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A 
 
 HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES: 
 
 Specimens of tjje ©ipso f anjuHge. 
 
 By WALTER SIMS ON. 
 
 KDITKD, WITH 
 
 PREFACE, INTRODUCTION, AND NOTES, AND A DISQUISITION ON TIIE 
 PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF GIPSYDOM, 
 
 By JAMES SIMSON. 
 
 1 Hast thou not noted on the bye way-side, 
 
 Where ngod soughs lenn o’er the lazy tide, 
 
 A vagrant crew, far straggled through the glade, 
 With trifles busied, or in slumber laid ; 
 
 Their children lolling round them on the grass. 
 
 Or pestering with thoir sports the patient nssl 
 The wrinkled beldame there you may espy, 
 
 And ripe young maiden with the glossy eye; 
 
 Men In their prime, and striplings dark and dun, 
 Scathed by the storm and freckled with the sun ; 
 
 Their swarthy hue and mantle’s flowing fold, 
 
 Bespeak the remnant of a race of old. 
 
 Strange are their annals—list 1 and mark them well— 
 For thou hast much to hear and I to toll.*’—Hoco. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 M. DOOLADY, 448 BROOME STREET. 
 LONDON: 
 
 SAMPSON LOW, SON <fc MARSTON. 
 
 I 8 6 0. 
 
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, 
 
 Bv JAMES SIMSON, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of tile District Court of the United States for the Southern District 
 of New York. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 EDITOR’S PREFACE. 5 
 
 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION. 27 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 55 
 
 CHAPTER. 
 
 I. CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 69 
 
 II. ENGLISH GIPSIES. 90 
 
 III. SCOTTISH GIPSIES, DOWN TO THE YEAR 1715. 9S 
 
 IV. LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 123 
 
 V. FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 140 
 
 VI. TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 165 
 
 VII. BORDER GIPSIES. 236 
 
 VIII. MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 257 
 
 IX. LANGUAGE. 281 
 
 X. PRESENT CONDITION AND NUMBER OF THE GIPSIES 
 
 IN SCOTLAND. 341 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF 
 
 GIPSYDOM. 371 
 
 INDEX. 543 
 
 * The Contents of these Chapters will be found detailed in the Index, forming an 
 epitome of the work, for reference, or studying the subject of the Gipsies. 
 
 4?f59i 
 
Ever since entering Great Britain, about the year 1506, the 
 Gipsies have been drawing into their body the blood of the ordin¬ 
 ary inhabitants and conforming to their ways; and so prolific has 
 the race been, that there cannot be less than 250,000 Gipsies of all 
 castes, colours, characters, occupations, degrees of education, cul¬ 
 ture, and position in life, in the British Isles alone, and possibly 
 double that number. There are many of the same race in the 
 United States of America. Indeed, there have been Gipsies in 
 America from nearly the first day of its settlement; for many of 
 the race were banished to the plantations, often for very trifling 
 offences, and sometimes merely for being by “ habit and repute 
 Egyptians.” But as the Gipsy race leaves the tent, and rises to 
 civilization, it hides its nationality from the rest of the world, so 
 great is the prejudice against the name of Gipsy. In Europe and 
 America together, there cannot be less than 4,000,000 Gipsies in 
 existence. John Bunyan, the author of the celebrated Pilgrim's 
 Progress, was one of this singular people, as will be conclusively 
 shown in the present work. The philosophy of the existence of 
 the Jews, since the dispersion, will also be discussed and established 
 in it. 
 
 When the “wonderful story” of the Gipsies is told, as it ought 
 to be told, it constitutes a work of interest to many classes of read¬ 
 ers, being a subject unique, distinct from, and unknown to, the rest 
 of the human family. In the present work, the race has been treated 
 of so fully and elaborately, in all its aspects, as in a great meas¬ 
 ure to fill and satisfy the mind, instead of being, as heretofore, little 
 better than a myth to the understanding of the most intelligent 
 person. 
 
 The history of the Gipsies, when thus comprehensively treated, 
 forms a study for the most advanced and cultivated mind, as well 
 as for the youth whose intellectual and literary character is still to 
 be formed; and furnishes, among other things, a system of science 
 not too abstract in its nature, and having for its subject-matter the 
 strongest of human feelings and sympathies. The work also seeks 
 to raise the name of Gipsy out of the dust, where it now lies; 
 while it has a very important bearing on the conversion of the 
 Jews, the advancement of Christianity generally, and the develop¬ 
 ment of historical and moral science. 
 
 New York, May \st, 1866. 
 
EDITOR’S PREFACE. 
 
 This work should have been introduced to the world 
 long ere now. The proper time to have brought it forward 
 would have been about twenty years ago* when the subject 
 was nearly altogether new, and when popular feeling, in 
 Scotland especially, ran strongly toward the body it treats 
 of, owing to the celebrity of the writings of the great Scot¬ 
 tish novelist, in which were depicted, with great truthfulness, 
 some real characters of this wayward race. The induce¬ 
 ments then to hazard a publication of it were great; for by 
 bringing it out at that time, the author would have enjoyed, 
 in some measure, the sunshine which the fame of that great 
 luminary cast around all who, in any way, illustrated a sub¬ 
 ject on which he had written. But for Sir Walter Scott’s 
 advice—an advice that can only be appreciated by those 
 who arc acquainted with the vindictive disposition which 
 the Gipsies entertain toward those whom they imagine 
 to have injured them—our author would have published a 
 few magazine articles on the subject, when the tribe would 
 have taken alarm, and an end would have been made to 
 the investigation. The dread of personal danger, there is 
 no doubt, formed a considerable reason for the work being 
 so long withheld from the public : at the same time, our 
 author, being a timid and nervous man, not a little dreaded 
 the spleen of the party opposed to the literary society with 
 which he identified himself, and the idea of being made the 
 subject of one of the slashing criticisms so characteristic of 
 the times. But now he has descended into the tomb, with 
 most of his generation, where the abuse of a reviewer or 
 the ire of a wandering Egyptian cannot reach him. 
 
 Since this work was written there has appeared one by 
 
 ® It has been brought down, however, to the present time. 
 
G 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 Mi*. Borrow, on the Gitanos or Spanish Gipsies. In the 
 year 1838, a society was formed in Scotland, under the 
 patronage of the Scottish Church, for the reformation of 
 the wandering portion of the body in that country, with 
 some eminent men as a committee of management, among 
 whom was a reverend gentleman of learning*, piety, and 
 worth, who said that lie himself was a Gipsy, and whose 
 fine swarthy features strongly marked the stock from which 
 he was descended. There are others in that country of a 
 like origin, ornaments to the same profession, and many in 
 other respectable walks of life, of whom I will speak in 
 my Disquisition on the Gipsies, at the end of the work. 
 
 Although a few years have elapsed since the principal 
 details of this work ivere collected, the subject cannot bo 
 considered as old. The body in Scotland has become more 
 numerous since the downfall of Napoleon ; but the improved 
 system of internal order that has obtained since that period, 
 has so very much suppressed their acts of depredation and 
 violence toward the community, and their savage outbursts 
 of passion toward those of their own race who had offended 
 them, that much which would have met with only a slight 
 punishment before, or in some instances been passed over, as 
 a mere Gipsy scuffle, would now be visited with the utmost 
 penalty the law could inflict. Hence the wild spirit, but not 
 the number, of the body has been very much crushed. 
 Many of them have betaken themselves to regular callings 
 of industry, or otherwise withdrawn from public observa¬ 
 tion ; but, in respect to race, are as much, at heart, Gipsies 
 as before. Many of the Scottish wandering class have 
 given way before an invasion of swarms of Gipsies from 
 Ireland. 
 
 It is almost unnecessary to give a reason why this work 
 has been introduced here, instead of the country in which 
 it was written, and of which, for the most part, it treats. 
 Suffice it to say, that, having come to this country, I have 
 been led to bring it out here, where it may receive, sooner 
 or later, more attention from those at a distance from the 
 place and people it treats of, than from those accustomed to 
 see and hear of them daily, to many of whom they appear 
 as mere vagabonds ; it being a common feature in the 
 human mind, that that which comes frequently under our 
 observation is but little thought of, while that at a distance, 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 r 
 
 and unknown to us, forms the subject of our investigations 
 and desires.* In taking this view of the subject, the lan¬ 
 guage of Dr.. Bright may be used, when he says : “ The 
 condition and circumstances of the Gipsy nation throughout 
 the whole of Europe, may truly be considered amongst the 
 most curious phenomena in the history of man.” And 
 although this work, for the most part, treats of Scottish 
 Gipsies, it illustrates the history of the people all over 
 Europe, and, it may be said, pretty much over the world ; 
 and affords materials for reflection on so singular a subject 
 connected with the history of our common family, and so 
 little known to mankind in general. To the American 
 reader generally, the work will illustrate a phase of life and 
 history with which it may be reasonably assumed he is not 
 much conversant; for, although he must have some know¬ 
 ledge of the Gipsy race generally, there is no work, that I 
 am aware of, that treats of the body like the present. To 
 all kinds of readers the words of the celebrated Christopher 
 North, as quoted in the author’s Introduction, may be 
 addressed : 
 
 “ Few tilings more sweetly vary civil life 
 Than a barbarian, savage Tinklerf tale.” 
 
 It is a singular circumstance that, until comparatively 
 lately, little w r as known of this body in Scotland, beyond 
 their-mere existence, and the depredations which they com¬ 
 mitted on their neighbours ; no further proof of which need 
 
 * “ Men of letters, while eagerty investigating the customs of Otaheite 
 or Kamschatka, and losing their tempers in endless disputes about Gothic 
 and Celtic antiquities, have witnessed, with apathy and contempt, the 
 striking spectacle of a Gipsy camp—pitched, perhaps, amidst the moulder¬ 
 ing entrenchments of their favourite Piets and Romans. The rest of the 
 community, familiar from infancy with the general character and appear¬ 
 ance of these vagrant hordes, have probably never regarded them with 
 any deeper interest than what springs from the recollected terrors of a 
 nursery tale, or the finer associations of poetical and picturesque descrip¬ 
 tion — Itlackwnotfs Magazine. 
 
 \ Tinkler is the name generally applied to the Scottish Gipsies. The 
 wandering, tented class prefer it to the term Gipsy. The settled and 
 better classes dete-t the word : they would much rather be called Gipsies ; 
 but the term Egyptian is the most agreeable to their feelings. Tinkler 
 has a peculiar meaning that can be understood only by a Scotchman. In 
 its radical sen-e it means Tinker. The verb tink, according to Jamieson’s 
 Scottish Dictionary, means to “ rivet, including the idea of the noise mado 
 in the operation of riveting; a Gipsy word.” 
 
8 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 be given than a reference to the letters of Sir Walter 
 Scott and others, in the Introduction to the work, and the 
 avidity with which the few articles of our author in Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine were read. 
 
 The higher we may rise in the scale of general informa¬ 
 tion and philosophic culture, the greater the attractions 
 will this moral puzzle have for our contemplation—the phe¬ 
 nomenon of a barbarous race of men, free as the air, with 
 little but the cold earth for a bed, and the canopy of heaven 
 for a covering, obtruding itself upon a civilized community, 
 and living so long in the midst of it, without any material 
 impression being made on the habits of the representative 
 part of it; the only instance of the kind in the modern 
 history of the world. In this solitary case, having nothing 
 from which to reason analogously as to the result, observa¬ 
 tion alone must be had recourse to for the solution of the 
 experiment. It is from this circumstance that the subject, 
 in all its bearings, has been found to have such charms for 
 the curious and learned ; being, as it were, a study in his¬ 
 tory of the most interesting kind. It may be remarked 
 that Professor Wilson, the Christopher North of Black¬ 
 wood, is said to have accompanied some of the tribe in their 
 peregrinations over parts of England and Wales. Without 
 proceeding to the same length, our author, in his own 
 peculiar way, prosecuted his researches with much indefatig¬ 
 ability, assiduity, and patience. He kept an open house 
 for them at all times, and presented such allurements as the 
 skillful trapper of vermin will sometimes use in attracting 
 the whole in a neighbourhood ; when if one Gipsy entered, 
 many would follow ; although lie would generally find them 
 so shy in their communications as sometimes to require years 
 of such baiting to ensure them for the elucidation of a 
 single point of their history. In this way he made himself 
 appear, in his associations with them, as very odd, and per¬ 
 haps not of very sound mind, in the estimation of the wise 
 ones around him. 
 
 The popular idea of a Gipsy, at the present day, is very 
 erroneous as to its extent and meaning. The nomadic 
 Gipsies constitute but a portion of the race, and a very 
 small portion of it. A gradual change has come over their 
 outward condition, all over Europe, from about the com¬ 
 mencement of the first American war, but from what time 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 13 
 
 He will adhere to his ancient language, and talk it in his 
 own family ; and he has as much right to do so, as, for ex¬ 
 ample, a Highlander has to speak Gaelic in the Lowlands, 
 or when he goes abroad, and teach it to his children. And 
 he takes a greater pride in doing it, for t hus h e reasons : 
 “ What is English, French, Gaelic, or any o^^tliving lan¬ 
 guage, compared to mine ? Mine will cc^^^Pe through 
 every part of the known world : wherever a Than is to be 
 found, there is my language spoken. I will find a brother 
 in every part of the world on which I may set my foot; I 
 will be welcomed and passed along wherever I may go. 
 Freemasonry indeed! what is masonry compared to the 
 brotherhood of the Gipsies ? A language—a whole lan¬ 
 guage—is its pass-word. I almost worship the idea of 
 being a member of a society into which I am initiated by 
 my blood and language. I would not be a man if I did not 
 love my kindred, and cherish in my heart that peculiarity 
 of my race (its language) which casts a halo of glory 
 around it, and makes it the wonder of the world!” 
 
 The feeling alluded to induces some of these Gipsies to 
 change their residences or go abroad. I heard of one 
 family in Canada, of whom a Scotchman spoke somewhat in 
 the following way : “ I know them to be Gipsies. They 
 remind me of a brood of wild turkeys, hatched under a tame 
 bird ; it will take the second or third descent to bring 
 them to resemble, in some of their ways, the ordinary barn¬ 
 door fowl. They are very restless and queer creatures, and 
 move about as if they were afraid that every one was going 
 to tramp on their corns.” But it is in large towns they feel 
 more at home. They then form little communities among 
 themselves ; and by closely associating, and sometimes 
 huddling together, they can more easily perpetuate their 
 language, as I have already said, than by straggling, twos 
 or threes, through the country. But their quarrelsome dis¬ 
 position frequently throws an obstacle in the way of such 
 associations. Secret as they have been in keeping their 
 language from even being heard by the public while wan¬ 
 derers, they are much more so since they have settled in 
 towns. 
 
 The origin of the Gipsies has given rise, in recent times, 
 to many speculations. The most plausible one, however, 
 seems to be that they are from Hindostan ; an opinion our 
 
14 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 author supports so well, that we are almost bound to acqui¬ 
 esce in it. In these controversies regarding the origin of 
 the Gipsies, very little regard seems to have been had to 
 what they say of themselves. It is curious that in every 
 part of E urope they have been called, and are now called, 
 Egyptiam*B^trace can now be found of any enquiry made 
 as to the^HKin, if such there was made, when they first 
 appeared iifEurope. They seein then to have been taken 
 at their word, and to have passed current as Egyptians. 
 But in modern times their country has been denied them, 
 owing to a total dissimilarity between their language and 
 any of the dialects of modern Egypt. A very intelligent 
 Gipsy informed me that his race sprung from a body of 
 men—a cross between the Arabs and Egyptians—that left 
 Egypt in the train of the Jews.* In consulting the record 
 of Moses, I find it said, in Ex. xii. 38, “and a mixed multi¬ 
 tude went up also with them” (the Jews, out of Egypt). 
 Very little is said of this mixed multitude. In Lev. xxiv. 
 10, mention is made of the son of an Israelitish woman, by 
 an Egyptian, being stoned to death for blasphemy, which 
 would almost imply that a marriage had taken place pre¬ 
 vious to leaving Egypt. After this occurrence, it is said in 
 Num. xi. 4, “and the mixed multitude that was among 
 them fell a lusting” for flesh. That would imply that they 
 had not amalgamated with the Jews, but were only among 
 them. The Scriptures say nothing of what became of this 
 mixed multitude after the Jews separated from them (Neh. 
 xiii. 3), and leave us only to form a conjecture relative to 
 their destiny. 
 
 We naturally ask, what could have induced this mixed 
 multitude to leave Egypt ? and the natural reply is, that 
 their motive was the same that led to the exodus of the 
 Jews—a desire to escape from slavery. No commentator 
 that I have read gives a plausible reason for the mixed 
 multitude leaving Egypt with the Jews. Scott, be¬ 
 sides venturing four suppositions, advances a fifth, that 
 “ some left because they were distressed or discontented.” 
 But that seems to fall infinitely short of the true reason. 
 Adam Clark says, “ Probably they were refugees who came 
 to sojourn in Egypt, because of the dearth which had obliged 
 
 * The intelligent reader will not differ with me as to the weight to be at¬ 
 tached to the Gipsy’s remark on this point. 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 15 
 
 them to emigrate from their own countries.” But that 
 dearth occurred centuries before the time of the exodus ; so 
 that those refugees, if such there were, who settled in Egypt 
 during the famine, could have returned to their own coun¬ 
 tries generations before the time of that event. Scott 
 says, “ It is probable some left Egypt because it was deso¬ 
 late and Henry, “ Because their country was laid waste 
 by the plagues.” But the desolation was only partial ; for 
 we are told that “ He that feared the word of the Lord 
 among the servants of Pharaoh, made his servants and his 
 cattle flee into the houses by which means they escaped 
 destruction from the hail, which affected only those remain¬ 
 ing in the field. We are likewise told that, although the 
 barley and flax were smitten by the same hail-storm, the 
 wheat and rye, not being grown up, were left untouched. 
 These two latter (besides fish, roots and vegetables) would 
 form the staples of the food of the Egyptians ; to say nothing 
 of the immense quantities in the granaries of the country. 
 If the Egyptians could not find bread in their own country, 
 how were they to obtain it by accompanying the Jews into 
 a land of which they knew nothing, and which had to be 
 conquered before it could be possessed ? Where were they 
 to procure bread to support them on the journey, if it was 
 not to be had at home ? 
 
 The other reasons given by these commentators for the 
 departure of the mixed multitude from Egypt are hardly 
 worth controverting, when we consider the social mannors 
 and religious belief of the Egyptians. We are told that, 
 for being shepherds, the Israelites were an abomination 
 unto the Egyptians (Gen. xlvi. 34) ; and that the Egyptians 
 considered it an abomination to eat bread with a Hebrew, 
 (Gen. xliii. 32,) so supreme was the reign of caste and of 
 nationality at that period in Egypt. The sacrifices of the 
 Jews were also an abomination to the Egyptians (Ex. viii. 
 26). The Hebrews were likewise influenced by feelings 
 peculiar to themselves, which would render any alliances 
 or even associations between them and their oppressors 
 extremely improbable ; but if such there should have been, 
 the issue would be incorporated witli the Hebrews. 
 
 There could thus be no personal motive for any of the 
 Egyptians to accompany the Hebrews ; and as little could 
 there be of that which pertains to the religious ; for, as a 
 
1G 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 people, they had become so “ vain in their imaginations,” 
 and had “ their foolish hearts so darkened,” as to worship 
 almost every created thing—bulls, birds, serpents, leeks, 
 onions and garlic. Such a people were almost as well nigh 
 devoid of a motive springing from a sense of elevated reli¬ 
 gion, as were the beasts, the reptiles and the vegetables 
 which they worshipped. A miracle performed before the 
 eyes of such a people would have no more salutary or last¬ 
 ing influence than would a flash of lightning before the 
 eyes of many a man in every day life ; it might prostrate 
 them for a moment, but its effects would be as transitory. 
 Like the Jews themselves, at a subsequent time, they might 
 credit the miracle to Beelzebub, the prince of devils ; and, 
 like the Gergesenes, rise up in a body and beseech Moses 
 and his people to depart out of their coasts.” Indeed, 
 after the slaying of*the first-born of the Egyptians, we are 
 told that “ the Egyptians' were urgent upon the people that 
 they might send them out of the land in haste ; for, they 
 said, We be all dead men.” Considering how hard a mat¬ 
 ter it was for Moses to urge the Jews to undertake the 
 exodus ; considering their stiff-necked and perverse grumb¬ 
 ling at all that befell them ; notwithstanding that to them 
 “ pertained the fathers, the adoption, the glory and the 
 covenant;” the commands and the bones of Joseph ; the 
 grievous bondage they were enduring, and the almost daily 
 recourse to which Moses had for a miracle to strengthen 
 their faith and resolution to proceed ; and we will perceive 
 the impossibility of the “ mixed multitude” leaving Egypt 
 on any ground of religion. 
 
 This principle might even be urged further. If we con¬ 
 sider the reception which was given to the miracles of 
 Christ as “ a son over his own house, and therefore worthy 
 of more glory than Moses, who was but a servant,” we will 
 conclude that the miracles wrought by Moses, although per¬ 
 sonally felt by the Egyptians, would have as little lasting- 
 effect upon them as had those of the former upon the 
 Jews themselves ; they would naturally lead to the Hebrews 
 being allowed to depart, but would serve no purpose of in¬ 
 ducing the Egyptians to go with them. For if a veil was 
 mysteriously drawn over the eyes of the Jews at the advent 
 of Christ, which, in a negative sense, hid the Messiah from 
 them (Mark iv. 11, 12 ; Matt. xi. 25, 26 ; and John xii. 39, 
 
EDITOR'S DREE A CE. 
 
 9 
 
 previous to that, we have no certain data from which to 
 form an opinion. In the whole of Great Britain they have 
 been very much mixed with the native blood of the country, 
 but nowhere, I believe, so much so as in Scotland. There 
 is every reason to suppose that the same mixture has taken 
 place in Europe generally, although its effects are not so 
 observable in the southern countries—from the circumstance 
 of the people there being, for the most part, of dark hair 
 and complexion—as in those lying further toward the north. 
 But this circumstance would, to a certain extent, prevent the 
 mixture which has taken place in countries the inhabitants 
 of which have fair hair and complexions. The causes 
 leading to this mixture are various. 
 
 The persecutions to which the Gipsies were exposed, 
 merely for being Gipsies, which their appearance would 
 readily indicate, seem to have induced the body to inter¬ 
 marry with our race, so as to disguise theirs. That would 
 be done by receiving and adopting males of our race, 
 whom they would marry to females of theirs, who would 
 bring up the children of such unions as members of their 
 fraternity. They also adopted the practice to give their 
 race stamina, as well as numbers, to contend with the people 
 among whom they lived. The desire of having servants, 
 (for Gipsies, generally, have been too proud to do menial 
 work for each other,) led to many children being kidnapped, 
 and reared among them ; many of whom, as is customary 
 with Oriental people, rose to as high a position in the tribe 
 as any of themselves.* 
 
 Then again, it was very necessary to have people of fair 
 complexion among them, to enable them the more easily to 
 carry on their operations upon the community, as well as to 
 contribute to their support during times of persecution. Ow- 
 
 * Mr. Borrow labours under a very serious mistake when he asserts that 
 “ The unfounded idea, that Gipsies steal children, to bring them up as 
 Gipsies, has been the besetting sin of authors, who have attempted to 
 found works of fiction on the way of life of this most, singular people.’’ The 
 only argument which he advances to refute this belief in regard to Gipsies, 
 which is universal, is the following: “ They have plenty of children of 
 their own, whom they can scarcely support; and they would smile at the 
 idea of encumbering themselves with the children of others.” This is 
 rather inconsistent with his own words, when he says, “ I have dealt more 
 in facts than in theories, of which I am, in general, no friend.” As a matte) 
 of fact, children have been stolen and brought up as Gipsies, and incoi 
 porated with the tribe. 
 
10 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 ing to these causes, and the occasional occurrence of white 
 people being, by more legitimate means, received into their 
 body, which would be more often the case in their palmy days, 
 the half, at least, of the Scottish Gipsies are of fair hair and 
 blue eyes. Some would naturally think that these would 
 not be Gipsies, but the fact is otherwise ; for, owing to the 
 dreadful prejudice which has always attached to the name 
 of Gipsy, these white and parti-coloured Gipsies, imagining 
 themselves, as it were, banished from society, on account of 
 their descent, cling to their Gipsy connection ; as the other 
 part of their blood, they imagine, will not own them. They 
 are Gipsies, and, with the public, they think that is quite 
 enough. They take a pride in being descended from a race 
 so mysterious, so ancient, so universal, and cherish their 
 language the more from its being the principal badge of 
 membership that entitles them to belong to it. The nearer 
 they approach the whites as regards blood, the more acutely 
 do they feel the antipathy which is entertained for their race, 
 and the more bitter does the propinquity become to them. The 
 more enlightened they become, the stronger becomes their 
 attachment to the sept in the abstract, although they will 
 despise many of its members. The sense of such an ancient 
 descent, and the possession of such an ancient and secret 
 language, in the minds of men of comparatively limited 
 education and indifferent rearing, brought up in humble 
 life, and following various callings, from a tinker upward, 
 and even of men of education and intelligence, occupying 
 the position of lawyers, medical doctors, and clergymen, 
 possess for them a charm that is at once fascinating and 
 enchanting. If men of enlightened minds and high social 
 standing will go to such lengths as they have done, in their 
 endeavours to but look into their language, how much more 
 will they not cling to it, such as it is, in whose hearts it 
 is? Gipsies compounded for the most part of white blood, 
 but with Gipsy feelings, are, as a general thing, much 
 superior to those who more nearly approach what may 
 be called the original stock ; and, singularly enough, speak 
 the language better than the others, if their opportunities 
 have been In any way favourable for its acquisition. 
 
 The primitive, original state of the Gipsies is the tent and 
 tilted cart. But as any country can support only a limited 
 number in that way, and as the increase of the body is very 
 
EDITOR 8 FREE A GE. 
 
 11 
 
 large, it follows that they must cast about to make a 
 living in some other way, however bitter the pill may be 
 which they have to swallow. The nomadic Gipsy portion 
 resembles, in that respect, a water trough ; for the water 
 which runs into it, there must be a corresponding quantity 
 running over it. The Gipsies who leave the tent resemble 
 the youth of our small seaports and villages; for there, 
 society is so limited as to compel such youth to take to the 
 sea or cities, or go abroad, to gain that livelihood which the 
 neighbourhood in which they have been reared denies to 
 them. In the same manner do these Gipsies look back to 
 the tent from which they, or their fathers, have sprung. 
 They carry the language, the associations, and the sympa¬ 
 thies of their race, and their peculiar feelings toward the 
 community, with them ; and, as residents of towns, have 
 generally greater facilities, from others of their raco residing 
 near them, for perpetuating their language, than when stroll¬ 
 ing over the country. 
 
 The prejudice of their fellow creatures, which clings to 
 the race to which they belong, almost overwhelms some of 
 them at times ; but it is only momentary ■ for such is the 
 independence and elasticity of their nature, that they rise 
 from under it, as self-complacent and proud as ever. They 
 in such cases resort to the tu quoque —the tit for tat argu¬ 
 ment as regards their enemies, and ask, “ What is this white 
 race, after all? What were their forefathers a few genera¬ 
 tions ago ? the Highlands a nest of marauding thieves, and 
 the Borders little better. Or society at the present day— 
 what is it but a compound of deceit and hypocrisy? Peo¬ 
 ple say that the Gipsies steal. True ; some of them steal 
 chickens, vegetables, and such things ; but what is that com¬ 
 pared to the robbery of widows and orphans, the lying and 
 cheating of traders, the swindling, the robberies, the mur¬ 
 ders, the ignorance, the squalor, and the debaucheries of so 
 many of the white race ? What are all these compared to 
 the simple vices of the Gipsies? What is the ancestry 
 they boast of, compared, in point of antiquity, to ours? 
 People may despise the Gipsies, but they certainly despise 
 all others not of their own race : the veriest beggar Gipsy, 
 without shoes to his feet, considers himself better than the 
 queen that sits upon the throue. People say that Gipsies 
 arc blackguards. Well, if some of them are blackguards, 
 
12 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 they are at least illustrious blackguards as regards descent, 
 and so in fact; for they never rob each ether, and far less 
 do they rob or ruin those of their own farnily.” And they 
 conclude that the odium which clings to the race is but a 
 prejudice. Still, they will deny that they are Gipsies, and 
 will rather almost perish than let any one, not of their own 
 race, know that they speak their language in their own 
 households and among their own kindred. They will even 
 deny or at least hide it from many of their own race. 
 
 For all these reasons, the most appropriate word to apply 
 to modern Gipsyism, and especially British Gipsyism, and 
 more especially Scottish Gipsyism, is to call it a caste, and a 
 kind of masonic society, rather than any particular mode 
 of life. And it is necessary that this distinction should be 
 kept in mind, otherwise the subject will appear contra¬ 
 dictory. 
 
 The most of these Gipsies are unknown to the public as 
 Gipsies. The feeling in question is, for the most part, on 
 the side of the Gipsies themselves ; they think that more 
 of them is known than actually is. In that respect a kind 
 of nightmare continually clings to them ; while their pecu¬ 
 liarly distant, clannish, and odd habits create a kind of 
 separation between them and the other inhabitants, which 
 the Gipsy is naturally apt to construe as proceeding from a 
 different cause. Frequently, all that is said about them 
 amounts only to a whisper among some of the families in 
 the community in which they live, and which is confiden¬ 
 tially passed around among themselves, from a dread of 
 personal consequences. Sometimes the native families say 
 among themselves, “ Why should we make allusion to their 
 kith and kin ? They seem decent people, and attend 
 church like ourselves ; and it would be cruel to cast up 
 their descent to them, and damage them in the estimation 
 of the world. Their cousins, (or second cousins, as it may 
 be,) travel the country in the old Tinkler fashion, no doubt; 
 but what has that to do with them ?” The estimate of such 
 people never, or hardly ever, goes beyond the simple idea 
 of their being “ descended from Tinklersfew have the 
 most distant idea that they are Gipsies, and speak the 
 Gipsy language among themselves. It is certain that a 
 Gipsy can be a good man, as the world goes, nay, a very 
 good man, and glory in being a Gipsy, but not to the public. 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 17 
 
 40), how much more might it not be said, “ He hath blinded 
 their eyes, and hardened their hearts, that they should not 
 see witli their eyes, nor understand with their hearts,” and 
 let the people of Israel go, “ till they would thrust them out 
 hence altogether and particularly so when the object of 
 Moses’ mission was to redeem the Israelites from the bond¬ 
 age of Egypt, and spoil and smite the Egyptians. 
 
 The only reasonable conclusion to which we can come, as 
 regards a motive for the “ mixed multitude” leaving Egypt 
 along with the Jews, is, that being slaves like themselves, 
 they took advantage of the opportunity, and slipped out with 
 them.* 
 
 The Jews, on being reduced to a state of bondage, were 
 employed by Pharaoh to “ build treasure cities, and work 
 in mortar and brick, and do all manner of service in the 
 field,” besides being “ scattered abroad through all the land 
 of Egypt, to gather stubble in place of straw,” wherewith to 
 make their tale of bricks. In this way they would come 
 much in contact with the other slaves of the country ; and, 
 as “ adversity makes strange bed-fellows,” they would natu¬ 
 rally prove communicative to their fellow-sufferers, and 
 expatiate on the history of their people, from the days of 
 Abraham downward, were it only from a feeling of vanity 
 to make themselves appear superior to what they would con¬ 
 sider the ordinary dross around them. They would also 
 naturally allude to their future prospects, and the positive 
 promise, or at least general idea, which they had of their 
 God effecting their deliverance, and leading them into a 
 country (Gen. 1. 24, 25) where all the miseries they were 
 then enduring would be forgotten. They would do that 
 more especially after Moses had returned from his father-in- 
 law in Midian, to bring them out of Egypt; for we are told, 
 in Ex. iv. 29-31, that the elders of the children of Israel 
 were called together and informed of the intended redemp¬ 
 tion, and that all the people believed. By such means as 
 these would the minds of some of the other slaves of Egypt 
 be inflamed at the very idea of freedom being perhaps in 
 immediate prospect for so many of their fellow-bondsmen. 
 
 * Since the above was written, I have read IJengstenberg on the Penta¬ 
 teuch, who supposes that the “ mixed multitude” were an inferior order of 
 workmen, employed, like the Jews, as slaves, in the building of the pyra¬ 
 mids. 
 
18 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 Thereafter happened the many plagues ; the causes of 
 which must have been more or less known to the Egyptians 
 generally, from the public manner in which Moses would 
 make his demands (Ex. x. 7); and consequently to their 
 slaves ; for many of the slaves would be men of intelligence, 
 as is common in oriental countries. Some of these slaves 
 would, in all probability, watch, with fear and trembling, the 
 dreadful drama played out (Ex. ix. 20). Others would per¬ 
 haps, give little heed to the various sayings of the Hebrews 
 at the time they were uttered ; the plagues would, perhaps, 
 have little effect in reminding them of them. As they ex¬ 
 perienced their effects, they might even feel exasperated to¬ 
 ward the Hebrews for being the cause of them ; still it is 
 more probable that they sympathized with them, as fellow- 
 bondsmen, and murmured against Pharaoh for their exist¬ 
 ence and greater manifestation. But the positive order, nay 
 the entreaty, for the departure of the Israelites, and the 
 passage before their eyes of so large a body of slaves to ob¬ 
 tain their freedom, would induce many of them to follow 
 them ; for they would, in all likelihood, form no higher 
 estimate of the movement than that of merely gaining that 
 liberty "which slaves, in all nations, and under all circum¬ 
 stances, do continually sigh after. 
 
 The character of Moses alone was a sufficient guarantee 
 to the slaves of Egypt that they might trust themselves to 
 his leadership and protection (not to speak of the miraculous 
 powers which he displayed in his mission); for we are told 
 that, besides being the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 
 he was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and 
 mighty in word and deed. Having been, according to Jo¬ 
 sephus, a great commander in the armies of Egypt, he must 
 have been the means of reducing to bondtige many of the 
 slaves, or the parents of the slaves, then living in Egypt. At 
 the time of the exodus we are told that he was “ very great 
 in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and 
 in the sight of the people” (Ex. xi. 3). The burying of the 
 “ first-born” was not a circumstance likely to prevent a slave 
 gaining his freedom amid the dismay, the moaning, and 
 groaning, and howling throughout the land of Egypt. The 
 circumstance was even the more favourable for his escape, 
 owing to the Hebrews being allowed to go, till it pleased 
 God again to harden and stir up Pharaoh to pursue them 
 
EDITORS PREFACE. 
 
 19 
 
 (Ex. xiv. 2-5 and 8), in order that his host might to over¬ 
 thrown in the Red Sea. 
 
 The Jews, while in Egypt, seem to have been reduced to 
 a state of serfdom only—crown slaves, not chattels personal; 
 which would give them a certain degree of respect in the 
 eyes of the ordinary slaves of the country, and lead them, 
 owing to the dignity of their descent, to look down with 
 disdain upon the “ mixed multitude” which followed them. 
 While it is said that they were “ scattered over the land of 
 Egypt,” we are told, in Ex. ix. 4, that the murrain touched 
 not the cattle of Israel ; and in the 26th verse, that “ in the 
 land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, there was 
 no hail.” And Moses said to Pharaoh, “Our cattle also shall 
 go with us ; there shall not an hoof be left behind ; for 
 thereof we must take to serve the Lord our God” (Ex. x. 26). 
 From this we would naturally conclude, that such of the 
 Jews only as were capable of work, were scattered over the 
 land of Egypt to do the work of Pharaoh, while the rest 
 were left in the land of Goshen. By both the Egyptians 
 and their slaves, the Hebrews would be looked upon as a 
 mysterious people, which the former would be glad to send 
 out of the land, owing to the many plagues which they had 
 been the cause of being sent upon them ; and while they got 
 quit of them, as they did, there would be no earthly motive 
 for the Egyptians to follow them, through a wilderness, into 
 a country of which the Hebrews themselves knew nothing. 
 But it would be different with their slaves ; they had every¬ 
 thing to hope from a change of condition, and would readily 
 avail themselves of the chance to effect it. 
 
 The very term “ mixed multitude” implies slaves ; for the 
 Hebrew word hasaphsuph, as translated by Bochartus, means 
 populi colluvies undecunque colleda —“ the dregs or scum of 
 the people gathered together from all parts.” But this in¬ 
 terpretation is most likely the literal meaning of a figurative 
 expression, which was intended to describe a body of men 
 such as the slaves of Egypt must have been, that is, a mix¬ 
 ture that was compounded of men from almost every part of 
 the world known to the Egyptians ; the two principal in¬ 
 gredients of which must have been what may be called the 
 Egyptian and Semitic. Moses seems to have used the word in 
 question in consequence of the vexation and snare which the 
 mixed multitude proved to him, by bringing upon the camp 
 
20 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFA CE. 
 
 of his people the plague, inflicted, in consequence of their 
 pins, in the midst of them. At the same time the Hebrews 
 ■were very apt to term “ dregs and scum” all who did not 
 proceed from the loins of their father, Abraham. But I am 
 inclined to believe that the bulk or nucleus of the mixed 
 multitude would consist of slaves who were located in Go¬ 
 shen, or its neighbourhood, when the Jews were settled 
 there by Pharaoh. These would be a mixture of the shep¬ 
 herd kings and native Egyptians, held by the former as 
 slaves, who would naturally fall into the hands of the Egyp¬ 
 tian monarch during his gradual reconquest of the country ; 
 and they would be held by the pure Egyptians in as little 
 esteem as the Jews themselves, both being, in a measure, of 
 the shepherd race. In this way it may be claimed that the 
 Gipsies are even descendants of the shepherd kings. 
 
 After leaving Egypt, the Hebrews and the “ mixed multi¬ 
 tude,” in their exuberance of feeling at having gained their 
 freedom, and witnessed the overthrow of their common op¬ 
 pressor in the Red Sea, would naturally have everything in 
 common, till they regained their powers of reflection, and 
 begau to think of their destiny, and the means of supporting 
 so many individuals, in a country in which provisions could 
 hardly be collected for the company of an ordinary caravan. 
 Then their difficulties would begin. It was enough for 
 Moses to have to guide the Hebrews, whose were the prom¬ 
 ises, without being burdened and harassed by those who fol¬ 
 lowed them. Then we may reasonably assume that the 
 mixed multitude began to clamour for flesh, and lead the 
 Hebrews to join with them ; in return for which a plague 
 was sent upon the people. They were unlikely to submit to 
 be led by the hand of God, and be fed on angels’ food, and, 
 like the Hebrews, leave their carcasses in the wilderness ; 
 for their religious sentiments, if, as slaves of Egypt, they 
 had religious sentiments, would be very low indeed, and 
 Avould lead them to depend upon themselves, and leave the 
 deserts of Arabia, for some other country more likely to 
 support them and their children. Undoubtedly the two 
 people then separated, as Abraham and Lot parted when 
 they came out of Egypt. 
 
 How to shake off this mixed multitude must have caused 
 Moses many an anxious thought. Possibly his father-in-law, 
 Jethro, from the knowledge and sagacity which he displayed 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 21 
 
 in forming the government of Moses himself, may have 
 assisted him in arriving at the conclusion which ho must 
 have so devoutly wished. To take them into the promised 
 land with him was impossible ; for the command of God, 
 given in regard to Ishmael, the son of Abraham, by Hagar 
 the Egyptian, and which was far more applicable to the 
 mixed multitude, must have rung in his ears : “ Cast out 
 this bondwoman and her son, for the son of this bondwoman 
 shall not be heir with my son, Isaac “ for in Isaac shall 
 thy seed be called.” As slaves of Egypt they would not 
 return to that country ; they would not go north, for that 
 was the heritage of the people of Israel, which had to be 
 wrested from the fierce tribes of Palestine ; they would not 
 go north-east, for there lay the powerful empire of Assyria, 
 or the germs out of which it sprung ; they could not go 
 south, for the ocean hemmed them in, in that direction ; and 
 their only alternative was to proceed east, through Arabia 
 Petrea, along the gulf of Persia, through the Persian 
 desert, into northern Hindostan, where they formed the 
 Gipsy caste, and whence they issued, after the lapse of so 
 many centuries, in possession of the language of Hindostan, 
 and spread themselves over the earth. What a strange 
 sensation passes through the mind, when such a subject is 
 contemplated! Jews and Gipsies having, in a sense, the 
 same origin, and, after such vicissitudes, meeting each 
 other, face to face, under circumstances so greatly alike, in 
 almost every part of the world, upward of 3000 years after 
 they parted company. What destiny awaited the Jews 
 themselves on escaping from Egypt? They had cither to 
 subdue and take the place of some other tribe, or be reduced 
 to a state of slavery by it and perhaps others combined ; or 
 they might possibly have been befriended by some great 
 empire as tributaries ; or failing these three, what remained 
 for them was the destiny that befell the Gipsies. 
 
 On leaving Egypt, the Gipsies would possess a common 
 language, which would hold them together as a body; as 
 slaves under the society of an Egyptian monarchy, they 
 would have few, if any, opinions of a religious nature ; and 
 they would have but little idea of the laws of meum and 
 tuum. The position in which they would find themselves 
 placed, and the circumstances surrounding them, would 
 necessitate them to rob, steal, or appropriate whatever they 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 22 
 
 found to be necessary to tlieir existence ; for whether they 
 turned to the right hand or to the left, they would always 
 find territory previously occupied, and property claimed by 
 some one ; so that their presence would always be unwel¬ 
 come, their persons an intrusion everywhere ; and having 
 once started on their weary pilgrimage, as long as they 
 maintained their personal independence, they would never 
 attain, as a body, to any other position than they have done, 
 in popular estimation, for the last four hundred and fifty 
 years in Europe. 
 
 In entering Hindostan they would meet with a civilized 
 people, governed by rigid caste, where they would have no 
 alternative but to remain aloof from the other inhabitants. 
 Then, as now, that country had many wandering tribes 
 within its borders, and for which it is peculiarly favourable. 
 Whatever might have been the amount of civilization which 
 some of the Gipsies brought with them from Egypt, it could 
 not be otherwise than of that quasi nature which generally 
 characterizes that of slaves, and which would rapidly degen¬ 
 erate into a kind of barbarism, under the change of circum¬ 
 stances in which they found themselves placed. As run¬ 
 away slaves, they would naturally be shy and suspicious, and 
 be very apt to betake themselves to mountains, forests and 
 swamps, and hold as little intercourse with the people of 
 the country in which they were, as possible. Still, having 
 been reared within a settled and civilized state, they would 
 naturally hang around some other one, and nestle within it, 
 if the face of the country, and the character and ways of 
 the people, admitted of it. Having been bondsmen, they 
 would naturally become lazy after gaining their freedom, 
 and revel in the wild liberty of nature. They would do 
 almost anything for a living rather than work ; and what¬ 
 ever they could lay their hands on would be fairly come by, 
 in their imagination. But to cany out this mode of life, 
 they would naturally have recourse to some ostensible em¬ 
 ployment, to enable them to travel through the country, and 
 secure the toleration of its inhabitants. Here their Egyp¬ 
 tian origin would come to their assistance ; for as slaves of 
 that country, they must have had many among them who 
 would be familiar with horses, and working in metals, for 
 which ancient Egypt was famous ; not to speak of some of 
 the occult sciences whicl they would carry with them from 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 23 
 
 that country. In the first generation their new habits and 
 modes of life would become chronic ; in the second genera¬ 
 tion they would become hereditary; and from this strange 
 phenomenon would spring a race that is unique in the history 
 of the human family. What origin could be more worthy 
 of the Gipsies ? What origin more philosophical ? 
 
 Arriving in India a foreign caste, the Gipsies would 
 naturally cling to their common origin, and speak their com¬ 
 mon language, which, in course of ages, would be forgotten, 
 except occasional words, which would be used by them as 
 catch-words. At the present day my Gipsy acquaintances 
 inform me that, in Great Britain, five out of every ten of 
 their words are nothing^but eomnyjn-Hiiidostanee. How 
 strange would it be if sdme'oT the other words of their 
 language were those used by the people of Egypt under the 
 Pharaohs. Mr. Borrow says : “ Is it not surprising that the 
 language of Pelulengro, (an English Gipsy,) is continually 
 coming to my assistance whenever I appear to be at a loss 
 with respect to the derivation of crabbed words. I have 
 made out crabbed words in ^Eschylus by means of his 
 speech ; and even in my Biblical researches I have derived 
 no slight assistance from it.” “ Broken, corrupted and half 
 in ruins as it is, it was not long before I found that it was 
 an original speed), far more so, indeed, than one or two 
 others of high name and celebrity, which, up to that time, 
 I had been in the habit of regarding with respect and venera¬ 
 tion. Indeed, many obscure points connected with the 
 vocabulary of these languages, and to which neither classic 
 nor modern lore afforded any clue, I thought I could now 
 clear up by means of this strange, broken tongue, spoken 
 by people who dwell among thickets and furze bushes, in 
 tents as tawny as their faces, and whom the generality of 
 mankind designate, and with much semblance of justice, as 
 thieves and vagabonds.” 
 
 A difficulty somewhat similar to the origin of the Gipsies 
 has been started in reference to their language ; whether it 
 is a speech distinct from any other surrounding it, or a few 
 slang words or expressions connected together by the usual 
 languages of the countries in which the race is to be found. 
 The slightest consideration will remove the doubt, and lead 
 us to the former conclusion. It is true there must needs be 
 some native words mixed up with it; for what language, in 
 
24 
 
 EDIT OH'S PREFACE. 
 
 ancient or modern times, has come down free of a mixture 
 with others? If that be the case with languages classified, 
 written, and spoken in a community, with no disturbing ele¬ 
 ment near it to corrupt it, is it to be expected that the 
 speech of a people like the Gipsies can be free of similar 
 additions or substitutions, when it possesses none of these 
 advantages for the preservation of its entirety and purity? 
 From the length of time the people have been in Europe, 
 and the frequency of intercourse which they have been 
 forced by circumstances, in modern times especially, to have 
 with its natives, it would appear beyond measure surprising 
 that even a word of their language is spoken at all. And 
 tliis fact adds great weight to Sir Walter Scott’s remark, 
 when he says that “ their language is a great mystery ; v and 
 to that of Dr. Bright, when he speaks of its existence as 
 being “ little short of the miraculous.” But when we con¬ 
 sider, on strictly philosophical principles, the phenomenon of 
 the perpetuation of the Gipsy language, we will find that 
 there is nothing so very wonderful about it after all. The 
 race have always associated closely and exclusively together ; 
 and their language has become to them like the worship of 
 a household god—hereditary, and is spoken among them¬ 
 selves under the severest of discipline. It is certain that it 
 is spoken at the present day, by some of the race, nearly as 
 well as the Gaelic of many of the immediate descendants 
 of the emigrants in some of the small Highland settlements 
 in America, when it has not been learned by book, even to 
 the extent of conversing on any subject of ordinary life, 
 without apparently using English words. But, as is common 
 with people possessing two languages, the Gipsies often use 
 them interchangeably in expressing the smallest idea. Be¬ 
 sides the way mentioned by which the Gipsy language has 
 been corrupted, there is another one peculiar to all speeches, 
 and which is, that few tongues are so copious as not to stand 
 in need of foreign words, either to give names to things or 
 wants unknown in the place where the language originated, 
 or greater meaning or elucidation to a thing than it is capa¬ 
 ble of; and preeminently so in the case of a barbarous 
 people, with few ideas beyond the commonest wants of daily 
 life, entering states so far advanced toward that point of 
 civilization which they have now reached. But the question 
 as to the extent of the Gipsy language never can be con- 
 
EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 25 
 
 clusively settled, until some able philologist has the unre¬ 
 stricted opportunity of daily intercourse with the race ; or, 
 as a thing more to be wished than obtained, some Gipsy 
 take to suitable learning, and confer a rarity of information 
 upon the reader of history everywhere : for the attempt 
 at getting a single word of the language from the Gipsies, 
 is, in almost every case, impracticable. Sir Walter Scott 
 seems to have had an intention of writing an account of the 
 Gipsies himself; for, in a letter to Murray, as given by 
 Lockhart, he writes: “I have been over head and ears in 
 work this summer, or I would have sent the Gipsies ; indeed 
 I was partly stopped by finding it impossible to procure a 
 few words of their language.” For this reason, the words 
 furnished in this work, although few, are yet numerous, 
 when the difficulties in the way of getting them are con¬ 
 sidered. Under the chapter of Language will be found 
 some curious anecdotes of the manner in which these were 
 collected. 
 
 Of the production itself little need be said. Whatever 
 maybe the opinion of the public in regard to it, this may be 
 borne in mind, that the collecting of the materials out of 
 which it is formed was attended with much trouble, and no 
 little expense, but with a singular degree of pleasure, to the 
 author; and that but for the urgent and latest request of 
 him whom, when alive or dead, Scotchmen have always de¬ 
 lighted to honour, it might never have assumed its present 
 form. It is what it professes to be—a history, in which the 
 subject has been stripped of everything pertaining to fiction 
 or even colouring ; so that the reader will see depicted, in 
 their true character, this singular people, in the description 
 of whom, owing to the suspicion and secrecy of their nature, 
 writers generally have indulged in so much that is trifling 
 and even fabulous. 
 
 Such as the work is, it is offered as a contribution toward 
 the filling up of that void in literature to which Dr. Bright 
 alludes, in the introduction to his travels in Hungary, when, 
 in reference to Iloyland’s Survey, and some scattered notices 
 of the Gipsies in periodicals, he says : “ We may hope at 
 some time to collect, satisfactorily, the history of this extra¬ 
 ordinary race.” It is likewise intended as a response to the 
 call of a writer in Blackwood, in which he says : “ Our duty 
 is rather to collect and store up the raw materials of litera- 
 o 
 
26 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 ture—to gather into our repository scattered facts, hints and 
 observations—which more elaborate and learned authors 
 may afterwards work up into the dignified tissue of history 
 or science.” 
 
 I deem it proper to remark that, in editing the work, I 
 have taken some liberties with the manuscript. I have, for 
 example, recast the Introduction, re-arranged some of the 
 materials, and drawn more fully, in some instances, upon the 
 author’s authorities ; but I have carefully preserved the 
 facts and sentiments of the original. I may have used some 
 expressions a little familiar and perhaps not over-refined in 
 their nature ; but my excuse for that is, that they are illus¬ 
 trative of a subject that allows the use of them. 
 
EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The discovery and history of barbarous races of men, be¬ 
 sides affording exquisite gratification to the general mind of 
 civilized society, have always been looked upon as important 
 means toward a right understanding of the history of our 
 species, and the relation in which it stands to natural and 
 revealed theology ; and in their prosecution have produced, 
 in latter times, many instances of the most indefatigable dis¬ 
 interestedness and greatest efforts of true courage of which 
 our nature is capable ; many, in the person of the traveller, 
 philanthropist and missionary, cheerfully renouncing in their 
 pursuit every comfort of civilized life, braving death itself 
 in every variety of form, and leaving their bones on the dis¬ 
 tant shore, or faraway in the unknown interior of the dreary 
 continent, without a trace of their fate to console those most 
 dearly attached to them. The result of the discoveries 
 hitherto made has invariably confirmed the conclusions of a 
 few superior minds, formed without the assistance drawn 
 from such a source, that under whatever circumstances man 
 is placed, and whatever advantages he may enjoy, there is 
 very little real difference between the characters, intrinsi¬ 
 cally considered, of the savage and man in what is considered 
 a civilized community. There is this difference between what 
 may be called barbarism, not unfrequently to be met with in 
 a civilized community, springing from the depravity natural 
 to man, and what obtains in a barbarous tribe or nation as 
 such, that, in the former, it forms the exception ; the brother, 
 the father, or the son of the person of it often exhibiting the 
 most opposite nature and conduct; while, in the latter, it 
 forms the rule, and what the individual cannot, in a sense, 
 avoid. But, in making this distinction, is there nothing to be 
 found within the former sphere somewhat anomalous to the 
 position thus presented ? 
 
 The subject of the following enquiry forms the exception, 
 
 ( 27 ) 
 
28 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 and from its being the only instance to be met with in the 
 history of Europe, it may be said to merit the greatest con¬ 
 sideration of the statesman, the historian, the philosopher, 
 and the Christian. 
 
 It does not appear possible, from the peculiar mould in 
 which the European mind has been cast, for it to have re¬ 
 mained in that state of immobility which, from the remotest 
 antiquity, seems to have characterized that of Asia ; in which 
 continent society has remained torpid and inactive, contented 
 with what it has inherited, without making any effort at 
 change or advancement. This peculiarity of character, in 
 connexion with the influences of the Christian religion, seems 
 to have had the effect of bringing about that thorough amal¬ 
 gamation of races and ideas in the various countries of Eu¬ 
 rope in which more than one people happened to occupy the 
 same territory, or come under the jurisdiction of the same 
 government, when no material difference in religion existed. 
 In no country has such an amalgamation been more happily 
 consummated than in our own ; if not altogether as to blood, 
 at least as to feeling, the more important thing of the two ; 
 the physical differences, in occasional instances, appearing in 
 some localities, on the closest observation of those curious 
 individuals who make such a subject the object of their 
 learned researches. 
 
 Notwithstanding what has been said, how does it happen 
 that in Europe, but especially in our own country, there ex¬ 
 ists, and has for four hundred years existed, a pretty numer¬ 
 ous body of men distinct in their feelings from the general 
 population, and some of them in a state of barbarism nearly 
 as great as when they made their appearance amongst us ? 
 Such a thing would appear to us in no way remarkable in 
 the stationary condition so long prevalent in Asia ; where, 
 in the case of India, for example, are to be found, inhabiting 
 the same territory, a heterogeneous population, made up of the 
 remnants of many nations ; where so many languages are 
 spoken, and religions or superstitions professed, and the peo¬ 
 ple divided into so many castes, which are separated from 
 each other on the most trivial, and, to Europeans, ridicu¬ 
 lous and generally incomprehensible points ; some eating 
 together, and others not; some eating mutton, and others 
 not ; some beef and fowls, others vegetables, milk, but¬ 
 ter and eggs, but no flesh or fish; those going to sea not 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 29 
 
 associating with those remaining at home ; some not follow¬ 
 ing the occupation of others ; and all showing the most de¬ 
 termined antipathy to associate with each other where, from 
 the numerous facilities so essential toward the perpetuation 
 of peculiar modes of life, and the want of the powerful ele¬ 
 ments of assimilation and amalgamation so prominent in our 
 division of the human race, a people may continue in a stereo¬ 
 typed state of mind and habits for an indefinite length of 
 time. But in a country that is generally looked upon as 
 the bulwark of the Reformation, and the stronghold of Euro¬ 
 pean civilization, how does it happen that we find a people, 
 resembling in their nature, though not in the degree, the all 
 but fabulous tribe that was lately to be found in the dreary 
 wastes of Newfoundland, flying from the approach, and cross¬ 
 ing the imagination of the fishermen like a spectre ? Or like 
 the wild men of the jungle, in some of the oceanic parts of 
 Asia, having no homes, roaming during the dry season in the 
 forests, and sleeping under or on the branches of trees, and 
 in the rainy season betaking themselves to caves or shelter¬ 
 ing beneath rocks, making their beds of leaves, and living 
 on what they can precariously find, such as roots and wild 
 honey ; yet, under the influence of the missionary, many of 
 them now raising crops, building dwellings, erecting school- 
 houses, keeping the Sabbath, and praising God? But some 
 of the Gipsies with us may be said to do few of these things. 
 They live among us, yet arc not of us ; they come in daily 
 contact with us, yet keep such distance from the community 
 as a wild fowl, that occasionally finds its way into the farm¬ 
 yard, does in shrinking from the close scrutiny of the hus¬ 
 bandman. They cling like bats to ruined houses, caves, and 
 old lime-kilns ; and pitch their tents in dry water-courses, 
 quarry-holes, or other sequestered places, by the way-side, 
 or on the open moor, and even on dung-heaps for the warmth 
 to be derived from them during the winter season, and live 
 under the bare boughs of the forest during the summer ;— 
 yet amid all this apparent misery, through fair means or foul, 
 they fare well, and lead what some call a happy life ; while 
 everything connected with them is most solicitously wrapt 
 up in inscrutable mystery. These Gipsies exhibit to the 
 European mind the most inexplicable moral problem on re¬ 
 cord ; in so far as such phenomena are naturally expected to 
 be found among a people whom the rays of civilization have 
 
30 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 never reached ; while, in the case of the Gipsies, the first 
 principles of nature would seem to be set at defiance. 
 
 “And thus ’(is ever ; what’s within our ken. 
 
 Owl-like, we blink at, and direct our search 
 To fnrtherest Inde, in quest of novelties ; 
 
 Whilst here at home, upon our very thresholds, 
 
 Ten thousand objects hurtle into view, 
 
 Of interest wonderful.” 
 
 But to give a fair description of the tented Gipsy life, 1 
 cannot employ more appropriate language than that of 
 Doctor Bright, when, in reference to the English Gipsies, he 
 says : “I am confident that we are apt to appreciate much 
 too lightly the actual happiness enjoyed by this class of 
 people, who, beneath their ragged tents, in the pure air of 
 the heath, may well excite the envy of many of the poor, 
 though better provided with domestic accommodation, in the 
 unwholesome haunts of the town. At the approach of night, 
 they draw around their humble but often abundant board, 
 and then retiring to their tent, leave a faithful dog to guard 
 its entrance. With the first rays of morning, they again 
 meet the day, pursue their various occupations, or, rolling 
 up their tents and packing all their property on an ass, set 
 forward to seek the delights of some fresh heath, or the 
 protection of some shaded copse. I leave it to those who 
 have visited the habitations of the poor, to draw a compari¬ 
 son between the activity, the free condition, and the pure 
 air enjoyed by the Gipsy, and the idleness, the debauchery, 
 and the filth in which the majority of the poorer classes are 
 enveloped.”—“ No sooner does a stranger approach their fire 
 on the heath, than a certain reserve spreads itself through 
 the little family. The women talk to him in mystic language ; 
 they endeavour to amuse him with secrets of futurity ; they 
 suspect him to be a spy upon their actions ; and he generally 
 departs as little acquainted with their true character as he 
 came. Let this, however, wear away ; let him gain their 
 confidence, and he will find them conversable, amusing, sen¬ 
 sible and shrewd ; civil, but without servility; proud of their 
 independence ; and able to assign reasons for preferring 
 their present condition to any other in civilized society. 
 He will find them strongly attached to each other, and free 
 from many cares which too often render the married life a 
 source of discontent.” 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 31 
 
 In -what direction may we look for the causes of sucli an 
 anomaly in the history of our common civilization ? Tliis 
 question, however, will be discussed by and by : in the 
 meantime let us consider the fact itself. 
 
 In the early part of the fifteenth century there first ap¬ 
 peared in Europe large hordes of a people of singular com¬ 
 plexion and hair, and mode of life—apparently an Asiatic 
 race—which, in spite of the sanguinary efforts of the gov¬ 
 ernments of the countries through which they passed, con¬ 
 tinued to spread over the continent, and have existed in 
 large numbers to this day; many of them in the same 
 condition, and following the same modes of life, now as 
 then; and preserving their language, if not in its 
 original purity, yet without its having lost its character. 
 This circumstance has given rise in recent times to several 
 researches, with no certain result, as to the country which 
 they left on entering Europe, and still less as to the place 
 or the circumstances of their origin. The latter is not to 
 be wondered at, when it is considered that, in the instances 
 of even the most polished nations of antiquity, nothing is 
 to be found as to their origin beyond what is contained in 
 the myths and fables of their earliest poets and historians. 
 But considering the traces that have been left of the origin 
 and early history of the people and kingdoms of Europe, 
 subsequent to the fall of the Roman Empire, amid the bar¬ 
 barism and confusion attending their establishment, and, in 
 many respects, the darkness immediately and for a long time 
 following it, we would naturally think that, for an event 
 happening so recently as the fifteenth century, some reliable 
 traces would have been discovered and bequeathed to us on 
 a subject that has baffled the antiquarians of modern times. 
 
 If, however, there is any doubt as to the country which 
 they left on entering Europe, and their place of origin, there 
 remains for us to consider the people generally, and in an 
 especial manner those who have located themselves in Scot¬ 
 land ; and give an account of their subsequent history in its 
 various aspects, and their present condition. But before 
 doing that, it would be well to take a general but cursory 
 view of the political as well as social condition of Europe 
 at the time they made their appearance in it, so as, in some 
 measure, to account for the circumstance of no trace being 
 left of their previous history ; form an estimate of the rela- 
 
32 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 tive position in which they have stood to its general popu¬ 
 lation since ; and attempt to realize the feeling with which 
 they have always been regarded by our own people, so as 
 to account for that singular degree of dread and awe which 
 have always been associated with the mention of their 
 n'ame ; the foundation of which has been laid in infancy. 
 
 That which most forcibly strikes the mind of the student, 
 :n reading the history of the age in which the Gipsies 
 entered Europe, is the political turmoil in which nearly the 
 whole of the continent seems to have been embroiled for 
 the greater part of a century. The desperate wars waged 
 by England against what has been termed her natural 
 enemy, for the recovery and retention of her ancient contin¬ 
 ental possessions, and the struggle of the other for her bare 
 existence ; the long and bloody civil wars of England, and 
 the distracted state of France, torn with dissensions within, 
 and menaced at various points from without; the long and 
 fanatical struggle of religion and race, between the Span¬ 
 iards and their invaders, for the possession of the peninsula ; 
 the brave stand made by the Swiss for that independence so 
 much theirs' by nature ; the religious wars of the Hussites, 
 and the commotions throughout central Europe ; the per¬ 
 petual internal feuds of the corrupt and turbulent southern 
 republics ; the approaching dissolution of the dissolute 
 Byzantine empire ; the appalling progress of that terrible 
 power that had emerged from the wilds of Asia, subdued 
 the empire, and threatened Europe from its vulnerable 
 point; all these seem to have been enough to have engrossed 
 the mental energies of the various countries of Europe, and 
 prevented any notice being taken of the appearance of the 
 race in question. 
 
 But over and above these convulsions, sufficient as they 
 were to exclusively engage the attention of the small amount 
 of cultivated intellect then in the world, there was one 
 that was calculated even to paralyze the clergy, to whom, 
 in that age, fell the business of recording passing events, 
 and which seems to have prevented their even taking notice 
 of important matters in the history of that time. I mean 
 the schism that for so long rent the church into fragments, 
 the greatest schism, indeed, that the world ever saw, when, 
 for so many years, two and even three Popes reigned at 
 once, each anathematizing and excommunicating the other, 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 33 
 
 for a schism which, after an infinity of intrigues, was ulti¬ 
 mately so happily patched up to the comfort of the church. 
 On the death of Urban Y, Gregory XI became Pope, but 
 soon after died, and was succeeded by Urban YI; but the 
 Cardinals, who were in the French interest, after treating 
 him as Pope for a short time, annulled the whole proceedings, 
 on the plea of having been constrained in the election by 
 the turbulence of the Roman populace, but really on account 
 of the extraordinary harshness with which he began his 
 reign, and chose one of themselves in his stead, under the 
 name of Clement YII. The former remained at Rome, and 
 was supported by Italy, the Empire, England and the North ; 
 while Clement proceeded to Avignon, and was acknow¬ 
 ledged by France, Spain, Scotland, and Sicily. Urban was 
 respectively succeeded by Boniface IX, Innocent VI, and 
 Gregory XII ; and Clement, at his death, in 1394, by 
 Benedict XIII, the most implacable spirit in prolonging the 
 schism, from whose authority France for a time withdrew, 
 without acknowledging any other head, but afterwards 
 returned, at the same time urging his resignation of the 
 chair. At last the Cardinals, disgusted with the unprin¬ 
 cipled dissimulation of both, and at their wits’ end in 
 devising a way to stay the scandal, and build up the 
 influence of the whole church, then so rapidly sinking in the 
 estimation of the world, amidst such unheard of calamities, 
 deserted both, and summoned a council, which met at Pisa, 
 and in which both were deposed, and another, in the person 
 of Alexander V, elected to fill the chair. But in place of 
 proving a remedy, the step rendered the schism still more 
 furious. After that, John XXIII, successor to Alexander Y, 
 was reluctantly prevailed on to call a council, which accord¬ 
 ingly met at Constance, in 1414, but in which he himself 
 was deposed. Martin V being chosen, was succeeded by 
 Eugenius 1Y. But the Fathers of Basle elected Felix Y, 
 thus renewing the schism, and dividing the church for 
 some years, from France and the Empire observing a neu¬ 
 trality, while England adhered to Eugenius, Aragon and 
 the smaller states to Felix ; but the partisans of Felix 
 gradually losing their influence, Nicholas Y, the successor 
 of Eugenius, after much cajolery, prevailed on him to resign 
 his claim, and thus restored peace to the world. 
 
 At that time the kinds of learning taught were, in the 
 
34 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 greater part of Europe, confined to few, being almost entirely 
 monopolised by the clergy and a few laymen ; by the former 
 for the dogmatism of the schools and the study of the canon 
 law, and by the latter for civil jurisprudence and medicine. 
 Even the sons of nobles were generally wholly illiterate, 
 one of them, only, being educated, to act as the clerk of the 
 family. We are even told of a noble, when a conspiracy 
 was detected, with the name of his son attached to it, saying, 
 “ Thank God, none of my children were ever taught to 
 write.” The great mass of the people, and especially those 
 of the lower classes, were as ignorant of direct educational 
 training as a tribe of semi-barbarians at the present day. 
 Many of the nobility, although as scantily educated as the 
 lowest of our own people, and having as much difficulty in 
 inditing an epistle as some of these would now have, would 
 still admirably maintain their position in such a state of so¬ 
 ciety, by the influence which their high birth and breeding, 
 elevated bearing, superiority of character, and possession 
 of domain, gave them ; and by the traditionary feudal awe 
 that had sunk so deeply into the feelings of their compara¬ 
 tively, and often absolutely, abject dependents and followers, 
 extending itself, when unaccompanied by overt acts of op¬ 
 pression, to the inhabitants of the smaller towns, where so 
 many restraints surrounded their personal independence, 
 from their precarious modes of living, owing to all so much 
 depending on each other for a subsistence, and the endless 
 jealousies prevailing among them. 
 
 At the same time all classes, although frequently possess¬ 
 ing a sufficiency, if not an abundance, of the rough neces¬ 
 saries of life, enjoyed nothing of the comfort and elegancies 
 of subsequent times. The house of many a noble presented 
 such a plainness in furnishing as a person, in very moderate 
 circumstances, would now be almost ashamed to possess. 
 The circumstances of the middle classes were much more 
 lowly; plain boards and wooden trenchers, few beds but 
 many shake-clotuns, rough stools and no chairs, with won¬ 
 derfully few apartments relative to the size of the family, 
 and much sleeping on straw-heaps in the cock-loft, marked 
 the style of living of a class now deemed very respectable. 
 The huts of the poorest class were as often composed of 
 “ sticks and dirt” as any other material, with 'plenishing to 
 correspond. There was a marked exception to this state 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 35 
 
 of comparative barbarism to be found, however, in some of 
 the cities of Italy, and other parts of the Mediterranean, 
 the seats of the flourishing republics of the middle ages; 
 arising not only from the affluence which follows in the 
 wake of extended commerce and manufactures, but also 
 from the feelings with which the wreck of a highly polished 
 antiquity inspired a people in whom the seeds of the former 
 civilization had not died out; heightened, as it must have 
 been, by the influence of the once celebrated, but then de¬ 
 caying, splendour which the court of the long line of eastern 
 emperors shed over the countries lying contiguous to it. 
 The inhabitants of the cities of the north, on the other 
 hand, were marked by a degree of substantial wealth and 
 comfort, sense and ease, civility and liberality, which were 
 apt to distinguish a people situated as they were, without 
 the traditions and objects, meeting the eye at every step in 
 the south, of the greatest degree of culture in the polite 
 arts of life unto which a people can attain. But, with the 
 exception of the inhabitants of these cities, and some of 
 those in a few of the cities of western Europe, the clergy 
 and some of the laity, the people, as such, were sunk in deep 
 ignorance and superstition, living in a state of which, in our 
 favoured times, we can form no adequate conception. Then, 
 life and property were held in little respect, and law tram¬ 
 pled upon, even if it existed under more than the shadow of 
 its present form ; and no roads existed but such as were for 
 the greater part of the year impassable, and lay through 
 forests, s.wamps and other uncultivated wastes, the resorts of 
 numerous banditti. Then, almost no intercourse existed be¬ 
 tween the people of one part of a country and another, 
 when all were exceedingly sanguinary and rude. 
 
 What wonder, then, that, under such circumstances, the 
 race in question should have stolen into Europe unobserved, 
 without leaving a trace of the circumstances connected with 
 the movement ? The way by which they are supposed to 
 have entered Western Europe was by Transylvania, a sup¬ 
 position which, if not true, is at least most likely. Although, 
 when first publicly taken notice of in Europe, they were found 
 to move about in large bands, it is unlikely that they would 
 do that while entering, but only after having experienced 
 the degree of toleration and hospitality which the represen¬ 
 tation of their condition called forth ; at least if wo judge 
 
3G 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 from the cunning which they have displayed in moving about 
 alter their true character became known. Asia having been 
 so long their home, where from time immemorial they are 
 supposed to have wandered, they would have no misgiving, 
 from their knowledge of its inhabitants, in passing through 
 any part of it. But in contemplating an entry into Europe 
 they must have paused, as one, without any experience of his 
 own or of others, would in entering on the discovery of an 
 unknown continent, and anxiously examined the merchants 
 and travellers visiting Europe, on the various particulars of 
 the country most essential to their prospects, and especially 
 as to the characteristics of the people. There seems no rea¬ 
 son for thinking that they were expelled from Asia against 
 their will; and as little for supposing that they fled rather 
 than submit to a particular creed, if we judge from the 
 great readiness with which, in form, they have submitted to 
 such in Europe, when it would serve their purpose. The 
 only conclusion, in regard to their motive of migration, to 
 which we can come, is, that having, in the course of time, 
 gradually found their way to the confines of Western Asia., 
 and most likely into parts of Northern Africa, and there 
 heard of the growing riches of modern Europe, they, with 
 the restlessness and unsettledness of their race, longed to 
 reach the Eldorado of their hopes—a country teeming with 
 what they were in quest of, where they would meet with no 
 rivals of their own race to cross their path. The step must 
 have been long and earnestly debated, possibly for genera¬ 
 tions, ere it was taken ; spies after spies may have surveyed 
 and reported on the country, and the movement been made 
 the subject of many deliberations, till at last the influence, 
 address, or resolution of some chief may have precipitated 
 them upon it, possibly at a time when some accidental or un¬ 
 avoidable cause urged them to it. Nor would it be long 
 ere their example was followed by others of the tribe ; some 
 from motives of friendship ; others from jealousy at the idea 
 of all the imagined advantages being reaped by those going 
 before them ; and others from the desire of revenging un¬ 
 settled injuries, and jealousy combined. After the die had 
 been cast, their first step would be to choose leaders to pro¬ 
 ceed before the horde, spy out the richness of the land, and 
 organize stations for those to follow ; and then continue the 
 migration till all the horde had passed over. Considering 
 
EDITORS INTRODUCTION. 
 
 37 
 
 that the representative part of the Gipsies have retained 
 their peculiarities almost uncontaminated, it is in the highest 
 degree probable, it may even be assumed as certain, that this 
 was the manner in which they entered Europe : at first strag¬ 
 glers, with systematic relays of stations and couriers, fol¬ 
 lowed up by such small, yet numerous and closely following, 
 companies, as almost to escape the notice of the authorities 
 of the countries through which they passed ; a mode of tra¬ 
 velling which they still pursue in Great Britain. But when 
 any special obstacle was to be encountered in their journey 
 —such, for example, as the hostility of the inhabitants of any 
 particular place—they would concentrate their strength, so 
 as to force their way through. Their next step would be to 
 arrange among themselves the district of country each tribe 
 was to occupy. After their arrival, they seem to have appeared 
 publicly in large bands, growing emboldened by the generous 
 reception which they met with for some time after their 
 appearance ; and they seem to have had the sagacity to 
 know, that if they secured the favour of the great, that of 
 the small would necessarily follow. 
 
 But if the first appearance of the Gipsies in Europe had a 
 different complexion from what I have conjectured, there are 
 other causes to which may be attributed the fact of its not 
 being known. Among these is to be found the distracted 
 state of the Eastern Empire in its struggles with the Turks, 
 which led to the capture of its capital, and the subversion 
 of the Greek rule in the East. The literary and other men 
 of note, scattered over the provinces, likely to chronicle such 
 an event as the appearance of the Gipsies, must necessarily 
 have betaken themselves to the capital, as each district sub¬ 
 mitted to the conquerors, and so lost the opportunity of wit¬ 
 nessing the migration, under such circumstances as would 
 have made it observable, assuming that the Gipsies travelled 
 in large companies, which, under all the circumstances of the 
 case, was not, on all occasions, likely. The surrounding 
 countries having been the theatre of so many changes in 
 the history of the human family, and the inhabitants having 
 undergone so many changes of masters, leading to so many 
 distinct races, from the intellectual and cultivated Greek to 
 the barbarous Arab and dusky Moor, of so various hues and 
 habits, many of whom would be found in such a city as Con¬ 
 stantinople, what peculiarity was there about the Gipsies to 
 
38 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 attract the notice of the haughty Greek, characterized as he 
 was by all the feelings of disdain which his ancestors dis¬ 
 played in not even naming the Jews and early Christians? 
 Then, if we consider the peculiar turn which the new-born 
 literary pursuits of learned men assumed during that age— 
 how it was exclusively confined to the restoration of the 
 classics, and followed in Europe by the influx of the Greeks 
 during the troubles of their country, we will find another 
 reason for the manner of the first appearance of the Gipsies 
 not being known. Nor is it to be expected that any light 
 would be thrown on the subject by the memoirs of any of 
 our own countrymen, visiting the East at a time when so little 
 intercourse existed between the West and that part of 
 the world ; nothing perhaps beyond a commercial or mari¬ 
 time adventurer, under the flag of another nation, or one 
 whose whole acquirements consisted in laying lance in rest 
 and mounting the breach in an assault; it being a rare thing 
 even to see an English ship in the Mediterranean during the 
 whole of the fifteenth century. 
 
 That the Gipsies were a tribe of Hindoo Suallas, driven, 
 by the cruelty of Timour, to leave Ilindostan, is not for a 
 moment to be entertained ; for why should that conqueror 
 have specially troubled himself with the lowest class of Hin¬ 
 doos ? or why should they, in particular, have left Hindos- 
 tan ? It would have been the ruling , or at least the higher , 
 classes of Hindoo society against which Timour would have 
 exercised any acts of cruelty; the lowest would be pretty 
 much beneath his notice. Not only do we not read of such 
 a people as the Hindoos ever having left their country on 
 any such account—for it is contrary to their genius and feel¬ 
 ings of caste to do so—but the opinion that the Gipsies left 
 India on Timour’s account rests on no evidence whatever, 
 beyond the simple circumstance that they were first taken 
 notice of in Europe about the time of his overrunning India. 
 Mr. Borrow very justly remarks : “ It appears singular that 
 if they left their native land to escape from Timour, they 
 should never have mentioned, in the western world, the name 
 of that scourge of the human race, nor detailed the history 
 of their flight and sufferings, which assuredly would have 
 procured them sympathy ; the ravages of Timour being al¬ 
 ready but too well known in Europe.” Still, Mr. Borrow 
 does not venture to give reasons for the trustworthiness or 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 39 
 
 untrustworthiness of a passage in Arabschah’s life of 
 Timour, in which it is said that Gipsies were found in 
 Samarcand at a time before that conqueror had even directed 
 his thoughts to the invasion of India. The description 
 given of these Zingari or Gipsies of Samarcand is as ap¬ 
 plicable to the Gipsies as possibly can be ; for in it it is 
 said, “ Some were wrestlers, others gladiators, others pugi¬ 
 lists. These people were much at variance, so that hostili¬ 
 ties and battling were continually arising amongst them. 
 Each band had its chief and subordinate officers.” How 
 applicable this description is to the Scottish Gipsies, down 
 to so late a period as the end of last century 1 
 
 If there is little reason for thinking that the Gipsies left 
 India owing to the cruelties of Timour, there is less for 
 supposing, as Mr. Borrow supposes, that their being called 
 Egyptians originated, not with themselves, but with others ; 
 for he says that the tale of their being Egyptians “ probably 
 originated amongst the priests and learned men of the east 
 of Europe, who, startled by the sudden apparition of bands 
 of people foreign in appearance and language, skilled in 
 divination and the occult arts, endeavoured to find in Scrip¬ 
 ture a clue to such a phenomenon ; the result of which was 
 that the Romas (Gipsies) of Hindostan were suddenly trans¬ 
 formed into Egyptian penitents, a title which they have ever 
 since borne in various parts of Europe.” Why should the 
 priests and learned men of the east of Europe go to the 
 Bible to find the origin of such a people as the Gipsies ? 
 What did priests and learned men know of the Bible at the 
 beginning of the fifteenth century ? Did every priest, at 
 that time, know there even was such a book as the Bible in 
 existence ? The priests and learned men of the east of Eu¬ 
 rope were more likely to turn to the eastern nations for the 
 origin of the Gipsies, than to Egypt, were the mere matter 
 of the skill of the Gipsies in divination and the occult arts 
 to lead them to make any enquiry into their history. But 
 what could have induced the priests and learned men to 
 take any such particular interest in the Gipsies ? When 
 the Gipsies entered Europe, they would feel under the neces¬ 
 sity of saying who they were. Having committed themselves 
 to that point, how could they afterwards call themselves by 
 that name which Mr. Borrow supposes the priests and 
 learned men to have given them ? Or, 1 should rather say, 
 
40 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 liow could the priests and learned men think of giving them 
 a name after they themselves had said who they were ? And 
 did the priests and learned men invent the idea of the Gip¬ 
 sies being pilgrims, or bestow upon their leaders the titles 
 of dukes, earls, lords, counts and knights of Little Egypt? 
 Assuredly not; all these matters must have originated with 
 the Gipsies themselves. The truth is, Mr. Borrow has evi¬ 
 dently had no opportunities of learning, or, at least, has not 
 duly appreciated, the real mental acquirements of the early 
 Gipsies, an idea of which will be found in the history of 
 the race on their first general arrival in Scotland, about a 
 hundred years after they were first taken notice of in Eu¬ 
 rope, during which time they are not supposed to have 
 made any great progress in mental condition. I may ven¬ 
 ture to say that the prophecy of Ezekiel* in regard to the 
 scattering of the Egyptians, does not apply to the Gipsies, 
 for this reason, that such of these Egyptians as were carried 
 away captive would become lost among other nations, wdiile 
 the “mixed multitude” which left Egypt with the Jews, tra¬ 
 velled East, their oivn masters, and became the origin of the 
 Gipsy nation throughout the world. If we could but find 
 traces of an Egyptian origin among the Gipsies of Asia, say 
 Central and Western Asia, the question would be beyond 
 dispute. But that might be a matter of some trouble. I 
 am inclined to believe that the people in India corresponding 
 to the Gipsies in Europe, will be found among those tented 
 tribes who perform certain services to the British armies ; 
 at all events there is such a tribe in India, who are called 
 Gipsies by the Europeans who come in contact with them. 
 A short time ago, one of these people, who followed the occu¬ 
 pation of a camel driver in India, found his way to England, 
 
 * Ezelt. xxix. 12,-14, and xxx. 10, 23, and 26.—The scattering of the 
 Egyptians, here foretold, is a subject about which very little is known. 
 Scott, in commenting on it, says: “ History informs us that Nebuchadnez¬ 
 zar conquered Egypt, and carrying multitudes of prisoners hence, dispersed 
 them in different parts of his dominions: and doubtless great numbers 
 perished, or took shelter in other nations at the same time. But we are 
 not sufficiently informed of the transactions of those ages, to show the exact 
 fulfilment of this part of the prophecy, as lias been done in other instances.” 
 
 The bulk of the Egyptians were doubtless restored to their country, ar 
 promised in Ezek. xxix. 13, 14, and it is not impossible that the Gipsies are 
 the descendants of such as did not return to Egypt. The language which 
 they now speak proves nothing to the contrary, as, since the time in ques¬ 
 tion, they have had opportunities to learn and unlearn many languages. 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 41 
 
 and “ pulled up ” with some English Gipsies, whom he recog¬ 
 nized as his own people ; at least he found that they had the 
 ways and ceremonies of them. But it would be unreasonable 
 to suppose that such a tribe in India did not follow various 
 occupations. Bishop Heber, on several occasions, speaks of 
 certain- tents of people whom he met in India, as Gipsies. 
 But I can conceive nothing more difficult than an attempt to 
 elucidate the history of any of the infinity of sects, castes, or 
 tribes to be met with in India.* What evidently leads Mr. 
 Borrow and others astray, in the matter of the origin of the 
 Gipsies, is, that they conclude that, because the language 
 spoken by the Gipsies is apparently, or for the most part, 
 Hindostanee, therefore the people speaking it originated in 
 Hindostan ; as just a conclusion as it would be to maintain 
 that the Negroes in Liberia originated in England because 
 they speak the English language ! 
 
 The leaders of the Gipsies, on the arrival of the body in 
 Europe, and for a long time afterwards, seem to have been 
 a superior class to those known as Gipsies to-day ; although, 
 if the more intelligent of the race were observable to the 
 general eye, they would, in many respects, compare most 
 
 * Abb6 Dubois says: “ In every country of the Peninsula, great num¬ 
 bers of foreign families are to be found, whose ancestors had been obliged 
 to emigrate thither, in times of trouble or famine, from their native land, and 
 to establish themselves amongst strangers. This species of emigration is 
 very common in all the countries of India; but what is most remarkable is, 
 that in a foreign land, these emigrants preserve, from generation to generation , 
 their own language and national peculiarities. Many instances might be 
 pointed out of such foreign families, settled four or five hundred years in the 
 district they now inhabit, without approximating in the least to the man¬ 
 ners, fashions, or even to the language, of the nation where they have been 
 for so many generations naturalized. They still preserve the remembrance 
 of their origin, and keep up the ceremonies and usages of the land where 
 their ancestors were born, without ever receiving any tincture of the parti¬ 
 cular habits of the countries where they live.”—Preface xvii. 
 
 At page 470, he gives an instance of a wandering tribe in the Mysore and 
 Telinga country, originally employed in agriculture, who, a hundred and 
 fifty years previously, took up their vagrant and wandering life, in conse¬ 
 quence of the severe treatment which the governor of the province was 
 going to inflict upon some of their favourite chiefs. To this kind of life they 
 have grown so much accustomed, that it would be impossible to reclaim 
 them to any fixed or sedentary habits; and they have never entertained a 
 thought of resuming their ancient manners. They sojourn in the open 
 fields, under small tents of bamboo, and wander from place to place as 
 humour dictates. They amount to seven or eight thousand individuals, 
 are divided into tribes, and are under the government of chiefs, and main¬ 
 tain a great respect for the property of others. 
 
42 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 favourably with many of our middle classes. If the leaders 
 of the Gipsies, at that time, fell behind some of even the no¬ 
 bility, in the pittance of the education of letters which the 
 latter possessed, they made up for it in that practical sagacity, 
 the acquisition of which is almost unavoidable in the school in 
 which, from infancy, they had been educated—that of provid¬ 
 ing for the shifts and exigencies of which their lives, as a 
 whole, consisted ; besides showing that superior aptitude for 
 many of the things of every-day life, so inseparable from the 
 success to which a special pursuit will lead. A Gipsy leader 
 stood, then, somewhat in the position towards a gentleman 
 that a swell does to-day; with this difference, that he was 
 not apt to commit himself by the display of that ignorance 
 which unmasks the swell; an ignorance which the gentleman, 
 in spite of his little learning, no less shared in. If the latter 
 happened to be well educated, the Gipsy could still pass 
 muster, from being as well, or rather as ill, informed as many 
 with whom the gentleman associated. The Gipsy being 
 alert, capable of playing many characters, often a good musi¬ 
 cian, an excellent player at games of hazard, famous at tale 
 and repartee, clever at sleight of hand tricks, ready with his 
 weapon, at least in the boast of it, apt at field and athletic 
 sports, suspicious of everything and everybody around him, 
 the whole energies of his mind given to, and his life spent in, 
 circumventing and plundering those around him, while, in 
 appearance, “ living in peaceable and catholic manner,” and 
 “ doing a lawful business,” and having that thorough know¬ 
 ledge of men acquired by mixing with all classes, in every 
 part of the country—he became even more than a match for 
 the other, whose life was spent in occasional forays, field 
 sports and revellings, with so little to engage his intellectual 
 nature, from his limited education, the non-existence of books, 
 and the forms of government and social institutions, with 
 those beautifully complicated bearings and interests towards 
 general society which the present age displays. At such a 
 time, conversation must have been confined to the ordinary 
 affairs of common life, the journal of much of which, beyond 
 one’s own immediate neighbourhood, would be found in the 
 conversation of the accomplished Gipsy, who had the tact of 
 ingratiating himself, in a manner peculiar to himself, with all 
 kinds of society, even sometimes the very best. And it is 
 remarkable that, when the Gipsies were persecuted, it was 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 43 
 
 seldom, if ever, at the instance of private individuals, but 
 almost always by those acting under authority. If they 
 were persecuted by a private individual, they would natur¬ 
 ally leave for another district, and place themselves, for a 
 time, in the nominal position of a clansman to such barons as 
 would be always ready to receive them. The people at large 
 generally courted their friendship, for the amusement which 
 they afforded them, and the various services which they ren¬ 
 dered them, the most important of which was the safety of 
 property which followed from such an acquaintance. That 
 being the case even with people of influence, it may be judged 
 what position the Gipsies occupied towards the various 
 classes downwards ; the lowest of which they have always 
 despised, and delighted to tyrannize over. In coming among 
 them, the Gipsies, from the first, exhibited ways of life and 
 habits so dissimilar to those of the natives, and such tricks 
 of legerdemain so peculiar to Eastern nations, and such 
 claims of seeing into the future, as to cause many to believe 
 them in league with the evil one ; a conclusion very easily 
 arrived at, in the darkness in which all were wrapped. Al¬ 
 though the rabble of the Gipsies is said to have presented, 
 in point of accoutrements, a most lamentable appearance, 
 that could much more have been said of the same class of 
 the natives, then, and long after, if we judge of a Highland 
 “ tail,” of a little more than a century ago, as described by 
 the author of Waverly ; or even of the most unwashed of 
 what has been termed the “unwashed multitude” of to-day. 
 In point of adaptability to their respective modes of life, the 
 poorest of the Gipsies far excelled the others. To carry out 
 the character of pilgrims, the bulk of the Gipsies would go 
 very poorly dressed ; it would only be the chiefs who would 
 be well accoutred. 
 
 But the Gipsies that appear to the general eye have fallen 
 much from what they were. The superior class of Scottish 
 Gipsies, possessing the talents and policy necessary to accom¬ 
 modate themselves to the change of circumstances around 
 them, have adopted the modes of ordinary life to such an 
 extent, and so far given up their wandering habits, as to 
 baffle any chance of discovery by any one unacquainted with 
 their history, and who will not, like a bloodhound, follow 
 them into the retreats in which they and their descendants 
 are now to be found. Such Gipsies arc still a restless race, 
 
44 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 and nourish that inveterate attachment to their blood and 
 language which is peculiar to all of them. When we con¬ 
 sider the change that has come over the face of society dur¬ 
 ing the last hundred years, or even during a much shorter 
 time, we will find many causes that have contributed to that 
 which has come over the Gipsy character in its more atro¬ 
 cious aspect. All classes of our own people, from the highest 
 to the lowest, have experienced the change ; and nowhere 
 to a greater extent than in the Highlands, where, in little 
 more than a hundred years, a greater reformation has been 
 effected, than took almost any other part of the world per¬ 
 haps three centuries to accomplish ; and where the people, 
 as a body, have emerged, from a state of sanguinary barbar¬ 
 ism, into the most lawful and the most moral and religious 
 subjects of the British Empire. The Gipsies have likewise 
 felt the change. Even the wildest of them have had the 
 more outrageous features of their character subdued ; but it 
 is sometimes as an animal of prey, sans teeth, sans claws, sans 
 everything. Officials, in the zeal of their callings, often 
 greatly distress those that go about—compelling them, in 
 their wanderings, to “ move on and look after them so 
 closely, that when they become obnoxious to the inhabitants, 
 the offence has hardly occurred, ere, to use an expression, 
 they are snapped up before they have had time to squeak. 
 Amid such a state of things, it is difficult for Gipsies to 
 flourish in their glory ; still, such of them as go about in the 
 olden form are deemed very annoying. 
 
 The dread which has always been entertained toward the 
 Gipsies has been carefully fostered by them, and lias become 
 the principal means contributing to their toleration. They 
 have always been combined in a brotherhood of sentiment 
 and interest, even when deadly feuds existed among them ; 
 an injury toward one being generally taken up by others ; 
 and have presented that union of sympathy, and lawless 
 violence toward the community, which show what a few 
 audacious and desperate men, under such circumstances, w T ill 
 sometimes do in a well regulated society. Sir Walter Scott, 
 relative to the original of one of his heroines, says : “ She 
 was wont to say that she could bring, from the remotest 
 parts of the island friends, to revenge her quarrel, while she 
 sat motionless in her cottage ; and frequently boasted that 
 there was a time when she was of still more considerable 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 45 
 
 importance, when there were at her wedding fifty saddled 
 asses, and unsaddled asses without number.” But of their 
 various crimes, none have had sucli terrors for the grown-up 
 person as those of fire-raising and child-stealing. The Gipsy 
 could easily steal into a well guarded but scattered premises, 
 by night, and, in an instant, spread devastation around him, 
 and irretrievable ruin to the rural inhabitant. But that 
 which has, perhaps, contributed most to the feeling in ques¬ 
 tion, has been their habit of child-stealing, the terrors of 
 which have grown up with the people from infancy. This 
 trait in the Gipsy character has certainly not been so com¬ 
 mon, in latter times, as some others ; still, it has taken place. 
 As an instance, it may be mentioned that Adam Smith, the 
 author of the great work called “An Enquiry into the 
 Causes of the Wealth of Nations,” was actually carried olf 
 by the Gipsies, when a child, and was some hours in their 
 possession before recovery. It is curious to think what 
 might have been the political state of so many nations, and 
 of Great Britain in particular, at the present time, if the 
 father of political economy and free-trade, as he is generally 
 called, had had to pass his life in a Gipsy encampment, and, 
 Jike a white transferred to an Indian wigwam, under similar 
 circumstances, acquired all their habits, and become more 
 incorrigibly attached to them than the people themselves ; 
 tinkering kettles, pots, pans and old metal, in place of sepa¬ 
 rating the ore of a beautiful science from the debris which 
 had been for generations accumulating around it, and work¬ 
 ing it up into one of the noblest monuments of modern times. 
 
 When a child will become unruly, the father will often 
 say, in the most serious manner, “ Mother, that canna be 
 our bairn—the Tinklers must have taken ours, and left 
 theirs—are you sure that this is ours? Gie him back to 
 the Gipsies again, and get our ain.” The other children 
 will look as bewildered, while the subject of remark will 
 instantly stop crying, and look around for sympathy; but 
 meeting nothing but suspicion in the faces of all, will 
 instinctively flee to its mother, who as instinctively clasps it 
 to her bosom, quieting its terrors, as a mother only can, 
 with the lullaby, 
 
 “ Hush nac, hush nae, dinna fret ye ; 
 
 The black Tinkler winna get ye.”* 
 
 * The Gipsies frighten their children in the same manner, by saying 
 that they will give them to the Gurqio. 
 
46 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 And the result is, that it will remain a “good bairn” for a 
 long time after. This feeling, drawn into the juvenile mind, 
 as food enters into the growth of the body, acts like the 
 influence of the stories of ghosts and hobgoblins, often so 
 inconsiderately told to children, but differs from it in this 
 respect, that what causes it is true, while its effects are 
 always more or less permanent. It lias had this effect upon 
 our youth—in connection with the other habits of the people, 
 so outlandish when compared with the ways of our own—that 
 should they happen to go a little distance from home, on such 
 expeditions as boys are given to, and fall in with a Gipsy 
 camp, a strange sensation of fear takes possession of them. 
 The camp is generally found to be pitched in some little dell 
 or nook, and so hidden from view as not to be noticed till 
 the stranger is almost precipitated into its midst ere he is 
 aware of it. What with the traditionary feeling toward 
 the Gipsies, and the motley assemblage of wild looking 
 men, and perhaps still wilder looking women, ragged little 
 urchins, ferocious looking dogs, prepared for an assault with 
 an instinct drawn from the character of their masters, and 
 the droll appearance of so many cuddies (asses,) startled in 
 their browsing—animals that generally appear singly, but, 
 when driven by Gipsies, come in battalions ;—the boys, at 
 first rivetted to the spot with terror, will slip away as 
 quietly as possible till a little way off, and then run till 
 they have either arrived at home, or come within the reach 
 of a neighbourhood or people likely to protect them, 
 although, it might be, the Gipsies had not even noticed 
 them.* Curiosity is so strong in our youth, in such cases, 
 as often to induce them to return to the spot, after being 
 satisfied that the Gipsies have decamped for another district. 
 They will then examine the debris of the encampment with 
 a great degree of minuteness, wreaking their vengeance on 
 what is left, by turning up with their feet the refuse of 
 almost everything edible, particularly as regards the bones 
 and feathers of fowl and game, and, if it happened to be 
 near the sea, crab, limpet, and whelk shells, and heaps of 
 tin clippings and horn scrapings. In after life, they will 
 often think of and visit the scenes of such adventures. At 
 other times, our youth, when rambling, will often make a 
 
 * As children, have we not, at some time, run affrighted from a Gipsy ? 
 — Grellmann on the Hungarian Gipsies. 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 47 
 
 detour of several miles, to avoid falling in with the dreaded 
 Gipsies. The report of Gipsies being about acts as a salu¬ 
 tary check upon the depredatory habits of the youth of our 
 country towns on neighbouring crops ; for, as the farmers 
 make up their minds to lose something by the Gipsies, at any 
 rate, the wholesome dread they inspire, even in grown-up 
 lads, is such as, by night especially, to scare away the thieves 
 from those villages, whose plunderings are much greater, 
 and more unwillingly submitted to, from the closeness of 
 residence of the offenders ; so that the arrival of the Gipsies, 
 in some places, is welcomed, at certain times of the year, 
 as the lesser of two evils ; and, to that extent, they have 
 been termed the “farmers’ friends.” And if a little en¬ 
 couragement is given them—such as the matter of “ dogs’ 
 payment,” that is, what they can eat and drink, and a mouth¬ 
 ful of something for the cuddy , for the first day after their 
 arrival—the farmer can always enlist an admirable police, 
 who will guard his property against others, with a degree 
 of faithfulness that can hardly be surpassed. I heard of a 
 Scottish farmer, very lately, getting the Gipsies to take up 
 their quarters every year on the corner of a potato or turnip 
 field, with the express purpose of using them, as half con¬ 
 stables half scare-crows, against the common rogues of the 
 neighbourhood. “ Now,” said he to the principal Gipsy, “ I 
 put you in charge of this property. If you want anything 
 for yourselves, come to the barn.” Whatever might have 
 been the experience of farmers near by, this farmer never 
 missed anything while the Gipsies were on his premises. 
 
 But a greater degree of awe is inspired by the females 
 than the males of the Gipsies. In their periodical wander¬ 
 ings, they will generally, with their fortune-telling, turn the 
 heads of the country girls in matters of matrimony—setting 
 them all agog on husbands ; and render them, for the time, 
 of but little use to their employers. In teaching them the 
 “ art of love,” they will professedly so instruct them as to 
 have as many lovers at once as their hearts can desire. But 
 if a country girl, with her many admirers, has one to get 
 quit of, who is “ no’ very weel faured, but a clever fellow,” 
 or another, who is “ no’ very bright in the upper story, but 
 strapping enough to become the dish-clout,” she will call in 
 the assistance of the strolling Gipsy ; who, after carefully 
 weighing the circumstances of the case, will sometimes, after 
 
48 
 
 EDITORS INTRODUCTION. 
 
 ordinary means have failed, collect, unknown to her, a 
 bucket full of everything odious about a dwelling, wait at 
 the back door the return of the rustic Adonis, and, ere he is 
 aware, dash it full in his face ; then fold her arms akimbo, 
 and quietly remark, “ That will cool your ears, and youi 
 courting too, my man !” Such Gipsy women are peculiarly 
 dreaded by the males of our own people, who will much 
 sooner encounter those of the other sex ; for, however much 
 some of them may be satisfied, in their cooler moments, that 
 these Gipsy women will not attempt what they will some¬ 
 times threaten, they generally deem them “ unco uncanny,” 
 at any time, and will flee when swearing that they will gut 
 or shin alive all who may have anything to say to them. 
 
 To people unacquainted with the peculiarities of the Gip¬ 
 sies, it may appear that this picture is overdrawn. But Sir 
 Walter Scott, who is universally allowed to be a true de- 
 picter of Scottish life, in every form, says, in reference to the 
 original of Meg Merrilies, in Guy Mannering : “ I remember 
 to have seen one of her grand-daughters ; that is, as Dr. 
 Johnson had a shadowy recollection of Queen Anne—a stately 
 lady in black, adorned with diamonds ; so my memory is 
 haunted by a solemn remembrance of a woman, of more than 
 female height, dressed in a long, red cloak, who commenced 
 acquaintance by giving me an apple, but whom, nevertheless, 
 I looked on with as much awe as the future Doctor could 
 look upon the Queen.” And he approvingly quotes another 
 writer, as to her daughter, as follows : “ Every week, she paid 
 my father a visit for her awmons , when I was a little boy, 
 and I looked on her with no common degree of awe and 
 terror.” The same feeling, somewhat modified, I have heard 
 expressed by Germans, Spaniards, and Dalians. In Eng¬ 
 land, the people do not like to trouble the Gipsies, owing to 
 their being so “ spiteful,” as they express it. The feeling in 
 question cannot well be realized by people reared in towns, 
 wiio have, perhaps, never seen Gipsies, or heard much about 
 them ; but it is different with youths brought up in the coun¬ 
 try. When the Gipsies, in their peregrinations, will make 
 their appearance at a farmer’s house, especially if it is in the 
 pastoral districts, and the farmer be a man of information 
 and reflection, he will often treat them kindly, from the in¬ 
 terest with which their singular history inspires him; and 
 others, not unkindly, from other motives. The farmer’s sons, 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 49 
 
 who are young and hasty, probably but recently returned 
 from a town, where they have been jeered at for their cow¬ 
 ardice in being afraid to meddle with the Gipsies, will show 
 a disposition to use them roughly, on the cry arising in the 
 house, that “ the Tinklers are coming.” But the old father, 
 cautious with the teachings of years gone by, will become 
 alarmed at such symptoms, and, before the Gipsies have 
 approached the premises, will urge his children to treat them 
 kindly. “ Be canny now, bairns—be canny ; for any sake 
 dinna anger them ; gie them a’ they want, and something 
 more.” With this, a good fat sheep will sometimes be killed, 
 and the band regaled with kail, and its accompaniments ; or, 
 if the) r are very nice gabbit , it will be served up to them in a 
 roasted form. Thereafter, they will retire to the barn, and 
 start in the morning on something better than an empty 
 stomach. 
 
 And yet it is singular that, if the Gipsies are met in the 
 streets of a town, or any considerably frequented place, peo¬ 
 ple will, in passing them, edge off a little to the side, and 
 look at them with a degree of interest, which, on ordinary 
 occasions, the Gipsies will but little notice. But if a person 
 of respectable appearance will scrutinize them in an ominous 
 way, they will observe it instantly ; and, as a swell-mobsman, 
 on being stared at by a detective, on the mere suspicion of 
 his being such, generally turns the first cross street, and, in 
 turning, anxiously looks after his enemy, who, after calcu¬ 
 lating the distance, has also turned to watch his movements, 
 so the Gipsy will become excited, soon turning round to 
 watch the movements of the object of his dread ; a fear that 
 will be heightened if any of his band has been spoken to. 
 And such is the masonic secrecy with which they keep their 
 language, that should they at the time have rested on the 
 road-side, and the stranger assume the most impressive tone, 
 and say : “ Sattah , jaiv drom ”—(curse you, take the road), 
 the effects upon them are at first bewildering, and followed 
 by a feeling of some dire calamity that is about to befall 
 them. When any of the poorest kind can be prevailed upon 
 to express a candid sentiment, and be asked how they really 
 do get on, they will reply, “ It’s only day and way w r e want, 
 ye ken—what a farmer body ne’er can miss ; foreby selling a 
 spoon, and tinkering a kettle now and then.” 
 
 In viewing the effects of civilization upon a barbarous 
 3 
 
50 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION, 
 
 race, we are naturally led to confine our reflections to some 
 of the instances in which the civilized race has carried its 
 influence abroad to those beyond its pale, to the exclusion 
 of those instances, from their infrequency of occurrence, in 
 which the barbarous race, of its own accord or otherwise, 
 has come within its circle. There are but two instances, in 
 modern times, in which the latter has happened, and they arc 
 well worthy of our notice. The one is, the existence of the 
 Gipsies, in the very heart of civilization ; the other, that of 
 the Africans in the various European settlements in the 
 New World ; and between these a short comparison may 
 be instituted, although at the risk of it being deemed a 
 digression. 
 
 The forcible introduction of barbarous men into the colon¬ 
 ies of civilized nations, in spite of the cruelties which many 
 of them have undergone, has greatly improved their condi¬ 
 tion—their moral and intellectual nature—at the expense 
 of the melancholy fact of it being advanced as a reason of 
 justification for that sad anomaly in the history of our times. 
 The African, it is admitted, was forcibly brought under 
 the influence of the refinement, religion, and morals of 
 the Avhites, whether as a domestic under the same roof, 
 a field labourer, in the immediate vicinity of the master, or 
 in some other way under his direct control and example. 
 Not only was he, as it were, forced to become what he is, 
 but his obedient, lightdiearted, and imitative nature, even 
 under many bodily sufferings, instinctively led him to enter 
 immediately into the spirit of a new life, presenting to his 
 barbarous imagination, so destitute of everything above the 
 grossest of animal wants and propensities, those wonderfully 
 incessant and complicated employments ot a being, appearing 
 to him as almost a god, when compared with his own savage 
 and unsophisticated nature. The importations comprised 
 Negroes of many dialects, which were distributed on arrival 
 in every direction. A large proportion would live singly 
 with the poorer classes of the colonists, as domestics ; two 
 or three would be the limited number with many others, and 
 the remainder would be disposed of, in larger or smaller 
 numbers, for the various services necessary in civilized life. 
 Single domestics would be under the necessity of learning the 
 language of the master; and, having none speaking their 
 own dialect to commune with, or only occasionally meeting 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 51 
 
 such, momentarily, they would soon forget it. When sev¬ 
 eral of different dialects lived together, they would natur¬ 
 ally follow the same course, to communicate with each other. 
 All these circumstances, with the frequent changes of masters 
 and companions, and the general influence which the whites 
 exercised so supremely over them, have had the effect of al¬ 
 most erasing every trace of (he language, customs, and super¬ 
 stitions of Africa, in parts of the United States of America, 
 in little more than one generation. The same may especially 
 be said of what pertains to the religious ; for a race of men, 
 in a state of nature, or but slightly civilized, depending for 
 such instruction on the adjunct of a superior grade, in the 
 person of a priest, would, on being deprived of such, soon 
 lose recollection of what had been taught them. Such an 
 instance as to language, and, I understand, to a great extent 
 as to religion, is to be found in St. Domingo ; French and 
 Spanish being spoken in the parts of that island which be¬ 
 longed to these countries respectively. Still, such traces are 
 to be found in Cuba ; but, were importations of Africans into 
 that island to cease, the same result would, in course of time, 
 follow. From such causes as those stated, the Negroes in 
 the United States have, to a very great extent, nay, as far 
 as their advantages and opportunities have gone, altogether, 
 acquired the ways of civilized life, and adopted the morals 
 and religion of the white race ; and their history compares 
 favourably with that of a portion of the Gipsy race, which, 
 being unique, and apparently incomprehensible, 1 will insti¬ 
 tute a short enquiry into some of the causes of it. 
 
 While the language and common origin of the Gipsies hold 
 them together as a body, their mode of life has taken such a 
 hold on the innate nature of the representative part of them, 
 as to render it difficult to wean them from it. Like the 
 North American Indians, they have been incapable of being 
 reduced to a state of servitude ;* and, in their own peculiar 
 way, have been as much attached to a life of unrestricted 
 freedom of movement. Being an Oriental people, they have 
 displayed the uniformity of attachment to habit, that has 
 characterized the people of that part of the world. Like 
 the maidens of Syria, wearing to-day the identical kind of 
 veil with which Rebecca covered herself when she met 
 
 * There is an exception, however, to this rule in the Danubian Princi¬ 
 palities, to which I will again refer. 
 
62 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Isaac, they have, with few exceptions, adhered to all that 
 originally distinguished them from those among whom they 
 are found. In entering Europe, they would meet with few 
 customs which they would willingly adopt in preference to 
 their ow r n. Their chiefs, being men of ambition, and fond 
 of a distinguished position in the tribe, would influence the 
 body to remain aloof from the people at large ; and society 
 being divided between the nobles and their various grades 
 of dependents, and the restrained inhabitants of towns, with 
 what part of the population could the Gipsies have been in¬ 
 corporated ? With the lowest classes only, and become 
 little better than serfs—a state to which it was almost im¬ 
 possible for a Gipsy to submit. His habits rendered him 
 unfit to till the soil ; the close and arbitrary laws of muni¬ 
 cipalities would debar him from exercising almost any me¬ 
 chanical trade, in a way suitable to his disposition ; and, no 
 matter what might have been his natural propensities, he 
 had almost no alternative left him but to wander, peddle, 
 tinker, tell fortunes, and “ find things that nobody ever lost.” 
 His natural disposition was to rove, and partake of whatever 
 he took a liking to ; nothing coming so acceptably and so 
 sweetly to him, as when it required an exercise of ingenuity, 
 and sometimes a degree of danger, in its acquisition, and 
 caused a corresponding chagrin to him from whom it was 
 taken, without affording him any trace of the purloiner. 
 He must also enjoy the sports of the river and lake, the 
 field, hill and forest, and the pleasure of his meal, cooked 
 after his own fashion, in some quiet spot, where he would 
 pitch his tent, and quench his thirst at his favourite 
 springs. Then followed the persecution of his race ; both 
 by law and society it was declared outcast, although, by a 
 large part of the latter, it was, from selfish motives, tolerated, 
 and, in a measure, courted. The Gipsy's mode of life ; his 
 predatory habits ; his vindictive disposition toward his ene¬ 
 mies ; his presumptuous bearing toward the lower classes, who 
 had purchased his friendship and protection ; his astuteness 
 in doubling upon and escaping his pursuers ; his audacity, 
 under various disguises and pretences, in bearding justice, 
 and the triumphant manner in which he would generally 
 escape its toils ; his utter destitution of religious opinions, 
 or sentiments ; his being a foreigner of such strongly marked 
 appearance, under the legal and social ban of proscription ; 
 
EDITORS INTRODUCTION. 
 
 53 
 
 and the hereditary name which has, in consequence, attached 
 to his race, have created those broad and deep-drawn lines of 
 isolation, fear and antipathy, which, in the popular mind, 
 have separated him from other men. To escape from the 
 dreadful prejudice that is, in consequence, entertained toward 
 his race, the Gipsy will, if it be possible, hide the fact of his 
 being a Gipsy ; and more especially when he enters upon 
 settled life, and mixes with his fellow-men in the world. 
 
 In the general history of Europe, we can find nothing to 
 illustrate that of the Gipsies. But if we take a glance at 
 the history of the New World, we will find, in a mild and 
 harmless form, something that bears a slight resemblance to 
 it. In various parts of the eastern division of North 
 America are to be found remnants of tribes of Indians, 
 living in the hearts of the settlements, on reserves of lands 
 granted to them for their support; a race bearing somewhat 
 the same resemblance to the European settlers that the 
 Gipsies, with their dark complexion, and long, coarse, black 
 hair, seem to have borne to the natives of Europe. Few of 
 these Indians, although in a manner civilized, and professing 
 the Christian religion, and possessing houses, schools and 
 churches, have betaken, or, if they support their numbers, 
 will ever betake, themselves to the ways of the other in¬ 
 habitants. They will engage in many things to make a 
 living, and a bare living; in that respect very much resem¬ 
 bling some of the Gipsies. They will often leave their 
 home, and build their wigwams whenever and wherever 
 they have a mind, and indulge in the pleasures of hunting 
 and laziness ; and often make numerous small wares for 
 sale, with the proceeds of which, and of the timber growing 
 on their lots of land, the}' will manage to pass their lives in 
 little better than sloth, often accompanied by drunkenness. 
 If it prove otherwise, it is generally from the Indian, or 
 rather half or quarter breed, having been wholly or partly 
 reared with whites, or otherwise brought up under their 
 immediate influence ; or from the ambition of their chiefs to 
 raise themselves in the estimation of the white race, leading, 
 from the influence which they possess, to some of the lower 
 grades of the tribes following their example. It may be 
 that the “ poor Indian” has voluntarily exiled himself, in a 
 fit of melancholy, from the wreck of his patrimony, to make 
 a miserable shift for himself elsewhere, as he best may. In 
 
54 
 
 EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 this respect the resemblance fails : that the Indian in America 
 is aboriginal, the Gipsy in Europe foreign, to the soil; but both 
 are characterized by a nature that renders them almost 
 impervious to voluntary change. In this they resemble 
 each other: that they are left to live by themselves, and 
 transmit to their descendants their respective languages, 
 and such of their habits as the change in their outward cir¬ 
 cumstances will permit. But in this they differ : that these 
 Indians really do die out, while the Gipsies are very prolific, 
 and become invigorated by a mixture of the white blood ; 
 under the cover of which they gradually leave the tent, and 
 become scattered over and through society, enter into the 
 various pursuits common to the ordinary natives, and be¬ 
 come lost to the observation of the rest of the population. 
 
 The peculiar feeling that is entertained for what is popu¬ 
 larly understood to be a Gipsy, differs from that which is 
 displayed toward the Negro, in that it attaches to his tradi¬ 
 tional character and mode of life alone. The general pre¬ 
 judice against the Negro is, to a certain extent, natural, 
 and what any one can realize. If the European has a 
 difficulty in appreciating the feeling which is exhibited by 
 Americans against the African, in their general intercourse 
 of daily life, few Americans can realize the feeling which is 
 entertained toward the tented Gipsy. Should such a Gipsy 
 be permitted to enter the dwelling of a native, the most he 
 will let him come in contact with will be the chair he will 
 give him to sit on, and the dish and spoon out of which he 
 will feed him, all of which can again be cleaned. His 
 guest will never weary his patience, owing to the embodi¬ 
 ment of restlessness which characterizes his race ; nor will 
 his feelings ever be tried by his asking him for a bed, for 
 what the herb commonly called catnip is to the animal some¬ 
 what corresponding to that word, a bundle of straw in an 
 out-house is to the tented Gipsy. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The new era which the series of splendid works, called 
 the Waverly Novels, created in literature, produced, among 
 other effects, that of directing attention to that singular 
 anomaly in civilization—the existence of a race of men 
 scattered over the world, and known, wherever the English 
 language is spoken, as Gipsies ; a class as distinct, in some 
 respects, from the people among whom they live, as the Jews 
 at the present day. The first of the series in which their 
 singular characters, habits, and modes of life were illustrated, 
 was that of Guy Mannering ; proving one of the few happy 
 instances in which a work of fiction has been found to serve 
 the end of specially stirring up the feelings of the human 
 mind, in its various phases, toward a subject with which it 
 has a common sympathy. The peasant and the farmer at 
 once felt attracted by it, from the dread of personal danger 
 which they had always entertained for the race, and the un¬ 
 certainty under which they had lived, for the safety of their 
 property from fire and robbery, and the desire which they 
 had invariably shown to propitiate them by the payment of 
 a species of blackmail, under the form of kind treatment, 
 and a manner of hospitality when occasion called for it. 
 The work at the same time struck a chord in the religious 
 and humane sentiments of others, and the result, but a very 
 tardily manifested one, was the springing up of associations 
 for their reformation ; with comparatively little success, 
 however, for it was found, as a general thing, that while 
 some of the race allowed their children, very indifferently, 
 even precariously, to attend school, yet to cure them of their 
 naturally wandering and other peculiar dispositions, was 
 nearly as hopeless as the converting of the American 
 Indians to some of the ways of civilized life. That general 
 class was also interested, which consist of the more or less 
 
 ( 55 ) 
 
56 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 educated, moral, or refined, to whom anything exciting 
 comes with relish. To the historical student, the subject 
 was fraught with matter for curious investigation, owing to 
 the race having been ignored, for a length of time, as being 
 in no respect different from a class to be found in all coun¬ 
 tries ; and, whatever their origin, as having had their 
 nationality extinguished in that general process which has 
 been found to level every distinction of race in our country. 
 The antiquary and philologist, in their respective pursuits, 
 found also a sphere which they were unlikely to leave unex¬ 
 plored, considering that they are often so untiring in their 
 researches in such matters as sometimes to draw upon them¬ 
 selves a smile from the rest of mankind : and while the 
 latter was thinking that he had exhausted the languages of 
 his native land, and was contemplating others elsewhere, he 
 struck accidentally upon a mine under his feet, and at once 
 turned up a specimen of virgin ore; coming all the more 
 acceptably to him, from those in possession of it keeping it 
 as secret as if their existence depended on its being con¬ 
 cealed from others around them. All, indeed, but especially 
 those brought up in rural places, knew from childhood more 
 or less of the Gipsies, and dreaded them by day or night, 
 in frequented or in lonely places, knowing well that, if 
 insulted, they would threaten vengeance, if they could not 
 execute it then ; which they in no way doubted, with the 
 terror of doomed men. 
 
 Among others, I felt interested in the subject, from having 
 been brought up in the pastoral district of Tweed-dale, the 
 resort of many Gipsies, who were treated with great favour 
 by the inhabitants, for many reasons, the most important 
 of which were the desire of securing their good-will, for 
 their own benefit, and the use which they were to them in 
 selling them articles in request, and the various mechanical 
 turns which they possessed; and often from the natural 
 generosity of people so circumstanced. My curiosity was 
 excited, and having various sources of information at com¬ 
 mand, I proceeded to write a few short articles for Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine, which were well received, as the follow¬ 
 ing letters from Mr. William Blackwood will show : 
 
 “ I now send a proof of No. 2 Gipsy article. I hope you 
 are pleased, and will return it with your corrections on 
 Monday or Tuesday. We shall be glad to hear you are 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 57 
 
 going on with the continuation, for I assure you your former 
 article has been as popular as anything almost we ever had 
 in the magazine.’' 
 
 Again, 
 
 “ Your magazine was sent this morning by the coach, but 
 I had not time to write you last night. Mr. Walter Scott 
 is quite delighted with the Gipsies.” 
 
 Again, 
 
 “ I am this moment favoured with your interesting packet. 
 Your Gipsies, from the slight glance I have given them, 
 seem to be as amusing as ever.” 
 
 And again, 
 
 “ It was not in my power to get your number sent off. It 
 is a very interesting one. You will be much pleased with 
 Mr. Scott’s little article on Buckhaven, in which he pays 
 you some very just compliments.”* 
 
 At the same time I was much encouraged, by the author 
 of Guy Mannering, to prosecute my enquiries, by receiving 
 several communications from him, and conversing with him 
 at Abbotsford, on the subject. 
 
 * The following is the article alluded to: “The following enquiries are 
 addressed to the author of the Gipsies in Fife, being suggested by the re¬ 
 search and industry which he has displayed in collecting memorials of that 
 vagrant race. They relate to a class of persons who, distinguished for 
 honest industry in a laborious and dangerous calling, have only this in 
 common with the Egyptian tribes, that they are not originally native of the 
 country which they inhabit, and are supposed still to exhibit traces of a 
 
 foreign origin.I mean the colony of fishermen in the village of 
 
 Buckhaven, in Fife. 
 
 “ I make no apology to your respectable correspondent for engaging him 
 in so troublesome a research. The local antiquary, of all others, ought, in 
 the zeal of his calling, to feel the force of what Spencer wrote and Burke 
 quoted: ‘ Love esteems no office mean .’— 1 Entire affection scorneth nicer 
 hands.’ The curious collector who seeks for ancient reliques among the 
 ruins of ancient Borne, often pays for permission to trench or dig over 
 some particular piece of ground, in hopes to discover some remnant of 
 antiquity. Sometimes he gets only his labour, and the ridicule of hav¬ 
 ing wasted it, to pay for his pains; sometimes he finds but old bricks 
 and shattered pot-sherds ; but sometimes also his toil is rewarded by a 
 valuable medal, cameo, bronze, or statue. And upon the same principle it 
 is, by investigating and comparing popular customs, often trivial and fool¬ 
 ish in themselves, that we often arrive at the means of establishing curious 
 and material facts in history.” 
 
 This extract is given for the benefit of the latter part of it, w'hich applies 
 admirably to the present subject; yet falls as much short of it as the 
 interest in the history of an Egyptian mummy falls short of that of a living 
 and universally scattered race, that appears a riddle to our comprehension. 
 
 3 * 
 
58 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 I received a letter from Sir Walter, in which he says : 
 
 “This letter has been by me many weeks, waiting for a 
 frank, and besides, our mutual friend, Mr. Laidlaw. under 
 whose charge my agricultural operations are now proceeding 
 in great style, gave me some hope of seeing you in this 
 part of the country. I should like much to have asked you 
 some questions about the Gipsies, and particularly that great 
 mystery—their language. I cannot determine, in my own 
 mind, whether it is likely to prove really a corrupt eastern 
 dialect, or whether it has degenerated into mere jargon.” 
 
 About the same time I received the following letter from 
 Mr. William Laidlaw, the particular friend of Sir Walter 
 Scott, and manager of his estate at Abbotsford, as men¬ 
 tioned in the foregoing letter ; the author of “ Lucy’s Flittin,” 
 and a contributor to Blackwood : 
 
 “ I was very seriously disappointed at not seeing you 
 when you were in this (part of the) country, and so was no 
 less a person than the mighty minstrel himself. He charged 
 me to let him know whenever you arrived, for he was very 
 anxious to see you. What would it be to you to take the 
 coach, and three days before you, and again see your father 
 and mother, come here on an evening, and call on Mr. Scott 
 next day? We would then get you full information upon 
 the science of defence in all its departments. Quarterstaff 
 is now little practised ; but it was a sort of legerdemain 
 way of fighting that I never had mucMe broo of, although I 
 know somewhat of the method. It was a most unfortunate 
 and stupid trick of the man to blow you up with your kittle 
 acquaintances. I hope they will forgive and forget. I am 
 very much interested about the language (Gipsy). Mr. 
 Scott has repeatedly said, that whatever you hear or see, you 
 should never let on to naebody, no doubt excepting himself. 
 Be sure and come well provided with specimens of the 
 vocables, as lie says he might perhaps have it in his power 
 to assist you in your enquiries.” 
 
 Shortly after this, Sir Walter wrote me as follows : 
 
 “ The inclosed letter has long been written. I only now 
 send it to show that I have not been ungrateful, though late 
 in expressing my thanks. The progress you have been able 
 to make in the Gipsy language is most extremely interesting. 
 My acquaintance with most European languages, and with 
 slang words and expressions, enables me to say positively, 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 59 
 
 that the Gippy words you have collected have no reference 
 to either, with the exception of three or four.* I have 
 little doubt, from the sound and appearance, that they are 
 Oriental, probably Hindostanee. When I go to Edinburgh, 
 I shall endeavour to find a copy of Grellinann, to compare 
 the language of the German Gipsies with that of the Scot¬ 
 tish tribes. As you have already done so much, I pray you 
 to proceed in your enquiries, but by no means to make any¬ 
 thing public, as it might spread a premature alarm, and 
 obstruct your future enquiries. It would be important 
 to get the same words from different individuals ; and in 
 order to verify the collection, I would recommend you to 
 set down the names of the persons by whom they were com¬ 
 municated. It would be important to know whether they 
 have a real language, with the usual parts of speech, or 
 whether they have a collection of nouns, combined by our own 
 language. I suspect the former to be the case, from the 
 specimens I have had. I should like much to see the article 
 you proposed for the magazine. I am not squeamish about 
 delicacies, where knowledge is to be sifted out and acquired. 
 I like Ebony’st idea of a history of the Gipsies very much, 
 and I wish you would undertake it. I gave all my scraps 
 to the magazine at its commencement, but I think myself 
 entitled to say that you are welcome to the use of them, 
 should you choose to incorporate them into such a work. 
 Do not be in too great a hurry, but get as many materials 
 as you can.”:]: 
 
 And again as follows : 
 
 “An authentic list of Gipsy words, as used in Scotland, 
 especially if in such numbers as may afford any reasonable 
 
 * I sent him a specimen of forty-six words. [Many words used in Scot¬ 
 land, in every day life, are evidently derived from the Gipsy, owing, doubt¬ 
 less, to the singularity of the people who have used them, or the happy 
 peculiarity of circumstances under which they have been uttered; the 
 original cause of such passing current in a language, no less than that 
 degree of personal authority which sometimes occasions them to be adopted. 
 Randy, a disreputable word for a bold, scolding, and not over nicely worded 
 woman, is evidently derived from the Gipsy raunie, the chief of a tribe of 
 viragos; so that the exceptions spoken of are as likely to have been derived 
 from the Gipsy as vice versa. —Ei>. ] 
 
 f The name by which Mr. Blackwood was known in the celebrated 
 Chaldee manuscript, published in his magazine. 
 
 t Previous to this, Mr. Blackwood wrote me as follows: “ I received 
 yo'ir packet some days ago, and immediately gave it to the editor. He 
 
60 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 or probable conjecture as to the structure of the language, 
 is a desideratum in Scottish literature -which -would be very 
 acceptable to the philologist, as well as an addition to gen¬ 
 eral history. I am not aware that any such exists, though 
 there is a German publication on the subject, which it would 
 be very necessary to consult.* That the language exists, I 
 have no doubt, though I should rather think the number to 
 which it is known is somewhat exaggerated. I need not 
 point out to you the difference between the cant language, 
 or slang, used by thieves or flash men in general, and the 
 peculiar dialect said to be spoken by the Gipsies.t The 
 difference ought to be very carefully noticed, to ascertain 
 what sort of language they exactly talk ; whether it is an 
 original tongue, having its own mode of construction, or a 
 speech made up of cant expressions, having an English or 
 Scotch ground-work, and only patched up so as to be unin¬ 
 telligible to the common hearer. There is nothing else 
 occurs to me by which I can be of service to your enquiry. 
 My own opinion leads me to think that the Gipsies have a 
 distinct and proper language, but I do not consider it is 
 extensive enough to form any settled conclusion. If there 
 occur any facts which I can be supposed to know, on which 
 you desire information, I will be willing to give them, in 
 illustration of so curious an enquiry. I have found them, in 
 general, civil and amenable to reason ; I must, nevertheless, 
 add that they are vindictive, and that, as the knowledge 
 of their language is the secret which their habits and igno¬ 
 rance make them tenacious of, I think your researches, 
 unless conducted with great prudence, may possibly expose 
 you to personal danger. For the same reason, you ought 
 to complete all the information you can collect, before 
 alarming them by a premature publication, as, after you 
 
 desires me to say that your No. 5, though very curious, would not answer, 
 from the nature of the details, to be printed in the magazine. In a regular 
 history of the Gipsies, they would, of course, find a place.’’ This was what 
 suggested the idea of the present work. 
 
 * Grellmann. I am not aware that he ever compared the words I sent 
 him with those in this publication, as he wrote he would do, in the pre¬ 
 vious letter quoted. 
 
 f Throughout the whole of his works there does not appear, I believe, a 
 single word of the proper Scottish Gipsy; although slang and cant expres¬ 
 sions are to be found in considerable numbers. [Some of these are of 
 Gipsy extraction.—E d.] 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 61 
 
 have published, there will be great obstructions to future 
 communications on the subject.” 
 
 From what has been said, it will be seen that the follow¬ 
 ing investigation has had quite a different object than a 
 description of the manners and habits of the common vagrants 
 of the country ; for no possible entertainment could have 
 been derived from such an undignified undertaking. And 
 yet many of our youth, although otherwise well informed, 
 have never made this distinction ; owing, no doubt, to the 
 cncreased attention which those in power have, in late years, 
 bestowed on the internal affairs of the country, and the 
 unseen, but no less surely felt, pressure of the advance¬ 
 ment of the general mass, and especially of the lower classes 
 of the community, forcing many of these people into posi¬ 
 tions beyond the observation of those unacquainted with 
 their language and traits of character. When it is, there¬ 
 fore, considered, that the body treated of, is originally an 
 exotic, comprising, I am satisfied, no less than five thousand 
 souls in Scotland* speaking an original and peculiar lan¬ 
 guage, which is mysteriously used among themselves with 
 great secrecy, and differing so widely from the ordinary na¬ 
 tives of the soil, it may well claim some little portion of public 
 attention. A further importance attaches to the subject, 
 when it is considered that a proportionate number is to be 
 found in the other divisions of the British Isles, and large 
 hordes in all parts of Europe, and more or less in every 
 other part of the world ; in all places speaking the same 
 language, with only a slight difference in dialect, and mani¬ 
 festing the same peculiarities. In using the language of Dr. 
 Bright, it may be said, that the circumstance is the most 
 singular phenomenon in the history of man ; much more 
 striking, indeed, than that of the Jews. For the Jews have 
 been favoured with the most splendid antecedents ; a com¬ 
 mon parentage ; a common history ; a special and exclusive 
 revelation ; a deeply rooted religious prejudice, and anti¬ 
 pathy ; a common persecution ; and whatever might appear 
 necessary to preserve their identity in the world, excepting 
 an isolated territorial and political existence.! The Gipsies, 
 
 * There cannot be less than 100,000 Gipsies in Scotland. See Disquisi¬ 
 tion on the Gipsies. —Ed. 
 
 f The following is a description of the Jews, throughout the world, as 
 given by them, in their letters to Voltaire: “ A Jew in London bears as 
 
62 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 on the other hand, have had none of these advantages. But 
 it is certain that the leaders of their hands, in addition to 
 their piteous representations, must have had something strik¬ 
 ing about them, to recommend them to the favourable notice 
 which they seem to have met with, at the hands of some of 
 the sovereigns of Europe, when they made their appearance 
 there, and spread over its surface. Still, their assumptions 
 might, and in all probability did, rest merely upon an amount 
 of general superiority of character, of a particular kind, 
 without even the first elements of education, which in that 
 age would amount to something ; a leading feature of cha¬ 
 racter which their chiefs have ever since maintained ; and 
 yet, although everything has been left by them to tradition, 
 the Gipsies speak their language much better than the Jews. 
 
 Gipsies and Jews have many things in common. They 
 are both strangers and sojourners, in a sense, wherever they 
 are to be found ; “ dwelling in tents,” the one literally, the 
 other figuratively. They have each undergone many bloody 
 persecutions ; the one for his stubborn blindness to the ad¬ 
 vent of the Messiah, the other for being a heathen, and 
 worse than a heathen—for being nothing at all, but linked 
 with the evil one, in all manner of witchcraft and sin. 
 Each race has had many crimes brought against it; the 
 Gipsy, those of a positive, and the Jew, those of a con¬ 
 structive and arbitrary nature. But in these respects they 
 differ: the Jew has been known and famed for doing almost 
 anything for money; and the Gipsy for the mere gratifica¬ 
 tion of his most innate nature—that of appropriating to 
 himself, when he needs it, that which is claimed by any out 
 of the circle of his consanguinity. The one’s soul is given 
 to accumulating, and, if it is in his power, he becomes rich ; 
 the other more commonly aims at securing what meets his 
 ordinary wants, and, perhaps, some little thing additional; 
 
 little resemblance to a Jew at Constantinople, as this last resembles a 
 Chinese Mandarin ! A Portuguese Jew, of Bordeaux, and a German Jew, 
 of Metz, appear two beings of a different nature ! It is, therefore, impos¬ 
 sible to speak of the manners of the Jews in general, without entering into a 
 very long detail, and into particular distinctions. The Jew is a chamelion, 
 that assumes all the colours of the different climates he inhabits, of the 
 different people he frequents, and of the different governments under which 
 he lives.” 
 
 These words are much more applicable to the Gipsy tribe, in consequence 
 of their drawing into their body the blood of other people.—E d. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 63 
 
 or, if be prove otherwise, he liberally spends what he ac¬ 
 quires. The Gipsy is humane to a stranger, when he has 
 been rightly appealed to; but when that circumstance is 
 wanting, he will never hesitate to rob him, unless when he 
 stands indebted to him, or, it may be, his immediate relations, 
 for previous acts of kindness. To indulge his hatred to¬ 
 wards an enemy, a Jew will oppress him, if lie is his debtor, 
 “ exacting his bond or if he is not his debtor, he will often 
 endeavour to get him to become such, with the same motive ; 
 or it may be, if his enemy stands in need of accommodation, 
 he will not supply his wants ; at other times, if he is poor, 
 he will ostentatiously make a display of his wealth, to spite 
 him ; and, in carrying out his vengeance, will sometimes dis¬ 
 play the malignity, barring, perhaps, the shedding of blood, 
 of almost every other race combined. In such a case, a 
 Gipsy will rob, burn, maltreat, maim, carry off a child, and 
 sometimes murder, but not often the two last at the pre¬ 
 sent day.* The two races are to be found side by side, in 
 countries characterized by almost every degree of climate 
 and stage of civilization, each displaying its peculiar type of 
 feature, but differing in this respect, that the Gipsies read¬ 
 ily adopt others into their tribe, at such a tender age as to 
 secure an infallible attachment to their race and habits. 
 This circumstance has produced, in many instances, a change 
 in the colour of the hair and eyes of the descendants of 
 those adopted. In some such cases, it requires an intimate 
 knowledge of the body, to detect the peculiarity common to 
 all, and especially in those who have conformed to the ways 
 of the other inhabitants. In this they agree—that they des¬ 
 pise and hate, and arc despised and hated by, those among 
 whom they live. But in this they differ—that the Jew en¬ 
 tered Europe, as it were, singly and by stealth, pursuing 
 pretty much the avocations he yet follows ; but the Gipsies, 
 in bands, and openly, although they were forced to betake 
 themselves to places of retreat, and break up into smaller 
 bands. It is true that the Jew was driven from his home 
 eighteen centuries ago, and that it is not yet five since the 
 Gipsy appeared in Europe. We know who the Jew is, and 
 something of the providence and circumstances under which 
 he suffers, and what future awaits him ; but who is this sin- 
 
 * This, I need hardly say, is a description of what may be called a wild 
 Gipsy. —Ed. 
 
64 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 gular and unfortunate exile, whose origin and cause of ban¬ 
 ishment none can comprehend—who is this wandering Gipsy ? 
 
 After the receipt of the second of Sir Walter Scott’s 
 letters, already alluded to, I discontinued the few short arti¬ 
 cles I had written for Blackwood, on the Fifeshire Gipsies ; 
 but I have incorporated the most interesting part of them 
 into the work, forming, however, only a small part of the 
 whole. Since it was written, I have seen Mr. Borrow on 
 the Gipsies in Spain, and the short report of the Rev. Mr. 
 Baird, to the Scottish Church Society ; the latter printed in 
 1840, and the former in 1841. The Gitanos in Spain and 
 the Tinklers in Scotland are, in almost every particular, the 
 same people, while the Yetholm Gipsy words in Mr. Baird’s 
 report and those collected by me, for the most part, between 
 the years 1817 and 1831, are word for word the same. 
 
 In submitting this work to the public, I deem it necessary 
 to say a word or two as to the authorities upon which the 
 facts contained in it rest. My authorities for those under 
 the heads of Fife and Linlithgowshire Gipsies, were aged and 
 creditable persons, who had been eye-witnesses to the greater 
 part of the transactions ; in some cases, the particulars were 
 quite current in their time. The details under the head of 
 Gipsies who frequented Tweed-dale, Ettrick Forest, Annan- 
 dale, and the upper ward of Lanarkshire, were chiefly de¬ 
 rived from the memories of some of my relatives, and other 
 individuals of credit, who had many opportunities of observ¬ 
 ing the manners of these wanderers, in the South of Scotland, 
 the greater number being confirmed by the Gipsies, on being 
 interrogated. The particulars under the head of the cere¬ 
 monies of marriage and divorce, and the sacrifice of horses, 
 were related by Gipsies, and confirmed by other undoubted 
 testimony, as will appear in detail. Almost every recent 
 occurrence and matter relative to the present condition, 
 employment, and number of the body, is the result of my own 
 personal enquiries and observations, while the whole speci¬ 
 mens of the language, and the facts immediately connected 
 therewith, were written down, with my own hand, from the 
 mouths of the Gipsies themselves, and confirmed, at intervals, 
 by others. Indeed, my chief object has been to produce facts 
 from an original source, in Scotland, as far as respects man¬ 
 ners, customs, and language, for the purpose of ascertaining 
 the origin of this mysterious race, and the country from 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 65 
 
 which they have migrated ; and the result, to my mind, is a 
 complete confirmation of Grellmann, Hoyland, and Bright, 
 that they are from Hindostan. 
 
 In writing the history of any barbarous race, if history it 
 can be called, the field for our observation must necessarily 
 be very limited. This may especially be said of a people 
 like the Gipsies ; for, having, as a people, neither literature, 
 records, nor education,* all that can be drawn together of 
 their history, from themselves, must be confined to that of 
 the present, or of such time as the freshness of their tradi¬ 
 tion may suffice to illustrate ; unless it be a few precarious 
 notices of them, that may have been elicited from their having 
 come, it may be, in violent contact with their civilized neigh¬ 
 bours around them. In attempting such a work, in connection 
 with so singular a people, the difficulties in the way of suc¬ 
 ceeding in it are extraordinarily great, as the reader may 
 have perceived, from what has already been written, and as 
 the “ blowing up,” alluded to in Mr. Laidlaw’s letter, will 
 illustrate, and which was as follows : 
 
 I had obtained some of the Gipsy language from a prin¬ 
 cipal family of the tribe, on condition of not publishing 
 names, or place of residence ; and, at many miles’distance, I 
 had also obtained some particulars relative to the customs 
 and manners of the race, from a highly respectable farmer, 
 in the south of Scotland. At his farm, the family alluded 
 to always took up their quarters, in their periodical journeys 
 through the country. The farmer, without ever thinking of 
 the consequences, told them that I was collecting materials 
 for a publication on the Tinklers, in Scotland, and that every¬ 
 thing relative to their tribe would be given to the world. 
 The aged chief of the family was thrown into the greatest 
 distress, at the idea of the name and residence of himself 
 and family being made public. I received a letter from the 
 family, deeply lamenting that they had ever communicated a 
 word to me relative to their language, and stating that the old 
 man was like to break his heart, at his own imprudence, being 
 in agony at the thought of his language being published to the 
 world. I assured them, however, that they had no cause for 
 fear, as I had never so much as mentioned their names to 
 
 * There are, comparatively speaking, few Gipsies in Scotland that have 
 not some education, in common with the ordinary natives of the soil; but 
 the same cannot be said of England.—E d. 
 
66 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 their friend, the farmer, and that I would strictly adhere to 
 the promise I had given them. This was one of the many 
 instances in which 1 was obstructed in my labours, for, how¬ 
 ever cautious I might personally be, others, who became in 
 some way or other acquainted with my object, were, from 
 inconsiderate meddling, the cause of many difficulties being 
 thrown in my way, and the consequent loss of much interest¬ 
 ing information. But for this unfortunate circumstance, I 
 am sanguine, from the method I took in managing the Gip¬ 
 sies, 1 would have been able to collect songs, and sentences 
 of their language, and much more information than what 
 has been procured, at whatever value the reader may es¬ 
 timate that; for the Gipsies are always more or less in com¬ 
 munication with each other, in their various divisions of the 
 country, especially when threatened with anything deemed 
 dangerous, which they circulate among themselves with as¬ 
 tonishing celerity. 
 
 Professor Wilson, in a poetical notice of Blackwood’s 
 Magazine, writes : 
 
 “ Few things more sweetly vary civil life 
 Than a barbarian, savage Tinkler tale; 
 
 Our friend, who on the Gipsies writes in Fife, 
 
 We verily believe promotes our sale.” 
 
 And, in revising his works, in 1831, Sir Walter Scott, in a 
 note to Quentin Durward, says, relative to the present work : 
 
 “ It is natural to suppose, the band, (Gipsy), as it now 
 exists, is much mingled with Europeans ; but most of these 
 have been brought up from childhood among them, and 
 learned all their practices. . . . When they are in 
 
 closest contact with the ordinary peasants around them, they 
 still keep their language a mystery. There is little doubt, 
 however, that it is a dialect of the Hindostanee, from the 
 specimens produced by Grellmann, Hoyland, and others who 
 have written on the subject. But the author, (continues Sir 
 Walter,) has, besides their authority, personal occasion to 
 know, that an individual, out of mere curiosity, and availing 
 himself, with patience and assiduity, of such opportunities as 
 offered, has made himself capable of conversing with any 
 Gipsy whom he meets, or can, like the royal Hal, drink 
 with any tinker, in his own language.* The astonishment 
 
 * Allowance must be made for the enthusiasm of the novelist. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 67 
 
 excited among these vagrants, on finding a stranger parti¬ 
 cipant of their mystery, occasions very ludicrous scenes. It 
 is to be hoped this gentleman will publish the knowledge he 
 possesses on so singular a topic. There are prudential 
 reasons for postponing this disclosure at present, for, al¬ 
 though much more reconciled to society since they have 
 been less the objects of legal persecution, the Gipsies are 
 still a ferocious and vindictive people.”* 
 
 * Abbotsford, 1st Dec., 1831. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 Before giving an account of the Gipsies in Scotland, I 
 shall, by way of introduction, briefly notice the periods of 
 time at which they were observed in the different states on 
 the continent of Europe, and point out the different periods 
 at which their governments found it necessary to expel them 
 from their respective territories. I shall also add a few 
 facts illustrative of the manners of the continental tribes, for 
 the purpose of showing that those in Scotland, England, and 
 Ireland, are all branches of the same stock. I shall, like¬ 
 wise, add a few facts illustrative of the tribe who found 
 their way into England. I am indebted for my information 
 on the early history of the continental Gipsies, chiefly to 
 the works of Grellmann, Hoyland and Bright. 
 
 It appears that none of these- wanderers had been seen in 
 Christendom before the year 140©-* But, in the beginning 
 of the fifteenth century, this people first attracted notice, 
 and, within a few years after their arrival, had spread them¬ 
 selves over the whole continent. The earliest mention 
 which is made of them, was in the years 1414 and 1417, 
 when they were observed in Germany. In 1418, they were 
 found in Switzerland ; in 1422, in Italy ; in 1427, they are 
 mentioned as being in the neighbourhood of Paris ; and 
 about the same time, in Spain.t 
 
 They seem to have received various appellations. In 
 France, they were called Bohemians ; in Holland, Heydens 
 —heathens ; in some parts of Germany, and in Sweden and 
 Denmark, they were thought to be Tartars ; but over Ger¬ 
 many, in general, they were called Zigeuners, a word which 
 means wanderers up and down. In Portugal, they received 
 
 * Sir Thomas Brown’s vulgar errors, f Bright’s travels in Hungary. 
 
 (69) 
 
70 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the name of Siganos ; in Spain, Gitanos ; and in Italy, Cin- 
 gari. They were also called in Italy, Hungary, and Ger¬ 
 many, Tziganys; and in Transylvania, Cyganis. Among 
 the Turks, and other eastern nations, they were denominated 
 Tschingenes ; but the Moors and Arabians applied to them, 
 perhaps, the most just appellation of any— Charami, rob¬ 
 bers.* 
 
 “ When they arrived at Paris, 17tli August, 1427, nearly 
 all of them had their ears bored, with one or two silver rings 
 in each, which, they said, were esteemed ornaments in their 
 country. The men were black, their hair curled ; the wo¬ 
 men remarkably black, and all their faces scarred.”!' Dr. 
 Hurd, in his account of the different religions of the world, 
 says, that the hair of these men was “ frizzled,” and that 
 some of the women were witches, and “ had hair like a 
 horse’s tail.” It is, I think, to be inferred from this passage, 
 that the men had designedly curled their hair, and that the 
 hair of the females was long and coarse—not the short, woolly 
 hair of the African. I have, myself, seen English female 
 Gipsies with hair as long, coarse, and thick as a black 
 horse’s tail. 
 
 “ At the time of the first appearance of the Gipsies, no 
 certain information seems to have been obtained as to the 
 country from which they came. It is, however, supposed 
 that they entered Europe in the south-east, probably through 
 Transylvania. At first, they represented themselves as 
 Egyptian pilgrims, and, under that character, obtained con¬ 
 siderable respect during half a century ; being favoured by 
 different potentates with passports, and letters of security. 
 Gradually, however, they really became, or were fancied, 
 troublesome, and Italy, Sweden, Denmark and Germany, 
 successively attempted their expulsion, in the sixteenth cen¬ 
 tury.”!; 
 
 With the exception of Hungary and Transylvania, it is 
 believed that every state in Europe attempted either their 
 expulsion or extermination ; but, notwithstanding the dread¬ 
 ful severity of the numerous laws and edicts promulgated 
 against them, they remained in every part of Europe, in 
 defiance of every effort made by their respective govern¬ 
 ments to get rid of their unwelcome guests. 
 
 Hoyland’8 historical survey of the Gipsies, f Ibid, f Bright. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 71 
 
 “ German writers say that King Ferdinand of Spain, who 
 esteemed it a good work to expatriate useful and profitable 
 subjects—Jews, and even Moorish families—could much less 
 be guilty of an impropriety, in laying hands on the mischiev¬ 
 ous progeny of Gipsies. The edict for their extermination 
 was published in the year 1492. But, instead of passing the 
 boundaries, they only slunk into hiding places, and shortly 
 after appeared in as great numbers as before. The Emperor, 
 Charles Y, persecuted them afresh ; as did Philip II. Since 
 that time, they nestled in again, and were threatened with 
 another storm, but it blew over without taking effect. 
 
 “ In France, Francis I passed an edict for their expul¬ 
 sion, and at the assembly of the states of Orleans, in 1561, 
 all governors of cities received orders to drive them out 
 with fire and sword. Nevertheless, in process of time, they 
 collected again, and encreased to such a degree that, in 1612, 
 a new order came out for their extermination. In the year 
 1572, they were compelled to retire from the territories of 
 Milan and Parma ; and, at a period somewhat earlier, they 
 were chased beyond the Venetian jurisdiction. 
 
 “ They were not allowed the privilege of remaining in 
 Denmark, as the code of Danish law specifies : 1 The Tartar 
 Gipsies, who wander about everywhere, doing great damage 
 to the people, by their lies, thefts and witchcraft, shall bo 
 taken into custody by every magistrate.’ Sweden was not 
 more favourable, having attacked them at three different 
 times. A very sharp order for their expulsion came out in 
 1662. The diet of 1723 published a second ; and that of 
 1727 repeated the foregoing, with additional severity. 
 
 “They were excluded from the Netherlands, under the 
 pain of death, by Charles Y, and afterwards, by the United 
 States, in 1582. But the greatest number of sentences of 
 exile have been pronounced against them in Germany. The 
 beginning was made under Maximilian I, at the Augsburg 
 Diet-in 1500 ; and the same business occupied the attention 
 of the Diet in 1530, 1544, 1548, and 1551 ; and was also 
 again enforced, in the improved police regulations of Frank¬ 
 fort, in 1577.”* The Germans entertained the notion that 
 the Gipsies were spies for the Turks. They were not allowed 
 to pass through, remain, or trade within the Empire. They 
 were ordered to quit entirely the German dominions, by a 
 * Hoy land. 
 
72 
 
 A HIST GUY OF TUB GIPSIES. 
 
 certain day, and whoever injured them, after that period, was 
 considered to have committed no crime. 
 
 “ But a general extermination never did happen, for the 
 law banishing them passed in one state before it was 
 thought of in the next, or when a like order had long become 
 obsolete, and sunk into oblivion. These undesirable guests 
 were, therefore, merely compelled to shift their quarters to 
 an adjoining state, where they remained till the government 
 began to clear them away, upon which the fugitives either 
 retired whence they came, or went on progressively to a 
 third place—thus making a continual circle.”* 
 
 That almost the whole of Christendom had been so pro¬ 
 voked by the conduct of the Gipsies as to have attempted 
 their expulsion, or rather their extermination, merely because 
 they were jugglers, fortune-tellers, astrologers, warlocks, 
 witches and impostors, is a thing not for a moment to be 
 supposed. I am inclined to believe that the true cause of 
 the promulgation of the excessively sanguinary laws and 
 edicts, for the extermination of the whole Gipsy nation in 
 Europe, must be looked for in much more serious crimes 
 than those mentioned ; and that these greater offences can 
 be no other than theft and robbery, and living upon the 
 inhabitants of the countries through which they travelled, 
 at free quarters, or what we, in Scotland, call sorning.t 
 But, on the other hand, I am convinced that the Gipsies 
 have committed few murders on individuals out of their own 
 tribe. As far as our authorities go, the general character 
 of these people seems to have been the same, wherever they 
 have made their appearance on the face of the earth ; and 
 the chief and leading feature of that extraordinary charac¬ 
 ter appears to me to have been, in general, an hereditary 
 propensity to theft and robbery, in men, women and children. 
 
 In whatever country we find the Gipsies, their manners, 
 habits, and cast of features are uniformly the same. Their 
 occupations are in every respect the same. They were, on 
 
 * Grellraann. 
 
 I Dr. Hurd says, at page 785, “Our over credulous ancestors vainly im¬ 
 agined that those Gipsies or Bohemians were so many spies for the Turks; 
 and that, in order to expiate the crimes which they had committed in their 
 own country, they were condemned to steal from and rob the Christians.” 
 
 [Living at free quarters by force, or masterful begging, or “ sorning,” is 
 surely a trifling, though troublesome, offence for tbe original condition of 
 a wandering tribe, which has so progressed as, at the present day, to fill 
 some of the first positions in Scotland.— Ed.] 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 73 
 
 L 
 
 the continent, horse-dealers, innkeepers, workers in iron, 
 musicians, astrologers, jugglers, and fortune-tellers by palm¬ 
 istry. They arc also accused of cheating, lying, and witch¬ 
 craft, and, in general, charged with being thieves and rob¬ 
 bers. They roam up and down the country, without any 
 fixed habitations, living in tents, and hawking small trifles 
 of merchandise for the use of the people among whom they 
 travel. The whole race were great frequenters of fairs. 
 They seldom formed matrimonial alliances out of their own 
 tribe.* It will be seen, in another part of this work, that 
 the language of the continental Gipsies is the same as that 
 of those in Scotland, England and Ireland. As to the 
 religious opinions of the continental Gipsies, they appear to 
 have had none at all. It is said they were “ worse thatT 
 heathens.” “It is, in reality,” says Twiss, “almost absurd 
 to talk of the religion of this set of people, whose moral 
 characters are so depraved as to make it evident they be¬ 
 lieve in nothing capable of being a check to their passions.” 
 “Indeed,” adds Hoyland, “it is asserted that no Gipsy has 
 any idea of submission to any fixed profession of faith.” It 
 appears to me that, to secure to themselves protection from 
 the different governments, they only conformed outwardly 
 to the customs and religion of the country in which they 
 happened to reside at the time. 
 
 Cantemir, according to Grellmann, says that the Gipsies 
 are dispersed all over Moldavia, where every baron has 
 several families subject to him. In Wallachia and the 
 Sclavonian countries they arc quite as numerous. In Wal¬ 
 lachia and Moldavia they are divided into two classes—the 
 princely and boyardish. The former, according to Sulzer, 
 amount to many thousands ; but that is tr.iflng in comparison 
 witli the latter, as there is not a single Boyard in Wallachia 
 who has not at least three or four of them for slaves ; the 
 rich have often some hundreds under their command.! Grell- 
 
 * Iloyland. 
 
 t In the narrative of the Scottish Church Mission of Enquiry to the 
 Jews, in 18:■>9, are to be found the following remarks relative to the Gipsies 
 of Wallachia: 
 
 “ They are almost all slaves, bought and sold at pleasure. One was 
 lately sold for 200 piastres, but the general price is BOO. Perhaps £3 is 
 the average price, and the female Gipsies are sold much cheaper. The sale 
 is generally carried on by private bargain. '1 he men are the best me¬ 
 chanics in the country; so that smiths and masons are taken from this 
 class. The women are considered the best cooks, and therefore almost 
 
 4 
 
74 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 maun divides those in Transylvania into four classes : 1st, 
 city Gipsies, who arc the most civilized of all, and maintain 
 themselves by music, smith-work, selling old clothes, horse¬ 
 dealing, &c.; 2d. gold-washers ; 3d. tent Gipsies ; and 4th. 
 Egyptian Gipsies. These last are more filthy, and more 
 addicted to stealing than any of the others. Those who 
 are gold-washers, in Transylvania and the Banat, have no 
 intercourse with others of their nation ; nor do they like to 
 be called Gipsies. They sift gold sand in summer, and in 
 winter make trays and troughs, which they sell in an honest 
 way. They seldom beg, and more rarely steal. Dr. Clarke 
 says of the Wallachian Gipsies, that they are not an idle 
 race; they ought rather to be described as a laborious 
 race ; and the majority honestly endeavour to earn a liveli¬ 
 hood. 
 
 every wealthy family lias a Gipsy cook. Their appearance is similar to 
 that of the Gipsies in other countries; being all dark, with fine black eyes, 
 and long black hair. They have a language peculiar to themselves, and 
 though they seem to have no system of religion, yet are very superstitious 
 in observing lucky and unlucky days. They are all fond of music, both 
 vocal and instrumental, and excel in it. There is a class of them called the 
 Turkish Gipsies, who have purchased their freedom from government; but 
 these are few in nnml er, and all from Turkey. Of these latter, there are 
 twelve families in Galatz. The men are employed as horse-dealers, and the 
 women in making bags, sacks, and such articles. In winter, they live in 
 town, almost under ground; but in summer, they pitch their tents in the 
 open air, for, though still within the bounds of the town, they would not 
 live in their winter houses during summer.” 
 
 That these Gipsies should be in a state of slavery is, perhaps, a more 
 marked exception to their race than the Indians in Spanish America were 
 to those found in the territories colonized by the Anglo-Saxons. The Em¬ 
 press Maria Theresa could make nothing of the Gipsies in Hungary, where 
 they are said to be almost as little looked after as the wolves of the forest; 
 so that the slave'ry of the Gipsies in Wallachia must be of a very nominal 
 or mild nature, or the subjects of it must be far in excess of the demand, 
 if £3 is the average price of a good smith or mason, and less for a good 
 female cook. These Wallachian Gipsies evidently prefer a master whose 
 property they will consider as their own, and whose protection will relieve 
 them from the interference and oppression of others. A slavery that is 
 not absolute or oppressive must gratify the vanity of the owner, and be 
 easily borne by a race that is semi-civilized and despised by others 
 around it. 
 
 Since the conclusion of the Russian war, the manumission of the Gipsiea 
 of the Principalities was debated and carried by a majority of something 
 like thirteen against eleven ; but I am not aware of its having been put in 
 force. They are said to have been greatly attached to the late Sultana- 
 calling him the “good father,” for the interest bo took in them. As spies, 
 they rendered his generals efficient services, while contending with the 
 Russians on the Danube.—E d. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 75 
 
 “Bessarabia, all Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece, and Romania 
 swarm with Gipsies ; even in Constantinople they are innu¬ 
 merable. In Romania, a large tract of Mount Hminus, 
 which they inhabit, has acquired from them the name of 
 TschengJie Vallcen —Gipsy Mountain. This district extends 
 from the city of Aydos quite to Phillippopolis, and contains 
 more Gipsies than any other province in the Turkish 
 empire. 
 
 “ They were universally to be found in Italy, insomuch 
 that even Sicily and Sardinia were not free. But they were 
 most numerous in the dominions of the Church ; probably 
 because there was the worst police, with much superstition. 
 By the former, they were left undisturbed ; and the latter 
 enticed them to deceive the ignorant, as it afforded them an 
 opportunity of obtaining a plentiful contribution by their 
 fortune-telling and enchanted amulets. There was a general 
 law throughout Italy, that no Gipsy should remain more 
 than two nights in any one place. By this regulation, it is 
 true, no place retained its guests long ; but no sooner was 
 one gone than another came in his room : it was a continual 
 circle, and quite as convenient to them as a perfect tolera¬ 
 tion would have been. Italy rather suffered than benefited 
 by this law ; as, by keeping these people in constant motion, 
 they would do more mischief there, than in places where 
 they were permitted to remain stationary. 
 
 “In Poland and Lithuania, as well as in Courland, there 
 are an amazing number of Gipsies. A person may live many 
 years in Upper Saxony, or in the districts of Hanover and 
 Brunswick, without seeing a single Gipsy. When one 
 happens to stray into a village or town, lie occasions as 
 much disturbance as if the black gentleman with his cloven 
 foot appeared ; he frightens children from their play, and 
 draws the attention of the older people, till the police get 
 hold of him, and make him again invisible. In some of the 
 provinces of the Rhine, a Gipsy is a very common sight. 
 Some years ago, there were such numbers of them in the 
 Duchy of Wurtemberg, that they were seen lying about every¬ 
 where ; but the government ordered departments of soldiers 
 to drive them from their holes and lurking-places throughout 
 the country, and then transported the congregated swarm, 
 in the same manner as they were treated by the Duke of 
 Deuxponts. In France, before the Revolution, there were 
 
76 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 but few Gipsies, for the obvious reason that every Gipsy 
 who could be apprehended fell a sacrifice to the 
 police.”* 
 
 As regards the Gipsies of Spain, Dr. Bright remarks : 
 That the disposition of the Gitano is more inclined to a 
 fixed residence titan that of the Gipsy of other countries, is 
 beyond doubt. The generality are the settled inhabitants of 
 considerable towns, and, although the occupations of some 
 necessarily lead them to a more vagrant life, the proportion 
 is small who do not consider some hovel in a suburb as a 
 home. ‘ Money is in the city—not in the country,’ is a saying 
 frequently in their mouths. In the vilest quarters of every 
 large town of the southern provinces, there are Gitanos liv¬ 
 ing together, sometimes occupying whole barriers. But 
 Seville is, perhaps, the spot in which the largest proportion 
 is found. Their principal occupation is the manufacture 
 and sale of articles of iron. Their quarters may always be 
 traced by the ring of the hammer and anvil, and many amass 
 considerable wealth. An inferior class have the exclusive 
 trade in second-hand articles, which they sell at the doors 
 of their dwellings, or at benches at the entrance of towns, or 
 by the sides of frequented walks. A still inferior order 
 wander about, mending pots, and selling tongs and other 
 trifling articles. In Cadiz, they monopolize the trade of 
 butchering, and frequently amass wealth. Others, again, 
 exclusively fill the office of Matador of the Bull Plaza, while 
 the Tereros are for the most part of the same race. Others 
 are employed as dressers of mules and asses ; some as figure- 
 dancers, and many as performers in the theatre. Some gain 
 a livelihood by their musical talents. Dancing, singing, 
 music and fortune-telling are the only objects of general 
 pursuit for the females. Sometimes they dance in the infe¬ 
 rior theatres; and sing and dance in the streets. Palmistry 
 is one of their most productive avocations. In Seville, a 
 few make and sell an inferior kind of mat. Besides these, 
 there is a class of Gipsies in Spain who lead a vagrant life 
 
 * Grcllmann.—I would suppose that these severe edicts of the French 
 would drive the Hipsies to adopt the costume and manners of the other 
 inhabitants. In this way they would disappear from the public eye. The 
 officers of justice would of course direct their attention to what would be 
 understood to be Gipsies—that is tented Gipsies, or those who professed the 
 ways of Gipsies, such as fortune telling. 1 have met with a French Gipsy 
 in the streets of New York, engaged as a dealer in candy.— Ed. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 77 
 
 throughout—residing chiefly in the woods and mountains, 
 and known as mountaineers. These rarely visit towns, and 
 live by fraud and pillage. There are also others who wan¬ 
 der about the country—such as tinkers, dancers, singers, and 
 jobbers in asses and mules. 
 
 Bishop Pocoke, prior to 1745, mentions having met with 
 Gipsies in the northern part of Syria, where he found them 
 in great numbers, passing for Mahommedans, living in tents 
 or caravans, dealing in milch cows, when near towns, manu¬ 
 facturing coarse carpets, and having a much better character 
 than their relations in Hungary or England. By the census 
 of the Crimea, in 1793, the population was set down at 
 157,125, of which 3,225 were Gipsies. Bishop Heber states 
 that the Persian Gipsies are of much better caste, and much 
 richer than those of India, Russia or England. In India, he 
 says, the Gipsies are the same tall, fine-limbed, bony, slender 
 people, with the same large, black, brilliant eyes, lowering 
 forehead, and long hair, curled at the extremities, which are 
 to be met with on a common in England. He mentions, in 
 his journal of travels through Bengal, having met with a 
 Gipsy camp on the Ganges. The women and children fol¬ 
 lowed him, begging, and had no clothes on them, except a 
 coarse kind of veil, thrown back from the shoulders, and a 
 ragged cloth, wrapped round their waists, like a petticoat. 
 One of the women was very pretty, and the forms of all the 
 three were such as a sculptor would have been glad to take 
 as his models. 
 
 Besides those in Europe, it is stated by Grellmann that 
 the Gipsies are also scattered over Asia, and arc to be found 
 in the centre of Africa. In Europe alone, he supposes (in 
 1782), their number will amount to between seven and eight 
 hundred thousand. So numerous did they become in France, 
 that the king, in 1545, sixteen years before they were ex¬ 
 pelled from that kingdom, entertained an idea of embodying 
 four thousand of them, to act as pioneers in taking Boulogne, 
 then in possession of England. It is impossible to ascertain, 
 at the present day, how many Gipsies might be even in a 
 parish ; but, taking in the whole world, there must be an 
 immense number in existence. 
 
 About the time the Gipsies first appeared in Europe,'their 
 chiefs, under the titles of dukes, earls, lords, counts, and 
 knights of Little Egypt, rode up and down the country on 
 
78 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 horseback, dressed in gay apparel, and attended by a train 
 of ragged and miserable inferiors, having, also, hawks and 
 hounds in their retinue. It appears to me, that the excessive 
 vanity of these chiefs had induced them, in imitation of the 
 customs of civilized society, to assume these high-sounding 
 European titles of honour. I have not observed, on record, 
 any form of government, laws or customs, by which the in¬ 
 ternal affairs of the tribe, on the Continent, were regulated. 
 On tlicse important points, if I am not mistaken, all the au¬ 
 thors, with the exception of Grellmann, who have written 
 on the Gipsies, are silent. Grellmann says of the Hungarian 
 Gipsies : “ They still continue the custom among themselves 
 of dignifying certain persons, whom they make heads over 
 them, and call by the exalted Sclavonian title of Waywode. 
 To choose their Waywode, the Gipsies take the opportunity, 
 when a great number of them are assembled in one place, 
 commonly in the open field. The elected person is lifted up 
 three times, amidst the loudest acclamation, and confirmed 
 in his dignity by presents. His wife undergoes the same 
 ceremony. When this solemnity is performed, they separate 
 with great conceit, imagining themselves people of more 
 consequence than electors returning from the choice of an 
 emperor. Every one who is of a family descended from a 
 former Waywode is eligible ; but those who are best 
 clothed, not very poor, of large stature, and about the middle 
 age, have generally the preference. The particular distin¬ 
 guishing mark of dignity is a large whip, hanging over the 
 shoulder. His outward deportment, his walk and air, also 
 plainly show his head to be filled with notions of authority.” 
 According to the same authority, the Waywode of the Gip¬ 
 sies in Courland is distinguished from the principals of the 
 hordes in other countries, being not only much respected by 
 his own people, but even by the Courland nobility. He is 
 esteemed a man of high rank, and is frequently to be met 
 with at entertainments, and card parties, in the first families, 
 where he is always a welcome guest. His dress is uncom¬ 
 monly rich, in comparison with others of his tribe ; generally 
 silk in summer, and constantly velvet in winter. 
 
 As a specimen of the manners and ferocious disposition of 
 the German Gipsies, so late as the year 1726,1 shall here 
 transcribe a few extracts from an article published in Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine, for January, 1818. This interesting arti- 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 79 
 
 cle is partly an abridged translation, or rather the substance, 
 of a German work on the Gipsies, entitled “ A Circumstan¬ 
 tial Account of the Famous Egyptian Band of Thieves, and 
 Bobbers, and Murderers, whose Leaders were executed at 
 Giessen, by Cord, and Sword, and Wheel, on the 14th and 
 ]5tli November, 1726, Ac.” It is edited by Dr. John Ben¬ 
 jamin Wiessenburch, an assessor of the criminal tribunal by 
 which these malefactors were condemned, and published at 
 Frankfort and Leipsic, in the year 1727. The translator of 
 this work is Sir Walter Scott, who obligingly offered me the 
 use of his “ scraps” on this subject. The following are the 
 details in his own words . 
 
 “ A curious preliminary dissertation records some facts 
 respecting the German Gipsies, which are not uninteresting. 
 
