oon grew out of humour with
it, and addicted himself wholly to strolling about the streets with such
wicked lads as himself, and so was easily drawn in to think of supplying
himself with money by the plunder of honest people, in order to carry on
those debaucheries in which, though a lad, he was already deeply
immersed.

Women, forsooth, drew this spark away from the paths of virtue and
goodness at about sixteen years old, after which time he lost all sense
of duty to his parents, respect of laws divine or human, and even care
of himself. It seems he found certain houses in Chick Lane, where they
met abundance of loose young men and women, accustomed themselves to
every kind of debauchery which it was possible for wicked people to
commit or the most fruitful genius to invent. Here he fell into the
company of his two companions, Morris and Johnson.

The first of these was the son of an unfortunate tradesman who had once
kept a great shop, and lived in good reputation in the Strand, but
through the common calamities of life, he was so unfortunate as to
break, and laying it too much to heart, died soon after it, happy,
however, in one thing, that he did not live to see the deplorable end of
his son by the hand of justice.

Robert Johnson was the son of honest parents, and had a very good
education, but put it to a very ill use; for having all his life time
been addicted to pilfering and thieving, at last he fell into the
company of these unfortunate young men who led him a directer way to the
gallows than perhaps he might have found himself. One of his chief
inducements to forfeit reputation and hazard life by engaging in street
robberies, was his commencing an amour with his father's servant-maid,
and not long after falling into a multitude of such like adventures, the
ready road to inevitable ruin.

These three sparks, together with Bernard Fink, and another person who
turned evidence against them, came all at the same time to a resolution
of attacking people in the streets; and having provided themselves with
pistols and whatever else they thought necessary for putting their
design in execution, they immediately set about it, and though but boys,
committed bolder and more numerous robberies than had ever hitherto been
heard of. It may, indeed, seem surprising that lads of their age should
be able to intimidate passengers, but when it is considered that having
less precaution than older rogues, they were more ready a