To hug brown bess; to carry a firelock, or serve as a private soldier. He hugs it as the Devil hugs a witch: said of one who holds any thing as if he was afraid of losing it.
Definition taken from The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, originally by Francis Grose.
To Huff * Hugger MuggerNathan Bailey's 1736 Dictionary of canting and thieving slang
John S. Farmer's collection of canting songs and slang rhymes