this case the goods had not been put into crates, but were concealed
in the ballast, the idea being not to land them in London but to
bring them back under the ballast to Dover.

[Illustration: "Under cover of darkness took on board ... forty bales
of silk."]

The first remark the Customs officer made was, "There is a great deal
more ballast here than is necessary for such a ship," and promptly
began moving the same. Of course the goods were discovered, and of
course Allen pretended he knew nothing about the forty bales being
there concealed. They were seized and condemned.

Becker got to hear of this disaster and that a warrant was out for his
own arrest, so he quickly hopped across to Calais. An officer was sent
both to Deal and to Dover to find Tomsett, but found him not, so he
crossed over to Calais, and among the first people whom he saw on
Calais pier were Tomsett and Becker walking about together. The
officer had no wish to be seen by Becker, but the latter saw him, and
came up and asked him how he was and what he was doing there. The
officer made the best excuse he could, and stated that he had got on
board the steam-packet and been brought off by mistake.

"Oh, I am here in consequence of that rascal Allen having peached
against us," volunteered Becker, and then went on to say that he was
as innocent as the child unborn. However, the judge, at a later date,
thought otherwise, and imposed a penalty of L4750, though the full
penalty really amounted to the enormous sum of L71,000.

CHAPTER XX

FORCE AND CUNNING

A smuggling vessel was usually provided with what was called a
tub-rail--that is to say, a rail which ran round the vessel just below
the gunwale on the inside. When a vessel was about to arrive at her
destination to sink her tubs, the proceeding was as follows. The tubs
were all made fast to a long warp, and this warp with its tubs was
placed outside the vessel's bulwarks, running all round the ship from
the stern to the bows and back again the other side. This warp was
kept fastened to the tub-rail by five or seven lines called
stop-ropes. Consequently all the smugglers had to do was to cut these
stop-ropes, and the tubs and warp would drop into the water, the stone
weights immediately sinking the casks.

Bearing this in mind, let us see the Revenue cutter _Tartar_, on the
night between the 3rd and 4th of April 1839, cruising off Kimeridge,
between St. Alban's Head and Weymouth, and a