HISTORY of SUSSEX
Smuggling Days: Page 2
For fifty years the Brighton smugglers employed the ruinous old houses
by the shore as " bolt holes " and " smouting places,"
but in 1747 Dr. Russell, the celebrated physician, moved to the fisher village
and attracted to it a considerable measure of prosperity by his zealous
championship of sea-bathing for diseases of the glands.
With the influx of visitors and residents into Brighton the smuggling
fraternity were considerably hampered in their traffic. New houses were
erected; old ones were demolished, and the sea-frontage improved with breakwaters
and provided, in parts, with a banked up carriage-road illuminated with
oil lamps. Those swinging oil-lamps broke up the shadows of the night and
the new houses attracted inquisitive " foreigners " who poked
their noses into the business of any poor honest fellow whose duty took
him along the sea shore or over the Downland tracks with a keg or two of
brandy.
But the fish-market on the beach still remained a haunt of the old breed,
and here, even up to 1810, a little colony of muggier-fisher-folk lived
in the ancient buildings which adjoined it. One can well imagine how thinly
settled Brighton was in 1700 when she could only boast of 600 houses in
1770 ; and one can well picture the waste of shingle-beach extending to
Shoreham, a shy, secretive place, running up to solitary pasture-lands that
gave way to some of the wildest and roughest Downland tracks in Sussex.
The respectable inhabitants of Hove knew those Downland tracks very well
and used them for less innocent purposes in 1750 than they would today care
to speak about. As a matter of fact Hove was a notorious smugglers' sanctuary,
and even up to 1835 she was dabbling in this prohibited traffic. Bishop's
Brighton in the Olden Times contains the following cases of smuggling at
Hove:
" Hove and Preston were formerly ecclesiastically conjoined: the
Service being conducted at each Parish Church on alternate Sundays. One
Hove Sunday, the worthy Vicar, in full canonicals, went to the Church to
' do duty.' To his astonishment, the bell was not going ; and, on inquiring
the reason of the Sexton, that individual coolly informed him that he had
made a mistake - that, in fact, it was Preston Sunday!
The Vicar felt certain he was right ; the Sexton as stoutly asserted he
was wrong. But the Vicar would not give in, and ordered the bell to be rung
forthwith. The Sexton said, ' It's no use, Sir, you can't preach today.'
' Why not ? ' exclaimed the Vicar indignantly. ' Because,' rejoined the
Sexton, ' the Church is full of tubs, and the pulpit's full of tea.' "
This incident must have occurred under an improved state of ecclesiastical
affairs in Hove; by the Rev. J. Mossop, published in The Gentleman's Magazine,
in February, 1792, It is stated " Divine Service is only performed
in the Church once in six weeks," the writer adding, " and, by
the appearance of the ruinous state in. which it at present is, that will
soon be entirely neglected."
Possibly a more daring act was never perpetrated than that which took
place on Sunday morning, October 10th, 1810. A suspected " smuggling
boat " being seen off Hove by some of the Custom House officers, they,
with two of the crew of The Hound revenue cutter, gave chase in a galley.
On coming up with the boat their suspicions were confirmed. They at once
" boarded " her; but, while intent on securing their prize, nine
of the smugglers leapt into the Hound's galley, and, thus escaping, "
rowed off rejoicing "!
They, however, " halloed before they were out of the wood,"
for, landing at Hove, seven only escaped, two being taken prisoners by some
other officers who were in waiting for them. This fact becoming known through
the village, the cry was - " To the rescue." Upon which a large
company of smugglers assembled, and, according to the advertisement respecting
the affair issued by the Custom House authorities,
"commenced a desperate attack upon the officers, and, having overpowered
them, assaulted them with stones and large sticks, knocked them down and
cut the belts of the Chief Officer's arms, which they took away, and thereby
enabled the two prisoners to escape. "
With a view of bringing the offenders to justice, the Commissioners of
His Majesty's Customs, were " pleased to offer a reward of £200
"; but, as a matter of course, without effect. The cargo of the "
smuggling boat " consisted of 225 tubs of gin, 52 tubs of brandy, and
1 bag of tobacco.
On October 20th, 1827, a smuggling boat succeeded in running 500 tubs
opposite Brunswick Terrace. The blockade were overpowered, disarmed, and
several of them severely wounded, whilst it is supposed that two or three
of the smugglers were either severely wounded or killed. So recently as
1835, there was an attempt made to run " a crop of goods " near
Hove turnpike gate, as many as between 40 and 50 men waiting there with
bats ready to carry off the tubs when landed. The attempt was defeated by
the vigilance of the Coast Guard, and a large number of the tubs secured,
which were landed on the Chain Pier.
The development of Brighton after Doctor Russell arrived as its champion
will be seen if the reader refers to Cobby's Brighthelmston Directory,
printed in 1800, which gives the following details of the rapid growth
of the town:
Previous to the year 1770, the town consisted of only Seven principal
Streets, and of less than 600 houses. The number of inhabitants was then
about 2,5OO.
In 1794 there were fifteen streets, the number of Houses was upwards of
1,200, and the number of inhabitants 5,600 (The actual number was 5,699.)
The present Town (in 1800) consists of eighteen streets, containing about
1,500 houses, and the number of inhabitants is estimated at 7,000 and upwards.
(The Census of 1801 gives it 7,339)
Boats were secretly built in many a barn in Hove Street and you may still
see some of the old workshops and tackle sheds there. Everywhere in Hove
was understood the smuggler's proverb ; " Moonshine under the hearth
; moonshine under the horse's belly. " that is to say, the smuggled
spirits were concealed either near the fireplace or in the stable where
the horses stood. The Ship Inn at Hove Street was a favourite meeting place
of the Brighton and Hove smugglers. Some years ago it was pulled down and
rebuilt, but it still retains its old name and position.
Smuggling was much in vogue at Hastings. Lawlessness was the rule in the
" Old Town " for nearly two hundred years, and the history of
its fishing luggers carries with it an amazing calendar of contraband performances
both tragic and
amusing. Every variety of smuggling was followed by the Hastingers - they
shipped the Sussex wool to Calais in their own illicit manner; they carried
guineas to the Continent to pay the troops who were fighting against us
in the Peninsular War; they worked for spies and carried their reports;
and they fished, some times ; but ceaselessly they imported silks, teas,
spirits, and tobacco without remembering to pay duty.
The guide books all tell you that the people of Hastings are called "
chop-backs " because their breed could be traced back to Danes and
Norsemen of old who were famous for an axe stroke which cleaved their enemies
from skull to backbone. Alas ! For guide-book history this is only a tale
to tell to the beanfeasters and chars-a-bancers, but a tale to tell to true
Hastingers it decidedly is not. The association of " chop-backs "
with the sturdy gallants of Hastings is much more recent and definite than
the days of the Norse rovers. It is in fact so recent as the year 1768.
The true details of the " chop-back " affair will be found in
the story, or rather the admiralty Court report on thirteen men of Hastings
who were indicted on October 30th, 1760, for piracy and murder on the high
seas.
These turbulent seafaring cut-throats were members of the notorious Ruxley
gang who hailed a Dutch hoy off the Hastings Coast on the pretence of bartering
goods, and having boarded her fell upon the master, Peter Bootes, and chopped
him from the crown of his head to his chine. The ruffians afterwards boasted
about their frightful deed.
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