Books Should Be Free Loyal Books Free Public Domain Audiobooks & eBook Downloads |
|
King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855 By: E. Keble (Edward Keble) Chatterton (1878-1944) |
---|
![]()
by E. KEBLE CHATTERTON
Author of "Sailing Ships and Their Story," "The Romance of the Ship"
"The Story of the British Navy," "Fore and Aft," Etc. With 33 Illustrations and Frontispiece in Colours [Illustration: REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER.
Before firing on a smuggler the cruiser was bound to hoist his Revenue
colours both pennant and ensign no matter whether day or night.
( from the original painting by Charles Dixon, R.I. )]
London
George Allen & Company, Ltd.
44 & 45 Rathbone Place
1912
[All rights reserved]
Printed by Ballantyne, Hanson & Co.
At the Ballantyne Press, Edinburgh PREFACE
I have in the following pages endeavoured to resist the temptation to
weave a web of pleasant but unreliable fiction round actual
occurrences. That which is here set forth has been derived from facts,
and in almost every case from manuscript records. It aims at telling
the story of an eventful and exciting period according to historical
and not imaginative occurrence. There are extant many novels and short
stories which have for their heroes the old time smugglers. But the
present volume represents an effort to look at these exploits as they
were and not as a novelist likes to think they might have occurred. Perhaps there is hardly an Englishman who was not thrilled in his
boyhood days by Marryat and others when they wrote of the King's
Cutters and their foes. It is hoped that the following pages will not
merely revive pleasant recollections but arouse a new interest in the
adventures of a species of sailing craft that is now, like the brig
and the fine old clipper ship, past and done with. The reader will note that in the Appendices a considerable amount of
interesting data has been collected. This has been rendered possible
only with great difficulty, but it is believed that in future years
the dimensions and details of a Revenue Cutter's construction, the
sizes of her spars, her tonnage, guns, &c., the number of her crew
carried, the names and dates of the fleets of cutters employed will
have an historical value which cannot easily be assessed in the
present age that is still familiar with sailing craft. In making researches for the preparation of this volume I have to
express my deep sense of gratitude to the Honourable Commissioners of
the Board of Customs for granting me permission to make use of their
valuable records; to Mr. F.S. Parry C.B., Deputy Chairman of the Board
for his courtesy in placing a vast amount of data in my hands, and for
having elucidated a good many points of difficulty; and, finally, to
Mr. Henry Atton, Librarian of the Custom House, for his great
assistance in research. E. KEBLE CHATTERTON.
CONTENTS
CHAP. PAGE
I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. THE EARLIEST SMUGGLERS 14 III. THE GROWTH OF SMUGGLING 40 IV. THE SMUGGLERS' METHODS 56 V. THE HAWKHURST GANG 82 VI. THE REVENUE CRUISERS 94 VII. CUTTERS AND SLOOPS 121 VIII. PREVENTIVE ORGANISATION 138 IX. CUTTERS' EQUIPMENT 157 X. THE INCREASE IN SMUGGLING 182 XI. THE SMUGGLERS AT SEA 199 XII. THE WORK OF THE CUTTERS 215 XIII. THE PERIOD OF INGENUITY 239 XIV. SOME INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS 257 XV. A TRAGIC INCIDENT 276 XVI. ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 295 XVII. SMUGGLING BY CONCEALMENTS 320 XVIII. BY SEA AND LAND 339 XIX. ACTION AND COUNTER ACTION 361 XX. FORCE AND CUNNING 379
APPENDICES 403
ILLUSTRATIONS
PLATES REVENUE CRUISER CHASING SMUGGLING LUGGER Colour frontispiece FACING PAGE A REPRESENTATION OF YE SMUGGLERS BREAKING OPEN YE KING'S
CUSTOM HOUSE AT POOLE 86 MR... Continue reading book >>
|
Genres for this book |
---|
Economics/Political Economy |
History |
eBook links |
---|
Wikipedia – E. Keble (Edward Keble) Chatterton |
Wikipedia – King's Cutters and Smugglers 1700-1855 |
eBook Downloads | |
---|---|
ePUB eBook • iBooks for iPhone and iPad • Nook • Sony Reader |
Kindle eBook • Mobi file format for Kindle |
Read eBook • Load eBook in browser |
Text File eBook • Computers • Windows • Mac |
Review this book |
---|