“Thus some months passed on in a round of wickedness which not all the counsel in the universe could restrain. My poor grandmother with tears in her eyes entreated me to leave off my wicked course and to follow her instructions. But I little regarded her advice, and still pursued my own schemes.
“There was hardly a place round London famed for wickedness, but I was there. Tottenham Court Fair, when it came, I rejoiced at, for there I lived riotously, and there too I became a proficient in the dexterous art of picking pockets, by which I gained for some time pretty handsomely. But at length that business grew dead, and, as I lived at a large rate, money was wanting. Accordingly, having mustered up a sufficient quantity of cash, I purchased a pair of pistols and a horse, and set out; and in Epping Forest, near Woodford, I stopped two gentlemen in a chaise and pair, from whom I took only a little silver, and proceeded on to Newmarket, where I arrived that night, and early next morning set out again, stopped the Norwich coach, and took from the passengers thirty guineas, a gold watch, and a diamond ring, and then rode away; and about three hours after, near Littlebury, met the Cambridge coach, from the passengers of which I took about five pounds, and came on for London. I now began to frequent a noted gaming-house in Covent Garden, where, for several nights, I had a prodigious run of luck, and won a considerable sum of money. I bought myself a silver hilted sword, had several new suits of clothes made, particularly one suit of black velvet, and appeared at all my usual haunts with surprising eclat. It was at this time I gained the name of ‘Gentleman Harry,’ for though I was before only called plain Harry, yet, on this my sudden grand appearance, I was christened ‘Gentleman Harry,’ which name I retained forever. But fortune not continuing her favors to me at the gaming-table, I was once more reduced, and obliged to take up again my old trade. Hitherto, what business I had done was by myself; but being out one day with a companion of mine, we agreed to attack the first person we met with powder and shot. We saw nothing for some days that we either cared or dared to attack, till we came to a place called Eversley Bank, where we met a collector of Shrewsbury: we ordered him to stand and deliver, and took from him near three hundred pounds. For this robbery two men were taken up a short time after, tried at the assizes, capitally convicted, and executed: and I cannot but own, that, notwithstanding my hardened villany, so often as I remembered it, I felt a good deal of sorrow at being the cause of shedding innocent blood, which I always avoided and abhorred.
“About a month after this, I robbed a lady on Blackheath, in her coach. After this robbery, riding down the hill that leads to Lewisham Wash, I was overtaken by six or seven butchers, one of whom seizing the cape of my coat, pulled me off my horse, and the cape giving way, he tore it quite off. I then pulled out my pistols, swearing I would shoot the first man who dared to advance; which none of them caring to do, I retreated into the fields and got off with the loss of my horse, which cost me seventeen pounds. But I was not long without a horse, for, going towards Bromley, I met a gentleman on horseback, to whom I presented my pistols, ordering him to dismount or I would shoot him through the head; which he did, and I took from him eight guineas and seventeen shillings in silver, and, mounting the horse, left him to pursue his journey on foot. I sold the horse the next day at the George, in Farnham, and bought another, which cost me thirteen guineas. From thence I proceeded to Tunbridge, at which place I stayed a day or two, and then came to London, where I found an old companion, a sailor, who agreed to turn out with me. At the bottom of Shooters hill we robbed a gentleman of his gold watch, and about seventeen pounds: the watch I afterwards sold for nine pounds at the gaming-table in Covent Garden, and lost the money when I had done.
“Being by this time pretty well known, I ran great hazards; it was but a very few days after I lost the money as above, I was attacked by several soldiers in Drury Lane, and should have been carried to the Savoy, had I not been rescued by some of my friends from Covent Garden; and in about a week after that, I was taken out of a tavern for the robbery of a gold watch which I had about me, and was again rescued by my companions. Some little time after this, I was attacked by about nine gentlemen thief-takers, in Bridewell Walk, Clerkenwell, but having my pistols about me, I soon dispersed the cowardly rascals, and walked off. Another time, riding on horseback through Covent Garden, I was pursued by a party of thief-takers, but got clear.
