e port mustered strong, and hearty were their demonstrations of
enthusiasm. The shops were shut in many of the streets, while barricades
were prepared at the street ends leading out of town, ready to be put up
at any moment. Information was then so slow in its journeyings that
falsehood became as strong-looking as truth, and it was easy to keep up a
ferment for some time. Any atom of news became a mountain, until the
fresh air of truth melted it away. We were therefore kept for days in a
state of great excitement, and it certainly was some time before our
warlike spirit subsided, and I must say that although we were somewhat
laughed at for our extraordinary haste in coming to the conclusions we
did, we had nothing to be ashamed of. We Liverpool men showed our pluck
on that and many other occasions during the French war. I fear we were a
little too much alive. We had too much pugnacity about us if anything.
I recollect some poor simple looking French fishermen in that year put
into Liverpool, in order to sell some oysters, when it was all once taken
for granted that they were spies, sent to ascertain what we were doing.
The mayor at a meeting held to consider the state of the
harbour-defences, actually alluded to these poor fishermen as having in
their possession the soundings and bearings of the harbour and
river-entrance. I, for one, did not believe in their being spies, never
having seen such a lot of harmless, stupid-looking men.

About this period the press-gang was very actively engaged in taking men
for the navy. These gangs were made up of the very worst and most
violent men in the service. They were by no means particular whom they
took: to them a man was a man, and that was a sufficient reason for
securing him. Cases of horrible cruelty and great hardship frequently
occurred to individuals. Men were constantly torn from their homes,
wives, and families, without a moment's warning. They disappeared and
were not heard of for years, or perhaps not at all. There was a man I
knew who was seized in Pool-lane and hurried off to the tender, and was
not heard of for four years, when he returned suddenly as his wife was
about to be married for the third time since his departure. His arrival,
with a good store of pay, and prize-money, was ample compensation for the
loss of the new husband. Terrible rows took place between the
press-gangs and the sailor-men--the latter resisted to the very death any
attempt