aking line. I stayed with him till the time of his death,
which happened in about three months, travelling about with him and his
family, and living in green lanes, where we saw gypsies and trampers, and
all kinds of strange characters. Old Fulcher, besides being an
industrious basket-maker was an out and out thief, as was also his son,
and indeed every member of his family. They used to make baskets during
the day, and thieve during a great part of the night. I had not been
with them twelve hours before old Fulcher told me that I must thieve as
well as the rest. I demurred at first, for I remembered the fate of my
father, and what he had told me about leaving off bad courses, but soon
allowed myself to be over-persuaded; more especially as the first robbery
I was asked to do was a fruit robbery. I was to go with young Fulcher
and steal some fine Morell cherries, which grew against a wall in a
gentleman's garden; so young Fulcher and I went and stole the cherries,
one half of which we ate, and gave the rest to the old man, who sold them
to a fruiterer ten miles off from the place where we had stolen them. The
next night old Fulcher took me out with himself. He was a great thief,
though in a small way. He used to say that they were fools who did not
always manage to keep the rope below their shoulders, by which he meant,
that it was not advisable to commit a robbery, or do anything which could
bring you to the gallows. He was all for petty larceny, and knew where
to put his hand upon any little thing in England, which it was possible
to steal. I submit it to the better judgment of the Romany Rye, who I
see is a great hand for words and names, whether he ought not to have
been called old Filcher, instead of Fulcher. I shan't give a regular
account of the larcenies which he committed during the short time I knew
him, either alone by himself, or with me and his son. I shall merely
relate the last.

"A melancholy gentleman, who lived a very solitary life, had a large carp
in a shady pond in a meadow close to his house; he was exceedingly fond
of it, and used to feed it with his own hand, the creature being so tame
that it would put its snout out of the water to be fed when it was
whistled to; feeding and looking at his carp were the only pleasures the
poor melancholy gentleman possessed. Old Fulcher--being in the
neighbourhood, and having an order from a fishmonger for a large fish,
which was wanted at a great c