purse as well in verse as prose; - And when thou'rt dead, can write upon thy hearse, - 'Here lies a poet who was robbed in verse.'" - -This ingenious reply disarmed Jonson, who thus discovered that he had -both a wit and a knave to contend with. He endeavoured to save his -money, but to no purpose, and had to resign it to the man who, it -seemed, could rhyme better, impromptu, than himself, and at greater -length. This was not the only misfortune that befel Jonson on this -journey; for, when within two or three miles of London, he was attacked -by a gang of thieves, who knocked him from his horse, bound him hand -and foot, and threw him into a park, where some other wayfarers who -had shared the same fate were lying. One of his unfortunate companions -calling out that he and his wife and children were undone, another, -who was tied up also, said, "Pray, if you are all undone come and undo -me"; which afforded Ben a hearty laugh, and a subject upon which he -afterwards expressed his poetical powers. - -Tracey was not one of your common highwaymen who expended their money -as fast as they earned it. He was of a saving disposition, and after -some time amassed sufficient to keep him in comfort during the rest -of his life. Unfortunately there is little dependence to be placed -upon the honesty of the world, as Tracey found, for the person to whom -he had entrusted his savings embezzled them; and so our highwayman's -intention to retire was upset, and he was reduced to going once more -upon the road. His hand seems by this time to have lost its cunning, or -else he had the very worst luck, for he was soon taken, in an attempt -to rob the Duke of Buckingham; and, after being brought to trial at -Winchester, was executed there in 1634, aged thirty-eight. - - - - -NED WICKS - - -The famous Edward Wicks—more famous as "Ned," one of the favourites -of the romancing Harrison Ainsworth—was born in 1684, and was the son -of an innkeeper at Coventry. His father had him properly grounded in -reading, writing, and 'rithmetic, with the ambition of seeing him -a clerk, but the youthful Edward shunned the desk, and for a few -months filled the post of exciseman. The excisemen of that day were -looked upon with that suspicion and hatred with which tax-gatherers, -tithe-collectors, landlords, people who render accounts for payment, -and the like vermin, have ever been regarded from the earliest times, -and ever will be by all right-minded folk; and Edward soon quitted -the unpopular post of gauger, not only because of its unpopularity, -but for reasons not altogether unconnected with an inability to make -his accounts balance. His reasons for the change are, however, put -in a different light by Smith, who, with sardonic humour, says: "Not -thinking that a post sufficient to cheat Her Majesty's subjects, he -was resolved to impose upon 'em more by taking all they had on the -highway." Or, in milder fashion, according to Johnson, "he chose -rather to gather contributions for himself than for the King." For -"King" read "Queen," for Wicks practised in the reign of Queen Anne. - -The first two interviews he held with travellers upon the highway -were successful, but the third brought him misfortune, for he was -apprehended near Croydon, and sent to prison in the Marshalsea, a -doleful hold, at that time said to be "a lively representation of the -Iron Age, since nothing but gingling of keys and rattling of shackles -and bolts and grates are here to be heard." - -His third attempt would no doubt have remained also his last, had it -not been for the exertions of his friends, who, during the interval -between his arrest and the trial at Sessions, got at the prosecutor -and bribed him with sixty guineas, to fail in identifying him. As -the prosecutor had been robbed of only thirty shillings, he profited -largely by the transaction and was doubtless sorry it could not be -often repeated. - -Wicks was accordingly acquitted, on the failure of this suborned -prosecutor to swear to him; and was immediately on the road again; this -time in partnership with a certain Joe Johnson, alias Saunders. Near -Colnbrook they held up a stage-coach containing four gentlemen, one of -whom discharged a blunderbuss at the luckless Joe, who received seven -or eight bullets, and was thus wounded so severely that he was easily -seized: the more easily in that Wicks instantly made off, with the -speed of the wind. The "chivalry" of the highwaymen, of which we read -so much in novels, was an elusive thing, and was apt to be altogether -missing in the stress of danger. The highwayman who would stand by a -wounded comrade was a very rare bird: so rare, indeed, that we are -inclined to doubt his existence. - -Joe Johnson, committed to prison, was charged by one Woolley with an -earlier robbery, of a silver watch and some money, and was found guilty -and hanged at Tyburn, February 7th, 1704, aged twenty-two. - -The fate of the companion whom he had so basely deserted in the moment -of his greatest need did not warn Wicks from his perilous career, and -we are assured that he "pursued his wicked courses with a great deal of -pleasure and satisfaction." One day he overtook the Duke of Marlborough -at St. Albans, but His Grace had too large a retinue for it to be safe -to venture an attack, and so the great Churchill escaped, for once in a -way. - -Then, riding on towards Cheshunt, he found his way to a little cottage -in a bye-road, where he discovered a poor old woman, bitterly weeping. -She told him she was a poor widow, with no money to pay her rent, and -expected the landlord every moment to come and seize what few goods she -had. - -Wicks bade her rest contented, and he would make things easy; and, -pulling off the richly laced clothes he wore, and putting on an old -coat the woman lent him, he awaited the arrival of the hard-hearted -landlord; who presently came and demanded payment. Ned thereupon, -rising out of the chimney-corner with a short pipe in his mouth, said, -"I understand, sir, that my sister here, poor woman, is behindhand for -rent, and that you design to seize her goods, but as she is a desolate -widow and hath not wherewithal to pay you at present, I hope you will -take so much pity and compassion on her mean circumstances as not to be -too severe: pray let me persuade you to have a little forbearance." - -Said the landlord, "Don't talk to me of forbearance; I'll not pity -people to ruin myself. I'll have my money. I want my rent, and if I am -not paid now, I'll seize her goods forthwith, and turn her out of my -house." - -When Ned found that no entreaties or persuasions would prevail, he -said, "Come, come, let's see a receipt in full, and I'll pay it." - -Accordingly the receipt was given, and the rent paid, and the landlord -made ready to go. - -But Wicks warned him of the dangers of the roads. "'Tis drawing towards -night, sir, and there are many robbers about. I would advise you to -stay here till to-morrow, and go in the morning." - -"No, no!" exclaimed the landlord impatiently, "I'll go now. I can go -seven miles before dark. I don't care what robbing there is abroad. -Besides, I am not afraid of being robbed by any one man, be he whom he -may." - -So, taking his horse, away he rode, and Wicks, hastily re-assuming his -fine clothes, quietly after him, at a cautious interval. - -Taking a circuitous course and putting his mare to a hand-gallop, Wicks -was already waiting the landlord at the edge of a dark pond on a lonely -stretch of road, when the old man rode by. In that situation, as the -shades of night were falling, he robbed him of the rent and of as much -beside, which he later kept for his honest brokerage, after making the -widow a present of the original amount. Hastening back to the cottage, -he had already resumed the rustic clothes and was seated in the chimney -corner, when a knocking came at the door. It was the landlord returning -to tell the story of his woes. He said he had been robbed by a rogue in -a lace coat, who swore a thousand oaths at him. - -"I told you how unsafe it was," said Wicks, from his corner; "but you -would not take my advice." - -The landlord begged leave to stay the night, and went the following -morning upon his way. - -The obvious criticism of this is that, having already been robbed, his -best and safest course would have been to make haste on his way home, -the remainder of the journey, without turning back. - -Ned Wicks one day met Lord Mohun on the road between Windsor and -Colnbrook, attended by only a groom and a footman. He commanded his -lordship to "stand and deliver!" for he was in great want of money, and -money he would have, before they parted company. Lord Mohun, a noted -bully and rustler of that age, proposed that, if the highwayman was so -insistent, they should fight for it, and Wicks very readily accepted -this proposal; whereupon, my lord, seeing him busily preparing his -pistols for the engagement, began to back out of the bargain. Wicks, -perceiving this, said contemptuously: "All the world knows me to be -a man, and such a man am I that, although your lordship could, in a -cowardly manner, murder Mumford the actor, and Captain Cout, I am by no -means afraid of you. Therefore, since you will not fight, I order you -to down with your gold, or expect no quarter!" - -Thus meeting with more than his match, Lord Mohun fell into a -passionate fit of swearing. "My lord," said Wicks, when he could get a -word in edgeways, "I perceive you swear perfectly well, _extempore_: -come, I'll give your honour a fair chance for your money, and that is, -he that swears best of us two shall keep his own, and the money of he -who loses as well." - -My lord, an expert in this line, through long cursing over losses at -cards, eagerly agreed to this new bargain, and threw down a purse of -fifty guineas. Wicks staked a like sum, and the competition started. - -After a quarter of an hour's prodigious swearing on both sides, it was -left to his lordship's groom to declare the winner. - -He said: "Why, my lord, your honour swears as well as ever I heard -any Person of Quality in my life; but, indeed, to give the Strange -Gentleman his due, he has done better than yourself, and has won the -wager, even if it were for a thousand pounds." - -After a few successful years of constant attention to his profession, -Wicks was at last executed at Warwick, on August 29th, 1719, aged -twenty-nine. - - - - -DICK TURPIN - - -Richard Turpin, the hero of half a hundred plays, and of many hundred -ballads and chap-book histories, now demands our attention. His name -stands out, far and away above that of any other of the high-toby -fraternity. Not Claude Du Vall himself owns half his celebrity, -nor Hind, nor Whitney, nor Sixteen-String Jack. Ballad-mongers, -playwrights of the old penny-gaff order, and novelists, with Harrison -Ainsworth at their head, have ever united to do him honour and have -conspired—innocently as a rule—to deprive another and a worthier -highwayman of his due, in order to confer it upon "Dick." The familiar -"Dick" itself shows us how the great public long ago took Turpin to -its ample bosom, and cherished him, but the student of these things -smiles a little sourly as he traces the quite unheroic doings of this -exceptionally mean and skulking scoundrel, and fails all the time to -note anything of a dashing nature in his very busy but altogether -sordid career. - -Turpin never rode that famous Ride to York upon Black Bess: another -and an earlier than he by some sixty years—the bold and daring -Nevison—performed that ride, as we have already shown; and the -chivalry, the courtesy, and consideration, generally so much in -evidence in the plays and the stories, are by no means found in the -many contemporary reports of his doings. - -Richard Turpin was born on September 21st, 1705, at the village -of Hempstead, in Essex. There are those who find a fanciful -appropriateness in the fact, that a man, whose wife was to become a -"hempen widow," should have been born at a place so significantly -named. Those who are curious enough to seek it, may duly find the -record of the future highwayman's baptism in the parish register, and -will find the baptism of an elder sister, Maria, recorded nearly three -years and a half earlier, April 28th, 1702. - -The Reverend William Sworder, vicar of Hempstead, who performed the -baptism, and thereafter made an entry of it in his register, was -evidently proud of his acquaintance with the language of the ancients, -and less pleased with his native tongue, for his entries are generally -in Latin: and thus we find the infant Dick and his parents figuring, -"_Richardus, filius Johannis et Mariae Turpin._" - -[Illustration: TURPIN'S BAPTISMAL REGISTER OF HEMPSTEAD.] - -John Turpin at that time kept the inn that even now, somewhat altered -perhaps in detail, looks across the road to the circle of pollard trees -known as "Turpin's Ring," and thence up to the steep church-path. It -was then, it appears, known as the "Bell," but at times is referred to -as the "Royal Oak," and is now certainly the "Crown." Such are the -difficulties that beset the path of the historian. Nor has this mere -nomenclature of the ancestral roof-tree been the only difficulty. Were -there not seven cities that claimed to be the birthplace of Homer? In -like manner at least one other place, Thaxted, is said to have been -Turpin's native home; but with the register as witness we can flatly -disprove this, and give the honour of producing the famous person to -Hempstead. - -The youthful Turpin was apprenticed to a butcher in Whitechapel, and -soon afterwards set up in business for himself at Waltham Abbey, at the -same time marrying at East Ham a girl named Hester Palmer, whose father -is said to have kept the "Rose and Crown" inn at Bull Beggar's Hole, -Clay Hill, Enfield. - -As a butcher, he introduced a novel method of business by which, except -for the absurd and obstinate old-fashioned prejudices that stood in his -way, he might soon have made a handsome competence. This method was -simply that of taking your cattle wherever they might best be found, -without the tiresome and expensive formality of buying and paying for -them. It might conceivably have succeeded, too, except that he worked -on too Napoleonic a scale, and stole a herd. It was a herd belonging to -one "Farmer Giles," of Plaistow, and unfortunately it was traced to his -door, and he had to fly. More restrained accounts, on the other hand, -tell us it was only two oxen that were taken. - -The Plaistow-Waltham Abbey affair rendered Turpin's situation extremely -perilous, and he retired north-east in the Rodings district, generally -called in those times "the Hundreds of Essex"—to "Suson," say old -accounts, by which Seward-stone is meant. - -But although a comparatively safe retreat, it was exceedingly dull, -and nothing offered, either in the way of the excitements he now -thirsted for, or by way of making a living. He was reduced to the -at once mean and dangerous occupation of robbing the smugglers who -then infested this, and indeed almost every other, country district. -It was mean, because they, very like himself, warred with law and -order; and dangerous, because although he might only attack solitary -"freetraders," there was that strong fellow-feeling among smugglers -that made them most ferociously resent interference with their kind. -Turpin probably ran greater risks in meddling with them than he -encountered at any other period in his career. - -Sometimes he would rob them without any beating about the bush: at -others he would make pretence of being a "riding-officer," _i.e._ a -mounted Revenue officer, and would seize their goods "in the King's -name." - -But that line of business could not last long. Writers on Turpin -generally say he wearied of it: but the truth is, he was afraid of -the smugglers' vengeance, which, history tells us, could take fearful -forms, scarcely credible in a Christian country, did we not know, by -the irrefragible evidence of courts of justice, and by the terrible -murders by smugglers in Hampshire, duly expiated in 1749, to what -lengths those desperate men could go. - -He turned again, therefore, to the neighbourhood of Waltham, and, with -a few chosen spirits, haunted Epping Forest. There they established -themselves chiefly as deer-stealers, and soon formed an excellent -illicit connection with unscrupulous dealers in game in London, to whom -they consigned many a cartload of venison, which generally travelled -up to town covered over with an innocent-looking layer of cabbages, -potatoes, or turnips. - -[Illustration: TURPIN AND HIS GANG IN THEIR CAVE IN EPPING FOREST.] - -But the prices they obtained for these supplies did not, in their -opinion, pay them sufficiently for the work they did, or the risks they -ran, and they then determined to throw in their lot with a notorious -band of housebreakers and miscellaneous evil-doers, dreaded in Essex -and in the eastern suburbs of London as "Gregory's Gang." The earliest -of their exploits in this new class of venture was the robbing of Mr. -Strype, who kept a chandler's shop at Watford, a district hitherto -unaffected by them. They cleared the house of everything of any value, -without offering Mr. Strype any violence (which was thought to be very -good of them) and so disappeared; to reappear always unexpectedly in -widely-sundered districts. - -Nothing came amiss to them. In one night they robbed both Chingford -and Barking churches, but found little worth their while; and then, in -a manner most baffling to the authorities of those times, would for -a time disband themselves and work separately, or some of them would -lie entirely by for a while. An odd one or two would even be taken and -hanged, which rendered it more than ever desirable for their surviving -brethren to make themselves scarce for a time. But want of money was -not long in bringing such generally spendthrift and improvident rogues -back again to the calling they had chosen. Several among them were -already too well and too unfavourably known as deer-stealers to the -verderers of Epping Forest for their reappearance in those glades to -be safe, but Turpin, among others, ventured. Mr. Mason, one of the -chief of these verderers, rangers, or keepers, was especially active -in putting down this poaching, and the gang vowed they would repay him -for it. But more immediate schemes claimed their attention. First among -these was a plan for robbing a farmhouse at Rippleside, near Barking. -There would seem to have been eight or nine of them on this occasion. -After their manner, they knocked at the door at night, and when, -properly afraid of strangers coming after dark, the people refused to -open, they rushed forward in a body and broke the door in. Having -bound the farmer, his wife, his son-in-law, and the servant-maid, they -ransacked the house, and stole £700. - -"This will do!" exclaimed Turpin, captaining the band; adding -regretfully, "if it were always so!" - -The attack then made by the gang upon the house of Mr. Mason, the -vigilant keeper of Epping Forest, was probably determined upon in -the first instance from a desire rather to be revenged upon him for -interfering with their earlier deer-stealing operations, than from the -idea of plunder. Turpin was not present on this occasion, for although -he had intended to take part in the act of vengeance, he was at the -time in London, squandering his share of the Rippleside robbery, and in -too advanced a state of intoxication to meet his accomplices as he had -arranged to do. - -Rust, Rose, and Fielder were the three concerned in the affair, and -it clearly shows the spirit in which they entered upon it, when it -is said that, before starting, they bound themselves by oath not to -leave anything in the house undamaged. An oath would not necessarily -be of any sacred quality of irrevocability with scoundrels of this or -any other type, but when the compact fitted in with their own earnest -inclinations, there was no difficulty in adhering to it. - -Fielder gained admission to the house by scaling the garden wall and -breaking in at the back door, then admitting the other two by the front -entrance. Mason was upstairs, sitting with his aged father in his -bedroom, when the three suddenly burst in upon them, and, seizing them, -bound them hand and foot. They asked the old man if he knew them: he -said he did not, and they then carried him downstairs and laid him, -helplessly tied up, under the kitchen dresser. Mason, the keeper, -had a sack forced over his head and tied round his waist; his little -daughter, terrified at what she heard, slipping hurriedly out of bed -and out of doors, and hiding in a pigstye. - -The revengeful three then entered upon the work of wanton destruction -upon which they had come. They first demolished a heavy fourpost -bedstead, and then, each armed with a post, systematically visited -every room in the house and battered everything to pieces. Carpets, -curtains, bedclothing, and linen, and everything that could not be -broken, were cut to shreds. Money had not been expected, but in -smashing a china punch-bowl that stood somewhat out of the way, on a -high shelf, down fell a shower of a hundred and twenty-two guineas, -with which they went off, doubly satisfied with revenge and this -unlooked-for plunder. They hastened up to London and joined Turpin at -the Bun-House in the Rope Fields, and shared their booty fairly with -him, although he had not been present to earn his portion—an unusual -support of that generally misleading proverb, "There is honour among -thieves." - -From 1732 and onwards a solitary inn, on the then desolate, remote, and -often flooded Hackney Marshes was greatly frequented by Turpin on his -way to and from Epping and London. This inn, the "White House" by name, -then kept by one Beresford, was the resort of sportsmen interested in -cock-fighting. Turpin was known there as a private gentleman. The house -was demolished and entirely rebuilt in 1900; but another at Tyler's -Ferry, Temple Mills, also a white-faced house, remains, and claims a -similar association. - -On January 11th, 1735, Turpin and five of his companions, Ned Rust, -George Gregory, Fielder, Rose, and Wheeler, went boldly to the house -of a Mr. Saunders, a rich farmer at Charlton, Kent, between seven and -eight o'clock in the evening, and, having knocked at the door, asked if -Mr. Saunders were at home. When they learned that he was within, they -rushed immediately into the house and found the farmer, with his wife -and some friends, playing at cards. They told the company they would -not be injured if they remained quiet, and then proceeded to ransack -the house. First seizing a trifle in the way of a silver snuff-box that -lay on the card-table, they left a part of their gang to stand guard -over the party, while the rest took Mr. Saunders and forced him to -act the part of guide, to discover the whereabouts of his valuables. -They broke open some escritoires and cupboards, and stole about £100, -exclusive of a quantity of plate. Meanwhile, the maid-servant had -retreated into her room upstairs and bolted the door, and was calling -"Thieves!" at the top of her voice, out of window. But the marauders -presently found their way upstairs, broke open the door and secured -and silenced her: not, apparently, doing her any considerable injury: -and then at leisure thoroughly searched every corner of the house, -and gleaned everything of a portable nature that was worth taking. -There was no hurry. They discovered some relics of the late Christmas -festivities in the larder, in the shape of mince-pies, and sat down -impudently, with the master of the house and his friends, to partake -of them. One of the gang, by careful foraging, had found a bottle of -brandy, and broached it at the table, hospitably offering some to Mr. -Saunders and his friends, and assuring them, with a quaint humour, that -they were as welcome as could be to it. Mrs. Saunders did not, however, -see the humour of it, and was fainting from terror; and so they mixed -her some brandy-and-water, to revive her. - -At length, having taken everything possible, and thoroughly enjoyed -themselves, they made off, declaring that if any of the family gave -the least alarm within two hours, or if they dared to advertise the -marks on the stolen plate, they would infallibly return at some future -period, and murder them. - -It was afterwards ascertained that they then retired to a public-house -in Woolwich, near by, where the robbery had been planned, and soon -afterwards crossed the river and resorted to an empty house in -Ratcliffe Highway, where they deposited the plunder until they had -found a purchaser ready to buy without asking any inconvenient -questions. - -A week later, the same gang visited the house of a Mr. Sheldon, near -Croydon church. They arrived at about seven o'clock in the evening, -and, finding the coachman in the stable, immediately gagged and bound -him. Then, leaving the stable, they encountered Mr. Sheldon himself, -in the yard, come to hear what the unaccustomed sounds of scuffling -and struggling in the stable could mean. The unfortunate Mr. Sheldon -was then compelled to act as guide over his own house, and to show the -gang where all his valuables resided. Jewels, plate, and other valuable -articles were removed, together with a sum of eleven guineas; but at -the last moment, they returned two guineas, and apologised more or less -handsomely for their conduct. They then had the effrontery to repair -to the "Half Moon" tavern, close at hand, and to each take a glass -of spirits there, and to change one of the guineas of which they had -robbed Mr. Sheldon. - -The manners of the gang would thus appear to be mending, but their -unwonted politeness did not last long, as we shall presently see. - -In giving some account of the doings of Turpin, either singly or in -association with others, it is desirable, as far as possible, to -tell his story largely by the aid, and in the exact words, of the -newspapers of the time. Only in this manner is it likely that a charge -of exaggeration can be avoided. Where all have boldly enlarged upon -the popular theme and have as richly brocaded it as their imaginations -permit, to revert to plain facts becomes a healthy exercise. - -The _London Evening Post_ of February 6th, 1735, is the original -authority for the next two incidents; two of the foremost in all -popular accounts of Turpin's life. So much extravagant nonsense has -been written, and is still being written, and will yet continue to be -written about Dick Turpin, that any original documents about him are -particularly valuable. They help to show us what we must discredit and -what we may safely retain. Indeed, without such newspaper paragraphs, -the conscientious writer, faced with the flood of indubitably spurious -Turpin "literature," might in his impatience with its extravagance, -refuse to credit any portion of it. But the newspapers of that day -serve amply to show that in this case, truth is equally as strange -as fiction. Not stranger, as the proverb would have us believe, but -certainly as strange. - -Thus we read in the _London Evening Post_: "On Saturday Night last, -about Seven o'Clock, five Rogues enter'd the House of the Widow -Shelley, at Loughton in Essex, having Pistols etc., and threaten'd to -murder the old Lady, if she did not tell them where her Money lay, -which she obstinately refusing for some Time, they threaten'd to lay -her across the Fire if she did not instantly tell them, which she would -not do; but her Son being in the Room, and threaten'd to be murder'd, -cry'd out, he would tell them if they would not murder his Mother, -and did; whereupon they went up Stairs and took near £100, a Silver -Tankard, and other Plate, and all Manner of Household Goods; they -afterwards went into the Cellar, and drank several Bottles of Ale and -Wine, and broil'd some Meat, eat the Relicts of a Fillet of Veal, etc. -While they were doing this, two of their Gang went into Mr. Turkle's, -a Farmer's, who rents one End of the Widow's House, and robb'd him of -above £20 and then they all went off, taking two of the Farmer's Horses -to carry off their Luggage; the Horses were found on Sunday Morning in -Old Street; they staid (the Rogues, not the horses) about three Hours -in the House." - -[Illustration: TURPIN HOLDS THE LANDLADY OVER THE FIRE.] - -This house, still in existence, although part of it has been rebuilt, -is identified with a place now styled "Priors," but at that time known -as "Traps Hill Farm." The heavy outer door, plentifully studded with -nail-heads, is said to have been added after this visit. - -This incident is probably the original of the story told of Turpin -holding the landlady of the "Bull" inn, Shooter's Hill, over the fire; -although it is inherently possible that he and his scoundrelly crew, -having certainly threatened to do as much at Loughton, and having done -the like to a farmer at Edgeware, actually perpetrated the atrocity. - -The startling paragraph already quoted is followed immediately by -another report, a good deal more startling: "On Tuesday Night," it -says, very circumstantially, "about Eight o'Clock, five Villains"—it -will be noticed that by this time the "Rogues" of the earlier narration -have become "Villains," and their conduct, by natural consequence, -infinitely more heinous—"came to the House of Mr. Lawrence, a Farmer -at Edgewarebury, near Edgeware, in Middlesex, but the Door being -bolted, they could not get in, so they went to the Boy who was in the -Sheep-house, and compell'd him to call the Maid, who open'd the Door; -upon which they rush'd in, bound the Master, Maid, and one Man-Servant, -and swore they would murder all the Family, if they did not discover -their Money, etc.; they trod the bedding under foot, in case there -should be money hidden in it, and took about £10 in Money, Linnen etc., -all they could lay their Hands on, broke the old Man's Head, dragg'd -him about the House, emptied a kettle of water from the fire over -him, which had fortunately only just been placed on it, and ravish'd -the Maid, Dorothy Street, using her in a most barbarous Manner, and -then went off, leaving the Family bound, lock'd the Door, and took -the key away with them: The Son, who came Home soon after they were -gone, call'd the Boy to take his Horse, but could make nobody hear, -but at last the old Man call'd out, and told him Rogues had been -there" (surely, he meant "Villains"), "as they were all bound, and -that the Rogues said they would go rob his Brother; whereupon he rode -and alarm'd the Town, went to his Brother's, but they had not been -there; they pursued them to the Turnpike, and found they had been gone -through for London about an Hour. They were all arm'd with Pistols, and -one had a Handkerchief all over his Face." - -Neither of these accounts mentions the name of Turpin, but these -outrages were immediately ascribed to a gang of which he was a member. - -The same evening journal of February 11th has a later account: "Mr. -Lawrence, the Farmer at Edgeware-Bury, who was robb'd last Week (as -we mention'd) lies so ill, of the Bruises etc., he receiv'd, that its -question'd whether he'll recover: the Rogues, after he had told them -where his Money was, not finding so much as they expected, let his -Breeches down, and set him bare—on the Fire, several times; which burnt -him prodigiously." - -There seems, by this account, to have been much in common between this -gang and those "chauffeurs" described by Vidocq in his _Memoirs_; bands -of robbers who pervaded the country districts of France, and adopted -the like methods of persuasion with people who could not otherwise be -made to disclose the whereabouts of their hoards. - -This ferocious attack upon the farm at Edgewarebury was the first of -a series in which the gang appeared on horseback. They had already -done so well that they felt they could no longer deny themselves the -luxury of being fully-furnished highwaymen. But they did not purchase; -they merely hired; and imagination pictures some of them as very -insufficient cavaliers, holding on by their horses' necks. For it -is not given to a footpad, graduating in the higher branch of his -profession, instantly to command an easy seat in the saddle; and the -scene at the "Old Leaping Bar" inn, High Holborn, whence they set out -to ride to the "Ninepin and Bowl" at Edgeware, must have been amusing -in the extreme. - -Six of Turpin's gang assembled next on the 7th of February at the -"White Bear" inn, Drury Lane, and planned to rob the house of a Mr. -Francis, a farmer in the then rural fields of Marylebone. Arriving at -the farm about dusk, they first saw a man in a cowshed and seized and -bound him, declaring they would shoot him if he should dare to make any -attempt to break loose, or to cry out. In the