rn on
the sea-shore, just a quarter of a mile out of Dover, towards
Shakespeare's Cliff. My father was a fisherman by profession, and a
smuggler by practice, all was fish that came to his net; but his cottage
was small, he was supposed to be very poor, and a very bad fisherman,
for he seldom brought home many; but there was a reason for that, he
very seldom put his nets overboard. His chief business lay in taking out
of vessels coming down Channel, goods which were shipped and bonded for
exportation, and running them on shore again. You know, Bob, that there
are many articles which are not permitted to enter even upon paying
duty, and when these goods, such as silks, &c., are seized or taken in
prizes, they are sold for exportation. Now, it was then the custom for
vessels to take them on board in the river, and run them on shore as
they went down Channel, and the fishing-boats were usually employed for
this service; my father was a well-known hand for this kind of work, for
not being suspected he was always fortunate; of course, had he once
been caught, they would have had their eyes upon him after he had
suffered his punishment. Now the way my father used to manage was this,
there was a long tunnel drain from some houses used as manufactories,
about a hundred yards above his cottage, which extended out into the sea
at low water mark, and which passed on one side of our cottage. My
father had cut from a cellar in the cottage into the drain, and as it
was large enough for a man to kneel down in, he used to come in at low
water with his coble, and make fast the goods, properly secured from the
wet and dirt in tarpaulin bags, to a rope, which led from the cellar to
the sea through the drain. When the water had flowed sufficiently to
cover the mouth of the drain, he then threw the bags overboard, and,
securing the boat, went to the cottage, hauled up the articles, and
secured them too; d'ye understand? My father had no one to assist him
but my brother, who was a stout fellow, seven years older than myself,
and my mother, who used to give a helping hand when required; and thus
did he keep his own counsel, and grow rich; when all was right, he got
his boat over into the harbour, and having secured her, he came home as
innocent as a lamb. I was then about eight or nine years old, and went
with my father and brother in the coble, for she required three hands,
at least, to manage her properly, and like a tin-pot, although not very