 “From the authorities collected by Wiessenburch, it ap¬ 
 pears that these wanderers first appeared in Germany dur¬ 
 ing the reign of Sigismund. The exact year has been 
 disputed ; but it is generally placed betwixt 1416 and 1420. 
 They appeared in various bands, under chiefs, to whom 
 they acknowledged obedience, and who assumed the titles 
 of dukes and carls. These leaders originally affected a cer¬ 
 tain degree of consequence, travelling well equipped, and on 
 horseback, and bringing hawks and hounds in their retinue. 
 Like John Faw, ‘ Lord of Little Egypt,’ they sometimes 
 succeeded in imposing upon the Germans the belief in their 
 very apocryphal dignity, which they assumed during their 
 lives, and recorded upon their tombs, as appears from three 
 epitaphs, quoted by Dr. Wiessenburch. One is in a convent 
 at Steinbach, and records that on St. Sebastians’ eve, 1445, 
 
 ‘ died the Lord Panncl, Duke of Little Egypt, and Baron of 
 Ilirschhorn, in the same land.’ A monumental inscription 
 at Bautmer, records the death of the ‘ Noble Earl Peter, of 
 Lesser Egypt, in 1453 ;’ and a third, at Pferz, as late as 
 1498, announces the death of the ‘high-born, Lord John, 
 Earl of Little Egypt, to whose soul God be gracious and 
 merciful.’ 
 
 “In describing the state of the German Gipsies, in 1726, 
 the author whom we are quoting gives the leading features 
 proper to those in other countries. Their disposition to 
 wandering, to idleness, to theft, to polygamy, or rather pro¬ 
 miscuous licence, are all commemorated ; nor are the wo¬ 
 men’s pretentions to fortune-telling, and their practice of 
 
80 
 
 A ms TORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 stealing children, omitted. Instead of travelling in very 
 large bands, as at their first arrival, they are described as 
 forming small parties, in which the females are far more 
 numerous than the men, and which are each under command 
 of a leader, chosen rather from reputation than by right of 
 birth. The men, unless when engaged in robbery or theft, 
 lead a life of absolute idleness, and are supported by what 
 the women can procure by begging, stealing or telling for¬ 
 tunes. These resources are so scanty that they often suffer 
 the most severe extremities of hunger and cold. Some of 
 the Gipsies executed at Giessen pretended that they had 
 not eaten a morsel of bread for four days before they were 
 apprehended ; yet are they so much attached to freedom, 
 and licence of this wandering life, that, notwithstanding its 
 miseries, it lias not only been found impossible to reclaim 
 the native Gipsies, who claim it by inheritance, but even 
 those who, not born in that state, have associated themselves 
 with their bands, and become so wedded to it, as to prefer 
 it to all others.* 
 
 “As an exception, Wiesscnburch mentions some gangs, 
 where the men, as in Scotland, exercise the profession of 
 travelling smiths, or tinkers, or deal in pottery, or practise 
 as musicians. Finally, he notices that in Hungary the 
 gangs assumed their names from the countries which they 
 chiefly traversed, as the band of Upper Saxony, of Branden¬ 
 burg, and so forth. They resented, to extremity, any attempt 
 on the part of other Gipsies to intrude on their province ; 
 and such interference often led to battles, in which they shot 
 each other with as little remorse as they would have done 
 to dogs.f By these acts of cruelty to each other, they be¬ 
 came gradually familiarized with blood, as well as with 
 arms, to which another cause contributed, in the beginning 
 of the 18th century. 
 
 “In former times, these outcasts were not permitted to 
 
 * The natives here alluded to were evidently Germans, married to Gipsy 
 women, or Germans brought up from infancy with the Gipsies, or mixed 
 Gipsies, taking after Germans in point of appearance.— Ed. 
 
 f This is the only continental writer, that I am aware of, who mentions 
 the circumstance of the Gipsies having districts to themselves, from which 
 others of their race were excluded. This author also speaks of the German 
 Gipsies stealing children. John Bunyan admits the same practice in Eng¬ 
 land, when he compares his feelings, as a sinner, to those of a child carried 
 off by Gipsies. He gives the Gipsy women credit for this practice.—E d. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 81 
 
 bear arms in the service of any Christian power, bnt the 
 long wars of Louis XIV had abolished this point of deli¬ 
 cacy ; and both in the French army, and those of the con¬ 
 federates, the stoutest and boldest of the Gipsies werg- 
 occasionally enlisted, by choice or compulsion. These men 
 generally tired soon of the rigour of military discipline, and 
 escaping from their regiments, on the first opportunity, went 
 back to their forests, with some knowledge of arms, and 
 habits bolder and more ferocious than those of their prede¬ 
 cessors. Such deserters soon become leaders among the 
 tribes, whose enterprises became, in proportion, more auda¬ 
 cious and desperate. 
 
 “ In Germany, as in most other kingdoms of Europe, 
 severe laws had been directed against this vagabond people, 
 and the Landgraves of Hesse had not been behind-hand in 
 such denunciations. They were, on their arrest, branded 
 as vagabonds, punished with stripes, and banished from the 
 circle ; and, in case of their return, were put to death Avith- 
 out mercy. These measures only served to make them des¬ 
 perate. Their bands became more strong and more open 
 in their depredations. They often marched as strong as 
 fifty or a hundred armed men ; bade defiance to the ordi¬ 
 nary police, and plundered the villages in open day; 
 wounded and slew the peasants, who endeavoured to pro¬ 
 tect their property ; and skirmished, in some instances suc¬ 
 cessfully, with parties of soldiers and militia, dispatched 
 against them. Their chiefs, on these occasions, were John 
 La Fortune, a determined villain, otherwise named Ilcm- 
 perla ; another called the Great Gallant ; his brother, 
 Antony Alexander, called the Little Gallant; and others, 
 entitled Lorries, Lamport, Gabriel, &c. Their ferocity 
 may be judged of from the following instances : 
 
 “ On the 10th October, 1724, a land-lieutenant, or officer 
 of police, named Emerander, set off with two assistants to 
 disperse a band of Gipsies who had appeared near Hirzen- 
 hayn, in the territory of Stolberg. He seized on two or 
 three stragglers whom he found in the village, and whom, 
 females as well as males, he seems to have treated with 
 much severity. Some, however, escaped to a large band 
 which lay in an adjacent forest, who, under command of the 
 Great Gallant, Hcmperla, Antony Alexander, and others, 
 immediately put themselves in motion to rescue their com- 
 4* 
 
82 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 rades, and avenge themselves of Emerander. The land- 
 lieutenant had the courage to ride out to meet them, with 
 his two attendants, at the passage of a bridge, where he 
 fired his pistol at the advancing gang, and called out 
 ‘ charge,’ as if he had been at the head of a party of cavalry. 
 The Gipsies, however, aware, from the report of the fugi¬ 
 tives, how weakly the officer was accompanied, continued to 
 advance to the end of the bridge, and ten or twelve, drop¬ 
 ping each on one knee, gave fire on Emerander, who was 
 then obliged to turn his horse and ride off, leaving his two 
 assistants to the mercy of the banditti. One of these men, 
 called Hempel, was instantly beaten down, and suffered, 
 especially at the hands of the Gipsy women, much cruel 
 and abominable outrage. After stripping him of every rag 
 of his clothes, they were about to murder the wretch out¬ 
 right ; but at the earnest instance of the landlord of the 
 inn, they contented themselves with beating him dreadfully, 
 and imposing on him an oath that he never more would per¬ 
 secute any Gipsy, or save any fleshrrvan, (dealer in human 
 flesh,) for so they called the officers of justice or police.* 
 
 “The other assistant of Emerander made his escape. 
 But the principal was not so fortunate. When the Gipsies 
 had wrought their wicked pleasure on Hempel, they com¬ 
 pelled the landlord of the little inn to bring them a flagon 
 of brandy, in which they mingled a charge of gunpowder 
 and three pinches of salt; and each, partaking of this sin¬ 
 gular beverage, took a solemn oath that they would stand 
 by each other until they had cut thongs, as they expressed 
 it, out of the fleshman’s hide. The Great Gallant at the 
 same time distributed to them, out of a little box, billets, 
 which each was directed to swallow, and which were sup¬ 
 posed to render them invulnerable. 
 
 “ Thus inflamed and encouraged, the whole route, amount¬ 
 ing to fifty well armed men, besides women armed with 
 clubs and axes, set off with horrid screams to a neighbour- 
 
 * Great allowance ought to he made for the conduct of these Gipsies. 
 Even at the present day, a Gipsy, in many parts of Germany, is not 
 allowed to enter a town ; nor will the inhabitants permit him to live in the 
 street in which they dwell. He has therefore to go somewhere, and live 
 in some way or other. In speaking of the Gipsies, people never lake 
 these circumstances into account. The Gipsies alluded to in the text 
 seem to have been very cruelly treated, in the first place, by the author¬ 
 ities.—Er>. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 83 
 
 ing hamlet, called Glazhutte, in which the object of their 
 resentment sought refuge. They took military possession 
 of the streets, posting sentinels to prevent interruption or 
 attack from the alarmed inhabitants. Their leaders then 
 presented themselves before the inn, and demanded that 
 Emerander should be delivered up to them. When the inn¬ 
 keeper endeavoured to elude their demand, they forced their 
 way into the house, and finding the unhappy object of pur¬ 
 suit concealed in a garret, Hemperla and others fired their 
 muskets at him, then tore his clothes from his body, and pre¬ 
 cipitated him down the staircase, where he was dispatched 
 with many wounds. 
 
 “ Meanwhile, the inhabitants of the village began to take 
 to arms ; and one of them attempted to ring the alarm-bell, 
 but was prevented by an armed Gipsy, stationed for that 
 purpose. At length their bloody work being ended, the 
 Gipsies assembled and retreated out of the town, with shouts 
 of triumph, exclaiming that the fleshman was slain, display¬ 
 ing their spoils and hands stained with blood, and headed 
 by the Great Gallant, riding on the horse of the murdered 
 officer. 
 
 “ I shall select from the volume another instance of this 
 people’s cruelty still more detestable, since even vengeance 
 or hostility could not be alleged for its stimulating cause, as 
 in the foregoing narrative. A country clergyman, named 
 Heinsius, the pastor of a village called Dorsdorff, who had 
 the misfortune to be accounted a man of some wealth, was 
 the subject of this tragedy. 
 
 “ Hemperla, already mentioned, with a band of ten Gipsies, 
 and a villain named Essper George, wdio had joined himself 
 with them, though not of their nation by birth, beset the 
 house of the unfortunate minister, with a resolution to break 
 in and possess themselves of his money ; and if interrupted 
 by the peasants, to fire upon them, and repel force by force. 
 With this desperate intention, they surrounded the parson¬ 
 age-house at midnight; and their leader, Hemperla, having 
 cut a hole through the coverof the sink or gutter,endeavoured 
 to creep into the house through that passage, holding in his 
 hand a lighted torch made of straw. The daughter of the 
 parson chanced, however, to be up, and in the kitchen, at 
 this late hour, by which fortunate circumstance she escaped 
 the fate of her father and mother. When the Gipsy saw 
 
84 
 
 A HIS TOUT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 there was a person in the kitchen, he drew himself back out 
 of the gutter, and ordered his gang to force the door, re¬ 
 garding the noise which accompanied this violence as little 
 as if tlie place had been situated in a wilderness, instead of 
 a populous hamlet. Others of the gang were posted at the 
 windows of the house, to prevent the escape of the inmates. 
 Nevertheless, the young woman, already mentioned, let her¬ 
 self down from a window which had escaped their notice, 
 and ran to seek assistance for her parents. 
 
 “ In the meanwhile the Gipsies had burst open the out¬ 
 ward door of the house, with a beam of wood which chanced 
 to be lying in the court-yard. They next forced the door 
 of the sitting apartment, and were met by the poor clergy¬ 
 man, who prayed them at least to spare his life and that of 
 his wife. But he spoke to men who knew no mercy ; Hemp- 
 erla struck him on the breast with a torch ; and receiving 
 the blow as a signal for death, the poor man staggered back 
 to the table, and sinking in a chair, leaned his head on his 
 hand, and expected the mortal blow. In this posture 
 Hemperla shot him dead with a pistol. The wife of the 
 clergyman endeavoured to fly, on witnessing the murder of 
 her husband, but was dragged back, and slain by a pistol- 
 shot, fired either by Essper George, or by a Gipsy called 
 Christian. By a crime so dreadful those murderers only 
 gained four silver cups, fourteen silver spoons, some trifling 
 articles of apparel, and about twenty-two florins in money. 
 They might have made more important booty, but the sen¬ 
 tinel, whom they left on the outside, now intimated to them 
 that the hamlet was alarmed, and that it was time to retire, 
 which they did accordingly, undisturbed and in safety. 
 
 “ The Gipsies committed many enormities similar to those 
 above detailed, and arrived at such a pitch of audacity as 
 even to threaten the person of the Landgrave himself; an 
 enormity at which Dr. Wiessenburch, who never introduces 
 the name or titles of that prince without printing them in 
 letters of at least an inch long, expresses becoming horror. 
 This was too much to be endured. Strong detachments of 
 troops and militia scoured the country in different directions, 
 and searched the woods and caverns which served the ban¬ 
 ditti for places of retreat. These measures were for some 
 time attended with little effect. The Gipsies had the advan¬ 
 tages of a perfect knowledge of the country, and excellent 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 85 
 
 intelligence. They baffled the efforts of the officers detached 
 against them, and, on one or two occasions, even engaged 
 them with advantage. And when some females, unable to 
 follow the retreat of the men, were made prisoners on such 
 an occasion, the leaders caused it to be intimated to the 
 authorities at Giessen that if their women were not set at 
 liberty, they would murder and rob on the high roads, and 
 plunder and burn the country. This state of warfare lasted 
 from 1718 until 1726, during which period the subjects of 
 the Landgrave suffered the utmost hardships, as no man was 
 secure against nocturnal surprise of his property and person. 
 
 “At length, in the end of 1725, a heavy and continued 
 storm of snow compelled the Gipsy hordes to abandon the 
 woods which had long served them as a refuge, and to ap¬ 
 proach more near to the dwellings of men. As their move¬ 
 ments could be traced and observed, the land-lieutenant, 
 Krocker, who had been an assistant to the murdered Emer- 
 ander, received intelligence of a band of Gipsies having 
 appeared in the district of Sohnsassenheim, at a village 
 called Fauerbach. Being aided by a party of soldiers and 
 volunteers, he had the luck to secure the whole gang, being 
 twelve men and women. Among these was the notorious 
 Hcmpcrla, who was dragged by the heels from an oven in 
 which he was attempting to conceal himself. Others were 
 taken in the same manner, and imprisoned at Giessen, with 
 a view to their trial. 
 
 “Numerous acts of theft, and robbery, and murder were 
 laid to the charge of these unfortunate wretches ; and, ac¬ 
 cording to the existing laws of the empire, they were inter¬ 
 rogated under torture. They were first tormented by means 
 of thumb-screws, which they did not seem greatly to regard ; 
 the Spanish boots, or 1 leg-vices/ were next applied, and 
 seldom failed to extort confession. Hemperla alone set 
 both means at defiance, which induced the judges to believe 
 he was possessed of some spell against these agonies. 
 Having in vain searched his body for the supposed charm, 
 they caused his hair to be cut off; on which lie himself ob¬ 
 served that, had they not done so, he could have stood the 
 torture for some time longer. As it was, his resolution gave 
 way, and he made, under the second application of the Span¬ 
 ish boots, a full confession, not only of the murders of winch 
 lie was accused, but of various other crimes. While he was 
 
86 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 in this agony, the judges had the cruelty to introduce his 
 mother, a noted Gipsy woman, called the crone, into the tor¬ 
 ture-chamber ; who shrieked fearfully, and tore her face with 
 her nails, on perceiving the condition of her son, and still 
 more on hearing him acknowledge his guilt. 
 
 “ Evidence of the guilt of the other prisoners was also 
 obtained from their confessions, with or without torture, 
 and from the testimony of witnesses examined by the fiscal. 
 Sentence was finally passed on them, condemning four Gip¬ 
 sies, among whom were Hempcrla and the Little Gallant, to 
 be broken on the wheel, nine others to be hanged, and thir¬ 
 teen, of whom the greater part were women, to be beheaded. 
 They underwent their doom with great firmness, upon the 
 14th and 15th November, 1726. 
 
 “ The volume contains.some rude prints, repre¬ 
 
 senting the murders committed by the Gipsies, and the man¬ 
 ner of their execution. There are also two prints repre¬ 
 senting the portraits of the principal criminals, in which, 
 though the execution be indifferent, the Gipsy features may 
 be clearly traced.” 
 
 Leaving this view of the character of the continental 
 Gipsies, we may take the following as illustrative of one of 
 its brighter aspects. So late as the time of the celebrated 
 Baron Trenck, it would appear that Germany was still in¬ 
 fested with prodigiously large bands of Gipsies. In a 
 forest near Ginnen, to which lie had fled, to conceal himself 
 from the pursuit of his persecutors, the Baron says : “ Here 
 we fell in with a gang of Gipsies, (or rather banditti,) 
 amounting to four hundred men, who dragged me to their 
 camp. They were mostly French and Prussian deserters, 
 and, thinking me their equal, would force me to become one 
 of their band. But venturing to tell my story to their 
 leader, he presented me with a crown, gave us a small por¬ 
 tion of bread and meat, and suffered us to depart in peace, 
 after having been four-and-twenty hours in their company.”* 
 
 I shall conclude the notices of the continental Gipsies by 
 some extracts from an article published in a French periodical 
 work, for September, 1802, on the Gipsies of the Pyrenees ; 
 who resemble, in many points, the inferior class of our 
 Scottish Tinklers, about the beginning of the French war, 
 more, perhaps, than those of any other country in Europe. 
 
 * Life of Baron Trenck, translated by Thomas Holcroft, Vol. I., page 138. 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 87 
 
 “ There exists, in the department of the Eastern Pyrenees, 
 a people distinct from the rest of the inhabitants, of a foreign 
 origin, and without any settled habits. It seems to have 
 fixed its residence there fora considerable time. It changes 
 its situation, multiplies there, and never connects itself by 
 marriage with the other inhabitants. This people are called 
 Gitanos, a Spanish word which signifies Egyptians. There 
 are many Gitanos in Catalonia, who have similar habits to 
 the above-mentioned, but who are very strictly watched. 
 They have all the vices of those Egyptians, or Bohemians, 
 who formerly used to wander over the world, telling for¬ 
 tunes, and living at the expense of superstition and credulity. 
 These Gitanos, less idle and less wanderers than their prede¬ 
 cessors, are afraid of publicly professing the art of fortune¬ 
 tellers ; but their manner of life is scarcely different. 
 
 “ They scatter themselves among villages, and lonesome 
 farms, where they steal fruit, poultry, and often even cattle ; 
 in short, everything that is portable. They are almost al¬ 
 ways abroad, incessantly watching an opportunity to practise 
 their thievery ; they hide themselves with much dexterity 
 from the search of the police. Their women, in particular, 
 have an uncommon dexterity in pilfering. When they enter 
 a shop, they are watched with the utmost care ; but with 
 every precaution they are not free from their rapines. They 
 excel, above all, in hiding the pieces of silver which are 
 given in exchange for gold, which they never fail to offer in 
 payment, and they are so well hidden that they are often 
 obliged to be undressed before restitution can be obtained. 
 
 ‘‘The Gitanos affect, externally,a great attachment to the 
 Catholic religion ; and if one was to judge from the number 
 of reliques they carry about witli them, one would believe 
 them exceedingly devout; but all who have well observed 
 them assure us they areas ignorant as hypocritical, and that 
 they practise secretly a religion of their own. It is not rare 
 to see their women, who have been lately brought to bed, 
 have their children baptized several times, in different places, 
 in order to obtain money from persons at their ease, whom 
 they choose for godfathers. Everything announces among 
 them that moral degradation which must necessarily attach 
 to a miserable, insulated caste, as strangers to society, which 
 only suffers it through an excess of contempt. 
 
 “ The Gitanos are disgustingly filthy, and almost all co- 
 
88 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 vered with rags. They have neither tables, chairs, nor beds, 
 but sit and eat on the ground. They are crowded in huts, 
 pell-mell, in straw ; and their neglect of the decorum of so¬ 
 ciety, so dangerous to morals, must have the most melancholy 
 consequences on wretched vagabonds, abandoned to them¬ 
 selves. They consequently are accused of giving themselves 
 up to every disorder of the most infamous debauchery, and 
 to respect neither the ties of blood nor the protecting laws 
 of the virtues of families. 
 
 l: They feed on rotten poultry and fish, dogs and stinking 
 cats, which they seek for with avidity ; and when this re¬ 
 source fails them, they live on the entrails of animals, or 
 other aliments of the lowest price. They leave their meat 
 but a very few minutes on the fire, and the place where they 
 cook it exhales an infectious smell. 
 
 “ They speak the Catalonian dialect, but they have, be¬ 
 sides, a language to themselves, unintelligible to the natives 
 of the country, from whom they are very careful to hide the 
 knowledge of it. 
 
 “ The Gitanos are tanned like the mulattoes, of a size 
 above mediocrity, well formed, active, robust, supporting all 
 the changes of seasons, and sleeping in the open fields, when¬ 
 ever their interest requires it. Their features are irregular, 
 and show them to belong to a transplanted race. They 
 have the mouth very wide, thick lips, and high cheek-bones. 
 
 “ As the distrust they inspire causes them to be carefully 
 watched, it is not always possible for them to live by steal¬ 
 ing : they then have recourse to industry, and a trifling trade, 
 which seems to have been abandoned to them ; they show 
 animals, and attend the fairs and markets, to sell or exchange 
 mules and asses, which they know how to procure at a cheap 
 rate. They are commonly cast-off animals, which they have 
 the art to dress up, and they are satisfied, in appearance, 
 with a moderate profit, which, however, is always more than 
 is supposed, because they feed these animals at the expense 
 of the farmers. They ramble all night, in order to steal 
 fodder ; and whatever precautions may have been taken 
 against them, it is not possible to be always guarded against 
 their address. 
 
 “ Happily the Gitanos are not murderers. It would, 
 without doubt, be important to examine if it is to the natural 
 goodness of their disposition, to their frugality, and the few 
 
CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
 89 
 
 wants they feel in their state of half savage, that is to be 
 attributed the sentiment that repels them from great crimes, 
 or if this disposition arises from their habitual state of alarm, 
 or from that want of courage which must be a necessary 
 consequence of the infamy in which they are plunged.* 
 
 * Annals de Statistigue, No. Ill, page 31-37.—What the writer of this 
 article says "of the aversion which the Gipsies have to the shedding of 
 human blood, not of their own fraternity, appears to have been universal 
 among the tribe; but, on the other hand, they seem to have had little or 
 no hesitation in putting to death those of their own tribe. This writer also 
 says, that the Gipsies of the Pyrenees have a religion of their own, which 
 they practise secretly, without mentioning what this secret religion is. It 
 is probable that his remark is applicable to the sacrifice of horses, as des¬ 
 cribed in chapter viii. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 The first arrival of the Gipsies in England appears to 
 have been about the year 1512 * but this does not seem to 
 be quite certain. It is probable they may have arrived 
 there at an earlier period. The author from which the 
 fact is derived published his work in 1612, and states, gen¬ 
 erally, that “ this kind of people, about a hundred years 
 ago, began to gather an head, about the southern parts. 
 And this, I am informed and can gather, was their begin¬ 
 ning : Certain Egyptians, banished their country, (belike 
 not for their good condition,) arrived here in England ; 
 who, for quaint tricks and devices, not known here at that 
 time among us, were esteemed, and held in great admira¬ 
 tion ; insomuch that many of our English loiterers joined 
 with them, and in time learned their crafty cozening. 
 
 “The speech which they used was the right Egyptian 
 language, with Avhom our Englishmen conversing at least 
 learned their language. These people, continuing about 
 the country, and practising their cozening art, purchased 
 themselves great credit among the country people, and got 
 much by palmistry and telling of fortunes; insomuch that 
 they pitifully cozened poor country girls both of money, 
 silver spoons, and the best of their apparel, or any goods 
 they could make.”t 
 
 From this author it is collected they had a leader of the 
 name of Giles Hather, who was termed their king ; and a 
 woman of the name of Calot was called queen. These, 
 riding through the country on horseback, and in strange 
 attire, had a pretty train after them.'! 
 
 * Hoyland. 
 
 t A quarto work by S. R., published to detect and expose the art of 
 juggling and legerdemain, in 1612. J Hoyland. 
 
 (90) 
 
ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 91 
 
 It appears, from this account, that the Gipsies had been 
 observed on the continent about a hundred years before 
 they visited England. According to Dr. Bright, they 
 seemed to have roamed up and down the continent of Eu¬ 
 rope, without molestation, for about half a century, before 
 their true character was perfectly known. If 1512 was 
 really the year in which these people first set foot in Eng¬ 
 land, it would seem that the English government had not 
 been so easily nor so long imposed on as the kings of Scot¬ 
 land, and the authorities of Europe generally. For we 
 find that, within about the space of ten years from this 
 period, they are, by the 10th chapter of the 22d Henry 
 YlII, denominated “an outlandish people, calling them¬ 
 selves Egyptians, using no craft nor feat of merchandise, 
 who have come into this realm, and gone from shire to 
 shire, and place to place, in great company ; and used great 
 subtlety and crafty means to deceive the people—bearing 
 them in hand that they, by palmistry, could tell men’s and 
 women’s fortunes; and so, many times, by craft and subtlety, 
 have deceived the people for their money ; and also have 
 committed many heinous felonies and robberies.” As far 
 back as the year 15-19, they had become very troublesome 
 in England, for, on the 22d June of that year, according to 
 Burnet’s History of the Reformation, “ there was privy 
 search made through all Sussex for all vagabonds, Gipsies, 
 conspirators, prophesiers, players, and such like.” 
 
 The Gipsies in England still continued to commit num¬ 
 berless thefts and robberies, in defiance of the existing 
 statutes ; so that each succeeding law enacted against them 
 became severer than the one which preceded it. The fol¬ 
 lowing is an extract from the 27th Henry VIII} “ Whereas, 
 certain outlandish people, who do not profess any craft or 
 trade whereby to maintain themselves, but go about in 
 great numbers, from place to place, using insidious means to 
 impose on his majesty’s subjects, making them believe that 
 they understand the art of foretelling to men and women 
 their good and evil fortunes, by looking in their hands, 
 whereby they frequently defraud people of their money ; 
 likewise arc guilty of thefts and highway robberies : It is 
 hereby ordered that the said vagrants, commonly called 
 Egyptians, in case as thieves and rascals .... and on the 
 importation of any such Egyptians, he, the importer, shall 
 
92 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 forfeit forty pounds for every trespass." So much had the 
 conduct of the Gipsies exasperated the government of Queen 
 Elizabeth, that it was enacted, during her reign, that “ If 
 any person, being fourteen years, whether natural born sub¬ 
 ject or stranger, who had been seen in the fellowship of such 
 persons, or disguised like them, and remain witli them one 
 month at once, or at several times, it should be felony with¬ 
 out benefit of clergy.”* It would thus appear that, when 
 the Gipsies first arrived in England, they had not kept 
 their language a secret, as is now the case ; for some of the 
 Englishmen of that period had acquired it by associating 
 with tliem.f 
 
 In carrying out the foregoing extraordinary enactments, 
 the public was at the expense of exporting the Gipsies to 
 the continent; and it may reasonably be assumed that great 
 numbers of these unhappy people were executed under these 
 sanguinary laws. A few years before the restoration of 
 Charles II, thirteen Gipsies were executed “at one Suffolk 
 assize.” This appears to have been the last instance of in¬ 
 flicting the penalty of death on these unfortunate people in 
 England, merely because they were Gipsies4 But although 
 these laws of blood are now repealed, the English Gipsies 
 are liable, at the present day, to be proceeded against under 
 the Vagrant Act; as these statutes declare all those per¬ 
 sons “ pretending to be Gipsies, or wandering in the habit 
 and form of Egyptians, shall be deemed rogues and vaga¬ 
 bonds.” 
 
 In the reign of Queen Elizabeth it was thought England 
 contained above 10,000 Gipsies ; and Mr. Hoyland, in his 
 historical survey of these people, supposes that there are 
 18,000 of the race in Britain at the present day. A mem¬ 
 ber of Parliament, it is reported, stated, in the House of 
 Commons, that there were not less than 36,000 Gipsies in 
 Great Britain. I am inclined to believe that the statement 
 of the latter will be nearest the truth ; as I am convinced 
 that the greater part of all those persons who traverse Eng¬ 
 land with earthenware, in carts and waggons, are a superior 
 class of Gipsies. Indeed, a Scottish Gipsy informed me, 
 
 * English acts of Parliament. 
 
 \ This does not appear to be necessarily the case. These Englishmen 
 may have married Gipsies, become Gipsies by adoption, and so learned 
 the language, as happens at the present day.—E d. t Hoyland. 
 
ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 93 
 
 that almost all those people are actually Gipsies. Now Mr. 
 Hoyland takes none of these potters into his account, when 
 he estimates the Gipsy population at only 18,000 souls. 
 Besides, Gipsies have informed me that Ireland contains a 
 great many of the tribe ; many of whom are now finding- 
 their way into Scotland.* 
 
 I am inclined to think that the greater part of the Eng¬ 
 lish Gipsies live more apart from the other inhabitants of 
 the country, reside more in tents, and exhibit a great deal 
 more of their pristine manners, than their brethren do in 
 Scotland.! 
 
 The English Gipsies also travel in Scotland, with earthen¬ 
 ware in cart? and waggons. A body of them, to the num¬ 
 ber of six tents, with sixteen horses, encamped, on one occa¬ 
 sion, on the farm of Kinglcdoors, near the source of the 
 Tweed. They remained on the ground from Saturday night 
 till about ten o’clock on Monday morning, before they 
 struck their tents and waggons. 
 
 At St. Boswell’s fair I once inspected a horde of English 
 Gipsies, encamped at the side of a hedge, on the Jedburgh 
 road as it enters St. Boswell’s Green. Their name was 
 Blewett, from the neighbourhood of Darlington. The chief 
 possessed two tents, two large carts laden with earthenware, 
 four horses and mules, and five large dogs. He was attended 
 by two old females and ten young children. One of the 
 women was the mother of fourteen, and the other the 
 mother of fifteen, children. This chief and the two females 
 were the most swarthy and barbarous looking people I ever 
 saw. They had, however, two beautiful children with them, 
 
 * The number of the British Gipsies mentioned here is greatly under¬ 
 stated. See Disquisition on the Gipsies.— Ed. 
 
 f In no part of the world is the Gipsy life more in accordance with tho 
 general idea that the Gipsy is like Cain—a wanderer on the face of the 
 earth—than in England ; for there, the covered cart and the little tent are 
 the houses of the Gipsy ; and he seldom remains more than three days in 
 the same place. So conducive is the climate of England to beauty, that 
 nowhere else is the appearance of tho race so prepossessing as in that 
 country. Their complexion is dark, but not disagreeably so; their faces 
 are oval, their features regular, their foreheads rather low, and their hands 
 and feet small. The men are taller than the English peasantry, and far 
 more active. They all speak the English language with fluency, and in 
 their gait and demeanour are easy and graceful; in both respects standing 
 in striking contrast with the peasantry, who, in speech, are slow and un¬ 
 couth, and, in manner, dogged and brutal.— Borrow. —Ed. 
 
94 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 about five years of age, with light flaxen hair, and very fair 
 complexions. The old Gipsy women said they were twins ; 
 but they might have been stolen from different parents, for 
 all that, as there was nothing about them that had the 
 slightest resemblance to any one of the horde that claimed 
 them. Apparently much care was taken of them, as they 
 were very cleanly and neatly kept.* 
 
 This Gipsy potter was a thick-set, stout man, above the 
 middle size. He was dressed in an old dark-blue frock coat, 
 with a profusion of black, greasy hair, which covered the 
 upper part of his broad shoulders. Pie wore a high-crowned, 
 narrow-brimmed, old hat, with a lock of his black hair 
 hanging down before each ear, in the same manner as the 
 Spanish Gipsies are described by Swinburn. He also wore 
 a pair of old full-topped boots, pressed half way down his 
 legs, and wrinkled about his ankles, like buskins. His vis¬ 
 age was remarkably dark and gloomy. He walked up and 
 down the market alone, without speaking to any one, with a 
 peculiar air of independence about him, as he twirled in his 
 hand, in the Gipsy manner, by way of amusement, a strong 
 bludgeon, about three feet long, which he held by the centre. 
 I happened to be speaking to a surgeon in the fair, at the 
 time the Gipsy passed me, when I observed to him that that 
 strange-looking man was a Gipsy; at which the surgeon 
 only laughed, and said he did not believe any such thing. 
 To satisfy him, I followed the Gipsy, at a little distance, 
 till he led me straight to his tents at the Jedburgh road 
 already mentioned. 
 
 This Gipsy band had none of their wares unpacked, nor 
 w T ere they selling anything in the market. They w r ere 
 cooking a lamb’s head and pluck, in a pan suspended from a 
 triangle of rods of iron, while beside it lay an abundance 
 of small potatoes, in a wooden dish. The females wore 
 black Gipsy bonnets. The visage of the oldest one was re¬ 
 markably long, her chin resting on her breast. These three 
 old Gipsies were, altogether, so dark, grim, and outlandish- 
 looking, that they had little or no appearance of being 
 natives of Britain. On enquiring if they were Gipsies, 
 
 * It, does not follow, from what our author says about these two children, 
 that they were stolen. I have seen some of the children of English Gip¬ 
 sies as fair as any Saxon. It sometimes happens that the flaxen hair of a 
 Gipsy child will change into raven black before he reaches manhood.— Ed. 
 
ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 95 
 
 and could speak the language, the oldest female gave me 
 the following answ r er: “We are potters, and strangers in 
 this land. The people are civil unto us. I say, God bless 
 the people ; God bless them all.” She spoke these words in 
 a decided, emphatic, and solemn tone, as if she believed 
 herself possessed of the power to curse or bless at pleasure. 
 On turning my back, to leave them, I observed them burst 
 out a laughing ; making merry, as I supposed, at the idea of 
 having deceived me as to the tribe to which they belonged. 
 
 The following anecdote will give some idea of the man¬ 
 ner of life of the Gipsies in England. 
 
 A man, whom I knew, happened to lose his way, one dark 
 night, in Cambridgeshire. After wandering up and down 
 for some time, he observed a light, at a considerable distance 
 from him, within the skirts of a wood, and, being overjoyed 
 at the discovery, lie directed his course toward it; but, be¬ 
 fore reaching the tire, he w r as surprised at hearing a man, a 
 little way in advance, call out to him, in a loud voice, “ Peace 
 or not peace?” The benighted traveller, glad at hearing 
 the sound of a human voice, immediately answered, “ Peace ; 
 I am a poor Scotchman, and have lost my way in the dark.” 
 “ You can come forward then,” rejoined the sentinel. When 
 the Scotchman advanced, ho found a family of Gipsies, with 
 only one tent ; but, on being conducted further into the 
 wood, he was introduced to a great company of Gipsies. 
 They were busily employed in roasting several whole sheep 
 —turning their carcasses before large fires, on long wooden 
 poles, instead of iron spits. The racks on which the spits 
 turned were also made of wood, driven into the ground, 
 cross-ways, like the letter X. The Gipsies were exceedingly 
 kind to the stranger, causing him to partake of the victuals 
 which they had prepared for their feast. He remained with 
 them the whole night, eating and drinking, and dancing with 
 his merry entertainers, as if he had been one of themselves. 
 When day dawned, the Scotchman counted twelve tents 
 within a short distance of each other. On examining his 
 position, he found himself a long way out of his road ; but 
 a party of the Gipsies voluntarily offered their services, 
 and w T ent with him for several miles, and, with great kind¬ 
 ness, conducted him to the road from which lie had wandered. 
 
 The crimes of some of the English Gipsies have greatly 
 exceeded those of the Scottish, such as the latter have been. 
 
96 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The following- details of the history of an English Gipsy 
 family are taken from a report on the prisons in Northum¬ 
 berland. The writer of this report does not appear to have 
 been aware, however, of the family in question being Gip¬ 
 sies, speaking an Oriental language, and that, according to 
 the custom of their tribe, a dexterous theft or robbery is 
 one of the most meritorious actions they can perform. 
 
 “ Crime in Families. William, Winters' Family. 
 
 “ William himself, and one of his sons, were hanged toge¬ 
 ther for murder. Another son committed an offence for 
 which he was sent to the hulks, and, soon after his release, 
 was concerned in a murder, for which he was hanged. Three 
 of the daughters were convicted of various offences, and the 
 mother was a woman of notorious bad character. The 
 family was a terror to the neighbourhood, and, according to 
 report, had been so for generations. The father, with a 
 woman with whom he cohabited, (himself a married 0130,1 
 was hanged for house-breaking. His first wife was a wo¬ 
 man of very bad character, and his second wife was trans¬ 
 ported. One of the sons, a notorious thief, and two of the 
 daughters, were hanged for murder. Mr. Blake believes 
 that the only member of the family that turned out well was 
 a girl, who was taken from the father when he was in pri¬ 
 son, previous to execution, and brought up apart from her 
 brothers and sisters. The grandfather was once in a lunatic 
 asylum, as a madman. The father had a quarrel with one 
 of his sons, about the sale of some property, and shot him 
 dead. The mother co-habited with another man, and was 
 one morning found dead, with her throat cut. One of the 
 sons, (not already spoken of,) had a bastard child by one of 
 his cousins, herself of weak intellect, and, being under suspi¬ 
 cion of having destroyed the child, was arrested. While in 
 prison, however, and before the trial came on, he destroyed 
 himself by cutting his throat.” 
 
 This family, I believe, are the Winters noticed by Sir 
 Walter Scott, in Blackwood’s Magazine, as follows : 
 
 “A gang (of Gipsies), of the name of Winters, long in¬ 
 habited the wastes of Northumberland, and committed many 
 crimes ; among others, a murder upon a poor woman, with 
 singular atrocity, for which one of them was hung in chains, 
 
ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 97 
 
 near Tonpitt, in Reedsdale. The mortal reliques having 
 decayed, the lord of the manor has replaced them by a 
 wooden effigy, and still maintains the gibbet. The remnant 
 of this gang came to Scotland, about fifteen years ago, and 
 assumed the Roxburghshire name of Wintirip, as they found 
 their own something odious. They settled at a cottage 
 within about four miles of Earlston, and became great plagues 
 to the country, until they were secured, after a tight battle, 
 tried before the circuit court at Jedburgh, and banished 
 back to their native country of England. The dalesmen of 
 Reedwater showed great reluctance to receive these returned 
 emigrants. After the Sunday service at a little chapel near 
 Otterbourne, one of the squires rose, and, addressing the con¬ 
 gregation, told them they would be accounted no longer 
 Reedsdale men, but Reedsdale women, if they permitted this 
 marked and atrocious family to enter their district. The 
 people answered that they would not permit them to come 
 that way ; and the proscribed family, hearing of the unan¬ 
 imous resolution to oppose their passage, went more south- 
 ernly, by the heads of the Tyne, and I never heard more of 
 them, but I have little doubt they are all hanged.* 
 
 * It is but just to say that this family of Winters is, or at least was, the 
 worst kind of English Gipsies. Their name is a by-word among the race 
 in England. When they say, “ It’s a winter morning,” they wish to ex- 
 I'ress something very bad. It is difficult to get them to admit that the 
 Winters belong to the tribe.—E d. 
 
 5 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPSIES, DOWN TO THE TEAR 1715. 
 
 That the Gipsies were in Scotland in the year 1506 is 
 certain, as appears by a letter of James IY, of Scotland, to 
 the King of Denmark, in favour of Anthonius Gawino, Earl 
 of Little Egypt, a Gipsy chief. But there is a tradition, re¬ 
 corded in Crawford’s Peerage, that a company of Gipsies, 
 or Saracens, were committing depredations in Scotland be¬ 
 fore the death of James II, which took place in 1460, being 
 forty-six years after the Gipsies were first observed on the 
 continent of Europe, and it is, therefore, probable that these 
 wanderers were encamped on Scottish ground before the 
 year 1460, above mentioned. As I am not aware of Sara¬ 
 cens ever having set foot in Scotland, England, or Ireland, I 
 am disposed to think, if there is any truth in this tradition, 
 it alludes to the Gipsies.* The story relates to the estate 
 and family of McLellan of Bombie, in Galloway, and is as 
 follows: 
 
 In the reign of James II, the Barony of Bombie was again 
 recovered by the McLellaus, (as the tradition goes,) after 
 this manner : In the same reign, says our author of small 
 credit, (Sir George McKenzie, in his baronage M.S.,) it hap¬ 
 pened that a company of Saracens or Gipsies, from Ireland,! 
 
 * There is no reason to doubt that these were Gipsies. They were evi¬ 
 dently a roving- band, from some of the continental hordes, that had passed 
 over into Scotland, to “ prospect” and plunder. They would, very natur¬ 
 ally, be called Saracens by the natives of Scotland, to whom any black 
 people, at that time, would appear as Saracens. We may, therefore, assume 
 that the Gipsies have been fully four hundred years in Scotland. I may 
 mention, however, that Mediterranean corsairs occasionally landed and 
 plundered on the British coast, to as late a period as the reign of Charles 
 I—Ed. 
 
 f Almost all the Scottish Gipsies assert that their ancestors came by 
 way of Ireland into Scotland. 
 
 [This is estremely likely. On the publication of the edict of Ferdinand 
 ( 98 ) 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 99 
 
 infested the county of Galloway, whereupon the king intim¬ 
 ated a proclamation, bearing, that whoever should disperse 
 them, and bring in their captain, dead or alive, should have 
 the Barony of Bombie for his reward. It chanced that a 
 brave young gentleman, the laird of Bombie’s son, fortunated 
 to kill the person for which the reward was promised, and 
 he brought his head on the point of his sword to the king, 
 and thereupon he was immediately seized in the Barony of 
 Bombie ; and to perpetuate the memory of that brave and 
 remarkable action, lie took for his crest a Moor’s head, and 
 ‘ Think on’ for his motto.' 3 *' 
 
 As armorial bearings were generally assumed to commem¬ 
 orate facts and deeds of arms, it is likely that the crest of 
 the McLellans is the head of a Gipsy chief. In the reign 
 of James II, alluded to, we find “ away putting of sorners, 
 (forcible obtruders,) fancied fools, vagabonds, out-liers, mas¬ 
 terful beggars, bairds , (strolling rhymers,) and such like 
 runners about,” is more than once enforced by acts of parlia- 
 ment.f 
 
 But the earliest authentic notice which has yet been dis¬ 
 covered of the first appearance of the Gipsies in Scotland, is 
 the letter of James IV, to the King of Denmark, in 1506. 
 At this period these vagrants represented themselves as 
 Egyptian pilgrims, and so far imposed on our religious and 
 melancholy monarch, as to procure from him a favourable 
 recommendation to his uncle of Denmark, in behalf of one of 
 these “ Earls,” and his “ lamentable retinue.” The following 
 is a translation of this curious epistle : 
 
 “ Most illustrious, &c.—Anthonius Gawino, Earl of Little 
 Egypt, and the other afflicted and lamentable tribe of his re¬ 
 tinue, whilst, through a desire of travelling, and, by command 
 of the Pope,:]; (as he says,) pilgriming, over the Christian 
 
 of Spain, in 1492, some of the Spanish Gipsies would likely pass over to the 
 south of Ireland, and thence find their way into Scotland, before 150G. 
 Anthonius Gawino, above referred to, would almost seem to be a Spanish 
 name. We may, therefore, very safely assume that the Gipsies of Scotland 
 are of Spanish Gipsy descent.— Ed. 
 
 * Crawford’s Peerage, page 238. 
 
 f Glendook’s Scots’ acts of parliament. 
 
 X Mr. Hoyland makes some very judicious remarks upon the capacity of 
 the Gipsies, when they first appeared in Europe. Ho says: “ The first of 
 this people who came into Europe must have been persons of discernment 
 and discrimination, to have adapted their deceptions so exactly to the genius 
 and habits of the different people they visited, as to ensure success iu all 
 
100 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 world, according to their custom, had lately arrived on the 
 frontiers of our kingdom, and implored us that we, out of 
 humanity, would allow him to approach our limits without 
 damage, and freely carry about all things, and the company 
 he now has. He easily obtains what the hard fortune 
 wretched men require. Thus he has sojourned here, (as we 
 have been informed,) for several months, in peaceable and 
 catholic manner. King and uncle, he now proposes a voyage 
 to Denmark to thee. But, being about to cross the ocean, 
 he hath requested our letters, in which we would inform 
 your Highness of these, and at the same time commend the 
 calamity of this tribe to your royal munificence. But we 
 believe that the fates, manners, and race of the wandering 
 Egyptians are better known to thee than us, because Egypt 
 is nearer thy kingdom, and a greater number of such men 
 sojourn in thy kingdom.—Most illustrious, <fcc.”* 
 
 countries. The stratagem to which they had recourse, on entering France, 
 evinces consummate artifice of plan, and not a little adroitness and dex¬ 
 terity in the execution. The specious appearance of submission to Papal 
 authority, in the penance of wandering seven years, without lying in a bed, 
 contained three distinct objects. They could not have devised an expedient 
 more likely to recommend them to the favour of the ecclesiastics, or better 
 concerted for taking advantage of the superstitious credulity of the people, 
 and, at the same time, for securing to themselves the gratification of their 
 own nomadic propensities. So complete was the deception they practised, 
 that we find they wandered up and down France, under the eye of the ma¬ 
 gistracy, not for seven years only, but for more than a hundred years, with¬ 
 out molestation.” 
 
 Mr. Hoyland’s remarks cover only half of the question, for, being “ pil¬ 
 grims,” their chiefs must also assume very high titles, to give them con¬ 
 sideration with the rulers of Europe—such as dukes, earls, lords, counts 
 and knights. To carry out the character of pilgrims, the body would go 
 very poorly clad ; it would only be the chiefs who would be flashily accou¬ 
 tred. It is, therefore, by no means wonderful that the Gipsies should have 
 succeeded so well, and so long, in obtaining an entrance, and a toleration, 
 in every country of Europe.— Ed. 
 
 * Illustrissime, Ac.—Anthonius Gawino, ex Parva Egypto comes, et 
 csetera ejus comitatus, gens afflicta et miseranda, dum Christianam orbem 
 peregrinationes studio, Apostolicse sedis, (ut refert) jussu, suorum more 
 peregrinans, fines nostri regni dudum advenerat, atque in sortis suse, et 
 miseriarum hujus populi, refugium, nos pro humanitate imploraverat ut 
 nostros limites sibi impune adire, res cunctas, et quarn habet societatem 
 libere circumagere liceret. Impetrat facile qua; postulat miserorum homi- 
 num dura fortuna. Ita aliquot menses bene et catholice, (sic accepimus,) 
 hie versatus, ad te, Rex et avuncule, in Racism transitum paret. Sed 
 oceanum transmissurus nostras litera3 exoravit; qnibus celsitudinem tuam 
 liorum certiorum redderemus, simul et calamitatem ejus gentis Regice tiue 
 munificentise commendaremus. Ceterum errabunda; Egypti fata, moresque, 
 et genus, eo tibe quam nobis credimus notiorn, quo Egyptus tuo regno 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 101 
 
 Fi’om 1506 to 1540, the 28th of the reign of James V, 
 we find that the true character of the Gipsies had not 
 reached the Scottish court; for, in 1540, the king of Scot¬ 
 land entered into a league or treaty with “John Faw, 
 Lord and Earl of Little Egypt;” and a writ passed the 
 Privy Seal, the same year, in favour of this Prince or Rajah 
 of the Gipsies. As the public edicts in favour of this race 
 are extremely rare, I trust a copy of this curious document, 
 in this place, may not be unacceptable to the reader.* 
 
 “ James, by the grace of God, King of Scots: To our 
 sheriffs of Edinburgh, principal and within the constabulary 
 of Haddington, Berwick, Roxburgh, &c., &c.; provosts, 
 aldermen, and baillies of our burghs and cities of Edinburgh, 
 &c., &c., greeting: Forasmuch as it is humbly meant and 
 shown to us, by our loved John Faw, Lord and Earl of Little 
 Egypt, that whereas he obtained our letter under our great 
 seal, direct you all and sundry our said sheriffs, stewarts, 
 baillies, provosts, aldermen, and baillies of burghs, and to 
 all and sundry others having authority within our realm, to 
 assist him in execution of justice upon his company and 
 folk, conform to the laws of Egypt, and- in punishing of all 
 them that rebel against him : nevertheless, as we are in¬ 
 formed, Sebastianc Lalow Egyptian, one of the said John’s 
 company, with his accomplices and partakers under written, 
 that is to say, Anteane Donea, Satona Fingo, Nona Finco, 
 Phillip Hatscyggaw, Towla Bailyow, Grasta Neyn, Geleyr 
 Bailyow, Bernard Beige, Deineo Matskalla (or Macskalla), 
 Notfaw Lawlowr, Martyn Femine, rebels and conspirators 
 against the said John Faw, and have removed them all 
 utterly out of his company, and taken from him divers sums 
 of money, jewels, clothes and other goods, to the quantity 
 of a great sum of money ; and on nowise will pass home 
 with him, howbeit he has bidden and remained of long time 
 upon them, and is bound and obliged to bring home with 
 him all them of his company that are alive, and a testimony 
 of them that are dead : and as the said John has the said 
 
 vicinior, et major hujusmodi liominum frequentia tuo diversatur imperio. 
 Illustrissime, die. 
 
 * I have taken the liberty of translating the various extracts from the 
 Scottish acts of parliament, quoted in this chapter, as the original language 
 is not very intelligible to English or even Scottish readers. For doing 
 this, I may be denounced as a Vandal by the ultra Scotch, for so treating 
 such “ rich old Doric,” as the language of the period may be termed.—E d. 
 
103 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Sebastiane’s obligation, made in Dunfermline before our 
 master household, that he and his company should remain 
 with him, and on nowise depart from him, as the same bears : 
 In contrary to the tenor of which, the said Sebastiane, by 
 sinister and wrong’ information, false relation, circumvention 
 of us, has purchased our writings, discharging him and the 
 remnant of the persons above written, his accomplices and 
 partakers of the said John’s company, and with his goods 
 taken by them from him ; causes certain our lieges assist 
 them and their opinions, and to fortify and take their part 
 against the said John, their lord and master ; so that he on 
 nowise can apprehend nor get them, to have them home 
 again within their own country, after the tenor of his said 
 bond, to his heavy damage and slcaith (hurt), and in great 
 peril of losing his heritage, and expressly against justice : 
 Our Avill is, therefore, and we charge you straightly and 
 
 command that ..ye and every one of you 
 
 within the bounds of your offices, command and charge all 
 our lieges, that none of them take upon hand to reset, 
 assist, fortify, supply, maintain, defend, or take part with 
 the said Sebastiane and his accomplices above written, for 
 no body’s nor other way, against the said John Daw, their 
 lord and master ; but that they and ye, in likewise, take 
 and lay hands upon them wherever they maybe apprehended, 
 and bring them to him, to be punished for their demerits, 
 conform to his laws ; and help and fortify him to punish and 
 do justice upon them for their trespasses ; and to that effect 
 lend him your prisons, stocks, fetters, and all other things 
 necessary thereto, as ye and each of you, and all other our 
 lieges, will answer to us thereupon, and under all highest 
 pain and charge that after may follow : So that the said 
 John have no cause of complaint thereupon in time coming, 
 nor to resort again to us to that effect, notwithstanding any 
 our writings, sinisterly purchased or to be purchased, by the 
 said Sebastiane on the contrary : And also charge all our 
 lieges that none of them molest, vex, unquiet, or trouble the 
 said John Faw and his company, in doing their lawful busi¬ 
 ness, or otherwise, within our realm, and in their passing, 
 remaining, or away-going forth of the same, under the pain 
 above written : And such-like that ye command and charge 
 all skippers, masters and mariners of all ships within our 
 realm, at all ports and havens where the said John and his 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 103 
 
 company shall happen to resort and come, to receive him 
 and them therein, upon their expenses, for furthering of them 
 forth of our realm to the parts beyond sea, as you and each 
 of them such-like will answer to us thereupon, and under 
 the pain aforesaid. Subscribed with our hand, and under 
 our privy seal at Falkland, the fifteenth day of February, 
 and of our reign the 28th year.”* 
 
 * Ex. Registro Secreti Sigilli, Vol. XIY, fol. 59. Blackwood. Appendix 
 to McLaurin’s Criminal Trials. 
 
 This document may well be termed the most curious and important record 
 of the early history of the Gipsy race in Europe; and it is well worthy of 
 consideration. The meaning of it is simply this: John Faw had evidently 
 been importuned by the Scottish Court, (at which he appears to have been 
 a man of no small consequence,) to bring his so-called ‘‘pilgrimage,” which 
 he had undertaken “by command of the Pope,” to an end, so far, at least, 
 as remaining in Scotland was concerned. Being pressed upon the point, 
 he evidently, as a last resource, formed a plan with Sebastiane Lalow, and 
 the other “ rebels,” to leave him, and carry off, (as he said,) his property. 
 To give the action an air of importance, and make it appear as a real rebel¬ 
 lion, they brought, the question into court. Then, John could turn round, 
 and reply to the king: “ May it please your majesty! I can’t return to 
 my own country. My company and folk have conspired, rebelled, robbed, 
 and left me. I can’t lay my hands upon them ; I don’t even know w here 
 to find them. I must take them home with ine, or a testimony of them 
 that are dead, under the great peril of losing my heritage, at the hands of 
 my lord, the Duke of Egypt. However, if your majesty will help me to 
 catch them, I will not be long in taking leave of your kingdom, with all 
 roy company. In the meantime, your majesty will be pleased to issue 
 your commands to all the shipowners and mariners in the kingdom, to be 
 ready, when 1 gather together my fol.k(!) to further our passage to Egypt, 
 for which I will pay them handsomely.” The whole business may be 
 termed a piece of “thimble-rigging,” to prolong their stay—that is, enable 
 them to remain permanently—in the country. Our author, I think, is quite 
 in error in supposing this to have been a real quarrel among the Gipsies. 
 If it had been a real quarrel, the Gipsies would soon have settled the ques¬ 
 tion among themselves, by their own laws; it would have been the last 
 thing, under all the circumstances of the case, they would have thought 
 of, to have brought it before the Scottish court. The Gipsies, according 
 to Grellmann, assigned the following reason for prolonging their stay in 
 Europe: “They endeavoured to prolong the term (of their pilgrimage) by 
 asserting that their return home was prevented by soldiers, stationed to 
 intercept them ; and by wishing to have it believed that new parties of 
 pilgrims were to leave their country every year, otherwise their land would 
 be rendered totally barren.” 
 
 '1 he quarrel between the Faas and the Baillies, for the Gipsy croton, in 
 after times, did not, in all probability, arise from this business, but most 
 likely, as the English Gipsies believe, from some marriage between these 
 families. The Scottish Gipsies, like the two Roses, have had. and for aught 
 I know to the contrary, may have yet, two rival kings—Faa and Baillie, 
 with their partisans—although the Faas, from the prominent position which 
 they have always occupied in Scottish history, have been the only kings 
 known to the Scottish public generally. 
 
104 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 This curious league of John Faw with the Scottish king, 
 who acknowledges the laws and customs of the Gipsies 
 within his kingdom, was of very short duration. Like that 
 of many other favourites of princes, the credit which the 
 “ Earl of Little Egypt” possessed at court was, the succeed¬ 
 ing year, completely annihilated, and that with a vengeance, 
 as will appear by the following order in council. The Gip¬ 
 sies, quarrelling among themselves, and publicly bringing 
 their matters of dispute before the government, had, per¬ 
 haps, contributed to produce an enquiry into the real char¬ 
 acter and conduct of these foreigners ; verifying the ancient 
 adage, that a house divided against itself cannot stand. 
 But the immediate cause assigned for the sudden change of 
 mind in the king, so unfortunate for the Gipsies, is handed 
 down to us in the following tradition, current in Fife : 
 
 King James V, as he was travelling through part of his 
 dominions, disguised under the character of the Gaberlunzie- 
 man, or Guid-man of Ballangiegh. prosecuting, as was his 
 custom, his low and vague amours, fell in with a band of 
 Gipsies, in the midst of their carousals, in a cave, near 
 Wemyss, in Fifeshire. His majesty heartily joined in their 
 revels, but it was not long before a scuffle ensued, wherein 
 the king was very roughly handled, being in danger of his 
 life.* The Gipsies, perceiving at last that he was none of 
 their people, and considering him a spy, treated him with 
 great indignity. Among other humiliating insults, they 
 compelled his royal majesty, as an humble servant of a Tink¬ 
 ler, to carry their budgets and w r allets on his back, for 
 several miles, until he was exhausted ; and being unable to 
 
 In perusing this work, the reader will be pleased to take the above men¬ 
 tioned document as the starting point of the history of the Gipsies in 
 Scotland; and consider the Gipsies of that time as the progenitors of all 
 those at present in Scotland, including the great encrease of the body, by 
 the mixture of the white blood that has been brought within their com¬ 
 munity. He will also be pleased to direst himself of the childish preju¬ 
 dices, acquired in the nursery and in general literature, against the name 
 of Gipsy; and consider that there are people in Scotland, occupying some 
 of the highest positions in life, who are Gipsies; not indeed Gipsies in point 
 of purity of blood, but people who have Gipsy blood in their veins, and 
 who hold themselves to be Gipsies, in the manner which I have, to a cer¬ 
 tain extent, explained in the Preface, and will more fully illustrate in my 
 Disquisition on the Gipsies.—En. 
 
 * The Gipsies asseit that, on this occasion, the king attempted to take 
 liberties with one of their women: and that one of the male Gipsies 
 *■ came crack over his head with a bottle.”—E d. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 105 
 
 proceed a step farther, he sank under his load. He was 
 then dismissed with scorn and contempt by the merciless 
 Gipsies. Being exasperated at their cruel and contemptuous 
 treatment of his sacred person, and having seen a fair speci¬ 
 men of their licentious manner of life, the king caused an order 
 in council immediately to be issued, declaring that, if three 
 Gipsies were found together, one of the three was instantly 
 to be seized, and forthwith hanged or shot, by any one of 
 his majesty’s subjects that chose to put the order in execution. 
 
 This tradition is noticed by the Rev. Andrew Small, in 
 his antiquities of Fife, in the following words. His book 
 came into my hands after I had written down my account 
 of the tradition. 
 
 “ But, surely, this would be the last tinker that ever he 
 would dub (a knight). If we may judge from what hap¬ 
 pened, one might imagine he, (James V,) would be heartily 
 sick of them, (tinkers,) being taken prisoner by three of them, 
 and compelled to stay with them several days, so that his 
 nobles lost all trace of him, and being also forced, not only 
 to lead their ass, but likewise to assist it in carrying part of 
 the panniers ! At length he got an opportunity, when they 
 were bousing in a house at the east end of the village of 
 Milnathort, where there is now a new meeting-house built, 
 when he was left on the green with the ass. He contrived 
 to write, some way, on a slip of paper, and gave a boy half- 
 a-crown to run with it .to Falkland, and give it to his no¬ 
 bles, intimating that the guid-man of Ballangiegh was in a 
 state of captivity. After they got it, and knew where he 
 was, they were not long in being with him, although it was 
 fully ten miles they had to ride. Whenever he got assist¬ 
 ance, he caused two of the tinkers, that were most harsh 
 and severe to him, to be hanged immediately, and let the 
 third one, that was most favourable to him, go free. They 
 were hanged a little south-west of the village, at a place 
 which, from the circumstance, is called the Gallow-hill to 
 this day. The two skeletons were lately found after the 
 division of the commonty that recently took place. He also, 
 after this time, made a law, that whenever three tinkers, or 
 Gipsies, were found going together, two of them should be 
 hanged, and the third set at liberty.”* 
 
 * Small’s Roman Antiquities of Fife, pages 2S5 and 286. Small also re¬ 
 cords a song composed on James V dubbing a Tinker a knight. 
 
 5 * 
 
106 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The following order in council is, perhaps, the one tc 
 which this tradition alludes : 
 
 “ Act of the lords of council respecting John Faw, &c., 
 June 6, 1541. The which day anent the complaint given 
 by John Faw and his brother, and Sebastiane Lalow, 
 Egyptians, to the King’s grace, ilk ane plenizeand . . . . 
 
 upon other and divers faults and injuries ; and that it is 
 agreed among them to pass home, and have the same decid¬ 
 ed before the Duke of Egypt.* The lords of council, being 
 advised with the points of the said complaints, and under¬ 
 standing 'perfectly the great thefts and skaitks (hurts) done 
 by the said Egyptians upon our sovereign lord’s lieges, where- 
 ever they come or resort, ordain letters to be directed to the 
 provosts and baillies of Edinburgh, St. Johnstown (Perth), 
 Dundee, Montrose, Aberdeen, St. Andrews, Elgin, Forres, 
 and Inverness; and to the sheriffs of Edinburgh, Fife, 
 Perth, Forfar, Kincardine, Aberdeen, Elgin and Forres, 
 Banff, Cromarty, Inverness, and all other sheriffs, stewarts, 
 provosts and baillies, where it happens the said Egyptians to 
 resort.! To command and charge them, by open proclama¬ 
 tion, at the market crosses of the head burghs of the sher¬ 
 iffdoms, to depart forth of this realm, with their wives, chil¬ 
 dren, and companies, within xxx days after they be charged 
 thereto, under the pain of death ; notwithstanding any 
 other letters or privileges granted to them by the king’s 
 grace, because his grace, with the advice of the lords, has 
 discharged the same for the causes aforesaid : with certifi¬ 
 cation that if they be found in this realm, the said xxx days 
 being past, they shall be taken and put to death.”! 
 
 This sharp order in council seems to have been the first 
 edict banishing the Gipsies as a whole people—men, women, 
 
 * It would seem that John Faw had become frightened at the mishap of ono 
 of his folk “ coming crack over the king’s head with a bottle,” and that, to 
 pacify his majesty, he had at once gone before him, and informed him that 
 he had prevailed on his “ rebellious subjects” to pass home, and have the 
 matter in dispute decided by the Puke of Egypt. This would, so far, satisfy 
 the king; but to make sure of getting rid of his troublesome visitors, he 
 issued his commands to the various authorities to see that they really did 
 leave the country.— Ed. 
 
 j- It would appear, from the mention that is made here of the authorities 
 of so many towns and counties, “ where it happens the said Egyptians tc 
 resort,” that the race was scattered over all Scotland at this time, and that 
 it must have been numerous.— Ed. 
 
 \ M. S. Act. Dom. Con. vol. 16, fob 166.— Blackwood's Magazine. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 107 
 
 and children—from Scotland. But the king, whom, accord* 
 ing to tradition, they had personally so deeply offended, dying 
 in the following year, (1542) a new reign brought new 
 prospects to the denounced wanderers.* They seem to have 
 had the address to recover their credit with the succeeding 
 government ; for, in 1553, the writ which passed the privy 
 seal in 1540, forming a sort of league with “ John Faw, Lord 
 and Earl of Little Egypt,” was renewed by Hamilton, Earl 
 of Arran, then Regent during the minority of Queen Mar)'. 
 McLaurin, in his criminal trials, when speaking of John 
 Faw, gravely calls him “ this peer.” “ There is a writ ” 
 says he, “ of the same tenor in favour of this peer from Queen 
 Mary, same record, 25 April, 1553 ; and 8 April, 1554, lie 
 gets remission for the slaughter of Ninian Small.” In Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine it is mentioned that 11 Andro Faw, Captain 
 of the Egyptians,t and twelve of his gang specified by name, 
 obtained a remission for the slaughter of Ninian Small, com¬ 
 mitted within the town of Linton, in the month of March 
 last by past upon suddenly.” This appears to be the slaugh¬ 
 ter to which McLaurin alludes. The following are the 
 names of these thirteen Gipsies : “ Andro Faw, captain of 
 the Egyptians, George Faw, Robert Faw, and Anthony Faw, 
 his sons, Johnnc Faw, Andrew George Nichoah, George 
 Sebastiane Colyne, George Colyne, Julie Colync, Johnnc 
 Colyne, James Haw, Johnnc Browne, and George Browne, 
 Egyptians.” 
 
 From the edict above mentioned, it is evident that the 
 Gipsies in Scotland, at that time, were allowed to punish the 
 criminal members of their own tribe, according to their own 
 
 * It is perfectly evident that the severe decree of James Y against the 
 Gipsies arose from the personal insult alluded to, owing to the circumstance 
 of its falling to the ground after his death, and the Gipsies recovering their 
 position with his successor. Apart from what the Gipsies themselves say 
 on this subject, the ordinary tradition may be assumed to be well founded. 
 If the Gipsies were spoken to on the subject of the insult offered to the 
 king, they would naturally reply, that they did not know, from his having 
 been dressed like a beggar, that it was the king ; an excuse which the court, 
 knowing bis majesty’s vagabond habits, would probably receive. But it 
 is very likely that John Faw would declare that the guilty parties were 
 those rebels whom he was desirous to catch, and take home with him to 
 Egypt 1 This Gipsy king seems to have been a master of diplomacy.— Ed. 
 
 f The Gipsy chiefs were partial to the title of Captain ; arising, I suppose, 
 from their being leaders of large bands of young men employed in theft 
 and robbery. [In Spain, such Gipsy chiefs, according to Mr. Borrow, as¬ 
 sumed the name of Counts.— Ed.] 
 
10S 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 peculiar laws, customs and usages, without molestation. And 
 it cannot be supposed that the ministers of three or four suc¬ 
 ceeding monarchs would have suffered their sovereigns to be 
 so much imposed on, as to allow them to put their names to 
 public documents, styling poor and miserable wretches, as 
 we at the present day imagine them to have been, “Lords 
 and Earls of Little Egypt.” Judging from the accounts 
 which tradition has handed down to us, of the gay and fash¬ 
 ionable appearance of the principal Gipsies, as late as about 
 the beginning of the eighteenth century, as will be seen in 
 my account of the Tweed-dale bands, I am disposed to be¬ 
 lieve that Antlionius Gawino, in 1506, and John Faw, in 
 1540, would personally, as individuals, that is, as Gipsy 
 Rajahs* have a very respectable and imposing appearance 
 in the eyes of the officers of the crown. And besides, John 
 Faw appears to have been possessed of “ divers sums of 
 money, jewels, clothes and other goods, to the quantity of a 
 great sum of money and it would seem that some of the 
 officers of high rank in the household of our kings had fin¬ 
 gered the cash of the Gipsy pilgrims. If there is any truth 
 in the popular and uniform tradition that, in the seventeenth 
 century, a Countess of Cassilis was seduced from her duty 
 to her lord, and carried off by a Gipsy, of the name of John 
 Faa, and his band, it cannot be imagined, that the seducer 
 would be a poor, wretched, beggarly Tinkler, such as many 
 of the tribe are at this day. If a handsome person, elegant 
 apparel, a lively disposition, much mirth and glee, and a con¬ 
 stant boasting of extraordinary prowess, would in any 
 way contribute to make an impression on the heart of the 
 frail countess, these qualities, I am disposed to think, would 
 not be wanting in the “ Gipsy Laddie.” And, moreover, 
 John Faw bore, on paper at least, as high a title as her 
 husband, Lord Cassilis, from whom she absconded. It is 
 said the individual who seduced the fair lady was a Sir 
 John Faw, of Dunbar, her former sweetheart, and not a 
 Gipsy ; but tradition gives no account of a Sir John Faw, of 
 Dunbar.f The Falls, merchants, at Dunbar, were descended 
 from the Gipsy Faas of Yetholm. 
 
 * Rajah —The Scottish Gipsy word for a chief, governor, or prince. 
 
 + The author, (Mr. Finlay,) who claims a Sir John Faw, of Dunbar, to 
 have been the person who carried off the Countess of Cassilis, gives no au¬ 
 thority, ns a writer in Blackwood says, in support of his assertion. Nor 
 does he accoun/ for a person of that name being any other than a Gipsy. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 109 
 
 It is pretty clear that the Gipsies remained in Scotland, 
 ■with little molestation, from 1506 till 1579—the year in 
 which James VI took the government into his own hands, 
 being a period of about seventy-three years, during which 
 time these wanderers roamed up and down the kingdom, 
 without receiving any check of consequence, excepting the 
 short period—probably about one year—in which the severe 
 order of James V remained in force, and which, in all pro¬ 
 bability, expired with the king.* 
 
 The civil and religious contests in which the nation had 
 been long engaged, particularly during the reign of Queen 
 Mary, produced numerous swarms of banditti, who commit¬ 
 ted outrages in every part of the country. The slighter de¬ 
 predations of the Gipsy bands, in the midst of the fierce and 
 bloody quarrels of the different factions that generally pre¬ 
 vailed throughout the kingdom, would attract but little at¬ 
 tention, and the Gipsies would thereby escape the punishment 
 which their actions merited. But the government being 
 more firmly established, by the union of the different parties 
 who distracted the country, and the king assuming the su¬ 
 preme authority, which all acknowledged, vigorous measures 
 were adopted for suppressing the excess of strolling vaga¬ 
 bonds of every description. In the very year the king was 
 placed at the head of affairs, a law was passed, “ For punish¬ 
 ment of strong and idle beggars, and relief of the poor and 
 impotent.” 
 
 Against the Gipsies this sweeping statute is particularly 
 directed, for they are named, and some of their practices 
 pointed out, in the following passage : “ And that it may be 
 
 Indeed, this is hut an instance of the ignorance and prejudice of people ge¬ 
 nerally in regard to the Gipsies. The tradition of the hero being a Gipsy, 
 1 have met with among the English Gipsies, who even gave me the name 
 of the lady. John Faw, in all probability the king of the Gipsies, who car¬ 
 ried off the countess, might reasonably be assumed to have been, in point 
 of education, on a par with her, who, in that respect, would not, in all pro¬ 
 bability, rise above the most humble Scotch cow milker at the present day, 
 whatever her personal bearing might have been.—E d. 
 
 * During these seventy-three years of peace, the Gipsies in Scotland 
 must have multiplied prodigiously, and, in all probability, drawn much of 
 the native blood into their body. Not being, at that time, a proscribed 
 race, but, on the contrary, honoured by leagues and covenants with the 
 king himself, the ignorant public generally would have few of those objec¬ 
 tions to intermarry with them, which they have had in subsequent times. 
 The thieving habits of the Gipsies would prove no bar to such connections, 
 as the Scottish people were accustomed to thieving of all kinds.—E d. 
 
110 
 
 A HIST OUT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 known what manner of persons arc meant to be strong and 
 idle beggars and vagabonds, and worthy of the punishment 
 before specified, it is declared that all idle persons going 
 about the country of this realm, using subtle, crafty and un¬ 
 lawful plays—as jugglery, fast-and-loose, and such others, the 
 idle people calling themselves Egyptians, or any other that 
 fancy themselves to have knowledge of prophecy, charming, 
 or other abused sciences, whereby they persuade the people 
 that they can tell their weirds, deaths, and fortunes, and 
 such other fantastical imaginations.”* And the following is 
 the mode prescribed for punishing the Gipsies, and the other 
 offenders associated with them in this act of parliament: 
 “ That such as make themselves fools and are bairds, (strol¬ 
 ling rhymers,) or other such like runners about, being appre¬ 
 hended, shall be put in the king’s ward, or irons, so long as 
 they have any goods of their own to live on, and if they have 
 not whereupon to live of their own, that their ears be nailed 
 to the tron or other tree, and cut off, and (themselves) ban¬ 
 ished the country ; and if thereafter they be found again, 
 that they be hanged.”! 
 
 This statute was ratified and confirmed in the 12th par¬ 
 liament of James VI, cap. 147,5th June, 1592, wherein the 
 incorrigible Gipsies are again referred to : “ And for the 
 better trial of common sorners (forcible obtruders,) vaga¬ 
 bonds, and masterful beggars, fancied fools, and counterfeit 
 Egyptians, and to the effect that they may be still pre¬ 
 served till they be compelled to settle at some certain 
 dwelling, or be expelled forth of the country, &c.” 
 The next law in which the Gipsies are mentioned, with 
 other vagabonds, was passed in the 15th parliament of the 
 same reign, 19th December, 1597, entitled, “ Strong beg¬ 
 gars, vagabonds, and Egyptians should be punished.” The 
 statute itself reads as follows : “ Our sovereign lord and es¬ 
 tates of parliament ratify and approve the acts of parliament 
 
 * In this act of parliament are denounced, along with the Gipsies, “ all 
 minstrels, songsters, and tale-tellers, not avowed by special licence of some 
 of the lords of parliament or great barons, or by the high burghs and 
 cities, for their common minstrels.” “ All vagabond scholars (!) of the uni¬ 
 versities of St. Andrews, Glasgow, and Aberdeen, not licenced by the rector 
 and dean of faculty to ask alms.” It would seem, from this last extract, 
 that the Scottish Universities granted diplomas to their students to beg 1 
 The Gipsies were associated or classed with good company at this time. 
 But beggar students, or student-beggars, were common in other parts of 
 Europe during that age.— Ed. 
 
 f Glendook’s Scots Acts, James YI, 6th Par. cap. 14—20th Oct. 1519. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 Ill 
 
 made before, against strong and idle beggars, vagabonds, 
 and Egyptians,” with this addition : “ That strong beggars 
 and their children be employed in common works, and their 
 service mentioned in the said act of parliament, in the year 
 of God, 1579, to be prorogate in during their life times, Ac.”*' 
 All the foregoing laws were again ratified and enforced 
 by another act, in the same reign, 15th November, 1600. 
 The following extract will serve to give some explanation 
 how these statutes were neglected, and seldom put in force : 
 “ And how the said acts have received little or no effect or 
 execution, by the oversight and negligence of the persons 
 who were nominated justices and commissioners, for putting 
 of the said acts to full and due execution, so that the strong 
 and idle beggars, being for the most part thieves, bairds, 
 (strolling rhymers,) and counterfeit limmcrs, (scoundrels,) 
 living most insolently and ungodly, without marriage or bap¬ 
 tism, are suffered to vaicj and wander throughout the whole 
 country.”! - “ But,” says Baron Hume, “ all ordinary means 
 having proved insufficient to restrain so numerous and so 
 sturdy a crew, the privy council at length, in June, 160J, 
 were induced to venture on the more effectual expedient, 
 (recommended by the example of some other realm.) of at 
 once ordering the whole race to leave the kingdom by a cer¬ 
 tain day, and never to return under the pain of death.J A 
 few years after, this proclamation was converted into per- 
 
 * By the above, and subsequent statutes, in the reign of James YI, 
 “ Coal and salt-masters might apprehend, and put to labour, all vagabonds 
 and sturdy beggars.” The truth is, these kidnapped individuals and their 
 children were made slaves of to these masters. The colliers were emanci¬ 
 pated oidy within these fifty years. It has been stated to me that some of 
 the colliers in the Lothians are of Gipsy extraction. [Our author might 
 have said Gipsies; for being “ of Gipsy extraction,” and Gipsies,” are ex¬ 
 pressions quite synonymous, notwithstanding the application by the public 
 of the latter term to the more original kind of Gipsies only.—E d.] 
 
 f If Fletcher of Saltoun bo correct, when he states that, in his time, wffiich 
 was about the end of the 17th century, there were two hundred thousand 
 people, (about one-fifth of the whole population.) begging from door to door 
 in Scotland, it would be a task of no little difficulty, for those in power, to 
 put in force the laws against the Gipsies, and vagabonds generally. The 
 editor of Dr. Pennicuick’s history of Tweed-dale, thinks Fletcher’s is an 
 over-charged picture. Some are of opinion that, when he made his state¬ 
 ment, he included the greater part of the inhabitants of the Scottish Border, 
 and also those in the north of Scotland ; for, he said, the Highlands “ was an 
 inexhaustible source of beggars,” and wished these banditti transplanted 
 to the low country, and to people the Highlands from hence. 
 
 J The records in which this order is contained are lost. 
 
113 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 pehial law, by statute 1609, cap. 13, with this farther conve¬ 
 nient, but very severe, provision toward the more effectual 
 execution of the order, that it should be lawful to condemn 
 and execute them to the death, upon proof made of the single 
 fact ‘ that they are called, known, repute and holden Egyp¬ 
 tians’ !” As this is the only statute exclusively relating to, 
 and denouncing, the Gipsies, I shall give it at length. 
 
 “ 13. Act anent the Egyptians. Our sovereign lord and 
 estates of parliament ratify, approve, and perpetually con¬ 
 firm the act of secret council, made in the month of Juue or 
 thereby, 1603 years, and proclamation following thereupon, 
 commanding the vagabonds, sorners (forcible obtruders), and 
 common thieves, commonly called Egyptians, to pass forth 
 of this kingdom, and remain perpetually forth thereof, and 
 never to return within the same, under pain of death ; and 
 that the same have force and execution after the first day 
 of August next to come. After the which time, if any of 
 the said vagabonds, called Egyptians, as well women as 
 men, shall be found within this kingdom, or any part there¬ 
 of, it shall be lawful to all his majesty’s good subjects, or 
 any one of them, to cause take, apprehend, imprison, and 
 execute to death the said Egyptians, either men or women, 
 as common, notorious, and condemned thieves, by one assize 
 only to be tried, that they are called, known, repute and 
 holden Egyptians : In the which cause, whosoever of the 
 assize happen to clenge (exculpate) any of the aforesaid 
 Egyptians pannelled, as said is, shall be pursued, handled 
 and censured as committers of wilful error : And whoever 
 shall, any time thereafter, reset, receive, supply, or entertain 
 any of the said Egyptians, either men or women, shall lose 
 their escheat, and be warded at the judge’s will: And that 
 the sheriffs and magistrates, in whose bounds they shall pub¬ 
 licly and avowedly resort and remain, be called before the 
 lords of his highness’ secret council, and severely censured 
 and punished for their negligence in execution of this act: 
 Discharging all letters, protections, and warrants whatsoever, 
 purchased by the said Egyptians, or any of them, from his 
 majesty or lords of secret council, for their remaining within 
 this realm, as surreptitiously and deceitfully obtained by 
 their knowledge: Annulling also all warrants purchased, 
 or hereafter to be purchased, by any subject of whatsoever 
 rank within this kingdom, for their reset, entertaining, or 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 113 
 
 doing any manner of favour to the said Egyptians, at any 
 time after the said tirst day of August next to come, for now 
 and ever.”* In a subsequent enactment, in 1617, appoint¬ 
 ing justices of the peace and constables, the destruction of 
 the proscribed Egyptians is particularly enjoined, in defin¬ 
 ing the different duties of the magistrates and their peace 
 officers.! 
 
 But so little respected was the authority of the govern¬ 
 ment, that in 1612, three years after the passing of the 
 Gipsy act, his majesty was under the humiliating necessity 
 of entering into a contract with the clan Scott, and their 
 friends, by which the clan bound themselves “ to give up all 
 bands of friendship, kindness, oversight, maintenance or as¬ 
 surance, if any we have, with common thieves and broken 
 clans, &c.” It is certain there would be many bonds of the 
 same nature with other turbulent clans throughout the king¬ 
 dom. That Scotchmen of respectability and influence pro¬ 
 tected the Gipsies, and afforded them shelter on their lands, 
 after the promulgation of the cruel statute of 1609, is mani¬ 
 fest from the following passages, which I extract from Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine, for 1817 ; the conductor of which seems 
 to have been careful in examining the public records for the 
 documents quoted by him ; having been guided in his re¬ 
 searches, I believe, by Sir Walter Scott. 
 
 “In February, 1615, we find a remission under the privy 
 seal, granted to William Auchterlony, of Cayrine, for re¬ 
 setting of John Faw and his followers.^ On the 14th July, 
 1616, the sheriff of Forfar is severely reprimanded for delay¬ 
 ing to execute some Gipsies, who had been taken within his 
 jurisdiction, and for troubling the council w r ith petitions in 
 their behalf. In November following appears a proclama¬ 
 tion against Egyptians and their resetters. In December, 
 1619, we find another proclamation against resetters of them ; 
 
 * Glendook’s Scots Act. f lb. 
 
 t The nature of this crime in Scotch law is fully explained in the follow¬ 
 ing extract from the original, which also appears curious in other respects. 
 The pardon is granted “ pro receptione, supportatione, et detentione supra 
 terra suas de Belmadie, et infra eius habitations domum, aliaq. edificia 
 eiusdem, Joann in Fall, Ethiopia, lie Egiptian, eiusq. uxoris, puerorum, ser- 
 vorum et associatorum; Necnon pro ministrando ipsis cibum, potum, pecn- 
 nias, hospicium, aliaq. necessaria, quocunq. tempore vel oecasioue preterita, 
 contra acta nostri Parliamenti vel secreti concilii. vel contra quecunq. leges, 
 alia acta, nut constitutiones liuius nostri regni Scotia in contrarium facta. 
 1 legist, secreti sigilli vol. lxxxiii, fol. 291, Blackwood’a Magazine. —Ei>. 
 
114 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 in April, 1620, another proclamation of the same kind, and 
 in July, 1620, a commission against resetters, all with very 
 severe penalties. The nature of these acts will be better 
 understood from the following extract from that of the 4th 
 July, 1616, which also very well explains the way in which 
 the Gipsies contrived to maintain their footing in the coun¬ 
 try, in deiiancc of all the efforts of the legislature to extir¬ 
 pate them.” “ It is of truth that the thieves and limmers 
 (scoundrels), aforesaid, having for some short space after the 
 said act of parliament, (1609,) . . . dispersed them¬ 
 
 selves in certain secret and obscure places of the country. . 
 they were not known to wander abroad in troops and com¬ 
 panies, according to their accustomed manner, yet, shortly 
 thereafter, finding that the said act of parliament was neg¬ 
 lected, and that no enquiry nor . . . was made for 
 
 them, they began to take new breath and courage, and . . 
 
 unite themselves in infamous companies and societies, under 
 . . . . commanders, and continually since then have re¬ 
 
 mained within the country, committing as well open and 
 avowed rieffis (robberies) in all parts .... murders, 
 . . . pleine stouthe (common theft,) and pickery, where 
 
 they may not be mastered ; and they do shamefully and mis¬ 
 chievously abuse the simple and ignorant people, by telling 
 fortunes, and using charms, and a number of juggling tricks 
 and falseties, unworthy to be heard of in a country subject 
 to religion, law, and justice ; and they are encouraged to 
 remain within the country, and to continue in their thievish 
 and juggling tricks and falseties, not only through default 
 of the execution of the said act of parliament, but, what is 
 worse, that great numbers of his majesty’s subjects, of whom 
 some outwardly pretend to be famous and unspotted gentle¬ 
 men, have given and give open and avowed protection, reset, 
 supply and maintainance, upon their grounds and lands, to 
 the said vagabonds, sorners, (forcible obtruders,) and con¬ 
 demned thieves and limmers. (scoundrels,) and suffer them to 
 remain days, weeks, and months together thereupon, without 
 controulment, and with connivance and oversight, &c.” “ So 
 they do leave a foul, infamous, and ignominious spot upon 
 them, their houses, and posterity, that they are patrons to 
 thieves and limmers , (scoundrels,)” <fcc.* 
 
 * The same state of things existed in Spain. Charles II, passed a law 
 on the 12th June, 1695, the 16th article of which, as given by Mr. Borrow, 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 115 
 
 Fiom their first arrival in the country till 1579, the Gip¬ 
 sies, as already mentioned, appear to have been treated as a 
 separate people, observing their own laws and customs. In 
 the year 1587, such was the state of society in Scotland, 
 that laws were passed by James VI, compelling all the 
 baronial proprietors of lands, chiefs and captains of clans, 
 on the Borders and Highlands of Scotland, to find pledges 
 and securities for the peaceable conduct of their retainers, 
 tenants, clansmen, and other inhabitants of their respective 
 estates and districts.* In the same parliament another act 
 was passed, allowing vagabonds and broken and unpledged 
 men to produce pledges and securities for their good con¬ 
 duct. The Gipsies, under these statutes, would remain un¬ 
 molested, as they would readily find protection by becoming, 
 nominally, clansmen, and assuming the surnames, of those 
 chieftains and noblemen who were willing and able to afford 
 them protection.t Indeed, the act allowing vagabonds to 
 find sureties would include the Gipsy bands, for, about this 
 
 enacts: “ And because we understand that the continuance of those who 
 are called Gitanos has depended on the favour, protection, and assistance 
 which they have experienced from persons of different stations, wc do ordain 
 that whosoever against whom shall be proved the fact of having, since the 
 day of the publication hereof, favoured, received, or assisted the said 
 Gitanos, in any manner whatever, whether within their houses or without, 
 provided he is a noble, shall be subjected to the tine of six thousand ducats, 
 . , . . and if a plebeian, to a punishment of ten years in the galleys” 
 
 Such an enactment would surely prove that the Gipsies in Spain were 
 greatly favoured by the Spanish people generally, even two centuries after 
 they entered the country. 
 
 The causes to which may be attributed this toleration, even encourage¬ 
 ment, of the Gipsies, are various. Among these may be mentioned a fear 
 of consequences to person and property, tinkering, trafficking and amuse¬ 
 ment, and corruption on the part of those in power. But in the character 
 of tho Gipsies itself may be found a general cause for their escaping the 
 effects of the laws passed against them, viz., wheedling. The term Gitano 
 has been variously modified in the Spanish language, thus: 
 
 Gitano, Gipsy, flatterer ; Gitanillo, a little Gipsy; Gitanismo, the. Gipsy 
 tribe ; Gitanesco, Gipsy-like ; Gitanear, to flatter, entice ; Gitaneria, wheed¬ 
 ling, fattery ; Gitanamente, in a sly, winning manner ; Gitanada, blandish¬ 
 ment, wheedling, fatten/. —Ed. 
 
 * There were 17 clans on the Borders, and 34 clans in the Highlands, 
 who appear to have had chiefs and captains over them. There were 22 
 baronial proprietors connected with the Borders, and 106 connected with 
 the Highlands, named in a roll, who were likewise ordered to find pledges. 
 — G'cudook's Scots Acts. 
 
 f It sometimes happened, when an internal quarrel took place in a elan, 
 portions of the tribe left their chief, and united themselves to another, whose 
 name they assumed and dropped their original one. 
 
116 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 period, they poem to have been only classed with our own 
 native vagabonds, moss-troopers, Border and Highland 
 thieves, broken elans and masterless men. It appears by 
 the act of 1609, that the Gipsies had even purchased their 
 protection from the government. The inhabitants of Scot¬ 
 land being at this period still divided into clans, would 
 greatly facilitate the escape of the Gipsies from the laws 
 passed against them. The clans on the Borders and High¬ 
 lands were in a state of almost constant warfare with one 
 another ; and frequently several of the clans were united in 
 opposition to the regular government of the country, to 
 whose mandates they paid little or no regard. The Gipsies 
 had no settled residence, but roamed from place to place 
 over the whole country ; and when they found themselves 
 in danger in one place, they had no more to do but remove 
 into the district inhabited by a hostile clan, where they 
 would immediately find protection. Besides, the Borderers 
 and Highlanders, themselves plunderers and thieves, would 
 not be very active in apprehending their brother thieves, 
 the Gipsies. Even, according to Holinshed, “ the poison of 
 theft and robbery pervaded almost all classes of the Scot¬ 
 tish community about this period.” 
 
 The excessive severity of the sanguinary statute of 1609, 
 and the unrelenting manner in which it was often carried 
 into effect, were calculated to produce a great outward 
 change on the Scottish Gipsies. Like stags selected from a 
 herd of deer, and doomed to be hunted down by dogs, these 
 wanderers were now singled out, and separated from the 
 community, as objects to whom no mercy was to be shown.* 
 The word Egyptian would never be allowed to escape their 
 lips ; not a syllable of their peculiar speech would be uttered, 
 unless in the midst of their own tribe. It is also highly 
 probable that every part of their dress by which their fra¬ 
 ternity could be recognized, would be carefully discontinued. 
 To deceive the public, they would also conform externally 
 to some of the religious rites, ceremonies, observances, and 
 
 * The reader will see that the Gipsies, at this time, were not greater 
 “ vagabonds” than great numbers of native Scotch, if as great. But, being 
 strangers in the country, sojourners according to their own account, the 
 king would naturally enough banish them, as they seem always to have 
 been saying that they were about leaving for “ their own country.” Their 
 living in tents, a mode of life so different from that of the natives, would, 
 of itself, make them obnoxious to the king personally.—E d. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 117 
 
 other customs of the natives of Scotland. I am further in¬ 
 clined to think that it would be about this period, and chiefly 
 in consequence of these bloody enactments, the Gipsies 
 would, in general, assume the ordinary Christian and sur¬ 
 names common at that time in Scotland. And their usual 
 sagacity pointed out to them the advantages arising from 
 taking the cognomens of the most powerful families in 
 the kingdom, whose influence would afford them ample 
 protection, as adopted members of their respective clans. 
 In support of my opinion of the origin of the surnames of 
 the Gipsies of the present day, we find that the most pre¬ 
 vailing names among them are those of the most influential 
 of our noble families of Scotland ; such as Stewart, Gordon, 
 Douglas, Graham, Ruthven, Hamilton, Drummond, Kennedy, 
 Cunningham, Montgomery, Kerr, Campbell, Maxwell, John¬ 
 stone, Ogilvie, McDonald, Robertson, Grant, Baillie, Shaw, 
 Burnet, Brown, Keith, &c.* If, even at the present day, 
 you enquire at the Gipsies respecting their descent, the 
 greater part of them will tell you that they are sprung 
 from a bastard son of this or that noble family, or other 
 person of rank and influence, of their own surname.t This 
 pretended connexion with families of high rank and power 
 lias saved some of the tribe from the gallows even in our own 
 time. The names, however, of the two principal families, 
 Faw, (now Faa,) and Bailyow, (now Baillie,) appear not to 
 have been changed since the date of the order in council or 
 league with James V, in the year 1540, as both of these 
 names arc inserted in that document. 
 
 Baron Hume, on the criminal law of Scotland, gives the 
 
 * The English Gipsies say that native names were assumed by their 
 race in consequence of the proscription to which it was subjected. German 
 Gipsies, ou arrival in America, change, at least modify, their names there 
 are many of them who go under the names of Smith, Miller, and Wag¬ 
 goner. Jews frequently bear names common to the natives of the countries 
 in which they are to be found, and sometimes, at the piesent day, assume 
 Christian one s . I knew, two German Jews, of the name of Cohen, who 
 settled in Scotland. One of them, who was a priest, retained the original 
 name ; but the other, who was a watchmaker, assumed the name of Cowan, 
 which, singularly enough, the priest said, was a corruption of Cohen.— El>. 
 
 f It is stated by Paget, in his Travels in Hungary, that the Gipsies in 
 that country have a profound regard for aristocracy ; and that they inva¬ 
 riably follow that class in the matter of religious opinions. Grellmann 
 says as much in regard to the Gipsy’s desire of getting hold of a distin¬ 
 guished old coat to put on his person.— Ed. 
 
118 
 
 A niSTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 following account of some of the trials and executions of 
 the Gipsies : 
 
 “ The statute (1609) annuls at the same time all protection 
 and warrants purchased by the Egyptians from his majesty’s 
 privy council, for their remaining within the realm ; as also 
 all privileges purchased by any person to reset, entertain, or 
 do them any favour. It appears, indeed, from a paper in 
 the appendix to McLaurin’s Cases, that even the king’s ser¬ 
 vants and great officers had not kept their hands entirely 
 pure of this sort of treaty with the Egyptian chiefs, from 
 whom some supply of money might in this way be occasion¬ 
 ally obtained. 
 
 “ The first Gipsies that were brought to trial on the 
 statute, were four persons of the name of Faa, who, on the 
 31st July, 1611, were sentenced to be hanged. They had 
 pleaded upon a special license from the privy council, to 
 abide within the country ; but this appearing to be clogged 
 with a condition of finding surety for their appearance 
 when called on, and their surety being actually at the horn, 
 for failure to present themselves, they were held to have in¬ 
 fringed the terms of their protection. 
 
 “ The next trial Avas on the 19th and 24th July, 1616, in 
 the case of other two Faas and a Baillie, (which seem to 
 have been noted names among the Gipsies ;) and here was 
 started that plea which has since been repeated in almost 
 every case, but has always been overruled, viz : that the act 
 and proclamation were temporary ordinances, and applicable 
 only to such Egyptians as Avere in the country at their date. 
 These pannels, upon conviction, were ordered by the privy 
 council to find caution to the extent of 1,000 merles, to leave 
 Scotland and never to return ; and having failed to comply 
 with this injunction, they were in consequence condemned to 
 die. 
 
 “ In January, 1624, follows a still more severe example ; 
 no feAver than eight men, among whom Captain John Faa 
 and other five of the name of Faa, being convicted, were 
 doomed to death on the statute. Some days after, there 
 Avere brought to trial Helen Faa, relict of Captain Faa, 
 Lucretia Faa, and other women to the number of eleven ; all 
 of whom were in like manner convicted, and condemned to 
 be drowned! But, in the end, their doom was commuted 
 for banishment, (under pain of death,) to them and all their 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 119 
 
 race. The sentence was, however, executed on the male 
 convicts ; and it'appears that the terror of their fate had 
 been of material service ; as, for the space of more than 50 
 years from that time, there is no trial of an Egyptian.” 
 
 But notwithstanding this statement of Baron Ilume, of 
 the Gipsy trials having ceased for half a century, we find, 
 twelve years after 1024, the date of the above trials, the 
 following order of the privy council : “Anent some Egyptians. 
 At Edinburgh, 10th November, 1636. Forasmuch as Sir 
 Arthur Douglas of Quhittinghame having lately taken and 
 apprehended some of the vagabond and counterfeit thieves 
 and limmers, (scoundrels,) called the Egyptians, he presented 
 and delivered them to the sheriff principal of the sheriffdom 
 of Edinburgh, within the constabulary of Haddington, 
 where they have remained this month or thereby : and 
 whereas the keeping of them longer, within the said tolbooth, 
 is troublesome and burdensome to the town of Haddington, 
 and fosters the said thieves in an opinion of impunity, to 
 the encouraging of the rest of that infamous bylce (hive) of 
 lawless limmers (scoundrels) to continue in their thievish 
 trade: Therefore the lords of secret council ordain the 
 sheriff of Haddington, or his deputies, to pronounce doom 
 and sentence of death against so many of these counterfeit 
 thieves as are men, and against so many of the women as 
 want children ; ordaining the men to be hanged, and the 
 women to be drowned ; and that such of the women as have 
 children, to be scourged through the burgh of Haddington, 
 and burned in the check ; and ordain and command the 
 provost and baillies of Haddington to cause this doom be 
 executed upon the said persons accordingly.”* 
 
 “ Towards the end of that century,” continues Baron 
 Hume, “ the nuisance seems to have again become trouble¬ 
 some. On the 13th of December, 1698, John Baillie and 
 six men more of the same name, along with the wife of one 
 of them, were indicted as Egyptians, and also for sundry 
 special misdeeds ; and being convicted, (all but the woman,) 
 they were ordered for execution. But in this case it is to 
 be remarked, that the court had so far departed from the 
 rigour of the statute as not to sustain a relevancy on the 
 habit and repute of being an Egyptian of itself, but only 
 ‘ along with one or other of the facts of picking and little 
 
 * Blackwood'n Magazine. 
 
120 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 thieving;’ thus requiring some proof of actual guilt in aid 
 of the fame. In the next trial, which was that of William 
 Baillie, June 26th, 1699, a still further indulgence was in¬ 
 troduced ; for the interlocutor required a proof, not of one 
 only, but of several, of the facts of 1 picking or little thieving, 
 or of several acts of beating and striking with invasive 
 weapons.’ He was only convicted as an Egyptian, and of 
 one act of striking with an invasive weapon, and he escaped 
 in consequence with his life. 
 
 “ This lenient course of dealing with the Gipsies was not 
 taken, however, from any opinion of it as a necessary thing, 
 nor was there any purpose of prescribing it as a rule for 
 other times, or for further cases of the kind where such an 
 indulgence might seem improper, as appears from the inter¬ 
 locutor of relevancy in the case of John Kerr, and Helen 
 Yorkston, and William Baillie and other seven ; in both of 
 which the simple fame and character of being an Egyptian 
 is again found separatum relevant to infer the pain of death, 
 (10th and 11th August, 1714.) Kerr and Yorkston had a 
 verdict in their favour; Baillie and two of his associates 
 were condemned to die ; but as far as concerns Baillie, (for 
 the others were executed,) his doom was afterwards mitigated 
 into transportation, under pain of death in case of return. 
 
 “As early as the month of August, 1715, the same man, (as 
 I understand it,) was again indicted, not only for being 
 found in Britain, but for continuing his former practices and 
 course of life. Notwithstanding this aggravation, the inter¬ 
 locutor is again framed on the indulgent plan, and only in¬ 
 fers the pain of death, from the fame and character of being 
 an Egyptian, joined with various acts of violence and sorn- 
 ing, to the number of three, that are stated in the libel. 
 Though convicted nearly to the extent of the interlocutor, 
 he again escaped with transportation.* 
 
 “ Nor have I observed that the court, in any later case, 
 have thought it necessary to proceed upon the repute alone, 
 unavouched by evidence of, at least, one act of theft or vio¬ 
 lence ; so that, upon the whole, according to the practice of 
 later times, this sort of charge seems to be reduced nearly 
 to the level of the charge of being habit and repute a thief 
 at common law.” 
 
 * This, and part of the preceding paragraph, will be quoted again, under 
 the chapter of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale Gipsies. 
 
SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 121 
 
 It is noticed by Baron Hume that the Faas and the Bail- 
 lies were noted names among the Gipsies. Indeed, the 
 trials referred to by him are all of persons bearing these two 
 surnames, except two individuals only. The truth is, the 
 Faas and the Baillies were the two principal families among 
 the Gipsies ; giving, according to their customs, kings and 
 queens to their countrymen in Scotland. They would be 
 more bold, daring, and presumptuous in their conduct than 
 the most part of their followers ; and, being leaders of the 
 banditti, government, in all probability, would fix upon them 
 as the most proper objects for destruction, as the best and 
 easiest method of overawing and dispersing the whole tribe 
 in the country, by cutting off their chiefs. As I have already 
 mentioned, these two principal clans of Faw and Bailyow 
 appear to be the only Gipsy families in Scotland who have 
 retained the original surnames of their ancestors, at least of 
 those whose names are inserted in the treaty with James V, 
 in 1540. 
 
 It will be seen, under the head Tweed-dale and Clydesdale 
 Gipsies, that tradition has represented William Baillie, who 
 was tried in 1714 and 1715, as a bastard son of the ancient 
 family of Lamington, (his mother being a Gipsy). It appears 
 to me that the Gipsy policy of joining themselves to some 
 family of rank was, in Baillie’s case, of very important ser¬ 
 vice, not only to himself but to the whole tribe in Scotland.* 
 
 * From the time of arrival of the Gipsies in the country, in 1506, till 
 1611 , the date of the first trials of the tribe, as given by Baron Hume, a 
 period of 105 years had elapsed ; during which time there had doubtless 
 been five generations of Gipsies added to the population, as Scottish subjects; 
 to put whom to deatli, on the mere ground of being Egyptians, was con¬ 
 trary to every principle of natural justice. The cruelty exercised upon 
 them was quite in keeping with that of reducing to slavery the individuals, 
 and their descendants, who constituted the colliers, coal-bearers, and salters 
 referred to in the following interesting note, to be found in “ Schools 
 and Schoolmasters,” of Hugh Miller. 
 
 “ The act for manumitting our Scotch colliers was passed in the year 
 1775, forty-nine years prior to the date of my acquaintance with the class of 
 Niddry. But though it was only such colliers of the village as were in 
 their fiftieth year when I knew them, (with, of course, all the older ones,) 
 who had been born slaves, even its men of thirty had actually, though not 
 nominally, come into the world in a state of bondage, in consequence of 
 certain penalties attached to the emancipation act, of which the poor igno¬ 
 rant workers under ground were both too improvident and too little inge¬ 
 nious to keep clear. They were set free, however, by a second act passed 
 in 1799. The language of both these acts, regarded as British ones of the 
 latter half of the last century, and as bearing reference to British subjects 
 
 G 
 
122 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The extraordinary lenity shown to him by the court, after 
 such repeated aggravation, cannot be accounted for in any 
 other way than that great interest had been used in his be¬ 
 half. in some quarter or other ; and that, by creating a mer¬ 
 ciful precedent in his case, it was afterwards followed in the 
 trial of all others of the race in Scotland. 
 
 liv'ng within the limits of the island, strikes with startling effect. * Where¬ 
 as,’ says the preamble of the older act.—that of 1775-—‘ by the statute law of 
 Scotland, as explained by the judges of the courts of law there, many col¬ 
 liers, and coal-bearers, and sailers, are in a state of slavery or bondage , 
 bound to t! e collieries or salt works, where they work/or life , transferable 
 with the collieries or salt works ; and whereas, the emancipation.’ Ac,, Ac. A 
 passage in the preamble of the act of 1799 is scarcely less striking: it de¬ 
 clares that, not withstanding the former act, ‘ many colliers and coal-bearers 
 still continue in a slate of bondage’ in Scotland. The history of our Scotch 
 colliers would be found a curious and instructive one. Their slavery seems 
 not to have been derived from the ancient time of general serfship, but to 
 have originated in comparatively modern acts of the Scottish Parliament, 
 and in decisions of the Court of Session—in acts of Parliament in which 
 the poor ignorant subterranean men of the country were, of course, wholly 
 unrepresented, and in decisions of a court in which no agent of theirs ever 
 made appearance in their behalf.” 
 
 What is here said of a history of Scotch colliers being “ curious and in¬ 
 structive,” is applicable in an infinitely greater degree to that of the Gip¬ 
 sies.—En. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES.* 
 
 The Gipsies who frequented the banks of the Forth, and 
 the counties northward, appear to have been more daring 
 than those who visited some other parts of Scotland. 
 
 Within these sixty years, a large horde, of very desperate 
 character, resided on the banks of the Avon, near the burgh 
 of Linlithgow. At first, they quartered higher up on the 
 Stirling side of the stream, at a place called Walkmilton ; 
 but latterly they took up their abode in some old houses, on 
 the Linlithgow side of the river, at or near the bridge of 
 Linlithgow. 
 
 These Gipsies displayed much sagacity in carrying on their 
 trade, by selecting the neighbourhood of Falkirk and Lin¬ 
 lithgow for their headquarters, as this was, perhaps, the most 
 advantageous position in all Scotland that a Gipsy band 
 could occupy. The district was of itself very populous, and 
 a very considerable trade and bustle then existed at the port 
 of Bo’ness, in the vicinity. All the intercourse between 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow passed a few miles to the south of 
 their quarters. The traffic, by carts, between Glasgow and 
 the west of Scotland, and the shipping at Carron-shore, El- 
 phingston-Pow and Airth, on the Forth, before the canal was 
 cut, was immense ; all which traffic, as well as that between 
 Fife and the western districts, passed a few miles north of 
 
 * This and the following three chapters are illustrative of the Gipsies, in 
 their wild state, previous to their gradual settlement and civilization, and 
 are applicable to the same class in every part of the world. Chapter VI, 
 on the Gipsies of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale, might have been taken the 
 first in order, as descriptive of the tribe in its more primitive condition, 
 but I have allowed it to remain where it stands. A description of the 
 habits peculiar to the race will be found, more or less, in all of these chap¬ 
 ters, where they can be consulted, for the better identification of the facts 
 given.—E d. 
 
 ( 123 ) 
 
124 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 their position. The road for travellers and cattle from the 
 Highlands, by way of Stirling, crossed the above-mentioned 
 roads, and led, through Falkirk and Linlithgow, to Edin¬ 
 burgh, the eastern and southern counties of Scotland, and 
 England. 
 
 The principal surnames of this Gipsy band were McDon¬ 
 ald, Jamieson, Wilson, Gordon andLundie. Frequently the 
 number that would assemble together would amount to up¬ 
 wards of thirty souls, and it was often observed that a great 
 many females and children were seen loitering about their 
 common place of residence. No protection was given by 
 them to our native vagrants, nor were any of our common 
 plunderers, vagabonds, or outlaws suffered to remain among 
 them. When at home, or traversing the country, the trade 
 and occupation of this band were exactly the same as those 
 of their friends in other parts of Scotland, viz : making wool- 
 cards, cast-iron soles for ploughs, smoothing-h-ons, horn 
 spoons, and repairing articles in the tinker line. The old 
 females told fortunes, while the women in general assisted 
 their husbands in their work, by blowing the bellows, scrap¬ 
 ing and polishing the spoons with glass and charred wood, 
 and otherwise completing their articles for sale. Many of 
 the males dealt in horses, with which they frequented fairs 
 —that great resort of the Gipsies ; and these wanderers, in 
 general, were considered excellent judges of horses. Num¬ 
 bers of them were fiddlers and pipers, and the tribe often 
 amused themselves with feasting and dancing.* 
 
 Like their race generally, these Gipsies were extremely 
 civil and obliging to their immediate neighbours, and those 
 who lived nearest to their quarters, and had the most inter¬ 
 course with them, in the ordinary affairs of life, were the 
 least afraid of them.f But the farmers and others at a dis- 
 
 * It appears that, at this period, James Wilson, town-piper, and John 
 Livingston, hangman, of Linlithgow, were both Gipsies. [Formerly the 
 Gipsies were exclusively employed in Hungary and Transylvania as hang¬ 
 men and executioners. Grellmann. —Ed.] 
 
 f This trait in the character of the Scottish Gipsies is well illustrated in 
 the following anecdote, which appeared in Blackwood’s Magazine. It was 
 obtained by an individual who frequently heard the clergyman in question 
 relate it. 
 
 “ The late Mr. Leek, minister of Yetholm, happened to be riding home 
 one evening from a visit in Northumberland, when, finding himself likely 
 to be benighted, for sake of a near cut, he struck into a wild, solitary track, 
 or drove-road, across the fells, by a place called the Staw. In one of the 
 
LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 125 
 
 tance, who frequented the markets at Falkirk, and other 
 fairs in the neighbourhood, were always a plentiful harvest 
 for the plundering Tinklers. Their plunderings on such 
 occasions spread a general alarm over the country. But 
 that good humour, mirth, and jocund disposition, peculiar to 
 many of the males of the Gipsies, seldom failed to gain the 
 good-will of those who deigned to converse with them with 
 familiarity, or treated them with kindness. They even 
 formed strong attachments to certain individuals of the com¬ 
 munity, and afforded them protection on all occasions, giving 
 them tokens to present to others of their fraternity, while 
 travelling under night. Notwithstanding the good disposi¬ 
 tion which they always showed under these circumstances, 
 the fiery Tinklers often fell out among themselves, on divid¬ 
 ing, at home, the booty which they had collected at fairs, 
 and excited feelings of horror in the minds of their aston¬ 
 ished neighbours, when they beheld the hurricanes of wrath 
 and fury exhibited by both sexes, and all ages, in the heat 
 of their battles. 
 
 The children of these Gipsies attended the principal school 
 
 derne places through which this path led him, there stood an old deserted 
 shepherd’s house, which, of course, was reputed to be haunted. The minis¬ 
 ter, though little apt to be alarmed by such reports, was, however, some¬ 
 what startled on observing, as he approached close to the cottage, a‘grim 
 visage’ staring out past a t rindow claith, or sort of curtain, which had been 
 fastened up to supply the place of a door, and also several ‘ dusky figures,’ 
 skulking among the boui tree-bushes that had once sheltered the shepherd’s 
 garden. Without leaving him any time for speculation, however, the knight 
 of the curtain bolted forth upon him, and, seizing his horse by the bridle, 
 demanded his money. Mr. Leek, though it was now dark, at once recog¬ 
 nised the gruff voice, and the great, black, burly head of his next-door 
 neighbour, Gleid Ncclcit Will, the Gipsy chief. ‘ Dear me, William,’ said 
 the minister, in his usual quiet manner, ‘ can this be you? ye’re surely no 
 serious wi’ me ? ye wadna sae far wrang your character for a good neigh¬ 
 bour, for the bit trifle I ha’e to gi’e, William?’—‘ Lord saif us, Mr. Leek !’ 
 said Will, quitting the rein, and lifting his hat, with great respect, ‘ Whae 
 wad hae thought o’ meeting 3 011 out owre here-away ? Ye needna gripe 
 for ony siller to me—I wadna touch a plack o’ your gear, nor a hair o’ j our 
 head, for a’ the gowd o’ Tividale. I ken ye’ll no do us an ill turn for this 
 mistak—and I’ll e’en see j-e safe through the eirie Staw—it’s no reckoned a 
 very canny bit, mair ways nor ane ; but I wat ye’ll no be feared for the 
 dead, and I’ll tak care o’ the living.’ Will accordingly gave his reverend 
 friend a safe convoy through the haunted pass, and, notwithstanding this 
 ugly mistake, continued ever after an inoffensive and obliging neighbour to 
 the minister, who, on his part, observed a prudent and inviolable secrecy- 
 on the subject of this rencounter, during the life time of Olcid Nichit Will." 
 
 I understand this anecdote to applj : to old Will Faa, mentioned in the 
 Border Gipsies, under chapter VII.—Ed. 
 
126 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 at Linlithgow, and not an individual at tho school dared to 
 cast the slightest reflection on, or speak a disrespectful word 
 of, either them or their parents, although their robberies were 
 everywhere notorious, yet always conducted in so artful a 
 manner that no direct evidence could ever be obtained of 
 them. Such was the fear that the audacious conduct of 
 these Gipsies inspired, that the magistrates of the royal 
 burgh of Linlithgow stood in awe of them, and were deterred 
 from discharging their magisterial duties, when any matter 
 relative to their conduct came before their honours. The 
 truth is, the magistrates would not interfere with them at all, 
 but stood nearly on the same terms with them that a tribe 
 of American Indians, who worshipped the devil—not from 
 any respect which they had for his Satanic majesty, but from 
 being in constant dread of his diabolical machinations. Not 
 a justice of the peace gave the horde the least annoyance, 
 but, on the contrary, allowed them to remain in peaceable 
 possession of some old, uninhabited houses, to which they 
 had no right whatever. Instead of endeavouring to repress 
 the unlawful proceedings of the daring Tinklers, numbers 
 of the most respectable individuals in Linlithgowshire 
 deigned to play at golf and other games with the principal 
 members of the body. The proficiency which the Gipsies 
 displayed on such occasions was always a source of interest 
 to the patrons and admirers of such games. At throwing 
 the sledge-hammer, casting the putting-stone, and all other 
 athletic exercises, not one was a match for these powerful 
 Tinklers. They were also remarkably dexterous at hand¬ 
 ling the cudgel, at which they were constantly practising 
 themselves. 
 
 The honourable magistrates, indeed, frequently admitted 
 the presumptuous Tinklers to share a social bowl with them 
 at their entertainments and dinner parties. Yet these 
 friends and companions of the magistrates and gentlemen of 
 Linlithgowshire were no other than the occasional tenants 
 of kilns, or temporary occupiers of the ground floor of some 
 ruinous, half-roofed houses, without furniture, saving a few 
 blankets and some straw, to prevent their persons from rest¬ 
 ing upon the cold earth. But, nevertheless, these Gipsies 
 made themselves of considerable importance, and possessed 
 an influence over the minds of the community to an extent 
 hardly to be credited at the present day. It was well 
 
LIN LI TIIG 0 WSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 127 
 
 known that the provost of Linlithgow, who was much ex¬ 
 posed by riding at all times through the country, in the way 
 of his business as a brewer, had himself received from the 
 Gipsies assurance that he would not be molested by the 
 band, and that he was, therefore, at all times, and on all oc¬ 
 casions, perfectly safe from being plundered. Having in 
 this manner rendered the local authorities entirely passive, 
 or rather neutral, from fear and interest, the audacious Gip¬ 
 sies prosecuted their system of plunder and robbery to an 
 alarming extent. 
 
 Notwithstanding the fear which these Gipsies inspired in 
 the mind of the community, there were yet individuals of 
 courage who would brave them, if circumstances rendered a 
 meeting with them unavoidable. None, indeed, would dream 
 of wantonly molesting them, but, if brought to the pinch, 
 some would not shrink from encountering them, when acting 
 under the influences of those feelings which call forth the 
 latent courage of even the most timid and considerate of 
 people. Such a rencounter resulted in the death of the 
 chief of the Linlithgow band, of the name of McDonald, to 
 whom the others of the tribe gave the title of captain. 
 
 In a dark night, a gentleman of the name of II-, an 
 
 officer in the army, and a man of courage, while travelling 
 on the highroad, from the eastward to Stirlingshire, to visit, 
 as was said, his sweetheart, had occasion to stop, for refresh¬ 
 ment, at a public-house near the bridge of Linlithgow. The 
 landlord advised him to go no further that night, owing to 
 the road being “ foul,” meaning that the Tinklers had been 
 seen lurking in the direction in which he was travelling. 
 Foul or not foul, he would proceed ; his particular engage¬ 
 ment with the lady making him reluctant to break his pro¬ 
 mise, and turn back. He called for a gill of brandy, which 
 he shared with the landlord, and deliberately loaded, in his 
 presence, a brace of pistols which he carried about his per¬ 
 son. His courage rose with the occasion, and he declared 
 that whoever dared to molest him should not go unpunished. 
 He then mounted his horse and rode forward. On arriving 
 at a place called Sandy-ford-burn, a man, in the dark, sprang 
 out from the side of the road, and, laying hold of the bridle 
 of his horse, demanded his money. The horseman being on 
 the alert, and quite prepared for such a demand, with his 
 spirits, moreover, elevated by his dram of brandy, instantly 
 
128 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 replied by firing one of his pistols at the robber, who fell 
 to the ground. He, however, held fast the bridle reins in 
 his convulsive death grasp, and the horse, being urged for¬ 
 ward, dragged him a short distance along the ground. 
 Hardly had the shot been fired, ere a voice, close by, was 
 heard to exclaim, “ There goes our captain,” while a con¬ 
 fused cry of vengeance was uttered on all sides, against him 
 by whom lie had fallen. But the rider, clapping his spurs 
 to his horse, instantly galloped forward, yet made a narrow 
 escape, for several shots were fired at him, which Avere heard 
 by the landlord of the public-house which he had just left. 
 
 The Gipsies, in this awkward predicament, carried the 
 body of their chieftain home, and gave out to their neigh¬ 
 bours, the country people, the following morning, (Sunday,) 
 that he had died \ r ery suddenly of iliac passion. His lyke- 
 Avake Avas kept up in their usual manner, and great feastings 
 and drinkings were held by them Avhile his body lay unin¬ 
 terred. After several days of carousing, the remains of the 
 robber Avere buried in the church-yard of Linlithgow.* His 
 funeral was very respectable, having been attended by the 
 magistrates of Linlithgow, and a number of the most genteel 
 persons in the neighbourhood. The real cause of the sud¬ 
 den death of the Tinkler began to spread abroad, a short 
 time after the burial, but no enquiry was made into the mat¬ 
 ter. The individual Avho had done the public a service, by 
 taking off the chief of the banditti, mentioned the circum¬ 
 stance afterwards to his friends, and was afraid of the band 
 for some time thereafter ; although it Avas improbable that, 
 in the dark, they were able to make out, or afterwards ascer¬ 
 tain, the person avIio had made himself so obnoxious to them. 
 
 Notwithstanding this prompt and well-merited chastise¬ 
 ment which the Gipsies received, in their leader being shot 
 dead in his attempt at highway robbery, in the immediate 
 vicinity of their ordinary place of rendezvous, they contin¬ 
 ued their depredations in their usual manner, but generally 
 took care, as is their custom, to give no molestation to their 
 
 * Some of the Gipsies only put a paper cap on the head, and paper 
 round the feet, of their dead; leaving all the body bare, excepting that 
 they place upon the breast, opposite the heart, a circle made of red and 
 blue ribbons, in form something like the shape of the variegated cockade, 
 worn in the hats of newly-enlisted recruits in the army. [In England it 
 was customary with the Gipsies, at one time, to burn the dead, but now 
 they only burn the clothes, and some of the effects of the deceased.—E d.] 
 
LINLITHG 0 WSill HE GIPSIEB. 
 
 129 
 
 nearest neighbours. The deceased captain was succeeded, in 
 the chieftainship of the tribe, by his son, Alexander Mc¬ 
 Donald, who also assumed the title of captain. This man 
 trod in the footsteps of his father in every respect, and ex¬ 
 ercised his hereditary profession of theft and robbery, with 
 an activity and audacity unequalled by any among his tribe 
 in that part of Scotland. The very name of McDonald 
 and his gang appalled the boldest hearts of those who ven¬ 
 tured to travel under night with money in their pockets, in 
 certain parts of the country. His band appears to have 
 been very numerous, as among them some held the subordin¬ 
 ate rank of lieutenants, as if they had been organized like 
 a regular military company. James Jamieson, his brother- 
 in-law, was also styled captain in this notorious band of 
 Gipsies, who were connected with similar bands in England 
 and Ireland. 
 
 McDonald and his brother-in-law, Jamieson, were con¬ 
 sidered remarkably stout, handsome, and fine-looking men. 
 By constant training at all kinds of athletic exercises, they 
 brought themselves to perform feats of bodily strength and 
 agility which were almost incredible. They were often 
 elegantly dressed in the finest clothes of the first fashion, 
 with linen to correspond. At the same time they were per¬ 
 fect chameleons in respect to their appearance and apparel. 
 McDonald was frequently observed in three or four different 
 dresses in one market-day. At one time of the day, he was 
 seen completely attired in the best of tartan, assuming the 
 appearance and manners of a highland gentleman in full cos¬ 
 tume. At another time, he appeared ruffled at hands and 
 breast, booted and spurred, on horseback, as if he had been 
 a man of some consideration. He would again be seen in a 
 ragged coat, with a budget and wallet on his back—a com¬ 
 mon travelling Tinkler. Both of these men often dealt in 
 horses, and were themselves frequently mounted on the best 
 of animals. The Arabians and Tartars are scarcely inoi’e 
 partial to horses than the Gipsies. 
 
 The pranks and tricks played by McDonald were numer¬ 
 ous, and many a story is yet remembered of his extraordi¬ 
 nary exploits. He took great pains in training and learning 
 some of his horses various evolutions and tricks. He had, 
 at one time, a piebald horse so efficiently trained, and so 
 completely under his management, that it, in some respects, 
 6 * 
 
130 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 assisted him in his depredations. By certain signals and 
 motions, he could, when he found it necessary, make it clap 
 close to the ground, like a hare in its furrow. It 
 would crouch down in a hollow piece of ground, in a ditch, 
 or at the side of a hedge, so as to hide itself, when McDon¬ 
 ald’s situation was like to expose him to detection. With 
 the assistance of one of these well trained-horses, this man, 
 on one occasion, saved his wife, Ann Jamieson, from prison, 
 and perhaps from the gallows. Ann was apprehended near 
 Dunfermline for some of her unlawful practices. As the 
 officers of the law were conducting her to prison, McDonald 
 rode up to the party, and requested permission to speak 
 with their prisoner, which was readily granted, as, from 
 McDonald’s appearance, the officers supposed he had some¬ 
 thing to say to the woman. He then drew her aside, under 
 the pretence of conversing with her in private, when, in an 
 instant, Ann, with his assistance, sprang upon the horse, be¬ 
 hind him, and bade good-bye to the messengers, who were 
 amazed at the sudden and unexpected escape of their pris¬ 
 oner. Ann was a little, handsome woman, and was con¬ 
 sidered one of the most expert of the Scottish Gipsies at 
 conducting a plundering at a fair ; and was, on that account, 
 much respected by her tribe. 
 
 McDonald and Jamieson, like others of the superior clas¬ 
 ses of Gipsies, gave tokens of protection to their particular 
 friends of the community generally. The butchers of Lin¬ 
 lithgow, when they went to the country, with money to buy 
 cattle, frequently procured these assurances from the Gip¬ 
 sies. The shoemakers did likewise, when they had to go to 
 distant markets with their shoes. Linlithgow appears even 
 to have been under the special protection of these banditti. 
 Mr. George Hart, and Mr. William Baird, two of the most 
 respectable merchants of Bo’ness, who had been peddlers in 
 their early years, scrupled not to say that, when travelling 
 through the country, they were seldom without tokens from 
 the Gipsies. But if the Gipsies were kind to those who 
 kept on good terms with them, the}', on the other hand, vin¬ 
 dictively tormented their enemies. They would steal sheep, 
 and put the blood and parts of the animal about the premises 
 of those they hated, that they might be suspected of the 
 theft, searched and affronted by the enquiries made about 
 the stolen property. 
 
LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 131 
 
 When McDonald and Jamieson attacked individuals on 
 the highway, or elsewhere, and were satisfied that they had 
 little or no money, they were just as ready to supply then- 
 wants as to rob them. The idea of plundering the wealthy, 
 and giving the booty to the poor, gives the Gipsies great 
 satisfaction. The standard by which this people’s conduct 
 can be measured, must be sought for among the robber tribes 
 of Tartary, Afghanistan, or Arabia. Many of our Scottish 
 Gipsies have, indeed, been as ready to give a purse as take 
 one ; and it cannot be said that they have lacked in the dis¬ 
 play of a certain degree of honour peculiar to themselves, 
 as the following well-authenticated fact will illustrate.* 
 
 A gentleman, whose name is not mentioned, while travel¬ 
 ling, under night, between Falkirk and Linlithgow, fell in, 
 on the road, with a man whom he did not know. During 
 the conversation which ensued, he mentioned to the stranger 
 that he was afraid of being attacked, for many a one, he ob¬ 
 served, had been robbed on that road. He then urged that 
 they should return, as the safest plan for them both. The 
 stranger, however, replied that he had often travelled the 
 road, yet had never been troubled by any one. After some 
 further conversation, lie put his hand into his pocket, and 
 gave the traveller a knife, with which he was desired to pro¬ 
 ceed without fear.f The traveller now perfectly understood 
 the relation that existed between them, and continued his 
 journey with confidence ; but he had not proceeded far ere 
 lie was accosted by a foot-pad, to whom he produced the 
 knife. The pad looked at it carefully, said nothing, but 
 passed on, without giving the traveller the slightest annoy¬ 
 ance. It is needless to say that the mysterious stranger was 
 no other than the notorious Captain McDonald. The travel¬ 
 ler, by his fears and the nature of his conversation, had 
 plainly informed McDonald of his being possessed of money 
 —a considerable quantity of which he had, indeed, with him— 
 and had the love of booty been the Gipsy’s sole and con- 
 
 * Instances liave occurred in which an Afghan has received a stranger 
 with all the rights of hospitality, and afterwards, meeting him in the open 
 country, has robbed him. The same person, it is supposed, who would 
 plunder a cloak from a traveller who had one, would give a cloak to ono 
 who had none .—Hugh Murray's Asia, vol. 2 .page 608. 
 
 f A pen-knife, a snuff-box, and a ring are some of the Gipsy pass-ports. 
 It is what is marked upon them that protects the bearer from being dis 
 turbed by others of t! e tribe. 
 
132 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 stant object, how easily could he, in this instance, have pos¬ 
 sessed himself of it. But the stranger had put himself, in a 
 measure, under the protection of the robber, who disdained 
 to take advantage of the confidence reposed in him. 
 
 Another instance of a Gipsy’s honour, generosity, or ca¬ 
 price, or by whatever word the act may be expressed, occur¬ 
 red between McDonald and a farmer of the name of Campbell, 
 and exhibits a singular cast of character, which has not been 
 uncommon among the Scottish Gipsies. On this occasion, 
 it would appear, the Gipsy had been influenced rather by a 
 desire of enjoying the extraordinary surprise of the simple 
 countryman, than of obtaining booty. The occurrence will 
 also give some idea of the part which the cautious chiefs take 
 in plundering at a fair. The particulars are derived from 
 a Mr. David McRitchic, of whom I shall again make mention. 
 
 While Campbell was on his way to a market in Perth, he 
 fell in with Captain McDonald. Being unacquainted with 
 the character of his fellow-traveller, the unsuspecting man 
 told him, among other things, that he had just as much money 
 in his pocket as would purchase one horse, for his four-horse 
 plough, having other three at home. McDonald heard all 
 this with patience till he came to a solitary part of the road, 
 when, all at once, he turned upon the astonished farmer, and 
 demanded his money. The poor man, having no alternative, 
 immediately produced his purse. But in parting, the robber 
 desired him to call next day at a certain house in Perth, 
 where he would find a person who might be of some service 
 to him. Campbell promised to do as desired, and called at 
 the house appointed, and great was his surprise, when, on 
 being ushered into a room, he found himself face to face with 
 the late robber, sitting with a large bowl of smoking toddy 
 before him. The Gipsy, in a frank and hearty manner, in¬ 
 vited his visitor to sit down and share his toddy with him ; 
 a request which he readily complied with, although bewil¬ 
 dered with the idea of the probable fate of his purse, and 
 the result of his personal adventure. He had scarcely got 
 time, however, to swallow one glass, before he was relieved 
 of his suspense, by the Gipsy returning him every farthing 
 of the money he had robbed him of the day before. Being 
 now pleased with his good fortune, and the Gipsy pressing 
 him to drink, Campbell was in no hurry to be gone, his 
 spirits haying become elevated with his good cheer, and the 
 
LINLITIIG 0 WSIITRE GIPSIES. 
 
 133 
 
 confidence with which his host’s conduct had inspired him. 
 But his suspicions returned upon him, as he saw pocket-book 
 after pocket-book brought in to his entertainer, during the 
 time he was enjoying his hospitality. The Gipsy chief was, 
 in fact, but following a very important branch of his calling, 
 and was, on that day, doing a considerable business, having 
 a number of youths ferreting for him in the market, and 
 coming in and going out constantly. 
 
 But this crafty Gipsy, and his brother-in-law, Jamieson, 
 were at last apprehended for house-breaking and robbery. 
 Their trials took place at Edinburgh, on the 9th and 13th 
 of August, 1770, and “the fame of being Egyptians” made 
 part of the charge against them in the indictment; a charge 
 well founded, as both of them spoke the “right Egyptian 
 language.” It was the last instance, I believe, that the fact 
 of their being “ called, known, repute, and holden Egyp¬ 
 tians,” made part of the indictment against any of the tribe 
 in Scotland, under the sanguinary statute of James VI, 
 chap. 13, passed in 1609. So cunning are the Gipsies, how¬ 
 ever, in committing crimes, that, in this instance, the crim¬ 
 inals, it was understood, would have escaped justice, for want 
 of sufficient proof, had not one of their own band, of the 
 name of Jamieson, a youth of about twenty-two years of age, 
 turned king’s evidence against his associated. The two un¬ 
 happy men were then found guilty by the jury, and con¬ 
 demned to die. They were ordered to be executed at 
 Linlithgow bridge, near the very spot where their band had 
 their principal rendezvous, with the apparent object of daunt¬ 
 ing their incorrigible race. 
 
 Immediately after the trial, a report was spread, and 
 generally believed, that the Gipsies would attempt a rescue 
 of the criminals on the way to execution, or even from under 
 the gallows itself; and it was particularly mentioned that 
 thirty stout and desperate members of the race had under¬ 
 taken to set their chieftains free. Every precaution was 
 therefore taken, by the authorities, to prevent any such 
 attempt being made. A large proportion of the gentlemen 
 and farmers of the shire of Linlithgow were requested, 
 with what arms they could procure, to attend, on foot or 
 horseback, the execution of the desperate Tinklers. Indeed, 
 every third man of all the fencible men of the county was 
 called upon to appear on the occasion ; while a company of 
 
134 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 pensioners, with a commissioned officer at their head, and a 
 strong body of the military, completed the force deemed 
 necessary for the due execution of justice. Besides guard¬ 
 ing against the possibility of a rescue on the part of the 
 Gipsies, it was generally understood that the steps taken by 
 the authorities, in bringing together so large a body of men, 
 had in view the object of exhibiting to the people the igno¬ 
 minious death of two men who had not only been allowed 
 to remain among them, but, in many instances, countenanced 
 by some of the most respectable inhabitants of the county ; 
 and that not only in out-door amusements, but even in some 
 of the special hospitalities of daily life, while in fact they 
 were nothing but the leaders of a band of notorious thieves 
 and robbers. 
 
 These precautions being completed, the condemned Gipsies 
 were bound hand and foot, and conveyed, by the sheriff of 
 Edinburgh and a company of the military, to the boat-house 
 bridge, on the river Almond—the boundary of the two 
 counties—and there handed over to the sheriff of Linlith¬ 
 gow ; under whose guard they were carried to the jail of 
 the town of Linlithgow, and securely bound in irons, to wait 
 their execution on the morrow.* As night approached,fires 
 were kindled at the door of the prison, and guards posted 
 in the avenues leading to the building, while all the entrances 
 to the town were guarded, and all ingress and egress pro¬ 
 hibited, as if the burgh had been in a state of siege. So 
 strictly were these orders put in force, that many of the in¬ 
 habitants of Bo’ness, who had gone to Linlithgow, to view 
 the bustle occasioned by the assemblage of so great a num¬ 
 ber of armed men, were forced to remain in the town over 
 night; so alarmed were the authorities for the onset of the 
 resolute Gipsies. It was soon perceived, by some sagacious 
 individuals, that the fires would do more harm than good, 
 as the light would show the prison, expose the sentinels, and 
 guide the Gipsy bands. They were accordingly extinguished, 
 
 * “This morning, a little after nine o’clock, McDonald and Jamieson 
 were transported from the Tolbooth here, (Edinburgh,) escorted by a party 
 of the military, and attended by the sheriff-depute on horseback, with the 
 officers of court, armed with broad-swords, amidst an innumerable crowd 
 of spectators. They were securely pinioned to a cart, and are to be 
 received by the sheriff-depute of Linlithgow, on the confines of this county, 
 whither they are to be conveyed, in order to their execution to-morrow, 
 near Linlithgow-bridgc, pursuant to their sentence.”— liuddiman’s Weekly 
 Magazine, vol 9, page 384. 
 
LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 135 
 
 and the guards placed in such positions as would enable 
 them, with the most advantage, to repel any attack that 
 might be attempted : yet the enemy that caused all this 
 alarm and precaution was nowhere visible. 
 
 On the following morning, McDonald’s wife requested 
 permission to visit her husband before being led to execu¬ 
 tion, with what particular object can only be conjectured ; a 
 favour which was readily granted her, in the company of a 
 magistrate. On beholding the object of her affection, she 
 became overwhelmed with grief; she threw her arms around 
 his neck, and embraced him most tenderly ; and after giving 
 vent to her sorrow in sobs and tears, she tore herself from 
 him, and, turning to the magistrate, exclaimed, with a burst¬ 
 ing heart, “Is he not a pretty man? What a pity it is to 
 hang him!” 
 
 Arrangements were then made to carry the prisoners to 
 the place of execution, at the bridge of Linlithgow, which 
 lay about a mile from the town. The armed force was 
 drawn up at the town-cross, and those who carried muskets 
 were ordered to load them with ball cartridge, and hold 
 themselves ready, at the word of command, upon the least 
 appearance of an attempt at rescue, to fire upon the aggres¬ 
 sors. The whole scene presented such an alarming and war¬ 
 like appearauce, that the people of the town and surrounding 
 country compared it to the bustle and military parade which 
 took place, twenty-five years before, when the rebel ►army 
 made its appearance in the neighbourhood. The judicious 
 arrangements adopted by the officers of the crown had the 
 desired effect; for not the slightest symptom of disturbance, 
 not even a movement, was observed among the Gipsies, 
 either on the night before, or on the morning of the execu¬ 
 tion. The formidable armed bands, ready to overwhelm 
 the presumptuous Gipsies, clearly showed them that they 
 had not the shadow of a chance for carrying out their in¬ 
 tended rescue. All was peace and silence throughout the 
 immense crowd surrounding the gallows, patiently waiting 
 the appearance of the criminals. In due time the condemned 
 made their appearance, in a cart, accompanied by Charles 
 and James Jamieson, two youths, sitting beside their father 
 and uncle, busily eating rolls, and, to all appearance, totally 
 indifferent to the fate of their relatives, and the awful cir¬ 
 cumstances surrounding them. 
 
136 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 On ascending the platform, Jamieson’s demeanour was 
 suitable to the circumstances in which he found himself 
 placed ; but McDonald appeared quite unconcerned. He 
 was observed frequently to turn a quid of tobacco in his 
 mouth, and squirt the juice of it around him ; it was even 
 evident, from his manner, that he expected to be delivered 
 from the gallows by his tribe; and more especially as he 
 had been frequently heard to say that the hemp was not 
 grown that would hang him. He then began to look fre¬ 
 quently and wistfully around him for the expected aid, yet 
 none made its appearance; and his heart began to sink 
 within him. Indeed, the overwhelming force then surround¬ 
 ing him rendered a deliverance impossible. Every hope 
 having failed him, and seeing his end at hand, McDonald 
 resigned himself, with great firmness, to his fate, and ex¬ 
 claimed : “ I have neither friends on my right hand nor on 
 my left; I see I now must die.” Jamieson, who appeared 
 from the first never to indulge in vain expectations of being 
 rescued, exclaimed to his fellow-sufferer : “ Sandie, Sandie ! 
 it is all over with us, and I told you so long ago.” Mc¬ 
 Donald then turned to the executioner, whose name was 
 John Livingston, and dropping into his hand something, 
 supposed to be money, undauntedly said to him : “Now, 
 John, don’t bungle your job.” Both of the unhappy men 
 were then launched into eternity. Ever afterwards, the in¬ 
 habitants of Linlithgow pestered the hangman, by calling to 
 him : “ Now, John, don’t bungle your job. What was it the 
 Tinkler gave you, John ?”* 
 
 McDonald’s wife had stood by, a quiet spectator, among 
 the promiscuous crowd, of the melancholy scene displayed 
 before her. But when she had witnessed the closing act of 
 an eventful life—the heroism and fortitude which all she 
 held as dear displayed in his last moments—and enjoyed the 
 satisfaction which it had given her, nature, which the odium 
 of her fellow-creatures, not of her blood, could not destroy, 
 burst forth with genuine expression. The silence attending 
 the awful tragedy was abruptly broken by the lamentable 
 yells and heart-rending screams which she gave vent to, as 
 
 * “ On Friday last, about three o’clock, McDonald and Jamieson were 
 hanged, at the end of Linlithgow bridge. The latter appeared very peni¬ 
 tent, but the former very little affected, and, as the saying is, died hard .”— 
 Ruddiman's Weekly Magazine, vol. 9, page 41G. 
 
LINLITHG 0 WSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 137 
 
 she beheld her husband turned off the scaffold. Two gentle¬ 
 men, who were present, informed me that she foamed at the 
 mouth, and tore her hair out of her head, and was so com¬ 
 pletely frantic with grief and rage, that the spectators were 
 afraid to go near her. 
 
 On the bodies being taken down from the scaffold, an at¬ 
 tempt was made to restore them to life, by opening a vein, 
 but without effect. It is said they were buried in the moor 
 near Linlithgow, by the Gipsies, and that the magistrates of 
 the town ordered them to be taken up, and interred in the 
 east end of the church-yard of Linlithgow. However that 
 may be, the bodies were buried in the church-yard of Lin¬ 
 lithgow ; but the populace, delivered from the terror with 
 which these daring Gipsies inspired them, treated with ig¬ 
 nominy the remains of those whom they dared scarcely look 
 in the face when alive. They dug them out of the place of 
 Christian sepulture, and interred them in a solitary held in 
 the neighbourhood. A clump of trees, I believe, marks the 
 spot, and the gloomy pine now waves, in the winds of heaven, 
 over the silent and peaceful graves of the restless and law¬ 
 less Gipsies. 
 
 McDonald, it would appear, was married, hrst of all, to a 
 daughter of a Gipsy of the name of Eppie Lundie, with 
 whom he lived unhappy, and was divorced from her over a 
 horse sacrificed for the occasion, a ceremony which I will 
 describe in another chapter.* He was more fortunate in 
 his second matrimonial alliance, for, in Ann Jamieson, he 
 found a wife after his own heart in every way. Previous to 
 his own execution, she had witnessed the violent deaths of 
 at least six of her own nearest relatives. But, if anything 
 could have influenced, in the slightest degree, a reformation 
 in her own character, it would have been the melancholy 
 scene attending his miserable end ; yet, we find it had not 
 the slightest effect upon her after career, for she continued, 
 to the last, to follow the practices of her race, as an anec¬ 
 dote told of her will show. 
 
 At the North Queensferry was a very respectable inn, kept 
 by a Mr. McRitchie, which was much frequented and patron- 
 
 * This Eppie Lundie lived to the advanced age of a hundred years, and 
 was a terror wherever she travelled. Without the least hesitation or 
 scruple, she frequently stripped defenceless individuals of their wearing 
 apparel, leaving them sometimes naked in the open fields. 
 
138 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 ized by the Gipsies. On such occasions they did not visit 
 the house in whole families or hordes, fluttering in rags, but 
 as well-dressed individuals, arriving from different directions, 
 as if by chance. In this house they were always treated 
 with consideration and kindness, for other reasons than that 
 of the liberal custom which they brought to it, and, as a 
 natural consequence, the landlord and his family became 
 great favourites with them. One of the members of the 
 family, David McRitchic, my informant, happened one day 
 to purchase a horse, at a fair in Dunfermline, but in feeling 
 for his pocket-book, to pay for the animal, he found, to his 
 surprise and grief, that book and money were gone. The 
 person from whom he bought the horse commenced at once 
 to abuse him as an impostor, for he not only would not be¬ 
 lieve his talc, but would not trust him for a moment. Under 
 these distressing circumstances, he sought out Ann Jamieson, 
 or Annie McDonald, after her husband’s name, for he knew 
 well enough where his money had gone to, and the sovereign 
 influence which Ann exercised over her tribe. Being well 
 acquainted with her, from having often met her in his fa¬ 
 ther’s house, he went up to her, and putting his hand gently 
 on her shoulder, in a kind and familiar manner, and with a 
 long face, told her of his misfortune, and begged her friendly 
 assistance to help him out of the difficulty, laying much stress 
 on the horse-dealer charging him with an attempt to impose 
 on him. “ Some o’ my laddies will hae seen it, Davie ; I’ll 
 enquire,” was her immediate reply. She then took him to a 
 public-house, called for brandy, saw him seated, and desired 
 him to drink. Taking the marks of the pocket-book, she 
 entered the fair, and, after various doublings and windings 
 among the crowd, proceeded to her temporary depot of 
 stolen goods. In about half an hour she returned, with the 
 book and all its contents. The cash, bills, and papers which 
 it contained, were in the same parts of the book in which the 
 owner had placed them. This affair was transacted in as 
 cool and business-like a manner as if Annie and her “ laddies” 
 had been following any of the honest callings in ordinary 
 life. Indeed, no example, however severe, no punishment, 
 however awful, seems to have had any beneficial effect upon 
 the minds of these Gipsies, or their friends who frequented 
 the surrounding parts of the country, for they continued to 
 follow the ways of their race, in spite of the sanguinary laws 
 
LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 139 
 
 of the country. A continuation of their history, up to a 
 period, is little better than a melancholy narrative of a scries 
 of imprisonments, banishments, and executions. 
 
 Ann Jamieson’s two nephews, Charles and James Jamie¬ 
 son, who rode alongside of their father and uncle to the 
 place of their execution, eating rolls, as if nothing unusual 
 was about to befall them, and who had witnessed their 
 miserable end, in 1770, were themselves executed in 1786 
 for robbing the Kinross mail. It was their intention to 
 have committed the deed upon the highway, for, the night 
 before the robbery, their mother, Euphan Graham, to pre¬ 
 vent detection, insisted upon the post-boy being put to death, 
 to which bloody proposition her sons would not consent. It 
 was then agreed that they should secure their prize in the 
 stable yard of an inn in the town, where the post-boy usually 
 stopped. The two highwaymen were traced to a small 
 house near Stirling, in which they made a desperate resist¬ 
 ance. One of them attempted to ascend the chimney, to 
 effect his escape ; but, failing in that, they attached the offi¬ 
 cers, and tore at them with their teeth, after having struck 
 furiously at them with a knife. But they were overpowered, 
 and secured in irons. Two females were in their company 
 at the time, on whom some of the money was found, most 
 artfully concealed about their persons. So illiterate were 
 these two men that, in crossing the Forth at Kincardine, 
 they presented a twenty-pound note, to be changed, instead 
 of a twenty-shilling one. According to Baron Hume, the 
 trial of these two Gipsies took place on the 18th December, 
 1786. They were assisted in the robbery by other members 
 of their band, including women and children. Their mother 
 was said to have been transported for the part which she 
 took in the affair ; while another member of the gang was 
 below the age at which criminals can be tried and punished 
 in this country. The two brothers, before they committed 
 the crime, measured themselves in a room in Kinross, kept 
 by a Mary Barclay, and marked their heights on the wall. 
 The one stood six feet two inches, and the other five feet 
 four inches.* 
 
 * Perhaps the author intended to say, six feet two inches, and xix feet 
 four inches. Si ill, it might have been as stated in the MS.; for with Gip¬ 
 sies of mixed blood, the individual, if he takes after the Gipsy, is apt to be 
 short and thick-set. 'the mixture of the two people produces a strong raco 
 of men.—E d. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 In this account of the Gipsies in Fife, the horde which at 
 one period resided at the village of Lochgellie are frequently 
 referred to. But it is proper to premise that this noted 
 band were not the only Gipsies in Fife. This populous 
 county contained, at one time, a great number of nomadic 
 Gipsies. The Falkland hills and the Falkland fairs were 
 greatly frequented by them ;* and, not far from St. Andrews, 
 some of the tribe had, within these fifty years, a small farm, 
 containing about twenty acres of waste land, on which they 
 had a small foundry, which the country people, on that ac¬ 
 count, called “ Little Carron.” As my materials for this 
 chapter are chiefly derived from the Lochgellie band, and 
 their immediate connexions in other districts not far from 
 Fife, their manners and customs are, on that account, brought 
 more under review. 
 
 The village of Lochgellie was, at one time, a favourite re¬ 
 sort of the Gipsies. The grounds in its immediate vicinity 
 are exactly of that character upon which they seem to have 
 
 * In Oliver and Boyd’s Scottish Tourist, (1852), page 181, occurs the fol¬ 
 lowing passage: “ A singular set of vagrants existed long in Falkland, 
 called Scropies, who had no other visible means of existence than a horse 
 or a cow. Their ostensible employment was (be carriage of commodities 
 to the adjoining villages, and in the intervals of work they turned out their 
 cattle to graze on the Lomond Hill. Their excursions at night were long 
 and mysterious, for the pretended object of procuring coals, but they 
 roamed with their little carts through the country-side, securing whatever 
 they could lift, and plundering fields in autumn. Whenever any enquiry 
 was addressed to a Falkland Scrapie as to the support of his horse, the 
 ready answer was, ‘ Ou, he gangs up the (Lomond) Hill, ye ken.’ This is 
 now prevented ; the Lomond is enclosed, and the Scrapies now manage 
 their affairs on the road-sides.” 
 
 The people mentioned in this extract are doubtless those to whom our 
 author alludes. The reader will notice some resemblance between them 
 and the tribe in the Pyrenees, as described at page 87 —En. 
 
 (140) 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 141 
 
 fixed their permanent, or rather winter’s residence, in a 
 great many parts of Scotland. By the statistical account of 
 the parish of Auchterderran, Lochgellie was almost inacces¬ 
 sible for nearly six months in the year. The bleak and 
 heathy morasses, and rushy wastes, with which the village 
 is surrounded, have a gloomy and melancholy aspect. The 
 scenery and face of the adjoining country are very similar 
 to those in the neighbourhood of Biggar, in Lanarkshire, 
 and Middleton, in Midlothian, which were also, at that time, 
 Gipsy stations. A little to the south of the spot where the 
 Linlithgow band, at one period, had their quarters, the coun¬ 
 try becomes moory, bleak, and barren. The village ofKirk- 
 Yetholm, at present full of Gipsies, is also situated upon the 
 confines of a wild, pastoral tract, among the Cheviot hills.* 
 The Gipsies, in general, appear to have located themselves 
 upon grounds of a flattish character, between the cultivated 
 and uncultivated districts ; having, on one side, a fertile and 
 populous country, and, on the other, a heathy, boggy, and 
 barren waste, into which they could retire in times of dan- 
 ger.f 
 
 In the statistical account of Auchterderran, just alluded 
 to, is to be found the following notice of the Lochgellie Gip¬ 
 sies : “ There are a few persons called Tinkers and Horn¬ 
 ers , half resident and half itinerant, who are feared and 
 suspected by the community. Two of them were banished 
 within these six years.” This horde, at one time, consisted 
 of four or five families of the names of Graham, Brown, 
 Robertson, &c. The Jamiesons and Wilsons were also often 
 seen at Lochgellie ; but such were the numbers that were 
 coming and going about the village, that it was difficult to 
 say who were residenters, and who were not. Some of 
 them had feus from the proprietor of the estate of Loch¬ 
 gellie. They were dreaded for their depredations, and 
 were well known to the country people, all over the shires 
 of Fife, Kinross, Perth, Forfar, Kincardine and Aber¬ 
 deen, by the name of the “ Lochgellie band.” The chiefs of 
 
 * Yetholm lies in a valley which, surrounded on all sides by lofty moun¬ 
 tains, seems completely sequestered from the rest of the world—alike inac¬ 
 cessible from without, and not to be left from within. The valley has, 
 however, more than one outlet. —Chambers Gazetteer of Scotland .— Ed. 
 
 f In Hungary, their houses, which are always small, and poor in appear¬ 
 ance, are commonly situated in the outskirts of the village, and, if possible, 
 in the neighbourhood of somo thicket or rough land.— Bright .— Ed. 
 
142 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 this band were the Grahams, at the head of which was old 
 Charles Graham, an uncommonly stout and fine-looking man. 
 He was banished the kingdom for his many crimes. Charlie 
 had been often in courts of justice, and on one occasion, 
 when he appeared for some crime or other, the judge, in a 
 surly manner, demanded of him, what had brought him 
 there ?—“ The auld thing again, my lord, but nae proof,” 
 was the Tinkler’s immediate reply. Ann Brown, one of his 
 wives, and the chief female of the band, was also sentenced to 
 banishment for fourteen years ; seven of which, however, she 
 spent in the prison of Aberdeen. She remained altogether 
 nine years at Botany Bay, married a Gipsy abroad, returned 
 to Scotland, with more than a hundred pounds in cash, and 
 now sells earthenware at St. Andrews.* Being asked why 
 she left Botany Bay, while making so much money there, 
 she said, “ It was to let them see 1 could come back again.” 
 
 Young Charlie Graham, son and successor, as chief, to old 
 Charlie, was hanged at Perth, about thirty years ago, for 
 horse-stealing. The anecdotes which are told of this singu¬ 
 lar man are numerous. When he was apprehended, a num¬ 
 ber of people assembled to look at him, as an object of won¬ 
 der ; it being considered a thing almost impossible to take 
 him. His dog had discovered to the messengers the place 
 of his concealment, having barked at them as they came 
 near the spot. His feelings became irritated at the curi¬ 
 osity of the people, and he called out in great bitterness to 
 the officers : “ Let me free, and gie me a stick three feet 
 lang, and I’ll clear the knowe o’ them.” His feet and hands 
 were so handsome and small, in proportion to the other 
 parts of his athletic body, that neither irons nor hand-cuffs 
 could be kept on his ankles or wrists ; without injury to his 
 person the gyves and manacles always slipped over his 
 joints. He had a prepossessing countenance, an elegant 
 figure, and mucli generosity of heart ; and, notwithstanding 
 all his tricks, was an extraordinary favourite with the pub¬ 
 lic. Among the many tricks he played, it is related that he 
 once, unobserved, in a grass park, converted a young colt 
 into a gelding. He allowed the animal to remain for some 
 time in the possession of the owner, and then stole it. He was 
 immediately detected, and apprehended ; but as the owner 
 
 * This woman is most probably dead, and the same may be said of some 
 of the other characters mentioned in this and other chapters.—E d. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 143 
 
 swore positively to the description of his horse, and Char¬ 
 lie’s being a gelding, he got off clear. The man was amazed 
 when he discovered the trick that had been played upon 
 him, but when, where, and by whom done, he was entirely 
 ignorant. Graham sold the animal to a third person, again 
 stole it, and replaced it in the park of the original owner. 
 He seemed to take great delight in stealing in this ingeni¬ 
 ous manner, trying how dexterously he could carry off the 
 property of the astonished natives. He sometimes stole 
 from wealthy individuals, and gave the booty to the indi¬ 
 gent, although they were not Gipsies ; and so accustomed 
 were the people, in some places, to his bloodless robberies, 
 that some only put their spurs to their horses, calling out, as 
 they passed him : “ All ha, Charlie lad, ye hae missed your 
 mark to—night!” A widow, with a large family, at whose 
 house he had frequently been quartered, was in great dis¬ 
 tress for want of money to pay her rent. Graham lent her 
 the amount required ; but as the factor was returning homo 
 witli it in his pocket, Charlie robbed him, and, without loss 
 of time, returned to the woman, and gave her a full dis¬ 
 charge for the sum she had just borrowed from him. 
 
 He was asked, immediately before his execution, if he had 
 ever performed any good action during his life, to recom¬ 
 mend him to the mercy of his offended God. That of giving 
 the widow and fatherless the money of which he immediately 
 afterwards robbed the factor, was the only instance he ad¬ 
 duced in his favour ; thinking that thereby he had performed 
 a virtuous deed. In the morning of the day on which he 
 was to suffer, he sent a messenger to one of the magistrates, 
 requesting a razor to take off his beard ; at the same time, 
 in a calm manner, desiring the person to tell the magistrate 
 that, “ unless his beard was shaven, he could appear before 
 neither God nor man.” A short time before he was taken 
 out to the gallows, he was observed reclining very pensively 
 and thoughtfully on a seat. All at once he started up, ex¬ 
 claiming, in a mournful tone of voice, “ Oh, can ony o’ ye 
 read, sirs; will some o’ ye read a psalm to me ?” at the 
 same time regretting much that he had not been taught to 
 read. The fifty-first psalm was accordingly read to him, by 
 a gentleman present, which soothed his feelings exceedingly, 
 and gave him much ease and comfort. He was greatly 
 agitated after ascending the platform—his knees knocking 
 
144 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 against each other ; but just before he was cast off, his in¬ 
 veterate Gipsy feelings returned upon him with redoubled 
 violence. He kicked from his feet both of his shoes, in 
 sight of the spectators—to set at nought, as was supposed, 
 some prophecy that he would die with them on ; and ad¬ 
 dressed the assembled crowd in the following words: “I 
 am this day to be married to the gallows-tree, by suffering 
 in the maimer of many of my ancestors ; and I am extremely 
 glad to see such a number of respectable people at my wed¬ 
 ding.” A number of the band attended his execution, and, 
 when his body was returned to them, they all kissed it with 
 great affection, and held the usual lyke-wake over it. His 
 sweetheart, or widow, I am uncertain which, of the name 
 of Wilson, his own cousin, put his corpse into hot lime, then 
 buried it, and sat on his grave, in a state of intoxication, 
 till it was rendered unfit for the use of the medical gentle¬ 
 men ; it having been reported that he was to be taken out 
 of his grave for the purpose of dissection. This man 
 boasted greatly, while under sentence of death, of never 
 having spilled human blood by committing murder. 
 
 Hugh Graham, brother to Charlie, above-mentioned, was 
 stabbed with a knife by his own cousin, John Young, in 
 Aberdeenshire. These powerful Gipsies never fell in with 
 each other but a wrestling bout took place. Young gen¬ 
 erally came off victorious, but Graham, although worsted, 
 would neither quit Young nor acknowledge his inferiority 
 of strength. Young frequently desired Graham to keep 
 out of his way, as his obstinate disposition would prove 
 fatal to one of them some time or other. They, however, 
 met again, when a desperate struggle ensued. Graham was 
 the aggressor; he drew his knife to stab Young, who 
 wrested it out of his hand, and stabbing him in the upper 
 part of the stomach, close to the breast, laid his opponent 
 dead at his feet.* In this battle the Gipsy females, in 
 their usual manner, took a conspicuous part, by assisting the 
 combatants on either side. 
 
 * Young was chased for nearly thirty miles, by Highlanders, on foot, and 
 General Gordon of Cairnfiekl, and others, on horseback ; and, as he was 
 frequently in view, the affair much resembled a fox-hunt. The hounds 
 were most of them game-keepers—an active race of men ; and so exhausted 
 were they, before the Gipsy was caught, that they were seen lying by the 
 springs, lapping water with their tongues, like dogs.— Blackwood’s Maga¬ 
 zine .—Ed. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 145 
 
 Jenny Graham, sister of these Grahams, was kept by a 
 gentleman as his mistress ; but, although treated with affec¬ 
 tion, such was her attachment to her old wandering way of 
 life, that she left her protector and his wealth, and rejoined 
 her erratic associates in the gang. She was a remarkably 
 handsome and good-looking woman, and, while she traversed 
 the country, she frequently rode upon an ass, which was 
 saddled and bridled. On these occasions, she was sometimes 
 dressed in a blue riding-habit and a black beaver hat. It 
 was generally supposed that the stolen articles of value be¬ 
 longing to the family were committed to the care of Jenny. 
 Margaret Graham, another sister, is still living, and is a 
 woman of uncommon bodily strength ; so much so, that she 
 is considered to be a good deal stronger than the generality 
 of men. She w T as married to William Davidson, a Gipsy, 
 at Wemyss. They have a large family, and sell earthenware 
 through the country. 
 
 John Young, who stabbed his cousin, Hugh Graham, was 
 one of seven sons, and though above five feet ten inches in 
 height, his mother used to call him “the dwarf o’ a’ my 
 bairns.” He was condemned and hanged at Aberdeen for 
 the murder. He wrote a good hand, and the country-peo¬ 
 ple were far from being displeased with his society, while 
 lie was employed in repairing their pots and pans in the way 
 of his calling. Sarah Graham, his mother, was of the high¬ 
 est Tinkler mettle. She lost a forefinger in a Gipsy fray. 
 Peter Young, another son of Sarah’s, was also hanged at 
 Edinburgh, after breaking a number of prisons in which he 
 was confined. He is spoken of as a singular man. Such 
 was his generosity of character, that he always exerted him¬ 
 self to the utmost to set his fellow-prisoners free, although 
 they happened not to be in the same apartment of the 
 prison. The life of this man was published about the time 
 of his execution. When any one asked old John Young 
 where his sons were, his reply was, “They are all hanged.” 
 They were seven in number, and it was certainly a fearful 
 end of a whole family. The following is an extract of a 
 letter addressed to Mr. Blackwood, from Aberdeen, relative 
 to Peter Young : “It is said, in your far-famed magazine, 
 that Peter Young, brother to John Young, the Gipsy, like¬ 
 wise suffered at Aberdeen. It is true that he received sen¬ 
 tence to die there, but the prison and all the irons the per- 
 
146 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 sons vere able to load him with, somehow or other, were 
 found insufficient to prevent him from making his escape. 
 After he had repeatedly broken loose, and had been as often 
 retaken, the magistrates at last resolved that lie should be 
 effectually secured ; and, for that purpose, ordered a great 
 iron chain to be provided, and Peter to be fast bound in 
 it. As the jailer was making everything, as he thought, 
 most secure, Peter, with a sigh, gazed on him, and said, 
 ‘Av, ay, I winna come out now till I come out at the 
 door making him believe that lie would not be able to 
 make his escape again, nor come out till the day fixed for 
 his execution. But the great iron chain, bolts and bars, 
 were all alike unable to withstand his skill and strength : 
 he came out, within a few nights, at the ‘ door,’ along with 
 such of his fellow-prisoners as were inclined to avail 
 themselves of the 1 catch but he was afterwards taken, and 
 conveyed to Edinburgh, and there made to suffer the penalty 
 which his crimes deserved.—D. C.”* 
 
 * Our author says that the Life of Peter Young was published. The 
 following particulars, quoted in an account of the Gipsies, in the sixteenth 
 volume of Chambers’ Miscellany, are probably taken from that source: 
 
 “ Peter was Captain of a band well known in the north of Scotland, 
 where his exploits are told to this day. Possessed of great strength of 
 body, and very uncommon abilities, he was a fine specimen of his race, 
 though he retained all their lawless propensities. lie was proud, passion¬ 
 ate, revengeful, a great poacher, and an absolute despot, although a toler¬ 
 ably just one, over his gang, maintaining his authority with an oak stick, 
 the principal sufferers from which were his numerous wives.”—“ He 
 esteemed himself to be a very honourable man, and the keepers of the 
 different public-houses in the country seem to have thought that, to a cer¬ 
 tain extent, he was so. He never asked for trust as long as he had a half¬ 
 penny in his pocket. At the different inns which he used to frequent, lie 
 was seldom or never denied anything. If he pledged his word that he 
 would pay his bill the next time he came that way, he punctually per¬ 
 formed his promise.” 
 
 “ Peter’s work was that of a very miscellaneous nature. It comprehended 
 the profession of a blacksmith, in all its varieties, a tin-smith, and brazier. 
 His original business was to mend pots, pans, kettles, Ac., of every descrip¬ 
 tion, and this he did with great neatness and ingenuity. Having an un¬ 
 common turn for mechanics, lie at last cleaned and repaired clocks and 
 watches. He could also engrave on wood or metal; so also could his 
 brother John ; but where they learned any of these arts I never heard. 
 Peter was very handy about all sorts of carpenter work, and occasionally 
 amused himself, when the fancy seized him, in executing some pieces of 
 curious cabinet work that required neatness of hand. He was particularly 
 famous in making fishing-rods, and in the art of fishing he was surpassed 
 by few.” 
 
 Immediately before one of the days fixed for his execution, he seized the 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 147 
 
 Charles Brown, one of the principal members of the 
 Lochgellie band, was killed in a desperate fight at Raploch, 
 near Stirling. A number of Gipsy boys, belonging to 
 several gangs in the south, obtained a considerable quan¬ 
 tity of plunder, at a fair in Perth, and had, in the 
 division of the spoil, somehow or another, imposed on the 
 Lochgellie tribe, and their associates. Charles Graham, al¬ 
 ready mentioned, and Charles Brown, went south in pursuit 
 of the young depredators, for the purpose of compelling them 
 to give up their ill-gotten booty to those to whom, by the 
 Gipsy regulations, it of right belonged. After an arduous 
 chase, the boys were overtaken near Stirling, when a furi¬ 
 ous battle immediately commenced. Both parties were 
 armed with bludgeons. After having fought for a consider¬ 
 able time, with equal success on both sides, Graham, from 
 some unknown cause, fled, leaving his near relation, Brown, 
 to contend alone with the youths; in the best way he could. 
 The boys now became the assailants, and began to press hard 
 upon Brown, who defended himself long and manfully with 
 his bludgeon, displaying much art in the use of his weapon, 
 in warding off the lighter blows of his opponents, which 
 came in upon him from all quarters. At length he was 
 forced to give way, although very few of the blows reached 
 his person. On retreating, with his front to his assailants, 
 his foot struck upon an old feal dyke, when he fell to the 
 ground. The enraged youths now sprang in upon him, like 
 tigers, and, without showing him the least mercy, dispatched 
 him on the spot, by literally beating out his brains with 
 their bludgeons. Brown’s coat was brought home to Loch¬ 
 gellie, by some of his wife’s friends, with the collar and 
 shoulders besmeared all over with blood and brains, with 
 quantities of his hair sticking in the gore. It was preserved 
 for some time in this shocking condition by his wife, and ex¬ 
 hibited as a proof that her husband had not fled, as well as to 
 
 jailer, and, upon the threat of instant death, compelled him to lay on his 
 hark, as one dead, till he had set at liberty every one in the prison, himself 
 being 1 the last to leave the building. After travelling twenty-four miles, 
 he went to sleep in the snow, and was apprehended by a company of sports¬ 
 men, whose dogs had made a dead set at him. On being taken to the gal¬ 
 lows, one of the crowd cried: “ Peter, deny you are the man !”—which he 
 did, declaring that his name was John Anderson, and wondered what the 
 people wanted with hint. And there being none present who could identify 
 him, although he was well known in Aberdeen, he managed to get off 
 clear.—E d. 
 
148 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 arouse the clan to vengeance. My informant, a man about 
 fifty years of age, with others, saw this dreadful relique of 
 Brown, in the very state in which it is now described. 
 
 Alexander Brown, another member of the Lochgellie band, 
 happened, on one occasion, to be in need of butcher meat, for 
 his tribe. He had observed, grazing in a field, in the county 
 of Linlithgow, a bullock that had, by some accident, lost about 
 three-fourths of its tail. He procured a tail of a skin of the 
 same colour as that of the animal, and, in an ingenious man¬ 
 ner, made it fast to the remaining part of its tail. Disguised 
 in this way, lie drove off his booty ; but after shipping the 
 beast at the Quecns-ferry, on his way to the north, a ser¬ 
 vant, who had been dispatched in quest of the depredator, 
 overtook him as he was stepping into the boat. An alterca¬ 
 tion immediately commenced about the ox. The country¬ 
 man said he could swear to the identity of the animal in 
 Brown’s possession, were it not for its long tail ; and was 
 proceeding to examine it narrowly, to satisfy himself on that 
 particular, when the ready-witted Gipsy, ever fertile in ex¬ 
 pedients to extricate himself from difficulties, took his knife 
 out of his pocket, and, in view of all present, cut off the tail 
 above the juncture, drawing blood instantly ; and, throwing 
 it into the sea, called out to the pursuer, with some warmth : 
 “ Swear to the ox now, and be-to ye.” The coun¬ 
 
 tryman said not another word, but returned home, while the 
 Tinkler proceeded on his journey with his prize.* 
 
 * Besides getting themselves out of scrapes in such an adroit manner, the 
 Scotch Gipsies have been known to serve a friend, when innocently placed 
 in a position of danger. It happened once that Billy Marshall, the Gipsy 
 chief in Gallowayshire, attacked and robbed the laird of Bargally, and in 
 the tussle lost his cap. A respectable farmer, passing by, some time after¬ 
 wards, picked up the cap, and put it on his head. The laird, with his mind 
 confused by the robbery and the darkness combined, accused the farmer of 
 the crime; and it would have gone hard with him at the trial, had not 
 Billy come to his rescue. lie seized the cap, in the open court, and, putting 
 it on his head, addressed the laird: “ Look at me, sir, and tell me, by the 
 oath you have sworn, am not I the man that robbed you ?’—By heaven ! 
 you are the very man.”—“ You see what sort of memory this gentleman 
 has,” exclaimed the Gipsy; ‘‘he swears to the bonnet, whatever features 
 are under it. If you, yourself, my lord, will put it on your head, he will 
 be willing to swear that your lordship was the person who robbed him.” 
 The farmer was unanimously acquitted. 
 
