Illicit Trade 101 



and some of the places where they are said to have stored 

 their contraband goods. Smuggling suggests the sea, but 

 the goods landed on the beach had afterwards to be con- 

 veyed inland for sale, so that the hamlet, though far distant 

 from the shore, has its traditions of illicit trade. The 

 route followed was a wild and unfrequented one, and the 

 smugglers appear to have kept to the downs as much as 

 possible. More than one family — well-to-do for the hamlet 

 or village, where a small capital goes a long way — are said 

 to have originally derived their prosperity from assisting 

 the storage or disposal of smuggled goods ; and the sym- 

 pathies of the hamlet would be with the smugglers still. 



The old folk, too, talk of having the ague, and say that 

 it was quite common in their early days ; but it is rare to 

 hear of a case now. Possibly the better drainage of the 

 fields and the better food and lodging enjoyed by the 

 labourers have something to do with this. There are, of 

 course, no scientific or precise data for exact comparison ; 

 but, judging from the traditions transmitted down, the 

 hamlet is much more healthy at the present day than it 

 was in the olden times. 



