cony-catchers

The special lure that the underworld had is evidenced by a whole literature of pamphlets dealing with rogues, vagabonds, and cony-catchers which became popular in the sixteenth and throughout the following century.

Wrong Side of the River: London's disreputable South Bank in the sixteenth and seventeenth century. Jessica A. Browner Jessica A. Browner 1994

England, borrows more from "soldiers on the long march, seamen at the capstan, and ladies disposing of fish," than from the common cursetors and cony-catchers who once dominated it.

American Sketches 1908 Charles Whibley 1894

"Haven't we made it plain enough we've been trying to lure you like cony-catchers?

The Lark And The Wren Lackey, Mercedes 1992