 Notwithstanding Billy’s courage in “ taking care of the living’’ an anec¬ 
 dote is related of his having been frightened almost out of his wits, under 
 very ludicrous circumstances. He and his gang had long held possession 
 of a cavern in Gallowayshire, where they usually deposited their plunder. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 149 
 
 But this Gipsy was not always so fortunate as he was on 
 this occasion. Being once apprehended near Duiriblane, it was 
 the intention of the messengers to carry him direct to Perth, 
 but they were under the necessity of lodging him in the 
 nearest prison for the night. Brown was no sooner in cus¬ 
 tody than he began to meditate his escape. He requested, 
 as a favour, that the officers would sit up all night with him, 
 in a public-house, instead of a prison, promising them as 
 much meat and drink, for their indulgence and trouble, as 
 they should desire. His request having been granted, four 
 or five officers were placed in and about the room in which 
 he was confined, as a guard on his person, being aware of 
 the desperate character they had to deal with. He took 
 care to ply them well with the bottle ; and early next morn¬ 
 ing, before setting out, he desired one of them to put up the 
 window a little, to cool the apartment. After walking 
 several times across the room, the Gipsy, all at once, threw 
 himself out of the window, which was a considerable height 
 from the ground. The hue and cry was at his heels in an 
 instant; and as some of the messengers were gaining on 
 him, he boldly faced about, drew forth, from below his coat, 
 a dagger, which he brandished in the air, and threatened 
 death to the first wdio should approach him. He was, on 
 this occasion, suffered to make his escape, as none had the 
 courage to advance upon him. 
 
 When in full dress, Brown wore a hat richly ornamented 
 and trimmed with beautiful gold lace, which was then fash¬ 
 ionable among the first ranks in Scotland, particularly 
 among the officers of the army. His coat was made of 
 superfine cloth, of a light green colour, long in the tails, and 
 having one row of buttons at the breast. His shirt, of the 
 finest quality, was ruffled at hands and breast, with a black 
 
 and sometimes resided, secure from tiie officers of the law. Two Highland 
 pipers, strangers to the country, happened to enter it, to rest themselves 
 during the night. They perceived, at once, the character of its absent in¬ 
 habitants; and they were not long within it, before they were alarmed by 
 the voices of a numerous band advancing to its entrance. The pipers, 
 expecting nothing but death from the ruthless Gipsies, had the presence of 
 mind to strike up a pibroch, with tremendous fury ; at the terrific recep¬ 
 tion of which—the yelling of the bag-piipes issuing from the bowels of the 
 earth—Billy and his gang precipitately fled, as before a blast from the in¬ 
 fernal regions, and never afterwards dared to visit their favourite haunt. The 
 pipers, as might naturally be expected, carried off, in the morning, tho 
 spoils of the redoubted Gipsies .—Sir Walter Scott .—En. 
 
150 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 stock and buckle round the neck. He also wore a pair of 
 handsome boots, with silver-plated spurs, all in the fashion 
 of the day. Below his garments he carried a large knife, 
 and in the shaft or butt-end of his large whip, a small spear, 
 or dagger, was concealed. His brother-in-law, Wilson, w r as 
 frequently dressed in a similar garb, and both rode the best 
 horses in the country. Having the appearance of gentle¬ 
 men in their habits, and assuming the manners of such, which 
 they imitated to a wonderful degree, few persons took these 
 men for Gipsies. Like many of their race, they are repre¬ 
 sented as having been very handsome, tall, and stout-made 
 men, with agreeable and manly countenances. Among the 
 numerous thefts and robberies which they committed in 
 their day, they were never known to have taken a sixpence 
 from people of an inferior class, but, on the contrary, rather 
 to have assisted the poor classes in their pecuniary matters, 
 with a generous liberality, not at all to be looked for from 
 men of their singular habits and manner of life. The fol¬ 
 lowing particulars are descriptive of the manner and style 
 in which some of the Gipsies of rank, at one time, traversed 
 this country. 
 
 Within these forty-five years, Mr. McRitchie, already 
 alluded to, happened to be in a smithy, in the neighbourhood 
 of Carlisle, getting the shoes of his riding-horse roughened 
 on a frosty day, to enable him to proceed on his journey, 
 when a gentleman called for a like purpose. The animal 
 on which he was mounted was a handsome blood-horse, which 
 was saddled and bridled in a superior manner. He was himself 
 dressed in superfine clothes, with a riding-whip in his hand ; 
 was booted and spurred, with saddle-bags behind him ; and 
 had, altogether, man and horse, the equipment and appear¬ 
 ance of a smart English mercantile traveller, riding in the 
 way of his business. There being several horses in the 
 smithy, he, in a haughty and consequential manner, enquired 
 of the smith, very particularly, -whose turn it was first: in¬ 
 dicating a strong desire to be first served, although he was 
 the last that had entered the smithy. Tins bold assurance 
 made my acquaintance take a steady look at the intrusive 
 stranger, whom he surveyed from head to foot. And what 
 was his astonishment when he found the mighty gentleman 
 to be no other than Sandie Brown, the Tinkler’s son, from 
 the neighbourhood of Crieff; whom he had often seen stroll- 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 151 
 
 ing through the country in a troop of Gipsies, and frequently 
 in his father’s house, at the North Queensferry. He could 
 scarcely believe his eyes, so to prevent any disagreeable 
 mistake, politely asked the “gentleman” if his name was not 
 Brown ; observing that he thought he had seen him some¬ 
 where before. The surprised Tinkler hesitated considerably 
 at the unexpected question, and, after having put some 
 queries on his part, answered that “ he would not deny 
 himself—his name was really Brown.” He had, in all like¬ 
 lihood, been travelling under a borrowed name, a practice 
 very common with the Gipsies. When he found himself 
 detected, yet seeing no danger to be apprehended from the 
 accidental meeting, he very shrewdly showed great marks 
 of kindness to his acquaintance. Being now quite free from 
 embarrassment, he, in a short time, began to display, as is 
 the Gipsy custom, extraordinary feats of bodily strength, 
 by twisting with his hands strong pieces of iron ; taking 
 bets regai’ding his power in these practices, with those who 
 would wager with him. Before parting with my friend, 
 Brown very kindly insisted upon treating him with a bottle 
 of any kind of liquor he would choose to drink. At some 
 sequestered station of his tribe, on his way home, the eques¬ 
 trian Tinkler would unmask himself—dispose of his horse, 
 pack up his fine clothes, and assume his ragged coat, leathern 
 apron, and budget—before lie would venture among the 
 people of the country, who were acquainted with his real 
 character. Here we see a haughty, overbearing, highway 
 robber, clothed in excellent apparel, and mounted on a good 
 steed, metamorphose himself, in an instant, into a poor, 
 wandering, beggarly, and pitiful Gipsy. 
 
 This Alexander Brown, and his brother-in-law, Wilson, 
 carried on conjointly a considerable trade in horse-stealing 
 between Scotland and England. The horses which were 
 stolen in the South were brought to Scotland, aud sold there ; 
 those stolen in Scotland were, on the other hand, disposed 
 of in the South by English Gipsies. The crime of horse¬ 
 stealing lias brought a great many of these wanderers to an 
 untimely end on the gallows. Brown was at last hanged at 
 Edinburgh, to expiate the many crimes he had, from time 
 to time, committed. It is said that his brother-in-law, Wil¬ 
 son, was hanged along with him on the same day, having 
 been also guilty of a number of crimes. Brown was taken 
 
152 
 
 A ms TORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 in a wood in Rannacli, having been surprised and overpow¬ 
 ered by a party of Highlanders, raised for the purpose of 
 apprehending him, and dispersing his band, who lay in the 
 wood in which he was captured. He thought to evade them 
 by clapping close to the ground, like a wild animal. Upon 
 being seized, a furious scuffle ensued ; and during the vio¬ 
 lent tossing and struggling which took place, while they 
 were securing this sturdy wanderer, he took hold of the 
 bare thigh of one of the Highlanders, and bit it most cru¬ 
 elly. Martha, the mother of Brown, and the mother-in-law 
 of Wilson, was apprehended in the act of stealing a pair of 
 sheets while attending their execution. 
 
 Charles, by some called William, a brother of Alexander 
 Brown, was run down by a party of the military and some 
 messengers, near Dundee. He was carried to Perth, where 
 he was tried, condemned and executed, to atone for the nu¬ 
 merous crimes of which he was guilty. He was conveyed 
 to Perth by water, in consequence of it being reported that 
 the Gipsies of Fife, with the Grahams and Ogilvies at their 
 head, were in motion to rescue him. He, also, was a man 
 of great personal strength ; and regretting, after being 
 handcuffed, having allowed himself to be so easily taken, he, 
 in wrath, drove the messengers before him with his feet, as 
 if they had been children. While in the apartment of the 
 prison called the condemned cell, or the cage, he freed him¬ 
 self from his irons, and by some means set on fire the damp 
 straw on which he lay, with the design of making his escape 
 in the confusion. Surprised at the building being on fire, 
 and suspecting Brown to have been the cause of it, and that 
 he was free from his chains, ramping like a lion in his den, 
 no one, in the hurry, could be found with resolution enough 
 to venture near him, till a sergeant of the forty-second regi¬ 
 ment volunteered his services. Before he would face the 
 Tinkler, however, he requested authority from the magis¬ 
 trates to defend himself witli his broad-sword, and, in case 
 the prisoner became desperate, to cut him down. This per¬ 
 mission being obtained, the sergeant drew his sword, and, 
 assisted by the jailer’s daughter, unbarred the doors, till he 
 came to the cage, whence the prison was being filled with 
 smoke. As he advanced to the door, he asked with a loud 
 voice, “ Who is there ?” “ The devil,” vociferated the Gipsy, 
 through fire and smoke. “ I am also a devil, and of the 
 
FIFE AND STIFLING SHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 1.53 
 
 black-watch/’ thundered back the intrepid Highlander. The 
 resolute reply of the soldier sounded like a death knell to 
 the artful Tinkler—lie knew his man—it daunted him com¬ 
 pletely ; for, after some threats from the sergeant, he qui¬ 
 etly allowed himself to be again loaded with irons, and 
 thoroughly secured in his cell, whence he did not stir till the 
 day of his execution. 
 
 Lizzy Brown, by some called Snippy, a member of the 
 same family, was a tall, stout woman, with features far from 
 being disagreeable. She lost her nose in a battle, fought in 
 the shire of Angus. In this rencounter, the Gipsies fought 
 among themselves with highland dirks, exhibiting all the 
 fury of hostile tribes of Bedouin Arabs of the desert. When 
 this woman found that her nose was struck off, by the sweep 
 of a dirk, she put her hand to the wound, and, as if little 
 had befallen her, called out, in the heat of the scuffle, to 
 those nearest her: “ But, in the'middle o’ the meantime, 
 where is my nose ?” Poor Lizzy’s tall figure was conspicu¬ 
 ous among the tribe, owing to the want of that ornamental 
 part of her face. 
 
 The Grahams of Lochgellie, the Wilsons of Raploch, near 
 Stirling, and the Jamiesons, noticed under the head of Lin¬ 
 lithgowshire Gipsies, were all, by the female side, immedi¬ 
 ately descended from old Charles Stewart, a Gipsy chief, at 
 one period of no small consequence among these hordes.* 
 When I enquired if the Robertsons, who lived, at one time, 
 at Menstry, were related to the Lochgellie band, the answer 
 which I received was : “ The Tinklers are a’ sib”—meaning 
 that they are all connected with one another by the ties of 
 blood, and considered as one family. This is a most power¬ 
 ful bond of union among these desperate clans, which almost 
 bids defiance to the breaking up of their strongly ce¬ 
 mented society. Old Charles Stewart was described to 
 me as a stout, good-looking man, with a fair complexion ; 
 and I was informed that he lived to a great age. He af¬ 
 firmed, wherever he went, that he was a descendant of the 
 royal Stewarts of Scotland. His descendants still assert 
 that they are sprung from the royal race of Scotland. In 
 
 * It is interesting to notice that the three criminals who gave occasion to 
 the Porteous mob, in 1736, were named Stewart, Wilson and Robertson. 
 They were doubtless Gipsies of the above mentioned clans. Their crimes 
 and modes of escape were quite in keeping with the character of the Gip¬ 
 sies.—E d. 
 
 7 * 
 
154 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 support of this pretension, Stewart, in the year 1774, at a 
 wedding, in the parish of Corstorphine, actually wore a large 
 'cocked hat, decorated with a beautiful plume of white fea¬ 
 thers, in imitation of the white cockade of the Pretender. 
 On this occasion, he wore a short coat, philabeg and purse, 
 and tartan hose. He sometimes wore a piece of brass,-as a 
 star, on his left breast, with a cudgel in his hand. Such 
 ridiculous attire corresponds exactly with the taste and 
 ideas of a Gipsy.* These pretensions of Stewart are ex¬ 
 actly of a piece with the usual Gipsy policy of mak¬ 
 ing the people believe that they are descended from families 
 of rank and influence in the country. At the same time, it 
 cannot be denied that some of our Scottish kings, especially 
 James Y, the “ Gaberlunzie-man,”f were far from being scrup¬ 
 ulous or fastidious in their vague amours. As old Charles 
 Stewart was, on one occasion, crossing the Forth, atQueens- 
 ferry, chained to his son-in-law, Wilson, in charge of messen¬ 
 gers, he, with considerable shame in his countenance, ob¬ 
 served David McRitchie, whose father, as already mentioned, 
 kept a first-rate inn at the north-side, and in which the 
 Tinkler had frequently regaled himself with his merry com¬ 
 panions. Stewart called McRitchie to him, and, taking five 
 shillihgs out of his pocket, said to him, “ Hae, Davie, there’s 
 five shillings to drink my health, man ; I’ll laugh at them 
 
 * Grcllmann, in giving an account of the attire of the poorer kind of Hun¬ 
 garian Gipsies, says: We are not to suppose however that they are indif¬ 
 ferent about dress; on the contrary, they love fine clothes to an extrava¬ 
 gant degree. Whenever an opportunity offers of acquiring a good coat, 
 either by gift, purchase, or theft, the Gipsy immediately bestirs himself to 
 become master of it. Possessed of the prize, he puts it on directly, with¬ 
 out considering in the least whether it suits the rest of his apparel. If his 
 dirty shirt had holes in it as big as a barn door, or his breeches so out of 
 condition that any one might, at the first glance, perceive their antiquity; 
 were he unprovided with shoes and stockings, or a covering for his head ; 
 none of these defects would prevent his strutting about in a laced coat, 
 feeling himself of still greater consequence in case it happened to be a red 
 one. They are particularly fond of clothes which have been worn by peo¬ 
 ple of distinction, and will hardly ever deign to put on a boor’s coat. They 
 will rather go half naked, or wrap themselves up in a sack, than condescend 
 to wear a foreign garb. Green is a favourite colour with the Gipsies, but 
 scarlet is held in great esteem among them. It is the same with the Hun¬ 
 garian female Gipsies. In Spain, they hang all sorts of trumpery in their 
 ears, and baubles around their necks. 
 
 Mr. Borrow says of the Spanish Gipsies, that there is nothing in the 
 dress of either sex differing from that of the other inhabitants. The same 
 may be said of the Scottish tribes, and even of those in England.— Ed. 
 
 f Gaberlunzie-man —The beggar-man with the ragged apparel. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 155 
 
 a’. ” He did laugh at them all, for nothing couhl be proved 
 against him and he was immediately set at liberty. It was, 
 as Charles Graham said—“ The auld. thing again, butnac*- 
 proof.”* 
 
 Another very singular Gipsy, of the name of Jamie Rob¬ 
 ertson, a near relation of the Lochgellic tribe, resided at 
 Menstry, at the foot of the Ochil hills. James was an ex¬ 
 cellent musician, and was in great request at fairs and coun¬ 
 try weddings. Although characterized by a dissoluteness 
 of manners, and professed roguery, this man, when trusted, 
 was strictly honest. A decent man in the neighbourhood, 
 of the name of Robert Gray, many a time lent him sums of 
 money, to purchase large ox horns and other articles, in the 
 east of Fife, which he always repaid on the very day he 
 promised, with the greatest correctness and civility. The 
 following anecdote will show the zeal with which he would 
 resent an insult which he conceived to be offered to his 
 friend : In one of his excursions through Fife, he happened 
 to be lying on the ground, basking himself in the sun, while 
 baiting his ass, on the roadside, when a countryman, an 
 entire stranger to him, came past, singing, in lightness of 
 heart, the song of “Auld Robin Gray,” which, unfortunately 
 for the man, Robertson had never heard before. On the 
 unconscious stranger coming to the words “ Auld Robin 
 Gray was a kind man to me,” the hot-blooded Gipsy started 
 to his feet, and, with a volley of oaths, felled him with his 
 bludgeon to the ground ; repeating his blows in the most 
 violent manner, and telling him, “ Auld Robin Gray was a 
 kind man to him indeed, but it was not for him to make a 
 song on Robin for that.” In short, he nearly put the inno- 
 
 * The unabashed hardihood of the Gipsies, in the face of suspicion, or 
 even of open conviction, is not less characteristic than the facility with 
 which they commit crimes, or their address in concealing them. A Gipsy 
 of note, (known by the title of the “ Earl of Hell,”) was, about twenty years 
 ago, tried for a theft of a considerable sum of money at a Dalkeith market. 
 The proof seemed to the judge fully sufficient, but the jury rendered a ver¬ 
 dict of “ not proven.” On dismissing the prisoner from the bar, the judge 
 informed him, in his own characteristic language, “ That he had rubbit 
 shouthers wi’ the gallows that morning and warned him not again to 
 appear there with a similar body of proof against him. as it seemed scarcely 
 possible he should meet with another jury who would construe it as fa¬ 
 vourably. His counsel tendered him a similar advice. The Gipsy, how¬ 
 ever, replied, to the great entertainment of all around, “ That he was proven 
 an innocent man, and that naebody had ony right to use siccan language 
 to him.”— Blacki-ood's Magazine .— Ed. 
 
156 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 cent man to death, in the heat of his passion, for satirizing, 
 as he thought, his friend in a scurrilous song. It was an in¬ 
 variable custom with Robertson, whenever he passed Robert 
 Gray’s house, even were it at the dead hour of night, to 
 draw out his “ bread winner,” and give him a few of his 
 best airs, in gratitude for his kindness. 
 
 Robertson’s wife, a daughter of Martha, whose son and 
 son-in-law, Brown and Wilson, were executed, as already 
 mentioned, was sentenced to transportation to Botany Bay ; 
 but, owing to her advanced years, it was not thought worth 
 the expense and trouble of sending her over seas, and she 
 was set at liberty. Her grandson, Joyce Robertson, would 
 also have been transported, if not hanged, but for the assist¬ 
 ance of some of his clan rescuing him from Stirling jail. 
 So coolly and deliberately did he go about his operations, in 
 breaking out of the prison, that he took along with him his 
 oatmeal bag, and a favourite bird, in a cage, with 'which he 
 had amused himself during his solitary confinement. The 
 following anecdote of this audacious Gipsy, which was told 
 to me by an inhabitant of Stirling, who was well acquainted 
 with the parties, is, I believe, unequalled in the history of 
 robberies : While Robertson was lying in jail, an old man, 
 for wdiat purpose is not mentioned, went to the prison win¬ 
 dow, to speak to him through the iron staunoheons. Joyce, 
 putting forth his hand, took hold of the unsuspecting man 
 by the breast of his coat, and drew him close up to the iron 
 bars of the window ; then thrusting out his other hand, and 
 pointing a glittering knife at his heart, threatened him with 
 instant death, if he did not deliver him the money he had on 
 him. The poor man, completely intimidated, handed into 
 the prison all the money he had; but had it returned, on 
 the jailer being informed of the extraordinary transaction.* 
 After escaping from confinement, this Gipsy stole a watch 
 from a house at Alva, but had hardly got it into his posses¬ 
 sion before he was discovered, and had the inhabitants of 
 the village in pursuit of him. A man, of the name of Daw¬ 
 son, met liim in his flight, and, astonished at seeing the crowd 
 at his heels, enquired, impatiently, what was the matter. 
 
 * The “ game” of such a Gipsy may be fitly compared to that of a 
 sparrow-hawk. This bird has been known, while held in the band, after 
 being wounded, to seize, 'vyhen presented to it, a sparrow with each claw, 
 and a third with its beak.— Ed. 
 
FIFE AND STIFLING SHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 157 
 
 “They are all running after me, and you will soon run too,” 
 replied tlie Tinkler, without shortening his step. He took 
 to Tullibody plantations, but was apprehended, and had the 
 watch taken from him. 
 
 I will notice another principal Gipsy, closely connected 
 by blood with the Fife bands, and of that rank that entitled 
 him to issue tokens to the members of his tribe. The name 
 of this chief Was Charles Wilson, and his place of residence, 
 at one time, was Raploch, close by Stirling castle, where he 
 possessed some heritable property in houses. lie was a 
 stout, athletic, good-looking man, fully six feet in stature, 
 and of a fair complexion ; and was, in general, handsomely 
 dressed, frequently displaying a gold watch, with many seals 
 attached to its chain. In his appearance he was respectable, 
 very polite in his manners, and had, altogether, little or 
 nothing about him which, at first sight, or to the general 
 public, indicated him to be a Gipsy. But, nevertheless, I 
 was assured by one of the tribe, who was well acquainted 
 with him, that lie spoke the language, and observed all the 
 customs, and followed the practices of the Gipsies. 
 
 He was a pretty extensive horse-dealer, having at times 
 in his possession numbers of the best bred horses in the 
 country. He most commonly bought and sold hunters, and 
 such as were suitable for cavalry ; and for some of his horses 
 he received upwards of a hundred guineas apiece. In his 
 dealings he always paid cash for his purchases, but accepted 
 bills from his customers of respectability. Many a one pur¬ 
 chased horses of him ; and he was taken notice of by many 
 respectable people in the neighbourhood ; but the community 
 in general looked upon him, and his people, with suspicion 
 and fear, and were by no means fond of quarrelling with 
 any of his vindictive fraternity. When any of his customers 
 required a horse from him, and told him that the matter was 
 left wholly to himself, as regards price, but to provide an 
 animal suitable for the purpose required, no man in Scotland 
 would act with greater honour than Charles Wilson. He 
 would then fit his employer completely, and charge for the 
 horse exactly what the price should be. To this manner of 
 dealing he was very averse, and endeavoured to avoid it as 
 much as possible. It is said he was never known to deceive 
 any one in his transactions, -when entire confidence was 
 placed in him. But, on the other hand, when any tried to 
 
158 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 make a bargain with him, without any reference to himself, 
 but trusting wholly to their own judgment, he would take 
 three prices for his horses, if he could obtain them, and 
 cheat them, if it was in his power. It is said his people 
 stole horses in Ireland, and sent them to him, to dispose of 
 in Scotland. On one occasion his gang stole and sold in 
 Edinburgh, Stirling and Dumbarton a grey stallion, three 
 different times in one week. Wilson himself was almost 
 always mounted on a blood-horse of the highest mettle. 
 
 At one time, Charles Wilson travelled the country with a 
 horse and cart, vending articles which his gang plundered 
 from shops in Glasgow and other places. He had an asso¬ 
 ciate who kept a regular shop, and when Wilson happened 
 to be questioned about his merchandise, he always had fic¬ 
 titious bills of particulars, invoices and receipts, ready to 
 show that the goods were lawfully purchased from his mer¬ 
 chant, who was no other than his friend and associate. As 
 Charles was chief of his tribe, he received the title of cap¬ 
 tain, to distinguish him from the meaner sort of his race. 
 Like others of his rank among the Gipsies, he generally had 
 a numerous gang of youths in fairs, plundering for him in all 
 directions, among the heedless and unthinking crowd. But 
 he always managed matters with such art and address that, 
 however much he might be suspected, no evidence could 
 ever be found to show that he acted a part in such transac¬ 
 tions. It was well understood, however, that Charlie, as 
 he was commonly called, divided the contents of many a 
 purse with his band ; all the plundered articles being in 
 fact brought to him for distribution. 
 
 This chief, as I have already mentioned, issued tokens to 
 the members of his own tribe ; a part of the polity of the 
 Gipsies which will be fully described in the following chap¬ 
 ter. But, besides these regular Gipsy tokens, he, like many 
 of his nation, gave tokens of protection to his particular 
 friends of the community at large. The following is one 
 instance, among many, of this curious practice among the 
 Gipsies. I received the particulars from the individual 
 himself who obtained the token or passport from Wilson. 
 My informant, Mr. Buchanan, a retired officer of the Excise, 
 chanced, in his youth, to be in a fair at Skirling, in Peebles¬ 
 shire, when an acquaintance of his, of the name of John 
 Smith, of Carnwath Mill, received, in a tent, fifty pounds 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 159 
 
 for horses which he had sold in the market. Wilson, who 
 was acquainted with both parties, was in the tent at the 
 time, and saw the latter receive the money. On leaving the 
 tent, Smith mentioned to his friend that he was afraid of 
 being robbed in going home, as Wilson knew he had money 
 in his possession. Mr. Buchanan, being well acquainted 
 with Wilson, went to him in the fair, and told him the plain 
 facts ; that Smith and himself were to travel with money on 
 their persons, and that they were apprehensive of being 
 robbed of it, on their way home. The Gipsy, after hesi¬ 
 tating for a moment, gave Buchanan a pen-knife, which he 
 was to show to the first person who should offer to molest 
 them ; at the same time enjoining him to keep the affair 
 quite private. After my informant and his friend had 
 travelled a considerable distance on their way home, they 
 observed, at a little distance before them, a number of 
 Tinklers—men and women—fighting together on the side 
 of the road. One of the females came forward to the 
 travellers, and urged them vehemently to assist her husband, 
 who, she said, was like to be murdered by others who had 
 fallen upon him on the highway. My friend knew quite 
 well that all the fighting was a farce, got up for the purpose 
 of robbing him and his companion, the moment they inter¬ 
 fered with the combatants in their feigned quarrel. Instead 
 of giving the woman the assistance she asked, he privately 
 and very quietly, as if he wished nobody to see it, showed 
 her Wilson’s knife in his hand, when she immediately ex¬ 
 claimed, “ You are our friends,” and called, at the same 
 moment, to those engaged in the scuffle, in words to the 
 same effect. Both the travellers now passed on, but, on 
 looking behind them, they observed that the squabble had 
 entirely ceased. The pen-knife was returned to AVilson the 
 day following. 
 
 I may give, in this place, another instance of these tokens 
 being granted by the Gipsies to their particular favourites 
 of the community. The particulars were given to me by 
 the individual with whom the incident occurred ; and the 
 
 Gipsy mentioned I have myself seen and spoken to : A- 
 
 A-, a small farmer, who resided in the west of Fife, 
 
 happened to be at one of the Falkland fairs, where, in the 
 evening, he fell in with old Andrew Steed man, a Gipsy horse- 
 dealer from Lochgellie, with whom he was well acquainted. 
 
160 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 They entered a public-house in Falkland to have a dram to¬ 
 gether, before leaving the fair, and after some conversation 
 had passed, on various subjects, Stcedman observed to his 
 acquaintance that it would be late in the night before he 
 could reach his home, and that he might be exposed to some 
 danger on the road ; but lie would give him his snuff-box, 
 to present and offer a snuff to the first person who should 
 offer to molest him. My informant, possessed of the Gipsy’s 
 snuff-box, mounted his horse, and left his acquaintance and 
 Falkland behind for his home. He had not proceeded far 
 on his journey, before a man in the dark seized the bridle 
 of his horse, and ordered him to stop ; without, however, 
 enforcing his command to surrender in that determined tone 
 and manner common to highwaymen with those they intend 
 to rob. The farmer at once recognized the robber to be no 
 other than young Charles Graham, one of the Locbgellie 
 Tinklers, whom he personally knew. Instead of delivering 
 him his purse, he held out to him the snuff-box, as if nothing 
 had happened, and, offering him a pinch, asked him if he was 
 going to Lochgellic to-night. A sort of parley now ensued, 
 the farmer feeling confident in the strength of his protec¬ 
 tion, and Graham confounded at being recognized by an ac¬ 
 quaintance whom he was about to rob, and who, moreover, 
 was in possession of a Gipsy token. At first a dry conver¬ 
 sation ensued, similar to that between persons unacquainted 
 with each other when they happen to meet; but Graham, 
 recovering his self-possession, soon became very frank and 
 kind, and insisted on the farmer accompanying him to a 
 public-house on the road-side, where he would treat him to 
 a dram. The farmer, a stout, athletic man, and no coward, 
 complied with the Gipsy’s invitation without hesitation. 
 While drinking their liquor, Graham took up the snuff-box, 
 and examined it all over very attentively, by the light of 
 the candle, and returned it, without making a single remark, 
 relative either to the untoward occurrence or the snuff-box 
 itself. The farmer was equally silent as to what had taken 
 place ; but he could not help noticing the particular manner 
 in which the Gipsy examined the token. They drank a 
 hearty dram together, and parted the best of friends; the 
 farmer for his home, and Graham, as he supposed, for the 
 highway, to exercise his calling. Graham, about this period, 
 resided in a house belonging to Steedman, in Lochgellie. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 161 
 
 Instances occurred of individuals, who happened to be 
 plundered, applying to Charles Wilson for his assistance to 
 recover their property. The particulars of the following 
 case are in the words of a friend who gave me the anec¬ 
 dote : “A boy, having received his hard-earned fee, at the 
 end of a term, set out for Stirling to purchase some clothes 
 for himself. On the road he was accosted by two men, who 
 conversed with and accompanied him to Stirling. The lad 
 proceeded accordingly to fit himself in a shop with a new 
 suit, but, to his utter disappointment and grief, his small 
 penny-fee was gone. The merchant questioned him about 
 the road he had come, and whether he had been in company 
 with any one on the way or otherwise. Upon the appear¬ 
 ance of his companions being described, the shop-keeper 
 suspected they might have picked his pocket unobserved. 
 As a last resource, the boy was advised to call upon Charlie 
 Wilson, and relate to him the particulars of his misfortune ; 
 which he accordingly did. Charles heard his story to the 
 end, and desired him to call next day, when he might be 
 able to give him some information relative to his loss. The 
 young lad kept the appointment, and, to his great joy, the 
 Tinkler chief paid him down every farthing of his lost 
 money ; but at the same time told him to ask no questions.” 
 
 This Gipsy chief died within these thirty-fiveyears in his own 
 house, on the castle-hill at Stirling, whither he had removed 
 from Raploch. It is stated that, for a considerable time be¬ 
 fore his deatli, he relinquished his former practices, and died 
 in full communion with the church.* He was, about the 
 latter end of his life, reduced to considerable poverty, and 
 was under the necessity of betaking himself to his original 
 occupation of making horn spoons for a subsistence. In 
 the days of his prosperity, Charles was considered a very 
 kind-hearted and generous man to the poor ; and it seldom 
 happened that poverty and distress were not relieved by 
 him, when application was made to him by the needy. Al¬ 
 though many of the more original kind of Gipsies have a 
 respectable appearance, and may possess a little money, 
 during the prime of life, yet the most of them, in their old 
 age, are in a condition of poverty and misery. 
 
 * In the “ Monthly Visitor,” for February, 1850, will be found an account 
 of the conversion of one of this Gipsy clan, of the name of Jeanie Wilson. 
 The tract is very appropriately headed, “A lily among thorns.”—E d. 
 
1G2 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GirSIES. 
 
 Charles Wilson had a family of very handsome daughters, 
 one of whom was considered a perfect beauty. She did not 
 travel the country, like the rest of her family, but remained 
 at home, and acted as her father’s housekeeper ; and, when 
 any of the tribe visited him, they always addressed her by 
 the title of “my lady,” ( raunie ,) and otherwise treated her 
 with great respect. This beautiful girl was, about the year 
 1795, kept as a mistress by an adjutant of a Scotch regiment 
 of feucible cavalry. She was frequently seen as handsomely 
 and fashionably attired as the first females in Stirling ; and 
 some of the troopers were not displeased to see their adju¬ 
 tant’s mistress equal in appearance to the highest dames in 
 the town. But Wilson’s daughters were all frequently 
 dressed in a very superior manner, and could not have been 
 taken for Gipsies. 
 
 To suit their purposes of deception, in practising their 
 pilfering habits, the female Gipsies, as well as the males, 
 often changed their wearing apparel. Some of them have 
 been seen in four different dresses in one fair day, varying 
 from the appearance of a sturdy female beggar to that of a 
 young, flirting wench, fantastically dressed, and throwing 
 herself, a perfect lure, in the way of the hearty, ranting, 
 half-intoxicated, and merry young farmers, for the sole pur¬ 
 pose of stripping them of their money.* The following is 
 given as an instance of this sort of female deception :—-On a 
 fair-day, in the town of Kinross, a Brae-laird,t in the same 
 county, fell in with a Gipsy harpy of the above character, 
 of the name of Wilson, one of Charles’ daughters, it was 
 understood. She had a fine pex-son, an agreeable and pre¬ 
 possessing countenance, was handsomely dressed, and was, 
 altogether, what one would pronounce a pretty girl. Her 
 charms made a very sudden and deep impression on the sus¬ 
 ceptible laird ; and as it was an easy matter, in those times, 
 
 * An old woman, whom I found occupying the house of Charles Wilson, 
 at Rnploch, in 1845, informed me that she had seen his wife in five differ¬ 
 ent. dresses, in one market-day. She was, at the time, a servant in a black¬ 
 smith’s family in Stirling, who were great friends of Charles Wilson; and 
 every time Mrs. Wilson came into the smith’s house, from her plundering 
 in the market, this servant girl, then nine years old, cleaned her shoes for a 
 fresh expedition in the crowd. When suspected, or even detected, in their 
 practices, these female Gipsies, by such change of dress and character, 
 easily escaped apprehension by the authorities. 
 
 t There are a number of small landed proprietors in the hilly parts of 
 Kinross-shire ; hence the appellation of Brae-laird. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 163 
 
 to make up acquaintance at these large and promiscuous 
 gatherings, the enamoured rustic soon found means to intro¬ 
 duce himself to the stranger lady. He treated her in a 
 gallant manner, and engaged to pay his respects to her at 
 her place of residence. It happened, however, that a num¬ 
 ber of Tinklers were, that very evening, apprehended in the 
 fair, for picking pockets, and a great many purses were 
 found in their custody. Proclamation was made by the 
 authorities, that all those who had lost their money should 
 appear at a place named, and identify their property. The 
 Brae-laird, among others, missed his pocket-book and purse, 
 and accordingly went to enquire after them. His purse was 
 produced to him ; but greatly was he ashamed and mortified 
 when the thief was also shown to him, lying in prison—the 
 very person of his handsome and beautiful sweetheart, now 
 metamorphosed into a common Tinkler wench. Whether he 
 now provoked the ire of his dulcinea, by harsh treatment, is 
 not mentioned ; but the woman sent, as it were, a dagger to 
 his heart, by calling out before all present: “Ay, laird,ye’re 
 no sae kind to me noo, lad, as when ye treated me wi’ wine 
 in the forenoon.” The man, confounded at his exposure, 
 was glad to get out of her presence, and, rather than bear 
 the cutting taunts of the Gipsy, fled from the place of inves¬ 
 tigation, leaving his money behind him.* 
 
 It is almost needless to mention that the Stirlingshire 
 Gipsies contributed their full proportion to the list of victims 
 to the offended laws of the country. Although Charles 
 Wilson, the chieftain of the horde, dexterously eluded justice 
 himself, two of his brothers were executed within the mem¬ 
 ory of people still living. Another of his relatives, of the 
 name of Gordon, also underwent the last penalty of the law, 
 at Glasgow, where an acquaintance of mine saw him hanged. 
 Wilson had a son who carried a box of jewelry through the 
 country, and was suspected of having been concerned in 
 robbing a bank, at, 1 believe, Dunkeld. Some of the des¬ 
 cendants of this Stirlingshire tribe still roam up and down 
 the kingdom, nearly in the old Gipsy manner; and several 
 
 * It is interesting to notice such rencounters between these pretty, gent.eel- 
 looldng Gipsies and the ordinary natives. The denouement, in this instance, 
 might have been a marriage, and the plantation of a colony of Gipsies 
 among the Braes of Kinross-shire. The same might have happened in the 
 case of the other lady Wilson, with the adjutant at Stirling, or with one 
 of his acquaintances.—E d. 
 
164 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of them have their residence, when not on the tramp, in the 
 town of Stirling. 
 
 The great distinguishing feature in the character of the 
 Gipsies is an incurable propensity for theft and robbery, 
 and taking openly and forcibly (sorning) whatever answers 
 their purpose. A Gipsy,’of about twenty-one years of age, 
 stated to me that his forefathers considered it quite lawful, 
 among themselves, to take from others, not of their own fra¬ 
 ternity, any article they stood in need of. Casting his eyes 
 around the inside of my house, he said : “ For instance, were 
 they to enter this room, they would carry off anything that 
 could be of service to them, such as clothes, money, victuals, 
 Ac. “ but,” added he, “ all this proceeded from ignorance ; 
 they are now quite changed in their manners.” Another 
 Gipsy, a man of about sixty years of age, informed me that 
 the tribe have a complete and thorough hatred of the whole 
 community, excepting those who shelter them, or treat them 
 with kindness ; and that a dexterous theft or robbery, com¬ 
 mitted on any of the natives among whom they travel, is 
 looked upon as one of the most meritorious actions which a 
 Gipsy can possibly perform. 
 
 But the Gipsies are by no means the only nation in the world 
 that have considered theft reputable. In Sparta, under the 
 celebrated law-giver Lycurgus, theft was also reputable. In 
 Hugh Murray’s account of an embassy from Portugal to the 
 Emperor of Abyssinia, in 1620, we find the following curious 
 passage relative to thieves in that part of the world : “ As 
 the embassy left the palace, a band of thieves carried off a 
 number of valuable articles, while a sei'vant who attempted 
 to defend them was wounded in the leg. The ambassadors, 
 enquiring the mode of obtaining redress for this outrage, 
 were assured that these thieves formed a regular part of the 
 court establishment, and that officers were appointed who 
 levied a proportion of the articles stolen, for behoof his im¬ 
 perial majesty.”* In another part of Africa, there is a horde 
 of Moors who go by the name of the tribe of thieves. This 
 wandering, vagabond horde do not blush at adopting this 
 odious denomination. Their chief is called chief of the 
 tribe of thieves.f In Hugh Murray’s Asia, we have the fol¬ 
 lowing passage relative to the professed thieves in India. 
 
 * Yol. ii., page 17. 
 
 Golbery’s Travels, translated by Francis Blagden. Vol. L, page 158. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 165 
 
 “Nothing tends more to call in question the mildness of 
 the Hindoo disposition than the vast scale of the practice 
 of decoity. This term, though essentially synonymous with 
 robbery, suggests, however, very different ideas. With us, 
 robbers are daring and desperate outlaws, who hide them¬ 
 selves in the obscure corners of great cities, shunned and 
 detested by all society. In India, they are regular and 
 reputable persons, who have not only houses and families, 
 but often landed property, and have much influence in the 
 villages where they reside. This profession, like all others, 
 is hereditary ; and a father has been heard, from the gallows, 
 carefully admonishing his son not to be deterred, by his fate, 
 from following the calling of his ancestors. They are very 
 devout, and have placed themselves under the patronage of 
 the goddess Kali, revered in Bengal above all other deities, 
 and who is supposed to look with peculiar favour on achiev- 
 ments such as theirs. They are even recognized by the old 
 Hindoo laws, which contain enactments for the protection 
 of stolen goods, upon a due share being given to the magis¬ 
 trate. They seldom, however, commit depredations in their 
 own village, or even in that immediately adjoining, but seek 
 a distant one, where they have no tie to the inhabitants. 
 They are formed into bands, with military organization, so 
 that when a chief dies, there is always another ready to suc¬ 
 ceed him. They calculate that they have ten chances to one 
 of never being brought to justice.” 
 
 The old Hindoo law alluded to in the above passage is, I 
 presume, the following enactment in the Gentoo Code, trans¬ 
 lated by Nathaniel Brassey Halhed, page 146 : “ The mode 
 of shares among robbers is this : If any thieves, by the com¬ 
 mand of the magistrate, and with his assistance, have com¬ 
 mitted depredations upon, and brought any Booty from, an¬ 
 other province, the magistrate shall receive a share of 
 one-sixth of the whole; if they receive no command or 
 assistance from the magistrate, they shall give the magis¬ 
 trate, in that case, one-tenth of his share ; and of the 
 remainder, their chief shall receive four shares : and whoso¬ 
 ever among them is perfect master of his occupation, shall 
 receive three shares ; also whichever of them is remarkably 
 strong and stout, shall receive two shares ; and the rest shall 
 receive each one share. If any one of the community of 
 thieves happens to be taken, and should be released from 
 
166 
 
 A ms TOBY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the Cutchery, (com’t of justice), upon payment of a sum of 
 money, all the thieves shall make good that sum by equal 
 shares.”—“ In the Gentoo code containing this law, there 
 are many severe enactments against theft and robbery of 
 every description ; but these laws refer to domestic disturbers 
 of their own countrymen, or violators of the first principles 
 of society. The law which regulates these shares of robbers, 
 refers only to such bold and hardy adventurers as sally forth 
 to levy contributions in a foreign province.” 
 
 Now our Gipsies are, in one point, exactly on a level with 
 the adventurers here mentioned. They look upon themselves 
 as being in a foreign land, and consider it fair game to rob, 
 plunder, and cheat all and every one of the “ strangers” 
 among whom they travel. I am disposed to believe that 
 there were also rules among the Gipsy bands for dividing 
 their booty, something like the old Hindoo law alluded to.* 
 We find the following curious particulars mentioned of a 
 tribe among the mountains in India, who are supposed to be 
 the aborigines of Hindostan. They are called Koobies or 
 Lunctas. “ Next to personal valour, the accomplishment 
 most esteemed in a warrior is superior address in stealing ; 
 and if a thief can convey, undiscovered, to his own house, 
 his neighbour’s property, it cannot afterwards be reclaimed ; 
 nor, if detected in the act, is he otherwise punished than by 
 exposure to the ridicule of the Porah, and being obliged to 
 restore what he may have laid hold of.” “ It is a great 
 recommendation in obtaining a wife, when a Kookie can 
 say that his house is full of stolen articles.”f There are 
 several other tribes in the world among whom theft and rob¬ 
 bery are considered meritorious actions. It appears that 
 among the Coords “ no one is allowed to marry a wife till 
 he has committed some great act of robbery or murder.” In 
 an account of Kamtschatka, it is mentioned that “ among all 
 these barbarous nations, excepting the Kamtschadales, theft 
 
 * What is said here is, of course, applicable to a class, only, of the Gipsies. 
 Our author need not have gone so very far away from home, for instances 
 of theft and robbery being, under certain circumstances, deemed honour¬ 
 able. Both were, at one time, followed in Scotland, when all practised 
 
 “The good old rule, the simple plan. 
 
 That they should take who have the power, 
 
 And they should keep who can.” 
 
 See Disquisition on the Gipsies.— Ed. 
 
 f Asiatic Researches, vol. vii., pages 189 and 193. 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 167 
 
 is reputable, provided they do not steal in their own tribe, 
 or if done with such art as to prevent discovery : on the 
 other hand, it is punished very severely if discovered ; not 
 for the theft, but for the want of address in the art of steal¬ 
 ing. A Tschukotskoe girl cannot be married before she has 
 shown her dexterity in this way.”* 
 
 Halhed, in apologizing for the Hindoo magistrate partici¬ 
 pating in the plunder of banditti, which applies equally well 
 to the Gipsies, remarks that, “ unjust as this behaviour may 
 appear in the eye of equity, it bears the most genuine stamp 
 of antiquity, and corresponds entirely with the manners of 
 the early Grecians, at or before the period of the Trojan 
 war, and of the western nations before their emersion from 
 barbarism; a practice still kept up among the piratic States 
 of Barbary, to its fullest extent by sea, and probably among 
 many hordes of Tartars and Arabian banditti by land.” It 
 is proper to mention that the Gipsies seldom or never steal 
 from one another ; at least, 1 never could find out an instance 
 of a theft having been committed by a Gipsy on one of his 
 own tribe. 
 
 It will be seen, from the following details, that the san¬ 
 guinary law r s which have been, from time to time, promul¬ 
 gated all over Europe against the Gipsies, were not enacted 
 to put dow r n fanciful crimes, as an author of the present day 
 seems, in his travels, to insinuate. To plunder the com¬ 
 munity with more safety to their persons, the Gipsies appear 
 to have had a system of theft peculiar to themselves. Those 
 of Lochgellie trained all their children to theft. Indeed, 
 this has been the general practice with the tribe all over 
 Scotland. Several individuals have mentioned to me that 
 the Lochgellie band were exercised in the art of thieving 
 under the most rigid discipline. They had various ways of 
 making themselves expert thieves. They frequently prac¬ 
 tised themselves by {ticking the pockets of each other. 
 Sometimes a pair of breeches were made fast to the end of 
 a string, suspended from a high part of the tent, kiln, or 
 outhouse in which they happened to be encamped. The 
 children were set at work to try it they could, by sleight of 
 hand, abstract money from the pockets of the breeches hang¬ 
 ing in this position, without moving them. Sometimes they 
 
 * Dr. James Grieve s translation of a Russian account of Kamtschatl a. 
 
106 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 used bells in this discipline. The children who were most 
 expert in abstracting the money in this manner, were rewarded 
 with applause and presents ; while, on the other hand, those 
 who proved awkward, by ringing the bell, or moving the 
 breeches, were severely chastised. After the youths were 
 considered perfect in tin's branch of their profession, a purse, 
 or other small object, was laid down in an exposed part of 
 the tent or camp, in view of all the family. While the 
 ordinary business of the Gipsies was going forward, the 
 children again commenced their operations, by exerting their 
 ingenuity and exercising their patience, in trying to carry 
 off the purse without being perceived by any one present. 
 If they were detected, they were again beaten ; but if they 
 succeeded unnoticed, they were caressed and liberally re¬ 
 warded. As far as my information goes, this systematic 
 training of the Gipsy youth was performed by the chief 
 female of the bands. These women seem to have had great 
 authority over their children. Ann Brown, of the Loch- 
 gellie tribe, could, by a single stamp of her foot, cause the 
 children to crouch to the ground, like trembling dogs under 
 the lash of an angry master. The Gipsies, from these con¬ 
 stant trainings, became exceedingly dexterous at picking 
 pockets. The following instance of their extraordinary ad¬ 
 dress in these practices, will show the effects of their careful 
 training, as well as exhibit the natural ingenuity which they 
 will display in compassing their ends. 
 
 A principal male Gipsy, of a very respectable appearance, 
 whose name it is unnecessary to mention, happened, on a 
 market day, to be drinking in a public-house, with several 
 farmers with whom he was well acquainted. The party 
 observed, from the window, a countryman purchase some¬ 
 thing at a stand in the market, and, after paying for it, thrust 
 his purse into his watch-pocket, in the band of his breeches. 
 One of the company remarked that it would be a very diffi¬ 
 cult matter to rob the cautious man of his purse, without 
 being detected. The Gipsy immediately offered to bet two 
 bottles of wine that he would rob the man of his purse, in 
 the open and public market, without being perceived by him. 
 The bet was taken, and the Gipsy proceeded about the diffi¬ 
 cult and delicate business. Going up to the unsuspecting 
 man, he requested, as a particular favour, if he would ease 
 the stock about his neck, which buckled behind—an article 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 1G9 
 
 of dress at that time in fashion. The countryman most 
 readily agreed to oblige the stranger gentleman—as he sup¬ 
 posed him to be. The Gipsy, now stooping down, to allow 
 his stock to be adjusted, placed his head against the country¬ 
 man’s stomach, and, pressing it forward a little, he reached 
 down one hand, under the pretence of adjusting his shoe, 
 while the other was employed in extracting the farmer’s 
 purse. The purse was immediately brought into the com¬ 
 pany, and the cautious, unsuspecting countryman did not 
 know of his loss, till he was sent for, and had his property 
 returned to him. 
 
 The Gipsy youth, trained from infancy to plunder, in the 
 manner described, were formed into companies or bands, 
 with a captain at their head. These captains were generally 
 the grown-up sons of the old chieftains, who, having been 
 themselves leaders in their youth, endeavoured, in their old 
 age, to support, outwardly, a pretty fair character, although 
 under considerable suspicion. The captains were generally 
 well dressed, and could not be taken for Gipsies. The 
 youths varied in age from ten to thirty years. They travel¬ 
 led to fairs singly, or at least never above two together, 
 while their captains almost always rode on horse-back, but 
 never in company with any of their men.* The band con¬ 
 sisted of a great number of individuals, and in a fair several 
 of these companies would be present; each company acting 
 independent of the others, for behoof of its own members 
 and chief. Each chief, on such occasions, had his own head¬ 
 quarters, to which his men repaired with their booty, as fast 
 as they obtained it. Some of the chiefs, handsomely dressed, 
 pretended to be busily employed in buying and selling horses, 
 but were always ready to attend to the operations of their 
 
 *_An old Gipsy told me that lie had seen one of the principal chiefs, 
 dressed like a gentleman, travelling in a post-chaise, for the purpose of 
 attending fairs. 
 
 [Vidocq, of the French secret police, thus writes of the Hungarian Gip¬ 
 sies, visiting the west of Europe : Raising my eyes towards a crowd in front 
 of a menagerie, I perceived one of the false jockeys taking the purse of a fat 
 glazier, whom we saw the next moment seeking for it in his pocket; the 
 Bohemian then entered a jeweller’s shop, where were already- two of the pre¬ 
 tended Zealand peasants , and my- companion assured me that he would not 
 come out until he had pilfered some of the jewels that were shown to him. 
 In every part of the fair where there was a crowd, I met some of the 
 lodgers of the Ituehess, (i he inn kept by a Gipsy woman in which he had 
 spent the previous night.)— Ed.] 
 
 8 
 
170 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 tribe, employed in plundering in the market. The purses 
 were brought to the horse-dealer by the members of his band, 
 who, to prevent being discovered, pretended to be buying 
 horses from him, while communicating with him relative to 
 their peculiar vocation. When a detection was likely to 
 take place, the chief mounted a good horse, and rode off to 
 a distant part of the country, previously made known to his 
 men, with the whole of the booty in his custody. To this 
 place the band, when all was quiet, repaired, and received 
 their share of the plunder. They could communicate infor¬ 
 mation to one another by signs, to say nothing of their lan¬ 
 guage, which frequently enabled them to get the start of 
 their pursuers. Like the fox, the dog, and the corbie, they 
 frequently concealed their stolen articles in the earth. Par¬ 
 ties of them would frequently commence sham fights in mar¬ 
 kets, to facilitate the picking of the pockets of the people, 
 while crowded together to witness the scuffles. 
 
 Many of the male Gipsies used a piece of strong leather, 
 like a sailmaker’s palm, having a short piece of sharp steel, 
 like the point of a surgeon’s lancet, where the sailmaker has 
 his thimble. The long sleeves of their coats concealed the 
 instrument, and when they wished to cut a purse out of an 
 arm-pocket, they stretched out the arm, and ran it flatly and 
 gently along the cloth of the coat, opposite the pocket of the 
 individual they wished to plunder. The female Gipsies 
 wore, upon their forefingers, rings of a peculiar construction, 
 yet nothing unusual in their appearance, excepting their 
 very large size. On closing the hand, the pressure upon a 
 spring sent forth, through an aperture or slit in the ring, a 
 piece of sharp steel, something like the manner in which a 
 bee thrusts out and withdraws its sting. With these inge¬ 
 nious instruments the female Gipsies cut the outside of the 
 pockets of their victims, exactly as a glazier runs his dia¬ 
 mond over a sheet of glass. The opening once made by the 
 back of the forefinger, the hand, following, was easily intro¬ 
 duced into the pocket. In the midst of a crowded fair, the 
 dexterous Gipsies, with their nimble fingers, armed with 
 these invisible instruments, cut the pocket-books and purses 
 of the honest farmers, as if they had been robbed by magic. 
 So skillful were the wife and one of the sisters of Charles 
 Wilson, in the art of thieving, that although the loss of the 
 pocket-book was, in some instances, immediately discovered, 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 171 
 
 nothing was ever found upon their persons by which their guilt 
 could be established. No instrument appeared in their posses¬ 
 sion with which the clothes of the plundered individuals could 
 have been cut, as no one dreamt that the rings on their fin¬ 
 gers contained tools so admirably adapted for such purposes. 
 
 The Gipsy chiefs in Scotland appear, at one time, to have 
 received a share of the plundered articles in the same man¬ 
 ner as those of the same rank received from their inferiors 
 in Hungary. Grellmann says : “ Whenever a complaint is 
 made that any of their people have been guilty of theft, the 
 Waywode (chief) not only orders a general search to be 
 made in every tent or hut, and returns the stolen goods to 
 the owner, if they can be foifnd ; but he punishes the thief, 
 in presence of the complainant, with his whip. He does not, 
 however, punish the aggressor from any regard to justice, 
 but rather to quiet the plaintiff, and at the same time to 
 make his people more wary in their thefts, as well as more 
 dexterous in concealing their prey. These very materially 
 concern him, since, by every discovery that is made, his in¬ 
 come suffers, as the whole profit of his office arises from his 
 share of the articles that are stolen. Every time any one 
 brings in a booty, lie is obliged to give information to the 
 Arch-gipsy of his successful enterprise, then render a just ac¬ 
 count of what and how much he has stolen, in order that the 
 proper division may be made. This is the situation in which 
 a Gipsy looks on himself as bound to give a fair and true 
 detail, though, in every other instance, he does not hesitate 
 to perjure himself.” 
 
 A shrewd and active magistrate, in the west of Fife, knew 
 our Scottish Gipsy depredators so well, that he caused them 
 all to be apprehended as they entered the fairs held in the 
 town in which lie resided ; and when the market, which lasted 
 for several days, was over, the Gipsies were released from 
 prison, with empty pockets and hungry bellies--most effec¬ 
 tually baffled in their designs. 
 
 Great numbers of these Gipsy plunderers, at one time, 
 crossed the Forth at the Queensferry, for the purpose of 
 stealing and robbing at the fairs in the north of Scotland. 
 They all travelled singly or in pairs. Very few persons 
 knew whence they came, or with whom they were connected. 
 They were, in general, well dx’essed, and could not have been 
 taken for Gipsier. Every one put up at a public-house, at 
 
172 
 
 A ETSTOBY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 North Queensferry, kept by a Mr. McRitchie, already men¬ 
 tioned, an inn well known in the neighbourhood for its good 
 fare, and much frequented by all classes of society. In this 
 house, on the morning after a fair in Dunfermline, when their 
 business was all over, and themselves not alarmed by detec¬ 
 tion, or other scaring incidents, no fewer than fourteen of 
 these plunderers have frequently been seen sitting at break¬ 
 fast, with Captain Gordon, their commander, at their head. 
 The landlord’s son informed me that they ate and drank of 
 the best in the house, and paid most handsomely for every¬ 
 thing they called for. I believe they were among the best 
 customers the landlord had. Gipsies, however, are by no 
 means habitual drinkers, or tiplers ; but when they do sit 
 down, it is, in the phraseology of the sea, a complete blow¬ 
 out. About this public-house, these Gipsies were perfectly 
 inoffensive, and remarkably civil to all connected with it. 
 They troubled or stole from none of the people about the inn, 
 nor from those who lodged in the house, while they were 
 within doors, or in the immediate neighbourhood. Anything 
 could have been trusted with them on these occasions. At 
 these meetings, the landlord’s son frequently heard them 
 talking in the Gipsy language. Gordon, at times, paid the 
 reckoning for the whole, and transacted any other business 
 with the landlord ; but, when the Gipsy company was inter¬ 
 mixed with females, which was commonly the case, each 
 individual paid his own share of the bill incurred. It 
 was sometimes the practice with the young bands to leave 
 their reckoning to be paid by their chiefs, who were not pre¬ 
 sent, but who, perhaps next day, came riding up, and paid 
 the expenses incurred by their men. I am informed that 
 two chiefs, of the names of Wilson and Brown, often paid the 
 expenses of their bands in this way. When any of these 
 principal Gipsies happened to remain in the public-house all 
 night, they behaved very genteelly. They paid the chamber¬ 
 maid, boots, and waiter with more liberality than was the 
 custom with mercantile travellers generally. Captain Gor¬ 
 don, just mentioned, assumed very considerable consequence 
 at this place. Frequently he hired boats and visited the 
 islands in the Forth, and adjacent coasts, like a gentleman 
 of pleasure. On one occasion he paid no less than a guinea, 
 with brandy and eatables ad libitum, to be rowed over to 
 Inch-colm, a distance of four miles. 
 
 ( 140 ) 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 173 
 
 The female Gipsies from the south, on visiting their friends 
 at Lochgellie, in the depth of winter, often hired horses at 
 the North Queensferry, and rode, with no small pomp and 
 pride, to the village. Sometimes two females would ride 
 upon one horse. A very decent old man, of the name of 
 Thomas Chalmers, a small farmer, informed me that he him¬ 
 self had rode to Lochgellie, with a female Gipsy behind him, 
 accompanied by other two, mounted on another of his horses, 
 riding with much spirit and glee by his side. Chalmers 
 said that these women not only paid more than the common 
 hire, but treated the owners of the horses with as much meat 
 and drink as they could take. The male Gipsies also hired 
 horses at this Ferry, with which they rode to markets in the 
 north. 
 
 The young Gipsies, male and female, of whom I have 
 spoken, appear to have been the flower of the different bands, 
 collected and employed in a general plundering at the fairs 
 in the north. So well did they pay their way at the village 
 and passage alluded to, that the boatmen gave them the 
 kindly name of “ our frien’s.” These wanderers were all 
 known at the village by the name of “ Gillie Wheesels,” or 
 “ Killie Wheesh,” which, in the west of Fife, signified “ the 
 lads that take the purses.” Old Thomas Chalmers informed 
 me that he had frequently seen these sharks of boatmen 
 shake these Gipsy thieves heartily by the hand, and, with a 
 significant smile on their harsh, weather-beaten countenances, 
 wish them a good market, as they landed them on the north 
 side of the Forth, on their way to picking pockets at fairs. 
 
 As an incident in the lives of these Gipsies, I will give 
 the following, which was witnessed by Chalmers: A Gillie 
 of a Gipsy horse-couper stole a black colt, in the east of 
 Fife, and carried it direct to a fair in Perth, where he ex¬ 
 changed it for a white horse, belonging to a Highlander 
 wearing a green kilt. The Highlander, however, had not 
 long put the colt into the stable, before word was brought to 
 him that it was gone. Suspecting the Gipsy of the theft, 
 the sturdy Gael proceeded in search of him, and receiving 
 positive information of the fact, he pursued him, like a 
 staunch hound on the warm foot of reynard, till he overtook 
 him in a house on the north side of Kinross. The Gipsy 
 was taking some refreshment in the same room with Chal¬ 
 mers, when the Highlander, in a storm of broken English, 
 
174 
 
 4 HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 burst into their presence. The astute and polished Gipsy 
 instantly sprang to his feet, and, throwing his arms around 
 the foaming Celt, embraced and hugged him in the eastern 
 manner, overpowering him with expressions of joy at seeing 
 him again. This quite exasperated the mountaineer: al¬ 
 most suffocated with rage, he shook the Gipsy from his per¬ 
 son, with the utmost disdain, and demanded the colt lie had 
 stolen from him. Notwithstanding the deceitful embraces 
 and forced entreaties of the Gipsy, lie was, with the assist¬ 
 ance of a messenger, at the back of the Highlander, safely 
 lodged in the jail of Cupar. 
 
 Considering the great aptitude which the Gipsies have 
 always shown for working in metals, it is not surprising that 
 they should have resorted to coining, among their many ex¬ 
 pedients for circumventing and plundering the “strangers” 
 among whom they sojourn. The following instance will 
 illustrate the singular audacity which they can display in 
 this branch of their profession : As an honest countryman, 
 
 of much simplicity of character, of the name of W-0-, 
 
 was journeying along the public road, a travelling Tinkler, 
 whom he did not know, chanced to come up to him. After 
 walking and conversing for some time, the courteous Gipsy, 
 on arriving at a public-house, invited him to step in, and 
 have a “ tasting.” They accordingly entered the house, and 
 had no sooner finished one half mutcliken, than the liberal 
 wanderer called for another ; but when the reckoning came 
 to be thought of, the countryman was surprised when his 
 friend the Tinkler declared that he had not a coin in his 
 possession. Unfortunately, the honest man happened also to 
 be without a farthing in his pocket, and how they were to 
 get out of the house, without paying the landlord, whom 
 neither of them knew, puzzled him not a little. While 
 meditating over their dilemma, the Gipsy, with his eyes 
 rolling about in every direction, as is their wont, espied a 
 pewter basin under a bed in the room. This was all he re¬ 
 quired. Bolting the door of the apartment, he opened his 
 budget, and, taking out a pair of large shears, cut a piece 
 from the side of the basin, and, putting it into his crucible 
 on the fire, in no time, with his coining instruments, threw 
 off several half-crowns, resembling good, sterling money. If 
 the simple countryman was troubled at not being able to 
 pay his reckoning, he was now terrified at being locked up 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 175 
 
 with a man busily engaged in coining base money from an 
 article stolen in the very apartment in which he was con¬ 
 fined. He expected, every moment, some one to burst the 
 door open, and apprehend them, while the Tinkler had all 
 his coining apparatus about him. His companion, however, 
 was not in the least disturbed, but deliberately finished his 
 coin in a superior manner, and cutting the remainder of the 
 basin into pieces, packed it into his wallet. Unlocking the 
 door, he rang the bell, and tendered one of his half-crowns 
 to his host, to pay his score, which was accepted without a 
 suspicion. The Tinkler then offered his fellow-traveller part 
 of his remaining coin ; but the unsophisticated man, far 
 from touching one of them, was only too glad to rid himself 
 of so dangerous an acquaintance. The Gipsy, on his part, 
 marched off, with his spirits elevated with liquoi-, and his 
 pockets replenished with money, smiLing at the simplicity 
 and terror of the countryman. 
 
 However numerous the crimes which the Gipsies have 
 committed, or the murders they have perpetrated in then- 
 own tribe, yet, in justice to them, I must say that only two 
 instances have come to my knowledge of their having put to 
 death natives of Scotland who were not of their own frater¬ 
 nity. One of these instances was that of a man of the name 
 of Adam Thomson, whom they murdered because he had en¬ 
 croached, it was said, upon one of their supposed privileges 
 —that of gathering rags through the country. Amongst 
 other ticts of cruelty, they placed the poor man on a fire, in 
 his own house. Two Gipsies were tried for the murder, but 
 whether they were both executed, I do not know. The fol¬ 
 lowing particulars connected with this deed will show 
 how exactly the Gipsies know the different routes and halt¬ 
 ing-places of each band, as they travel through the country. 
 Indeed, I have been informed that the track which each 
 horde is to take, the different stages, and the number of 
 days they are to remain at each place, are all marked out 
 and fixed upon in the spring, before they leave their winter 
 residence. One of the Gipsies concerned in the murder of 
 Thomson lay in prison, in one of the towns in the south of 
 Scotland, for nearly twelve months, without having had any 
 communication with his tribe. There was not sufficient evi¬ 
 dence against him to justify his being brought to trial; nor 
 would he give any information regarding the transaction. 
 
176 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 At last lie changed his mind, and told the authorities they 
 would find the murderer at a certain spot in the Highlands, 
 on a certain day and hour of that day ; but if he could not 
 be found there, they were to proceed .to another place, at 
 twenty miles’ distance, where they would be sure to find 
 him. 
 
 The murderer was found at the place, and on the day, 
 mentioned by the Gipsy. But, on entering the house, the 
 constables could not discover him, although they knew he 
 had been within its walls a few minutes before they ap¬ 
 proached it. A fire having been kindled in the house, a 
 noise was heard in the chimney, which attracted the notice 
 of the constables ; and, on examination, they found the ob¬ 
 ject of their search ; the heat and smoke having caused him 
 to become restless in his place of concealment. He was se¬ 
 cured, and some of the country-people were called upon to 
 assist in carrying him to Edinburgh. The prisoner was bound 
 into a cart with ropes, to prevent him making his escape ; 
 the party in charge of him being aware of the desperate 
 character of the man. Nothing particular occurred on the 
 road, until after they had passed the town of Linlithgow, 
 when, to their astonishment, they found a woman in the pangs 
 of labour, in the open field. She called upon them either to 
 bring her a midwife, or take her to one ; a claim that could 
 not be resisted. She was accordingly put into the cart, be¬ 
 side the prisoner, and driven with all speed to a place where 
 a midwife could be procured. On arriving opposite a dell, 
 full of trees and bushes, about the west-end of Kirkliston, 
 the guards were confounded at seeing their prisoner, all at 
 once, spring out of the cart, and, darting into the cover, 
 vanish in an instant. Pursuit was immediately given, and, 
 in the excitement, the unfortunate woman was left to her 
 fate. In searching for the Gipsy, they met a gentleman 
 shooting in the neighbourhood, who had observed a man hide 
 himself among the bushes. On going to the spot, they found 
 the criminal, lying like a fox in his hole. The sportsman, 
 presenting his gun, threatened to blow out his brains, if he 
 did not come out, and deliver himself up to the constables. 
 On returning with him to the cart, his captors, to their as¬ 
 tonishment, found that the woman in labour had also van¬ 
 ished. It is needless to add that she was a Gipsy, who had 
 feigned being in travail, and, while in the cart, had cut the 
 
FIFE AND STIFLINGSUIEE GIPSIES. 
 
 177 
 
 ropes with which the prisoner was bound, to enable him to 
 make his escape. 
 
 The female Gipsies have had recourse to many expedients 
 in their impositions on the public. The following is an in¬ 
 stance, of a singular nature, that took place a good many 
 years ago. When it is considered that the Gipsies, in their 
 native country* would not be encumbered with much wear¬ 
 ing-apparel, but would go about in a state little short of 
 nudity, the extreme indecency of such an action will appear 
 somewhat lessened. The inhabitants of Winchburgh and. 
 neighbourhood were one day greatly astonished at behold¬ 
 ing a female, with a child in her arms, walking along the 
 road, as naked as when she was born. She stated to the 
 country-people that she had just been plundered, and strip¬ 
 ped of every article of her wearing-apparel, by a band of 
 Tinklers, to whom she pointed, lying in a field hard by. She 
 submitted her piteous condition to the humanity of the inha¬ 
 bitants, and craved any sort of garment to cover her naked¬ 
 ness. The state in which she was found left not the slightest 
 doubt on the minds of the spectators as to the truth of her 
 representations. Almost every female in the neighbourhood 
 ran with some description of clothing to the unfortunate 
 woman ; so that, in a short time, she was not only comfort¬ 
 ably clad, but had many articles of dress to spare. Shortly 
 after, she left the town, and proceeded on her journey. But 
 some one, observing her motions more closely than the rest, 
 was astonished at seeing her go straight to the very Tinklers 
 who, she said, had stripped her. Her appearance among 
 her band convulsed them all with laughter, at the dexterous 
 trick she had played upon the simple inhabitants. 
 
 The following anecdote, related to me of one of the well- 
 attired female Gipsies, belonging to the Stirling horde, will 
 illustrate the gratitude which the Scottish Gipsies have, on 
 all occasions, shown to those who have rendered them acts 
 of kindness and attention : A person, belonging to Stirling, 
 had rendered himself obnoxious to the Gipsies, by giving 
 information relative to one of the gang, of the name of Ham¬ 
 ilton, whom he had observed picking a man’s pocket of 
 forty pounds in a fair at Doune. Hamilton was apprehended 
 
 * It is pretty certain that the Gipsies came from a warm country, for 
 they have no words for frost or snow, as will be seen in my enquiry into 
 the history of their language. 
 
178 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 immediately after committing the theft, but none of the 
 money was found upon him. The informer, however, was 
 marked out for destruction by the band, for his officious con¬ 
 duct ; and they only waited a convenient opportunity to 
 put their resolution into execution. Some time afterwards, 
 the proscribed individual had occasion to go to a market at 
 no great distance from Stirling, and while on his way to it, 
 he observed, on the road before him, a female, in the attire 
 of a lady, riding on horseback. On coming to a pond at the 
 road-side, the horse suddenly made for the water, and threw 
 down its head to drink. Not being prepared for the move¬ 
 ment, the rider was thrown from her seat, with considerable 
 violence, to the ground. The proscribed individual, observ¬ 
 ing the accident, ran forward to her assistance ; but, being 
 only slightly stunned, she was, with his help, safely placed 
 in her seat again. She now thanked him for his kind and 
 timely assistance, and informed him of the conspiracy that 
 had been formed against him. She said it was particularly 
 fortunate for him that such an accident had befallen her 
 under the circumstances ; for, in consequence of the infor¬ 
 mation he had given about the pocket-picking at Doune, he 
 was to have been way-laid and murdered ; that very night 
 having been fixed upon for carrying the resolution into ef¬ 
 fect. But, as he had shown her this kindness, she w r ould 
 endeavour to procure, from her people, a pardon for him, 
 for the past. She then directed him to follow slowly, while 
 she would proceed on, at a quick pace, and overtake some 
 of her people, to whom she would relate her accident, and 
 the circumstances attending it. She then informed him that 
 if she waved her hand , upon his coming in sight of herself 
 and her people, he was to retrace his steps homeward, there 
 being then no mercy for him ; but if she waved her hand- 
 Icerchief, he might advance without fear. To his heart¬ 
 felt delight, on coming near the party, the signal of peace 
 was given, when lie immediately hastened forward to the 
 spot. The band, who had been in deliberation upon his 
 fate, informed him that the lady’s intercession had prevailed 
 with them to spare his life; and that now he might con¬ 
 sider himself safe, provided he would take an oath, there 
 and then, never again to give evidence against any of 
 their people, or speak to any one about their practices, 
 should he discover them. The person in question deemed 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 179 
 
 it prudent, under all the circumstances of the case, to take 
 the oath ; after which, nothing to his hurt, in cither pui’se 
 or person, ever followed.* The lady, thus equipped, and 
 possessed of so much influence, was the chief female of 
 the Gipsy band, to whom all the booty obtained at the fair 
 was brought, at the house where she put up at for the day. 
 It would seem that she was determined to save her friend 
 at all events ; for, had her band not complied with her 
 wishes, the waving of her hand—the signal for him to make 
 his escape—would have defeated their intentions for that 
 time. 
 
 When occurrences of so grave and imposing a nature as 
 the above arc taken into consideration, the fear and awe 
 with which the Gipsies have inspired the community are not 
 to be wondered at. 
 
 The Gipsies at Lochgellie had a dance peculiar to them¬ 
 selves, during the performance of which they sung a song, 
 in the Gipsy language, which they called a “ croon.” A 
 Gipsy informed me that it was exactly like the one old 
 Charles Stewart, and other Gipsies, used to perform, and 
 which I will describe. At the wedding near Corstorphine, 
 which Charles Stewart attended, as already mentioned, there 
 were five or six female Gipsies in his train. On such occa- 
 
 * Such interference with the Gipsies causes them much greater offence 
 than if the informer was a principal in the transaction. To such people, 
 their advice has always been: “ Follow your nose, and let sleeping dogs 
 lie.” The following anecdote will illustrate the way in which they have 
 revenged themselves, under circumstances different from the above: 
 
 Old Will, of Phaup, at the head of Ettriclc, was wont to shelter them for 
 many years. They asked nothing but house-room, and grass for their hors¬ 
 es ; and, though they sometimes remained for several days, he could have 
 left every chest and press about the house open, with the certainty that 
 nothing would be ndssing; for, he said, *• he aye ken’d fu’weel that the 
 toad wad keep his ain hole clean.” But it happened that he found one of 
 the gang, through the trick of a neighbouring farmer, feeding six horses on 
 the best piece of grass on his farm, which he was keeping for winter fod¬ 
 der. A desperate combat followed, and the Gipsy was thrashed to his 
 heart’s content, and hunted out of the neighbourhood. A warfare of five 
 years’ duration ensued between Will and the Gipsies. They nearly ruined 
 him, and, at the end of that period, he was glad to make up matters with 
 his old friends, and shelter them as formerly. He said he could have held 
 his own with them, had it not been for their warlockry ; for nothing could 
 he keep from them—they once found his purse, though he had made his 
 wife bury it in the garden.— Blackwood's Magazine. It is the afterclap that 
 keeps the people off the Gipsies, and secures for them a sort of toleration 
 wherever they go.—En. 
 
180 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 sions he did not allow males to accompany him. At some 
 distance from the people at the wedding, but within hearing 
 of the music, the females formed themselves into a ring, with 
 Charles in the centre. Here, in the midst of the circle, he 
 danced and capered in the most antic and ludicrous manner, 
 sweeping his cudgel around his body in all directions, and 
 moving with much grace and agility. Sometimes he danced 
 round the outside of the circle. The females danced and 
 courtesied to him, as he faced about and bowed to them. 
 When they happened to go wrong, he put them to rights by 
 a movement of his cudgel; for it was by the cudgel that all 
 the turns and figures of the dance were regulated. A twii'l 
 dismissed the females ; a cut recalled them ; a sweep made 
 them squat on the ground ; a twist again called them up, in 
 an instant, to the dance. In short, Stewart distinctly spoke 
 to his female dancers by means of his cudgel, commanding 
 them to do whatever he pleased, without opening his mouth 
 to one of them. 
 
 George Drummond, a Gipsy chief of an inferior gang in 
 Fife, danced with his seraglio of females, amounting some¬ 
 times to half a dozen, in the same manner as Stewart, with¬ 
 out the slightest variation, excepting that his gestures were, 
 on some occasions, extremely lascivious. He threw himself 
 into almost every attitude in which the human body can be 
 placed, while his cudgel was flying about his person with 
 great violence. All the movements of tire dance were regu¬ 
 lated by the measures of an indecent song, at the chorus of 
 which the circular movements of Drummond’s cudgel ceased ; 
 when one of the females faced about to him, and joined him 
 with her voice, the gestures of both being exceedingly ob¬ 
 scene. Drummond’s appearance, while dancing, has been 
 described to me, by a gentleman who has often seen him per¬ 
 forming, as exactly like what is called a “jumping-jack”— 
 that is, a human figure, cut out of wood or paste-board, with 
 which children often amuse themselves, by regulating its 
 ludicrous movements by means of strings attached to various 
 parts of it. 
 
 Dr. Clark, in his account of his travels through Russia, 
 gives a description of a Gipsy dance in Moscow, which is, 
 in all respects, very similar to that performed by Stewart 
 and Drummond. These travels came into my hands some time 
 after I had taken notes of the Scottish Gipsy dance. Nap- 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 181 
 
 kins appear to have been nsecl by the Russian Gipsies, -where 
 sticks were employed by our Scottisli tribes. No mention, 
 however, is made, by Dr. Clark, whether the females, in the 
 dance at Moscow, were guided by signs with the napkins, in 
 the manner in which Stewart and Drummond, by their cud¬ 
 gels, directed their women in their dances. The eyes of the 
 females were constantly fixed upon Stewart’s cudgel. Dr. 
 Clark is of opinion that the national dance in Russia, called 
 the barina, is derived from the Gipsies ; and thinks it prob¬ 
 able that our common hornpipe is taken from these wan¬ 
 derers.* 
 
 George Drummond was, in rank, quite inferior to the 
 Lochgellie band, who called him a “ beggar Tinkler,” and 
 seemed to despise him. He always travelled with a number 
 of females in his company. These he married after the 
 custom of the Gipsies, and divorced some of them over the 
 body of a horse, sacrificed for the occasion ; a description 
 of both of which ceremonies will be given in another chap¬ 
 ter. He chastised his women with his cudgel, without 
 mercy, causing the blood to flow at every blow, and fre¬ 
 quently knocked them senseless to the ground ; while he 
 would call out to them, “ What the deevil are ye fighting 
 at—can ye no’ ’gree ? I’m sure there’s no’ sae mony o’ 
 ye !” although, perhaps, four would be engaged in the scuffle. 
 Such was this man’s impudence and audacity, that he some¬ 
 times carried off the flesh out of the kail-pots of the farmers ; 
 and so terrified -were some of the inhabitants of Fife, at 
 some of the Gipsy women who followed him, that, the mo¬ 
 ment they entered their doors, salt was thrown into the fire, 
 to set at defiance the witchcraft which they believed they 
 possessed. One female, called Dancing Tibby, was, in par¬ 
 ticular, an object of apprehension and suspicion. In Drum¬ 
 mond’s journeys through the country, when he came at night 
 to a farmer’s premises, where he intended to lodge, and 
 found his place occupied by others of his gang, he, with¬ 
 out hesitation, turned them out of their quarters, and 
 
 * If I am not mistaken, Col. Todd is of opinion that the Gipsies origin¬ 
 ally came from Cabool, in Afghanistan. I will here give a description of 
 an Afghan dance, very like the Gipsy dance in Scotland. “ The western 
 Afghans are fond of a particular dance called Attum, or Ghoomboor, in 
 which from fourteen to twenty people move, in strange attitudes, with shout¬ 
 ing, clapping of hands, and snapping of fingers, in a circle, round a single 
 person, who plays on an instrument in the centre.”— Fraser's Library. 
 
 
182 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 took possession of their warm beds himself; letting them 
 shift for themselves as they best might. This man lived 
 till he was ninety years of age, and was, from his youth, im¬ 
 pressed with a belief that he would die in the house in 
 which he was born ; although he had travelled a great part 
 of the continent, and, while in the army, had been in various 
 engagements. He fell sick when at some distance from the 
 place of his nativity, but he hired a conveyance, and drove 
 with haste to die on his favourite spot. To this house he 
 was allowed admittance, where he closed his earthly career, 
 in about forty-eight hours after his arrival. Like others of 
 his tribe, Drummond, at times, gave tokens of protection to 
 some of his particular friends, outside of the circle of his 
 own fraternity. 
 
 James Robertson, a Gipsy closely related to the Loch- 
 gellie band, of whom I have already made mention, fre¬ 
 quently danced, with his wife and numerous sisters, in a par¬ 
 ticular fashion, changing and regulating the figures of the 
 dance by means of a bonnet; being, I believe, the same 
 dance which I have attempted to describe as performed by 
 others of the tribe in Scotland. When his wife and sisters 
 got intoxicated, which was often the case, it was a wild and 
 extravagant scene to behold those light-footed damsels, with 
 loose and flowing hair, dancing, with great spirit, on the 
 grass, in the open field, while James was, with all his “ might 
 and main,” like the devil playing to the witches, in “ Tam 
 o’ Shanter,” keeping the bacchanalians in fierce and ani¬ 
 mated music. When like to flag in his exertions to please 
 them with his fiddle, they have been heard calling loudly to 
 him, like Maggy Lawder to Rob the Ranter, “ Play up, 
 Jamie Robertson ; if ever we do weel, it will be a wonder 
 being totally regardless of all sense of decorum and decency. 
 
 The Gipsies in Fife followed the same occupations, in all 
 respects, as those in other parts of Scotland, and were also 
 dexterous at all athletic exercises. They were exceedingly 
 fond of cock-fighting, and, when the season came round for 
 that amusement, many a good cock was missing from the 
 farm-yards. The Lochgellie band considered begging a dis¬ 
 grace to their tribe. At times they were handsomely dressed, 
 wearing silver buckles in their shoes, gold rings on their 
 fingers, and gold and silver brooches in the bosoms of their 
 ruffled shirts. They killed, at Martinmass, fat cattle for 
 
FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 183 
 
 their winter’s provisions, and lived on the best victuals the 
 country could produce. It is, 1 believe, the common practice, 
 among inferior Scotch traders, for those who receive money 
 to treat the payer, or return a trifle of the payment, called 
 a luck-penny : but, in opposition to this practice, the Loch- 
 gellie Gipsies always treated those to whom they paid 
 money for what they purchased of them. They occasionally 
 attended the church, and sometimes got their children bap¬ 
 tized : but when the clergyman refused them that privilege, 
 they baptized them themselves. At their baptisms, they had 
 great feastings and drinkings. Their favourite beverage, 
 on such occasions, was oatmeal and whiskey, mixed. When 
 intoxicated, they were sometimes very fond of arguing and 
 expostulating with clergymen on points of morality. With 
 regard to the internal government of the Lochgellie Gipsies, 
 I can only find that they held consultations among them¬ 
 selves, relative to their affairs, and that the females had 
 votes as well as the males, but that old Charles Graham had 
 the casting vote ; while, in his absence, his wife, Ann Brown, 
 managed their concerns. 
 
 There is a strict division of property among the Gipsies ; 
 community of goods having no place among them. The 
 heads of each family, although travelling in one band, manu¬ 
 facture and vend their own articles of merchandise, for the 
 support of their own families. The following particulars 
 are illustrative of this fact among the Gipsies :—A farmer 
 in Fife, who would never allow them to kindle fires in his 
 out-houses, had a band of them, of about twenty-five persons, 
 quartered one night on his farm. Next morning, the chief 
 female borrowed from the family a large copper caldron, 
 used for the purposes of the dairy, with which she had re¬ 
 quested permission to cook the breakfast of the horde upon 
 the kitchen fire. This having beeu granted, each family 
 produced a small linen bag, (not the beggar’s wallet,) made 
 of coarse materials, containing oatmeal; of which at least 
 four were brought into the apartment. The female who 
 prepared the repast went regularly over the bags, taking 
 out the meal in proportion to the members of the families to 
 which they respectively belonged, and repeated her visits in 
 this manner till the porridge was ready to be served up. 
 
 I shall conclude my account of the Gipsies in Fife by 
 mentioning the curious fact that, within these sixty years, a 
 
184 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 gentleman of considerable landed property, between the 
 Forth and the Tay, abandoned his relatives, and travelled 
 over the kingdom in the society of the Gipsies. He married 
 one of the tribe, of the name of Ogilvie, who had two 
 daughters to him. Sometimes he quartered, it is said, upon 
 his own estate, disguised, of course, among the gang, to the 
 great annoyance of his relatives, who were horrified at the 
 idea of his becoming a Tinkler, and alarmed at the claims 
 which he occasionally made upon the estate. His daughters 
 travel the country, at the present day, as common Gipsies. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 
 
 The county of Peebles, or Tweed-dale, appears to have 
 been more frequented by the Gipsies than, perhaps, any 
 other part of Scotland. So far back as the time of Henry 
 Lord Darnley, when the Gipsies were countenanced by the 
 government, we find, according to Buchanan, that this county 
 was a favourite resort of banditti ; so much so, that when 
 Darnley took up his residence in Peebles, for the purpose of 
 shunning the company of his wife, Queen Mary, he “ found 
 the place so cold, so infested with thieves, and so destitute 
 of provisions, that he was driven from it, to avoid being 
 fleeced and starved by rogues and beggars.” In the poems 
 of Dr. Pennecuik, as well as in his history of Peebles-shire, 
 published in the year 1715, the Gipsy bands are frequently 
 taken notice of. But, notwithstanding the attachment which 
 the tribe had for the romantic glens of Tweed-dale, no evi¬ 
 dence exists of their ever having had a permanent habitation 
 within the shire. They appear to have resorted to that pas¬ 
 toral district during only the months of spring, summer and 
 autumn. Their partiality for this part of Scotland may be 
 attributed to three reasons. 
 
 The first reason is, Tweed-dale was part of the district in 
 which, if not the first, at least the second, Gipsy family in 
 Scotland claimed, at one time, a right to travel, as its own 
 peculiar privilege. The chief of this family was called Baillie, 
 who claimed kindred, in the bastard line, to one of the most 
 ancient families in the kingdom, of the name of Baillie, once 
 Balliol.* In consequence of this alleged connexion, this 
 (Jipsy family also claimed, as its right, to travel in the up- 
 
 * This claim appears doubtful, for there were Gipsies of the name of 
 Baillie (Bailyow) as far back as 1540, as already mentioned. However, 
 the particulars of the laird's intrigue with the beautiful Gipsy girl, arc im¬ 
 printed on the minds of the Gipsies of that name at the present day. 
 
 (185) 
 
186 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 per ward of Lanarkshire, adjoining Tweed-dale, in which 
 district the Scottish family alluded to possessed estates ; 
 and one of the principal places of the Gipsy rendezvous was 
 an old ruin, among the hills, in the upper part of the parish 
 of Lamington, or rather Wan el in those days. 
 
 The second reason is, that the surface of Tweed-dale is 
 much adapted to the wandering disposition of the Gipsies. 
 It is mountainous, but everywhere intersected by foot-paths 
 and bridle-roads, affording an easy passage to the Gipsies, 
 on foot or horseback. On its many hills are plenty of game ; 
 and its infinite number of beautiful streams, including about 
 thirty-five miles of the highest part of the Tweed, abound 
 with trout of the finest quality. The Gipsies, being fond of 
 game, and much addicted to poaching and fishing, flocked to 
 Tweed-dale and the adjoining upland districts of a similar 
 character, comprehending some of the most remote and least 
 frequented parts in the south of Scotland. All these dis¬ 
 tricts being covered with vast flocks of sheep, many of which 
 were frequently dying of various diseases, the Gipsies never 
 wanted a plentiful supply of that sort of food from the fami¬ 
 lies of the store-masters.* 
 
 And the third reason is, that, in the pastoral districts in 
 the upper parts of the shires of Peebles, Selkirk, Dumfries, 
 and Lanark, including all that mountainous tract of land in 
 which the rivers Tweed, Annan and Clyde have their 
 sources, the Gipsies were, in a great measure, secure from 
 the officers of the law, and enjoyed their favourite amuse¬ 
 ments without molestation or hindrance. 
 
 Before, and long after, the year 1745, the male branches 
 of the Baillies traversed Scotland, mounted on the best hor- 
 
 ■* Tine Gipsies were not spared of braxy, of which they were fond. I have 
 known natives of Tweed-dale and Ettrick Forest, who preferred braxy to 
 the best meat killed by the hand of man. It has a particular sharp relish, 
 which made them so fond of it. 
 
 [Braxy is the flesh of sheep which have died of a certain disease. When 
 the Gipsies are taunted with eating what some call carrion, they very 
 wittily reply: “ The flesh of a beast which God kills must be better than 
 that of one killed by the hand of man.” Such flesh, “ killed by the hand of 
 God,” is often killed in this manner : They will administer to swine a drug 
 affecting the brain only, which will cause speedy death ; when they will 
 call and obtain the carcass, without suspicion, and feast on the flesh, which 
 has been in no way injured.— Borrow. They will also stuff wool down a 
 sheep’s throat, and direct the farmer’s attention to it when near its last gasp, 
 and obtain the carcass after being skinned.— Ed.] 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GLPSLES. 187 
 
 ses to be found in the country ; themselves dressed in long 
 coats, made of the finest scarlet and green cloth, ruffled at 
 hands and breast, booted and spurred ; with cocked hats on 
 their heads, pistols in their belts, and broad-swords by then- 
 sides : and at the heels of their horses followed greyhounds, 
 and other dogs of the chase, for their amusement. Some of 
 them assumed the manners and characters of gentlemen, 
 which they supported with wonderful art and propriety. 
 The females attended fairs in the attire of ladies, riding on 
 ponies, with side-saddles, in the best style. On these occa¬ 
 sions, the children were left in charge of their servants, per¬ 
 haps in an old out-house or hut, in some wild, sequestered 
 glen, in Tweed-dale or Clydesdale. 
 
 The greater part of the tenantry were kind to the Gip¬ 
 sies, and many encouraged them to frequent their premises. 
 Tweed-dale being the favourite resort of the principal horde, 
 they generally abstained from injuring the property of the 
 greater part of the inhabitants. Indeed, 1 have been in¬ 
 formed, by eye-witnesses, that several of the farmers in 
 Tweed-dale and Clydesdale, at so late a period as about the 
 year 1770, accepted of entertainments from the principal 
 Gipsies, dining with them in the open fields, or in some old, 
 unoccupied out-house, or kiln. Their repast, on such occa¬ 
 sions, was composed of the best viands the country could 
 produce. On one occasion, a band dined on the green-sward, 
 near Douglass-mill, when the Gipsies drank their wine, after 
 dinner, as if they had been the best in the land. Some of 
 the landed proprietors, however, introduced clauses in their 
 leases prohibiting their tenants from harbouring the Gip¬ 
 sies ; and the Laird of Dolphington is mentioned as one. 
 The tribe, on hearing of the restriction, expressed great in¬ 
 dignation at the Laird’s conduct in adopting so effectual a 
 method of banishing them from the district. But so strong 
 were the attachments which some of the Gipsies displayed 
 towards the inhabitants, that the chief of the Ruthvens 
 actually wept like a child, whenever the misfortunes of the 
 ancient family of Murray, of Philliphaugh, were mentioned 
 to him. 
 
 In giving an account of the Gipsies who frequented 
 Tweed-dale, and the country adjacent, I have thought it pro¬ 
 per to mention particularly the family of Baillie ; for this 
 family produced kings and queens, or, in their language, 
 
188 
 
 A BISTORT OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 baurie rajahs and baurie raunies , to the Scottish Gipsies. At 
 one period they seem to have exercised a sort of sovereign 
 authority in the tribe, over almost the whole of Scotland; 
 and, according to the ordinary practice of writing history of 
 a great deal more importance, they should, as the chief fa¬ 
 mily of a tribe, be particularly noticed. 
 
 The quarrels of the Gipsies frequently broke out in an 
 instant, and almost without a visible cause. A farmer’s 
 wife, with whom I was acquainted, was one day sitting in 
 the midst of a band of them, at work in an old out-house, en¬ 
 quiring the news of the country of them, when, in an in¬ 
 stant, a shower of horns and hammers, open knives, files, 
 and fiery peats, were flying through the house, at one an¬ 
 other’s heads. The good-wife took to her heels immediately, 
 to get out of the fray. Some of their conflicts were terrible 
 in the extreme. Dr. Pennecuik, in his history of Peebles¬ 
 shire, already referred to, gives an account of a sanguinary 
 struggle that took place on his estate of Romanno, in Tweed- 
 dale. The following are the particulars in his own words: 
 
 “ Upon the 1st of October, 1677, there happened at Ro¬ 
 manno, on the very spot where now the dove-cot is built, a 
 remarkable polymachy betwixt two clans of Gipsies, the 
 Fawes and the Shawes, who had come from Haddington fair, 
 and were going to Harestanes, to meet two other clans of 
 these rogues, the Baillies and Browns, with a resolution to 
 fight them. They fell out, at Romanno, among themselves, 
 about dividing the spoil they had got at Haddington, and 
 fought it manfully. Of the Fawes, there were four brethren 
 and a brother’s son; of the Shawes, the father with three 
 sons ; and several women on both sides. Old Sandie Fawe, 
 a bold and proper fellow* with his wife, then with child, 
 were both killed dead upon the place ; and his brother 
 George very dangerously wounded. In February, 1678, old 
 Robin Shawe, the Gipsy, and his three sons, were hanged 
 at the Grass-market, for the above-mentioned murder, com¬ 
 mitted at Romanno ; and John Fawe was hanged, the Wed¬ 
 nesday following, for another murder. Sir Archibald Prim¬ 
 rose was justice general at the time, and Sir George 
 McKenzie king’s advocate.” Contrasting the obstinate 
 
 * It is interesting to notice that the Doctor calls this Gipsy a “ bold and 
 proper fellow.” He was, in all probability, a fine specimen of physical 
 manhood.—E d. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLTDESDALE GIPSIES. 189 
 
 ferocity of the Gipsy with the harmless and innocent nature 
 of the dove, Dr. Pennecuik erected on the spot a dove-cot; 
 and, to commemorate the battle, placed upon the lintel of 
 the door the following inscription : 
 
 “A. D. 1G83. 
 
 The field of Gipsie blood, which here you see, 
 
 A shelter for the harmless dove shall be.” 
 
 This Gipsy battle is also noticed by Lord Fountainhall, in 
 the following extract from his MS., now in the Advocate’s 
 Library :—“Sixth February, 1G78.—Four Egyptians, of the 
 name of Shaw, were this day hanged—the father and three 
 sons—for the slaughter committed by them on the Faws, 
 (another tribe of these vagabonds, worse than the mendi¬ 
 cants validi, mentioned in the code,) in a drunken squabble, 
 made by them in a rendezvous they had at Romanno, with a 
 design to unite their forces against the clans of Browns and 
 Bailezies (Baillies), that were come over from Ireland* to 
 chase them back again, that they might not share in their 
 labours ; but, in their ramble, they discovered and committed 
 the foresaid murder; and sundry of them, of both sides, 
 were apprehended.”—“ Tne four being thrown into a hole 
 dug for them in the Greyfriars churchyard, with their 
 clothes on, the next morning the body of the youngest of 
 the three sons, (who was scarce sixteen,) was missed. Some 
 thought that, being last thrown over the ladder, and first 
 cut down, and in full vigour, and not much earth placed upon 
 him, and lying uppermost, and so not so ready to smother, 
 the fermentation of the blood, and heat of the bodies under 
 him, might cause him to rebound, and throw off the earth, 
 and recover ere the morning, and steal away. Which, if 
 true, he deserved his life, though the magistrates deserved a 
 reprimand. But others, more probably, thought his body 
 was stolen away by some chirurgeon, or his servant, to make 
 an anatomical dissection on.” 
 
 About a century after this conflict, we find the nature of 
 the Gipsies still unchanged. The following details of one 
 
 * The Scottish Gipsies, as I have already said, have a tradition that their 
 ancestors came into Scotland by way of Ireland. 
 
 [The allusion to that circumstance by the Gipsies, on this occasion, was 
 evidently to throw dust into the eyes of the Scottish authorities, by whom 
 the whole tribe in "cotland were proscribed. — Ed.] 
 
190 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of their general engagements will serve as a specimen of 
 the obstinate and desperate manner in which, to a late 
 period, they fought among themselves. The battle took 
 place at the bridge of Hawick, in the spring of the year 
 1772, or 1773.- The particulars are derived from the late 
 Mr. Robert Laidlaw, Tenant of Fanash, a gentleman of 
 respectability, who was an eye-witness to the scene of action. 
 It was understood that this battle originated in some en¬ 
 croachments of the one tribe upon the district assigned to 
 the other ; a principal source of quarrels among these wan¬ 
 derers. And it was agreed to, by the contending parties, 
 that they were to fight out their dispute the first time they 
 should meet, which, as just said, happened at Hawick. 
 
 On the one side, in this battle, was the celebrated Alex¬ 
 ander Kennedy, a handsome and athletic man, and head of 
 his tribe.. Next to him, in consideration, was little Wull 
 Ruthven, Kennedy’s father-in-law. This man was known, all 
 over the country, by the extraordinary title of the Earl of 
 Hell ;* and, although he was above five feet ten inches in 
 height, he got the appellation of Little Wull, to distinguish 
 him from Muckle William Ruthven, who was a man of un¬ 
 common stature and personal strength.! The earl’s son was 
 also in the fray. These were the chief men in Kennedy’s 
 band. Jean Ruthven, Kennedy’s wife, was also present; 
 with a great number of inferior members of the clan, males 
 as well as females, of all ages, down to mere children. The 
 opposite band consisted of old Rob Tait, the chieftain of his 
 horde, Jacob Tait, young Rob Tait, and three of old Rob 
 Tait’s sons-in-law. These individuals, with Jean Gordon, 
 old Tait’s wife, and a numerous train of youths of both 
 sexes and various ages, composed the adherents of old Rob¬ 
 ert Tait. These adverse tribes were all closely connected 
 with one another by the ties of blood. The Kennedys and 
 Ruthvens were from the ancient burgh of Lochmaben. 
 
 * This seems a favourite title among the Tinklers. One, of the name of 
 Young, bears it at the present time. But the Gipsies are not singular in 
 these terrible titles. In the late Burmese war, we find his Burmese majesty- 
 creating one of his generals “ King of Hell, Prince of Harkness.”—See 
 Countable's Miscellany. 
 
 f A friend, in writing me, says: “ I still think I see him, (Muckle Wull,) 
 bruising the charred peat over the flame of his furnace, with hands equal 
 to two pair of hands of the modern day ; while his withered and hairy 
 shackle-bones were more like the postern joints of a sorrel cart-horse than 
 anything else.” 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 191 
 
 The whole of the Gipses in the field, females as well as 
 males, were armed with bludgeons, excepting some of the 
 Taits, who carried cutlasses, and pieces of iron hoops, 
 notched and serrated on either side, like a saw, and fixed to 
 the end of sticks. The boldest of the tribe were in front 
 of their respective bands, with their children and the other 
 members of their clan in the rear, forming a long train be¬ 
 hind them. In this order both parties boldly advanced, with 
 their weapons uplifted above their heads. Both sides fought 
 with extraordinary fury and obstinacy. Sometimes the one 
 band gave way, and sometimes the other; but both, again 
 and again, returned to the combat with fresh ardour. Not 
 a word was spoken during the struggle ; nothing was heard 
 but the rattling of the cudgels and the strokes of the cut¬ 
 lasses. After a long and doubtful contest, Jean Ruthven, 
 big with child at the time, at last received, among many 
 other blows, a dreadful wound with a cutlass. She was cut 
 to the bone, above and below the breast, particularly on one 
 side. It was said the slashes were so large and deep that 
 one of her breasts was nearly severed from her body, and 
 that the motions of her lungs, while she breathed, were ob¬ 
 served through the aperture between her ribs. But, notwith¬ 
 standing her dreadful condition, she would neither quit the 
 field nor yield, but continued to assist her husband as long 
 as she was able. Her father, the Earl of Hell, was also 
 shockingly wounded ; the flesh being literally cut from the 
 bone of one of his legs, and, in the words of my informant, 
 “hanging down over his ankles, like beef steaks.” The earl 
 left the field to get his wounds dressed ; but observing his 
 daughter, Kennedy’s wife, so dangerously wounded, he lost 
 heart, and, with others of his party, fled, leaving Kennedy 
 alone, to defend himself against the whole of the clan of 
 Tait. 
 
 Having now all the Taits, young and old, male and fe¬ 
 male, to contend with, Kennedy, like an experienced warri¬ 
 or, took advantage of the local situation of the place. Post¬ 
 ing himself on the narrow bridge of Hawick, he defended 
 himself in the defile, with his bludgeon, against the whole 
 of his infuriated enemies. His handsome person, his un¬ 
 daunted bravery, his extraordinary dexterity in handling 
 his weapon, and his desperate situation, (for it was evident 
 to all that the Taits thirsted for his blood, and were deter- 
 
192 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 mined to despatch him on the spot,) excited a general and 
 lively interest in his favour, among the inhabitants of the 
 town, who were present, and had witnessed the conflict with 
 amazement and horror. In one dash to the front, and with 
 one powerful sweep of his cudgel, he disarmed two of the 
 Taits, and cutting a third to the skull, felled him to the 
 ground. He sometimes daringly advanced upon his assail¬ 
 ants, and drove the whole band before him, pell-mell. When 
 he broke one cudgel on his enemies, by his powerful arm, 
 the town’s people were ready to hand him another. Still, 
 the vindictive Taits rallied, and renewed the charge with 
 unabated vigour ; and every one present expected that Ken¬ 
 nedy would fall a sacrifice to their desperate fury. A party 
 of messengers aud constables at last arrived to his relief, 
 when the Taits were all apprehended, and imprisoned ; but, 
 as none of the Gipsies were actually slain in the fray, they 
 were soon set at liberty* 
 
 In this battle, it was said that every Gipsy, except Alex¬ 
 ander Kennedy, the brave chief, was severely wounded ; 
 and that the ground on which they fought was wet with 
 blood. Jean Gordon, however, stole, unobserved, from her 
 band, and, taking a circuitous road, came behind Kennedy, 
 and struck him on the head with her cudgel. What aston¬ 
 ished the inhabitants of Hawick the most of all, was the 
 fierce and stubborn disposition of the Gipsy females. It 
 was remarked that, when they were knocked down senseless 
 to the ground, they rose again, with redoubled vigour and 
 energy, to the combat. This unconquerable obstinacy and 
 courage of their females is held in high estimation by the 
 
 * This Gipsy battle is alluded to by Sir Walter Scott, in a postcript to a 
 letter to Captain Adam Ferguson, 16th April, 1819. 
 
 “ By the by, old Kennedy the tinker swam for his life at Jedburgh, 
 and was only, by the sophisticated and timed evidence of a seceding doctor, 
 who differed from all his brethren, saved from a well-deserved gibbet. He 
 goes to botanize for fourteen years. Pray tell this to the Duke (of Buccleuch,) 
 for he was an old soldier of the Duke, and the Duke’s old soldier. Six of 
 his brethren were, I am told, in the court, and kith and kin without end. 
 I am sorry so many of the clan are left. The cause of the quarrel with 
 the murdered man, was an old feud between two Gipsy clans, the Kennedys 
 and Irvings, which, about forty years since, gave rise to a desperate quar¬ 
 rel and battle at Hawick-green, in which the grandfather of both Kennedy and 
 the man whom he murdered were engaged.”— Lockhart's Life of Sir Waller 
 Scott. Alexander Kennedy was tried for murdering Irving, at Yarrowford. 
 
 [This Gipsy fray at Hawick is known among the English Gipsies as 
 “ the Battle of the Bridge.”— Ed.] 
 
TWEED DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSLES. 193 
 
 tribe. I once heard a Gipsy sing a song, which celebrated 
 one of their battles ; and, in it, the brave and determined 
 manner in which the girls bore the blows of the cudgel over 
 their heads was particularly applauded. 
 
 The battle at Hawick was not decisive to either party. 
 The hostile bands, a short time afterwards, came in contact, 
 in Ettrick Forest, at a place, on the water of Teema, called 
 Heephope. They did not, however, engage here ; but the 
 females on both sides, at some distance from one another, 
 with a stream between them, scolded and cursed, and, clap¬ 
 ping their hands, urged the males again to fight. The men, 
 however, more cautious, only observed a sullen and gloomy 
 silence at this meeting. Probably both parties, from expe¬ 
 rience, were unwilling to renew the fight, being aware of 
 the consequences which would follow, should they again 
 close in battle. The two clans then separated, each taking 
 different roads, but both keeping possession of the disputed 
 district. In the course of a few days, they again met in 
 Eskdale moor, when a second desperate conflict ensued. 
 The Taits were here completely routed, and driven from 
 the district, in which they had attempted to travel by force. 
 
 The country-people were horrified at the sight of the 
 wounded Tinklers, after these sanguinary engagements. 
 Several of them, lame and exhausted, in consequence of the 
 severity of their numerous wounds, were, by the assistance 
 of their tribe, carried through the country on the backs of 
 asses ; so much were they cut up in their persons. Some of 
 them, it was said, were slain outright, and never more heard 
 of. Jean Ruthven, however, who was so dreadfully slashed, 
 recovered from her wounds, to the surprise of all who had 
 seen her mangled body, which was sewed in different parts 
 by her clan. These battles were talked of for thirty miles 
 around the country. I have heard old people speak of them, 
 with fear and wonder at the fierce, unyielding disposition 
 of the willful and vindictive Tinklers.* 
 
 * Grellmann, on the Hungarian Gipsies, says: “'They are loquacious 
 and quarrelsome in the highest degree. In the public markets, and before 
 ale-houses, where they are surrounded by spectators, they bawl, spit at 
 each other, catch up sticks and cudgels, vapour and brandish them over 
 their heads, throw dust and dirt; now run from each other, then back 
 again, with furious gestures and threats. The women scream, drag their 
 husbands by force from the scene of action : these break from them again, 
 and return to it. 1 lie children, too, howl piteously." But I am at a loss 
 
 9 
 
194 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 "We have already seen that the female Gipsies are nearly 
 as expert at handling the cudgel, and fully as fierce and un¬ 
 yielding in their quarrels and conflicts, as the males of their 
 race. The following particulars relative to a Gipsy scuffle, 
 derived from an eye-witness, will illustrate how a Gipsy wo¬ 
 man, of the name of Rebecca Keith, displayed no little dex¬ 
 terity in the effective use which she made of her bludgeon. 
 
 Two gangs of Gipsies, of different tribes, had taken up 
 their quarters, on a Saturday, the one at the town of Dum- 
 blane, the other at a farm-steading on the estate of Cromlix, 
 in the neighbourhood. On the Sunday following, the Dum- 
 blane horde paid a visit to the others, at their country 
 quarters. The place set apart for their accommodation was 
 an old kiln, of which they had possession, where they were 
 feasted with abundance of savoury viands, and regaled with 
 mountain dew, in copious libations, of quality fit for a prince. 
 The country squad were of the Keith fraternity, and their 
 queen, or head personage, at the time, was Rebecca Keith, 
 past the middle age, but of gigantic stature, and great mus¬ 
 cular power. In the course of their carousal, a quarrel 
 ensued between the two gangs, and a fierce battle followed. 
 The Keiths were the weaker party, but Becca, as she was 
 called by the country-people, performed prodigies of valour, 
 against fearful odds, with only the aid of her strong, hard- 
 worn shoe, which she wielded with the dexterity and effect 
 of an experienced cudgelist. She appeared, however, unable 
 much longer to contend against her too numerous opponents. 
 Being a great favourite with all, especially with the inmates 
 of the farm which was the scene of encounter, two young 
 boys—the informant and the herd-callant—who witnessed 
 the engagement, and whose sympathy was altogether on the 
 side of the valourous Becca, exchanged a hurried and whis¬ 
 pering remark to each other that, “ if she had the soople of 
 a flail, they thought she would do gude wark.” No sooner 
 said than done. The herd-boy went off at once to the barn, 
 cut the thongs asunder, and returned, in a twinkling, with 
 
 to understand the object of such an affray, as given by this author, on 
 any other theory than that of collecting crowds, in the places mentioned, 
 to enable them the more easily to pick pockets. For Grellmann adds: 
 “ After a short time, without any persons interfering, when they have cried 
 and make a noise till they are tired, and without either party having re¬ 
 ceived any personal injury, the affair terminates, and they separate with 
 as much ostentation as if they had performed the most heroic feat.”— Ed. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 195 
 
 the soople below his jacket, concealing it from view, with the 
 cunning of a thief. Edging up to Becca, and uncovering the 
 end of the weapon, it was seized upon by her with avidity. 
 She flourished it in the air, and plied it with such effect, 
 about the cars of her adversaries, that they were speedily 
 driven off the field, with “sarks full of sore bones.” In this 
 furious manner would the friendly meetings of the Gipsies 
 frequently terminate.* 
 
 So formidable were the numbers of the nomadic Gipsies, 
 at one time, and so alarming their desperate and sanguinary 
 battles, in the upper parts of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale, 
 that the fencible men in their neighbourhood, (the country¬ 
 side was the expression,) had sometimes to turn out to quell 
 and disperse them. A clergyman was, on one occasion, un¬ 
 der the necessity of dismissing his congregation, in the 
 middle of divine service, that they might quell one of these 
 furious Gipsy tumults, in the immediate vicinity of the 
 church.f 
 
 * It is astonishing how trifling a circumstance will sometimes set such 
 Gipsies by the ears. In England, they will frequently “ cast up” the history 
 of their respective families on such occasions. “ What, was your father. I 
 would like to know ? He hadn’t even an ass to carry his traps, and was a 
 
 rogue at that, you-Gipsy. My father was an honest man.’ ’“ Honest 
 
 man ?”—“ Yes, honest man, and that’s more than you can say of your kin.” 
 The other, having more of “ the blood,” will taunt his acquaintance with 
 some such expression as “ Gorgio like,” (like the white.)—“ And what are 
 you, you black trash? Will blood put money in your pocket? Klood, 
 indeed ! I’m a better Gipsy than you are, in spite of the black devil that 
 every one sees in your face !” Then the fray commences. 
 
 When Gipsies take up their quarters on the premises of country people, 
 a very effectual way of sometimes getting rid of them is to stir up discord 
 among them. For when it comes to “ hammers and tongs,” “ tongs and 
 hammers,” they will scatter, uttering howls of vengeance, on some more 
 appropriate occasion, against their most intimate friends, who have just 
 incurred their wrath, yet who will be seen “ cheek by jowl” with them, per¬ 
 haps, the next day, or even before the sun has gone down upon them ; so 
 easily are they sometimes irritated, and so easily reconciled.— Ed. 
 
 t A writer in Blackwood’s Magazine mentions that the Gipsies, late in 
 the seventeenth century, broke into the house of Pennicuik, when the greater 
 part of the family were at church. Sir John Clerk, the proprietor, barri¬ 
 caded himself in his own apartment, where he sustained a sort of siege—■ 
 firing from the windows upon the robbers, who fired upon him in return. 
 One of them, while straying through the house in quest of booty, happened 
 to ascend the stairs of a very narrow turret, but, slipping his foot, caught 
 hold of the rope of the alarm bell, the ringing of which startled the congre¬ 
 gation assembled in the parish church. They instantly came to the rescue 
 of the Laii d, and succeeded, it is said, in apprehending some of the Gipsies, 
 
196 
 
 A BISTORT OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 About the year 1770, the mother of the Baillies received 
 some personal injury, or rather insult, at a fair at Biggar, 
 from a gardener of the name of John Cree. The insult was 
 instantly resented by the Gipsies ; but Cree was luckily 
 protected by his friends. In contempt and defiance of the 
 whole multitude in the market, four of the Baillies—Mat¬ 
 thew, James, William, and John—all brothers, appeared on 
 liorsc-baek, dressed in scarlet, and armed with broad-swords, 
 and, parading through the crowd, threatened to be 
 avenged of the gardener, and those who had assisted him. 
 Burning with revenge, they threw off their coats, rolled up 
 the sleeves of their shirts to the shoulder, like butchers when 
 at work, and, with their naked and brawny arms, and glitter¬ 
 ing swords in their clenched hands, furiously rode up and 
 down the fair, threatening death to all who should oppose 
 them. Their bare arms, naked weapons, and resolute looks, 
 showed that they were prepared to slaughter their enemies 
 without mercy. No one dared to interfere with them, till 
 the minister of the parish appeased their rage, and persuaded 
 them to deliver up their swords. It was found absolutely 
 necessary, however, to keep a watch upon the gardener’s 
 house, for six months after the occurrence, to protect him 
 and his family from the vengeance of the vindictive Gipsies. 
 
 To bring into view and illustrate the character and practices 
 of our Scottish Gipsies, I will transcribe the following de¬ 
 tails, in the original words, from a MS. which I received 
 from the late Mr. Blackwood, as a contribution towards a 
 history of the Gipsies. Mr. Blackwood did not say who the 
 writer of the paper was, but some one mentioned to me that 
 he was a clergyman. I am satisfied that the statements it 
 contains are true, and that the William Baillie therein men¬ 
 tioned was, in his day and generation, well known, over the 
 greater part of Scotland, as chief of his tribe within the 
 kingdom. He was the grandfather of the four Gipsies who, 
 as just mentioned, set at defiance the whole multitude at 
 Biggar fair. It will be seen, by this MS., that while the 
 principal Gipsies, with their subordinates, were plundering 
 the public, in all directions, they sometimes performed acts 
 of gratitude and great kindness to their favourites of the 
 community among whom they travelled. In it will also be 
 
 who were executed. There is a written account of this daring assault kept 
 in the records of the family.—E d. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GLPSIES. 197 
 
 exhibited the cool and business-like manner in which they 
 delivered back stolen purses, when circumstances rendered 
 such restoration necessary. 
 
 “ There was formerly a gang of Gipsies, or pick-pockets, 
 who used to frequent the fairs in Dumfries-shire, headed by 
 a William Baillie, or Will Baillie, as the country-people 
 were accustomed to call him, of whom the old men used to 
 tell many stories. 
 
 “ Before any considerable fair, if the gang were at a dis¬ 
 tance from the place where it was to be held, whoever of 
 them were appointed to go, went singly, or, at most, never 
 above two travelled together. A day or so after, Mr. Baillie 
 himself followed, mounted like a nobleman ; and, as journeys, 
 in those days, were almost all performed on horseback, he 
 sometimes rode, for many miles, with gentlemen of the first 
 respectability in the country. And, as he could discourse 
 readily and fluently on almost any topic, he was often taken 
 to be some country gentleman of property, as his dress and 
 manners seemed to indicate. 
 
 “ Once, in a very crowded fair at Dumfries, an honest far¬ 
 mer, from the parish of Hatton, in Annandale, had his pocket 
 picked of a considerable sum, in gold, with which he was 
 going to buy cattle. On discovering his loss, he immediately 
 went and got a purse like the one he had lost, into which he 
 put a good numbor of small stones, and, going into a crowded 
 part of the fair, he kept a watchful eye on his pocket, and, in 
 a little 'while, he caught a fellow in the very act of picking 
 it. The farmer, who was a stout, athletic man, did not wish 
 to make any noise, as he knew a more ready way of recover¬ 
 ing his money ; but whispered to the fellow, while he still 
 kept fast hold of him, to come out of the throng a little, as 
 he wanted to speak to him. There he told him that he had 
 lost his money, and that, if lie would get it to him again, he 
 would let him go ; if not, he would have him put in jail im¬ 
 mediately. The pick-pocket desired him to come along with 
 him, and he ■would see what could be done, the farmer still 
 keeping close to him, lest he should escape. They entered 
 an obscure house, in an unfrequented close, where they found 
 Mr. Baillie sitting. The farmer told his tale, concluding 
 with a promise that, as the loss of the money would hurt 
 him very much, he would, if he could get it back again, 
 make no more ado about it. On which, Mr. Baillie went to 
 
198 
 
 A ms TORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 a concealment in the wall, and brought out the very purse 
 the farmer had lost, with the contents untouched, which he 
 returned to the farmer, who received it with much gratitude. 
 
 “ The farmer, after doing his business in the fair, got a 
 little intoxicated in the evening ; on which he thought he 
 would call ou Mr Baillie, and give him a treat, for his kind¬ 
 ness in restoring his purse ; but on entering the house, the 
 woman who kept it, a poor widow, fell on him and abused 
 him sadly, asking him what he had done to cause Mr. 
 Stewart, by which name she knew Mr. Baillie, to leave her 
 house ; and saying she had lost the best friend that ever she 
 had, for always when he stayed a day or two in her house, 
 (which he used to do twice a year,) he gave her as much as 
 paid her half-year’s rent; but after he, (the farmer,) called 
 that day, Mr. Stewart, she said, left her house, telling her he 
 could not stay with her any longer ; but before he went, she 
 said, he had given her what was to pay her half-year’s rent, 
 a resource, she lamented, she would lose in future. About 
 two years afterwards, the farmer again had the curiosity to 
 call on her, and ask her if her lodger had ever returned. 
 She said he never had, but that, ever since, a stranger had 
 called regularly, and given her money to pay her rent. 
 
 “ In the parish of Kirkmichael, about eight miles from 
 Dumfries, lived a widow who occupied a small farm. As 
 she had a number of young children, and no man to assist 
 her, she fell behind in paying her rent, and at last got a 
 summons of removal. She had a kiln that stood at a con¬ 
 siderable distance from the other houses, which was much 
 frequented by Baillie’s people, when they came that way ; 
 and she gave them, at all times, peaceable possession, as she 
 had no person to contend with them, or put them away, and 
 she herself did not wish to differ with them. They, on the 
 other hand, never molested anything she had. One even¬ 
 ing, a number of them arrived rather late, and went into the 
 kiln, as usual; after which, one came into the house, to ask 
 a few peats, to make a fire. She gave the peats, saying she 
 believed they would soon have to shift their quarters, as she 
 herself was warned to flit, and she did not know if the next 
 tenant would allow them such quiet possession, and she did 
 not know what would become of herself and her helpless 
 family. Nothing more was said, but, after having put her 
 children to bed, as she was sitting by the fire, in a disconso- 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 199 
 
 late manner, she heard a gentle tap at the door. On open¬ 
 ing it, a genteel, well-dressed man entered, who told her he 
 just wished to speak with her for a few minutes, and, sitting 
 down, said he had heard she was warned to remove, and 
 asked how much she was behind. She told him exactly. 
 On which, rising hastily, he slipt a purse into her hand, and 
 went out before she could say a single word. 
 
 “ The widow, however, kept the farm, paid off all old 
 debts, and brought up her family decently ; but still, it 
 grieved her that she did not know who was her benefactor. 
 She never told any person till about ten years afterwards, 
 when she told a friend who came to see her, when she 
 was rather poorly in health. After hearing the story, he 
 asked her what sort of a man he was who gave her the 
 money. She said their interview was so short, and it was 
 so long past, that she could recollect little of him, but only 
 remembered well that he had the scar of a cut across his 
 nose. On which, her friend immediately exclaimed, ‘ Then 
 Will Baillie was the man.’ 
 
 “ Before the year 1740, the roads were bad through all 
 the country. Carts were not then in use, and all the mer¬ 
 chants’ goods were conveyed in packs, on horseback. 
 Among others, the farmers on the water of Ae, in Dum- 
 fries-shire, were almost all pack-carriers. As there was lit¬ 
 tle improvement of land then, they had little to do at home, 
 and so they made their rents mostly by carrying. Among 
 others, there was an uncle of my father, whose name was 
 Robert McYitie, who used to be a great carrier. This man, 
 once, in returning from Edinburgh, stopt at Broughton, and 
 in coming out of the stable, he met a man, who asked him 
 if he knew him. Robert, after looking at him for a little, 
 said: ‘ I think you are Mr. Baillie.’ He said, I am, and 
 asked if Robert could lend him two guineas, and it should 
 be faithfully repaid. As there were few people who wished 
 to differ with Baillie, Robert told him he was welcome to 
 two guineas, or more if he wanted it. He said that would 
 just do ; on which Robert gave them to him, and he put them 
 into his pocket. Baillie then asked, if ever lie was molested 
 by any person, when he was travelling late with his packs. 
 He said he never was, although he was sometimes a little 
 afraid. Baillie then gave him a kind of brass token, about 
 the size of a half-crown, with some marks upon it, which he 
 
200 
 
 A BISTORT OF TBE GIPSIES. 
 
 desired him to carry in his parse, and it might be of use 
 to him some time, as he was to show it, if any person offered 
 to rob him. Baillie then mounted his horse and rode off. 
 
 “ Some considerable time after this, as Robert was one 
 evening travelling with his packs, between Elvanfoot and 
 Moffat, two men came up to him, whom he thought very 
 suspicious-looking fellows. As he was a stout man himself, 
 and carried a good cudgel, he kept on the alert for a con¬ 
 siderable way, lest they should take him by surprise. At 
 last, one of them asked him if he was not afraid to travel 
 alone, so late at night. He said he was under a necessity 
 to be out late, sometimes, on his lawful business. But recol¬ 
 lecting- his token, he said a gentleman had once given him 
 a piece of brass, to show, if ever any person troubled him. 
 They desired him to show it, as it was moonlight. He gave 
 it to them. Oh seeing it, they looked at one another, and 
 then, whispering a few words, told him it was well for him 
 he had the token, which they returned ; and they left him 
 directly. 
 
 “ After a lapse of nearly two years, when he had almost 
 forgotten his two guineas, as he was one morning loading 
 his packs, at the door of a public-house, near Gretna-green, 
 he felt some person touch him behind, and, on looking 
 round, saw it was Mr. Baillie, who slipped something into 
 his hand, wrapped in paper, and left him, without speaking 
 a single word. On opening the paper, he found three 
 guineas, which was his own money, and a guinea for in¬ 
 terest. 
 
 “ There was another gang of Gipsies that stayed mostly 
 in Annandale, headed by a Jock Johnstone, as he was called 
 in the country. These were counted a kind of lower caste 
 than Baillie’s people, who would have thought themselves 
 degraded if they had associated with any of the Johnstone 
 gang. Johnstone confined his travels mostly to Dumfries¬ 
 shire ; while Baillie went over all Scotland, and even made 
 long excursions into England. Johnstone kept a great 
 many women about him,* several of whom had children to 
 him ; and, in kilns and in barns, Johnstone always slept in 
 the middle of the whole gang. Baillie sometimes told his 
 
 * A great many of the inferior Gipsy chiefs travelled with a number of 
 women in their company ; such as George Drummond, Doctor Duds, John 
 Lundie, and others. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 201 
 
 select friends that he had a wife, but never any of them 
 could find out where she stayed ; and as he used to disap¬ 
 pear now and then, for a considerable time together, it was 
 supposed he was with her. He never slept, in barn or kiln, 
 with any of his people. Johnstone travelled all day in the 
 midst of a crowd of women and children, mounted on asses. 
 Daillie travelled always by himself, mounted on the best 
 horse he could get for money. 
 
 “ Some time in the year 1739, Johnstone, with a number of 
 his women, came/ to the house of one Margaret Farish, an 
 old woman who sold ale at Lonegate, six miles from Dum¬ 
 fries, on the Edinburgh road. After drinking for a long 
 time, some of Jock’s wives and the old woman quarrelled. 
 On which he took up the pewter pint-stoup, with which she 
 measured her ale, and, giving her two or three severe blows 
 on the head, killed her on the spot. Next day he was ap¬ 
 prehended near Lockerby, and brought into Dumfries’jail. 
 He had a favourite tame jack-daw that he took with him in 
 all his travels, and he desired it might be brought to stay 
 with him in the jail, which was done. When the lords were 
 coming into the circuit, as they passed the jail, the trumpet¬ 
 ers gave a blast, on which the jack-daw gave a flutter 
 against the iron bars of the window, and dropped down dead. 
 When Jock saw that, he immediately exclaimed: ‘Lord 
 have mercy on me, for I am gone.’ He was accordingly 
 tried and condemned. When the day of execution came, he 
 would not walk to the scaffold, and so they were forced to 
 carry him. The executioner, being an old man, could not 
 turn him over. Several of the constables refused to touch 
 him. At last, one of the burgh officers turned him off; but 
 the old people about Dumfries used to say that the officer 
 never prospered any more after that day.”* 
 
 * Dr. Alexander Carlyle, in a note to his autobiography, mentions hav¬ 
 ing seen this Jock Johnstone hanged. The date given by him (1783), dif¬ 
 fers, however, from that mentioned above. According to him, Johnstone 
 was but twenty years of age, but bold, and a great ringleader, and was con¬ 
 demned for robbery, and being accessory to a murder. The usual place of 
 execution was a moor, adjoining the town ; but, as it was strongly reported 
 that the “ thieves” were collecting from all quarters, to rescue the criminal 
 from the gallows, the magistrates erecled the scaffold in front of the prison, 
 with a platform connecting, and surrounded it with about a hundred of the 
 stoutest burgesses, armed with Lochaber axes. Jock made h : s appearance, 
 surrounded by six officers. lie was curly-haired, and fierce-looking, about 
 five feet eight inches in height, and very strong of his size. At first he ap- 
 
 9 * 
 
202 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The extraordinary man Baillie, who is here so often men¬ 
 tioned, was well known in Tweed-dale and Clydesdale ; and 
 my great-grandfather, who knew him well, used to say that 
 he was the handsomest, the best dressed, the best looking, 
 and the best bred man he ever saw. As I have already 
 mentioned, he generally rode one of the best horses the 
 kingdom could produce; himself attired in the finest scar¬ 
 let, with his greyhounds following him, as if he had been a 
 man of the first rank. With the usual Gipsy policy, he re¬ 
 presented himself as a bastard son of one of the Baillies of 
 Lamington, his mother being a Gipsy. On this account, con¬ 
 siderable attention was paid to him by the country-people ; 
 indeed, he was taken notice of by the first in the land. But, 
 from his singular habits, his real character at last became 
 well known. He acted the character of the gentleman, the 
 robber, the sorner, and the tinker, whenever it answered 
 his purpose. He was considered, in his time, the best 
 swordsman in all Scotland. With this weapon in his hand, 
 and his back at a wall, he set almost everything, saving fire¬ 
 arms, at defiance. His sword is still preserved by his 
 descendants, as a relic of their powerful ancestor. The 
 stories that are told of this splendid Gipsy are numerous and 
 interesting. I will relate only two well-authenticated anec¬ 
 dotes of this baurie rajah, this king of the Scottish Gipsies ; 
 who was, in all probability, a descendant of Towla Bailyow, 
 who, with other Gipsies, rebelled against, and plundered, 
 John Faw, “ Lord and Earl of Little Egypt,” in the reign of 
 James V. The following transaction of his has some re¬ 
 semblance to a custom among the Arabians. 
 
 peared astonished, but, looking around awhile, proceeded with a bold step. 
 Psalms and prayers being over, and the rope fastened about his neck, he 
 was ordered to mount a short ladder, attached to the gallows, in order to 
 be thrown off; when he immediately seized the rope, and pulled so vio¬ 
 lently at it as to be in danger of bringing down the gallows—causing much 
 emotion among the crowd, and fear among the magistrates. Jock, becom¬ 
 ing furious, like a wild beast, struggled and roared, and defied the six offi¬ 
 cers to bind him ; and, recovering the use of his arms, became more formid¬ 
 able. The magistrates then with difficulty prevailed on by far the strongest 
 man in Dumfries, for the honour of the town, to come on the scaffold. 
 Putting aside the six officers, this man seized the criminal, with as little 
 difficulty as a nurse handles her child, and in a few minutes bound him 
 hand and foot; and quietly laying him down on his face, near the edge 
 of the scaffold, retired. Jock, the moment he felt his grasp, found himself 
 subdued, and, becoming calm, resigned himself to his fate.— Carlyle's Au- 
 tubiograpli y. — Ed. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSLES. 203 
 
 William, with his numerous horde, happened to fall in 
 with a travelling packman, on a wild spot between Hawk- 
 sliaw and Menzion, near the source of the Tweed. The pack¬ 
 man was immediately commanded to halt, and lay his packs 
 upon the ground. Baillie then unsheathed his broadsword, 
 with which he was always armed, and, with the point of the 
 weapon, drew, on the ground, a circle around the trembling 
 packman and his wares. Within this circle no one of the 
 tribe was allowed by him to enter but himself.* The poor 
 man was now ordered to unbuckle his packs, and exhibit his 
 merchandise to the Gipsies. Baillie, without the least cere¬ 
 mony, .helped himself to some of the most valuable things in 
 the pack, and gave a great many to the members of his band. 
 The unfortunate merchant, well aware of the character of 
 his customers, concluded himself a ruined man ; and, in place 
 of making any resistance, handed away his property to the 
 Gipsies. But when they were satisfied, he was most agree¬ 
 ably surprised by Baillie taking out his purse, and paying 
 him, on the spot, a great deal more than the value of every 
 article he had taken for himself and given to his band. The 
 delighted packman failed not to extol, wherever he went, 
 the gentlemanly conduct and extraordinary liberality of 
 “ Captain Baillie”—a title by which he was known all over 
 the country. 
 
 The perilous situations in which Baillie was often placed 
 did not repress the merry jocularity and sarcastic wit which 
 he, in common with many of his tribe, possessed. He sometimes 
 almost bearded and insulted the judge while sitting on the 
 bench. On one of these occasions, when he was in court, 
 the judge, provoked at seeing him so often at the bar, ob¬ 
 served to him that he would assuredly get his ears cut out 
 of his head, if he did not mend his manners, and abandon 
 his way of life. “ That I defy you to do, my lord,” replied 
 the Tinkler. The judge, perceiving that his ears had al¬ 
 ready been “nailed to the tron, and cut off,” and being dis¬ 
 pleased at the effrontery and levity of his conduct, told him 
 
 * Bruce, in his travels, when speaking of the protection afforded by the 
 Arabs to shipwrecked Christians, on the coasts of the lied Sea, says:— 
 “ the Arabian, with his lance, draws a circle large enough to hold you and 
 yours. lie then slrikes his lance in the sand, and bids you abide within the 
 circle. You are thus as safe, on the desert coast of Arabia, as in a citadel; 
 there is no example or exception to the contrary that has ever been known.” 
 — Bruce’s 7'ravels in Abyssinia. 
 
204 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 that lie -was certainly a great villain. “ I am not such a 
 villain as your lordship,” retorted Baillie. “ What do you 
 say ?” rejoined the judge, in great surprise at the bold man¬ 
 ner of the criminal. “ I say,” continued the Gipsy, “ that I 
 
 am not such a villain as your lordship-takes me to be.” 
 
 “William,” quoth the judge, “put your words closer to¬ 
 gether, otherwise you shall have cause to repent of your in¬ 
 solence and audacity.”* 
 
 Tradition states that William Baillie’s conduct involved 
 him in numerous scrapes. He was brought before the Jus¬ 
 ticiary Court, and had “his ears nailed to the tron, or other 
 tree, and cut off, and banished the country,” for his many 
 crimes of “ sorning, pickery, and little thieving.” It also 
 appears, from popular tradition, that he is the same William 
 Baillie who is repeatedly noticed by Hume and McLaurin, 
 in their remarks on the criminal law of Scotland. 
 
 In June, 1699, William Baillie, for being an Egyptian, and 
 for forging and using a forged pass, was sentenced to be 
 “ hanged • but the privy council commuted his sentence to 
 banishment, but under the express condition that, if ever he 
 returned to this country, the former sentence should be exe¬ 
 cuted against him.” William entered into a bond with the 
 privy council, under the penalty of 500 merks, to leave the 
 kingdom, and to “ suffer the pains of death, in case of con¬ 
 travention thereof.” 
 
 This Gipsy chief paid little regard to the terrible conditions 
 of his bond, in case of failure ; for, on the 10th and 11th Au¬ 
 gust, 1714, “ Baillie,” says Hume, “ and two of his associates, 
 were convicted and condemned to die ; but as far as con¬ 
 cerned Baillie, (for the others were executed,) his doom was 
 afterwards mitigated into transportation, under pain of death 
 in case of return.” “The jury,” says McLaurin, “brought 
 in a special verdict as to the sorning,f but said nothing at 
 
 * It might be supposed that the pride of a Gipsy would have the good 
 effect of rendering him cautious not to be guilty of such crimes as subject 
 him to public shame. But here his levity of character is rendered conspic¬ 
 uous ; for he never looks to the right or to the left in his transactions; 
 and though his conceit and pride are somewhat humbled, during the time 
 of punishment, and while the consequent pain lasts ; these being over, he 
 no longer remembers his disgrace, but entertains quite as good an opinion 
 of himself as before.— Grellmami on the Hungarian Gipsies. — Ed. 
 
 f Sorti, (Scottish and Irish :) an arbitrary exaction, by which a chieftain 
 lived at pleasure, in free quarters, among his tenants: also one who obtrudes 
 himself upon another, for bed and board, is said to sorn.— Bailey. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 
 
 205 
 
 nil as to any other points ; all they found proved was, that 
 William, in March, 1713, had taken possession of a barn, 
 without consent of the owner, and that, during his abode in 
 it, there was corn taken out of the barn, and he went away 
 without paying anything for his quarters, or for any corn 
 during his abode, which was for several days ; and that he 
 was habit and repute an Egyptian, and did wear a pistol* 
 and shable,” (a kind of sabre.) 
 
 “As early as the month of August, 1715, the same man, 
 as I understand it,” says Baron Hume, “ was again indicted, 
 not only for being found in Britain, but for continuing his 
 former practices and course of life. Notwithstanding this 
 aggravation, the interlocutor is again framed on the indul¬ 
 gent plan ; and only infers the pain of death from the fame 
 and character of being an Egyptian, joined with various acts 
 of violence and sorning, to the number of three that are 
 stated in the libel. Though convicted nearly to the extent 
 of the interlocutor, he again escaped with transportation.” 
 
 Baillie’s policy in representing himself as a bastard son of 
 an ancient and honourable family had, as I have already ob¬ 
 served, been of great service to him ; and in no way would 
 it be more so than in his various trials. It is almost certain, 
 as in cases of more recent times, that great interest would 
 be used to save a bastard branch of an honourable house 
 from an ignominious death upon the scaffold, when his crimes 
 amounted only to “ sorning, pickery, and little thieving, and 
 habit and repute an Egyptian.”t 
 
 * A great many of the Scottish Gipsies, in former times, carried arms. 
 One of the Baillies once left his budget in a house, by mistake. A person, 
 whom I knew, had the curiosity to examine it; and he found it to contain a 
 pair of excellent pistols, loaded and ready for action. 
 
 f What our author says of “ the usual Gipsy policy of making the people 
 believe that they are descended from families of rank and influence in the 
 country,” (page 154,) and that “the greater part of them will tell you that 
 they are sprung from a bastard son of this or that noble famdy, or other 
 person of rank and influence, of their own surname,” (117.) is doubtless 
 true as a rule; but there were as likely cases of what the Gipsies assert, 
 aud that Gipsy women, “ in some instances, bore children to some of the 
 ‘ unspotted gentlemen’ mentioned by act of parliament as having so greatly 
 protected and entertained the tribe,” (114,) and that Baillie was one of 
 them, (121 and 183.) If Baillie had been following the occupation, and 
 bearing the reputation, of an ordinary native of Scotland, there would have 
 been some chance “ that great interest would be used to save a bastard 
 branch of an honourable house from an ignominious death upon the scaf¬ 
 fold,” for almost any offence he had committed, but not for one who was 
 guilty of “ sorning, pickery, and little thieving, and habit and repute an 
 
206 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 The descendants of William Baillie state that he was 
 married to a woman of the name of Rachel Johnstone ; and 
 that he was killed, in a scuffle, by a Gipsy of the name of 
 Pinkerton, in a quarrel among themselves. Baillie being 
 quite superior in personal strength to Pinkerton, his wife 
 took hold of him, for fear of his destroying his opponent, 
 and, while he was in her arms, Pinkerton ran him through 
 with his sword. Upon his death, his son, then a youth of 
 thirteen years of age, took a solemn oath, on the spot, that 
 he would never rest until the blood of his father should be 
 avenged. And, true to his oath, his mother and himself fol¬ 
 lowed the track of the murderer over Scotland, England, 
 and Ireland, like staunch bloodhounds, and rested not, till 
 Pinkerton was apprehended, tried, and executed. 
 
 The following particulars, relative to the slaughter of Wil¬ 
 liam Baillie, were published in Blackwood’s Magazine, but 
 apparently without any knowledge, on the part of the writer, 
 of that individual’s history, further than that he was a 
 Gipsy. 
 
 “In a precognition, taken in March, 1725, by Sir James 
 Stewart, of Coltness, and Captain Lockhart, of Kirkton, two 
 of his majesty’s justices of the peace for Lanarkshire, anent 
 the murder of William Baillie, brazier* commonly called 
 Gipsy, the following evidence is adduced:—John Meikle, 
 wright, declares, that, upon the twelfth of November last, he, 
 being in the house of Thomas Riddle, in Newarthill, with 
 some others, the deceased, William Baillie, James Kairns, 
 and David Pinkerton, were in another room, drinking, where, 
 after some high words, and a confused noise and squabble, 
 the said three persons, above-named, went all out; and the 
 declarant, knowing them to be three of those idle sorners 
 that pass in the country under the name of Gipsies, in hopes 
 they were gone off, rose, and went to the door, to take the 
 air ; where, to his surprise, he saw William Baillie standing, 
 
 Egyptian.” There was doubtless a connexion, in Gipsy blood, between Baillie 
 and his influential friends who saved him and his relatives so often from 
 the gallows.— See Baillies of Lartiinglon and McLaurin's Criminal Trials, 
 in the Index. — Ed. 
 
 * On some of the tombstones of the Gipsies, the word “ brazier ’ is 
 added to their names. [Brazier is a favourite name with the Gipsies, and 
 sounds better than tinker. Southey, in his Life of Bunyan, says: “ It is 
 stated, in a history of Bedfordshire, that he was bred to the business of a 
 brazier, and worked, as a journeyman, at Bedford.”—Er>.] 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 207 
 
 and Kairns and Pinkerton on horseback, with drawn swordis 
 in their hands, who both rushed upon the said William Bail- 
 lie, and struck him with their swords ; whereupon, the said 
 William Baillie fell down, crying out he was gone ; upon 
 which, Kairns and Pinkerton rode off: That the declarant 
 helped to carry the said William Baillie into the house, 
 where, upon search, he was found to have a great cut or 
 wound on his head, and a wound in his body, just below the 
 slot of his breast: And declares, he, the said William Bail- 
 lie, died some time after. 
 
 “ Thomas Riddle, tenant and change-keeper in Newart- 
 hill, &c., declares, that the deceased, William Baillie, James 
 Kairns, and David Pinkerton, all idle sorners, that are 
 known in the country by the name of Gipsies, came to the 
 declarant’s, about sun-setting, where, after some stay, and 
 talking a jargon the declarant did not well understand , they 
 fell a squabbling, when the declarant was in another room, 
 with some other company ; upon the noise of which, the de¬ 
 clarant ran in to them, where lie found the said James Kairns 
 lying above the said William Baillie, whose nose the said 
 James Kairns had bitten with his teeth till it bled ; upon 
 which, the declarant and his wife threatened to raise the 
 town upon them, and get a constable to carry them to 
 prison ; but Kairns and Pinkerton called for their horses, 
 William Baillie saying he would not go with them : Declares 
 that, after the said Kairns and Pinkerton had got their 
 horses, and mounted, they ordered the declarant to bring a 
 chopin of ale to the door to them, where William Baillie was 
 standing, talking to them: That, when the declarant had filled 
 about the ale, and left them, thinking they were going oft’, 
 the declarant’s wife went to the door, where Kairns struck 
 at her with a drawn sword, to fright her in ; upon which 
 she ran in ; and thereupon the declarant went to the door, 
 where he found the said William Baillie, lying with the 
 wounds upon him, mentioned in John Meikle’s declaration.” 
 
 By Hume’s work on the criminal law, it appears that the 
 trial of David Pinkerton, with others of his tribe, took place 
 on the 22nd August, 1726, for “ sorning and robbery but 
 no mention is made of the murder of Baillie; yet it was 
 Baillic’s relatives that pursued Pinkerton to the gallows. 
 Probably sufficient evidence could not then be adduced to 
 substantiate the fact, being about twenty-one months after 
 
208 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the murder was committed ; and, besides, Bailiic was himself 
 dead in law, having either returned from banishment, or 
 remained at large in the country, and so forfeited his life, 
 when he was killed by Pinkerton, in 1724. The following 
 is part of the interlocutor pronounced upon the indictment 
 of the prisoners : “ Find the said David Pinkerton, alias Max¬ 
 well, John Marshal], and Helen Baillie, alias Douglass, or 
 any of them, their being habit and repute Egyptians, sorners 
 or masterful beggars, in conjunction with said pannels, or 
 any of them, their being, at the times and places libelled, 
 guilty, art and part, of the fact of violence, theft, robbery, or 
 attempts of robbery libelled, or any of the said facts relevant 
 to infer the pain of death and confiscation of moveables.” 
 
 William Baillie was succeeded, in the chieftainship, by 
 his son Matthew, who married the celebrated Mary Yowston 
 or Yorkston, and became the leader of a powerful horde of 
 Gipsies in the south of Scotland. He frequently visited the 
 farms of my grandfather, about the year 1770. It appears 
 that his courtship had been after the Tartar manner ; for he 
 used to say that the toughest battle he ever fought was 
 that of taking, by force, his bride, then a very young girl, 
 from her mother, at the hamlet of Drummelzier.* This 
 Matthew Baillie had, by Mary Yorkston, a son, who was 
 also named Matthew, and who married Margaret Campbell, 
 and had by her a family of remarkably handsome and pretty 
 daughters. Of this principal Gipsy family, I can trace, 
 distinctly, six generations in descent, and have myself seen 
 the great-great-great-grand-children of the celebrated Wil¬ 
 liam Baillie. Some of his descendants still travel the coun¬ 
 try, in the manner of their ancestors, and at this moment 
 speak the Gipsy language with fluency. Some of them, 
 however, are little better than common beggars. There 
 were, at one period, a captain and a quarter-master in the 
 army, belonging to the Baillie clan ; and another was a 
 country surgeon. 
 
 Mary Yorkston, above mentioned, went under the appella¬ 
 tions of “ my lady,” and “ the duchess,” and bore the title of 
 queen, among her tribe. She presided at the celebration of 
 
 * The English Gipsies say that the old mode of getting a wife among the 
 tribo was to steal her. The intended bride was nothing loth, still it was 
 necessary to steal her, while the tribe were on the watch to detect and 
 prevent it.—E d. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GLPSLES. 209 
 
 their barbarous marriages, and assisted at their equally 
 singular ceremonies of divorce. What the custom of this 
 queen of the Gipsies was, when in full dress, in her youth, 
 on gala days, cannot now be easily known ; but the following 
 is a description of her masculine figure, and public travelling 
 apparel, when advanced in years. It was taken from the 
 mouth of an aged and very respectable gentleman, the late 
 Mr. David Stoddart, at Bankhead, near Queensferry, who 
 had often seen her in his youth : She was fully six feet in 
 stature, stout made in her person, with very strongly-marked 
 and harsh features; and had, altogether, a very imposing 
 aspect and manner. She wore a large black beaver-hat, 
 tied down over her ears with a handkerchief, knotted below 
 her chin, in the Gipsy fashion. Her upper garment was a 
 dark-blue short cloak, somewhat after the Spanish fashion, 
 made of substantial woollen cloth, approaching to superfine 
 in quality. The greater part of her other apparel was made 
 of dark-blue camlet cloth, with petticoats so short that they 
 scarcely reached to the calves of her well-set legs. [Indeed, 
 all the females among the Baillies wore petticoats of the 
 same length.] Her stockings were of dark-blue worsted, 
 flowered and ornamented at the ankles with scarlet thread ; 
 and in her shoes she displayed large, massy, silver buckles. 
 The whole of her habiliments were very substantial, with 
 not a rag or rent to be seen about her person. [She was 
 sometimes dressed in a green gown, trimmed with red 
 ribbons.] Her outer petticoat was folded up round her 
 haunches, for a lap, with a large pocket dangling at each 
 side ; and below her cloak she carried, between her shoul¬ 
 ders, a small flat pack, or pad, which contained her most 
 Valuable articles. About her person she generally kept a 
 large clasp-knife, with a long, broad blade, resembling a dag¬ 
 ger or carving-knife; and carried in her hand a long pole 
 or pike-staff, that reached about a foot above her head. 
 
 It was a common practice, about the middle of last cen¬ 
 tury, for old female Gipsies of authority to strip, without 
 hesitation, defenceless individuals of their wearing-apparel 
 when they met them in sequestered places. Mary York- 
 ston chanced, on one occasion, to meet a shepherd’s wife, 
 among the wild hills in the parish of Stobo, and stripped her 
 of the whole of her clothes. The shepherd was horrified at 
 beholding his wife approaching his house in a state of perfect 
 
210 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 nakedness. A Jean Gordon was once detected, by a shep¬ 
 herd, stripping a female of her wearing-apparel. He at once 
 assisted the helpless woman ; but Jean drew from below her 
 garments a dagger, and threw it at him. Evading the blow, 
 the shepherd closed in upon her, and struck her over the 
 head with his staff, knocking her to the ground. Another 
 Gipsy of the old fashion, of the name of Esther Grant, was 
 also celebrated for the practice of stripping people of their 
 clothing. The Arabian principle, expressed in these words, 
 on meeting a stranger in the desert, “ Undress thyself—my 
 wife, (thy aunt,) is in want of a garment,” is truly applica¬ 
 ble to the disposition of the old female Gipsies. 
 
 Nothing was more common, in the counties of Peebles 
 and Lanark, when the country-people lost their purses at 
 fairs, than to have recourse to the chief Gipsy females, to 
 get their property returned to them. Mary Yorkston, hav¬ 
 ing a sovereign influence and power among her tribe, was 
 often applied to, in such cases of distress, of which the fol¬ 
 lowing is a good specimen :—On one of these occasions, in a 
 market in the South of Scotland, a farmer lost his purse, 
 containing a considerable sura of money, which greatly per¬ 
 plexed and distressed him. He immediately went to Mary 
 Yorkston, to try if she would exert her wonderful influence 
 to recover his property. Being a favourite of Mary’s, she, 
 without the least hesitation, took him along with her to the 
 place in the fair where her husband kept his temporary 
 depot, or rather his office, in which he exercised his extra¬ 
 ordinary calling during the continuance of the market. The 
 presence of Mary was a sufficient assurance that all was 
 right ; and, upon the matter being explained, Matthew 
 Baillie instantly produced, and spread out before the aston¬ 
 ished farmer, from twenty to thirty purses, and desired 
 him to pick out his own from amongst them. The country¬ 
 man soon recognized his own, and grasped at it without 
 ceremony. “ Hold on,” said Baillie, “ let us count its con¬ 
 tents first.” The Gipsy chief, with the greatest coolness 
 and deliberation, as if he had been an honest banker or 
 money-changer, counted over the money in the purse, when 
 not a farthing was found wanting. “ There is your purse, 
 sir,” continued Baillie ; “ you see what it is, when honest 
 people meet!” 
 
 The following incident, that occurred one night after a 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 211 
 
 fair, in a barn belonging; to one of my relatives, will strik¬ 
 ingly illustrate the character of the Gipsies in the matter of 
 stealing purses :—A band of superior Gipsies were quar¬ 
 tered in the barn, after several of them had attended the 
 fair, in their usual manner. The principal female, whom I 
 shall not name, had also been at the market; but the old 
 chief had thought proper to remain at home, in the barn. 
 My relative, as was sometimes his custom, chanced to take 
 a turn about his premises that night, when it was pretty 
 late. He heard the voice of a female weeping in the barn, 
 and, being curious to know the cause of the disturbance 
 among the Tinklers, stepped softly up, close to the back of 
 the door, to listen to what they were doing, as the woman 
 was crying bitterly. He was greatly astonished at hearing, 
 and never could forget, the following expressions : “ Oh, 
 cruel man, to beat me in this way. I have had my hands in 
 as good as twenty pockets, but the honest people had it not 
 to themselves.” The chieftain was, in fact, chastising his 
 wife, in the presence of his family, for her want of diligence 
 or success, in not obtaining enough of booty at the fair. 
 And yet this individual bore, among the country-people, the 
 character of an honest man. 
 
 Another story is told of Mary Yorkston and the Good¬ 
 man of Coulter-park. It differs in its nature from the 
 above anecdote, yet is very characteristic of the Gipsies. 
 Mary and her band were lurking one night at a place in 
 Clydesdale, called Raggingill. As a man on horseback ap¬ 
 proached the spot where they were concealed, some of the 
 tribe immediately laid hold of the horse, and, without cere¬ 
 mony, commenced to plunder the rider. But Mary, step¬ 
 ping forth to superintend the operation, was astonished to 
 hnd that the horseman was her particular friend, the Good¬ 
 man of Coulter-park. She instantly exclaimed, with all her 
 might: “ It’s Mr. Lindsay, the Gudeman o’ Couter-park—- 
 let him gang—let him gang— God bless him, honest man !” 
 It is needless to add that Mr. Lindsay had always given 
 Mary and her horde the use of an out-house when they re¬ 
 quired it. 
 
 Mary Yorkston despised to ask what is properly under- 
 derstood to be alms. She sold horn spoons and other 
 articles ; and, when she made a bargain, she would take, 
 almost by force, what she called her “ boontith,” which is 
 
212 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 a present of victuals, exclusive of the cash paid ; a prac¬ 
 tice which I will explain further on in the chapter. 
 
 Matthew Baillie had, by Mary Yorkston, among other 
 children, a son, named James Baillie, who, along with his 
 brothers, as we have seen, threatened with destruction the 
 people assembled in Biggar fair, in consequence of an affront 
 offered to his mother by a gardener of that town. He was 
 condemned, in 1771, to be hung, for the murder of his wife, 
 by beating her with a horse-whip, and tumbling her over a 
 steep ; but he “ obtained a pardon from the king, on condi¬ 
 tion that he transported himself beyond seas within a limited 
 time, otherwise the pardon was to have no effect.” Baillie, 
 paying little regard to the serious conditions of this pardon, 
 did not “ transport himself beyond seas,” but continued 
 his former practices, as appears by the following extract 
 from the Weekly Magazine of the 8th October, 1772 :— 
 “ James Baillie, who was last summer condemned for the 
 murder of a woman, and afterwards obtained his majesty’s 
 pardon, on condition of transporting himself to America, for 
 life, was lately apprehended at Falkirk, on suspicion of rob¬ 
 bery. On the 1st October he was brought to town, and 
 committed to the Tolbooth, by a warrant of Lord Auchin- 
 leck. This warrant was granted upon the petition of the 
 procurator fiscal of Stirling, in which he set forth that, as 
 Baillie was a very daring fellow, and suspected of being 
 concerned with a gang equally so with himself, there was 
 great reason to apprehend a rescue might be attempted, by 
 breaking the prison ; and therefore praying that he might 
 be removed to Edinburgh, where a scheme of that nature 
 could not so easily be effected.” On the 18th December, 
 1773, and 27th February, 1774, the “ Lords, in terms of the 
 said former sentence, decree and adjudge the said James 
 Baillie to be hanged on the 30th March then next.” He 
 thus appears to have remained in prison from October, 1772, 
 till March, 1774. “ Soon after this sentence, he got another 
 pardon,” and was again discharged from prison, in order to 
 his transporting himself; but he remained at home, and again 
 relapsed into his former way of life. He was, some time 
 afterwards, committed to Newcastle gaol, but made his 
 escape. A short time after that, he was committed to 
 Carlisle gaol, on suspicion of having stolen some plate. On 
 the 4th December, 1776, three sheriff-officers set out from 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GLPSLES. 213 
 
 Edinburgh, to bring him hither ; but before they reached 
 Carlisle, he had again broken prison and escaped.* 
 
 During one of the periods of Baillie’s imprisonment, he 
 escaped from jail, attired as a female ; having been assisted 
 by some of his tribe, residing in the Grass-market of Edin¬ 
 burgh. Tradition states that the then Mistress Baillie, of 
 Lamington, and her family, used all their interest in obtain¬ 
 ing these pardons for James Baillie ; who, like his fathers 
 before him, pretended to be a bastard relative of the family 
 of Lamington, and thereby escaped the punishment of death. 
 McLaurin justly remarks that “ few cases have occurred in 
 which there has been such an expenditure of mercy.”t 
 
 I have already mentioned how handsomely the superior 
 order of Gipsies dressed at the period of which we are 
 speaking. The male head of the Ruthvens—a man six feet 
 some inches in height—who, according to the newspapers 
 of the day, lived to the advanced age of 115 years, when in 
 full dress, in his youth, wore a white wig, a ruffled shirt, a 
 blue Scottish bonnet, scarlet breeches and waistcoat, a long 
 blue superfine coat, white stockings, with silver buckles in 
 his shoes. Others wore silver brooches in their breasts, 
 and gold rings on their fingers. The male Gipsies in Scot¬ 
 land were often dressed in green coats, black breeches, and 
 leathern aprons. The females were very partial to green 
 clothes. At the same time, the following anecdote will 
 show how artful they were at all times, by means of dress 
 and other equipments, to transform themselves, like actors 
 on the stage, into various characters, whenever it suited 
 their purposes.^ 
 
 My father, when a young lad, noticed a large band of 
 
 * Scot’s Magazine, vol. xxxviii., page 675. 
 
 f McLaurin’s Trials, page 555. [See note at page 205.—E».] 
 
 j It appears, from Vidocq’s memoirs, that the Gipsies on the continent 
 changed their apparel, so as they could not again be recognized: “ At break 
 of day everybody was on foot, and the general toilet was made. But for 
 their (the Gipsies’) prominent features, their raven-black tresses, and oily 
 and tanned skins, I should scarcely have recognized my companions of the 
 preceding evening. The men, clad in rich jockey Holland vests, with 
 leathern sashes like those worn by the men of Poirsy, and the women, 
 covered with ornaments of gold and silver, assumed the costume of Zealand 
 peasants; eveu the children, whom I had seen covered with rags, were 
 neatly clothed, and had an entirely different appearance. All soon left the 
 house, and took different directions, that they might not reach the market 
 place together, where the country-people were assembled in crowds.”— 
 Yidocq had lodged all night in a ruinous house, with a band of Gipsies. 
 
214 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Gipsies taking up their quarters one night in an old out* 
 house on a farm occupied by his father. The band had 
 never been observed on the farm before, and seemed all to 
 be strangers, with, altogether, a very ragged and miserable 
 appearance. Next morning, a little after breakfast, as the 
 band began to pack up their baggage, and load their asses, 
 preparatory to proceeding on their journey, the youth, out 
 of curiosity, went forward to see the horde decamp. Among 
 other articles of luggage, he observed a large and heavy 
 sack put upon one of the asses ; and, as the Gipsies were 
 fastening it upon the back of the animal, the mouth of it 
 burst open, and the greater part of its contents fell upon 
 the ground. He was not a little surprised when he beheld 
 a great many excellent cocked hats, suits of fine green 
 clothes, great-coats, <£c., with several handsome saddles and 
 bridles, tumble out of the bag. At this unexpected accident, 
 the Gipsies were much disconcerted. By some strange ex¬ 
 pressions and odd manoeuvres, they endeavoured to drive 
 the boy from their presence, and otherwise engage his at¬ 
 tention, to prevent him observing the singular furniture 
 contained in the unlucky sack. By thus carrying along 
 with them these superior articles, so unlike their ordinary 
 wretched habiliments, the ingenious Gipsies had it always 
 in their power to disguise themselves, Avhenever circum¬ 
 stances called for it. The following anecdote will, in some 
 measure, illustrate the “ gallant guise” in which these wan¬ 
 derers, at one time, rode through Scotland : 
 
 About the year 1768, early in the morning of the day of 
 a fair, held annually at Peebles, in the month of May, two 
 gentlemen were observed riding along the only road that 
 led to my grandfather’s farm. One of the servant girls was 
 immediately told to put the parlour in order, to receive the 
 strangers, as, from their respectable appearance, at a dis¬ 
 tance, it was supposed they were friends, coming to break¬ 
 fast, before going to the market; a custom common enough 
 in the country. This preparation, however, proved unneces¬ 
 sary, as the strangers rode rapidly past the dwelling-house, 
 and alighted at the door of an old smearing-house, nearly 
 roofless, situated near some alder trees, about three hundred 
 yards further up a small mountain stream. In passing, they 
 were observed to be neatly dressed in long green coats, 
 cocked hats, riding-boots and spurs, armed with broad- 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 215 
 
 sword?, and mounted on handsome grey ponies, saddled and 
 bridled; everthing, in short, in style, and of the best 
 quality. The people about the farm were extremely curious 
 to know who these handsomely-attired gentlemen could be, 
 who, without taking the least notice of any one, dismounted 
 at the wretched hovel of a sheep-smearing house, where 
 nothing but a band of Tinklers were quartered. Their 
 curiosity, however, was soon satisfied, and not a little mirth 
 was excited, on it being ascertained that the gallant horse¬ 
 men were none other than James and William Baillie, sons 
 of old Matthew Baillie, who, with part of his tribe, were, at 
 the moment, in the old house, making horn spoons. But 
 greater was their surprise, when several of the female 
 Gipsies set out, immediately afterwards, for the fair, attired 
 in very superior dresses, with the air of ladies in the middle 
 ranks of society* 
 
 Besides the large hordes that traversed the south of Scot¬ 
 land, parties of twos and threes also passed through the 
 country, apparently not at all connected, nor in communica¬ 
 tion, at the time, with the large bands. When a single 
 Gipsy and his wife, or other female, were observed to take 
 up their quarters by themselves, it was supposed they had 
 either fallen out with their clan, or had the officers of the 
 law in pursuit of them. Sometimes the chiefswould enquire 
 of the country people, if such and such a one of their tribe 
 had passed by, this or that day, lately. Under any circum¬ 
 stances, the presence of a female does not excite so much 
 suspicion as a single male. In following their profession, as 
 tinkers, the Gipsies seldom, or never, travel without a female 
 in their company, and, I believe, they sometimes hire them 
 to accompany them, to hawk their wares through the coun¬ 
 try. The tinker keeps himself snug in an out-house, at his 
 work, while the female vends his articles of sale, and forages 
 for him, in the adjoining country. 
 
 One of these straggling Gipsies, of the name of William 
 Keith, was apprehended in an old smearing-house, on a farm 
 occupied by my grandfather, in Tweed-dale. William had 
 been concerned, with his brother Robert, in the murder of 
 
 * The females of this tribe also rode to the fairs at Moffat and Biggar, on 
 horses, with side-saddles and bridles, the ladies themselves being very 
 gaily dressed. The males wore scarlet cloaks, reaching to their knees, and 
 resembling exactly the Spanish fashion of the present day. 
 
216 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 one of their clan, of the name of Charles Anderson, at a small 
 public-house among the Lammermoor hills, called Lourie’s 
 Den. Robert Keith and Anderson had fallen out, and had 
 followed each other for some time, for the purpose of fighting 
 out their quarrel. They at last met at Lourie’s Den, when 
 a terrible combat ensued. The two antagonists were bro¬ 
 thers-in-law ; Anderson being married to Keith’s sister. 
 Anderson proved an over-match for Keith ; and William 
 Keith, to save his brother, laid hold of Anderson ; but Mage 
 Greig, Robert’s wife, handed her husband a knife, and called 
 on him to despatch him, while unable to defend himself. 
 Robert repeatedly struck with the knife, but it rebounded 
 from the ribs of the unhappy man, without much effect. Im¬ 
 patient at the delay, Mage called out to him, “ strike laigh, 
 strike laigh inand, following her directions, he stabbed 
 Anderson to the heart. The only remark made by any of 
 the gang was this exclamation from one of them : “ Gude 
 faith, Rob, ye have done for him noo !” But William Keith 
 was astonished when he found that Anderson was stabbed 
 in his arms, as his interference was only to save the life of 
 his brother from the overwhelming strength of Anderson. 
 Robert Keith instantly fled, but was immediately pursued by 
 people armed with pitchforks and muskets. He was appre¬ 
 hended in a braken-bush, in which he had concealed himself, 
 and was executed at Jedburgh, on the 24th November, 
 1.772. 
 
 Sir Walter Scott, and the Ettrick Shepherd, slightly notice 
 this murder at Lourie’s Den, in their communications to 
 Blackwood’s Magazine. One of the individuals who assisted 
 at the apprehension of Keith was the father of Sir Walter 
 Scott. The following notice of this bloody scene appeared 
 in one of the periodical publications at the time it occurred : 
 “ By a letter from Lauder, we are informed of the following 
 murder : On Wednesday se’night, three men, with a boy, 
 supposed to be tinkers, put up at a little public-house near 
 Soutra. From the after conduct of two of the men, it would 
 appear that a difference had subsisted between them, before 
 they came into the house, for they had drunk but very little 
 when the quarrel was renewed with great vehemence, and, in 
 the dispute, one of the fellows drew a knife, and stabbed the 
 other in the body no less than seven different times, of which 
 wounds he soon after expired. The gang then immediately 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 217 
 
 made off; but upon the country-people being alarmed, the 
 murderer himself and one of the women were apprehended.”'* 
 Long after this battle took place, James Bartram and 
 Robert Brydon, messengers-at-arms in Peebles, were dis¬ 
 patched to apprehend William Keith, in the ruinous house 
 already mentioned. As they entered the building, early in 
 the morning, with cocked pistols in their hands, Keith, a 
 powerful man, rose up, half naked, from his shake-doim , and, 
 holding out a pistol, dared them to advance. Bartram, the 
 chief officer, with the utmost coolness and bravery, advanced 
 close up to the muzzle of the Gipsy’s pistol, and, clapping his 
 own to the head of the desperate Tinkler, threatened him 
 with instant death if he did not surrender. A Gipsy, who 
 had informed against Keith, was with the officers, as their 
 guide ; but the moment he saw Keith’s pistol, he artfully 
 threw himself, upon his back, to the ground. He imme¬ 
 diately rose to his feet, but, in great terror, sprang, like a 
 greyhound, over a fauld dylce , to escape the shot which 
 Keith threatened. The intrepid conduct of the officers com¬ 
 pletely daunted the Gipsy. He yielded, and allowed him¬ 
 self to be hand-cuffed, thinking that the messengers were 
 strongly supported by the servants on the farm ; for, on per¬ 
 ceiving only the two officers, lie became desperate, but he 
 was now fast in irons. In great bitterness he exclaimed, 
 “ Had I not, on Saturday night, observed five stout men on 
 Mr. Simson’s turf-hill, ye wadna a’ hae ta’en me.” The five 
 individuals were all remarkably strong men. It was on 
 Monday morning the Gipsy was apprehended, and it would 
 appear he had been reconnoitering on Saturday, before risk¬ 
 ing to take up his quarters, which he did without asking 
 permission from any one. He imagined that the five turf- 
 casters were ready to assist the officers in the execution of 
 their duty, and that it would have been in vain for him to 
 make any resistance. The frantic Gipsy now leaped and 
 tossed about in the most violent manner imaginable. He 
 struck with so much vigour, with his hands bound in irons, 
 and kicked so powerfully with his feet, that it was with the 
 greatest difficulty the officers could get him carried to the 
 jail at Peebles. Ilis wife came into the kitchen of the farm¬ 
 house, weeping and wailing excessively ; and on some of the 
 servant-girls endeavouring to calm her grief, she, among 
 * Weekly Magazine, 10th September, 1772, page 354. 
 
 10 
 
218 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 other bitter expressions, exclaimed, “ Had a decent, honest 
 man, like the master, informed, I would not have cared ; but 
 for a blackguard like ourselves to inform, is unsufferable.” 
 Keith w r as tried, condemned, and banished to the planta¬ 
 tions, for the part he acted at the slaughter at Lourie’s Den. 
 
 Here we have seen the melancholy fate of two, if not 
 three, of the then Gipsy constabulary force in Peebles-shire ; 
 one murdered, another hanged, and the third banished. 
 However strange it may appear at the present day, it is 
 nevertheless true, that the magistrates of this county, about 
 this period, (1772,) actually appointed and employed a num¬ 
 ber of the principal Gipsies as peace officers, constables, or 
 country-keepers, as they were called, of whom I will speak 
 again in another place. 
 
