There is not anything more extraordinary in the circumstances of those
who from a life of rapine and plunder come to its natural catastrophe, a
violent and ignominious death, than that some of them from a life of
piety and religion, have on a sudden fallen into so opposite a
behaviour, and without any stumbles in the road of virtue take, as it
were, a leap from the precipice at once.
This malefactor, William Sperry, was born of parents in very low
circumstances, who afforded him and his brother scarce any education,
until having reached the age of fourteen years, he and his younger
brother before mentioned, were both decoyed by one of the agents for the
plantations, to consent to their being transported to America, where
they were sold for about seven years.[58] After the expiration of the
term, William Sperry went to live at Philadelphia, the capital of
Pennsylvania, one of the best plantations the English have in America,
which receives its name from William Penn, the famous Quaker who first
planted it. Here, being chiefly instigated thereto by the great piety
and unaffected purity of morals in which the inhabitants of that colony
excel the greater part of the world, Sperry began with the utmost
industry to endeavour at retrieving his reading; and the master with
whom he lived favouring his inclinations, was at great pains and some
expense to have him taught writing. Yet he did not swerve in his
religion, nor fall into Quakerism, the predominant sect here, but went
constantly to the Church belonging to the religion by Law established in
England, read several good books, and addicted himself with much zeal to
the service of God. Removing from the house of his kind master to that
of another planter, he abated nothing in his zeal for devotion, but went
constantly from his master's house to church at West Chester, which was
near five miles from his home.
Happening, not long after, to have the advantage of going in a trading
vessel to several ports in America, he addicted himself with great
pleasure to this new life. But his happiness therein, like all other
species of human bliss, very shortly faded, for one morning just as the
day began to dawn, the vessel in which he sailed was clapped on board,
and after a very short struggle taken by Low, the famous pirate.[59]
Sperry, being a brisk young lad, Low would very fain have taken him into
his crew, but the lad having still virtuous principles remaining,
earnestly entreated that he might be excused. On the score of his having
discovered to Low a mutinous conspiracy of his crew, the generosity of
that pirate was so great that, finding no offer he could make made any
impression, he caused him to be set safe on shore in the night, on one
of the Leeward Islands.
Notwithstanding that Sperry did not at that time comply with the
instigations of the pirate, yet his mind was so much poisoned by the
sight of what passed on board, that from that time he had an itching
towards plunder and the desire of getting money at an easier rate than
by the sweat of his brow. While these thoughts were floating in his
head, he was entertained on board one of his Majesty's men-of-war, and
while he continued in the Service, saw a pirate vessel taken; and the
men being tried before a Court of Admiralty in New England, every one of
them was executed except five, who manifestly appeared to have been
forced into the pirates' service. One would have thought this would have
totally eradicated all liking for that sort of practice, but it seems it
did not. For as soon as Sperry came home into England and had married a
wife, by which his inclinations were chained, though he had no ability
to support her, and falling into very great necessities, he either
tempted others or associated himself with certain loose and abandoned
young men, for as he himself constantly declared, he was not led into
evil practices by the persuasions of any. However it were, the deeds he
committed were many, and he became the pest of most of the roads out to
the little villages about London, particularly towards Hampstead,
Islington and Marylebone, of some of which as our papers serve we shall
inform you.
Sperry and four more of his associates hearing that gaming was very
public at Hampstead,[60] and that considerable sums were won and lost
there every night, resolved to share part of the winnings, let them
light where they would. In order to this, they planted themselves in a
dry ditch on one side of the foot-road just as evening came on,
intending when it was darker to venture into the coach road. They had
hardly been at their posts a quarter of an hour before two officers came
by. Some were for attacking them, but Sperry was of a contrary opinion.
In the meanwhile they heard one of the gentlemen say to the other,
_There's D---- M----, the Gamester, behind us, he has won at least sixty
guineas to-night._ Sperry and his crew had no further dispute whether
they should rob the gentlemen in red or no, but resolved to wait the
coming of so rich a prize.
