thief-maker and a mastermind of organised crimes. There was virtually no type of crime he was not involved in; coining, forging, smuggling or protection rackets. It is obvious that a handicapped under-marshal would make a good use of such a scoundrel. It was actually him who ushered Wild from making his living with proceeds of prostitution and as a bailiff's assistant to the fully fledged thief-taker. In his account of 1713–14, written as an answer to Hitchen's "Regulator", Wild describes how the marshal approached him: I am very sensible that you are let into the knowledge of the intrigues of the compter, particularly with relation to the securing of pocket books. But your experience is inferior to mine... I can put you in a far better method than you are acquainted with... But I must first tell you that you'll spoil the trade of thief-taking in advancing greater rewards than are necessary. I give but half a crown a book... And when the thieves and pickpockets see us confederate they'll submit to our terms. Thus their partnership started, taking Hitchen and his assistant first to Temple Bar, westernmost limit of his area of jurisdiction. There, the marshal was revered with different "fine" drinks at different taverns, to which he only gave a brief sign asking for information on stolen goods. He was verbose, though, in his "promises of protection" to female visitors of those establishments: "I'll give you my word...you shall be detected, unless you deliver all the pocket books you from time to time meet with to me...If you at any time for the future, refuse to yield... either to me or my servant, you may be assured of being all sent to Bridewell...'' Wild gives an example of the marshal's treatment of well-dressed women too. Once he seized a baillif's wife in the street in Ludgate Hill for talking to a man and accused her of being "lewd". He took her to Cheapside and made her wait till he dined and paid for his meal. Pickpockets, or "mathematicians" as Hitchen called them affectionately", appear with a noteworthy incident in this period. On their regular night walks near St Paul's, Hitchen and Wild saw the boys running away. Hitchen, having information on a stolen book, saw the reason of their hiding. He caught and arrested one, whose name was James Jones, the same juvenile who stole Lord Barnard's bills.