 The nomadic Gipsies in general, like the Baillies in par¬ 
 ticular, have gradually declined in appearance, till, at the 
 present day, the greater part of them have become little 
 better than beggars, when compared to what they were in 
 former times. Among those who frequented the south of 
 Scotland were to be found various grades of rank, as in all 
 other communities of men. There were then wretched and 
 ruffian-looking gangs, in whose company the superior Gipsies 
 would not have been seen. 
 
 The reader will have observed the complete protection 
 which William Baillie’s token afforded Robert McVitie, 
 when two men were about to rob him, while travelling with 
 his packs, between Elvanfoot and Moffat. This system of 
 tokens made part of the general internal polity of the Gip¬ 
 sies. These curious people stated to me that Scotland was 
 at one time divided into districts, and that each district was 
 assigned to a particular tribe. The chieftains of these tribes 
 issued tokens to the members of their respective hordes, 
 “ when they scattered themselves over the face of the coun¬ 
 try.” The token of a local chieftain protected its bearer 
 only while within his own district. If found without this 
 token, or detected travelling in a district for which the 
 token was not issued, the individual was liable to be plun¬ 
 dered, beaten, and driven back into his own proper territory, 
 by those Gipsies on whose rights and privileges he had in¬ 
 fringed. These tokens were, at certain periods, called in 
 and renewed, to prevent any one from forging them. They 
 were generally made of tin, with certain characters impres- 
 
TWEED-DAI.E AND CLYDESDALE GLPSLES. 219 
 
 sed upon them ; and the token of each tribe had its own 
 particular mark, and was well known to all the Gipsies in 
 Scotland. But -while these passes of the provincial chief¬ 
 tains -were issued only for particular districts, a token of the 
 Baillie family protected its bearer throughout the kingdom 
 of Scotland ; a fact which clearly proves the superiority of 
 that ancient clan. Several Gipsies have assured me that 
 “ a token from a Baillie was good over all Scotland, and that 
 kings and queens had come of that family.” And an old 
 Gipsy also declared to me that the tribes would get into 
 utter confusion, were the country not divided into districts, 
 under the regulations of tokens. It sometimes happened, as 
 in the case of Robert McVitie and others, that the Gipsies 
 gave passes or tokens to some of their particular favourites 
 who were not of their own race. 
 
 This system of Gipsy polity establishes a curious fact, 
 namely, the double division and occupation of the kingdom 
 of Scotland ; by ourselves as a civilized people, and by a 
 barbarous community existing in our midst, each subject to 
 its own customs, laws and government; and that, while the 
 Gipsies were preying upon the vitals of the civilized society 
 which harboured them, and were amenable to its laws, they 
 were, at the same time, governed by the customs of their 
 own fraternity. 
 
 The surnames most common among the old Tweed-dale 
 bands of Gipsies were Baillie, Ruthven, Kennedy, Wilson, 
 Keith, Anderson, Robertson, Stewart, Tait, Geddes, Grey, 
 Wilkie and Halliday. The three principal clans were the 
 Baillies, Ruthvens and Kcnncdys ; but, as I have already 
 mentioned, the tribe of Baillie were superior to all others, 
 in point of authority as well as in external appearance.* 
 
 Besides the Christian and surnames common to them in 
 Scotland, the Gipsies have names in their own language ;t 
 
 * According to Hoyland, the most common names amonp: the English 
 tented Gipsies are Smith, Cooper, Draper, Taylor, Boswell, Lee, Lovel, 
 Loversedge, Allen, Mansfield. Glover, Williams, Carew, Martin, Stanley, 
 Berkley, Plunket, and Corrie. Mr. Borrow says: “The clans Young and 
 Smith, or Curraple, still haunt two of the eastern counties. The name Cur- 
 raple is a favourite among the English Gipsies. It means a smith—a name 
 very appropriate to a Gipsy. The root is Curaw, to strike, hammer, <fec.” 
 Among the English and Scottish Gipsies in America, I have found a great 
 variety of surnames.— Ed. 
 
 f In the “Gipsies in Spain.” Mr. Borrow says: “ Every family in Eng- 
 
220 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 and. while travelling through the country, assume new names 
 every morning, before commencing the day’s journey, and 
 retain them till money is received, in one way or other, by 
 each individual of the company ; but if no money is received 
 before twelve o’clock, they all, at noon-tide, resume their 
 permanent Scottish names. They consider it unlucky to set 
 out on a journey, in the morning, under their own proper 
 names ; and if they are, by any chance, called back, by any 
 of their neighbours, they will not again stir from home for 
 that day. The Gipsies also frequently change their British 
 names when from home : in one part of the country they 
 have one name, and in another part they appear under a 
 different one, and so on. 
 
 I will now describe the appearance of the Gipsies in 
 Tweed-dale during the generation immediately following the 
 one in which we have considered them ; and would make 
 this remark, that this account applies to them of late years, 
 with this exception, that the numbers in which the nomadic 
 class are to be met with are greatly reduced, their condi¬ 
 tion greatly fallen, and the circumstances attending their 
 reception, countenance and toleration, much modified, and in 
 some instances totally changed. 
 
 Within the memories of my father and grandfather, which 
 take in about the last hundred years, none of the Gipsies 
 who traversed Tweed-dale carried tents with them for their 
 accommodation. The whole of them occupied the kilns and 
 out-houses in the country ; and so thoroughly did they know 
 the country, and where these were to be found, and the dis¬ 
 position of the owners of them, that they were never at a 
 loss for shelter in their wanderings. 
 
 Some idea may be formed of the number of Gipsies who 
 would sometimes be collected together, from the following 
 extract from the Clydesdale Magazine, for May, 1818: 
 “ Mr. Steel, of Kilbucho Mill, bore a good name among 
 ‘ tanderal gangerals.’ His kiln was commodious, and some 
 hardwood trees, which surrounded his house, bid defiance 
 to the plough, and formed a fine pasture-sward for the cud¬ 
 dies, on a green of considerable extent. On a summer Sat¬ 
 urday night, Mary came to the door, asking quarters, pretty 
 
 land has two names; one by which they are known to the Gentiles, and 
 another which they use among themselves.”—Er>. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GLPSLES. 221 
 
 late. She had only a single ass, and a little boy swung in 
 the panniers. She got possession of the kiln, as usual, and 
 the ass was sent to graze on the green ; but Mary was only 
 the avant-garde. Next morning, when the family rose, they 
 counted no less than forty cuddies on the grass, and a man 
 for each of them in the kiln, besides women and children.” 
 Considering the large families the Gipsies generally have, 
 and allowing at this meeting two asses for carrying the in¬ 
 fants and luggage of each family, there could not have been 
 less than one hundred Gipsies on the spot. 
 
 My parents recollect the Gipsies, about the year 1775, 
 traversing the county of Tweed-dale, and parts of the sur¬ 
 rounding shires, in bands varying in numbers from ten to 
 upwards of thirty in each horde. Sometimes ten or twelve 
 horses and asses were attached to one large horde, for the 
 purpose of carrying the children, baggage, &c. In the sum¬ 
 mer of 1784, forty Gipsies, in one band, requested permis¬ 
 sion of my father to occupy one of his out-houses. It was 
 good-humouredly observed to them that, when such numbers 
 of them came in one body, they should send their quarter¬ 
 master in advance, to mark out their camp. The Gipsies 
 only smiled at the remark. One half of them got the house 
 requested ; the other half occupied an old, ruinous mill, a 
 mile distant. There were above seven of these large bands 
 which frequented the farms of my relatives in Tweed-dale 
 down to about the year 1790. A few years after this period, 
 when a boy, I assisted to count from twenty-four to thirty 
 Gipsies who took up their quarters in an old smearing-house 
 on one of these farms. The children, and the young folks 
 generally, were running about the old house like bees flying 
 about a hive. Their horses, asses, dogs, cats, poultry, and 
 tamed birds were numerous. 
 
 These bands did not repeat their visits above twice a 
 year, but in many instances the principal families remained 
 for three or four weeks at a time. From their manner and 
 conduct generally, they seemed to think that they had a 
 right to receive, from the family on whose grounds they 
 halted, food gratis for twenty-four hours; for, at the end of 
 that period, they almost always provided victuals for them¬ 
 selves, however long they might remain on the farm. The 
 servants of my grandfather, when these large bands arrived, 
 frequently put on the kitchen fire the large family kail-pot, 
 
222 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of the capacity of thirty-two Scotch pints, or about sixteen 
 gallons, to cook victuals for these wanderers. 
 
 The first announcement of the approach of a Gipsy band 
 was the chief female, with, perhaps, a child on her back, and 
 another walking at her feet. The chieftain himself, with his 
 asses and baggage, which he seldom quits, is, perhaps, a mile 
 and a half in the rear, baiting his beasts of burden, near the 
 side of the road, waiting the return and report of his quar¬ 
 ter-mistress. This chief female requests permission for her 
 gude-man and iceary bairns to take up their quarters for the 
 night, in an old out-house. Knowing perfectly the disposi¬ 
 tion of the individual from whom she asks lodgings, she is 
 seldom refused. A farmer’s wife, whom I knew, on granting 
 this indulgence to a female in advance of her band, added, 
 by way of caution, “ but ye must not steal anything from 
 me, then.” “ We’ll no’ play ony tricks on you, mistress ; 
 but others will pay for that,” was the Gipsy’s reply. 
 
 Instead, however, of the chief couple and a child or two, 
 the out-house, before night-fall, or next morning, will perhaps 
 contain from twenty to thirty individuals of all ages and 
 sexes. The different members of the horde are observed to 
 arrive at head-quarters as single individuals,in twos, and in 
 threes ; some of the females with baskets on their arms, 
 some of the males with fishing-rods in their hands, trout 
 creels on their backs, and large dogs at their heels. The 
 same rule is observed when the camp breaks up. The old 
 chief and two or three of his family generally take the van. 
 The other members of the band linger about the old house 
 in which they have been quartered, for several days after 
 the chiefs are gone ; they, however, move off, in small parties 
 of twos or as single individuals, on different days, till the 
 whole horde gradually disappear. Above three grown-up 
 Gipsies are seldom seen travelling together. In this manner 
 have the Gipsies traversed the kingdom, concealing their 
 numbers from public observation, and only appearing in large 
 bands on the grounds of those individuals of the community 
 who were not disposed to molest them. On such occasions, 
 when the chief Gipsies continued encamped, they would be 
 visited by small parties of their friends, arriving and de¬ 
 parting almost daily. 
 
 Excepting that of sometimes allowing their asses to go, 
 under night, into the barn-yard, as if it were by accident, to 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 223 
 
 draw the stacks of corn, it is but fair and just to state, that 
 I am not aware of a single Gipsy ever having injured the 
 property of any of my relatives in Tweed-dale, although 
 their opportunities were many and tempting. My ancestor’s 
 extensive business required him, almost daily, to travel, on 
 horseback, over the greater part of the south of Scotland ; 
 and he was often under the necessity of exposing himself’ 
 by riding at night, yet he never received the slightest moles¬ 
 tation, to his knowledge, from the Gipsies. They were as 
 inoffensive and harmless as lambs to him, and to every one 
 connected with his family. Whenever they beheld him, 
 every head was uncovered, while they would exclaim, 
 “ There is Mr. Simson ; God bless him, honest man !” And 
 woe would have been to that man who would have dared to 
 treat him badly, had these determined wanderers been 
 present. 
 
 The Gipsies may be compared to the raven of the rock, as 
 a complete emblem of their disposition. Allow the corbie 
 shelter, and to build her nest in your cliffs and wastes, and 
 she will not touch your property ; but harass her, and destroy 
 her brood, and she will immediately avenge herself upon 
 your young lambs, with terrible fury.* Washings of clothes, 
 of great value, were often left out in the fields, under night, 
 and were as safe as if they had been within the dwelling- 
 house, under lock and key, when the Gipsies happened to be 
 quartered on the premises. If any of their children had 
 dared to lay its hands upon the most trifling article, its pa¬ 
 rents would have given it a severe beating. On one occa¬ 
 sion, when a Gipsy was beating one of his children, for 
 some trifling offence it had committed, my relative observed 
 to him that the boy had done no harm. “ If he has not 
 been in fault just now, sir, it will not be long till he be in 
 one ; so the beating he has got will not be thrown away on 
 him,” was the Tinkler’s reply. 
 
 * It is known that the rock-raven, or corbie, seldom preys upon the flocks 
 around her nest; but the moment she is deprived of her young, she will, 
 to the utmost of her power, wreak her vengeance on the young lambs in 
 her immediate neighbourhood. I have known the corbie, when bereaved of 
 her brood, tear, with her beak, the very foggage from the earth, and toss 
 it about; and before twenty-four hours elapsed, several lambs would full 
 a sacrifice to her fury. I have also observed that grouse, where the 
 ground suits their breeding, are generally very plentiful close around the 
 eyrie of the relentless falcon. 
 
224 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 When the Gipsies took up their residence on the cold 
 earthen floor of an old out-house, the males and females of 
 the different families had always beds by themselves, made 
 of straw and blankets, and called shake-downs. The younger 
 branches also slept by themselves, in separate beds, the 
 males apart from the females. When the-band consisted of 
 more families than one, each family occupied a separate part 
 of the floor of the house, distinct from their neighbours ; 
 kindled a separate fire, at which they cooked their victuals ; 
 and made horn spoons and other articles for themselves, for 
 sale in the Avay of their calling. They formed, as it were, 
 a camp on the ground-floor of the ruinous house, in which 
 would sometimes be observed five mothers of families, some 
 of whom would be such before they were seventeen years of 
 age. The principal Gipsies who, about this period, travelled 
 Tweed-dale, were never known to have had more than one 
 wife at a time, or to have put away their wives for trifling 
 causes. 
 
 On such occasions, the chief and the grown-up males of 
 the band seldom or never set foot within the door of the 
 farm-house, but generally kept themselves quite aloof and 
 retired ; exposing themselves to observation as little as pos¬ 
 sible. They employed themselves in repairing broken 
 china, utensils made of copper, brass and pewter, pots, pans 
 and kettles, and white-iron articles generally ; and in making 
 horn spoons, smoothing-irons, and sole-clouts for ploughs. 
 But working in horn is considered by them as their favourite 
 and most ancient occupation. It would certainly be one of 
 the first employments of man, at a very early stage of human 
 society—that of converting the horns of animals for the use 
 of the human race : and such has been the regard which 
 the Gipsies have had for it, that every clan knows the 
 spoons which are made by another. The females also 
 assisted in polishing, and otherwise finishing, the spoons. 
 However early the farm-servants rose to their ordinary em¬ 
 ployments, they always found the Tinklers at work. 
 
 A considerable portion of the time of the males was occu¬ 
 pied in athletic amusements. They were constantly exer¬ 
 cising themselves in leaping, cudgel-playing, throwing the 
 hammer, casting the putting-stone, playing at golf, quoits, 
 and other games ; and while they were much given, on other 
 occasions, to keep themselves from view, the extraordinary 
 
TWEED- DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 225 
 
 ambition which they all possessed, of beating every one they 
 met with, at these exercises, brought them sometimes in con¬ 
 tact with the men about the farm, master as well as servants. 
 They were fond of getting the latter to engage with them, 
 for the purpose of laughing at their inferiority in these 
 healthy and manly amusements ; but when any of the coun¬ 
 try-people chanced to beat them at these exercises, as was 
 sometimes the case, they could not conceal their indignation 
 at the affront. Their haughty scowl plainly told that they 
 were ready to wipe out the insult in a different and more 
 serious manner. Indeed, they were always much disposed 
 to treat farm-servants with contempt, as quite their inferiors 
 in the scale of society ; and always boasted of their own 
 high birth, and the antiquity of their family. They were 
 extremely fond of the athletic amusement of “ o’erending 
 the tree,” which was performed in this way : The end of a 
 spar or beam, above six feet long, and of a considerable 
 thickness and weight, is placed upon the upper part of the 
 right foot, and held about the middle, in a perpendicular 
 position, by the right hand. Standing upon the left foot, 
 and raising the right a little from the ground, and drawing 
 it as far back as possible, and then bringing the foot for¬ 
 ward quickly to the front, the spar is thrown forward into 
 the air, from off the foot, with great force. And he who 
 “ overends the tree” the greatest number of times in the 
 air, before it reaches the ground, is considered the most ex¬ 
 pert, and the strongest man. A great many of these Gip¬ 
 sies had a saucy military gesture in their walk, and gener¬ 
 ally carried in their hands short, thick cudgels, about three 
 feet in length. While they travelled, they generally unbut¬ 
 toned the knees of their breeches, and rolled down the heads 
 of their stockings, so as to leave the joints of their knees 
 bare, and unincumbered by their clothes. 
 
 During the periods they occupied the out-houses of the 
 farms, the owners of which were kind to them, the Gipsies 
 were very orderly in their deportment, and temperate in 
 the use of spirituous liquors, being seldom seen intoxicated ; 
 and were very courteous and polite fo all the members of 
 the family. Their behaviour was altogether very orderly, 
 peaceable, quiet, and inoffensive. In gratitude for their 
 free-quarters, they frequently made, from old metal, smooth¬ 
 ing-irons for the mistress, and sole-clouts for the ploughs of 
 10 * 
 
226 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the master, and spoons for the family, from the horns of 
 rams, or other horns that happened to be about the house ; 
 for all of which they would take nothing. They, however, 
 did not attend the church, while encamped on the premises ; 
 at the same time, they took especial care to give no moles¬ 
 tation, or cause of offence, to any about the farm, on Sunday ; 
 being, indeed, seldom seen on that day out-side of the door 
 of the house in which they were quartered, saving an indi¬ 
 vidual to look after their horses or asses, while grazing in 
 the neighbouring fields. Their religious sentiments were 
 confined entirely within their own breasts ; and it was im¬ 
 possible to know what were their real opinions on the score 
 of religion. However, within the last ten years, I enquired, 
 very particularly, of an intelligent Gipsy, what religion his 
 forefathers professed, and his answer was, that “ the Gipsies 
 had no religious sentiments at all ; that they worshipped no 
 sort of thing whatever.” 
 
 Many practised music; and the violin and bag-pipes 
 were the instruments they commonly used. This musical 
 talent of the Gipsies delighted the country-people ; it oper¬ 
 ated like a charm upon their feelings, and contributed much 
 to procure the wanderers a night’s quarters. Many of the 
 families of the farmers looked forward to the expected visits 
 of the merry Gipsies with pleasure, and regretted their de¬ 
 parture. Some of the old women sold salves and drugs, 
 while some of the males had pretensions to a little surgery. 
 One of them, of the name of Campbell, well known by the 
 title of Dr. Duds, traversed the south of Scotland, accom¬ 
 panied by a number of women. He prescribed, and sold me¬ 
 dicines to the inhabitants ; and several odd stories are told 
 of the very unusual, but successful, cures performed by 
 him. 
 
 As in arranging for, and taking up, their quarters, the 
 principal female Gipsy almost always negotiates the transac¬ 
 tions which the horde have with the fanner’s family, during 
 their abode on his premises. Indeed, the females are the most 
 active, if not the principal, members of the tribe, in vending 
 their articles of merchandise. The time at which, on such 
 occasions, they present these for sale, is the day after their 
 arrival on the farm, and immediately after the breakfast of 
 the farmer’s family is over. When there are more families 
 than one in the band, but all of one horde, the chief female 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSLES. 227 
 
 of the whole gets the first chance of selling her wares ; but 
 every head female of the respective families bargains for 
 her own merchandise, for the behoof of her own family. 
 When the farmer’s family is in want of any of their articles, 
 an extraordinary higgling and chaffering takes place in 
 making the bargain. Besides money, the Gipsy woman in¬ 
 sists upon having what she calls her “ boon tit h”—that is. a 
 present in victuals, as she is fond of bartering her articles 
 for provisions. If the mistress of the house agrees, and goes 
 to her larder or milk-house for the purpose of giving her 
 this boontith, the Gipsy is sure to follow close at her heels. 
 Admitted into the larder, the voracious Tinkler will have 
 part of everything she sees—flesh, meal, butter, cheese, <fcc., 
 &c. Her fiery and penetrating eye darts, with rapidity, from 
 one object to another. She makes use of every argument 
 she can think of to induce the farmer’s wife to comply 
 with her unreasonable demands. “ I’m wi’ bairn, mistress,” 
 she will say ; “ I’m greenin’ ; God bless ye, gie me a wee bit 
 flesh to taste my mouth, if it should no’ be the book o’ a 
 robin-red-breast.”* If the farmer’s wife still disregards her 
 importunities, the Gipsy will, in the end, snatch up a piece 
 of flesh, and put it into her lap. in a twinkling ; for out of 
 the larder she will not go. without something or other. The 
 farmer’s wife, ever on the alert, now takes hold of the sorner, 
 to wrest the flesh from her clutches, when a serious personal 
 struggle ensues. She will frequently be under the necessity 
 of calling for the assistance of her servants, to thrust the 
 intruder out of the apartment; but the cautious Gipsy takes 
 care not to let matters go too far : she yields the contest, 
 and, laughing heartily at the good-wife losing her temper, 
 immediately assumes her ordinary polite manner. And not¬ 
 withstanding all that has taken place, both parties generally 
 part on good terms. 
 
 On one of these bargain-making occasions, as the wife of the 
 farmer of Glencotha, in Tweed-dale, went to give a boontith 
 to Mary Yorkston, the harpy thrust, unobserved, about four 
 
 * After recovery from child-birth, the Gipsy woman recommences her 
 course of begging or stealing, with her child in her arms; and then she is 
 more rapacious than at other times, taking whatever she can lay her hands 
 upon. For she calculates upon escaping without a beating, by holding up 
 her child to receive the blows aimed at her; which she knows will have 
 the effect of making the aggrieved person desist, till she finds an opportun¬ 
 ity of getting out of the way.— Grellmann on the Hungarian Gipsies. —Ed. 
 
228 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 pounds weight of tallow* into her lap. On the return of the 
 good-wife, the tallow was missed. She charged Mary with 
 the theft, but Mary, with much gravity of countenance, ex¬ 
 claimed : “ God bless ye, mistress, I wad steal from mony a 
 one before I wad steal from you.” The good-wife, however, 
 took hold of Mary, to search her person. A struggle 
 ensued, when the tallow fell out of Mary’s lap, on the kitch¬ 
 en-floor. At this exposure, in the very act of stealing, the 
 Gipsy burst into a lit of laughter, exclaiming : “ The Lord 
 hae a care o’ me, mistress; ye hae surely little to spare, 
 whan ye winna let a body take a bit taueh for a candle, to 
 light her to bed.” At another time, this Gipsy gravely 
 told the good-wife of Rachan-mill, that she must give her a 
 pound of butter for her boontith, that time, as it would be 
 the last she would ever give her. Astonished at the extra¬ 
 ordinary saying, the good-wife demanded, with impatience, 
 what she meant. “ You will,” rejoined the Gipsy, “ be in 
 eternity (by a certain day, which she named,) and I will 
 never see you again ; and this will be the last boontith you 
 will ever give me.” The good-wife of Rachan-mill, however, 
 survived the terrible prediction for several years.* 
 
 The female Gipsies also derived considerable profits from 
 their trade of fortune-telling. The art of telling fortunes 
 was not, however, general among the Gipsies ; it was only 
 certain old females who pretended to be inspired with the 
 
 * The following facts will show what a Scottish Tinkler, at the present 
 day, will sometimes do in the way of ‘‘sorning,” or masterful begging. 
 
 One of the race paid a visit to the house of a country ale-wife, and, in a 
 crowded shop, vaulted the counter, and applied his bottle to her whiskey- 
 tap. Immediately a cry, with up-lifted hands, was raised for the police, but 
 the prudent ale-wife treated the circumstance with indifference, and ex¬ 
 claimed : “ Hout, tout, tout! let the deil tak’ a wee drappie.” 
 
 On another occasion, a Gipsy woman entered a country public-house, 
 leaving her partner at a short distance from the door. Espying a drawn 
 bottle of porter, standing on a table, in a room in which were two females 
 sitting, she, without the least ceremony, filled a glass, and drank it off; 
 but before she. could decant another, the other Gipsy, feeling sure of the 
 luck of his mate, from her being admitted into the premises, immediately 
 proceeded to share it with her. But he had hardly drank off the remainder 
 of the porter, ere a son of the mistress of the house made his appearance, 
 and demanded what was wanted. “ Want— want ?” replied the Gipsy, with 
 a leering eye towards the empty bottle; “ we want nothing—we’ve got all 
 that we want I” On being ordered to “ walk out of that,” they left, with a 
 smile of satisfaction playing on their weather-beaten countenances. 
 
 Such displays of Gipsy impudence sometimes call forth only a hearty 
 laugh from the people affected by them,—E d. 
 
TWEED BALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 229 
 
 gift of prophecy. Tiie method which they adopted to get 
 at the information which often enabled them to tell, if not 
 fortunes, at least the history, and condition of mind, of indi¬ 
 viduals, with great accuracy, was somewhat this : 
 
 The inferior Gipsies generally attended our large country 
 “ penny-weddings,” in former times, both as musicians and 
 for the purpose of receiving the fragments of the entertain¬ 
 ments. At the wedding in the parish of Corstorphine, to 
 which I have alluded, under the chapter of Fife and Stir¬ 
 lingshire Gipsies, Charles Stewart entered into familiar con¬ 
 versation with individuals present; joking with them about 
 their sweet-hearts, and love-matters generally ; telling them 
 he had noticed such a one at such a place ; and observing 
 to another that he had seen him at such a fair, and so on. 
 He always enquired about their masters, and places of abode, 
 with other particulars relative to their various connections 
 and circumstances in life. Here, the Gipsy character dis¬ 
 plays itself; here, we see Stewart, while he seems a mere 
 merry-andrew, to the heedless, merry-making people at these 
 weddings, actually reading, with deep sagacity, their char¬ 
 acters and dispositions; and ascertaining the places of 
 residence, and connexions, of many of the individuals of the 
 country through which he travelled. In this manner, by 
 continually roaming up and down the kingdom, now as in¬ 
 dividuals in disguise, at other times in bands—not passing 
 a house in their route—observing everything taking place 
 in partial assemblies, at large weddings, and general gather¬ 
 ings of the people at fairs—scanning, with the eye of a 
 hawk, both males and females, for the purpose of robbing 
 them—did the Gipsies, with their great knowledge of hu¬ 
 man character, become thoroughly acquainted with par¬ 
 ticular incidents concerning many individuals of the popula¬ 
 tion. Hence proceed, in a great measure, the warlockry and 
 fortune-telling abilities of the shrewd and sagacious Gipsies. 
 
 Or, suppose an old Gipsy female, who traverses the king¬ 
 dom, has a relative a lady’s maid in a family of rank, and 
 another a musician in a band, playing to the first classes of 
 society, in public or private assemblies, the travelling spcie- 
 wife would not be without materials for carrying on her 
 trade of fortune-telling. The observant handmaid, and the 
 acute, penetrating fiddler would, of course, communicate to 
 their wandering relative every incident and circumstance 
 
230 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 that came under their notice, -which would, at an after and 
 suitable period, enable the cunning fortune-teller to astonish 
 some of the parties who had been at these meetings, when in 
 another part of the country, remote in time, and distant in 
 place, from the spot where the occurrences happened. 
 
 In order that they might not lessen the importance and 
 value of their art, these Gipsies pretended they could tell 
 no one’s fortune for anything less than silver, or articles 
 of wearing-apparel, or other things of value. Besides telling 
 fortunes by palmistry* they foretold destinies by divination 
 of the cup, their method of doing which appears to be nearly 
 the same as that practised among the ancient Assyrians, 
 Chaldeans, and Egyptians, perhaps, about the time of Joseph. 
 The Gipsy method was, and I may say is, this : The divin¬ 
 ing cup, which is made of tin, or pewter, and about three 
 inches in diameter, was filled with water, and sometimes 
 with spirits. Into the cup a certain quantity of a melted 
 substance, resembling tin, was dropped from a crucible, 
 which immediately formed itself, in the liquid, into curious 
 figures, resembling frost-work, seen on windows in winter. 
 The compound was then emptied into a trencher, and from 
 the arrangements or constructions of the figures, the destiny 
 of the enquiring individual was predicted.t While per- 
 
 * The Kamtschadales, says Dr. Grieve, in his translation of a Russian 
 account of Kamtschatka, pretend to chiromancy, and tell a man’s good or 
 bad fortune by the lines of his hand; but the rules which they follow are 
 kept a great secret. Page 206. 
 
 t Julius Serenus, says Stackhouse, tells us, that the method among the 
 Assyrians, Chaldeans, and Egyptians was to fill the cup with water, then 
 throw into it thin plates of gold and silver, together with some precious 
 stones, whereon were engraven certain characters, and, after that, the per¬ 
 son who came to consult the oracle used certain forms of incantation, and, 
 so calling upon the devil, were wont to receive their answer several ways: 
 sometimes by particular sounds; sometimes by the characters which were 
 in the cup rising upon the surface of the water, and by their arrangement 
 forming the answer; and many times by the visible appearance of the per¬ 
 sons themselves, about whom the oracle was consulted. Cornelius Agrippa 
 (De Occult. Philos. LI, c. 57,) tells us, likewise, that the manner of some was 
 to pour melted wax into the cup wherein was water; which wax would 
 range itself in order, and so form answers, according to the questions pro¬ 
 posed.— Saurin’s Dis.-ierlation, 38, and Hudegger’x IPs. patriar. excrcil. 20. 
 
 Fortune-telling is punishable by the 9th Geo. II, chap. 5th. In June, 
 1805, a woman, of the name of Maxwell, commonly called the Galloway 
 Eorceress, was tried for this offence, by a jury, before the Stewart of Kirk¬ 
 cudbright, and was sentenced to imprisonment and the pillory.— Burnet on 
 Criminal Law, page 173. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE OIFSLES. 231 
 
 forming the ceremony, the Gipsies muttered, in their own 
 language, certain incantations, totally unintelligible to the 
 spectator. The following fact, however, will, more particu¬ 
 larly, show the manner in which these Gipsy sorceresses im¬ 
 posed on the credulous. 
 
 A relative of mine had several servant-girls who would, 
 one day, have their fortunes told. The old Gipsy took them, 
 one at a time, into an apartment of the house, and locked the 
 door after her. My relative, feeling a curiosity in the mat¬ 
 ter, observed their operations, and overheard their conver¬ 
 sation, through a chink in the partition of the room. A 
 bottle of whiskey, and a wine glass, were produced by the 
 girl, and the sorceress filled the glass, nearly full, with the 
 spirits. Into the liquor she dropped part of the white of a 
 raw egg, and taking out of her pocket something like chalk, 
 scraped part of it into the mixture. Certain figures now 
 appeared in the glass, and, muttering some jargon, unintelli¬ 
 gible to the girl, she held it up between her eyes and the 
 window. “ There is your sweetheart now—look at him— 
 do you not see him ?” exclaimed the Gipsy to the trembling 
 girl ; and, after telling her a number of events which were 
 to befall her, in her journey through life, she held out the 
 glass, and told her to “ cast that in her mouth”—“ Me drink 
 that ? The Lord forbid that I should drink a drap o’t.” 
 “ E’ens ye like, my woman ; I can tak J it mysel,” quoth the 
 Gipsy, and, suiting the action to the word, “ cast” the whis¬ 
 key, eggs and chalk* down her throat, in an instant. Know¬ 
 ing well that the idea of swallowing the glass in which 
 their future husbands were seen, and their own fortunes 
 told, in so mysterious a manner, would make the girls shud¬ 
 der, the cunning Gipsy gave each of them, in succession, the 
 order to drink, and, the moment they refused, threw the con¬ 
 tents of the “ divining cup” into her own mouth. In this 
 manner did the Gipsy procure, at one time, no less than 
 four glasses of ardent spirits, and sixpence from each of the 
 credulous girls. 
 
 The country-girls, however, never could stand out the 
 operations of telling fortunes by the method of turning a 
 corn-riddle, with scissors attached, in a solitary out-house. 
 
 * It is not unlikely that the “ something like chalk,” here mentioned, was 
 nothing but a nutmeg, with which, and the eggs and whiskey, the Gipsy 
 would make, what is called, " egg-nogg.”—E d. 
 
232 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Whenever the Gipsy commenced her work, and, with her 
 mysterious mutterings, called out: “ Turn riddle—turn— 
 shears and all,” the terrified girls fled to the house, impres¬ 
 sed with the belief that the devil himself would appear to 
 them, on the spot. 
 
 The Gipsies in Tweed-dale were never in want of the best 
 of provisions, having always an abundance of fish; flesh, and 
 fowl. At the stages at which they halted, in their progress 
 through the country, it was observed that the principal fami¬ 
 lies, at one time, ate as good victuals, and drank as good 
 liquors, as any of the inhabitants of the country. A lady of 
 respectability informed me of her having seen, in her youth, a 
 band dine on the green-sward, near Douglass-mill, in Lanark¬ 
 shire, when, as I have already mentioned, the Gipsies handed 
 about their wine, after dinner, as if they had been as good 
 a family as any in the land. Those in Fifeshire, as we have 
 already seen, were in the habit of purchasing and killing fat 
 cattle, for their winter’s provisions. In a communication to 
 Blackwood’s Magazine, to which I will again allude, the 
 illustrious author of “ Waverley” mentions that his grand¬ 
 father was, in some respects, forced to accept a dinner from 
 a party of Gipsies, carousing on a moor, on the Scottish Bor¬ 
 der. The feast consisted of “ all the varieties of game, 
 poultry, pigs, and so forth.” And, according to the same 
 communication, it would appear that they were in the prac¬ 
 tice of stewing game and all kinds of poultry into soup, 
 which is considered very rich and savoury, and is now 
 termed “ Pottage a la Meg Merrilies de Derncleugh a 
 name derived from the singular character in the celebrated 
 novel of Guy Mannering. 
 
 But the ancient method of cooking practised among the 
 Scottish Gipsies, and which, in all probability, they brought 
 with them, when they arrived in Europe, upwards of four 
 hundred years ago, is, if I am not mistaken, new to the world, 
 never having as yet, that I am aware of, been described.* 
 It is very curious, and extremely primitive, and appears to 
 be of the highest antiquity. It is admirably adapted to the 
 wants of a rude and barbarous people, travelling over a wild 
 and thinly-inhabited country, in which cooking utensils could 
 not be procured, or conveniently carried with them. 
 
 ** I published the greater part of the Gipsy method of cooking, in the 
 Fife Herald, of the 18th April, 1833. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GITSIES. 233 
 
 My facts are from the Gipsies themselves, and are corrobo¬ 
 rated by people, not of the tribe, who have witnessed some 
 of their cooking operations. 
 
 The Gipsies, on such occasions, make use of neither pot, 
 pan, spit, nor oven, in cooking fowls. They twist a 
 strong rope of straw, which they wind very tightly around 
 the fowl, just as it is killed, with the whole of its feathers 
 on, and its entrails untouched. It is then covered with 
 hot peat ashes, and a slow fire is kept up around and about 
 the ashes, till the fowl is sufficiently done. When taken out 
 from beneath the fire, it is stripped of its hull, or shell, of 
 half-burned straw-rope and feathers, and presents a very 
 fine appearance. Those who have tasted poultry, cooked by 
 the Gipsies, in this manner, say that it is very palatable 
 and good. In this invisible way, these ingenious people 
 could cook stolen poultry, at the very moment, and in the 
 very place, that a search was going on for the pilfered 
 article. 
 
 The art of cooking butcher-meat among the Gipsies is 
 similar to that of making ready fowls, except that linen 
 and clay are substituted for feathers and straw. The piece 
 of flesh to be cooked is first carefully wrapped up in a cov¬ 
 ering of cloth or linen rags, and covered over with well 
 wrought clay, and either frequently turned before a strong 
 fire, or covered over with hot ashes, till it is roasted, or 
 rather stewed. The covering or crust, of the shape of the 
 article enclosed, and hard with the fire, is broken, and the 
 meat separated from its inner covering of burned rags, 
 which, with the juice of the meat, are reduced to a thick 
 sauce or gravy. Sometimes a little vinegar is poured upon 
 the meat. The tribe are high in their praise of flesh cooked 
 in this manner, declaring that it has a particularly fine 
 flavour. These singular people, I am informed, also boiled 
 the flesh of sheep in the skins of the animals, like the 
 Scottish soldiers in their wars with the English nation, 
 when their camp-kettles were nothing but the hides of the 
 oxen, suspended from poles, driven into the ground. 
 
 The only mode of cooking butcher-meat, bearing any 
 resemblance to that of the Gipsies, is practised by some of 
 the tribes of South America, who wrap flesh in leaves, and, 
 covering it over with clay, cook it like the Gipsies. Some 
 of the Indians of North America roast deer of a small size 
 
234 
 
 A BISTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 in tlicir skins, among hot ashes. An individual of great 
 respectability, who had tasted venison cooked in this fashion, 
 said that it was extremely juicy, and finely flavoured. In 
 the Sandwich Islands, pigs are baked on hot stones in pits, 
 or in the leaves of the bread-fruit tree, on hot stones, covered 
 over with earth, during the operation of cooking. It is pro¬ 
 bable that the Gipsy art of cooking would be amongst the 
 first modes of making ready animal food, in the first stage 
 of human society, in Asia—the cradle of the human race.* 
 Substitute linen rags for the leaves of trees, and what me¬ 
 thod of cooking can be more primitive than that of our 
 Scottish Gipsies ? 
 
 The Gipsy method of. smelting iron, for sole-clout for 
 ploughs, and smoothing-irons, is also simple, rude, and pri¬ 
 mitive.! The tribe erect, on the open field, a small circle, 
 built of stone, turf, and clay, for a furnace, of about three feet 
 in height, and eighteen inches in diameter, and plastered, 
 closely round on the outside, up to the top, with mortar made 
 of clay. The circle is deepened by part of the earth being 
 scooped out from the inside. It is then filled with coal or 
 charred peat; and the iron to be smelted is placed in small 
 pieces upon the top. Below the fuel an aperture is left 
 open, on one side, for admitting a large iron ladle, lined 
 inside with clay. The materials in the furnace are power¬ 
 fully heated, by the blasts of a large hand-bellows, (gene¬ 
 rally wrought by females,) admitted at a small hole, a little 
 from the ground. When the metal comes to a state of 
 
 * Ponqueville considers the Gipsies contemporary of the first societies. 
 Paris, 1830. 
 
 f According to Grellmann, working in iron is the most usual occupa¬ 
 tion of the Gipsies. In Hungary it is so common, as to have given rise 
 to the proverb, “ So many Gipsies, so many smiths.” The same may be 
 said of those in Transylvania, Wallachia, and Moldavia, and all Turkey in 
 Europe; at least, Gipsies following that occupation are very numerous in 
 those countries. 
 
 This occupation seems to have been a favourite one with them, from the 
 most distant period. Uladislaus, King of Hungary, in the year 1496, or¬ 
 dered : “ That every officer and subject, of whatever rank or condition, do 
 allow Thomas Polgar, leader of twenty-five tents of wandering Gipsies, free 
 residence everywhere, and on no account to molest either him or his 
 people, because they prepared musket balls and other military stores, for 
 the Bishop Sigismund, at Funf-kircheu.” In the year 1565, when Mus- 
 tapa, Turkish Regent of Bosnia, besieged Crupa, the Turks having ex¬ 
 pended their powder and cannon balls, the Gipsies were employed to make 
 the latter, part of iron, the rest of stone, cased with lead. 
 
TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE 0TDS1ES. 235 
 
 fusion, it finds its way down to the ladle, and, after being 
 skimmed of its cinders, is poured into the different sand 
 moulds ready to receive it. 
 
 Observe the Gipsies at whatever employment you may, there always 
 appear sparks of genius. We cannot, indeed, help wondering, when w'e 
 consider the skill they display in preparing and bringing their work to 
 perfection, from the scarcity of proper tools and materials.— Grclhnann on 
 the Hungarian Gipsies. —Ed. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 It would be an unpardonable omission were I to overlook 
 the descendants of John Faw, “ Lord and Earl of Little 
 Egypt,” in this history of the Gipsies in Scotland. But to 
 enter into details relative to many of the members of this 
 ancient clan, would be merely a repetition of actions, simi¬ 
 lar in character to those already related of some of the other 
 bands in Scotland. 
 
 It would appear that the district in which the Faw tribe 
 commonly travelled, comprehended East Lothian, Berwick¬ 
 shire and Roxburghshire; and that Northumberland was also 
 part of their walk. I can find no traces of Gipsies, of that 
 surname, having, in families, traversed the midland or west¬ 
 ern parts of the south of Scotland, for nearly the last seventy 
 years; and almost all the few ancient public documents 
 relative to this clan seem to imply that they occupied the 
 counties above mentioned. 
 
 I am inclined to believe that the Faws and the Baillies, 
 the two principal Gipsy clans in Scotland, had frequently 
 lived in a state of hostility with one another. These two 
 tribes quarrelled in the reign of James V, when they 
 brought their dispute before the king in council; and from 
 the renewal of the order in council, in the reign of Queen 
 Mary, it appears their animosities had then existed. In the 
 year 1677, the Faws and the Shaws, as already noticed, 
 advanced into Tweed-dale, to fight the Baillies and the 
 Browns, as mentioned by Dr. Pennecuik, in his history of 
 Tweed-dale. At the present day, the Baillies consider 
 themselves quite superior in rank to the Faas ; and, on the 
 other hand, the Faas and their friends speak with great 
 bitterness and contempt of the Baillies, calling them “a 
 parcel of thieves and vagabonds.”* 
 
 * This long standing feud between the Baillies and the Faas is notorious. 
 
 (236) 
 
BOEDER GIPSIES. 
 
 237 
 
 In Ruddiman’s Weekly Magazine, of the 4th August, 1774, 
 the following notice is taken of this tribe, which shows the 
 fear which persons of respectability entertained for them : 
 “ The descendants of this Lord of Little Egypt continued to 
 travel about in Scotland till the beginning of this century, 
 mostly about the southern Border ; and I am most credibly 
 informed that one, Henry Faa, was received, and ate at the 
 tables of people in public office, and that men of considerable 
 fortune paid him a gratuity, called blackmail, in order to 
 have their goods protected from thieves.” 
 
 One of the Faas rose to great eminence in the mercantile 
 world, and was connected by marriage with Scotch families 
 of the rank of baronets. This family was the highly respect¬ 
 able one of Fall, now extinct, general merchants in Dunbar, 
 who were originally members of the Gipsy family at 
 Yetholm. So far back as about the year 1670, one of the 
 baillies of Dunbar was of the surname of Faa, spelled exactly 
 as the Gipsy name, as appears by the Rev. J. Blackadder’s 
 Memoirs. On the 18th of May, 1734, Captain James Fall, 
 of Dunbar, was elected member of parliament for the Dunbar 
 district of burghs. On the 28th of May, 1741, Captain Fall 
 was again elected member for the same burghs ; but, there 
 being a double return, Sir Hew Dalrymple ousted him. The 
 family of Fall gave Dunbar provosts and baillies, and ruled 
 the political interests of that burgh for many years. When 
 hearty over their cups, they often mentioned their origin ; 
 and, to perpetuate the memory of their descent from the 
 family of Faa, at Yetholm, the late Mrs. Fall, of Dunbar, 
 whose husband was provost of the town, had the whole 
 family, with their asses, &c., &c., as they took their departure 
 from Yetholm, represented, by herself, in needle-work, or 
 tapestry.* The particulars, or details, of this family group 
 
 In paying a visit to a family of English Gipsies in the United States, the 
 head of the family said to me: “You must really excuse us to-day. It's 
 the Faas and Baillies over again ; it will be all I can do to keep them from 
 coming to blows.” The noise inside of the house was frightful. There had 
 been a “ difficulty” between two families in consequence of some gossip about 
 one of the parties before marriage, which the families were sifting to the 
 bottom. 
 
 The Faas and their partisans, on reading this work, will not overwell 
 relish the prominence given to the Baillie clan.—En. 
 
 * “ lie will be pleased to learn that there is, in the house of Provost Whyte, 
 of Kirkaldy, a piece of needle-work, or tapestry, on which is depicted, by 
 the hands of Mrs. Fall, the principal events in the life of the founder of her 
 
238 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 were derived from her husband, who had the facts from his 
 grandfather, one of the individuals represented in the piece. 
 A respectable aged gentleman, yet living in Dunbar, has 
 often seen this family piece of the Falls, and had its details 
 pointed out and explained to him by Mrs. Fall herself.* 
 
 The mercantile house of the Falls, at Dunbar, was so ex¬ 
 tensive as to have many connexions in the ports of the Baltic 
 and Mediterranean, and supported so high a character that 
 several of the best families in Scotland sent their sons to it, 
 to be initiated in the mysteries of commerce. Amongst 
 others who were bred merchants by the Falls, were Sir 
 Francis Kinloch, and two sons of Sir John Anstruther. It 
 appears that the Falls were most honourable men in all their 
 transactions ; and that the cause of the ruin of their eminent 
 firm was the failure of some considerable mercantile houses 
 who were deeply indebted to them. 
 
 One of the Misses Fall was married to Sir John Ans¬ 
 truther, of Elie, baronet. It appears that this alliance with 
 the family of Fall was not relished bv the friends of Sir 
 John, of his own class in society. The consequence was 
 that Lady Anstruther was not so much respected, and did 
 not receive those attentions from her neighbours, to which 
 
 family, from the clay the Gipsy child came to Dunbar in its mother’s creel, 
 until the same Gipsy child had become, by its own honourable exertions, the 
 head of the first mercantile establishment then existing in Scotland.” [This 
 seems to be an extract from a letter. The authority has been omitted in 
 the MS— Ed.] 
 
 * “ There are,” says a correspondent, “ several gentlemen in this town and 
 neighbourhood who have heard declare, that the Falls themselves had often 
 acknowledged to them their descent from the Gipsy Fans. I am told by 
 an old Berwickshire gentleman, who had the account from his mother, that 
 the Falls, on their departure from Yetholm, stopped some little time at a 
 country village-hamlet called Hume, in Berwickshire, where they had some 
 female relations; and after a few days spent there, they set out for Dunbar, 
 taking their female friends along with them. 
 
 “ Latterly, the late Robert and Charles Fall, who were cousins, kept sep¬ 
 arate establishments. Robert possessed the dwelling house now occupied 
 by Lord Lauderdale; and Charles possessed one at the shore, (now the 
 custom-house.) built on the spot where some old houses formerly stood, and 
 was called ‘ Lousy Law.’ It was in these old cot-houses that the Falls 
 first took up their residence on coming to Dunbar. It appears the mother 
 of the first of the Falls who came to Dunbar was a woman of much spirit 
 and great activity. Old William Faa, the chief of the Gipsies at Yetholm, 
 when in Lothian, never failed to visit the Dunbar family, as his relations. 
 The Dunbar Falls were connected, by marriage, with the Anstruthers, 
 Footies, of Balgonie, Coutts, now bankers, and with Collector Whyte, of the 
 customs, at Kirkaldy, and Collector Melville, of the customs, at Dunbar.” 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 239 
 
 her rank, as Sir John’s wife, gave her a title. The tradition 
 of her Gipsy descent was fresh in the memories of those in 
 the vicinity of her residence ; and she frequently got no 
 other name, or title, when spoken of, than “ Jenny Faa.” 
 She was, however, a woman of great spirit and activity. 
 Her likeness was taken, and, I believe, is still preserved by 
 the family of Anstruther.* 
 
 At a contested election, for a member of parliament, for 
 the burghs in the east of Fife, in which Sir John was a can¬ 
 didate, his opponents thought to annoy him, and his active 
 lady, by reference to the Gipsy origin of the latter. When¬ 
 ever Lady Anstruther entered the burghs, during the canvass, 
 the streets resounded with the old song of the “ Gipsy 
 Laddie.” A female stepped up to her ladyship, and expressed 
 her sorrow at the rabble singing the song in her presence. 
 “ Oh, never mind them,” replied Lady Anstruther ; “ they are 
 only repeating what they hear from their parents.”! The 
 following is the song alluded to: 
 
 JOHNNY FAA, THE GIPSY LADDIE. 
 
 The Gipsies came to my Lord Cassilis’ yett, 
 And oh ! but they sang bonnie; 
 
 They sang sae sweet, and sae compdete, 
 
 That down came our fair ladie. 
 
 She came tripping down the stair, 
 
 And all her maids before her; 
 
 As soon as they saw her weel-far’d face 
 They coost their glamourie owre her. 
 
 * Speaking of a gentleman in his autobiography, Dr. Alexander Carlyle, 
 in 1744, says: “ He had the celebrated Jenny Fall, (afterwards Lady Ans¬ 
 truther,) a coquette and a beauty, for months together in the house with 
 him ; and as his person and manners drew the marked attention of the 
 ladies, he derived considerable improvement from the constant intercourse) 
 with this young lady and her companions, for she was lively and clever, 
 no less than beautiful."—En. 
 
 \ I beg the reader to take particular notice of this circumstance. A 
 Scotch rabble is the lowest and meanest of all rabbles, at such work as 
 this. In their eyes, it was unpardonable that Lady Anstruther, or “Jenny 
 Faa,” should have been of Gipsy origin ; but it would have horrified them, 
 had they known the meaning of her ladyship “ being of Gipsy origin,” and 
 that she doubtless “ chattered Gipsy,” like others of her tribe.—Ei>. 
 
240 
 
 A BISTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 She gave to them the good -wheat bread, 
 
 And they gave her the ginger; 
 
 But she gave them a far better thing, 
 
 The gold ring off her finger. 
 
 “ Will ye go wi’ me, my hinny and my heart, 
 
 Will ye go wi’ me, my dearie; 
 
 And I will swear, by the staff of my spear, 
 
 That thy lord shall nae mair come near thee.” 
 
 “ Gar take from me my silk manteel, 
 
 And bring to me a plaidie; 
 
 For I will travel the world owre, 
 
 Along with the Gipsy laddie. 
 
 “ I could sail the seas with my Joclcie Faa, 
 
 I could sail the seas with my dearie; 
 
 I could sail the seas with my Jockie Faa, 
 
 And with pleasure could drown with my dearie.” 
 
 They wandered high, they wandered low, 
 
 They wandered late and early, 
 
 Until they came to an old tenant’s barn, 
 
 And by this time she was weary. 
 
 “ Last night I lay in a weel-made bed, 
 
 And my noble lord beside me; 
 
 And now I must lie in an old tenant’s barn, 
 
 And the black crew glowring owre me.” 
 
 “ 0 hold your tongue, my hinny and my heart, 
 
 O hold your tongue, my dearie; 
 
 For I will swear by the moon and the stars 
 That thy lord shall nae mair come near thee.” 
 
 They wandered high, they wandered low, 
 
 They wandered late and early, 
 
 Until they came to that wan water, 
 
 And by this time she was* weary. 
 
 “ Aften I have rode that wan water, 
 
 And my Lord Cassilis beside me; 
 
 And now I must set in my white feet, and wade, 
 And carry the Gipsy laddie.” 
 
 By-and-by came home this noble lord, 
 
 And asking for his ladie ; 
 
 The one did cry, the other did reply, 
 
 “ She is gone with the Gipsy laddie.” 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 241 
 
 “ Go, saddle me the black,” he says, 
 
 “ The brown rides never so speedie; 
 
 And I will neither eat nor drink 
 Till I bring home my ladie.” 
 
 He wandered high, he wandered low, 
 
 He wandered late and early, 
 
 Until he came to that wan water, 
 
 And there he spied his ladie. 
 
 “ O wilt thou go home, my hinny and my heart, 
 
 O wilt thou go home, my dearie; 
 
 And I will close thee in a close room 
 Where no man shall come near thee.” 
 
 “ I will not go home, my hinny and heart, 
 
 I will not come, my dearie ; 
 
 If I have brewn good beer, I will drink of the same, 
 
 And my lord shall nae mair come near me. 
 
 “ But I will swear by the moon and the stars, 
 
 And the sun that shines sae clearly, 
 
 That I am as free of the Gipsy gang 
 As the hour my mother did bear me.” 
 
 They were fifteen valiant men, 
 
 Black, but very bonny, 
 
 And they all lost their lives for one, 
 
 The Earl of Cassilis’ ladie. . 
 
 Tradition states that John Faa, the leader of a band of 
 Gipsies, seizing the opportunity of the Earl of Cassilis’ ab¬ 
 sence, on a deputation to the Assembly of divines at West¬ 
 minster, in 1643, to ratify the solemn league and covenant, 
 carried off the lady. The Earl was considered a sullen and 
 ill-tempered man, and perhaps not a very agreeable compan¬ 
 ion to his lady.* 
 
 Before proceeding to give an account of the modern Gip¬ 
 sies on the Scottish Border, 1 shall transcribe an interesting 
 note which Sir Walter Scott gave to the public, in explain¬ 
 ing the origin of that singular character Meg Merrilies, in 
 the novel Guy Mannering. The illustrious author kindly 
 offered me the “ scraps” which he had already given to 
 Blackwood’s Magazine, to incorporate them, if I chose, in 
 my history of the Gipsies ; but I prefer giving them in his 
 own words. 
 
 “ My father,” says Sir Walter, “ remembered Jean Gor- 
 
 * Sec page 108 .—Ed. 
 
 11 
 
242 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 don of Yctliolm, who had a great sway among her tribe. 
 She was quite a Meg Merrilies, and possessed the savage 
 virtue of fidelity in the same perfection. Having been hos¬ 
 pitably received at the farm-house of Lochside, near Ycth- 
 olm, she had carefully abstained from committing any depre¬ 
 dations on the farmer’s property. But her sons, (nine in 
 number,) had not, it seems, the same delicacy, and stole a 
 brood-sow from their kind entertainer. Jean was so much 
 mortified at this ungrateful conduct, and so much ashamed 
 of it, that she absented herself from Lochside for several 
 years. At length, in consequence of some temporary pecu¬ 
 niary necessity, the good-man of Lochside was obliged to go 
 to Newcastle, to get some money to pay his rent. Return¬ 
 ing through the mountains of Cheviot, he was benighted, 
 and lost his way. A light, glimmering through the window 
 of a large waste-barn, which had survived the farm-house to 
 which it had once belonged, guided him to a place of shel¬ 
 ter ; and when he knocked at the door, it was opened by 
 Jean Gordon. Her very remarkable figure, for she was 
 nearly six feet high, and her equally remarkable features 
 and dress, rendered it impossible to mistake her for a mo¬ 
 ment ; and to meet with such a character, in so solitary a 
 place, and probably at no great distance from her clan, was 
 a terrible surprise to the poor man, whose rent, (to lose 
 which would have been ruin to him,) was about his person. 
 Jean set up a loud shout of joyful recognition. 1 Eh, sirs ! 
 the winsome gude-man of Lochside ! Light down, light 
 down ; for ye manna gang farther the night, and a friend’s 
 house sae near!’ The farmer was obliged to dismount, and 
 accept of the Gipsy’s offer of supper and a bed. There was 
 plenty of meat in the barn, however it might be come by, 
 and preparations were going on for a plentiful supper, which 
 the farmer, to the great encrease of his anxiety, observed 
 was calculated for ten or twelve guests of the same descrip¬ 
 tion, no doubt, with his landlady. Jean left him in no doubt 
 on the subject. She brought up the story of the stolen sow, 
 and noticed how much pain and vexation it had given her. 
 Like other philosophers, she remarked that the world grows 
 worse daily, and, like other parents, that the bairns got out 
 of her guiding, and neglected the old Gipsy regulations 
 which commanded them to respect, in their depredations, the 
 property of their benefactors. The end of all this was an 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 243 
 
 enquiry what money the farmer had about him, and ar. ur¬ 
 gent request that he would make her his purse-keeper, as 
 the bairns, as she called her sons, would be soon home. The 
 poor farmer made a virtue of necessity, told his story, and 
 surrendered his gold to Jean’s custody. She made him put 
 a few shillings in his pocket ; observing it would excite sus¬ 
 picion should he be found travelling altogether penniless. 
 This arrangement being made, the farmer lay down on a 
 sort of shake-down , as the Scotch call it, upon some straw ; 
 but, as is easily to be believed, slept not. About midnight 
 the gang returned with various articles of plunder, and 
 talked over their exploits, in language which made the far¬ 
 mer tremble. They were not long in discovering their 
 guest, and demanded of Jean whom she had got there. 
 
 ‘ E’en the winsome gude-man of Lochsidc, poor boy,’ replied 
 Jean ; ‘ lie’s been at Newcastle, seeking siller to pay his rent, 
 honest man, but deil-be-licket lie’s been able to gather in ; 
 and sae lie’s gaun e’en liame wi’ a toom purse and a sail* 
 heart.’ ‘That may be, Jean,’ replied one of the banditti, 
 but we maun ripe his pouches a bit, and see if it be true or 
 no.’ Jean set up her throat in exclamation against this 
 breach of hospitality, but without producing any change of 
 their determination. The farmer soon heard their stilled 
 whispers and light steps by his bed-side, and understood 
 they were rummaging his clothes. When they found the 
 money which the prudence of Jean Gordon had made him 
 retain, they held a consultation if they should take it or not; 
 but the smallness of the booty, and the vehemence of Jean’s 
 remonstrances, determined them on the negative. They 
 caroused, and went to rest. So soon as day dawned, Jean 
 roused her guest, produced his horse, which she had accom¬ 
 modated behind the kalian , and guided him for some miles, 
 till he was on the high-road to Lochside. She then restored 
 his whole property, nor could his earnest entreaties prevail 
 on her to accept so much as a single guinea. 
 
 “ I have heard the old people at Jedburgh say that all 
 Jean’s sons were condemned to die there on the same day. 
 It is said the jury were equally divided, but that a friend of 
 justice, who had slept during the whole discussion, waked 
 suddenly, and gave his vote for condemnation, in the em¬ 
 phatic words : ‘ Hang them a’.’ Jean was present, and 
 only said, ‘The Lord help the innocent in a day like this.’ 
 
244 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GirSIES. 
 
 Her own death was accompanied with circumstances of 
 brutal outrage, of which poor Jean was, in many respects, 
 wholly undeserving. Jean had, among other demerits, or 
 merits, as you may choose to rank it, that of being a staunch 
 Jacobite. She chanced to be at Carlisle, upon a fair or 
 market day, soon after the year 1746, where she gave vent 
 to her political partiality, to the great offence of the rabble 
 in that city. Being zealous in their loyalty when there 
 was no danger, in proportion to the tameness with which 
 they had surrendered to the Highlanders, in 1745, they in¬ 
 flicted upon poor Jean Gordon no slighter penalty than that 
 of ducking her to death in the Eden. It was an operation 
 of some time, for Jean was a stout woman, and, struggling 
 with her murderers, often got her head above water; and, 
 while she had voice left, continued to exclaim, at such inter¬ 
 vals, ‘ Charlie yet! Charlie yet!’ 
 
 “ When a child, and among the scenes which she fre¬ 
 quented, I have often heard these stories, and cried piteously 
 for poor Jean Gordon. 
 
 “Before quitting the Border Gipsies, I may mention that 
 my grandfather, riding over Charter-house moor, theu a very 
 extensive common, fell suddenly among a large band of 
 them, who were carousing in a hollow of the moor, sur¬ 
 rounded by bushes. They instantly seized on his horse’s 
 bridle, with many shouts of welcome, exclaiming, (for he 
 was well known to most of them,) that they had often dined 
 at his expense, and he must now stay, and share their good- 
 cheer. My ancestor was a little alarmed, for, like the good 
 man of Lochside, he had more money about his person than 
 he cared to venture with into such society. However, be¬ 
 ing a bold, lively man, he entered into the humour of the 
 thing, and satq down to the feast, which consisted of all the 
 different varieties of game, poultry, pigs, and so forth, that 
 could be collected by a wide and indiscriminate system of 
 plunder. The feast was a very merry one, but my relative 
 got a hint, from some of the elder Gipsies, to retire just 
 when ‘ The mirth and fun grew fast and furiousand, 
 mounting his horse, accordingly, he took French leave 
 of his entertainers, but without experiencing the least 
 breach of hospitality. I believe Jean Gordon was at this 
 festival. 
 
 “ The principal settlements of the Gipsies, in my time, 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 245 
 
 have been the two villages of Easter and Wester Gordon, 
 and what is called Kirk-Yetholm, 
 
 Making good the proverb odd, 
 
 Near the church and far from God.” 
 
 In giving an account of the modern Gipsies on the Scot¬ 
 tish Border, I shall transcribe, at full length, the faithful 
 and interesting report of Baillie Smith, of Kelso, which was 
 published in Hoyland’s “ Historical Survey of the Gipsies.” 
 
 “ A considerable time,” says Mr. Smith, “ having elapsed 
 since I had an opportunity or occasion to attend to the 
 situation of the colony ol Gipsies in our Neighbourhood, I 
 was obliged to delay my answer to your enquiries, until I 
 could obtain more information respecting their present 
 numbers. 
 
 “ The great bar to the benevolent intentions of improving 
 their situation, will be the impossibility to convince them 
 that there either is, or can be, a mode of life preferable, or 
 even equal, to their own. 
 
 “ A strong spirit of independence, or what they would 
 distinguish by the name of liberty, runs through the whole 
 tribe. It is, no doubt, a very licentious liberty, but entirely 
 to their taste. Some kind of honour peculiar to themselves 
 seems to prevail in their community. They reckon it a dis¬ 
 grace to steal near their homes, or even at a distance, if de¬ 
 tected. I must always except that petty theft of feeding 
 their shelties and asses, on the farmer’s grass and corn, which 
 they will do, whether at home or abroad. 
 
 “ When avowedly trusted, even in money matters, they 
 never deceived me, nor forfeited their promise. I am sorry 
 to say, however, that when checked in their licentious appro¬ 
 priations, Ac., they are very much addicted both to threaten 
 and to execute revenge. 
 
 “ Having so far premised with respect to their general 
 conduct and character, I shall proceed to answer, as far as I 
 am able, the four queries subjoined to the circular which 
 you sent me ; and then subjoin, in notes, some instances of 
 their conduct in particular cases, which may perhaps eluci¬ 
 date their general disposition and character. 
 
 “ Query 1st. What number of Gipsies in the county? 
 
 11 Answer. I know of none except the colony of Yetholm, 
 and one family who lately removed from that place to Kelso. 
 
246 
 
 A BIST OUT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Yctliolm consists of two towns, or large villages, called 
 Town-Yctholm and Kirk-Yetholm. The first is in the estate 
 of Mr. 'Wauchope, of Niddry ; the latter in that of the 
 Marquis of Tweed-dale. The number of the Gipsy colony 
 at present in Kirk-Yetholm amounts to, at least, 109 men, 
 women and children ; and perhaps two or three may have 
 escaped notice. They marry early in life ; in general have 
 many children ; and their number seems to be encreasing. 
 
 “ Query 2 cl. In what do the men and women mostly employ 
 themselves ? 
 
 “Answer. I have known the colony between forty and 
 fifty years. At my first remembrance of them, they were 
 called the Tinlders (Tinkers) of Yetholm, from the males 
 being chiefly then employed in mending pots and other culin¬ 
 ary utensils, especially in their peregrinations through the 
 hilly and less frequented parts of the country. Sometimes 
 they were called Horners , from their occupation in making 
 and selling horn-spoons, called cutties. Now, their common 
 appellation is that of Muggers, or, what pleases them better, 
 Potters. They purchase, at a cheap rate, the cast or faulty 
 articles from the different manufacturers of earthenware, which 
 they carry for sale all over the country; consisting of groups 
 of six, ten, and sometimes twelve or fourteen persons, male 
 and female, young and old, provided with a horse and cart, 
 to transport the pottery, besides shelties and asses, to carry 
 the youngest of the children, and such baggage as they find 
 necessary. A fetv of the colony also employ themselves, 
 occasionally, in making besoms, foot-basses, &c., from heath, 
 broom, and bent, and sell them at Kelso and the neighbour¬ 
 ing towns. After all, their employment can be considered 
 little better than an apology for idleness and vagrancy. I 
 do not see that the women are otherwise employed than 
 attending the young children, and assisting to sell the pot¬ 
 tery when carried through the country. 
 
 “ They are, in general, great adepts in hunting, shoot¬ 
 ing and fishing; in which last they use the net and spear, 
 as well as the rod; and often supply themselves with 
 a hearty meal by their dexterity. They have no notion of 
 being limited in their field sports, either in time, place, or 
 mode of destruction. In the country, they sleep in barns 
 and byres, or other out-houses ; and when they cannot find 
 that accommodation, they take the canvas covering from the 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 247 
 
 pottery cart and squat below it, like a covey of partridges 
 in the snow. 
 
 “ Query 3d. Have they any settled abode in winter, and 
 where ? 
 
 “ Ansiver. Their residence, with the exception of a single 
 family, who, some years ago, came to Kelso, is at Kirk- 
 Yetholm, and chiefly confined to one row of houses, or 
 street, of that town, which goes by the name of the Tinkler 
 Tote. Most of them have leases of their possessions, 
 granted for a term of nineteen times nineteen years, for pay¬ 
 ment of a small sum yearly, something of the nature of a 
 quit-rent. There is no tradition in the neighbourhood con¬ 
 cerning the time when the Gipsies first took up their resi¬ 
 dence at that place, nor whence they came. Most of their 
 leases, I believe, were granted by the family of the Bennets, 
 of Grubit, the last of whom was Sir David Bonnet, who died 
 about sixty years ago. The late Mr. Nisbet, of Dirlton, 
 then succeeded to the estate, comprehending the baronies 
 of Kirk-Yetholm and Grubit. He died about the year 
 1783 ; and long after, the property was acquired by the late 
 Lord Tweed-dale’s trustees. During the latter part of the 
 life of the late Mr. Nisbet, he was less frequently at his 
 estate in Roxburghshire than formerly. He was a great 
 favourite of the Gipsies, and was in use to call them his 
 body-guards, and often gave them money, <tc. 
 
 “ On the other hand, both the late and present Mr. Waucli- 
 ope were of opinion that the example of these people had 
 a bad effect upon the morals and industry of the neighbour¬ 
 hood ; and seeing no prospect of their removal, and as little 
 of their reformation, considered it as a duty to the public 
 to prevent the evil encreasing ; and never would consent to 
 any of the colony taking up their residence in Yortui-Ye tholm. 
 
 “They mostly remain at home during winter, but as soon 
 as the weather becomes tolerably mild, in spring, most of 
 them, men, women and children, set out on their peregrina¬ 
 tions over the country ; and live in a state of vagrancy, until 
 driven into their habitations by the approach of winter. 
 
 “ Seeming to pride themselves as a separate tribe, they 
 very seldom intermarry out of the colony ; and, in rare in¬ 
 stances, when that happens, the Gipsy, whether male or 
 female, by influence and example, always induces the stranger 
 husband, or wife, to adopt the manners of the colony ; so 
 
248 
 
 A ms TOUT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 that no improvement is ever obtained in that way. The 
 progeny of such alliances have almost universally the tawny 
 complexion, and fine black eyes, of the Gipsy parent, whether 
 father or mother. So strongly remarkable is the Gipsy cast 
 of countenance, that even a description of them to a stranger, 
 who has had no opportunity of formerly seeing them, will 
 enable him to know them whenever lie meets them. Some 
 individuals, but very rarely, separate from the colony alto¬ 
 gether ; and when they do so, early in life, and go to a dis¬ 
 tance, such as London, or even Edinburgh, their acquaint¬ 
 ances in the country get favourable accounts of them. A 
 few betake themselves to regular and constant employments 
 at home, but soon tire, and return to their old way of life. 
 
 “ When any of them, especially a leader, or man of influ¬ 
 ence, dies, they have full meetings, not only of the colony, 
 but of the Gipsies from a distance ; and those meetings, or 
 late-zvalces, are by no means conducted with sobriety or 
 decency. 
 
 “ Query 4 tli. Are any of their children taught to read, and 
 what portion of them? With any anecdotes respecting 
 their customs and conduct. 
 
 “ Answer. Education being obtained at a cheaper rate, 
 the Gipsies, in general, give their male children as good a 
 one as is bestowed on those of the labouring people, and 
 farm servants, in the neighbourhood ; such as reading, writ¬ 
 ing, and the first principles of arithmetic. They all apply 
 to the clergyman of the parish for baptism to their children ; 
 and a strong, superstitious notion universally prevails with 
 them, that it is unlucky to have an unchristened child in the 
 house. Only a very few ever attend divine service, and 
 those as seldom as they can, just to prevent being refused as 
 sponsors at their children’s baptism. 
 
 “ They are, in general, active and lively, particularly when 
 engaged in field sports, or in such temporary pursuits as are 
 agreeable to their habits and dispositions ; but are destitute 
 of the perseverance necessary for a settled occupation, or 
 even for finishing what a moderate degree of continued 
 labour would enable them to accomplish in a few weeks. 
 
 “ I remember that, about 45 years ago, being then appren¬ 
 ticed to a writer, who was in use to receive the rents and 
 the small duties of Kirk-Yetholm, he sent me there with a 
 list of names, and a statement of what was due, recommend- 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 249 
 
 in,a; me to apply to the landlord of the public-house, in the 
 village, for any information or assistance which I might 
 need, 
 
 “After waiting a long time, and receiving payment from 
 most of the feuers, or rentalers, I observed to him, that none 
 of the persons of the names of Faa, Young,Blythe, Fluckie, 
 &c., who stood at the bottom of the list, for small sums, had 
 come to meet me, according to the notice given by the baron- 
 officer, and proposed sending to inform them that they were 
 detaining me, and to request their immediate attendance, 
 
 “ The landlord,with a grave face, enquired whether my 
 master had desired me to ask money from those men. I 
 said, not particularly ; but they stood on the list. ‘ So I 
 see,’ said the landlord ; ‘ but had your master been here him¬ 
 self, he did not dare to ask money from them, either as rent 
 or feu duty. He knows that it is as good as if it were in 
 his pocket. They will pay when their own time comes, but 
 do not like to pay at a set time, with the rest of the barony, 
 and still less to be craved.’ 
 
 “ I accordingly returned without their money, and reported 
 progress. I found that the landlord was right: my master 
 said, with a smile, that it was unnecessary to send to them, 
 after the previous notice from the baron-officer ; it was 
 enough if 1 had received the money, if offered. Their rent 
 and feu duty was brought to the office in a few weeks. 
 I need scarcely add that those persons all belonged to the 
 tribe. 
 
 “ Another instance of their licentious, independent spirit 
 occurs to me. The family of Niddry always gave a decent 
 annual remuneration to a baron-baillie, for the purpose of 
 keeping good order within the barony of'Town-Yetholm. 
 The person whom I remember first in possession of that 
 office was an old man, called Doctor Walker, from his being 
 also the village surgeon ; and from him I had the following 
 anecdote: 
 
 “ Between Yetholm and the Border farms, in Northum¬ 
 berland, there were formerly, as in most Border situations, 
 some uncultivated lands, called the Plea-lands, or Debata¬ 
 ble-lands, the pasturage of which was generally eaten up 
 by the sorners and vagabonds, on both sides of the marches. 
 Many years ago, Lord Tankerville and some others of the 
 English Borderers made their request to Sir David Bennet, 
 11 * 
 
250 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 and the late Mr. Wanchope, of Niddry, that they would ac¬ 
 company them at a riding of the Plea-lands, who readily 
 complied with their request. They were induced to this, as 
 they understood that the Gipsies had taken offence, on the 
 supposition that they might be circumscribed in the pastur¬ 
 age for their shelties and asses, which they had held a long 
 time, partly by stealth, and partly by violence. 
 
 “Both threats and entreaties were employed to keep them 
 away ; and, at last, Sir David obtained a promise from some 
 of the heads of the gang, that none of them should show 
 their.faces on the occasion. They, however, got upon the 
 hills, at a little distance, whence they could see everything 
 that passed. At first they were very quiet. But when 
 they saw the English court-book spread out, on a cushion, 
 before the clerk, and apparently him taking in a line of 
 direction, interfering with what they considered to be their 
 privileged ground, it was with great difficulty that the most 
 moderate of them could restrain the rest from running down 
 and taking vengeance, even in sight of their own lord of the 
 manor. 
 
 “ They only abstained for a short time ; and no sooner 
 had Sir David and the other gentlemen taken leave of each 
 other, in the most polite and friendly manner, as Border 
 chiefs were wont to do, since Border feuds ceased, and had 
 departed to a sufficient distance, than the clan, armed with 
 bludgeons, pitchforks, and such other hostile weapons as 
 they could find, rushed down in a body, and before the chiefs 
 on either side had reached their home, there was neither 
 English tenant, horse, cow nor sheep left upon the premises. 
 
 “ Meeting at Kelso, with Mr. Walter Scott, whose dis¬ 
 criminating habits and just observations I had occasion to 
 know, from his youth, and, at the same time, seeing one of 
 my Yetholm friends in the horse-market, I said to Mr. Scott, 
 ‘ Try to get before that man with the long drab coat, look 
 at him on your return, and tell me whether you ever saw 
 him, and what you think of him.’ He was as good as to in¬ 
 dulge me ; and, rejoining me, he said, without hesitation : 
 
 ‘ I never saw the man that I know of; but he is one of the 
 Gipsies of Yetholm, that you told me of, several years ago.’ 
 X need scarcely say that he was perfectly correct. 
 
 “ When first I knew anything about the colony, old Will 
 Faa was king, or leader ; and had held the sovereignty 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 251 
 
 for many years. The descendants of Faa now take the 
 name of Fall, from the Messrs. Fall, of Dunbar, who, they 
 pride themselves in saying, are of the same stock and line¬ 
 age. When old Will Faa was upwards of eighty years of 
 age, he called on me, at Kelso, on his way to Edinburgh, 
 telling me that he was going to see the laird, the late Mr. 
 Nisbct, of Dirlton, as he understood that he was very unwell ; 
 and he himself being now old, and not so stout as he had 
 been, lie wished to see him once more before he died. He 
 set out by the nearest road, which was by no means his com¬ 
 mon practice. Next market-day, some of the farmers in¬ 
 formed me that they had been in Edinburgh, and seen Will 
 Faa, upon the bridge, (the south bridge was not then built;) 
 that he was tossing about his old brown hat, and huzzaing, 
 with great vociferation, that he had seen the laird before he 
 died. Indeed, Will himself had no time to lose ; for, having 
 set his face homewards, by the way of the sea-coast, to vary 
 his route, as is the general custom of the gang, he only got 
 the length of Coldingham, when he was taken ill and died. 
 
 “ His death being notified to his friends at Yetholm, they 
 and their acquaintances at Berwick, Spittal, Horncliff, &c., 
 met to pay the last honours to their old leader. His obse¬ 
 quies were continued three successive days and nights, and 
 afterwards repeated at Yetholm, whither he was brought. I 
 cannot say that the funeral rites were celebrated with de¬ 
 cency and sobriety, for that was by no means the case. This 
 happened in the year 1783, or 1784, and the late Mr. Nis- 
 bet did not long survive.”* 
 
 In addition to the above graphic report of Baillie Smith, 
 I will now give a few details from a MS., given to me by 
 Mr. Blackwood, towards the elucidation of the history of 
 the Gipsies. This MS. bears the initials of A. W., and ap¬ 
 pears to have been written by a gentleman who had ample 
 opportunities of observing the manners of the Border Gip¬ 
 sies. 
 
 * When Mr. Iloyland commenced making enquiries into the condition of 
 the Gipsies, he addressed circulars to the sheriffs, for information. No less 
 than thirteen Scotch sheriffs reported, “ No Gipsies within the county.* 
 A report of this kind was nearly as good as would be that of a cockney, as 
 to their being no foxes in the country; because, while riding through it, on 
 the stage, he did not see any ! Baillie Smith’s report, although graphic, is 
 superficial. He states that the Gipsies “ marry early in life, and in general 
 have many children yet “ that their number seems to be encreasing.”—E d. 
 
252 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 “ I am a native of Yetliolm parish, and a residenter in it, 
 with a little exception, for upwards of fifty years. I well 
 remember Kirk - Yetliolm, when the Faas and Youngs 
 alone had a footing in it.* The Taits came next., and lat¬ 
 terly, at various periods, the Douglasses, Blyths, Montgom¬ 
 erys, &c. Old William Faa, (with whom I was well ac¬ 
 quainted, and saw him married to his third wife,f) con¬ 
 stantly claimed kindred with the Falls of Dunbar ; and per¬ 
 sisted, to the last, that he himself was the male descendant, 
 in a direct line, from the Earl of Little Egypt. For many 
 years before his death, Mr. Nisbet of Dirlton, (the then laird 
 of Kirk-Yetholm,) gave him the charge of his house, at 
 Marlfield, and all its furniture, although he resided six miles 
 distant from it. The key of the principal door was regu¬ 
 larly delivered to him, at the laird’s departure. I remember 
 a sale of wood at Cherry-trees, belonging to the late Sheriff 
 Murray. William Faa was a purchaser at the roup, and 
 the sheriff proclaimed aloud to the clerk, that he would be 
 Mr. Faa’s cautioner. All the Tinklers in the village, and 
 even strangers resorting thither, considered William Faa 
 as the head and leader of the whole. His corpse was es- 
 
 * The tribe of Young have preserved the following tradition respecting 
 their first settlement in Yetliolm : At a siege of the city of Namur, (date 
 unknown,) the laird of Kirk-Yetholm, of the ancient family of Bennets, of 
 Grubit and Marlfield, in attempting to mount a breach, at the head of his 
 company, was struck to the ground, and all his followers killed, or put to 
 flight, except a Gipsy, the ancestor of the Youngs, who resolutely defended 
 his master till he recovered his feet, and then, springing past him upon the 
 rampart, seized a flag which he put into his leader’s hand. The besieged 
 were struck with panic—the assailants rushed again to the breach—Na¬ 
 mur was taken, and Captain Bennet had the glory of the capture. On re¬ 
 turning to Scotland, the laird, out of gratitude to his faithful follower, set¬ 
 tled him and his family, (who had formerly been travelling tinkers and 
 heckle-makers,) in Kirk-Yetholm; and conferred upon them, and the Faas, 
 a feu of their cottages, for the space of nineteen times nineteen years; 
 which they still hold from the Marquis of Tweed-dale, the present proprie¬ 
 tor of the estate.— Blackwood's Magazine .— Ed. 
 
 f On solemn occasions, Will Faa assumed, in his way, all the stately 
 deportment of sovereignty. He had twenty-four children, and at each of 
 their christenings he appeared, dressed in his original wedding-robes. These 
 christenings were celebrated with no small parade. Twelve young hand¬ 
 maidens were always present, as part of the family retinue, and for the pur¬ 
 pose of waiting on the numerous guests, who assembled to witness the cere¬ 
 mony, or partake of the subsequent festivities. Besides Will’s Gipsy 
 associates, several of the neighbouring farmers and lairds, with whom he 
 w r as on terms of friendly intercourse, (among others, the Murrays, of Cher¬ 
 ry-trees,) used to attend these christenings.— Blackwood's Magazine. — Ed. 
 
BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 253 
 
 corted betwixt Coldstream and Yetholm by above three 
 hundred asses. 
 
 “ He was succeeded by his eldest son William, one of the 
 cleverest fellows upon the Border. For agility of person, 
 and dexterity in every athletic exercise, he had rarely met 
 with a competitor. He had a younger brother impressed, 
 when almost a boy. He deserted from his ship, in India ; 
 enlisted as a soldier, and, by dint of merit, acquired a com¬ 
 mission in a regular regiment of foot, and died a lieutenant, 
 within these thirty years, at London. He was an officer un¬ 
 der Governor Wall, at Goree, when he committed the crime 
 for which he suffered, twenty years after, in England. 
 
 “ It was the present William Faa that the ‘ Earl of 
 Hell’ contended with ; not for sovereignty, but to revenge 
 some ancient animosity.* His lordship lives at Hew Cold¬ 
 stream, and was the onlyperson in Berwickshire that durst en¬ 
 counter, in single combat, the renowned Bully-More. Young 
 fought three successive battles with Faa, and one desper¬ 
 ate engagement with More, midway between Dunse and 
 Coldstream ; and was defeated in all of them. He is a 
 younger son of William Young, of Yetholm, the eotempo- 
 rary chieftain of old William Faa. It was still a younger 
 brother that migrated to Kelso, where he supported a good 
 character till he died. Charles Young, the eldest brother, is 
 still alive, and chief of the name. The following anecdote of 
 him will serve to establish his activity. 
 
 “ Mr. Walker, of Thirkstane, the only residing heritor in 
 Yetholm parish, missed a valuable mare, upon a Sunday 
 morning. After many fruitless enquiries, at the adjacent 
 kirks and neighbourhood, he dispatched a servant for 
 Charles, in the evening. He privately communicated to him 
 his loss, and added, that he was fully persuaded he could 
 be the means of recovering the mare. Charles boldly an¬ 
 swered, ‘ If she was betwixt the Tyne and the Forth, she 
 should be restored.’ On the Thursday after, at sunrise, the 
 mare was found standing at the stable door, much jaded, and 
 very warm. 
 
 “ When the Kirk-Yetholm families differed among them- 
 
 * This is in contradiction to the assertion, in Blackwood’s Magazine, that, 
 on the death of Ids father, a sort of civil war broke out among the Yetholm 
 Gipsies; and that the usurper of the regal office was dispossessed, after a 
 battle, by the subjects who adhered to the legitimate heir.—E d. 
 
254 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 selves, (and terrible conflicts at times they had,)this same 
 Mr. Walker was often chosen sole arbitrator, to decide their 
 differences. He has often been locked up in their houses 
 for twenty-four hours together, but carefully concealed their 
 secrets.* 
 
 “ The Yetholm Tinklers keep up an intercourse with their 
 friends at Horncliff, Spittal, Rothbury, Hexam, and liar- 
 bottle. They go frequently to Newcastle, and even to Staf¬ 
 fordshire, for earthenware, and the wfliole family embark in 
 every expedition. 
 
 “ I was at school with most of the present generation of 
 Tinklers. I mean the males ; for, to speak truth, I never 
 heard of a female Gipsy being educated at all. 
 
 “ None of this colony have been either impeached or tried 
 for a crime for fifty years past. Two Tinklers have been 
 executed at Jedburgh, in my remembrance, named Keith and 
 Clark, for murder and horse-stealing. They were strangers, 
 from a distance.” 
 
 When I visited Yetholm, I fell in with a gentleman who 
 resided at that time in Town-Yetholm. I chanced to men¬ 
 tion to him that I was sure all the Gipsies had a method of 
 their own in handling the cudgel, but he would not believe 
 it. At my request, lie took me into some of their houses, 
 and, observing an old, rusty sword lying upon the joists of 
 an apartment in which we were sitting, I took it down, and, 
 under pretence of handling it, in their fashion, gave some of 
 the guards of the Hungarian sword-exercise. An old Gipsy, 
 of the name of Blyth, shook his head, and observed : “ Ay, 
 
 * There would appear to be something remarkable in the position which 
 this Mr. Walker held with the Gipsies. I know, from the best of authority, 
 that most of the people living in and about Yetholm are Gipsies, settled or 
 unsettled, civilized or uncivilized, educated or uneducated ; and of one in 
 particular, who went under the title of “ Lord Mayor of Yetholm.” He 
 is now dead. The above mentioned Mr. Walker was probably a relation 
 of Dr. Walker, mentioned by Baillie Smith, as the baron-baillie of Yetholm. 
 1 notice in Blackwood’s Magazine, that one William Walker, a Gipsy, in 
 company with various Yetholm Gipsies, was indicted at Jedburgh, in 
 1714, for fire-raising, but was acquitted. The Walkers alluded to in the 
 text are very probably of the same family, settled, and raised in the world. 
 As I have just said, most of the people in and about Yetholm are Gipsies. 
 Gipsydom has even eaten its way in among the population round about 
 Yttholm. The Rev. Mr. Baird, in conducting the Scottish Church Mission 
 among the travelling Gipsies, hailing from Yetholm, doubtless encountered 
 many of them incog. But all this will be better understood by the reader 
 after he peruses the Disquisition on the Gipsies.—E d. 
 
BOEDER GIPSIES. 
 
 255 
 
 that is an art easily carried about with you ; it maybe of 
 service to you some day.” My friend was then convinced 
 of his mistake. 
 
 William Faa, when I was in his house, showed me the 
 mark of a stroke of a sword on his right wrist, by which he 
 had nearly lost his hand. With others of his clan, he had 
 been engaged in a smuggling speculation, on the coast of 
 Northumberland, when they were overtaken by a party of 
 dragoons, one of whom singled out and attempted to take 
 Faa prisoner. William was armed with a stick only, but, 
 with his stick in his dexterous hand, he, for a long time, set 
 the dragoon, with all his arms, at defiance. The horseman, 
 now galloping round and round him, attempting to capture 
 him, became exasperated at the resistance of a man on foot, 
 armed with a cudgel only, and struck with such vigour that 
 the cudgel became shattered, and cut in pieces, till nothing 
 but a few inches of it remained. Still holding up the stump, 
 to meet the stroke of his antagonist’s sword, William was 
 cut to the bone, and compelled to yield himself a prisoner. 
 A person, present at the scuffle, informed me that the only 
 remark the brave Tinkler made to the dragoon was, “ Ye’ve 
 spoiled a good fiddler.” 
 
 William Faa, the lineal descendant of John Faw, “ Lord 
 and Earl of Little Egypt,” when I saw him, appeared about 
 sixty years of age, and was tall and genteel-looking, with 
 grey hair, and dark eyes. He is the individual who fought 
 the three battles with Young, between Dunso and Cold¬ 
 stream. The following notice of his death I have extracted 
 from the “ Scotsman” newspaper, of the 20th October, 1847 : 
 
 “A LAMENT FOR WILL FAA, 
 
 “THE DECEASED KING OF LITTLE EGYPT. 
 
 “ The daisy has faded, the yellow leaf drops ; 
 
 The cold sky looks grey o’er the shrivelled tree-tops ; 
 
 And many around us, since Summer’s glad birth, 
 
 Have dropt, like the old leaves, into the cold earth. 
 
 And one worth remembering hath gone to the home 
 Where the king and the kaiser must both at last come, 
 
 The King of the Gipsies—the last of a name* 
 
 Which in Scotland’s old story is rung on by fame. 
 
 The cold clod ne’er pressed down a manlier breast 
 Than that of the old man now gone to his rest. 
 
 * Will Faa had a brother, a house-carpcnter, in New York, who survived 
 
256 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 “ It is meet we remember him; never again 
 Will such foot as old Will’s kick a ball o’er the plain, 
 
 Or such hand as his, warm with the warmth of the soul, 
 
 Bid us welcome to Yetliolm, to bicker and bowl. 
 
 Oh, the voice that could make the air tremble and ring 
 With the great-hearted gladness becoming a king, 
 
 Is silent, is silent; oh, wail for the day 
 
 When Death took the Border King, brave Willie Faa. 
 
 “ No dark Jcddart prison e’er closed upon him, 
 
 The last lord of Egypt ne’er wore gyve on limb. 
 
 Though his grey locks were crownless, the light of his eye 
 Was kingly—his bearing majestic and high. 
 
 Though his hand held no sceptre, the stranger can tell 
 That the full bowl of welcome became it as well; 
 
 The fisher or rambler, by river or brae, 
 
 Ne’er from old Willie’s liallan went empty away. 
 
 “ In the old house of Yetliolm we’ve sat at the board, 
 
 The guest, highly honoured, of Egypt’s old lord, 
 
 And mark’d his eye glisten as oft as he told 
 Of his feats on the Border, his prowess of old. 
 
 It is meet, when that dark eye in death hath grown dim, 
 That we sing a last strain in remembrance of him. 
 
 The fame of the Gipsy hath faded away 
 
 With the breath from the brave heart of gallant Will Faa.” 
 
 him a few years. He was considered a fine old man by those who knew 
 him. He left a family in an humble, but respectable, way of doing. The 
 Scottish Gipsy throne was occupied by another family of Gipsies, in conse¬ 
 quence of this family being “ forth of Scotland.” There are a great many 
 Faas, under one name or other, scattered over the world.—E d 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 The Gipsies in Scotland are all married at a very eaily 
 age. I do not recollect ever having seen or heard of them, 
 male or female, being unmarried, after they were twenty 
 years old. There are few instances of bastard children 
 among them ; indeed, they declare that their children are all 
 born in wedlock.* I know, however, of one instance to the 
 contrary ; and of the Gipsy being dreadfully punished for 
 seducing a young girl of his own tribe. 
 
 The brother of the female, who was pregnant, took upon 
 himself the task of chastising the offender. With a knife in his 
 hand, and at the dead hour of night, he went to the house<2 
 of the seducer. The first thing he did was deliberately to 
 sharpen his knife upon the stone posts of the door of the 
 man’s house ; and then, in a gentle manner, tap at the door, 
 to bring out his victim. The unsuspecting man came to the 
 door, in his shirt, to see what was wanted ; but the saluta¬ 
 tion he received was the knife thrust into his body, and the 
 stabs repeated several times. The avenger of his sister’s 
 wrongs fled for a short while ; the wounded Tinkler recov¬ 
 ered, and, to repair the injury he had done, made the girl 
 his wife. The occurrence took place in Mid-Lothian, about 
 twenty years ago. The name of the woman was Baillie, and 
 her husband, Tait. 
 
 * There is one word in the Gipsy language to which is attached more 
 importance than to any otherthing whatever— Ldcha —the corporeal chas¬ 
 tity of woman; the loss of which she is, from childhood, taught to dread. 
 
 'Jo ensure its preservation, the mother will have occasion to the Bide —a 
 hind of drapery which she ties around the daughter ; and which is never 
 removed, but continually inspected, till the day of marriage; but not for 
 fear of the “ stranger” or the “ white blood.” A girl is generally betrothed 
 at fourteen, and never married till two years afterward. Betrothal is in¬ 
 variable. But the parties are never permitted, previous to marriage, to 
 have any intimate associations together.— Borrow on the Spanish Gipsies .— 
 Ed. 
 
 (257) 
 
268 
 
 A ms TOUT OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 I have not been able to discover any peculiarity in the 
 manner of Gipsy courtships, except that a man, above sixty 
 years of age, affirmed to me that it was the universal custom, 
 among the tribe, not to give away in marriage the younger 
 daughter before the elder. In order to have this informa¬ 
 tion confirmed, 1 enquired of a female, herself one of eleven 
 sisters,* if this custom really existed among her people. She 
 was, at first, averse, evidently from fear, to answer my 
 question directly, and even wished to conceal her descent. 
 But, at last, seeing nothing to apprehend from speaking 
 more freely, she said such was once the custom ; and that it 
 had been the cause of many unhappy marriages. She said 
 she had often heard the old people speaking about the law 
 of not allowing the younger sister to be married before the 
 elder. She, however, would not admit of the existence of 
 the custom at the present day, but appeared quite well ac- 
 
 * A GIPSY MULTIPLICATION TABLE. 
 
 Births 
 
 Mar- 
 
 Births of 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 of Children. 
 
 riages. 
 
 Grand-chil- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 dren. 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1822, Oct. 1. 
 
 1842 
 
 1843, Jul. 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1824, Jan. 1. 
 
 1844 
 
 1844, Oct. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1825, Apl. 1. 
 
 1845 
 
 1846, Jan. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1826, Jul. 1. 
 
 1846 
 
 1847, Ap. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1827, Oct. 1. 
 
 1847 
 
 1848, Jul. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 1829, Jan. 1. 
 
 1849 
 
 1849, Oct. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 ~T 
 
 ~1 
 
 
 
 
 1830, Apl. 1. 
 
 1850 
 
 1851, Jan. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 l 
 
 ~ 
 
 J] 
 
 
 
 1831, Jul. 1. 
 
 1851 
 
 1852, Ap. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 l 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 9} 
 
 
 1832, Oct. 1. 
 
 1852 
 
 1853, Jul. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 l 
 
 l 
 
 1 
 
 - - 
 
 1 
 
 - 1 
 
 Tcfl 
 
 1834, Jan. 1. 
 
 1854 
 
 1854, Oct. 
 
 ] 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 l 
 
 l 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 111 I 
 
 1835, Apl. 1. 
 
 1855 
 
 1856, Jan. 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 l 
 
 l 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 1836, Jul. 1. 
 
 1856 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 lpijial 
 
 Total. 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 11110 
 
 9 
 
 8 
 
 7 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 4 
 
 3| 2| 1| 0 
 
 78 | 
 
 The above table will give a general idea of the natural encrease of the 
 Gipsies. The reader can make what allowances he pleases, for ages at time 
 of marriage, intervals between births, twins, deaths, or numbers of chil¬ 
 dren born. By this table, the Gipsy, by marrying at twent}' years of age, 
 would, when 54 years old, have a “ following” of no less than 78 souls. 
 “ There is one of the divine laws,” said I to a Gipsy, “ which the Gipsies 
 obey more than any other people.” “What is that?” replied he, with 
 great gravity. “ The command to ‘ Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish 
 (but not subdue) the earth.’ ” Even five generations can be obtained from 
 the male, and six from the female Gipsy, in a century, counting lrom first- 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 259 
 
 quainted with it, and could have informed me fully of it, 
 had she been disposed to speak on the subject. 
 
 The exact parallel to this custom is to be found in the 
 Gentoo code of laws, translated by Halhed ; wherein it is 
 made criminal for “a man to marry while In’s elder brother 
 remains unmarried ; or when a man marries his daughter to 
 such a person ; or where a man gives the younger sister in 
 marriage while the elder sister remains unmarried.”* The 
 learned translator of the code considers this custom of the 
 Gentoosof the remotest antiquity, and compares it with that 
 passage in the Book of Genesis, where Laban excuses him¬ 
 self to Jacob for having substituted Leah for Rachel, in 
 these words, “ It must not be so done in our country, to give 
 the younger before the first-born.” 
 
 The nuptial ceremony of the Gipsies is undoubtedly of the 
 highest antiquity, and would, probably, be one of the first 
 marriage ceremonies observed by mankind, in the very first 
 stages of human society. When we consider the extraordi¬ 
 nary length of time the Gipsies have preserved their speech, 
 as a secret among themselves, in the midst of civilized society, 
 all over Europe, while their persons were proscribed and 
 hunted down in every country, like beasts of the chase, we 
 arc not at all surprised at their retaining some of their an¬ 
 cient customs ; for these, as distinguished from their lan¬ 
 guage, are of easy preservation, under any circumstances in 
 which they may have been placed. That may much more 
 be said of this ceremony, as there would be an occasion for 
 its almost daily observance. It was wrapped up with their 
 very existence—the choice of their wives, and the love of their 
 offspring—the most important and interesting transactions 
 of their lives; and would, on that account, be one of the longest 
 observed, the least easily forgotten, of their ancient usages. 
 
 The nuptial rites of the Scottish Gipsies are, perhaps, un¬ 
 equalled in the history of marriages. At least, I have nei¬ 
 ther seen nor heard of any marriage ceremony that has the 
 slightest resemblance to it, except the extraordinary bene¬ 
 diction which our countryman, Mungo Park, received from 
 the bride at the Moorish wedding in Ali’s camp, at Benown ; 
 and that of a certain custom practised by the Mandingoes, 
 
 born to first-born. The reader will notice how large are the Gipsy fami¬ 
 lies incidentally mentioned by our author.— Ed. 
 
 * Major Archer says that this law is still in force. 
 
260 
 
 A BISTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 at Kamalia, in Africa, also mentioned by Park.* This cus¬ 
 tom with the Mandingoes and the Gipsies is nearly the same 
 as that observed by the ancient Hebrews, in the days of 
 Moses, mentioned in the Book of Deuteronomy. When we 
 have the manners and customs of every savage tribe hith¬ 
 erto discovered, including even the Hottentots and Abyssin- 
 ians, described, in grave publications, by adventurous travel¬ 
 lers, I can see no reason why there should not be preserved, 
 and exhibited for the inspection of the public, the manners 
 and customs of a barbarous race that have lived so long at 
 our own doors—one more interesting, in some respects, than 
 any yet discovered ; and more particularly as marriage is a 
 very important, indeed the most important, institution among 
 the inhabitants of any country, whether civilized or in a 
 state of barbarism. How much would not our antiquarians 
 now value authenticated specimens of the language, man¬ 
 ners, and customs of the ancient Pictish nation that once 
 inhabited Scotland ! 
 
 In describing the marriage ceremony of the Scottish Gip¬ 
 sies, it is scarcely possible to clothe the curious facts in 
 language fit to be perused by every reader. But I must 
 adopt the sentiment of Sir Walter Scott, as given in the 
 Introduction, and “ not be squeamish about delicacies, where 
 knowledge is to be sifted out and acquired.”! 
 
 A marriage cup, or bowl, made out of solid wood, and of 
 a capacity to contain about two Scotch pints, or about one 
 gallon, is made use of at the ceremony. After the wedding- 
 party is assembled, and everything prepared for the occa- 
 
 * “ I was soon tired,” says Park, “ and had retired into my tent. When 
 I was sitting, almost asleep, an old woman entered with a wooden bowl in 
 her hand, and signified that she had brought me a present from the bride. 
 Before I could recover from the surprise which this message created, tho 
 woman discharged the contents of the bowl full in my face. Finding that 
 it was the same sort of holy water with which, among the Hottentots, a 
 priest is said to sprinkle a new-married couple, I began to suspect that the 
 iady was actuated by mischief or malice ; but she gave me seriously to un¬ 
 derstand that it was a nuptial benediction from the bride’s own person; 
 and which, on such occasions, is always received by the young unmarried 
 Moors, as a mark of distinguished favour. This being the case, I wiped my 
 face, and sent my acknowledgment to the lady.— Park's Travels, pages 205 
 and 206. 
 
 | Whatever prudes and snobs may think of this chapter, I believe that the 
 sensible and intelligent reader will agree with me in saying, that the mar¬ 
 riage and divorce ceremonies of the Gipsies are historical gems of the most 
 antique and purest water.— Ed. 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 2C1 
 
 sion, the priest takes the bowl and gives it to the bride, 
 who passes urine into it ; it is then handed, for a similar 
 purpose, to the bridegroom. After this, the priest takes a 
 quantity of earth from the ground, and throws it into the 
 bowl, adding sometimes a quantity of brandy to the mix¬ 
 ture. He then stirs the whole together, with a spoon made 
 of a ram’s horn, and sometimes with a large ram’s horn it¬ 
 self, which he wears suspended from his neck by a string. 
 He then presents the bowl, with its contents, first to the 
 bride, and then to the bridegroom ; calling at the same 
 time upon each to separate the mixture in the bowl, if they 
 can. The young couple are then ordered to join hands 
 over the bowl containing the earth, urine, and spirits ; when 
 the priest, in an audible voice, and in the Gipsy language, 
 pronounces the parties to be husband and wife ; and as none 
 can separate the mixture in the bowl, so they, in their per¬ 
 sons, cannot be separated till death dissolves their union. 
 
 As soon as that part of the ceremony is performed, the 
 couple undress, and repair to their nuptial couch. After 
 remaining there for a considerable time, some of the most 
 confidential relatives of the married couple are admitted 
 to the apartment, as witnesses to the virginity of the bride ; 
 certain tokens being produced to the examining friends, 
 at this stage of the ceremony. If all the parties concerned 
 are satisfied, the bride receives a handsome present from the 
 friends, as a mark of their respect for her remaining chaste 
 till the hour of her marriage. This present is, in some in¬ 
 stances, a box of a particular construction.* 
 
 * On their return from church, the bride is seated at one extremity of a 
 room, with the unmarried girls by her ; the bridegroom on the right, and 
 the father and mother, or those who perform their office, on the left. The 
 male part of Ihe company stand in the corners, singing, and playing on the 
 guitar. About one o'clock, the oldest matron, accompanied by others ad¬ 
 vanced in years, conducts the bride into the bed-room, which, according to 
 the custom of Spain, is usually a small chamber, without a window, opening 
 into the general apartment. Tunc vetula, manic sud sponsce naturalibus ad- 
 motd, rnetnbranam, vulvce ori oppositam unguibus scindit et cruorem d plagd 
 fusurn linteolo txcipil. The Gitanos without make a loud noise with their 
 whistles, and the girls, striking the door, sing the following couplets, or 
 6ome other like them : 
 
 “Abra viBd la ptierta Snr. Joaquin 
 Que le voy a vifid a poner un pafiuclito 
 „ En las manos que tienen que llorar 
 
 Toditas las callis.” 
 
 The bride then returns from the chamber, accompanied by the matrons, 
 
262 
 
 A BISTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 These matters being settled on the spot, the wedded pair 
 rise from the marriage-bed, again dress themselves in their 
 finest apparel, and again join the wedding-party. The joy 
 and happiness on all sides is now excessive. There is 
 nothing to be heard or seen but fiddling and piping, dancing, 
 feasting and drinking, which are kept up, with the utmost 
 spirit and hilarity imaginable, for many hours together.* 
 
 and the new-married couple are placed upon a table, where the bride 
 dances, et coram aslantibus linteolum, intcmcrati pudoris indicium explicat ; 
 whilst the company, throwing down their presents of sweetmeats, etc., 
 dance and cry, “ Viva la honra.”— Bright, on the Spanish Gipsy marriage. 
 
 Before the marriage festival begins, four matrons—relations of the con¬ 
 tracting parties—arc appointed to scrutinize the bride; in which a hand¬ 
 kerchief, of the finest French cambric, takes a leading part. Should she 
 prove frail, she will likely be made away with, in a way that will leave no 
 trace behind. In carrying out some marriage festivals, a procession will 
 take place, led by some vile-looking fellow, bearing, on the end of a long 
 pole, the dicle and unspotted handkerchief; followed by the betrothed and 
 their nearest friends, and a rabble of Gipsies, shouting and firing, and bark¬ 
 ing of dogs. On arriving at the church, the pole, with its triumphant 
 colours, is stuck into the ground, with a loud huzza; while the train defile, 
 on either side, into the church. On returning home, the same takes place. 
 Then follows the most ludicrous and wasteful kind of revelling, which often 
 leaves the bridegroom a beggar for life.— Borrow, on the Spanish Gipsy mar¬ 
 riage. — Ed. 
 
 * The part of the marriage ceremony of the Gipsies which relates to the 
 chastity of the bride has a great resemblance to a part of the nuptial rites 
 of the Russians, and the Christians of St. John, in Mesopotamia and Chaldea. 
 Dr. Hurd says: “ When a new-married couple in Russia retire to the nup¬ 
 tial bed, an old domestic servant stands sentinel at the chamber-door. 
 Some travellers tell us that this old servant, as soon as it is proper, attends 
 nearer the bedside, to be informed of what happens. Upon the husband’s 
 declaration of his success and satisfaction, the kettle-drums and trumpets 
 proclaim the joyful news.” Among the Christians of St. John, as soon as 
 the marriage is consummated, “ both parties wait upon the bishop, and the 
 husband deposes before him that he found his wife a virgin; and then the 
 bishop marries them, puts several rings on their fingers, and baptizes them 
 
 again.A marriage with one who is discovered to have lost her 
 
 honour beforehand but very seldom, if ever, holds good.” 
 
 When speaking of the marriages of the Mandingoes, at Kamalia, about 
 600 miles in the interior of Africa, Park says: ‘‘The new-married couple 
 are always disturbed toward morning by the women, who assemble to inspect 
 the nuptial sheet, (according to the manners of the ancient Hebrews, as 
 recorded in Scripture,) and dance around it. This ceremony is thought 
 indispensably necessary, nor is the marriage considered valid without it.” 
 J‘ark’s Travels, page 399. 
 
 By the laws of Menu, the Hindoo could reject his bride, if he found her 
 not a virgin.— Sir William Jones. 
 
 [The reader will observe that the marriage ceremony of the Gipsies, 
 though barbarous, is very figurative and emphatic, and certainly moral 
 enough. To show that the Gipsies, as a people, have not been addicted 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 263 
 
 The nuptial mixture is carefully bottled up, and the bottle 
 marked with the Roman character, M. In this state, it is 
 buried in the earth, or kept in their houses or tents, and is 
 carefully preserved, as evidence of the marriage of the par¬ 
 ties. When it is buried in the fields, the husband and wife 
 to whom it belongs frequently repair to the spot, and look 
 at it, for the purpose of keeping them in remembrance of 
 their nuptial vows. Small quantities of the compound are 
 also given to individuals of the tribe, to be used for certain 
 rare purposes, such, perhaps, as pieces of the bride’s cake 
 are used for dreamiug-bread, among the natives of Scotland, 
 at the present day. 
 
 What is meant by employing earth, water, spirits, and, of 
 course, air, in this ceremony, cannot be conjectured ; unless 
 these ingredients may have some reference to the four ele¬ 
 ments of nature—fire, air, earth, and water. That of using 
 a ram’s horn, in performing the nuptial rites, has also its 
 meaning, could information be obtained concerning that 
 part of the ceremony. 
 
 This marriage ceremony is observed by the Gipsies in 
 Scotland at the present day. A man, of the name of James 
 Robertson, and a girl, of the name of Margaret Graham, 
 were married, at Lochgellie, exactly in the manner described. 
 Besides the testimony of the Gipsies themselves, it is a 
 popular tradition, wherever these people have resided in 
 Scotland, that they were all married by mixing of earth and 
 urine together in a wooden bowl. I know of a girl, of about 
 sixteen years of age, having been married in the Gipsy 
 fashion, in a kiln, at Appindull, in Perthshire. A Gipsy in¬ 
 formed me that he was at a wedding of a couple on a moor 
 near Lochgellie, and that they were married in the ancient 
 
 to the most barbarous customs, in regard to marriage, I note the following 
 very singular form of the Scottish liighlanders, which, according to Skene, 
 continued in use until a very late, period. “ This custom was termed hand- 
 fasting, and consisted in a species of contract between two chiefs, by which 
 it was agreed that the heir of one should live with the daughter of the 
 other, as her husband, for twelve months and a day. If, in that time, the 
 lady became a mother, or proved to be with child, the marriage became 
 good in law, even although no priest had performed the marriage in due 
 form ; but should there not have occurred any appearance of issue, the con¬ 
 tract was considered at an end. and each party was at liberty to marry, or 
 hand-fast, with any other.” Which fact shows that Highland chiefs, at one 
 time, would have annulled any, or all, of the laws of God, whenever it 
 would have served their purposes.—E d.] 
 
264 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Gipsy manner described. Shortly after this, a pair were 
 married near Stirling, after the custom of their ancestors. 
 In this instance, a screen, made of an old blanket, was put 
 up in the open field, to prevent the parties seeing each 
 other, while furnishing the bowl with what was necessary 
 to lawfully constitute their marriage.* The last-named 
 Gipsy further stated to me, that when two young folks of 
 the tribe agree to be married, the father of the bridegroom 
 sleeps with the bride’s mother, for three or four nights im¬ 
 mediately previous to the celebration of the marriage. 
 
 Having endeavoured to describe the ancient nuptial cere¬ 
 mony of the Scottish Gipsies, I have considered it proper to 
 give some account of an individual who acted as priest on 
 such occasions. The name of a famous celebrator of Gipsy 
 marriages, in Fifeshire, was Peter Robertson, well known, 
 towards the latter end of his days, by the name of Blind 
 Pate. Peter was a tall, lean, dark man, and wore a large 
 cocked hat, of the olden fashion, with a long staff in his 
 hand. By all accounts, he must have been a hundred years 
 of age when he died. He was frequently seen at the head 
 of from twenty to forty Gipsies, and often travelled in the 
 midst of a crowd of women. Whenever a marriage was 
 determined on, among the Lochgellie horde, or their imme¬ 
 diate connexions, Peter was immediately sent for, however 
 far distant he happened to be at the time from the parties 
 requiring his assistance, to join them in wedlock : for he 
 was the oldest member of the tribe at the time, and head of 
 the Tinklers in the district, and, as the oldest member, it 
 was his prerogative to officiate, as priest, on such occasions. 
 A friend, who obligingly sent me some anecdotes of this 
 Gipsy pi’iest, communicated to me the following facts regard¬ 
 ing him : 
 
 “ At the wedding of a favourite Brae-laird, in the shire of 
 Kinross, Peter Robertson appeared at the head of a numer- 
 
 * On reading the above ceremony to an intelligent native of Fife, he said 
 he had himself heard a Gipsy, of the name of Thomas Ogilvie, say that 
 the Tinklers were married in the way mentioned. On one occasion, when 
 a couple of respectable individuals were married, in the usual Scottish 
 Presbyterian manner, at Elie, in Fife, Ogilvie, Gipsy-like, laughed at such 
 a wedding ceremony, as being, in his estimation, no way binding on the 
 parties. He at the same time observed that, if they would come to him, 
 he would marry them in the Tinkler manner, which would make it a diffi¬ 
 cult matter to separate them again. 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 265 
 
 ous band of Tinklers, attended by twenty-four asses. He 
 was always chief and spokesman for the band. At the wed¬ 
 ding of a William Low, a multerer, at Kinross, Peter, for 
 the last time, was seen, with upwards of twenty-three asses 
 in his retinue. He had certain immunities and privileges 
 allowed him by his tribe. For one thing, he had the solo 
 profits arising from the sale of keel, used in marking sheep, 
 in the neighbouring upland districts ; and one of the asses 
 belonging to the band was always laden with this article 
 alone. Peter was also notorious as a physician, and admin¬ 
 istered to his favourites medicines of his own preparation, 
 and numbers of extraordinary cures were ascribed to his 
 superior skill. He was possessed of a number of wise say¬ 
 ings, a great many of which are still current in the country. 
 Peter Robertson was, altogether, a very shrewd and sensible 
 man, and no acts of theft were ever laid to his charge, that 
 I know of. He had, however, in his band, several females 
 who told fortunes. The ceremony of marriage which he 
 performed was the same you mentioned to me. The whole 
 contents of the bowl were stirred about with a large ram’s 
 horn, which was suspended from a string round his neck, as 
 a badge, I suppose, of his priestly office.* He attended all 
 the fairs and weddings for many miles round. The 
 Braes of Kinross were his favourite haunt; so much so 
 that, in making his settlement, and portioning his chil¬ 
 dren, he allowed them all districts, in the country round 
 
 * Two rain’s horns and two spoons, crossed, are sculptured on the tomb¬ 
 stone of William Marshall, a Gipsy chief, who, according to a writer in 
 Blackwood’s Magazine, died at the age of 120 years, and whose remains are 
 deposited in the church yard of Kirkcudbright. 
 
 A horn is the hieroglyphic of authority, power, and dignity, and is a 
 metaphor often made use of in the Scriptures. The Jews held ram’s horns 
 in great veneration, on account, it is thought, of that animal having been 
 caught in a bush by the horns, and used as a substitute, when Isaac was 
 about to be sacrificed by his father ; or, perhaps, on account of this animal 
 being first used in sacrifice. So much were rani’s horns esteemed by the 
 Israelites, that their Priests and Levites used them as trumpets, particularly 
 at the taking of Jericho. The modern Jews, when they confess their sins, 
 in our month of September, announce the ceremony by blowing a ram’s 
 horn, the sound of which, they say, drives away the Devil. In ancient 
 Egypt, and other parts of Africa, Jupiter Ammon was worshipped under the 
 figure of a ram, and to this deity one of these animals was sacrificed annu¬ 
 ally. A ram seems to have been an emblem of power in the East, from the 
 remotest ages. It would, therefore, appear that the practice of the Gipsy 
 priest “wearing a ram’s horn, suspended from a string, around his neck,” 
 must be derived from the highest antiquity. 
 
 12 
 
266 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 about, to travel in ; but he reserved the Braes of Kinross as 
 his own pendicle, and hence our favourite toast in the shire 
 of Kinross, ‘ The lasses of Blind Pate’s Pendicle.’ Besides 
 the Braes of Kinross, this Gipsy, in his sweeping verbal tes¬ 
 tament, reserved the town of Dunfermline, also, to himself, 
 ‘because,’ said lie, ‘Dunfermline was in cash, what Loch- 
 leven was in water—it never ran dry.’” A great deal of 
 booty was obtained by the Tinklers, at the large and long- 
 continued fairs which were frequently held in this populous 
 manufacturing town, in the olden times. 
 
 This Gipsy priest was uncommonly fond of a bottle of 
 good ale. Like many other celebrators of marriages, he 
 derived considerable emoluments from his office. A Gipsy 
 informed me that Robertson, on these occasions, always re¬ 
 ceived presents, such as a pair of candlesticks, or basins and 
 platters, made of pewter, and such like articles. The dis¬ 
 obedient and refractory members of his clan were chastised 
 by him at all times, on the spot, by the blows of his cudgel, 
 without regard to age or sex, or manner of striking. When 
 any serious scuffle arose among his people, in which he was 
 like to meet with resistance, he would, with vehemence, call 
 to his particular friends, “ Set my back to the wa’; ” and, 
 being thus defended in the rear, he, with his cudgel, made 
 his assailants in front smart for their rebellion. Although 
 he could not see, his daughter would give him the word of 
 command. She would call to him, “ Strike down”—“ Strike 
 laigli” (low)—Strike amawn” (athwart,)—“ Strike haunch- 
 ways,”—“ Strike shoulder-ways,” Ac. In these, we see 
 nearly all the cuts or strokes of the Hungarian sword-exer¬ 
 cise. As I have frequently mentioned, all the Gipsies were 
 regularly trained to a peculiar method of their own in hand¬ 
 ling the cudgel, in their battles. I am inclined to think that 
 part of the Hungarian sword-exercise, at present practised 
 in our cavalry, is founded upon the Gipsy manner of attack 
 and defence, including even the direct thrust to the front, 
 which the Gipsies perform with the cudgel. 
 
 Notwithstanding all that has been said of the licentious 
 manners of the Scottish Gipsies, I am convinced that the 
 slightest infidelity, on the part of their wives, would be pun¬ 
 ished with the utmost severity. 1 am assured that nothing 
 can put a Gipsy into so complete a rage as to impute incon¬ 
 tinence to his wife. In India, the Gipsy men “ are extremely 
 
Jfsl/ t'y ^ 
 
 MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 20 ? 
 
 jealous of their wives, who arc kept in strict subservance, 
 and are in danger of corporeal punishment, or absolute dis¬ 
 missal, if they happen to displease them.''* The Gipsies are 
 complete Tartars in matters of this kind.r 
 
 But in the best-regulated society—in the most virtuous of 
 families—the sundering of the marriff^e-tie is often unavoid¬ 
 able, even under the most heinous of circumstances. And it 
 is not to be expected that the Gipsies should be exempted 
 from the lot common to humanity, under whatever circum¬ 
 stances it may be placed. The separation of husband and 
 wife is, with them, a very serious and melancholy affair—an 
 event greatly to be lamented, while the ceremony is attended 
 with much grief and mourning, blood having to be shed, and 
 life taken, on the occasion. 
 
 It would be a conclusion naturally to be drawn from the 
 circumstance of the Gipsies having so singular a marriage 
 ceremony, that they should have its concomitant in as singu¬ 
 lar a ceremony of divorce. The first recourse to which a 
 savage would naturally resort, in giving vent to his indigna¬ 
 tion, and obtaining satisfaction for the infidelity of the fe¬ 
 male, (assuming that savages are always susceptible of such 
 a feeling,) would be to despatch her on the spot. But the 
 principle of expiation, in the person of a dumb creature, for 
 offences committed against the Deity, has, from the very 
 creation of the world, been so universal among mankind, 
 that it would not be wondered at if it should have been ap¬ 
 plied for the atonement of offences committed against each 
 other, and nowhere so much so as in the East—the land of 
 figure and allegory. The practice obtains with the Gipsies 
 in the matter of divorce, for they lay upon the head of that 
 noble animal, the horse, the sins of their offending sister, 
 and generally let her go free. But, it may be asked, how 
 has this sacrifice of the horse never been mentioned in Scot¬ 
 land before? The same question applies equally well to 
 their language, and marriage ceremony, yet we know that 
 both of these exist at the present day. The fact is, the Gip¬ 
 sies have hitherto been so completely despised, and held in 
 such thorough contempt, that few ever thought of, or would 
 
 * Edinburgh Encyclopedia, yol. x. 
 
 f Mr. Borrow bears very positive testimony to the personal virtue of 
 Gipsy females. I have heard natives of Hungary speak lightly of them in 
 that respect; but I conclude that they alluded to exceptions to the general 
 rule among the race.—E d. 
 
268 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 venture to make enquiries of them relative to, their ancient 
 customs and manners ; and that, when any of their cere¬ 
 monies were actually observed by the people at large, they 
 were looked upon as the mere frolics, the unmeaning and 
 extravagant practices, of a race of beggarly thieves and vag¬ 
 abonds, unworthy of the slightest attention or credit.* In 
 whatever country the Gipsies have appeared, they have al¬ 
 ways been remarkable for an extraordinary attachment to 
 the horse. The use which they make of this animal, in sacri¬ 
 fice, will sufficiently account, in one way at least, for this 
 peculiar feature in their character. Many of the horses 
 which have been stolen by them, since their arrival in Eu¬ 
 rope, I am convinced, have been used in parting with their 
 wives, an important religious ceremony—or at least a cus¬ 
 tom—which they would long remember and practise.f 
 
 It is the general opinion, founded chiefly upon the affinity 
 of language, that this singular people migrated from Hin- 
 dostan. None of the authors on the Gipsies, however, that 
 I am aware of, have, in their researches, been able to dis¬ 
 cover, among the tribe, any customs of a religious nature, 
 by which their religious notions and ceremonies, at the time 
 they entered Europe, could be ascertained. Indeed, the 
 learned and industrious Grellmann expressly states that the 
 Gipsies did not bring any particular religion with them, 
 from their native country, by which they could be distin¬ 
 guished from other people. The Gipsy sacrifice of the horse, 
 at parting with their wives, however, appears to be a 
 remnant of the great Hindoo religious sacrifice of the As- 
 wamedha, or Assummeed Jugg, observed by all the four 
 principal castes in India, enumerated in the Gentoo code of 
 laws, translated from the Persian copy, by Nathaniel Bras- 
 sey Halhed, and is proof, besides the similarity of language, 
 
 * What our author says, relative to the sacrifice of the horse, by the Gip¬ 
 sies, not being known to the people of Scotland at large, is equally applica¬ 
 ble to the entire subject of the tribe. And we see here how admirably the 
 passions—in this case, the prejudice and incredulity—of mankind are cal¬ 
 culated to blind them to facts, perhaps to facts the most obvious and incon- 
 testible. What is stated of the Gipsies in this work, generally, should be 
 no matter of wonder ; the real wonder, if wonder there should be, is that it 
 should not have been known to the world before.— Ed. 
 
 j- Grellmann says, of the Hungarian Gipsies, “ The greatest luxury to 
 them is when they can procure a roast of cattle that have died of any dis¬ 
 temper, whether it be sheep, pig, cow, or other beast, a horse only ex¬ 
 celled .”— Ed. 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 2G9 
 
 that the Gipsies are from Hindostan. Before the Gentoo 
 code of laws came into my hands, I was inclined to believe 
 that this ceremony of sacrificing horses might be a Tartar 
 custom, as the ancient Pagan tribes of Tartary also sacrificed 
 horses, on certain occasions ; and my conjectures were coun¬ 
 tenanced by the Gipsy and Tartar ceremonies being some¬ 
 what similar in their details. Indeed, in Sweden and 
 Denmark, and in some parts of Germany, the Gipsies, as I 
 have already stated, obtained the name of Tartars. “They 
 were not allowed the privilege of remaining unmolested in 
 Denmark, as the code of Danish laws specifies : The Tartar 
 Gipsies, who wander about everywhere, doing great damage 
 to the people, by their lies, thefts, and witchcraft, shall be 
 taken into custody by every magistrate.” And it also ap¬ 
 pears, according to Grellmann, that the Gipsies sometimes 
 called themselves Tartars. If it was observed, on the con¬ 
 tinent, that they sacrificed horses, a custom very common at 
 one time among the Tartars, their supposed Tartar origin 
 would appear to have had some foundation. The Tartar 
 princes seem to have ratified and confirmed their military 
 leagues by sacrificing horses and drinking of a running 
 stream ; and we find our Scottish Gipsies dissolving their 
 matrimonial alliances by the solemn sacrifice of the same 
 animal, while some Gipsies state that horses were also, at 
 one time, sacrificed at their marriage ceremonies. At these 
 sacrifices of the Scottish Gipsies, no Deity—no invisible 
 agency—appears, as far as I am informed, to have been in¬ 
 voked by the sacrificers. 
 
 I have alluded to this custom of the Tartars, more partic¬ 
 ularly, to show that the Gipsies are not the only people 
 who have sacrificed horses. The ancient Hindoos, as already 
 stated, sacrificed horses. The Greeks did the same to Nep¬ 
 tune ; the ancient Scandinavians to their god, Assa-Thor, 
 the representative of the sun ; and the Persians, likewise, to 
 the sun.* But I am inclined to believe that the Gipsy sacri¬ 
 fice of the horse is the remains of the great Assurnrrveed Jugg 
 of the Hindoos, observed by tribes of greater antiquity than 
 
 * It appears that the Jews, when they lapsed into the grossest idolatry, 
 dedicated horses to the sun. “And he (Josiah) took away the horses that 
 the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of 
 the Lord, by the chamber of Nathan melech, the chamberlain, which was in 
 the suburbs, and burnt the chariots of the sun with tire ” Id Kings, xxiii. 11. 
 
270 
 
 A ms TORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the modern nations of India, as appears by the Gentoo code 
 of laws already referred to. 
 
 The sacrificing of horses is a curious as well as a leading 
 and important fact in the history of the Gipsies, and, as far 
 as I know, is new to the world. I shall, in establishing its 
 existence among the Scottish Gipsies, produce my authorities 
 with my details. 
 
 In the first place, it was, and I believe it still is, a general 
 tradition, over almost all Scotland, that, when the Tinklers 
 parted from their wives, the act of separation took place 
 over the carcass of a dead horse. In respect to McDonald’s 
 case, alluded to under the head of Linlithgowshire Gipsies, 
 my informant, Mr. Alexander Ramsay, late an officer of the 
 Excise, a very respectable man, who died in 1819, at the age 
 of 74 years, stated to me that he saw McDonald and his 
 wife separated over the body of a dead horse, on a moor, at 
 Shieldhill, near Falkirk, either in the year 1758 or 1760, he 
 was uncertain which. The horse was laying stretched out 
 on the heath. The parties took hold of each other by the 
 hand, and, commencing at the head of the dead animal, 
 walked—the husband on one side, and the wife on the other 
 —till they came to the tail, when, without speaking a word 
 to each other, they parted, in opposite directions, as if pro¬ 
 ceeding on a journey. Mr. Ramsay said he never could 
 forget the violent swing which McDonald gave his wife at 
 parting. The time of the day was a little after day-break. 
 My informant, at the time, was going, with others, to Shield- 
 hill for coals, and happened to be passing over a piece of 
 rising ground, when they came close upon the Gipsies, in a 
 hollow, quite unexpectedly to both parties. 
 
 Another aged man of credibility, of the name of James 
 Wilson, at North Queensferry, also informed me that it was 
 within his own knowledge, that a Gipsy, of the name of John 
 Lundie, divorced four wives over dead horses, in the manner 
 described. Wilson further mentioned that, when Gipsies 
 were once regularly separated over a dead horse, they could 
 never again be united in wedlock ; and that, unless they 
 were divorced in this manner, all the children which the 
 female might have, subsequently to any other mode of sepa¬ 
 ration, the husband was obliged to support. In fact, the 
 transaction was not legal, according to the Gipsy usages, 
 without the horse. The facts of Lundie, and another Gipsy, 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 271 
 
 of the name of Drummond, having divorced many wives 
 over dead horses, have been confirmed to me by several 
 aged individuals who knew them personally. One intelli¬ 
 gent gentleman, Mr. Richard Baird, informed me that, in his 
 youth, he actually saw John Lundie separated from one of 
 his wives over a dead horse, in the parish of Carridcn, near 
 Bo’ness. My father, who died in 1837, at the age of nearly 
 83 years, also stated that it was quite current, in Tweed-dale, 
 that Mary Yorkston, wife of Matthew Baillie, the Gipsy 
 chief, parted married couples of her tribe over dead horses. 
 
 About ten years after receiving the above information, 
 Malcolm’s Anecdotes of the Manners and Customs of Lon¬ 
 don came into my hands; wherein I found the following 
 quotations, from a work published in 1674, describing the 
 different classes of impostors at that period in England : 
 “ Patricos,” says this old author, “ are strolling priests; 
 every hedge is their parish, and every wandering rogue 
 their parishioner. The service, he saith, is the marrying of 
 couples, without the Gospels or Book of Common Prayer ; 
 the solemnity whereof is this: The parties to be married 
 find out a dead horse, or other beast; standing, one on the 
 one side, and the other on the other, the Patrico bids them 
 live together till death part them ; so, shaking hands, the 
 wedding is ended.” Now the parties here described seem 
 to have been no other than Gipsies. But it also appears 
 that the ceremony alluded to is that of dissolving a mar¬ 
 riage, and not that of celebrating it. It is proper, however, 
 to mention, as I have already done, that horses, at one time, 
 were sacrificed at their marriages, as well as at their di¬ 
 vorces. 
 
 Feeling now quite satisfied that Gipsies wei-e, at one 
 time, actually separated over the bodies of dead horses, and 
 horses only, (for I could find no other animal named but 
 horses,) I proceeded to have the fact confirmed by the direct 
 testimony of the people themselves. And whether these 
 horses were sacrificed expressly for such purposes, or whether 
 the rites were performed over horses accidentally found 
 dead, I could not discover till the year 1828. It occurred 
 to me that the using of dead horses, in separating man and 
 wife, was a remnant of some ancient ceremony, which induced 
 me to persevere in my enquiries, for the purpose of ascer¬ 
 taining, if not the origin, at least the particulars, of so ex- 
 
272 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 traordinary a custom. In the year mentioned, and in the 
 year following, I examined a Gipsy on the subject; a man 
 of about sixty years of age, who, a few years before, had 
 given me a specimen of his language. He said that he him¬ 
 self had witnessed the sacrifices and ceremonies attending 
 the separation of husband and wife. From this man I re¬ 
 ceived the following curious particulars relative to the sacri¬ 
 fice of horses and ceremony of divorce ; which I think may 
 be depended on, as I was very careful in observing that his 
 statements, taken down at four different times, agreed with 
 each other. 
 
 When the parties can no longer live together as husband 
 and wife, and a separation for ever is finally determined on, 
 a horse, without blemish, and in no manner of way lame, is 
 led forth to the spot for performing the ceremony of divorce. 
 The hour at which the rites must be performed is, if possible, 
 twelve o’clock at noon, “ when the sun is at his height.”* 
 Tlfe Gipsies'present cast lots for the individual who is to 
 sacrifice the animal, and whom they call the priest, for the 
 time. The priest, with a long pole or staff in his hand,+ 
 V walks round and round the animal several times ; repeating 
 the names of all the persons in whose possession it has been, 
 and extolling and expatiating on the rare qualities of so use¬ 
 ful an animal. It is now let loose, and driven from their 
 presence, to do whatever it pleases. The horse, perfect and 
 free, is put in the room of the woman who is to be divorced ; 
 
 * This Gipsy mentioned one particular instance of having seen a couple 
 separated in this way, on a wild moor, near Huntly, about the year 1805. 
 He particularly stated that a horse found dead would not do for a separa¬ 
 tion, but that one must be hilled for the express purpose; and that “the 
 sun must be at his height” before the horse could be properly sacrificed. 
 From the fact of Ramsay stumbling upon the Gipsies “ a little after day¬ 
 break,” it would seem that circumstances had compelled them to change 
 the time, or adjourn the completion, of the sacrifice; or that the extreme 
 wildness of the victim had prevented its being caught, and so led to the 
 “ violent swing which McDonald gave his wife at parting.” And it might 
 be that Ramsay had come upon them when McDonald and his wife were 
 performing the last part of the ceremony, or had caused them to finish it 
 abruptly; as the old Gipsy stated that not only are none but Gipsies 
 allowed to be present on such occasions, but that the greatest secrecy is 
 observed, to prevent discovery by those who are not of the tribe. 
 
 f It appears all the Gipsies, male as well as female, who perform cere¬ 
 monies for tlieir tribe, carry long staffs. In the Institutes of Menu, page 
 23, it is written: “ The staff of a priest must be of such length as to reach 
 bis hair ; that of a soldier to reach his forehead; and that of a merchant 
 to reach the nose.” 
 
h 
 
 tL )Q' y/ ' / t 
 
 MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 273 
 
 and by its different movements is the degree of her guilt 
 ascertained. Some of the Gipsies now sot off in pursuit of 
 it, and endeavour to catch it. If it is wild and intractable, 
 kicks, leaps dykes and ditches, scampers about, and will not 
 allow itself to be easily taken hold of, the crimes and guilt 
 of the woman are looked upon as numerous and heinous. If 
 the horse is tame and docile, when it is pursued, and suffers 
 itself to be taken without much trouble, and without exhibit¬ 
 ing many capers, the guilt of the woman is not considered 
 so deep and aggravated; and it is then sacrificed in her 
 stead. But if it is extremely wild and vicious, and cannot 
 be taken without infinite trouble, her crimes are considered 
 exceedingly wicked and atrocious ; and my informant said 
 instances occurred in which both horse and woman were 
 sacrificed at the same time ; the death of the horse, alone, 
 being then considered insufficient to atone for her excessive 
 guilt. The individuals who catch the horse bring it before 
 the priest. They repeat to him all the faults and tricks it 
 had committed ; laying the whole of the crimes of which 
 the woman is supposed to have been guilty to its charge ; 
 and upbraiding and scolding the dumb creature, in an angry 
 manner, for its conduct. They bring, as it were, an accusa¬ 
 tion against it, and plead for its condemnation. When this 
 part of the trial is finished, the priest takes a large knife 
 and thrusts it into the heart of the horse ; and its blood is 
 allowed to flow upon the ground till life is extinct. The 
 dead animal is now stretched out upon the ground. The 
 husband then takes his stand on one side of it, and the wife 
 on the other ; and, holding each other by the hand, repeat 
 certain appropriate sentences in the Gipsy language. They 
 then quit hold of each other, and walk three times round the 
 body of the horse, contrariwise, passing and crossing each 
 other, at certain points, as they proceed in opposite directions. 
 At certain parts of the animal, (the corners of the horse, was 
 the Gipsy’s expression,) such as the hind and fore feet, the 
 shoulders and haunches, the head and tail, the parties halt, 
 and face each other; and again repeat sentences, in their 
 own speech, at each time they halt. The two last stops they 
 make, in their circuit round the sacrifice, are at the head and 
 tail. At the head, they again face each other, and speak ; 
 and lastly, at the tail, they again confront each other, utter 
 some more Gipsy expressions, shake hands, and finally part, 
 12 * 
 
274 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the one going north, the other south, never again to be 
 united in this life:* Immediately after the separation takes 
 place, the woman receives a token, which is made of cast- 
 iron, about an inch and a half square, with a mark upon it 
 resembling the Roman character, T. After the marriage has 
 been dissolved, and the woman dismissed from the sacrifice, 
 the heart of the horse is taken out and roasted with fire, 
 then sprinkled with vinegar, or brandy, and eaten by the 
 husband and his friends then present; the female not being 
 allowed to join in this part of the ceremony. The body of 
 the horse, skin and everything about it, except the heart, is 
 buried on the spot; and years after the ceremony has taken 
 place, the husband and his friends visit the grave of the 
 animal, to sec whether it has been disturbed. At tlieso 
 visits, they walk round about the grave, with much grief and 
 mourning. 
 
 The husband may take another wife whenever he pleases, 
 but the female is never permitted to marry again.f The 
 token, or rather bill of divorce, which she receives, must 
 never be from about her person. If she loses it, or attempts 
 to pass herself off as a woman never before married, she 
 becomes liable to the punishment of death. In the event of 
 her breaking this law, a council of the chiefs is held upon 
 her conduct, and her fate is decided by a majority of the 
 members ; and, if she is to suffer death, her sentence must 
 be confirmed by the king, or principal leader. The culprit 
 is then tied to a stake, with an iron chain, and there cudgel¬ 
 led to death. The executioners do not extinguish life at one 
 beating, but leave the unhappy woman for a little while, and 
 return to her, and at last complete their work by despatch¬ 
 ing her on the spot. 
 
 I have been informed of an instance of a Gipsy falling out 
 with his wife, and, in the heat of his passion, shooting his 
 own horse dead on the spot with his pistol, and forthwith 
 
 * That I might distinctly understand the Gipsy, when he described the 
 manner of crossing and wheeling round the corners of the horse, a common 
 sitting-chair was placed on its side between us, which represented the 
 animal lying on the ground. 
 
 f'Bright, on the Spanish Gipsies, says : “ Widows never marry again, 
 and are distinguished by mourning-veils, and black shoes made like those 
 of a man; no slight mortification, in a country where the females are so re¬ 
 markable for the beauty of their feet.” It is most likely that divorced fe¬ 
 male Gipsies are confounded here with widows .— Ed. 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 275 
 
 performing the ceremony of divorce over the animal, with¬ 
 out allowing himself a moment’s time for reflection on the 
 subject. Some of the country-people observed the transac¬ 
 tion, and were horrified at so extraordinary a proceeding. 
 It was considered by them as merely a mad frolic of an en¬ 
 raged Tinkler. It took place many years ago, in a wild, se¬ 
 questered spot between Galloway and Ayrshire. 
 
 This sacrifice of the horse is also observed by the Gipsies 
 of the Russian Empire. In the year 1830, a Russian gentle¬ 
 man of observation and intelligence, proprietor of estates on 
 the banks of the Don, stated to me that the Gipsies in the 
 neighbourhood of Moscow, and on the Don, several hundred 
 versts from the sea of Asoph, sacrificed horses, and ate part 
 of their flesh, in the performance of some very ancient cere¬ 
 mony of idolatry. They sacrifice them under night, in the 
 woods, as the practice is prohibited by the Russian Govern¬ 
 ment. The police are often detecting the Gipsies in these 
 sacrifices, and the ceremony is kept as secret as possible. 
 My informant could not go into the particulars of the Gipsy 
 sacrifice in Russia ; but there is little doubt that it is the 
 same which the tribe performed in Scotland. In Russia, the 
 Gipsies, like those in this country, have a language peculiar 
 to themselves, which they retain as a secret among their own 
 fraternity. 
 
 As regards the sacrificing of horses by the Gipsies of 
 Scotland, at the present day, all that I can say is that I do 
 not know of its taking place ; nor has it been denied to me. 
 The only conclusion to which I can come, in regard to the 
 question, is that it is in the highest degree probable that, 
 like their language and ceremony of marriage, it is still 
 practised when it can be done. In carrying out this cere¬ 
 mony, there is an obstacle to be overcome which does not 
 lay in the way of that of marriage, and it is this : Where are 
 many of the Tinklers to find a horse, over which they can 
 obtain a divorce? The difficulty with them is as great as 
 it is with the people of England, who must, at a frightful 
 expense, go to no less than the House of Lords to obtain an 
 act to separate legally from their unfaithful partners* The 
 Gipsies, besides being generally unable or unwilling to bear 
 the expense of what will procure them a release in their own 
 way, find it a difficult matter, in these days, to steal, carry off, 
 * This difficulty has been removed by recent legislation.—E d. 
 
276 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 and dispose of such a bulky article as a horse, in the sacri¬ 
 fice of which they will find a new wife. I am not aware 
 how they get quit of this solemn and serious difficulty, be¬ 
 yond this, that a Gipsy, a native of Yetholm, informed me 
 that some of his brethren in that colony knock down their 
 asses, for the purpose of parting with their wives, at the pres¬ 
 ent day.* • 
 
 As the code of the ancient laws of Hindostan is not in 
 the hands of every one, I shall here transcribe from the 
 work the account of the. Gentoo Institution of the Astva- 
 medha or the Assummeed Jugg, t that the reader may com¬ 
 pare it with the Gipsy sacrifice of horses ; for which, owing 
 to its length, I must crave his indulgence. It is under the 
 chapter of evidence, and is as follows : 
 
 “An Assummeed Jugg is when a person, having com¬ 
 menced a Jugg, writes various articles upon a scroll of 
 paper on a horse’s neck, and dismisses the horse, sending, 
 along with the horse, a stout and valiant person, equipped 
 with the best necessaries and accoutrements, to accompany 
 the horse day and night, whithersoever he shall choose to 
 go ; and if any creature, either man, genius or dragon, 
 should seize the horse, that man opposes such attempt, and, 
 having gained the victory, upon a battle, again gives the 
 horse his freedom. If any one in this world, or in heaven, 
 or beneath the earth, would seize this horse, and the horse 
 of himself comes to the house of the celebrator of the Jugg, 
 upon killing that horse, he must throw the flesh of him upon 
 the fire of the Julc, and utter the prayers of his Deity ; such a 
 Jugg is called a Jugg Assummeed , and the merit of it, as 
 a religious work, is infinite.” Page 127. 
 
 In another part of the same chapter of the Hindoo code 
 of laws, are the following particulars relative to horses, 
 which show the great respect in which these animals were 
 held among the ancient natives of Hindostan. “ In an affair 
 concerning a horse : if any person gives false evidence, his 
 guilt is as great as the guilt of murdering one hundred per¬ 
 sons.” Page 128. In the Asiatic Researches, the sacrifice 
 
 * “ An ass is sometimes sacrificed by religious mendicants, as an atone¬ 
 ment for some fault by which they had forfeited their rank as devotees.”— 
 A ccount of the Hindoos. 
 
 f Jugg, in Hindostanee, i9 a word which signifies a religious ceremony; 
 hence thp well-kno\yn temple Juggernaut. 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 277 
 
 of the horse is frequently noticed ; and in Sir William 
 Jones’ Institutes of Menu, chapter viii.,page 202, it is said : 
 “ A false witness, in the case of a horse, kills, or incurs the 
 guilt of killing, one hundred kinsmen.” “ The Aswamedha , 
 or sacriiice of the horse : Considerable difficulties usually 
 attend that ceremony ; for the consecrated horse was to be 
 set at liberty for a certain time, and followed at a distance 
 by the owner, or his champion, who was usually one of his 
 near kinsmen ; and if any person should attempt to stop it 
 in its rambles, a battle must inevitably ensue ; besides, as 
 the performer of an hundred Aswamedhas became equal to 
 the god of the firmaments.” ( Asiatic Researches, vol. iii., 
 •page 216.) “ The inauguration of Indra, (the Indian God of 
 the firmaments,) it appears, was performed by sacrificing an 
 hundred horses. It is imagined that this celebration be¬ 
 comes a cause of obtaining great power and universal mon¬ 
 archy ; and many of the kings in ancient India performed 
 this sacrifice at their inauguration, similar to that of In- 
 dra’s.” “ These monarchs were consecrated by these great 
 sacrifices, with a view to become universal conquerors.” 
 {Asiatic Researches.) It appears, by the Hindoo mythology, 
 that Indra was at one time a mere mortal, but by sacrificing 
 an hundred horses, he became sovereign of the firmament ; 
 and that should any Indian monarch succeed in immolating an 
 hundred horses, he would displace Indra. 
 
 The above are literal and simple facts, which took place 
 in performing the sacrifice ; but the following is the explan¬ 
 ation of the mystic signification contained in the ceremony. 
 
 “The Assummeed Jugg does not merely consist in the 
 performance of that ceremony which is open to the inspec¬ 
 tion of the world, namely, in bringing a horse, and sacrific¬ 
 ing him ; but Assummeed is to be taken in a mystic signifi¬ 
 cation, as implying that the sacrificer must look upon himself 
 to be typified in that horse, such as he shall be described ; 
 because the religious duty of the Assummeed Jugg compre¬ 
 hends all those other religious duties, to the performance of 
 which all the wise and holy direct all their actions ; and by 
 which all the sincere professors of every different faith aim 
 at perfection. The mystic signification thereof is as fol¬ 
 lows : The head of that unblemished horse is the symbol 
 of the morning ; his eyes are the sun; his breath the wind ; 
 his wide-opening mouth is the Bishwdner, or that innate 
 
278 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 warmth which invigorates all the world ; his body typifies 
 one entire year ; his back, paradise ; his belly, the plains ; 
 his hoof, this earth ; his sides, the four quarters of the hea¬ 
 vens ; the bones thereof, the intermediate spaces between 
 the four quarters ; the rest of his limbs represent all distinct 
 matter ; the places where those limbs meet, or his joints, imply 
 the months, and halves of the months, which are called Peche 
 (or fortnights); his feet signify night and day ; and night and 
 day are of four kinds ; first, the night and day of Brihma ; 
 second, the night and day of angels ; third, the night and day 
 of the world of the spirits of deceased ancestors ; fourth, the 
 night and day of mortals. These four kinds are typified in 
 his four feet. The rest of his bones are the constellations 
 of the fixed stars, which are the twenty-eight stages of the 
 moon’s course, called the lunar year ; his flesh is the clouds ; 
 his food the sand ; his tendons the rivers ; his spleen and 
 liver the mountains ; the hair of his body the vegetables, 
 and his long hair the trees. The fore part of his body typi¬ 
 fies the first half of the day, and the hinder part the latter 
 half; his yawning is the flash of the lightning, and his 
 turning himself is the thunder of the cloud ; his urine rep¬ 
 resents the rain ; and his mental reflection is his only 
 speech. 
 
 “The golden vessels, which are prepared before the horse 
 is let loose, are the light of the day ; and the place where 
 these vessels are kept is a type of the ocean of the East; 
 the silver vessels, which are prepared after the horse is let 
 loose, are the light of the night; and the place where those 
 vessels are kept is a type of the ocean of the West. These 
 two sorts of vessels are always before arid after the horse. 
 The Arabian horse, which, on account of his swiftness, is 
 called JJy, is the performer of the journeys of angels ; the 
 Tdjee , which is of the race of Persian horses, is the per¬ 
 former of the journeys of the Kundherps (or the good spirits); 
 the Wdzbd, which is of the race of the deformed Tdjee 
 horses, is the performer of the journeys of Jins (or demons); 
 and the Ashoo , which is of the race of Turkish horses, is 
 the performer of the journeys of mankind. This one horse 
 which performs these several services, on account of his 
 four different sorts of riders, obtains the four different ap- 
 pellati 3 ns. The place where this horse remains is the great 
 ocean, which signifies the great spirit of Perm-atmd, or the 
 
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE CEREMONIES. 
 
 279 
 
 universal soul, which proceeds also from that Ferm-atmdi 
 and is comprehended in the same Pcrm-atma. 
 
 “ The intent of this sacrifice is, that a man should con¬ 
 sider himself to be in the place of that horse, and look upon 
 all these articles as typified in himself; and conceiving the 
 Atmd (or divine soul) to be an ocean, should let all thought 
 of self be absorbed in that Atvid.” Page 19. 
 
 Mr. Halhed, the translator,justly observes : “This is the 
 very acme and enthusiasm of allegory, and wonderfully dis¬ 
 plays the picturesque powers of fancy in an Asiatic genius ; 
 yet, unnatural as the account there stands, it is seriously 
 credited by the Hindoos of all denominations.” On the 
 other hand, he thinks there is a great resemblance between 
 this very ancient Hindoo ceremony and the sacrifice of the 
 scape-goat, in the Bible, described in the 21st and 22d 
 verses of the 16th chapter of Leviticus, viz.: “ And Aaron 
 shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and 
 confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, 
 and all their transgressions, in all their sins, putting them 
 upon the head of the goat; and shall send him away, by the 
 hand of a fit man, into the wilderness : and the goat shall 
 bear upon him all their iniquities into a land not inhabited ; 
 and he shall let go the goat into the wilderness.” Page 17. 
 In the same manner, all the iniquities of the sacrificer, in 
 the Gentoo ceremony, are laid upon the horse, which is let 
 loose, and attended by a stout and valiant person. The 
 same is done in the Gipsy sacrifice, as typifying the woman 
 to be divorced. 
 
 The resemblance between the Gipsy and the Hindoo sac¬ 
 rifice is close and striking in their general bearings. The 
 Hindoo sacrificer is typified in the horse, and his sins are 
 ascertained and described by the motions or movements of 
 the animal ; for if the horse is very docile and tame, and of 
 its own accord comes to the Hindoo celebrator of the sacri¬ 
 fice, his merits are then infinite, and extremely acceptable to 
 the Deity worshipped. In the Gipsy sacrifice, if the horse 
 is in like manner quiet, and easily caught, the woman, whom 
 it represents, is then comparatively innocent. In India, part 
 of the flesh of the horse was eaten : among the Gipsies, the 
 heart is eaten. The Hindoos sacrificed their enemies, by 
 substituting for them a buffalo, &c.: the Gipsies sacrifice 
 their unfaithful wives, by the substitute of a horse. In the 
 
280 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Hindoo sacrifice, particular parts of the horse allegorically 
 represent certain parts of the earth : at certain parts of the 
 horse, (the corners^?, the Gipsies call them,) the Gipsies, in 
 their circuit round the animal, halt, and utter particular 
 sentences in their own language, as if these parts were of 
 more importance, and had more influence, than the other 
 parts. And it is probable that, in these sentences, some in¬ 
 visible agency was addressed and invoked by the Gipsies. 
 
 As the Aswamedha, or sacrifice of the horse, was the most 
 important of all the religious ceremonies of every caste of 
 Hindoos, in ancient India, so it would be the last to be for¬ 
 gotten by the wandering Gipsies. And as both sacrificed at 
 twelve o’clock, noon, I am inclined to believe that both of¬ 
 fered their sacrifice to the sun, the animating soul of univer¬ 
 sal nature. As already stated, the Gipsies, while travelling, 
 assume new names every morning before setting out; but 
 when noon-tide arrives, they resume their permanent English 
 ones. This custom is practised daily, and has undoubtedly 
 also some reference to the sun. By the account of the Gipsy 
 already mentioned, the horse must, if possible, be killed at 
 noon. According to Southey, in his curse of Kehamah, the 
 sacrifice of the horse in India was performed at the same 
 time. Colonel Tod, in his history of India, says : “ The 
 sacrifice of the horse is the most imposing, and the earliest, 
 heathenish rite on record, and was dedicated to the sun, an¬ 
 ciently, in India.” According to the same author, the horse 
 in India must be milk-white, with particular marks upon it. 
 The Gipsy’s horse to be sacrificed must be sound, and with¬ 
 out blemish ; but no particular colour is mentioned. Ac¬ 
 cording to Halhed, the horse sacrificed in India was also 
 without blemish. 
 
 I have, perhaps, been too minute and tedious in describing 
 these rites and ceremonies of the Gentoos ; but the singular 
 fact that our Scottish Tinklers yet—at least till very lately— 
 retained the important fragments of the ancient mythology 
 of the Pagan tribes of Hindostan, is offered as an apology to 
 the curious reader for the trouble of perusing the details. I 
 shall only add, that there appears to be nearly as great a 
 resemblance between the sacrifices of the Gipsies and the 
 ancient Hindoos, as there is affinity between modern Hin- 
 dostanee and the language of the Gipsies in Scotland, at the 
 present day, as will be seen in the following chapter. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 LANGUAGE. 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies appear to be extremely tenacious of 
 retaining their language, as their principal secret, among 
 themselves, and seem, from what I have read on the subject, 
 to be much less communicative, on this and other matters 
 relative to their history, than those of England and other 
 countries. On speaking to them of their speech, they ex¬ 
 hibit an extraordinary degree of fear, caution, reluctance, 
 distrust, and suspicion ; and, rather than' give any informa¬ 
 tion on the subject, will submit to any self-denial. It has 
 been so well retained among themselves, that I believe it is 
 scarcely credited, even by individuals of the greatest intel¬ 
 ligence, that it exists at all, at the present day, but as slang, 
 used by common thieves, house-breakers and beggars, and 
 by those denominated flash and family men.* 
 
 * Before considering this trait in the character of the Scottish Gipsies, 
 it may interest the reader to know that the same peculiarity obtains among 
 those on the continent. 
 
 Of the Hungarian Gipsies, Grellmann writes: “ It will be recollected, from 
 the first, how great a secret they make of their language, and how sus¬ 
 picious they appear when any person wishes to learn a few words of it. 
 Even if the Gipsy is not perverse, he is very inattentive, and is conse¬ 
 quently likely to answer some other rather than the true Gipsy word.” 
 
 Of the Hungarian Gipsies, Bright says: “No one, who has not had ex¬ 
 perience, can conceive the difficulty of gaining intelligible information, from 
 people so rude, upon the subject of their language. If you ask for a word, 
 they give you a whole sentence; and on asking a second time, they give 
 the sentence a totally different turn, or introduce some figure altogether 
 new. Thus it was with our Gipsy, who. at length, tired of our questions, 
 prayed most piteously to be released; which we granted him, only on con¬ 
 dition of his returning in the evening.” 
 
 Of the Spanish Gipsies, Mr. Borrow writes: “ It is only by listening 
 attentively to the speech of the Gitanos, whilst discoursing among them¬ 
 selves, that an acquaintance with their dialect can be formed, and by seizing 
 upon all unknown words, as they fall in succession from their lips. Noth¬ 
 ing can be more useless and hopeless than the attempt to obtain possession 
 
 ( 281 ) 
 
282 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Among the causes contributing to this state of things 
 among the ^Scottish Gipsies, and what are called Tink¬ 
 lers or Tinkers, IbT 'tliey are the same people, may be men¬ 
 tioned the following : The traditional accounts of the nu¬ 
 merous imprisonments, banishments, and executions, which 
 many of the race underwent, for merely being “by habit 
 and repute Gipsies,” under the severe laws passed against 
 them, are still fresh in the memories of the present genera¬ 
 tion. They still entertain the idea that they are a perse¬ 
 cuted race, and liable, if known to be Gipsies, to all the 
 penalties of the statutes framed for the extirpation of the 
 whole people. But, apart from this view of the question, 
 it may be asked, how is it that the Gipsies in Scotland are 
 more reserved, (they are generally altogether silent,) in re¬ 
 spect to themselves, than their brethren in other countries 
 seem to be? It may be answered, that our Scottish tribes 
 
 of their vocabulary, by enquiring of them how particular objects and ideas 
 ore styled in the same; for, with the exception of the names of the most 
 common things, they are totally incapable, as a Spanish writer has observed, 
 of yielding the required information; owing to their great ignorance, the 
 shortness of their memories, or, rather, the state of bewilderment to which 
 their minds are brought by any question which'tends to bring their reason¬ 
 ing faculties into action ; though, not unfrequently, the very words which 
 have been in vain required of them will, a minute subsequently, proceed 
 inadvertently from their mouths.” 
 
 What has been said by the two last-named writers is very wide of the 
 mark; Grellmann, however, hits it exactly. The Gipsies have excellent memo¬ 
 ries. It is all they have to depend on. If they had not good memories, how 
 could they, at the present day, speak a word of their language at all ? The 
 difficulty in question is down-right shuffling, and not a want of memory on 
 the part of the Gipsy. The present chapter will throw some light on the 
 subject. Even Mr. Borrow himself gives an ample refutation to his sweep¬ 
 ing account of the Spanish Gipsies, in regard to their language; for, in an¬ 
 other part of his work, he says: “ I recited the Apostles’ Creed to the 
 Gipsies, sentence by sentence, which they translated as I proceeded. They 
 exhibited the greatest eagerness and interest in their unwonted occupation, 
 and frequently broke into loud disputes as to the best rendering, many be¬ 
 ing offered at the same time. I then read the translation aloud, whereupon 
 they raised a shout of exultation, and appeared not a little proud of the 
 composition.” On this occasion, Mr. Borrow evidently had the Gipsies in 
 the right humour—that is, off their guard, excited, and much interested in 
 the subject. He says, in another place : “The language they speak among 
 themselves, and they are particularly anxious to keep others in ignorance 
 of it.” As a general thing, they seem to have been bored by people much 
 above them in the scale of society; with whom, their natural politeness, 
 and expectations of money or other benefits, would naturally lead them to 
 do anything than give them that which it is inborn in their nature to 
 keep to themselves.— Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 283 
 
 are, in general, much more civilized, their bands more broken 
 up, and the individuals more mixed with, and scattered 
 through, the general population of the country, than the 
 Gipsies of other nations; and it therefore appears to me 
 that the more their blood gets mixed with that of the ordi¬ 
 nary natives, and the more they approach to civilization, the 
 more determinedly will they conceal every particular rela¬ 
 tive to their tribe, to prevent their neighbours ascertaining 
 their origin and nationality. The slightest taunting allu¬ 
 sion to the forefathers of half-civilized Scottish Tinklers 
 kindles up in their breasts a storm of wrath and fury : for 
 they are extremely sensitive to the feeling which is enter¬ 
 tained toward their tribe by the other inhabitants of the 
 country.* “ I have,” said one of them to me, “ wrought all 
 my life in a shop with fellow-tradesmen, and not one of 
 them ever discovered that I knew a single Gipsy word.” A 
 Gipsy woman also informed me that herself and sister had 
 nearly lost their lives, on account of their language. The 
 following are the particulars : The two sisters chanced to 
 be in a public-house near Alloa, when a number of colliers, 
 belonging to the coal-works at Sauchie, were present. The 
 one sister, in a low tone of voice, and in the Gipsy language, 
 desired the other, among other things, to make ready some 
 broth for their repast. The colliers took hold of the two 
 Gipsy words, shaucha and blawkie , which signify broth and 
 pot; thinking the Tinkler women were calling them Sauchie 
 Blackies, in derision and contempt of their dark, subterra¬ 
 neous calling. The consequence was, that the savage colliers 
 attacked the innocent Tinklers, calling out that they would 
 ‘‘ grind them to powder,” for calling them Sauchie Blackies. 
 But the determined Gipsies would rather perish than explain 
 the meaning of the words in English, to appease the en¬ 
 raged colliers ; “ for,” said they, “ it would have exposed 
 our tribe, and made ourselves odious to the world.” The 
 two defenceless females might have been murdered by their 
 brutal assailants, had not the master of the house fortunately 
 come to their assistance. The poor Gipsies felt the effects 
 
 * Tliis opinion is confirmed by the fact that the Gipsies whom the Rev. 
 Mr. Crabbe has civilized will not now be seen among the others of the 
 tribe, at his annual festival, a* Southampton. We have already seen, under 
 the head of Continental Gipsies, that “ those who are gold-washers in 
 Transylvania and the Banat have no intercourse with others of their na¬ 
 tion ; nor do they like to be called Gipsies.” 
 
284 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of the beating they had received, for many months thereafter ; 
 and my informant had not recovered from her bruises at the 
 time she mentioned the circumstances to me.* 
 
 They are also anxious to retain their language, as a secret 
 among themselves, for the use which it is to them in con¬ 
 ducting business in markets or other places of public resort. 
 But they are very chary of the manner in which they em¬ 
 ploy it on such occasions. Besides tins, they display all the 
 pride and vanity in possessing the language which is com¬ 
 mon with linguists generally. The determined and uni¬ 
 form principle laid down by them, to avoid all communi¬ 
 cations with “ strangers” on the subject, and their resolution 
 to keep it a secret within their own tribe, will be strikingly 
 illustrated by the following facts. 
 
 For seven years, a woman, of the name of Baillie, about 
 fifty years of age, and the mother of a family, called regu¬ 
 larly at my house, twice a year, while on her peregrinations 
 through the country, selling spoons and other articles made 
 from horn. Every time I saw her, I endeavoured to prevail 
 upon her to give me some of her secret speech, as I was cer¬ 
 tain she was acquainted with the Gipsy tongue. But, not 
 to alarm her by calling it by that name, I always said to 
 her, in a jocular manner, that it was the mason word I wished 
 her to teach me. She, however, as regularly and firmly 
 declared that she knew of no such language among the 
 Tinklers. I always treated her kindly, and desired her to 
 continue her visits. I gave her, each time she called, a 
 glass of spirits, a piece of flesh, and such articles ; and 
 generally purchased some trifle from her, for which I inten¬ 
 tionally paid her more than its value. She so far yielded 
 to my importunities, that, for the last three years she called, 
 she went the length of saying that she would tell me “some¬ 
 thing” the next time she came back. But when she returned, 
 she guardedly evaded all my questions, by constantly repeat¬ 
 ing nearly the same answer, such as, “ I will speak to you 
 the next time I come back, sir.” After having been put off 
 for seven years in this manner, I was determined to put her 
 
 * On the whole, however, our Scottish peasantry, in some districts, do 
 not greatly despise the Tinklers ; at least not to the same extent as the 
 inhabitants of some other countries seem to do. When not involved in 
 quarrels with the Gipsies, our country people, with the exception of a con¬ 
 siderable portion of the land-owners, were, and are even yet. rather fond 
 of the superior families of the nomadic class of these people, than otherwise. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 285 
 
 to the usual test, should she never enter ray door again, and, 
 as she was walking out of the gate of my garden, I called to 
 her, in the Gipsy language, “ Jaw wee, mandgie /”—(go away, 
 woman.) She immediately turned round, and, laughing, re¬ 
 plied, “ I will jaw with you when I come back, gaugie ”—(I 
 will go or speak with you, when I come back, man.) She 
 returned, as usual, in December following. I again re¬ 
 quested her to give me some of her words, assuring her that 
 she would be in no danger from me on that account. I fur¬ 
 ther told her it was of no use to conceal her speech from me, 
 having, the last time she was in my house, shown her that I 
 was acquainted with it. After considerable hesitation and 
 reluctance, she consented ; but then, she said, she would not 
 allow any one in the house to hear her speak to me but my 
 wife. I took her at once into my parlour, and, on being 
 desired, she, without the least hesitation or embarrassment, 
 took the seat next the fire. Observing the door of the room 
 a little open, she desired it to be shut, in case of her being 
 overheard, again mentioning that she had no objections to 
 my wife being present, and gravely observing that “ hus¬ 
 bands and wives were one, and should know all one another’s 
 secrets.” She stated that the public would look upon her 
 with horror and contempt, were it known she could speak 
 the Gipsy language. She was extremely civil and intelli¬ 
 gent, yet placed me upon a familiar equality with herself, 
 when she found I knew of the existence of her speech, and 
 could repeat some of the words of it. Her nature, to appear¬ 
 ance, seemed changed. Her bold and fiery disposition was 
 softened and subdued. She was very frank and polite ; re¬ 
 tained her self-possession, and spoke with great propriety.* 
 The words which I got on this occasion will be found in 
 another part of the chapter. 
 
 In corroboration of this principle of concealment observed 
 by the Scottish Gipsies, relative to their language, I may 
 give a fact which will show how artful they are in avoiding 
 any allusion to it. One evening, as a band of potters, with 
 a cart of earthenware, were travelling on the high-road, in 
 a wild glen in the south of Scotland, a brother of mine over- 
 
 * Their (the female’s) speech is as fluent, and their eyes as unabashed, in 
 the presence of royalty, as before those from whom they have nothing to 
 hope or fear ; the result of which is, that most minds quail before them.— 
 Burrow oh the Spanish Gipsies .— Ed. 
 
286 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 heard them, male and female, conversing in a language, a 
 word of which he did not understand. As the road was 
 very bad, and the night dark, one of the females of the band 
 was a few yards in advance of the cart, acting as a guide to 
 the horde. Every now and then, among other unintelligible 
 expressions, she called out “ Shan drom .” My brother’s 
 curiosity was excited by hearing the potters conversing in 
 this manner, and, next morning, he went to where they lodged, 
 in an out-house on the farm, and enquired of the female 
 what she was saying on the road, the night before, and what 
 she meant by “ Shan drom .” The woman appeared con¬ 
 fused at the unexpected question; but in a short time re¬ 
 covered her self-possession, and artfully replied that they 
 were talking Latin (!) and that u Shan drom” in Latin, 
 signified “ bad road.” But the truth is, “ Shan drom ” is 
 the Gipsy expression for bad road, as will by and by be seen. 
 
 Besides the difficulties mentioned in the way of getting 
 any of their language from them, there is a general one that 
 arises from the suspicious, unsettled, restless, fickle and vola¬ 
 tile nature by which they are characterized. It is a rare 
 thing to get them to speak consecutively for more than a 
 few minutes on any subject, thus precluding the possibility, 
 in most instances, of taking advantage of any favourable 
 humour in which they may be found, in the matter of their 
 general history—leaving alone the formal and serious pro¬ 
 cedure necessary to be followed in regard to their lan¬ 
 guage. *If this favourable turn in their disposition is allowed 
 to pass, it is rarely anything of that nature can be got from 
 them at that mectiug; and it is extremely likely that, at 
 any after interviews, they will entirely evade the matter so 
 much desired. 
 
 With these remarks, I will now proceed to state the 
 method I adopted to get at the Gipsy language. 
 
