Sentence:  He has only a few Scratches on his Face; which, said she, I suppose he got by <WSD>grabbling</WSD> among the Gravel, at the bottom of the Dam, to try to find a Hole in the Ground, to hide himself from the Robbers. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To search with one's hands and fingers; to attempt to grasp something.