stable they found another -man, whom they served in the like manner. Scarcely had they done this -when they met Mr. Francis at his own garden gate, returning home. Three -of the gang laid their hands upon his shoulders and stopped him; and -the farmer, thinking it to be a freak of some silly young fellows, -out for the evening, was not at all alarmed. "Methinks you are mighty -funny, gentlemen," he said good-humouredly; upon which, showing him -their pistols in a threatening manner, he saw his mistake. - -No harm, they said, should come to him if he would but give his -daughter a note by one of them, authorising her to pay bearer a hundred -pounds in cash. - -Mr. Francis declared he could not do so; he had not anything like that -amount in the house; upon which they ran him violently into the stable -and tied him up also. Then, knocking at the door of the house, and Miss -Francis opening it, they pushed into the passage and secured her as -well. The foremost men were particularly rude and violent, but Turpin, -who came in at the rear, appears to have remonstrated with them about -this gross usage, and to have stopped it: only assuring her that it -would be best she remained quiet, and that if she made any resistance -she would be treated even worse. - -A maid-servant, hearing this, cried out, "Lord, Mrs. Sarah! what have -you done?" - -One of the gang then struck the maid, and another hit Miss Francis, and -swore they would be murdered if they did not hold their peace. - -Mrs. Francis, hearing the disturbance from an inner room, called out, -"What's the matter?" on which Fielder ran forward, and crying "D——n -you, I'll stop your mouth presently!" broke her head with the handle of -a whip he carried, and then tied her to a chair. - -Miss Francis and the maid were tied to the kitchen-dresser, and Gregory -was deputed to watch them, with a pistol in his hand, lest they should -cry out for assistance or try to struggle free while the others were -raiding the house. - -A not very considerable reward met their unhallowed industry; including -a silver tankard, a gold watch and chain, a silver medal of Charles -the First, a number of minor silver articles, and four or five gold -rings. A find of thirty-seven guineas was more to the point, and a -brace of pistols was not to be despised. They were even so particular -about details, in the hour-and-a-half search they made, that they took -away with them such inconsiderable items as a wig, six handkerchiefs, -four shirts, a velvet hat, and some pairs of stockings. A frugal and -meticulous gang, this! - -As a result of these bold attacks in the suburbs of London, a great -feeling of indignation and insecurity arose, and a reward of £100 -was at once offered for the apprehension of the gang, or of any -members of it. Information having come to some of the Westminster -peace-officers that these confederates were accustomed to meet in an -alehouse situated in a low alley in Westminster, the place was beset, -and Turpin, Fielder, Rose, and Wheeler were found there. After a short -fight with cutlasses, the last three were secured. No one appears to -have been seriously hurt in this affray, except the usual harmless, -innocent person, present by mere chance; in this case, a certain Bob -Berry, who received a dangerous cut on the arm, below the elbow. Turpin -dexterously escaped out of window, and, obtaining a horse (_not_ the -celebrated "Black Bess," who never existed outside the imagination of -Harrison Ainsworth and the pages of his _Rookwood_), rode away to fresh -fields and pastures new. Fielder and Rose were tried and found guilty, -chiefly on the testimony of Wheeler, who turned King's evidence. They -were hanged at Tyburn, and afterwards gibbeted. - -The _Gentleman's Magazine_ refers shortly to the execution, and -includes a certain, or an altogether uncertain, Saunders: "Monday, -March 10th, the following malefactors, attended by a guard of fifty -soldiers, were executed at Tyburn, appearing bold and undaunted; viz. -Rose, Saunders, and Fielder, the Country Robbers." It is significant -of the horrors of that era that ten others were hanged in company with -them, for various crimes. - -The gang was thus broken up, but rogues have, as it were, a magnetic -attraction for one another, and Turpin was not long alone. It must -have been a dull business waiting solitary on suitable, _i.e._ dark -or foggy, nights in lonely situations for unsuspecting wayfarers; an -experience calculated to get on the nerves, and so it is scarcely -remarkable that many highwaymen elected to hunt in couples; although -in the long run it was safer to work alone and unknown. No fear then -of treachery on the part of a trusted comrade, always ready to "make a -discovery," as the technical phrase ran, to save his own neck from the -rope, a little while longer. - -But Turpin seems to have sought, and found, one companion for a -little while, for he duly appears in an account of how two gentlemen -were robbed about eight o'clock on the evening of July 10th, between -Wandsworth and Barnes commons, "by two Highwaymen, suppos'd to be -Turpin the Butcher, and Rowden the Pewterer, the remaining two of -Gregory's Gang, who robb'd them of their Money and dismounted them; -made them pull off their Horse's Bridles, then turning them loose, they -rode off towards Roehampton, where a Gentleman was robb'd (as suppos'd -by the same Highwaymen), of a Watch and £4 in Money." - -Old maps of this district hint, not obscurely, that this was no mere -isolated, chance danger in the neighbourhood; for the eye, roaming -along those charts, towards Richmond, notes "Thieves' Corner" boldly -marked at what is now the junction of the Sheen Road and Queen's Road, -where the "Black Horse" of old, a very shy and questionable kind of -brick-built, white-washed alehouse, stood until it was pulled down -about the year 1902 and rebuilt in the flashy modern style. Adjoining, -was, and still is, for that matter, "Pest House Common": cheerful name! -while Rocque's map of 1745, not marking that inimical corner, transfers -the affected area to the stretch of highway between Marshgate and -Manor Road and Richmond Town, and styles it "Thieves' Harbour." On the -opposite side, in sharp contrast, is marked "Paradise Row." Rocque also -styles the common, "Pestilent Common." Altogether, in fact, a pestilent -neighbourhood. - -How well-named was "Thieves' Corner" we may perhaps judge from a -brief and matter-of-fact account (as though it were but an ordinary -occurrence, demanding little notice) of a Reverend Mr. Amey, "a -country clergyman who lodges at the 'Star' inn, in the Strand," being -robbed two nights earlier than the foregoing robbery "two miles this -side of Richmond in Surrey, of his Silver Watch, four Guineas, and some -Silver, by two Highwaymen, well-mounted and well-dress'd. The Rogues -turn'd his Horse loose and went off towards Richmond." - -[Illustration: BOLD DICK TURPIN. - -(_According to Skelt._)] - -Again, this time in the _Grub Street Journal_ of July 24th, 1735, we -find a trace of the busy Dick, in the following: "Monday, Mr. Omar, -of Southwark, meeting between Barnes-Common and Wandsworth, Turpin -the butcher, with another person, clapt spurs to his horse, but they -coming up with him, oblig'd him to dismount, and Turpin suspecting that -he knew him, would have shot him, but was prevented by the other, who -pull'd the pistol out of his hand." - -On Sunday, August 16th, Turpin and Rowden the Pewterer seem to have -been particularly busy and to have had a good day; for it is recorded -by the same authority that they robbed several gentlemen on horseback -and in coaches. The district they favoured on this occasion was the -Portsmouth Road between Putney and Kingston Hill. - -In another fortnight's time or so, having made these parts of Surrey -too hot to hold them longer, and being apparently unwilling to transfer -their activities beyond ten or twelve miles' radius from London, they -opened a most aggressive campaign in suburban Kent. "We hear," says -the _Grub Street Journal_ of October 16th, "that for about six weeks -past, Blackheath has been so infested by two highwaymen (suppos'd to -be Rowden and Turpin) that 'tis dangerous for travellers to pass. -On Thursday Turpin and Rowden had the insolence to ride through the -City at noonday, and in Watling Street they were known by two or -three porters, who had not the courage to attack them; they were -indifferently mounted, and went towards the bridge; so 'tis thought are -gone the Tonbridge road." - -It was while patrolling the road towards Cambridge (on Stamford Hill, -according to some historians) that Turpin first met Tom King. -Observing a well-dressed and well-mounted stranger riding slowly along, -Turpin spurred up to him, presented a pistol, and demanded his money. -The stranger merely laughed, which threw Turpin into a passion, and he -threatened him with instant death if he did not comply. King—for it was -he—laughed again, and said, "What! dog eat dog? Come, come, brother -Turpin; if you don't know me I know you, and shall be glad of your -company." - -[Illustration: TURPIN MEETS TOM KING.] - -This was the beginning of an alliance. These brethren in iniquity soon -struck up a bargain, and, immediately entering on business, committed -so large a number of robberies that no landlord of any wayside inn -of the least respectability cared to welcome them, for fear of being -indicted for harbouring such guests. Thus situated, they fixed on a -spot between the King's Oak and the Loughton road, in Epping Forest, -where they made a cave, "large enough to receive them and their -horses," says an old account. This was enclosed within a thicket of -bushes and brambles, through which they could look, without themselves -being observed. From this station they used to issue, and robbed such -numbers of persons that at length the very pedlars who travelled the -road carried firearms for their defence. At such times when they could -not safely stir from this hiding-place, Turpin's wife was accustomed to -secretly convey to them such articles of food and such other things as -might be necessary to their comfort. When, at a later period, Turpin's -cave was discovered, and he was reduced to skulking about the forest, -it was found to be by no means a despicable retreat. It was dry, and -carpeted with straw, hay, and dry leaves; and such articles as two -clean shirts, two pairs of stockings, a piece of ham, a bottle of wine, -and some feminine apparel, served to show that this was not altogether -an anchorite's cell. Some old accounts go so far as to say that Turpin -altogether occupied this cave for six years, but that is not credible. - -One day, as Turpin and Tom King were spying up and down the road from -their cave, through the screen of furze and bramble that hid them from -passers-by, they saw a gentleman driving past whom King knew very well -as a rich City merchant, of Broad Street. He was on his way to his -country estate at Fairmead Bottom, in a carriage with his children. -King made after him, and on the Loughton road called upon the coachman -to stop. The merchant, however, was a man of spirit, and offered a -resistance, supposing there to be only one highwayman; upon which, King -called Turpin, by the name of "Jack," and bid him hold the horses' -heads. They then proceeded to take his money, which he parted with, -without any further trouble; but strongly demurred to parting with his -watch, which he said was a family heirloom, the gift of his father. The -altercation, although short, was accompanied by threats and menaces -and frightened the children, who persuaded their father to give up the -watch; and then an old mourning ring became an object of dispute. Its -value was very small, but King insisted upon having it, when Turpin -interposed and said they were not so ungentlemanly as to deprive a -traveller of such a relic, and bade King desist. This concession -prompted the merchant to ask whether they would not, as a favour, -permit him to repurchase his watch from them; upon which King said: -"Jack, he seems to be a good, honest fellow; shall we let him have the -watch?" - -"Aye," said Turpin; "do as you will." - -The merchant, then inquiring the price, King replied, "Six guineas," -adding, "we never sell one for more, even though it be worth -six-and-thirty." Then the merchant promised not to discover them, and -said he would leave the money at the "Sword Blade" coffee-house in -Birchin Lane, and no questions asked. - -The _Country Journal_ for April 23rd, 1737, says that on Saturday, -April 16th, as a gentleman of West Ham and others were travelling to -Epping, "the famous Turpin and a New Companion of his came up and -attack'd the Coach, in order to rob it; the Gentleman had a Carbine in -the Coach, loaded with Slugs, and seeing them coming, got it ready, -and presented it at Turpin, on stopping the Coach, but it flash'd in -the Pan; upon which says Turpin 'G—d D—— you, you have miss'd me, but -I won't you,' and shot into the Coach at him, but the Ball miss'd him, -passing between Him and a Lady in the Coach; and then they rode off -towards Ongar, and dined afterwards at Hare Street, and robbed in the -Evening several Passengers on the Forest between Loughton and Romford, -who knew him; he has not robb'd on that Road for some Time before." - -It is possible that this adventure gave Turpin the idea of providing -himself with a carbine and slugs in addition to his pistols, for, -following the contemporary newspaper record of his movements, we -learn from several London papers, notably the _London Daily Post_ and -the _Daily Advertiser_, that when a servant of Thompson, one of the -under-keepers of Epping Forest, went in search of him and his retreat -in those leafy recesses, with a higgler on Wednesday, May 4th, Turpin -shot the man dead with a charge of slugs from a carbine. Detailed -accounts set forth how Mr. Thompson's servant, animated with hopes of a -hundred pounds reward, went out, armed with a gun, in company with the -higgler, in search for Turpin. When they came near his hiding-place, -the highwayman saw them, and, taking them for sportsmen, called out -that there were no hares near that thicket. - -"No," replied Mr. Thompson's man, "but I have found a Turpin!" and, -presenting his gun, required him to surrender. - -Turpin, replying to him in a friendly manner, and at the same time -gradually retreating into the cave, slyly seized his carbine, and shot -him in the stomach. - -He then fled from the Forest, and was reported, by the _London Daily -Post_ of May 12th, to have been very nearly captured in the small -hours of the morning of the 11th by three peace-officers, who, late -the night before, received information that he proposed to sleep at a -certain house near Wellclose Square. Three men accordingly beset the -house, but they were observed by a woman on the look-out, and Turpin, -hurriedly aroused, fled through the roof, and over the chimneypots of -the adjoining houses. - -It will be observed by these various newspaper paragraphs and scattered -notices, that Turpin was always changing his associates, and it is -obvious that the stories which would have us believe he and Tom King -set up an exclusive partnership, are not to be implicitly believed. -Turpin and the many of his kind, with whom he associated from time to -time, no doubt, worked together or apart, or in alliance with others, -just as changing circumstances from week to week dictated. - -[Illustration: TOM KING. - -(_From Skelt's Drama._)] - -Tom King is usually said to have been killed under dramatic -circumstances in the yard of the "Red Lion" inn, at the corner of the -Whitechapel Road and Leman Street; but although we read much of him -in the picturesque romances of the highway, it is by no means easy to -trace Tom's movements, and he remains, whatever brave figure he may be -in fiction, a very shadowy figure as seen in recorded facts. He, it -appears, was one of three brothers. The other two were named Matthew -and Robert, and it was really Matthew King who was mortally wounded in -the yard of the "Red Lion" in 1737, in the affray with the Bow Street -runners. The newspapers of the time record how, a week later, he died -of his wounds in the New Prison, Clerkenwell, on May 24th. - -The affair was the outcome of Turpin having stolen a fine horse -of considerable celebrity at that time, a racehorse named "White -Stockings," belonging to a Mr. Major, who, riding it, was overtaken one -evening by Turpin, Tom King, and a new ally of theirs, named Potter, -near the "Green Man," Epping. Turpin made him dismount and exchange -horses, and took away his riding-whip; and then the three confederates -went their way to London. - -Mr. Major immediately made his loss known at the "Green Man," to Mr. -Bayes, the landlord, who at once said: "I daresay Turpin has done -it, or one of that crew," and then advised him the best thing to do -would be to get a number of handbills immediately printed, describing -the horse, and offering a reward. It was characteristic of the -thoroughpaced rascality of Turpin, that the very horse he had compelled -Mr. Major to change with him was stolen. It was identified as one that -had been missing from Plaistow marshes. And the saddle had been stolen -too, and was afterwards claimed. - -[Illustration: DICK TURPIN. - -(_Skelt._)] - -Although this was on Saturday night, the handbills were at once struck -off and put into circulation, and by Monday morning information was -brought to the "Green Man," that a horse answering the description of -"White Stockings," had been left at the "Red Lion," in the Whitechapel -Road. The innkeeper went to the house with some Bow Street runners, -determined to wait there until some one called for the horse; and -about eleven o'clock at night Matthew King came for it. When he was -seized, he declared he had bought the animal; but a whip he held in -his hand proved to be the identical one stolen by Turpin, and although -a portion of the handle had been broken off, Mr. Major's name could -still be read on it. An offer was made to Matthew King, that he would -be released if he would disclose the actual robber, and he thereupon -said it was a stout man in a white duffel coat, who was at that moment -waiting in the street. - -A movement was then made to capture the man in the duffel coat, who -proved to be Tom King; but he resisted and fired at his would-be -captors. The pistol merely flashed in the pan, and King then attempted -to draw another; but it got twisted in his pocket, and Bayes' hands -were being laid upon him, when he cried out to Turpin, who was waiting -on horseback at a little distance, "Dick, shoot him, or we are taken, -by God!" - -Turpin was heavily armed. Nothing less than three brace of pistols -contented him, in addition to a carbine slung across his back. He -fired, and shot (the stories say) Tom King. - -"Dick, you have shot me; make off," the wounded man is represented as -saying, but is afterwards said to have cursed him for a coward, and to -have informed the authorities that if they wanted him, he might most -likely be found at a certain place on Hackney Marsh: indicating, no -doubt, the "White House." - -Turpin is indeed said to have at once made for that retreat and to have -exclaimed, "What shall I do? where shall I go? d——n that Dick Bayes, -I'll be the death of him, for I have lost the best fellow I ever had in -my life. I shot poor King in endeavouring to kill that dog." - -That is the accepted version, but it seems to be incorrect in several -particulars. As before mentioned, Matthew King was the victim of that -ill-considered aim. A somewhat different account is given in Turpin's -alleged confessions to the hangman, printed in the, in most respects, -reliable pamphlet narrating his life and trial, published in York in -four editions in 1739. In those pages Turpin "said he was confederate -with one King, who was executed in London some time since, and that -once, being very near taken, he fired a pistol in the crowd, and by -mistake, shot the said King in the thigh, who was coming to rescue him." - -[Illustration: TOM KING. - -(_Skelt._)] - -That entirely reverses the position, and may or may not be an -imperfectly recollected account of what Turpin said. - -There is no doubt that a Tom King, a highwayman, was executed at -Tyburn, in 1753, many years after the Tom King who was supposed to -have been shot dead. - -If Turpin had been really so terrified for his safety after the -Whitechapel affair as represented, he must speedily have recovered -himself, for he was busy all that month in his vocation. Comrades -might die tragically, but his own pockets, always leaking like a -colander, must be replenished. Really, however narrowly the career -of this much-discussed highwayman is scanned, it seems hopeless to -paint a consistent picture of him. He was, by the testimony of many -witnesses, a cowardly fellow, not often with sufficient resolution -to rob unaccompanied, and even on those occasions when he did play a -lone hand, he wore a perfect armoury of weapons and attacked only the -unarmed. One Gordon, lying at Newgate on a charge of highway robbery, -told how he had once proposed to Turpin that himself and his brother, -Turpin, and another should seize the money going down to pay the -King's ships at Portsmouth. They were to stand in a very narrow pass -and with swords and pistols attack the convoy. The scheme recalls -the fine mid-seventeenth century exploits of "Mulled Sack" and his -contemporaries, and if the enterprise had been undertaken, a splendid -booty might have become theirs. But Turpin's courage failed him, and -he backed out. Gordon said he was sure Turpin would be guilty of many -cowardly actions, and die like a dog. His career, although a busy one, -never touched great heights, and was commonly concerned with mean -thefts and raids, but he must have been possessed of some nerve to -continue actively robbing in the neighbourhood of London where he was -so well known, after a hundred pounds was advertised to be waiting for -any one who brought about his arrest. It is not merely a tradition that -he so continued: we have the facts abundantly in the public prints of -the time. - -[Illustration: TOM KING. - -(_Skelt._)] - -Thus, the _London Magazine_ has this note respecting him: "The -noted Highwayman, Turpin the Butcher, (who lately kill'd a Man who -endeavour'd to take him on Epping Forest) this Night robbed several -Gentlemen in their Coaches and Chaises at Holloway and the back Lanes -at Islington, and took from them several Sums of Money. One of the -Gentlemen signified to him that he had reigned a long Time, and Turpin -replied, ''Tis no matter for that. I am not afraid of being taken by -you; therefore don't stand hesitating, but give me the Cole.'" (Or, by -another account, "the coriander-seed.") - -A London newspaper of the close of May is found stating that "Turpin, -the renown'd Butcher-Highwayman, committed a robbery almost every day -this month." - -But these were his last exploits in the neighbourhood of London. -The position presently grew so difficult that the merest elementary -instincts of self-preservation suggested a flight to other scenes. - -By a proclamation issued in the _London Gazette_ of June 25th, 1737, -"His Majesty was pleased to promise his most gracious pardon to any of -the Accomplices of Richard Turpin who shall discover him, so that he -may be apprehended and convicted of the Murder, or any of the Robberies -he has committed; as likewise a Reward of £200 to any Person or Persons -who shall discover the said Criminal, so that he may be apprehended -and convicted as aforesaid; over and above all other Rewards to which -they may be entitled." In this proclamation, Turpin is described as -being 5 feet 9 inches in height, and it further appears that he was not -by any means the prepossessing and even elegant figure he presents in -the engraving that shows him reclining exquisitely in his cave; dainty -boots on his feet, and a ladylike hand thrown over his carbine. He had -high cheekbones, his face tapered to a narrow point at his chin, and he -was deeply pitted with small-pox. - -[Illustration: TURPIN IN HIS CAVE. - - _From an old Engraving._] - -Really, he was, it will be gathered, not an engaging ruffian; but there -is, unfortunately, no portrait existing which can lay the slightest -claim to be authentic. A rough woodcut, no doubt from the strictly -unauthentic imagination of the wood engraver, or the wood-chopper who -engraved, or rather hewed it out, appears in one of the popular old -chap-books, and shows him to have rather a plentiful development of -chin and an expression that somewhat baffles description, but which -conveys the very decided impression that he was not the kind of person -one would much like to meet in a lonely lane on a dark night. - -[Illustration: DICK TURPIN. - -(_From a strictly unauthentic source._)] - -Rowden the Pewterer, whom we have shown to have accompanied Turpin so -frequently in 1735, chiefly in his adventures in Surrey, was taken -about this time and transported in July 1737. - -With the price of £200 upon his head, and with the additional promise -of a pardon for any accomplice who would betray him, Turpin's position -was now more than ever desperate. He fully realised this, and took the -only possible course, that of removing himself into the country, far -away from his accustomed haunts. After three months at Long Sutton, -in Lincolnshire, he appears to have selected Yorkshire as the safest -part, and staying some time at the ferry-house. Brough, and then at -Market Cave and North Cave, to have settled at Welton, ten miles from -Beverley, in October 1737. There he posed as a gentleman horse-dealer, -Palmer by name. Sometimes he would range southward to Long Sutton -in Lincolnshire, but always where he went the farmers and others -missed their horses, in the most mysterious way. No one suspected -the "gentleman" horse-dealer, who mixed freely in the company of the -Yorkshire yeomen and knew a thing or two about cock-fighting and proved -himself a singularly good judge of stock—qualities which would render -any one popular at that time, with the Yorkshire tykes. His ugly mug -was a mere accident, and as for his rough manners, why the tykes -themselves were rough and ready, and so they easily excused, or perhaps -even did not notice, his overbearing ways. - -But his evil temper got the better of him one day, when, returning from -a shooting expedition, and being perhaps half-drunk, he wantonly shot -one of his neighbour's fowls. When the owner resented this, Turpin, or -"Palmer," threatened to serve him in the same way (_i.e._ "if he would -only stay till he had charged his piece, he would shoot him too"), and -in the result he was arrested on a charge of brawling, at the "Green -Man" inn. When he came before the magistrates in Quarter Sessions at -Beverley, the singular fact was discovered that this man, so well -known in the neighbourhood, had many acquaintances, but no friends -who would speak to his character or go bail for him. It then appeared -that he had come as an entire stranger to the district less than two -years earlier; and in short, in one way and another, it was all at -once discovered that he was a suspicious character, whose doings had -better be investigated. He was accordingly remanded, and enquiries -resulted in his being charged with stealing a black mare, blind of the -near eye, off Heckington Common, in Lincolnshire, near Sleaford. He had -declared himself a native of Long Sutton, and said his father lived -there and his sister kept house for him. He had been, he continued, in -business there, but had been obliged to abscond, owing to his having -contracted some debts he found himself unable to pay, in an unfortunate -transaction in which he had bought some sheep that had proved to be -diseased. Enquiries proved these statements to be entirely false. He -had no relations at Long Sutton, but he was known there, and badly -wanted, as a sheep-stealer, suspected also of horse-stealing. - -It is significant of Turpin's activity in horse-stealing, that the -_Worcester Journal_ of September 29th, 1738, has the following curious -item: "A few days since, the Father of the noted Turpin was committed -to Chelmsford Gaol, for having in his Possession a Horse supposed to -be stolen out of Lincolnshire, which, he pleads, was left with him by -his Son, to pay for Diet and Lodging." Research fails to discover the -result of this committal. - -John Palmer, or Richard Turpin, was sent from Beverley to York -Castle to stand his trial at the assizes for stealing the horse from -Heckington; and from his grim dungeon cell, still in existence in the -Castle, he wrote a letter to his brother, or, according to the evidence -at his trial, his brother-in-law, at Hempstead, asking him to be a -referee as to character: - - YORK, _Feb. 6, 1639_. - - "DEAR BROTHER, - - "I am sorry to acquaint you that I am now under confinement in - York Castle, for horse-stealing. If I could procure an evidence - from London to give me a character, that would go a great way - towards my being acquitted. I had not been long in this county - before my being apprehended, so that it would pass off the - readier. For heaven's sake, my dear brother, do not neglect me; - you will know what I mean when I say, - - "I am, your's, - - "JOHN PALMER." - -The letter was not prepaid, and the recipient, not recognising the -handwriting of the address, refused to receive it and pay the sixpence -demanded. As it happened, Mr. Smith, the schoolmaster who had taught -Turpin to write, saw the letter, and recognising the handwriting, -carried it to the magistrates, so that it might legally be opened, and -perhaps the very much wanted Turpin be arrested from the information it -possibly contained. Perhaps this public-spirited person really thought -he saw a chance of obtaining the £200 reward offered; but, however that -may be, the letter disclosed the fact that Turpin was lying in prison -at York, and Smith eventually appeared at the trial and identified him. -It is not known who, if indeed any one, received the reward. - -The rumour that Turpin had been taken, and was a prisoner in York -Castle, was no sooner circulated than people flocked from all parts -to get a sight of him, and debates ran very high whether he was the -real person or not. This making a holiday show of a prisoner in his -cell seems odd to us moderns; but it was then, as we see constantly in -these pages, the usual thing, and a practice that greatly enriched the -turnkeys; or the warders, as we should call them. - -[Illustration: SIR RALPH ROOKWOOD AND SIMON SHARPSCENT. - -(_Skelt._)] - -Among others who visited Turpin was a young fellow who pretended to -know the famous highwayman. After having looked for a considerable time -at the prisoner, he turned to the warder on duty, and said he would bet -him half a guinea this was not Turpin; whereupon Turpin, in his turn -inclining to the warder, whispered, with cynical humour, "Lay him the -wager, you fool, and I'll go you halves!" - -The trial of "John Palmer, _alias_ Paumer, _alias_ Richard Turpin," as -the official account of the proceedings has it, took place at the York -Assizes, March 22nd, 1739, "before the Hon. Sir William Chapple, one -of His Majesty's Justices of the Court of King's Bench, for stealing a -black gelding, the property of Thomas Creasy." - -Thomas Creasy deposed that in the August of 1738 he was owner of the -black gelding, and missed it on the eighteenth of the month. He had -hired men and horses, and had ridden some forty miles to try and obtain -news of its whereabouts, and had paid criers to cry it in different -market towns. He had also told one Richard Grasby of his loss, and -described the animal to him, and at a later date Grasby told him his -horse was at an inn called the "Blue Bell" at Beverley. He then went -to Beverley and saw the landlord of the "Blue Bell," and described the -horse to him as a black gelding, with a little star on his forehead. -The landlord then took him to the stable and showed him the horse. - -James Smith was then called, and asked if he knew the prisoner at the -bar. He said he did. He had known him at Hempstead, in Essex, where he -was born. He had known him since he was a child. His name was Richard -Turpin, and his father kept the "Bell" inn in that village. Richard -Turpin had married one of his maids. It was about five years since he -had last seen him. He had taught him at school, and there was no doubt -whatever that this was the same man. - -Asked how it happened that, living so far distant as Essex, he -came to be present as a witness at this trial, he said that at the -Hempstead post-office one day he observed a letter directed to Turpin's -brother-in-law, who had refused to pay the postage on it. Looking -narrowly at the handwriting, he