“Being in this manner continually beset on all sides, I was at length, by the perfidy of some ladies with whom I was in company at Goodman’s Fields’ Wells, taken by a parcel of thief-takers, and conducted to Clerkenwell Bridewell, where several prosecutions were commenced against me, and I was obliged to come to a composition with divers of them, which drained me very low. One gentleman in particular, whom I had robbed of only eleven shillings and a small medal, made me pay him forty-seven guineas. By these means, having got rid of my several prosecutors, I was, by order of the court of justice, confined in Clerkenwell Bridewell two months for an assault, at the end of which time I was set at liberty, giving sureties for my good behavior for two years. It was not long after I was discharged, before I was pressed and sent on board his majesty’s ship the Rye, where I continued for about three months, though much against my inclination; being continually forming some scheme for an escape, not one of which schemes took effect till the following was hit upon. Whilst we were at Leith, we had pressed several hands out of some colliers, who, I found by talking to, were as little desirous of staying on board as myself; I therefore proposed to eight of them this scheme:—that when the cutter, which had been on shore pressing, came alongside at night, one of them should fall out of the main-chains into the river, and the rest of us should immediately jump into the boat and take the man up, and row away, which we put in practice with success, only, just as we had got up our man, the boatswain jumped on board and threatened us. My companions were for throwing him overboard, but on his promising to be quiet they were overruled, and he was suffered to sit still; and, notwithstanding several guns were fired after us, we rowed safe to shore, and left the boat to the care of the boatswain to carry back if he thought proper. Being safe on shore, we took leave of each other: they set out for Scarborough, and I for Edinburgh, in which city I stayed about a week, and during that time became acquainted with a Scotch lassie, who not only furnished me with money to purchase my former implements, but lent me seven guineas to bear my expenses to London, which lasted me no farther than Grantham; and between Grantham and Stamford I was obliged to speak with the York stage, from the passengers of which I took eight guineas, about seventeen shillings in silver, a silver watch and three plain gold rings, with which I came to London.
“In a short space of time after this, I committed many robberies by myself, which I did not exactly minute down. My general rendezvous was about Epping Forest, where I robbed the Harwich coach, the Cambridge coach, the Norwich coach, &c., to a pretty large amount, which I spent as fast as I got. About this time, I kept company with another man’s wife, who was so fond of me, that I could persuade her either out of cash or any valuables she had, to supply my present necessities; as was the case when I persuaded her out of her gold watch, and some other things, which her husband took me up upon, and I was committed to Newgate, tried at the Old Bailey, and acquitted by the court, who very justly saw through the prosecution. After my being discharged on this affair, I unluckily, in a quarrel, ran a crab-stick into a woman’s eye in Goodman’s-fields, for which I was sent to New Prison. In the mean time, I was informed that the wife was arrested on an action, and sent to a sponging-house. Being determined to relieve her, if possible, I contrived in what manner I could make my escape, and, accordingly, by the help of sheets I let myself down out of my window and got off: I immediately went to a friend of mine in Leather-lane, who furnished me with two pistols, with which I went to the sponging-house in Gray’s-inn-lane, expecting to find my lady; but when I came there I found she had been removed to Newgate. Being thus disappointed, and having no hopes of getting her out of Newgate, I determined to go to work at my old trade.