 Short vocabularies of the language of the Tschengenes of 
 Turkey, the Cyganis of Hungary, the Zigeuners of Germany, 
 the Gitanos of Spain, and the Gipsies of England, have, at 
 different periods, since 1783, issued from the press, in this 
 country and in Germany ; but I am not aware of any speci¬ 
 mens of our Scottish Tinkler or Gipsy language having as 
 yet been submitted to the public. Some of the former I 
 committed to memory, and used, intermixed with English 
 words, in questions I would put to the Scottish Gipsies. In this 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 287 
 
 way,one word would lead to another. I would address them 
 in a confident and familiar manner, as if I were one of them¬ 
 selves, and knew exactly who they were, and all about them. 
 I would, for instance, ask them : Have you a grye (horse)? 
 How many chauvies (children) have you ? Where is your 
 gaugie (husband) ? Do you sell roys (spoons) ? Being 
 taken completely by surprise, they would give me at once a 
 true answer. For, being the first, as far as I know, to apply 
 the language of the Gipsies of the continent to our own 
 tribes, they could naturally have no hesitation in replying to 
 my questions ; although they would wonder what kind of a 
 Gipsy I could possibly be—dressed, as I was, in black, with 
 black neck-cloth, and no display of linen, save a ruffled 
 breast, thick-soled shoes and gaiters. The consequence 
 was, I became a character of interest to many of the Gipsies 
 to be found in a circuit of many miles ; and great wonder 
 was excited in their untutored minds, leading to a desire to 
 see, and know something of, the Riali Nawken , or the gen¬ 
 tleman Gipsy. On such occasions, I would treat them as I 
 would land a fish—give them hook and line enough. But 
 the circumstance was to them something incomprehensible, 
 for, although Gipsies are very ready-witted, and possess 
 great natural resources, in thieving, and playing tricks of 
 every kind, and great tact in getting out of difficulties of 
 that nature—which, with them, are matters of instinct, train¬ 
 ing, and practice—their whole mind being bent, and exclu¬ 
 sively employed, in that direction, it was almost impossible 
 for them to form any intelligible opinion as to my true char¬ 
 acter, provided I was any way discreet in disguising my real 
 position among them. As little chance was there of any of 
 themselves informing the others of what assistance they had 
 inadvertently been to me, in getting at their language. 
 Some of them might have an idea that one of their race had, 
 in their own way of thinking, peached, turned traitor to 
 their blood, and let the cat out of the bag. At times, if they 
 happened to see me approach them, so as to have an oppor¬ 
 tunity to scrutinize me—which they are much given to, with 
 people generally—they would not be so easily disconcerted 
 at any question put to them in their language ; but the re¬ 
 sult would be either direct replies, or the most ludicrous 
 scenes of surprise and terror imaginable, which, to be en¬ 
 joyed, were only to be seen, but could not be described, 
 
288 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 although the sequel will in some measure illustrate them. 
 At other times, if I addressed a Gipsy in his own language, 
 and spoke to him in a kind and familiar manner, as if I had 
 been soothing a wild and unmanageable horse, before mount¬ 
 ing him, he would either very awkwardly pretend not to 
 understand what I meant, or, with a downcast and guilty 
 look, and subdued voice, immediately answer my Gipsy 
 words in English. But if I put the words to him in an ab¬ 
 rupt, hasty, or threatening manner, he would either take to 
 his heels, or turn upon me, like a tiger, and pour out upon 
 me a torrent of abusive language. The following instances 
 will show the manner in which my use of their language was 
 sometimes appreciated by the female Gipsies. 
 
 When I spoke in a sharp manner to some of the old wo¬ 
 men, on the high-road, by way of testing them, they would 
 quicken their paces, look over their shoulders, and call out, 
 in much bitterness of spirit, “You are no gentleman, sir, 
 otherwise you would not insult us in that way.” On one 
 occasion. I observed a woman with her son, who appeared 
 about twelve years of age, lingering near a house at which 
 they had no business, and I desired her, rather sharply, to 
 leave the place, telling her that I was afraid her chauvie 
 was a chor —(that’ her son was a thief). I used these two 
 words merely to see what effect they would have upon her, 
 as I did not really think she was a Gipsy. She instantly 
 flew into a dreadful passion, telling me that I had been 
 among thieves and robbers myself, otherwise I could not 
 speak to her in such words as these. She threatened to go 
 to Edinburgh, to inform the police that I was the head and 
 captain of a band of thieves* and that she would have me 
 immediately apprehended as such. Pour sailors who were 
 present with me were astonished at the sudden wrath and 
 insolence of the woman, as they could not perceive any pro¬ 
 vocation she had received from me—being ignorant of the 
 meaning of the words chauvie and chor, which I applied to 
 her boy. 
 
 One day I fell in by chance, on a lonely part of the old 
 public road, on the hills within half a mile of the village of 
 North Queensferry, with a woman of about twenty-seven 
 years of age, and the mother, as she said, of seven children. 
 
 * This woman evidently mistook our author for a G ipsy gent, such as he 
 is described at page 169.—Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 289 
 
 She had light hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion. The 
 youngest of her children appeared to be about nine months 
 old, and the eldest about ten years. The mother was dressed 
 in a brown cloak, and the group had altogether a very 
 squalid appearance. In the most lamentable tone of voice, 
 she informed me that her husband had set off with another 
 woman, and left her and her seven children to starve ; and 
 that he had been lately employed at a paper-mill in Mid- 
 Lothian. She sometimes appeared almost to choke with 
 grief, but, nevertheless, I observed no tears in her eyes. She 
 often repeated, in a sort of hypocritical and canting manner, 
 “ The Lord has been very kind to me, and will still protect 
 me and my helpless babes. Last night we all slept in 
 the open fields, and gathered peas and beans from the stub¬ 
 ble for our suppers/’ She certainly seemed to be in very in¬ 
 digent circumstances ; but that her husband had abandoned 
 her, I did not credit. However, I gave her a few half-pence, 
 for which she thanked me very civilly. From her extrava¬ 
 gant behaviour, and a peculiar wildness in her looks, it oc¬ 
 curred to me that she belonged to the lowest caste of Gipsies, 
 although her appearance did not indicate it; that her grief 
 was, for the most part, feigned, and that the story of her 
 husband having abandoned her was got up merely to excite 
 pity, for the purpose of procuring a little money for the sub¬ 
 sistence of her band. I now put a number of questions to 
 her, relative to many individuals whom I knew were Gipsies 
 of a superior class, taking care not to call them by that name, 
 in case of alarming her. I spoke to her as if I had been 
 quite intimate with all the persons I was enquiring about. 
 She gave me ■ satisfactory answers to almost every question, 
 and seemed well acquainted with every individual I named. 
 She now appeared quite calm and collected, and answered 
 me very gravely. But she said that some of the men I men¬ 
 tioned were rogues, and that their wives played many clever 
 tricks. On mentioning the tricks of the wives, I noticed a 
 smile come over her countenance. I observed to her that 
 they were not faultless, but that they were often blamed for 
 crimes of which they were not guilty. Upon perceiving that 
 I took their part, which I did on purpose, to hear what she 
 would say, she gradually changed her mind, and came over 
 to my opinion. She said that they were exceedingly good- 
 hearted people, and that some of them had frequently paid 
 13 
 
290 
 
 A BISTORT OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 a night’s lodging for herself and family. I now ventured to 
 put a question to her, half in Gipsy and half in English. 
 After a short pause and hesitation, she signified that she un¬ 
 derstood what I said. I then asked one or two questions 
 in Gipsy words only. A Gipsy, with crockery-ware in a 
 basket, happened to pass us at the very moment I was speak¬ 
 ing to her; and to show her the knowledge I had of her 
 speech and people, I said, “ There is a nawken ”•—(there is a 
 Gipsy.) She, in a very civil and polite manner, immediately 
 replied, “ Sir, I hope you will not take it ill, when I use the 
 freedom of saying that you must have been among the people 
 you arc enquiring about, otherwise you could not speak to 
 me in that way.” To show her that I did not despise her 
 for understanding my Gipsy words, I gave her a few pence 
 more, and spoke kindly to her. She then became quite I 
 cheerful and frank, as if we had been old acquaintances. 
 Instead of trying to impose upon me, by tales of grief and 
 woe, and feigned piety, she appeared happy and contented, 
 her whole conduct indicating that it was useless to play off 
 her tricks upon me, as'she was now sensible that I knew ex- ; 
 actly what she was, and yet did not treat her contemptu¬ 
 ously. She said her husband’s name was Wilson, and her 
 own Jackson, (the names of two Gipsy tribes ;) that she could 
 tell fortunes, and was acquainted with the Irish Avords I 
 spoke, being afraid to call them by their right name. She 
 further stated that every one of the people I was enquiring 
 about spoke in the same language. 
 
 About half an hour after I parted Avith her, on the road, 
 
 I met her in the village of North Queensferry, while I Avas 
 walking with a friend. I then put a question to her in 
 Gipsy words, in the presence of this third party, who knew 
 not what she was, to see how she would conduct herself in 
 public. She seemed surprised at my question, as if she did : 
 not understand a Avord of it—to prevent it being discovered t 
 to others of the community that she Avas a Gipsy. But she 1 
 publicly praised me highly, for having given her something! p 
 to help her poor children ; and, with her trumped-up story ft 
 at her tongue’s end, proceeded on her travels. 8 
 
 These poor people were much alarmed when I let them $t 
 see that I knew they Avere Gipsies. They thought I Avasij jo 
 despising them, and treating them with contempt; or they! to 
 Avere afraid of being apprehended under the old sanguinary in 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 291 
 
 laws, condemning the whole unfortunate race to death ; for 
 the Gipsies, as I have already said, still believe that these 
 bloody statutes are in full force against them at the present 
 day. 
 
 I was advised by Sir Walter Scott, as mentioned in the 
 Introduction, to “ get the same words from different individ¬ 
 uals ; and, to verify the collection, to set down the names of 
 the persons by whom they were communicated which I 
 have done. For this reason, the words now furnished will 
 appear as the confessions of so many individuals, rather than 
 a vocabulary drawn up in the manner in which such is usu¬ 
 ally done ; and which will be more satisfactory to the gene¬ 
 ral reader, as well as the philologist, than if I had presented 
 the words by themselves, without an) r positive or circum¬ 
 stantial evidence of their genuineness. To the general 
 reader, as distinguished from the philologist, the anecdotes 
 connected with the collection may prove interesting, if the 
 words themselves have no attraction for him ; while they 
 will satisfy the latter, as far as they go, as to the existence 
 of a language which has almost always been denied, yet 
 which is known, at the present day, to a greater number of 
 the population of the country than could at first have been 
 imagined ; this part of it having been drawn from a variety 
 of individuals, at different and widely-separated times and 
 places. On this account, I hope that the minuteness of the 
 details of the present enquiry may not appear tedious, but, 
 on the contrary, interesting, to my readers generally ; inas¬ 
 much as the present collection is the first, as far as I know, 
 of the Scottish Gipsy language that has ever been made ; 
 although the people themselves have lived amongst us for 
 three hundred and fifty years, and talked it every hour of 
 the day, but hardly ever in the hearing of the other inhabit¬ 
 ants, excepting, occasionally, a word of it now and then, to 
 disguise their discourse fi'om those around them ; which, on 
 being questioned, they have always passed off for card , to 
 prevent the law taking hold of them, and punishing them 
 for being Gipsies. These details will also show that our 
 Scottish Tinklers, or Gipsies, are sprung from the common 
 stock from which are descended those that are to be found 
 in the other parts of Europe, as well as those that arc scat¬ 
 tered over the world generally ; what secrecy they observe 
 in all matters relative to their affairs ; what an extraordi- 
 
292 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 nary degree of reluctance and fear they evince in answering 
 questions tending to develop their history ; and, conse¬ 
 quently, how difficult it is to learn anything satisfactory 
 about them.* 
 
 I fell in one day, on the public road, with an old woman 
 and her two daughters, of the name of Ross, selling horn 
 spoons, made by Andrew Stewart, a Tinkler at Bo’ness. I 
 repeated to the woman, in the shape of questions, some of 
 the Gipsy words presented in these pages. She at first 
 affected, though very awkwardly, not to understand what I 
 raid, but in a few minutes, with some embarrassment in her 
 manner, acknowledged that she knew the speech, and gave 
 me the English of the following words : 
 
 Gaugie, man. Grge, horse. 
 
 Managie, woman. Grye-fcmler , horse-dealer. 
 
 Chavvies, children. Hogs , spoons. 
 
 1 ubserved to this woman, that I saw no harm in speaking 
 this language openly and publicly. “None in the least, sir,” 
 was her reply. 
 
 Two girls, of the name of Jamieson, came one day beg¬ 
 ging to my door. They appeared to be sisters, of about 
 eight and seventeen years of age, and were pretty decently 
 clothed. Both had light-blue eyes, light-yellow, or rather 
 flaxen, hair, and fair complexions. To ascertain whether 
 they were Tinklers or not, I put some Gipsy words to the 
 eldest girl. She immediately hung down her head, as if she 
 had been detected in a crime, and, pretending not to under¬ 
 stand what was said, left the house ; but, after proceeding 
 about twelve paces, she took courage, turned round, and, 
 with a smile upon an agreeable countenance, called back, 
 “ There are eleven of us, sir.” I had enquired of her how 
 many children there were of her family. I called both the 
 girls back to my house, and ordered them some victuals, for 
 which they were extremely grateful, and seemed much 
 pleased that they were kindly treated. After I had dis- 
 
 * II would he well for the reader to consider what a Gipsy is, irrespec¬ 
 tive of tire language which he speaks ; for the race comes before the speech 
 which it uses. That will be done fully in my Disquisition on the Gipsies. 
 The language, considered in itsedf, however interesting it may be, is a sec¬ 
 ondary consideration ; it may ultimately disappear, while the people who 
 now speak it will remain.— Ed. 
 
LANG VAO E. 
 
 293 
 
 covered they were Gipsies, I wormed out of them the fol¬ 
 lowing words : 
 
 Gaugie, man. 
 Managie , woman. 
 Chauvies, children. 
 
 Grye, horse. 
 Jucal, dog. 
 
 When I enquired of the eldest girl the English of Jucal , 
 she did not, at first, catch the sound of the word ; hut her 
 little sister looked up in her face, and said to her, “ Don’t 
 you hear ? That is dog. It is dog he means.” The other 
 then added, with a downcast look, and a melancholy tone 
 of voice, “ You gentlemen understand all languages now- 
 a-days.” 
 
 At another time, four or five children were loitering about, 
 and diverting themselves, before the door of a house, near 
 Inverkeithing. The youngest appeared about five, and the 
 eldest about thirteen years of age. One of the boys, of the 
 name of McDonald, stepped forward, and asked some money 
 from me in charity. From his importunate manner of beg¬ 
 ging, I suspected the children were Gipsies, although their 
 appearance did not indicate them to be of that race. After 
 some questions put to them about their parents and their 
 occupations, they gave me the English of the following 
 words : 
 
 Gaugie, man. 
 Chauvies, children. 
 Riali , gentleman. 
 Grye, horse. 
 
 Jucal, dog. 
 
 Aizel, ass. 
 
 Lowa , silver. 
 Chor. thief. 
 Slaurdie, prison. 
 Ring, the devil. 
 
 A gentleman, an acquaintance of mine, was in my presence 
 while the children were answering my words ; and as the 
 subject of their language was new to him, I made some re¬ 
 marks to him in their hearing, relative to their tribe, which 
 greatly displeased them. One of the boys called out to me, 
 with much bitterness of expression, “ You are a Gipsy your¬ 
 self, sir, or you never could have got these words.” 
 
 Some years since, a female, of the name of Ruthven, was 
 in the habit of calling at»a farm occupied by one of my 
 brothers. My mother, being interested about the Gipsies, 
 began, on one occasion, to question this female Tinkler, rela¬ 
 tive to her tribe, and, among other things, asked if she was 
 
294 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 a Gipsy. “ Yes,” replied Ruthven, “I am a Gipsy, and a 
 desperate, murdering race Ave are. I will let you hear me 
 speak our language, but Avhat the better will you be of 
 that?” She accordingly uttered a few sentences, and then 
 said, “ Noav, are you any the wiser of what you have heard ? 
 But that infant,” pointing to her child of about five years of 
 age, “ understands every word I speak.” “ I know,” con¬ 
 tinued the Tinkler, “ that the public are trying to find out 
 the secrets of the Gipsies, but it is in vain.” This woman 
 further stated that her tribe would be exceedingly dis¬ 
 pleased, were it known that any of their fraternity taught 
 their language to “ strangers.”* She also mentioned that the 
 Gipsies believe that the laws which were enacted for their 
 extirpation were yet in full force against them. I may men¬ 
 tion, however, that she could put confidence in the family in 
 whose house she made these confessions. 
 
 On another occasion, a female, with three or four children, 
 the eldest of whom was not above ten years of age, came 
 up to me while speaking to an innkeeper, on a public pier 
 on the banks of the Forth. She stated to us that her prop¬ 
 erty had been burned to the ground, and her family reduced 
 to beggary, and solicited charity of us both. After receiv¬ 
 ing a few half-pence from the innkeeper, she continued her 
 importunities with an unusual impertinence, and hung upon 
 me for a contribution. Her barefaced conduct displeased 
 me. I thought I Avould put her to the test, and try if she 
 was not a Gipsy. Deepening the tone of my voice, I called 
 out to her, in an angry manner, “ Sallah, jaio drom ”— 
 (“ Curse you, take the road.”) The Avoman instantly wheeled 
 about, uttered not another word, but set off, Avith precipita¬ 
 tion ; and so alarmed Avere her children, that they took hold 
 of her clothes, to hasten and pull her out of my presence ; 
 calling to her, at the same time, “ Mother, mother, come 
 aAvay.” Mine host, the innkeeper, was amazed at the effec¬ 
 tual manner in which I silenced and dismissed the impor¬ 
 tunate and troublesome beggars. He was anxious that I 
 
 * The Gipsies are always afraid to say what they would do in such cases. 
 Perhaps they don't know, but have only a general impression that the in¬ 
 dividual would “ catch itor there may be some old law on the subject. 
 What Ruthven said of her’s being a desperate race is true enough, and 
 murderous too, among themselves as distinguished from the inhabitants 
 generally. Her remark was evidently part of that frightening policy which 
 keeps the natives from molesting the tribe. See page 44.—Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 295 
 
 should teach him the unknown words that had so terrified 
 the poor Gipsies ; with the design, it appeared to me, of 
 frightening others, should they molest him with their beg¬ 
 ging. Had I not proved this family by the language, it was 
 impossible for any one to perceive that the group were 
 Gipsies. 
 
 In prosecuting my enquiries into the existence of the 
 Gipsy language, I paid a visit to Lochgcllie, once the resi¬ 
 dence of four or five families of Gipsies, as already men¬ 
 tioned, and procured an interview with young Andrew 
 Steedman, a member of the tribe. At first, he appeared 
 much alarmed, and seemed to think I had a design to do 
 him harm. His fears, however, were in a short while 
 calmed ; and, after much reluctance, he gave me the follow¬ 
 ing words and expressions, with the corresponding English 
 significations. Like a true Gipsy, the first expression which 
 he uttered, as if it came the readiest to him, was, “ Chocir a 
 chauvie "—(“ rob that person,”) which he pronounced with a 
 smile on his countenance. 
 
 Gaugie, man. Keechan, knife. 
 
 Gourie, man. Chowrie, knife. 
 
 Managie, woman. Scaf, hat. 
 
 Chauvie, a person of either Mass, flesh. 
 
 sex. Mass, hand. 
 
 Chauvies, children. 
 
 Been gaugie, gentleman. 
 Been gourie, gentleman. 
 Bajah, a chief, governor. 
 Baurie rajah, the king. 
 Greharn, horse. 
 
 Grye, horse. 
 
 Scefer, ass. 
 
 Jucal, dog. 
 
 Mujler, cat. 
 
 Sloof, sheep. 
 
 Bashanie, cock. 
 
 Caunie, hen. 
 
 Borlan , sun. 
 
 Mn 11 n moon. 
 
 Bar, money. 
 
 Lowie, coin or money. 
 
 Roug , silver. 
 
 Neel, shilling. 
 
 Deek, to listen. 
 
 Chee, tongue. 
 
 Chee chee, hold your tongue. 
 Chor, thief. 
 
 Choar, to steal. 
 
 Quad, prison. 
 
 Moolie, death. 
 
 Moolie, I’ll kill you. 
 
 Bing, the devil. 
 
 Bing feck, devil take you. 
 Bing feck eelreelee, devil take 
 
 Garlan, ship. 
 Ileefe, spoon. 
 
 your soul. 
 
 Choar a chauvie, rob that per¬ 
 
 son. 
 
296 
 
 A HISTORY OF TnE GIPSIES. 
 
 Choar a gaugie , steal from that Gloioxe a Iowa , pay him the 
 
 man. money. 
 
 Cheeteroxnanxe , a dram of whis¬ 
 key. 
 
 The first expression which the Gipsies use in saluting one 
 another, when they first meet, anywhere, is “ Autcenie , au- 
 teenie.” Steedman, however, did not give me the English 
 of this salutation. He stated to me that, at the present day, 
 the Gipsies in Scotland, when by themselves, transact their 
 business in their own language, and hold all their ordinary 
 conversations in the same speech. In the course of a few 
 minutes, Steedman’s fears returned upon him. He appeared 
 to regret what he had done. He now said he had forgotten 
 the language, and referred me to his father, old Andrew 
 Steedman, who, lie said, would give me every information I 
 might require. I imprudently sent him out, to bring the old 
 man to me ; for, when both returned, all further communica¬ 
 tion, with regard to their speech, was at an end. Both 
 were now dead silent on the subject, denied all knowledge 
 of the Gipsy language, and were evidently under great 
 alarm. The old man would not face me at all; and when I 
 went to him, he appeared to be shaking and trembling, while 
 he stood at the head of his horses, in his own stable. Young 
 Steedman entreated me to tell no one that he had given me 
 any words, as the Tinklers, he said, would be exceedingly 
 displeased with him for doing so. This man, however, by 
 being kindly treated, and seeing no intention of doing him 
 any harm, became, at an after period, communicative on 
 various subjects relative to the Gipsies. 
 
 The following are the words which I obtained during an 
 hour’s interrogation of the woman that baffled me for seven 
 years, and of whom I have said something already : 
 
 Gaugie, man. 
 
 Cha.uvie, child. 
 
 Mori, wife. 
 
 Shan mort , bad wife. 
 Blawkxe, pot. 
 
 Roys, spoons, 
 
 Snypers , shears. 
 
 Fluff, tobacco-pipe. 
 Baurie mort, good wife. 
 Nais mort, grandmother. 
 
 JYais gavgie, grandfather. 
 Been riah, gentleman. 
 
 Been raunie, gentlewoman. 
 Bill, servant-maid. 
 Loudnie, whore. 
 
 Chor, thief. 
 
 Gawvers , pickpockets. 
 Nawkexis, Tinklers. 
 Rachlin, hanged man. 
 Klistie, soldier. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 297 
 
 Puunie-col, sailor. 
 
 Harro, sword. 
 
 Femmel , hand. 
 
 Chourie , bayonet-knife. 
 
 Yak, eye. 
 
 Mass, meat, flesh. 
 
 Sherro, head. 
 
 Gaffe, swine’s flesh. 
 
 Mooie , mouth. 
 
 Flair ins, fish. 
 
 Chatters , teeth. 
 
 Habben, bread. 
 
 Rat, blood. 
 
 Blaw , meal. 
 
 Rat, night. 
 
 Neddies , potatoes. 
 
 Moo lie, death, to die, kill. 
 
 Thood , milk. 
 
 Shucha, coat. 
 
 Smout, butter. 
 
 Teeyakas, shoes. 
 
 Chizcazin, cheese. 
 
 Gawd, shirt. 
 
 Bobies, peas. 
 
 Olivers, stockings. 
 
 Pooklie, pot-barley. 
 
 Wiper, napkin, 
 
 Coories, blankets. 
 
 Shaucha, broth. 
 
 Geeve, corn, wheat, grain. 
 
 Grye, horse. 
 
 Faizim, hay. 
 
 Aizel, ass. 
 
 Stramel, straw. 
 
 Jucaf , dog. 
 
 Paunie, water. 
 
 Rouller, cow. 
 
 Yak, coal. 
 
 Bakra , sheep. 
 
 Mauds, peats. 
 
 Kair, house. 
 
 Shan drom, bad road. 
 
 Blinker, window. 
 
 Beenlightment, daylight. 
 
 Key, bed. 
 
 Jaw vree, go away. 
 
 Aucheer many an, hold your 
 
 Fluff an, tobacco. 
 
 Lowie, money. 
 
 tongue. 
 
 Rouy, silver. 
 
 Bing tee ma , devil miss me. 
 
 Leel, bank notes. 
 
 Ruffe feck ma, devil take me. 
 
 Casties, trees. 
 
 Ruffe lee ma, devil miss me. 
 
 Quad, prison. 
 
 I observed to this woman that her language would, in 
 course of time, be lost. She replied, with great seriousness, 
 “It will never be forgotten, sir; it is in our hearts, and 
 as long as a single Tinkler exists, it will be remembered.” 
 I further enquired of her, how many of her tribe were in 
 Scotland. Her answer was, “ There are several thousand ; 
 and there are many respectable shop-keepers and house¬ 
 holders in Scotland that are Gipsies.” I requested of this 
 woman the Gipsy word for God.* She said they had no 
 
 * Ponqueville, in his travels, says that the Gipsies in the Levant have 
 no words in their language to express either God or the soul. Of ten 
 words of the Greek Gipsy, given by him, five of them are in use in Scot¬ 
 land.— Paris, 1820. 
 
 [The Gipsy for God, according to Grellmann, is JJswe, Lewel, Lewol, 
 Ltwla .~\— Ed. 
 
 13 * 
 
298 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 corresponding word for God in their speech ; adding, that 
 she thought “ it as well, as it prevented them having their 
 Maker’s name often unnecessarily and sinfully in their 
 mouths.” She acknowledged the justice, and highly ap¬ 
 proved of the punishment of death for murder ; but she 
 condemned, most bitterly, the law that took away the lives 
 of human beings for stealing. She dwelt on the advantages 
 which her secret speech gave her tribe in transacting busi¬ 
 ness in markets. She said that she was descended from the 
 first Gipsy family in Scotland. I was satisfied that she was 
 sprung from the second, if not the first, family. I could 
 make out, with tolerable certainty, the links of her descent 
 for four generations of Gipsies. I have already described 
 the splendid style in which her ancestors travelled in Tweed- 
 dale. Her mother, above eighty years of age, also called 
 at my house. Both were fortune-tellers. It was evident, 
 from this woman’s manner, that she knew much she would 
 not communicate. Like the Gipsy chief, in presence of Dr. 
 Bright, at Csurgo, in Hungary, she, in a short time, became 
 impatient; and, apparently, when a certain hour arrived, she 
 insisted upon being allowed to depart. She would not sub¬ 
 mit to be questioned any longer. 
 
 Owing to the nature of my enquiries, and more particu¬ 
 larly the fears of the tribe. I could seldom venture to ques¬ 
 tion the Gipsies regarding their speech, or their ancient 
 customs, with any hope of receiving satisfactory answers, 
 when a third party was present. The following, however, 
 is an instance to the contrary ; and the facts witnessed by 
 the gentleman who was with me at the time, are, besides 
 the testimony of the Gipsies themselves, convincing proofs 
 that these people, at the present day, in Scotland, can con¬ 
 verse among themselves, on any ordinary subject, in their 
 own language, without making use of a single word of the 
 English tongue.* 
 
 o o _ 
 
 In May, 1829, while near the manse of Inverkeithing, my 
 friend and I accidentally fell in, on the high road, with four 
 children, the youngest of whom appeared to be about four, 
 
 * Had a German listened a whole day to a Gipsy conversation, he would 
 not have understood a single expression.— Grellmann. 
 
 The dialect of the English Gipsies, though mixed with English, is toler¬ 
 ably pure, from the fact of its being intelligible to the race in the centre of 
 Russia. — Borrow .— Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 299 
 
 and the eldest about thirteen, years of age. They were accom¬ 
 panied by a woman, about twenty years old, who had the 
 appearance of being married, but not the mother of any of 
 the children with her. Not one of the whole party could 
 have been taken for a Gipsy, but all had the exact appearance 
 of being the family of some indigent tradesman or labourer. 
 Excepting the woman, whose hair was dark, all of the com¬ 
 pany had hair of a light colour, some of them inclining to 
 yellow, with fair complexions. In not one of their counte¬ 
 nances could be seen those features by which many pretend 
 the Gipsies can, at all times, be distinguished from the rest 
 of the community. The manner, however, in which the 
 woman, at first, addressed me, created in my mind a suspicion 
 that she was one of the tribe. In order to ascertain the 
 fact, I put a question to her in Gipsy, in such a manner that 
 it might appear to her that I was quite certain she was one 
 of the fraternity. She immediately smiled at my question, 
 held down her head, cast her eyes to the ground, then ap¬ 
 peared as if she had been detected in something wrong, and 
 pretended not to understand what I said. One of the chil¬ 
 dren, however, being thrown entirely off his guard, imme¬ 
 diately said to her, “You know quite well what he says.” 
 The woman, recovering from her surprise and confusion, and 
 being assured she had nothing to fear from me, now answered 
 my question. She also replied to every other interrogation 
 I put to her, without showing the least fear or hesitation. 
 After I had repeated a few words more, and a sentence in 
 the Gipsy tongue, one of the boys exclaimed, “ He has good 
 cant!” and then addressed me entirely in the Gipsy language. 
 (All the Gipsies, as I have already mentioned, call their lan¬ 
 guage cant, for the purpose of concealing their tribe.) The 
 whole party seemed extremely happy that I was acquainted 
 with their speech. The woman put several questions to me, 
 in return, some of which were wholly in her own peculiar 
 tongue. She asked my name, place of residence, and whether 
 I was a naiclcen —that is a Gipsy. She further enquired 
 whether my friend was also a nawlcen ; adding, with a smile, 
 that she was sure I was a tramper. The children some¬ 
 times conversed among themselves wholly in their own lan¬ 
 guage ; and, when I could not understand the woman, as 
 she requested, in her own speech, to know my name, &c., 
 one of them instantly interpreted the sentence into English 
 
800 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 for me. One of the oldest boys, however, thinking I was 
 only pretending to be ignorant of their speech, observed, in 
 English, to his companions, “ I am sure he is a tramper, and 
 can speak as good cant as any of ns.” To keep up the char¬ 
 acter, my friend told them that I had been a tramper in my 
 youth, but that I had now nearly lost the language. On 
 hearing this, the woman, with great earnestness, exclaimed, 
 “ God bless the gentleman !” In order to confirm their be¬ 
 lief that I was one of their tribe, I bade the woman good- 
 day in her own tongue, and parted with them. She informed 
 me, on leaving, that she resided at Banff, but that her hus¬ 
 band was then at Perth. 
 
 During the short interview which I had with these Gipsies, 
 I collected the following words : 
 
 Gavgie , man. 
 
 Riah, gentleman. 
 
 Ravnie , lady. 
 
 Vast, hand. 
 
 Sonnakie, gold. 
 
 Sonnakie vanister, gold ring. 
 Rang, silver. 
 
 Bowie, money. 
 
 Grye, horse. 
 
 Aizel, ass. 
 
 Jucal , dog. 
 
 Maichkci , cat. 
 
 Baurie , great. 
 
 Vile, village. 
 
 Baurie vile , large village. 
 Nawken, Gipsy. 
 
 Davies, day. 
 
 Beenship davies, Nawken, good- 
 day, Gipsy. 
 
 Pen yer naarn ? what is your 
 name ? 
 
 Shucha, coat. 
 
 Cables, breeches. 
 
 Gogle, hat. 
 
 Coories , blankets. 
 
 Boys, spoons. 
 
 Skews, platters. 
 
 Habben kairer , baker of bread. 
 
 The method I adopted with them, as I have already 
 hinted, was to ask them the English of the words I gave 
 them in Gipsy, so that the answers I got were confirmations 
 of the same words collected from other individuals, and 
 which I drew from memory for the occasion. Had I at¬ 
 tempted to write down any of their sentences, it would have 
 instantly shut the door to all further conversation on the 
 subject, and, in all probability, the Gipsies would have taken 
 to their heels, muttering imprecations against me for having 
 insulted them. Of this I was satisfied, that had I really been 
 acquainted with their speech, these Gipsy children could 
 have kept up a regular and connected conversation with me, 
 with the greatest fluency, and without their sentences being 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 301 
 
 intermixed with any English or Scotch words whatever, a 
 fact which lias been repeatedly stated to me by the Gipsies. 
 
 In confirmation of these facts, I shall transcribe a letter 
 addressed to me by the gentleman who was present on the 
 occasion* 
 
 Inverkeithing, 25 th May, 1829. 
 
 “ My Dear Sir : 
 
 “ Agreeably to your desire, I have looked over that part 
 of your manuscript of the Scottish Gipsies which details the 
 particulars of a short and accidental interview which we 
 had with a woman and four children, whom we met near 
 Inverkeithing Manse, on the 22d inst., and who turned out 
 to be Gipsies. I have no hesitation in averring that your 
 statements, to my knowledge, are substantially correct— 
 being present during the whole conversation which took 
 place with the individuals mentioned. It was the first time 
 I ever heard the Gipsy language spoken, and it appeared 
 quite evident that those Gipsies could converse, in a regular 
 and connected manner, on any subject, without making use 
 of a single English word ; and which particularly appeared 
 from the questions which they put to you, as well as from 
 the conversation which they had among themselves, in their 
 own peculiar speech : and that, otherwise, the woman and 
 children had not, in the colour of their hair, complexion, and 
 general appearance, any resemblance to those people whom 
 I always considered to be Gipsies. I am, <fec., 
 
 “ JAMES II. COBBAN, 
 
 Deputy Compt. of Customs , Inverkeithing. 
 
 Mr. Walter Simson, 
 
 Supt. of Quarantine , Inverkeithing .”f 
 
 I have already mentioned having succeeded in obtaining 
 
 * This letter is interesting to the extent that it illustrates the amount of 
 knowledge possessed by the Scottish community, generally, regarding the 
 subject of the Gipsies. —Ed. 
 
 t Sir Walter Scott was disposed to think that our Gipsy population was 
 rather exaggerated at five thousand souls; but when families such as the 
 above mentioned are taken into account—leaving alone those who may be 
 classed as settled Gipsies—I am convinced that their number is not over¬ 
 estimated. 
 
 [Not being in possession of sufficient information on the subject of the 
 Gipsies, the opinion of Sir Walter Scott, on the point in question, amounted 
 to nothing. See the Index, for Sir Walter Scott’s ideas of the Scottish 
 Gipsy population. —Ed.] 
 
302 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 a few words of Gipsy, from two sisters, of the name of Jamie¬ 
 son, who came begging to my door. I had reason to sup¬ 
 pose they would acquaint their relatives of having been 
 questioned in their own speech, and would greatly exaggerate 
 my knowledge of it; for I always observed that the individ¬ 
 uals with whom I conversed were at first impressed with a 
 belief that I knew much more of it than I really did. 
 
 During the following summer, a brother and a cousin of 
 these girls called at my house, selling baskets. The one 
 was about twenty-one, the other fifteen, years of age. I 
 happened to be from home, but one of my family, suspecting 
 them to be Gipsies, invited them into the house, and men¬ 
 tioned to them, (although very incorrectly,) that I understood 
 every word of their speech. So I saw,” replied the eldest 
 lad, “ for when he passed us on the road, some time ago, I 
 called, in our language, to my neighbour, to come out of the 
 way, and he understood what 1 said, for he immediately 
 turned round, and looked at us.” I, however, knew nothing 
 of the circumstance; I did not even recollect having seen 
 them pass me. It is likely, however, I had been examining 
 their appearance, and it is as likely they had been trying if 
 I understood their speech. At all events, they appeared to 
 have known me, while I was entirely ignorant of who they 
 were, and to have had their curiosity excited, on account, as 
 I imagined, of their relatives having told them I was ac¬ 
 quainted with their language. This occurrence produced a 
 wonderful effect upon the two lads, for they appeared pleased 
 to think I could speak their language. At this moment, one 
 of my daughters, about seven years of age. repeated, in their 
 hearing, the Gipsy word for pot, having picked it up from 
 hearing me mention it. The young Tinklers now thought 
 they were in the midst of a Gipsy family, and seemed quite 
 happy. “ But are you really a nmvJcen ?” I asked the eld¬ 
 est of them. “ Yes, sir,” he replied ; “ and to show you 
 I am no impostor, I will give you the names of everything 
 in your house ;” which, in the presence of my family, he 
 did, to the extent I asked of him. “ My speech,” he contin¬ 
 ued, “ is not the cant of packmen, nor the slang of common 
 thieves.” 
 
 But Gipsy-hunting is like deer-stalking. In prosecuting 
 it, it is necessary to know the animal, its habits, and the 
 locality in which it is to be found. I saw the unfavourable 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 303 
 
 turn approaching : tlio Gipsies’ time was up ; their patience 
 was exhausted. I dropped the subject, and ordered them 
 some refreshment. On their taking leave of me, I said to 
 them, “ D° you intend coming round this part of the country 
 again ?” (I need not have asked them such a question as 
 that.) “ That we do, sir ; and we will not fail to come and 
 see you again.” They thus left me, with the strong impres¬ 
 sion on their minds, that I was a natvken, like themselves, 
 «but a riah —a gentleman Gipsy. I waited patiently for 
 their return, which would happen in due season, on their 
 half-yearly tramp. Everything looked so favourably, cir¬ 
 cumstances had contributed so fortunately, to the end which 
 I had so much at heart, that I looked upon the information 
 to be drawn from these poor Tinkler lads, with as much 
 solicitude and avarice as one would who had discovered a 
 treasure hid in his field. 
 
 This species of Gipsy-hunting, I believe, I had exclusively 
 to myself. I had none of the difficulties to contend with, 
 which would be implied in the field of it having been gone 
 over by others before me. That kind of Gipsy-hunting 
 which implied imprisonment, banishment, and hanging, was 
 a thing of which the Gipsies had had sad experience; if not 
 in their own persons, at least in that which the traditions 
 of their tribe had so carefully handed down to them. Be¬ 
 sides this, the experience of the daily life of the members 
 of their tribe afforded an excellent school of training, for 
 acquiring a host of expedients for escaping every danger 
 and difficulty to which their habits exposed them. But so 
 thoroughly had they preserved their secrets, and especially 
 the grand one—their language—that they came to their 
 wits’ end how to understand, and how to act in, the new 
 sphere of danger into which they were now thrown, or even 
 to comprehend its nature. Such was the advantage which 
 education and enlightenment had given their civilized neigh¬ 
 bour over them. How could they imagine that the com¬ 
 mencement of my knowledge of their language had been 
 drawn from hooks ? What did some of them know of books, 
 beyond, perhaps, a youth sent to school, where, owing to his 
 restless and unsettled good-for-nothingness, he would advance 
 little beyond his alphabet?* For we know that some Gip- 
 
 * In speaking of the more original kind of Gipsy, Grellmann says: “ No 
 Gipsy lias ever signalized himself in literature, notwithstanding many of 
 
304 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GirSIES. 
 
 sies are so intensely vain as to send a child to school, merely 
 to brag before their civilized neighbours that their children 
 have been educated. How could they comprehend that 
 their language had found, or could find, its way into books? 
 The tiling to them was impossible; the idea of it could 
 not, by any exertion of their own, even enter into their 
 imagination. The danger to arise from such a quarter was 
 altogether beyond their capacity of comprehension. Know¬ 
 ing, however, that there was danger of some singular na¬ 
 ture surrounding them, yet being unable to comprehend it, 
 they flickered about it, like moths about a candle; till at 
 last they did come to comprehend, if not its origin, or ex¬ 
 tent, at least its tendency, and the consequences to which it 
 would lead. 
 
 According to promise, the eldest of the Gipsy boys called 
 at my house, in about six months, accompanied by his sister. 
 He was selling white-iron ware, for he was a tin-smith by 
 occupation. Without entering into any preliminary conver¬ 
 sation, for the purpose of smoothing the way for more direct 
 questions, I took him into my parlour, and at once enquired 
 if he could speak the Tinkler language ? He applied to my 
 question the construction that I doubted if he could, and the 
 consequences which that would imply, and answered firmly, 
 “ Yes, sir ; I have been bred in that line all my life.” “ Will 
 you allow me,” said I, “ to write down your words ?” “ 0 yes, 
 sir ; you are welcome to as many as you please.” “ Have you 
 names for everything, and can you converse on any subject, 
 in that language ?” “ Yes, sir ; we can converse, and have a 
 
 name for everything, in our own speech.” I now commenced 
 to “ make hay while the sun shone,” as the phrase runs ; for 
 I knew that I could have only about an hour with the Gipsy, 
 
 them have partaken of the instruction to he obtained at public schools. 
 Their volatile disposition and unsteadiness will not allow them to complete 
 anything which requires perseverance or application. In the midst of his 
 career of learning, the recollection of his origin seizes him ; he desires to 
 return to what he thinks a more happy manner of life ; this solicitude en- 
 creases; he gives up all at once, turns back again, and consigns over his 
 knowledge to oblivion.” 
 
 There are too many circumstances surrounding such a Gipsy to remind 
 him of his origin, and arrest him in his career of learning: for his race 
 never having been tolerated—that is, no position ever having been assigned 
 it, he feels as if he were a vagabond, if known or openly avowed to the 
 public as a member of the tribe. And this, in itself, is sufficient to dis¬ 
 courage such a Gipsy in every effort towards improvement.—E d. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 305 
 
 at the most. The following, then, are the words and sen¬ 
 tences which I took down, on this occasion : 
 
 Slaps , tea. 
 
 Moozies, porridge. 
 
 Mass, flesh. 
 
 Shavcha , broth. 
 
 Mumlie, candle. 
 
 Stramel , straw. 
 
 Parnie, wdieat. 
 
 Duff, smoke. 
 
 Yale, fire. 
 
 Wuther, door. 
 
 Glue , window. 
 
 Kair , house. 
 
 Shucha , coat. 
 
 Shvch-hamie, waistcoat. 
 
 Castle , stick. 
 
 Coories , blankets. 
 
 Eegees , bed-clothes. 
 
 Wavlheriz , bed. 
 
 Suchira , sixpence. 
 
 Sye-boord , sixpence. 
 
 Chinda, shilling. 
 
 Chinda ochindies, twelve shil¬ 
 lings. 
 
 TVm chindies, three shillings. 
 Baurle , grand, great, good. 
 Shan, bad. 
 
 Davies-pagrin, daybreak. 
 Baurle dairies, good day. 
 
 Shan davies, bad day. 
 
 Fannie davies , wet day. 
 
 Sheelra davies, frosty or cold 
 day. 
 
 Sneepa davies, snowy or white 
 day. 
 
 Baurle forest , the chief city. 
 Baurle pantile, the sea, ocean, 
 grand water. 
 
 Bing, the devil. 
 
 Ruffle, the devil, 
 take. 
 
 Chauvies wautlieriz, the chil¬ 
 dren’s bed-clothes. 
 
 Sherro, head. 
 
 Carlie, neck. 
 
 Lears , ears. 
 
 Chatters, teeth, 
 
 Yak, eye. 
 
 Nak, nose. 
 
 Mooie, mouth. 
 
 Vast, hand. 
 
 Jaur, leg. 
 
 Nek , knee. 
 
 Peerie, foot. 
 
 Bur, stone. 
 
 From, the earth. 
 
 Cang-geerie, church. 
 
 Sonnakie, gold. 
 
 Sonnakie vanister, gold ring. 
 Callo, black. 
 
 Cullo gaugie , black man. 
 Leehgh callo, blue. 
 
 Sneepa, white, snow. 
 
 Sheelra, cold, frost. 
 
 Lon, salt. 
 
 Lon paunie, the sea, salt water. 
 Rat, night. 
 
 Rat, blood. 
 
 Habben kairer, baker of bread. 
 Aizel, ass. 
 
 Govrnie, cow. 
 
 Jit cal, dog. 
 
 Pavpeenie, goose. 
 
 Connie, hen. 
 
 Boord, penny. 
 
 Curdle, half-penny. 
 
 Lee, miss. 
 
 Ruffle feck ma, devil take me. 
 Ruffle lee ma, devil miss me. 
 Feck a bar and mar the gaugie, 
 lift a stone and fell the man. 
 Chee, chee, silence, hold your 
 tongue. 
 
 Auvie, come here. 
 
 Jaw vree, go aw'ay. 
 
306 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Jaw vree wautheriz, go away to 
 your bed. 
 
 Baish doun, sit down. 
 
 Baish doun betiiment , sit down 
 on the chair. 
 
 Howie been baishen ? how are 
 you ? 
 
 Biah, gentleman. 
 
 Ilaunie, gentlewoman. 
 
 Baurie riah, king. 
 
 Baurie raunie, queen. 
 
 Braw, son. 
 
 Brawl , daughter. 
 
 Taggers , colliers. 
 
 Naivken, Tinkler, Gipsy. 
 Cam , the moon. 
 
 Quad , prison. 
 
 Staurdie, prison. 
 
 Yaik, one. 
 
 Buie , two. 
 
 Trin, three. 
 
 Tor , four. 
 
 Bo, five. 
 
 Shaigh, six. 
 
 Naivairn, seven. 
 
 Naigh, eight. 
 
 Line, nine. 
 
 Nay, ten. 
 
 This young man sang part of two Gipsy songs to me, in 
 English; and then, at my request, he turned one of them 
 into the Gipsy language, intermingled a little, however, 
 with English words; occasioned, perhaps, by the difficulty 
 in translating it. The subject of one of the songs was that 
 of celebrating a robbery, committed upon a Lord Shandos ; 
 and the subject of the other was a description of a Gipsy 
 battle. The courage with which the females stood the rattle 
 of the cudgels upon their heads was much lauded in the song. 
 Like the Gipsy woman with whom I had no less than seven 
 years’ trouble ere getting any of her speech, this Gipsy lad 
 became, in about an hour’s time, very restless, and impatient 
 to be gone. The true state of things, in this instance, 
 dawned upon his mind. He now became much alarmed, and 
 would neither allow me to write down his songs, nor stop 
 to give me any more of his words and sentences. His 
 terror was only exceeded by his mortification ; and, on part¬ 
 ing with me, he said that, had he, at first, been aware I was 
 unacquainted with his speech, he would not have given me 
 a word of it. 
 
 As far as I can judge, from the few and short specimens 
 which I have myself heard, and had reported to me, the 
 subjects of the songs of the Scottish Gipsies, (I mean those 
 composed by themselves,) are chiefly their plunderings, their 
 robberies, and their sufferings. The numerous and deadly 
 conflicts which they had among themselves, also, afforded 
 them themes for the exercise of their muse. My father, in 
 his youth, often heard them singing songs, wholly in their 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 307 
 
 own language. They appear to have been very fond of our 
 ancient Border marauding songs, which celebrate the daring 
 exploits of the lawless freebooters on the frontiers of Scot¬ 
 land and England. They were constantly singing these com¬ 
 positions among themselves. The song composed on Hughie 
 Graeme, the horse-stealer, published in the second volume of 
 Sir Walter Scott’s Border Minstrelsy, was a great favourite 
 with the Tinklers. As this song is completely to the taste 
 of a Gipsy, I will insert it in this place, as affording a 
 good specimen of that description of song in the singing of 
 which they take great delight. It will also serve to show 
 the peculiar cast of mind of the Gipsies. 
 
 HUGHIE THE GRH2ME. 
 
 Gude Lord Scroope’s to the hunting gane, 
 
 He has ridden o’er moss and nmir; 
 
 And he has grippit Hughie the Grmme, 
 
 For stealing o’ the Bishop’s mare. 
 
 “ Now, good Lord Scroope, this may not be! 
 
 Here hangs a broadsword by my side ; 
 
 And if that thou canst conquer me. 
 
 The matter it may soon be tryed.” 
 
 “ I ne’er was afraid of a traitor-thief; 
 
 Although thy name be Hughie the Graeme, 
 
 I’ll make thee repent thee of thy deeds, 
 
 If God but grant me life and time.” 
 
 “ Then do your worst now, good Lord Scroope, 
 
 And deal your blows as hard as you can ! 
 
 It shall be tried, within an hour, 
 
 Which of us two is the better man.” 
 
 But as they were dealing their blows so free, 
 
 And both so bloody at the time, 
 
 Over the moss came ten yeomen so tall, 
 
 All for to take brave llughie the Graeme. 
 
 Then they liae grippit Hughie the Graeme, 
 
 And brought him up through Carlisle town ; 
 
 The lasses and lads stood on the walls, 
 
 Crying, “ Hughie the Graeme, thou’se ne’er gae down.” 
 
 Then liae they chosen a jury of men, 
 
 The best that were in Carlisle town ; 
 
 And twelve of them cried out at once, 
 
 “ Hughie the Graeme, thou must gae down.” 
 
308 
 
 A ms TOUT OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 Then np bespak him gude Lord Hume, 
 
 As he sat by the judge’s knee,— 
 
 “ Twenty white owsen, my gude lord, 
 
 If you’ll grant Hugliie the Graeme to me.” 
 
 “ 0 no, 0 no, my gude Lord Hume ! 
 
 For sooth and sae it manna be; 
 
 For, were there but three Graemes of the name, 
 
 They suld be hanged a’ for me.” 
 
 ’Twas up and spake the gude Lady Hume, 
 
 As she sat by the judge’s knee,— 
 
 “A peck of white pennies, my guile lord judge, 
 
 If you’ll grant Hughie the Graeme to me.” 
 
 “O no, 0 no, my gude Lady Hume! 
 
 For sooth and so it must na be; 
 
 Were he but the one Graeme of the name, 
 
 He suld be hanged high for me.” 
 
 “ If I be guilty,” said Hughie the Graeme, 
 
 “ Of me my friends shall have small talk 
 And he has louped fifteen feet and three, 
 
 Though his hands they were tied behind his back. 
 
 He looked over his left shoulder, 
 
 And for to see what he might see ; 
 
 There was he aware of his auld father, 
 
 Came tearing his hair most piteouslie. 
 
 “ 0 ! hald your tongue, my father,” he says, 
 
 “ And see that ye dinna weep for me! 
 
 For they may ravish me o’ my life, 
 
 But they canna banish me fro Heavin hie. 
 
 “ Fare ye weel, fair Maggie, my wife ! 
 
 The last time we came ower the muir, 
 
 ’Twas thou bereft me of my life, 
 
 And wi’ the Bishop thou play’d the whore. 
 
 “ Here, Johnie Armstrang, take thou my sword, 
 
 That is made o’ the metal sae fine ; 
 
 And when thou eomest to the English side, 
 
 Remember the death of Hughie the Graeme.”* 
 
 * On mentioning to Sir Walter Scott, when at Abbotsford, that the Gip¬ 
 sies were very partial to Hughie the Grseme, he caused his eldest daughter, 
 afterwards Mrs. Lockhart, to sing this ancient Border song, which she 
 readily did, accompanying her voice with the harp. We were, at the time, 
 in the room which contained his old armour and other antiquities; to which 
 place he had asked me, after tea, to hear his daughter play on the harp. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 309 
 
 I will now give the testimony of the Gipsy chief from 
 whom I received the “ blowing up” alluded to, by Mr. Laid- 
 law, in the Introduction to the work.* 
 
 One of the greatest fairs in Scotland is held, annually, on 
 the 18th day of July, at St. Boswell’s Green, in Roxburgh¬ 
 shire. I paid a visit to this fair, for the purpose of taking 
 a view of the Gipsies. An acquaintance, whom I met at 
 the fair, observed to me, that lie was sure if any one could 
 give me information regarding the Tinklers, it would be old 
 
 -, the horner, at-. To ensure a kind reception from 
 
 the Gipsies, it was agreed upon, between us, that I should 
 introduce myself by mentioning who my ancestors were, on 
 whose numerous farms, (sixteen, rented by my grandfather, 
 in 1781,t) their forefathers had received many a night’s 
 quarters, in their out-houses. We soon found out the old 
 chieftain, sitting in a tent, in the midst of about a dozen of 
 his tribe, all nearly related to him. The moment I made 
 myself known to them, the whole of the old persons imme¬ 
 diately expressed their gratitude for the humane treatment 
 they, and their forefathers, had received at the farms of my 
 relatives. They were extremely glad to see me ; and “ God 
 bless you,” was repeated by several of the old females. “Ay,” 
 said they, “ those days are gone. Christian charity has now 
 left the land. We know the people are growing more hard 
 and uncharitable every year.” I found the old man shrewd, 
 sensible, and intelligent; far beyond what could have been 
 expected from a person of his caste and station in life. He, 
 besides, possessed all that merriness and jocularity which I 
 
 She sang Ilughie the Grseme, in a plain, simple, unaffected manner, exactly 
 in the style in which I have heard the humble country-girls singing the 
 same song, in the south of Scotland. Sir Walter was much interested about 
 the Gipsies; and when I repeated to him a^hort sentence in their speech, 
 he, with great feeling, exclaimed, “ Poor things ! do you hear that?” This 
 was the first time, I believe, that he ever heard a Scottish Gipsy word 
 pronounced. It appeared to me that the mind of the great magician was 
 not wholly divested of the fear that the Gipsies might, in some way or 
 other, injure his young plantations. 
 
 * See pages 58 and 65.—Ed. 
 
 t These sixteen farms embraced about 25,000 acres of mountainous land, 
 and maintained 13,000 sheep, 100 goats, 250 cattle, 50 horses, 20 draught- 
 oxen, and 60 dogs ; 2!) shepherds, 26 other servants, and 15 cotters, making, 
 with their families, 228 souls, supported by my ancestor’s property, as that 
 of a Scotch gentleman-farmer. On the farms mentioned, which lay in Mid- 
 Lothian, Tweed dale, and Selkirkshire, the Gipsies were allowed to remain 
 as long as they pleased; and no loss was ever sustained by the indulgence. 
 
310 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 have often observed among a number of the males of his 
 race. After some conversation with this chief, who appeared 
 about eighty years of age, I enquired if his people, who, in 
 large bands, about sixty years ago, traversed the south of 
 Scotland, had not an ancient language, peculiar to them¬ 
 selves. He hesitated a little, and then readily replied, that 
 the Tinklers had no language of their own, except a few 
 cant words. I observed to him that he knew better—that 
 the Tinklers had, beyond dispute, a language of their own ; 
 and that I had some knowledge of its existence at the pres¬ 
 ent day. He, however, declared that they had no such lan¬ 
 guage, and that I was wrongly informed. In the hearing 
 of all the Gipsies in the tent, I repeated to him four or five 
 Gipsy words and expressions. At this he appeared amazed ; 
 and on my adding some particulars relative to some of the 
 ancestors of the tribe then present, enumerating, I think, 
 three generations of their clan, one of the old females ex¬ 
 claimed, “ Preserve me, he kens a’ about us!” The old 
 chief immediately took bold of my right hand, below the 
 table, with a grasp as if he were going to shake it; and, in 
 a low and subdued tone of voice, so as none might hear but 
 myself, requested me to say not another word in the place 
 where we were sitting, but to call on him, at the town of 
 
 -, and he would converse with me on that subject. I 
 
 considered it imprudent to put any more questions to him 
 relative to his speech, on this occasion, and agreed to meet 
 him at the place he appointed. 
 
 Several persons in the tent, (it being one of the public 
 booths in the market,) who were not Gipsies, were equally 
 surprised, when they observed an understanding immediately 
 take place between me and the Tinklers, by means of a few 
 words, the meaning of which they could not comprehend. A 
 farmer, from the south of Scotland, who was present in the 
 tent, and had that morning given the Tinklers a lamb to eat, 
 met me, some days after, on the banks of the Yarrow. He 
 shook his head,and observed, with a smile, “ Yon was queer¬ 
 looking wark wi’ the Tinklers.' - ’ 
 
 As I was anxious to penetrate to Ids secret speech, I re¬ 
 solved to keep the appointment with the Gipsy, whatever 
 might be the result of our meeting, and I therefore proceeded 
 to the town which he mentioned, eleven days after I had 
 seen him at the fair. On enquiring of the landlord of the 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 311 
 
 principal inn, at which I put up my horse, where the house 
 
 of-, the Tinkler, was situated in the town, lie appeared 
 
 surprised, and eyed me all over. He told me the street, but 
 said he would not accompany me to the house, thinking that 
 I wished him to go with me. It was evident that the land¬ 
 lord, whom I never saw before, considered himself in bad 
 company, in spite of my black clothes, black neck-cloth, and 
 ruffles aforesaid, and was determined not to be seen on the 
 street, either with me or the Tinkler. I told him I by no 
 means wished him to accompany me, but only to tell me in 
 what part of the town the Tinkler’s house was to be found. 
 
 On entering the house, I found the old chief sitting, with¬ 
 out his coat, with an old night-cap on his head, a leathern 
 apron around his waist, and all covered with dust or soot, 
 employed in making spoons from horn. After conversing 
 with him for a short time, I reminded him of the ancient 
 language with which lie was acquainted. He assumed a 
 grave countenance, and said the Tinklers had no such lan¬ 
 guage, adding, at the same time, that I should not trouble 
 myself about such matters. He stoutly denied all knowledge 
 of the Tinkler language, and said no such tongue existed in 
 Scotland, except a few cant words. I persisted in asserting 
 that they were actually in possession of a secret language, 
 and again tried him with a few of my words ; but to no pur¬ 
 pose. All my efforts produced no effect upon his obstinacy. 
 At this stage of my interview, I durst not mention the word 
 Gipsy, as they are exceedingly alarmed at being known as 
 Gipsies. I now signified that he had forfeited his protnisej 
 given me at the fair, and rose to leave him. At this remark, 
 I heard a man burst out a-laughing, behind a partition that 
 ran across the apartment in which we were sitting. The 
 old man likewise started to his feet, and, with both his sooty 
 hands, took hold of the breast of my coat, on either side, 
 and, in this attitude, examined me closely, scanning me all 
 over from head to foot. After satisfying himself, lie said, 
 “ Now, give me a hold of your hand—farewell—I will know 
 you when I see you again.” I bade him good-day, and left 
 the house.* 
 
 * I am convinced the Gipsies have a method of communicating with one 
 another by their hands and fingers, and it is likely this man tried me, in 
 that way, both at the fair and in his own house. I know a man who has 
 seen the Gipsies communicating their thoughts to each other in this way. 
 
 “ Bargains among the Indians are conducted in the most profound silence, 
 
S12 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 I had now no hope of obtaining any information from this 
 man, regarding his peculiar language. I had scarcely, how¬ 
 ever, proceeded a hundred yards down the street, from the 
 house, when I was overtaken by a young female, who re¬ 
 quested me to return, to speak with her father. I imme¬ 
 diately complied. On reaching the door, with the girl, I 
 met one of the old man’s sons, who said that he had over¬ 
 heard what passed between his father and me, in the house. 
 He assured me that his father was ashamed to give me Ms 
 language ; but that, if I would promise not to publish their 
 names, or place of residence, he would himself give mo some 
 of their speech, if his father still persevered in his refusal. 
 I accordingly agreed not to make public the names, and place 
 of residence, of the family. I again entered the little fac¬ 
 tory of horn spoons. Matters were now, to all appearance, 
 quite changed. The old man was very cheerful, and seemed 
 full of mirth. “ Come away,” said he; “ what is this you 
 are asking after ? I would advise you to go to Mr. Stewart, 
 at Hawick, and. he will tell you everything about our lan¬ 
 guage.” “ Father,” said the son, who had resumed his place 
 behind the partition before mentioned, “you know that Mr. 
 Stewart will give our speech to nobody.” The old chief 
 again hesitated and considered, but, being urged by his son 
 and myself, he, at last, said, “ Come away, then ; I will tell 
 you whatever you think proper to ask me. I gave you my 
 oath, at the fair, to do so. Get out your paper, pen and ink, 
 and begin.” He gave me no other oath, at the fair, than his 
 
 and by merely touching each other’s hands. If the seller takes the whole 
 hand, it implies a thousand rupees or pagodas; five fingers import five 
 hundred ; one finger, one hundred; half a finger, fifty; a single joint only 
 ten. In this manner, they will often, in a crowded room, conclude the most 
 important transactions, without the company suspecting that anything 
 whatever was doing .”—Historical Account of Travels in Asia, by Hugh 
 Murray. 
 
 “Method of the English selling their cargoes, at Jedda, to the Turks : 
 Two Indian brokers come into the room to settle the price, one on the part 
 of the Indian captain, the other on that of the buyer or Turk. They are 
 neither Mahommedans nor Christians, but have credit with both. They sit 
 down on the carpet, and take an Indian shawl, which they carry on their 
 shoulders like a napkin, and spread it over their hands. They talk, in the 
 meantime, indifferent conversation, of the arrival of ships from India, or of 
 the news of the day, as if they were employed in no serious business what¬ 
 ever. After about twenty minutes spent in handling each other’s fingers, 
 below the shawl, the bargain is concluded, say for nine ships, without one 
 word ever having been spoken on the subject, or pen or ink used in any 
 shape whatever.”— Bruce's Travels. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 313 
 
 ward, and taking me by the hand, that lie would converse 
 with me regarding the speech of the Tinklers. But, I be¬ 
 lieve, joining hands is considered an oath in some countries 
 of the Eastern world. I was fully convinced, however, that 
 lie was ashamed to give me his speech, and that it was with 
 the greatest reluctance he spoke one word on the subject. 
 The following-are the words and sentences which I collected 
 from him :* 
 
 Pagrie, to break. 
 Humf, give me. 
 Afar, to strike. 
 Alang , to speak. 
 
 Kair, house. 
 
 Prom, street or road. 
 Vile, village. 
 
 Gave, village. 
 
 * It is interesting to notice the reason for this old Gipsy chief being so 
 backward in giving our author some of his language. “ He was ashamed 
 to do it.” Pity it is that there should be a man in Scotland, who, indepen¬ 
 dent of personal character, should be ashamed of such a thing. Then, see 
 how the Gipsy woman, in our author’s house, said that “ the public would 
 look upon her with horror and contempt, were it known she could speak the 
 Gipsy language.” And again, the two female Gipsies, who would rather 
 allow themselves to be murdered, than give the meaning of two Gipsy 
 words to Sauchie colliers, for the reason that “ it would have exposed their 
 tribe, and made themselves odious to the world.” And all for knowing the 
 Gipsy language !—which would be considered an accomplishment in an¬ 
 other person ! What frightful tyranny ! Mr. Borrow, as we will by and 
 by see, says a great deal about the law of Charles III, in regard to the pros¬ 
 pects of the Spanish Gipsies. But there is a law above any legislative 
 enactment—the law of society, of one’s fellow-creatures—which bears so 
 hard upon the Gipsies ; the despotism of caste. If Gipsies, in such humble 
 circumstances, are so afraid of being known to be Gipsies, we can form some 
 idea of the morbid sensitiveness of those in a higher sphere of life. 
 
 The innkeeper evidently thought himself in bad company, when our au¬ 
 thor asked him for the Tinkler’s house, or that any intercourse with a Tink¬ 
 ler would contaminate and degrade him. In this light, read an anecdote 
 in the history of John Bunyan, who was one of the same people, as I shall 
 afterwards show. In applying for his release from Bedford jail, his wife 
 said to Justice Ilale, “ Moreover, my lord, I have four small children that 
 cannot help themselves, of which one is blind, and we have nothing to live 
 upon but the charity of good people.” Thereat, Justice Hale, looking very 
 soberly on the matter, said, “ Alas, poor woman !” “ What is his calling?” 
 
 continued the judge. And some of the company, that stood by, said, (evi¬ 
 dently in interruption, and with a bitter sneer,) “ A Tinker, my lord 1” 
 “ Yes,” replied Bunyan’s wife, “and because he (3 a Tinker, and a poor 
 man, therefore he is despised, and cannot have justice.” Noble woman ! 
 wife of a noble Gipsy 1 If the world wishes to know who John Bunyan 
 really was, it can find him depicted in our author’s visit to this Scottish 
 Gipsy family, where it can also learn the meaning of Bunyan, at a time 
 when Jews were legally excluded from England, taking so much trouble to 
 ascertain whether he was of that race, or not. From the present work 
 generally, the world can learn the reason why Bunyan said nothing of his 
 ancestry and nationality, when giving an account of his own history.—E d. 
 
 14 
 
314 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Jaw drom , take the road, get 
 
 Bakra , sheep. 
 
 off quickly. 
 
 Matchka , cat. 
 
 Hatch here , come here. 
 
 Bashanie, cock. 
 
 Bing, the devil. 
 
 Caunie, hen. 
 
 Bing lee , devil miss me. 
 
 Thood, milk. 
 
 Moolie , death. 
 
 Molzie , wine. 
 
 Moolie , I’ll kill you. 
 
 Bulliment , loaf of bread. 
 
 Mooled , murdered. 
 
 Heddie , potato. 
 
 Moolie a gaugie, kill the man. 
 
 Shaucha, broth. 
 
 Bowiskie , gun or pistol. 
 
 Mass, flesh. 
 
 Harro , sword. 
 
 Hahben , bread. 
 
 Shammel, sword. 
 
 Pavplers, pottage. 
 
 Chourie , knife. 
 
 Paunie, water. 
 
 Raclilin, hanged. 
 
 Paurie , water. 
 
 Sallah *, to curse. 
 
 Mumlie, candle. 
 
 Klistie , soldier. 
 
 Blinkie, candle. 
 
 Hash, deserter. 
 
 Flatrin , fish. 
 
 Grye-femler , horse-dealer. 
 
 Chizcazin , cheese. 
 
 Staurdie, prison. 
 
 Romanic , whiskey. 
 
 Hak, nose. 
 
 Casties , wood. 
 
 Yak , eye. 
 
 Filsh, tree. 
 
 Yaka , eyes. 
 
 Lodlie, quarters. 
 
 Mooie, mouth. 
 
 Choar, to steal. 
 
 Vast, hand. 
 
 Chor, a thief. 
 
 Sherro, head 
 
 Bumie, to drink. 
 
 Femmel , hand. 
 
 Jaw vree, go away. 
 
 Bowie, coin or money. 
 
 Gravnzie , barn. 
 
 Lowa , silver. 
 
 Graunagie, barn. 
 
 Curdie, half-penny. 
 
 Clack, stone. 
 
 Bar, live shillings. 
 
 Yak, fire. 
 
 Size, six. 
 
 Peerie, pot. 
 
 Grye, horse. 
 
 Treepie, pot-lid. 
 
 Greliam, horse. 
 
 Roy , spoon. 
 
 Prancie , horse. 
 
 Skew, platter. 
 
 Aizel, ass. 
 
 Swag, sack. 
 
 Jucal, dog. 
 
 Ingrims , pincers. 
 
 Boutler , cow. 
 
 
 * Sallah, in the Scottish Gipsy speech, properly signifies accursed, or de¬ 
 tested. It is one of the most abusive expressions that can be used towards 
 your fellow creatures. Nothing terrifies a young Gipsy so much as to bawl 
 out to him, “ Sallah, jaw drom,” which, in plain English, nearly means, 
 “ You accursed, take the road.” 
 
 It appears that, in Hindostanee, Salla is a word of the highest reproach, 
 and that nothing can provoke a Hindoo so much as the applying of it to 
 him. When cursing and swearing, by what would appear to be the Deity, 
 the Gipsies make use of the word Sallahen. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 315 
 
 Yag-ingrims , fire-irons. 
 Sauster, iron. 
 
 Mashlam , brass or metal. 
 Fizam , grass. 
 
 Penum , hay. 
 
 Geeve, corn. 
 
 Greenam , corn. 
 
 Beerie , ship. 
 
 Outhrie , window, 
 horn. 
 
 Shuclia , coat. 
 
 /See/, hat. 
 
 Gogle, hat. 
 
 Cockle, hat. 
 
 Calshes, breeches. 
 
 Teeyakas , shoes. 
 
 Olivers, stockings. 
 
 Beenship, good. 
 
 Baurie, good. 
 
 Shan, bad. 
 
 Range, mad. 
 
 Riah, Rajah, chief, governor. 
 .Seerc ria/t, the king. 
 
 2?een wtorf, the queen. 
 
 Been gaugie, gentleman. 
 
 Seen, ria^, gentleman. 
 
 morl, lady. 
 
 Yagger, collier. 
 
 Nawken* Tinkler, Gipsy. 
 Davies, day. 
 
 Rat, night. 
 
 Beenship mashlam , good metal 
 Beensliip-rat, good-night. 
 Beenlightment , Sabbath-day. 
 Shan drom, bad road. 
 
 Shan davies, bad day. 
 
 Gaugie, man. 
 
 Managie, woman. 
 
 Mart, wife. 
 
 Chavo, son. 
 
 Chauvies, children. 
 
 Praw, son. 
 
 Prawl, daughter. 
 
 Nais-gaugie, grandfather. 
 Nais-mort, grandmother. 
 Aukaman , marriage. 
 
 Carie, penis. 
 
 Bight, pudenda. 
 
 Sjair, to ease nature. 
 
 Jair dah, a woman’s apron. 
 
 I was desirous to learn, from this Gipsy, if there were any 
 traditions among the Scottish Gipsies, as to their origin, 
 and the country from which they came. He stated that the 
 language of which he had given me a specimen was an Ethi¬ 
 opian dialect, used by a tribe of thieves and robbers ; and 
 that the Gipsies were originally from Ethiopia, although 
 now called Gipsies.t He now spoke of himself and his 
 tribe by the name of Gipsies, -without hesitation or alarm. 
 “ Our Gipsy language,” added he, “ is softer than your harsh 
 Gaelic.” He was at considerable pains to give me the 
 proper sound of the words. The letter a is pronounced broad 
 
 * Nawken has a number of significations, such as Tinkler, Gipsy, a wan¬ 
 derer, a worker in iron, a man who can do anything for himself in the 
 mechanical arts, <fcc., <fcc. 
 
 f The tradition among the Scottish Gipsies of being Ethiopians, what¬ 
 ever weight the reader may attach to it, dates as far back, at least, ns the 
 year 1615; for it is mentioned in the remission under the privy seal, 
 granted to William Auehterlony, of Cayrine, for resetting John Faa arid 
 Ills followers. See page 113.—Ed. 
 
316 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 % 
 
 in their language, like aw in paw, or a in water ; and ie, or 
 ee, in the last syllable of a great many words, are sounded 
 short and quick ; and cli soft, as in church. Their speech 
 appears to be copious, for, said he, they have a great 
 many words and expressions for one thing. He further 
 stated that the Gipsy language has no alphabet, or character, 
 by which it can be learned, or its grammatical construction 
 ascertained. He never saw any of it written. 1 observed 
 to him that it would, in course of time, be lost. He replied, 
 that “ so long as there existed two Gipsies in Scotland, it 
 would never be lost.” He informed me that every one of 
 the Yetholm Tinklers spoke the language; and that almost 
 all those persons who were selling earthen-ware at St. Bos¬ 
 well’s fair were Gipsies. I counted myself twenty-four fami¬ 
 lies, with earthen-ware, and nine female heads of families, 
 selling articles made of horn. These thirty-three fami¬ 
 lies, together with a great many single Gipsies scattered 
 through the fair, would amount to above three hundred Gip¬ 
 sies on the spot. He further mentioned that none of the 
 Yetholm Gipsies were at the market. The old man also in¬ 
 formed me that a great number of our horse-dealers are 
 Gipsies. “ Listen attentively,” said he, “ to our horse-coup- 
 ers, in a market, and you will hear them speaking in the 
 Gipsy tongue.” I enquired how many there were in Scot¬ 
 land acquainted with the language. He answered, “ There 
 are several thousand.” I further enquired, if he thought the 
 Gipsy population would amount to five thousand souls. He 
 replied he was sure there were fully five thousand of his 
 tribe in Scotland. It was further stated to me, by this fam¬ 
 ily, that the Gipsies arc at great pains in teaching their 
 children, from their very infancy, their own language ; and 
 that they embrace every opportunity, when by themselves, 
 Qf conversing in it, about their ordinary affairs. They also 
 pride themselves very much in being in possession of a 
 speech peculiar to themselves—quite unknown to the public. 
 
 I then sent for some spirits wherewith to treat the old 
 chief; but I was cautioned, by one of the family, not to 
 press him to drink much, as, from his advanced age and in¬ 
 firmities, little did him harm. The moment you speak to 
 an intelligent Gipsy chief, in a familiar and kindly manner, 
 putting yourself, as it were, on a level with him, you find 
 him entirely free from all embarrassment in his manners. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 317 
 
 He speaks to you, at once, in a free* independent, confident, 
 emphatic tone, without any rudeness in his way of address¬ 
 ing you. He never loses his self-possession. The old chief¬ 
 tain sang part of a Gipsy song, in his own language, but he 
 would not allow me to write it down.* Indeed, by his man¬ 
 ner, he seemed frequently to hesitate whether he would pro¬ 
 ceed any further in giving me information, and appeared to 
 regret that he had gone so far as he had done. I now 
 and then stopped him in his song, and asked him the mean¬ 
 ing of some of the expressions. It was, however, intermixed 
 with a few English words; perhaps every fifth word was 
 English. The Gipsy words, graunzie (barn), caunies (chick¬ 
 ens), molzie (wine), staurdie (prison), mort and cJiauvies 
 (wife and children), were often repeated. In short, the sub¬ 
 ject of the song was that of a Gipsy, lying in chains in 
 prison, lamenting that he could not support his wife and 
 children by plunder and robbery. The Gipsy was repre¬ 
 sented as mourning over his hard fate, deprived of his liberty, 
 confined in a dungeon, and expressing the happiness and de¬ 
 light which he had when free, and would have were he lying 
 in a barn, or out-house, living upon poultry, and drinking 
 wine with his tribc.f 
 
 This family, like all their race, now became much alarmed 
 at their communications ; and it required considerable trou¬ 
 ble on my part to allay their fears. The old man was in 
 the greatest anguish of mind, at having committed himself 
 at all, relative to his speech. I was very sorry for his dis¬ 
 tress, and renewed my promise not to publish his name, or 
 place of residence, assuring him he had nothing to fear. It 
 
 * The Scottish Gipsies have doubtless an oral literature, like their breth¬ 
 ren in other countries. It would be strange indeed if they did not rank as 
 high, in that respect, as many of the barbarous tribes in the world. People 
 so situated, with no written language, are wonderfully apt at picking up, 
 and retaining, any composition that oontains poetry and music, to which 
 oral literature is chiefly confined. In that respect, their faculties, like those 
 of the blind, are sharpened by the wants which others do not experience in 
 indulging a feeling common to all mankind. 
 
 A striking instance of a people, unacquainted with the art of writing, 
 possessing a literature, is said to have been found in Hawaii; and to such 
 an extent, as to “ possess a force and compass that, at the beginning of the 
 study of it, would not have been credited.”—En. 
 
 f A song which a female Gipsy sang to Mr. Borrow, at Moscow, com¬ 
 menced in this way, “ Her head is aching with grief, as if she had tasted 
 wineand ended thus, “ lhat she may depart in quest of the lord of her 
 bosom, and share his joys and pleasures.”— Ed. 
 
318 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 is now many years since he died. He was considered a very 
 decent, honest man, and was a great favourite with thos« 
 who were acquainted with him. But his wife, and somt 
 other members of his family, followed the practices of theii 
 ancestors. 
 
 Publish their language ! Give to the world that which 
 they had kept to themselves, with so much solicitude, so 
 much tenacity, so much fidelity, for three hundred and fifty 
 years ! A parallel to' such a phenomenon cannot be found 
 within the whole range of history.* What will the Tinklers, 
 the “ poor things,” as Sir Walter Scott so feelingly called 
 them—what will they think of me, after the publication of 
 the present work ?t 
 
 H Smith, in his “ Hebrew people,” writes: “ The Jews had almost lost, in 
 the seventy years’ captivity, their original language ; that was now become 
 dead ; and they spoke a jargon made up of their own language and that of 
 the Chaldeans, and other nations with whom they had mingled. Formerly, 
 preachers had only explained subjects ; now, they were obliged to explain 
 words ; words which, in the sacred code, were become obsolete, equivocal, 
 dead.”— Ed. 
 
 f The Gipsies have been much annoyed, in late times, by people anxious 
 to find out their secrets. The circumstance caused them, at first, much 
 alarm as to what it meant; but when they came to learn the object of this 
 modern Gipsy-hunting, they became, in a measure, reconciled to their trou¬ 
 bles; for they were perfectly satisfied that the labours of these inquisitive 
 people would, in the language of Ruthven, “ be in vain.” But the attempt 
 of our author, with his “ open sesame,” caused not a few of them to travel 
 through life with the weight of a millstone hanging about their necks, 
 which the publication, now, is perhaps calculated to lighten. The “ giving 
 to the world everything relative to their tribe,” was something they were 
 more apt to over than underestimate. To be “ put in the papers,” judg¬ 
 ing from the horror with which such is regarded by our own humble peo¬ 
 ple, was bad enough ; still, the end of that would, in their peculiar way of 
 thinking, bo merely the “ lighting of the candles, and curling the hair, of 
 the gentle folk.” But to have themselves put in a book—to see themselves, 
 in their imaginations, “ carried about in every bit herd-laddie’s pouch,” was 
 something that aggravated them. The presumptuous pride, the overween¬ 
 ing conceit of a high-mettled Scottish Gipsy; his boasted descent—a des¬ 
 cent at once high, illustrious, and lost in antiquity; his unbounded con¬ 
 tempt for the rabble of town and country — rendered him, under the cir¬ 
 cumstances, almost incapable of brooking the idea of seeing his race 
 exposed to, what he would consider, the ridicule of the very herds. The 
 very idea of it was to him mortifying and maddening. Well might our 
 author, from having been so much mixed up with the Gipsies, show some 
 hesitancy ere taking a step that would, have brought such a nest of hornets 
 about his ears. But, all things considered, my impression is, that the out¬ 
 door Gipsies, at the present day, will feel extremely proud of the present 
 work; and that the same may be said of all classes of them, if one subject 
 had been excluded from the volume, over which they will be very apt to 
 growl a little in secret.— Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 319 
 
 "While walking one clay, with a friend, around the harbour 
 of Grangemouth, I observed a man, who appeared above 
 seventy years of age, carrying a small wooden box on his 
 shoulder, a leathern apron tied around his waist, with a 
 whitish coloured bull-dog following him. He was enquir¬ 
 ing of the crews of the vessels in the port, whether they had 
 any pots, kettles, or pans to repair. Just as my friend and 
 I came up to him, on the quay, I said to him, in a familiar 
 manner, as if I knew exactly what he was, “ Baurie jucal” 
 words which signify, in the Gipsy language, a “ good dog.” 
 Being completely taken by surprise, the old man turned 
 quickly round, and, looking down at his dog, said, without 
 thinking what he was about, “ Yes, the dog is not bad.” 
 But the words had scarcely escaped his lips ere he affected 
 not to comprehend my question, after he had distinctly an¬ 
 swered it. He looked exceedingly foolish, and afforded my 
 friend a hearty laugh, at his attempt at recovering himself. 
 He became agitated and angry, and called out, “ What do 
 you mean ? I don’t understand you—yes, the dog is hairy ” 
 I said not another word, nor took any further notice of him, 
 but passed on, in case of provoking him to mischief. He 
 stood stock-still upon the spot, and, keeping his eyes fixed 
 upon me, as long as I was in sight, appeared to be consider¬ 
 ing with himself what I could be, or whether he might not 
 have seen me before. He looked so surprised and alarmed, 
 that he could scarcely trust bimself in the place, since he 
 found, to a certainty, that his grand secret was known. I 
 saw him a short while afterwards, at a little distance, with 
 his glasses on, sitting on the ground, in the manner of the 
 East, with his hammers and files, tin and copper, about him, 
 repairing cooking utensils belonging to a vessel in the basin ; 
 with his trusty jucal, sitting close at his back, like a senti¬ 
 nel, to defend him. The truth is, I was not very fond of 
 having anything further to do with this member of the tribe, 
 in case he had resented my interference with him and his 
 speech. This old man wore a long great-coat, and exter¬ 
 nally looked exactly like a blacksmith. No one of ordinary 
 observation could have perceived him to be a Gipsy ; as 
 there were no striking peculiarities of expression about his 
 countenance, which indicated him as being one of that race. 
 I was surprised at my own discovery. 
 
 A Gipsy informed me that almost all our thimble-riggers, 
 
320 
 
 A BISTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 or “ thimble-men,” as they are sometimes called, are a supe¬ 
 rior class of Gipsies, and converse in the Gipsy language. 
 In the summer of 1836, an opportunity presented itself to 
 me to verify the truth of this information. On a by-road, 
 between Edinburgh and Newhaven, I fell in with a band of 
 these thimble-riggers, employed at their nefarious occupa¬ 
 tion. The band consisted of six individuals, all personating 
 different characters of the community. Some had the ap 
 pearance of mercantile clerks, and others represented young 
 farmers, or dealers in cattle, of inferior appearance. The 
 man in charge of the board and thimbles looked like a 
 journeyman blacksmith or plumber. They all pretended to 
 be strangers to each other. Some were betting and playing, 
 and others looking on, and acting as decoys. None besides 
 themselves were present, except myself, a young lad, and a 
 respectable-looking elderly female. I stood and looked at 
 the band for a little ; but as nobody was playing but them¬ 
 selves, the man with the thimbles, to lead me on, urged me 
 to bet with him, and try my fortune at his board. 1 said I 
 did not intend to play, and was only looking at them. I 
 took a steady look at the faces of each of the six villains ; 
 but, whenever their eyes caught mine, they looked away, or 
 down to the ground, verifying the saying that a rogue can¬ 
 not look you in the face. The man at the board again 
 urged me to play, and, with much vapouring and insolence, 
 took out a handful of notes, and said he had many hundreds 
 a year ; that I was a poor, shabby fellow, and had no money 
 on me, and, therefore, could not bet with him. I desired 
 him to let me alone, otherwise I would let them see I was 
 not to be insulted, and that I knew more about them than 
 they were aware of. “ Who the devil are you, sir, to speak 
 to us in that manner,” was the answer I received. I again 
 replied, that, if they continued their insolence, I would 
 show them who I was. This only provoked them the more, 
 and encrcased their violent behaviour. High words then 
 arose, and the female alluded to, thinking I was in danger, 
 kindly entreated me to leave them. I now thought it time 
 to try what effect my Gipsy words would produce upon 
 them. In an authoritative tone of voice, I called out to 
 them, “ Chee, cheel" which, in the Scottish Gipsy language, 
 signifies “Hold your tongue,” “be silent,” or “silence.”* 
 
 * A lady, who had been seventeen years in India, told me that “ Chee, 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 321 
 
 The surprised thimble-men were instantly silent. They 
 spoke not a word, but looked at one another. Only, one 
 of them whispered to his companions, “ He is not to be 
 meddled with.” They immediately took up their board, 
 thimbles and all, and left the place, apparently in consider¬ 
 able alarm, some taking one direction and some another. 
 The female in question was also surprised at seeing their 
 insolent conduct repressed, in a moment, by a single expres¬ 
 sion. “ But, sir,” said she, “ what was that you said to 
 them, for they seem afraid ?” I was myself afraid to say 
 another word to them, and took care they did not see me 
 go to my dwelling-house.* 
 
 One of the favourite, and permanent, fields of operation of 
 these thimblers is on the Queensferry road, from where it is 
 
 chee" was, in Hindostanee, an expression of reproof, corresponding exactly 
 with our “ Fie, shame !” “ Oh fie, shame !” 
 
 * About four years after this occurrence, I was invited to dine at the 
 house of a friend, with whose wife I was not acquainted. On being introduced 
 to her, I was rather surprised at the repeated hard looks which she took at 
 me. At last she said, “ I think I have seen you before. Were you never 
 engaged with a band of thimble-men, near Newhaven?” I said I was, 
 some years ago. “ Do you recollect,” continued she, “ of a female taking 
 you by the arm, and urging you to leave them ?” I said, “ Perfectly.” 
 “ Well, then, I am the female ; and I yet recollect your words were Chee, 
 chee.” She mentioned the circumstance to her husband at the time ; but he 
 always said to her that I must have been only one of the blackguards 
 themselves, deceiving her. lie would not listen to her when she described 
 me as not at all like a thimble-rigger, but always answered her, “ I tell ye, 
 woman, the man you spoke to was nothing but one of these villains.” 
 
 The thimble-riggers who molested Mr. Rose, ship-builder, so much, also 
 answered my Gipsy words distinctly; and, ever afterwards, took off their 
 hats to me, as I passed them playing at their game. 
 
 [The thimble-men here alluded to took up their quarters immediately to 
 the west of Leith Fort, where the road takes a turn, at a right angle, a 
 little in front of Mr. Rose’s house, and there takes a similar turn towards 
 the west: the best position for carrying on the thimble game. So exas¬ 
 perated was this gentleman, when, by every means in his power, he failed 
 to dislodge them, that he sent some of the men from his yard, to erect, on 
 the spot, a pole, which he covered with sheet-iron, to prevent its being cut 
 down; and placed on the top of it a board, having this upon it, “ Beware 
 of thimble-riggers and chain-droppers,” with a hand pointing directly 
 below. This had no effect, how T ever, for the “ knights of the thimble” pur¬ 
 sued their game right under it. A gentleman, in passing one day, directed 
 their attention to the board, but the only reply he got was, “ Bah ! that’s 
 nothing. Where can you find a shop without a sign V and where’s the 
 other person that gets a sign from the public for nothing ?” 
 
 Thimble-rigging is peculiarly a Gipsy game. In Great Britain, the 
 Gipsies nearly monopolize it; and it would be singular if some of the 
 American thimblers were not Gipsies.—E d.] 
 
 14 * 
 
322 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 intersected by the street leading from the back of Leith 
 Fort, on the east, to the new road leading from Granton 
 pier, on the west. This part of the Queensferry road is 
 intersected by about half-a-dozcn cross-roads, all leading 
 from the landing and shipping places at the piers of 
 Granton, Trinity, and Newhaven. These cross-roads are 
 cut by three roads running nearly parallel to each other, 
 viz., the road along the sea-beach, Trinity road, and the 
 Queensferry road. A great portion of the passengers, by 
 the many steamboats, pass along all these different roads, 
 to and from Edinburgh. On all of these roads, between the 
 water of Leith and the Forth, the thimble-riggers station 
 themselves, as single individuals, or in numbers, as it may 
 answer their purpose. In fact, this part of the country 
 between the sea and Edinburgh, is so much chequered by 
 roads crossing each other, that it may be compared to the 
 meshes of a spider’s web, and the thimblers as so many 
 spiders, watching to pounce upon their prey. The moment 
 one of these sentinels observes a stranger appear, signals are 
 made to his confederates, when their organized plan of 
 operations for entrapping the unwary person is imme¬ 
 diately put in execution. Strangers, unacquainted with the 
 locality, are greatly bewildered among all the cross-roads 
 mentioned, and have considerable difficulty in threading 
 their way to the city. One of the gang will then step for¬ 
 ward, and, pretending to be a stranger himself, will enquire 
 of the others the road to such and such a place. Frequently 
 the unsuspecting and bewildered individual will enquire of 
 the thimbler for some street or place in Edinburgh. The 
 decoy and the victim now walk in company, and converse 
 familiarly together on various topics ; the thimbler offers 
 snuff to his friend, and makes himself as agreeable as he 
 can ; while one of the gang, at a distance in front, drops a 
 watch, chain, or other piece of mock jewelry, or commences 
 playing at the thimble-board. The decoy is sure to lead 
 his dupe exactly to the spot where the trap is laid, and 
 where he will probably be plundered. One of these entrap- 
 ments terminated in the death of its subject. A working 
 man, having risked his half-year’s wages at the thimble- 
 board, of course lost every farthing of the money ; and took 
 the loss so much to heart as, in a fit of despondency, to 
 drown himself in the water of Leith. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 323 
 
 In the beginning of 1842,1 fell in with six of these thim¬ 
 ble-riggers and chain-droppers, on Newhaven road, on their 
 way to Edinburgh. I was anxious to discover the nature 
 of their conversation, and kept as close to them as I could, 
 without exciting their suspicion. Like that of most people 
 brought up in one particular line of life, their conversation 
 related wholly to their own trade—that of swindling, theft, 
 and robbery. I overheard them speaking of “ bloody swells,” 
 and of dividing their booty. One of them was desired by 
 the others to look after a certain steamboat, expected to 
 arrive, and to get a bill to ascertain its movements exactly. 
 He said he would “ require three men to take care of that 
 boat” ; meaning, as I understood him, that all these men 
 were necessary for laying his snares, and executing his 
 designs upon the unsuspecting passengers, as they landed 
 from the vessel, and were on their way to their destinations. 
 The manager of the steamboat company could not have 
 consulted with his subordinates, about their lawful affairs, 
 witli more care and deliberation, or in a more cool, business¬ 
 like way, than were these villains in contriving plans for 
 plundering the public. On their approach to Pilrig street, the 
 band separated into pairs ; some taking the north, and some 
 the south, side of Leith walk, for Edinburgh, where they 
 vanished in the crowd. Their language was fearful, every 
 expression being accompanied by a terrible oath. 
 
 On another occasion, I fell in with another band of these 
 vagabond thimble-men, on the Dalkeith road, near Craig- 
 miller Castle. I asked the fellow with the thimbles, “ Is 
 that gaugie a nawken f” pointing to one of the gang who 
 had just left him. The question, in plain English, was, “ Is 
 that man a Gipsy?” The thimbler flew at once into a great 
 passion, and bawled out, “ Ask himself, sir.” He then fell 
 upon me, and a gentleman who was with me, in most abusive 
 language, applying to us the most insulting epithets he could 
 think of. It was evident to my friend that the thimble-man 
 perfectly understood my Gipsy question. So enraged wms 
 lie, that we were afraid lie would follow us, and do us some 
 harm. My friend did not consider himself safe till he was 
 in the middle of Edinburgh, for many a look did he cast be¬ 
 hind him, to see whether the Gipsy was not in pursuit of us.* 
 
 * There is a Gipsy belonging to one of these bands, known by the sou¬ 
 briquet of the “ winged duck,” from having lost an arm, of whom I have 
 
324 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The Gipsies in Scotland consider themselves to be of the 
 same stock as those in England and Ireland, for they are all 
 acquainted with the same speech. They afford assistance to 
 one another, whenever they happen to meet. The following 
 
 often heard our author speak. He is what may be called the captain of 
 the company. A description of him, and his way of life, may be inter¬ 
 esting, inasmuch as it illustrates a class of Scottish Gipsies at the present 
 day. 
 
 About the year 1853, three young gentlemen, from the town of Leith, had 
 occasion to take a stroll over Arthur’s Seat, a hill that overhangs Edin¬ 
 burgh, on the east side of the city. In climbing the hill, they observed, a 
 little way before them, a man toiling up the ascent, whom they did not 
 notice till they came close upon him, and who had evidently been laying off 
 on the side of the path, and entered it as they approached it. He appears 
 about sixty years of age, is well dressed, and carries a fine cane, which he 
 keeps pressing into the ground, to help him up the hill. Just as they make 
 up to him, he abruptly stops, and turns round, so as almost to touch them. 
 “ Hech, how ! I’m blown, I’m blown ; I’m fairly done up. Young gentle¬ 
 men, you have the advantage of me; I’m getting old. and it is hard for me 
 to climb the hill.” (Blown, done up, indeed ! The fellow has stamina 
 enough to outclimb any of them for years yet.) An agreeable conversation 
 ensues, such as at once gains for him the confidence of the youths. He 
 appears to them so mild, so bland, so fatherly, so worthy of respect, in short, 
 a “ nice old cove,” who is evidently enjoying his otium cum dignitate in his 
 old age, in some cottage near by, upon a pension, an annuity, or a moderate 
 competency of some sort. During the conversation, he manages to ascer¬ 
 tain that his young friends have not been on the hill for some time—that 
 one of them, indeed, has never been there before. All at once he exclaims, 
 “ Ah ! what can this be ? Let us go and see.” Upon which they step for¬ 
 ward to look at a person like a mechanic playing at the thimbles. Placing 
 his arm around the neck of one of the young men, he begins to moralize: 
 “Pray, young gentlemen, don’t bet, (they had not shown the least symptoms 
 of doing that ;) it’s wrong to bet; it’s a thing I never do; I would advise 
 you not to do it. This is a rascally thimbler; he’ll cheat, he’ll rob you.” 
 At this time there are three playing at the board, winning and losing 
 money rapidly. The “ old cove” becomes impatient to be gone, and mo¬ 
 tions so as to imply, “ Boys, let us go, let us go.” Moving a few steps 
 forward, he halts to admire the scenery, (but easts a leering eye in the 
 direction of the board.) “ Ah ! there’s another goose gone to be plucked ; 
 let us see what luck he meets with.” 
 
 Now thimble rigging is the game, of all others, by which the uninitiated 
 can be duped. They see the pea put under one of the thimbles, (nutshells 
 they are, indeed ;) there seems to be no doubt of that. The thimbles are 
 then so gently moved, that any one can follow them. The pea is not after¬ 
 wards tampered with—that is evident. All, then, that remains to be done, 
 is to lift the thimble under which the pea is, and secure your prize. But 
 the thimble man, with his long nail, and nimble finger, has secured the pea 
 under his nail, or, with the crook of his little finger, thrust it into the palm 
 of his hand, while he pretended to cover it with the thimble. An accom¬ 
 plice, to make doubly sure of the pea being under the thimble, lifts it, and 
 shows a pea, which he, by sleight of hand, drops, and, while pretending to 
 cover it, as nimbly takes it up again. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 325 
 
 facts will at least show that the Scottish and Irish Gipsies 
 are one and the same people. 
 
 In the county of File, I once fell in with an Irish 
 family, to appearance in great poverty and distress, rest¬ 
 ing themselves on the side of the public road. A shelty 
 
 Betting and playing go on as before. The player makes some fine hauls, 
 but loses a game. He swears that foul play has been used. An altercation 
 follows. The man at the board gets excited, and to show that he really is 
 honourable in his playing, exclaims, “ Well, sir, there’s your money again ; 
 try another game if you have a mind.” “ Now that is really honest, and 
 no mistake about it,” remarks the “ old cove.” Then the thimbler averts 
 his head, to speak to a person behind him, and the “ old cove” slyly lifts a 
 thimble and shows the pea, and whispers very confidentially to his friends, 
 “ Now, young gentlemen, you can safely bet a few shillings on that.” They 
 shake their heads, however, for they know too much about thimbling. The 
 “ old cove” now gets fidgetty, and, managing to edge a little away from the 
 board, commences, in a subdued tone, to speak, in a strange gibberish, to 
 another bystander; but, forgetting himself, drops a word rather louder 
 than the others, on which, as he turns round and catches the eyes of his 
 young friends, he coughs and hems. On hearing the gibberish, a fear steals 
 over the young men, on finding themselves surrounded by a band of des¬ 
 peradoes, in so solitary a place, and they make haste to be off. But the 
 “ old cove,” to quiet their suspicions, accompanies them to a convenient 
 spot, where he leaves them, to go to his home, by a side-path that soon 
 leads him out of sight. On separating, he looks around him at the scenery, 
 now lets fall his stick, now picks up something, that he may, with less sus¬ 
 picion, watch the movements of his escaped victims. They feel a singular 
 relief in getting rid of his company, and, with tact, dog him over the hill, 
 till they see him go back to the thimblers. They then think over their 
 adventure, and the strange jargon they have heard, and unanimously ex¬ 
 claim, “ Wasn’t he a slippery old serpent, after all!” 
 
 On this occasion, there were no less than fourteen of these fellows present, 
 some of them stationed here, some there, while they kept artfully moving 
 around and about the hill, so as not to appear connected, but frequently 
 approached the board, to contribute to and watch their luck. They per¬ 
 sonated various characters. One of them played the country lout, whose 
 dress, gait, gape, and stare were inimitable. On the slightest symptom of 
 danger manifesting itself, they would, by the movement of a hat, scatter, 
 and vanish in an instant. 
 
 Among the people generally, a mystery attaches to these and other 
 thimble-men. No one seems to know anything about them—who they are 
 or where they come from—and yet the)- are seen flitting everywhere through 
 the country ; but hardly ever two days together in one dress. But the 
 mystery is solved by their being Gipsies. They are dangerous fellows to 
 meddle with; yet they seem to prefer thimbling, chain-dropping, card¬ 
 playing, pocket-picking, in fairs and thoroughfares, and pigeon-plucking 
 in every form, to robbery on the high-way, after the manner of their ances¬ 
 tors. 
 
 Thimble-rigging, according to Sir J. Gardner Wilkinson, was practised 
 in ancient Egypt. lie calls it “ thimble rig, or the game of cups, under 
 which a ball was put, while the opposite party guessed under which of four 
 it was concealed.”—E d. 
 
326 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 and an ass were grazing hard by. The ass they used in 
 carrying a woman, who, they said, was a hundred and one 
 years of age. She was shrunk and withered to a skeleton, 
 or rather, I should say, to a bundle of bones ; and her chin 
 almost rested on her knees, and her body was nearly doubled 
 by age. On interrogating the head of the family, I found 
 that his name was Hugh White, and that he was an Irish¬ 
 man, and a son of the old woman who was with him. I put 
 some Gipsy words to him, to ascertain whether or not he 
 was one of the tribe. He pretended not to understand what 
 I said ; but his daughter, of about six years of age, replied, 
 “ But I understand what he says.” I then called out 
 sharply to him, “Jaiu vree ”—(“Go away,” or “get out of 
 the way.”) “ As soon as I can,” was his answer. On 
 leaving him, I again called, “ Beenship-davies ”—(“ Good- 
 day.”) “ Good-day, sir ; God bless you,” was his immedi¬ 
 ate reply. 
 
 I happened, at another time, to be in the court-house of 
 one of the burghs north of the Forth, when two Irishmen, 
 of the names of O’Reilly and McEwan, were at the bar for 
 having been found drunk, and fighting within the town. 
 They were sentenced by the magistrates to three days’ im¬ 
 prisonment, and to be “ banished the town,” for their riotous 
 conduct. The men had the Irish accent, and had certainly 
 been born and brought up in Ireland; but their habiliments 
 and general appearance did not correspond exactly with the 
 ordinary dress and manners of common Irish peasants, al¬ 
 though their features were in all respects Hibernian. When 
 the magistrates questioned them in respect to their conduct, 
 the prisoners looked very grave, and said, “ Sure, and it 
 plase your honours, our quarrel was nothing but whiskey, 
 and sure we are the best friends in the world and seemed 
 very penitent. But when the magistrates were not looking 
 at them, they were smiling to each other, and keeping up a 
 communication in pantomime. Suspecting them to be Irish 
 Gipsies, I addressed the wife of McEwan as follows : “For 
 what is the riah (magistrate) going to put your gaugie 
 (man) in slaurdie, (prison)?” “Only for a little whiskey, 
 sir,” was her immediate reply. She gave me, on the spot, 
 the English of the following words ; adding, at the same 
 time, that I had got the Gipsy language, but that her’s was 
 only the English cant. She was afraid to acknowledge that 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 327 
 
 she was a Gipsy, as such a confession might, in her opinion, 
 have proved prejudicial to her husband, in the situation in 
 which lie was placed. 
 
 Yaka, eyes. 
 Grye, horse. 
 Roys, spoons. 
 Skews , platters. 
 Mashlam, metal. 
 
 G angle, man. 
 
 Managie , woman. 
 Chau vies, children 
 Riah, magistrate. 
 Chor, thief. 
 
 I observed the woman instantly communicate to her hus¬ 
 band the conversation she had with me. She immediately 
 returned to me, and, after questioning me as to my name, 
 occupation, and place of residence, very earnestly entreated 
 me to save her gaugie from the staurdie. I asked her, how 
 many ehauvies she had? “Twelve, sir.” Were any of 
 them chors? “None, sir.” Two of her ehauvies were in 
 her hand, weeping bitterly. The woman was in great dis¬ 
 tress, and when she heard the sound of her own language, 
 she thought she saw a friend. I informed one of the magis¬ 
 trates, whom I knew, that the prisoners were Gipsies ; and 
 proposed to him to mitigate the punishment of the woman’s 
 husband, on condition of his giving me a specimen of his 
 secret speech. But the reply of the man of authority was, 
 “ The scoundrel shall lie in prison till the last hour of his 
 sentence.” * The “ scoundrel,” however, did not remain in dur- 
 ance so long. While the jailer was securing him in prison, 
 the determined Tinklei’, with the utmost coolness and indif¬ 
 ference, asked him, which part of the jail would be the easiest 
 for him to bi-eak through. The jailer told him that, if he 
 attempted to .escape, the watchman, stationed in the church¬ 
 yard, close to the prison, would shoot him. On visiting the 
 prison next morning, the turnkey found that the Gipsy had 
 undone the locks of the dooi’s, and fled during the night. 
 O’Reilly, the other Gipsy, remained, in a separate cell, the 
 whole period of his sentence. When the officers were com¬ 
 pleting the other part of his punishment—“ banishing him 
 from the town”—the regardless, light-hearted Irish Tinkler 
 went capering along the streets, with his coat off, brandish- 
 ing, and sweeping, and twirling his shillalah, in the Gipsy 
 fashion. Meeting, in this excited state, his late judge, the 
 Tinkler, with the utmost contempt and derision, called out 
 
328 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 to him, “ Plase your honour! won’t you now take a fight 
 with me, for the sake of friendship ?” This worthy Irish 
 Gipsy represented himself as the head Tinkler in Perth, and 
 the first of the second class of boxers. 
 
 On another occasion, I observed a horde of Gipsies on 
 the high street of Inverkeithing, employed in making spoons 
 from horn. I spoke to one of the young married men, partly 
 in Scottish Gipsy words, when he immediately answered me 
 in English. He said they were all natives of Ireland. They 
 had, male and female, the Irish accent completely. I invited 
 this man to accompany me to a public-house, that I might 
 obtain from him a specimen of his Irish Gipsy language. 
 The town-clerk being in my company at the time, I asked 
 him to go with me, to hear what passed ; but he refused, 
 evidently because he considered that the company of a 
 Gipsy would contaminate and degrade him. I treated the 
 Tinkler with a glass of spirits, and obtained from him the 
 following words: 
 
 Yaik, one. 
 
 Hide , two. 
 
 Trin, three. 
 
 Punch, five. 
 
 Saus, six. 
 
 Luflen, eight. 
 
 Sonnakie, gold. 
 
 Roug, silver. 
 
 Vanister , ring. 
 
 Rat, night. 
 
 Cham, the moon. 
 
 Borlan, the sun. 
 
 Yak, fire. 
 
 Chowrie, knife. 
 
 Bar, stone. 
 
 Shnha, coat. 
 
 Roiy, spoon. 
 
 Chauvie, child. 
 
 Gaugie, man. 
 
 Mart and kinshen , wife and 
 child. 
 
 Klistie , soldier. 
 
 Ruffie lee ma , devil miss me. 
 
 Nasher , deserter. 
 
 Haw-douglars , hand-cuffs. 
 Staurdie , prison. 
 
 Lodie , lodgings. 
 
 Vile , town. 
 
 Yak , eye. 
 
 Heekers , eyes. 
 
 Shir, head. 
 
 Test, head. 
 
 Nak, nose. 
 
 Mooie , mouth. 
 
 Meffemel , hand. 
 
 Grye, horse, 
 
 Aizel , ass. 
 
 Hugal, dog. 
 
 Bakra, sheep. 
 
 Ruffie, devil. 
 
 Bing , devil. 
 
 Feck, take. 
 
 Ruffie feck ma, devil take me. 
 Nawken , Tinkler, 
 
 Baurie-dews, Nawken, good-day, 
 Tinkler. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 329 
 
 This man conducted himself very politely, his behaviour be¬ 
 ing very correct and becoming ; and he seemed much pleased 
 at being noticed, and kindly treated. At first, he spoke 
 wholly in the Gipsy language, thinking that I was as well 
 acquainted with it as himself. But when he found that I 
 knew only a few words of it, he, like all lps tribe, stopped 
 in his communications, and, in this instance, began to quiz 
 and laugh at my ignorance. On returning to the street, I 
 repeated some of the words to one of the females. She 
 laughed, and, with much good humour, said, “ You will put 
 me out, by speaking to me in that language.” 
 
 These facts prove that the Irish Gipsies have the same 
 language as those in Scotland. The English Gipsy is sub¬ 
 stantially the same. There are a great many Irish Gipsies 
 travelling in Scotland, of whom 1 will again speak, in the 
 following chapter. They are not easily distinguished 
 from common Irish peasants, except that they are gen¬ 
 erally employed in some sort of traffic, such as hawking 
 earthen-ware, trinkets, and various other trifles, through the 
 country. 
 
 It may interest the reader to know how the idea origi¬ 
 nated that the Gipsies, at all events their speech, came, or 
 was thought to have come, from Hindostan. According to 
 Grellmann, it was in this way : 
 
 “ The following is an article to be found in the Vienna 
 Gazette, from a Captain Szekely, who was thinking of 
 searching for (the origin of) the Gipsies, and their language, 
 in the East Indies : In the year 1763, on the 6th of Novem¬ 
 ber, a printer, whose name was Stephen Pap Szathmar Ne- 
 methi, came to see me. Talking upon various subjects, we 
 at last fell upon that of the Gipsies ; and my guest related 
 to me the following anecdote, from the mouth of a preacher 
 of the Reformed Church, Stephen Vali, at Almasch. When 
 the said Vali studied at the University of Leyden, he was 
 intimately acquainted with some young Malabars, of whom 
 three are obliged constantly to study there ; nor can they re¬ 
 turn home till relieved by three others. Having observed that 
 their native language bore a great affinity to that spoken 
 by the Gipsies, he availed himself of the opportunity to note 
 down from themselves upwards of one thousand words, to¬ 
 gether with their significations. After Vali was returned 
 from the University, he informed himself of the Raber Gip- 
 
A niSTORY OF THE OirSIES. 
 
 3'30 
 
 sies, concerning’ the meaning of his Malabar words, which 
 they explained without trouble or hesitation.”*' 
 
 None of the Scottish Gipsy words have as yet, I believe, 
 been collated with the Hindostnnee, the supposed mother 
 tongue of the Gipsies.t I showed my list to a gentleman 
 lately from India, who, at first sight, pointed out, from 
 among several hundred words and sentences scattered 
 through these pages, about thirty-nine which very closely re¬ 
 sembled Hindostanee. But in ascertaining the origin of the 
 Gipsies, the traveller, Dr. Bright, thinks it would be desir¬ 
 able to procure some of the speech of the lowest classes in 
 India, and compare it with the Gipsy, as spoken in Europe ; 
 for the purpose of showing, more correctly, the affinity of 
 the two languages. He supposes, as I understand him, that 
 the terms used by the despised and unlettered Gipsies 
 would probably resemble more closely the vulgar idiom of 
 the lowest castes in India, than the Hindostanee spoken by 
 the higher ranks, or that which is to be found in books. 
 The following facts show that Dr. Bright’s conjectures are 
 not far from the truth. 
 
 I had occasion at one time to be on board of a vessel 
 lying in the harbour of Limekilns, Fifeshire, where I ob¬ 
 served a black man, acting as cook, of the name of John 
 Lobbs, about twenty-five years of age, and a native of Bom¬ 
 bay, who could neither read nor write any language what¬ 
 ever. He stated that he was now a Christian, and had 
 been baptized by the name of John. He had been absent 
 from India three years, as cabin boy, in several British ves¬ 
 sels, and spoke English well. He appeared to be of a low 
 caste in his native land, but sharpened by his contact with 
 Europeans. Recollecting Dr. Bright’s hint, it occurred to 
 
 * “ The opinion, that the Gipsies came originally from India, seems to 
 have been very early entertained, although it was again soon forgotten, or 
 silently relinquished. Hieronymus Foroliviensis, in the nineteenth volume 
 of Muratori, says, that on the 7th day of August, A. D. 1422, 200 of the 
 Cingari came to his native town, and remained there two days, on their 
 way to Rome, and that some of them said that they came from India, ‘ et 
 ut audivi aliqui dicebant quod erant de India and the account which Mun¬ 
 ster gives of what he gathered from one of the Cingari, in 1624, seems to 
 prove that an impression existed amongst them of their having come from 
 that country.”— Bright .— Ed. 
 
 f Mr. Baird’s Missionary Report contained a collation of the Scottish 
 Gipsy with Hindostanee, but that appeared considerably after what our 
 author has said was written.— Ed. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 331 
 
 me that this Hindoo’s vulgar dialect might resemble the 
 language of our Scottish Gipsies. I repeated to him about 
 one hundred and eighty Gipsy words and expressions. The 
 greater part were familiar to his ear, but many of them 
 that meant one thing in Gipsy, had quite a different signi¬ 
 fication in his speech. I shall, however, give the following 
 Gipsy words, with the corresponding words of Lobb’s lan¬ 
 guage, and the English opposite.* 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPST. JOHN LOBBS’ IHNDOSTANEE. ENGLISH. 
 
 Laurie, great, grand, 
 rich. 
 
 Been, great, grand, 
 rich. 
 
 Cullo, 
 
 Lon, 
 
 Gourie, a man. 
 
 Gaugie, a man. 
 
 Mart, a wife. 
 
 Chavo, 
 
 Praw , 
 
 Prawl, 
 
 JYuis-gaugie, grand¬ 
 father. 
 
 Nais-mort, grand¬ 
 mother. 
 
 Jliah, 
 
 Rajah, a chief, gov¬ 
 ernor. 
 
 Raunie, lady, wife 
 of a gentleman. 
 
 Been riah, 
 
 Been raunie, 
 
 Been gourie, 
 
 Bauree rajah, 
 
 Bura, 
 
 Beenie, 
 
 Kala, 
 
 Loon, 
 
 Gowra, 
 
 Gaugie, or Fraugie, 
 Murgia, 
 
 Chokna, 
 
 Pra w, 
 
 Pra wl, 
 
 Nais gaugie, 
 
 Nais mort, 
 
 Riah, 
 
 Rajah, 
 
 Raunie, 
 
 Beenie riah, 
 
 Beenie raunie, 
 Beenie gourie, 
 
 Bura rajah, 
 
 Grand, good, great, 
 rich. 
 
 Grand, good, great, 
 rich. 
 
 Black. 
 
 Salt. 
 
 White man. 
 
 Rich man. 
 
 Dead wife. 
 
 A boy, a son 
 Son. 
 
 Daughter. 
 
 Old man. 
 
 Old woman. 
 
 A chief, a gentleman. 
 A chief, a lord. 
 
 The wife of a prince. 
 
 The king. 
 
 The queen. 
 
 A gentleman. 
 
 The king. 
 
 * Meeting a Bengalee at Peebles, begging money to pa}' his passage back 
 to India, I repeated to him, from memory, a few of the Gipsy words 1 had 
 collected a week before. After listening attentively, he answered that it 
 was the Moor’s language I had got, and gave, me the English of paunie, 
 water, and dairies, day. I took the first opportunity of mentioning this in¬ 
 terview to the Gipsies, observing it was the general opinion that their fore¬ 
 fathers came from India. They, however, persisted in their own tradition, 
 that they were a tribe of Ethiopians, which is believed by all the Scottish 
 Gipsies. [See pages 113 and 315.— Ed ] 
 
332 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPST. 
 
 Baurie rau-nie , 
 Baurie forest, 
 
 Baurie paunie, 
 
 Lon paunie, 
 
 Grye, _ 
 
 Prancie , a horse. 
 
 Gournie, 
 
 Backra, 
 
 Sherro, 
 
 Yak, 
 
 Yaka, 
 
 JVak , 
 
 Mooie, 
 
 Chee, 
 
 Chee chee , 
 
 Femmel, hand. 
 
 Fas<, 
 
 Peerie, 
 
 Gave, 
 
 Hair, 
 
 Wautheriz, 
 
 Outhrie, a window. 
 Eegees, bed clothes. 
 Shuch-liamie, 
 Jair-dah, 
 
 Gawd, 
 
 Teeyakas, 
 
 Scaf, a hat. 
 
 Skews, 
 
 Chowrie, 
 
 Harro, 
 
 Sauster , iron. 
 jV/ass, 
 
 Thood, 
 
 Chizcazin, cheese. 
 Blaw, meal. 
 
 Flatrin, 
 
 Shauclia, broth. 
 Molzie, 
 
 JOHN LOBB3’ HINDOSTANEE. 
 
 Bur a, rau-nie, 
 
 Bura frost, bura 
 malook, 
 
 Bura paunie, 
 
 Loon paunie, 
 Ghora, 
 
 Prawncie, 
 
 Goroo, 
 
 Buckra, 
 
 Sir, 
 
 Aukh, 
 
 A uklia, 
 
 JVak, 
 
 Mooih, 
 
 Jeebh, 
 
 Choopra, 
 
 Fin gal, 
 
 Wast, 
 
 Peir, 
 
 Gaw, 
 
 Gur, 
 
 Waudrie , 
 
 Outrie, Durvaja, 
 Eegees, 
 
 Shuamie, 
 
 Jairda, 
 
 Dowglaw, 
 
 Teeyaka, 
 
 Scaf, a small piece 
 the head, like 
 Skows, 
 
 Choree, 
 
 Dhoro, 
 
 Sauspoon, 
 
 Mass, 
 
 Doodh, 
 
 Chizcaizim, 
 
 Blaw, 
 
 Flatrin, 
 
 Shooriva, 
 
 Mool, 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 The queen. 
 
 Great town. 
 
 The sea, the great 
 water. 
 
 Salt water, the ocean. 
 Horse. 
 
 A gentleman’s car¬ 
 riage. 
 
 A cow. 
 
 A sheep. 
 
 Head. 
 
 Eye. 
 
 Eyes. 
 
 Nose. 
 
 Mouth. 
 
 The tongue. 
 
 Hold your tongue. 
 Ends of the fingers. 
 The hand. 
 
 The foot. 
 
 Village. 
 
 A house. 
 
 A bed. 
 
 A door. 
 
 Bed curtains. 
 
 A waistcoat. 
 Woman’s apron. 
 
 A man’s shirt. 
 
 Shoes. 
 
 of cloth tied around 
 a fillet. 
 
 Platters, jugs. 
 
 Knife. 
 
 Sword. 
 
 Iron pot-lid, iron. 
 Flesh. 
 
 Milk. 
 
 Cheese-knife. 
 
 Indian corn. 
 
 Fish of any kind. 
 Soup. 
 
 Wine. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 333 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPST. 
 
 JOHN LOBBS HINDOSTANEE, 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 Romanic, whiskey. 
 
 Rominie, 
 
 Spirits, liquor. 
 
 Mumlie, a candle. 
 
 Memhootie, 
 
 Candles. 
 
 Flu fan, 
 
 Floo fan, 
 
 Smoking tobacco. 
 
 Yak, 
 
 Jig, 
 
 Fire. 
 
 Paunie, 
 
 Paunie , 
 
 Water. 
 
 Cashes, 
 
 Cashtes, 
 
 Dunbar, 
 
 Fruit trees. 
 
 Bar, 
 
 A stone. 
 
 Sonnakie, 
 
 Sona, 
 
 Gold. 
 
 Roug, 
 
 Ronpa, 
 
 Silver. 
 
 Chinda, silver. 
 
 Chindee, 
 
 Silver, tin. 
 
 Geeve, 
 
 Guing, 
 
 Wheat. 
 
 Mang, 
 
 Chan, Jung, 
 
 The moon. 
 
 Binnie, 
 
 Boomie, 
 
 To drink. 
 
 Mar, 
 
 Mama , 
 
 To strike. 
 
 Rauge, 
 
 Rawd, 
 
 Mad. 
 
 Choar, 
 
 Chorna, 
 
 To steal. 
 
 Chor, 
 
 Chor, 
 
 Thief. 
 
 Hurriff , 
 
 Huff, 
 
 Give me. 
 
 Moolie, death, to die, Moola, 
 dead. 
 
 Dead. 
 
 Quad, 
 
 Quid, 
 
 Prison. 
 
 Staurdie, prison. 
 
 Staurdee, 
 
 A prison, to confine, 
 hold. 
 
 Jaw vree, 
 
 Jowa, 
 
 Go away. 
 
 Auvie, 
 
 Davies, 
 
 Aow, 
 
 Coming, come here. 
 
 Din, 
 
 Day. 
 
 Rat, 
 
 Raul, 
 
 Night. 
 
 Pagrin, 
 
 Paivgrin, 
 
 To break. 
 
 Davies-pagrin, 
 
 Da wis-pawgrin, 
 
 Day-break, the mor¬ 
 ning. 
 
 Klistie, a soldier. 
 Nash, deserter. 
 
 Kleeslie, 
 
 Black soldier, Sepoy. 
 
 Natch, 
 
 To run away. 
 
 Loudnie, 
 
 Loonie, 
 
 A bad woman.* 
 
 My informant understood, he said, two of the dialects of 
 Hindostan, the one called the Hindoo, and the other the 
 Moors’ language. The former, he said, the English in 
 
 * A lady who resided seventeen years in India, already alluded to, men¬ 
 tioned to me that the pronunciation of the Hindoos is broad, like that of 
 the Scotch, particularly where the letter a occurs; and that the Scotch 
 learn Hindostanee sooner, and more correctly, than the natives of other 
 countries. For this reason, I am inclined to think that the Scottish Gipsy 
 will have a greater resemblance to Hindostanee than the Gipsy of some 
 other countries. 
 
834 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 India generally spoke, but understood little of the latter; 
 and that he himself did not know a word of the language 
 of the Brahmins. When he failed to produce, in the Moors’ 
 language, the word corresponding to the Gipsy one, he fre¬ 
 quently found it in what he called the Hindoo speech. The 
 greater part of the Gipsy words, as I have already men¬ 
 tioned, were familiar to his ear ; but many of them that 
 signified one thing in his speech, meant quite another in 
 Gipsy. For example, the word Graunagie , in Gipsy, signifies 
 a bam; with Lobbs, it meant an old rich man. Coories, 
 bed clothes or blankets, signified, in Lobb’s dialect, ornaments 
 for the cars. Dill , a servant maid, according to Lobbs, 
 was a church. Shan davies, a bad day, was the Hindos- 
 tanee for holiday. Managie, a woman, signifies the name 
 of a person, such as John or James. Chavo, a son, meant 
 a female child; and Pooklie, hulled barley, anything 
 ■fine. The two Gipsy words Gallo and Rat are black and 
 night ; but, according to Lobbs, Callorat is simply anything 
 dark.* 
 
 To confirm my collection of Scottish Gipsy words, I will 
 collate some of those which I sent to Sir Walter Scott, for 
 examination but not for publication, with those to be found 
 in Mr. Baird’s report, a publication which I first saw in 
 1842. 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPSY. YETIIOLM GIPSY. 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 Gaugie, Gadge, 
 
 Managie, Manishee, 
 
 Mart, 
 
 Chavo, (cliauvies, chil- Shavies, children, 
 dren,) 
 
 Man. 
 
 Woman. 
 
 Wife. 
 
 Son. 
 
 * In the report of the Fourteenth Gipsies’ Festival, held at Southampton, 
 under the superintendence of the Rev. James Crabb, the Gipsies’ friend, on 
 the 25th December, 1841, is the following statement: 
 
 “ The above gentleman, (the Rev. J. West, one of the speakers at the 
 festival,) with the Rev. Mr. Crabb, and two elderly Gipsies, who speak the 
 Gipsy language, called, the following morning, on a lady who had long 
 resided in India, and speaks the Hindostanee language; and it was clear 
 that many of the Rommany (Gipsy) words were pure Hindostanee, and 
 other words strongly resembled that language .”—Hampshire Advertiser, 
 ls< January, 1842. 
 
 This statement, made some years subsequent to the period at which I 
 took down the words from Lobbs and the Gipsies in Scotland, is nearly in 
 my own words, and proves that my opinion, as to the close affinity between 
 Hindostanee and the Scottish Gipsy language, is correct. 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 335 
 
 SCOTTISH GirSY. 
 
 YETHOLM GirST. 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 Praw, 
 
 Praia l, 
 
 Goure, a boy, 
 
 Son. 
 
 Raekle, a girl, 
 
 Daughter. 
 
 Riah, 
 
 Rajah, 
 
 Rai , a gentleman, 
 
 A chief. 
 Governor. 
 
 Laurie, 
 
 Bare, 
 
 Good. 
 
 Sherro, 
 
 Shero, 
 
 Head. 
 
 Yah, 
 
 Yaka, 
 
 Yack, 
 
 Eye. 
 
 Eyes. 
 
 Nak , 
 
 Nak, 
 
 Nose. 
 
 Mooie, 
 
 Moi, 
 
 Mouth. 
 
 Vast, 
 
 Grye, 
 
 Vastie, 
 
 Hand. 
 
 Gral, 
 
 Horse. 
 
 Bashanie, 
 
 Basne, 
 
 Cock. 
 
 Caunie, 
 
 Kanne, 
 
 Hen. 
 
 Drom, 
 
 Drone, 
 
 Road. 
 
 Gave, 
 
 Graunagie, 
 
 Gaave, 
 
 Village. 
 
 Barn. 
 
 Graunzie, 
 
 Granse, 
 
 Barn. 
 
 Kuir, 
 
 Outhrie, 
 
 Keir, 
 
 House. 
 
 Window. 
 
 Yog, 
 
 Yag, 
 
 Fire. 
 
 Thood, 
 
 Thud, 
 
 Milk. 
 
 Mass, 
 
 Mass, 
 
 Flesh. 
 
 Peerie , (or blawkie ,) 
 
 Blakie, 
 
 Pot. 
 
 Paunie, 
 
 Paurie, 
 
 Pawne, 
 
 Water. 
 
 Water. 
 
 Molzie, 
 
 Mul, 
 
 Roy, 
 
 Wine. 
 
 Roy, 
 
 Nab, 
 
 Chorie, 
 
 Choivrie, 
 
 Spoon. 
 
 Horn. 
 
 Knife. 
 
 Choure, 
 
 Knife. 
 
 Shuha, 
 
 Shohe, 
 
 Coat. 
 
 Scaf, (or gogle,) 
 Harro, 
 
 Beerie, 
 
 Gogel, 
 
 Hat. 
 
 Sword. 
 
 Ship. 
 
 Ramie, 
 
 Choar, 
 
 Peevan , drinking, 
 
 To drink. 
 
 To steal. 
 
 Chor, 
 
 Staurdie , 
 
 Tschor, 
 
 Thief. 
 
 Slarde , a jail, 
 
 Prison. 
 
 Moolie, 
 
 Moulian, dying, 
 
 Death. 
 
 Moolie, 
 
 Moule, to kill, 
 
 I’ll kill you. 
 
 Bing, 
 
 Bing, 
 
 The deviL 
 
83G 
 
 A niSTORT OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The following Scottish Gipsy words appear to have some 
 relation to the Sanscrit: 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPSY. 
 
 SANSCRIT. 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 Yag, 
 
 Aguish, 
 
 Fire. 
 
 Paurie , 
 
 Varni, 
 
 W ater. 
 
 Castles , 
 
 Cashth, 
 
 Wood. 
 
 Duff, 
 
 Dhvpali, 
 
 Smoke. 
 
 Sneepa, 
 
 Sweta, 
 
 White. 
 
 Callo, 
 
 Cala , 
 
 Black. 
 
 Sherro , 
 
 Sira, 
 
 The head. 
 
 Rajah, 
 
 Rajah, 
 
 Lord. 
 
 Vast, 
 
 Hastah, 
 
 The hand. 
 
 Praw, 
 
 Puira, 
 
 Son. 
 
 Gave , or Gan, 
 
 Gramam, 
 
 A village. 
 
 Mar , 
 
 Mar, 
 
 To strike. 
 
 Loudnle , 
 
 Lodha, loved, 
 
 A whore. 
 
 In order to show the relationship of the language of the 
 Gipsies in Scotland, England, Germany, Hungary, Spain, and 
 Turkey, and the affinity between it and the Persian, Hindos- 
 tanee, Sanscrit, Pali, and Kawi, I append a table containing 
 the first ten numerals in all these tongues : 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 337 
 
 15 
 
 * The four last of these numerals, in the Scottish Gipsy language, differ very considerably from the corresponding ones in the Table. I leave 
 the matter to be settled by philologists. 
 
338 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 That the Gipsy language, in Scotland, is intermixed with 
 cant, or slang, and other words,is certain,as will appear by the 
 specimens I have exhibited.* I am inclined to believe, how¬ 
 ever, that were the cant and slang used by our Hash men and 
 others carefully examined, much of it would turn out to be 
 corrupted Hindostanee, picked up from the Gipsies. I have, 
 after considerable trouble, produced, and, I may venture to 
 say, faithfully recorded, the raw materials as I found them : 
 to separate the other words from the original and genuine 
 Gipsy, is a task I leave to the learned philologist. I shall 
 only observe, that the way in which the Gipsy language has 
 been corrupted is this : That whenever the Gipsies find 
 words not understood by the people among whom they 
 travel, they commit such to memory, and use them in their 
 conversation, for the purpose of concealment. In the Lowlands 
 of Scotland, for example, they make use of Gaelic,!' Welsh, 
 Irish, and French words. These picked-up words and terms 
 have, in the end, become part of their own peculiar tongue ; 
 yet some of the Gipsies are able to point out a number of 
 these foreign words, as distinguished from their own. In 
 this manner do the Gipsies carry along with them part of 
 the language of every country through which they pass4 
 
 * It is remarkable, considering- liow much the habits and occupations of 
 the Gipsies bring them in contact with beggars, thieves, and other bad 
 and disorderly characters, how few of the slang words used by such per¬ 
 sons have been adopted by them.— Rev. Mr. Baird’s Missionary Report to 
 the Scottish Church, 1840.—Ed. 
 
 ■f Of the Highland Gipsies, I had the following account from a person of 
 observation, and highly worthy of credit: There are many settled in Kin- 
 t 3 ’re, who travel through the Highlands and Lowlands annually. They 
 certainly speak, among themselves, a language totally distinct from either 
 Gaelic or Lowland Scotch.— Blackwood’s Magazine. — Ed. 
 
 \ “ There is reason for supposing that the Gipsies had been wandering in 
 the remote regions of Sclavonia, for a considerable time previous to enter¬ 
 ing Bohemia—the first civilized country of Europe in which they made 
 their appearance; as their language abounds with words of Sclavonic 
 origin, which could not have been adopted in a hasty passage through a 
 wild and half populated country.”— Borrow. 
 
 That the Gipsies were, in some way, drawn together, at a very remote 
 age, and became amalgamated, so as to form a race, can hardly admit of a 
 doubt. But it is an opinion that has no reasonable foundation which sup¬ 
 poses that they suddenly took their departure from India, and travelled 
 together, till they entered and spread over Europe. They may, as I have 
 conjectured in the Introduction, have separated into bands, and passed into 
 countries in Asia, as they have done in Europe; and existed in Asia, and 
 Africa, long before they appeared in Europe. For this reason, their lan¬ 
 guage ought to vary in different countries; and it would be enough to 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 339 
 
 In concluding my account of the Scottish Gipsy language, 
 I may observe, that I think few who have perused my de¬ 
 tails will hesitate for a moment in pronouncing that the 
 people have migrated from Hindostan. Many convincing 
 proofs of the origin of the race have been adduced bv Grell- 
 mann, Hoy kind, and Bright; and I think that my researches, 
 made in Scotland alone, have confirmed the statements of 
 these respectable authors. 
 
 The question which now remains to be solved is this : 
 From what tribe or nation at present in, or originally from, 
 Hindostan are the Gipsies descended ? That they have 
 been a robber or predatory nation, from principle as well 
 as practice, I am convinced little doubt can be entertained. 
 Even yet, the greater the art and address displayed in com¬ 
 mitting a dexterous theft or robbery, the higher is the merit 
 of such an action esteemed among their fraternity. I am 
 also convinced that this general, or national, propensity to 
 plunder has been the chief cause of the Gipsies concealing 
 their origin, language, customs, and religious observances, 
 at the time they entered the territories of civilized nations, 
 and up to this time. The intelligent old Gipsy, whose ac¬ 
 quaintance I made at St. Boswell’s, distinctly told me, that 
 his tribe were originally a nation of thieves and robbers ; 
 and it is quite natural to suppose that, when they found 
 theft and robbery punished with such severity, in civilized 
 society, everything relating to them would be kept a pro¬ 
 found secret. 
 
 The tribe in India whose customs, manners, and habits 
 have the greatest resemblance to those of the Gipsies, arc 
 the Nuts, or Bazcgurs ; an account of which is to be found 
 in the 7th volume of the Asiatic Researches, page 451. In 
 Blackwood’s Magazine we find the following paragraph rela¬ 
 tive to these Nuts, or Bazegurs, which induces a belief that 
 these people are a branch of the Gipsy nation, and a tribe 
 of the highest antiquity. They are even supposed to be the 
 wild, aboriginal inhabitants of India. 
 
 identify them as the same race, were the substance of their language, and 
 their customs, or even their cast of mind, the same. In speaking of the 
 Hungarian Gipsies, Grellmann says, that their speech contains words from 
 the Turkish, Sclavonian, Greek, Latin, Wallachian, Hungarian, and German ; 
 but that it would not be absurd to pronounce that there remain more, or at 
 least different, Gipsy words among those residing in one country than an¬ 
 other.— Ed. 
 
340 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 “A lady of rank, who has resided some time in India, 
 lately informed me that the Gipsies are to be found there, 
 in the same way as in England, and practise the same arts of 
 posture-making and tumbling, fortune-telling, stealing, and 
 so forth. The Indian Gipsies are called Nuts, or Bazegurs, 
 and they are believed by many to be the remains of an 
 aboriginal race, prior even to the Hindoos, and who have 
 never adopted the worship of Bramah. They are entirely 
 different from the Parias, who are Hindoos that have lost 
 caste, and so become degraded.” 
 
 The Nuts, or Bazegurs, under the name of Decoits or 
 Dukyts, are, it seems, guilty of frequently sacrificing victims 
 to the goddess Calie, under circumstances of horror and 
 atrocity scarcely credible. Now the old Gipsy, who gave 
 me the particulars relative to the Gipsy sacrifice of the 
 horse, stated that sometimes both woman and horse were 
 sacrificed, when the woman, by the action of the horse, was 
 found to have greatly offended. 
 
 In the ordinances of Menu, the Nuts, or Bazegurs, are called 
 Nata. Now, our Scottish Gipsies, at this moment, call 
 themselves Naivkens, a word not very dissimilar in sound to 
 Nata. When I have spoken to them, in their own words, 
 I have been asked, “ Are you a naivken ?” a word to which 
 they attach the meaning of a ivanderer, or traveller —one 
 who can do any sort of work for himself that may be re¬ 
 quired in the world. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 PRESENT CONDITION AND NUMBER OP THE GIPSIES IN SCOT- 
 
 of the Gip¬ 
 sies lias, I believe, represented them as all having remark¬ 
 ably dark hair, black eyes, and swarthy complexions. This 
 notion has been carried to such an extent, that Hume, on the 
 criminal laws of Scotland, thinks the black eyes should 
 make part of the evidence in proving an individual to be of 
 the Gipsy race. The Gipsies, in Scotland, of the last cen¬ 
 tury, were of all complexions, varying from light flaxen hair, 
 and blue eyes, and corresponding complexions, to hair of 
 raven black, dark eyes, and swarthy countenances. Many 
 of them had deep-red and light-yellow hair, with very fair 
 complexions. I am convinced that one-half of the Gipsies 
 in Scotland, at the present day, have blue eyes, instead of 
 black ones. According to the statistical account of the 
 parish of Borthwick, Mid-Lothian, (1839,) the Baillies, Wil¬ 
 sons, and Taits, at Middleton, the descendants of the old 
 Tweed-dale Gipsies, are described as, “ in general, of a 
 colour rather cadaverous, or of a darkish pale ; their cheek¬ 
 bones high ; their eyes small, and light coloured ; their hair 
 of a dingy white or red colour, and wiry; and their skin, 
 drier and of a tougher texture than that of the people of 
 this country.” This question of colour has been illustrated 
 in my enquiry into the history of the Gipsy language ; for 
 the language is the only satisfactory thing by which to test 
 a Gipsy, let his colour be what it may. 
 
 In other countries, besides Scotland, the Gipsies are not all 
 of one uniform swarthy hue. A Russian gentleman stated 
 to me that many of the Gipsies in Finland have light hair, 
 and fair complexions. I am also informed there are Gipsies 
 in Arabia with fair hair. 
 
 
 
 
 LAND. 
 
 y/'H 
 
 Every author who has written on the subic 
 
342 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Among many other mal-practices, the Gipsies have, in all 
 countries, been accused of stealing children ; but what be¬ 
 came of these kidnapped infants, no one appears to have 
 given any account, that I am aware of. To satisfy myself 
 on this trait of their character, I enquired of a Gipsy the 
 reasons which induced his tribe to steal children. He can¬ 
 didly acknowledged the practice, and said that the stolen 
 children were adopted as members of the tribe, and in¬ 
 structed in the language, and all the mysteries of the body. 
 They became, he said, equally hardy, clever, and expert in 
 all the practices of the fraternity. The male Gipsies were 
 very fond of marrying the stolen females. Some of the kid¬ 
 napped children were made servants, or, rather, a sort of 
 slaves, to the tribe.. They considered that the occasional 
 introduction of another race into their own, and mixing the 
 Gipsy blood, in that manner, invigorated and strengthened 
 their race. In this manner would the Gipsies alter the 
 complexion of their race, by the introduction of foreign 
 blood among them.* 
 
 * An objection is perhaps started, that these incorporated individuals are 
 not Gipsies. They have been brought into the body at such an age as to 
 leave no trace of past recollections, leaving alone past associations. There 
 was no occasion for such children being either “ squalling infants,” or of 
 such an age as was likely to lead them to “ betray the Gipsies,” as Mr. 
 Borrow supposes would be the case, when he says that Gipsies have never 
 stolen children, to bring them up as Gipsies. How are they to discover 
 their origin, when so many of the body around them have the same colour 
 of hair and complexion ? If the idea has ever entered into their imagina¬ 
 tions, it has led to a greater antipathy towards their own race, and attach¬ 
 ment to the tribe, from the special education which they have received to 
 those ends. So far ns the matter of blood is concerned, they are not what 
 may be physiologically called Gipsies; and, by being married to Gipsies, 
 they become doubly attached to the. body. What has been said of children 
 introduced among the Gipsies, in the way described, applies with infinitely 
 greater force to those born of one of such parents. 
 
 Suppose, for instance, that the Spanish race was originally of an exclu¬ 
 sively dark hair and complexion : should we therefore say that a fair 
 Spaniard, at the present day, was no Spaniard ? Or that the Turks of Con¬ 
 stantinople, on account of the mixture of their blood, were not Turks ? In 
 the same manner are Gipsies with white blood in their veins Gipsies. They 
 may be half-breed, but it would be improper to call them half-caste, Gipsies. 
 But what are full-blood Gipsies, to commence with ? The idea itself is in¬ 
 tangible ; for, by adopting, more or less, wherever they have been, others 
 into their body, during their singular history, a pure Gipsy, like the pure 
 Gipsy language, is doubtless nowhere to be found. 
 
 An English Gipsy acquaintance, of perfect European appearance, who, 
 for love of race and language, may be termed “ a Gipsy of the Gipsies,” 
 admitted that he was only one-eighth Gipsy ; his father, a full-blood white, 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 343 
 
 Before going into details to show the condition in which 
 the Gipsies are at the present day, I will consider, shortly, 
 the causes which have contributed to the change that has 
 come over their outward circumstances, and driven so many 
 of them, as it were, “ to cover,” in consequence of the unfor¬ 
 tunate times on which they had fallen : a state of things 
 which, however unfortunate to them, in their peculiar way 
 of thinking, lias been of so much benefit to civilization, and 
 society at large. 
 
 About the commencement of the American war of in¬ 
 dependence, in 1775, the Gipsies, in Scotland, occupied a very 
 singular position in society. Instead of being the proscribed, 
 and, as they thought, persecuted, members of the community, 
 many of them then became the preservers of the peace and 
 good order of the country. The country, as appears by the 
 periodical publications of the day, was, about this time, 
 greatly pestered by rogues and vagabonds. The Gipsies 
 had art enough to get a number of their chiefs appointed 
 constables, peace-officers, and country-keepers, in several 
 counties in Scotland. These public officers were to clear 
 the country of all idle vagrants, vagabonds, and disturbers 
 of the peace. This was, sure enough, a very extraordinary 
 employment for the Gipsies. The situation of country- 
 keeper was, of all others, the office in society the most COm- 
 
 having married a quadroon Gipsy. lie spoke Gipsy with great fluency-, 
 lie married a seven-eighths Gipsy. Were iiis descendants to marry what 
 are supposed to be pure Gipsies, the result would be as follows: The first 
 generation, (his children,) would be one-half Gipsy; the second, three- 
 fourths; the third, seven-eighths ; the fourth, fifteen-sixteenths; the fifth, 
 thirty-one thirty-seconds; and the sixth, sixty-three sixty-fourths. If this 
 were to go on ad infinitum, the issue would always lack the one part to 
 make the full blood. But the Gipsies do not calculate their vulgar fractions 
 so closely as that; the division of the blood doubtless bothers them, so that 
 they “ lump” the question. What has been said, is breeding up. Some¬ 
 times they breed down, and sometimes across. Mixing the blood, in this 
 way, is quite a peculiarity among the English Gipsies. I asked my friend, 
 if he was sure his wife was a pure Gipsy. He said she was considered 
 such, (I have put her down at seven-eighths,) but that one of her forefathers 
 was a fair-haired French Gipsy. According to a well-admitted principle in 
 physiology, a fair-haired Gipsy, of almost full blood, is by no means so vara 
 avis in terris as a white crow. Some of the children of my acquaintance 
 took after himself, and had blue eyes ; and others after the mother, and 
 had black ones. But the English Gipsies, (the tented ones at least,) are 
 much purer, in point of blood, than their brethren in Scotland. Many of 
 the Irish Gipsies have very red hair—fiery and shaggy in the extreme. 
 Indeed, they seem to be pretty much all of a fairish kind.—E d. 
 
344 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 pletely to tlieir liking. It gave them authority over every 
 rogue in the country, ancl they certainly followed out their 
 instructions to the very letter. They hunted down, with 
 the utmost vigilance, every delinquent who was not of their 
 tribe ; but, on the other hand, they took especial care to 
 protect every individual of their own fraternity, excepting 
 those that were obnoxious to themselves. When it agreed 
 with their inclinations, these Gipsy country-keepers some¬ 
 times caused stolen property to be returned to the owners, as 
 if it had been done by magic. It is needless to observe that 
 they were themselves the very chiefs of the depredators, but 
 had generally the dexterity never to be seen in the trans¬ 
 actions.* 
 
 A Gipsy country-keeper was at the height of his vanity 
 and glory, when he got an unfortunate individual of the 
 community into his clutches. In the presence of his captive, 
 he would draw his sword, flourish it in the air, and swear a 
 terrible oath, that he would, at a blow, cut the head from 
 his body, if he made the least attempt at escape. 
 
 The public services of the Gipsies were in a short time 
 discontinued, as their conduct only made matters a great 
 deal worse. A friend of minet saw those Gipsy constables, 
 for Peebles-shire, sworn into office, at the town of Peebles, 
 when they were first appointed. He said he never saw 
 such a set of gloomy, strange-looking fellows, in his life ; 
 and expressed his surprise at the conduct of the county 
 magistrates, for employing such banditti as conservators of 
 the public peace. The most extraordinary circumstance 
 attending their appointment, he said, was, that not one of 
 them had a permanent residence within the county. 
 
 During the American war, however, the tide of fortune 
 again completely turned against the Gipsies. The Govern¬ 
 ment was in need of soldiers and sailors ; the Gipsies were 
 a proscribed race; their peculiar habits were continually 
 
 * The following extract from the Fife Herald, for the 18th June, 1829, 
 will give the reader an idea of a Scotch “ country-keeper,” at the time 
 alluded to: “A Gipsy chief, of the name of Pat. Gillespie, was keeper for 
 the county of Fife. He rode on horse-back, armed with a sword and pistols 
 attended by four men, on foot, carrying staves and batons. Fie appears to 
 have been a sort of travelling justice of the peace. The practice seems to 
 have been general. About the commencement of the late French war, a 
 man, of the name of Robert Scott, (Rob the Laird,) was keeper for the coun¬ 
 ties of Peebles, Selkirk, and Roxburgh.” 
 
 f The late Mr. Charles Alexander, tenant of Happrcw. 
 
MODEIiN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 involving them in serious scrapes and difficulties ; the con¬ 
 sequence was, that the Tinklers were apprehended all over 
 the country, and forced into our fleets and armies then 
 serving in America. All the aged persons of intelligence 
 with whom I have conversed on this subject, agree in repre¬ 
 senting that the kidnapping system at that period was the 
 means of greatly breaking up and dispersing the Gipsy 
 bands in Scotland. From this blow these unruly vagrants 
 have never recovered their former position in the country.* 
 
 The war in America had been concluded only a few years 
 before that with France broke out. Our army and navy 
 were, of necessity, again augmented to an extent beyond 
 precedent. It was not difficult to find pretences for renew¬ 
 ing the chase of the Gipsies, and apprehending them, under 
 the name of vagrants and disorderly persons. They were 
 again compelled to enlist into our regiments, and embark 
 on board our ships of war, as sailors and marines. An in¬ 
 dividual stated - to me that, about the commencement of this 
 war, he had seen English Gipsies sent, in scores at a time, 
 on board of men-of-war, in the Downs. 
 
 But, rather than be forced into a service so much against 
 their inclinations, numerous instances occurred of Gipsies 
 voluntarily mutilating themselves. In the very custody of 
 press-gangs, and other hardened kidnappers, the determined 
 Gipsies have, with hatchets, razors, and other sharp instru¬ 
 ments, struck from their hands a thumb, or finger or two, 
 to render them unfit for a military life. Several instances 
 have come to my knowledge of these resolute acts of the 
 Scottish Gipsies. I have myself seen several of the tribe 
 without fingers ; and, on enquiry, I found that they them¬ 
 selves had struck them from their hands, in consequence of 
 their aversion to become soldiers and sailors. One man, of 
 the name of Graham, during the last war, laid his hand upon 
 a block of wood, and, in a twinkling, struck, with a hatchet, 
 his thumb from one of his hands. Another, of the name 
 of Gordon, struck two of his fingers from one of his hands 
 
 * We may very readily believe that almost all of the Gipsies -would 
 desert the army, on landing in America, and marry Gipsy women in the 
 colonies, or bring others out front home, or marry with common natives, 
 or return home. Indeed; native-born American Gipsies say that many of 
 the British Gipsies voluntarily accepted the bounty, and a passage to the 
 colonies, during the war of the Revolution, and deserted the army on land¬ 
 ing. This would lead to a migration of the tribe generally to America.—E d. 
 
 15 * 
 
346 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 with a razor. Such, indeed, was the aversion which the 
 whole Gipsy race had to a military life, that even mothers 
 sometimes mutilated their infants, by cutting off certain fin¬ 
 gers. to render them, when they became men, entirely inca¬ 
 pable of serving in either the army or navy.* 
 
 Such causes as these, taken in connection with the improved 
 
 * “ When Paris was garrisoned by the allied troops, in the year 3815, I 
 was walking with a British officer, near a post held by the Prussian troops. 
 He happened, at the time, to smoke a cigar, and was about, while passing 
 the sentinel, to take it out of his mouth, in compliance with a general regu¬ 
 lation to that effect; when, greatly to the astonishment of the passengers, 
 the soldier addressed him in these words; ‘ Rauchen Sie intmer fort; ver- 
 damt sey der Preussische Dienst;' that is : ‘ Smoke away ; may the Prussian 
 
 service be d-d.’ Upon looking closer at the man, he seemed plainly to 
 
 be a Zigenner, or Gipsy, who took this method of expressing his detestation 
 of the duty’ imposed on him. When the risk he ran, by doing so, is con¬ 
 sidered, it will be found to argue a deep degree of dislike which could make 
 him commit himself so unwarily. If he had been overheard by a sergeant 
 or corporal, the prnqel would have been the slightest instrument of punish¬ 
 ment employed.”— Sir Walter Scott : Note to Quentin Durward. 
 
 Mutilation was also very common among the English Gipsies, during the 
 French war. Strange as it may appear, the same took place among them, 
 at the commencement of the late Russian war ; from which we may con¬ 
 clude, that they had suffered severely during the previous war, or they 
 would not have resorted to so extreme a measure for escaping military duty, 
 when a press-gang was not even thought of. An English Gipsy, at the lat¬ 
 ter time, laid two of his fingers on a block of wood, and, handing his broom- 
 knife to his neighbour, said, “Now, take off these fingers, or I’ll take off 
 your head with this other hand !” 
 
 During the French war, Gipsies again and again accepted the bounty 
 for recruits, but took “ French leave” of the service. The idea is finely 
 illustrated in Burns’ “ Jolly Beggars 
 
 “ Tune — Clout the caudron. 
 
 “ My bonny lass, I work in brass, 
 
 A Tinkler is my station : 
 
 I’ve travell’d round all Christian ground, 
 
 In this my occupation. 
 
 I’ve ta’en the gold, an’ been enroll’d 
 In many a noble squadron; 
 
 But vain they search’d when off I march’d 
 To go and clout the caudron.” 
 
 Poosie Nancie and her reputed daughter. Racer Jess, were very probably 
 Gipsies, who kept a poor “ Tinkler llowff” at Mauchline. 
 
 Gipsies sometimes voluntarily join the navy’, as musicians. Here their 
 vanity will have a field for conspicuous display ; for a good fifer, on board 
 of a man-of-war, in accompanying certain work with his music, is equal to 
 the services of ten men. There were some Gipsy musicians in the fleet at 
 Sebastopol. But, generally speaking, Gipsies are like cats—not very fond 
 of the water.— Ed. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 347 
 
 internal administration of the country, and the progression 
 of the age, have cast a complexion over the outward aspect 
 of the bulk of the Scottish Gipsy race, entirely different 
 from what it was before they came into existence. 
 
 Many of the Gipsies now keep shops of earthen-ware, 
 china, and crystal. Some of them, I am informed on the 
 best authority, have from one to eight thousand pounds in¬ 
 vested in this line of business.* I am disposed to think that 
 few of these shops were established prior to the commence¬ 
 ment of the French war ; as I find that several of their 
 owners travelled the country in their early years. Perhaps 
 the fear of being apprehended as vagrants, and compelled 
 to enter the army or navy, forced some of the better sort to 
 settle in towns.f Like their tribe in other countries, num¬ 
 bers of our Scottish Gipsies deal in horses ; others keep 
 public-houses ; and some of them, as innkeepers, will, in 
 heritable and moveable property, possess, perhaps, two or 
 three thousand pounds. These innkeepers and stone-ware 
 merchants are scarcely to be distinguished as Gipsies ; yet 
 they all retain the language, and converse in it, among 
 themselves. The females, as is their custom, are particu¬ 
 larly active in managing the affairs of their respective con¬ 
 cerns. 
 
 Many of them have betaken themselves to some of the 
 regular occupations of the country, such as coopers, shoe¬ 
 makers, and plumbers ; some are masons—an occupation to 
 which they seem to have a partiality. Some of them are 
 members of masons’ lodges. There are many of them itin¬ 
 erant bell-hangers, and umbrella-menders. Among them 
 there are tin-smiths, braziers, and cutlers, in great numbers ; 
 and the tribe also furnish a proportion of chimney-sweeps. 
 I recollect of a Gipsy, who travelled the country, selling 
 
 * Mr. Borrow mentions having observed, at a fair in Spain, a family of 
 Gipsies, richly dressed, after the fashion of their nation. They had come 
 a distance of upwards of a hundred leagues. Some merchants, to whom he 
 was recommended, informed him, that they had a credit on their house, to 
 the amount of twenty thousand dollars. —Ed. 
 
 f In his enquiry into the present condition of the Gipsies, our author 
 has apparently confined his remarks exclusively to the body in its present 
 wandering state, and such part of it as left the tent subsequently to the 
 commencement of the French war. In the Disquisition on the Gipsies, the 
 subject will be fully’- reviewed, from the date of arrival of the race in the 
 country.—E d. 
 
348 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 earthen-ware, becoming, in the end, a master-sweep. Several 
 were, and I believe are, constables ; and I am inclined to 
 think that the police establishments, in large as well as 
 small towns, contain some of the fraternity.* Individuals 
 of the female Gipsies are employed as servants, in the fami¬ 
 lies of respectable persons, in town and country. Some of 
 them have been ladies’ maids, and even house-keepers to 
 clergymen and farmers.f I heard of one, in a very re¬ 
 spectable family, who tvas constantly boasting of her ancient 
 and high descent; her father being a Baillie, and her 
 mother a Faa—the two principal families in Scotland. 
 Some of those persons who sell gingerbread at fairs, or 
 Avhat the country-people call rowly-powly-men, are also of 
 the Gipsy race. Almost all these individuals hawking earth¬ 
 en-ware through the country, with carts, and a large pro¬ 
 portion of those haAvking japan and white-iron goods, are 
 Gipsies. 
 
 Some of the itinerant venders of inferior sorts of jewelry, 
 part of which they also manufacture, and carry about in 
 boxes on their shoulders, are of the tribe ; and some of 
 them even carry these articles in small, handsome, light- 
 made carts. I had frequently observed, in my neighbour- 
 
 * This is quite common. An English mixed Gipsy spontaneously in¬ 
 formed me that he had been a constable in L-, and that he had a cousin 
 
 who was lately a runner in the police establishment of M-. Among 
 
 other motives for the Gipsies joining the police is the following: that such 
 is their dislike for the people among whom they live, owing to the preju¬ 
 dice which is entertained against them, that nothing gives them greater 
 satisfaction than being the instruments of affronting and punishing their 
 hereditary enemies. Besides this, the lounging and idle kind of life, coup¬ 
 led with the activity, of a constable, is pretty much to their natural dispo¬ 
 sition. An intelligent mixed Gipsy is calculated to make a first-rate con¬ 
 stable and thief-catcher. Of course, he will not be very hard on those of 
 his own race who come in his way.— Ed. 
 
 •j Our author frequently spoke of a dissenting Scottish clergyman having 
 been married to a Gipsy, but was not aware, as far as I know, of the cir¬ 
 cumstances under which the marriage took place. The clergyman was not, 
 in all probability, aware that he was taking a Gipsy to his bosom ; and as 
 little did the public generally ; but it was well known to the initiated that 
 both her father and mother had cut and divided many a purse. The un¬ 
 questionable character and standing of the father, and the prudent conduct 
 of the mother, protected the children. One of the daughters married an¬ 
 other dissenting clergyman, which fairly disarmed those not of the Gipsy 
 race of any prejudice towards the grand children. The issue of these 
 marriages would' pass intq Gipsydom, as explained in the Disquisition on 
 the Gipsies.—Er. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 349 
 
 hood, a very smart-looking and well-dressed man, who, with 
 his wife and family, and a servant to take care of his chil¬ 
 dren, travelled the country, in a neat, light cart, selling 
 jewelry. All the family were well dressed. I was curious 
 to know the origin of this man, and, upon enquiring of one 
 of the tribe, but of a different clan, I found that he was a 
 Gipsy, of the name of Robertson, descended from the old 
 homers who traversed the kingdom, about half a century 
 ago. He still retained the speech, peculiar dance, and man¬ 
 ner of handling the cudgel, the practices and roguish tricks 
 of his ancestors. I believe he also practised chain-dropping. 
 To show the line of life which some of the descendants of 
 the old style of Gipsies are now pursuing, in Scotland, I will 
 give the following anecdote, which I witnessed, relative to 
 this Gipsy jeweller. 
 
 I happened to be conversing, about twenty years ago, 
 with four or five individuals, on a public quay in Fifeshire, 
 when a smart, well-dressed sailor, apparently of the rank of 
 a mate, obtruded himself on our company. He said he was 
 “a sailor, and had spent all his money in a frolic, as many 
 thoughtless sailors had done ;” and, pulling out a watch, he 
 continued, “ he would give his gold watch for a mere trifle, 
 to supply his immediate wants.” One of the company at 
 once thought he was an impostor, and told him his watch 
 was not gold at all, and worth very little money. “ Not 
 worth much money !” he exclaimed ; “ why, I paid not less 
 than ten francs for it, in France, the other day !” At this 
 assertion, all present burst out a laughing at the impostor’s 
 ignorance in exposing his own trick. “ Why, friend,” said a 
 ship-master, who was one of the company, “ a franc is only 
 worth tenpence ; so you have paid just eight and four- 
 pence for this valuable watch of yours. Do not attempt to 
 cheat us in this manner.” At finding himself so completely 
 exposed, the villain became furious, and stepping close up to 
 the ship-master, with abusive language, chucked him under 
 the chin, to provoke him to fight. I at once perceived that 
 the feigned sailor was a professional boxer and cudgel- 
 ist, and entreated the ship-master not to touch him, notwith¬ 
 standing his insolence. The “sailor,” now disappointed on 
 all hands, brandished his bludgeon, and retreated back¬ 
 wards, dancing in the Gipsy manner, and twirling his 
 weapon before him, till he got his back to a wall. Flere 
 
350 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 he set all at defiance, with, a design that some one should 
 strike at him, that he might avenge the affront he had re¬ 
 ceived. But he was allowed to go away without interrup¬ 
 tion. This man was, in short, Robertson, the Gipsy travel¬ 
 ling jeweller, disguised as a sailor, and a well-known prize¬ 
 fighter. 
 
 Almost all those cheats called thimble-riggers, who infest 
 thoroughfares, highways and byways, are also Gipsies, of a 
 superior class. I have tried them by the language, and 
 found they understood it, as has been seen in my account of 
 the Gipsy language. 
 
 I need scarcely say, that all those females who travel the 
 country in families, selling articles made from horn, while 
 the males practise the mysteries of the tinker, are that por¬ 
 tion of the Gipsies who adhere more strictly to their ancient 
 customs and manner of life. Some of the principal families 
 of these nomadic horner bands have yet districts on which 
 none others of the tribe dare encroach. This division of 
 the Gipsies are, by superficial observers, considered the only 
 Gipsies in existence in Scotland ; which is a great mistake. 
 The author of Guy Mannering, himself, seems to have had 
 this class of Gipsies, only, in view, when he says, “ There are 
 not now above five hundred of the tribe in Scotland.” 
 Those who deal in earthen-ware, and work at the tinsmith 
 business, call these homers Gipsies ; and nothing can give 
 greater offence to these Gipsy potters and smiths than to 
 ask them if they ever made horn spoons; for, by asking 
 them this question, you indirectly call them Gipsies, an ap¬ 
 pellation that alarms them exceedingly.* 
 
 Since the termination of the long-protracted French war, 
 the Gipsies have, to some extent, resumed their ancient man¬ 
 ners ; and many of them are to be seen encamped in the 
 open fields. There are six tents to be observed at present, 
 for one during the war.. To substantiate what I have said 
 of the numbers and manners of the nomadic Gipsies since 
 
 * It is only within these forty years that spoon-making from horn became 
 a regular trade. It would seem the Gipsies had a monopoly of the business; 
 for I am informed that the first man in Scotland who served a regular ap¬ 
 prenticeship to it was alive, in Glasgow, in 1836. [There is nothing in this 
 remark to imply that the manufacturing of spoons, and other articles, from 
 horn, may not be monopolized by the Gipsies yet, whatever the way in 
 which it may be carried on.—E d.] 
 
^ MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 351 
 
 the peace, I will give the two following paragraphs, taken 
 from the Caledonian Mercury newspaper : 
 
 “ Tinklers mid vngahcmdR • The country has been much 
 IrifesfedfoTTate years, by wandering hordes of vagabonds, 
 who, under pretonce of following the serviceable calling of 
 tinkers, assume the name and appearance of such, merely to 
 extort contributions of victuals, and other articles of value, 
 from the country-people, particularly in lonely districts. 
 The evil has encreased rapidly of late, and calls loudly for 
 redress upon those in whose charge the police of the country 
 districts is placed. They generally travel in bands, varying 
 in number from ten to thirty ; and wherever they pitch their 
 camp, the neighbours are certain of suffering loss of cattle 
 or poultry, unless they submit to pay a species of black-mail, 
 to save themselves from heavier and more irregular contri¬ 
 butions. These bands possess all the vices peculiar to the 
 regular Gipsies, without any of the extenuating qualities 
 which distinguish these foreign tribes. Unlike the latter, 
 they do not settle in one place sufficiently long to attach 
 themselves to the soil, or to particular families ; and seem 
 possessed of no industrious habits, but those of plunder, 
 knavery, and riot. The chief headquarters of the hordes 
 are at the caves of Auchmithie, on the east coast of For¬ 
 farshire ; from which, to the wilds of Argyleshire, seems to 
 be the usual route of their bands ; small detachments being 
 sent off, at intermediate places, to extend the scene of their 
 plunder. Their numbers have been calculated by one who 
 lives on the direct line of their passage, through the braes 
 of Perthshire, and who has had frequent opportunities for 
 observation ; and he estimates them at several hundred.”— 
 22 d August , 1829. 
 
 “A horde of Gipsies and vagabonds encamped, last week, 
 in a quarry, on the back of the hill opposite Cherx-y-bank. 
 Their number amounted to about thirty. The inhabitants 
 in that quarter became alarmed ; and Provost Ross, whose 
 mansion is in the vicinity of the new settlei'S, ordered out a 
 strong posse of officers from Perth, to dislodge them ; which 
 they effected. The country is new kept in continual terror 
 by these vagabonds, and it will really be imperative on the 
 landed proprietors to adopt some decided measure for the 
 suppression of this growing evil.”—3 d October , 1829.* 
 
 * From the numerous enquiries I lnive made, I am fully satisfied that lha 
 
352 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 A gentleman informed me that, in the same year, he 
 counted, in Aberdeenshire, thirty-five men, women, and chil¬ 
 dren, in one band, with six asses and two carts, for carrying 
 their luggage and articles of merchandise. Another indi¬ 
 vidual stated to me, that upwards of three hundred of the 
 Gipsies attended the funeral of one of their old females, 
 who died near the bridge of Earn. So late as 1841, the 
 sheriff of East Lothian addressed a representation to the 
 justices of the peace of Mid-Lothian, recommending a new 
 law for the suppression of the numerous Gipsy tents in the 
 Lothians. I have, myself, during a walk of two hours, 
 counted, in Edinburgh and its suburbs, upwards of fifty of 
 these vagrants, strolling about.* 
 
 When I visited St. Boswell’s, I felt convinced, as mentioned 
 in the last chapter, that there were upwards of three hundred 
 Gipsies in the fair held at that place. Part of them formed 
 their carts, laden with earthen-ware, into two lines, leaving a 
 space between them, like a street. In the rear of the carts 
 were a few small tents, in which were Gipsies, sleeping in 
 the midst of the noise and bustle of the market; and num¬ 
 bers of children, horses, asses, and dogs, hanging around 
 them. There were also kettles, suspended from triangles, in 
 which victuals were cooking ; and many of the Gipsies en¬ 
 joyed a warm meal, while others at the market had to con¬ 
 tent themselves with a cold repast. In the midst of the 
 throng of this large and crowded fair, I noticed, without the 
 least discomposure on their part, some of the male Gipsies 
 changing their dirty, greasy-looking shirts for clean ones, 
 
 greater part of the vagrants mentioned in these notices are Gipsies; at 
 least most of them speak the Gipsy language. [It matters not whether the 
 people mentioned are wholly or only partly of Gipsy blood ; it is sufficient 
 if they have been reared as Gipsies. There are enough of the tribe in the 
 country to follow the kind of life mentioned, to the extent the people can 
 afford to submit to, without having their prerogatives infringed upon by 
 .ordinary natives. Where will we find any of the latter, who would betake 
 themselves to the tent, and follow such a mode of life? Besides, the Gip¬ 
 sies, with their organization, would not tolerate it; and far less would they 
 allow any common natives, of the lowest class, to travel in their com¬ 
 pany.— Ed.] 
 
 * Owing to such causes as these, many of the Gipsies have been again 
 driven into their holes. It is amusing to notice the tricks which some^jf 
 them resort to, in evading the letter of the Vagrant Act. They generally 
 encamp on the borders of two counties, which they will cross—passing 
 over into the other—to avoid being taken up: for county officers have no 
 jurisdiction over them, beyond the, boundaries of their respective shires.—JIiv- 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 353 
 
 leaving no covering on their tawny persons, but their 
 breeches ; and some of the old females, with bare shoulders 
 and breasts, combing their dark locks, like black horses’ 
 tails, mixed with grey. “ Ae whow! look at that,” ex¬ 
 claimed a countryman to his companion ; and, without wait¬ 
 ing for his friend’s reply, he gravely added : “Everything 
 after its kind.” The Gipsies were, in short, dressing them¬ 
 selves for the fair, in the midst of the crowd, regardless of 
 everything passing around them. 
 
 On my return from the English Border, I passed over the 
 field where the fair had been held, two days before, and 
 found, to my surprise, the Gipsies occupying their original 
 encampment. They, alone, were in possession of St. Boswell’s 
 Green. I counted twenty-four carts, thirty horses, twenty 
 asses, and about thirty dogs ; and I thought there were up¬ 
 wards of a hundred men, women, and children, on the spot. 
 The horses were, in general, complete rosinantes—as lean, 
 worn-out, wretched-looking animals, as possibly could be im¬ 
 agined. The field trampled almost to mortar, by the mul¬ 
 titude of horses, cattle, and sheep, and human beings, at the 
 fair ; the lean, jaded and lame horses, braying asses, and 
 surly-looking dogs ; the groups of miserable furniture, ragged 
 children, and gloomy-looking parents ; a fire, here and there, 
 smoking before as many miserable tents—when contrasted 
 with the gaily-dressed multitude, of both sexes, on the spot, 
 two days before—presented a scene unequalled for its 
 wretched, squalid and desolate appearance. Any one desirous 
 of viewing an Asiatic encampment, in Scotland, should visit 
 St. Boswell’s Green, a day or two after the fair.* 
 
 The following may be said to be about the condition in 
 which the present race of Scottish tinkering Gipsies are to 
 
 * St. Boswell’s fair “ is the resort of many salesmen of goods, and, in 
 particular, of tinkers. Bands of these very peculiar people, the direct de¬ 
 scendants of the original Gipsies, who so much annoyed the country in the 
 fifteenth century, haunt the fair, for the disposal of earthen-ware, horn 
 spoons, and tin culinary utensils. They possess, in general, horses and 
 carts, and they form their temporary camp by each whomling his cart up¬ 
 side down, and forming a lodgement with straw and bedding beneath. Cook¬ 
 ing is performed outside the craal, in Gipsy fashion. There could not, per¬ 
 haps, be witnessed, at the present day, in Britain, a more amusing and 
 interesting scene, illustrative of a rude period, than is here annually ex¬ 
 hibited.’’— Chambers’ Gazetteer of Scotland. [This writer is in error as to 
 the Gipsies annoying the country in the fifteenth century: that occurred 
 during the three following centuries.—En.] 
 