thought he recognised it as that of -Richard Turpin, whom he had taught to write. Turpin then being very -much in demand by the magistrates, he took the letter forthwith to a -local Justice of the Peace, who opened it, and found it was sent from -York Castle, and purported to come from one "John Palmer." - -The justices had sent him a subpœna to appear for the prosecution at -York. He had been shown into the prison yard, and there he had seen and -recognised Turpin, who was there under the name of Palmer. - -"Palmer," then informed that he might ask Mr. Smith any questions he -desired, merely replied he did not know him. - -Mr. Edward Saward, of Hempstead, then called and asked if he knew -prisoner, said he did. He was born and brought up at the "Bell," kept -by his father, John Turpin. He had known him twenty-two years. ("Upon -my soul, I have," he added; to which counsel rejoined, "My friend, you -have sworn once already; you need not swear again.") "I knew him ever -since he was a boy and lived at the 'Bell.' He lived with his father -there, and I was friendly with him. I knew him also after he had set -up for himself, and I have bought a great many good joints of meat -from him." The prisoner had at first affected not to know him; but -afterwards had acknowledged the acquaintance, and had added: "Let's -bung our eyes up with drink." - -[Illustration: TURPIN'S CELL IN YORK CASTLE.] - -The prisoner's sole defence was that he had bought the horse; but he -could produce no evidence to show he had actually done so, and could -not mention the name of the person from whom he had bought him, nor the -place where the transaction had been completed. - -The jury had no difficulty in returning a verdict of "guilty," and, -indeed, did so without leaving the court. Turpin was then formally -sentenced to death. - -He wrote to his father, and made great efforts to obtain a reduction of -his sentence to transportation; but without result. A letter received -from his father was a feature of a pamphlet, detailing his trial and -adventures, published at York in April 1739. There is no reason to -doubt its genuine character: - - _March 29, 1739._ - - "DEAR CHILD, - - "I received you Letter this Instant, with a great deal of grief; - according to your Request, I have writ to your Brother John, and - Madam Peek, to make what intercession can be made to Col. Watson, - in order to obtain Transportation for your Misfortune; which, had - I £100 I would freely part with it to do you good; and for God's - Sake, give your whole Mind to beg of God to pardon your many - Transgressions, which the Thief upon the Cross received Pardon - for at the last Hour, tho' a very great Offender. The Lord be - your Comfort, and receive you into his eternal Kingdom. - - "I am yours Distress'd, - - "Yet Loving Father, - - "JOHN TURPIN. - - "HEMSTEAD. - - "All our Loves to you, who are in much Grief to subscribe - ourselves your distressed Brother and Sister, with Relations." - -Turpin principally concerned himself in those twenty-six days that -bridged the distance between sentence and execution in joking, -drinking with the many visitors who came to see him, and telling -stories of his adventures. He turned a deaf ear to the ministrations -of the Ordinary, and was infinitely more concerned that he should -make a last "respectable" appearance in this world, on the scaffold, -than for his welfare in the next. Nothing would satisfy him but new -clothes, a brand-new fustian frock, and a smart pair of pumps to die -in. On the morning before the fatal April 17th he gave the hangman £3 -10_s._ 0_d._, to be divided among five men, who were to follow him as -mourners, and were to be furnished with black hat-bands and mourning -gloves. When the time came, and he went in the tumbril to be turned -off upon York's place of execution at Knavesmire, he bowed to the -ladies and flourished his hat like a hero. It is true that when he had -arrived at the tragic place his leg trembled, but he stamped it down -impatiently. He talked for half an hour with the hangman, until the -crowd began to grow impatient, but then mounted the ladder provided, -and threw himself off in the most resolute fashion. He had the reward -of his courage, for he died in a moment. - -It should here be explained that hanging in those old times, before -the drop had been introduced, was generally a cruel and clumsy method. -As a rule, the culprit was driven up in the cart immediately under the -gallows, and the noose then adjusted round his neck. When all was -ready, the cart was simply drawn away and the victim left hanging, to -be slowly and agonisingly suffocated. Thus the horrible spectacle was -often witnessed of compassionate persons—and sometimes the relations of -the hanging man—pulling his legs to more speedily end his sufferings. -In the museum at Dorchester there may to this day be seen two heavy -weights made for the purpose of thus shortening the misery of criminals -hanged at the gaol there, and bearing the word MERCY. - -It sometimes happened, in those days, that a criminal would be -ineffectually hanged, and afterwards cut down and revived. "Half-hanged -Smith" was a burglar who obtained his nickname in this manner at -Tyburn; but he was convicted, a few years later, of a similar crime, -and effectually hanged on that occasion. Another, cut down and revived, -declared the sensation of being hanged was sufficiently bad, but that -of being restored to life was indescribably agonising, and said he -wished those hanged who had cut him down. - -[Illustration: RALPH OSTLER. - -(_Skelt._)] - -The shocking old alternative to being slowly hanged when the cart was -withdrawn was the method by which criminals with sufficient courage -were enabled to anticipate the modern drop, by throwing themselves off -the ladder, and so securing an instant and practically painless death. -But this was making the condemned their own executioners, and, to all -intents and purposes, suicides. It also required a considerable amount -of resolution. - -Turpin's body lay in state for a day and a night at the "Blue Boar" -inn, Castlegate, York, and was buried the following morning in the -churchyard of St. George's, Fishergate Postern. That evening it was -disinterred by some of the city surgeons, for dissection, but the mob, -with whom Turpin had already become a hero, determined that his remains -should not be dishonoured, rescued the body and reinterred it in lime, -so as to effectually prevent any other attempts. - -The Ride to York and Black Bess are alike myths, but the spot was -long pointed out upon the racecourse at York (perhaps it still is), -where that gallant mare sank down exhausted and died. So strong a hold -have myths upon the imagination, that it is hardly possible the most -painstaking historian will succeed in popularly discrediting the _bona -fides_ of that ride, invented and so stirringly described by Harrison -Ainsworth in 1834, in his _Rookwood_. - -[Illustration: TURPIN'S WAIST-GIRDLE, WRIST-SHACKLES, AND LEG IRONS.] - -Ainsworth was the unconscious predisposing cause of much of _Skelt's -Juvenile Drama_, that singular collection of remarkably mild plays for -toy theatres, allied with terrific scenes and the most picturesque -figures conceived, drawn and engraved in the wildest spirit of -melodrama, and in the most extravagant attitudes. No such scenery -ever existed as that drawn by Skelt's anonymous artists. It was a -decided improvement upon Nature; and no heroes so heroic and no -villains so villainous could possibly have lived and moved as those -imagined by his staff of draughtsmen. _Dick Turpin_ was of course -in the forefront of the thirty-three plays published by Skelt, and -the pictured characters do full justice—and perhaps a trifle over—to -the entirely illegitimate fame Turpin has acquired. You see them -reproduced here, engraved line for line from Skelt, scattered over the -pages of this reconsideration of Turpin. Firstly, you have the great -brethren, Turpin and Tom King, themselves, mounted on noble steeds -that stretch themselves gallantly in their stride; and then you have -Sir Ralph Rookwood and that intelligent officer, Simon Sharpscent, -also on horseback, hurrying off in company, but upon the trail of -the highwaymen. Simon Sharpscent, you will observe, has in his hand -a something that looks not unlike a Field Marshal's bâton. It is the -police-officer's crown-tipped staff of office; and producing it he will -presently say, dramatically: "I arrest you in the King's name!" - -Always, with the remarkable exception of the group of "Highwaymen -Carousing," these characters are intensely dramatic in their -attitudes; but the carousing highwaymen are unexpectedly wooden; -although they look capable of being daredevil fellows when the generous -wine, or the old ale—whichever it may be—has done its work. Even the -"Maid of the Inn" is a creature of romance. - -[Illustration: MAID OF THE INN. - -(_Skelt._)] - -[Illustration: HIGHWAYMEN CAROUSING. - -(_Skelt._)] - -Although Ainsworth invented Turpin's Ride to York, he certainly did -not invent Black Bess, nor did he conceive the ride as an attempt to -establish an _alibi_; for he shows him hotly pursued by the officers of -the law, nearly all the way. In Ainsworth's pages you find no reason -why the ride should have been undertaken. I have elsewhere remarked -that Ainsworth invented Black Bess, as well as robbed Swiftnicks of -the glory of the ride; but a further acquaintance with the literature -of the early part of the nineteenth century discloses the curious -fact that Horace Smith in 1825, in a volume entitled _Gaieties and -Gravities_, included a story called "Harry Halter," in which that -highwayman hero is represented as sitting at the "Wig and Water -Spaniel," in Monmouth Street, with his friends of the same persuasion, -Ned Noose, and Old Charley Crape, and singing the ballad of - -TURPIN AND THE BISHOP - - Bold Turpin upon Hounslow Heath - His black mare Bess bestrode, - When he saw a Bishop's coach and four - Sweeping along the road; - He bade the coachman stop, but he, - Suspecting of the job, - His horses lash'd—but soon roll'd off, - With a brace of slugs in his nob. - - Galloping to the carriage-door, - He thrust his face within, - When the Chaplain said—"Sure as eggs is eggs, - That is the bold Turpin." - Quoth Turpin, "You shall eat your words - With sauce of leaden bullet"; - So he clapp'd his pistol to his mouth, - And fired it down his gullet. - - The Bishop fell upon his knees, - When Turpin bade him stand, - And gave him his watch, a bag of gold, - And six bright rings from his hand. - Rolling with laughter, Turpin pluck'd - The Bishop's wig from his head, - And popp'd it on the Chaplain's poll, - As he sate in the corner dead. - - Upon the box he tied him then, - With the reins behind his back, - Put a pipe in his mouth, the whip in his hand, - And set off the horses, smack! - Then whisper'd in his black mare's ear, - Who luckily wasn't fagg'd, - "You must gallop fast and far, my dear, - Or I shall be surely scragg'd." - - He never drew bit, nor stopp'd to bait, - Nor walk'd up hill or down, - Until he came to Gloucester's gate, - Which is the Assizes town. - Full eighty miles in one dark night, - He made his black mare fly, - And walk'd into Court at nine o'clock - To swear an Alibi. - - A hue and cry the Bishop raised, - And so did Sheriff Foster, - But stared to hear that Turpin was - By nine o'clock at Gloucester. - So all agreed it couldn't be him, - Neither by hook nor crook; - And said that the Bishop and Chaplain was - Most certainly mistook. - -Here we certainly find Black Bess, not treated to two capital letters, -and only referred to as "his black mare Bess" (it was reserved for -Ainsworth to discover the worth of the alliteration and the demand it -made for two capital B's), but we thus have traced the invention of -that coal-black steed one remove further back, and there it must rest, -for a time, at any rate. - -It seems pretty clear that Smith was acquainted with the exploit of -Swiftnicks, but why he transferred the ride to Turpin, and the purpose -of establishing an _alibi_ to Gloucester, does not appear, unless -indeed he wanted a rhyme to "Foster." - -[Illustration: INNKEEPER. - -(_Skelt._)] - -Dickens, who wrote _Pickwick_ in 1836, eleven years after _Gaieties -and Gravities_ was published, had evidently read Smith's book, for -in Chapter XLIII. we find Sam Weller represented as singing to the -coachman a condensed and greatly altered version, beginning: - - Bold Turpin vunce, on Hounslow Heath - His bold mare Bess bestrode—er; - Ven there he see'd the Bishop's coach - A-coming along the road—er. - -That Swiftnicks actually performed the famous ride was generally -believed, as elsewhere described in these pages; and unless any -later evidence can be adduced to deprive him of the credit, he must -continue to enjoy it. But it is curious to note that riding horseback -between York and London under exceptional circumstances has often been -mentioned. A prominent instance is the wager accepted by John Lepton, -esquire to James the First, that he would ride six times between London -and York on six consecutive days. Fuller, in his _Worthies_, tells us -all about it. He first set out on May 20th, 1606, from Aldersgate, -London, and completed the journey before nightfall, returning the next -day; and so on until he had won the wager, "to the great praise of his -strength in acting, than to his discretion in undertaking it," says -Fuller, with an unwonted sneer. - -Turpin was certainly described in his own lifetime as "the noted," "the -renowned," "the famous," but those were merely newspaper phrases, and -the notability, the renown, or the fame commented upon in to-day's -paper is, we are by way of seeing in our own age, the oblivion of next -week. The _London Magazine_, commenting briefly on his execution, -styles him a "mean and stupid wretch," and that estimate of him is -little likely ever to be revised, although it may readily and justly -be amplified by the epithets "brutal" and "cowardly." The brutalities -of himself and his associates kept the suburbs of London for a while -in terror, but he evidently had made little impression on the mind -of Captain Charles Johnson, whose book on _The General History of -Highwaymen_, published in 1742, three years after Turpin's execution, -has no mention of him. - -Yet, side by side with these facts, we are confronted with the -undoubted immediate ballad fame he acquired in the north, of which here -are two pitiful specimen verses: - - For shooting of a dunghill cock - Poor Turpin he at last was took; - And carried straight into a jail, - Where his misfortune he does bewail, - O rare Turpin hero, - O rare Turpin O! - Now some do say that he will hang— - Turpin the last of all the gang; - I wish the cock had ne'er been hatched, - For like a fish in the net he's catched. - -Pedlars hawked these untutored productions widely over the country, -and it will be noticed with some amusement that, just as Robin Hood -had been made a popular ballad hero, robbing the rich to give to the -poor, and succouring the widow and the orphan, and just as Nevison had -been similarly enshrined, so Turpin, who would have been mean enough -to rob a poor man of his beer, a poor widow of her last groat, or to -steal a penny out of a blind man's pannikin (the worst of crimes), was -instantly converted into a blameless martyr. We may, however, readily -imagine the ill-treated Mr. Lawrence of Edgewarebury, rubbing his -roasted posteriors and vehemently dissenting from that estimate of -Turpin. - -But the ballad-writers did not pretend to historical accuracy, or to -grammar, scansion, or anything but a rude way of appealing to the -feelings of the rustics, whose lives of unremitting toil for poor wages -embittered them more than they knew against the rich; to this extent, -that they imagined virtue resided solely in the lowly cot, and vice -and oppressive feelings exclusively in the lordly hall. Those who were -poor were virtuous, and the highwayman who emptied the pockets of the -rich performed a meritorious service. Hence ballads like the following -grievous example, in which Turpin appears, in spite of well-ascertained -facts, to have been executed at Salisbury: - -TURPEN'S APPEAL TO THE JUDGE IN HIS DEFENCE; OR THE GEN'ROUS ROBBER - - Printed and sold by J. Pitts, 6, Great St. Andrew Street, Seven - Dials - - Come all you wild and wicked young men - A warning take by me, - A story now to you I'll tell - Of Turpen of Salisbury. - He was a wild and wicked blade - On the High road did he hie, - But at last was tried, and cast, - And condemn'd he was to die. - When before the Judge he came - And at the Bar he did stand, - For no pardon he did ask, - But boldly he held up his hand, - Declared the truth before the Judge - Who was to try him then:— - "I hope, my Lord, you'll pardon me, - I'm not the worst of men, - I the Scripture have fulfilled, - Tho' a wicked life I led, - When the naked I've beheld, - I've cloathed them and fed; - Sometimes in a Coat of Winter's pride, - Sometimes in a russet grey, - The naked I've cloathed, the hungry fed, - And the Rich I've sent empty away. - As I was riding out one day, - I saw a Prisoner going to Jail, - Because his debts he could not pay, - Or yet sufficient bail. - A true and faithful friend he found - In me that very day; - I paid the Creditor forty pounds - Which set the Prisoner free. - When he had my guineas bright, - He told them into his purse, - But I could not be satisfied: - To have 'em again I must. - Boldly I mounted my prancing steed, - And crossing a point of land, - There I met the Creditor, - And boldly bade him stand. - Sir, the debt you owe to me - Amounts to Forty pounds - Which I am resolved to have - Before I quit this ground. - I search'd his pockets all around, - And robb'd him of his store, - Wherein I found my forty pounds - And Twenty Guineas more. - What harm, my Lord Judge, he said, - What harm was there in this, - To Rob a Miser of his store, - By my stout heartedness. - I never rob'd or wrong'd the poor, - As it plainly does appear; - So I hope you'll pardon me - And be not too severe." - Then the Judge unto bold Turpen said - "Your stories are but in vain, - For by our laws you are condemn'd, - And must receive your pain. - Repent, repent, young man, he said, - For what is done and past, - You say the hungry you've cloathed and fed, - But you must die at last." - -It is of course possible that this ballad was not meant for Dick Turpin -at all; for, so widespread in rural districts had his fame early grown, -that "Turpin" became almost a generic name for local highwaymen, just -as after Julius Cæsar all the Emperors of Rome were Cæsars. It was -a name to conjure with: and this no doubt goes some way to explain -the infinitely many alleged "Turpin's haunts" in widely separated -districts: places Turpin could not have found time to haunt, unless he -had been a syndicate. - -Away down in Wiltshire, in the neighbourhood of Trowbridge, between -Keevil and Bulkington, and in a soggy level plain watered by an -affluent of the Wiltshire Avon, there stands in a wayside ditch a -hoary object called "Turpin's Stone," inscribed, in letters now almost -entirely obliterated, - - Dick Turpin's dead and gone, - This Stone's set up to think upon. - -[Illustration: TURPIN'S STONE.] - -This curious wayside relic may be found on the boundary-line of the -parishes of Bulkington and Keevil, near a spot oddly named Brass Pan -Bridge, and standing in an evil-smelling ditch that receives the -drainage of the neighbouring pigsties. It is a battered and moss-grown -object, and its inscription, despite the local version of it given -above, is not really decipherable, as a whole. "Turpin" may be read, -easily enough, but if the word above it is meant for "Dick," why then -the sculptor of it spelled the name "Dicq," a feat of illiterate -ingenuity that rather staggers belief. Brake-loads of Wiltshire -archæologists have visited the spot in summer, when county antiquaries -mostly archælogise, and, braving typhoid fever, have descended into the -ditch and sought to unravel the mystery of this Sphinx: without result. - -The village of Poulshot, birthplace of Thomas Boulter, a once-dreaded -highwayman, is not far off, and it is possible that Boulter, who had -a very busy and distinguished career on the highways of England in -general, and of Salisbury Plain in particular,[2] may have been named -locally "Dick Turpin," after the hero who died at York under tragical -circumstances, with the aid of a rope, in 1739. Boulter himself ended -in that way in 1778, at Winchester, and so the transference of names -was quite possible. He, it is significant to note, had a mare named -"Black Bess," which he stole in 1736 from Mr. Peter Delmé's stables at -Erle Stoke. - -[2] See the "Exeter Road," pp. 217-228. - -There are Turpin "relics" and associations at the "Spaniards," on -Hampstead Heath, and we find the _Times_ of August 22nd, 1838, saying: -"The rear of the houses on Holborn Bridge has for many years been the -receptacle for characters of the most daring and desperate condition. -There, in a secret _manège_ (now a slaughter-house for her species), -did Turpin suffer his favourite Black Bess to repose for many a -night previously to her disastrous journey to York." The _Times_ had -evidently swallowed the Ride to York story whole, and relished it. - -Another, and more cautious commentator says, "He shot people like -partridges. Many wild and improbable stories are told of him, such as -his rapid ride to York, his horse chewing a beef-steak on the way; but, -setting these aside, he was hardy and cruel enough to shine as a mighty -malefactor. He seems, to quote the Newgate jest, to have been booked, -at his very birth, for the _Gravesend Coach_ that leaves at eight in -the morning." - -"Many years ago," we read in Pink's _History of Clerkenwell_, "a small -leather portmanteau was found at the 'Coach and Horses' tavern, at -Hockley-in-the-Hole, with the ends of wood, large enough to contain a -change of linen, besides other little _etceteras_. On the inner side -of the lid, lightly cut in the surface of the leather, is the name, -'R. TVRPIN.' Whether or no this portmanteau (such an one as horsemen -formerly carried behind them, strapped to the saddle), belonged to that -famous highwayman," says Pink, "we will not attempt to decide." - -[Illustration: PORTMANTEAU, FORMERLY BELONGING TO TURPIN, DISCOVERED AT -CLERKENWELL.] - -But here there should not be much room for doubt. The relic was -probably genuine. It was illustrated in Pink's book, but the -whereabouts of it are not now known. - -The irons worn by Turpin in his cell at York Castle are now preserved -in the York Museum, together with those used for Nevison. They have a -total weight of 28 lb. - - - - -WILLIAM PARSONS, THE BARONET'S SON - - -William Parsons, born in 1717, was the youngest son of a respectable -baronet, Sir William Parsons, of Nottingham; and was so well -connected that he could claim no less a personage than the Duchess of -Northumberland for aunt. Sent to Eton, to complete his education, he -left "Henry's holy shade" in considerable disfavour, and on a visit to -an uncle at Epsom so misconducted himself, that he was bidden never -show his face there again. His behaviour was no better at Cheshunt, -where another relative had the misfortune to receive him for a time. -He was then packed off to sea, as midshipman, aboard the _Drake_. -Returning at the end of a cruise to England, he continued in the gaming -habits he had early learnt, and, to provide funds for his amusements, -called upon his highly-placed aunt and stole a gold-mounted miniature -from her dressing-room. This he was obliged to sell for one-fourth its -value. We next find him at Buxton, stealing a gold-buckled pair of -shoes in the assembly-room belonging to a Mr. Graham, and realising on -them while the owner, vainly seeking, lost all his dances. - -A cruise aboard the _Romney_ then took him to Newfoundland. He played -cards and cheated aboard ship, and acquired so bad a character that -it was plainly intimated the Navy was not his vocation and he had -better leave it. He accordingly left the service and soon found himself -deserted by his friends and without a stiver in his breeches pockets. - -Realising his wild nature, his father thought it best to secure him -some post that should take him abroad for at least a few years, by -which time his hot blood might have cooled down. To this end, he -procured him a billet with the Royal African Company, on the West -Coast of that then very Dark Continent; but the scapegrace was soon -back in England, having quarrelled with the governor of James Fort on -the Gambia River, to whom he had been accredited. He landed even more -destitute, if possible, than before, and of necessity lived the simple -life, by existing for four whole days on three half-penny worth of -bread. The public fountains supplied him freely with water, wherewith -to wash down those frugal meals. - -[Illustration: WILLIAM PARSONS.] - -He dared make no more applications to his father for assistance, for -that father was then smarting at having paid £70 to redeem his honour -over a discreditable affair that had taken place in Africa, where the -reckless youth had forged a letter purporting to come from his aunt, -the Duchess, saying she would be answerable for any debts her nephew -might incur, up to that amount. It was folly of the worst, and most -unremunerative, kind, for that aunt, with whom he had originally been -a favourite, revoked the will she had made in his favour, and left the -£25,000, that would have come to him, to his sister. - -It is evident that William Parsons was what would be called in modern -times a "degenerate." In 1740 he borrowed a large sum of money by a -pretence that he was his elder brother, who was the prospective owner -of a considerable legacy. He then succeeded in making a respectable -appearance for a time, and married a young lady of good family and -fortune. By that marriage he acquired a sum of £4,000, but his wife's -trustees, being not quite satisfied with him, took care to secure the -bulk of her property in such a manner that he could not touch it. -Entering the Army in 1741, as an ensign in a foot regiment, he embarked -upon an extravagant manner of living: obtained a quantity of gold and -silver plate from confiding tradesmen, and kept a large number of -servants. He could never resist the gaming-tables, and although himself -a rogue and a swindler, always found others there who proved more -finished than himself, and thoroughly fleeced him. - -He would then turn to forgery, and successfully negotiate forged bills -under well-known names. The Duke of Cumberland's signature was used -for £500. Nothing came amiss to his perverse ingenuity; and he would -even, as an army officer, call upon tailors and pretend to having -a contract for the supply of uniforms. He would pocket a handsome -commission and receive the goods and sell them for what they would -fetch. To be his friend was to be marked down for being defrauded, and -often to be placed in the most embarrassing situations. Thus in 1745, -when the Jacobite rebellion was disturbing the country, he borrowed -a horse of a brother officer and rode away with it, intending to -desert to the rebels. But, thinking better of it, he went no further -than Clerkenwell, where he sold the horse. The late owner was, in -consequence, arrested on charges of desertion and high treason, and -things might quite conceivably have gone hard with him. - -Accounts of Parsons' next doings do not quite agree. By one of them -we learn that he went to Florida as a lieutenant, but according to -another and a more probable version, he was shipped to the plantations -in Virginia as a convict, who had been found guilty of forgery at -Maidstone Assizes, and sentenced to be transported. Family influence -had no doubt prevented his being hanged. - -Working as a slave in the plantations belonging to Lord Fairfax, he -attracted the attention of that nobleman, who took him from the gang -of convicted malefactors, with whom, under strict supervision, he hoed -and delved under the blazing sun, and befriended him. It did not pay -to befriend William Parsons. He stole one of the best horses belonging -to his benefactor, and, going upon those early colonial roads, soon -accumulated, as a highwayman, a sufficient sum to buy himself a -passage back to old England. - -By fraud, backed up with consummate assurance, he obtained £70 at his -port of landing, and came at once to London. A scheme for plundering -his sister, who by this time had succeeded to her aunt's legacy -of £25,000, then engaged his attention. He hatched a plot with a -discharged footman, for that man to pose as a gentleman of fortune, and -to make advances to her, and even to forcibly carry her off and marry -her against her will, if needs were. Some women servants were also in -the plot, and were even given duly signed bonds in £500 and lesser -sums, to lend their aid. The footman and Parsons were, in the event of -this scheme proving successful, to share the £25,000 in equal parts. - -[Illustration: WILLIAM PARSONS.] - -By a mere accident, the plot was discovered in a milliner's shop in the -West End, where a lady friend of Miss Parsons had pointed out to her a -finely dressed gentleman, "who was going to marry Miss Parsons." This -led to enquiries, and an exposure of the whole affair. - -The last resource of this thorough-paced scoundrel was the road. He -chiefly affected the western suburbs and Hounslow Heath, and it was -in a robbery on that widespreading waste that he was captured. He -had obtained information that a servant, with a valise containing a -large sum in notes and gold, was to leave town and meet his master at -Windsor; and so set out to lie in wait for him. But he had already -been so active on the Heath that his face was too well known, and he -was recognised at Brentford by a traveller who had suffered from him -before. Following him into Hounslow Town, this former victim suddenly -raised an alarm and caused him to be seized. Taken to the "Rose and -Crown" inn, Parsons was recognised by the landlord and others, as one -who had for some time scoured the Heath and committed robberies. His -pistols were taken from him, and he was committed to Newgate, and in -the fulness of time tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. The -efforts of his family connections were again used to save him from the -gallows, and themselves from the stigma of it; but his career was too -notorious for further leniency, and he was hanged at Tyburn on February -11th, 1751. - - - - -WILLIAM PAGE - - -"There is always room on top" has long been the conclusive reply to -complaints of overcrowding in the professions. However many duffers may -already be struggling for a bare livelihood in them, there yet remains -an excellent career for the recruit with energy and new methods. The -profession of highwayman aptly illustrates the truth of these remarks. -It was shockingly over-crowded in the middle of the eighteenth century, -even though the duffers were generally caught in their initial efforts -and hanged; and really it is wonderful where all the wealth came from, -to keep such an army of "money-changers" in funds. - -William Page, who for twelve years carried on a flourishing practice -in the "Stand and Deliver!" profession, was one of those few who -lived very near the top of it. His name is not so familiar as those -of Du Vall, Hind, Maclean, or Turpin, but not always do the really -eminent come down to us with their eminence properly acknowledged. -He was born about 1730, the son of a bargeman to a coal merchant at -Hampton-on-Thames. The bargeman was unfortunately drowned at Putney -in 1740, and his widow was reduced to eking out a meagre livelihood -by the distilling of waters from medicinal herbs. She is described -as "a notable industrious woman," and certainly it was not from her -example that William learned the haughty and offensive ways that -would not permit him long to keep any of the numerous situations he -took, after leaving the Charity School at Hampton, where he acquired -what small education he had. He started life as tapster's boy at -the "Bell" alehouse, in his native town, and thence changed to -errand-boy in the employment of "Mr. Mackenzie," apothecary. Soon his -youthful ambition took him to London, where he obtained a situation -in the printing-office of Woodfall, in Little Britain, who became in -after-years notorious as printer of the "Letters of Junius"; but "that -business being too great a confinement for his rambling temper, he -left it, and went footboy to Mr. Dalrymple, Scots Holland warehouse in -London." - -He rapidly filled the situations of footman to one Mr. Hodges, in -Lincoln's Inn