Kent’s master and four of the men had been killed.  It should be added that the day before this incident the Pelican had also chased the Kent out of Bridlington Bay, so the smuggler must have come further north in the meanwhile, thus meeting the two Scottish cruisers bound south.  The hatches of the Kent were found to be unbattened, and her cargo in great disorder.  The latter consisted of 1974 half-ankers, and a large amount of tea packed in oilskin-bags to the number of 554.  This schooner had been built at that other famous home of smugglers, Folkestone.  She was specially rigged for fast sailing, her mainmast being 77 feet long, and her main-boom 57 feet.  It was found that her sails were much damaged by shot.  Her mainmast was shot through in two places, and her main-boom rendered quite unserviceable.  Ship and tackle were appraised at L1405, 16s., so with the addition of her cargo she represented a fair prize.

But “Smoker” was still at large even though “Stoney” was a prisoner.  It was in April of 1777, when Captain Mitchell had fallen in with him off Robin Hood’s Bay.  A month later the Collector of Hull wrote up to the Board to say that a large lugger had been seen off Whitby, and well armed.  She was described as “greatly an overmatch” for any of the Revenue cruisers, “or even for a joint attack of two of them”:  and that as long as she and the armed cutter commanded by Browning, alias “Smoker” continued so daringly to “insult” the coasts, there was little prospect of success.  For six months past the Revenue cruisers had not been able to make any seizures, because these smuggling craft not only brought over vast quantities themselves, but protected the smaller ones from the attempts of the Revenue cruisers.  A year later, and we find that Mitchell was every bit as slack as before.  This is made quite clear from a letter which the Collector of Hull was compelled on November 12 (1778) to write.  In this epistle he informs Mitchell that either he or his mate, one of them, must remain on board the Swallow at night, when lying in the Humber.  For it appeared that two days earlier both were ashore.  The mariner who had the midnight watch on board the cruiser saw a vessel, supposed to be a privateer, come right up the Humber into Hull Roads, sail around the naval tender there lying, then sail round the Swallow, and finally down the river again.  Although there were twelve or fourteen men on the supposed privateer’s deck, yet the Swallow’s watchman did not even hail her, Mitchell and his mate being ashore all the while.