A COACH ROBBERY 27 



fortunate in this comparatively easy fall. Still, shocks 

 and bruises were not few, and one gentleman had his 

 thigh broken. 



By June, 1811, traffic had so increased that there 

 were then no fewer than twenty-eight coaches running 

 between Brighton and London. On February 5th in 

 the following year occurred the only great road robbery 

 known on this road. This was the theft from the 

 " Blue " coach of a package of bank-notes representing 

 a sum of between three and four thousand pounds 

 sterling. Crosswellers were proprietors of the coach, 

 and from them Messrs. Brown, Lashmar & West, of 

 the Brighton Union Bank, had hired a box beneath 

 the seat for the conveyance of remittances to and 

 from London. On this dav the Bank's London 

 correspondents placed these notes in the box for 

 transmission to London, but on arrival the box was 

 found to have been broken open and the notes all 

 stolen. It would seem that a carefully planned 

 conspiracy had been entered into by several persons, 

 who must have had a thorough knowledge of the 

 means by which the Union Bank sent and received 

 money to and from the metropolis. On this morning 

 six persons were booked for inside, places. Of this 

 number two only made an appearance — a gentleman 

 and a lady. Two gentlemen were picked up as the 

 coach proceeded. The lady was taken suddenly ill 

 when Sutton was reached, and she and her husband 

 were left at the inn there. When the coach arrived 

 at Reigate the two remaining passengers went to inquire 

 for a friend. Returning shortly, they told the coach- 

 man that the friend whom they had supposed to be 

 at Brighton had returned to town, therefore it was of 

 no use proceeding further. 



Thus the coachman and guard had the remainder 

 of the journey to themselves, while the cash-box, as 

 was discovered at the journey's end, was minus its 

 cash. A reward of £300 was immediately offered for 

 information that would lead to recovery of the notes. 

 This was subsequently altered to an offer of 100 guineas 