Fields; porter to a gentleman in Cork Street, and footman -to Mr. Macartney in Argyle Buildings. He then entered the service -of the Earl of Glencairn, but left that situation to become valet -to a certain Captain Jasper. Frequently discharged for "his proud -and haughty spirit, which would not brook orders from his masters," -and prevented him, on the other hand, being on good terms with his -fellow-servants, he at last found himself unable to obtain another -place. This was a sad time for William Page. In service he had learned -extravagant habits, the love of fine clothes and the fascination of -gambling; but his arrogant ways had brought him low indeed. - -"Being by such means as these extremely reduced in his circumstances, -without money, without friends, and without character, he could think -of no better method of supplying his wants, and freeing himself from -a servile dependency, than by turning Collector on the Highway. This -he imagined would not only take off that badge of slavery, the livery -he had always worn with regret, but would set him on a level with -gentlemen, a figure he was ever ambitious of making." - -His first steps were attended with some difficulty, for he laboured -under the disadvantage, at the moment of coming to this decision, of -having no money in his pockets; and to commence highwayman, as to begin -any other business or profession, it was necessary to have a small -capital, for preliminary expenses. But a little ingenuity showed him -the way. Pistols and a horse were the tools of his trade, and pistols, -of course, first. A servant of his acquaintance knew a person who had -a brace of pistols to sell, and Page took them, "to show a friend on -approval." He then hired a horse for deferred payment, and with the -pistols went out and immediately and successfully robbed the Highgate -coach. Thus, with the £4 he in this manner obtained, he paid for the -pistols and settled with the livery-stable keeper for his horse-hire. -In another day or two he had touched the wayfaring public for a sum -sufficient to purchase a horse of his own; and thus commenced his -twelve-years' spell of highway adventure, in which, although he had -many exciting experiences, he was arrested only once before the final -escapade that brought him to the gallows. - -An early freak of his was the robbing of his former master, Captain -Jasper, on Hounslow Heath. The Captain was crossing the ill-omened -place with a lady in a post-chaise, when Page rode up, bade the -postilion stop, and ordered the Captain to deliver. - -"That may be, sir," retorted the Captain angrily, "but not yet," and, -pulling out a pistol, fired at him. His aim was not good, but he hit -somebody: none other, indeed, than his own postilion, who was struck in -the back, "and wounded very much." - -Then said Page, "Consider, sir, what a rash action you have been guilty -of. You have killed this poor fellow, which I would not have done for -the world. And now, sir, I repeat my orders, and if you refuse any -longer to comply, I will actually fire upon you." - -[Illustration: WILLIAM PAGE.] - -The Captain then snapped his second pistol at him, but it missed fire. -Page then swore he would shoot the lady; intending to do nothing of the -kind, but only to alarm the Captain the more. But in Captain Jasper -our highwayman had met sterner stuff than common, and the gallant -soldier, the better to protect her, forthwith sat himself in her lap. -On Page continuing to declare he would shoot him, the Captain leapt out -of the chaise at him, and at that moment Page fired, but with intention -to miss, and the shot passed harmlessly by. Again the Captain pulled -the trigger of his pistol, and again it missed fire. - -Then Page declared his ultimatum: "You must now surrender, or I -absolutely will shoot you." Whereupon the Captain, having done all he -possibly could, delivered up his gold watch and ten or eleven guineas. -Page then demanded his sword, but he quite rightly, as a soldier, -demurred to such a humiliation. - -"You may see by my cockade I am an officer, and I would sooner part -with my life and soul than with my sword," he bravely declared. - -Page generously acknowledged his spirit. "I think myself," he said, -"thou art the bravest fellow that ever crossed these plains, but thou -art an obstinate fellow; and so, go about your business." - -He introduced some interesting novelties into the well-worn business. -The chief of these was the distinctly bright idea of driving from -London in a phaeton with a pair of horses and at some lonely spot -disguising himself with a wig and another suit of clothes. Then, -saddling one of the horses and leaving the phaeton, he would carefully -emerge upon the high road and hold up coaches, post-chaises, or -solitary equestrians. This accomplished, he returned to his phaeton, -harnessed the horse again, resumed his former attire, and drove back to -town, like the gentleman of fashion and leisure he pretended to be. One -day, pursuing this highly successful programme, he was nearly undone by -the action of some countryfolk who, finding an abandoned phaeton and -one horse strangely left in a coppice, went off with it. The simple -people, making along the road with this singular treasure-trove, were -themselves followed by some unlucky travellers whom Page had just -robbed, and violently denounced as confederates. Page was fully equal -to the occasion. Nearly stripping himself, and casting his clothes down -a convenient well, he returned to London in that plight and declared -himself to have been treated like the man in the Scriptures, who -"fell among thieves"; although it does not appear that the traveller -in question had a carriage. His phaeton had been stolen, and himself -robbed and left almost naked. - -This precious story was fully believed, and the country people -themselves stood in some considerable danger. They were flung into -prison and would no doubt have been convicted had Page appeared against -them. This he, for obvious reasons, refused to do, and they found -themselves at liberty once more, resolved to leave any other derelict -carriages they might chance to see severely alone. - -Page, in course of time, married a girl of his native town. She could -not long remain ignorant of his means of livelihood, and earnestly -begged him to leave the road and take to honest work. Few, however, -quitted the highway except for the "three-legged mare" at Tyburn, and -the one- or two-legged mares of other places; and he held on his way. -Now and again he would disappear for a time, after some particularly -audacious exploit, to reappear when the excitement it had caused was -over. On one of these occasions he shipped to Barbados and Antigua, -stayed there for seven or eight months, and then returned to England, -desperately in want of money. The line of least resistance indicated -the road once more. - -His first exploit after this reappearance was the robbing of one Mr. -Cuffe, north of Barnet. The traveller, being driven along the road -alone and unarmed in a post-chaise, had no choice but to surrender his -purse, and held it out from the window at arm's length. But Page's -horse, not being used to this kind of business, shied violently, and -Page thereupon ordered the postilion to dismount and hand it him, which -he did, and he then gracefully and at leisure retired. - -On his return to town, leading this high-mettled horse down Highgate -Hill, Page was followed by three men on horseback, who, having heard -of this robbery down the road, suspected he might be the man. They -immediately planned how they were to take him, and then, one of them -riding quietly up, said, "Sir, I have often walked my horse up Highgate -Hill, but never down; but since you do, I will also, and bear you -company." - -Page readily agreed, without the least suspicion of any design against -him, and so they entered into a very friendly conversation. After -walking in this manner some little distance, the gentleman finding a -fit opportunity, keeping a little behind, suddenly laid hold of his -arms and pinioned them so tightly behind him that he was not able to -stir; seeing which, the other two, then on the opposite side of the -road, crossed over and secured him beyond any possibility of escape. -They found in his pockets four loaded pistols, a powder-horn, and some -bullets, a crape mask, and a curious and ingenious map himself had -drawn, showing all the main roads and cross roads for twenty miles -round London. - -They then took him before a Justice of the Peace at Highgate, who -put many searching questions, without gaining any information. He -was, however, committed to Clerkenwell Bridewell, and was afterwards -examined by none other than Henry Fielding, magistrate and novelist. -Sent from the Old Bailey to stand his trial at Hertford Assizes, he -was acquitted for lack of exact evidence, although every one was fully -satisfied of his guilt, for, however strange the times, they were not -so strange that honest gentlemen carried such a compromising collection -of things about with them on the roads. - -His narrow escape did not disturb him, and he was soon again on his -lawless prowls. On Hounslow Heath he robbed a Captain of one of the -Guards regiments, and was pursued into Hounslow town by that officer, -shouting "Highwayman!" after him. No one took any notice. Page got -clear away, and afterwards boasted of having, the following night at a -theatre in London, sat next the officer, who did not recognise him. - -An interlude followed in the activities of our high-spirited -highwayman. He and an old acquaintance struck up a more intimate -friendship over the tables of billiard-rooms in London, and there they -entered into an alliance, with the object of rooking frequenters of -those places. But their returns were small and precarious, and did not -even remotely compare with the rich harvest to be gathered on the road, -to which he accordingly returned. - -It was Page's ill-fortune to meet with several plucky travellers, who, -like Captain Jasper, would not tamely submit to be robbed, and resisted -by force of arms. Among them was Lord Downe, whose post-chaise he, -with a companion, one day stopped at Barnet. Presenting his pistol, he -issued the customary orders, but, to his surprise, Lord Downe himself -drew a pistol, and discharged it with such excellent aim, that Page -was shot in the body, and bled very copiously. His companion's horse, -alarmed at the shot, grew restive, and thus his friend was for a while -unable to come to his aid. Page, however, again advanced to the attack; -but my lord was ready with another pistol, and so the highwaymen -thought it best to make off. They hurried to London, and Page sought -a doctor, who found the wound so dangerous, that he refused to treat -him without consultation. The other doctor, immediately on arriving, -recognised Page, and asked him how he came by the wound; to which Page -replied, that he had received it in a duel he had just fought. - -"I will extract the ball," replied the doctor; "but," he added -significantly, "I do not wish to see your face again, for I believe you -fought that duel near Barnet." - -Shortly after his recovery from this untoward incident, he and one -ally, Darwell, by name, an old schoolfellow, waiting upon chance -on Shooter's Hill, met two post-chaises, in one of which was a -"supercargo" belonging to the East India Company, and in the other a -person, who is simply described as a "gentleman." - -Page's accomplice opened the encounter by firing a pistol, to which -the supercargo replied in like manner; but with a better aim, for the -bullet tore away a portion of his coat, under the armpit. A second -shot from the highwayman was also ineffective. Then Page rode up and -attacked the other chaise. A desperate fusillade followed; but the only -damage done was that Page's horse was slightly wounded. At last, the -post-chaise travellers having expended all their ammunition, the two -highwaymen compelled them to alight, and the postilions to dismount; -and then, having bound the hands of all of them with rope, they ordered -these unfortunate persons, on peril of their lives, to remain on -that spot for one hour. They then returned to the chaises, removed -the travelling trunks, and, carrying them off on horseback, hid them -securely. - -Then they hastened back to London. The next morning, in two chaises, -they returned to the spot, and in security brought back the trunks, -which contained, not only a large amount of money, but a mass of -important documents belonging to the East India Company. - -A reward of forty guineas was offered, by advertisement in the -newspapers of the time, for the return of the documents, "and no -questions asked." The advertisers themselves, by so doing, risked a -fine of £50 for compounding a felony; but, in any case, the reward was -never claimed, although Page carefully returned the papers anonymously. - -The fact which at last cut the knot of William Page's existence was -the robbing of Captain Farrington in 1757, on Blackheath. Among other -things the Captain was compelled to render to this Cæsar of the roads -was a gold repeater watch. Hotly pursued, Page gave the hue-and-cry a -long chase for it, and finally, arriving at Richmond, had himself and -his exhausted horse ferried across to Twickenham. - -Soon after, finding the south of England ringing uncomfortably with -the fame of his doings, he took ship for Scotland, but landed at -Scarborough, where, at the fashionable spa, he gambled heavily and -strutted awhile as a man of considerable fortune. But he must have -been at last really alarmed and prepared to consider turning over -a new leaf, for he went north to see his former master, the Earl -of Glencairn, who, he thought, would be able to recommend him to -employment in the plantations. The Earl, however, received him coldly, -and he came south again, to resume his chosen profession, in company -with Darwell, whom he had by constant alternate threats and persuasions -seduced from the reformed life he was leading and the respectable -situation he held, to take up again this hazardous calling. - -Together they scoured the road to Tonbridge, Darwell forming, as it -were, a rearguard. Page was pursued beyond Sevenoaks by five mounted -men armed with pistols, and a blunderbuss, who dashed past Darwell, -and after a struggle seized his leader, who presently escaped again. -In their return, disappointed, they made a prisoner of Darwell, who, -suspecting something of the kind would happen, had already thrown -away his pistols. In spite of his indignant protestations that he was -a private gentleman, and would not endure such an outrage, he was -searched and a part of Captain Farrington's watch was found upon him, -with the maker's name and most of the distinguishing marks more or less -carefully obliterated. Questioned closely, he declared he had picked -it up upon the road. As for the highwayman they had just now nearly -captured, he knew nothing of him: had never set eyes on him before. - -But, in spite of these denials, Darwell was taken off in custody and -examined before a magistrate, who so plied him with questions, threats -of what would happen to him if he continued obstinate, and promises of -clemency if he would make discovery of his companion, that he at last -turned King's evidence. During the interval, he was lodged in Maidstone -gaol. - -A fortnight later, Page was arrested in one of their old haunts in -London, the "Golden Lion," near Grosvenor Square. He was at first taken -to Newgate, but afterwards remitted to Maidstone, and tried there for -the robbery of Captain Farrington. Convicted and sentenced to death, he -was hanged on Penenden Heath, April 6th, 1758. - - - - -ISAAC DARKIN, _ALIAS_ DUMAS - - -Isaac Darkin was the son of a cork-cutter in Eastcheap, and was born -about 1740; too late to appear in the stirring pages of Alexander -Smith or Charles Johnson, in which he would have made, we may be sure, -an admired figure. All those who knew him, on the road or in the -domestic circle, agreed that he was a handsome fellow; and travellers, -in particular, noticed his taking ways. These were first displayed -in 1758, when he robbed Captain Cockburn near Chelmsford. No less -taking, in their own especial way, were the police of the neighbourhood -in that time, for they speedily apprehended Isaac, and lodged him -in Springfield gaol. He was duly arraigned at the next assizes, and -no fewer than eight indictments were then preferred against him. He -pleaded guilty to the robbing of Captain Cockburn, but not guilty on -the other counts; and was, after a patient trial, found guilty on the -first and acquitted on the others. He was then sentenced to death, but -was eventually respited on account of his youth, and finally pardoned -on condition that he enlisted in the 48th Regiment of foot, then -serving in the West Indies, at Antigua. Drafted with others aboard a -ship lying in the lower reaches of the Thames, presently to set sail -for that distant shore, he effected his escape, almost at the moment -of up-anchor, by dint of bribing the captain of a merchant vessel -lying alongside, to whom he promised so much as a hundred pounds to -help him out. He was smuggled aboard the merchantman, and so cunningly -disguised that when a search-party, suspecting his whereabouts, boarded -the ship, and searched it, even to the hold, they did not recognise -him in a particularly rough and dirty sailor who was swearing nautical -oaths among the ship's company on deck. So the transport-vessel sailed -without him, and he, assuming the name of Dumas, rioted all through -the West of England, robbing wealthy travellers and gaily spending his -takings on what he loved best: fine clothes and fine ladies. He was so -attentive to business that he speedily made a name for himself, the -name of a daring votary of the high toby. This reputation rendered -it politic on his part to enlist in the Navy, so that in case of -being arrested for highway robbery, he could prove himself to have a -respectable occupation, that would help to discredit the charge of -being a highwayman. - -He soon became a valued recruit, and was promoted to midshipman; and -it is quite likely that if he had been sent on active service he would -have distinguished himself in a more reputable career than that in -which he was so soon to die. But his duties kept him for considerable -periods in port, and he seems to have had ample leave from them; for -we find him hovering near Bath and gaily robbing the wealthy real or -imagined invalids going to, or returning from, the waters. - -On the evening of June 22nd, 1760, he fell in with Lord Percival, -travelling by post-chaise over Clarken Down, near Bath, and robbed him -of twelve, thirteen, or fourteen guineas—my lord could not positively -swear to the exact amount. He then made off in the gathering twilight, -and galloped across country, to Salisbury Plain and the little village -of Upavon, where he was arrested in a rustic alehouse, and sent -thence to Salisbury gaol. At his trial he indignantly denied being a -highwayman, or that he was an Englishman. He declared his name was -Dumas, that he had lately come from Guadaloupe, where he had taken -a part in the late military operations; and said that the so-styled -"suspicious behaviour" and damaging admissions he was charged with, -when arrested at the inn, were merely the perplexities of a foreigner, -when suddenly confronted by hostile strangers. - -This special pleading did not greatly deceive judge or jury, but -the prosecution broke down upon a technical detail, and Darkin was -acquitted; not, however, without an affecting address to the prisoner -from the judge, Mr. Justice Willmott, who urged him to amend his ways, -while there was yet time. - -It is thus quite sufficiently evident that, although the Court was -bound to acquit the prisoner, no one had the least doubt of his -guilt. His narrow escape does not appear to have impressed Darkin, -or "Dumas"; but he was anxious enough to be off, as we learn from a -contemporary account of the proceedings, in which it is quaintly said: -"He discovered great Impatience 'till he had got off his Fetters and -was discharged, which was about five o'clock in the evening, when he -immediately set out for London in a post-chaise." - -The fair ladies of Salisbury sorrowed when he was gone. They had -been constant in visiting him in prison, and had regarded him as a -hero, and Lord Percival as a disagreeable hunks. The hero-worship he -received is properly noted in the account of his life, trial, and -execution, issued in haste from an Oxford press in 1761, shortly after -the final scene had been enacted. In those pages we read: "During -Mr. Dumas' imprisonment at Salisbury, we find his sufferings made a -deep impression upon the tender Hearts of the Ladies, some of whom, -having visited him in his Confinement, his obliging Manner, genteel -Address, lively Disposition, and whole Deportment so struck them that -his Fame soon became the Discourse of the Tea Table; and at the happy -Termination of His Affair with my Lord Percival, produced between them -the following Copy of Verses: - - Joy to thee, lovely Thief! that thou - Hast 'scaped the fatal string, - Let Gallows groan with ugly Rogues, - _Dumas_ must never swing. - - Dost thou seek Money?—To thy Wants - Our Purses we'll resign; - Could we our Hearts to guineas coin - Those guineas all were thine. - - To Bath in safety let my lord - His loaded Pockets carry; - Thou ne'er again shall tempt the Road, - Sweet youth! if thou wilt marry. - - No more shall niggard travellers - Avoid thee—We'll ensure them: - To us thou shalt consign thy Balls - And Pistol; we'll secure 'em. - - Yet think not, when the Chains are off, - Which now thy Legs bedeck, - To fly: in Fetters softer far - We'll chain thee by the Neck." - -But in the short space of six weeks from his acquittal at Salisbury and -his triumphal exit in a post-chaise for London, he was again arrested -on a charge of highway robbery, this time for robbing a Mr. Gammon at -Nettlebed, on the road to Oxford. Committed to trial at Newgate, he was -transferred to Oxford gaol, and tried there on March 6th. He had up -to now been phenomenally fortunate, but things at this crisis looked -a great deal more serious. He acknowledged "he had experienced many -narrow scrapes, but never such a d—d one as this," and he was presently -found guilty and condemned to death, this time without any extenuating -circumstances being found. - -Isaac Darkin was what in our times would be called a "superior person." -Slang he disdained to use, bad language was anathema to him; and if -he did, indeed, condescend to describe a person of mean understanding -as "a cake," or "a flat," that was the most he permitted himself. His -delicacy was so great that he never mentioned a "robbery," a "robber," -or a "highwayman," but spoke instead of persons who had been "injured," -or of "the injured parties." And as he was so nice in his language, so -he was particular in his dress and deportment. As an eulogist of him -said, not without a little criticism: "He was possessed of too great -a share of pride for his circumstances in life, and retained more of -it to the last than was becoming in a person in his unhappy situation. -He had a taste for elegance in every respect; was remarkably fond of -silk stockings, and neat in his linen; had his hair dressed in the most -fashionable manner every morning; his polished fetters were supported -round his waist by a sword-belt, and tied up at his knees with ribbon." - -Although but the son of a cork-cutter, he had lived, in the estimation -of his contemporaries, like a gentleman. Like a gentleman he spent -his last days, and if he did indeed seem to boast a little when, a -few days before his execution, he declared he had been nine times in -gaol, and seven times tried on a capital charge, that was merely a -pardonable professional exaggeration. His claim to have gleaned over -six hundred guineas from the road has, on the other hand, the look of -an under-estimate. The rumbustious fellows of a hundred years earlier -would have thought that very bad business; they often took much more -in a single haul. But times were changing, and not for the better, from -the highwaymen's point of view. - -Isaac Darkin died like a gentleman, without apparent fear, and without -bravado, at Oxford, on March 23rd, 1761, and was at that time, as -himself remarked, without apparent pathos or truckling to weak -sentiment, "not twenty-one." - - - - -JAMES MACLAINE, THE "GENTLEMAN" HIGHWAYMAN - - -The career of James Maclean, or Maclaine, shows that it was not really -difficult to become a "gentleman" highwayman. Born at Monaghan in 1724, -he was the second son of Lauchlin Maclaine, a Presbyterian minister, -who, although settled in Ireland, was a Scotsman of unmixed Scottish -blood, and of undoubted Scottish sympathies. There are plenty of -materials for a life of his son James, the highwayman, for the story -of his career had a remarkable attraction for all classes of people -at the time when he went to die at Tyburn, in 1750; and consequently -the "Lives" and "Memoirs" of him are numerous. There are also several -portraits of him, most of them showing a distinctly Scottish type of -countenance, but not one solving the mystery of his extraordinary -fascination for women. Indeed, the full-length portrait of him -engraved in Caulfield's _Remarkable Characters_, in which he is styled -"Macleane, the Ladies' Hero," shows a heavy-jowled person, with dull, -yet staring fish-like eyes; exactly the kind of person who might be -expected to create an unfavourable impression. Perhaps the artist -does him an injustice, but none of the several artists and engravers -who have handed down to us their respective versions of his features -have succeeded in imparting the slightest inkling of good looks to him, -and few of the portraits agree with one another. He was tall above -the average, as the various prints show; and he wore fine clothes. It -was these exceedingly fine feathers, and the fashionable resorts he -affected, that gave him the distinction of "gentleman" highwayman; and -it is to be feared that his exquisite dress, in larger measure than the -quality of his manners, influenced the ladies of 1750, who wept over -his fate just as the equally foolish women of 1670 had wept over the -hanging of Du Vall. - -[Illustration: JAMES MACLAINE. - - _From a contemporary Portrait._] - -The Ordinary of Newgate saw nothing remarkable in Maclaine. He speaks -of him as "in person of the middle-size, well-limbed, and a sandy -complexion, a broad, open countenance pitted with the small-pox, but -though he was called the _Gentleman Highwayman_, and in his dress and -equipage very much affected the fine gentleman, yet to a man acquainted -with good breeding, and that can distinguish it from impudence and -affectation, there was very little in his address or behaviour that -could entitle him to the character." - -[Illustration: MACLAINE, THE LADIES' HERO.] - -Archibald, the elder brother of this fashionable hero, was an entirely -respected and blameless person, who entered the Church, and was pastor -of the English community at The Hague for forty-nine years, from 1747 -to 1796. - -James, the future knight of the road, was intended by his father for -a merchant; but that pious father died when James was eighteen years -of age, and so the youthful "perfect master of writing and accompts," -as he is styled, instead of proceeding, as intended, to a Scottish -merchant in Rotterdam, received a modest inheritance, with which he -immediately took himself off to Dublin, where he lost or expended it -all inside twelve months, in dissipation, after the example of the -Prodigal Son in the Scriptures. - -Only, unfortunately for him, when the money was gone, and he would, -given the opportunity, perhaps have returned, like that illustrious -exemplar, from his husks and his harlots, to partake of the fatted -calf, there was no father, no home, and no fatted calf to which he -might return. - -But he had still some relatives left in Monaghan, and he thought he -might be received by them. In this he was altogether mistaken when he -tried to put it to the proof, and was reduced almost to the point of -starvation there, when he attracted the attention of a gentleman, who -offered him a footman's place in his service. He did not keep this -situation long. He was too impudent to his master, and too patronising -towards the other servants. He was discharged, and for a time subsisted -upon a scanty allowance from his brother. - -In this extremity he found a gentleman of Cork, a "Colonel F——n," who -was confiding enough to engage him as butler. But he apparently did not -make a good butler; and was, moreover, discovered making away with his -master's property, and discharged. We next find him in London, thinking -of joining the Irish Brigade in the French service; but abandoning -the idea from conscientious scruples against being employed in Popish -surroundings. Maclaine had a very tender conscience and a timid nature, -and what with his religious scruples and the fear of being shot (to -which he does not allude, but which was very vivid to him), he had to -abandon the notion of wearing a fine uniform, which we may suspect had -originally given him the impulse to a military life. - -[Illustration: JAMES MACLAINE.] - -Maclaine did not at this period keep very reputable society; but -was in 1746 again occupying a position with the forgiving "Colonel -F——n." The Colonel seems to have, on this second occasion, found -him an undesirable servant; whereupon, "being prepossessed with the -perfections of his person," he proposed to enlist in Lord Albemarle's -troop of horseguards. The Colonel, as an old soldier, thought this, no -doubt, the best thing, and, with an advance of ten pounds, bade him go -where glory waited him. - -Maclaine accordingly enlisted. He had visions of being seated on a -prancing steed—"steed" being the superlative of "horse"—and, dressed in -something with plenty of blue or scarlet and gold in it, taking part -in ceremonial processions and escorts. Unhappily, soon after he had -enlisted, he heard that the troop was to proceed at once to Flanders -on active service, and hurriedly got, somehow, out of the dangerous -position. - -He then made some attempt to settle down and live respectably, for he -married the daughter of a Mr. Maclagen, a horse-dealer in the Oxford -Road—the Oxford Street of to-day. His wife brought a small dowry of -£500, and with this they set up business in the grocery and chandlery -way in Welbeck Street. Unhappily for any views he may have entertained -of a settled life as a tradesman, his wife died in 1748. It appeared -then that the business had not prospered, or that their style of living -had been beyond their means, for the stock and furniture were then -found to be worth only £85. - -Maclaine's first idea after this domestic catastrophe was one very -prevalent at that time: the notion of posing as a gentleman of fortune -and of fashion, with the object of ensnaring the affections of some -susceptible young lady of means and marrying her for her money. He -accordingly realised all his effects, and, placing his two infant -daughters in the care of his mother-in-law, burst upon the town as one -of the elegants of the day. - -A needy neighbour, like himself a tradesman, Plunkett by name, who had -failed as a chemist, was induced by this hopeful widower to act a part -as his footman, and together they frequented places of fashionable -assemblage, both in London and at Tunbridge Wells, on the look-out for -heiresses. But the game was shy, and meanwhile the small capital of -£85 was fast melting away. Fine clothes were ten times more expensive -in that age than the finest clothes of to-day, and although it was -possible to obtain a good deal on credit, it was not at all workable to -visit Vauxhall and such expensive places, and to cut a dash there, for -any considerable time on so inconsiderable a capital. - -It was Plunkett who at this stage of affairs, when their funds were -nearly exhausted, suggested the road as a place where money might -usually be had for the asking. - -"A brave man," said Plunkett, "cannot want. He has a right to live, and -need not want the conveniences of life. While the dull, plodding, busy -knaves carry cash in their pockets, we must draw upon them to supply -our wants. Only impudence is necessary, and the getting better of a -few idle scruples. Courage is scarcely necessary, for all we have to -deal with are mere poltroons." But when poltroon meets poltroon, when -the timid traveller, ready to hand over his purse on demand, cannot do -so because the coward highwayman dare not reach out and take it, what -happens? It is an embarrassing moment, whose fortunes are (or were) -determined