It was but a few minutes before M---- appeared in sight. They
immediately stepped into the path, two before him, and two behind, and
watching him to the corner of a hedge, the two who were behind him
caught him by the shoulders, turned him round, and hurrying him about
ten yards, pushed him into a dry ditch. This they had no sooner done,
but they all four leaped down upon him and began to examine his pockets,
M---- thought to have talked them out of a stricter search by pretending
he had lost a great deal of money at play, and had but fifty shillings
about him, which with a silver watch and a crystal ring he deemed very
ready to deliver; and it very probably would have been accepted if they
had not had better intelligence, but one of the oldest of the gang,
perceiving after turning out all his pockets that they could discover
nothing of value, began to exert the style of a highwayman upon an
examination, and addressed the gamester in these terms.
_Nobody but such a rogue as you would have given gentlemen of our
faculty so much trouble. Sir, we have received advice by good hands from
Belsize that you won sixty guineas to-day at play. Produce them
immediately, or we shall take it for granted you have swallowed them;
and in such a case, Sir, I have an instrument ready to give us an
immediate account of the contents of your stomach._
M----, in a dreadful fright, put his hand under his arm, and from thence
produced a green purse with a fifty pound bank-note and eighteen
guineas. This they had no sooner taken than, tying him fast to a hedge
stake, they ran across the fields in search of another booty. They spun
out the time, being a moonlight night, until past eleven, there being so
much company on the road that they found it impossible to attack without
danger.
As they were returning home, they heard the noise of a coach driving
very hard, and upon turning about saw it was that of Sir W---- B----,
himself on the box, two ladies of pleasure in the coach, and his
servants a great way behind. One of them seized the horse on one side,
and another on the other, but Sir W---- drove so very hard that the pull
of the horses brought them both to the ground, and he at the same time
encouraging them with his voice and the smack of his whip. So he drove
safe off without any hurt, though they fired two pistols after him.
About three weeks after this they were passing down Drury Lane, and
observing a gentleman going with one of the fine ladies of the Hundreds
into a tavern thereabouts, one of the gang who knew him, and that he had
married a lady with a great fortune to whom his father was guardian, and
that they lived altogether in a great house near Lincoln's Inn Fields,
immediately thought on a project. They slipped into an alehouse, where
he wrote an epistle to the old gentleman, informing him that they had a
warrant to apprehend a lewd woman who was with child by his son, but
that she had made her escape, and was now actually with him at a certain
tavern in Drury Lane, wherefore being apprehensive of disturbance, and
being unwilling to disgrace his family, rather than take rougher
methods, they had informed him, in order that by his interposition the
affair might be made up.
As soon as they had written this letter, they dispatched one of their
number to carry it and deliver it, as if by mistake, to the young
gentleman's wife. This had the desired effect, for in less than half an
hour came the father, the wife, and another of her trustees, who
happened to be paying a visit there when the letter came. They no sooner
entered the tavern but hearing the voice of the gentleman they asked
for, without ceremony they opened the door, and finding a woman there,
all was believed, and there followed a mighty uproar. Two of the rogues
who were best dressed, had slipped into the next room and called for
half a pint. As if by accident they came out at the noise, and under
pretence of enquiring the occasion, took the opportunity of picking the
gentleman's pockets of twenty-five guineas, one gold watch, and two
silver snuff-boxes, which it is to be presumed were never missed until
the hurry of the affair was over.
The last robbery Sperry committed was upon one Thomas Golding, not far
from Bromley, who not having any money about him, Sperry endeavoured to
make it up by taking all his clothes. Being apprehended for this, at the
next sessions at the Old Bailey he was convicted for this offence, and
having no friends, could not entertain the least hopes of pardon. From
the time that he was convicted, and, indeed, from that of his
commitment, he behaved like a person on the brink of another world,
ingenuously confessing all his guilt, and acknowledging readily the
justice of that sentence by which he was doomed to death. His behaviour
was perfectly uniform, and as he never put on an air of contempt towards
death, so, at its nearest approach he did not seem exceedingly terrified
therewith, but with great calmness of mind prepared for his dissolution.
On the day of his execution his countenance seemed rather more cheerful
than ordinarily, and he left this world with all exterior signs of true
penitence and contrition, on Monday, the 24th of May, 1725, at Tyburn,
being then about twenty-three years of age.