354 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 "be found : I visited, at one time, a horde of Gipsy tinsmiths, 
 bivouacked by the side of a small streamlet, about half a 
 mile from the town of Inverkeithing. It consisted of three 
 married couples, the heads of as many families, one grown¬ 
 up, unmarried female, and six half-clad children below six 
 years of age. Including the more grown-up members, scat¬ 
 tered about in the neighbourhood, begging victuals, there 
 must have been above twenty souls belonging to this band. 
 The tinsmiths had two horses and one ass, for carrying 
 their luggage, and several dogs. They remained, during 
 three cold and frosty nights, encamped in the open fields, 
 with no tents or covering, for twenty individuals, but two 
 pairs of old blankets.* Some of the youngest children, how¬ 
 ever, were pretty comfortably lodged at night. The band 
 had several boxes, or rather old chests, each about four feet 
 long, two broad, and two deep, in which they carried their 
 white-iron plates, working tools, and some of their infants, 
 on the backs of their horses. In these chests the children 
 passed the night, the lids being raised a little, to prevent 
 suffocation. The stock of working tools, for each family, 
 consisted of two or three files, as many small hammers, a 
 pair of bellows, a wooden mallet, a pair of pincers, a pair of 
 large shears, a crucible, a soldering-iron or two, and a small 
 anvil, of a long shape, which was stuck into the ground. 
 
 The females as well as the males of this horde of Gipsies 
 were busily employed in manufacturing white-iron into 
 household utensils, and the clink of their hammers was 
 
 * The Gipsies’ supreme luxury is to lie, day and night, so near the fire 
 as to be in danger of burning. At the same time, they can bear to travel 
 in the severest cold, bare-headed, with no other covering than a torn shirt., 
 or some old rags carelessly thrown over them, without fear of catching 
 cold, cough, or any other disorder. They are a people blessed with an 
 iron constitution. Neither wet nor dry weather, heat nor cold, let the ex¬ 
 tremes follow each other ever so close, seems to have any effect upon them. 
 — Grellmann on the Hungarian Gipsies. 
 
 Their power of resisting cold is truly wonderful, as it is not uncommon 
 to find them encamped, in the midst of the snow, in light canvas tents, 
 when the temperature is 25 or 30 degrees below freezing point, according 
 to Raumer .—Borrow on the Russian Gipsies. 
 
 It is no uncommon thing to see a poor Scottish Gipsy wrap himself and 
 wife in a thin, torn blanket, and pass the night, in the cold of December, in 
 the open air, by the wayside. On rising up in the morning, they will 
 shake themselves in their rags, as birds of prey, in coming off their perch, 
 do their feathers ; make for the nearest public-house, with, perhaps, their 
 last copper, for a gill; and, like the ravens, go in search of a breakfast, 
 wherever and whenever Providence may send it to them.— Ed. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 335 
 
 heard from daybreak till dark.* The males formed the 
 plates into the shapes of the different utensils required, and 
 the females soldered and otherwise completed them, while 
 the younger branches of the families presented them for sale 
 in the neighbourhood. The breakfast of the band consisted 
 of potatoes and herrings, which the females and children 
 had collected in the immediate neighbourhood by begging. 
 I noticed that each family ate their meals by themselves, 
 wrought at their calling by themselves, and sold their goods 
 for themselves. The name of the chief of the gang was 
 Williamson, who said he travelled in the counties of Fife 
 and Perth. When I turned to leave them, they heaped upon 
 me the most fulsome praises, and so loud, that I might dis¬ 
 tinctly hear them, exactly in the manner as those in Spain, 
 mentioned by Dr. Bright. 
 
 I have, for many months running, counted above twenty 
 Gipsies depart out of the town of Inverkeithing, about ten 
 o’clock in the forenoon, every day, on their way to various 
 parts of the country ; and I have been informed that from 
 twenty to thirty vagrants lodged in this small burgh nightly. 
 Some of the bakers declared that the persons who were the 
 worst to please with hot rolls for breakfast, were the beg¬ 
 gars, or rather Gipsies, who frequented the place. On one 
 occasion, I observed twelve females, without a single male 
 among them, decamp out of the town, all travelling in and 
 around a cart, drawn by a shagged pony. The whole party 
 were neatly attired, some of the young girls having trow- 
 sers, with frills about their ankles; and very few would 
 have taken them for Gipsies. A large proportion of those 
 miserable-looking females, who are accompanied by a num¬ 
 ber of ragged children, and scatter themselves through the 
 streets, and beg from door to door, are Gipsies. I do not 
 recollect, distressing as the times ever have been, of having 
 seen reduced Scotch tradesmen begging in families. I 
 remember once seeing a man with a white apron wrapped 
 around his waist, his coat off, an infant in his arms, and 
 
 * Some of the itinerant Gipsies, doubtless, use their trades, in a great 
 measure, as a cover for living by means such as society deems very objec¬ 
 tionable. Many of them work hard while they are at it. as in the above 
 instance, when “the clink of their hammers was heard from daybreak till 
 dark;” and as has been said of those in Tweed-dale—“ however early the 
 farm servants rose to their ordinary employments, they always found the 
 Tinklers at work.”— Ed. 
 
356 
 
 A HISTORY OF TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 two others at his feet, accompanied by a dark-looking fellow 
 of about twenty, singing through the town mentioned. They 
 represented themselves as broken-down tradesmen, and had 
 the appearance of having just left their looms, to sing for 
 bread ; and many half-pence they received. Suspecting 
 them to be impostors, I observed their motions, and soon 
 saw them join other vagrants, outside of the town, among 
 whom were females. The poor tradesmen were now 
 dressed in very substantial drab surtouts. They were 
 nothing but a family of Tinklers. They were proceed¬ 
 ing, with great speed, to the next town, to practise their 
 impositions on the inhabitants; and I learned that they 
 had, in this manner, traversed several counties in Scotland. 
 At a subsequent period, I fell in with another family, con¬ 
 sisting of five children and their parents, driving an ass and 
 its colt, near the South Queensferry. Upon the back of the 
 ass were two stone-hammers, and two reaping-hooks, placed 
 in such a manner as any one, in passing, might observe 
 them. I enquired where they had been. “ We have been 
 in England, sir, seeking work, but could find none.” Few 
 would have taken them for anything but country labourer's ; 
 but the truth was, they were a family of Gipsies, of the 
 well-known name of Marshall, from about Stranraer. Their 
 implements of industry, so conspicuously exhibited on the 
 back of their ass, was all deception. 
 
 It is only about twenty-five years since the Irish Gipsies, 
 in bands, made their appearance in Scotland. Many severe 
 conflicts they had with our Scottish tribes, before they ob¬ 
 tained a footing in the country. But there is a new swarm of 
 Irish Gipsies at present scattered, in bands, over Scotland, 
 all acquainted with the Gipsy language. They are a set of 
 the most wretched creatures on the face of the earth. A 
 horde of them, consisting of several families, encamped, at 
 one time, at Port Edgar, on the banks of the Forth, near 
 South Queensferry. They had three small tents, two horses, 
 and four asses, and trafficked in an inferior sort of earthen¬ 
 ware. On the outside of one of the tents, in the open air, 
 with nothing but the canopy of heaven above her, and the 
 greensward beneath her, one of the females, like the deer 
 in the forest, brought forth a child, without either the infant 
 or mother receiving the slightest injury.* The woman, 
 
 * I know another instance of a Gipsy having a child in the open fields 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 357 
 
 however, was attended by a midwife from Queensferry, who 
 said that these Irish Gipsies were so completely covered 
 with filth and vermin, that she durst not enter one of their 
 tents, to assist the female in labour. Several individuals 
 were attracted to the spot, by the novelty of such an occur¬ 
 rence, in so unusual a place as the open fields. Immediately 
 after the child was born, it was handed about to every one 
 of the band, that they might look at the “young donkey,’’ 
 as they called it. In about two days after the accouche¬ 
 ment, the horde proceeded on their journey, as if nothing 
 had happened.* 
 
 It took place among the rushes on Stanhope-haugh, on the banks of the 
 Tweed. Ir. the forenoon, she was delivered of her child, without the 
 assistance of a midwife, and in the afternoon the hardy Gipsy resumed her 
 journey. The infant was a daughter, named Mary Baillie. 
 
 [When a Gipsy woman is confined, it is either in a miserable hut or in 
 the open air, but always easily and fortunately. True Gipsy-like, for want 
 of some vessel, a hole is dug in the ground, which is filled with cold water, 
 and the new-born child is washed in it— Grelltnaun, on the Hungarian 
 Gipsies. We may readily believe that a child coming into the world under 
 the circumstances mentioned, would have some of the peculiarities of a wild 
 duck. Mr. Hoyland says that “on the first introduction of a Gipsy child 
 to school, he flew like a bird against the sides of its cage; but by a steady 
 care, and the influence of the example of the other children, he soon be¬ 
 came settled, and fell into the ranks.” It pleases the Gipsies to know that 
 their ancestors came into the world “ like the deer in the forest,” and, when 
 put to school, “ flew like a bird against the sides of its cage.” —Ed.] 
 
 * This invasion of Scotland by Irish Gipsies has, of late years, greatly 
 altered the condition of the nomadic Scottish tribes; for this reason, that 
 as Scotland, no less than any other country, can support only a certain 
 number of such people who “ live on the road,” so many of the Scottish 
 Gipsies have been forced to betake themselves to other modes of making a 
 living. To such an extent has this been the case, that Gipsies, speaking 
 the Scottish dialect, are in some districts comparatively rarely to be met 
 with, where they were formerly numerous. The same cause may even lend 
 to the extinction of the Scottish Gipsies as wanderers; but as the descen¬ 
 dants of the Irish Gipsies will acquire the Scottish vernacular in the second 
 generation, (a remarkably short period among the Gipsies,) what will then 
 pass for Scottish Gipsies will be Irish by descent. The Irish Gipsies are 
 allowed, by their English brethren, to speak good Gipsy, but with a broad 
 and vulgar accent; so that the language in Scotland will have a still better 
 chance of being preserved. 
 
 England has likewise been invaded by these Irish swarms. The English 
 Gipsies complain bitterly of them. “ They have no law among them,” 
 they say ; “ they have fairly destroyed Scotland as a country to travel in ; 
 if they get a loan of anything from the country-people, to wrap themselves 
 in, in the barn, at night, they will decamp with it in the morning. They 
 have brought a disgrace upon the very name of Gipsy, in Scotland, and are 
 heartily disliked by both English and Scotch.” “ There is a family of Irish 
 Gipsies living across the road there, whom I would not be seen speaking 
 
858 
 
 A HISTORY OF TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 But there are Irish Gipsies of a class much superior to 
 the above, in Scotland. In 1836, a very respectable and 
 ■wealthy inaster-tradesman informed me that the whole of 
 the individuals employed in his manufactory, in Edinburgh, 
 were Irish Gipsies.* 
 
 The Gipsies do not appear to have been altogether free from 
 the crime of destroying their offspring, when, by infirmities, 
 they could not be carried along with them in their wander¬ 
 ings, and thereby became an encumbrance to them. It has, 
 indeed, been often noticed that few, or no, deformed or 
 sickly individuals are to be found among them.f The fol¬ 
 lowing appears to be an instance of something like the prac¬ 
 tice in question. A family of Gipsies were in the habit of 
 calling periodically, in their peregrinations over the country, 
 at the house of a lady in Argyleshire. They frequently 
 brought with them a daughter, who was ailing of some lin¬ 
 gering disorder. The lady noticed the sickly child, and 
 often spoke kindly to her parents about her condition. On 
 one occasion, when the family arrived on her premises, she 
 missed the child, and enquired what had become of her, and 
 whether she had recovered. The father said his daughter 
 was “ a poor sickly thing, not worth carrying about with 
 them,” and that he had “made away with her.” Whether 
 any notice was taken of this murder, by the authorities, is 
 
 to.” said a superior English Gipsy; “ I hate a Jew, and I dislike an Irish 
 Gipsy.” But English and Scottish Gipsies pull well together; and are on 
 very friendly terms in America, and frequently visit each other. The 
 English sympathize with the Scottish, under the wrongs they have ex¬ 
 perienced at the hands of the Irish, as well as on account of the persecutions 
 they experienced in Scotland, so long after such had ceased in England. 
 
 Twenty-five years ago, there were many Gipsies to be found between 
 Londonderry and Belfast, following the style of life described under the 
 chapter of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale Gipsies. Their names were Docherty, 
 McCurdy, McCloskey, McGuire, McKay, Holmes, Dinsmore, Morrow, Allan, 
 Stewart, Lindsay, Cochrane, and Williamson. Some of these seem to have 
 migrated from Scotland and the North of England.— Ed. 
 
 * In England, some of the Irish Gipsies send their children to learn 
 trades. There are many of such Irish mechanic Gipsies in America. A 
 short time ago, a company of them landed in New York, and proceeded on to 
 Chicago. Their occupations, among others, were those of hatters and 
 tailors.— Ed. 
 
 \ They are neither overgrown giants nor diminutive dwarfs ; and their 
 limbs are formed in the justest proportions. Large bellies are as uncommon 
 among them as humpbacks, blindness, or other corporeal defects.— Grill - 
 mann on the Hungarian Gipsies .— Ed. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 359 
 
 not mentioned. The Gipsies, however, are generally noted 
 for a remarkable attachment to their children.* 
 
 Several authors have brought a general charge of 
 cowardice against the Gipsies, in some of the countries of 
 Europe ; but I never saw or heard of any grounds for 
 bringing such a charge against the Scottish Gipsies. On 
 the contrary, I always considered our Tinklers the very 
 reverse of cowards. Heron, in his journey through part of 
 Scotland, before the year 1793, when speaking of the Gipsies 
 in general, says : “ They make excellent soldiers, whenever 
 the habit of military discipline can be sufficiently impressed 
 upon them.” Several of our Scottish Gipsies have even 
 enjoyed commissions, as has already been noticed.t But the 
 
 * The Ross-shire Advertiser ,for April, 1842, says: “ Gipsy Recklessness.— 
 Last week, two Gipsy women, who were begging through the country, each 
 with a child on her back, having got intoxicated, took up their lodgings, 
 for the night, in an old sawpit, in the parish of Logie Easter. It is sup¬ 
 posed that they forgot to take the children off their backs, when going to 
 rest; for, in the morning, they were found to be both dead, having been 
 smothered by their miserable mothers lying upon them through the night. 
 One of the women, upon awakening in the morning, called to the other, 
 ‘ that her baby was dead,’ to which the reply was, ‘ that it could not be 
 helped.’ Having dug a hole, they procured some straw, rolled up the 
 children in it, put them in the hole, and then filled it up with the earth.” 
 
 f Though Gipsies everywhere, they differ, in some respects, in the 
 various countries which they inhabit. For example, an English Gipsy, of 
 pugilistic tendencies, will, in a vapouring way, engage to thrash a dozen of 
 liis Hungarian brethren. The following is the substance of what Grell- 
 mann says on this feature of their character: 
 
 Sulzer says a Gipsy requires to have been a long time in the army before 
 he can meet an enemy’s balls with decent soldiers’ resolution. They have 
 often been employed in military expeditions, but never as regular soldiers. 
 In the thirty years’ war, the Swedes had a body of them in the army; and 
 the Danes had three companies of them at the siege of Hamburg, in 1686. 
 They were chiefly employed in flying parties, to burn, plunder, or lay 
 waste the enemy’s country. 
 
 In two Hungarian regiments, nearly every eighth man is a Gipsy. In 
 order to prevent either them (!) or any others from remembering their descent, 
 it is ordered, by the Government, that as soon as a Gipsy joins the regiment, 
 he is no longer to be called by that appellation. Here he is placed pro¬ 
 miscuously with other men. But whether he would be adequate to a 
 soldier’s station—unmixed with strangers, in the company of his equals 
 only—is very doubtful. He has every outward essential for a soldier, 
 yet his innate properties, his levity, and want of foresight, render him 
 incompatible for the services of one, as an instance may illustrate. 
 Francis von Percnyi. who commanded at the siege of Nagy Ida, being 
 short of men, was obliged to have recourse to the Gipsies, of whom 
 he collected a thousand. These he stationed behind the entrenchments, 
 while he reserved his own meu to garrison the citadel. Tire Gipsies sup- 
 
360 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 military is not a life to their taste, as we have already seen ; 
 for, rather than enter it, they will submit to even personal 
 mutilation. There is even danger in employing them in our 
 regiments at the seat of war; as I am convinced that, if 
 there arc any Gipsies in the ranks of the enemy, an im¬ 
 proper intercourse will exist between them in both armies. 
 During the last rebellion in Ireland, the Gipsy soldiers in 
 our regiments kept up an intimate and friendly correspon¬ 
 dence with their brethren among the Irish rebels.* 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies have ever been distinguished for 
 their gratitude to those who treated them with civility and 
 kindness, during their progress through the country. The 
 
 ported tlie attack with so much resolution, and returned the fire of the 
 enemy with such alacrity, that the assailants—little suspecting who were 
 the defendants—were compelled to retreat. But the Gipsies, elated with 
 victory, immediately crept out of their holes, and cried after them, “ Go, 
 and be hanged, you rascals ! and thank God that we had no more powder 
 and shot, or we would have played the "devil with you!” “What!” they 
 exclaimed, bearing in mind the proverb, “You can drive fifty Gipsies be¬ 
 fore you with a wet rag,” “ What! are you the heroes V” and, so saying, the 
 besiegers immediately wheeled about, and, sword in hand, drove the black 
 crew back to their works, entered them along with them, and in a few 
 minutes totally routed them.— Ed. 
 
 * A Gipsy possesses all the properties requisite to render him a fit agent 
 to be employed in traitorous undertakings. Being necessitous, he is easily 
 corrupted; and his misconceived ambition and pride persuade him that he 
 thus becomes a person of consequence. He is, at the same time, too incon¬ 
 siderate to reflect on danger ; and, artful to the greatest degree, he works 
 his way under the most difficult circumstances. Gipsies have not only 
 served much in the capacity of spies, but their garb and manner of life 
 have been assumed by military and other men for the same purpose.— 
 Grellmann on the Hungarian Gipsies. 
 
 Mr. Borrow gives a very interesting description of a meeting of two 
 Gipsies, in a battle between the French and Spaniards, in the Peninsula, 
 in Bonaparte’s time. In the midst of a desperate battle—when everything 
 was in confusion—sword to sword and bayonet to bayonet—a French sol¬ 
 dier singled out one of the enemy, and, after a severe personal contest, got 
 his knee on his breast, and was about to run his bayonet through him. 
 His cap at this moment fell off, when his intended victim, catching his eye, 
 cried, “ Zincali, Ziucali /” at which the other shuddered,,relaxed his grasp, 
 smote his forehead, and wept. He produced his flask, and poured wine 
 into his brother Gipsy’s mouth; and they both sat down on a knoll, while 
 all were fighting around. “ Let the dogs fight, and tear each other s 
 throats, till they are all destroyed: what, matters it to us ? They are not 
 of our blood, and shall that be shed for them ?” 
 
 What our author says of there being danger in employing Gipsies in 
 time of war has little or no foundation ; for the associations between those 
 in the opposite ranks would be merely those of interest, friendship, assist¬ 
 ance, and scenes like the one depicted by Mr. Borrow. The objection to 
 Gipsies, ou such occasions, is as applicable to Jews and Freemasons.— Ed. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES 
 
 361 
 
 particulars of the following instance of a Gipsy's gratitude 
 arc derived from a respectable farmer, to whom one of the 
 tribe offered assistance in his pecuniary distress. I was 
 well acquainted with both of them. The occurrence, which 
 took place only about ten years ago, will show that gratitude 
 is still a prominent feature in the character of the Scottish 
 Gipsy. 
 
 The farmer became embarrassed in his circumstances, in 
 the spring of the year, when an ill-natured creditor, for a 
 small sum, put him in jail, with a design to extort payment 
 of the debt from his relatives. The farmer had always al¬ 
 lowed a Gipsy chief, of the name of-, with his family, 
 
 to take up his quarters on his premises, whenever the horde 
 came to the neighbourhood. The Gipsy’s horse received the 
 same provender as the farmer’s horses, and himself and fam¬ 
 ily the same victuals as the farmer’s servants. So sure was 
 the Gipsy of his lodgings, that he seldom needed to ask per¬ 
 mission to stay all night on the farm, when he arrived. On 
 learning that the farmer was in jail, he immediately went to 
 see him. When he called, the jailer laughed at him, and, 
 for long, would not intimate to the farmer that he wished to 
 see him. With tears in his eyes, the Gipsy then told him 
 he “ would be into the jail, and see the honest man, whether 
 he would or not.” At last, an hour was fixed when ho 
 would be allowed to enter the prison. When the time ar¬ 
 rived, the Gipsy made his appearance, with a quantity of 
 liquor in his hand, for his friend the farmer. “ Weel, man,” 
 said he to the turnkey, ‘‘is this your hour, now?” being dis¬ 
 pleased at the delay which had taken place. The jailer 
 again said to him that he was surely joking, and still re¬ 
 fused him admittance. “ Joking, man ?” exclaimed the 
 Gipsy, with the tears again glistening in his dark eyes, “ I 
 am not joking, for into this prison I shall be ; and if it is not 
 by the door, it shall be by another way.” Observing the 
 determined Gipsy quite serious, the jailer at last allowed 
 him to see the object of his search. The moment he saw the 
 farmer, he took hold of both his hands, and, immediately 
 throwing his arms around him, burst into tears, and was for 
 some time so overcome by grief, that he could not give utter¬ 
 ance to his feelings. Recovering himself, he enquired if it 
 was the laird that had put him in prison ; but on being told 
 it was a writer, one of his creditors, the Gipsy exclaimed, 
 16 
 
362 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 “ They are a d-d crew, tliae writers,* and the lairds are 
 
 little better.” With much feeling, he now said to his friend, 
 “ Your father, honest man, was aye good to my horse, and 
 your mother, poor body, was aye kind to me, when I came 
 to the farm. I was aye treated like one of their own house¬ 
 hold, and I can never forget their kindness. Many a night’s 
 quarters 1 received from them, when others would not suffer 
 me to approach their doors.” The grateful Gipsy now of¬ 
 fered the farmer fifty pounds, to relieve him from prison. 
 “ We are,” said he, “ not so poor as folk think we are ;” and, 
 putting his hand into his pocket, he added, “ Here is part 
 of the money, which you will accept; and if fifty pounds 
 will not do, i will sell all that I have in the world, horses 
 and all, to get you out of this place.” “ Oh, my bonnie man,” 
 continued the Gipsy, “ had I you in my camp, at the back 
 of the dyke, I would be a happy man. You would be far 
 better there than in this hole.” The farmer thanked him 
 for his kind offer, but declined to accept it. “We are,” re¬ 
 sumed the Gipsy, “ looked upon as savages, but we have our 
 feelings, like other people, and never forget our friends and 
 benefactors. Kind, indeed, have your relatives been to me, 
 and all I have in this world is at your service.” When the 
 Gipsy found that his offer was not accepted, he insisted that 
 the farmer would allow him to supply him, from time to 
 time, with pocket money, in case he should, during his con¬ 
 finement, be in want of the necessaries of life. Before leav¬ 
 ing the prison, the farmer asked the Gipsy to take a cup of 
 tea with him ; but long the Gipsy modestly refused to eat 
 with him, saying, “ I am a black thief-looking deevil, to sit 
 down and eat in your company ; but I will do it, this day, 
 for your sake, since you ask it of me.” The Gipsy’s wife, 
 with all her family, also insisted upon being allowed to see 
 the farmer in prison.f 
 
 * A writer in Scotland corresponds with an attorney in England. It is 
 interesting to notice the opinion which the Gipsy entertained of the writers. 
 Possibly he had been a good deal worried by them, in connection with the 
 conduct of some of his folk.— Ed. 
 
 f There is something singularly inconsistent in the mind of the Gipsies. 
 They pride themselves, to an exi raordinary degree, in their race and lan¬ 
 guage ; at the same time, they are extremely- sensitive to the prejudice that 
 exists against them. “ We feel.” say they, “ that every other creature 
 despises us, and would crush us out of existence, if it could be done. No 
 doubt, there are tilings which many- of the Gipsies do not hold to be a 
 shame, that others do; but, on the other hand, they- hold some things to 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 363 
 
 This interview took place in presence of several persons, 
 who were surprised at the gratitude and manner of the de¬ 
 termined Gipsy. It is proper to mention that he is con¬ 
 sidered a very honest man, and is a protection to the prop¬ 
 erty of the country-people, wherever he is quartered. He 
 sells earthen-ware, through the country, and has, sometimes, 
 several horses in his possession, more for pleasure than 
 profit, some of which the farmers graze for nothing, as he is 
 a great favourite with those who are intimately acquainted 
 with him. lie is about fifty years of age, about six feet in 
 height, is spare made, has small black eyes, and a swarthy 
 complexion. He is styled King of the Gipsies, but the coun¬ 
 try-people call him “ Terrible,” for a by-name. It was said 
 his mother was a witch, and many of the simple, ignorant 
 people, in the country, actually believed she was one. That 
 
 be a shame which others do not. They have many good points. They are 
 kind to their own people, and will feed and clothe them, if it is in lheir 
 power; and they will not molest others who treat them civilly. They are 
 somewhat like the wild American Indians: they even go so far as to des¬ 
 pise their own people who will willingly conform to the ways of the people 
 among whom they live, even to putting their heads under a roof. But, 
 alas 1 a hard necessity renders it unavoidable; a necessity of two kinds— 
 that of making a living under the circumstances in which they find them¬ 
 selves placed, and the impossibility of enforcing their laws among them¬ 
 selves. Let them do what they may, live as they may, believe what they 
 may, they are looked upon as everything that is bad. Yet they are a 
 people, an ancient and mysterious people, that have been scattered by the 
 will of Providence over the whole earth.” 
 
 It is to escape this dreadful prejudice that all Gipsies, excepting those 
 who avowedly live and profess themselves Gipsies, will hide their race, if 
 they can, and particularly so, in the case of those who fairly leave the tent, 
 conform to the ordinary ways of society’, and engage in any of its various 
 callings. While being convoyed by the son of an English Gipsy, whose 
 family I had been visiting, at their house, where I had heard them freely 
 speak of themselves as Gipsies, and converse in Gipsy, 1 said, in quite a 
 pleasant tone, “Ah, my little man, and you are a young Gipsy?—Eh, 
 what’s the matter?” “ I don’t wish to be known to the people as a Gipsy.” 
 Ilia father, on another occasion, said, “We are not ashamed to say to a 
 friend that we are Gipsies; but my children don’t like people to be crying 
 after them, ‘ Look at the Gipsies !’ ” And yet this family, like all Gipsies, 
 were strongly attached to their race and language. It was pitiful to think 
 that there was so much rcasou for them to make such a complaint. On one 
 occasion, I was asked, “ If you would not deem it presumptuous, might we 
 ask you to take a bite with us?” “ Eat with you? Why not?’ I replied. 
 “ What will your people think, if they knew that you had been eating with 
 us ? You will lose caste.” This was said in a serious manner, but slightly 
 tinged with irony. Bless me, I thought, are all our Scottish Gipsies, of 
 high and low degree, afraid that the ordinary natives would not even eat 
 with them, if they knew them to be Gipsies ? —Ed. 
 
364 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 lier son believed she possessed supernatural power, will ap> 
 pear from the following fact: As some one was lamenting 
 the hard case of the fanner remaining in prison, the Gipsy 
 gravely said, “ Had my mother been able to go to the jail, 
 to see the honest man, she possessed the power to set him 
 free.” 
 
 That numbers of our Gipsies attend the church, and pub¬ 
 licly profess Christianity, and get their children baptized, is 
 certain ; and that many of the male heads of principal fam¬ 
 ilies have the appearance and reputation of great honesty 
 of character, is also certain. Yet their wives and other 
 members of their families are, in general, little better than 
 professed thieves; and are secretly countenanced and en¬ 
 couraged in their practices by many of those very chief 
 males, who designedly keep up an outward show of integrity, 
 for the purpose of deception, and of affording their plunder¬ 
 ing friends protection. When the head of the family is be¬ 
 lieved to be an honest man, it excites a feeling of sympathy 
 for his tribe on his account, and it enables him to step for¬ 
 ward, with more freedom, to protect his kindred, when they 
 happen to get into scrapes. I am convinced, could the fact 
 be ascertained, that many of the offenders who are daily 
 brought before our courts of justice are Gipsies, though 
 their external appearance does not indicate them to be of 
 that race. 
 
 With regard to the education of our Scottish Gipsies, I 
 am convinced that very few of them receive any education 
 at all; except some of those among the superior classes, 
 who have property in houses, and permanent residences. A 
 Gipsy, of some property, who gave one of her sons a good 
 education, declared that the young man was entirely spoiled.* 
 It appears, however, that the males of the Yetholm colony 
 received such an education as is commonly given to the 
 working classes ; but it is supposed there is scarcely such a 
 thing as a female Gipsy who has been educated. There 
 are, however, instances to the contrary ; and I know one 
 
 * It is well to notice the fact, that by giving a Gipsy child a good educa¬ 
 tion, it became “entirely spoiled.” It would be well if we could “ spoil” 
 all the Gipsies. A thoroughly-spoiled Gipsy mates a very good naan, but 
 leaves him a Gipsy notwithstanding. A “ thorough Gipsy” has two mean¬ 
 ings ; one strongly attached to the tribe, and its original habits, or one 
 without, these original habits. There are a good many “ spoiled” Gipsies, 
 male a 1 d female, in Scotland.—E l>. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 3G5 
 
 female at least, who can handle her pen with some dex¬ 
 terity.* 
 
 As to their religious sentiments, I am inclined to think 
 that the greater part of the Scottish Gipsies are quite indif¬ 
 ferent on the subject. Numbers of them certainly attend 
 church, occasionally, when at home, in their winter quarters ; 
 but not one of them will enter its door when travelling 
 through the country.f On Sundays, while resting themselves 
 by the side of the public roads, the females employ them¬ 
 selves in washing and sewing their apparel, without any re¬ 
 gal'd for that sacred day. It appears to me that a large 
 proportion of them comply with our customs and forms of 
 worship, more for the purpose of concealing their tribe and 
 practices, than from any serious belief in the doctrines of 
 Christianity. I recollect, however, of once conversing with 
 an aged man who professed much apparent zeal in religious 
 matters ; and I mind well that he stoutly maintained, in 
 opposition to Calvin’s ideas on the subject of free grace, 
 that everything depended upon our own works. “ By my 
 works in this life,” said he, “I must stand, or fall, in the 
 world to come.” This very man acknowledged to me that 
 the Gipsies were a tribe of thieves. But almost all the Gip¬ 
 sies, when the subject of religion is mentioned to them, affect 
 to be very pious; speak of the goodness of God to them, 
 
 * The education and acquirements of the Spanish Gipsies, according to 
 Mr. Borrow, are, on the whole, not inferior to those of the lower classes 
 of the Spaniards ; some of the young men being able to read and write in 
 a manner by no means contemptible; but such never occurs among the fe¬ 
 males. Neglecting females, in the matter of education, is quite in keeping 
 with the Oriental origin of the Gipsies. The same feature is observable 
 among the Jews; and the Talmud bears heavily upon Jewish women. 
 Every Jew says, in his morning prayer, “ Blessed art thou, <) Lord, our 
 God, King of the Universe, who hast not made me a woman !” And the 
 woman returns thanks for having been “ created according to God’s will.” 
 —Ld. 
 
 t The ostensible reason which the Gipsy gives for not attending church, 
 when travelling, is to prevent himself being ridiculed by the people. If 
 he enters a place of worship, he makes the old people stare, and frightens 
 the children. On returning from church, a child will exclaim, “ Mother, 
 mother, there was a Tinkler at the kirk, to-day.”—“ A what V a Tinkler at 
 the kirk? What could have possessed him to go there?” 
 
 Gipsies are extremely sensitive to the feeling in question. A short time 
 
 ago, one of them entered-, in the State of-, with a “ shears to 
 
 grind,” having a small bell attached. Some bar room gentry assembled 
 around him, and saluted him with. “Oh, oh, a Gipsy in a new rig!” So 
 keenly did he feel the insult, that he at once left the village.— Ed. 
 
366 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 with much apparent sincerity ; lament the want of educa¬ 
 tion ; and reprobate, in strong terms, every act of immoral¬ 
 ity. This, I am sorry to say, is, in general, all hypocrisy 
 and deception. There is not a better test, in a general way, 
 for discovering who are Gipsies, than the expression of “ God 
 bless you,” which is constantly in the mouth of every fe¬ 
 male.* 
 
 With regard to the general politics of the Scottish Gip¬ 
 sies, if they entertain any political sentiments at all, I am 
 convinced they are monarchical ; and that, were any revo¬ 
 lutionary convulsion to loosen the bonds of society, and 
 separate the lower from the higher classes, they would take 
 to the side of the superior portion of the community. They 
 have, at all times, heartily despised the peasantry, and been 
 disposed to treat menials witli great contempt, though, at 
 the very moment, they were begging at the doors of their 
 masters. In the few instances which have come to my 
 knowledge, of Scottish Gipsies forming matrimonial connex- 
 
 * According to Grellmann, the Gipsies did not bring any particular reli¬ 
 gion with them from their own country, but have regulated it according to 
 those of the countries in which they have lived. They suffer themselves to 
 be baptized among Christians, and circumcised among Mahommedans. They 
 are Greeks with Greeks, Catholics with Catholics, Protestants with Protes¬ 
 tants, and as inconstant in their creed as their place of residence. They 
 suffer their children to be several times baptized. To-day, they receive the 
 sacrament as a Lutheran ; next Sunday, as a Catholic ; and, perhaps before 
 the end of the week, in the Reformed Church. The greater part of them 
 do not go so far as this, but live without any religion at all, and worse than 
 heathens. So thoroughly indifferent are they in this respect, as to have 
 given rise to the adage, “ The Gipsy’s church was built of bacon, and the 
 dogs ate it.” So perfectly convinced are the Turks of the insincerity of 
 the Gipsy in matters of religion, that, although a Jew, by becoming a 
 Mahommedan, is freed from the payment of the poll-tax, a Gipsy—at least in 
 the neighbourhood of Constantinople—is not, even although his ancestors, 
 for centuries, had been Mahommedans, or he himself should actually have 
 made a pilgrimage to Mecca. His only privilege is to wear a white turban, 
 which is denied to unbelieving Jews and Gipsies. 
 
 Mr. Borrow says, that when the female Gipsies, who sing in the choirs 
 of Moscow, were questioned, in their own language, about their externally 
 professing the Greek religion, they laughed, and said it was only to please 
 the Russians. 
 
 The same author mentions an instance in which he preached to them ; 
 taking, for his text, the situation of the flebrews in Egypt, and drawing a 
 comparison between it and theirs in Spain. Warming with his subject, he 
 spoke of the power of Godin preserving both, as a distinct people, in the 
 world, to this day. On concluding, lie looked around to see what impres¬ 
 sion he had made upon them, but the only response he cot from them all 
 was—a squint of the eye !— Ed. 
 
MODERN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 3C7 
 
 ions with individuals of the community, those individuals 
 were not of the working or lower classes of society.* 
 
 I believe there are Gipsies, in more or less numbers, in 
 almost every town in Scotland, permanent as well as peri¬ 
 odical residenters. In many of the villages there are also 
 Gipsy inhabitants. In Mid-Lothian there are great numbers 
 of them, who have houses, in which they reside permanently, 
 but a portion of them travel in other districts, during the 
 summer season. I have been at no ordinary pains and trou¬ 
 ble in making enquiries regarding the number of the Gip¬ 
 sies, and the result of my numerous investigations induces 
 me to believe that there are about five thousand of them in 
 Scotland, at the present day. Indeed, some of the Gipsies 
 themselves entertain the same opinion, and they must cer¬ 
 tainly be allowed to have some idea of the number of their 
 own fraternity.f 
 
 It appears to me that the civilization and improvement of 
 the body, generally, would be a work of great difficulty. I 
 would be apt to give nearly the same answer which a Hun¬ 
 garian nobleman gave to Dr. Bright, when that traveller 
 asked him if he could not devise a plan for bettering the 
 condition of the race in Hungary. The nobleman said he 
 knew of no manner of improving the Gipsies.^ The best 
 plan yet proposed for improving the race appears to be 
 
 * What our author says of the politics of the Gipsies is rather more ap¬ 
 plicable to their ideas of their social position. Being a small body in 
 comparison with the general population of the country, they entertain a 
 very exclusive and, consequently, a very aristocratic idea of themselves, 
 whatever others may think of them ; and therefore scorn the prejudice of 
 the very lowest order of the common natives.—En. 
 
 f Before the reformation of our criminal law, many of the male Gipsies 
 perished on the gallows, but now, the greatest punishment they meet with 
 is banishment, or a short imprisonment, for “ sorning, pickery, and little 
 thieving.” Few of them are now “ married to the gallows tree,” in the man¬ 
 ner of Graham, as described under the head of Fifeshire Gipsies. Owing to 
 their, (the more original kind especially,) all marrying very young, and 
 having very large families, their number cannot fail to encrease, under the 
 present laws, in a ratio far beyond that of our own population. Instead of 
 there being only 5,000 Gipsies in Scotland, there are, as I have already said, 
 nearer 100,000, for reasons to be given in my Disquisition on the Gipsies. 
 —Ed. 
 
 t Speaking of the attempted civilization of the Gipsies, by the Empress 
 Maria Theresa, Grellmann says, “ A boy, (for you must leave the old stock 
 alone,) would frequently seem in the most promising train to civilization; 
 on a sudden, his wild nature would appear, a relapse follow, and he become 
 a perfect Gipsy again.’ 
 
368 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the one suggested by the Rev. James Crabb, of Southamp¬ 
 ton, and the Rev. John Baird, of Yetholm.* One of the first 
 
 “ Curate —Could you not, by degrees, bring yourself to a more settled 
 mode of life ? 
 
 “ Gipsy. —I would not tell you a lie, sir; I really think I could not, hav¬ 
 ing beeu brought up to it from a child.”— Hoyland on the Enplish Gipsies. 
 
 The restless desire which the more original kind of Gipsies, and those 
 more recently from the tent, have for moving about, is generally gratified 
 in some way or other. The poorer class will send their wives and young 
 ones to the ‘‘grass,” in company with the nomadic portion, or to the 
 streets in towns. In either case, they have no great occasion to feel un¬ 
 easy about t heir support; for she would be a poor wife indeed, if she could 
 not forage for herself and “ weary bairns.” Among other things, she can 
 hiio herself to assist in disposing of the wares made by another Gipsy. Her 
 husband will then work at his calling, or go on the tramp, like some of our 
 ordinary mechanics. 
 
 The feeling which mankind in general have for the sweets of the country, 
 and the longing which so many of us have to end our days in the midst of 
 them, amount almost to a mania with these Gipsies. Frequently will Gip¬ 
 sies, in England, after spending the best part of their lives in a settled occu¬ 
 pation, again take to the tent; while others of them, on arrival in America, 
 will buy themselves places, and live on them till seized with the travelling 
 epidemic, communicated by a roving company of their tribe accidentally 
 arriving in their neighbourhood. Some of the more recently settled class 
 of Gipsies, whose occupations do not easily admit of their enjoying the 
 pleasure of a country or travelling life, show a great partiality to their 
 wandering brethren, however poor, with whom they are on terms of 
 intimacy, and especially if they happen to be related. Their children, from 
 hearing their parents speak of the “ good old times”—the “ golden age” of 
 the Gipsies—when they could wander hither and thither, with little moles¬ 
 tation, and live, in a measure, at free-quarters, wherever they went, grow 
 impatient under the restraint which society has thrown around them; and 
 vent their feelings in abusing that same society, and all the members 
 thereof. They envy the lot of these “ countrp-cousins.” Meetings of that 
 kind render these Gipsie-, (old as well as young,) irritable, discontented, 
 and gloomy: they feel like “ birds in a cage,” as a Gipsy expressed it. Not 
 unfrequently will a young town Gipsy travel in the company of these 
 country relatives, dressed a la Tinklaire, as a relief to the discontentment 
 which a restrained and pent-up life creates within him. At other times, 
 his parents will know nothing of his movements, beyond his coming home 
 to “ roost” at night. 
 
 The nomadic class take to winter-quarters in some village, towards the 
 close of the year, and fret themselves all day long, till, on the return of 
 spring, they can sav, “ To your tents, O Gipsies !” There is as little direct 
 relation existing between the tent and the long-settled Gipsies, as there is 
 between it and ordinary Scotch people. But there is that tribal or national 
 association connected with it, that is inseparable from the feelings of a 
 Gipsy, however high may be the position in life to which he may have 
 risen. —Ed. 
 
 * '1 he Fourteenth Annual Festival of the Rev. James Crabb’s Association, 
 for civilizing and teaching the principles of Christianity to the Gipsies in 
 England, was held on the 25th December, 1841. At that time, twenty 
 
MODE UN SCOTTISH GIPSIES. 
 
 369 
 
 steps, however, should be a complete publicity to their lan¬ 
 guage, if that was possible ; and encouragement held out to 
 them to speak it openly, without fear or reproach. Their 
 secret speech is a strong bond of union among them, and 
 forms, as it were, a wall of separation between them and 
 the other inhabitants of the country. 
 
 Many of the Gipsies, following the various occupations 
 enumerated, are not now to be distinguished from others of 
 the community, except by the most minute observation ; yet 
 they appear a distinct and separate people : seldom contract¬ 
 ing marriage out of their own tribe.* A tradesman of 
 Gipsy blood will sooner give his hand to a lady’s maid of 
 his own race, than marry the highest female in the land ; 
 while the Gipsy lady’s maid will take a Gipsy shoemaker, 
 in preference to any one out of her tribe. A Gipsy woman 
 will far rather prefer, in marriage, a man of her own blood 
 who has escaped the gallows, to the most industrious and 
 best-behaved tradesman in the kingdom. Like the Jews, 
 almost all those in good circumstances marry among them¬ 
 selves, and, I believe, employ their poorer brethren as ser¬ 
 vants. I have known Gipsies most solemnly declare, that 
 
 Gipsy youths were attending' his school. He was very sanguine of ulti¬ 
 mately ameliorating the condition of the British Gipsies. 
 
 At Yetholm, in the same year, after the Rev. John Baird’s school had 
 been in existence about two years, there were about forty Gipsy children 
 receiving instruction. When they were educated, they were hired as ser¬ 
 vants to families, or bound apprentices to different trades. 
 
 [I will offer some remarks on the improvement of the Gipsies, in the Dis¬ 
 quisition on the Gipsies.— Ed.] 
 
 * It is a difficult matter to tell some of the settled Scottish Gipsies. In 
 searching for them, some regard must be had to the employment of the in¬ 
 dividual, his associations, and his isolation from the community generally, 
 beyond what is necessary in following his calling and out door relations, as 
 contrasted with his hospitality to strangers from a distance ; a close scru¬ 
 tiny of the habits of himself and his numerous motley visitors ; the rough- 
 and-tumble way in which he sometimes lives; his attachment to animals, 
 such as horses, asses, dogs, cats, birds, or pets of any kind ; these, and 
 other relative circumstances, go a great way to enable one to pounce upon 
 some of them. But the use of their language, and the effect it has upon 
 them, (barring their responding to it,) is, at the present stage of their his¬ 
 tory, the only satisfactory test. Scottish Gipsy families will genet ally bo 
 found to be all dark in their appearance, or all very fair or reddish, or 
 partly very fair, and partly very dark, and sometimes dark or fair nonde¬ 
 script. Many of the residentary class of mechanic Gipsies are difficult 
 of detection ; so are the better classes, generally, if it is long since their 
 ancestors left the tent.—E d. 
 
370 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 no consideration would induce them to marry out of their 
 own tribe ; and I am informed, and convinced, that almost 
 every one of them marries in that way. One of them stated 
 to me that, let them be in whatever situation of life they 
 may, they all “ stick to each other.” 
 
A DISQUISITION ON THE PAST, PRESENT, AND 
 FUTURE OF GIPSYDOM. 
 
 There is nothing hid that shall not be revealed.” 
 
 In giving an account of the Gipsies, the subject would be 
 very incomplete, were not something said about the manner 
 in which they have drawn into their body the blood of other 
 people, and the way in which the race is perpetuated ; and 
 a description given of their present condition, and future 
 prospects, particularly as our author has overlooked some 
 important points connected with their history, which I will 
 endeavour to furnish. One of these important points is, 
 that lie has confined his description of the present genera¬ 
 tion of settled Gipsies to the descendants of those who left 
 the tent subsequently to the commencement of the French war, 
 to the exclusion of those who settled long anterior to that 
 time. It is also necessary to treat the subject abstractly—to 
 throw it into principles, to give the philosophy of it—to en¬ 
 sure the better understanding, and perpetuate the knowledge 
 of it, ainid the shifting objects that present themselves to 
 the eye of the world, and even of the people described. 
 
 Gipsydom may, in a word, be said to be literally a sealed 
 book, a terra incognita, to mankind in general. The Gipsies 
 arrived in Europe a strange race ; strange in their origin, 
 appearance, habits and disposition. Supposing that their 
 habits had never led them to interfere with the property of 
 others, or obtain money by any objectionable way, but that 
 they had confined their calling to tinkering, making and 
 selling w'arcs, trading, and such like, they would, in all prob¬ 
 ability, still have remained a caste in the community, with 
 a strong feeling of sympathy for those living in other coun¬ 
 tries, in consequence of the singularity of their origin and 
 development, as distinguished from those of the other inhab¬ 
 itants, their language and that degree of prejudice which 
 
 ( 371 ) 
 
372 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 most nations have for foreigners settling among them and 
 particularly so in the case of a people so different in their 
 appearance and mode of life as were the Gipsies from those 
 among whom they settled. That may especially be said of 
 tented Gipsies, and even of those who, from time to time, 
 would be forced to leave the tent, and settle in towns, or 
 live as tramps , as distinguished from tented Gipsies. The 
 simple idea of their origin and descent, tribe and language, 
 transmitted from generation to generation, being so different 
 from those of the people among whom they lived, was, in it¬ 
 self, perfectly sufficient to retain them members of Gipsy- 
 dom, although, in cases of intermarriages with the natives, 
 the mixed breeds might have gone over to the white race, 
 and been lost to the general body. But in most of such 
 cases that would hardly have taken place ; for between the 
 two races, the difference of feeling, were it only a slight 
 jealousy, would have led the smaller and more exclusive and 
 bigoted to bring the issue of such intermarriages within its 
 influence. In Great Britain, the Gipsies are entitled, in one 
 respect at least, to be called Englishmen, Scotchmen, or 
 Irishmen ; for their general ideas as men, as distinguished 
 from their being Gipsies, and their language, indicate them, 
 at once, to be such, nearly as much as the common natives 
 of these countries. A half or mixed breed might more 
 especially be termed or pass for a native ; so that, by cling¬ 
 ing to the Gipsies, and hiding his Gipsy descent and affilia¬ 
 tion from the native race, he would lose nothing of the out¬ 
 ward character of an ordinary inhabitant; while any benefit 
 arising from his being a Gipsy would, at the same time, be 
 enjoyed by him. 
 
 But the subject assumes a totally different aspect when, 
 instead of a slight jealousy existing between the two races, 
 the difference in feeling is such as if a gulf had been placed 
 between them. The effect of a marriage between a white 
 and a Gipsy, especially if he or she is known to be a Gipsy, 
 is such, that the white instinctively withdraws from any con¬ 
 nexion with his own race, and casts his lot with the Gip¬ 
 sies. The children born of such unions become ultra Gip¬ 
 sies. A very fine illustration of this principle of half-breed 
 ultra Gipsyism is given by Mr. Borrow, in his “ Gipsies in 
 Spain,” in the case of an officer in the Spanish army adopt¬ 
 ing a young female Gipsy child, whose parents had been 
 
DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 373 
 
 executed, and educating and marrying her. A son of this 
 marriage, who rose to be a captain in the service of Donna 
 Isabel, hated the white race so intensely, as, when a child, 
 to tell his father that he wished he (his father) was dead. 
 At whose door must the cause of such a feeling be laid? 
 One would naturally suppose that the child would have left, 
 perhaps despised, his mother’s people, and clung to those 
 whom the world deemed respectable. But the case was 
 different. Suppose the mother had not been prompted by 
 some of her own race, while growing up, and the son, in his 
 turn, not prompted by the mother, all that was necessary to 
 stir up his hatred toward the white race was simply to 
 know who he was, as I will illustrate.* 
 
 Suppose that a great iron-master should fancy a Cinderella, 
 living by scraping pieces of iron from the refuse of his fur¬ 
 naces, educate her, and marry her, as great iron-masters have 
 done. Being both of the same race, a complete amalgama¬ 
 tion would take place at once : perhaps the wife was the 
 best person of the two. Silly people might sneer at such a 
 marriage; but if no objection attached to the personal char¬ 
 acter of the woman, she might be received into society at 
 once, and admired by some, and envied by others, particu¬ 
 larly if she had no “ low relations” living near her. She 
 might even boast of having been a Cinderella, if it happened 
 to be well known ; in which case she might be deemed free 
 of pride, and consequently a very sensible, amiable woman, 
 and worthy of every admiration. 
 
 But who ever heard of such a thing taking place with a 
 Gipsy? Suppose a Gipsy elevated to such a position as that. 
 
 * Tliis Spanish Gipsy is reported by Mr. Borrow to have said : “ She, how- 
 ever, remembered her blood, and hated my father, and taught me to hate 
 him likewise. When a hoy, I used to stroll about the plain, that I might 
 not see my father; and my father would follow me, and beg me to look 
 upon him, and would ask me what I wanted; and 1 would reply, ‘ bather, 
 the only thing I want is to see you dead !’” 
 
 This is certainly an extreme instance of the result of the prejudice against 
 the Gipsy race; and no opinion can he formed upon it, without knowing 
 some of the circumstances connected with the feelings of the father, or his 
 relations, toward the mother and the Gipsy race generally. This Gipsy 
 woman seems to have been well brought up by her protector and husband ; 
 for she taught her child Gipsy from a MS., and procured a teacher to 
 instruct him in Latin. There are many reflections to be drawn from the 
 circumstances connected with this Spanish Gipsy family, but they do not 
 seem to have occurred to Mr. Borrow. 
 
374 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 spoken of ; she would not, she dare not, mention her descent 
 to any one not of her own race, and far less would she give 
 an expose of Gipsydom ; for she instinctively perceives, or 
 at least believes, that, such is the prejudice against her race, 
 people would avoid her as something horridly frightful, al¬ 
 though she might be the finest woman in the world. Who 
 ever heard of a civilized Gipsy, before Mr. Borrow men¬ 
 tioned those having attained to such an eminent position in 
 society at Moscow ? Are there none such elsewhere than in 
 Moscow ? There are many in Scotland. It is this unfortu¬ 
 nate prejudice against the name that forces all our Gipsies, 
 the moment they leave the tent, (which they almost invari¬ 
 ably do with their blood diluted with the white,) to hide 
 from the public their being Gipsies ; for they are morbidly 
 sensitive of the odium which attaches to the name and race 
 being applied to them. It is quite time enough to discover 
 the great secret of Nature, when it is unavoidable to enter 
 
 U . n .1 f, A ' 
 
 “ The undiscovered country from -whose bourne 
 No traveller returns.” : 1 
 
 f Hr " \ 
 
 As little disposition is manifested by these Gipsies to “ show 
 their hands the uncertainty of such an experiment makes 
 the very idea dreadful to them. Hence it is that the con¬ 
 stant aim of settled Gipsies is to hide the fact of their being 
 Gipsies from other people. 
 
 It is a very common idea that Gipsies do not mix their 
 blood with that of other people. Now, what is the fact? I 
 may, indeed, venture to assert, that there is not a full-blooded 
 Gipsy in Scotland ;* and, most positively, that in England, 
 where the race is held to be so pure, all that can be said of 
 some families is, that they have not been crossed, as far 
 as is known ; but that, with these exceptions, the body is 
 much mixed : “ dreadfully mixed” is the Gipsies’ descrip¬ 
 tion, as, in many instances, my own eyes have witnessed. 
 This brings me to an issue with a writer in the Edin¬ 
 burgh Review, who, in October, 1841, when reviewing the 
 “ Gipsies in Spain,” by Mr. Borrow, says, “ Their descent 
 is purity itself; no mixture of European blood has con- 
 
 * It is claimed, by some Scottish Gipsies, that there are full-blood Gipsies 
 at Yetholm, but I do not believe it. This, I may venture to say, that there 
 can be no certainty, but, on the contrary, great doubt, on the subject. But, 
 after all, what is a pure Gipsy? Was the race pure when it entered Scot* 
 land, or even Europe? The idea is perfectly arbitrary. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TIDE GIPSIES. 
 
 375 
 
 taminated theirs.They, (the stranger and Gipsy,) 
 
 may live together; the European vagrant is often to be 
 found in the tents of the Gipsies; they may join in the fel¬ 
 lowship of sport, the pursuit of plunder, the management of 
 their low trades, but they can never fraternize.” A writer 
 in Blackwood’s Magazine, on the same occasion, says, “ Their 
 care to preserve the purity of their race might, in itself, 
 have confuted the unfounded charge, so often brought against 
 them, of stealing children, and bringing them up as Gipsies.” 
 More unfounded ideas than those put forth by these two 
 writers are scarcely possible to be imagined.* 
 
 This mixture of “ the blood” is notorious. Many a full or 
 nearly full-blood Gipsy will say that Gipsies do not mix 
 their blood with that of the stranger. In such a case he 
 only shuffles ; for he whispers to himself two words, in his 
 own language, which contradict what he says ; which words 
 I forget, but they mean “ I belie it;” that is, he belies what 
 he has just said. Besides, it lets the Gipsies down in their 
 imagination, and, they think, in the imagination of others, 
 to allow that the blood of their race is mixed. It is also a 
 secret which they would rather hide from the world .t I am 
 intimate with English Gipsy families, in none of whom is 
 full blood; the most that can be said of them is, that they 
 range from nearly full, say from seven-eighths, down to one- 
 eighth, and perhaps less. Suppose that a fair-haired com¬ 
 mon native marries a full-blood Gipsy : the issue of such an 
 union will show some of the children, in point of external 
 
 * It would be interesting to know where these writers got such ideas about 
 the purity of the Gipsy blood. It certainly was not from Mr. Borrow’s 
 account of the Gipsies in Spain, whatever they may have inferred from 
 that work. 
 
 f An instance of this kind of shuffling is given by Mr. Borrow, in tho 
 tenth chapter of the “ Romany Rye,’’ in the person of Ursula, a full or 
 nearly full-blood Gipsy. She confines the crossing of the blood to such in¬ 
 stances as when a Gipsy dies and leaves his children to be provided for by 
 “ gorgios, trampers, and basket makers, who live in caravansbut she 
 says, “ I hate to talk of the matter.” When Mr. Borrow asked her, if a 
 Gipsy woman, unless compelled by hard necessity, would have anything to 
 do with a gorgio, she replied, “ We are not over-fond of gorgios , and wo 
 hate basket-makers and folks that live in caravans.” Here she makes a 
 very important distinction between gorgios, (native English,) and basket- 
 makeis and folks that live in caravans, (mixed Gipsies.) She does not deny 
 that a Gipsy woman will intermarry with a native under certain circum¬ 
 stances. A pretty-pure Gipsy, when angry, will very readily call a mixed 
 Gipsy a gorgio, or, indeed, by any other name. 
 
376 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 appearance, perfectly European, like the father, and others, 
 Gipsies, like the mother. If two such European-like Gip¬ 
 sies marry, some of their children will take after the Gipsy, 
 and be pretty, even very, dark, and others after the white 
 race. In crossing a second time with full white blood, the 
 issue will take still more after the white race. Still, the 
 Gipsy cannot be crossed altogether out; he will come up, 
 but of course in a modified form. Should the white blood 
 be of a dark complexion and hair, and have no tendency, 
 from its ancestry, to turn to fair, in its descent, then the 
 issue between it and the Gipsy will always be dusky. I 
 have seen all this, and had it fully explained by the Gipsies 
 themselves. 
 
 The result of this mixture of the Gipsy and European 
 blood is founded, not only on the ordinary principles of 
 physiology, but on common sense itself ; for why should not 
 such issue take after the European, in preference to the 
 Gipsy ? If a residence in Europe of 450 years has had no 
 effect upon the appearance of what may be termed pure 
 Gipsies, (a point which, at least, is questionable,) the length 
 of time, the effects of climate, and the influence of mind, 
 should, at least, predispose it to merge, by mixture, into 
 something bearing a resemblance to the ordinary European ; 
 which, by a continued crossing, it does. Indeed, it soon dis¬ 
 appears to the common eye : to a stranger it is not observ¬ 
 able, unless the mixture happens to be met with in a tent, 
 or under such circumstances as one expects to meet with 
 Gipsies. In paying a visit to an English Gipsy family, I 
 was invited to call again, on such a day, when 1 would meet 
 with some Welsh Gipsies. The principal Welsh Gipsy I 
 found to be a very quiet man, with fair hair, and quite like 
 an ordinary Englishman ; who was admitted by his English 
 brethren to “ speak deep Gipsy.” He had just arrived from 
 Wales, where he had been employed in an iron work. Un¬ 
 less I am misinformed, the issue of a fair-haired European 
 and an ordinary Hindoo woman, in India, sometimes shows 
 the same result as I have stated of the Gipsies ; but it ought 
 to be much more so in the case of the Gipsy in Europe, on 
 account of the race having been so long acclimated there. 
 Indeed, it is generally believed, that the population of 
 Europe contains a large part of Asiatic blood, from that con¬ 
 tinent having at one time been overrun by Asiatics, who 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 377 
 
 mixed their blood with an indigenous race which they met 
 with there. 
 
 Of the mixed Spanish Gipsy, to whom I have alluded, Mr. 
 Borrow says, that “lie had flaxen hair; his eyes small, and, 
 like ferrets, red and fiery ; and his complexion like a brick, 
 or dull red, chequered with spots of purple.” This descrip¬ 
 tion, with, perhaps, the exception of the red eyes, and spots 
 of purple, is quite in keeping with that of many of the mixed 
 Gipsies. The race seems even to have given a preference 
 to fair or red hair, in the case of such children and grown¬ 
 up natives as they have adopted into their body. I have 
 met with a young Spaniard from Corunna, wdio is so much 
 acquainted with the Gipsies in Spain, that I took him to be 
 a mixed Gipsy himself; and he says that mixtures among 
 the Spanish Gipsies are very common ; the white man, in 
 such cases, always casting his lot with the Gipsies. None 
 of the French, German, or Hungarian Gipsies whom I have 
 met with in America are full blood, or anything like it; but 
 I am told there are such, and very black too, as the English 
 Gipsies assert. Indeed, considering how “ dreadfully mixed” 
 the Gipsies are in Great Britain and Ireland, I cannot but 
 conclude that they are more or less so all over the world.* 
 
 The blood once mixed, there is nothing to prevent a little 
 more being added, and a little more, and so on. There are 
 English Gipsy girls who have gone to work in factories in 
 the Eastern States, and picked up husbands among the 
 ordinary youths of these establishments. And what differ¬ 
 ence does it make? Is not the game in the Gipsy woman’s 
 own hands? Will she not bring up her children Gipsies, 
 initiate them in all the mysteries of Gipsydom, and teach 
 them the language ? There is another married to an Ameri¬ 
 can farmer “ down east.” All that she has to do is simply 
 to “ tell her wonderful story,” as the Gipsies express it. 
 
 * Grellmann evidently alludes to Gipsies of mixed blood, when he writes 
 in the following manner: “ Experience shows that the dark colour of the 
 Gipsies, which is continued from generation to generation, is more the effect 
 of education and manner of life than descent. Among those who profess 
 music in Hungary, or serve in the imperial army, where they have learned 
 to pay more attention to order and cleanliness, there are many to be found 
 whose extraction is not at all discernible in their colour.” For my part, I 
 cannot say that such language is applicable to full-blood Gipsies. Still, the 
 change from tented to settled and tidy Gipsydom is apt to show its effects 
 in modifying the complexion of such Gipsies, and to a much greater degree 
 in their descendants. 
 
378 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Jonathan must think that he lias caged a queer kind of a bird 
 in the English Gipsy woman. But will he say to his friends, 
 or neighbours, that his wife is a Gipsy? Will the children 
 tell that their mother, and, consequently, they themselves 
 are Gipsies? No, indeed. Jonathan, however, will find 
 her a very active, managing woman, who will always be 
 a-stirring, and will not allow her “old man” to kindle the 
 fires of a morning, milk his cows, or clean his boots, and, as 
 far as she is concerned, will bring him lots of chabos. 
 
 Gipsies, however, do not like such marriages ; still they 
 take place. They are more apt to occur when they have 
 attained to that degree of security in a community where no 
 one knows them to be Gipsies, or when they have settled in 
 a neighbourhood to which they had come strangers. The 
 parents exercise more constraint over their sons than daugh¬ 
 ters ; they cannot bear the idea of a son taking a strange 
 woman for a wife; for a strange woman is a snare unto the 
 Gipsies. If a Scottish Gipsy lad shows a hankering after a 
 stranger lass, the mother will soon “ cut his comb,” by ask¬ 
 ing him, “ What would she say if she knew you to be a loon 
 of a Gipsy ? Take such or such a one (Gipsies) for a wife, 
 if you want one.” But it is different with the girls. If a 
 Gipsy lass is determined to have the stranger for a husband, 
 she has only to say, “ Never mind, mother; it makes no 
 earthly difference ; I’ll turn that fellow round my little fin¬ 
 ger ; I’ll take care of the children when I get them.” I do 
 not know how the settled Scottish Gipsies broach the sub¬ 
 ject of being Gipsies to the stranger son-in-law when he is 
 introduced among them. I can . imagine the girl, during the 
 courtship, saying to herself, with reference to her intended, 
 “ I’ll lead you captive, my pretty fellow!” And captive she 
 does lead him, in more senses lhan one. Perhaps the sub¬ 
 ject is not broached to him till after she has borne him chil¬ 
 dren ; or, if he is any way soft, the mother, with a leering 
 eye, will say to him at once, “ Ah ha, lad, ye’re among Gip¬ 
 sies now!” In such a case, the young man will be perfectly 
 bewildered to know what it all means, so utterly ignorant 
 is he about Gipsies ; when, however, he comes to learn all 
 about it, it will be mum with him, as if his wife’s friends 
 had burked him, or some “ old Gipsy” had come along, and 
 sworn him in on the point of a drawn dirk. It may be that 
 the Gipsy never mentions the subject to her husband at all, 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 379 
 
 for fear lie should “ take her life she can, at all events, trust 
 her secret with her children. 
 
 Why should there be any hard feelings towards a Gipsy 
 for “taking in and burking” a native in this way? She 
 does not propose—she only disposes of herself. She has no 
 business to tell the other that she is a Gipsy. She does not 
 consider herself a worse woman than he is a man, but, on 
 the contrary, a better. She would rather prefer a chabo, 
 but, somehow or other, she sacrifices her feelings, and takes 
 the gorgio, “ for better or worse.” Or there may be con¬ 
 siderable advantages to be derived from the connexion, so 
 that she spreads her snares to secure them. Being a Gipsy, 
 she has the whip-hand of the husband, for no consideration 
 will induce him to divulge to any one the fact that his wife 
 is a Gipsy—should she have told him ; in which case she 
 has such a hold upon him, as to have “ turned him round her 
 little finger” most effectually. “ Married a Gipsy! it’s no’ 
 possible !” “ Ay, it is possible. There 1” she will say, chat¬ 
 
 tering her words, and, with her fingers, showing him the 
 signs. He soon gets reconciled to the “ better or worse” 
 which he has taken to his bosom, as well as to her “ folk,” 
 and becomes strongly attached to them. The least thing 
 that the Gipsy can then do is to tell her “ wonderful story” 
 to her children. It is not teaching them any damnable 
 creed ; it is only telling them who they are ; so that they 
 may acknowledge herself, her people, her blood, and the 
 blood of the children themselves. 
 
 And how does the Gipsy woman bring up her children in 
 regard to her own race? She tells them her “ wonderful 
 story”-—informs them who they are, and of the dreadful prej¬ 
 udice that exists against them, simply for being Gipsies. 
 She then tells them about Pharaoh and Joseph in Egypt, 
 terming her people, “ Pharaoh’s folk.” In short, she dazzles 
 the imagination of the children, from the moment they can 
 comprehend the simplest idea. Then she teaches them her 
 words, or language, as the “ real Egyptian,” and frightens 
 and bewilders the youthful mind by telling them that they 
 are subject to be hanged if they arc known to be Gipsies, 
 or to speak these words, or will be looked upon as wild 
 beasts by those around them. She then informs the chil¬ 
 dren how long the Gipsies have been in the country ; how 
 they lived in tents ; how they were persecuted, banished, 
 
880 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TIIE OIDSIES. 
 
 and hanged, merely for being Gipsies. She then tells them 
 of her people being in every part of the world, whom they 
 can recognize by the language and signs which she is 
 teaching them ; and that her race will everywhere be ready 
 to shed their blood for them. She then dilates upon the 
 benefits that arise from being a Gipsy—benefits negative as 
 well as positive ; for should they ever be set upon—garroted, 
 for example—all that they will have to do will be to cry 
 out some such expression as “Biene rate, calo chabo,” (good¬ 
 night, Gipsy, or black fellow,) when, if there is a Gipsy near 
 them, he will protect them. The children will be fondled 
 by her relatives, handed about and hugged as “ little ducks 
 of Gipsies.” The granny, while sitting at the fireside, like 
 a witch, performs no small part in the education of the chil¬ 
 dren, making them fairly dance with excitement. In this 
 manner do the children of Gipsies have the Gipsy soul liter¬ 
 ally breathed into them.* 
 
 In such a way—what with the supreme influence which 
 the mother has exercised over the mind of the child from its 
 very infancy ; the manner in which its imagination has been 
 dazzled ; and the dreadful prejudice towards the Gipsies, 
 which they all apply, directly or indirectly, to themselves— 
 does the Gipsy adhere to his race. When he comes to be 
 a youth, he naturally enough endeavours to find his way to 
 a tent, to have a look at the “ old thing.” He does not, 
 however, think much of it as a reality ; but it presents some¬ 
 thing very poetical and imaginative to his mind, when he 
 contemplates it as the state from which his mysterious fore¬ 
 fathers have sprung.! It makes very little difference, in the 
 
 * Mr. Offor, editor of a late edition of Bunyan’s works, writes, in “ Notes 
 and Queries,” thus : “ I have avoided much intercourse with this class, fear¬ 
 ing the fate of Mr. Iloyland, who, being a Quaker, was shot by one of 
 Cupid’s darts from a black-eyed Gipsy girl; and J. S. may do well to be cau¬ 
 tious.” Mr. Offor is not far wrong. A Gipsy girl can sometimes fascinate 
 a “ white fellow,” as a snake can a bird—make him flutter, and particularly 
 so, should the “ little Gipsy” be met with in some such dress as black silks 
 and a white polka. This much can be said of Gipsy women, which cannot 
 be said of all women, that they know their places, and are not apt to usurp 
 the rights of the rajahs ; they will even “ work the nails off their fingers” 
 to make them feel comfortable. 
 
 I should conclude, from what Mr. Offor says, that the Quaker married 
 the Gipsy girl. If children were born of the union, they will be Gipsy- 
 Quakers, or Quaker-Gipsies, whichever expression we choose to adopt. 
 
 f I have picked up quite a number of Scottish Gipsies of respectable 
 character, from their having gone in their youth, to look at the “ old thing.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 381 
 
 case to -which I have alluded, whether the father be a Gipsy 
 or not; the children all go with the mother, for they in¬ 
 herit the blood through her. What with the blood, the edu¬ 
 cation, the words, and the signs, they are simply Gipsies, 
 and will be such, as long as they retain a consciousness of 
 who they are, and any peculiarities exclusively Gipsy. 
 As it sometimes happens that the father, only, is a Gipsy, the 
 attachment may not be so strong, on the part of the children, 
 as if the blood had come through the mother ; still, it like¬ 
 wise attaches them to the body. A great deal of jealousy 
 is shown by the Gipsies, when a son marries a strange wo¬ 
 man. A greater ado is not made by some Catholics, to 
 bring up their children Catholics, under such circumstances, 
 than is exhibited by Gipsies for their children knowing their 
 secret—-that is, the “ wonderful story which has the effect 
 of leading them, in their turn, to marry with Gipsies. The 
 race is very jealous of “ the blood” being lost; or that their 
 “ wonderful story” should become known to those who are 
 not Gipsies. 
 
 There are people who cannot imagine how a man can be 
 a Gipsy and have fair hair. They think that, from his hav¬ 
 ing fair hair, he cannot have the same feelings of what they 
 imagine to be a true Gipsy, that is, a black-haired one. 
 One naturally asks, what effect can the matter of colour of 
 hair have upon the mind of a member of any community or 
 clan, whether the hair be black, brown, red, fair, or white, 
 or the person have no hair at all ? Let us imagine a Gipsy 
 with fair hair. How long is it since the white blood was 
 introduced among his ancestors ? Perhaps three hundred 
 and fifty years. The race of which he comes has been, 
 more or less, mixing and crossing ever since, but always 
 retaining the issue within its own community. Is he fair¬ 
 haired ? Then he may be half a Gipsy ; he may be three- 
 fourths Gipsy, and perhaps even more. At the present day, 
 
 It is the most natural thing in the world for them to do. What is it to 
 look back to the time of James V., in 1540, when John Faw was lord-para- 
 mount over the Gipsies in Scotland ? Imagine, then, the natural curiosity 
 of a young Gipsy, brought up in a town, to look at something like the ori¬ 
 ginal condition of his ancestors. Such a Gipsy will leave Edinburgh, for 
 example, and travel over the south of Scotland, “ casting his sign,” as he 
 passes through the villages, in every one of which he will find Gipsies. 
 Some of these villages are almost entirely occupied by Gipsies. James 
 Hogg is reported, in Blackwood’s Magazine, to say, that Lochmaben is 
 “ stocked” with them. 
 
382 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the “ points” of such a Gipsy are altogether arbitrary ; some 
 profess to know their points, but it is a thing altogether un¬ 
 certain. All that they know and adhere to is, that they are 
 Gipsies, and nothing else. In this manner are the British 
 Gipsies, (with the exception of some English families, about 
 whom there iS no certainty,) members of the Gipsy commu¬ 
 nity, or nation, as such—eacli having some of the blood ; and 
 not Gipsies of an ideal purity of race. What they know is, 
 that their parents and relatives are Gipsies ; that Gipsies 
 separate them from the eternity that is past; and, conse¬ 
 quently, that they arc Gipsies. They, indeed, accept their 
 descent, blood, and nationality as instinctively as they accept 
 the very sex which God has given them. Which of the two 
 knows most of Gipsydom—the fair-haired or black? Al¬ 
 most invariably the fair.* 
 
 We naturally ask, what effect has this difference in appear¬ 
 ance upon two such members of one family—the one with 
 European, the other with Gipsy, features and colour ? and 
 the answer is this : The first will hide the fact of his being 
 a Gipsy from strangers ; indeed, he is ashamed to let it be 
 known that he is a Gipsy ; and he is afraid that people, not 
 knowing how it came about, would laugh at him. “ What!” 
 they would ask, “ you a Gipsy ? The idea is absurd.” Be¬ 
 sides, it facilitates his getting on in the world, to prevent it 
 being known that he is a Gipsy. The other member cannot 
 deny that he is a Gipsy, because anv one can see it. Such 
 are the Gipsies who are more apt to cling to the tent, or the 
 more original ways of the old stock. They are very proud 
 
 * Among the English Gipsies, fair-hairerl ones are looked upon by the 
 purer sort, or even by those taking- after the Gipsy, as “ small potatoes.” 
 The consequence is, they have to make up for their want of blood, by smart¬ 
 ness, knowledge of the language, or something that will go to balance the 
 deficiency of blood. They generally lay claim to the intellect, while they 
 yield the blood to the others. A full or nearly full-blood young English Gipsy 
 looks upon herself with all the pride of a little -duchess, while in the com¬ 
 pany of young male mixed Gipsies. A mixed Gipsy may reasonably be 
 assumed to be more intelligent than one of the old stock, were it only for 
 this reason, that the mixture softens down the natural concoit and bigotry 
 of the Gipsy; while, as regards his personal appearance, it puts him in a 
 more improvable position. Still, a full-blood Gipsy looks up to a mixed 
 Gipsy, if he is anything of a superior man, and freely acknowledges the 
 blood. Indeed, the two kinds will readily marry, if circumstances bring 
 them together. To a couple of such Gipsies I said : “ What difference does 
 it make, if the person has the blood, and, has his heart in the right place ?” 
 “ That’s the idea ; that’s exactly the idea,” they both replied. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 383 
 
 of their appearance ; but it is a pride accompanied with dis¬ 
 advantages, and even pain. For, after all, the beauty and 
 pleasure in being a Gipsy is to have the other cast of fea¬ 
 tures and colour ; he has as much of the blood and language 
 as the other, while he can go into any kind of company—a 
 sort of Jack-the-Giant-Killer in his invisible coat. The 
 nearer the Gipsy comes to the original colour of his race, 
 the less chance is there of improving him. He knows what 
 he is like ; and well does he know the feeling that people 
 entertain for him. In fact, he feels that there is no use in 
 being anything but what people call a Gipsy. But it is dif¬ 
 ferent with those of European countenance and colour, or 
 when these have been modified or diluted by a mixture of 
 white blood. They can, then, enter upon any sphere of em¬ 
 ployment to which they have a mind, and their personal ad¬ 
 vantages and outward circumstances will admit of.* 
 
 Let us now consider the destiny of such European-like 
 Gipsies. Suppose a female of this description marries a 
 native in settled life, which both of them follow. She brings 
 the children up as Gipsies, in the way described. The chil¬ 
 dren arc apt to become ultra Gipsies. If they, in their turn, 
 marry natives, they do the same with their children ; so that, 
 if the same system were always followed, they would continue 
 Gipsies forever. For all that is necessary to perpetuate 
 the tribe, is simply for the Gipsies to know who they are, 
 and the prejudice that exists toward the race of which they 
 are a part; to say nothing of the innate associations con¬ 
 nected with their origin and descent. Such a phenomenon 
 may be fitly compared to the action of an auger; with this 
 difference, that the auger may lose its edge, but the Gipsy 
 will drill his way through generations of the ordinary 
 natives, and, at the end, come out as sharp as ever ; all the 
 circumstances attending the two races being exactly the 
 same at the end as at the beginning. In this way, let their 
 blood be mixed as it may, let even their blood-relationship 
 outside of their body be what it may, the Gipsies still remain, 
 in their private associations, a distinct people, into whatever 
 
 * To thoroughly understand how a Gipsy, with fair hair and blue eyes, 
 can be as much a Gipsy as one with black, may be termed “ passing the 
 pons assinnrmn of the Gipsy question.” Once over the bridge, and there 
 are no difficulties to be encountered on the journey, unless it be to under¬ 
 stand that a Gipsy can be a Gipsy without living in a tent or being a rogue. 
 
334 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 sphere of human action they may enter ; although, in point 
 of blood, appearance, occupation, character, and religion, 
 they may have drifted the breadth of a hemisphere from the 
 stakes and tent of the original Gipsy. 
 
 There can surely be no great difficulty in comprehending 
 so simple an idea as this. Here wc have a foreign race in¬ 
 troduced amongst us, which has been proscribed, legally as 
 well as socially. To escape the effects of this double pro¬ 
 scription, the people have hidden the fact of their belonging 
 to the race, although they have clung to it with an ardour 
 worthy of universal admiration. The proscription is toward 
 the name and race as such, that is, the blood ; and is not 
 general, but absolute ; none having ever been received into 
 society as Gipsies. For this reason, every Gipsy, every one 
 who has Gipsy blood in his veins, applies the proscription 
 to himself. On the other hand, he has his own descent— 
 the Gipsy descent; and, as I have already said, he has 
 naturally as little desire to wish a different descent, as he 
 has to have a different sex. As Finns do not wish to have 
 been born Englishmen, or Englishmen Finns, so Gipsies are 
 perfectly satisfied with their descent, nay, extremely proud 
 of it. They would not change it, if they could, for any con¬ 
 sideration. When Gipsies, therefore, marry natives, they do 
 not only willingly bring up their children as Gipsies, but by 
 every moral influence they are forced to do it, and cling to 
 each other. In this way has the race been absolutely cut off 
 from that of the ordinary natives ; all intercourse between 
 the two, unless on the part of the hush Gipsy, in the way of 
 dealings, having been of a clandestine nature, on the side of 
 the Gipsy, or, in other words, incog. How melancholy it is 
 to think that such a state of things exists in the British 
 Islands! 
 
 The Gipsy, born of a Gipsy mother and a native father, 
 does, therefore, most naturally, and, I may say, invariably, 
 follow the Gipsy connexion ; the simplest impulse of man¬ 
 hood compels him to do it. Being born, or becoming a 
 member of settled society, he joins in the ordinary amuse¬ 
 ments or occupations of his fellow-creatures of both races ; 
 which he does the more readily when he feels conscious of 
 the incognito which he bears. But he has been brought up 
 from his mother’s knee a Gipsy ; he knows nothing else ; his 
 associations with his relatives have been Gipsy ; and he has 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 385 
 
 in his veins that which the white damns, and, he doubts not, 
 would damn in him, were lie to know of it. He has, more¬ 
 over, the words and signs of the Gipsy race ; he is brought 
 in contact with the Gipsy race ; he perceives that his feelings 
 are reciprocated by them, and that both have the same 
 reserve and timidity for “ outsiders.” He does not reason 
 abstractly what he is not, but instinctively holds that lie is 
 “one of them that he lias in his mind, his heart, and his 
 blood, that which the common native has not, and which 
 makes him a chabo, that is, a Gipsy. 
 
 The mother, in the case mentioned, is certainly not a full- 
 blood Gipsy, nor anything like it; she docs not know her 
 real “ points all that she knows is, that she is a “ Gipsy 
 so that, if the youth’s father is an ordinary native, the youth 
 holds himself to be a half-and-half, nominally, though he 
 does not know what lie really is, as regards blood. Imagine, 
 then, that he takes such a half-and-half Gipsy for a wife, and 
 that both tell their children that they are “Gipsies:” the 
 children, perhaps, knowing nothing of the real origin of 
 their parents, take up the “ wonderful story,” and hand it 
 down to their children, initiating them, in their turn, in the 
 “ mysteries.” These children never doubt that they are 
 “ Gipsies,” although their Gipsyism may, as I have already 
 said, have “drifted the breadth of a hemisphere from the 
 stakes and tent of the original Gipsy.” In this manner is 
 Gipsydom kept alive, by its turning round and round in a 
 perpetual circle. And in this manner docs it happen, that 
 a native finds his own children Gipsies, from having, in seek¬ 
 ing for a wife, stumbled upon an Egyptian woman. Gipsy¬ 
 dom is, therefore, the aggregate of Gipsies, wherever, or 
 under whatever circumstances, they are to be found. It is, 
 in two respects, an absolute question ; absolute as to blood, 
 and absolute as to those teachings, feelings, and associations, 
 that, by a moral necessity, accompany the possession of the 
 blood. 
 
 This brings me to an issue with Mr. Borrow. Speaking 
 of the destination of the Spanish Gipsies, he says: “ If the 
 Gitanos are abandoned to themselves, by which we mean, no 
 arbitrary laws are again enacted for their extinction, the 
 sect will eventually cease to be, and its members become 
 confounded with the residue of the population.” I can well 
 understand that such procedure, on the part of the Spanish 
 17 
 
S86 
 
 DISQUISITION' ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Government, was calculated to soften the ferocious disposi¬ 
 tion of the Gipsies; but did it bring them a point nearer 
 to an amalgamation with the people than before ? Mr. Bor¬ 
 row continues : “ The position which they occupy is the 
 
 lowest.The outcast of the prison and the presidio, 
 
 who calls himself Spaniard, would feel insulted by being 
 termed Gitano, and would thank God that he is not.” He 
 continues : “ It is, of course, by intermarriage, alone, that the 
 two races will ever commingle ; and before that event is 
 brought about, much modification must take place amongst 
 the Gitanos, in their manners, in their habits, in their affec¬ 
 tions and their dislikes, and perhaps even in their physical 
 peculiarities, (yet ‘ no washing,’ as Mr. Borrow approvingly 
 quotes, ‘ will turn the Gipsy white;’) much must be for¬ 
 gotten on both sides, and everything is forgotten in course 
 of time.” So great, indeed, was the prejudice against the 
 Gipsies, that the law of Charles III, in 1783, forbade the 
 people calling them Gitanos, under the penalty of being 
 punished for slander ! because, his majesty said : “ I declare 
 that those who go by the name of Gitanos are not so by 
 origin or nature; nor do they proceed from any infected 
 root (!)” What regard would the native Spaniards pay to 
 the injunction, that they would be punished for “ slander,” 
 for calling the Gipsies Gitanos, in place of Spaniards? 
 We may well believe that such a law would be a dead letter 
 in Spain ; where, according to Mr. Borrow, “justice has in¬ 
 variably been a mockery ; a thing to be bought and sold, 
 terrible only to the feeble and innocent, and an instrument 
 of cruelty and avarice.” 
 
 Mr. Borrow leaves the question where lie found it. Even 
 remove the prejudice that exists against the Gipsies, as re¬ 
 gards their colour, habits, and history ; what then? Would 
 they, as a people, cease to be ? Would they amalgamate 
 with the natives, so as to be lost ? Assuredly not. They 
 may mix their blood, but they preserve their mental identity 
 in the world ; even although, in point of physical appear¬ 
 ance, habits, manners, occupation, character, and creed, they 
 might “ become confounded with the residue of the popula¬ 
 tion.” In that respect, they are the most exclusive people 
 of almost any to be found in the world. We have only to 
 consider what Freemasonry is, and we can form an idea of 
 what Gipsyisra is, in one of its aspects. It rests upon the 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 387 
 
 broadest of all bases—flesh and blood, a common and 
 mysterious origin, a common language, a common history, a 
 common persecution, and a common odium, in every part of 
 the world. Remove the prejudice against the Gipsies, make 
 it as respectable to be Gipsies, as the world, with its igno¬ 
 rance of many of the race, deem it desreputable ; what 
 then? Some of them might come out with their “ tents and 
 encampments,” and banners and mottoes : the “ cuddy and 
 the creel, the hammer and tongs, the tent and the tin kettle” 
 forever. People need not sneer at the “ cuddy and the 
 creel.” The idea conveys a world of poetry to the mind of 
 a Gipsy. Mrs. Fall, of Dunbar, thought it so poetical, that 
 she had it, as we have seen, worked in tapestry ; and it is 
 doubtless carefully preserved, as an heir-loom, among her 
 collateral descendants.* 
 
 Mr. Borrow speaks of the Gipsies “ declining” in Spain. 
 Ask a Scotchman about the Scottish Gipsies, and ho will an¬ 
 swer : “ The Scotch Gipsies have pretty much died out.” 
 “ Died out?” I ask ; “ that is impossible ; for who are more 
 prolific than Gipsies ?” “ Oh, then, they have become settled, 
 
 * There is a considerable resemblance between Gipsyism, in its harmless 
 aspect, and Freemasonry ; with this difference, that the former is a general, 
 while the latter is a special, society; that is to say, the Gipsies have the 
 language, or some of the words, and the signs, peculiar to the whole race, 
 which each individual or class will use for different purposes. The race 
 does not necessarily, and does not in fact, have intercourse with every 
 other member of it; in that respect, they resemble any ordinary commu¬ 
 nity of men. Masonry, as my reader may be aware, is a society of what 
 may be termed “ a mixed multitude of good fellows, who arc all pledged to 
 befriend and help each other.” The radical elements of Masonry may be 
 termed a “rope of sand,” which the vows of the Order work into the most 
 closely and strongly formed coil of any to be found in the world. But it 
 is altogether of an artificial nature; while Gipsyism is natural—something 
 that, when separated from objectionable habits, one might almost call divine; 
 for it is founded upon a question of race—a question of blood. The cement 
 of a creed is weak, in comparison with that which binds the Gipsies together; 
 for a people, like an individual, may have one creed to day, and another 
 to morrow ; it may be continually travelling round the circle of every form 
 of faith; but blood, under certain circumstances, is absolute and immutable. 
 
 There are many Gipsies Freemasons; indeed, they are the very people 
 to push their way into a Mason’s lodge; for they have secrets of their own, 
 and are naturally anxious to pry into those of others, by which they may¬ 
 be benefited. I was told of a Gipsy who died lately, the Master of a Masons’ 
 Lodge. A friend, a Mason, told me, the other day, of his having entered a 
 house in Yetholm. where were five Gipsies, all of whom responded to his 
 Masonic signs. Masons should therefore interest themselves in, and be¬ 
 friend, the Gipsies. 
 
388 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 and civilized.” “ And ceased to he Gipsies ?” I continue. 
 “ Exactly so,” lie replies. What idea can be more ridicu¬ 
 lous than that of saying, that if a Gipsy leaves the tent, 
 settles in a town, and attends church, he ceases to be a 
 Gipsy ; and that, if he takes to the tent again, he becomes a 
 Gipsy again ? What has a man’s occupation, habits, or char¬ 
 acter, to do with his clan, tribe, or nationality? Does edu¬ 
 cation, does religion, remove from his mind a knowledge of 
 who he is, or change his blood ? Are not our own Borderers 
 and Highlanders as much Borderers and Highlanders as ever 
 they were ? Are not Spanish Gipsies still Spanish Gipsies, al¬ 
 though a change may have come over the characters and cir¬ 
 cumstances of some of them ? It would be absurd to deny it.* 
 
 Mr. Borrow has not sufficiently examined into Spanish 
 Gipsyism to pass a reliable opinion upon it. He says : 
 “ One thing is certain, in the history of the Gitanos; that 
 the sect flourished and encreased, so long as the law recom¬ 
 mended and enjoined measures the most harsh and severe 
 
 for its suppression.The caste of the Gitanos still 
 
 exists, but is neither so extensive, nor so formidable, as a 
 century ago, when the law, in denouncing Gitanismo, pro- 
 
 * The principle, or rather fact, here involved, simple as it is in itself, is 
 evidently very difficult of comprehension by the native Scottish mind. 
 Any person understands perfectly well how a Highlander, at the present 
 day, is still a Highlander, notwithstanding the great change that has come 
 over the character of his race. But our Scottish literati seem to have been 
 altogether at sea, in comprehending the same principle as applicable to the 
 Gipsies. They might naturally have asked themselves, whether Gipsies 
 could have procreated Jews ; and, if not Jews, how they could have pro¬ 
 created gorr/ios, (as English Gipsies term natives.) A writer in Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine says, in reference to Billy Marshall, a Gipsy chief, to whom 
 allusion has already been made: “Who were his descendants I cannot 
 tell; I am sure he could not do it himself, if he were living. It is known 
 that they were prodigiously numerous ; I dare say numberless.” And yet 
 this writer gravely says that “ the rare, is in some risk of becoming ex¬ 
 tinct (!)” Another writer in Blackwood says: “ Their numbers may per¬ 
 haps have since been diminished, in particular States, by the progress of 
 civilization (/)” We would naturally pronounce any person crazy who 
 would maintain that there were no Highlanders in Scotland, owing to their 
 having “changed their habits.” We could, with as much reason, say the 
 same of those who will maintain this opinion in regard to the Gipsies. 
 There has been a great deal of what is called genius expended upon the 
 Gipsies, but wonderfully little common sense. 
 
 As the Jews, during their pilgrimage in the Wilderness, were protected 
 from their enemies by a cloud, so have the Gipsies, in their encrease and 
 development, been shielded from theirs, by a mist of ignorance, which, it 
 would seem, requires no little trouble to dispel. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 389 
 
 posed to the Gitanos the alternatives of death for persisting 
 in their profession, or slavery for abandoning it.” These 
 are very singular alternatives. The latter is certainly not 
 to be found in any of the Spanish laws quoted by Mr. Bor¬ 
 row. I am at a loss to perceive the point of his reasoning. 
 There can be no difficulty in believing that Gipsies would 
 rather encrease in a state of peace, than if they were hunted 
 from place to place, like wild beasts ; and consequently, 
 having renounced their former mode of life, they would, in 
 Mr. Borrow’s own words, “ cease to play a distinct part in 
 the history of Spain, and the law would no longer speak of 
 them as a distinct people.” And the same might, to a cer¬ 
 tain extent, be said of the Spanish 'people. Mr. Borrow 
 again says: “ That the Gitanos are not so numerous as in 
 former times, witness those barrios , in various towns, still de¬ 
 nominated Gitanerias, but from whence the Gitanos have 
 disappeared, even like the Moors from the Morerias .” But 
 Mr. Borrow himself, in the same work, gives a good reason 
 for the disappearance of the Gipsies from these Gitanerias ; 
 for he says : “ The Gitanerias were soon considered as public 
 nuisances, on which account the Gitanos were forbidden to 
 live together in particular parts of the town, to hold meet¬ 
 ings, and even to intermarry with each other.” If the dis¬ 
 appearance of the Gipsies from Spain was like that of the 
 Moors, it would appear that they had left, or been expelled 
 from, the country ; a theory which Mr. Borrow does not ad¬ 
 vance. The Gipsies, to a certain extent, may have left these 
 barriers, or been expelled from them, and settled, as trades¬ 
 men, mechanics, and what not, in other parts of the same or 
 other towns ; so as to be in a position the more able to get 
 on in the world. Still, many of them are in the colonies. 
 In Cuba there are many, as soldiers and musicians, dealers 
 in mules and red pepper, which businesses they almost 
 monopolize, and jobbers and dealers in various wares ; and 
 doubtless there are some of them innkeepers, and others 
 following other occupations. In Mexico there are not a few. 
 1 know of a Gitano who has a fine wholesale and retail cigar 
 store in Virginia.* 
 
 * In Ohnstead's “ Journey in the Seaboard Slave States” it is stated, that 
 in Alexandria, Louisiana, when under the Spanish rule, there were “ French, 
 and Spanish, Egyptians and Indians, Mulattoes and Negroes.” This author 
 reports a conversation which he had with a planter, by which it appears 
 
390 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Mr. Borrow concludes, in regard to the Spanish Gipsies, 
 thus : We have already expressed our belief that the caste 
 lias diminished of latter years ; whether this diminution was 
 the result of one or many causes combined ; of a partial 
 change of habits, of pestilence or sickness, of war or 
 famine, or of a freer intercourse with the /Spanish population , 
 we have no means of determining, and shall abstain from 
 offering conjectures on the subject.” In this way does he 
 leave the question just where he found it. Is there any 
 reason to doubt that Gipsydom is essentially the same in 
 Spain as in Great Britain ; or that its future will be guided 
 by any other principles than those which regulate that of 
 the British Gipsies? Indeed, I am astonished that Mr. 
 Borrow should advance the idea that Gipsies should decrease 
 by “ changing their habits they might not encrease so fast, 
 in a settled life, as when more exposed to the air, and not 
 molested by the Spanish Government. I am no less aston¬ 
 ished that he should think they would decrease by “ a freer 
 intercourse with the Spanish population when, in fact, 
 such mixtures are well known to go with the Gipsies ; the 
 mixture being, in the estimation of the British Gipsies, cal¬ 
 culated to strengthen and invigorate the race itself. Had 
 Mr. Borrow kept in mind the case of the half-blood Gipsy 
 captain, he could have had no difficulty in learning what 
 became of mixed Gipsies.* 
 
 that these Egyptians came from “ some of the Northern Islands that they 
 spoke a language among themselves, but could talk French and Spanish 
 too ; that they were black, but not very black, and as good citizens as any, 
 and passed for white folk. The planter believed they married mostly with 
 mulattoes, and that a good many of the mulattoes had Egyptian blood in 
 them too. He believed these Egyptians had disappeared since the State 
 became part of the Union. Mr. Oimstead remarks: “The Egyptians were 
 probably Spanish Gipsies, though I have never heard of any of them be¬ 
 ing in America in any other way.” 
 
 * Mr. Borrow surely cannot mean that a Gipsy ceases to be a Gipsy, 
 when he settles down, and “ turns over a new leafand that this “ change 
 of habits” changes his descent, blood, appearance, language and nationality 1 
 What, then, does he mean, when he says, that the Spanish Gipsies have de¬ 
 creased by “ a partial change of habits ?” 
 
 And does an infusion of Spanish blood, implied in a “ freer intercourse 
 with the Spanish population,” lead to tiie Gipsy element being wiped out; 
 or does it lead to the Spanish feeling being lost in Gipsydom ? Which is 
 the element to be operated upon—the Spanish or the Gipsy ? Which is the 
 leaven ? The Spanish element is the passive, the Gipsy the active. As a 
 question of philosophy, the most simple of comprehension, and, above all, 
 as a matter of fact, the foreign element introduced, in detail, into the body 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 391 
 
 It doubtless holds in Spain, as in Great Britain, that as 
 the Gipsy enters into settled life, and engages in a respect¬ 
 able calling, he hides his descent, and even mixes his blood 
 with that of tlie country, and becomes ashamed of the name 
 before the public ; but is as much, at heart, a Gipsy, as any 
 others of his race. And this theory is borne out by Mr. 
 Borrow himself, when lie speaks of “ the unwillingness of 
 the Spanish Gipsies to utter, when speaking of themselves, 
 the detested expression Gitano; a word which seldom es¬ 
 capes their mouths.” We might therefore conclude, that 
 the Spanish Gipsies, with the exception of the more original 
 and bigoted stock, would hide tlieir nationality from the com¬ 
 mon Spaniards, and so escape their notice. It is not at all 
 likely that the half-pay Gipsy captain would mention to the 
 public that he was a Gipsy, although he admitted it to Mr. 
 Borrow, under the peculiar circumstances in which he met 
 him. My Spanish acquaintance informs me that the Gitanos, 
 generally, hide their nationality from the rest of the world. 
 
 Such a case is evidently told by Mr. Borrow, in the vaga¬ 
 bond Gipsy, Antonio, at Badajoz, who termed a rich Gipsy, 
 living in the same town, a hog, because he evidently would 
 not countenance him. Antonio may possibly have been 
 kicked out of his house, in attempting to entor it. He ac¬ 
 cused him of having married a Spaniard, and of fain attempt¬ 
 ing to pass himself for a Spaniard. As regards the wife, 
 she might have been a Gipsy with very little of “ the blood” 
 in her veins ; or a Spaniard, reared by Gipsies ; or an ordi¬ 
 nary Spanish maiden, to whom the Gipsy would teach his 
 language, as sometimes happens among the English Gipsies. 
 Ilis wishing to pass for a Spaniard had nothing to do with 
 his being, but not wishing to be known as, a Gipsy. The 
 same is done by almost all our Scottish Gipsies. In Eng¬ 
 land, those who do not follow the tent—I mean the more 
 mixed and better class—are even afraid of each other. 
 “ Afraid of what ?” said I, to such an English Gipsy ; 
 “ ashamed of being Gipsies ?” “ No, sir,” (with great em¬ 
 phasis ;) “ not ashamed of being Gipsies, but of being known 
 
 of Gipsydom, goes with that body, and, in feeling, becomes incorporated 
 with it, although, in physical appearance, it changes the Gijjsy race, so 
 that it becomes “ confounded with the residue of the population,” but re¬ 
 mains Gipsy, as before. A Spanish Gipsy is a Spaniard as he stands, and 
 it would be hard to say wha 1 wc should ask him to do, to become more a 
 Spaniard than he is already. 
 
892 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 to other 'people as Gipsies.” “ A world of difference,” I re¬ 
 plied. What does the world hold to be a Gipsy, and what 
 does it hold to be the feelings of a man ? If we consider 
 these two questions, we can have little difficulty in under¬ 
 standing’ the wish of such Gipsies to disguise themselves. 
 It is in this way, and in the mixing of the blood, that this 
 so-called “ dying out of the Gipsies” is to be accounted 
 for.'* 
 
 It is singular that Mr. Borrow should attribute the change 
 which has come over the Spanish Gipsies, so much to the 
 law passed by Charles III. in 1783 ; and that he should 
 characterize it as an enlightened, wise, and liberal law ; dis¬ 
 tinguished by justice and clemency ; and as being calculated 
 to exert considerable influence over the destiny of the race ; 
 nay, as being the principal, if not the only, cause for the 
 “ decline” of it in Spain. It was headed : “ Rules for repress¬ 
 ing. and chastising the vagrant mode of life, and other ex¬ 
 cesses, of those who are called Gitanos.” Article II. forbids, 
 under penalties, the Gipsies “ using their language, dress, or 
 vagrant kind of life, which they had hitherto followed.” 
 Article XI. prohibits them from “ wandering about the 
 roads and uninhabited places, even with the pretext of 
 visiting marPets and fairs.” Article IX. reads thus: “ Those 
 who have abandoned the dress, name, language or jargon, 
 associations and manners of Gitanos, and shall have, more¬ 
 over, chosen and established a domicile, but shall not have 
 devoted themselves to any office or employment, though it 
 be only that of day-labourer, shall be proceeded against as 
 common vagrants.” Articles XYI. and XVII. enact, that 
 “ the children, and young people of both sexes, who are not 
 above sixteen years of age, shall be separated from their 
 parents, ivho wander about and have no employment, [which 
 was forbidden by the law itself,] and shall be destined to 
 learn something, or shall be placed out in hospices or houses 
 of instruction.” Article XX. dooms to death, ivithout remis- 
 
 * Mr. Borrow mentions, in the twenty-second chapter of the “ Bible in 
 Spain,” having met several cavalry soldiers from Granada, Gipsies incog, 
 who were surprised at being discovered to be Gipsies. They had been im¬ 
 pressed, but carried on a trade in horses, in league with the captain of their 
 company. They said : “ We have been to the wars, but not to fight; we left 
 that to the Busnd. We have kept together, and like true Calore, have stood 
 back to back. We have made money in the wars.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 393 
 
 ,s ion, Gipsies who , for the second time , relapse into their old 
 habits. 
 
 I cannot agree with Mr. Borrow, when he says, that this 
 law r '■ differs in character ” from any which had hitherto been 
 enacted, in connection with the body in Spain, if I take 
 those preceding it, as given by himself. The only difference 
 between it and some of the previous laws is, that it allowed 
 the Gipsy to be admitted to whatever office or employment 
 to which he might apply himself, and likewise to any guilds 
 or communities ; but it prohibited him from settling in the 
 capital, or any of the royal residences ; and forbade him, on 
 pain of death , to publicly profess what he was—that is, a 
 Gipsy. With the trifling exceptions mentioned, the law of 
 Charles III. was as foolish a one as ever w r as passed 
 against the Gipsies. These very exceptions show what the 
 letter, whatever the execution, of previous laws must have 
 been. Nor can we form any opinion as to the effects the 
 law in question had upon the Gipsies, unless we know how 
 it was carried out. The law of the Empress Maria Theresa 
 produced no effect upon the Gipsies in Hungary. “ In Hun¬ 
 gary,” says Mr. Borrow, “ two classes are free to do what 
 they please—the nobility and the Gipsies—the one above 
 the law, the other below it.” And what did Mr. Borrow 
 find the Gipsies in Hungary? In England, the last instances 
 of condemnation, under the old sanguinary laws, happened 
 a few years before the Restoration, although these wmre not 
 repealed till 23d Geo. III., c. 54. The Gipsies in England 
 can follow any employment, common to the ordinary natives, 
 they please: and how has Mr. Borrow described them 
 there? In Scotland, the tribe have been allowed to do 
 nothing, not even acknowledge their existence, as Gipsies : 
 and this work describes what they are in that country. 
 
 Instead of the law of Charles III. exercising any great 
 beneficial influence over the character of the Spanish Gip¬ 
 sies, I would attribute the change in question to what Mr. 
 Borrow himself says : “ It must be remembered that during 
 the last seventy years, a revolution has been progressing in 
 Spain, slowly it is true ; and such a revolution may have 
 affected the Gitanos.” The Spanish Gipsy proverb, “ Money 
 is to be found in the town, not in the country,” has had its in¬ 
 fluence on bringing the race to settle in towns. And by resid¬ 
 ing in towns, and not being persecuted, they have, in Mr. Bor- 
 
894 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 row’s own words, “ insensibly become more civilized than tlieir 
 ancestors, and their habits and manners less ferocious.” The 
 only good which the law of Charles III. seems to have done 
 to the Spanish Gipsies was, as already said, to permit them 
 to follow' any occupation, and be admitted to any guilds, or 
 communities, (barring the capital, and royal residences,) they 
 pleased ; but only on the condition, and that on the pain of 
 death , that they renounced every imaginable thing connected 
 with their tribe; which, w r e may reasonably assume, no 
 Gipsy submitted to, however much in appearance he might 
 have done so. 
 
 But it is doubtful if the law of Charles III. was anything 
 but the one which it was customary for every Spanish mon¬ 
 arch to issue against the tribe. Mr. Borrow says : “ Per¬ 
 haps there is no country in which more laws have been 
 framed, having in view the suppression and extinction of 
 the Gipsy name, race, and manner of life, than Spain. Every 
 monarch, during a period of three hundred years, appears, 
 at his accession to the throne, to have considered that one 
 of his first and most imperative duties consisted in suppress¬ 
 ing and checking the robberies, frauds, and other enormities 
 of the Gitanos, with which the whole country seems to have 
 resounded since the time of their first appearance.” The 
 fact of so many laws being passed against the Gipsies, is, to 
 my mind, ample proof, as 1 shall afterwards explain, that 
 few, if any, of them were put, to any extent, in force; and 
 that the act in question, viewed in itself, as distinct from the 
 laws previously in existence, was little more than a form. It 
 contains a flourish of liberality, implied in the Gitanos be¬ 
 ing allowed to enter, if they pleased, any guilds, (which they 
 were not likely to do,) or communities, (where they were 
 doubtless already ;) but it debars, (that is, expels,) them from 
 the king’s presence, at the capital or any of the royal resi¬ 
 dences. Moreover, it allowed the Gitano to be “ admitted to 
 whatever office or employment to which he might apply him¬ 
 self,” (against which, there probably was, or should have 
 been, no law in existence.) His majesty must also impose 
 his pragmatical conceit upon his loyal subjects, by telling 
 them, that ‘‘Gitanos are not Gitanos”—that they “ do not 
 proceed from any infected rootand threaten them, that if 
 they maintain the contrary, and call them Gitanos, he will 
 have them punished for slander! 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 395 
 
 The Gipsies, after a residence of 350 years in the coun¬ 
 try, would have comparatively little notice taken of them, 
 under this law, except when they made themselves really 
 obnoxious, or gave an official an occasion to display his 
 authority, or his zeal for the public service.* Whatever may 
 have been the treatment which the Gipsies experienced at 
 the hands of the civil authorities, the church does not seem 
 to have disturbed, and far less distressed, them. Mr. Bor¬ 
 row represents a priest of Cordova, formerly an Inquisitor, 
 saying to him : “ I am not aware of one case of a Gitano 
 having been tried or punished by the Inquisition. The In¬ 
 quisition always looked upon them with too much contempt, 
 to give itself the slightest trouble concerning them ; for, as 
 no danger, either to the State or to the Church of Rome, 
 could proceed from the Gitanos, it was a matter of perfect 
 indifference to the holy office whether they lived without re¬ 
 ligion or not. The holy office has always reserved its anger 
 for people very different ; the Gitano having, at all times, 
 been Geute harrata y de.spreciahlc 
 
 Should the Spanish Gipsies not now assist each other, to 
 the extent they did when banditti, under the special pro¬ 
 scription of the Government, it would be absurd to say that 
 they were therefore not as much Gipsies as ever they were. 
 The change in this respect arose, to some extent, from the 
 toleration extended to them, as a people and as individu¬ 
 als, whether by the law, or society in general. Such Gip¬ 
 sies as Mr. Borrow seems to have associated with, in Spain, 
 were not likely to be very reliable authority ou the ques¬ 
 tions at issue ; for he has described them as “ being endowed 
 with a kind of instinct, (in lieu of reason,) which assists them 
 to a very limited extent, and no further.” 
 
 Might it not be in Spain as in Great Britain ? Even in 
 England, those that pass for Gipsies are few in number, 
 compared to the mixed Gipsies, following various occupa¬ 
 tions ; for a large part of the Gipsy blood in England has, 
 as it were, been spread over a large surface of the white. In 
 Scotland it is almost altogether so. There seems considcr- 
 
 * It would seem that the law in Spain, in regard to the Gipsies, stands 
 pretty much where it did—that is, the people are, in a sense, tolerated, but 
 that the use of their language is prohibited, as may be gathered from an 
 incident mentioned in the ninth chapter of the " Bible in Spain,’’ by Mr. 
 Borrrw. 
 
396 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 able reason for believing that Gipsydom is, perhaps, as much 
 mixed in Spain as in Great Britain, although Mr. Borrow 
 lias taken no notice of it. We have seen, (page 92.) how 
 severe an enactment was passed by Queen Elizabeth, against 
 “ any person, whether natural born or stranger, to be seen 
 in the fellowship of the Gipsies, or disguised like them.” In 
 the law of Ferdinand and Isabella, the first passed against 
 the Gipsies, in Spain, a class of people is mentioned, in con¬ 
 junction with them, but distinguished from them, by the 
 name of “ foreign tinkers.” Philip III., at Belan, in Portu¬ 
 gal, in 1619, commands all Gipsies to quit the kingdom 
 within six months. “ Those who should wish to remain are 
 to establish themselves in cities, and are not to be allowed 
 to use the dress, name, and language, in order, that foras¬ 
 much as they are not such by nation, (!) this name, and man¬ 
 ner of life, may be for evermore confounded and forgotten(l)” 
 Philip IV., on the 8th May, 1633, declares “that they are 
 not Gipsies by origin or nature, but have adopted this form 
 of life (!)” This idea of “ Gitanos not being Gitanos, and 
 not proceeding from any infected root,” was not original 
 with Charles III., in 1183 ; his proclamation having been in 
 formal keeping with previous ones, whether of his own 
 country, or, as in Scotland, in 1603, “ recommended by the 
 example of some other realm,” (page 111.) There had evi¬ 
 dently been a great curiosity to know who some of the “ not 
 Gipsies by origin and nature,” (evidently judging from their 
 appearance,) could be ; for Philip IV. enacts, “ that they 
 shall, within two months, leave the quarters where now they 
 live toith the denomination of Gitanos, and that they shall 
 separate from each other, and mingle with the other inhabi¬ 
 tants : tliat the ministers of justice are to observe, with par¬ 
 ticular diligence, whether they hold communication with each 
 other, or marry among themselves .” 
 
 The “ foreign tinkers” mentioned in the Act of Ferdi¬ 
 nand and Isabella, and the individuals distinguished from 
 the Gipsies in that of Queen Elizabeth, were doubtless mixed 
 Gipsies ; . whose relationship with the Gipsies proper, and 
 isolation from the common natives, are very distinctly pointed 
 out in the above extract from the law of Philip IV. Mr. 
 Borrow expresses a great difficulty to understand who these 
 people could be, if not Gipsies. How easy it is to get quit 
 of the difficulty, by concluding that they were Gipsies whose 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 397 
 
 blood, perhaps for the most part, was native ; and who had 
 been brought into the body in the manner explained in the 
 Preface to this work, and more fully illustrated in this Dis¬ 
 quisition. If Mr. Borrow found in Spain a half-pay captain, 
 in the service of Donna Isabel, with flaxen hair, a thorough 
 Gipsy , who spoke Gipsy and Latin, with great fluency, and 
 his cousin, Jara, in all probability another Gipsy, what diffi¬ 
 culty can there be in believing that the “ foreign tinkers,” 
 or tinkers of any kind, now to be met with in Spain, are, 
 like the same class in Great Britain and Ireland, Gipsies of 
 mixed blood? Indeed, the young Spaniard, to whom I have 
 alluded, informs me that the Gipsies in Spain are very much 
 mixed. Mr. Borrow himself admits that the Gipsy blood in 
 Spain has been mixed ; for, in speaking of the old Gipsy 
 counts, he says : “ It was the counts who determined what in¬ 
 dividuals were to be admitted into the fellowship and privi¬ 
 leges of the Gitanos.They (the Gipsies) were m 
 
 not to teach the language to any but those who, by birth or 
 inauguration, belonged to that sect.” And he gives a 
 case in point, in the bookseller of Logrono, who was mar¬ 
 ried to the only daughter of a Gitano count; upon whose 
 death, the daughter and son-in-law succeeded to the author¬ 
 ity which he had exercised in the tribe. If the Gipsies in 
 Spain were not mixed in point of blood, why should they 
 have taken Mr. Borrow for a Gipsy, as he said they did ? 
 The persecutions to which the race in Spain were subjected 
 were calculated to lead to a mixture of the blood, as in 
 Scotland, for the reasons given in the Preface ; but, perhaps, 
 not to the same extent; as the Spanish Acts seem to have 
 given the tribe an opportunity of escape, under the condi¬ 
 tion of settling, &c., &c., which would probably be complied 
 with,, nominally, for the time being ; while the face of part 
 of the country would afford a refuge till the storm had 
 blown over. (See pages 71 and 114.) 
 
 It is very likely that the following people, described by 
 Paget, in his travels in Central Europe, are mixed Gipsies, 
 lie says : “ In almost every part of the Austrian dominions 
 are to be found a kind of wandering tinkers, wire-workers, 
 and menders of crockery, whose language appears to be 
 that of the Sclaves, who travel about, and, at certain sea¬ 
 sons, return to their own settlements, where the women and 
 children remain during their absence.” The wandering 
 
398 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Rothwelsh, perhaps the same mentioned by Paget, may be 
 mixed Gipsies. In the Encyclopaedia Britannica they are 
 spoken of as “ a vagabond people, in the south of Germany, 
 who have sometimes been confounded with the Gipsies.” 
 The appearance of such persons has nothing to do with 
 their being, or not being, members of Gipsydom." 
 
 I will now consider the present condition of the Scottish 
 Gipsies. But, to commence with, what is the native capacity 
 of a Gipsy ? It is good. Take a common tinkering Gipsy, 
 without a particle of education, and compare him with a 
 common native, without a particle of education, and the tin¬ 
 ker, in point of smartness, is worth, perhaps, a dozen of the 
 other. If not a learned, he is at least a travelled, Athenian, 
 considerably rubbed up by his intercourse with the world. 
 This is the proper way by which to judge of the capacity 
 of a Gipsy. It will differ somewhat according to the coun¬ 
 tries and circumstances in which he is found. Grellmann, 
 about the year 1780, says, of evidently the more original 
 kind of Hungarian Gipsies : “ Imagine a people of childish 
 thoughts, whose minds are filled with raw, undigested con¬ 
 ceptions, guided more by sense than reason, and using under¬ 
 standing and reflection only so far as they promote the 
 gratification of any particular appetite ; and you have a 
 perfect sketch of the general character of the Gipsies.” 
 “ They are lively, uncommonly loquacious, fickle to an ex¬ 
 treme ; consequently, inconstant in their pursuits.” Bischoff, 
 in speaking of the German Gipsies, in 1827, says : “They 
 have a good understanding, an excellent memory, are quick 
 of comprehension, lively and talkative.” Mr. Borrow, in 
 evident allusion to the very lowest, and most ignorant, class 
 of the Spanish Gipsies, says : “ They seem to hunt for their 
 bread, as if they were not of the human, but rather of the 
 animal, species, and, in lieu of reason, were endowed with a 
 kind of instinct, which assists them to a very limited ex¬ 
 tent, and no further.” I admit that this class of Gipsies 
 may have as little intellect as there is in an ant-catcher’s 
 nose, but the remark can apply to them exclusively. 
 
 Without taking into account any opinion expressed by 
 other writers on the Gipsies, Mr. Borrow says : “ Should it 
 
 * Paget says these tinkers leave their women and children at home when 
 on their travels. That is not customary with the tribe, although it may 
 be their habit in the Austrian dominions. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 399 
 
 be urged that certain individuals have found them very dif¬ 
 ferent from what they are represented in these volumes, 
 (‘The Gipsies in Spain/) he would frankly say that he 
 yields no credit to the presumed fact.” And he refers his 
 readers to his Spanish-Gipsy vocabulary for the words hoax 
 and hocus, as a reason for sucli an opinion! He himself 
 gives descriptions of quite a different caste. For example, 
 lie speaks of a rich Gipsy appearing in a fair, at Leon, in 
 Spain, with a twenty thousand dollar credit in his pocket. 
 And of another Gipsy, a native of Constantinople, who had 
 visited the most remote and remarkable portions of the world, 
 “ passing over it like a cloud ;” and who spoke several dia¬ 
 lects of the Malay, and understood the original language of 
 Java. This Gipsy, he says, dealt in precious stones and 
 poisons ; and that there is scarcely a bey or satrap in Persia, 
 or Turkey, whom he has not supplied with both. In Mos¬ 
 cow, he says, “ There are not a few who inhabit stately 
 houses, go abroad in elegant equipages, and are behind the 
 higher orders of the Russians, neither in appearance nor 
 mental acquirements.” From these specimens, one might 
 naturally conclude that there was some room for discrimi¬ 
 nation among different classes of Gipsies, instead of rating 
 them as having the intellect of ant-catchers. 
 
 When the Gipsies appeared in Scotland, the natives them¬ 
 selves, as I have already said, were nearly wholly unedu¬ 
 cated. Many of the Gipsies, then, and long afterwards, 
 being smart, presumptuous, overbearing, audacious fellows, 
 seem to have assumed great importance, and been looked 
 upon as no small people by the authorities and the inhabit¬ 
 ants of the country. In every country in which they have 
 settled, they seem to have instinctively and very readily 
 appreciated the ways and spirit of the people, while, at the 
 same time, they preserved what belonged particularly to 
 themselves—their Gipsyism. Gipsydom being, in its very 
 essence, a “working in among other people,” “a people 
 within a people,” it followed, that marriages between adopted 
 Gipsies, and even Gipsies themselves, and the ordinary na¬ 
 tives, would be encouraged, were it only to contribute to 
 their existence in the couutry. The issue of such marriages, 
 go where they might, would become centres of little Gipsy 
 circles, which, in their turn, would throw off members that 
 would become the centres of other little Gipsy circles ; the 
 
400 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 leaven of Gipsydom leavening into a lump everything that 
 proceeded out of itself. To such an extent lias this been 
 followed, that, at the present day, the Scottish Gipsies—at 
 least the generality of them—have every outward charac¬ 
 teristic of Scotchmen. But the secret of being Gipsies, 
 which they carry in their bosoms, makes them appear a little 
 queer to others ; they have a something about them that 
 makes them look somewhat odd to the other Scotchman, who 
 is not “ one of them,” although he does not know the cause 
 of it. 
 
 Upon, or shortly after, their arrival, they seem to have 
 divided the country among themselves ; each tribe exercis¬ 
 ing its rights over its own territory, to the exclusion of 
 others, just as a native lord would have done against other 
 natives ; with a system of passes, regulated by councils of 
 local or provincial chieftains, and a king over all. The 
 Scottish Gipsies, from the very first, seem to have been 
 thoroughly versed in their vocation, from having had about 
 a hundred years’ experience, in some other part of Europe, 
 before they settled in Scotland ; although stragglers of their 
 race evidently had made their appearance in the country 
 many years before. What might have been the number of 
 Gipsies then in Scotland, it is impossible to conjecture ; it 
 must have been considerable, if we judge from what is said 
 in Wraxall’s History of France, vol. 2, page 32, when, in 
 reference to the Act of Queen Elizabeth, in 1563, he states, 
 that, in her reign, the Gipsies throughout England were sup¬ 
 posed to exceed ten thousand. The employments of the 
 original Gipsies, within their respective districts, seem to 
 have been what is described under the head of Tweed-dale 
 and Clydesdale Gipsies; that is, tinkering, making spoons 
 and other wares, petty trading, telling fortunes, living as 
 much as possible at free-quarters, dealing in horses, and 
 visiting fairs. It is extremely likely that those who trav¬ 
 elled Tweed-dale, for example, always averaged about the 
 same number, down to the time of the American Revolution, 
 (except in times of civil commotion, when they would have 
 the country pretty much to themselves,) and were confined 
 to such of the families of the respective tribes, or the mem¬ 
 bers of these families, in whom the right was hereditary. 
 The consequence seems to have been, that perhaps the 
 younger members of the family had to betake themselves to 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 401 
 
 towns and villages, and engage in whatever they could pos¬ 
 sibly turn their hands to. Some would, of course, take to 
 the highway, and kindred fields of industry. Admitting 
 that the circumstances attending the Gipsies in Scotland, at 
 that time, and subsequently, were the same, as regards the 
 manner of making a living, which attend those in England, 
 at the present day, (with this difference, that they could 
 more easily roam at large then than now,) and we can have 
 no difficulty in coming to a conclusion how the surplus of 
 the tented Gipsy population was disposed of. Among the 
 English Gipsies of to-day, taking year with year, and tent 
 with tent, there is, yearly, a continual moving out of the tent; 
 a kind of Gipsy crop is annually gathered from tented Gip- 
 sydom ; and some of these gradually find themselves drawn 
 into almost every kind of mechanical or manual labour, even 
 to working in coal-mines and iron-works ; others become 
 peddlers, itinerant auctioneers, and tramps of almost every 
 imaginable kind ; not to speak of those who visit fairs, in 
 various capacities, or engage in various settled traffic. 
 
 Put a Gipsy to any occupation you like, and he shows a 
 capability and handiness that is astonishing, if he can only 
 muster up steadiness in his new vocation. But it is difficult 
 to break him off the tent; he will return, and lounge, for 
 weeks together, about that of his father, or some other rela¬ 
 tive. But get him fairly out of the tent, married, and, in a 
 degree, settled to some occupation, in a town where there 
 are not too many of his own race in close proximity to him, 
 but where he gets mixed up, in his daily avocation, with tho 
 common natives, and he sooner or later falls into the ranks. 
 Still, his intimate associations are always with Gipsies ; for 
 his ardent attachment to'his people, and a corresponding 
 resentment of the prejudice that exists against it, keep him 
 aloof from any intimate intercourse with the ordinary in¬ 
 habitants ; his associations with them hardly ever extending 
 beyond the commons or the public-house. If he experiences 
 an attack from his old habits, he will take to the tramp, from 
 town to town, working at his mechanical occupation ; leav¬ 
 ing his wife and children at home. But it is not long before 
 he returns. Ilis children, having been born and reared in a 
 town, become habituated to a settled life, like other people. 
 
 There is a vast amount of ambition about every Gipsy, 
 which is displayed, among the humble classes, in all kinds 
 
402 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of athletic exercises.* The same peculiarity is discernible 
 among the educated Scottish Gipsies. Carrying about with 
 them the secret of being Gipsies, which they assume would 
 be a terrible imputation cast upon them by the ordinary na¬ 
 tives, if they knew of it, they, as it were, fly up, like game¬ 
 cocks, and show a disposition to surpass the others in one 
 way or other ; particularly as they consider themselves bet¬ 
 ter than the common inhabitants. They must always be 
 “ cock of the company,” master of ceremonies, or stand at 
 the top of the tree, if possible. The reader may ask, how 
 do they consider themselves better than the ordinary natives ? 
 And I answer, that, from having been so long in Scotland, 
 they are Scotchmen, (as indeed they are, for the most part, in 
 point of blood,) and consider themselves as good as the 
 others—nay, smarter than others in the same sphere, which, 
 generally speaking, they are ; and, in addition to that, being 
 Gipsies, a great deal better. They pique themselves on 
 their descent, and on being in possession of secrets which 
 are peculiarly and exclusively theirs, and which they im¬ 
 agine no other knows, or will ever know. They feel that 
 they are part and parcel of those mysterious beings who are 
 an enigma to others, no less than to themselves. Besides 
 this vanity, which is peculiar to the Gipsy everywhere, the 
 Scottish Gipsies have chimed in with all the native Scotch 
 ideas of clanism, kith, kin, and consequence, as regards 
 family, descent, and so forth ; and applied them so pecu¬ 
 liarly to themselves, as to render their opinion of their body 
 as something of no small importance. Some of them, 
 whose descent leads them more directly back to the tented 
 stock, speak of their families having possessed this district 
 or the other district of the country, as much, almost, as we 
 would expect to hear from some native Scottish chieftain. 
 
 As regards the various phases of history through which 
 many of the Scottish Gipsies have passed, we can only form 
 an estimate from what has been observed in recent times. 
 The further back, however, we go, the greater were their 
 facilities to rise to a position in society ; for this reason, 
 
 * “ I was one of these verminous ones, one of these great sin-breeders; 
 I infected all the youth of the town where I was born with all manner of 
 youthful vanities. The neighbours counted me so ; my practice proved me 
 so: wherefore Christ Jesus took me first, and taking me first, the contagion 
 was much allayed all the town over.”— Banyan. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 403 
 
 that a, very little education, joined to good natural talents, 
 were all that was necessary, in a mixed Gipsy, to raise 
 himself in the world, at the time to which I allude. He 
 could leave the district in which, when a youth, he had 
 travelled, with his parents ; settle in a town where he 
 was not personally known ; commence some traffic, and, 
 by his industry, gradually raise himself up, and acquire 
 wealth. He would not lack a proper degree of innate man¬ 
 ners, or personal dignity, to deport himself with propriety 
 in any ordinary company into which he might enter. Even 
 at the present day, in Scotland, a poor Gipsy will commence 
 life with a wheelbarrow, then get a donkey-cart, and, in a 
 few years, have a very respectable crockery-shop. I am in¬ 
 timate with an English mixed Gipsy family, the father of 
 which commenced life as a basket-maker, was afterwards a 
 constable, and now occasionally travels with the tent. His 
 son is an M. D., for I have seen his diploma; and is a smart, 
 intelligent fellow, and quite an adept at chemistry. To 
 illustrate the change that has taken place among some of the 
 Scottish Gipsies, within the last fifty years, I may mention 
 that the grand-children of a prominent Gipsy, mentioned in 
 chapter V., follow, at the present day, the medical, the legal, 
 and the mercantile professions. Such occurrences have been 
 frequent in Scotland. There are the cases mentioned by our 
 author ; such as one of the Faas rising to such eminence in 
 the mercantile world, at Dunbar ; and another who rose to 
 the rank of lieutenant in the East India Company’s service ; 
 and the Baillie family, which furnished a captain and a 
 quarter-master to the army, and a country surgeon. These 
 are but instances of many others, if they were but known. 
 Some may object, that these were not full-blood Gipsies. 
 That, I readily admit. But the objection is more nominal 
 than real. If a white were to proceed to the interior of 
 the American continent, and cast his lot with a tribe of 
 Indians, his children would, of course, be expected to be 
 superior, in some respects, to the children of the native 
 blood exclusively, owing to what the father might be sup¬ 
 posed to teach them. But it is different in the case of a 
 white marrying a Scottish Gipsy woman, born and reared in 
 the same community with himself; for the white, in general 
 cases, brings only his blood, which enables the children, if 
 they take after himself, in appearance, to enter such places 
 
404 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 as the black Gipsies would not enter, or might not be 
 allowed to enter. The white father, in such a case, might 
 not even be so intelligent as the Gipsy mother. Be that as 
 it may, the individuals to whom I have alluded were nothing 
 but Gipsies ; possibly they did not know when, or through 
 whom, the white blood was introduced among them ; they 
 knew, at least, that they were Gipsies, and that the links 
 which connected them with the past were substantially 
 Gipsy links. Besides the Scottish Gipsies rising to respect¬ 
 able positions in life, by their own exertions, I can well be¬ 
 lieve that Gipsydom lias been well brought up through the 
 female line ; especially at a time when females, and particu¬ 
 larly country females, were rude and all but uneducated. 
 Who more capable of doing that than the lady Baillies, of 
 Tweed-dale, and the lady Wilsons, of Stirlingshire? Such 
 Gipsy girls could “ turn natives round their little fingers,” 
 and act, in a way, the lady at once ; “ turn over a new leaf,” 
 and “ pin it down ;” and conduct themselves with great 
 propriety. 
 
 Upon a superior Scottisli Gipsy settling in a town, and 
 especially a small town, and wishing to appear respectable, 
 he would naturally take a pew in the church, and attend 
 public worship, were it only, as our author asserts, to hide 
 the fact of his being a Gipsy. Because, among the Scotch, 
 there is that prying inquisitiveness into their neighbours’ 
 affairs, that compels a person to be very circumspect, in all 
 his actions, movements, and expressions, if he wishes to be 
 thought anything of, at all. The habit of attending church 
 would then become as regular, in the Gipsy’s family, as in 
 the families of the ordinary natives, and, in a great measure, 
 proceed from as legitimate a motive. The family would be 
 very polite, indeed, extra polite, to their neighbours. After 
 they had lulled to sleep every suspicion of what they were, 
 or, by their really good conduct, had, according to the 
 popular idqa, “ ceased to be Gipsies,” they would naturally 
 encourage a formal acquaintance with respectable (and 
 nothing but respectable,) people in the place. The Gipsy 
 himself, a really good fellow at heart, honourable in his 
 dealings, but fond of a bargain, when he could drive a bar¬ 
 gain, and, moreover, a jovial fellow, would naturally make 
 plenty of business and out-door friends, at least. Rising in 
 circumstances and th>e public esteem, he makes up his mind 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 405 
 
 that his children ought to be something better than himself, 
 at all events : in short, that they ought not to be behind 
 those of his respectable neighbours. • Some of them he, 
 therefore, educates for a liberal profession. The Gipsy 
 himself becomes more and more ambitious : besides attend¬ 
 ing church, he must become an elder of the church ; or it 
 may be that the grace of God takes hold of him, and brings 
 him into the fold. He and his wife conduct themselves 
 with much propriety ; but some of the boys are rather w T ild ; 
 the girls, however, behave well. Altogether, the whole 
 family is very much thought of. Such is a Scottish Gipsy 
 family, (the parents of which are now dead,) that I have in 
 my mind at the present moment. No suspicion existed in 
 regard to the father, but there was a breath of suspicion in 
 regard to the mother. But what difference did that make? 
 What knowledge had the public of the nature of Gipsydom ? 
 
 Consider, then, that the process which I have attempted 
 to describe has been going on, more or less, for at least the 
 last three hundred and fifty years ; and I may well ask, 
 where might we not expect to meet with Gipsies, in Scotland, 
 at the present day? And I reply, that we will meet wdtli 
 them in every sphere of Scottish life, not excepting, perhaps, 
 the very highest. There are Gipsies among the very best 
 Edinburgh families. I am well acquainted with Scotchmen, 
 youths and men of middle age, of education and charac¬ 
 ter, and who follow very respectable occupations, that are 
 Gipsies, and who admit that they are Gipsies. But, apart 
 from my own knowledge, I ask, is it not a fact, that, a few 
 years ago, a pillar of the Scottish church, at Edinburgh, 
 upon the occasion of founding a society for the reformation 
 of the poor class of Scottish Gipsies, and frequently there¬ 
 after, said that he himself was a Gipsy ? I ask, again, is not 
 that a fact ? It is a fact. And such a man ! Such prayers 1 
 Such deep-toned, sonorous piety ! Such candour ! Such 
 judgment! Such amiability of manners! How much re¬ 
 spected 1 How worthy of respect! The good, the godly, 
 the saintly doctor! When will we meet his like again ?* 
 
 * “ Grand was the repose of his lofty brow, dark eye, and aspect of soft 
 and melancholy meaning. It was a face from which every evil and earthly 
 passion seemed purged. A deep gravity lay upon his countenance, which 
 had the solemnity, without the sternness, of one of our old reformers. You 
 could almost fancy a halo completing its apostolic character.” 
 
406 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 This leads me to speak of a high-class Scottish Gipsy 
 family—the Falls, -who settled at Dunbar, as merchants, al¬ 
 luded to under the*chapter on Border Gipsies.* Who can 
 doubt that they were Gipsies to the last ? How could they 
 avoid being Gipsies ? The Gipsies were their people ; their 
 blood was Gipsy blood. How could they get rid of their 
 blood and descent ? Could they throw either off, as they 
 would an old coat ? Could medical science rid them of 
 either ? Assuredly not. They admitted their descent, over 
 their cups. But being descendants of Gipsies, and yet not 
 Gipsies, is a contradiction in terms. The principles which 
 regulate the descent of other Gipsy families applied equally 
 to theirs. The fact that Mrs. Fall had the history of her 
 people, in the act of leaving Yetholm, represented in tapes¬ 
 try, may be taken as but a straw that indicated how the 
 wind blew. Was not old Will Faa, the Gipsy king, down 
 to his death, at the end of the first American war, admitted 
 to their hospitality as a relative ? And do not the Scottish 
 
 * Burns alludes to this family, thus : “ Passed through the most glorious 
 corn country I ever saw, till I reached Dunbar, a neat little town. Dine 
 ■with Provost Fall, an eminent merchant, and most respectable character, 
 but indescribable, as he exhibits no marked traits. Mrs. Fall, a genius in 
 painting; fully more clever in the fine arts and sciences than my friend 
 Lady Wauchope, without her consummate assurance of her own abilities.”— 
 Life of Burns, by Robert Chambers. 
 
 The crest of the Falls, of Dunbar, was three boars’ heads, couped ; that of 
 Baillie, of Lamington, is one boar’s head, couped. In the Statistical Account 
 of Scotland, (1835,) appears the following notice of this family : “ A family, 
 of the name of Fall, established themselves at Dunbar, and became, during 
 the last century, the most extensive merchants in Scotland. They were 
 long the chief magistrates of the burgh, and preferred the public good to 
 their own profit. They have left no one to bear their name, not even a 
 stone to tell where they lie ; but they will long be remembered for tbeir en¬ 
 terprise and public spirit.” There is apparently a reason for “ not even a 
 stone being left to tell where they lie;” for in Hoyland’s “ Survey of the 
 Gipsies” appeared the account of Baillie Smith, in which it is said : “ The 
 descendants of Faa now take the name of Fall, from the Messrs. Fall, of 
 Dunbar, who, they pride themselves in saying, are of the same stock and 
 lineage which seems to have frightened tlieir connexions at being known 
 to be Gipsies. 
 
 Let all that has been said of the Falls be considered as their monument 
 and epitaph ; so that their memories may be preserved as long as this 
 work exists. 
 
 it would be interesting to know who the Captain Fall was, who visited 
 Dunbar, with an American ship-of-war, during the time of Paul Jones. He 
 might have been a descendant of a Gipsy, sent to the plantations, in the 
 olden times. There are, as I have said before, a great many scions of Gipsy 
 Faas, under one name or other, scattered over the world. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 407 
 
 Gipsies, at the present day, claim them to have been Gip¬ 
 sies ? Why might not the Falls glory in being Egyptians 
 among themselves, but not to others? Were not their an¬ 
 cestors kings? “Wee kings,” no doubt, but still kings; 
 one of them being the “ loved John Faw,” of James V., whom 
 all the tribe consider as a great man, (which, doubtless, he 
 was, in that barbarous age,) and the principal of the thirteen 
 patriarchs of Scottish Gipsydom. Was not a Gipsy king, 
 (themselves being Gipsies,) an ancestor of far more respect, 
 in their eyes, than the founder of a native family, in their 
 neighbourhood ; who, in the reign of Charles II., was a com¬ 
 mon country snip, and most likely commenced life with 
 “ whipping the cat” around the country, for fivepence a 
 day, and victuals and clippings ?* 
 
 The truth of the matter is, these Falls must have con¬ 
 sidered themselves a world better than other people, merely 
 on account of their being Gipsies, as all Gipsies do, arising, 
 in part, from that antagonistic spirit of opposition which the 
 prejudice of their fellow-creatures is so much calculated to 
 stir up in their minds. Saying, over their cups, that they 
 were descended from the Faws, the historical Gipsy name 
 in Scotland, did not divulge very much to the public. For 
 what idea had the public of the working of Gipsydom — 
 what idea of'the Gipsy language? Did the public know of 
 the existence of a Gipsy language in Scotland ? In all prob¬ 
 ability, it generally did not. If the public heard a Tinkler 
 use a strange word, all that it would think of it would be, 
 that it was cant, confined to vagabonds strolling the coun¬ 
 try. Would it ever dream that what the vagabonds used 
 was carefully preserved and spoken among the great 
 Falls, of Dunbar, within the sanctity of their own dwellings, 
 as it assuredly must have been ? Would the public believe 
 in such a tiling, if even its own ears were made the witnesses 
 to it? Was the love which the Falls had for their Yeth- 
 olm connexion confined to a mere group of their ancestors 
 worked in tapestry ? Where was the Gipsy language, dur¬ 
 ing all this time ? Assuredly it was well preserved in their 
 family. If it showed the least symptoms of falling off, how 
 easily could the mothers bring into the family, as servants, 
 
 * Whipping the cot". Tailoring from house to house. The eat is whipped 
 by females, as well as males, in America, in some parts of which the ex¬ 
 pression is current. 
 
408 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 other Gipsies, who would teach it to the children ! For, be¬ 
 sides the dazzling hold which the Gipsy language takes of 
 the mind of a Gipsy, as the language of those black, mysteri¬ 
 ous heroes from whom he is descended, the keeping of it 
 up forms the foundation of that self-respect which a Gipsy 
 has for himself, amidst the prejudice of the world ; from 
 which, at the bottom of his heart, whatever his position in 
 life, or character, or associations, may be, he considers him¬ 
 self separated. I am decidedly of opinion that all the do¬ 
 mestics about this Fall family were Gipsies of one caste, 
 colour, condition, or what not. 
 
 Then, we are told that Miss Fall, who married Sir John 
 Anstruther, of Elie, baronet, was looked down upon by her 
 husband’s friends, and received no other name than Jenny 
 Faa ; and that she was indirectly twitted with being a 
 Gipsy, by the rabble, while attending an election in which 
 Sir John was a candidate. What real satisfaction could Jenny, 
 or any other Gipsy, have for ordinary natives of the coun¬ 
 try, when she was conscious of being what she was, and how 
 she was spoken of, by her husband’s relatives and the public 
 generally ? She would take comfort in telling her “ wonder¬ 
 ful story” to her children, (for I presume she would have 
 children,) who would sympathize with her ; and in convers¬ 
 ing with such of her own race as were near her, were it 
 only-her trusty domestics. It is the Gipsy woman who feels 
 the prejudice that exists towards her race the most acutely; 
 for she has the rearing of the children, and broods more 
 over the history of her people. As the needle turns to the 
 pole, so does the mind of the Gipsy woman to Gipsydom. 
 
 We are likewise told that this eminent Gipsy family were 
 connected, by marriage, with the Footies, of Balgonie ; the 
 Coutts, afterwards bankers ; Collector Whyte, of Kirkaldy, 
 and Collector Melville, of Dunbar. We may assume, as a 
 mathematical certainty, that Gipsydom, in a refined form, is 
 in existence in the descendants of these families, particu¬ 
 larly in such of them as were connected with this Gipsy 
 family by the female side.* 
 
 * Of the Gipsies at Moscow, the following is the substance of what Mr. 
 Borrow says : “ Those who have been accustomed to consider the Gipsy as 
 
 & wandering outcast.will be surprised to learn that, 
 
 amongst the Gipsies of Moscow, there are not a few who inhabit stately 
 houses, go abroad in elegant equipages, and are behind the higher order of 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 400 
 
 A person who lias never considered this subject, or any 
 other cognate to it, may imagine that a Gipsy reproaches 
 himself with his own blood. Pshaw! Where will you 
 find a man, or a tribe of men, under the heavens, that will 
 do that ? It is not in human nature to do it. All men 
 venerate their ancestors, whoever they have been. A Gipsy 
 is, to an extraordinary degree, proud of his blood. “ I have 
 very little of the blood, myself,” said one of them, “but just 
 come and sec my wife!” Put people may say that the an¬ 
 cestors of the Falls were thieves. And were not all the 
 Borderers, in their way, the worst kind of thieves? They 
 might not have stolen from their nearest relatives ; but, with 
 that exception, did they not steal from each other ? Now, 
 Gipsies never, or hardly ever, steal from each other. Were 
 not all the Elliots and Armstrongs thieves of the first 
 water? Were not the Scotts and the Kers thieves, long 
 after the Gipsies entered Scotland ? When the servants of 
 Scott of Harden drove out his last cow, and said, “ There goes 
 Harden’s cow,” did not the old cow-stealer say, “ It will soon 
 be Harden’s kye” —meaning, that he would set out on a cow¬ 
 stealing expedition? In fact, he lived upon spoil. AYas it 
 not his lady’s custom, on the last bullock being killed, to 
 place on the table a dish, which, on being uncovered, was 
 found to contain a pair of clean spurs—a hint, to her hus¬ 
 band and his followers, that they must shift for their next 
 meal ? The descendants of these Scotts, and the Scottish 
 public generally, look, with the utmost complacency and 
 pride, upon the history of such families ; yet would be very 
 apt to make a great ado, if the ancestress of a Gipsy should, 
 in such a predicament, have hung out a cock’s tail at the 
 mouth of her tent, as a hint to her “ laddies” to look after 
 
 Russians neither in appearance nor mental acquirements.The 
 
 sums obtained by the Gipsy females,-by the exercise of their art (singing 
 in the choirs of Moscow,) enable them to support their relatives in afflu¬ 
 ence and luxury. Some are married to Russians ; and no one who has 
 visited Russia can but be aware that a lovely and accomplished countess, 
 of the noble and numerous family of Tolstoy is, by birth, a Zigana, and was 
 originally one of the principal attractions of a Romany choir at Moscow.” 
 
 This short notice appears unsatisfactory, considering, as Mr. Borrow 
 says, that one of his principal motives for visiting Moscow was to hold 
 communication with the Gipsies. It might have occurred to him to en¬ 
 quire what relation the children of such marriages would bear to Gipsydom 
 generally ; that is, would they be initiated in the mysteries, and taught the 
 language, and hold themselves to be Gipsies? It is evident, however, that 
 the Gipsy-drilling process is going on among the Russian nobility. 
 
 18 
 
410 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GirSIES. 
 
 poultry. Common sense tells us, that, for one excuse to be 
 offered for such conduct, on the part of the landed-gentry 
 of the country, a hundred can be found for the ancestor of a 
 Gipsy—an unfortunate wanderer on the face of the earth, 
 who was hunted about, like a wolf of the forest.* 
 
 And what shall we say of our Highland thieves ? High¬ 
 landers may be more touchy on this point, for their ances¬ 
 tors were the last of the British race to give up that kind of 
 life. Talk of the laws passed against the Gipsies ! Vari¬ 
 ous of our Scottish monarchs issued decrees against “ the 
 wicked thieves and limmers of the clans and surnames, in¬ 
 habiting the Highlands and Isles,” accusing “ the chieftains 
 principal of the branches worthy to be esteemed the very 
 authors, fosterers, and maintainers, of the wicked deeds of 
 the vagabonds of their clans and surnames.” Indeed, the 
 doweries of the chiefs’ daughters were made up by a share 
 of the booty collected on their expeditions. The Highlands 
 were, at one time, little better than a nest of thieves ; 
 thieving from each other, and more particularly from their 
 southern neighbours. It is notorious that robbery, in the 
 Highlands, was “ held to be a calling not merely innocent, 
 but honourable and that a high-born Highland warrior 
 was “ much more becomingly employed, in plundering the 
 lands of others, than in tilling his own.” At stated times of 
 the year, such as at Candlemas, regular bands of Highland¬ 
 ers, the sons of gentlemen and what not, proceeded south 
 in quest of booty, as part of their winter’s provisions. The 
 Highlanders might even have been compared, at one time, to 
 as many tribes of Afghans. Mr. Skene, the historian of the 
 Highlands, and himself a Highlander, says that the High¬ 
 landers “ believed that they had a right to plunder the peo¬ 
 ple of the low country, whenever it was in their power P We 
 
 * On liis return with his gallant prey, he passed a very large hay-stack. 
 It occurred to the provident laird that this would be extremely convenient 
 to fodder his new stock of cattle ; but, as no means of transporting it were 
 obvious, he was fain to take leave of it, with the apostrophe, now become 
 proverbial, “ By my said , had ye but four feet., ye should not stand lung /here.” 
 In short, as Froissart says of a similar class of feudal robbers, “ Nothing 
 came amiss to them that was not too heavy or too hot.” Sir Walter Scott 
 speaks, in the most jocular manner, of an ancestress who had a curious 
 hand at pickling the beef which her husband stole ; and that there was not a 
 stain upon his escutcheon, barring Border theft and high treason.— Lock¬ 
 harts Life of Sir Walter Scott. 
 
 We should never forget that a “ hawk’s a hawk,” whether it is a falcon 
 or a mosquito hawk, which is the smallest of all hawks. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 411 
 
 naturally ask,liow did Hie Highlanders acquire this right of 
 plunder ? Were they ever proscribed ? Were any of them 
 hung, merely for being Highlanders? No. What plea, 
 then, did the Highlanders set up, in justification of this 
 ■wholesale robbery ?—“ They believed, from tradition, that 
 the Lowlands, in old times, were the possessions of their an¬ 
 cestors.” (Skene.) But that was no excuse for their plun¬ 
 dering each other.* 
 
 The Gipsy’s ordinary pilfering was confined to such petty 
 things as “hens and peats at pleasure,” “ cutting a bit lamb’s 
 throat,” and “ a mouthfu’ o’ grass and a pickle corn, for the 
 cuddy”—“ things that a farmer body ne’er could miss.” But 
 your Highlanders did not content themselves with such 
 “needles and pins;” they must have “horned cattle.” If 
 the coast was clear, they would table their drawn dirks, 
 and commence their spulzie, by making their victims furnish 
 them with what was necessary to fill their bellies ; upon the 
 strength of which, they would “ lift” whatever they could 
 carry and drive, or take its equivalent in black-mail. 
 
 What an effort is made by our McGregors, at the present 
 day, to scrape up kin with this or the other bandit Mc¬ 
 Gregor ; and yet how apt the McGregor is to turn up his 
 nose—just as Punch, only, could make him turn it up—if a 
 Gipsy were to step out, and say, that he was a descendant, 
 and could speak the language, of Will Baillie, mentioned 
 under the head of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale Gipsies : a 
 Gipsy, described by my ancestor, (and he could judge,) to 
 have been “ the handsomest, the best dressed, the best look¬ 
 ing, and the best bred, man he ever saw ; and the best 
 
 * Sir Waller Scott m ikes Fitz James, in the “ Lady of the Lake,” say to 
 Roderick Dhu: 
 
 “ But then, thy chieftain’s robber life !— 
 
 Winning mean prey by causeless strife, 
 
 "Wrenching from ruined Lowland swain 
 Ilis herds and harvests reared in vain— 
 
 Methinks a soul like thine should scorn 
 The spoils from such foul foray borne.” 
 
 The Gael beheld him, grim the while, 
 
 And answered with disdainful smile,— 
 
 ‘ Where live the mountain chiefs, who hold 
 That plundering Lowland field and fold 
 Is aught but retribution true ? 
 
 Seek other cause 'gainst Roderick Dhu !’ ” 
 
412 
 
 DISQUISITION' ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 swordsman in Scotland, for, with his weapon in his hand, 
 and his back at a wall, he could set almost everything, sav¬ 
 ing fire-arms, at defiance ; a man who could act the gentle¬ 
 man, the robber, the sorner, and the tinker, whenever it 
 answered his purpose.”* And yet, some of this man’s de¬ 
 scendants will doubtless be found among our medical doc¬ 
 tors, and even the clergy. I recollect our author pointing 
 out a clergyman of the Scottish Church, who, he was pretty 
 sure, was “ one of them.” What name could have stood 
 lower, at one time, than McGregor ? Both by legal and 
 social proscription, it was looked upon as vagabond ; and 
 doubtless the clan brought it, primarily and principally, upon 
 themselves ; but as for the rapine they practised upon their 
 neighbours, and the helpless southerners, they were, at first, 
 no worse, in that respect, than others of their nation. Are 
 the McGregors sure that there are no Gipsies among them ? 
 There are plenty of Gipsies of, at least, the name of Mc¬ 
 Gregor, known to both the Scottish and English Gipsies. 
 What more likely than some of the McGregors, when “ out,” 
 and leading their vagabond lives, getting mixed up with the 
 better kind of mixed Gipsies ? They were both leading a 
 wild life, and it is not unlikely that some of the McGregors, 
 of even no small consequence, might have been led captive 
 by such Gipsy girls as the lady Baillies, of Tweecl-dale. Let 
 a Gipsy once be grafted upon a native family, and she rises 
 with it; leavens the little circle of which she is the centre, 
 and leaves it, and its descendants, for all time coming, 
 Gipsies. 
 
 1 now come to ask, what constitutes a Gipsy, at the present 
 day ? And common sense replies : the simple fact of know¬ 
 ing from -whom he is descended, that is, who he is, in con¬ 
 nection with having the Gipsy words and signs, although 
 these are not absolutely necessary. It requires no argument 
 to show that there is no tribe or nation but finds something 
 that leads it to cling to its origin and descent, and not de¬ 
 spise the blood that runs in its own veins, although it may 
 despise the condition or conduct of some of its members. 
 Where shall we find an exception to this rule? The Gipsy 
 race is no exception to it. Civilize a Gipsy, and you make 
 him a civilized Gipsy ; educate him, and you make him an 
 educated Gipsy; bring him up to any profession you like, 
 
 * See page 202. 
 
413 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 / > 
 
 Chiijstianize him as much as you may, and he still remains a 
 Gipsy ; because he is of the Gipsy race, and all the influ¬ 
 ences of nature and revelation do not affect the questions 
 of blood, tribe, and nationality. Take all the Gipsies that 
 ever came out of the tent, or their descendants, including 
 those brought into the body through the male and female 
 line; and vfchat are they now ? Still Gipsies. They even 
 pass into other world Gipsies. “ But they will forget 
 that they Gipsies,” say, perhaps, some of my readers. 
 Forget that they are Gipsies! Will we hear, some of these 
 days, that Scotch people, themselves, will get up of a morn¬ 
 ing, toss about their night-caps, and forget that, they are 
 Scotch? We may then see the same happen with the Gip¬ 
 sies. What I have said, of the Gipsy always being a Gipsy, 
 is self-evident; but it has a wide difference of meaning 
 from that contained in the quotation given by Mr. Borrow, 
 in which it is said : “ For that which is unclean by nature 
 thou canst entertain no hope ; no washing will turn the 
 Gipsy white.”* But, taking the world all over, there will 
 doubtless be Gipsies, in larger or smaller numbers, who will 
 always be found following the original ways of their race. 
 
 What were the Hungarians, at one time, and what are 
 they now ? Pritchard says of them : “ The Hungarians 
 
 * In expatiating on the subject of the Gipsy race always being the Gipsy 
 race, I have had it remarked to me: “ Suppose Gipsies should not mention 
 to their children the fact of their being Gipsies.” In that case, I replied, 
 the children, especially if, for the most part, of white blood, would simply 
 not be Gipsies ; they would, of course, have some of “ the blood,” but they 
 would not be Gipsies if they had no knowledge of the fact. But to sup¬ 
 pose that Gipsies should not learn that they are Gipsies, on account of 
 their parents not telling them of it, is to presume that they had no other 
 relatives. Their being Gipsies is constantly talked of among themselves; 
 so that,-if Gipsy children should not hear their ‘‘wonderful story” from 
 their parents, they would readily enough hear it from their other relatives. 
 This is assuming, however, that the Gipsy mind can act otherwise than the 
 Gipsy mind; which it cannot. 
 
 It sometimes happens, ns the Gipsies separate into classes, like all other 
 races or communities of men, that a great deal of jealousy is stirred up in 
 the minds of the poorer members of the tribe, on account of their being 
 shunned by the wealthier kind. They are then apt to say that the exclu¬ 
 sive members have left the tribe; which, with them, is an undefined and 
 confused idea, at the best, principally on account of their limited powers of 
 reflection, and the subject never being alluded to by the others. This 
 jealousy sometimes leads them to dog these straggling sheep, so that, as far 
 as lies in their power, they will not allow them to leave, as they imagine, 
 the Gipsy fold. [See second note at page 532J 
 
414 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 laid aside the habits of rude and savage hunters, far below 
 the condition of the nomadic hordes, for the manners of 
 civilized life. In the course of a thousand years, they have 
 become a handsome people, of fine stature, regular European 
 features, and have the complexion prevalent in that tract of 
 Europe where they dwell.” Now the Gipsies have been in 
 Scotland at least three hundred and fifty years^ and what 
 with the mixture of native blood, (which, at leflt helped to 
 remove the prejudice against the man’s appeara^W, and, con¬ 
 sequently, gave him a larger and freer scope of action ;) the 
 hard laws of necessity, and the being tossed about by society, 
 like pebbles on the seashore ; the influences of civilization, 
 education, and the grace of God itself; by such means as 
 these, some of the Scottish Gipsies have risen to a respect¬ 
 able, even eminent, position in life. But some people may 
 say: “ These are not Gipsies ; they have little of the blood 
 in them.” That is nothing. Ask themselves what they are, 
 and, if they are at all candid, they will reply that they are 
 Gipsies. “No doubt,” they say, “ we have fair, or red, or 
 black, hair, (as the case may be ;) we know nothing about 
 that; but we know that we are Gipsies ; that is all.” There 
 is as much difference between such a high-class Gipsy and a 
 poor Gipsian, as there is between a Scottish judge and the 
 judge’s fourth cousin, who makes his living by clipping dogs’ 
 ears. The principle of progression, the passing through one 
 phase of history into another, while the race maintains its 
 identity, holds good with the Gipsies, as well as with any 
 other people. 
 
 Take a Gipsy in his original state, and we can find noth¬ 
 ing really vulgar about him. What is popularly understood 
 to be Gipsy life may be considered low life, by people who 
 do not overmuch discriminate in such matters ; but view it 
 after its kind, and it is not really low ; for a Gipsy is natu¬ 
 rally polite and well mannered. He does not consider him¬ 
 self as belonging to the same race as the native, and would 
 rather be judged by a different standard. The life which 
 he leads is not that of the lowest class of the country in 
 which he dwells, but the primitive, original state of a peo¬ 
 ple of great antiquity, proscribed by law and society ; him¬ 
 self an enemy of, and an enemy to, all around him ; with the 
 population so prejudiced against him, that attempts to change 
 his condition, consistently with his feelings as a man, are 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 415 
 
 frequently rendered in vain : so that, on the ground of 
 strict morals, or even administrative justice, the man can be 
 said to be only half responsible. The subject, however, 
 assumes quite a different aspect, when we consider a Gipsy 
 of education and refinement, like the worthy clergyman 
 mentioned, between whose condition and that of his tented 
 ancestor an interval of, perhaps, two or three centuries has 
 elapsed. We should then put him on the footing of any 
 other race having a barbarous origin, and entertain no preju¬ 
 dice against him on account of the race to which he be¬ 
 longs. He is then to be judged as we judge Highland and 
 Border Scots, for the whole three were at one time robbers ; 
 and all the three having welled up to respectable life to¬ 
 gether, they ought to be judged on their merits, individually, 
 as men, and treated accordingly. And the Gipsy ought to 
 be the most leniently dealt with, on the principle that the 
 actions of his ancestors were far more excusable, and even 
 less heinous, than those of the others. And as regards an¬ 
 tiquity of descent, the Gipsy’s infinitely surpasses the others, 
 being probably no less than the shepherd kings, part of 
 whose blood left Egypt, in the train of the Jews. 1 would 
 place such a Gipsy on the footing of the Hungarian race ; 
 with this difference, that the Hungarians entered Europe in 
 the ninth century, and became a people, occupying a terri¬ 
 tory ; while the Gipsies appeared in the fifteenth century, 
 and are now to be found, civilized and uncivilized, in almost 
 every corner of the known world. 
 
 The admission of the good man alluded to casts a flood 
 of light upon the history of the Scottish Gipsy race, 
 shrouded as it is from the eye of the general population ; 
 but the information given by him was apt to fall flat upon 
 the ear of the ordinary native, unless it was accompanied by 
 some such exposition of the subject as is given in this work. 
 Still, we can gather from it, where Gipsies are to be found, 
 what a Scottish Gipsy is, and what the race is capable of; 
 and what might be expected of it, if the prejudice of their 
 fellow-creatures was withdrawn from the race, as distin¬ 
 guished from the various classes into which it may be divided, 
 or, I should rather say, the personal conduct of each Gipsy 
 individually. View the subject any way I may, I cannot 
 resist coming to the conclusion that, under more favour¬ 
 able circumstances, it is difficult to say what the Gipsies 
 
416 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 might not, attain to. Bnt that would depend greatly upon 
 the country in which they are to be found. Scotland has 
 been peculiarly favourable for them, in some respects. 
 
 As regards the Scottish Gipsy population, at the present 
 day, I can only adopt the language of the immortal Dominie 
 Sampson, and say, that it must be “ prodigious.” If we con¬ 
 sider the number that appear to have settled in Scotland, 
 the length of time they have been in Scotland, the great 
 amount of white blood that has, by one means or other, been 
 brought into, and mixed up with, the body, and its great 
 natural encrease ; the feelings that attach them to their de¬ 
 scent-—feelings that originate, more properly, within them¬ 
 selves, and feelings that press upon them from without—the 
 various occupations and positions in life in which they are 
 to be found ; we cannot set any limit to their number. 
 Gipsies are just like other people ; they have their own sets 
 or circles of associates, out of which, as a thing that is 
 almost invariable, they will hide, if not deny, themselves to 
 others of their race, for reasons which have already been 
 given. So almost invariable is this, at the present day, 
 amongst Gipsies that are not tented Gipsies, that, should an 
 English Gipsy come across a settlement of them in America 
 —German Gipsies, for example—and cast his sign, and ad¬ 
 dress them in their own speech, they will pretend not to 
 know what he means, although he sees the Gipsy in their 
 faces and about their dwellings. But should lie meet with 
 them away from their homes, and where they are not known, 
 they would answer, and be cheek-by-jowl with him, in a mo¬ 
 ment. I have found, by personal experience, that the same 
 holds with the French and other continental Gipsies in 
 America.* It is particularly so with the Scottish Gipsies. 
 
 * I very abruptly addressed a French Gipsy, in the streets of New York, 
 thus: “Yous etes un Romany duel." “ Oui, monsieur,” was the reply 
 which he, as abruptly, gave me. But, ever afterwards, he got cross, when 
 I alluded to the subject. On one occasion, 1 gave him the sign, which lie 
 repeated, while he asked, with much tartness of manner, “ What is that— 
 what does it mean ?” This was a roguish Gipsy, and was afterwards lodged 
 in jail. 
 
 On one occasion, I met with a German cutler, in a place of business, in 
 New York. I felt sure he was a Gipsy, although the world would not have 
 taken him for one. Catching his eye, I commenced to look around the room, 
 from those present to himself, as if there was to be something confidential 
 between us, and then whispered to him, “ Cullo chabo,” (Gipsy, or black fel¬ 
 low ;) and the effect was instantaneous. I afterwards visited his family, on 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 417 
 
 For these reasons, it seems to be beyond question that the 
 number at which our author estimates them in Scotland, viz., 
 5,000, must be vastly below the real number. If I were to 
 say 100,000, I do not think I would over-estimate them. 
 The opinion of the Gipsies whom our author questioned 
 was a guess, so far as it referred to the class to which they 
 belonged, or with which they were acquainted ; so that, if 
 we take all kinds of Gipsies into account, it would be a very 
 moderate estimate to set the Scottish Gipsies down at 
 100,000 ; and those in all the British Isles at 300,000. The 
 number might be double what I have stated. The intelli¬ 
 gent English Gipsies say that, in England, they are not only 
 “ dreadfully mixed,” but extremely numerous. There is not 
 a race of men on the face of the earth more, prolific than 
 tented Gipsies ; in a word, tented Gipsydom, if I may hazard 
 such an expression, is, comparatively speaking, like a rabbit 
 warren. The rough and uncouth kind of settled Gipsies are 
 likewise very prolific ; but the higher classes, as a rule, are 
 by no means so much so. To set down any specific number 
 of Gipsies to be found in the British Isles, would be a thing 
 too arbitrary to serve any purpose ; I think sufficient data 
 have been given to enable the intelligent reader to form an 
 opinion for himself.* 
 
 a Sabbath evening, and took tea with them. They were from Wurtemberg, 
 and appeared very decent people. The mother, a tall, swarthy, fine look¬ 
 ing intelligent young woman, said grace, which was repeated by the chil¬ 
 dren. whom 1 found learning their Sabbath school lessons. The family 
 regularly’attend church. A fair-haired German called, and went to church 
 with the Gipsy himself. What with the appearance of everything about 
 the house, and the fine, clean, and neatly-dressed family of children, I felt 
 very much pleased with my visit. 
 
 French and German Gipsies are very shy, owing to the severity of the 
 laws against their race. 
 
 * Fletcher, of Saltoun, speaks of there being constantly a hundred thou¬ 
 sand people in Scotland, leading the life (as Sir Walter Scott describes it,) 
 of “ Gipsies, Jockies, or Cairds.” Between the time alluded to and the date 
 of John Faw’s league with James V., a period of 140 years had elapsed ; 
 and 174 years from the date of arrival of the race in the country: so that, 
 from the natural encrease of the body, and the large amount of white blood 
 introduced into it, the greater part, if not the whole, of the people men¬ 
 tioned, were doubtless Gipsies. But these Gipsies, according to Sir Wal¬ 
 ter’s opinion, “ died out by a change of habits.” How strange it is that 
 the very first class Scottish minds should have so little understood the 
 philosophy of origin, blood, and descent, and especially ns they applied to 
 the Gipsies! For Sir Walter says: “ The progress of time, and encrease 
 both of the means of life and the power of the laws, gradually reduced 
 this dreadful evil within more narrow bounds.Their numbers are 
 
418 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 That many Gipsies were banished to America, in colonial 
 times, from England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, some¬ 
 times for merely being “by habit and repute Gipsies,” is 
 beyond dispute. “Your Welsh and Irish,” said an English 
 Gipsy, in the United States, “ were so mean, when they 
 banished a Gipsy to the Plantations, as to make him find 
 his own passage ; but the English always paid the Gipsy’s 
 passage for him.” The Scotch seem also to have made the 
 Gipsy find his own passage, and failing that, to have hanged 
 him. It greatly interests the English Gipsies arriving in 
 America, to know about the native American Gipsies. I 
 have been frequently in the company of an English Gipsy, 
 in America, whose great-grandfather was so banished ; but 
 he did not relish the subject being spoken of. Gipsies may 
 be said to have been in America almost from the time of its 
 settlement. We have already seen how many of them found 
 their way there, during the Revolution, by being impressed 
 as soldiers, and taken as volunteers, for the benefit of the 
 
 so greatly diminished, that, instead of one hundred thousand, as calculated 
 by Fletcher, it would now, perhaps, be impossible to collect above five hun¬ 
 dred throughout all Scotland (!)” It is perfectly evident that Sir Walter 
 Scott, in common with many others, never realized the idea, in all its bear¬ 
 ings, of what a Gipsy was; or he never could have imagined that those, 
 only, were of the Gipsy race, who followed the tent. 
 
 It is very doubtful if Anthonius Gawino, and his tribe, departed with 
 their letter of introduction from James IV. to his uncle, the king of Den¬ 
 mark, in 1506. Having secured the favour of the king of Scots, by this 
 recommendatory notice, he was more apt, by delaying his departure, to se¬ 
 cure his position in the country. The circumstances attending the league 
 with his successor, John Faw, show that the tribe had been long in the 
 country; doubtless from as far back as 1506. From 1506 till 1579, with 
 the exception of about one year, during the reign of James V., the tribe, as 
 I have already said, (page 109,) must have encreased prodigiously. The 
 persecutions against the body extended over the reign of James VI., and 
 part of that of Charles I. ; for, according to Baron Hume, such was the 
 terror which the executions inspired in the tribe, that, “ for the space of more 
 than 50 years from that time, (1624,) there is no trial of an Egyptian;” 
 although our author shows that an execution of a band of them took place 
 in 1636. But “towards the end of that century,” continues Baron Hume, 
 “ the nuisance seems to have again become troublesome ;” in other words, 
 that from the reign of Charles I. to the accession of William and Mary, 
 the time to which Fletcher’s remark applies, the attention of all being taken 
 up with the troubles of the times, the Gipsies had things pretty much their 
 own way; but when peace was restored, they would be called to strict 
 account. 
 
 For all these reasons, it may be said that the 100,000 people spoken of 
 were doubtless Gipsies of various mixtures of blood; so that, at the pres¬ 
 ent day, there ougld to be a very large number of the tribe in Scotland. I 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 419 
 
 bounty and passage ; and how they deserted on landing. 
 Tented Gipsies have been seen about Baltimore for the last 
 seventy years. In New England, a colony is known which 
 lias existed for about a hundred years, and has always been 
 looked upon with a singular feeling of distrust and mystery 
 by the inhabitants, who are the descendants of the early 
 emigrants, and who did not suspect their origin till lately. 
 These Gipsies have never associated, in the common sense 
 of the word, with the other settlers, and, judging from their 
 exterior, seem poor and miserable, whatever their circum¬ 
 stances may be. They follow pretty much the employment 
 and modes of life of the same class in Europe ; the most 
 striking feature being, that the bulk of them leave the home¬ 
 stead for a length of time, scatter in different directions, 
 and reunite, periodically, at their quarters, which are left 
 in charge of some of the feeble members of the band. 
 
 It is not likely that many of the colonial Gipsies would 
 take to the tent ; for, arriving, for the most part, as individ¬ 
 uals, separated from family relations, they were more apt 
 to follow settled, semi-settled, or general itinerant occupa¬ 
 tions ; and the more so, as the face of the country, and the 
 thin and scattered settlements, would hardly admit of it. 
 The)- were apt to squat on wild or unoccupied lands, in the 
 neighbourhood of towns and settlements, like their brethren 
 in Europe, when they took up their quarters on the borders 
 of well-settled districts, with a wild country to fall back on, 
 in times of danger or prosecution by the lawful authori¬ 
 ties. Besides disposing of themselves, to some little extent, 
 in this way, many of the Gipsies, banished, or going to the 
 colonies of their own accord, would betake themselves to the 
 various occupations common to the ordinary emigrants ; the 
 more especially as, when they arrived, they would find a field 
 
 admit that many of the Scottish Gipsies have been hanged, and many ban¬ 
 ished to the Plantations; but these would be in a small ratio to their num¬ 
 ber, and a still smaller to the natural encrease of the body. Suppose that 
 such and such Gipsies were either hanged or banished ; so young did they 
 all marry, that, when they were hanged or banished, they might leave be¬ 
 hind them families ranging from five to ten children. We may say, of the 
 Scottish Gipsies generally, in days that are past, what a writer in Black¬ 
 wood’s Magazine, already alluded to, said of Billy Marshall: “Their de¬ 
 scendants were prodigiously numerous; I dare say, numberless.” Many 
 of the Scottish Gipsies have migrated to England, as well as elsewhere. 
 In Liverpool, there are many of them, following various mechanical occu¬ 
 pations. 
 
