ficers, had
doubtless lit this, since it flared up near to where he was seen to
run. The officers remained on the coast until daylight, and then
launching their boat rowed a little way from the shore, and found a
new buoy moored just by the spot where the lugger had been observed to
turn round when hailed and warned. It was clear, on examination, that
the buoy had not been in the water many hours, and after "creeping"
along the sea bottom hereabouts they brought up sixty kegs, which were
also quite new, and had evidently only been sunk when Bartlett sung
out his warning. The latter was again arrested, and found guilty when
subsequently tried. So again Bartlett had to retire from smuggling.

It happened only a few weeks before this incident that a seaman named
Willis was on shore with his officer. Willis belonged to H.M.S.
_Severn_, which was moored off Dover for the prevention of smuggling.
The officer was a naval midshipman named Hope, stationed ashore.
Whilst on their duty they began to notice a man, whose name was
William Clarke, near Chalk Fall, carrying a basket of nets and fishing
lines. For a time both Willis and Hope took shelter under the Chalk
Cliff as it was raining, but presently Willis separated from his
officer to go to his appointed station. It occurred to him that Clarke
appeared to be unnecessarily stout, and he was sure that he was trying
to smuggle something. Willis went up to him and said he intended to
search him, to which Clarke replied, "Certainly." He admitted he had
some liquor there, but he hoped Willis would take no notice of it. The
seaman insisted that he must take notice, for if it turned out to be
foreign spirits he must seize it: whereupon Clarke flung down a couple
of half-crowns and asked him to say nothing about it.

Willis again protested that he must see what the man had beneath his
gabardine. But at this Clarke took a knife from his pocket and cut a
large bladder which he had under his clothes, containing half a
gallon of spirits, and a spirituous liquor poured out on to the
ground. Willis put his finger to it and found that it was foreign
brandy. But the amusing legal aspect of this incident was that this
foreign liquor could not be seized, nor could the man be prosecuted
for having it, and it could not be condemned. But Clarke had indeed
destroyed that which he had so early brought safely home. This was
just one instance of the good work which the Coast Blockade was
performing,