the _Nelson_, whereupon the
crew became a little restless and went forward. Presently they
announced that they would go ashore, so they went forward again, got
hold of the warp, and were going to haul on shore by it when the
Coastguard observed, "Now, recollect I am an officer in his Majesty's
Revenue duty, and the vessel is safely moored and in my charge; and if
you obstruct me in my duty you will abide by the consequences." He
took the warp out of their hands, and continued to walk up and down
one side of the deck while the crew walked the other. This went on for
about twenty minutes, when Henry Roberts came up just as the
Coastguard was turning round, and getting a firm grip, pushed him
savagely aft and over the vessel's quarter into the water. Heavily
laden though the Coastguard was with a heavy monkey-jacket, petticoat
canvas trousers over his others, and with his arms as well, he had
great difficulty in swimming, but at last managed to get to the shore.
The chief boatman and the other man were now arriving, and it was
found that the _Nelson's_ crew had vanished. The vessel was eventually
examined, and found to have a false bottom containing thirty-two tubs
of liquor and twenty-eight flagons of foreign brandy. Roberts was
later on arrested, found guilty, and transported for seven years.

[Illustration: "Getting a firm grip, pushed him ... into the water."]

A few pages back we witnessed an incident off Hastings. On the 5th of
January 1832, a much more serious encounter took place. Lieutenant
Baker, R.N., was cruising at that time in the Revenue cutter _Ranger_
off the Sussex coast, when between nine and ten in the evening he saw
a suspicious fire on the Castle Hill at Hastings. Believing that it
was a smuggler's signal, he despatched his four-oared galley, with
directions to row between Eccles Barn and the Martello Tower, No. 39.
At the same time the _Ranger_ continued to cruise off the land so as
to be in communication with the galley. About 1 A.M. a report was
heard from the Hastings direction, and a significant blue light was
seen burning. Baker therefore took his cutter nearer in-shore towards
the spot where this light had been seen. He immediately fell in with
his galley, which had shown the blue light, and in her he found about
two hundred casks of different sizes containing foreign spirits, and
also five men who had been detained by the galley.

The men of course were taken on board the cruiser, and as the