The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

I was tall and personable, but a little too smooth-faced for a man;

however, I seldom went abroad but in the night, it did well enough; but

it was a long time before I could behave in my new clothes--I mean, as

to my craft. It was impossible to be so nimble, so ready, so dexterous

at these things in a dress so contrary to nature; and I did everything

clumsily, so I had neither the success nor the easiness of escape that

I had before, and I resolved to leave it off; but that resolution was

confirmed soon after by the following accident.

As my governess disguised me like a man, so she joined me with a man, a

young fellow that was nimble enough at his business, and for about

three weeks we did very well together. Our principal trade was

watching shopkeepers' counters, and slipping off any kind of goods we

could see carelessly laid anywhere, and we made several good bargains,

as we called them, at this work. And as we kept always together, so we

grew very intimate, yet he never knew that I was not a man, nay, though

I several times went home with him to his lodgings, according as our

business directed, and four or five times lay with him all night. But

our design lay another way, and it was absolutely necessary to me to

conceal my sex from him, as appeared afterwards. The circumstances of

our living, coming in late, and having such and such business to do as

required that nobody should be trusted with the coming into our

lodgings, were such as made it impossible to me to refuse lying with

him, unless I would have owned my sex; and as it was, I effectually

concealed myself. But his ill, and my good fortune, soon put an end to

this life, which I must own I was sick of too, on several other

accounts. We had made several prizes in this new way of business, but

the last would be extraordinary. There was a shop in a certain street

which had a warehouse behind it that looked into another street, the

house making the corner of the turning.

Through the window of the warehouse we saw, lying on the counter or

showboard, which was just before it, five pieces of silks, besides

other stuffs, and though it was almost dark, yet the people, being busy

in the fore-shop with customers, had not had time to shut up those

windows, or else had forgot it.

This the young fellow was so overjoyed with, that he could not restrain

himself. It lay all within his reach he said, and he swore violently

to me that he would have it, if he broke down the house for it. I

dissuaded him a little, but saw there was no remedy; so he ran rashly

upon it, slipped out a square of the sash window dexterously enough,

and without noise, and got out four pieces of the silks, and came with

them towards me, but was immediately pursued with a terrible clutter

and noise. We were standing together indeed, but I had not taken any

of the goods out of his hand, when I said to him hastily, 'You are

undone, fly, for God's sake!' He ran like lightning, and I too, but

the pursuit was hotter after him because he had the goods, than after

me. He dropped two of the pieces, which stopped them a little, but the

crowd increased and pursued us both. They took him soon after with the

other two pieces upon him, and then the rest followed me. I ran for it

and got into my governess's house whither some quick-eyed people

followed me to warmly as to fix me there. They did not immediately

knock, at the door, by which I got time to throw off my disguise and

dress me in my own clothes; besides, when they came there, my

governess, who had her tale ready, kept her door shut, and called out

to them and told them there was no man come in there. The people

affirmed there did a man come in there, and swore they would break open

the door.