by Daniel Defoe
on, I fellinto the snare in which I was appointed to meet with my last reward forthis kind of life. But even this was not yet, for I met with severalsuccessful adventures more in this way of being undone.
I remained still with my governess, who was for a while reallyconcerned for the misfortune of my comrade that had been hanged, andwho, it seems, knew enough of my governess to have sent her the sameway, and which made her very uneasy; indeed, she was in a very greatfright.
It is true that when she was gone, and had not opened mouth to tellwhat she knew, my governess was easy as to that point, and perhaps gladshe was hanged, for it was in her power to have obtained a pardon atthe expense of her friends; but on the other hand, the loss of her, andthe sense of her kindness in not making her market of what she knew,moved my governess to mourn very sincerely for her. I comforted her aswell as I could, and she in return hardened me to merit more completelythe same fate.
However, as I have said, it made me the more wary, and particularly Iwas very shy of shoplifting, especially among the mercers and drapers,who are a set of fellows that have their eyes very much about them. Imade a venture or two among the lace folks and the milliners, andparticularly at one shop where I got notice of two young women who werenewly set up, and had not been bred to the trade. There I think Icarried off a piece of bone-lace, worth six or seven pounds, and apaper of thread. But this was but once; it was a trick that would notserve again.
It was always reckoned a safe job when we heard of a new shop, andespecially when the people were such as were not bred to shops. Suchmay depend upon it that they will be visited once or twice at theirbeginning, and they must be very sharp indeed if they can prevent it.
I made another adventure or two, but they were but trifles too, thoughsufficient to live on. After this nothing considerable offering for agood while, I began to think that I must give over the trade inearnest; but my governess, who was not willing to lose me, and expectedgreat things of me, brought me one day into company with a young womanand a fellow that went for her husband, though as it appearedafterwards, she was not his wife, but they were partners, it seems, inthe trade they carried on, and partners in something else. In short,they robbed together, lay together, were taken together, and at lastwere hanged together.
I came into a kind of league with these two by the help of mygoverness, and they carried me out into three or four adventures, whereI rather saw them commit some coarse and unhandy robberies, in whichnothing but a great stock of impudence on their side, and grossnegligence on the people's side who were robbed, could have made themsuccessful. So I resolved from that time forward to be very cautioushow I adventured upon anything with them; and indeed, when two or threeunlucky projects were proposed by them, I declined the offer, andpersuaded them against it. One time they particularly proposed robbinga watchmaker of three gold watches, which they had eyed in the daytime,and found the place where he laid them. One of them had so many keysof all kinds, that he made no question to open the place where thewatchmaker had laid them; and so we made a kind of an appointment; butwhen I came to look narrowly into the thing, I found they proposedbreaking open the house, and this, as a thing out of my way, I wouldnot embark in, so they went without me. They did get into the house bymain force, and broke up the locked place where the watches were, butfound but one of the gold watches, and a silver one, which they took,and got out of the house again very clear. But the family, beingalarmed, cried out 'Thieves,' and the man was pursued and taken; theyoung woman had got off too, but unhappily was stopped at a distance,and the watches found upon her. And thus I had a second escape, forthey were convicted, and both hanged, being old offenders, though butyoung people. As I said before that they robbed together and laytogether, so now they hanged together, and there ended my newpartnership.
I began now to be very wary, having so narrowly escaped a scouring, andhaving such an example before me; but I had a new tempter, who promptedme every day--I mean my governess; and now a prize presented, which asit came by her management, so she expected a good share of the booty.There was a good quantity of Flanders lace lodged in a private house,where she had gotten intelligence of it, and Flanders lace beingprohibited, it was a good booty to any custom-house officer that couldcome at it. I had a full account from my governess, as well of thequantity as of the very place where it was concealed, and I went to acustom-house officer, and told him I had such a discovery to make tohim of such a quantity of lace, if he would assure me that I shouldhave my due share of the reward. This was so just an offer, thatnothing could be fairer; so he agreed, and taking a constable and mewith him, we beset the house. As I told him I could go directly to theplace, he left it to me; and the hole being very dark, I squeezedmyself into it, with a candle in my hand, and so reached the pieces outto him, taking care as I gave him some so to secure as much aboutmyself as I could conveniently dispose of. There was near #300 worthof lace in the hole, and I secured about #50 worth of it to myself.The people of the house were not owners of the lace, but a merchant whohad entrusted them with it; so that they were not so surprised as Ithought they would be.