only by chance. - -Plunkett did not know the manner of man he had to deal with until they -had taken the road together. He had always seemed a bold, swaggering -fellow, and big enough in all conscience; but when it came to highway -robbery he was a helpless companion. - -Their first affair was with a grazier, going home from Smithfield with -the proceeds of his day's business in his pocket. Plunkett, suddenly -enlightened as to Maclaine's want of nerve, took the conduct of the -incident firmly in hand at once, or the results might have been -disastrous for both. He took £60 from the grazier, while Maclaine -looked on and spoke no word, inwardly in greater fear than he, and -ready, had there been any sign of resistance, to fly. - -Their next attempt was to stop and rob a coach on the St. Albans road. - -It was agreed that Maclaine should stop the coachman and present his -pistol on one side, while Plunkett did the same on the other. But -although he rode up several times, intending to challenge the Jehu with -the traditional cry of the bold and fearless fellows who did the like -every night, his heart failed him; so Plunkett had to carry it off -as best he could, while Maclaine sat shivering with cowardice in the -background, in spite of the "Venetian mask" that covered the upper part -of his face and concealed his identity sufficiently well. - -But Plunkett, as may have been already gathered, was a man with -sufficient resolution for two, and although Maclaine was quaking with -terror on every occasion, he brought him in some fashion up to the -scratch in a long series of robberies. They frequently hired or stabled -horses at Hyde Park Corner, and thence rode out for a day and a night -upon Hounslow Heath, or elsewhere. - -"In all this while," we learn, he scarcely ever thought of his -daughters, "and seldom visited his mother-in-law." O villain! - -When in town, he had lodgings on the first floor over a shop in St. -James's Street, and presented a gorgeous figure to morning callers. -He was even more gorgeous in the evening, when he frequented places -of public entertainment, and obtained the freedom of some fashionable -houses. But the morning picture he presented will probably suffice. He -then wore a crimson damask banjan, a silk shag waistcoat turned with -lace, black velvet breeches, white silk stockings, and yellow morocco -slippers. - -On one exceptional occasion, Plunkett and Maclaine went as far as -Chester, and did good business on the way; but their best haul was on -Shooter's Hill, where they stopped and robbed an official of the East -India Company of a large sum. - -With his share of the plunder, Maclaine took a little holiday on the -Continent, and visited his brother at The Hague, probably astonishing -that worthy man by his sudden magnificence. He then returned and -rejoined Plunkett. - -Horace Walpole wrote at different times several accounts of how he was -once stopped by these brothers-in-arms. It was a moonlight night, in -the beginning of November 1749, nearly a year before Maclaine's career -was brought to a close, that Horace was returning from Holland House, -Kensington, to London. The hour was ten o'clock, the place Hyde Park. -What trifles, or what amount of money Messrs. Maclaine and Plunkett -took on this occasion we are not told; for Walpole does not take his -correspondents so completely and voluminously into his confidence over -this affair as he generally did. He only tells them, and us, that the -pistol of "the accomplished Mr. Maclean," as he calls him, went off—by -accident, he is careful to say—and that the bullet passed so close as -to graze the skin beneath his eye and stun him. The bullet then went -through the roof of the carriage. - -The incident that so nearly brought the life of Horace Walpole to -an untimely end, and might thus have left the world much poorer in -eighteenth-century gossip, was conducted, as he tells us, "with the -greatest good-breeding on both sides." He further adds that the reason -of Maclaine being out that night and taking a purse _that_ way was, he -had only that morning been disappointed of marrying a great fortune. It -does not seem at all an adequate reason; but that was the eighteenth -century and this is the twentieth, and perhaps we cannot see eye to eye -on all these matters. - -But, at any rate, Maclaine afterwards behaved very nicely about the -articles he had taken; sending a note to Walpole as soon as ever he had -returned to his lodgings, in which he made his excuses, if not with -the witty grace of a Voiture, at least expressed in a manner ten times -more natural and easily polite. He declared that, had the bullet found -its billet in Walpole's head, he would certainly have put one through -his own. Then, in a postscript, which, like the postscripts in letters -written by feminine hands, contained the whole substance of and reason -for the letter, Maclaine added that he would be pleased to meet the -gentleman at Tyburn (O ominous tryst!) at twelve at night, where the -gentleman might purchase again any trifles he had lost. - -There, if not particularly elsewhere, Maclaine seems to have indeed -proved himself, in one brief moment, a "gentleman" highwayman. You -see the argument passing in his mind. The trifles were indeed trifles -intrinsically, but they might have had some sentimental worth, of old -or new association, that would have made the loss of them a grievous -thing to their rightful owner. Well, then, if that owner liked to -ransom them for a trifling sum, here was his chance. A very considerate -offer. - -But Horace Walpole did not accept the rendezvous. Possibly he doubted -the honour of a highwayman met at such a spot. - -The "gentleman highwayman" resented criticism, as will be seen by -the following story: Maclaine frequented Button's Coffee House, in -Russell Street, Covent Garden, and paid particular attention to the -barmaid there, daughter of the proprietor. The attentions of such a -fine gentleman as he appeared to be were very flattering to the girl, -and very noticeable to other frequenters of the house, one of whom, -a certain Mr. Donaldson, knew Maclaine, and took the opportunity of -warning the girl's father of his real character. The father in his turn -cautioned his daughter, and foolishly let slip the name of the person -who had warned him; and she, of course, passed on the information to -the engaging Maclaine. - -On the next occasion when Donaldson visited Button's, and while he was -sitting in one of the boxes, Maclaine entered, and in a loud voice, and -the pronounced Irish brogue that was ever on his tongue, said: "Mr. -Donaldson, I wish to spake to you in a private room." - -Mr. Donaldson, being unarmed, and naturally afraid of being alone with -such a man as he knew Maclaine to be, said that as there could not -possibly be anything pass between them that the whole world was not -welcome to know, he begged leave to decline the invitation. - -"Very well," rejoined Maclaine, "we shall meet again." - -A day or so later, as Mr. Donaldson was walking near Richmond in the -evening, he saw Maclaine on horseback, approaching him; but fortunately -at that moment a gentleman's carriage appeared, and Maclaine rode -after it; Donaldson hastening into the protection that the streets -of Richmond town afforded. It is probable that, but for this timely -diversion, Maclaine would have shot the man who dared tell the truth -about him. - -But the end of the alliance of Maclaine and Plunkett was now at hand. -On June 26th, 1750, at two o'clock in the morning, they stopped the -Salisbury stage on Turnham Green. The courage of the coach passengers -was at a low ebb at that unconscionable hour, and they suffered -themselves to be robbed, without making the least resistance. They -numbered five men and one woman. The men were bidden step out, and, -doing so, were searched and robbed at leisure. A Mr. Higden had an -exceptionally fine waistcoat, and had to part with even that to -Maclaine, who was a connoisseur in waistcoats. A Mr. Lockyer also was -constrained to give up a wig. From the lady was taken "only what she -chose to give." Here, at any rate, is a faint sweet relic of an older -courtesy. - -As an afterthought, Maclaine went back for two or three of the -portmanteaux stored away in the hoot. - -They then, riding off westward, met the Earl of Eglinton, travelling in -his post-chaise. He had an escort of two mounted servants, but as they -were over half a mile behind at the time, he might equally well have -been travelling alone. - -[Illustration: MACLAINE AND PLUNKETT ROBBING THE EARL OF EGLINTON ON -HOUNSLOW HEATH.] - -Maclaine, riding up to the postboy, threatened him with a pistol and -told him to stop instantly; but, at the same time, was sufficiently -cautious to so place himself that the occupant of the post-chaise would -be unable to fire at him without hitting the postboy. The highwaymen -were, as a rule, exceedingly well-informed persons; and Maclaine knew -perfectly well that Lord Eglinton carried a blunderbuss with him, and -had the reputation of always being ready and willing to use it. - -But in the strategic position he had taken up, he was quite safe, and -meanwhile Plunkett had advanced from the rear and taken his lordship -completely by surprise. He threatened, indeed, instantly to shoot him, -if he did not throw the blunderbuss away; and my lord flung the weapon -from him at once, as though it had been red-hot. Plunkett then took -seven guineas from him. - -Maclaine was not behindhand, and seized his lordship's overcoat and the -blunderbuss which was lying upon the heath. He was a frugal person, -and in that particular did credit to his Scots ancestry. A curious -old print shows this robbery, famous in its day, and in it Maclaine -and Plunkett do certainly look most awe-inspiring in their attitudes: -Maclaine, in particular, being apparently engaged in pushing his pistol -through the postboy's head. But that is doubtless artistic licence. - -Maclaine did a very foolish thing when he returned to his St. James's -Street rooms, early that same day. He sent for a Jew dealer to come and -make an offer for some clothes he wished to sell; none other, in fact, -than those he had taken from the coach, and when they were shortly -advertised as having been stolen, the mischief was done. As if that -were not folly enough, Maclaine's frugality had led him also to remove -the gold lace from one of the stolen coats and to offer it for sale. -He chanced to take it to the very laceman who had recently sold it. -His arrest was then a matter of course. Equally of course, he strongly -protested against the indignity of a "gentleman" being arrested for -theft, and then he broke down and wept in "a most dastardly and -pusillanimous manner, whimpering and crying like a whipt schoolboy." - -Maclaine declared that the absconded Plunkett had left the clothes with -him, in part satisfaction of a debt he owed, and that he, Maclaine, was -to have sold them for what they would fetch, as part liquidation of the -debt. - -Any so-called confession he might have made, he now declared -impossible. What should a gentleman like himself know of highway -robbery? "It is true enough that when first apprehended, the surprise -confounded me and gave me a most extraordinary shock. It caused a -delirium and confusion in my brain which rendered me incapable of being -myself, or knowing what I said or did. I talked of robberies as another -man would do in talking of stories; but, my Lord, after my friends had -visited me in the Gate-house, and had given me some new spirits, and -when I came to be re-examined before Justice Lediard, and was asked -if I could make any discovery of the robbery, I then alleged I had -recovered my surprise, that what I had talked of before concerning -robberies was false and wrong, and was entirely owing to a confused -head and brain." - -He called nine witnesses to character; among them Lady Caroline -Petersham, who is represented in a curious print of the trial at the -Old Bailey, under examination. - -The elegant Maclaine stands prominently in the dock handsomely attired, -but, alas! heavily fettered, with his laced hat under his left arm. -One hand holds his lengthy written defence, the other is affectedly -spread over his breast, in gentlemanly protestation of his being an -injured person. His is a tall, upstanding figure; but he appears, by -the evidence of the print, to have had a face like a pudding: and the -majority of the counsel seated at a table in front of him are shown -regarding it with easily understood curiosity and astonishment. - -One of the dignified persons on the bench is represented addressing -Lady Caroline: "What has your Ladyship to say in favour of the -Prisoner at y^e Bar?" - -[Illustration: MACLAINE IN THE DOCK.] - -With a dramatic gesture, she replies: "My Lord, I have had the Pleasure -to know him well: he has often been about my House, and I never lost -anything." - -In spite of this cloud of witness, our gentleman was convicted, and -that with the utmost dispatch, for the jury returned their verdict of -"guilty" without leaving the box. - -The time between his condemnation and execution was spent in an -affectation of repentance, that does not read very pleasantly. He -suddenly found himself a great sinner, and indeed revelled luxuriantly -in the discovery. But there was not the true note of abasement and -conviction in all this; for he went among his fellow-criminals like -a superior person, and offered them consolation from the rarefied -heights of his "gentility," that must have been excessively galling to -them. Their profanity and callousness shocked him profoundly. Probably -their behaviour was not less profane when he, condemned to die for -misdeeds similar to their own, presumed to lecture them on the error of -their ways. But preaching was in his blood, and would find expression -somehow, and he found excuse for his almost consistent lack of courage -on the road in the moral reflection that it was conscience made a -coward of him. But conscience did not prevent him sharing in the swag -when the enterprise was carried through. - -He said it was true that, since he had entered upon the highway, he -had never enjoyed a calm and easy moment; that when he was among ladies -and gentlemen they observed his uneasiness, and would often ask him -what was the matter, that he seemed so dull. And his friends would tell -him that surely his affairs were under some embarrassment; "But they -little suspected," said he, "the wound I had within." - -He protested in a good cause he believed there was not a man of greater -natural courage than himself, but that in every scheme of villainy -he put Plunkett on the most hazardous post. "There," said he, "I was -always a coward—my conscience"——always that sickly, unconvincing -iteration. But the insistence of conscience that Plunkett should always -be placed in the way of the bullets is at least amusing. - -Walpole tells how Maclaine had rooms in St. James's Street, opposite -White's Club, and others at Chelsea. Plunkett, he says, had rooms in -Jermyn Street. Their faces were as well known in and about St. James's -as that of any of the gentlemen who lived in that quarter, who might -also be in the habit of going upon the road, if the truth were known -about everybody. Maclaine, he said, had quarrelled, very shortly -before his arrest, with an army officer at the Putney Bowling Green. -The officer had doubted his gentility, and Maclaine challenged him to -a duel, but the exasperating officer would not accept until Maclaine -should produce a certificate of the noble birth he claimed. - -"After his arrest," says Walpole, "there was a wardrobe of clothes, -three-and-twenty purses, and the celebrated blunderbuss found at his -lodgings, besides a famous kept-mistress." Walpole concluded he would -suffer, and as he wished him no ill, he did not care to follow the -example of all fashionable London, and go to see him in his cell. He -was almost alone in his thus keeping away. Lord Mountfield, with half -White's Club at his heels, went to Newgate the very first day. There, -in the cell, was Maclaine's aunt, crying over her unhappy nephew. When -those great and fashionable frequenters of White's had gone, she asked, -well knowing who they were, but perhaps not fully informed of their -ways, beyond the fact that they gambled extravagantly: "My dear, what -did the Lords say to you? Have you ever been concerned with any of -them?" - -"Was it not admirable?" asks Walpole; adding, "but the chief personages -who have been to comfort and weep over their fallen hero are Lady -Caroline Petersham and Miss Ashe: I call them 'Polly' and 'Lucy,' and -asked them if he did not sing: 'Thus I stand like the Turk with his -doxies around'?" - -In that last passage, Walpole refers to Gay's _Beggar's Opera_, written -in 1716 and produced in 1728; a play written around an imaginary -highwayman, "Captain Macheath," who might very well have stood for -Maclaine himself. Polly and Lucy were two of Macheath's friends in the -opera. - -We have Walpole's own authority for the otherwise almost incredible -statement that three thousand people went to see Maclaine in his cell, -the first Sunday after he was condemned. He fainted away twice with the -heat of the cell. "You can't conceive the going there is to Newgate, -and the prints that are published of the malefactors and the memoirs -of their lives and deaths, set forth with as much parade as Marshal -Turenne's." - -The fatal October 3rd came at last, when he was to die. A curious -etched print published at the time, at the small price of threepence, -entitled "Newgate's Lamentation, or the Ladies' Last Farewell of -Maclaine," shows the parting, and bears the following verses: - - Farewell, my friends, let not your hearts be fill'd, - My time is near, and I'll with calmness yield. - Fair ladies now, your grief, I pray, forbear, - Nor wound me with each tender-hearted tear. - - Mourn not my fate; your friendships have been kind, - Which I in tears shall own, till breath's resign'd. - Oh! may the indulgence of such friendly love, - That's been bestowed on me, be doubled from above. - -Thus fortified, and giving his blessing, for what it might be worth, he -went to Tyburn diligently conning his prayer-book all the way, and not -once glancing at the crowds. - -[Illustration: NEWGATE'S LAMENTATION; OR, THE LADIES' FAREWELL TO -MACLAINE.] - -To the constable who had arrested him, and who now came to beg his -forgiveness, he replied earnestly: "I forgive you, and may God bless -you, and your friends; may He forgive my enemies and receive my soul." -And then he was turned off, and died quite easily. There was a great -sale for the many more or less truthful lives of him hawked round the -gallows. - - - - -JOHN POULTER, _ALIAS_ BAXTER - - -The story of John Poulter is one of the saddest that here present -themselves to be recorded. He was born at Newmarket, of poor parents, -and was given a sufficient schooling for his station. At thirteen -years of age he was taken into service in the stables of the Duke of -Somerset, and remained there for six years, leaving with an excellent -character for smartness and industry. He then went into the employ of -Colonel Lumley, and was on three occasions sent to France, in charge -of racehorses; always giving complete satisfaction. But this slight -experience of foreign travel seems to have unsettled him, and he craved -for adventures under alien skies. We next find him, accordingly, -sailing on a Bristol merchant ship and voyaging to the West Indies, to -the American Colonies, and to Newfoundland; seeing life in a humble but -effective way. - -Returning to England at last, and, sailor-like—or at any rate, like -sailors of those times—falling at once into abandoned company, he -met, at Lichfield on February 1749, a dissolute set of persons living -disreputably upon their wits; among them a certain John Brown, alias -Dawson, who, with an experience of the highway trade, easily persuaded -the adventurous Poulter to join him and his associates. - -Brown, Poulter, and company, fully armed, then set out to prey upon -all and sundry; devoting themselves more particularly to thefts from -houses. At Lichfield, while one diverted the attention of the landlord -of the "George" inn, another rifled a chest and stole a sum of money -and many valuable articles. At Chester, Poulter distinguished himself -by stealing some black plush that he fancied might make him a fine -stylish waistcoat; and sent off at once to a tailor, to call at the -"Black Dog" inn, where he and the gang were lodging, that he might -be measured, and enabled to appear forthwith as a person of elegance -and distinction. We may here fitly pause a moment to admire, or to -be astonished at, the child-like vanity and delight in fine clothes -displayed by nearly all the highwaymen at that time. They could not -resist seizing every and any opportunity that offered, of dressing -themselves in the best that could be obtained. - -Unfortunately, the manners of a highwayman were not exactly those of -a gentleman. There was something overdone in the affected elegance of -deportment, a certain exaggeration and a decided "loudness" that made -reflective people suspicious. Thus, the tailor to whom Poulter sent -for his stolen plush to be made up was not altogether satisfied with -his strange customer, and when a pistol that Poulter carried in his -pocket went off accidentally during the process of measurement, he was -convinced that a person who carried loaded firearms in this manner was -not only a dangerous, but also a suspicious, person. The bullet had -harmlessly sped into the ceiling, but the tailor was unnerved by the -incident, and Poulter, rather lamely apologetic, endeavoured to explain -away this concealed armoury by accusing Brown of putting crackers -in his pockets. As for the tailor, he hurried off to the Mayor with -the story that a dangerous person, evidently a highwayman, had taken -lodgings in the city, and was one of a queer gang, whose suspicious -movements had already attracted attention. The Mayor sent some trusty -emissaries to examine Poulter and his associates, but they had already -taken the alarm, and had embarked at Parkgate for Ireland. - -Poulter had already had enough of this criminal life, and, tired of -adventure of all kinds, desired nothing better than to settle down to -some business. He accordingly, in the name of Baxter, took a small -alehouse in Dublin, and, entirely dissociating himself from his -companions for a time, did a comfortable and fairly prosperous trade, -averaging five barrels a week. Here he might have continued, and would -have been glad to do so, only for a most unfortunate circumstance. - -There were at that time a number of Irish rogues in London, obtaining a -hazardous livelihood, chiefly by picking pockets, but not disdaining -any form of villainy that might promise to be profitable. General -Sinclair was robbed of a gold watch by one or other of this gang, as he -was leaving a party at Leicester House, and William Harper and Thomas -Tobin, two suspicious characters, were arrested for being concerned, -and taken to the Gatehouse at Westminster, whence they were presently -rescued by their gang, to the number of a couple of dozen; all of them -making off to Ireland. - -This affair would not appear to concern Poulter in any way, engaged -as he was at Dublin in earning an honest livelihood; but it had a -very tragical result on his fortunes. Among the fugitives was one -James Field, who had known Poulter in London; and he, as ill-fortune -would have it, chanced one day to walk down that Dublin Street where -Poulter's inn was situated. By the accursed malevolence of fate, -Poulter himself happened at that moment to be standing at the door of -his house. Field immediately recognised him and stopped to enquire -what his old confederate was doing. He drank there and wished him good -day, but soon after brought all that escaped gang of scoundrels to the -spot; and there, much to Poulter's dismay, they established themselves, -day by day, making his inn, once so respectable and well-conducted, a -byword for riotous drinking, and the haunt of characters that it would -be flattery to describe as merely "suspicious." Field and others were -actually taken into custody there. Decent trade deserted the inn, and, -despairing of being rid of the scoundrels, whom he dared not forbid the -house, lest they should turn upon and denounce him, he absconded across -Ireland to Cork, where he at first contemplated taking another inn. -He at last, however, settled upon Waterford, and took an inn there, -remaining for six months, when he was induced to return to Dublin by -his former brewer, who, sorry to have lost a good customer by Poulter's -enforced flight, wanted him back. - -He eventually settled two miles outside Dublin, at an inn called the -"Shades of Clontarf," looking upon the sea; and became part innkeeper, -part fisherman, and led a very happy, honest, and contented life, -making, moreover, an average profit of £3 a week. - -But here he was found towards the close of 1751 by Tobin, who foisted -himself and a dissolute woman companion upon the unfortunate man. -Poulter generously received them, but earnestly implored Tobin not -to bring his evil associates into the neighbourhood. He wanted, he -declared, to live an honest life, and to be done with the past. Tobin -assured him he would not appear in the neighbourhood again; but in a -few days he was back at Clontarf, with a select company of rascals, and -from that time the unhappy Poulter knew no peace. His determination -to lead a respectable life they took as a direct challenge to, and -slur upon, themselves. There is nothing that so greatly enrages the -habitual criminal as the reclamation of one of his own kind, and it is -doubtless the influence of hardened evil-doers that prevents many a -criminal, really disgusted with crime, from reforming. These wretches -set themselves deliberately to ruin Poulter. They practically lived -at his house, and, as had been done before, they soon changed the -character of it from a decent alehouse to a thieves' boozing-ken, to -which the police-officers came at once when they wanted to find some -bad character, or to trace stolen property. Poulter was a mere cipher -under his own roof. - -But they were not content with wrecking his trade: they must needs -blast that good character he had been so patiently acquiring. They did -it by making him out a smuggler. Six pounds of tea and twelve yards of -calico and muslin placed secretly in his boat, and information then -lodged with the Revenue officers, was sufficient. Poulter's boat was -seized and condemned, and Poulter himself, convinced that he would not -be able to establish his innocence, fled from the scene and hurried -aboard a vessel bound for Bristol, where he landed penniless. There, in -Bristol streets, he met two early criminal acquaintances, Dick Branning -and John Roberts, and as there seemed to be no likelihood of being -allowed to live within the law, he agreed to take part with them and a -number of confederates, whose headquarters were at Bath, in a campaign -of highway and other robberies. - -Their operations were of the most roving description. By way of -Trowbridge, they made for Yorkshire, raiding the country as they went -with all manner of rogueries. Nothing came amiss. At Halifax they -netted twenty-five guineas from a clergyman by an eighteenth-century -ancestor of the thimble-rigging fraud, called "pricking in the -belt." At last they found themselves at Chester: place of evil omen -for Poulter. There, at the house of a confederate, they heard on -the evening of their arrival of a train of pack-horses laden with -Manchester goods, due to pass that night. Watch had been kept upon -them, said the confederate, and a man would point out to our friends -which, among all the animals of the pack-horse train, was best worth -robbing of his load. It would be best, he said, to do the work on the -country road, and to take the horse into a field. - -As it happened, they pitched upon the wrong horse, and got only a -load of calamancoes, fabrics woven of wool with an admixture of silk, -popular in those times; but the pack contained over a thousand yards, -and they cut it off after some difficulty in the dark, and got away -safely with it; although greatly alarmed by the horse's loud neighing -when he found himself separated from his companions. - -The robbers went off at once out of the neighbourhood, and that same -night reached a village near Whitchurch, eighteen or twenty miles -distant. There they obliterated all distinguishing marks on the goods, -and divided them. - -At Grantham, which Poulter and Tobin next favoured with a visit, they -relieved a credulous farmer of fifteen guineas by the "pricking in the -belt" device. At Nottingham several of the accomplices met, but they -had bad luck, and Poulter went on the sneak and stole a silver tankard, -without a lid, from the "Blackamoor's Head" inn: and that was all the -scurvy town of Nottingham yielded them. They then made for Yorkshire, -where they remained for a considerable period, and then left, only -because their widespread thefts of all kinds made a continued stay -dangerous. York, Durham, and the north, including Newcastle, comprised -a tour then undertaken. - -They then made their way to Bath, the general rendezvous of the -gang, and thence in what Poulter calls "three sets," or gangs, moved -independently and by easy stages into Devonshire: attending the -cattle-fair at Sampford Peverell, with marked success to themselves, -and grievous loss to the farmers and graziers there assembled. Thence -they moved on to Torrington and Exeter, and so back again to Bath, -where twelve of them met at Roberts's house. - -Poulter and two confederates named Elgar and Allen then went into the -north of England again, attending fairs, horse-races and cock-fighting -matches on the sharping lay; winning about £30 or £40 at cards. -Returning to Bath, and being looked upon with suspicion, living as -they were with a number of riotous men in Roberts's house, they hit -upon the dodge of passing for smugglers, and thus at once explaining -their association and enlisting public sympathy. Every one, except the -Revenue officers, was in those times well-affected towards smugglers. - -They were not only at considerable pains, but at great expense also, to -create this impression. "We used," says Poulter, in his confessions, -"to give seven shillings a pound for tea, and sell it again for four -shillings and sixpence, on purpose to make people believe we were -smugglers." - -While they were thus staying at Bath, they would go now and then to a -fair, and try "the nob," or "pricking in the belt." If that did not -succeed, they would buy a horse or two, give IOU's for the money and -false addresses, and then sell the horses again. "This," says Poulter, -"is called 'masoning.'" - -This was followed by a raid into Dorset. A visit of the gang to -Blandford races was highly successful. They attended numerously, and -while some robbed the booths, others devoted their attention to the -sportsmen, and yet others lightened the pockets of the crowds engrossed -in watching the cock-fighting. They wound up a glorious day by dining -in style at the "Rose and Crown," and there chanced upon the best luck -of all those gorgeous hours: finding a portmanteau from which they took -eighteen guineas, four broad pieces, and diamonds, jewels, and clothes -to a great amount. Many of these articles were taken to London by -Poulter, and sold there to Jews in Duke's Place, Aldgate, on behalf of -self and partners. The proceeds were duly divided at Roberts's house at -Bath. - -The next activities of these busy rogues were at Corsham, near Bath. -They then appeared at Farringdon in Berkshire, and there robbed the -Coventry carrier. Newbury and Bristol then suffered from them. At last, -they grew so notorious in the West of England that they judged it only -prudent to alter their methods for a time, and to devote themselves -exclusively to horse-stealing: an art they had not hitherto practised -with any frequency. - -An amusing incident was that in which Poulter robbed a man of £20. The -foolish fellow, an utter stranger, had been rash enough to display his -money to Roberts one night in a country alehouse. It had just been paid -to him, he said. "And it will presently be taken from you," Roberts -might truly have retorted. But he merely in a sly manner drew Poulter's -attention, who later followed the man and presenting a metal tinder-box -to his head, roared out, "Your money or your life." The tinder-box in -the darkness looked so like a pistol that the money was meekly handed -over. - -Poulter then went off to Trowbridge, in company with a new recruit, -Burke by name, an Irishman, who had been confidential