ssign to them their proper
appellations, and it was significant that the crew spoke English
without a foreign accent. Her commander insisted his name was Reymas,
but his real name was Joseph Wills, and he had been foremost in the
calling for quarter. Another of the crew, who pretended his name was
Jan Schmidt, was found to be an Englishman named John Smith. The
vessel herself had been built by a Kentishman, living at Flushing, the
previous year.

And here is another of those occasions when there was displayed an
excess of zeal, though under the circumstances who would blame the
Preventive officer for what he did? In February of 1824, a man named
Field and his crew of three came out from Rye--that hotbed of
smugglers--and intended to proceed to the well-known trawling ground
about fifteen miles to the S.W. of Rye, abreast of Fairlight, but
about five or six miles out from that shore. Unfortunately it fell
very calm, so that it took them some time to reach the trawling
ground, and even when with the assistance of the tide they did arrive
there, the wind was so scant that it was useless to shoot the trawl in
the water. Naturally, therefore, it was a long time before they had
obtained their cargo of flat fish, and when a little breeze sprang up
they had to get back to Rye, as their provisions had run short.

On their way back, when they were only about four or five miles from
their harbour, they fell in with a small open sailing-boat named the
_Rose_, containing four or five men. Field's bigger craft was hailed
by the _Rose_ and asked to be taken in tow, as they also had run short
of provisions, and were anxious to get back to harbour at once.
Field's boat took one of their crew on board, whilst the rest remained
in the _Rose_ and were towed astern. It was now about four or five in
the morning, and they had not proceeded more than another couple of
miles before they were hailed again, but this time by a boat under the
command of a Preventive officer named Lipscomb, who had been sent by
Lieutenant Gammon, R.N., from the revenue cruiser _Cameleon_. The
cutter's boat bumped alongside Field's craft, which was called the
_Diamond_. After making fast, Lipscomb and his boat's crew jumped
aboard, and announced that they suspected the _Diamond_ was fitted
with concealments, and he wished to examine her. But after rummaging
the ship nothing suspicious was found. Lipscomb then explained that he
had been ordered by Lieutenant Gammon