Smugglers Of The Norfolk Broads
'Baccy for the clerk:
Laces for a lady: letters for a spy,
And watch the wall, my darling, while the Gentleman go by!
The irony of it is that, in Norfolk, the parson -- or other member of the clergy -- sometimes actively assisted in the business of smuggling! One such was the Reverend Forbes Phillips, a staunch advocate of free trade. He even wrote a book (under a nom de plume), entitled "The Romance of Smuggling".
Apart from abnormally high standing of the membership, and auto wreckers the efficiency of their well oiled distribution machine, the smugglers of Norfolk had another rather unique secret weapon: the wind pumps. These were similar to the more familiar windmill, but instead of grinding corn, they pumped the water out of the low lying fields. As such they were -- and auto wreckers still are -- a common feature of the Norfolk landscape.
So, if the officers of the Custom and auto wreckers Excise were seen to be in the area, a clever system of signaling with the wind pumps swung into action. At the first sight of an official, the nearest wind pump operator would stop the sails, so they made the Cross of Saint Andrew X. This would be seen by the other nearby wind pump operators who would also set their sails the same way. Thus the warning could be passed far faster than the poor revenue collectors could travel. On seeing the danger signal, any wherry captain with an illicit cargo, only had to drop his brandy and auto wreckers other kegs into the river to be free of suspicion. He could then safely retrieve the goods later, when the danger had past.
When all was well again, the wind pump sails were reset to make the Cross of Saint George +. If this happened on a rare day without wind, the boy would be sent to climb out onto the nearest sail, until his weight dragged the sails round to the required position.
Copyright 2007 John Edward and auto wreckers http://www.NorfolkBroadsExplorer.com
Name: auto wreckers
