Thirty were despatched to attack Poole, the others were stationed as scouts to prevent a surprise from the rear, and, reaching the customs house, they smashed in the doors, removed tea worth five hundred pounds, and returned brazenly at dawn watched by hundeds of helpless citizens. Among those looking on was a shoemaker named Daniel Chater who, recognising a member of the gang, a fellow named John Diamond, greeted the latter, shook hands with him and was tossed a package of tea as a gift. This incident caused no little gossip in the town, and eventually, the story reached the ears of the officers at Southampton. Very promptly the cobbler was arrested, brought before the officials and questioned. Evidently he had knowledge of the outlaws, even if he was not a confederate, and the final outcome was that, to save himself, he turned hired informer and agreed to accompany an officer and identify Diamond. With William Galley, an excise officer, Chater went to the White Hart Inn at Rowlands Castle, a favorite haunt of the gangsters, and presided over by a Mrs. Payne whose two sons were members of the smugglers' band. Any strangers at such a place aroused suspicions, and when one of the two wayfarers was an old acquaintance of a smuggler and the other an officer of the revenue department, suspicions became a surety. The smugglers were notified of the strangers' presence and the two Paynes, with sev

eral others, put in their appearance. Chater and Galley had been drinking heavily, and though knocked about, insulted and abused a bit, still they soon dropped off into a drunken sleep. In the meantime, the gangsters were discussing what disposal to make of their two victims. It was generally agreed that they should be killed, but the question arose as to the manner of their murder and the best means of getting rid of the bodies and the two horses. While this discussion was taking place, one of the gang, a rascal named Jackson, lurched into the room where Chater and Galley slept, brutally raked them across their faces with his heavy spurs, and, as bleeding and screaming, they awoke, flogged them across the floor into the kitchen. Here their arms and limbs were bound, they were beaten and kicked and then, lashing them to horses the gang drove them along the road to Lady Holt Park. Here they were again flogged until nearly dead and were marched on to Rake and tossed, bound and bleeding, into an outhouse of the Red Lion Inn, kept by a confederate of the gangsters. Galley was hastily buried alive in the ground nearby, and Chater was left without food or drink for four days while the villains continued to discuss how to dispose of him. On the fourth day they returned, slashed the dying man across the face with knives, kicked and clubbed him and finally tossed him into a dry well. He still lived, however,

and fearing his agonized groans might attract attention, the brutal murderers threw stones upon him until he was literally crushed to death. One horse was skinned, the hide cut into bits and destroyed, but unfortunately for the criminals, the other escaped. It was this horse returning to its master that led to the discovery of the crimes. The men were arrested and brought to trial, and, on January 18th, 1749, were sentenced to death. Seven met a richly merited fate on the gallows, and one died in jail before he could be hanged as he deserved.

This effectually put a quietus on the Hawkhurst gang, but there were still others left. In 1768 the Ruxley gang of Hastings boarded a Dutch hoy, the THREE SISTERS, in mid-channel on the pretence of trading. Then, without warning, they attacked the captain, Peter Boolis, and killed him by chopping his back in twain with a hatchet. Their braggadocio proved their undoing for they boasted of their feat, described how the "Dutchman had wiggled as they slashed his backbone" and, as a result, the thirteen men were arrested, indicted for piracy on October 30th, 1769, and four were hanged at Execution Dock on November 27th. It was this terrible deed that led to the nickname "chop backs" being applied to Hastings men by their enemies, a term which if used in their hearing, was most strenuously resented.