ostler to -Roberts, and was now advanced to full membership of this body of -raiders. Meeting a post-chaise near Clarken Down, Burke proposed to -attack it, but Poulter would agree only on condition that no violence -were used. Poulter then led the attack, but in the darkness put his -hand with accidental force through the window, and cut it severely. -In doing so, his pistol went off, and Burke thinking it was the -occupant of the chaise who had fired, replied with his own firearms. -Fortunately, no one was hit. - -The chaise was occupied by Dr. Hancock and his little girl. Poulter -took up the child and kissed her, and then, setting her down, robbed -the Doctor of one guinea and a half in gold, six shillings, a gold -watch, and some clothes: a booty not worth all the trouble, and -certainly not by a long way worth the further trouble the affair was -presently to bring. - -After seeing the post-chaise disappear in the darkness, Poulter and his -companion made their way to a neighbouring inn, and coolly displayed -their takings to the landlord and his wife, who appear to have been, -if not actual confederates, at least better disposed to self-revealed -robbers than honest innkeepers should be. The landlady gave the -highwaymen a bag for the clothes, and the landlord, when they lamented -the fact of all their powder and ball being fired off, obligingly -removed the charge from his loaded fowling-piece, and melted down two -pewter spoons for casting into bullets. The landlady, when Poulter and -Burke asked her if these preparations for arming did not alarm her, -said: "No, they are not the first pistols I have seen loaded by night -in this kitchen." Evidently an inn that the solitary and unarmed -traveller with money about him should avoid. - -She added thoughtfully that, after this robbery, they had better travel -as far away as they could, that night from the spot. She would send -them any news. - -They then left, and, taking a horse they chanced to see in an adjacent -meadow, proceeded to Exeter, where they sold the stolen articles to a -receiver. - -It was not more than three weeks later when Poulter was arrested on -suspicion of being concerned in the robbery of Dr. Hancock. He was -thrown into Ilchester gaol, brought to trial, and condemned to death. -He made a full confession and disclosed the names of no fewer than -thirty-one of his associates, their places of meeting, and their -methods. He was not only anxious to save his life by thus turning -evidence against the gang, but he was genuinely wearied of the manner -of life into which he had been hounded. - -Many members of the gang, he said, lived to all appearances -respectably. Their general meeting-place was Bath. He added that it was -on every account desirable that the messenger to the police at Bath, -entrusted with these disclosures, should keep all these things secret, -except to the Mayor; but some one had gossiped, for within one hour -of his arrival those revelations were the talk of the town, and the -names of those implicated in them were freely mentioned. The next day -they were even printed, in accounts of the disclosures hastily struck -off and sold in the streets. The very natural result was that most of -the persons named escaped before justice could lay hands upon them. A -list of nineteen not taken, and twelve in various gaols all over the -country, is printed in the _Discoveries_. - -Dr. Hancock's property was found and returned to him. His conduct -was one of the most astonishing features in this amazing case, and -reflected considerable discredit upon him; for although he visited -Poulter in Ilchester gaol, before the trial, and assured the prisoner -that although he was obliged to be a prosecutor, he would bear lightly -upon the facts, and would in the event of a conviction use his best -efforts to obtain the Royal pardon, he treacherously used every effort -to secure his being hanged. There seems to have been no motive for this -double-dealing, except his own natural duplicity. His treachery was -thorough, for he even used his influence with the judge to obtain a -shortening of the period between sentence and execution. - -The trial and the revelations made by Poulter excited keen and -widespread public interest, and the lengthy pamphlet account of -them, entitled "The Discoveries of John Poulter, otherwise Baxter, -apprehended for robbing Dr. Hancock on Clarken Down, near Bath," had a -large and long-continued sale. A copy of the fourteenth edition, issued -in 1769, fourteen years later, is in the British Museum library. - -He was respited for six weeks, in consideration of the further -disclosures he was to make, or of any evidence he might be required -to give, and in this time, so moving was his tale, and so useful was -the information he had given, that the corporations of Bath, Bristol, -Exeter, and Taunton, together with numerous private gentlemen of -considerable influence, petitioned that he might be reprieved. It is -probable that these efforts would have been successful; but Poulter was -an unlucky man, and at this particular crisis in his affairs happened -in some way to rouse the ill-will of the gaoler, who was never tired, -in all those days of suspense, of assuring him that he would certainly -be hanged, and serve him right! - -It is not surprising that, under these circumstances, the unhappy -Poulter endeavoured to escape. With, the aid of a fellow-prisoner, -committed to gaol for debt, he forced an iron bar out of a window, and -the two, squeezing through the opening, broke prison at nightfall of -Sunday, February 17th, 1755. They intended to make for Wales. All that -night they walked along the country roads, Poulter with irons on his -legs as far as Glastonbury, where he succeeded in getting them removed. -When day came, they hid in haystacks, resuming their flight when -darkness was come again. They next found themselves at Wookey, near -Wells, much to their dismay, having intended to bear more towards the -north-west. Poulter was by this time in a terribly exhausted condition, -and his legs and ankles were so sore and swollen from the effects of -being chafed with the irons he had walked with for ten miles, that it -was absolutely necessary he should rest. He did so at an alehouse until -two o'clock in the afternoon, and was about to leave when a mason at -work about the place entered, and recognised him. Calling his workmen -to help, he secured Poulter, who was then taken back to Ilchester. -Nine days of his respite were left, but a strong and murderous animus -was displayed against this most unfortunate of men, and it was decided -to hang him out of hand. The execution could not, however, take place -earlier without a warrant from London, and the trouble and expense of -sending an express messenger to the local Member of Parliament, then -in town, demanding his instant execution, were incurred, in order to -cut shorter his already numbered days. The messenger must have been -phenomenally speedy, for he is said to have returned with the warrant -within twenty-four hours; and Poulter was at once taken out of his cell -and hanged, February 25th, 1755. - - - - -PAUL LEWIS - - -Paul Lewis, who was, like Nicholas Horner, the son of a clergyman, -was born at Hurst-monceaux, in Sussex, and was originally put to the -profession of arms, and became an officer of artillery. The usual -career of gambling and debauchery, so productive of highwaymen, led -him first into difficulties with his creditors, and then caused him to -desert from the army. He left one service only to enter another, for -he joined the navy, and rose from the rank of midshipman to that of -lieutenant. - -[Illustration: PAUL LEWIS.] - -None doubted his courage, nor, on the other hand, was there any -mistaking his depravity. He robbed his brother officers of the small -sum of three guineas, and made off with that meagre amount to begin the -life of the road in the neighbourhood of Newington Butts. He levied -contributions from a gentleman travelling in a chaise on this spot, -but this, his initial effort, resulted in his capture. The plea of an -_alibi_ set up for him, however, secured his acquittal. Later he was -seized at night by a police-officer while in the act of robbing a Mr. -Brown, whose horse he had frightened by discharging a pistol. Mr. -Brown was flung violently to the ground, and Lewis was in the act of -going over his pockets when Pope, the police-officer, who had been on -the look-out for him, secured him, after a struggle. - -Lewis was duly sentenced to death at the ensuing Sessions. - -The Newgate Calendar, recounting all these things, says: "Such was the -baseness and unfeeling profligacy of this wretch that when his almost -heart-broken father visited him for the last time in Newgate, and put -twelve guineas into his hand to repay his expenses, he slipped one of -the pieces of gold into the cuff of his sleeve by a dexterous sleight, -and then, opening his hand, showed the venerable and reverend old man -that there were but eleven; upon which his father took another from his -pocket, and gave it him to make the number intended. Having then taken -a last farewell of his parents, Lewis turned to his fellow-prisoners, -and exultingly exclaimed: "I have flung the old fellow out of another -guinea!" - -Lewis said he would die like a man of honour; no hangman should put a -halter round his neck. He would rather take his own life. But this he -had not, after all, sufficient courage to do. A knife he had secreted -in his pillow fell out one day, either by accident or design, and was -taken away from him. He was executed at Tyburn on May 4th, 1763, aged -twenty-three. - - - - -THE WESTONS - - -The careers of George and Joseph Weston read like the imaginings of a -romantic novelist, and, indeed, Thackeray adopted some of the stirring -incidents of their lives in his unfinished novel, _Denis Duval_. - -George Weston was born in 1753, and his brother Joseph in 1759; sons -of George Weston, a farmer, of Stoke, in Staffordshire. Early in 1772, -George was sent to London, where a place in a merchant's office had -been secured for him, and there he was fortunate enough to be promoted -to the first position, over the heads of all the others, upon the death -of the chief clerk, eighteen months later. He was then in receipt of -£200 a year, and on that amount contrived to take part pretty freely -in the gaieties and dissipations of Vauxhall and similar resorts. -At this period he introduced his brother Joseph to town, and also -began a series of peculations in the office, in order to support the -extravagances into which a passion for gambling and "seeing life" had -led him. When he could no longer conceal his defalcations, he fled to -Holland, and Joseph, suspected of complicity, was obliged to leave -London. - -Within three months George had returned to England in disguise. He made -his way to Durham and there entered the service of a devout elderly -lady of the Methodist persuasion. Pretending to have adopted the -religious convictions of George Whitefield's followers, he affected the -religious life, with the object of marrying the lady and securing her -ample fortune. But he was recognised on the very eve of the wedding, -and exposed. He then fled southward, with as much of the old lady's -money and valuables as he could manage to secure at the moment. - -But he speedily lost nearly all his plunder in backing outsiders at -York and Doncaster races, and entered Nottingham with only one guinea. -There he fell in with a company of strolling players, managed by one -James Whiteley, who offered him the post of leading gentleman. He -accepted it, and under the name of Wilford, remained with them a little -while. - -It was not a distinguished troupe, which perhaps accounts for his -having been so promptly given a leading part in it. It consisted of -two runagate apprentices, a drunken farrier, a stage-struck milliner, -two ladies whose characters it were well not to study too closely, the -manager's wife, a journeyman cobbler, a little girl seven years of age, -and a stage-keeper, who alternated his stage-keeping with acting and -barbering. - -The theatre was a decrepit and almost roofless barn, and the stage -consisted of loose boards propped up on empty barrels; while the -scenery and the curtains were chiefly dilapidated blankets. -Barn-storming in such pitiful circumstances did not suit our -high-minded hero, who soon made his way to Manchester, where he became -a schoolmaster, and a leading member of a local club, where he read -the papers and conducted himself with such a show of authority that -the parson, the lawyer, and the apothecary, who had before his coming -disputed for pre-eminence over their fellow-members, yielded before his -masterful ways. He shortly became High Constable, and soon began to -abuse the position by blackmailing innkeepers and forging small drafts -upon them. The more timid and easy-going submitted for a while to -this, but others resented it in the very practical way of taking steps -to secure his arrest. George then obeyed the instinct of caution and -disappeared. - -About the year 1774 the brothers met at a fair in Warwickshire, where -Joseph had been playing the game of "hiding the horse," and had hidden -three so effectively from their owners that he was presently able -to sell them, unsuspected, for over £70. They then had thoughts of -purchasing a farm, and travelled to King's Lynn, where, in the name of -Stone, they lodged some time with a farmer. Pretending to be riders -(_i.e._ travellers) to a London distiller, they wormed themselves into -the confidence of the farmer and appointed him local agent for the -non-existent firm, showing him tricks by which he would be able to -water down the spirits he was to receive, and so cheat the retailers. -On the strength of these confidences, they borrowed over a hundred -pounds, and then decamped, leaving only their "sample bottles" of -brandies and rums behind. - -They thought it wise to travel far, and so made their way into -Scotland, and in the name of Gilbert took a small farm, where they -remained for only a few months, leaving secretly and at night with all -the movables, and with two geldings belonging to a neighbour. - -Cumberland had next the honour of affording them shelter. In October -1776 they were apprehended on a charge of forgery at Bishop's Castle, -Shropshire, and must have received an altogether inadequate sentence, -or perhaps escaped, for they are next found in Ireland, in the -following summer, at Baltinglass, county Wicklow. They were shortly -afterwards at Dublin, frequenting the clubs under the name of Jones. -There they met a noted plunger of that time, one "Buck" English, and -fooled him in the highest degree; cheating at hazard, and obtaining -money from him in exchange for forged bills and drafts. At length, -after a fierce quarrel with English, who fought with George in the -Dublin streets and wounded him in the right hand, the Westons left for -Holyhead. Landing there with plenty of ready money, they toured Wales -at leisure; Joseph as "Mr. Watson," and George as his valet. - -In May 1778 they were at Tenby. On leaving the inn, where they had -stayed and run up a bill of £30, they paid the landlord with a forged -cheque and departed grandly with the change, in a post-chaise and -four. They then visited Brecon and Bideford; George now posing as -master, in the name of Clark, and Joseph acting as Smith, his valet. -Next they are found at Sutton Coldfield, then on the Sussex and Kentish -coasts, where they purchased a vessel and became known to the fishermen -of Folkestone, Deal, and Dover as the "Gentlemen Smugglers," trading -between those parts and Dunkirk. They did very well, too, until an -interfering Revenue cutter chased them and forced them to run their -craft ashore. - -After this exciting episode, they made their way to London, and led a -fashionable life, strongly flavoured with gambling and forgery. George -took a house in Queen Anne Street, and the two "commenced gentlemen," -as we are told; George passing for a wealthy squire of sporting tastes. -Hounds and whippers-in were almost daily at the door in the morning, -and at night the rooms were filled with callow young men about town, -attracted by the brilliant card-parties given—at which, it is scarcely -necessary to add, they were thoroughly rooked. - -The brothers lived here in great style, on the proceeds of forgery and -cheating at cards. They induced a lady next door to lend a sideboard -full of valuable silver plate, on the pretence that their own had not -arrived from the country, and sold it; and, advertising largely that -they were prepared to purchase plate, jewellery, and annuities, did, in -fact, make several such purchases, paying for them in worthless bills. -A good deal of the property thus obtained was stored at a residence -they had hired at Beckenham, in the name of Green. - -At length warrants were issued against them, and they fled to Scotland. -At Edinburgh they posed as merchants trading with Holland, and acted -the part with such complete success that they secured a considerable -amount of credit. After forging and cashing numerous acceptances, they -left for Liverpool, where, in the guise of "linen merchants," they -repeated their Edinburgh frauds; and then, transferring themselves -to Bristol, they became "African merchants." There they did a little -privateering with one Dawson, but that, being legalised piracy, did not -appeal to these instinctive criminals, to whom crime was a sport, as -well as a livelihood. - -London called them irresistibly, and they responded. - -Riding up to town from Bristol to Bath, and then along the Bath Road, -they overtook the postboy in the early hours of January 29th, 1781, -driving the mail-cart with the Bristol mails, between Slough and -Cranford Bridge, and bidding him "good night," passed him. Arriving at -the "Berkeley Arms," Cranford Bridge, they halted for refreshment, and -then turned back, with the object of robbing the mail. - -George took a piece of black crape from his pocket and covered his face -with it; and then they awaited the postboy. - -Halting him, George ordered him to alight, and when he meekly did so, -seized and bound him, and then flung him into a field. The two then -drove and rode off to Windmill Lane, Sion Corner, and thence on to the -Uxbridge road, through Ealing, and up Hanger Hill to Causeway Lane. -There, in "Farmer Lott's meadow," they rifled the contents of the cart -and took the bags bodily away. - -Having disposed the mails carefully about their persons, they hurried -off on horseback for London, to a house in Orange Street, near -Piccadilly, where they were well known. The bags proved to contain -between ten and fifteen thousand pounds, in notes and bills. - -A clever plan for immediately putting a great part of the notes in -circulation was at once agreed upon; and in the space of an hour or -two, George left the house fully clothed in a midshipman's uniform, -with Joseph following him dressed like a servant. They went to the -"White Bear," in Piccadilly, and, hiring a post-chaise, set out upon -what was nothing less than a hurried tour of the length and breadth of -England; tendering notes at every stage, and taking gold in exchange. -By way of Edgeware, they went to Watford, Northampton, Nottingham, -Mansfield, Chesterfield, Sheffield, York, Durham, Newcastle, and -Carlisle. Thence they returned, on horseback, by way of Penrith, -Appleby, Doncaster, Bawtry, and Retford, to Tuxford, where they -arrived February 1st. Putting up for a much-needed rest there, with an -innkeeper well known to them, they were informed that the Bow Street -runners had only that day passed through, in search of them, and had -gone towards Lincoln. - -Early in the morning, the Westons resumed their express journey, making -for Newark, where they were favoured by some exclusive information from -an innkeeper friend, which enabled them narrowly to escape the runners, -who had doubled back from Lincoln. - -Thence, post-haste, they went to Grantham, Stamford, and Huntingdon, to -Royston, halting two hours on the way at the lonely old inn known as -"Kisby's Hut." - -At Ware they took a post-chaise and four, and hurried the remaining -twenty miles to London; arriving at the "Red Lion," Bishopsgate, at -eleven o'clock on the night of February 2nd. The officers of the law -were not remiss in the chase, and were at the "Red Lion" only one hour -afterwards. - -Once in London, the brothers separated; Joseph taking another -post-chaise, and George a hackney-coach. They were traced to London -Bridge, but there all track of them vanished. - -Meanwhile, the Post Office had issued a long and detailed notice of -the robbery, and had offered a reward of two hundred pounds for the -apprehension of the guilty person, or persons: - -[Illustration: [++] Post Office logo.] - - "General Post Office, Jan. 29th, 1781. - - "The Postboy bringing the Bristol Mail this morning from - Maidenhead was stop't between two and three o'clock by a single - Highwayman with a crape over his face between the 11th and 12th - milestones, near to Cranford Bridge, who presented a pistol to - him, and after making him alight, drove away the Horse and Cart, - which were found about 7 o'clock this morning in a meadow field - near Farmer Lott's at Twyford, when it appears that the greatest - part of the letters were taken out of the Bath and Bristol Bags, - and that the following bags were entirely taken away:— - - Pewsy. - Ramsbury. - Bradford. - Henley. - Cirencester. - Gloucester. - Ross. - Presteign. - Fairford. - Aberystwith. - Carmarthen. - Pembroke. - Calne. - Trowbridge. - Wallingford. - Reading. - Stroud. - Ledbury. - Hereford. - Northleach. - Lechlade. - Lampeter. - Tenby. - Abergavenny. - Newbury. - Melksham. - Maidenhead. - Wantage. - Wotton-under-Edge. - Tewkesbury. - Leominster. - Cheltenham. - Hay. - Cardigan. - Haverfordwest. - - "The person who committed this robbery is supposed to have had an - accomplice, as two persons passed the Postboy on Cranford Bridge - on Horseback prior to the Robbery, one of whom he thinks was the - robber; but it being so extremely dark, he is not able to give - any description of their persons. - - "Whoever shall apprehend and convict, or cause to be apprehended - and convicted, the person who committed this Robbery will be - entitled to a reward of TWO HUNDRED POUNDS, over and above the - Reward given by Act of Parliament for apprehending Highwaymen; - or if any person, whether an Accomplice in the Robbery or - knoweth thereof, shall make Discovery whereby the Person who - committed the same may be apprehended and brought to Justice, - such discoverer will upon conviction of the party be entitled to - the Same Reward of TWO HUNDRED POUNDS and will also receive His - Majesty's most gracious Pardon. - - "By Command of the Postmaster-General, - - "ANTH. TODD, Sec." - -It was soon ascertained that the Westons were the robbers, and careful -descriptions of them were at once circulated: - - "George Weston is about twenty-nine years of age, five feet seven - inches high, square-set, round-faced, fresh-coloured, pitted - with small-pox, has a rather thick nose, his upper lip rather - thick, his hair of lightest brown colour, which is sometimes - tied behind, and at other times loose and curled; has much the - appearance of a country dealer, or farmer. One of his thumb-nails - appears, from an accident, of the shape of a parrot's bill, and - he is supposed to have a scar on his right hand, from a stroke - with a cutlass." - -The younger brother was just as closely described: - - "Joseph Weston is about twenty-three years of age, five feet - nine inches high, slender made, of a fair and smooth complexion, - genteel person, has grey eyes and large nose with a scar upon it; - his hair is of a light brown colour, sometimes tied behind, at - other times loose and curled; his voice is strong and he speaks - a little through his nose; has a remarkable small hand and long - fingers." - -While these descriptions were staring from every blank wall, George -and Joseph were hiding, in disguise, in the Borough. They had a large -amount of money, realised by their tremendous exertions over that -long journey, and they added judiciously to their store by carrying on -their business of lending money on plate and jewellery, and paying for -the articles in the remaining notes stolen from the Bristol mail. The -famous "Perdita" Robinson was one of those victimised in this way; and, -as a contemporary account says, "lost her diamond shoebuckles which a -certain Heir Apparent presented her with." - -It was in October 1781, when paying for some lottery tickets in -Holborn, with stolen notes, that George and Joseph became acquainted -with two pretty girls, cousins, employed as milliners near Red Lion -Square. George gallantly bought some shares for them, and in the -evening took them to Vauxhall Gardens. The delighted girls were told -the two gentlemen were Nabobs just returned from India; and, dazzled -with the wealth they flung about, readily consented to go and live with -them. They were soon, accordingly, all four in residence in a fine -house near Brompton; George adopting the name of "Samuel Watson," and -Joseph passing as "William Johnson." - -They left Brompton for a while and migrated to Winchelsea, where they -took the "Friars," a fine house with beautifully wooded grounds. The -foremost furnishers in London, Messrs. Elliot & Co., of 97, New Bond -Street, were given orders for furniture, cutlery, and a generous supply -of plate, and from other firms they procured horses and carriages, -finally establishing themselves at the mansion in December 1781. -While in residence there the ladies conducted themselves with such -propriety, and the gentlemen appeared so distinguished and so wealthy, -that they soon moved in the best society of the neighbourhood. It did -not, apparently, take long in those times, or in the neighbourhood -of Winchelsea, for strangers to obtain a footing in local society, -for all this short-lived social splendour began in December, and -ended in the middle of the following April. The last, sealing touch -of respectability and recognition was when George was elected -churchwarden of the parish church in Easter 1782. From that pinnacle -of parochial ambition, however, he and his were presently cast down, -for Messrs. Elliot & Co., growing anxious about their unpaid bills -for goods delivered, sent two sheriff's officers down to Winchelsea -to interview the brothers. The officers met them at Rye on horseback, -and endeavoured to arrest Joseph. When he refused to surrender, they -tried to dismount him, but the two brothers overawed them by presenting -pistols, and escaped; making their way back to Winchelsea, and thence -travelling at express speed to London, in their own handsome chariot. -Their identity with the Westons and the robbers of the mail was -revealed in that encounter with the sheriff's officers, one of whom -had observed George's peculiarly distorted thumb-nail. Information was -thereupon given, and a redoubled search begun. - -They went at once to their old hiding-place in the Borough, and might -again have escaped detection had they been sufficiently careful. But, -gambling for high stakes at the "Dun Horse," they quarrelled violently, -and in the hearing of the ostler used some remarks that led him to -suspect them. He communicated his suspicions to the police at Bow -Street, and although they appear to have become uneasy and to have -then left the Borough, they were traced on April 17th to Clements' -Hotel, in Wardour Street. Mr. Clark, the officer sent to arrest them, -met Mrs. Clements at the entrance and asked if two gentlemen of the -description he gave were in the house. She said she would see, and went -and warned them. Down they came, and, with pistols cocked and presented -at him, walked past as he was standing in the passage, and, without -a word, into the street. Once out of the house, they ran swiftly up -Wardour Street, into Oxford Street, and then doubled into Dean Street -and into Richmond Buildings. Unfortunately for them, this proved to -be a blind alley, and an unpremeditated trap. They hurried out again, -but already the mob was coming down the street after them, and they -had only reached Broad Street when they were overtaken. Both fired -recklessly upon the crowd; no one but a butcher-boy being hit, and he -only slightly grazed under the left ear. - -George was then knocked down by a carpenter, with a piece of wood. The -carpenter, we learn, "afterwards jumping upon him, kept him down till -his pistols were taken away." - -Meanwhile Joseph had been vanquished in an equally unsportsmanlike way -by a carrier, "who had a large stick, with which he beat him about the -legs." - -George was then pitched neck and crop, and still struggling, into a -hackney coach; but Joseph, being more tractable, was permitted to walk -to Bow Street, where, on being searched, he was found to have £240 in -his pockets, all in bank-notes that had been stolen from the mail. - -On the day of their arrest they gave a bill of sale to one Lucius -Hughes, who disposed of plate to the amount of £2,500, at the price of -old silver; and jewels to the value of £4,000 were said to have been -sold to a Jew in St. Mary Axe. - -After a preliminary examination, the brothers were committed to -separate prisons: Joseph to Tothill Fields Bridewell, and George to the -New Prison. They behaved with great insolence to the Bench, and seemed -to build much upon the postboy having died since the robbery. In court -they actually told Clark, who had arrested them, he was fortunate in -still having his brains in his skull that morning. Their coachman and -footman, attending upon them in the court, in livery, made an imposing -show. They were then remanded, and their wenches were in the meanwhile -arrested at Brompton, and appeared in court on the next hearing. No -evidence being forthcoming against them, they were discharged; but the -Westons were duly committed for trial, which began on May 15th, 1782. - -They made a brave appearance in the dock, George being dressed quietly -but fashionably, in black, with his hair finely curled in the latest -style; while Joseph, whose taste was not so subdued, was radiant in a -scarlet coat with gold buttons, and hair "queued à l'Artois." - -The trial was unexpectedly postponed, on the application of counsel -for the prosecution, owing to the death of Samuel Walker, and the -difficulty of collecting sufficient evidence; and so they were taken -back to Newgate. There they led a life typical of prison-life all -over England in those days. They entertained their fellow-prisoners, -gambled, and drank, and received their friends. They had plenty of -money, and as Newgate was then no ill place for those whose pockets -were well furnished, they were provided with every luxury that money -could buy. Unfortunately, however, they were heavily ironed: the one -circumstance that seared the souls of those gallant fellows. But, in -spite of these encumbering circumstances, they dreamt of liberty, and a -well-planned attempt to escape was made on July 2nd, the day before the -opening of the new sessions. - -Their faithful young women took breakfast with them that morning, and -then left, whereupon one of the brothers called Wright, the warder on -duty at the time, and asked him to get a bottle of port and make a bowl -of negus for some expected company. He then handed him a guinea. - -Wright had no sooner gone about this business than they slipped off -their fetters, which they had secretly and with much labour, filed -through. Then they calmly awaited the return of Wright, with the bowl. -It was too large to go through the hatch of their locked and bolted -door, as they had foreseen, and Wright was persuaded to unlock and open -the door and bring it in. When he had done so, the jovial highwaymen -hospitably invited him to take the first drink, and while he was -engaged in thus pleasing himself and themselves at the same time, they -made suddenly at him and pushed him violently over; then slamming the -door and fastening it securely upon him. - -[Illustration: THE WESTONS ESCAPING FROM NEWGATE.] - -An old woman who sold porter and such-like plebeian drinks to the -meaner prisoners, was at the head of the stone stairs up which they -then rushed, and stood still with amazement at sight of them, whereupon -they overset her and her cans, and then, by a short passage-way, came -to the outer door. They were each armed with a pistol, which their -thoughtful girls had smuggled into their cell. Escaping with them were -also one Lepierre, a suspected spy, and a certain Francis Storey. - -The warder whose post was at this doorway was at that moment washing -down the steps. At once the fugitives flung themselves upon him, and -downed him as he shouted "Stop thief!" The cry was heard, and by the -time the Westons had emerged upon the street, they were followed by -a "runner," John Owens by name. The brothers very cleverly separated; -Owens following George, who ran into Newgate Street, doubled into -Warwick Lane, and made for Newgate Market. Here, however, he was felled -by the fist of a market-porter, but struggled again to his feet, and -desperately resisted until Owens and a crowd of excited spectators -arrived and dragged him back to Newgate. - -Joseph was not more fortunate, and had only reached Cock Lane when his -flight also was stopped by a market-porter, one John Davis, who flung -down a sack of peas in his path. This Joseph easily avoided, but Davis -then laid hold of him by the collar. - -"Let go!" said the highwayman, "or I will shoot you." - -The porter did not let go, and Joseph fired and hit him in the neck. -But Davis held on until the crowd closed in, and Joseph also was soon -in his cell again. - -So, too, was Lepierre, who was taken in Newgate Street. Storey was more -successful, and escaped altogether, although he had fetters on his -legs. The crowd, seeing him calmly walking along, thought he was being -re-conducted to gaol, and so did not interfere with him. - -The brothers were brought to trial on July 6th, 1782, charged with -robbing the Bristol mail near Cranford Bridge, on January 29th, 1781. -Over a hundred witnesses appeared for the prosecution, among them, -people who had been given stolen notes by them. But the postboy, -Samuel Walker, having died, the prosecution failed. - -They were then charged with forgery in respect of the notes and bills -stolen: George being convicted and sentenced to death. Joseph was -acquitted, but was then charged in the third instance with maliciously -wounding John Davis, for which he was found guilty and condemned. They -were executed at Tyburn on September 3rd, 1782. - -Clothed quietly but fashionably in black, they went to the place -of execution in two carts, in company with several other condemned -criminals, but held themselves haughtily apart, as "gentlemen" should. -They refused the ministrations of the Ordinary, declaring themselves -to be Roman Catholics; and died firmly, and without any appearance of -contrition. - - - - -JACK RANN: "SIXTEEN-STRING JACK" - - -John Rann, better known as "Sixteen-string Jack," was born in the -neighbourhood of Bath, midway in the eighteenth century. As a boy he -earned a meagre but honest living by peddling articles of everyday -household consumption in the villages round about. He and his -donkey were well remembered in after years, and aroused the envious -anticipations of other small boys who, reckless of the appointed end -of highwaymen, looked forward to some happy day when they too might -perhaps blossom out from such obscure beginnings into such fame as his. -He was but twelve years of age when his handsome face attracted the -attention of a lady prominent in the neighbourhood. She offered him -a situation, and he gratefully accepted. A little later we find him -in London, occupied as a stable-helper in Brooke's Mews. From that he -became a postilion, and then an officer's servant. About the year 1770 -he was coachman to a gentleman living in the neighbourhood of Portman -Square, and was at one time in the service of the Earl of Sandwich. -In this situation he obtained the nickname of "Sixteen-string Jack," -from the bunches of eight parti-coloured ribbons he gaily wore at the -knees of his breeches; but by some intimates it was supposed that these -"sixteen strings" were a covert allusion to his having been sixteen -times arrested and charged, but on as many occasions acquitted. Such -were the legends that enwrapped the career of him whom Dr. Johnson -described as "above the common mark" in his line. - -It was this love of finery that led to the undoing of Jack Rann, -but before it sent him down into the company of those who lived by -their wits, employed in unlawful enterprises, it raised him to better -situations. For Rann was a tall, smart fellow, and good clothes well -became him. - -But flowered-satin waistcoats, and full-skirted damasked coats of silk, -elaborately embroidered, are not paid for out of a coachman's wages, -and Rann soon found himself deeply in debt. And, moreover, of what -possible use are brave costumes, but to flaunt and flourish about in? -And when you do so flourish, you must needs go the pace altogether. -There were excellent companions in those places to which Rann most -resorted, as a gentleman of fashion, at Vauxhall, and elsewhere; and -there were the card-tables, where he had a passing run of luck; and -there were the women. In spite of being pitted somewhat with the -small-pox, he was still a handsome fellow, and he played the very Cupid -with the girls. - -All these items totted up to a very costly sum-total, and the -gaming-tables did not long stand him in good stead. At the moment when -he was in the sorest straits, he became acquainted with three men: -Jones, Clayton, and Colledge (this last known as "Eight-string Jack"), -in whose company he very speedily grew more and more reckless, and at -last was dismissed from his situation with a long-suffering nobleman, -and refused a character. Thus turned adrift upon the world, he began, -with those three companions, a career of pocket-picking, and thence -drifted by easy stages into the society of highwaymen and of receivers -of stolen goods. - -In these circles there moved at that time a certain Eleanor Roche, -originally a milliner's apprentice, but who, from a somewhat -unfortunate friendship with an officer of the Guards, had declined upon -the condition of "fence," and generally, the fair friend and ally of -the nimble-fingered, and the speakers with travellers on the highways. -Jack Rann was a free-lover. Pretty faces, rosy lips, infallibly -attracted him, and although he loved his Nelly best, he scarce knew the -meaning of faithfulness. - -But to Ellen Roche, "Sixteen-string Jack" was her own Jack, her hero; -and when once she had met him, she had eyes for none other. - -Rann was first in custody in April 1774, at the Old Bailey, in -company with two others, named Clayton and Shepherd, on a charge of -robbing William Somers and Mr. Langford on the highway. All three -were acquitted, but on May 30th Rann was at Bow Street, charged -with robbing Mr. John Devall of his watch and money, near the ninth -milestone on the Hounslow Road. It was the watch brought him there. -The gallant Rann had brought it back with him from the road—just as -the hunter, home from the hill, returns with the day's spoil to his -domestic circle. He handed it to Ellen, who in turn sent out a certain -Catherine Smith to offer it in pledge with the nearest pawnbroker. The -pawnbroker, distrustful man, sent for the police, who, seeing at once -that Catherine Smith was merely an intermediary, apprehended Rann and -Ellen. - -"Sixteen-string Jack" made a proud, defiant figure in the dock before -Sir John Fielding. He was dressed not only in, but in advance of -the fashion. He was in irons, but the grimness of those fetters was -disguised in the blue satin bows in which they were tricked out, and in -his fine coat he carried a nosegay as big as a birch-broom. Beside him, -but not so collected as he, stood Ellen, charged with receiving. - -Ellen Roche had, indeed, lost her nerve altogether when Catherine Smith -deposed to having been told by her how Rann was expected home that -evening with some money; that he returned about ten o'clock, when Roche -told her he had brought ten guineas and a watch, and that she was sent -out to pawn the watch. Crying, and hardly aware of what she was doing, -Ellen at the first hearing owned that Rann had given her the watch, and -the two were thereupon committed. - -At the trial, after having had plenty of time for reflection, she -stoutly declared that she never before had set eyes upon him, and that -her former evidence was a mistake! - -Jack himself carried it off bravely, and, indeed, insolently. "I know -no more of the matter than you do," he replied to Sir John Fielding, -and added impudently, "nor half so much, neither." - -The prosecution, on some technicality, broke down, and the pair were -released. They celebrated the happy occasion by dining extravagantly -and then spending the evening at Vauxhall, where Rann was the gayest of -the gay, and returned home with two watches and three purses. - -An absurd burglary charge brought him into the dock again, that July. -The watch discovered him half-way through the window of a house in -which lodged one Doll Frampton, and not only hauled him out, but -marched him off to prison; but it appeared that he was only keeping an -appointment to supper with the weary Doll, who, tired of waiting for -him, had gone to bed. The Bench, assured of as much by the shameless -minx herself, dismissed the charge, and, in addition to some pertinent -remarks about this unconventional method of entry, gave him some -excellent advice on conduct. Although Rann had escaped so far, Sir John -Fielding said, his profession was perfectly well known, and he urged -the prisoner to leave his evil courses while yet there was time. - -So far from paying attention to this well-meant discourse, Rann put -in an appearance the next Sunday, not with Doll, but with Ellen, at -Bagnigge Wells, then a famous place for dining and drinking. They -drove thither in a carriage and dressed—in the slang phrase—"up to the -nines." Jack was splendid in a scarlet coat, tambour waistcoat, white -silk stockings, and a laced hat. Of course there flew at his knees the -already famous sixteen strings. - -[Illustration: JACK RANN.] - -He was by nature boastful, and when the drink was in him bragged -without restraint or ordinary prudence. On this occasion he drank -freely, and, with an oath, declared himself a highwayman. Rather more -of a pickpocket, perhaps. The company trembled: some sought the way -out. "No fear, my friends," quoth he, "this is a holiday." Then he -fell to quarrelling, and presently lost a ring from his finger, and -declared those present had stolen it. Then again his mood changed. -"'Tis no matter," he exclaimed; "'tis but a hundred guineas gone, -and one evening's work will replace it." Then, growing more drunken -and incapable, they threw him out, and he was not in a fit condition -to resist. So, Ellen—the gentle Ellen—scratching the faces of the -foremost, as they were put out, they drove back to their lodgings near -Covent Garden. - -"Fine treatment for a gentleman!" he hiccupped; and indeed a gentleman -he considered himself. But his highwayman's takings, large though they -occasionally were, did not keep pace with his gentlemanly expenses. -Debts accumulated, and sheriff's officers dogged his footsteps. He was -arrested for a debt of £50, and thrown into the Marshalsea prison; but -so much of a hero had he already become among those of his calling that -they clubbed together and liquidated the debt; and handsome Jack was -again free. - -The sheriff's officers he affected to regard as low, churlish fellows, -but they would not be denied. His creditors were soon after him again, -and he was arrested when drinking in an alehouse in the then suburban -Tottenham Court Road. He shrank with horror from the touch of the two -"vulgar" bailiffs, but there was little help for it. He must pay up, or -be taken up. His drinking-companions found between them three guineas, -and he gave up his watch. Together, these involuntary contributions -made up more than the amount due. The bailiffs, on their part, agreed -to refund the balance when Rann was sufficiently in funds to redeem the -ticker; and cordiality then reigned. "Lend me five shillings," said -Rann to the bailiffs, "and I will treat you to a bowl of punch." They -fell in with the proposal, and a merry carouse ensued. Such were the -manners and customs of about a hundred and forty years ago. - -Still, in the course of this merry evening, the subject of the manner -peculiar to bailiffs recurred to our Jack and rankled. "You have not," -he grumbled, "treated me like a gentleman. When Sir John Fielding's -people come after me, they only hold up a finger, beckon, and I follow -like a lamb. There's your proper civility!" - -It was soon after this that he visited Barnet races, fashionably -dressed; with waistcoat of blue satin trimmed with silver, and other -finery to match. Crowds followed him, eager to set eyes upon so -famous a person. Shortly afterwards, with perhaps some melancholic -foreshadowing of approaching doom, he attended a public execution at -Tyburn. In spite of opposition, he thrust through the ring formed by -the constables round the gallows. "For," said he, "perhaps it is very -proper I should be a spectator on this occasion." Why, he did not say, -but the inference was understood by some of the crowd. - -In September 1774 he was arrested, together with one William Collier, -for a robbery on the Uxbridge road, and brought the next Wednesday -before Sir John Fielding, when Dr. Bell, chaplain to the Princess -Amelia, gave evidence that, between three and four o'clock in the -afternoon of Monday, when taking horse-exercise near Ealing, he -observed two men of mean (!) appearance and suspicious looks, who rode -past him. Presently, one of them—he thought it was Rann—turned his -horse's head and demanded his money. "Give it me," he said, "and take -no notice, or I'll blow your brains out!" - -Dr. Bell handed over one shilling and sixpence, all he had about him, -and a common watch in a tortoiseshell case. So much tremendous bluster, -so paltry a booty: so poor a thing for which to throw away a life. For -that day's doings served to bring Rann to the gallows. - -That evening, Ellen Roche and her servant took the watch to pawn -with one "Mr. Cordy," in the Oxford Road, or, as we should now say, -Oxford Street. Cordy was a suspicious man. He communicated with the -watchmaker, Grigman by name, of Russell Street, Covent Garden, who had -made it for Dr. Bell, who, when called upon, told how he had parted -with it. - -The next day, Jack Rann and his doxy were arrested, and with them -Collier and Ellen Roche's servant, Christian Stewart. They all figured -in Bow Street dock, and later appeared on trial at the Old Bailey. - -[Illustration: "SIXTEEN-STRING JACK" AND ELLEN ROCHE IN THE DOCK.] - -Handsome Jack was no less a dandy on this occasion than he had been on -others, and he took the centre of the stage in his drama with a fine -air. To be sure, there were none who envied him the principal part. He -was dressed in pea-green coat and waistcoat, with unblemished white -buckskin breeches, and again his hat was silver-laced. He stood -there with every assurance of acquittal, and had taken thought to order -a splendid supper, wherewith to entertain his friends that evening, -to celebrate his release. But, as the grey day wore on, he grew less -confident. Dr. Bell's evidence was again taken, and a Mr. Clarke told -how, going to Miss Roche's lodging on that Monday night of the robbery, -he found two pairs of men's boots there, in a wet and dirty condition, -having evidently been worn that day. A Mr. Haliburton also swore that -he had waited at Miss Roche's lodgings that night until Rann and -Collier arrived. - -William Hills deposed that he was servant to the Princess Amelia. He -had observed Rann, whom he knew well by sight, ascend the hill at -Acton, about twenty minutes before the robbery was committed. - -This spot would be about where the Police Station now stands, in the -main road: less troubled nowadays with highwaymen than with electric -tram-cars. - -In the end, Rann was found guilty and sentenced to die. Collier was -also found guilty, but recommended to mercy, and was afterwards -respited. Ellen Roche was sentenced to fourteen years' transportation, -and her servant was acquitted. - -Thus the supper grew cold and was not eaten. The brave figure moved in -pea-green glory to his prison cell, and hoped there for a rescue that -never came. His last days were full-packed with the revelry the lax -prison regulations of the age permitted, and on Sunday, October 23rd, -he had seven girls to dine with him in gaol; and he the gayest of the -party. "Let us eat, drink, and be merry, for to-morrow we die." Or, at -any rate, in a month's time. So, with an air and a jest, behold him -on the fatal day, November 30th, 1774, the most admired figure in the -three-miles' journey from Newgate to Tyburn. Was it the cold November -air made him shiver, or the shadow of death, as, ladies' man to the -last, he raised his hat to the crowded windows lining Holborn and -thought how he would never come back? Whatever it was, it was no more -than involuntary: for, arrived at the fatal tree, he ended manfully in -his finery and his famous sixteen strings. - - - - -ROBERT FERGUSON—"GALLOPING DICK" - - -Robert Ferguson, who in after life became famous as "Galloping Dick," -was a native of Hertfordshire. His father, a gentleman's servant, -proposed a like career for him, and had a mental picture of his son -gradually rising from the position of stable-boy, in which he was -placed, to that of coachman. In such respectable obscurity would Robert -have lived and died, had his own wild nature not pioneered a career -for him. He had proved a dull boy at school, but proud, and out of -school-hours showed a strange original spirit of daring, so that he was -generally to be found captaining his fellows in some wild exploit. - -As a stable-boy, however, he proved efficient and obedient, and was -found presentable enough to take the postilion's place when the regular -man had fallen ill, on the eve of the family's journey to London in -their chariot. He performed that task to the satisfaction of every one, -but the other servant recovered, and the lad was obliged to return to -his stables and work in shirt sleeves or rough stable-jacket, instead -of titupping in beautifully white buckskin breeches, silk jacket, and -tall beaver hat, on one of the leading horses that drew the carriage -to town. The return to an inferior position through no fault of his -own was a bitter disappointment, and he determined to seek another -situation. - -Oddly enough, at this juncture of affairs, a neighbouring lady who was -in want of a postilion chanced to ask the family who employed young -Robert what had become of their smart young man, and, when informed of -the situation, engaged him. - -At this time he was close upon twenty years of age. Described as being -by no means handsome, he was of a cheerful and obliging temperament, -and might have long retained the post, had his employer not discovered -him in a discreditable love-affair with one of the maid-servants. -He was dismissed, but soon found another situation: but he never -afterwards kept a place for any length of time. Roystering companions -unsettled him and made him undesirable as a postilion. - -[Illustration: "GALLOPING DICK."] - -Coming up to London, he found employment in a livery-stable in -Piccadilly, but presently his father died and he found himself the -owner of his savings, amounting to £57. Alas! poor Robert. He had never -before possessed at one time the half of what he had now, and he acted -as though the sum of £57 was an endowment for life. He threw up the -Piccadilly livery-stable, and came out upon the world as a "gentleman"; -or in other words, ruffled it in fine clothes in fashionable places. -He frequented theatres in this novel character, and seems to have -impressed a number of perhaps not very critical people. Amongst these -was a dissolute woman whom he met at Drury Lane. She believed him to -be a man of wealth, and sought to obtain a share of it. Ferguson flung -away all his money on her. It could not have been a difficult task, -one would say, nor have occupied him long. And when all the money -was gone, he went back, sadder possibly, but still not wiser, to his -livery-stable situation in Piccadilly, as postilion. It was in this -employment that he observed the debonair gentlemen who had been his -rivals in the affections of this woman calling upon her, and received, -where he had been thrust forth with contumely when his money was at an -end, and when she discovered that he was no man about town, but only -one who got his living in the stables. False, perfidious Nancy! - -It was some time before the true character of those visitors was -revealed to him; but one day, acting as a postilion on the Great -North Road, the chaise he was driving was stopped by two highwaymen, -duly masked. One stood by the horses, while his companion robbed the -occupants of the chaise. It was a windy day, and a more than usually -violent gust blew the first highwayman's mask off. Instantly Ferguson -recognised the man who stood by the horses as one of his Nancy's -visitors. - -Seeing this, the unmasked robber perceived, clearly enough, that the -situation was peculiarly dangerous, and, when he had galloped off with -his companion, laid the facts before him. They agreed that there was -nothing for it but to await Ferguson's return at a roadside inn, and -to bribe him to silence. There, accordingly, they remained until the -chaise on its return journey drew up at the door. - -Two gentlemen, said the landlord, particularly desired to see the -postilion. He entered and accepted a price for his silence; further -agreeing to meet them that night at supper in the Borough. Meeting -there, according to arrangement, Ferguson was persuaded to throw in his -lot with the highway blades. His imagination took fire at the notion -of riding a fine horse, and, dressed in handsome clothes, presenting a -figure of romance; but his new-found friends were cool men of business, -and had nothing of that kind in view for their fresh associate. To cut -a fine figure was, no doubt, all very well, but the more important -thing was to know which travellers were worth robbing, and which were -not. If they could be reasonably well advised on that point, much -useless effort, and a considerable deal of risk, would be avoided, in -not stopping those whose pockets were so nearly next to empty as to -be not worth "speaking to" on the road. Their idea was that Ferguson -should continue in his employment of postilion, and, as a confederate, -keep them well informed of the movements of his clients. - -Ferguson was disappointed in not being allowed a spectacular part, but -the profitable nature of the scheme appealed to him, and he agreed to -this distinctly well-conceived plan. So a long series of unsuspecting -travellers driven by him owed their extraordinary ill-luck on the road -entirely to the agency of their innocent-looking postilion, who was so -professionally interested in their movements, who was so obliging with -the portmanteaus and valises, and who secretly kept a keen eye upon the -contents of his customers' purses. Quite often it would happen that a -trace would be broken in some lonely situation, and then, strange to -say, while it was being mended, a couple of highwaymen would infallibly -appear, and threatening the postilion with horrid oaths when he -pretended to show fight, would at their leisure ransack all the luggage -and coolly request all money and personal adornments to be handed over. - -Wine, women, and cards were Ferguson's downfall. Success in his new -line of life brought reckless conduct, and he grew so impossible -that the livery-stable, without in the least suspecting his honesty, -dismissed him for general unreliability. He then took to the road for a -while as a highwayman, and thus indulged his natural liking for finery. - -He was an excellent horseman, and daring to the verge—or beyond the -verge—of recklessness. On one occasion, he and two companions "spoke -to" and were robbing two gentlemen on the road to Edgeware, but were -interrupted by the appearance of three other well-mounted travellers, -who gave chase. Ferguson escaped, but his two companions were caught, -brought to trial, and executed. It was this exploit that first procured -him the name of "Galloping Dick," although his name was Robert. -Complimented by admiring friends on his escape, he declared he would -gallop a horse with any man in the kingdom. - -The name of "Galloping Dick" soon became well known, and was a name -of dread. No clattering horseman could come hurriedly along the road -without stirring the pulses of nervous travellers, who immediately -fancied "Galloping Dick" was upon them. Indeed, he soon became too -well known for any reasonable degree of safety, and he would then -for a while, for prudential reasons, find temporary employment as a -postilion. Frequently in custody at Bow Street, on various charges, he -was many times acquitted, on insufficient evidence; but was at last -arrested, at the beginning of 1800, on a charge of highway robbery, -sent for trial to the Lent Assizes at Aylesbury, convicted, and -executed. - - - - -JERRY ABERSHAW - - -The southern suburbs of London were haunted during the last quarter of -the eighteenth century by a youthful highwayman of a very desperate -kind. He was as successful as reckless, and captained a gang that made -Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common places to be dreaded as much as were -Hounslow Heath on the west, and Finchley Common in the north, and -brought the name of "Jerry Abershaw" into exceptional prominence. - -The real name of this highwayman was Louis Jeremiah Avershaw, and he -was born in 1773, of the usual "poor but honest" parents. Indeed, it -would seem, in enquiring into the lives of the highwaymen, that they -in general came of such stock, whose only crime was their poverty: -although _that_, as we well know in this happy land of ours, is a very -heinous offence, it being the duty of every English man and woman to -pay rates and taxes to keep a constantly growing official class in -well-paid and easy employment. - -We so rarely hear of a highwayman deriving from dishonest parents -that, it would seem, even in the more adventurous centuries, ill-led -lives were as a rule so short and sordid as to impress the children of -those who led them with the idea that honesty was not only really, in -the long run, the best policy, but that for evil courses there was no -long run at all. Otherwise, the life of the highwayman, if not by any -means, as a general rule, so gay as usually it was represented to be, -was sufficiently full of that spice of excitement which to the youthful -makes amends for much danger and discomfort, and sons might often have -succeeded fathers in the liberal profession of highway robbery. - -The boyhood of Jerry Abershaw has never been dragged from the obscurity -that enwraps it. No slowly-budding flower he, but one that in one brief -day flung open its petals. Or rather, in less flowery language, we -learn nothing of the first steps that led him to the highway, and find -him at the very first mention of his doings already a cool and assured -character, robbing with impunity, and making one place in especial a -spot to be dreaded. This was the hollow of Putney Bottom, through which -the Portsmouth Road runs on its way to Kingston. The little Beverley -Brook trickles by, to this day, in the hollow; and Combe Wood, whose -thickets formed so convenient a lair for Abershaw, and a rallying-place -for his gang, is still very much what it was then. - -Abershaw was not, of course, the first to see the strategic value of -the heath, and of such woody tangles as these, bordering the road for -quite three miles; for we read in Ogilby's great book on the roads, -published in 1675, of Kingston Hill, hard by as "not rarely infested -with robbers"; and a gibbet long stood near at hand, to remind those -robbers, and others who succeeded them, of their own probable fate. -But, if by no means the first, or even the last, who practised here, he -is easily the most famous, even though it be merely a pervasive fame, -not crystallised into many anecdotes. - -[Illustration: JERRY ABERSHAW ON PUTNEY HEATH.] - -The "Bald Faced Stag," that then stood, a lonely tavern, by the -roadside near the Beverley Brook, was a favourite meeting-place of -Abershaw and his fellows. It was afterwards rebuilt, as a superior -hostelry, in the days when the growth of travel and of coaching had -rendered the old roadside accommodation insufficient. This later house -may still be seen, standing nowadays as a private residence, with -imposing pillared portico, by the way. - -Whether the landlord of the original "Bald Faced Stag," was in league -with Abershaw and his gang, or not, is impossible to say. Very -generally, the tavern-keepers of that age were suspected, and rightly -suspected, of a guilty acquaintance with the highwaymen, but it would -be too much to assume that they were all of that character; and indeed -we find in the sad story of one John Poulter, otherwise Baxter, who was -hanged in 1754 for highway robbery, that the frequenting by highwaymen -against his wish of an inn he kept in Dublin first ruined his trade -and compelled him in self-defence at last to seek a living on the road. - -An innkeeper situated like him who kept the "Bald Faced Stag" in the -days of Abershaw would have no choice but to harbour the gang whenever -they felt inclined to confer their patronage upon him; but, to be quite -just, it would certainly appear that he was a willing ally, for, in the -most outstanding among the few stories told of Abershaw, it appears -that once, when taken ill on the road, the highwayman was put to bed -in the house and cared for while a doctor was procured. It was a Dr. -William Roots who answered the call, from Putney. The ailing stranger, -whose real name and occupation the doctor never for a moment suspected, -was bled, after the medical practice of the time, and the doctor was -about to leave for home, when his patient, with a great appearance of -earnestness, said: "You had better, sir, have someone to go back with -you, as it is a very dark and lonesome journey." This thoughtful offer -the doctor declined, remarking that "he had not the least fear, even -should he meet with Abershaw himself." The story was a favourite with -Abershaw: it afforded him a reliable criterion of the respect in which -the travelling public generally held him. - -The notoriety Abershaw early attained led to his early end. The -authorities made especial efforts to arrest him, and, learning that he -frequented a public-house in Southwark, called the "Three Brewers," -set a watch upon the place. One day the two officers detailed for this -duty discovered him in the house, drinking with some of his friends, -and entered to arrest him. But Abershaw was on the alert, and, as they -stood in the doorway, arose with a pistol in either hand, and, with a -curse, warned them to stand clear, or he would shoot them. Disregarding -this threat, they rushed in, and Abershaw, firing both pistols at once, -mortally wounded one officer and severely wounded the landlord in the -head. - -But he did not escape. He was tried at Croydon Assizes, on July 30th, -1795, before Mr. Baron Penryn, for murder; the wounded officer, David -Price, having died in the interval. A second indictment charged him -with having attempted to murder the other, by discharging a pistol at -him. - -Abershaw was taken by road from London to Croydon, and passing -Kennington Common, then the principal place of execution in Surrey, -he laughingly asked those in charge of him, if they did not share his -own opinion that he would himself be "twisted" there on the following -Saturday. That was the conventionally callous way in which the -highwaymen approached their doom. - -To prove the charge of killing Price was naturally the simplest of -tasks, and the jury, returning from a three-minutes' deliberation, duly -found him guilty. Prisoner's counsel, however, raising an objection -on some legal quibble as to a flaw in the indictment, the point was -argued for two hours—and not decided; the judge desiring to consult his -learned brethren on the point. There is a certain grim humour about -these proceedings; because, whatever the result of this was likely -to be, there was yet the second indictment to be tried, and on that -alone there could be no doubt of Abershaw being capitally convicted. -It was then proceeded with, and Abershaw himself, seeing how he must -inevitably be found guilty, and hanged, threw off all restraint. He -insolently inquired of the judge, if he were to be murdered by perjured -witnesses, and in violent language declared his contempt for the Court. -Even at that solemn moment, when, having been found guilty on the -second count, the judge, in passing sentence, assumed the black cap, -he was not affected, except by rage and the spirit of mockery, and -followed the action of the judge by putting on his own hat. The gaolers -were at last compelled by his violence to handcuff him, and to tie -his arms and legs. In that condition he was