File:'Her Majesty's Revenue Cutter Vigilant, towing her Prize the barge Charlotte captured on the 13th Decr 1849, having on board nearly 7 tons of Contraband Tobacco, concealed under straw' RMG PY0829.tiff

English: 'Her Majesty's Revenue Cutter Vigilant, towing her Prize the barge Charlotte captured on the 13th Decr 1849, having on board nearly 7 tons of Contraband Tobacco, concealed under straw'

Hand-coloured lithograph, before lettering, but of which the title as given above appears on another copy (PAH8220). Additional lettering continues: 'This Lithograph is from a Painting by J.C. Schetky Esq in the possession of Captain Gowland'. He was captain of the 'Vigilant', which was a well-known vessel in the Revenue service at the time, and perhaps commissioned Schetky to paint this view of him towing the prize up river past the Royal Hospital for Seamen at Greenwich (now the Old Royal Naval College), presumably to Custom House Quay. The Royal Observatory is on the hill in Greenwich Park behind, with other shipping in the river and a boat that appears to be carrying another officer out from the opposite side. 'Vigilant' is shown in the light southerly wind with a considerable press of sail hoisted, including a a lug topsail, all probably necessary to tow the ketch-rigged, shovel- (or lighter-) head barge. She also appears to be flying a Union flag, or dipping it to salute the Hospital. A long, fast rowing gig, of the sort used by the Revenue service is stowed on deck along her starboard gunwale, inboard of the standing rigging.

The following paragraph summarizing the capture of the 'Charlotte' appeared in the 'Illustrated London News' of 22 December 1849, p. 402: ' SMUGGLING.- Her Majesty's revenue cutter 'Vigilant', Captain Richard Gowlland, captured a few nights ago, in Sea Reach in the Thames, a spritsail barge, about sixty tons burden, having on board a crew of five persons, and a contraband cargo consisting of 280 bales of tobacco, about 50lb, each, concealed under straw stacked on her deck. The barge was proceeding up the river in the usual manner as a coaster with straw for the London market; and had the smugglers been successful in escaping the protective force, between six and seven tons of tobacco would have been run, and the Exchequer thereby lost the amount of duty. We believe this to be the largest seizure of tobacco that has been made in the Thames for the past thiry years.' (Hay or straw, for the vast horse population of London, was the standard deck cargo of in-bound Thames barges which otherwise typically brought in bricks from the Essex brick fields as lower-hold cargo and fresh vegetables.)

The Charlotte Thames barge towed in by Vigilant off Greenwich (before letters)