“In Broad-street, St. Giles’, about nine at night, I stopped a coach which contained a single gentleman, from whom I took about seventeen shillings, and from thence went to my old haunts in Covent Garden, and after drinking pretty freely, I had a quarrel with a gentleman, who calling the watch to his assistance, I was taken and carried to the Covent Garden round-house. Being very much fuddled, I soon went to sleep; but when I waked next morning, and found myself in a prison, after having escaped from one but the night before, I was almost distracted, and began to contrive an escape, but to no purpose; for after calling for the keeper of the round-house, under pretence of being hungry, I got some toast and ale, and therewith a knife, with which I hoped once more to make a breach whereby to escape. But I was doomed to be disappointed; for notwithstanding my cutting down the plaster and laths of the ceiling, the joists were so firm that I could not make an opening. I then grew desperate, broke all the things I could find in the room, cut the sheets to pieces, pulled off some tiles from the roof, and did every offensive act in my power, till at length the constable with a large posse of myrmidons arrived, who carried me before Sir Thomas De Veil, where, after a long examination, I laid my information of the robbery of Mr. Smith in Southwark, which robbery I was actually concerned in, though not with the persons I swore against at Croydon assizes, but with three others. We committed the robbery in December 1745, getting in at the two-pair-of-stairs window by a Jacob, that is, a ladder of ropes, which was fixed to the sign-post first, drawn afterwards into the balcony, and then attached to the two-pair-of-stairs window. We took from Mr. Smith’s house, after frightening Mrs. Smith almost to death, two bags of money containing 514l. and a 20l. bank note, and carried off in bags goods to the value of 800l. The cash we divided equally amongst us at a house in the Mint; the plate we sold; and we carried the goods to a house near the Pinder of Wakefield, near Pancras; but for my share of the goods I never received one penny; they were carried to Ireland by my three accomplices, who promised to remit me my part, but were never so good as their words. After my examination I was removed to the New Gaol, Southwark, to give evidence at the assizes at Croydon.
“After this affair at Croydon, I was removed by habeas to Newgate, on the oath of a barber at Westminster, whom I had robbed, which barber was found out by some of my enemies to prosecute me; and upon his indictment I was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to transportation; and, about two months after, was with several other convicts put on board the Italian Merchant, which carried us to Maryland. On our passage I had formed several plans for an escape, one of which had nearly been successful, and was agreed upon between me and the rest of the transports. We were at a certain time to have secured the captain and sailors, as well as the fire-arms, and to have run away with the ship, but one of them discovered it to the captain, who put us in irons, and kept a watchful eye on us during the remainder of the voyage. When we arrived at Maryland, I was disposed of to the master of the Two Sisters, who was in want of sailors, and with whom I went to sea. We had not been out many days before we were taken by a privateer of Bayonne, and carried into Spain. We were all sent on shore, and had papers given to us to go to Portugal. When I arrived at Oporto, I was pressed on board his majesty’s ship the King Fisher, where I remained about four months, in which time we took several prizes. But not liking my station, I left her at Oporto, travelled to Lisbon, and got in the Hanover packet to Falmouth, where I stayed about a month. My companions endeavored to persuade me to go a privateering with them in the Warner galley; but I refused, and leaving Falmouth travelled to St. Ives, where I found a vessel ready to sail for Bristol, on board of which I went, and arrived at Bristol in two days. I was not long there before I determined to set up my old trade, and procured a pair of pistols, though I still wanted a horse; but having observed several horses in a field near Lawford’s-gate, I soon marked out one for myself, and that night got into a stable, from whence I stole a saddle and bridle, and without much difficulty caught my horse and set out for London.
“When I reached London, I was soon informed the thief-takers were after me. The night I came to town, I put my horse up at the White Swan in Whitechapel, but went no more near him, fearful, as I had stolen him, he might be advertised. But I was not long without a horse, for one Saturday night, about eight o’clock, coming from St. James’, where I had been regaling with some friends, I perceived a boy in Rider street walking a horse about, apparently waiting for somebody. I called and persuaded him to step on an errand into Duke street while I held the horse, and, as soon as the boy was gone, I mounted and rode away, and crossing the country reached Harrow-on-the-Hill, where I passed the night, and the next day set out towards London, in hopes of meeting some of the farmers returning from the hay-markets after having sold their hay. I had drank pretty freely at dinner and was somewhat elevated. I had not ridden far before I met three gentlemen, whom I commanded to ‘stand and deliver their money,’ which they did very quietly. From the first I got about three pounds, from the second I had about five pounds, and from the third thirteen or fourteen shillings.
“The next person I robbed was Mr. Sleep, my prosecutor, and though neither he nor I recognised each other at that time, yet he, it seems, has known me from a child. I took from him his watch and six shillings, and made off.