420 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 in which they were not known to be Gipsies ; which would 
 give them greater scope and confidence, and enable them to 
 go anywhere, or enter upon any employment, where, not 
 being known to be Gipsies, they would meet with no preju¬ 
 dice to contend with. Indeed, a new country, in which the 
 people had, more or less, to be, in a sense, tinkers, that is, 
 jaeks-of-all-trades, and masters of none, was just the sphere 
 of a handy Gipsy, who could “ do a’ most of things.” They 
 would turn to the tinkering, peddling, horse-dealing, tavern¬ 
 keeping, and almost all the ordinary mechanical trades, and, 
 among others, broom-making. Perhaps the foundation of 
 the American broom manufacture was laid by the British 
 Gipsies, by whom it may be partly carried on at the present 
 day ; a business they pretty much monopolize, in a rough 
 way, in Great Britain. We will doubtless find, among the 
 fraternity, some of those whittling, meddling Sam Slick ped¬ 
 dlers, so often described : I have seen some of those itiner¬ 
 ant venders of knife-sharpeners, and such “ Yankee notions,” 
 with dark, glistening eyes, that would “ pass for the article.” 
 Some of them would live by less legitimate business. I en¬ 
 tertain no doubt, what from the general fitness of things, 
 and the appearance of some of the men, that we will find 
 some of the descendants of the old British mixed Gipsies 
 members of the various establishments of Messrs. Peter 
 Funks and Company* of the city of New York, as well as 
 elsewhere. And I entertain as little doubt that many of 
 those American women who tell fortunes, and engage in 
 those many curious bits of business that so often come up 
 at trials, are descendants of the British plantation stock of 
 Gipsies. But there are doubtless many of these Gipsies in 
 respectable spheres of life. It would be extremely unrea¬ 
 sonable to say that the descendants of the colonial Gipsies 
 do not still exist as Gipsies, like their brethren in Great 
 Britain, and other parts of the Old World. The English 
 Gipsies in America entertain no doubt of it; the more es¬ 
 pecially as they have encountered such Gipsies, of at least 
 two descents. I have myself met with such a Gipsy, follow¬ 
 ing a decidedly respectable calling, whom I found as much 
 one of the tribe, barring the original habits, as perhaps any 
 one in Europe. 
 
 There are many Hungarian and German Gipsies in Amer- 
 * Pfter Punks dc Co.: Mopk auctioneers of mock jewelry, <fcc., <Lc. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 421 
 
 ica ; some of them long settled in Pennsylvania and Mary¬ 
 land, where they own farms. Some of them leave their 
 farms in charge of hired hands, during the summer, and pro¬ 
 ceed South with their tents. In the State of Pennsylvania, 
 
 there is a settlement of them, on the J-river, a little 
 
 way above H-, where they have saw-mills. About the 
 
 Alleghany Mountains, there are many of the tribe, following 
 somewhat the original ways of the race. In the United 
 States generally, there are many Gipsy peddlers, British as 
 well as continental. There are a good many Gipsies in 
 New York—English, Irish, and continental—some of whom 
 keep tin, crockery, and basket stores ; but these are all 
 mixed Gipsies, and many of them of fair complexion. The 
 tin-ware which they make is generally of a plain, coarse 
 kind ; so much so, that a Gipsy tin store is easily known. 
 They frequently exhibit their tin-ware and baskets on the 
 streets, and carry them about the city. Almost all, if not 
 all, of those itinerant cutlers and tinkers, to be met with in 
 New York, and other American cities, are Gipsies, princi¬ 
 pally German, Hungarian, and French. There are a good 
 many Gipsy musicians in America. “ What!” said I, to an 
 English Gipsy, “ those organ-grinders ?” “ Nothing so low as 
 that. Gipsies don’t grind their music, sir ; they make it.” 
 But I found in his house, when occupied by other Gipsies, a 
 hurdy-gurdy and tambourine ; so that Gipsies sometimes 
 grind music, as well as make it. I know of a Hungarian 
 Gipsy who is leader of a Negro musical band, in the city of 
 New York ; his brother drives one of the Avenue cars. 
 There are a number of Gipsy musicians in Baltimore, who 
 play at parties, and on other occasions. Some of the for¬ 
 tune-telling Gipsy women about New York will make as 
 much as forty dollars a week in that line of business. They 
 generally live a little way out of the city, into which they 
 ride, in the morning, to their places of business. I know of 
 one, who resides in New Jersey, opposite New York, and 
 who has a place in the city, to which ladies, that is, females 
 of the highest classes, address their cards, for her to call 
 upon them. When she gets a chance of a young fellow with 
 his female friend, she “ puts the screws on ;” for she knows 
 well that he dare not “ back out ;” so she frequently man¬ 
 ages to squeeze five dollars out of him. 
 
 Many hundred, perhaps several thousand, of English 
 
422 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 tented, and partly tented Gipsies, have arrived in America 
 within the last ten years. They, for the most part, travel, 
 and have travelled every State in the Union, east of the 
 Rocky Mountains, as well as the British Provinces, as horse- 
 dealers, peddlers, doctors, exhibitors, fortune-tellers, and 
 tramps generally. Such English Gipsies, above all men in 
 America, may, with the greatest propriety, say, 
 
 “ No pent-up Utica contracts our powers. 
 
 But the ■whole boundless continent is ours.” 
 
 The fortune-tellers, every time they set out on their peregri¬ 
 nations, choose a new route ; for they say it is more difficult 
 to go over the same ground in America, than it is in Eng¬ 
 land. The horse-dealers say that Jonathan is a good judge 
 of a horse ; that sometimes they get the advantage of him, 
 and sometimes he of them ; but that his demand for a war¬ 
 ranty sometimes bothers them a deal. “ What then ?” I asked. 
 “ Well, we give him a warranty ; and should the beast hap¬ 
 pen to turn out wrong, let him catch us if he can !” It is 
 really astonishing how sensibly these English Gipsies talk 
 of American affairs generally ; they are very discriminating 
 in their remarks, and wonderfully observant of places and 
 localities. They do not like the Negroes. In their so¬ 
 ciety they drop the name of king, and adopt that of presi¬ 
 dent. “ Cunning fellows,” said I, “ to eschew the name of 
 king, and look down upon Negroes. That will do, in 
 America!” 
 
 I have found the above kind of Gipsies, in America, to be 
 generally pretty well off; they all seem to flourish, and 
 have plenty of money about them. The fortune-telling, horse¬ 
 dealing, and peddling branches of them have a fine field for 
 following their respective businesses. America, indeed, is a 
 “ great country” for the Gipsies ; for it contains “ no end” 
 of chickens, to say nothing of ducks, geese, and turkeys, 
 many of which are carried off by varmint, anyhow. There, 
 they will find, for some time, many opportunities of gather¬ 
 ing rich harvests, among what has been termed the shrewd¬ 
 est, but, in some things, the most gullible, of mortals, as an 
 instance may illustrate. A Gipsy woman, known as such, 
 drags, into the meshes of her necromancy, ’cute Jonathan ; 
 who, with an infinite reliance on his own smartness, to “ try 
 the skill of the critter,” by her directions, ties up, in gold 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 423 
 
 and paper, something like a thousand dollars, and, after she 
 has passed her hands over it, and muttered a few cabalistic 
 words, deposits it in his strong box. She sets a day, on 
 which she calls, handles the “ dimes,” while muttering some 
 more expressions, rather accidentally drops them, then re¬ 
 turns them to the box, and sets another day when she will 
 call, and add much to his wealth. She does not appear, 
 however, on the day mentioned. Our simpleton gets first 
 anxious, then excited, then suspicious, then examines his 
 “ pile,” and finds it transformed into a lot of copper and old 
 paper ! For, in dropping the parcel, Meg does it adroitly 
 about the folds of her dress, quickly substitutes another, ex¬ 
 actly alike, and makes off with the fruits of her labour. 
 Then come the hue and cry, telegraphing, and dispatching 
 of warrants everywhere. But why need he trouble himself? 
 So, after a harder day’s work than, perhaps, he ever under¬ 
 went in his life, he returns home : but knowing the sym¬ 
 pathy lie will find there, he puts on his best face, and, to 
 have the first word of it, (for he is not to be laughed at,) 
 wipes his forehead, twitches his mouth, winks his eyes, and 
 remarks : “ Waal, I reckon I’ve been most darnedly sold, any¬ 
 how !” Such occurrences are very common among almost 
 all classes of rural Americans. Sometimes it is to discover 
 treasure on the individual’s lands, or in the neighbourhood ; 
 sometimes a mine, and sometimes an Indian, a trapper, a 
 pirate, or a revolutionary deposit. When the Gipsy es¬ 
 capes with her spoil, she frequently makes for her home, but 
 where that is, no one knows. On being molested, while there, 
 she produces friends, in fair standing, who prove an alibi ; 
 and, with the further assistance of a well-feed lawyer, de¬ 
 fies all the requisitions, made by the governors of neighbour¬ 
 ing States, for her delivery. At other times, she will divide 
 with the inferior authorities, or surrender the whole of the 
 plunder; for, to go to jail she will not, if she can help it.* 
 
 * If the real characters of those “ lady fortune tellers,” who flourish so 
 much in the large cities, and publicly profess to reveal all matters in “ love 
 and law, health and wealth, losses and crosses,” were to be ascertained, 
 many of them would, in all probability, be found to belong to a superior 
 class of Gipsies. And this may much more be said of the more humble 
 ones, who trust to the gossipping of a class—and tiiat a respectable class of 
 females, for the advertising of their calling. For a certainty, those are 
 Gipsies who stroll about, telling fortunes for dimes, clothes, or old bottles. 
 The advertising members form a very small part of the fraternity. The 
 
424 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 In Virginia, the more original kind of Gipsies are very 
 frequently to be met with. It is in the Slave States they 
 are more apt to flourish in the olden form. The planters 
 need not trouble themselves about their tampering with the 
 Negroes, for they have no sympathy with them. Were it 
 otherwise, they would soon be mum, on finding what the re¬ 
 sults would be to them. I have given some of them some 
 useful hints on that score. The general disposition of the 
 people, the want of learning among so many of them, the dis¬ 
 tances between dwellings, the small villages, the handy me¬ 
 chanical services of the Gipsies, the uncultivated tracts of 
 land, the game of various kinds, and the climate, seem to 
 point out some of the Slave States as an elysium for the Gip¬ 
 sies ; unless the wealthier part of the inhabitants should use 
 the poorer class as tools to drive them out of the coun¬ 
 try.* 
 
 There are a good many very respectable Scottish Gipsies 
 in the United States ; but I do not wish to be too minute in 
 describing them. In Canada, I know of a doctor, a lawyer, 
 and an editor, Scottish Gipsies. The fact of the matter is, 
 that, owing to the mixture of the blood, the improvement, 
 and perpetuation, and secrecy, of the race, there may be 
 many, very many, Gipsies, in almost every place in the 
 world, and other people not know of it: and it is not 
 
 extent to which such business is patronized, by Americans, of both sexes, 
 and of almost all positions in society is such, that it is doubtful if the 
 English reader would credit it, if it were put on record. 
 
 * When travelling on the stage, towards Lake Huron, in Canada, I was 
 surprised at finding a Gipsy tent on the road-side, with a man sitting in 
 front of it, engaged in the mysteries of the tinker. I met a camp of Gip¬ 
 sies on a vacant space, beside a clump of trees, in Hamilton, at the head of 
 Lake Ontario, but I deferred visiting them till the following morning. 
 When I returned to the spot, I found that the birds liad flown. Feeling 
 disappointed, I began to question a man who kept a toll-bar, immediately 
 opposite to where their tents had been,as to their peculiarities generally; 
 when he said: “ They seemed droll kind o’ folk—quite like ourselves—no 
 way foreign ; yet I could not understand a word they were saying among 
 themselves.” Shortly after this, a company of them entered a shop, in the 
 same town, to buy tin, when l happened to be in it. I accosted one of the 
 mothers of the company, in an abrupt but bland tone. “ You’re a’ Naw- 
 kens (Gipsies) I see.”—“ Ou ay, we’re Nawkens,” was her immediate reply, 
 accompanied by a smile on her weather-beaten countenance. “ You’ll aye 
 speak the language?” I continued. “ Well ne’er forget that,” she again re¬ 
 plied. This seemed to bo a company of Gipsies from the Scottish Border; 
 for the woman spoke about the broadest Scotch I ever heard. Ihey dressed 
 well, and bore a good reputation in the neighbourhood. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 425 
 
 likely that, at the present time, they will say that they are 
 Gipsies. Indeed, the intelligent # English travelling Gipsies 
 say that there are an immense number of Gipsies, of all coun¬ 
 tries, colours, and occupations, in America. 
 
 There is even some resemblance between the formation of 
 Gipsydom and that of the United States. The children of 
 emigrants, it is well known, frequently prove the most ultra 
 Americans. Instead of the original colonists, at the Decla¬ 
 ration of Independence, imagine the commencement of Gip¬ 
 sydom as proceeding from the original stock of Gipsies. 
 The addition to their number, from without, differs from 
 that which takes place among Americans, in this way : that 
 all such additions to Gipsydom are made in such a manner, 
 that the new blood gets innoculated, as it were, with the 
 old, or part of the old ; so that it may be said of the whole 
 body, 
 
 One drop of blood makes all Gipsydom akin. 
 
 The simple fact of a person having Gipsy blood in his veins, 
 in addition to the rearing of a Gipsy parent, acts upon him 
 like a shock of electricity ; it makes him spring to his feet, 
 and—“ snap his teeth at other dogs !” A very important 
 circumstance contributing to this state of things is the an¬ 
 tipathy which mankind have for the very name of Gipsy, 
 which, as I have already said, they all take to themselves ; 
 insomuch that the better class will not face it. They imagine 
 that, socially speaking, they are among the damned, and they 
 naturally cast their lot with the damned. Still, the antag¬ 
 onistic spirit which would naturally arise towards society, 
 in the minds of such Gipsies, remains, in a measure, latent; 
 for they feel confident in their incognito, while moving 
 among their fellow-creatures ; which circumstance robs it of 
 its sting. 
 
 Let a Lowlander, in times that are past, but have cast up 
 a Highlander’s blood to him, and what would have been the 
 consequences? “ Her ainscl would have drawn her dirk, or 
 whipped out her toasting-iron, and seen which was the pret¬ 
 tiest. man.” Let the same have been done to a Scottish 
 Gipsy, in comparatively recent times, and he would have 
 taken his own peculiar revenge. See how the Baillics, as 
 mentioned under the chapter of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale 
 Gipsies, mounted on horseback, and with drawn swords in 
 
42 G 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 their hands, threatened death to all who opposed them, for 
 an affront offered to their mother. Twit a respectable 
 Gipsy with his blood, at the present day, and he would suf¬ 
 fer in silence ; for, by getting into a passion, he would let 
 himself out. For this reason, it would be unmanly to hint 
 it to him, in any tone of disparagement. The difference of 
 feeling between the two races, at the present day, proceeds 
 from positive ignorance on the part of the native towards 
 the other ; an ignorance in which the Gipsy would rather 
 allow him to remain ; for, let him turn himself in whatever 
 direction he may, he imagines he sees, and perhaps does see, 
 nothing but a dark mountain of prejudice existing between 
 him and every other of his fellow-creatures. He would 
 rather retain his incognito, and allow his race to go down 
 to posterity shrouded in its present mystery. The history 
 of the Gipsy race in Scotland, more, perhaps, than in any 
 other country, shows, to the eye of the world, as few traces 
 of its existence as would a fox, in passing over a ploughed 
 field. The farmer might see the foot-prints of reynard, but 
 how is he to find reynard himself? He must bring out the 
 dogs and have a hunt for him. As an Indian of the prairie, 
 while on the “ war path,” cunningly arranges the long grass 
 into its natural position, as he passes through it, to prevent 
 his enemy following him. so has the Scottish Gipsy, as he 
 entered upon a settled life, destroyed, to the eye of the or¬ 
 dinary native, every trace of his being a Gipsy. Still, I 
 cannot doubt but that he has misgivings that, some day, he 
 will be called up to judgment, and that all about him will 
 be exposed to the world. 
 
 What is it that troubles the educated Gipsies ? Nothing 
 but the word Gipsy; a word which, however swrnet when 
 used among themselves, conveys an ugly, blackguard, and 
 vagabond meaning to other people. The poet asks, What is 
 there in a name ? and I reply, Everything, as regards the name 
 Gipsy. For a respectable Scottish Gipsy to say to the public, 
 that “his mother is a Gipsy,” or, that “ his wife is a Gipsy,” or, 
 that “ he is a Gipsy;” such a Gipsy simply could not do it. 
 These Gipsies will hardly ever use the word among themselves, 
 except in very select circles ; but they will say “ lie’s one of 
 us “ lie’s from Yetholm “ he’s from the metropolis,” 
 (Yetholm being the metropolis of Scottish Gipsydom;) or, “lie’s 
 a traveller.” If the company is not over classical, they will 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 427 
 
 say “ lie’s from the black quarry,” or, “ he’s been with the cud¬ 
 dies.” Imagine a select party of educated Scottish Gipsies, 
 all closely related. They will then chatter Gipsy over their 
 tea ; but if a person should drop in, one of the party, who is 
 not acquainted with him, will nudge and whisper to another, 
 “ Is he one of the tribe ?” or, “ Is he one of us ?” The better 
 class of Scottish Gipsies arc very exclusive in matters of 
 this kind. 
 
 All things considered, in what other position could the 
 Gipsy race, in Scotland especially, be, at the present day, 
 than that described? How can we imagine a race of peo¬ 
 ple to act otherwise than hide themselves, if they could, from 
 the odium that attaches to the name of Gipsy ? And what 
 estimate should we place on that charity which would lead 
 a person to denounce a Gipsy, should he deny himself to be 
 a Gipsy ?* As a race, what can they offer to society at 
 large to receive them within its circle? They can offer lit¬ 
 tle, as a race ; but, if we consider them as individuals, we 
 will find many of them whose education, character, and po¬ 
 sition in life, would warrant their admission into any ordi¬ 
 nary society, and some of them into any society. Notwith¬ 
 standing all that, none will answer up to the name of Gipsy. 
 It necessarily follows, that the race must remain shrouded 
 in its present mystery, unless some one, not of the race, 
 should become acquainted with its history, and speak for 
 it. In Scotland, the prejudice towards the name of Gipsy 
 might be safely allowed to drop, were it only for this reason : 
 that the race has got so much mixed up with the native 
 blood, and even with good families of the country, as to 
 be, in plain language, a jumble—a pretty kettle of fish, in¬ 
 deed. One’s uncle, in seeking for a wife, might have 
 stumbled over an Egyptian woman, and, either known or 
 unknown to himself, had his children brought up bitter 
 Gipsies; so that one’s cousins may be Gipsies, for any¬ 
 thing one knows. A man may have a colony of Gipsies in 
 his own house, and know nothing about it 1 The Gipsies 
 died out? Oli, no. They commenced in Scotland by wring¬ 
 ing the necks of one’s chickens , and now they sometimes 
 
 * Mixed Gipsies tell no lies, when they say that they are not Gipsies; 
 for, physiologically speaking, they are not Gipsies, but only partly Gipsies, 
 as regards blood. In every other wav they are Gipsies, that is, chabos, 
 calos, or chals. 
 
428 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 .! But wliat is Gipsydom, after all, but a 
 
 “ working in among other people?” 
 
 In seeking for Gipsies among Scotch people, I know where 
 to begin, but it puzzles me where to leave off. I would pay 
 no regard to colour of hair or eyes, character, employment, 
 position, or, indeed, any outward thing. The reader may say : 
 “ It must be a difficult matter to detect such mixed and edu¬ 
 cated Gipsies as those spoken of.” It is not only difficult, 
 but outwardly impossible. Such Gipsies cannot even tell 
 each other, from their personal appearance ; but they have 
 signs, which they can use, if the others choose to respond to 
 them. If I go into a company which I have reason to be¬ 
 lieve is a Gipsy one, and it know nothing of me, so far as 
 my pursuit is concerned, I will bring the subject of the Gip¬ 
 sies up, in a very roundabout way, and mark the effect which, 
 the conversation makes, or the turn it takes. What I know 
 of the subject, and of the ignorance of mankind generally in 
 regard to it, enables me to say, in almost every instance, 
 who they are, let them make any remark they like, look as 
 they like, pretend what they like, wriggle about as they like, 
 or keep dead silent. As I gradually glide into the subject, 
 and expatiate upon the “ greatness of the society,” one re¬ 
 marks, “ I know it;” upon the “ respectability of some of its 
 members,” and another emphatically exclaims, “ That’s a 
 fact;” and upon “its universality,” and another bawls out, 
 That’s so.” Indeed, by finding the Gipsies, under such 
 circumstances, completely off their guard, (for they do not 
 doubt their secret being confined to themselves,) I can gen¬ 
 erally draw forth, in one way or other, as much moral cer¬ 
 tainty, barring their direct admission, as to their being Gip¬ 
 sies, as a dog, by putting his nose into a hole, can tell 
 whether a rat is there, or not. 
 
 The principle of the transmutation of Gipsy blood into 
 white, in appearance, is illustrated, in the ninth chapter of Mr. 
 Borrow’s “ Bible in Spain,” by its changing into almost pure 
 black. A Gipsy soldier, in the Spanish army, killed his 
 sergeant, for “ calling him calo, (Gipsy,) and curbing him,” and 
 made his escape. His wife remained in the army, as a sut¬ 
 ler, selling wine. Two years thereafter, a strange man came 
 to her wine shop. “ He was dressed like a Moor, ( corahano ,) 
 and yet he did not look like one ; he looked more like a 
 black, and yet he was not a black, either, though he was 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 429 
 
 almost black. And, as I looked upon him, I thought he 
 looked something like the Errate, (Gipsies,) and he said to 
 me, * Zincali , chachipe (the Gipsy salutation.) And then 
 he whispered to me, in queer language, which I could scarcely 
 understand, ‘ Your husband is waiting ; come with me, my 
 little sister, and I will take you to him.’ About a league 
 from the town, beneath a hill, we found four people, men 
 and women, all very black, like the strange man ; and we 
 joined ourselves with them, and they all saluted me, and 
 called me ‘ little sister.’ And away we marched, for many 
 days, amidst deserts and small villages. The men w r ould 
 cheat w 7 ith mules and asses, and the women told baji. I 
 often asked him (her husband) about the black men, and he 
 told me that he believed them to be of the Errate.” Her 
 husband, then a soldier in the Moorish army, having been 
 killed, this Gipsy woman married the black man, with whom 
 she followed real Gipsy life. She said to him : “ Sure I am 
 amongst the Errate ; . . . . and I often said that they 
 
 were of the Errate ; and then they would laugh, and say 
 that it might be so, and that they were not Moors, ( coraliai ,) 
 but they could give no account of themselves.” From this 
 it would seem that,-while preserving their identity, wherever 
 they go, there are Gipsies who may not be known to the 
 world, or to the tribe, in other continents, by the same 
 name.* 
 
 * The people above-mentioned are doubtless Gipsies. According to Grell- 
 mann, the race is even to be found in the centre of Africa. Mollien, in his 
 travels to the sources of the Senegal and Gambia, in 1818, says: “Scat¬ 
 tered among the Joloffs, we find a people not unlike our Gipsies, and known 
 by the name of Laaubes. Leading a roving life, and without fixed habita¬ 
 tion, their only employment is the manufacture of wooden vessels, mortars, 
 and bedsteads. They choose a well-wooded spot, fell some trees, form huts 
 with the branches, and work up the trunks. For this privilege, they must 
 pay a sort of tax to the prince in whose states they thus settle. In general, 
 they are both ugly and slovenly. 
 
 “ The women, notwithstanding their almost frightful faces, are covered 
 with amber and coral beads, presents heaped on them by the Joloffs, from 
 a notion that the favours, alone, of these women will be followed by those of 
 fortune. Ugly or handsome, all the young Laaubd females are in request 
 among the Negroes. 
 
 “ The Laaubes have nothing of their own but their money, their tools, 
 and their asses; the only animals on which they travel. In the woods, 
 they make fires with the dung of the flocks. Ranged round the fires, the 
 men and women pass their leisure time in smoking. The Laaubes have'not 
 those characteristic features and high stature which mark the Joloffs, and 
 they seem to form a distinct race. They are exempted from all military 
 
430 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 A word upon the universality of the Gipsies. English 
 Gipsies, on arriving in America, feci quite taken aback, on 
 coining across a tent or wigwam of Indians. “ Didn’t you 
 feel,” said I to some of them, “ very like a dog when he 
 comes across another dog, a stranger to him?” And, with 
 a laugh, they said, “ Exactly so.” After looking awhile at 
 the Indians, they will approach them, and “ cast their sign, 
 and salute them in Gipsy and if no response is made, they 
 will pass on. They then come to learn who the Indians are. 
 The same curiosity is excited among the Gipsies on meeting 
 with the American farmer, on the banks of the Mississippi 
 or Missouri; who, in travelling to market, in the summer, 
 will, to save expenses, unyoke his horses, at mid-day or eve¬ 
 ning, at the edge of the forest, light his fire, and prepare his 
 meal. What with the “ kettle and tented wagon,” the tall, 
 lank, bony, and swarthy appearance of the farmer, the Gipsy 
 will approach him, as he did the Indian ; and pass on, when 
 no response is made to his sign and salutation. Under such 
 circumstances, the Gipsy would cast his sign, and give his 
 salutation, whether on the banks of the Mississippi or the 
 Ganges. Nay, a very respectable Scottish Gipsy boasted to 
 me, that, by his signs alone, he could push his way to the 
 wall of China, and even through China itself. And there 
 are doubtless Gipsies in China. Mr. Borrow says, that when 
 he visited the tribe at Moscow, they supposed him to be one 
 of their brothers, who, they said, were wandering about in 
 Turkey, China, and other parts. It is very likely that Rus¬ 
 sian Gipsies have visited China, by the route taken by 
 Russian traders, and met with Gipsies there* But it tickles 
 the Gipsy most, when it is insinuated, that if Sir John Frank¬ 
 lin had been fortunate in his expedition, he would have 
 found a Gipsy tinkering a kettle at the North Pole. 
 
 The particulars of a meeting between English and Ameri- 
 
 service. Each family has its chief, but, over all, there is a superior chief, 
 who commands a whole tribe or nation. He collects the tribute, and com¬ 
 municates with such delegates of the king as receive the imposts: this 
 serves to protect them from all vexation. The Laaubds are idolaters, speak 
 the Poula language, and pretend to tell fortunes.” 
 
 * Bell, in an account of his journey to Pekin, [1721.] says that upwards 
 of sixty Gipsies had arrived at Tobolsky, on their way to China, but were 
 stopped by the Vice-Governor, for want of passports. They had roamed, 
 during the summer season, from Poland, in small parties, subsisting by 
 selling trinkets, and telling fortunes. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 431 
 
 can Gipsies are interesting. Some English Gipsies were 
 endeavouring to sell some horses, in Annapolis, in the State 
 of Maryland, to what had the appearance of being respect¬ 
 able American farmers ; who, however, spoke to each other 
 in the Gipsy language, dropping a word now and then, such 
 as “ this is a good one,” and so on. The English Gipsies 
 felt amazed, and at last said : “ What is that you are say¬ 
 ing? Why, you are Gipsies !” Upon this, the Americans 
 wheeled about, and left the spot as fast as they could. Had 
 the English Gipsies taken after the Gipsy in their appear¬ 
 ance, they would not have caused such a consternation to 
 their American brethren, who showed much of “ the blood” 
 in their countenances ; but as, from their blood being much 
 mixed, they did not look like Gipsies, they gave the others a 
 terrible fright, on their being found out. The English Gip¬ 
 sies said they felt disgusted at the others not owning them¬ 
 selves up. But I told them they ought rather to have felt 
 proud of the Americans speaking Gipsy, as it was the preju¬ 
 dice of the world that led them to hide their nationality. 
 On making enquiry in the neighbourhood, they found that 
 these American Gipsies had been settled there since, at 
 least, the time of their grandfather, and that they bore an 
 English name. 
 
 There are Scottish Gipsies in the United States, following 
 respectable callings, who speak excellent Gipsy, according 
 to the judgment of intelligent English Gipsies. The Eng¬ 
 lish Gipsies say the same of'the G ipsy families in Scotland, 
 with whom they are acquainted ; but that some of their 
 words vary from those spoken in England. There is, how¬ 
 ever, a rivalry between the English and Scottish Gipsies, as 
 to whose pronunciation of the words is the correct one : 
 in that respect, they somewhat resemble the English and 
 Scottish Latinists. One intelligent Gipsy gave it as his 
 opinion, that the word great, baurie, in Scotland, was softer 
 than boro, in England, and preferable, indeed, the right pro¬ 
 nunciation of the word. The German Gipsies are said, by 
 their English brethren, to speak Gipsy backwards ; from 
 which I would conclude, that it follows the construction of 
 the German language, which differs so materially, in that 
 respect, from the English.* It is a thing well-nigh im- 
 
 *Mr. Borrow says, with reference to the Spanish Gipsy language: “ Its 
 grammatical peculiarities have disappeared, the entire language haring 
 
432 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 possible, to get a respectable Scottish Gipsy to own up to 
 even a word of the Gipsy language. On meeting with a re¬ 
 spectable—Scotchman, I will call him—in a company, lately, 
 I was asked by him : “ Are ye a’ Tinklers?” “ We’re trav¬ 
 ellers,” I replied. “But who is he?” he continued, point¬ 
 ing to my acquaintance. Going up to him, I whispered 
 “ His dade is a baurie grye-femler,” (his father is a great 
 horse-dealer;) and he made for the door, as if a bee had 
 got into his ear. But he came back ; oh, yes, he came 
 back. There was a mysterious whispering of “ pistols and 
 coffee,” at another time. 
 
 It is beyond doubt that the Gipsy language in Great Brit¬ 
 ain is broken, but not so broken as to consist of words only ; 
 it consists, rather, of expressions, or pieces, which are tacked 
 together by native words—generally small words—which 
 are lost to the ordinary ear, when used in conversation. In 
 that respect, the use of Gipsy may be compared to the revo¬ 
 lutions of a wheel: we know that the wheel has spokes, but, 
 in its velocity, we cannot distinguish the colour or material 
 of each individual spoke ; it is only when it stands still that 
 that can be done. In the same manner, when we come to 
 examine into the British Gipsy language, we perceive its 
 broken nature. But it still serves the purpose of a speech. 
 Let any one sit among English' Gipsies, in America, and 
 hear them converse, and he cannot pick up an idea, and 
 hardly a word which they say. “ I have always thought 
 Dutch bad enough,” said an Irishman, who has often heard 
 
 been modified and subjected to the rules of Spanish grammar, with which 
 it now coincides in syntax, in t he conjugation of verbs, and in the declension 
 of its nouns.” We might have naturally expected that, cf the Gipsy lan¬ 
 guage, in the course of four hundred years, from the people speaking it be¬ 
 ing so much scattered over the country, and coming so much in contact 
 with the ordinary natives. But something different might be looked for, 
 where the Gipsies have not been persecuted, but allowed to live together 
 in a body, as in Hungary. Of the Hungarian Gipsy language, Mr. Borrow 
 says, that in no part of the world is the Gipsy language better preserved 
 than in Hungary; and that the roving bands of Gipsies from that country, 
 who visit France and Italy, speak the pure Gipsy, with all its grammatical 
 peculiarities. He estimates that the Spanish Gipsy language may consist 
 of four or five thousand words ; a sufficient number, one might suppose, to 
 serve the purpose of everyday life. A late writer in the Dublin University 
 Magazine estimates that five thousand words would serve the same purpose 
 in the English language. Four thousand words is a very large lurguage for 
 the Gipsies of Spain to possess, in addition to the ordinary one of the coun¬ 
 try. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 433 
 
 English Gipsies, in the State of New Jersey, speak among 
 themselves ; “butGipsy is perfect gibble-gabble, like ducks 
 and geese, for anything I can make of it.” Some Gipsies 
 can, of course, speak Gipsy much better than others. It is 
 most unlikely that the Scottish Gipsies, with the head, the 
 pride, and the tenacity of native Scotch, would be the first 
 to forget the Gipsy language. The sentiments of the people 
 themselves are very emphatic on that head. “ It will never 
 be forgotten, sir ; it is in our hearts, and, as long as a single 
 Tinkler exists, it will be remembered,” (page 297.) “ So 
 
 long as there existed two Gipsies in Scotland, it would never 
 be lost,” (page 316.) The English Gipsies admit that the 
 language is more easily preserved in a settled life, but more 
 useful to travelling and out-door Gipsies ; and that it is 
 carefully kept up by both classes of Gipsies. This informa¬ 
 tion agrees with our author’s, in regard to the settled Scot¬ 
 tish Gipsies. There is one very strong motive, among many, 
 for the Gipsies keeping up their language, and that is, as I 
 have already said, their self-respect. The best of them be¬ 
 lieve that it is altogether problematical how they would be 
 received in society, were they to make an avowal of their 
 being Gipsies, and lay bare the history of their race to the 
 world. The prejudice that exists against the race, and 
 against them, they imagine, were they known to be Gipsies, 
 drives them back on that language which belongs exclusively 
 to themselves ; to say nothing of the dazzling hold which it 
 takes of their imagination, as they arrive at years of reflec¬ 
 tion, and consider that the people speaking it have been 
 transplanted from some other clime. The more intelligent 
 the Gipsy, the more lie thinks of his speech, and the more 
 care he takes of it. 
 
 People often reprobate the dislike, I may say the hatred, 
 which the more original Gipsy entertains for society ; for¬ 
 getting that society itself has had the greatest share in the 
 origin of it. When the race entered Europe, they are not 
 presumed to have had any hatred towards their fellow- 
 creatures.* That hatred, doubtless, sprang from the severe 
 
 * I cannot agree with Mr. Borrow, when he says, that the Gipsies 
 “ travelled three thousand miles into Europe, with hatred in their hearts 
 towards the people among whom they settled." In none of the earliest laws 
 passed against them, is anything said of their being other than thieves, 
 eheats, Ac., Ac. They seem to have been too politic to commit murder; 
 
 19 
 
434 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 reception, and universal persecution, which, owing to the 
 singularity of their race and habits, they everywhere met 
 with. The race then became born into that state of things. 
 What would subsequent generations know of the origin of 
 the feud ? All that they knew was, that the law made 
 them outlaws and outcasts ; that they were subject, as Gip¬ 
 sies, to be hung, before they were born. Such a Gipsy 
 might be compared to Pascal’s man springing up out of an 
 island : casting his eyes around him, he iinds nothing but a 
 legal and social proscription hanging over his head, in what¬ 
 ever direction he may turn. Whatever might be assumed 
 to have been the original, innate disposition of a Gipsy, the 
 circumstances attending him, from his birth to his death, were 
 certainly not calculated to improve him, but to make him 
 much worse than he might otherwise have been. The worst 
 that can be said of the Scottish Gipsies, in times past, has 
 been stated by our author. With all their faults, we find a 
 vein of genuine nobility of character running through all 
 their actions, which is the more worthy of notice, consider¬ 
 ing that they were at war with society, and society at war 
 with them. Not the least important feature is that of grati¬ 
 tude for kind and hospitable treatment. In that respect, 
 a true Scottish Gipsy has always been as true as steel; and 
 that is saying a great deal in his favour. The instance 
 given by our author, (pages 361-3G3,) is very touching, and 
 to the point. I do not know how it may be, at the present 
 day, in Scotland, where are to be found so many Irish 
 Gipsies, of whom the Scottish and English Gipsies have not 
 much good to say, notwithstanding the assistance they ren¬ 
 der each other when they meet, (page 324.) If the English 
 farmers are questioned, I doubt not that a somewhat similar 
 testimony will be borne to the English Gipsies, to this extent, 
 at least, that, when civilly and hospitably treated, and per- 
 
 moreover, it appears to have been foreign to their disposition to do aught 
 but obtain a living in the most cunning manner they could. There is no 
 necessary connection between purloining one’s property and hating one’s 
 person. As long as the Gipsies were not hardly dealt with, they could, 
 naturally, have no actual hatred towards their fellow-creatures. Mr. Bor¬ 
 row attributes none of the spite and hatred of the race towards the com¬ 
 munity to the severity of the persecutions to which it was exposed, or to 
 that hard feeling with which society has regarded it. These, and the ex¬ 
 ample of the Spaniards, doubtless led the Gitanos to shed the blood of the 
 ordinary natives. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 435 
 
 sonally acquainted, they will respect the farmers’ property, 
 and even keep others off it. Indeed, both Scottisli and 
 English Gipsies call this “ Gipsy law.” It is certainly not 
 the Scottish Gipsies, or, I may venture to say, the English 
 Gipsies, to whom Mr. Borrow’s words may be applied, when 
 he says : “ I have not expatiated on their gratitude towards 
 good people, who treat them kindly, and take an interest in 
 their welfare ; for I believe, that, of all beings in the world, 
 they are the least susceptible of such a feeling.” Such a 
 character may apply to the Spanish Gipsies for anything I 
 know to the contrary ; and the causes to which it may be 
 attributed must be the influences which the Spanish charac¬ 
 ter, and general deportment towards the tribe, have exer¬ 
 cised over them. In speaking of the bloody and wolfish 
 disposition which especially characterizes the Gitanos, Mr. 
 Borrow says : “ The cause to which this must be attributed, 
 must be their residence in a country, unsound in every 
 branch of its civil polity, where right has ever been in less 
 esteem, and wrong in less disrepute, than in any other part of 
 the world.” Grellmann bears as poor testimony to the 
 character of the Hungarian Gipsies, in the matter of grati¬ 
 tude, as Mr. Borrow docs to the Spanish Gipsies, to whom I 
 apprehend his remarks are intended to apply. But both of 
 these authors give an opinion, unaccompanied by facts. 
 Their opinion may be correct, however, so far as it is appli¬ 
 cable to the class of Gipsies, or the individuals, to whom they 
 refer. Gratitude is even a characteristic of the lower ani¬ 
 mals. “ For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of ser¬ 
 pents, and of things in the sea, is tamed and hath been 
 tamed of mankind,” saith St. James ; the means of attaining 
 to which is frequently kindness. I doubt not that the same 
 can be said of Gipsies anywhere ; for surely we can expect 
 to find as much gratitude in them as can be called forth 
 from things that creep, fly, or swim in the sea. It is un¬ 
 reasonable, however, to look for much gratitude from such 
 Gipsies as the two authors in question have evidently alluded 
 to ; for this reason : that it is a virtue rarely to be met with 
 from those “ to whom much has been given ;” and, conse¬ 
 quently, very little should be required of those to whom 
 nothing has been given, in the estimation of their fellow- 
 creatures. In doing a good turn to a Gipsy, it is not tho 
 act itself that calls forth, or perhaps merits, a return in 
 
436 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 gratitude ; but it is the way in which it is done : for, while 
 he is doubtless being benefited, he is, frequently if not gen¬ 
 erally, as little sympathized with, personally, as if he were 
 some loathsome creature to which something had been 
 thrown. 
 
 As regards the improvement of the Gipsies, I would make 
 the following suggestions : The facts and principles of the 
 present work should be thoroughly canvassed and imprinted 
 upon the public mind, and an effort made to bring, if pos¬ 
 sible, our high-class Gipsies to own themselves up to be 
 Gipsies. The fact of these Gipsies being received into so¬ 
 ciety, and respected, as Gipsies, (as it is with them, at present, 
 as men,) could not fail to have a wonderful effect upon many 
 of the humble, ignorant, or wild ones. They would perceive, 
 at once, that the objections which the community had to 
 them, proceeded, not from their being Gipsies, but from 
 their habits, only. What is the feeling which Gipsies, who 
 are known to be Gipsies, have for the public at large? 
 The white race, as a race, is simply odious to them, for they 
 know well the dreadful prejudice which it bears towards 
 them. But let some of their own race, however mixed the 
 blood might be, be respected as Gipsies, and it would, in a 
 great measure, break down, at least in feeling, the wall of 
 caste that separates them from the community at large. This 
 is the first, the most important, step to be taken to improve 
 the Gipsies, whatever may be the class to which they belong. 
 Let the prejudice be removed, and it is impossible to say 
 what might not follow. Before attempting to reform the 
 Gipsies, we ought to reform, or, at least, inform, mankind in 
 regard to them ; and endeavour to reconcile the world to 
 them, before we attempt to reconcile them to the world ; and 
 treat them as men, before w r e try to make them Christians. 
 The poor Gipsies know well that there are many of their race 
 occupying respectable positions in life ; perhaps they do not 
 know many, or even any, of them, personally, but they believe 
 in it thoroughly. Still, they will deny it, at least hide it from 
 strangers, for this reason, among others, that it is a state to 
 which their children, or even they themselves, look forward, 
 as ultimately awaiting them, in which they will manage to 
 escape from the odium of their fellow-creatures, which clings 
 to them in their present condition. The fact of the poor 
 travelling Gipsies knowing of such respectable settled Gip- 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 437 
 
 sies, gives them a certain degree of respect in their own 
 eyes, which leads them to repel any advance from the other 
 race, let it come in almost whatever shape it may. The 
 white race, as I have already said, is perfectly odious to 
 them. This is exactly the position of the question. The 
 more original kind of Gipsies feel that the prejudice which 
 exists against the race to which they belong is such, that an 
 intercourse cannot be maintained between them and the 
 other inhabitants ; or, if it does exist, it is of so clandestine a 
 nature, that their appearance, and, it may be, their general 
 habits, do not allow or lead them to indulge in it. I will 
 make a few more remarks on this subject further on in this 
 treatise. 
 
 What are the respectable, well-disposed Scottish Gipsies 
 but Scotch people, after all? They are to be met with in 
 almost every, if not every, sphere in which the ordinary Scot 
 is to be found. The only difference between the two is, 
 that, however mixed the blood of these Gipsies may be, 
 their associations of descent and tribe go back to those 
 black, mysterious heroes who entered Scotland, upwards of 
 three hundred and fifty years ago ; and that, with this de¬ 
 scent, they have the words and signs of Gipsies. The pos¬ 
 session of all these, with the knowledge of the feelings * 
 which the ordinary natives have for the very name of Gipsy, 
 makes the only distinction between them and other Scotch¬ 
 men. I do not say that the world would have any prejudice 
 against these Gipsies, as Gipsies, still, they are morbidly sen¬ 
 sitive that it would have such a feeling. The light of reason, 
 of civilization, of religion, and the genius of Britons, forbid 
 such an idea. What object more worthy of civilization, and 
 of the age in which we live, than that such Gipsies would come 
 forward, and, by their positions in society, their talents and 
 characters, dispel the mystery and gloom that hang over the 
 history of the Gipsy race ! 
 
 But will these Gipsies do that? I have my misgivings. 
 They may not do it now, but I am sanguine enough to think 
 that it is an event that may take place at some future time. 
 The subject must, in the meantime, be thoroughly investi¬ 
 gated, and the mind of the public fully prepared for such a 
 movement. The Gipsies themselves, to commence with, 
 should furnish the public with information, anonymously, so 
 far as they are personally concerned, or confidentially, 
 
438 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 through a person of standing, who can guarantee the trust¬ 
 worthiness of the Gipsy himself. I do not expect that they 
 would give us any of the language ; but they can furnish us 
 with some idea of the position which the Gipsies occupy in 
 the world, and throw a great deal of light upon the history 
 of the race in Scotland, in, at least, comparatively recent 
 times. In anticipation of such an occurrence, I would make 
 this suggestion to them : that they must be very careful 
 what they say, on account of the “ court holding them in¬ 
 terested witnesses and, whatever they may do, to deny 
 nothing connected with the Gipsies. They certainly have 
 kept their secret well; indeed, they have considered the 
 subject, so far as the public is concerned, as dead and buried 
 long ago. It is of no use, however, Gipsies ; “ murder will 
 outthe game is up ; it is played out. I may say to you 
 what the hunter said to the ’coon, or rather what the ’coon 
 said to the hunter : “ You may just as well come down the 
 tree.” Yes! come down the tree ; you have been too long 
 up ; come down, and let us know all about you.* 
 
 Scottish Gipsies ! I now appeal to you as men. Am I not 
 right, in asserting, that there is nothing you hold more dear 
 than your Egyptian descent, signs, and language? And 
 nothing you more dread than such becoming known to your 
 fellow-men around you ? Do you not read, with the greatest 
 interest, any and everything printed, which comes in your 
 way, about the Gipsies, and say, that you thank God all that 
 is a thousand miles away from you? Whence this incon- 
 
 * I accidentally got into conversation with an Irishman, in the city of 
 New York, about secret societies, when he mentioned that he was a mem¬ 
 ber of a great mail}' such, indeed, “ ail of them,” as he expressed it. I said 
 there was one society of which he was not a member, when he began to 
 enumerate them, and at last came to the Zincali. “ What,” said I, “ are you a 
 member of this society ?” “ Yes,” said he; “ the Zincali, or Gipsy.” He then told 
 me that there are many members of this society in the city of New York ; 
 not all members of it, under that name, but of its outposts, if I may so ex¬ 
 press it. The principal or arcli-Gipsy for the city, he said, was a mer¬ 
 chant, in- street, who had in his possession a printed vocabulary, or 
 
 dictionary, of the language, which was open only to the most thoroughly 
 initiated. In the course of our conversation, it fell out that the native 
 American Gipsy referred to at page 420 was one of the thoroughly initiated ; 
 which circumstance explained a question he had put to me, and which I 
 evaded, by saying that 1 was not in the habit of telling tales out of school. 
 
 In Spain, as we have seen, a Gipsy taught her language to her son from 
 a MS. I doubt not there are MS. if not printed, vocabularies of the Gipsy 
 language among the tribe in Scotland, as well as in other countries. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 439 
 
 sistency ? Ah ! I understand it tvell. Shall the prejudice of 
 mankind towards the name of Gipsy drive you from the 
 position which you occupy ? Can it drive you from it? No, 
 it cannot. The Gipsies, you know, are a people ; a “ mixed 
 multitude,” no doubt, but still a people. You know you are 
 Gipsies, for your parents before you were Gipsies, and, con¬ 
 sequently, that you cannot be anything but Gipsies. What 
 effect, then, has the prejudice against the race upon you ? 
 Does it not sometimes appear to you as if, figuratively speak¬ 
 ing, it would put a dagger into your hands against the rest 
 of your species, should they discover that you belonged to 
 the tribe ? Or that it would lead you to immediately “ take 
 to your beds,” or depart, bed and baggage, to parts unknown ? 
 But then, Gipsies, what can you do? The thought of it 
 makes you feel as if you were sheep. Some of you may be' 
 bold enough to face a lion in the flesh ; but who so bold as 
 to own to the world that he is a Gipsy ? There is just one of 
 the higher class that I know of, and he was a noble speci¬ 
 men of a man, a credit to human nature itself. Although 
 you might shrink from such a step, would you not like, and 
 cannot you induce, some one to take it? Take my word for 
 it, respectable Scottish Gipsies, the thing that frightens you 
 is, after all, a bug-bear—a scare-crow. But, failing some of 
 you “ coming out,” would you not rather that the world 
 should now know that much of the history of the Gipsy race, 
 as to show that it was no necessary disparagement in any 
 of you to be a Gipsy ? Would you not rather that a Gipsy 
 might pass, anywhere, for a gentleman, as he does now, every¬ 
 where, for a vagabond; and that you and your children 
 might, if they liked, show their true colours, than, as at pres¬ 
 ent, go everywhere incog, and carry within them that 
 secret which they are as afraid of being divulged to the 
 world, as if you and all your kin were conspirators and mur¬ 
 derers ? The secret being out, the incognito of your race 
 goes for nothing. Come then, Scottish Gipsy, make a clean 
 breast of it, like a man. Which of you will exclaim, 
 
 “ Thus from the grave I’ll rise, and save my love; 
 
 Draw all your swords, and quick as lightning move ! 
 
 When I rush on, sure none will dare to stay ; 
 
 ’Tis love commands, and glory leads the way !” 
 
 Will none of you move ? Ah! Gipsies, you are “ great 
 hens,” and no wonder. 
 
440 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 American Gipsies, descendants of the real old British 
 stock! I make the same appeal to you. Let the world 
 know how you are getting on, in this land of “ liberty and 
 equality and whether any of your race are senators, con¬ 
 gressmen, and what not. 1 have heard of a Gipsy, a sheriff 
 in the State of Pennsylvania; and 1 know of a Scottish 
 Gipsy, who was lately returned a member of the Legislature 
 of the State of New York. 
 
 The reader may ask : Is it possible that there is a race of 
 men, residing in the British Isles, to be counted by its hun¬ 
 dreds of thousands, occupying such a position as that de¬ 
 scribed ? And I reply, Alas! it is too true. Exeter Hall 
 may hobnob with Negroes, Hottentots, and Bosjesmen—al¬ 
 ways with something or other from a distance ; but what 
 has it ever done for the Gipsies ? Nothing! It will rail 
 at the American prejudice towards the Negro, and entirely 
 pass over a much superior race at its own door ! The 
 prejudice against the Negro proceeds from two causes—his 
 appearance and the servitude in which he is, or has been, 
 held. But there can be no prejudice against the Gipsy, on 
 such grounds. It will not do to say that the prejudice is 
 against the tented Gipsies, only ; it is against the race, root 
 and branch, as far as it is known. What is it but that 
 which compels the Gipsy, on entering upon a settled life, to 
 hide himself from the unearthly prejudice of his fellow- 
 creatures ? The Englishman, the Scotchman, and the Irish¬ 
 man may rail at the American for his peculiar prejudices ; 
 but the latter, if he can but capitalize the idea, has, in all 
 conscience, much to throw back upon society in the mother 
 country. Instead of a class of the British public spending 
 so much of their time in an agitation against an institution 
 thousands of miles away from home, and over which they 
 have, and can expect to have, no control, they might direct 
 their attention to an evil laying at their own doors—that 
 social prejudice which is so much calculated to have a blast¬ 
 ing influence upon the condition of so many of their fellow- 
 subjects. It is beyond doubt that there cannot be less than 
 a quarter of a million of Gipsies in the British Isles, who 
 arc living under a grinding despotism of caste ; a despotism 
 so absolute and odious, that the people upon whom it bears 
 cannot, as in Scotland, were it almost to save their lives, 
 even say who they are ! Let the time and talents spent on 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 441 
 
 the agitation in question be transferred, for a time, into 
 some such channel as would be implied in a “ British Anti- 
 Gipsy-prejudice Association,” and a great moral evil may 
 disappear from the face of British society. In such a move¬ 
 ment, there would be none of that direct or indirect interest 
 to be ■encountered, which lies on the very threshold of sla¬ 
 very, in whatever part of the world it exists ; nor would there 
 be any occasion to appeal to people’s pockets.* After the 
 work mentioned has been accomplished, the British public 
 might turn their attention to wrongs perpetrated in other 
 climes. Americans, however, must not attempt to seek, in 
 the British Gipsy-prejudice, an excuse for their excessive 
 antipathy towards Negroes. I freely admit that the dislike 
 of white men, generally, for the Negro, lies in something that 
 is irremovable—something that is irrespective of character, 
 or present or previous social condition. But it is not so with 
 the Gipsy, for his race is, physically, among the finest that 
 are to be found on the face of the earth. Americans ought 
 also to consider that there are plenty of Gipsies among 
 themselves, towards whom, however, there are none of those 
 prejudices that spring from local tradition or association, 
 but only such as proceed from literature, and that towards 
 the tented Gipsy. 
 
 AVhat is to be the future of the Gipsy race? A reply to 
 this question will be found in the history of it during the 
 past, as described ; for it resolves itself into two very simple 
 matters of fact. In the first place, we have a foreign race, 
 deemed, by itself, to be, as indeed it is, universal, introduced 
 into Scotland, for example, taken root there, spread, and 
 flourished ; a race that rests upon a basis the strongest 
 imaginable. On the other hand, there is the prejudice of 
 caste towards the name, which those bearing it escape, only, 
 by assuming an incognito among their fellow-creatures. 
 These two principles, acting upon beings possessing the feel¬ 
 ings of men, will, of themselves, produce that state of things 
 which will constitute the history of the Gipsies during all 
 time coming, whatever may be the changes that may come 
 
 * Among the various means by which the name of Gipsy can be raised 
 up, it may be mentioned, that beginning the word with a capital is one of 
 no little importance. The almost invariable custom with writers, in that 
 respect, has been as if they were describing rats and mice, instead of a race 
 of men. 
 
 19* 
 
442 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 over their character and condition. They may, in course 
 of time, lose their language, as some of them, to a great ex¬ 
 tent, have done already; but they will always retain a con¬ 
 sciousness of being Gipsies. The language may be lost, but 
 their signs will remain, as well as so much of their speech 
 as will serve the purpose of pass-words. “ There is some¬ 
 thing there,” said an English Gipsy of intelligence, smiting 
 his breast, “ There is something there which a Gipsy cannot 
 explain.” And, said a Scottish Gipsy : “ It will never be 
 forgotten ; as long as the world lasts, the Gipsies will be 
 Gipsies.” What idea can be more preposterous than that 
 of saying, that a change of residence or occupation, or a 
 little more or less of education or wealth, or a change of 
 character or creed, can eradicate such feeling from the heart 
 of a Gipsy ; or that these circumstances can, by any human 
 possibility, change his descent, his tribe, or the blood that is 
 in his body ? How can we imagine this race, arriving in 
 Europe so lately as the fifteenth century, and in Scotland the 
 century following, with an origin so distinct from the rest 
 of the world, and so treated by the world, can possibly have 
 lost a consciousness of nationality in its descent, in so short 
 a time after arrival; or, that that can happen in the future, 
 when there are so many circumstances surrounding it to 
 keep alive a sense of its origin, and so much within it to 
 preserve its identity in the history of the human family? 
 Let the future history of the world be what it may, Gipsy- 
 dom is immortal.* 
 
 In considering the question of the Gipsies being openly 
 admitted, as a race, into the society of mankind, I ask, what 
 possible reason could a British subject advance against such 
 taking place with, at least, the better kind of Scottish Gip¬ 
 sies ? Society, generally, would not be over-ready to lessen 
 the distance between itself and the tented Gipsies, or those 
 who live by means really objectionable ; but it should have 
 that much sense of justice, as to confine its peculiar feelings 
 
 * Tliis sensation, in the minds of the Gipsies, of the perpetuity of their 
 race, creates, in a great measure, its immortality. Paradoxical as it may 
 appear, the way to preserve the existence of a people is to scatter it, pro¬ 
 vided, however, that it is a race thoroughly distinct from others, to com¬ 
 mence with. When, by the force of circumstances, it has fairly settled 
 down into the idea that it is a people, those living in one country become 
 conscious of its existence in others ; and hence arises the principal cause of 
 the perpetuity of its existence as a scattered people. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIFSIES. 
 
 443 
 
 to the ways of life of these individuals, and not keep them 
 up against their children, when they follow different habits. 
 If, for example, I should have made the acquaintance of 
 some Scottish Gipsies, associated with them, and acquired a 
 respect for them, (as has happened with me,) how could I 
 take exceptions to them, on account of it afterwards leaking 
 out that they were Gipsies ? A sense of ordinary justice 
 would forbid me doing so. I can see nothing objectionable 
 in their conduct, as distinguished from that of other people ; 
 and as for their appearance, any person, on being asked to 
 point out the Gipsy, would, so far as colour of hair and eyes 
 goes, pitch upon many a common native, in preference to 
 them. A sense of ordinary justice, as I have said, would 
 disarm me of any prejudice against them ; nay, it would urge 
 inc to think the more of them, on account of their being 
 Gipsies. To the ordinary eye, they are nothing but Scotch 
 people, and pass, everywhere, for such. There is a Scottish 
 Gipsy in the United States, with whom I am acquainted 
 —a liberal-minded man, and good company—who carries 
 on a wholesale trade, in a respectable article of merchandise, 
 and he said to me : “I will not deny it, nor am I ashamed 
 to say it —I come from Yetholm .” And I replied : “ Why 
 should you be ashamed of it ?” 
 
 It is this hereditary prejudice of centuries towards the 
 name, that constitutes the main difficulty in the way of recog¬ 
 nition of these Gipsies by the world generally. IIow long 
 it may be since they or their ancestors left the tent, is a 
 thing of no importance ; personal character, education, and 
 position in life, are the only things that should be considered. 
 The Gipsies to whom I allude do not require to be reformed, 
 unless in that sense in which all men stand in need of refor¬ 
 mation : what is wanted is, that the world should raise up 
 the name of Gipsy. And why should not that be done by 
 the people of Great Britain, and Scotland especially, in 
 whose mouths arc continually these words : “ God hath made 
 of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face 
 of the earth?” Will the British public spend its hundreds 
 of thousands, annually, on every other creature under heav¬ 
 en, and refuse to countenance the Gipsy race? Will it 
 squander its tens of thousands to convert, perhaps, on an 
 average, one Jew, and refuse a kind word, nay, grudge a 
 smile, towards that body, a member of which may be an 
 
444 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 official of that Missionary Society, or, it may he, the very 
 chairman of it ? I can conceive no liberal-minded Scotch¬ 
 man, possessing a feeling of true self-respect, entertaining a 
 prejudice against such Gipsies. The only people in Scotland 
 in whose mind such a prejudice might be supposed to exist, 
 are those miserable old women around the neighbourhood of 
 Stirling, who, under the influence of the old Highland feud, 
 will look with the greatest contempt upon a person, if he but 
 come from the north of the Ochils. I would class, with such 
 old women, all of our Scotch people who would object to the 
 Gipsies to whom I have alluded. A Scotchman should even 
 have that much love of country, as to take hold of his own 
 Gipsies, and “ back them up” against those of other coun¬ 
 tries : and particularly should he do that, when the “ Gip¬ 
 sies” might be his cousins, nay, his own children, for any¬ 
 thing that he might know to the contrary. Scotch people 
 should consider that the “ Tinklers,” whom they see going 
 about, at the present day, are, if not the very lowest kind of 
 Gipsies, at least those who follow the original ways of their 
 race ; and are greatly inferior, not only relatively, but actu¬ 
 ally, to many of those who have gone before them. They 
 should also consider that Gipsies are a race, however mixed 
 the blood may be ; subject, as a race, to be governed, in their 
 descent, by those laws which regulate the descent of all 
 races ; and that a Gipsy is as much a Gipsy in a house as in 
 a tent, in a “ but and a ben” as in a palace. 
 
 Wherever a Gipsy goes, he carries his inherent peculiari¬ 
 ties with him ; and the objection to him he considers to be 
 to something inseparable from himself—that which he can¬ 
 not escape ; but the confidence which he has in his incognito 
 neutralizes, as I have already said, the feelings which such a 
 circumstance would naturally produce. But, to disarm him 
 altogether of this feeling, all that is necessary is to state his 
 case, and have it admitted by the “ honourable of the earth;” 
 so that his mind may be set at perfect rest on that point. 
 He would, doubtless, still hide the fact of his being a Gipsy, 
 but he would enjoy, in his retreat, that inward self-respect, 
 among his fellow-creatures, which such an admission would 
 give him ; and which is so much calculated to raise the peo¬ 
 ple, generally, in every moral attribute. It is, indeed, a mel¬ 
 ancholy thing, to contemplate this cloud which hangs over 
 such a man, as he mixes with other people, in his daily cal) 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 445 
 
 mg ; but to dispel it altogether, the Gipsy himself must, in 
 the manner described, give us some information about his 
 race. Apart from the sense of justice which is implied in 
 admitting these Gipsies, as Gipsies, to a social equality with 
 others, a motive of policy should lead us to take such a step ; 
 for it can augur no good to society to have the Gipsy race 
 residing in its midst, under the cloud that hangs over it. 
 Let us, by a liberal and enlightened policy, at least blunt 
 the edge of that antipathy which many of the Gipsy race 
 have, and most naturally have, to society at large. 
 
 In receiving a Gipsy, as a Gipsy, into society, there should 
 be no kind of officious sympathy shown him, for he is too proud 
 to submit to be made the object of it. Should he say that he is 
 a Gipsy, the remark ought to be received as a mere matter 
 of course, and little notice taken of it; just as if it made no 
 difference to the other party whether he was a Gipsy or not. 
 A little surprise would be allowable ; but anything like con¬ 
 dolence would be out of the question. And let the Gipsy 
 himself, rather, talk upon the subject, than a desire be shown 
 to ask him questions, unless his remarks should allow them, 
 in a natural way, to be put to him. As to the course to be 
 pursued by the Gipsy, should he feel disposed to own himself 
 up, I would advise him to do it in an off-handed, hearty 
 manner ; to show not the least appearance that he had any 
 misgivings about any one taking exceptions to him on that 
 account. Should he act otherwise, that is, hesitate, and 
 take to himself shamefacedness, in making the admission, it 
 would, perhaps, have been better for him not to have com¬ 
 mitted himself at all : for, in such a matter, it may be said, 
 that “ he that doubteth is damned.” The simple fact of a 
 man, in Scotland, saying, after the appearance of this work 
 there, that he is a Gipsy, if he is conscious of having the 
 esteem of his neighbours, would probably add to his popu¬ 
 larity among them ; especially if they were men of good 
 sense, and had before their eyes the expression of good-will 
 of the organs of society towards the Gipsy race. Such an 
 admission, on the part of a Gipsy, would presumptively 
 prove, that ho was a really candid and upright person ; for 
 few Scottish Gipsies, beyond those about Yctholm, would 
 make such a confession. Having mentioned the subject, the 
 Gipsy should allude to it, on every appropriate occasion, 
 and boast of being in possession of those words and sigus 
 
446 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 which the other is entirely ignorant of. He could well say: 
 “ What was Borrow to him, or lie to Borrow ; that, for his 
 part, lie could traverse the world over, and, in the centre of 
 any continent, be received and feasted, by Gipsies, as a king.” 
 If but one respectable Scottish Gipsy could be prevailed 
 upon to act in this way, what an effect might it not have 
 upon raising up the name of this singular race ! But there 
 is a very serious difficulty to be encountered in the outset of 
 such a proceeding, and it is this, that if a Gipsy owns him¬ 
 self up, he necessarily “ lets out,” perhaps, all his kith and 
 kin ; a regard for whom would, in all probability, keep him 
 back. But there would be no such difficulty to be met with 
 in the way of the Gipsy giving us information by writing. 
 Let us, then, Gipsy, have some writing upon the Gipsies. It 
 will serve no good purpose to keep such information back ; 
 the keeping of it back will not cast a doubt upon the facts 
 and principles of the present work ; for rest assured, Gipsy, 
 that, upon its own merits, your secret is exploded. I would 
 say this to you, young Scottish Gipsy ; pay no regard to what 
 that old Gipsy says, when he tells you, that “ he is too old 
 a bird to be caught with chaff in that way.” 
 
 The history of the Gipsies is the history of a people 
 (mixed, in point of blood, as it is,) which exists ; not the his¬ 
 tory of a people, like the Aborigines of North America, 
 which has ceased to exist, or is daily ceasing to exist.* It 
 is the history of a people within a people, with whom we 
 come in contact daily, although we may not be aware of it. 
 Any person of ordinary intelligence can have little difficulty 
 in comprehending the subject, shrouded as it is from the eye 
 of the world. But should he have any such difficulty, it will 
 be dispelled by his coming in contact with a Gipsy who has 
 the courage to own himself up to be a Gipsy. It is no ar¬ 
 gument to maintain that the Gipsy race is not a race, be¬ 
 cause its blood is mixed with other people. That can be 
 said of all the races of Western Europe, the English more 
 especially ; and, in a much greater degree, of that of the 
 United States of America. Every Gipsy has part of the 
 
 * The fact of these Indians, and the aboriginal races found in the coun¬ 
 tries colonized by Europeans, disappearing so rapidly, prevents our regard¬ 
 ing them with any great degree of interest. This circumstance detracts 
 from that idea of dignity which the perpetuity and civilization of their race 
 would inspire in the minds of others. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 447 
 
 Gipsy blood, and more or less of the words and signs ; which, 
 taken in connection with the rearing of Gipsies, act upon 
 his mind in sucli a manner, that he is penetrated with the 
 simple idea that he is a Gipsy ; and create that distinct feel¬ 
 ing of nationality which the matters of territory, and some¬ 
 times dialect, government, and laws, do with most of other 
 races. Take a Gipsy from any country in the world you 
 may, and the feeling of his being a Gipsy comes as naturally 
 to him as does the nationality of a Jew to a Jew ; although 
 we will naturally give him a more definite name, to distin¬ 
 guish him ; such as an English, Welsh, Scotch, or Irish 
 Gipsy, or by whatever country of which the Gipsy happens 
 to be a native. 
 
 But I am afraid that what has been said is not sufficiently 
 explanatory to enable some people to understand this sub¬ 
 ject. These people know what a Gipsy, in the popular sense, 
 means ; they have either seen him, and observed his general 
 mode of life, or had the same described to them in books. 
 This idea of a Gipsy has been impressed upon their minds 
 almost from infancy. But it puzzles most people to form any 
 idea of a Gipsy of a higher order ; such a Gipsy, for exam¬ 
 ple, as preaches the gospel, or argues the law : that seems, 
 hitherto, to have been almost incomprehensible to them. 
 They know intuitively what is meant by any particular peo¬ 
 ple who occupy a territory—any country, tract of land, or 
 isle. They also know what is meant by the existence of the 
 Jews. For the subject is familiar to them from infancy; 
 it is wrapt up in their early reading ; it is associated with 
 the knowledge and practice of their religion, and the attend¬ 
 ance, on the part of the Jews, at a place of worship. They 
 have likewise seen and conversed with the Jews, or others 
 who have done either or both ; or they are acquainted with 
 them by the current remarks of the world. But a people 
 resembling, in so many respects, the Jews, without having 
 any territory, or form of creed, peculiar to itself, or any his¬ 
 tory, or any peculiar outward associations or residences, or 
 any material difference in appearance, character, or oc¬ 
 cupation, is something that the general mind of mankind 
 would seem never to have dreamt of, or to be almost capa¬ 
 ble of realizing to itself. We have already seen how a 
 writer in Blackwood’s Magazine gravely asserts, that, al¬ 
 though “ Billy Marshall left descendants numberless, the race, 
 
448 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 of which he was one, was in danger of becoming extinct 
 when, in fact, it had only passed from its first stage of ex¬ 
 istence—the tent, into its second—tramping, without the 
 tent; and after that, into its ultimate stage—a settled life. 
 We have likewise seen how Sir Walter Scott imagines that 
 the Scottish Gipsies have decreased, since the time of 
 Fletcher, of Saltoun, about the year 1680, from 100,000 to 
 500, by “ the progress of time, and encrease of the means of 
 life, and the power of the laws.” Mr. Borrow has not gone 
 one step ahead of these writers ; and, although I naturally 
 enough excuse them, I am not inclined to let him go scot- 
 free, since he has set himself forward so prominently as an 
 authority on the Gipsy question.* 
 
 In explaining this subject, it is by no means necessary to 
 “ crack an egg” for the occasion. There is doubtless a 
 “ hitch,” but it is a hitch so close under our very noses, that 
 it has escaped the observation of the world. Still, the point 
 can be readily enough realized by any one. Take, for ex¬ 
 ample, the Walker family. Walker knows well enough who 
 his father, grandfather, and so forth were ; and holds him¬ 
 self to be a .Walker. Is it not so with the Gipsies ? What 
 is it but a question of “ folk ?” A question more familiar 
 to Scotch people than any other people. If one’s ancestors 
 were all Walkers, is not the present Walker still a Walker? 
 If such or such a family was originally of the Gipsy race, is 
 it not so still? How did Billy Marshall happen to be a 
 Gipsy ? Was he a Gipsy because he lived in a tent ? or, 
 did he live in a tent, like a Gipsy of the old stock ? If Billy 
 was a Gipsy, surely Billy’s children must also have been 
 Gipsies! 
 
 The error committed by writers, with reference to the so- 
 called “ dying-out” of the Gipsy race, arises from their not 
 distinguishing between the questions of race, blood, descent, 
 and language, and a style of life, or character, or mode of 
 making a living. Suppose that a native Scottish cobbler 
 should leave his last, and take to peddling, as a packman, 
 
 * A writer in the Penny Cyclopa>dia illustrates this absurd idea, in very 
 plain terms, when he says: “ In England, the Gipsies have much dimin¬ 
 ished, of late years, in consequence of the enclosure of lands, and the laws 
 against vagrants.” Sir Walter Scott’s idea of the Gipsies has been fol¬ 
 lowed in a pictorial history of Scotland, lately issued from the Scottish 
 press. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 449 
 
 and ultimately settle again in a town, as a respectable trades¬ 
 man. On quitting “the roads,” lie would cease to be a 
 packman ; nor could his children after him be called pack¬ 
 men, because the whole family were native Scotch from the 
 first; following the pack having been only the occupation of 
 the father, during part of his life. Should a company of 
 American youths and maidens take to the swamp, cranberry- 
 ing and gipsying, for a time, it could not be said that they 
 had become Gipsies; for they were nothing but ordinary 
 Americans. Should the society of Quakers dissolve into its 
 original elements, it would just be English blood quaker- 
 ized, returning to English blood before it was quakerized. 
 But it is astonishing that intelligent men should conceive, 
 and others retail, the ideas that have been expressed in re¬ 
 gard to the destiny of the Gipsy race. What avails the les¬ 
 sons of history, or the daily experience of every family of 
 the land, the common sense of mankind, or the instinct of a 
 Hottentot, if no other idea of the fate of the Gipsy race can 
 be given than that referred to? Upon the principle of the 
 Gipsies “ dying out,” by settling, and changing their habits, 
 it would appear that, when at home, in the winter, they were 
 not Gipsies ; but that they were Gipsies, when they resumed 
 their habits, in the spring! On the same principle, it would 
 appear, that, if every Gipsy in the world were to disappear 
 from the roads and the fields, and drop his original habits, 
 there would be no Gipsies in the world, at all! What idea 
 can possibly be more ridiculous?* 
 
 It is better, however, to compare the Gipsy tribe in Scot¬ 
 land, at the present day, to an ordinary clan in the olden 
 time ; although the comparison falls far short of the idea. 
 
 * The following singular remarks appeared in a very late number of 
 Chambers’ Journal, on the subject of the Gipsies of the Danube: “ As the 
 wild cat. the otter, and the wolf, generally disappear before the advance of 
 civilization, the wild races of mankind are, in like manner and degree, gra¬ 
 dually coming to an end, and from the same causes (!) 'ihe waste lands get 
 enclosed, the woods are cut down, the police becomes yearly more efficient, 
 and the Pariahs vanish with their means of subsistence. [Where do they 
 goto?] In England, there are. at most, 1,500 Gipsivs(!) Before the end 
 of the present century, they will probably be extinct over Western Eu¬ 
 rope (!)” 
 
 It is perfectly evident that the world, outside of Gipsydom, has to be 
 initiated in the subject of the Gipsies, as in the first principles of a science, 
 or as a child is instructed in its alphabet. And yet, the above-mentioned 
 writer takes upon himself to chide Mr. Borrow, in the matter of the Gip¬ 
 sies. 
 
450 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 We know perfectly well wliat it was to have been a mem¬ 
 ber of this or that clan. Sir Walter Scott knew well that 
 he was one of the Buccleueh clan, and a descendant of Auld 
 Beard ie ; so that he could readily say that he was a Scott. 
 Wherein, then, consists the difficulty in understanding what 
 a Scottish Gipsy is ? Is it not simply that he is “ one of 
 them a descendant of that foreign race of which we have 
 such notice in the treaty of 1540, between James V. and 
 John Faw, the then head of the Scottish Gipsy tribe? A 
 Scottish Gipsy has the blood, the words, and the signs, of 
 these men, and as naturally holds himself to be “ one of 
 them,” as a native Scotchman holds himself to be one of his 
 father’s children. How, then, can a “ change of habits” 
 prevent a man from being his father’s son ? How could a 
 “change of habits” make a McGregor anything but a McGreg¬ 
 or ? How could the effects of any just and liberal law 
 towards the McGregors lead to the decrease, and final ex¬ 
 tinction, of the McGregors ? Every man, every family, 
 every clan, and every people, are continually “ changing 
 their habits,” but still remain the same people. It would be 
 a treat to have a treatise from Mr. Borrow upon the Gipsy 
 race “ dying out,” by “ changing its habits,” or by the acts 
 of any government, or by ideas of “ gentility.” 
 
 I have already alluded to a resemblance between the posi¬ 
 tion of the Gipsy race, at the present day, and that of the 
 English and American races. Does any one say that the 
 English race is not a race ? Or that the American is not a 
 race? And yet the latter is a compost of everything that 
 migrates from the Old World. But take some families, and 
 we will find that they are almost pure English, in descent, 
 and hold themselves to be actually such. But ask them if 
 they are English, and they will readily answer: “ English? 
 No, siree !” The same principle holds still more with the 
 Gipsy race. It is not a question of country against country, 
 or government against government, separated by an ocean ; 
 but the difference proceeds from a prejudice, as broad and 
 deep as the ocean, that exists between two races—the native, 
 and that of such recent introduction—dwelling in the same 
 community. 
 
 I have explained the effect which the mixing of native 
 blood with Gipsy has upon the Gipsy race, showing that it 
 only modifies its appearance, and facilitates its passing into 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 451 
 
 settled and respectable life. I will now substantiate the 
 principle from what is daily observed among the native race 
 itself. Take any native family—one of the Scotts, for ex¬ 
 ample. Let us commence with a family, tracing its origin 
 to a Scott, in the year 1600, and imagine that, in its de¬ 
 scent, every representative of the name married a wife of 
 another family, or clan, having no Scotts’ blood in her veins. 
 In the seventh descent, there would be only one one-hundred 
 and twenty-eighth part of the original Scott in the last re¬ 
 presentative of the family. Would not the last Scott be a 
 Scott ? The world recognizes him to be a Scott ; he holds 
 himself to be a Scott—“ every inch a Scottand doubtless 
 he is a Scott, as much as his ancestor who existed in the year 
 1600. What difficulty can there, therefore, be, in under¬ 
 standing how a man can be a Gipsy, whose blood is mixed, 
 even “ dreadfully mixed,” as the English Gipsies express it? 
 Gipsies are Gipsies, let their blood be mixed as much as it 
 may ; whether the introduction of the native blood may 
 have come into the family through the male or the female 
 line. 
 
 In the descent of a native family, in the instance given, 
 the issue follows the name of the family. But, with the 
 Gipsy race, the thing to be transmitted is not merely a ques¬ 
 tion of family, but a race distinct from any particular family. 
 If a Gipsy woman marries into a native family, the issue 
 retains the family name of the husband, but passes into the 
 Gipsy tribe ; if a Gipsy man marries into a native family, 
 the issue retains his name, in the general order of society, 
 and likewise passes into the Gipsy tribe ; so that such 
 intermarriages, which almost invariably take place un¬ 
 known to the native race, always leave the issue Gipsy. 
 For the Gipsy element of society is like a troubled 
 spirit, which has been despised, persecuted, and damned ; 
 cross it out, to appearance, as much as you may, it still 
 retains its Gipsy identity. It then assumes the form of 
 a disembodied spirit, that will enter into any kind of 
 tabernacle, in the manner described, dispel every other 
 kind of spirit, clean or unclean, as the case may be, and 
 come up, under any garb, colour, character, occupation, or creed 
 —Gipsy. It is perfectly possible, but not very probable, to 
 find a Gipsy a Jew, in creed, and, for the most part, in point 
 of blood, in the event of a Jew marrying a mixed Gipsy. 
 
452 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 He might follow the creed of the Jewish parent, and be ad- 
 mitted into the synagogue; but, although outwardly recog¬ 
 nised as a Jew, and having Jewish features, he would still 
 be a chabo ; for there are Gipsies of all creeds, and, like 
 other people in the world, of no creed at all. But it is ex¬ 
 tremely disagreeable to a Gipsy to have such a subject men¬ 
 tioned in his hearing ; for he heartily dislikes a Jew, and 
 says that no one has any “chance” in dealing with him. A 
 Gipsy likewise says, that the two races ought not to be men¬ 
 tioned in the same breath, or put on the same footing, which 
 is very true ; for reason tells us, that, strip the Gipsy of 
 every idea connected with “ taking bits o’ things,” and lead¬ 
 ing a wild life, and there should be no points of enmity 
 between him and the ordinary native ; certainly not that of 
 creed, which exists between the Jew and the rest of the 
 world, to which question I will by and by refer. 
 
 The subject of the Gipsies has hitherto been treated as a 
 question of natural history, only, in the same manner as we 
 would treat ant-bears. Writers have sat down beside them, 
 and looked at them—little more than looked at them—des¬ 
 cribed some of their habits, and reported their chaff. To 
 get to the bottom of the subject, it is necessary to sound the 
 mind of the Gipsy, lay open and dissect his heart, identify 
 one’s self with his feelings, and the bearings of his ideas, 
 and construct, out of these, a system of mental science, based 
 upon the mind of the Gipsy, and human nature generally. 
 For it is the mind of the Gipsy that constitutes the Gipsy ; 
 that which, in reference to its singular origin and history, 
 is, in itself, indestructible, imperishable and immortal. 
 
 Consider, then, this race, which is of such recent introduc¬ 
 tion upon the stage of the European world, of such a sin¬ 
 gular origin and history, and of such universal existence, 
 with such a prejudice existing against it, and the merest 
 impulse of reflection, apart from the facts of the case, will 
 lead us to conclude, that, as it has settled, it has remained 
 true to itself, in the various associations of life. In what¬ 
 ever position, or under whatever circumstances, it is to be 
 found, it may be compared, in reference to its past history, 
 to a chain, and the early Gipsies, to those who have charged 
 it with electricity. However mixed, or however polished, 
 the metal of the links may have since become, they have al¬ 
 ways served to convey the Gipsy fluid to every generation 
 
 0 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 453 
 
 of the race. It is even unnecessary to enquire, particularly, 
 how that has been accomplished, for it is self-evident that 
 the process which has linked other races to their ancestry, 
 has doubly linked the Gipsy race 1o theirs. Indeed, the 
 idea of being Gipsies never can leave the Gipsy race. A 
 Gipsy’s life is like a continual conspiracy towards the rest 
 of the world ; he has always a secret upon his mind, and, 
 from his childhood to his old age, he is so placed as if he 
 were, in a negative sense, engaged in some gunpowder plot, 
 or as if he had committed a crime, let his character be as 
 good as it possibly may. Into whatever company he may 
 enter, he naturally remarks to himself: “ I wonder if there 
 are any of us here.” That is the position which the mixed 
 and better kind of Gipsy occupies, generally and passively. 
 Of course, there are some of the race who are always 
 actually hatching some plot or other against thg rest of the 
 world. Take a Gipsy of the popular kind, who appears as 
 such to the world, and there are two ideas constantly before 
 him—that of the Gorcjio and Chabo : they may slumber 
 while he is in his house, or in his tent, or when he is asleep, 
 or his mind is positively occupied with something ; but let 
 any one come near him, or him meet or accost any one, and 
 he naturally remarks, to himself, that the person “ is not one 
 of us,” or that he “ is one of us.” He knows well what the 
 native may be thinking or saying of him, and he as naturally 
 responds in his own mind. This circumstance of itself, this 
 frightful prejudice against the individual, makes, or at least 
 keeps, the Gipsy wild ; it calls forth the passion of resent¬ 
 ment, and produces a feeling of reckless abandon, that might 
 otherwise leave him. To that is to be added the feeling, in 
 the Gipsy’s mind, of his race having been persecuted, for he 
 knows little of the circumstances attending the origin of the 
 laws passed against his tribe, and attributes them to perse¬ 
 cution alone. He considers that he has a right to travel ; 
 that he has heen deprived of rights to travel, which were 
 granted to his tribe by the monarchs of past ages ; and, 
 moreover, that his ancestors—the “ ancient wandering Egyp¬ 
 tians”—always travelled. He feels perfectly independent of, 
 and snaps his fingers at, everybody ; and entertains a pro¬ 
 found suspicion of any one who may approach him, inasmuch 
 as he imagines that the stranger, however fair he may speak 
 to him, has that feeling for him, as if he considered it pollu- 
 
454 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 tion to touch him. But he is very civil and plausible when 
 he is at home. 
 
 It is from such material that all kinds of settled Gipsies, 
 at one time or other, have sprung. Such is the prejudice 
 against the race, that, if they did not hide the fact of their 
 being Gipsies from the ordinary natives, they would hardly 
 have the “ life of a dog” among them, because of their hav¬ 
 ing sprung from a race which, in its original state, has been 
 persecuted, and so much despised. By settling in life, and 
 conforming with the ways of the rest of the community, they 
 “ cease to be Gipsies,” in the estimation of the world ; for 
 the world imagines that, when the Gipsy conforms to its 
 ways, there is an end of his being a Gipsy. Barring the 
 “ habits,” such a Gipsy is as much a Gipsy as before, al¬ 
 though he is one incog. The wonder is not that he and his 
 descendants should be Gipsies ; but the real wonder is, that 
 they should not be Gipsies. Neither he nor his descendants 
 have any choice in the matter. Does the settled Gipsy keep 
 a crockery or tin establishment, or an inn, or follow any 
 other occupation ? Then his children cannot all follow the 
 same calling; they must betake themselves to the various 
 employments open to the community at large, and, their 
 blood being mixed, they become lost to the general eye, 
 amid the rest of the population. While this process is 
 gradually going on, the Gipsy population which always re¬ 
 mains in the tent—the hive from which the tribe swarms— 
 attracts the attention of the public, and prevents it from 
 thinking anything about the matter. In England, alone, we 
 may safely assume that the tented Gipsy population, about 
 the commencement of this century, must have encreased at 
 least four-fold by this time, while, to the eye of the public, it 
 would appear that “ the Gipsies are gradually decreasing, so 
 that, by and by, they will become extinct.” 
 
 The world, generally, has never even thought about this 
 subject. When I have spoken to people promiscuously in 
 regard to it, they have replied : “ We suppose that the Gip¬ 
 sies, as they have settled in life, have got lost among the 
 general population :” than which nothing can be more un¬ 
 founded, as a matter of fact, or ridiculous, as a matter of 
 theory. Imagine a German family settling in Scotland. 
 The feeling of being Germans becomes lost in the first gen¬ 
 eration, who do not, perhaps, speak a word of German. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 455 
 
 There is no prejudice entertained for the family, but, on the 
 contrary, much good-will and respect are shown it by its 
 neighbours. The parents identify themselves with those 
 surrounding them ; the children, born in the country, be¬ 
 come, or rather are, Scotch altogether; so that all that re¬ 
 mains is the sense of a German extraction, which, but for 
 the name of the family, would very soon be lost, or become 
 a mere matter of tradition. In every other respect, the fam¬ 
 ily, sooner or later, becomes lost amid the general population. 
 In America, we daily see Germans getting mixed with, and 
 lost among, Americans ; but where is the evidence of such 
 a process going on, or ever having taken place, in Great 
 Britain, between the Gipsy and the native races? The 
 prejudice which the ordinary natives have for the very name 
 of Gipsy is sufficient proof that the Gipsy tribe has not been 
 lost in any such manner. Still, it has not only got mixed, 
 but “ dreadfully mixed,” with the native blood ; but it 
 has worked up the additional blood within itself, having 
 thoroughly gipsyfied it. The original Gipsy blood may be 
 compared to liquid in a vessel, into which native liquid has 
 been put: the mixture has, as a natural consequence, lost, 
 in a very great measure, its original colour ; but, inasmuch 
 as the most important element in the amalgamation has been 
 mind , the result is, that, in its descent, it has remained, as 
 before, Gipsy. Instead, therefore, of the Gipsies having 
 become lost among the native population, a certain part of 
 the native blood has been lost among them, greatly adding 
 to the number of the body. 
 
 We cannot institute any comparison between the intro¬ 
 duction of the Gipsies and the Huguenots, the last body of 
 foreigners that entered Great Britain, relative to the destiny 
 of the respective foreign elements. For the Huguenots were 
 not a race, as distinguished from every other creature in the 
 world, but a religious party, taking refuge among a people 
 of cognate blood and language, and congenial religious feel¬ 
 ings and faith ; and were, to say the least of it, on a par, in 
 every respect, with the ordinary natives, with nothing con¬ 
 nected with them to prevent an amalgamation with the 
 other inhabitants ; but, on the contrary, having this char¬ 
 acteristic, in common with the nations of Europe, that the 
 place of birth constitutes the fact, and, taken in connection 
 with the residence, creates the feelings of nationality and 
 
45G 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 race. Many of my readers are, doubtless, conversant with 
 the history of the Huguenots. Even in some parts of 
 America, nothing is more common than for people to say 
 that they are Huguenots, that is, of Huguenot descent, 
 which is very commonly made the foundation of the con¬ 
 nections and intimate associations of life. The peculiarity 
 is frequently shown in the appearance of the individuals, and 
 in such mental traits as spring from the contemplation of 
 the Huguenots as an historical and religious party, even 
 when the individual now follows the Catholic faith. But 
 these people differ in no essential respect from the other 
 inhabitants. 
 
 But how different is the position always occupied by the 
 Gipsies! Well may they consider themselves “strangers 
 in the land for by whom have they ever been acknowl¬ 
 edged ? They entered Scotland, for example, and have 
 encreased, progressed, and developed, with so great a preju¬ 
 dice against them, and so separated in their feelings from 
 others around them, as if none had almost existed in the 
 country but themselves, while they were “ dwelling in the 
 midst of their brethren the native blood that has been 
 incorporated with them having the appearance as if it had 
 come from abroad. They, a people distinct from any other 
 in the world, have sprung from the most primitive stage of 
 human existence—the tent, and their knowledge of their 
 race goes no further back than when it existed in other 
 parts of the world, in the same condition, more or less, as 
 themselves. They have been a migratory tribe, wherever 
 they have appeared or settled, and have never ceased to be 
 the same peculiar race, notwithstanding the changes which 
 they have undergone ; and have been at home wherever they 
 have found themselves placed. The mere place of birth, or 
 the circumstance under which the individual has been 
 reared, has had no effect upon their special nationality, 
 although, as citizens of particular countries, they have as¬ 
 similated, in their general ideas, with others around them. 
 And not only have they had a language peculiar to them¬ 
 selves, but signs as exclusively theirs as are those of Free¬ 
 masons. For Gipsies stand to Gipsies as Freemasons to 
 Freemasons ; with this difference—that Masons are bound to 
 respond to and help each other, while such associations, 
 among the Gipsies, are optional with the individual, who, 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 457 
 
 however, is persuaded that the same people, with these ex¬ 
 clusive peculiarities, are to be met with in every part of the 
 world. A Gipsy is, in his way, a Mason born, and, from his 
 infancy, is taught to hide everything connected with his race, 
 from those around him. He is his own tyler, and tyles his 
 lips continually. Imagine, then, a person taught, from his 
 infancy, to understand that he is a Gipsy ; that his blood, (at 
 least part of it,) is Gipsy ; that he has been instructed in the 
 language, and initiated in all the mysteries, of the Gipsies ; 
 that his relations and acquaintances in the tribe have under¬ 
 gone the same experience ; that the utmost reserve towards 
 those who arc not Gipsies has been continually inculcated 
 upon him, and as often practised before his eyes ; and what 
 must be the leading idea, in that person’s mind, but that he 
 is a Gipsy? His pedigree is Gipsy, his mind has been cast 
 in a Gipsy mould, and lie can no more “ cease to be a Gipsy” 
 than perform any other impossibility in nature. Thus it is 
 that Gipsydom is not a work of man’s hand, nor a creed, 
 that is “ revealed from faith to faith but a work which has 
 been written by the hand of God upon the heart of a family 
 of mankind, and is reflected from the mind of one generation 
 to that of another. It enters into the feelings of the very 
 existence of the man, and such is the prejudice against his 
 race, on the part of the ordinary natives, that the better 
 kind of Scottish Gispy feels that he, and more particularly 
 she, would almost be “ torn in pieces,” if the public really 
 knew all about them. 
 
 These facts will sufficiently illustrate how a people, “ re¬ 
 sembling, in so many respects, the Jews, without having any 
 territory, or form of creed, peculiar to itself, or any history, 
 or any peculiar outward associations or residences, or any 
 material difference in appearance, character, or occupation,” 
 can be a people, living among other people, and yet be dis¬ 
 tinct from those among whom they live. The distinction 
 consists in this people having blood, language, a cast of mind, 
 and signs, peculiar to itself; the three first being the only 
 elements which distinguish races ; for religion is a secondary 
 consideration ; one religion being common to many distinct 
 races. This principle, which is more commonly applied to 
 people occupying different countries, is equally applicable to 
 races, clans, families, or individuals, living within the 
 boundary of a particular country, or dwelling in the same 
 20 
 
458 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 community. We can easily understand how two individuals 
 can be two distinct individuals, notwithstanding their being 
 members of the same family, and professing the same religion. 
 We can still more easily understand the same of two families, 
 and still more so of two septs or clans of the same general 
 race. And, surely, there can be no difficulty in understand¬ 
 ing that the Gipsy tribe, whatever may be its habits, is 
 something different from any native tribe : for it has never 
 yet found rest for the sole of its foot among the native race, 
 although it has secured a shelter clandestinely ; and of the 
 extent, and especially of the nature, of its existence, the 
 world may be said to be entirely ignorant. The position 
 which the Gipsy race occupies in Scotland is that which it 
 substantially occupies in every other country—unacknowl¬ 
 edged, and, in a sense, damned, everywhere. There is, there¬ 
 fore, no wonder that it should remain a distinct family 
 among mankind, cemented by its language and signs, and 
 the knowledge of its universality. The phenomenon rests 
 upon purely natural causes, and differs considerably from 
 that of the existence of the Jews. For the Jews are, every¬ 
 where, acknowledged by the world, after a sort; they have 
 neither language nor, as far as I know, signs peculiar to 
 themselves, (although there are secret orders among them,) 
 but possess the most ancient history, an original country, to 
 which they, more or less, believe they will be restored, and 
 a religion of divine origin, but utterly superseded by a 
 new and better dispensation. Notwithstanding all that, the 
 following remark, relative to the existence of the Jews, since 
 the dispersion, may very safely be recalled: “The philoso¬ 
 phical historian confesses that he has no place for it in all 
 his generalizations, and refers it to the mysteries of Provi¬ 
 dence.” For the history of the Gipsies bears a very great 
 resemblance to it; and, inasmuch as that is not altogether 
 “ the device of men’s hands,” it must, also, be referred to 
 Providence, for Providence has a hand in everything. 
 
 It is very true that the “ philosophical historian has no 
 place, in all his generalizations, for the phenomenon of the 
 existence of the Jews, since the dispersion,” for he has never 
 investigated the subject inductively, and on its own merits. 
 It is poor logic to assert that, because the American Indians 
 are, to a great extent, and will soon be, extinct, therefore 
 the existence of the Jews, to-day, is a miracle. And it would 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 459 
 
 be nearly as poor logic to maintain the same of the Jews in 
 connection with any of the ancient and extinct nations. 
 There is no analogy between the history of the Jews, since 
 the dispersion, and that of any other people, (excepting the 
 Gipsies ;) and, consequently, no comparison can be instituted 
 between them.* Before asking how it is that the Jews exist 
 to-day, it would be well to enquire by what possible process 
 they could cease to be Jews. And by what human means 
 the Jews, as a people, or even as individuals, will receive 
 Christ as their Messiah, and thereby become Christian 
 Jews. This idea of the Jews existing by a miracle has 
 been carried to a very great length, as the following quota¬ 
 tion, from an excellent writer, on the Evidences of Chris¬ 
 tianity, will show : “ What is this,” says he, “ but a miracle? 
 connected with the prophecy which it fulfills, it is a double 
 miracle. Whether testimony can ever establish the credi¬ 
 bility of a miracle is of no importance here. This one is 
 obvious to every man’s senses. All nations are its eye-wit¬ 
 nesses.The laws of nature have been suspended 
 
 in their case.” This writer, in a spirit of gambling, stakes 
 the whole question of revelation upon his own dogma ; and, 
 according to his hypothesis, loses it. The laws of nature 
 would, indeed, have been suspended, in their case, and a 
 miracle would, indeed, have been wrought, if the Jews had 
 ceased to be Jews, or had become anything else than what 
 they are to-day. Writers on the Christian Evidences should 
 content themselves with maintaining that the Jews have 
 fulfilled the prophecies, and will yet fulfill them, and assert 
 nothing further of them. 
 
 The writer alluded to compares the history of the Jews, 
 since the dispersion, to the following phenomenon : “ A 
 mighty river, having plunged, from a mountain height, into 
 the depths of the ocean, and been separated into its com¬ 
 ponent drops, and thus scattered to the ends of the world, 
 and blown about, by all winds, during almost eighteen cen¬ 
 turies, is still capable of being disunited from the waters of 
 the ocean ; its minutest drops, vever having been assimilated 
 to any other, are still distinct,unchanged, and ready to be 
 gathered.” Such language cannot be applied to the Jews ; 
 for the philosophy of their existence, to-day, is so very sim¬ 
 ple in its nature, as to have escaped the observation of man- 
 
 * I lenve out of view various scattered nations in Asia. 
 
460 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 kind. I will give it further on in this Disquisition. The 
 language in question is somewhat applicable to the Gipsies, 
 for they have become tcorked into all other nations, in re¬ 
 gard to blood and language, and are “ still distinct and 
 unchanged,” as to their being Gipsies, whatever their habits 
 may be; and, although there is no occasion for them to be 
 “ gathered,” they would yet, outwardly or inwardly, heartily 
 respond to any call addressed to them.* 
 
 There is, as I have already said, no real outward difference 
 between many settled and educated Scottish Gipsies and 
 ordinary natives ; for such Gipsies are as likely to have fair 
 hair and blue eyes, as black. Their characters and occupa¬ 
 tions may be the same ; they may have intimate associations 
 together ; may be engaged in business as partners ; may 
 even be cousins, nay, half-brothers. But let them, on 
 separate occasions, enter a company of Gipsies, and the re¬ 
 ception shown to them will mark the difference in the two 
 individuals. The difference between two such Scotchmen, 
 (for they really are both Scotch,) the reader may remark, 
 makes the Gipsy only a Gipsy nominally, which, outwardly, 
 he is ; but he is still a Gipsy, although, in point of colour, 
 character, or condition, not one of the old stock ; for he has 
 “ the blood,” and has been reared and instructed as a Gipsy. 
 But such a Gipsy is not fond of entering a company of Gip¬ 
 sies, strangers to him, unless introduced by a friend in whom 
 he has confidence, for he is afraid of being known to be a 
 Gipsy. He is more apt to visit some of the more original 
 kind of the race, where he is not known. On sitting down 
 beside them, with a friendly air, they will be sure to treat 
 him kindly, not knowing but that they may be entertaining 
 a Gipsy unawares ; for such original Gipsies, believing that 
 “ the blood” is to be found well up in life, feel very curious 
 when they meet with such a person. If he “ lets out” an 
 idea in regard to the race, and expresses a kindly feeling 
 towards the blood,” the suspicions of his friends are at 
 once excited, so that, if iie, in an equivocal manner, remarks 
 that he is “ not one of them,” hesitates, stammers, and pro¬ 
 tests that he really is not one of them, they will as readily 
 swear that he is one of them ; for well does the blackguard 
 
 * It is interesting to hear the Gipsies speak of their race “ taking of ” 
 this or the other race. Said an English Gipsy, to me, with reference to some 
 Gipsies of whom we were speaking: “ They take of the Arabians.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 461 
 
 Gipsy, (as the world calls him,) know the delicacy of such 
 settled and educated Gipsies in owning the blood. There 
 is less suspicion shown, on such occasions, when the settled 
 Gipsy is Scotch, and the bush Gipsy English ; and particularly 
 so should the occasion be in America ; for, when they meet in 
 America, away from the peculiar relations under which they 
 have been reared, and where they can “breathe,” as they ex¬ 
 press it, the respective classes are not so suspicious of each other. 
 
 Besides the difference just drawn between the Gips}*- and 
 ordinary native—that of recognizing and being recognized 
 by another Gipsy—I may mention the following general 
 distinction between them. The ordinary Scot knows that 
 he is a Scot, and nothing more, unless it be something about 
 his ancestors of two or three generations. But the Gipsy’s 
 idea of Scotland goes back to a certain time, indefinite to 
 him, as it may be, beyond which his race had no existence 
 in the country. Where his ancestors sojourned, immediately, 
 or at any time, before they entered Scotland, he cannot tell; 
 but this much he knows of them, that they are neither Scot¬ 
 tish nor European, but that they came from the East-. The 
 fact of his blood being mixed exercises little or no influence 
 over his feelings relative to his tribe, for, mixed as it may 
 be, he knows that he is one of the tribe, and that the origin 
 of his tribe is his origin. In a word, he knows that he has 
 sprung from the tent. Substitute the word Scotch for Moor, 
 as related of the black African Gipsies, at page 429, and he 
 may say of himself and tribe: “ We are not Scotch, but can 
 give no account of ourselves.” It is a little different, if the 
 mixture of his blood is of such recent date as to connect him 
 with native families ; in that case, he has “ various bloods” 
 to contend for, should they be assailed ; but his Gipsy blood, 
 as a matter of course, takes precedence. By marrying into 
 the tribe, the connection with such native families gradually 
 drops out of the memory of his descendants, and leaves the 
 sensation of tribe exclusively Gipsy. Imagine, then, that 
 the Gipsy has been reared a Gipsy, in the way so frequently 
 described, and that he “ knows ail about the Gipsies,” while 
 the ordinary native knows really nothing about them ; and 
 we have a general idea of what a Scottish Gipsy is, as dis¬ 
 tinguished from an ordinary Scotchman. If we admit that 
 every native Scot knows who lie is, we may readily assume 
 that every Scottish Gipsy knows who he is. But, to place 
 
462 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 the point of difference in a more striking light, it may be 
 remarked, that the native Scot will instinctively exclaim, 
 that “ the present work lias no earthly relation either to 
 him or his folk while the Scottish Gipsy will as instinct¬ 
 ively exclaim : “It’s us, there’s no mistake about itand 
 will doubtless accept it, in the main, with a high degree of 
 satisfaction, as the history of his race, and give it to his 
 children as such. 
 
 A respectable, indeed, any kind of, Scottish Gipsy does 
 not contemplate his ancestors—the “ Pilgrim Fathers,” and 
 “ Pilgrim Mothers,” too—-as robbers, although he could do 
 that with as much grace as any Highland or Border Scot, 
 but as a singular people, who doubtless came from the Pyra¬ 
 mids ; and their language, as something about which he 
 really does not know what to think ; whether it is Egyptian, 
 Sanscrit, or what it is. Still, he has part of it; he loves it: 
 and no human power can tear it out of his heart. He knows 
 that every intelligent being sticks to his own, and clings to 
 his descent; and he considers it his highest pride to be an 
 Egyptian—a descendant of those swarthy kings and queens, 
 princes and princesses, priests and priestesses, and, of course, 
 thieves and thievesses, that, like an apparition, found their 
 way into, and, after wandering about, settled down in, Scot¬ 
 land. Indeed, he never knew anything else than that he 
 was an Egyptian ; for it is in his blood ; and, what is more, 
 it is in his heart, so that he cannot forget it, unless he should 
 lose his faculties and become an idiot; and then he would 
 be an Egyptian idiot. How like a Gipsy it was for Mrs. 
 Fall, of Dunbar, to “ work in tapestry the principal events 
 in the life of the founder of her family, from the day the 
 Gipsy child came to Dunbar, in its mother’s creel, until the 
 same Gipsy child had become, by its own honourable exer¬ 
 tions, the head of the first merca..tile establishment then 
 existing in Scotland.” 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies, when their appearance has been 
 modified by a mixture of the white blood, have possessed, in 
 common with the Highlanders, the faculty of “ getting out” 
 of the original ways of their race, and becoming superior in 
 character, notwithstanding the excessive prejudice that 
 exists against the nation of which they hold themselves 
 members'. Except his strong partiality for his blood and 
 tribe, language, and signs, such a Gipsy becomes, in his gen- 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 463 
 
 eral disposition and ways, like any ordinary native. It is 
 impossible that it should be otherwise. Whenever a Gipsy, 
 then, forsakes his original habits, and conforms with the 
 ways of the other inhabitants, lie becomes, for all practical 
 purposes, an ordinary citizen of the Gipsy clan. If he is a 
 man of good natural abilities, the original wild ambition of 
 his race acquires a new turn ; and his capacity fits him for 
 any occupation. Priding himself on being an Egyptian, a 
 member of this world-wide community, lie acquires, as he 
 gains information, a spirit of liberality of sentiment; he 
 reads history, and perceives that every family of mankind 
 has not only been barbarous, but very barbarous, at one 
 time ; and, from such reflections, he comes to consider his 
 own origin, and very readily becomes confirmed in his early, 
 but indistinct, ideas of his people, that they really are some¬ 
 body. Indeed, he considers himself not only as good, but 
 better than other people. His being forced to assume an 
 incognito, and “ keep as quiet as pussy,” chafes his proud 
 spirit, but it does not render him gloomy, for his natural 
 disposition is too buoyant for that. IIow, then, does such a 
 Scottish Gipsy feel in regard to his ancestors? He feels 
 exactly as Highlanders do, in regard to theirs, or, as the 
 Scottish Bordercrs'do, with reference to the “ Border Ruf¬ 
 fians,” as I have heard a Gipsy term them. Indeed, the gal¬ 
 lows of Perth and Stirling, Carlisle and Jedburgh, could tell 
 some fine tales of many respectable Scottish people, in times 
 that are past. 
 
 The children of such a Gipsy differ very much from those 
 of the same race in their natural state, although they may 
 have the same amount of blood, and the same eye. The eye 
 of the former is subdued, for hjs passions, in regard to his 
 race, have never been called forth ; while the eye of the lat¬ 
 ter rolls about, as if he were conscious that every one he 
 meets with is remarking of him, “ There goes a vagabond of 
 a Gipsy.” Two fine specimens of the former kind of Gipsies 
 attended the High School of Edinburgh, when I was at that in¬ 
 stitution. Hearing the family frequently spoken ofathome.my 
 attention was often taken up with the boys, without under¬ 
 standing what a Gipsy of that kind could mean ; although I 
 had a pretty good idea of the common Gipsy, or Tinkler, as 
 he is generally called in Scotland. These two young Gip¬ 
 sies were what might be called sweet youths; modest and shy, 
 
464 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 among the other boys, as young tamed wild turkeys ; very 
 dark in colour, with an eye that could be caught in what¬ 
 ever way I might look at them. They now occupy very 
 honourable positions in life. There were other Gipsies at the 
 High School, at this time, but they were of the “ brown sort.” 
 1 have met, in the United States, with a Scottish Gipsy, 
 taking greatly after the Gipsy, in his appearance ; a man 
 very gentlemanly in his manner and bearing, and as 
 neat and trim as if he had “ come out of a box.” It is natu¬ 
 ral, indeed, to suppose that there must be a great differ¬ 
 ence, in many respects, between a wild, original Gipsy, 
 and one of the tame and educated kind, whose descent 
 is several, perhaps many, generations from the tent. In 
 the houses of the former, things are generally found lying 
 about, here-away, there-away, as if they were just going 
 to be taken out and placed in the waggon, or on the ass’s 
 back. 
 
 It is certainly a singular position which is occupied, from 
 generation to generation, and century to century, by our set¬ 
 tled Scottish, as well as other, Gipsies, who are not known 
 to the world as such, yet maintain a daily intercourse with 
 others not of their own tribe. It resembles a state of semi¬ 
 damnation, with a drawn sword hanging over their heads, 
 ready to fall upon them at any moment. But the matter 
 cannot be mended. They are Gipsies, by every physical and 
 mental necessity, and they accommodate themselves to their 
 circumstances as they best may. This much is certain, that 
 they have the utmost confidence in their incognito, as regards 
 their descent, personal feelings, and exclusively private asso¬ 
 ciations. The word “Gipsy,” to be applied to them by 
 strangers, frightens them, in contemplation, far more than 
 it does the children of the ordinary natives ; for they imagine 
 it a dreadful thing to be known to their neighbours as Gip¬ 
 sies. Still, they have never occupied any other position ; 
 they have been born in it, and reared in it ; it has even 
 been the nature of the race, from the very first, always to 
 “ work in the dark.” In all probability, it has never oc¬ 
 curred to them to imagine that it will ever be otherwise ; 
 nor do they evidently wish it ; for they can see no possible 
 way to have themselves acknowledged, by the world, as 
 Gipsies. The very idea horrifies them. So far from letting 
 the world know anything of them, as Gipsies, their constant 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 465 
 
 care is to keep it in perpetual darkness on the subject. Of 
 all men, these Gipsies may say : 
 
 “.rather bear those ills we have, 
 
 Than fly to others we know not of.” 
 
 Indeed, the only thing that worries such a Gipsy is the 
 idea that the public should know all about him ; otherwise, 
 he feels a supreme satisfaction in being a Gipsy ; as well as 
 in having such a history of his race as I have informed him 
 I proposed publishing, provided I do not in any way mix him 
 up with it, or “ let him out.” By bringing up the body in the 
 manner done in this work, by making a sweep of the whole 
 tribe, the responsibility becomes spread over a large number 
 of people ; so that, should the Gipsy become, by any means, 
 known, personally, to the world, he would have the satisfac¬ 
 tion of knowing that he had others to keep him company ; 
 men occupying respectable positions in life, and respected, by 
 the world at large, as individuals. 
 
 Here, then, we have one of the principal reasons for 
 everything connected with the Gipsies being hidden from 
 the rest of mankind. They have always been looked upon 
 as arrant vagabonds, while they have looked upon their an¬ 
 cestors as illustrious and immortal heroes. How, then, are 
 we to bridge over this gulf that separates them, in feeling, 
 from the rest of the world ? The natural reply is, that 
 we should judge them, not by their condition and character 
 in times that are past, but by what they are to-day. 
 
 That the Gipsies were a barbarous race when they entered 
 European the beginning of the fifteenth century, is just what 
 could have been expected of any Asiatic, migratory, tented 
 horde, at a time when the inhabitants of Europe were little 
 better than barbarous, themselves, and many of them abso¬ 
 lutely so. To speak of the Highland clans, at that time, as 
 being better than barbarous, would be out of the question ; 
 as to the Irish people, it would be difficult to say what they 
 really were, at the same time. Even the Lowland Scotch, a 
 hundred years after the arrival of the Gipsies in Europe, 
 were, with some exceptions, divided into two classes—“beg¬ 
 gars and rascals,” as history tells us. Is it, therefore, un¬ 
 reasonable to say, that, in treating of the Gipsies of to-day, 
 we should apply to them the same principles of judgment 
 that have been applied to the ordinary natives ? If we refer 
 20 * 
 
460 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 to the treaty between John Faw and James V., in 1540, we 
 will very readily conclude that, three centuries ago, the 
 leaders of the Gipsies were very superior men, in their way ; 
 cunning, astute, and slippery Oriental barbarians, with the 
 experience of upwards of a century in European society 
 generally ; well up to the ways of the world, and the general 
 ways of Church and State ; and, in a sense, at home with 
 kings, popes, cardinals, nobility, and gentry. That was the 
 character of a superior Gipsy, in 1540. In 1840, we find 
 the race represented by as fine a man as ever graced the 
 Church of Scotland. “ Grand was the repose of his lofty 
 brow, dark eye, and aspect of soft and melancholy meaning. 
 It was a face from which every evil and earthly passion 
 seemed purged. A deep gravity lay upon his countenance, 
 which had the solemnity, without the sternness, of one of 
 our old reformers. You could almost fancy a halo complet¬ 
 ing its apostolic character.” Some of the Scottish Gipsies 
 of to-day could very readily exclaim : 
 
 “ And, if thou said’st I am not peer 
 To any one in Scotland here, 
 
 Highland or Lowland, far or near, 
 
 Oh, Donald, thou hast lied !” 
 
 But it is impossible for any one to give an account of the 
 Gipsies in Scotland, from the year 1506, down to the present 
 time. This much, however, can be said of them, that they 
 are as much Gipsies now as ever they were ; that is, the 
 Gipsies of to-day are the representatives of the race as it ap¬ 
 peared in Scotland three centuries and a half ago, and hold 
 themselves to be Gipsies now, as, indeed, they always will do. 
 
 Ever since the race entered Scotland, we may reasonably 
 assume that it has been dropping out of the tent into settled 
 life, in one form or other, and sometimes to a greater extent 
 at one time than another. It never has been a nomadic race, 
 in the proper sense of the word; for a nomad is one who 
 possesses flocks and herds, with which he moves about from 
 pasturage to pasturage, as lie does in Asia to-day. Mr. 
 Borrow says that there are Gipsies who follow this kind of 
 life, in Russia ; but that, doubtless, arises from the circum¬ 
 stances in which they have found themselves placed.* “ I 
 
 * There is scarce a part of the habitable world where they are not to be 
 found ; their tents are alike pitched on the heaths of Brazil and the ridges 
 of the Himalayan hills ; and their language is heard at Moscow and Madrid, 
 in the streets of London and Stamboul. They are found in all parts of 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 467 
 
 think,” said an English Gipsy to me, “ that we must take 
 partly of the ancient Egyptians, and partly of the Arabs ; 
 from the Egyptians, owing to our settled ways, and from the 
 Arabs, owing to our wandering habits.” Upon entering 
 Europe, they must have wandered about promiscuously, for 
 some short time, before pitching upon territories, which they 
 would divide among themselves, under their kings and chief¬ 
 tains. Here we find the proper sphere of the Gipsy, in his 
 original state. In 1506, Anthonius Gawino is represented, by 
 James IV., to his uncle, the king of Denmark, as having 
 “ sojourned in Scotland in peaceable and catholic manner 
 and John Faw, by James V., in 1540, during his “ pilgrim¬ 
 age,” as “ doing a lawful business which evidently had 
 some meaning, as we find that seven pounds were paid to the 
 Egyptians by the king’s chamberlain. In 1496, the Gipsies 
 made musket-balls for the king of Hungary ; and, in 1565, 
 cannon-balls for the Turks. In short, they were travelling 
 smiths, or what has since been called tinkers, with a turn for 
 any kind of ordinary mechanical employment, and particu¬ 
 larly as regards working in metals ; dealers in animals, petty 
 traders, musicians, and fortune-tellers, with a wonderful 
 knack for “ transferring money from other people’s pockets 
 into their own living representatively, but apparently not 
 wholly, in tents, and “ helping themselves ” to whatever they 
 stood in need of.* 
 
 Speaking of the Gipsy chiefs mentioned in the act of James 
 V., our author, as we have seen, very justly remarks : “ It 
 cannot be supposed that the ministers of three or four suc¬ 
 ceeding monarchs would have suffered their sovereigns to 
 be so much imposed on, as to allow them to put their names 
 
 Russia, with the exception of the Government of St. Petersburg, from which 
 they have been banished. In most of the provincial towns, they are to be 
 found in a state of half civilization, supporting themselves by trafficking in 
 horses, or by curing the disorders incidental to those animals. But the vast 
 majority reject this manner of life, and traverse the country in bands, like 
 the ancient llamaxobioi; the immense grassy plains of Russia affording 
 pasturage for their herds of cattle, on which, and the produce of the chase, 
 they chiefly depend for subsistence.— Borrow. 
 
 * Considering what is popularly understood to be the natural disposition 
 and capacity of the Gipsies, we would readily conclude that to turn inn¬ 
 keepers would be the most unlikely of all their employments ; j et that is 
 very common. Mahommed said, “ If the mountain will not come to us, we 
 will go to the mountain.” The Gipsies say, “ If we do not go to the peo¬ 
 ple, the people must come to us and so tliey open their houses of enter¬ 
 tainment. 
 
468 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 to public documents styling poor and miserable wretches, as 
 we at the present day imagine them to have been, 1 Lords 
 
 and Earls of Little Egypt.’.I am disposed 
 
 to believe that Anthonius Gawino, in 1506, and John Faw, in 
 1540, would personally, as individuals, that is, as Gipsy 
 rajahs, have a very respectable and imposing appearance, in 
 the eyes of the officers of the crown.” (Page 108.)* We 
 have likewise seen how many laws were passed, by the Scots 
 parliament, against “ great numbers of his majesty’s subjects, 
 of whom some outwardly pretend to be famous and unspot¬ 
 ted gentlemen,” for encouraging and supporting the Gipsies ; 
 and, in the case of William Auchterlony, of Cayrine, for re¬ 
 ceiving into their houses, and feasting them, their wives, 
 children, servants , and companies. All this took place 
 more than a hundred years after the arrival of the Gipsies in 
 Scotland, and seventy-six years after the date of the treaty 
 between James Y. and John Faw. We can very readily 
 believe that the sagacity displayed by this chief and his 
 folk, to evade the demand made upon them to leave the 
 country, was likewise employed to secure their perpetual 
 existence in it; for, from the first, their intention was evi¬ 
 dently to possess it. Hence their original story of being 
 pilgrims, which would prevent the authorities from disturb¬ 
 ing them, but which had no effect upon Henry YIII.,whom, 
 of all the monarchs of Europe, they did not hoax. Grell- 
 mann mentions their having obtained passports from the 
 Emperor Sigismund, and other princes, as well as from the 
 Idng of France, and the Pope. 
 
 Entering Scotland with the firm determination to “pos¬ 
 sess” the country, the Gipsies would, from the very first, 
 direct their attention towards its occupation, and draw into 
 their body much of the native blood, in the way which I 
 have already described. And there was certainly a large 
 
 * TJie following is a description of a superior Spanish Gipsy, in 1584, a3 
 quoted by Mr. Borrow, from the memoirs of a Spaniard, who had seen 
 him : “ At this time, they had a count, a fellow who spoke the Castilian 
 idiom with as much purity as if he had been a native of Toledo, lie was 
 acquainted with all the ports of Spain, and all the difficult and broken 
 ground of the provinces. lie knew the exact strength of every city, and 
 who were the principal people in each, and the exact amount of their 
 property ; there was nothing relative to the state, however secret, that he 
 was not acquainted with ; nor did he make a mystery of his know'edge, but 
 publicly boasted of it.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 469 
 
 floating population in the country, from which to draw jt. 
 It would little consist with the feelings of Highland or Low¬ 
 land outlaws to exist without female society ; nor was that 
 female society easily to be found, apart from some kind of 
 settled life ; hence, in seeking for a home, which is insepar¬ 
 able from the society of a female, our native outlaw would 
 very naturally and readily “ haul up” with the Gipsy woman ; 
 for, being herself quite “ at home,” in her tent, she would 
 present just the desideratum which the other was in quest 
 of. For, although “ Gipsies marry with Gipsies,” it is only 
 as a rule, the exceptions being many, and, in all probability, 
 mucli more common, in the early stage of their European 
 history. The present “ dreadfully mixed” state of Gipsy- 
 dom is a sufficient proof of this fact. The aversion, on the 
 part of the Gipsy, to intermarry with the ordinary natives, 
 proceeds, in the first place, from the feelings which the na¬ 
 tives entertain for her race. Remove those feelings, and the 
 Gipsies, as a body, would still marry among themselves ; for 
 their pride in their peculiar sept, and a natural jealousy of 
 those outside of their mystic circle, would, alone, keep the 
 world from penetrating their secrets, without its being ex¬ 
 tended to him who, by intermarriage, became “ one of them.” 
 There is no other obstacle in the way of marriages between 
 the two races, excepting the general one, on the part of the 
 Gipsies, and which is inherent in them, to preserve them¬ 
 selves as a branch of a people to be found in every country. 
 Admitting the general aversion, on the part of the Gipsies, 
 to marry with natives, and we at once see the unlikelihood 
 of their women 'playing the ivanton with them. Still, it is 
 very probable that they, in some instances, bore children to 
 some of the “unspotted gentlemen,” mentioned, by act of 
 parliament, as having so greatly protected and entertained 
 the tribe. Such illegitimate children would be put to good 
 service by the Gipsy chiefs. By one means or other, there 
 is no doubt but the Gipsies made a dead-set upon certain 
 native families of influence. The capacity that could devise 
 such a scheme for remaining in the country, as is contained 
 in the act of 1540, and influence the courts of the regency, 
 and of Queen Mary, to reinstate them in their old position, 
 after the severe order of 1541, proclaiming banishment 
 within thirty days, and death thereafter, even when the 
 “ lords understood, perfectly, the great thefts and skaiths, 
 
470 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 (damages,) done by the said Egyptians,” could easily execute 
 plans to secure a hold upon private families. If to all this 
 we add the very nature of Gipsydom ; how it always remains 
 true to itself, as it gets mixed with the native blood ; how it 
 works its way up in the world ; and how its members “ stick 
 to each other ;” we can readily understand how the tribe 
 acquired important and influential friends in high places. 
 Do not speak of the attachment of the Jewess to her people : 
 that of the Gipsy is greater. A Jewess passes current, any¬ 
 where, as a Jewess ; but the Gipsy, as she gets connected 
 with a native circle, and moves about in the world, does so 
 clandestinely, for, as a Gipsy, she is incog.; so that her at¬ 
 tachment remains, at heart, with her tribe, and is all the 
 stronger, from the feelings that are peculiar to her singularly 
 wild descent. I am very much inclined to think that Mrs. 
 Baillie, of Lamington, mentioned under the head of Tweed- 
 dale and Clydesdale Gipsies, was a Gipsy ; and the more so, 
 from having learned, from two different sources, that the 
 
 present Baillie, of-, is a Gipsy. Considering that 
 
 courts of justice have always stretched a point, to convict, 
 and execute , Gipsies, it looks like something very singular, that 
 William Baillie, a Gipsy, who was condemned to death, in 
 1714, should have had his sentence commuted to banishment, 
 and been alloioed to go at large , while others, condemned with 
 him, were executed. And three times did he escape in that 
 manner, till, at last, he was slain by one of his tribe. It 
 also seems very singular, that James Baillie, another Gipsy, 
 in 1772, should have been condemned for the murder of his 
 wife, and, also, had his sentence commuted to banishment, 
 and been allowed to go at large : and that twice, at least. 
 Well might McLaurin remark : “ Few cases have occurred 
 in which there has been such an expenditure of mercy.” 
 And tradition states that “ the then Mistress Baillie, of 
 Lamington, and her family, used all their interest in obtain¬ 
 ing these pardons for James Baillie.” No doubt of it. But 
 the reason for all this was, doubtless, different from that of 
 “ James Baillie, like his fathers before him, pretending that 
 he was a bastard relative of the family of Lamington.” 
 
 A somewhat similar case of pardoning Gipsies is related 
 by a writer in Blackwood’s Magazine, as having occurred 
 towards the end of last century ; the individual procuring 
 the pardon being the excitable Duchess of Gordon, the same, 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 471 
 
 I presume, whom Burns’ genius “ fairly lifted off her feet.” 
 The following are the circumstances, as given by this writer: 
 A Berwickshire farmer had been missing sheep, and lay in 
 wait, one night, with a servant, for the depredators. They 
 seized upon Tam Gordon, the captain of the Spittal Gipsies, 
 and his son-in-law, Ananias Faa, in the very act of stealing 
 the sheep ; when the captain drew a knife, to defend him¬ 
 self. They were convicted and condemned for the crime ; 
 “ but afterwards, to the great surprise of their Berwickshire 
 neighbours, obtained a pardon, a piece of unmerited and ill- 
 bestowed clemency, for which, it was generally understood, 
 they were indebted to the interest of a noble northern family, 
 of their own name. We recollect hearing a sort of ballad 
 upon Tam’s exploits, and his deliverance from the gallows, 
 through the intercession of a celebrated duchess, but do not 
 recollect any of the words.”* 
 
 A transaction like this must strike the reader as some¬ 
 thing very remarkable. Sheep-stealing, at the time men¬ 
 tioned, was a capital offence, for which there was almost no 
 pardon ; and more especially in the case of people who were 
 of notorious “ habit and repute Gipsies,” caught in the very 
 act, which was aggravated by their drawing an “invasive 
 weapon.” Not only were they condemned, but we may 
 readily assume that the “ country-side ” were crying, “ Hang 
 and bury the vagabonds and death seemed certain ; when 
 in steps the duchess, and snatches them both from the very 
 teeth of the gallows. What guarantee have we that the 
 duchess was not a Gipsy ? It certainly was not likely that 
 a Gipsy woman would step out of her tent, and seize a 
 coronet; but what cannot we imagine to have taken place, 
 in “ the blood” working its way up, during the previous 250 
 years? What guarantee have we that Professor Wilson 
 was not “ taking a look at the old thing,” when rambling 
 with the Gipsies, in his youth ? There are Gipsy families in 
 Edinburgh, to-day, of as respectable standing, and of as good 
 descent, as could be said of him, or many others who have 
 distinguished themselves in the world. 
 
 We must not forget that, when the Gipsies entered Scot¬ 
 land, it was for better or for worse, just for what was 
 to “turn up.” Very soon after their arrival, the country 
 
 * I should suppose that this was Captain Gordon who behaved himself 
 like a prince, at the North Queensferry. See page 172. 
 
472 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 would become their country, as much as that of the ordinary 
 natives ; so that Scotland became their home, as much as if 
 it had always been that of their race, except their retaining 
 a tradition of their recent arrival from some part of the 
 East, and a singular sense of being part and parcel of “ the 
 Egyptians that were scattered over the face of the earth ;” 
 neither of which the odious prejudice against “ the blood” 
 allowed them to forget; assuming that they were will¬ 
 ing, and, moreover, that the cast of their minds allowed 
 them, to do either. The idea which has been expressed by 
 the world, generally, of the Gipsy tribe gradually assimi¬ 
 lating with the native race, and ultimately “ getting lost 
 among it,” applies to the principle at issue ; for, as I have 
 already said, it has got greatly lost, in point of appearance, 
 arid general deportment, among the ordinary natives, but has 
 remained, heart and soul, Gipsy, as before. Even with the 
 native race, we will find that the blood of the lowly is always 
 getting mixed with that in the higher circles of life. We 
 have the case of a girl going to service with a London brewer, 
 then becoming his wife, then his widow, then employing a 
 lawyer to manage her affairs, and afterwards marrying him, 
 who, in his turn, became Earl of Clarendon, and father, by 
 her, of the queen of James II. Towards the end of last, or 
 beginning of the present, century, we hear of a poor actress, 
 who commenced life in a provincial theatre, marrying one 
 of the Coutts, the bankers, and dying Duchess of St. Albans. 
 Such events have been of much more common occurrence in 
 less elevated spheres of life ; and the Gipsy race has had its 
 share of them. For this reason, it is really impossible to 
 say, who, among the Scotch, are, and who are not, of the 
 Gipsy tribe ; such a thorough mess has the “ mixing of the 
 blood” made of the Scottish population. Notwithstanding 
 all that, there is a certain definite number of “ Gipsies” in 
 Scotland, known to God only ; while each Gipsy is known 
 in his or her conscience to belong to the tribe. This 
 much is certain, that we need not consult the census returns 
 for the number of the tribe in Scotland. However easy, or 
 however difficult, it may be, to define what a Gipsy, in re¬ 
 gard to external or internal circumstances, is, this much is 
 certain, that the feeling in his mind as to his being a Gipsy, 
 is as genuine and emphatic as is the feeling in the mind of 
 a Jew being a Jew. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 473 
 
 The circumstances connected with the perpetuation of the 
 Gipsy and Jewish races greatly resemble each other. Both 
 races are scattered over the face of the earth. The Jew has 
 had a home ; he has a strong attachment to it, and looks 
 forward to enter it at some future day. The Gipsy may be 
 said never to have had a home, but is at home everywhere. 
 “ What part of England did you come from ?” said I to an 
 English semi-tented Gipsy, in America. “ What part of 
 England did I come from, did you saj r ? I come from all 
 over England !” The Scottish race, as a race, is confined to 
 people born in Scotland ; for the children of expatriated 
 Scots are not Scotchmen. And so it is with people of other 
 countries. The mere birth upon the soil constitutes their 
 race or nationality, although subsequent events, in early life, 
 may modify the feelings, or draw them into a new channel, 
 by a change of domicile, in infancy. But the Jew’s nation¬ 
 ality is everywhere ; ’tis in his family, and his associations 
 with others of his race. Make the acquaintance of the 
 Jews, and you will find that each generation of them tell 
 their “ wonderful story” to the following generation, and 
 the story is repeated to the following, and the following. 
 The children of Jews are taught to know they are Jews, be¬ 
 fore they can even lisp. Soon do they know that much of 
 the phenomenon of their race, as regards its origin, its his¬ 
 tory, and its universality, to draw the distinction between 
 them and those around them who are not Jews. Soon do 
 they learn how their race has been despised and persecuted, 
 and imbibe the love which their parents have for it. and the 
 resentment of the odium cast upon it by others. It has been 
 so from the beginning of their history out of Palestine, and 
 even while there. Were it only religion, considered in it¬ 
 self, that has kept the Jews together as a people, they might 
 have got lost among the rest of mankind ; for among the 
 Jews there are to be found the rankest of infidels; even 
 Jewish priests will say that, “ it signifies not what a man’s 
 religion may be, if he is only sincere in it.” Is it a feeling, 
 or a knowledge, of religion that leads a Jewish child, almost 
 the moment it can speak, to say that it is a Jew ? It is 
 simply the workings of the phenomena of race that account 
 for this; the religion peculiar to Jews having been intro¬ 
 duced among them centuries after their existence as a 
 people. Being exclusively theirs in its very nature, they 
 
474 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 naturally follow it, as other people do theirs ; but, although, 
 from the nature of its origin, it presents infinitely greater 
 claims upon their intelligent belief and obedience, they have 
 yielded no greater submission to its spirit and morals, or 
 even to its forms, than many other people have done to their 
 religion, made up, as that has been, of the most fabulous 
 superstition, on the principle, doubtless, that 
 
 “ The zealous crowds in ignorance adore. 
 
 And still, the less they know, they fear the more.” 
 
 The Jews being a people before they received the religion 
 by which they are distinguished, it follows that the religion, 
 in itself, occupies a position of secondary importance, al¬ 
 though the profession of it acts and reacts upon the people, 
 in keeping them separate from others. The most, then, that 
 can be said of the religion of the Jews is, that, following in 
 the wake of their history as a people, it is only one of the pil¬ 
 lars by which the building is supported.* If enquiry is made 
 of Jewish converts to Christianity, Ave will find that, not¬ 
 withstanding their having separated from their brethren, 
 on points of creed, they hold themselves as much Jews as 
 before. But the conversions of Jews are, 
 
 “ Like angels’ visits, few and far between.” 
 
 In the case of individuals forsaking the Jewish, and joining 
 the Christian, Church, that is, believing in the Messiah 
 having come, instead of to come, it is natural, I may say 
 inevitable, for them to hold themselves Jews. They have 
 feelings which the world cannot understand. But beyond 
 the nationality, physiognomy, and feelings of Jews, there 
 are no points of difference, and there ought to be no 
 grounds of offense, between them and the ordinary inliab- 
 
 * The only part of the religion of the Jews having an origin prior to the 
 establishment of the Mosaic law was circumcision, which was termed the 
 covenant made by God with Abraham and his seed. (Gen. xvii. 10-14.) 
 The abolition of idols, and the worship of God alone, are presumed, although 
 not expressed. The Jews lapsed into gross idolatry while in Egypt, but 
 were not likely to neglect circumcision, as that was necessary to maintain 
 a physical uniformity among the race, but did not enter into the wants, 
 and hopes, and fears, inherent in the human breast, and stimulated by tha 
 daily exhibition of the phenomena of its existence. The second table of 
 the moral law was, of course, written upon the hearts of the Jews, in com 
 mon with those of the Gentiles. (Rom. ii. 14, 15.) 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 475 
 
 itants. While the points of antipathy between the Jew 
 and Christian rest, not upon race, considered in itself, but 
 mainly upon religion, and the relations proceeding from it, 
 it has to be seen what is to be the feeling, on the part of 
 the world, towards the Gipsy race ; such part of it, at least, 
 whose habits are unexceptionable. This is one of the ques¬ 
 tions which it is the object of this Disquisition to bring to 
 an issue. 
 
 Substitute the language and signs of the Gipsies for the 
 religion of the Jews, and we find that the rearing of the 
 Gipsies is almost identical with that of the Jews ; and in 
 the same manner do they hold themselves to be Gipsies. 
 But the one can be Gipsies, though ignorant of their lan¬ 
 guage and signs, and the other, Jews, though ignorant of 
 their religion ; the mere sense of tribe and community being 
 sufficient to constitute them members of their respective 
 nationalities. The origin of the Gipsies is as distinct from 
 that of the rest of the world, in three continents, at least, 
 as is that of the Jews ; and, laying aside the matter of re¬ 
 ligion, their history, so far as it is known to the world, is as 
 different. If they have no religion peculiar to themselves, 
 to assist in holding them together, like the Jews, they have 
 that which is exclusively theirs—language and signs ; about 
 which there are no such occasions to quarrel, as in the affair 
 of a religious creed. Indeed, the Gipsy race stands towards 
 religions, as the Christian religion does towards races. 
 
 People are very apt to speak of the blood of the Jews 
 being “ purity itselfthan which nothing is more unfounded. 
 If a person were asked, What is a pure Jew ? he would feel 
 puzzled to give an intelligent answer to the question. We 
 know that Abraham and Sarah were the original parents of 
 the Jewish race, but that much blood has been added to it, 
 from other sources, ever since. Even four of the patriarchs, 
 the third in descent from Abraham, were the sons of concu¬ 
 bines, who were, doubtless, bought with money, from the 
 stranger, (Gen. xvii. 12 and 13,) or the descendants of such, 
 and were, in all probability, of as different a race from their 
 mistresses, Leah and Rachel, as was the bondmaid, Hagar, 
 the Egyptian, from her mistress, Sarah. Joseph married a 
 daughter of the Egyptian priest of On, and Moses, a daugh¬ 
 ter of an Ethiopian priest of Midian. From a circumstance 
 mentioned in the Exodus, it would appear that Egyptian 
 
476 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 blood, perhaps much of it, had been incorporated with that 
 of the Jews, while in Egypt.* And much foreign blood 
 seems to have been added to the body, between the Exodus 
 and the Babylonian captivity, through the means of pros¬ 
 elytes and captives, strange women and bondmaids, concu¬ 
 bines and harlots. We read of Rahab, of Jericho, an inn¬ 
 keeper, or harlot, or both, marrying Salmon, one of the chief 
 men in the tribe of Judah, and becoming the mother of 
 Boaz, who married Ruth, a Moabitish woman, the daughter- 
 in-law of Naomi, and grandmother of David, from whom 
 Christ was lineally descended. Indeed, the Jews have al¬ 
 ways been receiving foreign blood into their body. We 
 read of Timothy having been a Greek by the father’s side, 
 and a Jew by the mother’s ; and of his having been brought 
 up a Jew. Such events are of frequent occurrence. There 
 is no real bar to marriages between Jews and Christians, 
 although circumstances render them difficult. The children 
 of such marriages sometimes resemble the Jew, and some¬ 
 times the Christian ; sometimes they cast their lot with 
 the Jews, in the matter of religion, and sometimes with the 
 Christians ; but they generally follow the mother in that 
 matter. Such, however, is the conceit which the Jew dis¬ 
 plays in regard to his race, that he is very reserved in 
 speaking about this “ mixing of the blood.” I once ad¬ 
 dressed a string of questions to a Christian-Jew preacher, 
 on this subject, but he declined answering them. I am in¬ 
 timate with a family the parents of which are half-blood 
 Jews, all of whom belong to the Jewish connexion, and I 
 
 * It is an unnecessary stretch upon the belief in the Scriptures, to ask 
 consent to the abstract proposition that the Jews, while in Egypt, encreased 
 from seventy souls to “ about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, 
 besides children,” at the time of the Exodus. Following a pastoral life, in 
 a healthy and fertile country, and inspired with the prophecy delivered to 
 Abraham, as to his numberless descendants, the whole bent of the mind of 
 the Jews was to multiply their numbers ; and polygamy and concubinage 
 being characteristic of the people, there is no reason to doubt that the 
 Jews encreased to the number stated. The original emigrants, doubtless, 
 took with them large establishments of bondmen and bondwomen, and 
 purchased others while in Egypt; and these being circumcised, according 
 to the covenant made with Abraham, would sooner or later become, on 
 that account alone, part of the nation ; and much more so by such amal¬ 
 gamation as is set forth by Rachel and Leah giving their maids to Jacob 
 to have children by them. Abraham was, at best, the representative head 
 of the Jewish nation, composed, as that was originally, of elements drawn 
 from the idolatrous tribes surrounding him and his descendants. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 477 
 
 find that, notwithstanding the mixture of the blood, there is 
 as little mental difference between them and the other Jews, 
 as there is between Americans of six descents, by both sides 
 of the house, and Americans whose descent, through one 
 parent, goes as far back, while, through the other parent, it 
 is from abroad. Purity of blood, as applicable to almost 
 any race, and, among others, to the Jewish, is a figment. 
 There are many Jews in the United States, and, doubtless, 
 in other countries, who are not known to other people as 
 Jews, either by their appearance or their attendance at the 
 synagogue. As a general principle, no Jew will tell the 
 w r orld that he belongs to the race ; he leaves that to be 
 found out by other people. Sir J. Gardner Wilkinson says 
 that the Jews of the East, to this day, often have red hair 
 and blue eyes, and are quite unlike their brethren in Europe. 
 He found the large nose at Jerusalem an invariable proof 
 of mixture with a Western family. It is singular, however, 
 how easy it is to detect the generality of Jews ; the nose, 
 the eyes, or the features, tell who they are, but not always 
 so. What may be termed a “ pure Jew,” is when the per¬ 
 son has no knowledge of any other blood being in his veins 
 than Jewish blood ; or when his feelings are entirely Jew¬ 
 ish as to nationality, although his ci'eed may not be very 
 strongly Jewish. 
 
 I will now consider the relative positions which the Jews 
 and Gipsies occupy towards the rest of mankind. I readily 
 admit that, in their original and wild state, the Gipsies have 
 not been of any use to the world, but, on the contrary, a 
 great annoyance. Still, that cannot be said altogether ; for 
 the handy turn of the Gipsies in some of the primitive me¬ 
 chanical arts, and their dealing in various wares, have been, 
 in a measure, useful to a certain part of the rural population ; 
 and themselves the sources of considerable amusement; but, 
 taking everything into account, they have been decidedly 
 annoying to the world generally. In their wild state, they 
 have never been charged by any one with an outward con¬ 
 tempt for religion, whatever their inward feelings may have 
 been for it ; but, on the contrary, as always having shown 
 an apparent respect for it. No one has ever complained of 
 the Gipsy scoffing at religion, or even for not yielding to its 
 general truths ; what has been said of him is, that he is, at 
 heart, so heedless and volatile in his disposition, that every- 
 
478 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 thing in regard to religion passes in at the one ear, and goes 
 out at the other. There are, doubtless, Gipsies who will be 
 “ unco godly,” when they can make gain by it; but it more 
 frequently happens that they will assume such an air, in the 
 presence of a person of respectable appearance, to show him 
 that they are really not the “ horrible vagabonds” which, 
 they never doubt, he holds them to be. They are then sure 
 to overdo their part. As a general thing, they wish people 
 to believe that “ they are not savages, but have feelings like 
 other people,” as “ Terrible ” expressed it. This much is cer¬ 
 tain, that whenever the Gipsy settles, and acquires an incog¬ 
 nito, we hear of little or nothing of the canting in ques¬ 
 tion. As regards the question of religion, it is very fortu¬ 
 nate for the Gipsy race that they brought no particular one 
 with them ; for, objectionable as they have been held to be, 
 the feeling towards them would have been worse, if they had 
 had a system of priestcraft and heathen idolatry among 
 them. But this circumstance greatly worries a respectable 
 Gipsy ; he would much rather have it said that his ancestors 
 had some sort of religion, than that they had none. It is 
 generally understood that the Gipsies did not bring any par¬ 
 ticular religion with them ; still, the ceremony of sacrificing 
 horses at divorces, and, at one time, at marriages, has a 
 strange and unaccountable significance. 
 
 Then, as regards the general ways of the Gipsies. If we 
 consider them as those of a people who have emerged, or 
 are emerging, from a state of barbarism, how trifling, how 
 venial do they appear! Scotch people have suffered, in 
 times past, far more at the hands of each other, than ever 
 they knowingly did at the hands of the Gipsies. What was 
 the nature of that system of black-mail which was levied by 
 Highland gentlemen upon Southerners ? Was it anything 
 but robbery ? So common, so unavoidable was the payment 
 of black-mail, that the law had to wink at it, nay, regulate 
 it. But after all, it was nothing but compounding for that 
 which would otherwise have been stolen. It gave peace 
 and security to the farmer, and a revenue to the Highland 
 gentleman, whom it placed in the position of a nominal pro¬ 
 tector, but actually prevented from being a robber, in law or 
 morals ; for, let the payment of the black-mail but have been 
 refused, and, perhaps the next day, the Southerner would 
 have been ruined ; so that the Highland gentleman would 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 479 
 
 have obtained his rights, under any circumstances. For 
 Highland people, by a process of reasoning peculiar to a 
 people in a barbarous state, held, as we have seen, that they 
 had a right to rob the Lowlanders, whenever it was in their 
 power, and that two hundred years after the Gipsies entered 
 Scotland. 
 
 Scottish Gipsies are British subjects, as much as either 
 Highland or Lowland Scots ; their being of foreign origin 
 does not alter the case ; and they are entitled to have that 
 justice meted out to them that has been accorded to the or¬ 
 dinary natives. They are not a heaven-born race, but they 
 certainly found their way into the country, as if they had 
 dropped into it out of the clouds. As a race, they have that 
 much mystery, originality, and antiquity about them, and 
 that inextinguishable sensation of being a branch of the 
 same tribe everywhere, that ought to cover a multitude of 
 failings connected with their past history. Indeed, what we 
 do know of their earliest history is not nearly so barbarous 
 as that of our own ; for we must contemplate our own an¬ 
 cestors, at one time, as painted and skin-clad barbarians. 
 What we do know, for certainty, of the earliest history of 
 the Scottish Gipsies, is contained, more particularly, in the 
 Act of 1540 ; and we would naturally say, that, for a people 
 in a barbarous state, such is the dignity and majesty, with 
 all the roguishness, displayed in the conduct of the Gipsies 
 of that period, one could hardly have a better, certainly not 
 a more romantic, descent; provided the person whose de¬ 
 scent it is is to be found amid the ranks of Scots, with 
 talents, a character, and a position equal to those of others 
 around him. For this reason, it must be said of the race, 
 that whenever it shakes itself clear of objectionable habits, 
 and follows any kind of ordinary industry, the cause of every 
 prejudice against it is gone, or ought to disappear ; for then, 
 as 1 have already said, the Gipsies became ordinary citizens, 
 of the Gipsy clan. It then follows, that in passing a fair 
 judgment upon the Gipsy race, we ought to establish a prin¬ 
 ciple of progression, and set our minds upon the best speci¬ 
 mens of it, as well as the worst, and not judge of it, solely", 
 from the poorest, the most ignorant, or the most barbarous 
 part of it.* 
 
 * Tacitus gives the following glowing account of the destruction of the 
 Druids, in the island of Anglesey : “ On the opposite shore stood the Brit- 
 
480 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 What shall we say further of the relative positions which 
 the Jews and Gipsies occupy towards the rest of the world ? 
 In the first place, the Jews entered Europe a civilized, and 
 the Gipsies a barbarous, people ; so that, in instituting any 
 comparison between them, we should select Gipsies occupying 
 positions in life similar to those of the Jews. The settled 
 Scottish Gipsy, we find, appears to the eye of the world as 
 a Scotchman, and nothing more. It is the weak position 
 which the Gipsy race occupies in the world, as it enters upon 
 a settled life, and engages in steady pursuits, that compels it 
 to assume an incognito ; for it has nothing to appeal to, as 
 regards the past; no history, except it be acts of legislation 
 passed against the race. In looking into a Dictionary or a 
 Cyclopedia, the Gipsy finds his race described as vagabonds, 
 always as vagabonds ; and he may be said never to have 
 heard a good word spoken of it, during the whole of his life. 
 Hence he and his descendants “ keep as quiet as pussy,” and 
 pass from the observation of the world. Besides this, there 
 is no prominent feature connected with his race, to bring it 
 before the world, such as there is with the Jewish, viz., his¬ 
 tory, church, or literature. A history, the Gipsy, as we see, 
 doubtless has ; but anything connected with him, pertaining 
 to the church or literature, he holds as a member of ordinary 
 society. Still, it would not be incorrect to speak of Gipsy 
 literature, as the work of a Gipsy, acquired from the sources 
 common to other men ; as we would say of the Jews, relative 
 to the literature which they produce under similar circum- 
 
 ons, closely embodied, and prepared for action. Women were seen rushing 
 through the ranks in wild disorder ; their apparel funereal ; their hair 
 loose to the wind, in their hands flaming torches, and their whole appear¬ 
 ance resembling the frantic rage of the Furies. The Druids were ranged 
 in order, with hands uplifted, invoking the gods, and pouring forth horrible 
 imprecations. The novelty of the sight struck the Romans with awe and 
 terror. They stood in stupid amazement, as if their limbs were benumbed, 
 riveted to one spot, a mark for the enemy. The exhortation of the general 
 diffused new vigour through the ranks, and the men, by mutual reproaches, 
 inflamed each other to deeds of valour. They felt the disgrace of yielding 
 to a troop of women, and a band of fanatic priests; they advanced their 
 standards, and rushed on to the attack with impetuous fury. The Britons 
 perished in the flames which they themselves had kindled. The island 
 fell, and a garrison was established to retain it in subjection. The religious 
 groves, dedicated to superstition and barbarous rites, were levelled to the ground. 
 In those recesses, the natives imbrued their altars with the blood of their prison¬ 
 ers, and, in the entrails of men, explored the will of the gods.” — Murphy’s 
 Translation. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 481 
 
 stances. As to the Gipsy to whom I have alluded, it may 
 be said that it is none of our business whether he is a Gipsy 
 or not; there is certainly no prejudice against him as an 
 individual, and there can be none as a Gipsy, except such as 
 people may of their own accord conceive for him. Many of 
 the Scottish Gipsies whom I have met with are civil enough, 
 sensible enough, decent enough, and liberal and honourable 
 enough in their conduct; decidedly well bred for their po¬ 
 sitions in life, and rather foolish and reckless with their 
 means, than misers ; and, generally speaking, what are called 
 “ good fellows.” It is no business of mine to ask them, how 
 long it is since their ancestors left the tent, or, indeed, if 
 they even know when that occurred ; and still less, if they 
 know when any of them ever did anything that was contrary 
 to law. Still, one feels a little irksome in such a Gipsy’s 
 company, until the Gipsy question has been fairly brought 
 before the world, and the point settled, that a Gipsy may be 
 a gentleman, and that no disparagement is necessarily con¬ 
 nected with the name, considered in itself. Such Scottish 
 Gipsies as I have mentioned arc decidedly smart, and, Yan¬ 
 kee-like, more adaptable in turning their hands to various 
 employments, than the common natives ; and are a fair credit 
 to the country they come from, and absolutely a greater than 
 many of the native Scotch that are to be met with in the 
 New World. Let the name of Gipsy be as much respected, 
 in Scotland, as it is now despised, and the community would 
 stare to see the civilized Gipsies make their appearance ; 
 they would come buzzing out, like bees, emerging even from 
 places where a person, not in the secret, never would have 
 dreamt of. 
 
 If we consider, in a fair and philosophical manner, the 
 origin of these people, we will find many excuses for the 
 position which their ancestors have occupied. They were a 
 tribe of men wandering upon the face of the earth, over 
 which they have spread, as one wave follows and urges on 
 another. Those that appeared in Europe seem to have been 
 impelled, in their migration, by the same irresistible im¬ 
 pulse ; to say nothing of the circumstances connected with 
 their coming in contact with the people whose territories 
 they had invaded. No one generation could be responsible 
 for the position in which it found itself placed. In the case 
 of John Faw and his company, we find that, being on the 
 
482 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 face of the earth, they had to go somewhere, and invent 
 some sort of excuse, to secure a toleration ; and the world 
 was bound to yield them a subsistence, of some kind, and in 
 some way obtained. As a wandering, barbarous, tented 
 tribe, with habits peculiar to itself, and inseparable from its 
 very nature, great allowance ought to be made for the time 
 necessary for its gradual absorption into settled society. 
 That could only be the result of generations, even if the race 
 had not been treated so harshly as it has been, or had such 
 a prejudice displayed against it. The difficulties which a 
 Gipsy has to encounter in leaving the tent are great, for he 
 has been born in that state, and been reared in it. To 
 leave his tent forever, and settle in a town, is a greater 
 trial to the innate feelings of his nature, than would be the 
 change from highly polished metropolitan life to a state 
 of solitude, in a society away from everything that had 
 hitherto made existence bearable. But the Gipsy will very 
 readily leave his tent, temporarily, to visit a town, if it is to 
 make money. It is astonishing how strong the circum¬ 
 stances are which bind him to his tent; even his pride and 
 prejudices in being a “ wandering Egyptian,” will, if it is 
 possible to live by the tent, bind him to it. Then, there is 
 the prejudice of the world—the objection to receive him into 
 any community, and his children into any school—that com¬ 
 monly prevails, and which compels him to steal into settled 
 life. It has always been so with the Gipsy race. Gipsies 
 brought up in the tent have the same difficulties to encounter 
 in leaving it to-day, that others had centuries ago. But, 
 notwithstanding all that, they are always keeping moving 
 out of the tent, and becoming settled and civilized. 
 
 Tented Gipsies will naturally “ take bits o’ things ;” many 
 of them would think one simple if he thought they would 
 not do it; some of them would even be insulted if he said 
 they did not do it. After they leave the tent, and com¬ 
 mence “ tramping,” they (I do not say all of them) will still 
 “ take bits o’ things.” From this stage of their history, they 
 keep gradually dropping into unexceptionable habits ; and 
 particularly so if they receive education. But we can very 
 readily believe that, independent of every circumstance, there 
 will be Gipsies who, in a great measure, always will be 
 rogues. The law of necessity exercises a great influence 
 over the destiny of the Gipsy race ; their natural encrease 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 483 
 
 is such, that, as they progress and develop, they are always 
 pushing others out of the sphere which those further ad¬ 
 vanced occupy ; so that it would not pay for all Gipsies to 
 be rogues. There is, therefore, no alternative left to the 
 Gipsy but to earn his bread like other men. If every Gipsy 
 actually “helped himself” to whatever he stood in need of, 
 it could hardly be said that the ordinary inhabitants would 
 have anything that they could really call their own. Not¬ 
 withstanding the manner how the Gipsies progress, or the 
 origin from which they spring, it is quite sufficient for me to 
 hold the race in respect, when I find them personally worthy 
 of it. 
 
 As a Scotchman, as a citizen of the world, whether should 
 my sympathies lay more with the Gipsies than with the 
 Jews? With the Gipsies, unquestionably. For, a race, 
 emerging from a state of barbarism, and struggling upwards 
 to civilization, surrounded by so many difficulties, as is the 
 Gipsy, is entitled to a world of charity and encouragement. 
 Of the Jews, who, though blessed with the most exalted 
 privileges, yet allowed themselves to be reduced to their 
 present fallen and degraded estate, it may be said : 
 “ Ephraim is joined to his idols ; let him alone.” The 
 Gipsies are, and have always been, a rising people, although 
 the world may be said to have known little of them hitherto. 
 The Gipsy, as he emerges from his wild state, makes ample 
 amends for his original offensiveness, by hiding everything 
 relative to his being a Gipsy from his neighbours around 
 him. In approaching one of this class, we should be careful 
 not to express that prejudice for him as a Gipsy, which we 
 might have for him as a man ; for it is natural enough to 
 feel a dislike for many people whom we meet with, and 
 which, if the people were Gipsies, we might insensibly allow 
 to fall upon them, on account of tribe alone ; so difficult is 
 it to shake one’s self clear of the prejudice of caste towards 
 the Gipsy name. The Gipsy has naturally a happy disposi¬ 
 tion, which circumstances cannot destroy, however much 
 they may be calculated to sour it. In their original state, 
 they are, what Grellmann says of them, “ always merry and 
 blithe not apt to be surly dogs, unless made such ; and 
 are capable of considerable attachment, when treated civilly 
 and kindly, without any attempt being made to commiserate 
 them, and after an acquaintance has been fairly established 
 
4S4 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 with them. But, what are properly called their affections 
 must, iu the position which they occupy, always remain Avith 
 their tribe. As for the other part of the race—those whose 
 habits arc unexceptionable—it is for us to convince them 
 that no prejudice is entertained for them on account of their 
 being Gipsies ; but that it would rather be pleasing and in¬ 
 teresting for us to know something of them as Gipsies, that 
 is, about their feelings as Gipsies, and hear them talk some 
 of this language which they have, or are supposed to have. 
 
 But how different is the position which the Jews occupy 
 towards the rest of the world ! They are, certainly, quiet 
 and inoffensive enough as individuals, or as a community ; 
 whence, then, arises the dislike which most people have for 
 them ? The Gipsies may be said to be, in a sense, strangers 
 amongst us, because they have never been acknowledged by 
 us ; but the Jews are, to a certain extent, strangers under 
 any circumstances, and, more or less, look to entering Pales¬ 
 tine at some day, it may be this year, or the following. If 
 a Christian asks : “ Who are the Jews, and what do they 
 here ?” the reply is very plain : “ They are rebels against 
 the Majesty of Heaven, and outcasts from His presence.” 
 They are certainly entitled to every privilege, social and 
 political, which other citizens enjoy ; they have a perfect 
 right to follow their own religion ; but other people have 
 an equal right to express their opinion in regard to it and 
 them. 
 
 The Jew is an enigma to the world, unless looked at 
 through the light of the Old and New Testaments. In 
 studying the history of the Jews, we will find very little 
 about them, as a nation, that is interesting, to the extent of 
 securing our affections, whatever may be said of some of the 
 members of it. What appears attractive, and, I may say, 
 of personal importance, to the Christian, in their history, is, 
 not what they have been or done, but what has been done 
 for them by God. “ What more could I have done for my 
 vine than I have done ?” And “ Which of the prophets have 
 they not persecuted?” “Wherefore, behold! I send unto 
 you prophets, and wise men, and scribes ; and some of them 
 ye shall kill and crucify ; and some of them shall ye scourge 
 iu your synagogues, and persecute from city to city.” And 
 thus it always was. “Elias saith of them, Lord, they have 
 killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars, and I am 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 485 
 
 left alone, and they seek my life.” Indeed, the whole his¬ 
 tory of the Jews has given to infidels such occasion to rail 
 at revelation, as has caused no little annoyance to Chris¬ 
 tians. What concerns the Christian in the Jewish history 
 is more particularly that which refers to the ways of God, 
 in preserving to Himself, in every generation, a seed who 
 did not how the knee to Baal, till the appearance of Him in 
 whom all the nations of mankind were to be blessed. Be¬ 
 yond this, we find that the Jews, as a nation, have been the 
 most rebellious, still-necked, perverse, ungrateful, and fac¬ 
 tious, of any recorded in history. How different from what 
 might have been expected of them ! Viewing the history 
 of the Jews in this aspect, the mind even finds a relief in 
 turning to profane history ; but viewing their writings as 
 the records of the dispensations of God to mankind, and 
 they are worthy of universal reverence; although the 
 most interesting part of them is, perhaps, that which reaches 
 to the settlement of the race in Palestine. And to sum up, 
 to complete, and crown the history of this singularly privi¬ 
 leged people, previous to the destruction of their city and 
 temple, and their dispersion among the nations, we find that 
 the prophet whom Moses foretold them would be raised up 
 to them, they wickedly crucified and slew ; “ delivering up 
 and denying him in the presence of Pilate, when he was 
 determined to let him go. But they denied the Holy One 
 and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto 
 them; and killed the Prince of Life, whom God hath raised 
 from the dead.” And Pilate “ washed his hands before the 
 multitude, saying, 1 am innocent of the blood of this just 
 person : see ye to it. Then answered all the people, and 
 said, His blood be on us and on our children.” And his blood 
 is on their children at the present day ; for while he is 
 acknowledged by three hundred millions of mankind as 
 their Lord and Master, the Jew teaches his children to 
 regard him as an impostor, and spit at the very mention of 
 his name. How great must be the infatuation of the poor 
 Jew, how dark the mind, how thick the veil that hangs 
 over his heart, how terrible the curse that rests upon his 
 head! But the Jew is to be pitied, not distressed; he 
 should be personally treated, in ordinary life, as his conduct 
 merits. 
 
 The manner in which the Jew treats the claims of Jesus 
 
486 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Christ disqualifies him for receiving the respect of the 
 Christian. He knows well that Christianity is no produc¬ 
 tion of any Gentile, but an emanation from people of his 
 own nation. And so conceited is the Jew in this respect, 
 that he will say : “ Jesus Christ and his apostles were Jews : 
 see what Jews have done!” He regards the existence 
 of his race as a miracle, yet looks with indifference upon 
 the history and results of Christianity. People have often 
 wondered that Jews, as Jews, have written so little oh the 
 inspiration of the Old Testament; but what else could have 
 been expected of them? How could they throw themselves 
 prominently forward, in urging the claims of Moses, who 
 was “faithful in all his house as a servant,” and totally 
 ignore those of Christ, who was “ a son over his own 
 house ?” So far from even entertaining the claims of the 
 latter, the Jew proper has the most bitter hatred for the 
 very mention of his name ; he would almost, if he dared, 
 tear out part of his Scriptures, in which the Messiah is, 
 alluded to. Does he take the trouble to give the claims of 
 Christianity the slightest consideration? He will spit at 
 it, but it is into his handkerchief; so much does he feel tied 
 up in the position which he occupies in the world. He 
 cannot say that he respects, or can respect, Christianity, 
 whatever he may think of its morals ; for, as a Jew, he 
 must, and does, regard it as an imposture, and blindly so 
 regards it. But all Jews are not of this description ; for 
 there are many of them who believe little in Moses or any 
 other, or give themselves the least trouble about such mat¬ 
 ters. 
 
 The position which Jews occupy among Christians is 
 that which they occupy among people of a different faith. 
 They become obnoxious to people everywhere ; for that 
 which is so foreign in its origin, so exclusive in its habits 
 and relations, and so conceited and antagonistic in its 
 creed, will always be so, go where it may. Besides, they 
 will not even cat what others have slain ; and hold other 
 people as impure. The very conservative nature of their 
 creed is, to a certain extent, against them ; were it aggres¬ 
 sive, like the Christian’s, with a genius to embrace all 
 within its fold, it would not stir up, or permanently retain, 
 the same ill-will toward the people who profess it; for 
 being of that nature which retires into the corner of selfish 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 487 
 
 exclusiveness, people will naturally take a greater objection 
 to them. Then, the keen, money-making, and accumulating 
 habits of the Jews, make them appear selfish to those around 
 them ; while the greediness, and utter want of principle, 
 that characterize some of them, have given a bad reputation 
 to the whole body, however unjustly it is applied to them 
 as a race. 
 
 The circumstances attending the Jews’ entry into any 
 country, to-day, are substantially what they were before the 
 advent of Christ; centuries before which era, they were 
 scattered, in great numbers, over most part of the world ; 
 having synagogues, and visiting, or looking to, Jerusalem, 
 as their home, as Catholics, in the matter of religion, have 
 looked to Rome. In going abroad, Jews would as little 
 contemplate forsaking their own religion, and worshipping 
 the gods of the heathen, as do Christians, to-day, in 
 Oriental countries ; for they were as thoroughly persuaded 
 that their religion was divine, and all others the inventions 
 of man, as are Christians of theirs. Then, it was a religion 
 exclusively Jewish, that is, the people following it were, 
 with rare exceptions, exclusively Jews by nation. The 
 ill-will which all these circumstances, and the very appear¬ 
 ance of the people themselves, have raised against the Jews, 
 and the persecutions, of various kinds, which have univer¬ 
 sally followed, have widened the separation between them 
 and other people, which the genius of their religion made so 
 imperative, and their feelings of nationality—nay, family — 
 so exclusive. Before the dispersion, Palestine was their 
 home; after the dispersion, the position and circumstances 
 of those abroad at the time underwent no change ; they 
 would merely contemplate their nation in a new aspect— 
 that of exiles, and consider themselves, for the time being, 
 at home wherever they happened to be. Those that were 
 scattered abroad, by the destruction of Jerusalem, would, 
 in their persons, confirm the convictions of the others, and 
 reconcile them to the idea that the Jewish nation, as such, 
 was abroad on the face of the earth ; and each generation 
 of the race would entertain the same sentiments. After this, 
 as before it, it can scarcely be said that the Jews have ever 
 been tolerated ; if not actually persecuted, they have, at 
 least, always been disliked, or despised. The whole nation 
 having been scattered abroad, with everything pertaining 
 
488 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 to them as a nation, excepting the temple, the high-priest¬ 
 hood, and the sacrifices, with such an ancient history, and 
 so unequivocally divine a religion, so distinct from, and ob¬ 
 noxious to, those of other nations, it is no wonder that they, 
 the common descendants of Abraham and Sarah, should 
 have ever since remained a distinct people in the world ; as 
 all the circumstances surrounding them have universallv 
 remained the same till to-day. 
 
 A Jew of to-day has a much greater aversion to forsake 
 the Jewish community than any other man has to renounce 
 his country ; and his associations of nationality are mani¬ 
 fested wherever a Jewish society is to be found, or wherever 
 he can meet with another Jew. This is the view which he 
 takes of his race, as something distinct from his religion ; 
 for he contemplates himself as being of that people—of the 
 same blood, features, and feelings, all children of Abraham 
 and Sarah—that are to be found everywhere ; that part of it 
 to which he has an aversion being only such as apostatize 
 from his religion, and more particularly such as embrace 
 the Christian faith. In speaking of Jews, we are too apt 
 to confine our ideas exclusively to a creed, forgetting that 
 Jews are a race ; and that Christian Jews are Jews as well 
 as Jewish Jews. Were it possible to bring about a refor¬ 
 mation among the Jews, by which synagogues would em¬ 
 brace the Christian faith, we would see Jewish Christian 
 churches ; the only difference being, that they would believe 
 in Him whom their fathers pierced, and lay aside only such 
 of the ceremonies of Moses as the Gospel had abrogated. 
 If a movement of that kind were once fairly afoot, by which 
 was presented to the Jew, his people as a community, how¬ 
 ever small it might be, there would be a great chance of 
 his becoming a Christian, in one sense or other: he could 
 then assume the position of a protesting Jew, holding the 
 rest of his countrymen in error; and his own Christian- 
 Jewish community as representing his race, as it ought to 
 exist. 
 
 At present, the few Christian Jews find no others of their 
 race with whom to form associations as a community; so 
 that, to all intents and purposes, they feel as if they were a 
 sort of outcasts, despised and hated by those of their own 
 race, and separated from the other inhabitants by a natural 
 law, over which neither have any control, however much 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 489 
 
 they may associate with, and respect, eacli other. It re¬ 
 quires a very powerful moral influence to constrain a Jew in 
 embracing the Christian faith—almost nothing short of 
 divine grace ; and sometimes a very powerful immoral one 
 in professing it—that which peculiarly characterizes Jews— 
 the love of money. Were a community of Christian Jews 
 firmly established, among whom were observed every tittle 
 of the Jewish ceremonial, excepting such as the dispensation 
 of Christ had positively abolished ; or even observing most 
 of that, (circumcision, for example,) as merely characteristic 
 of a people, without attaching to it the meaning of a service 
 recommending themselves, in any way, to the mercy of God ; 
 and many Jews would doubtless join such a society. They 
 could believe in Christ as their Messiah—as their prophet, 
 priest, and king ; receive baptism in His name ; and depend 
 on Him for a place of happiness in a future state of existence. 
 To such, the injunction, as declared by St. Paul, is : “ If 
 thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt 
 believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the 
 dead, thou shalt be saved.” (Romans x. 9.) And when they 
 contemplate death, they might lay their heads down in 
 peace, with the further assurance, as also declared by St. 
 Paul: “ For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 
 even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with 
 him.” (I Thess. iv. 14.) This is the kind of Messiah which 
 the Jew should contemplate, and seek after. He will find 
 his conception and birth more particularly recorded in the 
 two first, and his death, resurrection, and ascension, more 
 fully detailed in the two last, chapters of the Gospel accord¬ 
 ing to St. Luke. A person would naturally think that a 
 Jew would have the natural curiosity to read this wonderful 
 book called the “ New Testamentsince, at its very lowest 
 estimate, it is, with the exception of the writings of St. 
 Luke, altogether a production of people of his own nation. 
 Among the Jews, there are not a few who believe in Christ, 
 yet, more or less, appear at the synagogue. They have no 
 objections to become “ spectacles to angels;” but they are 
 not willing to make themselves such to men, by placing 
 themselves in that isolated position which a public profes¬ 
 sion of Christianity would necessarily lead to. But, all 
 things considered, one is rather apt to fall into Utopian 
 ideas in speaking of the conversion of Jews, as a body, or 
 21 * 
 
490 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TILE GIPSIES. 
 
 even as individuals, unless the grace of God, in an especial 
 degree, accompanies the means to that end. 
 
