G. A. Poynder first edition - 1906
I have tried to find out any information about Emily J. Climenson, but, apart from the fact that her middle name was Jane and her dates were 1844 to 1921, I have drawn a blank. That she wrote other books can be gleaned from the title page of this work. Amongst others, she published a Guide to Henley-on-Thames (1896, facsimile copy in 1982); Passages from the Diaries of Mrs. P. Lybbe 'Powys (1899, reprinted by Forgotten Books in 2008 and also in 2018); and Elizabeth Montagu, the Queen of the Blue Stockings (1906, reprinted by the CUP in 2011).
Strange Adventures is a well put-together story; written in a Diary or Journal format of those involved in the tale, which lends immediacy and 'veracity', whilst the descriptions of the Dorset countryside are well done. The addition of the map helps - it reminded me of happy hours spent around the Swanage and Corfe Castle area, as well as getting a thorough soaking from a sudden downpour on our way to the Tilly Whim caves. It's also good fun - there are possible ghosts; secret passages behind the panelling of an ancient mansion; an old 'witch' who is not a bad seer; a ruthless Spanish privateer who tries to abduct the heroine; and, of course, a band of brutal smugglers.
Climenson also adds the Dorset vernacular to the locals and embroiders this with extracts from the famous local poet William Barnes. Every so often, she will employ a footnote to explain a dialect word or phrase ('lingo') or point out the relevant section is 'a true story'.
The attack on Poole Customs House in October 1747
In fact, one episode describes the famous raid on the Poole Custom House in October 1747. The original Custom House building was erected that same year and it was attacked by some 30 smugglers, led by members of the infamous Hawkhurst gang. They stole two tons of smuggled tea and 30 barrels of rum, worth over £500, that had previously been confiscated. The raid happened at night, with the gang reaching Poole at 11.00 p.m. The tea was then taken through Fordingbridge. Four men were convicted at the Old Bailey in 1749, during which they argued that there was no crime in smuggling and that they were just recovering their own goods. Three of the four convicted were hanged at Tyburn.
Inspired by John Meade Falkner's Moonfleet, I purchased John Masefield's Jim Davis a couple of years ago (a decent enough tale, but it did not 'grip' me as much as Falkner's). I then bought several non-fiction and fiction books relating to Smuggling.
1871: John Banks - Reminiscences of Smugglers and Smuggling (1966 ed.)
1892: Henry N. Shore - Smuggling Days and Smuggling Ways (Cassell)
1908: Fox Russell - The Phantom Spy (Thomas Nelson and Sons)
1909: Charles G. Harper - The Smugglers (Chapman & Hall)
1911: John Masefield - Jim Davis (Wells, Gardner, Darton & Co.,)
1911: Harold Vallings - The Smugglers of Haven Quay (Frederick Warne and Co.)
1959: Neville Williams - Contraband Cargoes (Longmans, Green and Co.)
1964: Frank Graham - Smuggling in Cornwall (V. Graham)
1973: David Phillipson - Smuggling. A History 1700-1970 (David & Charles)
1983: Geoffrey Morley - Smuggling in Hampshire and Dorset (Countryside Books)
1991: Richard Platt - Smugglers' Britain (Cassell Publishers)
1999: Tom Quinn - Smugglers' Tales (David & Charles)
I am now turning to Harold Vallings' story for my next read.
N.B. An amusing (true?) story relating to Poole:
Poole smugglers made good use of the town drains, dragging contraband from the quay directly into the cellars of the town pubs. The smugglers...let the water wash a rope down the channel to their colleagues at the quay. Contraband was then tied on, and the rope hauled up against the flow of water. It's said that when the customs men got wise to this trick, they waited at the harbour end for the rope, tied on a tub chalked with the legend 'The end is nigh', then gave a tug to signal that the load was ready. The tub was hauled into the cellar of one of the town pubs, and the smugglers read the appropriate message at the very instant their adversaries burst in upstairs.
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