removed to gaol, to await -execution. - -There he must soon have realised the folly of resistance; for he became -quiet and apparently resigned. In the short interval that remained -between his sentence and that appearance on Kennington Common he had -accurately foreseen, he occupied himself with drawing rough pictures on -the whitewashed walls of his cell with the juice of black cherries that -had formed part of the simple luxuries his purse and the custom of the -prison permitted. These idle scribblings represented his own exploits -on the road. In one he appeared in the act of stopping a post-chaise -and threatening the driver: the words, "D—n your eyes! Stop!" appended. -The remainder of this curious gallery pictured the other incidents -common in a highwayman's life. - -The time then allowed convicted criminals between their sentence and -execution was very short. On August 3rd he was hanged on Kennington -Common; game—or, rather, callous—to the last. Arrived there, he kicked -off his boots among the great crowd assembled, and died unshod, to -disprove an old saying of his mother's, that he was a bad lad, and -would die in his shoes. He was but twenty-two years of age when he met -this fate, not actually for highway robbery, but for murder. His body -was afterwards hanged in chains in Putney Bottom, the scene of his -chief exploits, and an old and nasty legend was long current in those -parts of a sergeant in a regiment soon afterwards marching past firing -at the distended body, by which (to make short of an offensive story) -the neighbourhood was nearly poisoned. The sergeant was reduced to the -ranks for this ill-judged choice of a target. - - - - -JOHN AND WILLIAM BEATSON - - -The very general idea that the highwayman ended with the close of the -eighteenth century is an altogether erroneous one, and has already been -abundantly disproved in these pages. They not only continued into the -nineteenth century, but were very numerously executed for their crimes. -Early among those who belong to that era were John Beatson and William -Whalley. Theirs is a sad tale of business failure and of a desperate -recourse to the road, rather than the story of professional highwaymen. - -John Beatson was a Scotsman, who had in his youth been a sailor in -the merchant service, and had made many voyages to India and other -tropical countries. Tired at last of the sea, he settled at Edinburgh, -where he established himself as an innkeeper at the "College Tavern." -There he carried on a successful business for many years, and only -relinquished it at last in favour of his adopted son, William Whalley -Beatson, who for some time carried it on happily and profitably with -his wife. Unhappily, his wife died, and when he was left alone it was -soon seen, in the altered circumstances of the house, that it was -she, rather than her husband, who had in the last few years kept the -inn going. Left alone, and incapable of managing the domestic side of -the house, he was taken advantage of by the servants, who robbed him -at every opportunity; and, in short, in every respect the "College -Tavern" declined and ceased to pay its way. He gave it up and went to -London, with the idea of entering the wine and spirit trade there. -Arrived in London, he took a business in Bedford Street, Covent Garden, -and, finding it uncongenial, sold it to a man and accepted six months' -bills in payment. The purchaser went bankrupt within three months, -throwing Beatson himself into difficulties. At this juncture of affairs -he consulted with his adopted father as to what was to be done, and -the upshot of their long and anxious deliberations was that there was -no help for it but to try and retrieve their fortunes by robbing upon -the King's highway. Their first essay in this new business was begun -on July 18th, 1801, when they travelled from London to the "Rose and -Crown" at Godstone, Surrey, staying there the night. The next morning -they set off on foot, and at midday were at the "Blue Anchor," on the -road to East Grinstead. They dined there, and asked questions about -the mail, and did not leave until six o'clock. Between eight and nine -o'clock they were seen on East Grinstead Common. Half an hour after -midnight, the postboy who drove the mail-cart was stopped by two men -near Forest Row, south of East Grinstead. They produced a pistol and -threatened him with it if he refused to give up the bags. Then, he -unresisting, they led the horse into a meadow, where they took the bags -and carried them off. It was afterwards found that they had walked no -less a distance than six miles with them. They were afterwards found in -a wheatfield near the village of Hartfield, the letters strewn about in -the corn. - -They had taken all the Bank of England notes, and notes issued by -country banks, and had left drafts and bills of exchange worth upwards -of £9,500. - -The next morning the two Beatsons appeared at the "Chequers" at -Westerham, in a very exhausted condition, and had breakfast. With the -excuse that they were Deptford people, and under the necessity of -reaching the dockyard there in a hurry, they hastily hired a horse and -trap, paying for their refreshment with a £2 note, and for the hire -with one for £5. - -The people of the "Chequers" inn thought it strange, when their man -returned, to hear that he had driven them, not to the dockyard at -Deptford, but to a coach-office in the town, where they had at once -taken places in a coach for London. - -The fugitives did not hurry themselves when they reached town. On the -evening of their arrival, it was afterwards discovered, the elder -purchased a pair of shoes at a shop in Oxford Street, paying for them -with a £10 Bank of England note. They employed their time in London -in a shopping campaign, purchasing largely and always tendering -bank-notes, with the object of accumulating a large sum of money in -gold, by way of change. - -At the end of this week they procured a horse and gig and left London, -saying they intended to travel to Ireland. Meanwhile, the loss of -so many bank-notes had been widely advertised and the good faith of -persons who presented any of them for payment enquired into. The -movements of the men who had stopped the driver of the mail-cart and -robbed him were traced, and soon the Holyhead Road was lively with the -pursuit of them. - -They arrived at Knutsford, in Cheshire, only a short time before the -coming of the mail-coach bringing particulars of the robbery. Before -that, however, they had attracted a considerable deal of notice by -their singular behaviour at the "George" inn, where they had put up. To -draw attention by peculiarities of dress or demeanour is obviously the -grossest folly in fugitive criminals, whose only chance of safety lies -in unobtrusive manners and appearance. That would appear to be obvious -to the veriest novices in crime. But the Beatsons were no doubt by this -time agitated by the serious position in which they had irretrievably -placed themselves, and in so nervous a state that they really had not -full command of their actions. They adopted a hectoring manner at the -inn, and on the road had attracted unfavourable notice by the shameful -way in which they had treated their horse. - -On the arrival of the mail containing the official notices of the -robbery and descriptions of the two men concerned in it, the appearance -of these two men with the gig seemed so remarkably like that of the -robbers, that a Post Office surveyor was sent after them. They had -already left Knutsford, and had to be followed to Liverpool, where they -were discovered at an inn, and arrested. - -The mere hasty preliminary inspection of their travelling valise was -sufficient to prove that these were the men sought for. Bank-notes -to the amount of £1,700 were discovered, wrapped round by one of the -letters stolen; and the purchases of jewellery and other articles -carried with them were valued at another £1,300. - -Taken back to London, the prisoners were charged in the first instance -at Bow Street, and then committed for trial at Horsham. An attempt they -made to escape from Horsham gaol was unsuccessful, and they were found -hiding in a sewer. Their trial took place before Mr. Baron Hotham on -March 29th, 1802. No fewer than thirty witnesses were arrayed against -them; chiefly London tradesmen, from whom they had made purchases and -tendered notes in payment. There could hardly ever have been a clearer -case, and the result of the trial was never for a moment in doubt. - -The affectionate efforts of the elder man to shield his adopted son -drew tears from many eyes, but the readiness of that "son" to take -advantage of them and to throw the guilt upon him excited, naturally -enough, much unfavourable comment. Two statements had been prepared and -written by the prisoners, and both were read by the younger in court. -The first was by John Beatson, who declared himself to be guilty, but -his "son" innocent. Whalley's own statement, to the same effect, went -into a detailed story of how his "father" had given him a large number -of the notes, and had told him they were part of a large remittance he -had lately received from India. - -The story was so clumsy and unconvincing, and the story told by the -prosecution so complete in every detail, that both prisoners were -speedily found guilty. They were condemned to death, and were hanged on -Saturday, April 7th, 1802, at Horsham, before a crowd of three thousand -people. The elder Beatson was seventy years of age and the younger but -twenty-seven. - - - - -ROBERT SNOOKS - - -The careers of the highwaymen were, in the vast majority of cases, -remarkably short, and they were, for the most part, cut off in the -full vigour of their manly strength and beauty. The accursed shears -of Fate—or, to be more exact, a rope dangling from a beam—ended them -before experience had come to revise their methods and fit them out -with the artistry of the expert. - -But few were so summarily ended as the unfortunate Robert Snooks. -This person, a native of Hungerford, was in the year 1800 living at -Hemel Hempstead, in Hertfordshire, in the immediate neighbourhood of -Boxmoor. He had often observed the postboy carrying the well-filled -mail-bags across the lonely flat of Boxmoor, and (he is described as -having been of remarkably fine physical proportions) thought how easy a -thing it would be to frighten him into giving them up. Accordingly, on -one sufficiently dark night, he waited upon the moor for the postboy, -stopped him, and, adopting a threatening demeanour, instructed him to -carry the bags to a solitary spot and then go about his business. The -frightened official immediately hurried off to the postmaster of the -district: one Mr. Page, of the "King's Arms," Berkhamstead, and told -his tale; leaving Snooks to ransack the bags and take what he thought -valuable. - -The bags, turned inside out, were found, the next morning, with a heap -of letters, torn open and fluttering in all directions across the -fields. It subsequently appeared that the highwayman had secured a very -considerable booty, one letter alone having contained £5 in notes. -The postboy did not know the man who had terrorised him: only that he -was a "big man"; but the simultaneous disappearance of Snooks left no -reasonable doubt as to who it was. - -This was Snooks's first essay in the dangerous art, and it proved also -his last. Hurrying to London, he took up his abode in Southwark, and -presently had the dubious satisfaction of reading the reward-bills -issued, offering £300 for his capture. After a while he thought -himself comparatively safe, and was emboldened to make an effort at -negotiating one of the notes he still held. Afraid to do this in -person, he thought he might see what would happen if he tried to pass -one of the notes through the intermediary of the servant of the house -where he was lodging, and accordingly sent her to purchase a piece -of cloth for a coat, handing her a five-pound note. The tradesman -evidently found something suspicious about the note thus tendered, -and returned it, with the message that "there must be some mistake." -Whether the tradesman would have followed this up by communicating any -suspicions he may have had to the authorities does not appear; but "the -wicked flee when no man pursueth," and Snooks hurried off to what was -undoubtedly the most dangerous place for him. He fled to Hungerford, -his birthplace; yet, strange to say, he long evaded capture, and it was -not until 1802 that he was arrested, on the information of a postboy -who had been to school with him. He was in due course brought to trial -at Hertford Assizes, found guilty, and sentenced to death. It was -judged expedient, as a warning to others, that he should be executed on -the scene of his crime, the selection of the spot falling to Mr. Page, -who, besides being postmaster of Berkhamstead, was High Constable of -the Hundred of Dacorum. As a further warning, and one likely to be of -some permanence, it was originally proposed to gibbet the body of the -defunct Snooks on the same spot; so that, swinging there in chains on -the moor, it might hint to others the folly of doing likewise. But the -time was growing full late for such exhibitions; the inhabitants of the -district protested, and this further project was abandoned. - -Journeying from Hertford gaol on the morning of the fatal March 11th, -1802, Snooks, according to a surviving tradition, was given a final -glass of ale at the "Swan" inn, at the corner of Box Lane, and is said -to have remarked to the rustics hastening to the scene of execution: -"Don't hurry; there'll be no fun till I get there." - -The usual large and unruly crowd, that could always be reckoned upon -on such melancholy occasions, was present, and seemed to regard the -event as no more serious than a fair. To those thus assembled, Robert -Snooks, standing in the cart under the gallows, held forth in a moral -address: - -"Good people, I beg your particular attention to my fate. I hope this -lesson will be of more service to you than the gratification of the -curiosity which brought you here. I beg to caution you against evil -doing, and most earnestly entreat you to avoid two evils, namely, -'Disobedience to parents'—to you youths I particularly give this -caution—and 'The breaking of the Sabbath.' These misdeeds lead to the -worst of crimes: robbery, plunder, bad women, and every evil course. -It may by some be thought a happy state to be in possession of fine -clothes and plenty of money, but I assure you no one can be happy with -ill-gotten treasure. I have often been riding on my horse and passed -a cottager's door, whom I have seen dressing his greens, and perhaps -had hardly a morsel to eat with them. He has very likely envied me in -my station, who, though at that time in possession of abundance, was -miserable and unhappy. I envied him, and with most reason, for his -happiness and contentment. I can assure you there is no happiness but -in doing good. I justly suffer for my offences, and hope it will be a -warning to others. I die in peace with God and all the world." - -[Illustration: SNOOKS ADDRESSING THE CROWD AT HIS EXECUTION.] - -The horse was then whipped up, the cart drawn away from beneath the -gallows-tree, and Robert Snooks had presently paid the harsh penalty -of his crime. He had behaved with remarkable courage, and, espying an -acquaintance in the crowd, offered him his watch if he would promise -to see that his body received Christian burial. But the man, unwilling -to be recognised as a friend of the criminal, made no response, and -Snooks's body was buried at the foot of the gallows. A hole was dug -there, and a truss of straw divided. Half was flung in first; the body -upon that, and the second half on top. The hangman had half-stripped -the body, declaring the clothes to be his perquisite, and would have -entirely stripped it, had not the High Constable interfered, insisting -that some regard should be had to decency. - -A slow-moving feeling of compassion for the unhappy wretch took -possession of some of the people of Hemel Hempstead, who on the -following day procured a coffin, reopened the grave, and, placing the -body in the coffin, thus gave it some semblance of civilised interment; -but, those being the times of the body-snatchers, doubts have been -expressed of the body being really there. It is thought that the -body-snatchers may afterwards have visited the lonely spot and again -resurrected it. - -Two rough pieces of the local "plum-pudding stone" were afterwards -placed on the grave, and remained until recent years. - -Boxmoor is not now the lonely place it was. The traveller who seeks -Snooks's grave may find it by continuing northward from Apsley End, -passing under the railway bridges, and coming to a little roadside inn -called the "Friend at Hand." Opposite this, on the right-hand side -of the road, and between this road and the railway embankment runs a -long narrow strip of what looks like meadow land, enclosed by an iron -fence, This is really a portion of Boxmoor. At a point, a hundred and -fifty yards past the inn, look out sharply for a clump of five young -horse-chestnut trees growing on the moor. Close by them is a barren -space of reddish earth, with a grassy mound, a piece of conglomerate, -or "pudding-stone," and a newer stone inscribed "Robert Snooks, 11 -March, 1802." This has been added since 1905, and duly keeps the spot -in mind. - -[Illustration: SNOOKS'S GRAVE.] - - - - -HUFFUM WHITE - - -The decay of the highwayman's trade and its replacement by that of -the burglar and the bank-robber is well illustrated by the career of -Huffum, or Huffy, White, who was first sentenced for burglary in 1809. -Transportation for life was then awarded him, and we might have heard -no more of his activities, had not his own cleverness and the stupidity -of the authorities enabled him to escape from the hulks at Woolwich. -Thus narrowly missing the long voyage to Botany Bay, he made direct for -London, then as now the best hiding-place in the world. He soon struck -up an acquaintance with one James Mackcoull, and they proposed together -to enter upon a course of burglary; but at the very outset of their -agreement they were arrested. Mackcoull, as a rogue and vagabond, was -sent to prison for six months, and White was sentenced to death as an -escaped convict, the extreme penalty being afterwards reduced to penal -servitude for life. - -[Illustration: HUFFUM WHITE ESCAPING FROM THE HULKS.] - -On January 20th, 1811, Mackcoull was released, and at once, like -the faithful comrade he was, set about the task of securing White's -escape from the convict ship to which he had again been consigned. -Dropping overboard in the fog and darkness that enshrouded the lower -reaches of the Thames on that winter's evening into the boat that -Mackcoull had silently rowed under the bows of the ship, White was -again free. - -An astonishing enterprise now lay before White, Mackcoull, and a new -ally: a man named French. This was nothing less than a plan to break -into the premises of the Paisley Union Bank at Glasgow. Arrived in -Glasgow, they at length, after several disappointments, succeeded in -forcing an entry on a Saturday night, selecting that time for the sake -of the large margin it gave them for their escape, until the re-opening -of the bank on the Monday morning. Their booty consisted of £20,000 in -Scotch notes: a large sum, and in that form an unmanageable one, as -they were eventually to discover. - -The burglary accomplished, their first care was to set off at once for -London, posting thither by post-chaise, as fast as four horses could -take them. At every stage they paid their score, which they took care -should be a generous one, as beseemed the wealthy gentlemen they posed -as, with a £20 note: thus accumulating, as they dashed southward along -those four hundred miles, a heavy sum in gold. - -On the Monday morning the loss of the notes was of course at once -discovered. Information was easily acquired as to the movements of -the men who were at once suspected, and they were followed along the -road, and some days later White was arrested in London by a Bow Street -runner, at the house of one Scoltock, a maker of burglars' tools. None -of the stolen property was found upon White, Mackcoull having been -sufficiently acute to place all the remaining notes in the keeping of -a certain Bill Gibbons, who combined the trade of bruiser with that of -burglars' banker. - -Mackcoull himself went into hiding, both from the law and from his -associates, he having had the counting and custody of the notes, and -told White and French the amount was but £16,000. - -It now became quite evident to French, at least, that, so far as he -and his friends were concerned, the remaining notes were merely so -much waste-paper. Their numbers were bound to be known, and they could -not safely be negotiated. So he suggested to Mrs. Mackcoull that they -should propose to return the paper-money to the Bank, and save further -trouble, on the understanding that they should not be prosecuted. - -Mrs. Mackcoull appears to have had an influential friend named Sayer, -employed in close attendance upon the King, and by his good offices -secured a pardon for all concerned, on the conditions already named. -Unfortunately, she could not fully carry out the bargain agreed upon, -for, on the notes being counted, it was discovered that only £11,941 -remained. - -White, already in custody, was once more condemned to transportation -for life. The procedure must by this time have become quite staled by -familiarity, and we picture him going again to the hulks with an air of -intense boredom. - -He, of course, again escaped, and was soon again on his burglarious -career: this time at Kettering among other places. But the exploit -which concluded his course was the almost purely highwayman business -of robbing the Leeds mail-coach, on October 26th, 1812, near Higham -Ferrers. He had as accomplices a certain Richard Kendall and one Mary -Howes. White had booked an outside seat on the coach, and had, in the -momentary absence of the guard in front, cleverly forced open the lock -of the box in which the mail-bags were kept, extracted the bags, and -replaced the lid. At the next stage he left the coach. The accomplices, -who had a trap in waiting, then all drove off to London, White -immediately afterwards making for Bristol, where he was soon located, -living with two notorious thieves, John Goodman and Ned Burkitt. A -descent was made upon the house, and the two arrested, but White -escaped over the roof of a shed, and through the adjoining houses. - -He was traced in April 1813 to a house in Scotland Road, Liverpool, -where, in company with a man named Hayward, he was meditating another -burglary. The officers came upon them hiding in a cellar, and a -desperate struggle followed; but in the end they were secured. - -Richard Kendall and Mary Howes, _alias_ Taylor, were already in -custody, and White was arraigned with them at the ensuing Northampton -Assizes, for the robbery of the Leeds mail. Witnesses spoke at this -trial to having seen the men in the gig on the evening of October 26th, -on the road near Higham Ferrers, and afterwards at the house of Mary -Howes, who lived close by, and the keeper of the turnpike deposed to -only one gig having passed through that evening. There were no fewer -than forty witnesses, and the trial occupied fourteen hours. - -Mary Howes was acquitted, not from lack of evidence, but merely on a -technical flaw in the indictment; her offence having been committed in -another county. White and Kendall were convicted and sentenced to death. - -White again came near to escaping. By some unknown means, a file had -been conveyed to him, and on the night before the execution he filed -through his irons, and then forced a way through several doors, being -only stopped at the outer gate. The following morning, August 13th, -1813—unlucky date, with two thirteens—he met his fate with an unmoved -tranquility. He declared Kendall to be innocent. When the chaplain -asked him earnestly if he could administer any comfort to him at that -solemn moment, he replied: "Only by getting some other man to be hanged -for me." - -Kendall was then brought to the gallows, declaring himself to be -innocent, and a murdered man. - -Mackcoull, the earlier associate of White, disappeared for years, but -was arrested for a robbery in 1820, and died in prison soon after -receiving sentence. - -[Illustration: [++] Gibbet.] - - - - -INDEX - - - Abershaw, Jeremiah, i. 104; ii. 361-369 - - Adams, Richard, ii. 122 - - Allen, —, i. 123 - - — Robert, i. 276, 278-281 - - Arnott, Lieut., i. 97 - - Avery, —, ii. 121 - - - Beatson, John and William, ii. 370-375 - - _Beggar's Opera, The_, i. 240; ii. 296 - - Belchier, William, i. 224 - - Berkeley, 5th Earl of, i. 237-240 - - Bird, Jack, ii. 86-97 - - Blake, Joseph ("Blueskin"), ii. 134-136 - - Boulter, Thomas, ii. 238 - - Bow Street Patrol, i. 123 - - "Bowl" Inn, St. Giles-in-the-Fields, i. 166, 177-181 - - Bracy, —, i. 76 - - Bradshaw, Jack, ii. 101 - - Brown, Thomas, i. 211 - - Bunce, Stephen, ii. 117-120 - - - Carrick, Valentine, i. 145 - - Catnack, James, i. 127-130 - - Caxton, Gibbet, i. 201-204 - - Cherhill Gang, i. 117 - - Clarke, Sir Simon, Bart., i. 97 - - Clavel, John, i. 307-316 - - "Clever Tom Clinch," i. 166, 177 - - Clewer, Revd. William, ii. 81 - - "Clibborn's Post," i. 119-121 - - Cottington, John ("MulledSack"), i. 158; ii. 26-34, 210 - - Cox, Tom, i. 166, 254 - - "Cutpurse," Moll (Mary Frith), i. 262-268; ii. 128, 129 - - - Darkin, Isaac, ii. 264-270 - - Davis, William (the "Golden Farmer"), i. 317-332, 341 - - Denville, Sir Josselin, i. 17; ii. 55 - - Dickson, Christopher, i. 102 - - Dorbel, Tom, ii. 72 - - Dowe, Robert, i. 148, 153, 154 - - Drewett, Robert, i. 211 - - — William, i. 211 - - Dudley, Captain Richard, i. 387-397; ii. 55 - - Dun, Thomas, i. 17-22 - - Du Vall, Claude, i. 175, 214, 224, 254, 334, 342-355; ii. 173, - 249, 272 - - - Edwards, William, ii. 79 - - Elms, The, Smithfield, i. 157 - - — — St. Giles-in-the-Fields, i. 158, 165 - - — — Lane, Lancaster Gate, i. 158 - - — — Tyburn, i. 162 - - Everett and Williams, i. 254 - - - Falstaff, i. 62, 64, 217, 221 - - Ferguson, Robert ("Galloping Dick"), i. 105; ii. 353-360 - - Finchley Common, i. 245-249, 253-255, 319; ii. 122 - - Frith, Mary ("Moll Cutpurse"), i. 262-268; ii. 128, 129 - - - Gad's Hill, i. 62, 214, 217-221, 314; ii. 10 - - "Galloping Dick" (Robert Ferguson), i. 105; ii. 353-360 - - Gibbets, i. 122, 199-212, 214, 363 - - Gibson, John, i. 202 - - Giles, St., i. 157 - - "Golden Farmer," The (William Davis), i. 317-332, 341 - - - Hackney Marshes, i. 91; ii. 182, 208 - - Haggarty, —, i. 243 - - Hal, Prince, i. 62, 64, 217 - - Hall, John, i. 154; ii. 110-116 - - "Hand of Glory," The, i. 49-57, 210 - - "Hangman's Highway," i. 156-198 - - Harris, James, i. 89 - - Hartley John, i. 101 - - Hawes, Nathaniel, i. 253 - - Hawke (or Hawkes), William, i. 147, 224 - - Hawkins, John, i. 229-236 - - — William, i. 229, 231, 232, 236 - - Hill, Thos., i. 66 - - Hillingdon Heath, i. 323, 324 - - Hind, Capt. James, i. 65, 214, 273-306, 334; ii. 173, 249 - - Holborn, i. 163-175 - - — Bars, i. 172 - - — Hill, i. 164, 170, 171 - - Holloway, i. 243 - - Hood, Robin, i. 23-48, 57 - - Horner, Nicholas, ii. 148-157 - - Hounslow Heath, i. 89, 121, 122, 123, 224-244, 267, 346, 388; - ii. 29, 51, 71, 248, 252, 259 - - - Jackson, Francis, i. 356-386 - - Johnson, Charles, Historian of Highwaymen, i. 14, 17, 18, 124, 235, - 270, 335, 339, 392; ii. 41, 158, 166, 233 - - — Joe, ii. 167 - - Joiner, Abraham, i. 67 - - - King, Augustine, i. 84 - - — Matthew, ii. 206, 208, 209 - - — Robert, ii. 206 - - — Tom, ii. 198-203, 205-210, 228 - - Knightsbridge, i. 222-224 - - - Lansdowne Passage, i. 110 - - Lewis, Paul, ii. 316-319 - - Lorrain, Rev. Paul, i. 132-134 - - Low, Richard, ii. 115-117 - - - Maclaine, James, ii. 249, 271-300 - - Maidenhead Thicket, i. 59, 295; ii. 38 - - Marlborough Downs, i. 118 - - Mary-le-Bourne, St., i. 159-161 - - Mellish, Mr., Murder of, by highwaymen, i. 121 - - Miles, Edward, i. 210 - - Morgan, —, i. 99-101 - - "Mulled Sack" (Cottington, John), i. 158; ii. 26-34, 210 - - - Nevison, John, or William ("Swiftnicks"), ii. 1-25, 229, 231, - 232, 234 - - Newgate, i. 145, 146, 148-154, 156, 246, 249-254, 302; ii. 62, 63, - 131, 268, 296, 334-338, 352 - - — Ordinaries of, i. 124-126, 131-139, 142-145, 169, 187, 365; - ii. 117, 143, 272 - - Newmarket, i. 78-82, 173-175; ii. 301 - - New Oxford Street, i. 163, 176 - - - O'Brian, Patrick, ii. 81-85 - - Ogden, Will, ii. 98-104 - - "Old Mob" (Thomas Simpson), i. 254, 333-341 - - Ovet, Jack, ii. 105-109 - - Oxford Street, i. 163, 181, 192; ii. 279, 332 - - - Page, William, ii. 249-263 - - Parsons, William, ii. 241-248 - - Peace, Charles, i. 6-11 - - _Peine forte et dure_, i. 249-254 - - Phillips, Thos., i. 249-253 - - Piccadilly, Highwaymen in, i. 109 - - Plunkett, —, ii. 280-283, 286-290 - - "Poor Robin," ii. 90-93 - - Popham, Sir John, i. 62 - - Porter's Block, Smithfield, i. 158; ii. 63 - - Poulter, John, ii. 301-315 - - Pressing to Death, i. 249-254 - - Price, James, i. 211 - - Pureney, Rev. Thos., i. 132, 133, 135-139, 142; ii. 117, 143, 147 - - - Rann, John ("Sixteen-string Jack"), ii. 340-352 - - Ratsey, Gamaliel, i. 14-17 - - Reresby, Sir John, i. 82 - - Reynolds, Capt., i. 66 - - — Tom, ii. 98, 104 - - _Rizpah_, i. 204-206 - - Robin Hood, i. 23-48, 57; ii. 233 - - "Rowden the Pewterer," ii. 196, 198, 215 - - Rumbold, Thomas, ii. 35-40 - - - St. Giles-in-the-Fields, i. 157, 176-181 - - St. Mary-le-Bourne, i. 159-161 - - St. Sepulchre, i. 148-155, 163, 165 - - Salisbury Plain, i. 114, 117, 214, 318; ii. 41, 266 - - Shakespeare, Highwaymen in, i. 62-64, 217, 221 - - Sheppard, Jack, i. 137, 140, 183, 246, 247 - - Shooter's Hill, i. 214-217, 276; ii. 101, 189, 260 - - Shotover Hill, i. 255; ii. 30 - - Shrimpton, John, i. 256-258 - - Simms, Harry, i. 97 - - Simpson, Thomas ("Old Mob"), i. 254, 333-341 - - "Sixteen-string Jack" (Rann, John), ii. 340-352 - - Smith, Capt. Alexander, Historian of Highwaymen, i. 11-14, 75, 124, - 235, 270, 335, 339, 391; ii. 41, 81-83 - - Smith, Rev. Samuel, i. 132, 367 - - Smithfield, i. 157; ii. 63, 281 - - — Rounds, i. 158; ii. 34 - - Snooks, Robert, ii. 376-383 - - Spiggott, Wm., i. 248-253 - - Stafford, Capt. Philip, i. 269-272 - - Steele, Mr., Murder of, i. 240-244 - - Stratford Place, i. 158-161 - - Sunday Trading Act, i. 60 - - "Swiftnicks" (Nevison, John, or William), ii. 1-25, 229, 231, - 232, 234 - - Sympson, George, i. 229, 231 - - - Taylor, Tom, ii. 123-125 - - Tooll, "Captain" Edmund, i. 246 - - Tracey, Walter, ii. 158-165 - - Turpin, Richard, i. 124, 129, 215, 245, 247; ii. 1, 173-240, 249 - - Turpin's Oak, i. 245 - - Twm Shon Catti, ii. 65-72 - - Twysden, Bishop of Raphoe, i. 236 - - Tyburn, i. 133, 146, 153, 155, 156-198, 245, 249, 254, 281, 354, 397; - ii. 46, 59, 97, 116, 122, 147, 168, 248, 257, 284, 299, 319, 339 - - - Waltham Cross, i. 87 - - Watling Street, i. 159 - - Westons, The, ii. 320-339 - - Weymouth, Charles, i. 102 - - White, Huffum, ii. 384-391 - - Whitney, Capt. James, i. 86, 158; ii. 41-64, 173 - - "Who goes Home?" i. 92-95 - - Wickes, Edward, i. 254; ii. 166-172 - - Wild, Jonathan, i. 137, 187, 265; ii. 126-147 - - Wild, Robert, i. 70-74 - - Wilson, Ralph, i. 231, 232, 235, 236 - - Witherington, Thos., i. 171 - - Withers, John, ii. 75-80 - - Wright, —, i. 231 - - - - -_Printed and bound by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld., London and -Aylesbury._ - - - - - ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ - │ Transcriber's Note: │ - │ │ - │ Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note. │ - │ │ - │ Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained. │ - │ │ - │ Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant │ - │ form was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed. │ - │ │ - │ Mid-paragraph illustrations have been moved between paragraphs │ - │ and some illustrations have been moved closer to the text that │ - │ references them. The List of Illustrations was changed │ - │ accordingly. │ - │ │ - │ [++] indicates a caption added by the transcriber. │ - │ │ - │ Italicized words are surrounded by underline characters, _like │ - │ this_. Words in bold characters are surrounded by equal signs, │ - │ =like this=. │ - │ │ - │ Footnotes were moved to the end of chapters and numbered in one │ - │ continuous sequence. │ - │ │ - │ In the index the numbers i. and ii. refer to volumes i. and ii. │ - │ │ - │ Other notes: │ - │ Page 191: "... three several times;" changed to "... several │ - │ times;" │ - │ In this text Edgware is spelled Edgeware. │ - └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Half-hours with the Highwaymen, by -Charles G. 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