I left the officer overjoyed with his prize, and fully satisfied withwhat he had got, and appointed to meet him at a house of his owndirecting, where I came after I had disposed of the cargo I had aboutme, of which he had not the least suspicion. When I came to him hebegan to capitulate with me, believing I did not understand the right Ihad to a share in the prize, and would fain have put me off with #20,but I let him know that I was not so ignorant as he supposed I was; andyet I was glad, too, that he offered to bring me to a certainty.
I asked #100, and he rose up to #30; I fell to #80, and he rose againto #40; in a word, he offered #50, and I consented, only demanding apiece of lace, which I thought came to about #8 or #9, as if it had beenfor my own wear, and he agreed to it. So I got #50 in money paid methat same night, and made an end of the bargain; nor did he ever knowwho I was, or where to inquire for me, so that if it had beendiscovered that part of the goods were embezzled, he could have made nochallenge upon me for it.
I very punctually divided this spoil with my governess, and I passedwith her from this time for a very dexterous manager in the nicestcases. I found that this last was the best and easiest sort of workthat was in my way, and I made it my business to inquire out prohibitedgoods, and after buying some, usually betrayed them, but none of thesediscoveries amounted to anything considerable, not like that I relatedjust now; but I was willing to act safe, and was still cautious ofrunning the great risks which I found others did, and in which theymiscarried every day.
The next thing of moment was an attempt at a gentlewoman's good watch.It happened in a crowd, at a meeting-house, where I was in very greatdanger of being taken. I had full hold of her watch, but giving agreat jostle, as if somebody had thrust me against her, and in thejuncture giving the watch a fair pull, I found it would not come, so Ilet it go that moment, and cried out as if I had been killed, thatsomebody had trod upon my foot, and that there were certainlypickpockets there, for somebody or other had given a pull at my watch;for you are to observe that on these adventures we always went verywell dressed, and I had very good clothes on, and a gold watch by myside, as like a lady as other fold.
I had no sooner said so, but the other gentlewoman cried out 'Apickpocket' too, for somebody, she said, had tried to pull her watchaway.
When I touched her watch I was close to her, but when I cried out Istopped as it were short, and the crowd bearing her forward a little,she made a noise too, but it was at some distance from me, so that shedid not in the least suspect me; but when she cried out 'A pickpocket,'somebody cried, 'Ay, and here has been another! this gentlewoman hasbeen attempted too.'
At that very instance, a little farther in the crowd, and very luckilytoo, they cried out 'A pickpocket,' again, and really seized a youngfellow in the very act. This, though unhappy for the wretch, was veryopportunely for my case, though I had carried it off handsomely enoughbefore; but now i
t was out of doubt, and all the loose part of thecrowd ran that way, and the poor boy was delivered up to the rage ofthe street, which is a cruelty I need not describe, and which, however,they are always glad of, rather than to be sent to Newgate, where theylie often a long time, till they are almost perished, and sometimesthey are hanged, and the best they can look for, if they are convicted,is to be transported.
This was a narrow escape to me, and I was so frighted that I venturedno more at gold watches a great while. There was indeed a great manyconcurring circumstances in this adventure which assisted to my escape;but the chief was, that the woman whose watch I had pulled at was afool; that is to say, she was ignorant of the nature of the attempt,which one would have thought she should not have been, seeing she waswise enough to fasten her watch so that it could not be slipped up.But she was in such a fright that she had no thought about her properfor the discovery; for she, when she felt