 It is no elevated regard for the laws of Moses, or any- 
 exalted sense of the principles contained in the Old Testa¬ 
 ment, that leads a Jew to lend a deaf ear to the claims of 
 Christianity ; for his respect for them has always been in¬ 
 different, even contemptible, enough. Indeed, the Talmud, 
 which is the Jew’s gospel, may be characterized as being, in 
 a very great part, a tissue of that which is silly and puerile, 
 obscene and blasphemous. It is with the Jew now, as it was 
 at the advent of Christ. “ They have paid tithe of mint, 
 and anise, and cummin, and omitted the weightier matters 
 of the law—-judgment, mercy, and faith.” “ Laying aside 
 the commandment of God, they have held the tradition of 
 men, as the washing of pots and cups, and many other such¬ 
 like things;” “making the word of God of none effect 
 through their traditions which they have delivered.” “ Full 
 well have they rejected the commandments of God, that they 
 might keep their own traditions.” “ In vain do they wor¬ 
 ship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.’’ 
 The main prop of a Jew for remaining a Jew, in regard to 
 religion, rests much more upon the wonderful phenomena 
 connected with the history of his nation—its antiquity, its 
 associations, its universality’, and the length of time which it 
 has existed, since its dispersion, distinct from the rest of the 
 world, and so unique, (as he imagines,) that he at once con¬ 
 cludes it must have the special approbation of God for the 
 position which it occupies ; which is very true, although it 
 proceeds from a different motive than that which the Jew so 
 vainly imagines. The 'Jew imagines that God approves of 
 his conduct, in his stubborn rebellion to the claims of 
 Christianity, because he finds his race existing so distinct 
 from the rest of the world ; whereas, if he studies his own 
 Scriptures, he will see that the condition of his race is the 
 punishment due to its rebellion. Who knows but that the 
 mark which is to be found upon the Jew answers, in a sense, 
 the purpose of that which every one found upon Cain ? Did 
 not his ancestors call a solemn imprecation upon his head, 
 when they compelled Pilate to crucify the “just person,” 
 when he was determined to let him go ; with no other ex¬ 
 cuse than, “ His blood be on us, and on our children ?” Will 
 any genuine Jew repudiate the conduct of his ancestors, and 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 491 
 
 say that Christ was not an impostor, that he was not a 
 blasphemer, and that, consequently, he did not deserve, oy 
 the law of his nation, to be put to death ? 
 
 The history of the Jews acts as a spell upon the unfor¬ 
 tunate Jew, and proves the greatest bar to his conversion 
 to Christianity. He vainly imagines that his race stands 
 out from among all the races of mankind, by a miracle, 
 wrought for that purpose, and with the special approbation 
 of God upon it, for adhering to its religion ; and that, there¬ 
 fore, Christianity is a delusion. But we must break this 
 spell that enchants the Jew, and “ provoke him to jealousy 
 by them that are no people.” And who are this people ? 
 The Gipsies? Yes, the Gipsies ! For they are numerous, 
 though not as numerous, and ancient, though not as ancient, as 
 the Jews.* 
 
 As to the Gipsy population, scattered over the world, I 
 think that the intelligent reader will agree with me, after 
 all that has been said, in estimating it as very large. There 
 seems no reason for thinking that the Gipsies suflered so 
 greatly, by the laws passed against them, as people have 
 imagined ; for the cunning of the Gipsy, and the wild, or 
 partly uncultivated, face of all the countries of Europe 
 would afford him many facilities to evade the laws passed 
 against him. We have already seen what continental 
 writers have said of the race, relative to the laws passed 
 against it: “ But, instead of passing the boundaries, they 
 only slunk into hiding - places, and, shortly after, appeared in 
 as great numbers as before.” And this seems to have been 
 invariably the case over the whole of Europe. Mr. Borrow, 
 as we have already seen, speaks of every Spanish monarch, 
 on succeeding to the crown, passing laws against the Gipsies. 
 If former laws were put in force, there would be no occa¬ 
 sion for making so many new ones ; the very fact of so many 
 laws having been passed against the Gipsy race, in Spain, is 
 
 * It would almost seem that the Gipsies are the people mentioned in Deut. 
 xxxii. 21, and Rom. x. 19, where it is said: “I will provoke you, (the 
 Jews.) to jealousy, by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I 
 will anger you.” For the history of the Gipsy nation thoroughly bur¬ 
 lesques that of the Jews. But the Jews will be very apt to ignore the ex¬ 
 istence of the present work, should the rest of the world allow them to do 
 it. Yet, excepting the Gipsies themselves, none are so capable of under¬ 
 standing this subject as thi Jews, there being so much in it that is applica¬ 
 ble to themselves. 
 
492 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 sufficient proof of each individual law never having been 
 put to much execution, but rather, as has already been said, 
 (page 394,) of its having been customary for every king of 
 Spain to issue such against them. It does not appear that 
 any force was employed to hunt the Gipsies out of the 
 country, but that matters were left to the ordinary local 
 authorities, whom the tribe would, in many instances, manage 
 to render passive, or beyond whose jurisdiction they would 
 remove for the time being. The laws passed against the 
 nobility and commonalty of Spain, for protecting the Gip¬ 
 sies, (page 114,) is a very instructive commentary on 
 those for the extermination of the body itself. But the case 
 most in point is in the Scottish laws passed against the 
 Gipsies. Upon the passing of the Act of James YI., in 
 1609, we find that the Gipsies “dispersed themselves in 
 certain secret and obscure places of the country” ; and that, 
 when the storm was blown over, they “ began to take new 
 breath and courage, and unite themselves in infamous com¬ 
 panies and societies, under commanders” (page 114). The 
 extreme bitterness displayed in Scots acts of parliament 
 against the best classes of the population, for protecting 
 and entertaining the tribe, and, consequently, rendering the 
 other acts nugatory, has a very important bearing upon the 
 subject. We find that the Gipsies wandered up and down 
 France for a hundred years, unmolested ; and that, so 
 numerous had they become, that, in 1545, the King of 
 France entertained the idea of embodying four thousand 
 of them, to act as pioneers in taking Boulogne, then in pos¬ 
 session of England. The last notice which we have of the 
 French Gipsies was that made by Grellmann, when he says : 
 “ In France, before the Revolution, there were but few, for 
 the obvious reason, that every Gipsy who could be appre¬ 
 hended, fell a sacrifice to the police.” Grellmann, however, 
 had not studied the subject sufficiently deep to account for 
 the destiny of the race. If they were so very numerous in 
 France, in 1545, the natural encrease, in whatever position 
 in life it might be, must have been very great during the 
 following 235 years. I have learned, from the best of 
 authority, that there are many Gipsies in Flanders.* If the 
 
 * This information I obtained from some English Gipsies. Thereafter, 
 the title of the following work came under jny notice : “ Historical Re¬ 
 searches Respecting the Sojourn of the Heathens, or Egyptians, in the 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 493 
 
 Gipsies in England were estimated at above ten thousand, 
 during the early part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, how 
 many may they not be now, including those of every kind of 
 mixture of blood, character, and position in life ? If there 
 is one Gipsy in the British Isles, there cannot be less than a 
 quarter of a million, and, possibly, as many as six hundred 
 thousand ; and, instead of there being sixty thousand in 
 Spain, and constantly decreasing , (<disappearing is the right 
 word,) we may safely estimate them at three hundred thou¬ 
 sand. The reader has already been informed of what be¬ 
 comes of all the Gipsies. As a case in point, I may ask, 
 who would have imagined that there was such a thing in 
 Edinburgh as a factory, filled, not merely with Gipsies, but 
 with Irish Gipsies ? The owner of the establishment was 
 doubtless a Gipsy ; for how did so many Gipsies come to 
 work in it, or how did he happen to know that his workmen 
 were all Gipsies, or that even one of them was a Gipsy ? 
 
 Even to take Grellmann’s estimate of the Gipsies in Eu¬ 
 rope, at from 700,000 to 800,000, and the race must be very 
 numerous to-day. Since his time, the Negroes in the United 
 States have encreased from 500,000 to 4,000,000, and this 
 much is certain, that Gipsies are, to say the least of it, as 
 prolific as Negroes. The encrease in both includes much 
 white blood added to the respective bodies. Some of the 
 Gipsies have, doubtless, been hanged ; but, on the other 
 hand, many of the Negroes have been worked to death. 
 There is a great difference, however, between the wild, in¬ 
 dependent Gipsy race and the Negroes in the New World. 
 I should not suppose that the Gipsy race in Europe and 
 America can be less than 4,000,000. It embraces, for cer¬ 
 tainty, as in Scotland, men ranging in character and position 
 from a pillar of the Church down to a common tinker.* 
 
 Christians not only flatter but delude the Jew, when they 
 say that his race is “ purity itself they greatly flatter and 
 
 Northern Netherlands. By J. Dirks. Edited by the Provincial Utrecht 
 Society of Arts and Sciences. Utrecht: 1850. pp. viii. and 160.” 
 
 Indeed, the Gipsies are scattered all over Europe, and are to be found in 
 the condition described in the present work. 
 
 * There are, probably, 12,0u0,000 of Jews in the world. I have seen 
 them estimated at from ten to twelve millions. It is impossible to obtain 
 anything like a correct number of the Jews, in almost any country, leaving 
 out of view the immense numbers scattered over the world, and living even 
 in parts unexplored Joy Europeans. 
 
494 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 delude him, when they say that the phenomenon of its ex¬ 
 istence, since the dispersion, is miraculous. There is nothing 
 miraculous about it. There is nothing miraculous about the 
 perpetuation of Quakerdom ; yet Quakerdomhas existed for 
 two centuries. Although Quakerdom is but an artificial 
 thing, that proceeded out from among common English peo¬ 
 ple, it has somewhat the appearance of being a distinct race, 
 among those surrounding it. As such, it appears, at first 
 sight, to inexperienced youth, or people who have never seen, 
 or perhaps heard, much of Quakers. But how much greater 
 is the difference between Jews and Christians, than between 
 Quakers and ordinary Englishmen, and Americans! And 
 how much greater the certainty that Jews will keep them¬ 
 selves distinct from Christians, and all others in the world ! 
 It must be self-evident to the most unreflecting person, that 
 the natural causes which keep Jews separated from other 
 people, during one generation, continue to keep them distinct 
 during every other generation. A miracle, indeed! We 
 must look into the Old and New Testaments for miracles. 
 A Jew will naturally delude himself about the existence of 
 his race, since the dispersion, being a miracle ; yet not be¬ 
 lieve upon a person, if lie were even to rise from the dead ! 
 A little consideration of the philosophy of the Jewish ques¬ 
 tion will teach us that, perhaps, the best way for Providence 
 to preserve the Jews, as they have existed since their dis¬ 
 persion, would have been merely to leave them alone—leave 
 them to their impenitence and unbelief—and take that much 
 care of them that is taken of ravens. 
 
 The subject of the Gipsies is a mine which Christians 
 should work, so as to countermine and explode the conceit 
 of the Jew in the history of his people ; for that, as I have 
 already said, is the greatest bar to his conversion to Chris¬ 
 tianity. Still, it is possible that some people may oppose 
 the idea that the Gipsies are the “ mixed multitude” of the 
 Exodus, from some such motive as that which induces others 
 not merely to disbelieve, but revile, and even rave at some 
 of the clear points of revelation.* What objection could 
 
 * It is astonishing how superficially some passages of Scripture are in¬ 
 terpreted. There is, for instance, the conduct of Gamaliel, before the Jewish 
 council, (Acts v. 17-40.) The advice given by him, as a Pharisee, was 
 nothing but a piece of specious party clap-trap, to discomfit a Sadducee. 
 St. Paul, who was brought up at the feet of this Pharisee, and, doubtless. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 495 
 
 any one advance against the Gipsies being the people that 
 left Egypt, in the train of the Jews ? Not, certainly, an ob¬ 
 jection as to race ; for there must have been many captive 
 people, or tribes, introduced into Egypt, from the many 
 countries surrounding it. Pharaoh was a czar in his day, 
 transplanting people at his pleasure. Of one of his cities it 
 was said, 
 
 “ That, spreads her conquests o’er a thousand states, 
 
 And pours her heroes through a hundred gates: 
 
 Two hundred horsemen, and two hundred cars, 
 
 From each wide portal, issuing to the wars.” 
 
 That the “mixed multitude” travelled into India, acquired 
 the language of that part of Asia, and, perhaps, modified its 
 appearance there, and became the origin of the Gipsy race, 
 we may very safely assume. This much is certain, that they 
 are not Sudras, but a very ancient tribe, distinct from every 
 other in the world. With the exception of the Jews, we 
 have no certainty of the origin of any people ; in every 
 other case it is conjecture ; even the Hungarians know no¬ 
 thing of their origin ; and it is not wonderful that it should 
 be the same with the Gipsies. Everything harmonizes so 
 beautifully with the idea that the Gipsies are the “ mixed 
 multitude” of the Exodus, that it may be admitted by the 
 world. Even in the matter of religion, we could imagine 
 
 well versed in the factious tactics of his party, gives a beautiful commentary 
 on the action of his old master, when, on being brought before the same 
 tribunal, and perceiving that his enemies embraced both parties, he set 
 them by the ears, by proclaiming himself a Pharisee, and raising the ques¬ 
 tion, (the “ hope and resurrection of the dead,”) on which they so bitterly 
 disagreed. (Acts xxiii. 6-10.) There was much adroitness displayed by 
 the Apostle, in so turning the wrath of his enemies against themselves, after 
 having inadvertently reviled the high priest, in their presence, and within 
 one of the holy places, in such language as the following: “ God shall smite 
 thee, thou whited wall: fur sittest thou to judge me after the law, and coru- 
 mandest me to be smitten, contrary to the law.” As it was, he was only 
 saved from being “ pulled in pieces” by his blood-thirsty persecutors—the 
 one sect attacking, and the other defending him—by a company of Roman 
 soldiers, dispatched to take him by force from among them. Nothing could 
 be more specious than Gamaliel’s reasoning, for it could apply to almost 
 anything, and was well suited to the feelings of a divided and excited as¬ 
 sembly ; or have less foundation, according to his theory, for the very steps 
 which he advised the people against adopting, for the suppression of Chris- 
 tiaus, were used to destroy the false Messiahs to whom he referred. And 
 yet people quote this recorded clap-trap of an old Pharisee, as an inspira¬ 
 tion, for the guidance of private Christians, and Christian magistrates 1 
 
496 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Egyptian captives losing a knowledge of their religion, as 
 has happened with the Africans in the New World, and, not 
 having had another taught them, leaving Egypt under Moses, 
 without any religion at all.* After entering India, they 
 would, in all probability, become a wandering people, and, 
 for a certainty, live aloof from all others. 
 
 While the history of the Jews, since the dispersion, greatly 
 illustrates that of the Gipsies, so does the history of the Gip¬ 
 sies greatly illustrate that of the Jews. They greatly re¬ 
 semble each other. Jews shuffle, when they say that the 
 only difference between an Englishman and an English Jew, 
 is in the matter of creed ; for there is a great difference be¬ 
 tween the two, whatever they may have in common, as men 
 born and reared on the same soil. The very appearance of 
 the two is palpable proof that they are not of the same race. 
 The Jew invariably, and unavoidably, holds his “ nation” to 
 mean the Jewish people, scattered over the world ; and is 
 reared in the idea that he is, not only in creed, but in blood, 
 distinct from other men ; and that, in blood and creed, he 
 is not to amalgamate with them, let him live where he may. 
 Indeed, what England is to an Englishman, this universally 
 scattered people is to the Jew ; what the history of England 
 is to an Englishman, the Bible is to the Jew ; his nation be¬ 
 ing nowhere in particular, but everywhere, while its ultimate 
 destiny he, more or less, believes to be Palestine. Now, an 
 Englishman has not only been born an Englishman, but his 
 mind has been cast in a mould that makes him an English¬ 
 man ; so that, to persecute him, on the ground of his being 
 an Englishman, is to persecute him for that which can never 
 be changed. It is precisely so with the Jew. His creed 
 does not amount to much, for it is only part of the history 
 of his race, or the law of his nation, traced to, and emanat¬ 
 ing from, one God, and Him the true God, as distinguished 
 from the gods and lords many of other nations : such is the 
 nature of the Jewish theocracy. To persecute a Gipsy, for 
 being a Gipsy, would likewise be to persecute him for that 
 which he could not help ; for to prevent a person being a 
 
 * Tacitus makes Caius Cassius, in the time of Nero, say: “ At present, 
 we have in our service whole nations of slaves, the scum of mankind, col¬ 
 lected from all quarters of the globe ; a race of men who bring with them 
 foreign rites, and the religion of their country, or, probably, no religion at 
 all" — Murphy's Translation. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 497 
 
 Gipsy, in the most important sense of the word, it would be 
 necessary to take him, when an infant, and rear him entirely 
 apart from his own race, so that he should never hear the 
 11 wonderful story,” nor have his mind filled with the Gipsy 
 electric fluid. An English Gipsy went abroad, very young, 
 as a soldier, and was many years from home, without having 
 had a Gipsy companion, so that he had almost forgotten 
 that he was a Gipsy ; but, on his returning home, other Gip¬ 
 sies applied their magnetic battery to him, and gipsyfied 
 him over again. A town Gipsy will occasionally send a 
 child to a Gipsy hedge-schoolmaster, for the purpose of being 
 extra gipsyfied. 
 
 The being a Gipsy, or a Jew, or a Gentile, consists in birth 
 and rearing. The three may be born and brought up under 
 one general roof, members of their respective nationalities, 
 yet all good Christians. But the Jew, by becoming a Chris¬ 
 tian, necessarily cuts himself off from associations with the 
 representative part of his nation ; for Jews do not tolerate 
 those who forsake the synagogue, and believe in Christ, as 
 the Messiah having come ; however much they may respect 
 their children, who, though born into the Christian Church, 
 and believing in its doctrines, yet maintain the inherent af¬ 
 fection for the associations connected with the race, and 
 more especially if they also occupy distinguished positions 
 in life. So intolerant, indeed, are Jews of each other, in 
 the matter of each choosing his own religion, extending 
 sometimes to assassination in some countries, and invariably 
 to the crudest persecutions in families, that they are hardly 
 justified in asking, and scarcely merit, toleration for them¬ 
 selves, as a people, from the nations among whom they live. 
 The present Disraeli doubtless holds himself to be a Jew, 
 let his creed or Christianity be what it may ; if he looks at 
 himself in his mirror, he cannot deny it. We have an in¬ 
 stance in the Cappadoce family becoming, and remaining for 
 several generations, Christians, then returning to the syna¬ 
 gogue, and, in another generation, joining the Christian 
 church. The same vicissitude may attend future generations 
 of this family. There should be no great obstacle in the 
 way of it being allowed to pass current in the world, like 
 any other fact, that a person can be a Jew and, at the same 
 Time, a Christian ; as we say that a man can be an English¬ 
 man and a Christian, a McGregor and a Christian, a Gipsy 
 
498 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 and a Christian, or a Jew and a Christian, even should he 
 not know when his ancestors attended the synagogue. 
 Christianity was not intended, nor is it capable, to destroy 
 the nationality of Jews, as individuals, or as a nation, any 
 more than that of other people. We may even assume that 
 a person, having a Jew for one parent, and a Christian for 
 another, and professing the Christian faith, and having the 
 influences of the Jew exercised over him from his infancy, 
 cannot fail, with his blood and, it may be, physiognomy, to 
 have feelings peculiar to the Jews ; although he may believe 
 them as blind, in the matter of religion, as do other Chris¬ 
 tians. But separate him, after the death of the Jewish 
 parent, from all associations with Jews, and he may gradually 
 lose those peculiarly Jewish feelings that are inseparable 
 from a Jewish community, however small it may be. There 
 are, then, no circumstances, out of and independent of himself 
 and the other members of his family, to constitute him a 
 Jew ; and still less can it be so with his children, when they 
 marry with ordinary Christians, and never come in intimate 
 contact with Jews. The Jewish feeling may be ultimately 
 crossed out in this way ; I say ultimately, for it does not 
 take place in the first descent, (and that is as far as my per¬ 
 sonal knowledge goes,) even although the mother is an ordi¬ 
 nary Christian, and the children have been brought up ex¬ 
 clusively to follow her religion. 
 
 Gipsydom, however, goes with the individual, and keeps 
 itself alive in the family, and the private associations of life, 
 let its creed be what it may ; the original cast of mind, 
 words, and signs, always remaining with itself. In this re¬ 
 spect, the Gipsy differs from every other man. He cannot 
 but know who lie is to start life with, nor can he forget it; 
 lie lias those words and signs within himself which, as he 
 moves about in the world, he finds occasion to use. A Jew 
 may boast of the peculiar cast of countenance by which his 
 race is generally characterized, and how his nation is kept 
 together by a common blood, history, and creed. But the 
 phenomenon connected with the history of the Gipsy race is 
 more wonderful than that which is connected with the Jew¬ 
 ish ; inasmuch as, let the blood of the Gipsy become as much 
 mixed as it may, it always preserves its Gipsy identity ; al¬ 
 though it may not have the least outward resemblance to an 
 original Gipsy. You cannot crush or cross out the Gipsy 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 499 
 
 race ; so thoroughly subtle, so thoroughly adaptable, so 
 thoroughly capable, is it to evade every weapon that can be 
 forged against it. The Gipsy soul, in whatever condition it 
 may be found, or whatever may be the tabernacle which it 
 may inhabit, is as independent, now, of those laws which 
 regulate the disappearance of certain races among others, 
 as when it existed in its wild state, roaming over the heath. 
 The Gipsy race, in short, absorbs, but cannot be absorbed by, 
 other races. 
 
 In my associations with Gipsies and Jews, I find that both 
 races rest upon the same basis, viz. : a question of people. 
 The response of the one, as to who he is, is that he is a Gipsy ; 
 and of the other, that he is a Jew. Each of them has a 
 peculiarly original soul, that is perfectly different from each 
 other, and others around them ; a soul that passes as natu¬ 
 rally and unavoidably into each succeeding generation of 
 the respective races, as does the soul of the English or any 
 other race into-each succeeding generation. For each con¬ 
 siders his nation as abroad upon the face of the earth ; 
 which circumstance will preserve its existence amid all tho 
 revolutions to which ordinary nations are subject. As they 
 now exist within, and independent of, the nations among 
 whom they live, so will they endure, if these nations were 
 to disappear under the subjection of other nations, or become 
 incorporated with them under new names. Many of the 
 Gipsies and Jews might perish amid such convulsions, but 
 those that survived would constitute the stock of their re¬ 
 spective nations ; while others might migrate from other 
 countries, and contribute to their numbers. In the case of 
 the Gipsy nation, as it gets crossed with common blood, the 
 issue shows the same result as does the shaking of the needle 
 on the card—it always turns to the pole : that pole, among 
 the Gipsies, being a sense of its blood, and a sympathy with 
 the same people in every part of the world. For this rea¬ 
 son, the Gipsy race, like the Jewish, may, with regard to its 
 future, be said to be even eternal. 
 
 The Gipsy soul is fresh and original, not only from its 
 recent appearance in Europe, without any traditional knowl¬ 
 edge of its existence any where else, but from having sprung 
 from so singular an origin as a tent; so that the mystery 
 that attaches to it, from these causes, and the contemplation 
 of the Gipsy, in his original state, to-day, present to the 
 
500 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 Gipsy that fascination for his own history which the Jew 
 finds in the antiquity of his race, and the exalted privileges 
 with which it was at one time visited. The civilized Gipsy 
 looks upon his ancestors, as they appeared in Europe gener¬ 
 ally, and Scotland especially, as great men, as heroes who 
 scorned the company of anything below a gentleman. And 
 he is not much out of the way ; for John Faw, and Towla 
 Bailyow, and the others mentioned in the act of 1540, were 
 unquestionably heroes of the first water. He pictures to 
 himself these men as so many swarthy, slashing heroes, 
 dressed in scarlet and green, armed with pistols and broad¬ 
 swords, mounted on blood-horses, with hawks and hounds in 
 their train. True to nature, every Gipsy is delighted with 
 his descent, no matter what other people, in their ignorance 
 of the subject, may think of it, or what their prejudices may 
 be in regard to it. One of the principal differences to be 
 drawn between the history of the Gipsies and that of the 
 Jews, is, as I have already stated, that the Jews left Pales¬ 
 tine a civilized people, while the Gipsies entered Europe, in 
 the beginning of the fifteenth century, in a barbarous state. 
 But the difference is only of a relative nature ; for when 
 the Gipsies emerge from their original condition, they occu¬ 
 py as good positions in the world as the Jews ; while they 
 have about them none of those outward peculiarities of the 
 Jews, that make them, in a manner, offensive to other people. 
 In every sense but that of belonging to the Gipsy tribe, 
 they are ordinary natives ; for the circumstances that have 
 formed the characters of the ordinary natives have formed 
 theirs. Besides this, there is a degree of dignity about the 
 general bearing of such people, rough as it sometimes is, 
 that plainly shows that they are no common fellows, at least 
 that they do not hold themselves to be such. For it is to be 
 remarked, that such people do not directly apply to them¬ 
 selves the prejudice which exists towards what the world 
 understands to be Gipsies ; however much they may infer 
 that such would be directed against them, should the world 
 discover that they belonged to the tribe. In this respect, 
 they differ from Jews, all of whom apply to themselves the 
 prejudice of the rest of their species ; which exercises so 
 depressing an influence upon the character of a people. In¬ 
 deed, one will naturally look for certain general superior 
 points of character in a man who has fairly emerged from a 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 501 
 
 wild and barbarous state, which he will not be so apt to find 
 in another who lias fallen from a higher position in the scale 
 of nations, which the Jew has unquestionably done. A Jew, 
 no matter what he thinks of the long-gone-by history of his 
 race, looks upon it, now, as a fallen people ; while the Gipsy 
 has that subdued but, at heart, consequential, extravagance 
 of ideas, springing from the wild independence and vanity 
 of his ancestors, which frequently finds a vent in a lavish 
 and foolish expenditure, so as not to be behind others in his 
 liberality. A very good idea of such a cast of character 
 may be formed from that of the superior class of Gipsies 
 mentioned by our author, when the descendants of such 
 have been brought up under more favourable circumstances, 
 and enjoyed all the advantages of the ordinary natives of 
 the country. 
 
 In considering the phenomenon of the existence of the 
 Jews since the dispersion, I am not inclined to place it on 
 any other basis than I would that of the Gipsies ; for, with 
 both, it is substantially a question of people. They are a 
 people, scattered over the world, like the Gipsies, and have 
 a history—the Bible, which contains both their history 
 and their laws; and these two contain their religion. It 
 would, perhaps, be more correct to say, that the religion 
 of the Jews is to be found in the Talmud, and the other 
 human compositions, for which the race have such a super¬ 
 stitious reverence ; and even these are taken as interpreted 
 by the Rabbis. A Jew has, properly speaking, little of a 
 creed. He believes in the existence of God, and in Moses, 
 his prophet, and observes certain parts of the ceremonial 
 law, and some holidays, commemorative of events in the 
 history of his people. He is a Jew, in the first place, as a 
 simple matter of fact, and, as he grows up, he is made ac¬ 
 quainted with the history of his race, to which he becomes 
 strongly attached. He then holds himself to be one of the 
 “ first-born of the Lord,” one of the “ chosen of the Eternal,” 
 one of the “ Lord’s aristocracy expressions of amazing 
 import, in his worldly mind, that will lead him to almost 
 die for his faith ; while his religion is of a very low natural 
 order, “ standing only in meats and drinks, and divers wash¬ 
 ings, and carnal ordinances,” suitable for a people in a state 
 of pupilage. The Jewish mind, in the maiter of religion, is, 
 in some respects, preeminently gross and material in its 
 
502 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 nature ; its idea of a Messiah rising no higher than a con¬ 
 queror of its own race, who will bring the whole world 
 under his sway, and parcel out, among his fellow-Jews, a 
 lion’s share of the spoils, consisting of such things as the 
 inferior part of human nature so much craves for. And his 
 ideas of how this Messiah is to be connected with the ori¬ 
 ginal tribes, as mentioned in the prophecies, are childish 
 and superstitious in the extreme. Writers do, therefore, 
 greatly err, when they say, that it is only a thin partition 
 that separates Judaism from Christianity. There is almost 
 as great a dilference between the two, as there is between 
 that which is material, and that which is spiritual. A Jew 
 is so thoroughly bound, heart and soul, by the spell which 
 the phenomena of his race exert upon him, that, humanly 
 speaking, it is impossible to make anything of him in the 
 matter of Christianity. And herein, in his own Avay of think¬ 
 ing, consists his peculiar glory. Such being the case with 
 Christianity, it is not to be supposed that the Jew would 
 forsake his own religion, and, of course, his own people, and 
 believe in any religion having an origin in the spontaneous 
 and gradual growtli of superstition and imposture, modified, 
 systematized, adorned, or expanded, by ambitious and 
 superior minds, or almost wholly in the conceptions of 
 these minds ; having, for a foundation, an instinct—an 
 intellectual and emotional want—as common to man, as 
 instinct is to the brute creation, for the ends which it has 
 to serve. We cannot separate the questions of race and 
 belief, when we consider the Jews as a people, however it 
 might be with individuals among them. It was as unrea¬ 
 sonable to persecute a Jew, for not giving up his feelings 
 as a Jew, and his religion, for the superstitions and impos¬ 
 tures of Rome, as it was to persecute a Gipsy, for not giving 
 up his feelings of nationality, and his language, as was spe¬ 
 cially attempted by Charles III., of Spain : for such are in¬ 
 herent in the respective races. The worst that can be said 
 of any Gipsy, in the matter of religion, is, when we meet 
 with one who admits that all that he really cares for is, 
 “ to get a good belly-full, and to feel comfortable o’ nights.” 
 Here, we have an original soil to be cultivated ; a soil that 
 can be cultivated, if we only go the right way about doing it. 
 Out of such a man, there is no other spirit to be cast, but 
 that of “ the world, the flesh, and the devil,” before another 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 503 
 
 can take up its habitation in his mind. Bigoted as is the 
 Jew against even entertaining the claims of Christ, as the 
 Messiah, lie is very indifferent to the practice, or even the 
 knowledge, of his own religion, where he is tolerated and 
 well-treated, as in the United States of America. Of the 
 growing-up, or even the grown-up, Jews in that country, 
 the ultra-Jewish organ, the “Jewish Messenger,” of New 
 York, under date the 19th October, I860, says that, “with 
 the exception of a very few, who are really taught their reli¬ 
 gion, the great majority, we regret to state, know no more 
 of their faith than the veriest heathen and, I might add, 
 practise less of it; for, as a people, they pay very little 
 regard to it, in general, or to the Sabbath, in particular, 
 but are characterized as worldly beyond measure; having 
 more to answer for than the Gipsy, whose sole care is “a 
 good meal, and a comfortable crib at night.”* 
 
 Amid all the obloquy and contempt cast upon his race, 
 amid all the persecutions to which it has been exposed, the 
 Jew, with his inherent conceit in having Abraham for his 
 father, falls back upon the history of his nation, with the 
 utmost contempt for everything else that is human ; forget¬ 
 ting that there is such a thing as the “ first being last.” He 
 boasts that his race, and his only, is eternal, and that all 
 other men get everything from him ! He vainly imagines 
 that the Majesty of Heaven should have made his dispensa¬ 
 tions to mankind conditional upon anything so unworthy as 
 his race has so frequently shown itself to be. If he has been 
 so favoured by God, what can he point to as the fruits of so 
 much loving-kindness shown him ? What is his nation 
 now, however numerous it may be, but a ruin, and its mem* 
 bers, but spectres that haunt it? And what has brought it 
 to its present condition? “Its sins.” Doubtless, its sins; 
 but what particular sins ? And how are these sins to be 
 
 * The following extract from “ Leaves from the Diary of a Jewish Min¬ 
 ister,” published in the above mentioned journal, on the 4th April, 1862, 
 may not be uninteresting to the Christian reader: 
 
 “ In our day, the conscience of Israel is seldom troubled ; it is of so elastic 
 a character, that, like gutta percha, it stretches and is compressed, accord¬ 
 ing to the desire of its owner. We seldom hear of a troubled conscience. 
 
 . . . . Not that we would assert that our people are without a con¬ 
 
 science ; we merely state that we seldom hear of its troubles. It is more 
 than probable, that when the latent feeling is aroused on matters of religion, 
 and for a moment, they have an idea that ‘ their soul is not well,’ they take 
 a homoeopathic dose of spiritual medicine, and then feel quite convalescent.” 
 
504 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 put away, peeing that the temple, the high-priesthood, and 
 the sacrifices no longer exist? Or what effort, by such 
 means as offer, has ever been made to mitigate the wrath 
 of God, and prevail upon Him to restore the people to their 
 exalted privileges? Or what could they even propose 
 doing, to bring about that event? Questions like these in¬ 
 volve the Jewish mind in a labyrinth of difficulties, from 
 which it cannot extricate itself. The dispersion was not 
 only foretold, but the cause of it given. The Scriptures 
 declare that the Messiah was to have appeared before the 
 destruction of the temple ; and the time of his expected ad¬ 
 vent, according to Jewish traditions, coincided with that 
 event. It is eighteen centuries since the destruction of the 
 temple, before which the Messiah was to have come ; and 
 the Jew still “ hopes against hope,” and, if it is left to him¬ 
 self, will do so till the day of judgment, for such a Messiah as 
 his earthly mind seems to be only capable of contemplating. 
 Has he never read the New Testament, and reflected on 
 the sufferings of him who was meek and lowly, or on those 
 of his disciples, inflicted by his ancestors, for generations, 
 when he has come complaining of the sufferings to which 
 his race has been exposed ? He is entitled to sympathy, 
 for all the cruelties with which his race has been visited ; 
 but he could ask it with infinitely greater grace, were he to 
 offer any for the sufferings of the early Christians and their 
 divine master, or were he, even, to tolerate any of his race 
 following him to-day. 
 
 What has the Jew got to say to all this ? He cannot 
 now say that his main comfort and support, in his unbelief, 
 consists in his contemplating what he vainly calls a miracle, 
 wrapt up in the history of his people, since the dispersion. 
 That prop and comfort are gone. No, 0 Jew! the true 
 miracle, if miracle there is, is your impenitent unbelief. 
 No one asks you to disbelieve in Moses, but, in addition to 
 believing in Moses, to believe on him of whom Moses wrote. 
 Do you really believe in Moses ? You, doubtless, believe 
 after a sort; you believe in Moses, as any other person be¬ 
 lieves in the history of his own country and people; but 
 your belief in Moses goes little further. You glory in the 
 antiquity of your race, and imagine that every other has 
 perished. No, 0 Jew ! the “ mixed multitude” which left 
 Egypt, under Moses, separated from him, and passed into 
 
DISQUISITION ON TUE GIPSIES. 
 
 505 
 
 India, lias come up, in these latter times, again to vex you. 
 Even it is entering, it may be, pressing, into the Kingdom 
 of God, and leaving you out of it. Yes! the people from 
 the “ hedges and by-ways” are submitting to the authority 
 of the true Messiah ; while you, in your infatuated blindness, 
 are denying him. 
 
 What may be termed the philosophy of the Gipsies, is 
 very simple in itself, when we have before us its main points, 
 its principles, its bearings, its genius ; and fully appreciated 
 the circumstances with which the people are surrounded. 
 The most remarkable thing about the subject is, that people 
 never should have dreamt of its nature, but, on the con¬ 
 trary, believed that “ the Gipsies are gradually disappear¬ 
 ing, and will soon become extinct.” The Gipsies have al¬ 
 ways been disappearing, but where do they go to ? Look at 
 any tent of Gipsies, when the family are all together, and 
 see how prolific they are. What, then, becomes of this en- 
 crease ? The present work answers the question. It is a 
 subject, however, which I have found some difficulty in get¬ 
 ting people to understand. One cannot see how a person 
 can be a Gipsy, “ because his father was a respectable man ;” 
 another, “ because his father was an old soldier and 
 another cannot see “ how it necessarily follows that a person 
 is a Gipsy, for the reason that his parents were Gipsies.” 
 The idea, as disconnected from the use of a tent, or follow¬ 
 ing a certain kind of life, may be said to be strange to the 
 world ; and, on that account, is not very easily impressed on 
 the human mind. It would be singular, however, if a Scotch¬ 
 man, after all that has been said, should not be able to 
 understand what is meant by the Scottish Gipsy tribe, or 
 that it should ever cease to be that tribe as it progresses in 
 life. In considering the subject, he need not cast about for 
 much to look at, for he should exercise his mind, rather than 
 his eyes, when he approaches it. It is, principally, a mental 
 phenomenon, and should, therefore, be judged of by the 
 faculties of the mind : for a Gipsy may not differ a whit 
 from an ordinary native, in external appearance or charac¬ 
 ter, while, in his mind, he may be as thorough a Gipsy as 
 one could well imagine. 
 
 In contemplating the subject of the Gipsies, we should 
 have a regard for the facts of the question, and not be led 
 by what we might, or might not, imagine of it; for the 
 
506 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 latter course would be characteristic of people having the 
 moral and intellectual traits of children. The race might, 
 to a certain extent, be judged analogously, by what we know 
 of other races ; but that which is pre-eminently necessary, 
 is to judge of it by facts : for facts, in a matter like this, 
 take precedence of everything. Even in regard to the 
 Gipsy language, broken as it is, people are very apt to say 
 that it cannot exist at the present day ; yet the least reflec¬ 
 tion will convince us, that the language which the Gipsies 
 use is the remains of that which they brought with them 
 into Europe, and not a make-up, to serve their purposes. 
 The very genius peculiar to them, as an Oriental people, 
 is a sufficient guarantee of this fact; and the more so from 
 their having been so thoroughly separated, by the prejudice 
 of caste, from others around them ; which would so naturally 
 lead them to use, and retain, their peculiar speech. But 
 the use of the Gipsy language is not the only, not even the 
 principal, means of maintaining a knowledge .of being Gip¬ 
 sies ; perhaps it is altogether unnecessai’y ; for the mere 
 consciousness of the fact of being Gipsies, transmitted from 
 genei’ation to generation, and made the basis of marriages, 
 and the intimate associations of life, is, in itself, perfectly 
 sufficient. The subject of two distinct races, existing upon 
 the same soil, is not very familiar to the mind of a British 
 subject. To acquii-e a knowledge of such a phenomenon, 
 he should visit certain parts of Europe, or Asia, or Africa, 
 or the New World. Since all (I may say all) Gipsies hide 
 the knowledge of their being Gipsies from the other in¬ 
 habitants, as they leave the tent, it cannot be said that any 
 of them really deny themselves, even should they hide them¬ 
 selves from those of their own l’ace. The ultimate test of a 
 person being a Gipsy would be for another to catch the in¬ 
 ternal response of his mind to the question put to him as to 
 the fact; or observe the workings of his heart in his con¬ 
 templations of himself. It can hardly be said that any 
 Gipsy denies, at heart, the fact of his being a Gipsy, 
 (which, indeed, is a contradiction in terms,) let him disguise 
 it from others as much as he may. If I could find such 
 a man, he would be the only one of his race whom 1 
 would feel inclined to despise as such. 
 
 From all that has been said, the l’eader can have no diffi¬ 
 culty in believing, with me, as a question beyond doubt, that 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 507 
 
 the immortal John Bunyan was a Gipsy of mixed blood. 
 He was a tinker. And who were the tinkers ? Were thero 
 any itinerant tinkers in England, before the Gipsies settled 
 there? It is doubtful. In all likelihood, articles requiring 
 to be tinkered were carried to the nearest smithy. The 
 Gipsies are all tinkers, either literally, figuratively, or repre¬ 
 sentatively. Ask any English Gipsy, of a certain class, 
 what he can do, and, after enumerating several occupations, 
 he will add : “ I can tinker, of course,” although he may 
 know little or nothing about it. Tinkering, or travelling- 
 smith work, is the Gipsy’s representative business, which he 
 brought with him into Europe. Even the intelligent and 
 respectable Scottish Gipsies speak of themselves as belong¬ 
 ing to the “ tinker tribe.” The Gipsies in England, as in 
 Scotland, divided the country among themselves, under 
 representative chiefs, and did not allow any other Gipsies 
 to enter upon their walks or beats. Considering that the 
 Gipsies in England were estimated at above ten thousand 
 during the early part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, we 
 can readily believe that they were much more numerous 
 during the time of Bunyan. Was there, therefore, a pot or 
 a kettle, in the rural parts of England, to be mended, for 
 which there was not a Gipsy ready to attend to it ? If a Gipsy 
 would not tolerate any of his own race entering upon his 
 district, was he likely to allow any native ? If there were 
 native tinkers in England before the Gipsies settled there, 
 how soon would the latter, with their organization, drive 
 every one from the trade by sheer force ! What thing more 
 like a Gipsy ? Among the Scotch, we find, at a compara¬ 
 tively recent time, that the Gipsies actually murdered a 
 native, for infringing upon what they considered one of 
 their prerogatives—that of gathering rags through the 
 country. 
 
 Lord Macaulay says, with reference to Bunyan : “ The 
 tinkers then formed a hereditary caste, which was held in 
 no high estimation. They were generally vagrants and pil¬ 
 ferers, and were often confounded with the Gipsies, whom, 
 in truth, they nearly resembled.” I would like to know on 
 what authority his lordship makes such an assertion ; what 
 he knows about the origin of this “ hereditary tinker caste,” 
 and if it still exists ; and whether he holds to the purity-of- 
 Gipsy-blood idea, advanced by the Edinburgh Review and 
 
608 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 Blackwood’s Magazine, but especially the former. How 
 would he account for the existence of a hereditary caste of 
 any kind, in England, and that just one—the “ tinker caste”? 
 There w r as no calling at that time hereditary in England, 
 that I know of; and yet Bunyan -was born a tinker. In 
 Scotland, the collier and salter castes were hereditary, for 
 they were in a state of slavery to the owners of these 
 works.* But Avho ever heard of any native occupation, so 
 free as tinkering, being hereditary in England, in the seven¬ 
 teenth century ? Was not this “ tinker caste,” at that time, 
 exactly the same that it is now? If it was then hereditary, 
 is it not so still ? If not, by what means has it ceased to 
 be hereditary ? The tinkers existed in England, at that time, 
 exactly as they do now. And who are they now but mixed 
 Gipsies ? It is questionable, very questionable indeed, if we 
 will find, in all England, a tinker who is not a Gipsy. The 
 class will deny it; the purer and more original kind of Gip¬ 
 sies will also deny it; still, they are Gipsies. They are all 
 chabos, calos, or chals ; but they will play upon the word Gipsy 
 in its ideal, pnrity-of-blood sense, and deny that they are 
 Gipsies. We will find in Lavengro two such Gipsies—the 
 Flaming Tinman, and Jack Slingsby ; the first, a half-blood, 
 (which did not necessarily imply that either parent was 
 white ;) and the other, apparently, a very much mixed Gipsy. 
 The tinman termed Slingsby a “ mumping villain.” Now, 
 “mumper,” among the English Gipsies, is an expression for 
 a Gipsy whose blood is very much mixed. When Mr. Bor¬ 
 row used the word Petulengro,\ Slingsby started, and ex¬ 
 claimed : “ Young man, you know a thing or two.” I have 
 used the same word with English Gipsies, causing the same 
 surprise ; on one occasion, 1 was told : “ You must be a 
 Scotch Gipsy yourself.” “ Well,” I replied, “ I may be as 
 good a Gipsy as any of you, for anything you may know.” 
 “ That may be so,” was the answer I got. Then Slingsby 
 was very careful to mention to Lavengro that his ivife was 
 a white, or Christian, woman ; a thing not necessarily true 
 because he asserted it, but it implied that he was different. 
 These are but instances of, I might say, all the English tin- 
 
 * See pages 111 and 121. 
 
 j- Petal, according to Mr. Borrow, means a horse-shoe; and Petulengro, 
 a lord of the horse-shoe. It is evidently a very high catch-word among 
 the English Gipsies. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 509 
 
 kers. Almost every old countrywoman about the Scottish 
 Border knows that the Scottish tinkers are Gipsies.* 
 
 * Various of the characters mentioned in Mr. Borrow’s “ Lavengro,” 
 and “ ltomrny Rye,” are, beyond doubt, Gipsies. Old Fulcher is termed, 
 ilia derisive manner, by Ursula, “a gorgio and basket-maker.” She is one 
 of the ITernes; a family which gorgio and basket-maker Gipsies describe 
 as "an ignorant, conceited set, who think nothing of other Gipsies, owing 
 to the quality and quantity of their own blood.” This is the manner in 
 which the more original and pure and the other kind of English Gipsies 
 frequently talk of each other. The latter will deny that they are Gipsies, 
 at least hide it from the world ; and, like the same kind of Scottish Gipsies, 
 speak of the others, exclusively, as Gipsies. I am acquainted with a fair¬ 
 haired English Gipsy, whose wife, now dead, was a half-breed. “ But I 
 am not a Gipsy,” said he to me, very abruptly, before I had said anything 
 that could have induced him to think that I took him for one. He spoke 
 Gipsy, like the others. I soon caught him tripping; for, in speaking of 
 the size of Gipsy families, he slipped his foot, and said: “ For example, 
 there is our family ; there were (so many) of us.” There is another Gipsy, 
 a neighbour, who passes his wife off to the public as an Irish woman, while 
 she is a fair-haired Irish Gipsy. Both, in short, played upon the word 
 Gipsy ; for, as regards fullness of blood, they really were not Gipsies. 
 
 The dialogue bet ween the Romany Rye and the llorncastle jockey clearly 
 shows the Gipsy in the latter, when his attention is directed to the figure 
 of the Hungarian. The Romany Rye makes indirect reference to the Gip¬ 
 sies, and the jockey abruptly asks: “Who be they? Come, don’t be 
 ashamed. I have occasionally kept queerisli company myself.” “ Romany 
 chals ! Whew ! I bcgiir to smell a rat.” The remainder of the dialogue, 
 and the spree which follows, are perfectly Gipsy throughout, on the part of 
 the jockey ; but, like so many of his race, he is evidently ashamed to own 
 himsolf up to be “ one of them.” He says, in a way as if he were a 
 stranger to the language: “ And what a singular language they have got 1” 
 “ Do you know anything of it?” said the Romany Rye. “ Only a very few 
 words; they were always char}- in teaching me any.” He said he was 
 brought up with the gorgio and basket-maker Fulcher, who followed the 
 caravan. He is described as dressed in a coat of green, (a favourite Gipsy 
 colour,) and as having curly brown or black hair; and he says of Mary 
 Fulcher, whom he married: “ She had a fair complexion, and nice red hair, 
 both of which I liked, being a bit of a black myself.” How much this is in 
 keeping with the Gipsies, who so frequently speak of each other, in a 
 jocular way, as “ brown and black rascals 1” 
 
 I likewise claim Isopel Berners, in Lavengro, to be a thumping Gipsy 
 lass, who travelled the country with her donkey-cart, taking her own part, 
 and wapphig this one, and umpping that one. It signifies not what her ap¬ 
 pearance was. I have frequently taken tea, at her house, with a young, 
 blue-eyed, English Gipsy widow, perfectly English in her appearance, whe 
 spoke Gipsy freely enough. It did not signify what Isopel said of herself, 
 or her relations. How did she come to speak Gipsy? Do Gipsies teach 
 their language to strangers, and, more especially, to strange women ? As¬ 
 suredly not. Suppose that Isopel was not a Gipsy, but had married a 
 Gipsy, then I could understand how she might have known Gipsy, and yet 
 not have been a Gipsy, except by initiation. But it is utterly improbable 
 that she, a strange woman, should have been taught a word of it. 
 
 In England are to be found Gipsies of many occupations ; horse-dealers. 
 
510 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 The prejudice against the name of Gipsy was apparently 
 as great in Bunyan’s time as in our own ; and there was, 
 evidently, as great a timidity, on the part of mixed, fair- 
 haired Gipsies, to own the blood then, as now ; and great 
 danger, for then it was hangablc to be a Gipsy, by the law 
 of Queen Elizabeth, and “ felony without benefit of clergy,” 
 for “ any person, being fourteen years, whether natural born 
 subject or stranger, who had been seen in the fellowship of 
 such persons, or disguised like them, and remained with them 
 one month, at once, or at several times.” When the name 
 of Gipsy, and every association connected with it, were so 
 severely proscribed by law, what other name would the 
 tribe go under but that of tinkers—their own proper occu¬ 
 pation ? Those only would be called Gipsies whose appear¬ 
 ance indicated the pure, or nearly pure, Gipsy. Although 
 there was no necessity, under any circumstances, for Bunyan 
 to say that he was a Gipsy, and still less in the face of the 
 law proscribing, so absolutely, the race, and every one coun¬ 
 tenancing it, he evidently wished the fact to be understood, 
 or, I should rather say, took it for granted, that part of the 
 public knew of it, when he said : “ For my descent, it was, 
 as is well known to many, of a low and inconsiderable gen¬ 
 eration ; my father’s house being of that rank that is meanest 
 and most despised of all the families of the land.” Of whom 
 does Bunyan speak here, if not of the Gipsies ? He says, of 
 all the families of the land. And he adds: “ After I had 
 been thus for some considerable time, another thought came 
 
 livery stable-keepers, public-house keepers, sometimes grocers and linen- 
 drapers ; indeed, almost every occupation from these downwards. I can 
 readily enough believe an English Gipsy, when he tells me, that he knows 
 of an English squire a Gipsy. To have an English squire a Gipsy, might 
 have come about even in this way: Imagine a rollicking or eccentric Eng¬ 
 lish squire taking up with, and marrying, say, a pretty mixed Gipsy bar or 
 lady’s maid, and the children would be brought up Gipsies, for certainty. 
 
 There are two Gipsies, of the name of B-, farmers upon the estate 
 
 of Lord Lister, near Massingham, in the county of Norfolk. They are des¬ 
 cribed as good-sized, handsome men, and swarthy, with long black hair, 
 combed over their shoulders. They dress in the old Gipsy stylish fashion, 
 with a green cut-away, or Newmarket, coat, yellow leather breeches, but¬ 
 toned to the knee, and top boots, with a Gipsy hat, ruffled breast, and 
 turned-down collar. They occupy the position of any natives in society ; 
 attend church, take an interest in parish matters, dine with his lordship's 
 other tenants, and compete for prizes at the agricultural shows. They are 
 proud of being Gipsies. I have also been told that there are Gipsies in tho 
 county of Kent, who have hop farms and dairies. 
 
DISQUISITION ON T1IE GIPSIES. 
 
 511 
 
 into my mind, and that was. whether we, (his family and rel¬ 
 atives,) were of the Israelites or no ? For, finding in the 
 Scriptures, that they were once the peculiar people of God, 
 thought I, if I were one of this race, (how significant is the 
 expression !) my soul must needs be happy. Now, again, I 
 found within me a great longing to be resolved about this 
 question, but could not tell how I should ; at last, I 
 asked my father of it, who told me, No, we, (his father in¬ 
 cluded,) were not.”* I have heard the same question put 
 by Gipsy lads to their parent, (a very much mixed Gipsy,) 
 and it was answered thus : “ We must have been among the 
 Jews, for some of our ceremonies are like theirs.” The best 
 commentary that can be passed on the above extracts 
 from Bunyan’s autobiography, will be found in our author’s 
 account of his visit to the old Gipsy chief, whose acquaint¬ 
 ance he made at St. Boswell’s fair, and to which the reader 
 is referred, (pages 309-318.) When did we ever hear of an 
 ordinary Englishman taking so much trouble to ascertain 
 whether he was a Jew , or not? No Englishman, it may be 
 safely asserted, ever docs that, or has ever done it ; and no 
 one in England could have done it, during Bunyan’s time, 
 but a Gipsy. Bunyan seems to have been more or less ac¬ 
 quainted with the history of the Jews, and how they were 
 scattered over the world, though not publicly known to be 
 in England, from which country they had been for centuries 
 banished. About the time in question, the re-admission of 
 the Jews was much canvassed in ecclesiastical as well as 
 political circles, and ultimately carried, by the exertions of 
 Manasseh Ben Israel, of Amsterdam. Under these circum¬ 
 stances, it was very natural for Bunyan to ask himself wheth¬ 
 er he belonged to the Jewish race, since he had evidently 
 never seen a Jew ; and that the more especially, as the 
 Scottish Gipsies have even believed themselves to be Ethio¬ 
 pians. Such a question is entertained, by the Gipsies, even 
 
 * Bunyan adds: “ But, notwithstanding the meanness and inconsiderable¬ 
 ness of my parents, it pleased God to put it into their hearts to put me to 
 school, to learn me both to read and write; the which 1 also attained, ac¬ 
 cording to the rate of other poor men’s children.” 
 
 He does not say, “ According to the rate of poor men’s children,” but of 
 “ other poor men’s childrena form of expression always used by the Gip¬ 
 sies when speaking of themselves, as distinguished from others. The lan¬ 
 guage used by Bunyan, in speaking of his family, was in harmony with 
 that of the population at large ; but he, doubtless, had the feelings peculiar 
 to all the tribo, with reference to their origin and race. 
 
512 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 at the present day ; for they naturally think of the Jews, 
 and wonder whether, after all, their race may not, at some 
 time, have been connected with them. How trifling it is for 
 any one to assert, that Banyan—a common native of England 
 —while in a state of spiritual excitement, imagined that he 
 was a Jew, and that he should, at a mature age, have put 
 anything so absurd in his autobiography, and in so grave a 
 manner as he did ! 
 
 Southey, in his life of Bunyan, writes : “ Wherefore this 
 (tinkering - ) should have been so mean and despised a calling, 
 is not, however, apparent, when it was not followed as a 
 vagabond employment, but, as in this case, exercised by one 
 who had a settled habitation, and who, mean as his condition 
 was, was nevertheless able to put his son to school, in an 
 age when very few of the poor were taught to read and 
 write.” The fact is, that Bunyan’s father had, apparently, 
 a town beat, which would give him a settled residence, pre¬ 
 vent him using a tent, and lead him to conform with the 
 ways of the ordinary inhabitants ; but, doubtless, he had his 
 pass from the chief of the Gipsies for the district. The 
 same may be said of John Bunyan himself. 
 
 How little does a late writer in the Dublin University 
 Magazine know of the feelings of a mixed Gipsy, like 
 Bunyan, when he says: “ Did he belong to the Gipsies, we 
 have little doubt that he would have dwelt on it, with a sort 
 of spiritual exultation ; and that of his having been called 
 out of Egypt would have been to him one of the proofs of 
 Divine favour. We cannot imagine him suppressing the 
 fact, or disguising it.” Where is the point in the reviewer’s 
 remarks? His remarks have no point. How could the fact 
 of a man being a Gipsy be made the grounds of any kind of 
 spiritual exultation ? And how could the fact of the tribe 
 originating in Egypt be a proof of Divine favour towards 
 the individual ? What occasion had Bunyan to mention he 
 was a Gipsy ? What purpose would it have served? How 
 would it have advanced his mission as a minister? Con¬ 
 sidering the prejudice that has always existed against that 
 unfortunate word Gipsy, it would have created a sensation 
 among all parties, if Bunyan had said that he was a Gipsy. 
 “What!” the people would have asked, “a Gipsy turned 
 priest? We’ll have the devil turning priest next!” Con¬ 
 sidering the many enemies which the tinker-bishop had to 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 513 
 
 contend with, some of whom even sought his life, he would 
 have given them a pretty occasion of revenging themselves 
 upon him, had he said he was a Gipsy. They would have 
 put the law in force, and stretched his neck for him.* The 
 same writer goes on to say: “ In one passage at least—and 
 we think there are more in Banyan’s works—the Gipsies 
 are spoken of in such a way as would be most unlikely if 
 Bunyan thought he belonged to that class of vagabonds.” I 
 am not aware as to what the reviewer alludes ; but, should 
 Bunyan even have denounced the conduct of the Gipsies, in 
 the strongest terms imaginable, would that have been other¬ 
 wise than what he did with sinners generally ? Should a 
 clergyman denounce the ways and morals of every man of 
 his parish, does that make him think less of being a native 
 of the parish himself? Should a man even denounce his 
 children as vagabonds, does that prevent him being their 
 father ? This writer illustrates what I have said of people 
 generally—that they are almost incapable of forming an 
 opinion on the Gipsy question, unaided by facts, and the 
 bearings of facts, laid before them ; so thoroughly is the 
 philosophy of race, as it progresses and develops, unknown 
 to the public mind, and so absolute is the prejudice of caste 
 against the Gipsy race.f 
 
 * Justice Keeling threatened Bunyan with this fate, even for preaching; 
 for said he: “ If you do not submit to go to hear divine service, and leave 
 your preaching, you must be banished the realm : And if, after such a day 
 as shall be appointed you to be gone, you shall be found in this realm, or 
 be found to come over again, without special license from the king, you 
 must stretch by the neck for it. I tell you plainly.” 
 
 Sir Matthew Hale tells us that, on one occasion, at the Suffolk assizes, no 
 less than thirteen Gipsies were executed, under the old Gipsy statutes, a 
 few years before the Restoration. 
 
 f Perhaps the following passage is the one alluded to by this writer: “ I 
 often, when these temptations had been with force upon me. did compare 
 myself to the case of such a child, whom some Gipsy hath by force took 
 up in her arms, and is carrying from friend and country.” Grace abound¬ 
 ing. The use of a simile like this confirms the fact that Bunyan belonged 
 to the tribe, rather than that he did not; unless we can imagine that Gip¬ 
 sies, when candid, do not what every other race has done—admit the pecu¬ 
 liarities of theirs, while in a previous and barbarous state of existence. Ilis 
 admission confirms a fact generally believed, but sometimes denied, as in 
 the case of the writer in Blackwood's Magazine, mentioned at page 375. 
 
 Bunyan, doubtless, “ dwelt on it with a sort of spiritual exultation,” that 
 he should have been “ called”—not “ out, of Egypt,” but—“ out of the 
 tribe,” when, possibly, no others of it, to his knowledge, had been so priv¬ 
 ileged ; but it was, certainly, “ most unlikely” he would say that “ he 
 belonged to that class of vagabonds.” 
 
 22 * 
 
514 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 I need hardly Fay anything further to show that Banyan 
 was a Gipsy. The only circumstance that is wanting to 
 complete the evidence, would be for him to have added to his 
 account of his descent: “ In other words, I am a Gipsy.” 
 But I have given reasons for such verbal admission being, in 
 a measure, impossible. I do not ask for an argument in 
 favour of Bunyan not being a Gipsy, but a common English¬ 
 man ; for an argument of that kind, beyond such remarks as 
 I have commented on, is impracticable ; but what I ask for is, 
 an exposition of the animus of the man who does not wish 
 that he should have been a Gipsy ; assuming that a man can 
 be met with, who will so far forget what is due to the dig¬ 
 nity of human nature, as to commit himself in any such way. 
 That Bunyan was a Gipsy is beyond a doubt. That he is a 
 Gipsy, now, in Abraham’s bosom, the Christian may readily 
 believe. To the genius of a Gipsy and the grace of God 
 combined, the world is indebted for the noblest production 
 that ever proceeded from an uninspired man. Impugn it 
 whoso list. 
 
 Of the Pilgrim’s Progress, Lord Macaulay, in his happy 
 manner, writes: “For magnificence, for pathos, for vehe¬ 
 ment exhortation, for subtle disquisition, for every purpose 
 of the poet, the orator, and the divine, this homely dialect— 
 the dialect of plain working men—was perfectly sufficient. 
 There is no book in our literature on which we would so 
 readily stake the fame of the old, unpolluted, English lan¬ 
 guage,” as the Pilgrim’s Progress ; “ no book which shows, 
 so well, how rich that language is in its own proper wealth, 
 and how little it has been improved by all that it has bor¬ 
 rowed.” “ Though there were many clever men in England, 
 during the latter half of the seventeenth century, there were 
 only two great creative minds. One of these minds pro¬ 
 duced the Paradise Lost; the other, the Pilgrim’s Progress” 
 —the work of an English tinkering Gipsy. 
 
 It is very singular that religious writers should strive to 
 make out that Bunyan was not a Gipsy. If these writers 
 really have the glory of God at heart, they should rather 
 attempt to prove that he was a member of this race, which 
 has been so much despised. For, thereby, the grace of God 
 would surely be the more magnified. Have they never 
 heard that Jesus Christ came into the world to preach the 
 Gospel to the poor, to break the chains of the oppressed, 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 515 
 
 and raise up the bowed-down ? Have they never heard that 
 the poor publican who, standing afar off, would not so much 
 as lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote his breast, and ex¬ 
 claimed : “ God be merciful to me, a sinner,” went down 
 justified rather than him who gave thanks for his not being 
 like other men, or even as that publican ? Have they never 
 heard that God hath chosen the foolish things of the world 
 to confound the wise ; and the weak things of the world to 
 confound the things which are mighty ; and things which 
 are despised, yea, and things which are not, to bring to 
 naught things that are : that no flesh should glory in his 
 presence ? I shall wait, with considei*able curiosity, to see 
 whether the next editor, or biographer, of this illustrious 
 Gipsy will take any notice of the present work ; or whether 
 he will dispose of it somewhat in this strain : “ One of 
 Bunyan’s modern reviewers, by a strange mistake, construes 
 his self-disparaging admissions to mean that he was the off¬ 
 spring of Gipsies!” 
 
 Sir Walter Scott admits that Bunyan was most probably 
 a “ Gipsy reclaimed and Mr. Offor, that “ his father must 
 have been a Gipsy.”* But, with these exceptions, I know 
 not if any writer upon Bunyan has more than hinted at 
 the possibility of even a connexion between him and the Gip¬ 
 sies. It is very easy to account for all this, by the ignorance 
 of the world in regard to the Gipsy tribe, but, above all, by 
 the extreme prejudice of caste which is entertained against 
 it. Does caste exist nowhere but in India ? Does an Eng¬ 
 lishman feel curious to know what caste can mean ? In few 
 parts of tlie world does caste reign so supreme, as it does in 
 Great Britain, towards the Gipsy nation. What is it but 
 the prejudice of caste that has prevented the world from 
 acknowledging Bunyan to have been a Gipsy ? The evidence 
 of the fact of his having been a Gipsy is positive enough. 
 Will any one say that he does not believe that Bunyan 
 meant to convey to the world a knowledge of the fact of 
 
 * It is interesting to notice what these two writers say. If Bunyan’s 
 father was a Gipsy, we may reasonably assume that his mother was one 
 likewise ; and, consequently, that Bunyan was one himself, or as Sir Wal¬ 
 ter Scott expresses it—a “ Gipsy reclaimed.” A Gipsy being a question of 
 race, and not a matter of habits, it should be received as one of the simplest 
 of elementary truths, that once a Gipsy, always a Gipsy. We naturally 
 ask. Why has not the fact of Bunyan having been a Gipsy stood on record, 
 for the last twe centuries ? and, echo answers, Why ? 
 
51C 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 his being a Gipsy ? Or that he does not believe that the 
 tinkers are Gipsies ? Has any writer on Bunyan ever taken 
 the trouble to ascertain who the tinkers really are ; and 
 that, in consequence of his investigations, he has come to 
 the conclusion that they are not Gipsies ? If no writer on 
 the subject of the illustrious dreamer lias ever taken that 
 trouble, to what must we attribute the fact but the prejudice 
 of caste ? It is caste, and nothing but caste. What is it 
 but the prejudice of caste that has led Lord Macaulay to 
 invent his story about the tinkers ? Bor what he says of the 
 tinkers is a pure invention, or, at best, a delusion, on his part. 
 What is it but the prejudice of caste that has prevented 
 others from saying, plainly, that Bunyan was a Gipsy ? It 
 would be more manly if they were to leave Bunyan alone, 
 than receive his works, and damn the man, that is, his blood. 
 It places them on the level of boors, when they allow them¬ 
 selves to be swayed by the prejudices that govern boors. 
 When they speak of, or write about, Bunyan, let them exer¬ 
 cise common honesty, and receive both the man and the 
 man’s works : let them not be guilty of petit larceny, or 
 rather, great robbery, in the matter. 
 
 Southey, in his life of Bunyan, writes : “ John Bunyan has 
 faithfully recorded his own spiritual history. Had he 
 dreamed of being 1 forever known,’ and taking his place 
 among those who may be called the immortals of the earth, 
 he would probably have introduced more details of his tem¬ 
 poral circumstances, and the events of his life. But, glori¬ 
 ous dreamer as he was, this never entered into his imagina¬ 
 tion.* Less concerning him than might have been expected 
 has been preserved by those of his own sect; and it is not 
 likely that anything more should be recovered from obliv¬ 
 ion.” Remarks like these come with a singular grace from 
 a man with so many prejudices as Southey. John Bunyan has 
 told us as much of his history as lie dared to do. It was a 
 subject upon which, in some respects, he doubtless main¬ 
 tained a great reserve ; for it cannot be supposed that a 
 man occupying so prominent and popular a position, as a 
 preacher and writer, and of so singular an origin, should 
 
 * Although Bunyan probably never anticipated being held in high esti¬ 
 mation by what are termed the “ great ones ” of the earth, yet what Southey 
 has said cannol be predicated of him, if we consider the singularity of his 
 origin and history, and the popularity which he enjoyed, as author of the 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 517 
 
 have had no investigations made into his history, and that 
 of his family ; if not by his friends, at least, by his enemies, 
 who seemed to have been capable of doing anything to injure 
 and discredit him. But, very probably, his being a tinker 
 was, with friends and enemies, a circumstance so altogether 
 discreditable, as to render any investigation of the kind per¬ 
 fectly superfluous. In mentioning that much of himself 
 which he did, Bunyan doubtless imagined that the world 
 understood, or would have understood, what he meant, and 
 would, sooner or later, acknowledge the race to which he 
 belonged. And yet it has remained in this unacknowledged 
 state for two centuries since his time. How unreasonable 
 it is to imagine that Bunyan should have said, in as many 
 words, that he was a Gipsy, when the w T orld generally is so 
 apt to become fired with indignation, should we noiv say that 
 he was one of the race. How applicable are the words of 
 his wife, to Sir Matthew Hale, to the people of the present 
 day : “ Because he is a tinker, and a poor man, he is de¬ 
 spised, and cannot have justice.” 
 
 Had Southey exercised that common sense which is the 
 inheritance of most of Englishmen, and divested himself of 
 this prejudice of caste, which is likewise their inheritance, he 
 never could have had any difficulty in forming a proper idea 
 of Bunyan, and everything concerning him. And the same 
 may be said of any person at the present day. John Bun¬ 
 yan was simply a Gipsy of mixed blood, who must have 
 spoken the Gipsy language in great purity ; for, considering 
 
 Pilgrim’s Progress ; a work affecting the mind of man in every age of tho 
 world. Of this work Bunyan writes : 
 
 “ My Pilgrim’s book has travelled sea and land, 
 
 Yet could I never come to understand 
 That it was slighted, or turned out of door. 
 
 By any kingdom, were they rich or poor. 
 
 In France and Flanders, where men kill each other. 
 
 My Pilgrim is esteemed a friend, a brother. 
 
 In Holland, too, ’tis said, as I am told, 
 
 My Pilgrim is, with eome, worth more than gold. 
 
 Highlanders and Wild Irish can agree 
 My Pilgrim should familiar with them be. 
 
 'Tis in New England under such advance, 
 
 Receives there so much loving countenance, 
 
 As to bo trimmed, new clothed, and decked with gems. 
 
 That it may show its features, and its limbs. 
 
 Yet more, so public doth my Pilgrim walk, 
 
 That of him thousands daily sing and talk.” 
 
518 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the extent to which it is spoken in England, to-day, we can 
 well believe that it was very pure two centuries ago, and 
 that Bunyan might have written works even in that lan¬ 
 guage. But such is the childish prejudice against the name 
 of Gipsy, such the silly incredulity towards the subject, that, 
 in Great Britain, and, I am sorry to say, with some people 
 in America, one has nearly as much difficulty in persuading 
 others to believe in it, as St. Paul had in inducing the 
 Greeks to believe in the resurrection of the dead. Why 
 seemeth it unto thee incredible that Bunyan was a Gipsy ? 
 or that Bunyan’s race should now be found in every town, 
 in every village, and, perhaps, in every hamlet, in Scotland, 
 and in every sphere of life ?* 
 
 To a candid and unprejudiced person, it should afford a 
 relief, in thinking of the immortal dreamer, that he should 
 have been a member of this singular race, emerging from a 
 state of comparative barbarism, and struggling upwards, 
 amid so many difficulties, rather than he should have been 
 of the very lowest of our own race ; for in that case, there is 
 an originality and dignity connected with him personally, 
 that could not well attach to him, in the event of his having 
 belonged to the dregs of the common natives. Beyond be¬ 
 ing a Gipsy, it is impossible to say what his pedigree really 
 was. His grandfather might have been an ordinary native, 
 even of fair birth, who, in a thoughtless moment, might 
 have “ gone off with the Gipsies ;” or his ancestor, on the 
 native side of the house, might have been one of the “ many 
 English loiterers ” who joined the Gipsies on their arrival 
 in England, when they were “ esteemed and held in great 
 admiration ;” or he might have been a kidnapped infant; or 
 such a “ foreign tinker” as is alluded to in the Spanish 
 Gipsy edicts, and in the Act of Queen Elizabeth, in which 
 mention is made of “ strangers,” as distinguished from natu- 
 
 * Bunsen writes: “ Sound judgment is displayed rather in an aptness 
 
 for believing what is historical, than in a readiness at denying it. 
 
 Shallow minds have a decided propensity to fall into the latter error. In¬ 
 capability of believing on evidence is the last form of the intellectual im¬ 
 becility of an enervated age.” 
 
 A writer who contributes frequently to “ Notes and Queries,” after stat¬ 
 ing that he has read the works of Grellmann and Hoyland on the Gipsies, 
 adds: “ My conclusion is that the tribes have no more right to nationality, 
 race, blood, or language, than the London thieves have—with their slang, 
 some words of which may have their origin in the Hebrew, from their 
 dealings with the lowest order of Jews.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 519 
 
 ral born subjects, being with the Gipsies. The last is most 
 probable, as the name, Bunyan, would seem to be of foreign 
 origin. It is, therefore, very likely, that there was not a 
 drop of common English blood in Bunyan’s veins. John 
 Bunyan belongs to the world at large, and England is only 
 entitled to the credit of the formation of his character. Be 
 all that as it may, Bunyan’s father seems to have been a su¬ 
 perior, and therefore important, man in the tribe, from the 
 fact, as Southey says, of his having “ put his son to school in 
 an age when very few of the poor were taught to read and 
 write.” 
 
 The world never can do justice to Bunyan, unless it takes 
 him up as a Gipsy ; nor can the Christian, unless he con¬ 
 siders him as being a Gipsy, in Abraham’s bosom. Ilis 
 biographers have not, even in one instance, done justice to 
 him ; for, while it is altogether out of the question to call 
 him the “ wicked tinker,” the “ depraved Bunyan,” it is un¬ 
 reasonable to style him a “ blackguard,” as Southey has done. 
 He might have been a blackguard in that sense in which a 
 youth, in a village, is termed a “young blackguard,” for 
 being the ringleader among the boys ; or on account of his 
 wearing a ragged coat, and carrying a hairy wallet on his 
 shoulder, which, in a conventional sense, constitute any 
 man, in Great Britain, a blackguard. Bunyan’s sins were 
 confined to swearing, cursing, blaspheming, and lying; and 
 were rather intensely manifested by the impetuosity of his 
 character, or vividly described by the sincerity of his piety, 
 and the liveliness of his genius, than deeply rooted in 
 his nature ; for he shook off the habit of swearing, (and, 
 doubtless, that of lying,) on being severely reproved for 
 it, by a loose and ungodly woman. Three of the kindred 
 vices mentioned, (and, we might add the fourth, lying,) more 
 frequently proceed from the influence of bad example and 
 habit, than from anything inherently vicious, in a youth 
 witli so many of the good points which characterized Bunyan. 
 His youth was even marked by a tender conscience, and a 
 strong moral feeling ; for thus he speaks of himself in 
 “ Grace Abounding “ But this I well remember, that 
 though I could myself sin, with the greatest delight and 
 ease, and also take pleasure in the vileness of my compan¬ 
 ions, yet, even then, if I had, at any time, seen wicked 
 things in those who professed goodness, it would make my 
 
520 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 spirit tremble. As, once above all the rest, when I was 
 in the height of vanity, yet hearing one swear that 
 was reckoned for a religious man, it had so great a 
 stroke upon my spirit, that it made my heart ache.” He 
 was the subject of these experiences before he was ten 
 years of age. It is unnecessary to speak of his dancing, 
 ringing bells, and playing at tip-cat and hockey. Now, let 
 us see what was Bunyan’s moral character. He was not a 
 drunkard; and he says: “I know not whether there be 
 such a thing as a woman breathing under the copes of 
 heaven, but by their apparel, their children, or by common 
 fame, except my wife.” And he continues: “ Had not a 
 miracle of precious grace prevented, I had laid myself open 
 even to the stroke of those laws which bring some to dis¬ 
 grace and open shame, before the face of the world.” The 
 meaning of this is, evidently, that he never stole anything ; 
 but that it was “by a miracle of precious grace” he was pre¬ 
 vented from doing it. In what sense, then, was Bunyan a 
 blackguard ? There was never such occasion for him to say 
 of himself, what John Newton said of himself, as a criminal 
 passed him, on the way to the gallows : “There goes John 
 Bunyan, but for the gi'ace of God.” But such was the 
 depth of Bunyan’s piety, that hardly any one thought and 
 spoke more disparagingly of himself than he did ; although 
 he would defend himself, with indignation, against unjust 
 charges brought against him ; for, however peaceable and 
 humble he might be, he would turn most manfully upon his 
 enemies, when they baited or badgered him. “ It began, 
 therefore, to be rumoured, up and down among the people, 
 that I was a witch, a Jesuit, a highwayman, and the like. 
 
 . . . . I also call those fools and knaves that have 
 thus made it anything of their business to affirm any of 
 these things aforesaid of me, namely, that I have been 
 naught with other women, or the like. . . . My foes 
 
 have missed their mark in this their shooting at me. I am 
 not the man. I wish that they themselves be guiltless. If 
 all the fornicators and adulterers in England were hanged 
 up by the neck till they be dead, John Bunyan, the object of 
 their envy , would be still alive and well.” The style of his 
 language even indicated the Gipsy ; for English Gipsies, as 
 Mr. Borrow justly remarks, speak the English language 
 much better than the natives of the lower classes ; for this 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 521 
 
 apparent reason, tliat they have not the dialect of any par¬ 
 ticular part of England, which would be, were they always 
 to have resided in a particular place. It must have been 
 more so before the middle of the seventeenth century, up¬ 
 wards of a hundred years after the arrival of the Gipsies in 
 England ; for, in acquiring the English language, they would 
 keep clear of many of the rude dialects that so commonly 
 prevail in that country. But Bunyan’s language was, doubt¬ 
 less, drawn principally from the Scriptures. 
 
 The illustrious pilgrim had many indignities cast upon 
 him, by the lower and unthinking classes of the population, 
 and by Quakers and strict Baptists. ’Twas a man like 
 John Owen who knew how to appreciate and respect him ; 
 for, said he to Charles II. : “ I would readily part with all 
 my learning, could I but preach like the tinker.” And 
 what was it that supported Bunyan, amid all the abuse and 
 obloquy to which he was exposed, as he obeyed the call 
 of God, and preached the gospel, in season and out of season, 
 to every creature around him? When they sneered at his 
 origin, and the occupation from which he had risen, he 
 said : “ Such insults I freely bind unto me, as an ornament, 
 among the rest of my reproaches, till the Lord shall wipe 
 them olf at his coming.” And again : “ The poor Christian 
 hath something to answer them that reproach him for his 
 ignoble pedigree, and shortness of the glory of the wisdom 
 of this world. I fear God. This is the highest and most 
 noble ; he hath the honour, the life, and glory that is last¬ 
 ing.”* 
 
 In Great Britain, the off-scourings of the earth can say 
 who they are, and no prejudices are entertained against 
 
 * That the rabble, or “ fellows of the baser sort,” should have pelted 
 Bunyan with all sorts of offensive articles, when he commenced to preach 
 the gospel, is what could naturally have been expected; but it sounds 
 strange to read what he has put on record of the abuse heaped upon him, 
 by people professing to be the servants of Him “ in whom there is neither 
 Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female.” See with what Christian 
 humility lie alludes to such treatment, as contrasted with the manly indig¬ 
 nation which ho displayed in repelling slanders. lie speaks of “ the Lord 
 wiping off such insults at his coming;” when his enemies, with the utmost 
 familiarity and assurance, may approach the judgment-seat, and demand 
 their crowns. “ Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in 
 thy name have cast out devils ? and in thy name done many wonderful 
 works ?” And it may be answered unto them : “ I never knew you ; de¬ 
 part from me, yc that work iniquity.” 
 
622 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TJIE GIPSIES. 
 
 them. Half-caste Hindoos, Malays, Hottentots, and Negroes, 
 are “ sent home,” to be educated, and made pets of, and 
 have the choice of white women given to them for wives ; 
 but the children of a Scottish Christian Gipsy gentleman, 
 or of a Scottish Christian Gipsy gentlewoman, dare not say 
 who they arc, were it almost to save their lives. Scottish 
 people will wonder at what caste in India can mean, de¬ 
 plore its existence, and pray to God to remove it, that “ the 
 gospel may have free course and be glorified yet scowl— 
 silently and sullenly scowl—at the bare mention of John Bun- 
 yan having been a Gipsy ! Scottish religious journals will not 
 tolerate the idea to appear in their columns! To such peo¬ 
 ple I would say, Offer up no more prayers to Almighty God, to 
 remove caste from India, until they themselves have removed 
 from the land this prejudice of caste, that hangs like an 
 incubus upon so many of their fellow-subjects at home. It 
 is quite time enough to carry such petitions to the Deity, 
 when every Scottish Gipsy can make a return of himself in 
 the census, or proclaim himself a Gipsy at the cross, or from 
 the house-top, if need be ; or, at least, after steps have been 
 taken by the public to that end. But some of my country¬ 
 men may say : “ What are we to do, under the circum¬ 
 stances ?” And I reply : “ Endeavour to be yourselves, and 
 judge of this subject as it ought to be judged. You can, at 
 least, try to guard against your children acquiring your 
 own prejudices.” To the rising town generation, I would 
 look with more hope to see a better feeling entertained for 
 the name of Gipsy. But I look with more confidence to 
 the English than Scottish people ; for this question of “ folk” 
 is very apt to rankle and fester in the Scottish mind. I 
 wish, then, that the British, and more especially the 
 Scottish, public should consider itself as cited before the 
 bar of the w r orld, and not only the bar of the world, but 
 the bar of posterity, to plead on the Gipsy question, that it 
 may be seen if this is the only instance in which justice is 
 not to be done to a part of the British population. With 
 the evidence furnished in the present work, I submit the 
 name of Bunyan, as a case in point, to test the principle 
 at issue. Let British people beware how they approach 
 this subject, for there are great principles involved in it. 
 The social emancipation of the Gipsies is a question which 
 British people have to consider for the future. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 523 
 
 The day is gone by when it cannot be said who John 
 Bunyan was. In Cowper’s time, his name dare not be men¬ 
 tioned, “ lest it should move a sneer.” Let us hope that we 
 are living in happier times. Tinkering was Banyan’s occu¬ 
 pation ; his race the Gipsy—a fact that cannot be questioned. 
 His having been a Gipsy adds, by contrast, a lustre to his 
 name, and reflects an immortality upon his character; and 
 he stands out, from among all the men of the latter half of 
 the seventeenth century, in all his solitary grandeur, a mon¬ 
 ument of the grace of God, and a prodigy of genius. Let 
 us, then, enroll John Bunyan as the first (that is known to 
 the world) of eminent Gipsies, the prince of allegorists, and 
 one of the most remarkable of men and Christians. What 
 others of this race there may be who have distinguished 
 themselves among mankind, are known to God and, it may 
 be, some of the Gipsies. The saintly Doctor to whom I have 
 alluded was one of this singular people; and one beyond 
 question, for his admission of the fact cannot be denied by 
 any one. Any life of John Bunyan, or any edition of his 
 works, that does not contain a record of the fact of his 
 having been a Gipsy, lacks the most important feature con¬ 
 nected with the man that makes everything relating to him 
 personally interesting to mankind. It should even contain 
 a short dissertation on the Gipsies, and have, as a frontis¬ 
 piece, a Gipsy’s camp, with all its appurtenances. The 
 reader may believe that such a thing may be seen, and that, 
 perhaps, not before long. 
 
 It strikes me as something very singular, that Mr. Borrow, 
 “ whose acquaintance with the Gipsy race, in general, dates 
 from a very early period of his life who “ has lived more 
 with Gipsies than Scotchmen and than whom “ no one 
 ever enjoyed better opportunities for a close scrutiny of their 
 ways and habits,” should have told us so little about the 
 Gipsies. In all his writings on the Gipsies, he alludes to 
 two mixed Gipsies only—the Spanish half-pay captain, and 
 the English flaming tinman—in a way as if these were the 
 merest of accidents, and meant nothing. He has told us 
 nothing of the Gipsies but what was known before, with 
 the exception, as far as my memory serves me, of the custom 
 of the Spanish Gipsy, dressing her daughter in such a way 
 as to protect her virginity ; the existence of the tribe, in a 
 civilized state, in Moscow; and the habit of the members of 
 
524 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the race possessing two names ; all of which are, doubtless, 
 interesting pieces of information. The Spanish Gipsy mar¬ 
 riage ceremony was described, long before him, by Dr. 
 Bright; and Twiss, as far back as 1728, bears testimony to 
 the virtue of Gipsy females, inasmuch as they were not to 
 be procured in any way. Twiss also bears very positive 
 testimony on a point to which Mr. Borrow has not alluded, 
 viz. : the honesty of Spanish Gipsy innkeepers, in one re¬ 
 spect, at least, that, although he frequently left his linen, 
 spoons, &c., at their mercy, he never lost an article belong¬ 
 ing to him. He alludes, in his travels, to the subject of the 
 Gipsies incidentally ; and his testimony is, therefore, worthy 
 of every credit, on the points on which he speaks. In Mr. 
 Borrow’s writings upon the Gipsies, we find only sketches 
 of certain individuals of the race, whom he seems to have 
 fallen in with, and not a proper account of the nation. These 
 writings have done more injury to the tribe than, perhaps, 
 anything that ever appeared on the subject. I have met 
 with Gipsies—respectable young men—who complained bit¬ 
 terly of Mr. Borrow’s account of their race ; and they did 
 that with good reason ; for his attempt at generalization on 
 the subject of the people, is as great a curiosity as ever I set 
 my eyes upon. How unsatisfactory are Mr. Borrow’s opin¬ 
 ions on the Gipsy question, when he speaks of the “ deca¬ 
 dence ” of the race, when it is only passing from its first stage 
 of existence—the tent. This he does in his Appendix to the 
 Romany Bye ; and it is nearly all that can be drawn from 
 his writings on the Gipsies, in regard to their future his¬ 
 tory. 
 
 1 do not expect to meet among American people, generally, 
 with the prejudice against the name of Gipsy that prevails 
 in Europe ; for, in Europe, the prejudice is traditional—a 
 question of the nursery—while, in America, it is derived, 
 for the most part, from novels. American people will, of 
 course, form their own opinion upon the tented or any other 
 kind of Gipsies, as their behaviour warrants; but what 
 prejudice can they have for the Gipsy race as such? As a 
 race, it is, physically, as fine a one as ever came out of Asia ; 
 although, at the present day, it is so much mixed with the 
 white blood, as hardly to be observable in many, and abso¬ 
 lutely not so in others, who follow the ordinary vocations of 
 other men. What prejudice can Americans have against 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 625 
 
 Gipsy blood as sucli ? What prejudice can they have to the 
 Maryland farmers who have been settled, for at least two gen¬ 
 erations, near Annapolis, merely because they are Gipsies and 
 speak Gipsy ? If there is any people in the world who might 
 be expected to view the subject of the Gipsies dispassionately, 
 it ought to be the people of America ; for surely they have 
 prejudices enough in regard to race ; prejudices, the object 
 of which is independent of character or condition—some¬ 
 thing that stares them in the face, and cannot be got rid of. 
 If they have the practical sagacity to perceive the bearings 
 of the Gipsy question, they should at once take it up, and 
 treat it in the manner which the age demands. They have 
 certainly an opportunity of stealing a march upon English 
 people in this matter. 
 
 Part of what I have said in reference to Bunyan, I was de¬ 
 sirous of having inserted in a respectable American relig¬ 
 ious journal, but I did not succeed in it. “ It would take up 
 too much room in the paper, and give rise to more discus¬ 
 sion than they could afford to print.”—“ Perhaps you would 
 not wish it to be said that John Bunyan was a Gipsy ?”—“ Oh, 
 not at all,” replied the editor, colouring up a little. I found 
 that several of these papers devoted a pretty fair portion 
 of their space to such articles as funny monkey stories, and 
 descriptions of rat-trap and cow-tail-holder patents ; but for 
 anything of so very little importance as that which referred 
 to John Bunyan, they could afford no room whatever. Who 
 cared to know who John Bunyan was ? What purpose could 
 it serve? Who would be benefited by it? But funny mon¬ 
 key stories are pleasant reading ; every housewife should 
 know how to keep down her rats ; and every farmer should 
 be taught how to keep his cows’ tails from whisking their 
 milk in his face, while it is being drawn into the pail. Not 
 succeeding with the religious papers, I found expression to 
 my sentiments in one of the “ ungodly weeklies,” which de¬ 
 vote their columns to rats, monkeys, and cows, and a little 
 to mankind ; and there I found a feeling of sympathy for 
 Bunyan. Let it not be said, in after times, that the descend¬ 
 ants of the Puritans allowed themselves to be frightened by 
 a scare-crow, or put to flight by the shake of a rag. 
 
 I am afraid that the native-born quarrelsomeness of dis¬ 
 position about “ folk,” and things in general, which charac¬ 
 terizes Scottish people, will prove a bar to the Gipsies own- 
 
52G 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 ing themselves up in Scotland. Go into any Scottish village 
 you like, and ascertain the feelings which the inhabitants 
 entertain for each other, and you will find that such a one 
 is a “ poor grocer body that another belongs to a “ shoe¬ 
 maker pack,” another to a “ tailor pack,” another to a “cadger 
 pack,” another to a “ collier pack,” and another to a “ low 
 Tinkler pack ;” another to a “ bad nest,” and another to a 
 “ very bad nest.” And it is pretty much the same with the 
 better classes. Now, how could the Gipsy tribe live amid 
 such elements, if it did not keep everything connected with 
 itself hidden from all the other “ packs” surrounding it? 
 And is it consonant with reason to say, that a Scotchman 
 should be rated as standing at the bottom of all the various 
 “ packs” and “ nests,” simply because he has Gipsy blood 
 in his veins ? Yet, I meet with Scotchmen in the New 
 World, who express such a feeling towards the Gipsies. 
 This quarrelling about “ folk” I’eigns supreme in Scotland ; 
 and, what is worse, it is brought with the people to Am¬ 
 erica. It is inherent in them to be personal and intolerant, 
 among themselves, and to talk of, and sneer at, each other, 
 and “cast up things.” In that respect, a community of 
 Scotch people presents a peculiarity of mental feeling that 
 is hardly to be found in one of any other people. When 
 they come together, in social intercourse, there is frequently, 
 if not generally, a hearty, if not a boisterous, flow of feeling, 
 and, if the bottle contributes to the entertainment, a foam 
 upon the surface ; but the under-tow and ground-swell are 
 frequently long in subsiding. Even in America, where they 
 are reputed to have the clanishness of Jews, we will find 
 within their respective circles, more heart-burnings, jealous¬ 
 ies, envyings, and quarrellings, (but little or no Irish fight¬ 
 ing, for they are rather given to “ taking care of their 
 characters,”) than is to be found among almost any other 
 people. At the best, there may be said to be an armed 
 truce always to be found oxisting among them. Still, all 
 that is not known to people outside of these circles ; for 
 those within them are animated by a common national 
 sentiment, which leads them to conceal such feelings from 
 others, so as to “ uphold the credit of their country,” where- 
 ever they go. It will be a difficult matter to get the Gip¬ 
 sies heartily acknowledged among such elements as equals ; 
 for it makes many a native Scot wild, to tell him that there 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 527 
 
 are Scottish Gipsies as good, if not better, men than he is, 
 or any kith or kin that belongs to him. 
 
 And yet, it is not the Scottish gentleman—the gentleman 
 by birth, rearing, education, mind, or manners—who will be 
 backward to assist in raising up, and dignifying, the name of 
 Gipsy. No ; it will be the low-minded and ignorant Scots ; 
 people who are always either fawning upon, or sneering at, 
 those above them, or trampling, or, attempting to trample, 
 upon those below them. It is very apt to be that class 
 whibh Lord Jeffrey describes as “ having a double allow¬ 
 ance of selfishness, with a top-dressing of pedantry and con¬ 
 ceit,” and some of the “ but and ben” gentry, who will sneer 
 most at the word Gipsy. It is the flunkey, who lives and 
 brings up his family upon the cast-off clothes and broken 
 victuals of others, and but for whom such things would find 
 their way to the rag-basket and the pigs ; ’tis he and his 
 children who are too often the most difficult to please in the 
 matter of descent, and the most likely to perpetuate the 
 prejudice against the Gipsy tribe. 
 
 1 have taken some trouble to ascertain the feelings of 
 Scotchmen in America towards the Scottish Gipsies, such as 
 they are represented in these pages ; and I find that, among 
 the really educated and liberally brought up classes, there 
 are not to be discovered those prejudices against them, that 
 are expressed by the lower classes, and especially those from 
 country places. It is natural for the former kind of people 
 to take the most liberal view of a question like the present; 
 for they are, in a measure, satisfied with their position in 
 life ; while, with the lower classes, it is a feeling of restless 
 discontentment that leads them to strive to get some one 
 under them. No one would seem to like to beat the bottom 
 of any society ; and nowhere less so than in Scotland. A 
 good education and up-bringing, and a knowledge of the 
 world, likewise give a person a more liberal cast of mind, 
 wherewith to form an opinion upon the subject of the Gip¬ 
 sies ; and it is upon such that I would mainly rely in an 
 attempt to raise up the name of Gipsy. Among the lower 
 classes of my own countrymen, I find individuals all that 
 could be desired in the matter of esteeming the Gipsies, ac¬ 
 cording to the characters they bear, and the positions they 
 occupy in life ; but they are exceptions to the classes to 
 which they belong. Here is a specimen of the kind of Scot 
 
528 
 
 DISQUISITION' ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 the most difficult to break in to entertaining a proper feel¬ 
 ing upon the subject of the Gipsies : 
 
 By birth, he is a child of that dependent class that gets a 
 due share of the broken victuals and cast-off clothes of other 
 people. His parents are decent and honest enough people, 
 but very conceited and self-sufficient. Any person in the 
 shape of a mechanic, a labourer, or a peasant, appears as 
 nobody to them ; although, in independence, and even cir¬ 
 cumstances, they are not to be compared to many a peasant. 
 The “ oldest bairn” takes his departure for the Hew World, 
 “ with the firm determination to show to the world that he is 
 a man,” and “ teach the Yankees something.” The first 
 thing he does to “ show the world that he is a man,” is to 
 sneer, behave rudely, and attempt to pick quarrels with a 
 better class of his own countrymen, when lie comes in con¬ 
 tact with them. Providence has not been over-indulgent 
 with him in the matters of perceptors or reflectors ; for, what 
 little he knows, he has acquired in the manner that chickens 
 pick up their food, when it is placed before them. But he has 
 been gifted with a wonderful amount of self-conceit, which 
 nothing can break down in him, however much it may bo 
 abashed for the moment. Ho one boasts more of his “ fami¬ 
 ly,” to those who do not know who his family are, although 
 his family were brought up in a cage, and so small a cage, 
 that some of them must have roosted on the spars overhead 
 at night. Ho one is more independent, none more patriotic ; 
 no one boasts more of Wallace and Bruce, Burns and Scott, 
 and all the worthies ; to him there is no place in the world 
 like “ auld Scotland yet;” no one glories more in “ the noble 
 qualities of the Scot;” and none’s face burns with more im¬ 
 portance in upholding, unchallenged, what he claims to be 
 Ids character ; yet the individual is a compound of conceit 
 and selfishness, meanness and sordidness, and is estimated, 
 wherever he goes, as a “ perfect sweep.” Although no one 
 is more given to toasting, “ Brithers a’ the world o’er,” and, 
 “ A man’s a man for a’ that,” yet speak of the Gipsies to him, 
 and he exclaims: “Thank God! there’s no a drap o’ 
 Gipsy blood in me ; no one drap o’t!” Hot only is he un¬ 
 able to comprehend the subject, but he is unwilling to hear 
 the word Gipsy mentioned. In short, he turns up his nose 
 at the subject, and howls like a dog.* 
 
 * It is interesting to compare this feeling with that of the lowest order 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 529 
 
 It is the better kind of Scottish people, in whatever sphere 
 of life they are to be found, on whom the greatest reliance 
 is to be placed in raising up and dignifying the word Gipsy. 
 This peculiar family of mankind has been fully three centu¬ 
 ries and a half in the country, and it is high time that it 
 should be acknowledged, in some form or other ; high time, 
 certainly, that we should know something about it. To an 
 intelligent people it must appear utterly ridiculous that a 
 prejudice is to be entertained against any Scotchman, with¬ 
 out knowing who that Scotchman is, merely on account of 
 his blood. Nor will any intelligent Scotchman, after the 
 appearance of this work, be apt to say that he does not un¬ 
 derstand the subject of the Gipsies ; or that they cease to 
 be Gipsies by leaving the tent, or by a change of character 
 or habits, or by their blood getting mixed. It will not do 
 for any one to snap at the heels of this question : he must 
 look at it steadily, and approach it with a clear head, a firm 
 liond, and a Christian heart, and remove this stigma that lias 
 been allowed to attacli to his country. No one in particu¬ 
 lar can be blamed for the position which the Gipsies occupy 
 in the country : let by-gones be by-gones ; let us look to the 
 future for that expression of opinion which the subject calls 
 for. This much I feel satisfied of, that if the Gipsy subject 
 is properly handled, it would result in the name becoming as 
 much an object of respect and attachment in many of the 
 race, as it is now considered a reproach in others. There 
 is much that is interesting in the name, and nothing neces¬ 
 sarily low or vulgar associated with it; although there is 
 much that is wild and barbarous connected with the descent, 
 which is peculiar to the descent of all original tribes. It is 
 unnecessary to say, that in a part of the race, we still find 
 much that is wild, and barbarous, and roguish. 
 
 The latter part of the Gipsy nation, whether settled or 
 itinerant, must be reached indirectly, for reasons which have 
 already been given ; for it does not serve much purpose to 
 interfere too directly with them, as Gipsies. We should 
 bring a reflective influence to bear upon them, by holding 
 up to their observation, some of their own race in respect¬ 
 able positions in life, and respected by the world, as men, 
 
 of Spaniards, as described by Mr. Borrow. “ The outcast of the prison and 
 the presidio, who calls himself Spaniard, would feel insulted by being termed 
 Gitano, and would thank God that he is not.” /'aye 38G. 
 
 23 
 
530 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 though not known to be Gipsies. I could propose no better 
 plan to be adopted, with some of these people, than to give 
 them a copy of the present work, along with the Pilgrim’s 
 Progress, containing a short account of the Gipsies, and a 
 Gipsy’s encampment for a frontispiece. The world may 
 well believe that the Gipsies would read both of them, and 
 be greatly benelited by the Pilgrim’s Progress ; for, as a 
 race, they are exceedingly vain about anything connected 
 with themselves. Said I to some English Gipsies : “ You 
 are the vainest people in the world ; you think a vast deal 
 of yourselves.” “ There is good reason for that,” they re¬ 
 plied ; “ if we do not think something of ourselves, there 
 are no others to do it for us.” Now since John Bunyan has 
 become so famous throughout the world, and so honoured by 
 all sects and parties, what an inimitable instrument Provi¬ 
 dence has placed in our hands wherewith to raise up the 
 name of Gipsy ! Through him we can touch the heart of 
 Christendom ! I am well aware that the Church of Scot¬ 
 land has, or at least had, a mission among the itinerant 
 Scottish Gipsies. In addition to the means adopted by this 
 mission, to improve these Gipsies, it would be well to take 
 such steps as I have suggested, so as to raise up the name of 
 Gipsy. For, in this way, the Gipsies, of all classes, would 
 see that they are not outcasts ; but that the prejudices which 
 people entertain for them are applicable to their ways of 
 life, only, and not to their blood or descent, tribe or language. 
 Their hearts would then become more easily touched, their 
 affections more readily secured ; and the attempt made to 
 improve them would have a much better chance of being 
 successful. A little judgment is necessary in conducting an 
 intercourse with the wild Gipsy, or, indeed, any kind of 
 Gipsy ; it is very advisable to speak well of “ the blood,” 
 and never to confound the race with the conduct of part of 
 it. There is hardly anything that can give a poor Gipsy 
 greater pleasure than to tell him something about his people, 
 and particularly should they be in a respectable position in 
 life, and be attached to their nation. It serves no great 
 purpose to appear too serious with such a person, for that 
 soon tires him. It is much better to keep him a little buoy¬ 
 ant and cheerful, with anecdotes and. stories, for that is his 
 natural character ; and to take advantage of occasional op¬ 
 portunities, to slip in advices that are to be of use to him. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 531 
 
 What is called long-faceaness is entirely thrown away upon 
 a Gipsy of this kind. 
 
 I am very much inclined to believe that a Gipsy, well up 
 in the scale of Scottish society, experiences, in one respect, 
 nearly the same feelings in coming in contact with a wild 
 Gipsy, that are peculiar to any other person. These are of 
 a very singular nature. At first, we feel as if we were go¬ 
 ing into the lair of a wild animal, or putting our finger into 
 a snake’s mouth ; such is the result of the prejudice in which 
 we have been reared from infancy; but these feelings be¬ 
 come greatly modified as we get accustomed to the people. 
 The world has never had the opportunity of fairly contem¬ 
 plating any other kind of Gipsy ; hence the extreme preju¬ 
 dice against the name. But when we get accustomed to 
 meet with other kinds of Gipsies, and have associations 
 with them, the feeling of prejudice changes to that of de¬ 
 cided interest and attachment. I have met with various 
 Scottish Gipsies of the female sex, in America, and, among 
 others, one who could sit any day for an ideal likeness of the 
 mother of Burns. She takes little of the Gipsy in her ap¬ 
 pearance. There is another, taking greatly after the Gipsy, 
 born in Scotland, and reared in America ; a very line moth¬ 
 erly person, indeed. I cannot, at the present stage of mat¬ 
 ters, mention the word Gipsy to her, but I know very well 
 that she is a Gipsy. It takes some time for the feeling of 
 prejudice for the word Gipsy to wear off, when contempla¬ 
 ting even a passable kind of Gipsy. That object would be 
 much more easily attained, were the people to own “ the 
 blood,” unreservedly and cheerfully ; for the very reserve, 
 to a great extent, creates, at least keeps alive, the prejudice. 
 But that cannot well take place till the word “ Gipsy” bears 
 the signification of gentleman, in some of the race, as it does 
 of vagabond, in others. 
 
 Some of my readers may still ask : “ What is a Gipsy, 
 after all that has been said upon the subject ? Since it is 
 not necessarily a question of colour of face, or hair, or eyes, 
 or of creed, or character, or of any outward thing by which 
 a human being can be distinguished ; what is it that con¬ 
 stitutes a Gipsy ?” And I reply : “ Let them read this work 
 through, and thoroughly digest all its principles, and they 
 can feel what a Gipsy is, should they stumble upon one, it 
 may be, in their own sphere of life, and hear him, or her, 
 
532 
 
 DISQUISITION ON TIIE GIPSIES. 
 
 admit the fact, and speak unreservedly of it. They will then 
 feel their minds rubbing against the Gipsy mind, their spir¬ 
 its communing with the Gipsy spirit, and experience a pecu¬ 
 liar mental galvanic shock, which they never felt before.”* 
 It is impossible to say where the Gipsy soul may not exist 
 at the present day, for there is this peculiarity about the 
 tribe, as I have said before, that it always remains Gipsy, 
 cross it out to the last drop of the original blood ; for where 
 that drop goes, the Gipsy soul accompanies it.f 
 
 It is the Christian who should be the most ready to take 
 up and do justice to this subject ; for he will find in it a 
 very singular work of Providence—the most striking phe¬ 
 nomenon in the history of man. In Europe, the race has ex¬ 
 isted, in an unacknowledged state, for a greater length of 
 time than the Jews dwelt in Egypt. And it is time that it 
 should be introduced to the family of mankind, in its aspect 
 of historical development; embracing, as in Scotland, mem¬ 
 bers ranging from what are popularly understood to be Gip¬ 
 sies, to those filling the first positions in Christian and social 
 
 * Let us suppose that a person, who has rear] all the works that have 
 hitherto appeared on the Gipsies, and noticed the utter absence, in them, 
 of everything of the nature of a philosophy of the subject, thoroughly 
 masters all that is set forth in the present work. The knowledge which he 
 then possesses puts him in such a position, that he approximates to being 
 one of the tribe, himself ; that is, if all that is contained therein be known 
 to him and the tribe, only, it would enable him to pass current, in certain 
 circles of Gipsydom, as one of themselves. 
 
 + There is a point which I have not explained so fully as I might have 
 done, and it is this: “ Is any of the blood ever lost ? that is, does it ever 
 cease to be Gipsy, in knowledge and feeling?’’ That is a question not easily 
 answered in the affirmative, were it only for this reason : how can it ever 
 be ascertained that the knowledge and feeling of being Gipsies become 
 lost? Let us suppose that a couple of Gipsies leave England, and settle in 
 America, and that they never come in contact with any of their race, and 
 that their children never learn anything of the matter from any quarter. 
 (Page 413.) In such an extreme, I may say, such an unnatural, case, 
 the children would not be Gipsies, but, if born in America, ordinary Amer¬ 
 icans. The only way in which the Gipsy blood—that is, the Gipsy feeling 
 —can possibly be lost, is by a Gipsy, (a man especially,) marrying an ordi¬ 
 nary native, (page 331,) and the children never learning of the circum¬ 
 stance. But, as I have said before, how is that ever to be ascertained ? 
 The question might be settled in this way : Let the relatives of the Gipsy 
 interrogate the issue, and if it answers, truly, that it knows nothing of the 
 Gipsy connexion, and never has its curiosity in the matter excited, it holds, 
 beyond dispute, that “ the blood” has been lost to the tribe. For any loss 
 the tribe may sustain, in that way, it gains, in an ample degree, by draw¬ 
 ing upon the blood of the native race, and transmuting it into that of its 
 own fraternity. 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 533 
 
 society. After perusing the present work, the reader will 
 naturally pass on to reconsider the subject of the Jews ; and 
 he will perceive that, instead of its being a miracle by which 
 the Jews have existed since the dispersion, it would have 
 been a miracle had they been lost among the families of man¬ 
 kind. It is quite sufficient for the Christian to know that 
 the Jews now exist, and that they have fulfilled, and will 
 yet fulfill, the prophecies that have been delivered in regard 
 to them, without holding that any miracle has been wrought 
 for that end. A Christian ought to be more considerate in 
 his estimate of what a miracle is ; he ought to know that a 
 miracle is something that is contrary to natural laws ; and 
 that the existence of the Jews, since the dispersion, is in 
 exact harmony with every natural law. He should not main 
 tain that it is a miracle, for nothing having the decent 
 appearance of an argument can be advanced in support 
 of any such theory ; and far less should he, with his eyes 
 open, do what the writer on the Christian Evidences, al¬ 
 luded to, (page 459,) did, with his shut — gamble away 
 both law and gospel.* He might give his attention, 
 however, to a prophecy of Moses, quoted by St. Paul, in 
 Rom. x. 19, from Dent, xxxii. 21*, wherein it is said of the 
 Jews : “ I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are 
 no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger youand 
 lend his assistance towards its fulfillment.t The subject 
 
 * It was the nature of man, in ancient times, as it is with the heathen 
 to-day, to worship what could not be understood ; while modern civiliza¬ 
 tion seems to attribute such phenomena to miracles. It is even presump¬ 
 tuous to have recourse to such an alternative, for the enquirer may be de¬ 
 ficient in the intellect necessary to prosecute such investigations, or he may 
 not be in possession of sufficient data. If the European will, for example, 
 ask himself, lstly: what is the idea which he has of a Gipsy ? ‘2ndly: 
 what are the feelings which he entertains for him personally ? And 3dly: 
 what must be the response of the Gipsy to the sentiments of the other? 
 he cannot avoid coming to the conclusion, that the race should “ marry 
 among themselves,” and that, “ let them be in whatever situation of life 
 they may, they all” should “ stick to each other.” ( Page. 369.) 
 
 | Viewing the Gipsies as they are described in this work, and contrasting 
 their history with that of the nations of the world in general, and the Jews 
 in particular, and considering that they have no religion peculiar to them¬ 
 selves, yet are scattered among, and worked into, all nations, but not ac¬ 
 knowledged by, or even known to, others, we may, with the utmost 
 propriety, call them, in the language of the prophet, “no people,” and a “ fool¬ 
 ish nation ;” yet by no means a nation of fools, but rather more rogues than 
 fools. Of all the ways in which the Gipsies have hoaxed other people, the 
 
534 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 of the Gipsies is certainly calculated to do all that the 
 prophet said would happen to the Jews ; if Christians will 
 only do their duty to them, and, by playing them off against 
 the Jews , provoke and anger Israel beyond measure. That 
 the Jews have existed, since the dispersion, by the Provi¬ 
 dence of God, is what can be said of any other people, and 
 more especially of the Gipsies for the last four centuries 
 and a half in Europe. It is as natural for the Gipsies to 
 exist in their scattered state, as for other nations by the laws 
 that preserve their identity ; and although their history may 
 be termed remarkable, it is in no sense of the word miracu¬ 
 lous, notwithstanding the superstitious ideas held by many 
 of the Gipsies on that head, in common with the Jews re¬ 
 garding their history. A thousand years hence the Gipsies 
 will be found existing in the world ; for, as a people, they 
 cannot die out; and the very want of a religion peculiar to 
 themselves is one of the means that will contribute to that 
 end.* It is the Christian who should endeavour to have 
 the prejudice against the name of Gipsy removed, so that 
 every one of the race should freely own his blood to the 
 other, and make it the basis of a kindly feeling, and a bond 
 of brotherhood, all around the world. 
 
 I may be allowed to say a word or two to the Gipsies, 
 and more especially the Scottish Gipsies. I wish them to 
 believe, (what they, indeed, believe already,) that their blood 
 and descent are good enough ; and that Providence may 
 reasonably be assumed to look upon both with as much com¬ 
 placency and satisfaction, as He does on any other blood and 
 descent. All that they have to do is to “ behave them¬ 
 selves for, after all, it is behaviour that makes the man. 
 By all means “ stick to the ship,” but sail her as an honour¬ 
 able merchantman. They need not be afraid at being dis¬ 
 covered to be Gipsies ; they should feel as much assured 
 on the subject now, as before the publication of this work, 
 and never entertain the least misgiving on that score. They 
 
 manner in which they have managed to throw around themselves a sense 
 of their non-existence to the minds of others, is the most remarkable. 
 
 * The prejudice of their fellow-creatures is a sufficiently potent cause, 
 in itself, to preserve the identity of the Gipsy tribe in the world. It has 
 made it to resemble an essence, hermetically sealed. Keep it in that posi¬ 
 tion, and it retains its inherent qualities undiminisbed ; but uncork the 
 vessel containing it, and it might (I do not say it would) evaporate among 
 the surrounding elements. 
 
DISQUISITION ON TEE GIPSIES. 
 
 535 
 
 will have an occasion to cultivate a proper degree of confi¬ 
 dence in respect to themselves, and be so prepared as never 
 to commit tlicmselves, if they wish not to be known as Gip¬ 
 sies. I know there are few people who have nerve enough 
 so to deport themselves, as to prevent moral detection, who 
 have committed murder, when they are confronted with the 
 objects of it; but if the individuals are perfectly satisfied 
 of there being no evidence against them, they may confi¬ 
 dently assume an appearance of innocence. It is so with 
 the Gipsies in settled life, as to their being Gipsies. Gen¬ 
 erally speaking, their blood is so much mixed as almost to 
 defy detection ; although, for the future, some of them will 
 be very apt to look at themselves in their mirrors, to see 
 whether there is much of the “black deil” in their faces. 
 But it rests with themselves to escape detection, and par¬ 
 ticularly so as regards the fair, brown, and red Gipsies. 
 
 I may also be allowed to say a word or two to the Church, 
 and people generally. It says little for them, that, although 
 two centuries have elapsed since Bunyan’s time, no one has 
 acknowledged him. It surely might have occurred to them 
 to ask, 1 stly : What was that particular family, or tribe, of 
 which Bunyan said he was a member? 2 ndly: Who are 
 the tinkers ? 3 dly : What was the meaning of Bunyan en¬ 
 
 tertaining so much solicitude, and undergoing so much 
 trouble, to ascertain whether he, (a common Englishman , 
 forsooth!) was a Jew, or not? 4 tldg: Was John Bunyan 
 a Gipsy ? Let my reader reply to these questions, like a 
 man of honour. Aye or nay, was John Bunyan a Gipsy ? 
 “ He was a Gipsy.” 
 
 In modern times people will preach the gospel “ around 
 about Illyricum,” compass sea and land, and penetrate 
 every continent, to bring home Christian trophies ; while in 
 Bunyan they have a trophy—a real case of “ grace abound¬ 
 ing and yet no one has acknowledged him, although his 
 fame will be as lasting as the pyramids. John Bunyan was 
 evidently a man who was raised up by God for some great 
 purposes. One of these purposes lie has served, and will 
 yet serve ; and it becomes us to enquire what further pur¬ 
 pose he is destined to serve. It is showing a poor respect 
 for Bunyan’s memory, to deny him his nationality, to rob 
 him of his birth-right, and attempt to make him out to have 
 been tnat which he positively was not. To gratify their 
 
536 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 own prejudices, people would degrade the illustrious dreamer, 
 from being this great original, into being the off-scourings 
 of all England. People imagine that they would degrade 
 Bunyan by saying that he was a Gipsy. They degrade 
 themselves who do not believe he was a Gipsy ; they doubly 
 degrade themselves who deny it. Jews may well taunt 
 Christians in the matter of evidences, and that on a simple 
 matter of fact, affecting no one’s interests, temporal or eter¬ 
 nal, and as clear as the sun at mid-day ; for by Bunyan’s 
 own showing he was a Gipsy ; but if any further evidence 
 was wanted, how easily could it not have been collected, any 
 time during the last two hundred years ! 
 
 I have hitherto got the il cold shoulder” from the organs 
 of most of the religious denominations on this subject: time 
 will show whether it is always to be so. The Church should 
 know what is its mission : it rests on evidence itself, and it 
 should be the first to follow out its own principles. It 
 should fight its own battles, and give the enemy no occasion 
 to speak reproachfully of it. In approaching this subject, it 
 would be well to do it cheerfully, and gracefully, and man¬ 
 fully, and not as if the person were dragged to it, with a 
 rope around his neck. No one need imagine that by keep¬ 
 ing quiet, this matter will blow over. For the Gipsy race 
 cannot die out ; nor is this Avork likely to die out soon ; for 
 unless it is superseded by some other, it will come up cen¬ 
 turies hence, to judge the present generation on the Gipsy 
 question. May such as have written on the great dreamer 
 never lift up their heads, may his works turn to hot coals in 
 their fingers, may their memories be outlawed, if they allow 
 this unchristian, this unmanly, this silly, this childish, preju¬ 
 dice of caste to prevent them from doing justice to their 
 hero. Nor need any one utter a murmur at the prospect of 
 seeing the Pilgrim’s Progress prefaced by a dissertation on 
 the Gipsies, with a Gipsy’s camp for a frontispiece. Such a feel¬ 
 ing may be expressed by boors, snobs, and counterfeit relig¬ 
 ionists ; but better things are to be expected from other people. 
 
 Let the reader now pause, and reflect upon the prejudice 
 of caste that exists against the name of Gipsy, and he will 
 fully realize how it is that we should know so little about 
 the Gipsies, and why it is that the Gipsies, as they leave 
 the tent, should hide their nationality from the rest of the 
 world, and “ stick to each other.” 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 537 
 
 In bringing this Disquisition on the Gipsies to a close, I 
 may be allowed to say a word or two to some of the critics. 
 In the first place, I may venture to assert, that the subject is 
 worthy of a criticism the most disinterested and profound. 
 I am well aware that the publication of the work places me 
 in a position antagonistic alike to authors and critics who 
 have written on the subject, as well as to the prejudices of 
 mankind generally. If critics call in question any of the 
 facts contained in the production, they must give their 
 authorities ; if they controvert any of the principles, they 
 must give their reasons. It will not do to play the ostrich 
 instead of the critic. For as the ostrich is said to hide its 
 head in the sand, or in a bush, or, it may be, under its wing, 
 and imagine that because it sees no one, so no one sees it; 
 so there are people, sometimes to be met with, who will not 
 only imagine, but assert, that because they know nothing of 
 a tiling, or because they do not understand it, therefore, the 
 thing itself does not exist. This was the w r ay in which 
 Bruce’s travels in Africa were received. But we are not 
 living in those times. Procedure such as that described, is 
 playing the ostrich, not the critic. I refer more particularly, 
 however, to what is contained in this Disquisition. Taking 
 the work all through, I think there are sufficient materials 
 contained in it, to enable the critics to settle the various 
 questions among themselves. 
 
 To place myself in a position a little independent of pub¬ 
 lishers, (for 1 have had great difficulty in finding a publisher,) 
 I had the Introduction, (pages 55-67), printed, and circulated 
 among some acquaintances in Cauada, for subscribers.* A 
 copy of it fell into the hands of an intelligent Scottish 
 newspaper editor, in a small community, where every one 
 knows every other’s business nearly as well as his own, and 
 where all about the Prospectus was explained to those to 
 whom it was given. It seems to have frightened and en- 
 
 * The MS. of this work has undergone many vicissitudes. Among others, 
 it may be mentioned that, in the state in whioh it was left by the author, 
 it was twice lost, and once stolen; on which last occasion it was recovered, 
 at an expense of one shilling ! Then the original copy, in its present form, 
 was stolen, and never recovered. In both instances did that happen under 
 circumstances that such a fate was most unlikely to befall it. Then a copy 
 of it was sent to Scotland, and never acknowledged, although I am in hopes 
 it is now on its return, after a lapse of nearly three years; in which 
 case, I will be more fortunate than the author, who gave the MS. to an 
 individual and never got, and never could get, it back 
 
 23 * 
 
533 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 raged the editor to such an extent, that I entertain little 
 doubt he did not sleep comfortably, for nights in succession, 
 on finding that subject brought to light at his own door, 
 which has been considered, by some, as well-nigh dead and 
 buried long ago. lie imagines the circulation of the Pro¬ 
 spectus to be confined preity much to his own neighbourhood ; 
 and so he must crush the horrible thing out. But what can 
 he say about it ? How put it down ? A capital idea occurs 
 to him ; he will father it upon Barnum! Let the reader 
 glance again at the Introduction, and imagine how a Scotch¬ 
 man, well posted up on Scotch affairs, past and present, 
 should credit Barnum with the production. He heads his 
 criticism, “ The science of humbug,” and, in some long and 
 bitter paragraphs, pitches into what he calls American liter¬ 
 ary quackery ; the substance of which is, that the work 
 represented by the Prospectus, is a rare tit-bit of genuine, 
 Barnumized, American humbug! 
 
 He finds, however, that he has gone much too far in his 
 description of the Prospectus ; so he comes tumbling down 
 a long way from the high position which he took at the start, 
 and continues : “ Now, we do not, at present, venture the 
 assertion that the forthcoming * Scottish Gipsies' is a Yankee 
 get-up, a mere American humbug ; but we say £he Prospect¬ 
 us savours strongly of the Barnum school ; and our reasons 
 for so saying are the following : Firstly : It would be noth¬ 
 ing less than a literary miracle, that a Scottish work of suf¬ 
 ficient merit to command the highest commendations of Sir 
 Walter Scott, and Blackwood’s Magazine, should be pub¬ 
 lished, first of all in America, thirty years afterwards—pub¬ 
 lished, by subscription, at one dollar, in a book'of 400 pages. 
 We assert, positively, that of such a work William Black¬ 
 wood, alone, could have disposed of five thousand copies, at 
 double the proposed price. [He is well acquainted with the 
 prices of books in the two countries.] Secondly : There is 
 no evidence to connect Sir Walter Scott’s note to Quentin 
 Durward with Walter Sirnson, or any other particular indi¬ 
 vidual ; and the same may be said of the jingle of Professor 
 Wilson, and the other allusions in Blackwood’s Magazine. 
 Thirdly : There is neither danger nor difficulty in writing 
 anything you please, and telling the public it is au extract 
 of a private letter you had from some particular man of 
 eminence, thirty years ago, provided your eminent friend 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 539 
 
 has been many years in his grave. Such a fraud is not easily 
 detected. And Fourthly: The reason assigned for publish¬ 
 ing the ‘ Scottish Gipsies’.is totally upset by 
 
 the simple fact, that there are no such people in existence, in 
 so far as Scotland is concerned. [What an audacity he dis¬ 
 plays here ! What a liberty he takes with the Scotch set¬ 
 tlers in his neighbourhood ! He is evidently afraid that lie 
 has gone too far ; so he qualifies what he has said, by add¬ 
 ing :] There are, it is true, a few families of itinerant tink¬ 
 ers, or Tinklers, according to our peculiar vernacular, who 
 stroll the country, and subsist by making horn-spoons and 
 sauce-pans, which they barter with the rural peasantry, for 
 potatoes and other eatables. They are generally wild, reck¬ 
 less, and dishonest, and are a terror to children and old 
 women. In nineteen cases out of twenty, they are natives 
 of Ireland ; and were any person idle enough to trace their 
 genealogy, he would discover that their ancestors, not more 
 than three generations back, were honest brogue-makers, 
 pig-drovers, or, it may be, members of some more elevated 
 occupation. [He has been 1 idle enough’ to give us a very 
 odd account of the descent, in two senses of the word, of 
 the Irish tinkering Gipsies now in Scotland.] The writer 
 of these remarks is well acquainted with almost the whole 
 Lowlands, and a portion of the West Highlands. He has 
 been familiar with the shires of Fife and Linlithgow, with 
 Annandale, the Upper Ward of Lanarkshire, and the other 
 fabulously reputed haunts of the Gipsies [he seems to 
 have done a little tramping in his time] ; and he never saw 
 twenty Scottish Tinklers in his whole life, nor one single in¬ 
 dividual corresponding to the description we have received 
 of the Gipsies. [He has told us who the Irish Tinklers in 
 Scotland were originally, but does not venture to say any¬ 
 thing of the Scottish ones. He will not admit that there 
 is a Gipsy in Scotland, or ever lias been ; and virtually 
 denies that there are Gipsies in England ; for he continues :] 
 The nearest approach to the character is the hawkers from 
 the Staffordshire potteries, who are found living in tents by 
 the way-side, throughout the North Riding of Yorkshire, and 
 the five northern counties of England. These are a kind of 
 savages, who live in families, strolling the country, in large 
 caravans, consisting frequently of half a dozen canvas-cov¬ 
 ered wagons and twice that number of horses. 
 
540 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 These characters often cross the Border, at Langholm and 
 Gretna Green, and infest Annandale, Roxburghshire, Dum- 
 fries-shire, and the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. [He will 
 not allude to the tented Gipsies in England.] 
 
 “ These two classes of foreign vagrants [why does he call 
 them foreign vagrants ? why not say Gipsies ?] which we 
 mention, are to be found, occasionally, in certain localities of 
 Scotland, [still nothing said of the Scottish Tinklers ,] and 
 are to be found as a dreaded, dangerous nuisance. But the 
 idea of a race of Scottish Tinklers, or Scottish Gipsies, ex¬ 
 isting as a distinct and separate people, possessing a native, 
 independent language, and peculiar habits, rites, and ceremo¬ 
 nies, and bearing, in many features of their barbarous cus¬ 
 toms, and outcast destiny, a resemblance to the vagabond 
 Jews ; such an idea, we say, has as little foundation in fact, 
 as has Swift’s story of the Lilliputians, or the romance of 
 Guy Maunering itself! [It is astonishing what he would 
 not attempt to palm upon the public. Still, he is evidently 
 afraid that the subject will, somehow or other, bite him ; and, 
 after all that he has said, he concludes :] Still, we do not, 
 at present, assert that the Prospectus we have received is 
 another ’cute move of American humbug ; but we do say, 
 if there is a James Simson in existence, who possesses such 
 a manuscript, and such commendations of it as are set forth 
 in this Prospectus, he has already erred sufficiently far to en¬ 
 sure his identification with Yankee quackery. He has been 
 Barnumized into an egregious blunder.” [He is bound to 
 discredit the whole affair, under any circumstances, even at 
 the expense of the plainest consistency.] 
 
 Well might a brother editor reply to the foregoing, thus : 
 “ The bile of our excellent friend has just been agitated after 
 
 a pestilent fashion.The announcement [of 
 
 the intended publication] hath all the ungenial effects upon 
 our gossip that the exhibition of a pair of scarlet decencies 
 produces upon a cranky bull.How, just lis¬ 
 
 ten to us quietly for a little. More than two years ago, the 
 manuscript of the above-mentioned treatise on the Scoto- 
 Egyptians came under our ken. We perused the affair with 
 special appetite, and were decidedly of opinion that its pub¬ 
 lication would be a grateful and important boon to the re¬ 
 public of letters. Mr. Simson is neither a myth nor a disci¬ 
 ple of Barnunn” Upon the back ol this, the first editor 
 
DISQUISITION ON THE GIPSIES. 
 
 541 
 
 writes : “We are pleased to be informed that the work is a 
 bona fide production, and that Mr. Simson is no Yankee 
 fiction. [As if he did not know that from the first.] And 
 albeit he, [the other editor,] furnisheth neither facts nor 
 arguments to satisfy us that our notions of the Gipsies of 
 Scotland are heretical, we willingly accept his recommend 
 that the ‘ Scottish Gipsies ’ will be, at least, an entertaining 
 book, and reserve all further remarks till we see it.”[!] 
 
 The foregoing is a very curious criticism ; and although I 
 could say a great deal more about it, I refrain from doing so. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 PAQB 
 
 AFRICANS. 
 
 Comparison between Africans, in America, and Gipsies generally. .50, 493 
 
 How they lost their language and superstitions in America. 50 
 
 The prejudice against Africans in America.54, 441 
 
 AFRICAN GIPSIES.428, »429 
 
 AMERICAN GIPSIES. 
 
 Many arrived during the Revolution, as impressed soldiers, and vol- , 
 
 unteers. 345 
 
 English Gipsies married to native Americans. 377 
 
 A Gitano has a cigar store in Virginia. Egyptians in Louisiana, «.... 389 
 
 See Disquisition on the Gipsies .418-425 
 
 Meeting between English and American Gipsies, in Maryland. 430 
 
 The Zincali Society in the city of New York, «438—Address to the 
 
 American Gipsies. 440 
 
 There should be no prejudices against Gipsies in America.441, 524 
 
 AMERICAN INDIANS. 
 
 Comparison between them and the Gipsies generally.53, 55, 446 
 
 AMERICAN READER, to the.6, 7, 440, 524, 525 
 
 AMUSEMENTS OF GIPSIES.124, 126, 179, 182, 224 
 
 ANTIQUARIES. 
 
 Prejudices of, against the Gipsies. n7 
 
 The profession of, 56, zeal in the calling of.. no7 
 
 ARABS. 
 
 English Gipsies say they are a cross between Arabs and Egyptians. 14,467 
 
 How Arabs protect shipwrecked Christians. «203 
 
 They strip people of their clothes in the desert. 210 
 
 BAILLIES OF LAMINGTON. 
 
 Their influence of great service to the Scottish Gipsies... .121,205, 213,470 
 
 The connexion between them and the Gipsy tribe of Baillie. 185 
 
 BAIRD, REV. JOHN. 
 
 His report on the Gipsy mission to the Church of Scotland. 64 
 
 His collection of Gipsy words, collated with those of the author. 334 
 
 On the absence of slang in the Gipsy language. «338 
 
 His plan for improving the Gipsies.368, »369 
 
 BATTLES, GIPSY. 
 
 At Stirling 147, Romanno 188, Hawick 190, Esk-dale moor 193, Dum- 
 
 blane. 194 
 
 BIGGAR. 
 
 The face of the country about Biggar. 141 
 
 Gipsy turbulence in Biggar fair. 196 
 
 BIRTH OF THE ORIGINAL KIND OF GIPSIES.356, »357 
 
 BLACKWOOD'S MAGAZINE. 
 
 The author’s articles in, 8, 56, 64—Poetical notice of them. 66 
 
 Hints at a philosophical account of the Gipsies. 25 
 
 Extracts of Scottish public records, taken from. 113 
 
 Unintentional attempt of a Gipsy to rob his own clergyman. «124 
 
 Chase after John Young, a Gipsy, resembling a fox hunt. »144 
 
 The unabashed hardihood of Gipsies under suspicion. Til 55 
 
 Old Will of Phaup’s five years’ warfare with the Gipsies. «179 
 
 Assault of the Gipsies on Penmcuik House. nl95 
 
 The slaughter of William Baillie, a Gipsy chief. 206 
 
 (543) 
 
544 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 How the Gipsies acquired a foothold in Yetholm. «.252 
 
 •» Will Fan’s twenty-four children, and pompous christenings.»252 
 
 The language spoken by the Gipsies in the Highlands. n338 
 
 The Nuts or Bazegurs of India supposed to be the parent stock of the 
 
 Gipsies. 339 
 
 The purity of Gipsy blood, and child stealing—Mr. Borrow’s “ Gipsies 
 
 in Spain". 375 
 
 The numberless descendants of Billy Marshall, a Gipsy chief.»388 
 
 The Duchess of Gordon saves two Gipsies from the gallows. 470 
 
 BLACKWOOD, WILLIAM. 
 
 His four letters to the author. 56 
 
 He originates the idea of a history of the Gipsies. «59 
 
 Letter to him, describing the escapes and execution of Peter Young, 
 
 a Gipsy. 145 
 
 His contribution on the Gipsies in Tweed-dale 196, on the Border ... 251 
 
 BORDER GIPSIES. 
 
 The district in which the Faas travelled. 236 
 
 The tribes of Faa and Baillie in a state of hostility. 236 
 
 Quarrel in an English Gipsy family, in America: “the Faas and Bail- 
 
 lies over again”. zi237 
 
 Henry Faa sits at the tables of people in public office, and receives 
 
 blackmail from men of considerable fortune. 237 
 
 The mercantile house of Fall, of Dunbar, founded by Gipsies. 237 
 
 Captain Fall a member of parliament—the family rule the political 
 
 interests of Dunbar. 237 
 
 Mrs. Fall works, in tapestry, a group of the founders of the family, 
 
 with their asses, &c. 237 
 
 Anecdotes of the Falls with reference to their tribe and origin. «23S 
 
 The extensive nature of the Fall firm, and the cause of its ruin. 23S 
 
 Miss Fall marries Sir John Anstruther, of Elie, baronet. 238 
 
 The rabble insult her at an election, in which Sir John is a candidate, 239 
 
 The song of “Johnny Faa, the Gipsy Laddie”. 239 
 
 The Earl of Cassilis the husbaud of her who absconded with the 
 
 “ Gipsy Laddie ”. 241 
 
 Adventure of a relative of Sir Walter Scott among the Gipsies. 241 
 
 The original of Meg Merrilies 242—The execution of her sons 243— 
 
 She is drowned by the rabble, at Carlisle, for being a jacobite. 244 
 
 The grandfather of Sir Walter Scott is feasted by the Gipsies, on 
 
 Charterhouse moor. 244 
 
 Contribution of Baillie Smith, of Kelso, to Hoyland’s “Survey of the 
 
 Gipsies”. 
 
 Attachment of the Yetholm Gipsies to their mode of life, their 
 independence, peculiar points of honour, honesty when trusted, the 
 number of the tribe in the county 245—Their employment—given 
 to hunting and fishing, 246—The nature of their leases, the 
 late proprietor calls them his body-guard, his successor grants no 
 more leases to the tribe, they stay at home during the winter months 
 only, they seldom marry out of the tribe, 247—Their physical pecu¬ 
 liarities, occasional migrations, burials, education, church atten¬ 
 dance and baptism—unsteadiness of disposition, they will pay their 
 rents only when it suits themselves, 248—They resent an interfer¬ 
 ence with the Debatable Lands, 249—Sir Walter Scott points out a 
 Gipsy, 250—Will Faa, the Gipsy king, claims kin with the Messrs. 
 
 Fall, merchants, of Dunbar, Will’s death and burial, 251—Report 
 
 on the Gipsies by the sheriffs. «251 
 
 Contribution from Mr. Blackwood, towards a history of the Gipsies. 
 Yetholm first occupied by the Faas and the Youngs, tradition of 
 their first settlement, n —Will Faa and the Falls of Dunbar, Will 
 thrice married, his twenty-four children, and pompous christen¬ 
 ings, has charge of Marlfield house, the sheriff becomes his 
 security, his corpse escorted by 300 asses, 252—His son and sue- 
 
INDEX. 
 
 545 
 
 PAGB 
 
 cessor, his brother a lieutenant in the East India Company’s ser¬ 
 vice, Gipsy fights, recovery of a stolen mare, quarrels among the 
 tribe, 253—The Walker family, and civilized Gipsies about Yetholm, 
 Gipsy connexions, education, no female Gipsy educated, the colony 
 
 free of imputed crime for fifty years. 254 
 
 The author’s visit to Yetholm—Handling the cudgel. 254 
 
 A smuggling adventure of Will Faa—Ilis appearance—A lament on 
 
 his death. 255 
 
 His relations in New York—A great many of the tribe scattered over 
 the world. n255 
 
 BORROW, GEORGE. 
 
 His publications on the Gipsies, since this work was written. 6, 64 
 
 In error on the subject of Gipsies stealing children. 7 ) 9 , 7)342 
 
 On the Gipsy language, 23, 7)281, 7)298, 7)338, 7)431—On Timour over¬ 
 running India. 38 
 
 In error in saying that the Gipsies obtained the name of Egyptians 
 
 from others ... 39 
 
 Description of English Gipsies, and the English dialect spoken by 
 
 them. 7)93 
 
 Spanish Gipsy counts, 7)107, 397, 7)468—Act of Charles II. against 
 
 Spaniards, tor protecting the Gipsies. 7)114 
 
 Gipsies poison swine, and eat their flesh. 7)186 
 
 English Gipsy surnames—Travelling Gipsies have two names. 7)219 
 
 • Chastity among young Spanish Gipsy females, 7)257—Spanish Gipsy 
 
 marriage ceremony. 7)262 
 
 The character of Spanish Gipsy women. 7)285 
 
 On the Law of Charles III., ameliorating the condition of the Span¬ 
 ish Gipsies.7)313, 392 
 
 Song of a female Gipsy, at Moscow, 7)317—On the Sclavonic in the 
 
 Gipsy language. »33S 
 
 He meets with a rich Gipsy in Spain, 7 ) 347 —How Gipsies resist cold 
 
 weather. m354 
 
 Meeting between a French and Spanish Gipsy', in the heat of a battle, 7)360 
 
 On the education of the Spanish Gipsies.■.. 7)365 
 
 Religion among the Moscow Gipsies—He preaches to the tribe in 
 
 Spain. 7)366 
 
 A half-blood Spanish Gipsy captain, 372, 7 ) 373 , 377—Civilized Gipsies 
 
 in Moscow.374, 399, 7)408 
 
 Shuttling of the Gipsies regarding marriage with ordinary natives.. nil 5 
 
 Characters in Lavengro and the Romany Rve. 7 ) 375 , 508, 7)509 
 
 The Spanish Gipsies generally ; See Disquisition on the Gipsies .. , .385-397 
 The natural capacity of Gipsies—different classes in Spain, Turkey, 
 
 and Russia. 398 
 
 No washing will turn the Gips.v white, 413—Moorish Gipsies in Africa, 428 
 
 He is taken for a Gipsy in Spain, 397, and at Moscow. 430 
 
 On the grammatical peculiarities of the Gipsy language. 7)431 
 
 On the hatred entertained by the Gipsies for other people. 7)433 
 
 On Gipsy ingratitude—lawlessness in Spain. 435 
 
 Mr. Burrow as an authority on the Gipsies.448, 450, 523 
 
 On the Russian Gipsies owning flocks and herds. 466 
 
 Description of a superior Spanish Gipsv in 1584. 7 i 4 b 8 
 
 BRIGHT, Dll. (TRAVELS IN HUNGARY.) 
 
 1 he phenomenon of the existence of the Gipsies. 7 
 
 The existence of the Gipsy language little short of the miraculous .. 2 4 
 
 He hopes to see a satisfactory account of the Gipsies. 25 
 
 Description of Gipsy life in England. 30 
 
 Description of Gipsy dwellings, and their locations, in Hungary.... tzI 41 
 • Spanish Gipsy marriage ceremony, 7)261—Spuuish Gipsy widows.. . 7)274 
 
 The difficulties in acquiring the Gipsy language. 7)281 
 
 He suggests that the Gipsy language should be collated with vulgar 
 Hindostauee. 330 
 
546 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 An Hungarian nobleman’s opinion on the civilization of the Gipsies. 367 
 BRUCE, JAMES, (TRAVELS IN AFRICA.) 
 
 Account of the Arabs protecting shipwrecked Christians. »203 
 
 Method of selling cargoes, at Jedda, to the Turks. »312 
 
 His discoveries discredited. 537 
 
 BUNSEN, CHEVALIER, ON SOUND JUDGMENT AND SHALLOW 
 
 MINDS. »518 
 
 BUNYAN, JOHN. 
 
 He alludes to Gipsy women stealing children, »80—He is bred to the 
 
 business of a brazier. n206 
 
 Ilis family history illustrated by the author’s visit to a Gipsy, met with 
 
 at St. Boswell’s. 309 
 
 His wife before Judge Hale, «813, 517—His description of his early 
 
 habits, or “youthful vanities”. »402 
 
 His nationality, and that of his tribe; See Disquisition on the Gipsies, 
 
 507-523 
 
 The name of Bunyan calculated to raise up that of the Gipsies. 530 
 
 He is still unacknowledged, though his fame will be as lasting as the 
 
 pyramids. 535 
 
 Some people imagine it would degrade Bunyan, to say he was a Gipsy 536 
 BURNS, ROBERT. 
 
 His “Jolly Beggars;” “My bonny lass, I work in brass”. m346 
 
 He alludes to the Falls, of Dunbar, in his tour. «406 
 
 CANADA. 
 
 A Scottish Gipsy family in, 13—Gipsies in.... 424 
 
 A criticism on this work, while in prospect, by a Scotch editor in.... 537 
 
 CAPPADOCE FAMILY, VICISSITUDES IN THE RELIGIOUS HIS¬ 
 TORY OF THE. 497 
 
 CARLYLE, DR. ALEXANDER. 
 
 Execution of Jock Johnstone, «201—Jenny Fall, afterwards Lady An- 
 
 struther. n239 
 
 CASSIUS, THE COUNTESS OF. 
 
 Elopes with John Faa, a Gipsy chief, 108—The song of “Johnny Faa, 
 
 the Gipsy Laddie,” composed thereon. 239 
 
 CASTE. 
 
 In India, 28—In Great Britain, 52, 54, 440,443, 516, 522—In America, 
 
 54, 441, 525 
 
 CHAMBERS’ GAZETTEER. 
 
 Description of Yetholm, »141—Gipsy scenes at St. Boswell’s fair.... «353 
 
 CHAMBERS’ JOURNAL—On the disappearance of the Gipsies. ra449 
 
 CHAMBERS’ MISCELLANY—An account of Peter Young, a Gipsy_nl46 
 
 CHILD STEALING BY THE GIPSIES.9, 45, »80, 342, 375 
 
 CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. 
 
 Mission among the Scottish Gipsies,.6, 55, 64, »369 
 
 A Gipsy one of the committee of the missionary society. 6 
 
 Gipsies clergymen in the Scottish Church.6, 412 
 
 Mission of enquiry to the Jews; the Gipsies of Wallachia. »73 
 
 CHURCH, THE. 
 
 Religious journals decline entertaining the question, “Was John 
 Bunyan a Gipsy?” 522, 525—The Church should do its duty to the 
 
 Gipsy race generally.440, 443, 532, 535, 536 
 
 CLARKE, DR., (TRAVELS IN RUSSIA, &c.) 
 
 Characters of the Gipsies in Wallachia, 74—Gipsy dances in Moscow, 180 
 
 COLLIERS, GIPSY—In the Lothians, will—In the English mines. 401 
 
 COLLIERS, SCOTCH, SLAVES.will, »121, 508 
 
 CONSTABLES. 
 
 A Gipsy constable murdered, another hanged, and a third banished, 215-218 
 Gipsies formerly employed as county constables—Their peculiarities, 343 
 
 Gipsy constables at the present day. 348 
 
 A mixed Gipsy makes a good constable and thief-catcher. n348 
 
 CONTINENTAL GIPSIES. 
 
INDEX 
 
 547 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The times at which the tribe appeared in the different countries in 
 
 Europe. 69 
 
 The appellations given to them, in various countries. 69 
 
 Notice of the Gipsies, as they appeared at Paris, in 1427. 70 
 
 Their original country unknown—At first, they receive passports as 
 
 pilgrims. 70 
 
 Persecutions in Spain, France, and Italy, in Denmark, Sweden, the 
 
 Netherlands, and Germany. 71 
 
 A general extermination never took place. 72 
 
 Theft and robbery, and “ sorning,” or masterful begging, the causes 
 
 of these persecutions. 72 
 
 The habits of the Gipsies everywhere the same, 72—They have no re¬ 
 ligion peculiar to themselves. 73 
 
 Thecondition andclassesof the Gipsiesin theDanubian Principalities, 73 
 Allusion to these Gipsies, in a mission of enquiry to the Jews, in 1839, »73 
 Remarks on the slavery of these Gipsies—Gipsies as spies, in the late 
 
 Russian war. »74 
 
 The Gipsies in the Turkish empire, in Italy, Poland, Lithuania, Ger¬ 
 many, and France. 75 
 
 Remarks on Grellmann's alleged disappearance of the Gipsies from 
 
 France. ®76 
 
 The Gipsies in Spain, according to Dr. Bright. 76 
 
 The Gipsies of Syria, the Crimea, Persia, and India. 77 
 
 The population of the Gipsies in Europe, and the world generally... 77 
 
 The imposing titles and equipage of the leaders of the Gipsies, on 
 
 their arrival in Europe. 77 
 
 The nature and form of government among the Continental Gipsies. 78 
 An account of Germau Gipsy bands, translated by Sir Walter Scott, 
 
 for Blackwood’s Magazine. 78 
 
 Baron Trenck, in his wanderines, falls in with a German Gipsy band, 86 
 The Gipsies of the Pyrenees—Their resemblance to the inferior class 
 
 of Scottish Gipsies. 86 
 
 COOKING AMONG THE GIPSIES.88, 187,232 
 
 COUNTERFEITING AMONG THE GIPSIES.174, 204 
 
 CRABB, REV. JAMES. 
 
 The Gipsies, as they become civilized, avoid the barbarous part of the 
 
 tribe. »283 
 
 The Hindostanee and the Gipsy languages, »334—His plan for im¬ 
 proving the Gipsies. 368 
 
 CRITICS. 
 
 A word or two to—A criticism on this work, while in prospect, by a 
 
 Scotch editor in Canada. 537 
 
 DANCING AMONG THE GIPSIES.179, 180, 182 
 
 DEAD, THE BURIAL OF THE, AMONG THE GIPSIES. nl28 
 
 DISGUISES OF THE GIPSIES, 129, 150, 162, 169, 177, 213, 222, 320, »323, 
 
 349, 355 
 
 DISQUISITION ON THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF GIP- 
 SYDOM. 
 
 Points omitted by the author—The philosophy of the Gipsy subject, 371 
 Gipsydom a terra incognita —Its origin, language, and habits strange 
 
 to other people. 371 
 
 Natural perpetuation of the tribe—Mixed Gipsies hold by theconnexion 372 
 
 The prejudice of caste—A half-blood Spanish Gipsy captain. 372 
 
 An iron master marries a Cinderella, 373—Civilized Gipsies in Mos¬ 
 cow, and Scotland. 374 
 
 The Gipsies mix their blood—No full-blood Gipsies in Scotland. 374 
 
 The Edinburgh Review and Blackwood’s Magazine on the purity of 
 
 Gipsy blood. 374 
 
 How Gipsies shuffle on the point—The case of Ursula, in the Romany 
 
 Rye. n 375 
 
 The physical peculiarities cf mixed Gipsies 375, and other mixed races, 376 
 
648 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 , PACE 
 
 Appearance of the half-blood captain—The Gipsies partial to fair hair, 377 
 Mixed Gipsies common everywhere—Grellmann on the colour of 
 
 Gipsies. n.377 
 
 American mixed Gipsies, 377—The Gipsies receive males rather than 
 
 females into their tribe.. . 378 
 
 How female Gipsies “manage” natives, when they marry them. 378 
 
 How Gipsies are brought up to adhere to their race. 379 
 
 Remarks of Mr. George Offor on young female Gipsies generally_«380 
 
 Little difference if the father is a native—Town Gipsies visit the tent 
 
 in their youth. »380 
 
 Fair-haired Gipsies, 3S1—They are superior to the others—the two 
 
 kinds will readily marry. n382 
 
 The peculiarities of black and fair Gipsies—The pons assinorum of 
 
 the Gipsy question. 383 
 
 The destiny of European like Gipsies, and of the tribe generally.... 383 
 The philosophy of the mixture of Gipsy blood—The issue always 
 
 Gipsy. 384 
 
 Mr. Borrow on the Spanish Gipsies generally. 
 
 If no laws are passed against them. 385 
 
 Their social position, intermarriages, the law of Charles III. on the 
 
 prejudice against the tribe. 386 
 
 Gipsyism like Freemasonry, n —Mrs. Fall’s ancestral group of Gip¬ 
 sies . 387 
 
 A Scotchman on the destiny of the Gipsies, 387—Nothing interferes 
 
 with the question of tribe. 388 
 
 Scottish literati on the destiny of the Gipsies—A cloud of ignorance 
 
 protects the tribe. w388 
 
 The Gipsies “declining,” according to Mr. Borrow, 388—His sin¬ 
 gular inconsistencies. 389 
 
 Change in the habits of Gitanos—They are to be found in Cuba, 
 
 Mexico, and the United States. 389 
 
 Mr. Borrow leaves the question of the Spanish Gipsies where he 
 
 found it. 394 
 
 The Gipsies “ decreasing,” by changing their habits, and inter¬ 
 marriages . 390 
 
 Gipsies ashamed of the name before the world—Two kinds of Gip¬ 
 sies in Badajoz. 391 
 
 The law of Charles III., 392—Its real meaning—Causes of Spanish 
 
 Gipsy civilization. 393 
 
 The law of Charles III. little more than nominal, 394—The Church 
 
 did not annoy the Gitanos . 395 
 
 Mr. Borrow’s Spanish Gipsy authorities—The tribe the same in 
 
 Spain as in Great Britain. 395 
 
 “Strangers” among English Gipsies, “foreign tinkers” among 
 
 those in Spain. 396 
 
 Mixed Gipsies in Spain—Persecutions against the Spanish and Scot¬ 
 tish Gipsies. 397 
 
 The tinkers and Rothwelsh in the Austrian dominions. 397 
 
 The natural capacity of Gipsies—Opinions of Grellmann, Bischoff, 
 
 Borrow. 398 
 
 Various classes of Gipsies, according to Mr. Borrow, Spanish, Turk¬ 
 ish, and Russian.... 399 
 
 The original Scottish Gipsies, how they encreased, mixed their 
 
 blood, and spread. 399 
 
 Their internal polity and numbers, style of life, 400—How English 
 
 Gipsies leave the tent. 401 
 
 The natural vicissitudes of an English Gipsy, after leaving the tent, 401 
 Gipsy ambition, 401—John Bunyan’s early habits as described by 
 
 himself.. ?r402 
 
 The character cf Scottish Gipsies, and their opinion of themselves 
 and tribe.... . 402 
 
INDEX. 
 
 549 
 
 PA0B 
 
 Phases of history through which the Scottish Gipsies have passed, 402 
 The vicissitudes in the history of a respectable Scottish Gipsy 
 
 family, settling in a town. 404 
 
 Gipsies among the best Edinburgh families—An eminent Scottish 
 
 Gipsy clergyman. 405 
 
 The Falls, of Dunbar, Gipsies—Burns visits them, n, they are noticed 
 
 in the Statistical Account of Scotland. «406 
 
 They divulge their tribe, over their cups—Will Faa their relative— 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies claim them. 406 
 
 Their ancestors Gipsy kings—The Gipsy language in the family... 407 
 
 Miss Fall, afterwards Lady Anstruther, her feelings—Tho other con¬ 
 nexions of the Falls. 408 
 
 Mr. Borrow’s visit to, and description of, the Gipsies of Moscow ; «403 
 The Gipsies proud of their ancestors, though thieves and robbers.... 409 
 
 Border and Highland thieves and robbers, 409—Sir Walter Scott’s 
 
 ancestors. »410 
 
 Gipsy and Highland thieving—The McGregors and the Gipsies.... 411 
 
 Fitz-James’ address to Roderick Dhu, in the “ Lady of the Lake”. n411 
 A Gipsy is a Gipsy, whether barbarous, civilized, educated, or 
 
 Christianized. 412 
 
 Pritchard on the Hungarian race, past and present. 413 
 
 Civilized Scottish Gipsies—What they say of themselves. 414 
 
 The Gippies should be judged by a standard different from that ap¬ 
 plicable to ordinary natives. 414 
 
 The circumstances attending a wild Gipsy make him only half re¬ 
 sponsible. 414 
 
 The race, in its developement, should be more leniently treated 
 
 than others. 415 
 
 The antiquity of the Gipsies, they are probably the descendants of 
 
 the shepherd kings. 415 
 
 The confession of the Scotch clergyman unintelligible, unless fully 
 
 explained. 415 
 
 What might be expected of the Gipsy tribe, the Scottish Gipsies 
 
 especially. 415 
 
 Population of the Scottish Gipsies, and the British Gipsies generally 416 
 The Gipsies are afraid of strange Gipsies, when at home—A French 
 
 and German Gipsy in New York. «416 
 
 Scottish vagabonds, noticed by Fletcher of Saltoun, in 1680, were 
 
 doubtless Gipsies. «417 
 
 Scottish Gipsy encrease, since 1506, Sir Walter Scott’s opinion on 
 the destiny and number of the Scottish Gipsies, letter of James 
 IV. to the king of Denmark in favour of Anthonius Gawino, 
 
 Gipsy trials, Gipsies banished and hanged, the descendants of the 
 
 Gipsies “ prodigiously numerous”. n418 
 
 America, Gipsies banished to, 418—A Gipsy colony in New England— 
 Colonial Gipsies would not likely take to the tent—Their occupations, 419 
 
 European Gipsies in America, 420—Arrival and modes of life of Eng¬ 
 lish Gipsies. 421 
 
 Fortune-tellers: their mode of travelling, tricks, captures, and es¬ 
 capes. 422 
 
 The Slave States naturally suitable to the Gipsies—Travelling Gip¬ 
 sies in Canada. 424 
 
 Scottish Gipsies in the United States and Canada—Gipsies every¬ 
 where. 424 
 
 Resemblance between the formation of Gipsydom and that of the 
 
 United Slates. 425 
 
 The peculiar feelings of Gipsies—Highland and Lowland feuds— 
 
 Gipsy resentment. 425 
 
 The prejudice against the Gipsies compels them to hide their nationality 426 
 What is it that frightens the educated Gipsies? The word Gipsy.... 426 
 In what other than a hidden state could we expect to find the Gipsies? 427 
 
INDEX. 
 
 The difficulty in discovering who are, and who are not, Gipsies, at the 
 
 present day. 428 
 
 Gipsy blood changed into almost pure black, in Africa, as well as 
 
 white, in Europe. 428 
 
 Gipsies found near the sources of the Senegal and Gambia. »429 
 
 The universality of the Gipsies—Meeting between English and Am¬ 
 erican Gipsies. 430 
 
 Language of the Gipsies in England and Scotland—Rivalry in its pro¬ 
 nunciation. 431 
 
 The construction of German and Spanish Gipsy, 431—The purity 
 
 of Hungarian Gipsy. nA32 
 
 Respectable Scottish Gipsies, and the Gipsy language; “Are ye a’ 
 
 Tinklers?”. 432 
 
 The Gipsy language in America—In Spain. m432 
 
 The number of words sufficient for every-day use in any language, «432 
 The Gipsy language in Great Britain mixed, but still serves the pur¬ 
 poses of a speech. 432 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies the last to forget the language—The causes of 
 
 its perpetuation. 433 
 
 Hatred of the Gipsies for other people—Mr. Borrow on that hatred.. «433 
 The treatment of the Gipsies made them worse than they might 
 
 have been. 434 
 
 Gipsy gratitude, 434—Gipsy law—Borrow and Grellmatiu on Gipsy 
 
 ingratitude. 435 
 
 Unreasonableness of expecting much gratitude from Gipsies. 435 
 
 Gratitude among mankind generally—The nature of benefits con¬ 
 ferred on Gipsies. 435 
 
 Means of improving the Gipsies—The feeling between them and the 
 
 ordinary natives. 438 
 
 The name of Gipsy should be raised up, and the tribe respected ac¬ 
 cording to merit. 437 
 
 Respectable Scottish Gipsies are Scotch people, and should come for¬ 
 ward, and own themselves up. 437 
 
 The Zincali society in the city of New York. »438 
 
 An appeal to the Scottish Gipsies, 438, and to those in America. 440 
 
 The prejudices of British people against Gipsies, 440, and Americans 
 
 against Negroes. 441 
 
 What is to be the future of the Gipsy race?—Gipsydom immortal .. 441 
 
 The introduction of the Gipsies to the society of mankind, 442—The 
 
 hereditary prejudice of centuries. 443 
 
 Missions among heathen and Jews, 443—The Uipsies should, at least, 
 
 be countenanced. 444 
 
 The Gipsies are Gipsies everywhere, and under all circumstances.... 444 
 
 The way in which the Gipsies should be received into the society of 
 
 other people. 445 
 
 The Gipsies are a people that exist, and not such as disappear, like the 
 
 American Indians. 446 
 
 The popular idea of Gipsies aud Jews—Gipsies that preach the gos¬ 
 pel, and argue the law. 447 
 
 Erroneous ideas of writers generally as to the Gipsies—Mr. Borrow. 448 
 The Gipsies a question of people—Billy Marshall and his descendants, 448 
 No distinction has been made between race and habits, 448—Cham¬ 
 bers’ Journal. »449 
 
 The Gipsies compared to a clan, in the olden time—The McGregor 
 
 clan...:.... 449 
 
 English, American, and Gipsy races mixed, 450—Mixed races illus¬ 
 trated by individual families.. ; - 451 
 
 The mixture of Gipsy blood always leaves the issue Gipsy—Jewish 
 
 Gipsies possible. ; . 451 
 
 How the subject of the Gipsies has hitherto been treated—It is neces¬ 
 sary to sound the mind of the Gipsy. 452 
 
INDEX. 
 
 551 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The life of a superior Gipsy compared to a continual conspiracy 
 
 against society. 453 
 
 The position occupied by the popular kind of Gipsy—His ideas on the 
 
 persecutions of his race. 453 
 
 The condition from which all Gipsies have sprung—Popular preju¬ 
 dices and ideas. 454 
 
 The introduction of German blood into Great Britain and America.. 454 
 
 How the Gipsies have encreased and spread—Native blood has been 
 
 lost among them. 455 
 
 The introduction of Huguenot blood into Great Britain and America, 455 
 The Gipsies have hitherto been “strangers in the land,” unacknowl¬ 
 edged by others. 456 
 
 The principles of Gipsy nationality—Gipsies like Free-masons. 456 
 
 Gipsydom is not a creed, but a work stamped by Providence on the 
 
 heart of the tribe. 457 
 
 Blood, language, a cast of miud, and signs specially constitute the 
 
 Gipsy nationality. 457' 
 
 The possession of a special religion not necessary to constitute a peo¬ 
 ple distinct from others. 457 
 
 The same principle illustrated in races, clans, families, or individuals, 
 
 living in the same community. 458 
 
 The existence of the Gipsies is natural, it resembles that of the Jews; 
 
 neither is miraculous. 458 
 
 Philosophical historians on the existence of the Jews since the dis¬ 
 persion . 456 
 
 By what human means can Jews cease to be Jews, individually or 
 
 nationally?. 459 
 
 A writer on the Christian Evidences, in describing the existence of 
 
 the Jews, gambles away revelation. 459 
 
 His language on the subject of the Jews very applicable to the exist¬ 
 ence of the Gipsies. 459 
 
 No outward difference between many Gipsy and native Scotch. 460 
 
 How Scottish Gipsies deport themselves on meeting—Civilized and 
 
 hit$h Gipsies. 460 
 
 The general difference between Gipsy and native Scotch people. 461 
 
 A mixed Gipsy has sometimes “ various bloods” to contend for. 461 
 
 What Scottish Gipsies think of their ancestors and language. 462 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies, as they acquire education, become superior in 
 
 character. 462 
 
 The children of civilized and barbarous Gipsies compared. 463 
 
 The singular position of the Gipsies, from generation to generation, 
 
 and century to century. 464 
 
 How the gulf between the Gipsies and the native race is to be bridged, 465 
 The Gipsies, on their arrival in Europe, were barbarous, like other races 465 
 
 A superior Scottish Gipsy in 1540, and 1840. 466 
 
 The Gipsies never were a nomadic race, in the ordinary sense of the 
 
 word. 466 
 
 General description of the occupations and characters of the original 
 
 Gipsies. . 467 
 
 The superior characters of the early Scottish Gipsy chiefs—Their treat¬ 
 ment by the natives. 467 
 
 The character of a superior Spanish Gipsy, in 1584 .n468 
 
 Mixture of “ the blood” on arrival, 468—Intermarriages under certain 
 
 circumstances. 469 
 
 The plans of the Gipsies to secure their position in the country—Ille¬ 
 gitimate children. 469 
 
 The attachment of Jewesses and Gipsies to their respective races.... 410 
 
 The protection of the Baillies, of Lamington, to the Gipsies of that 
 
 name. 470 
 
 Two Gipsies pardoned through the intercession of the Duchess of 
 Gordon. 470 
 
652 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Scotland became the home of the tribe, as much as that of the ordinary 
 
 natives. 471 
 
 Effects of the mixture of Gipsy blood—Intermarriages among natives 
 
 of different ranks. 472 
 
 The census need not be consulted for the number of the Gipsy popu¬ 
 lation . 472 
 
 How the Jewish race is perpetuated—Their religion of secondary im¬ 
 portance. 473 
 
 Christian Jews—Their feelings of nationality—No prejudices against 
 
 them, or civilized Gipsies. 474 
 
 The rearing of Gipsies and Jews, in what respect they resemble each 
 
 other. 475 
 
 The Gipsies stand towards religions, as Christianity does towards 
 
 races. 475 
 
 The purity of Jewish blood a figment, 475—What may be termed a 
 
 “pure jew”. 477 
 
 The relative positions of Jews and Gipsies< Gipsies troublesome, but 
 
 not scoffers at religion. 477 
 
 The want of a religion among the Gipsies—Their feelings in regard 
 
 thereto... ... 478 
 
 The ways of Scottish Gipsies and Highland Scotch. 478 
 
 Scottish Gipsies are British subjects—Their romantic descent. 479 
 
 Tacitus’ account of the destruction of the Druids, in the island of An¬ 
 glesey... m479 
 
 The weak position of the Gipsies—Jewish and Gipsy literature. 480 
 
 The being a Gipsy, as distinguished from objectionable habits, im¬ 
 material to the world... 481 
 
 The probable result of the word Gipsy being as much respected as it 
 
 is now despised......... 481 
 
 The Gipsies originally a wandering, tented tribe, with habits peculiar 
 
 to itself. 481 
 
 The difficulties in the way of the tribe becoming settled and civilized. 482 
 The manner in which the Gipsies gradually acquire honest habits... 482 
 
 Public sympathy for the Gipsies, in preference to the Jews. 483 
 
 No prejudice should be entertained for well-behaved Gipsies. 484 
 
 The Jews are disliked, and are, to a certain extent, strangers every¬ 
 where . 484 
 
 They are rebels against Heaven—“ Which of the prophets have they 
 
 not persecuted ?”. 484 
 
 The interest of the Christian in their history—Their crucifixion of 
 
 the Messiah—How they treat his mission. 485 
 
 Their antagonistic position towards every people and religion, 486 
 
 —Their personal characters. 487 
 
 The destruction of Jerusalem confirmed the Jews in the idea that 
 
 theirs was a scattered people. 487 
 
 The existence of the Jews, since the dispersion, not in itself won¬ 
 derful . 488 
 
 The Jew’s nationality is everywhere—His aversion to forsake his 
 
 own race or community. 488 
 
 The Jews are a race—A Christian Jewish church possible—Its posi¬ 
 tion and aspects. 488 
 
 The present position of Christian Jews, 488—The relation of a 
 
 Christian Jewish Church to the Mosaic law... 489 
 
 The scriptural idea of a Messiah—Christian Jews incog .—The con¬ 
 version of Jews generally... 489 
 
 It is no elevated regard for Moses that prevents Jews entertaining 
 
 the claims of Jesus Christ. 490 
 
 But rather the phenomena connected with the history of their race. 490 
 The Jews exist under a spell—The prophecy of Moses regarding 
 
 the Gipsies, n . 491 
 
 The Jews are not apt to notice the present work. «491 
 
INDEX. 
 
 553 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The population of the Gipsies scattered over the world. 491 
 
 How the laws passed against the Gipsies were generally rendered 
 
 nugatory. 492 
 
 Grellmann’s estimate—The probable number of Gipsies in Europe 
 
 and America. 493 
 
 The population of the Jews scattered over the world. »493 
 
 Christians delude the Jews in regard to the existence of their race 
 
 being a miracle. 493 
 
 The Jew’s idea of the existence of his race is the greatest bar to his 
 
 conversion to Christianity. 494 
 
 The “mixed multitude” of the Exodus was doubtless the origin of 
 
 the Gipsies. 494 
 
 The meaning of Gamaliel’s advice—St. Paul before the Jewish 
 
 council. «494 
 
 The history of the Gipsies and the Jews greatly illustrate each other 496 
 
 The distinction between an Englishman and an English Jew. 490 
 
 Persecutions of races generally—How to prevent a Gipsy being a 
 
 Gipsy. 496 
 
 Tacitus on the religion of slaves. »496 
 
 Birth and rearing constitute Jews, Gipsies, and Gentiles. 497 
 
 Christian Jews persecuted by their own race—The Disraeli and 
 
 Cappadoce families. 497 
 
 Christianity was not intended, nor is it capable, to destroy the na¬ 
 tionality of Jews. 498 
 
 The Jew may be crossed out by intermarriage—The Gipsy absorbs 
 
 other races. 498 
 
 Gipsies and Jews have each a peculiarly original and distinct soul 
 
 of nationality. 499 
 
 Each race maintains its identity in the world, and may be said to 
 
 be even eternal. 499 
 
 Comparison and contrast between Gipsies and Jews. 499 
 
 The existence of the Jews, like that of the Gipsies, rests upon a 
 
 question of people . 501 
 
 The religion of the Jews, 501—Their idea of a Messiah. 502 
 
 Difference between Judaism and Christianity. 502 
 
 The position of Jews towards Christianity and other religions. 502 
 
 The persecutions of Jews and Gipsies—The extent of a Gipsy’s 
 
 wants. 502 
 
 The Jews show little regard for their religion, when tolerated and 
 
 well treated. 503 
 
 The prejudice against Jews—Their ideas of their race, as distin¬ 
 guished from others. 503 
 
 The treatment of Christians by Jews. 504 
 
 What has the Jew got to say to this subject generally?. 504 
 
 The philosophy of the Gipsies—Popular ideas in regard to them—A 
 
 mental phenomenon. 505 
 
 A regard to facts—The Gipsy language—Two races living on the 
 
 same soil. 506 
 
 The Gipsies hide their race—The kind of them that should be de¬ 
 spised . 506 
 
 John Bunyan a Gipsy, whose blood was mixed. 507 
 
 All the Gipsies tinkers, either literally, figuratively, or representa¬ 
 tively.. 507 
 
 Lord Macaulay on Bunyan : “the tinkers a hereditary caste”. 507 
 
 In what respect are the tinkers a native “ hereditary caste?”. 507 
 
 Characters in Mr. Borrow’s Luvengro and Komauy Rye—English 
 
 Gipsies. .508, w509 
 
 Prejudice against Gipsies—The legal responsibility—the Act of 
 
 f Queen Elizabeth.'.. 510 
 
 Buuyan’s tribe—His great desire to ascertain whether he was an 
 Israelite. 510 
 
 24 
 
654 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 A Gipsy family (309-31S) that illustrates that of Bunyan.. .. 511 
 
 The reason whv Bunyan imagined he was a Jew. 511 
 
 The Jews not then tolerated in England—The curiosity of the Gip¬ 
 sies regarding the Jews. 511 
 
 Southey on tinkering and Bunyan’s education—Bunj’an had doubt¬ 
 less a Gipsy pass. 512 
 
 The Dublin University Magazine on Bunyan’s nationality. 512 
 
 The philosophy of race, and the prejudice of caste against the 
 
 Gipsies. 513 
 
 Justice Keeling threatens to have Bunyan hanged for preaching... nbl'6 
 Bunyan a Gipsy beyond question—Lord Macaulay on the Pilgrim’s 
 
 Progress. 514 
 
 Religious writers averse to it being said that Bunyan was a Gipsy.. 514 
 
 Sir Walter Scott and Mr. George Offor on Bunvan’s tribe or nation¬ 
 ality... 515 
 
 Bunyau’s nationality unacknowledged, owing to popular ignorance 
 
 and prejudice. 515 
 
 Southey on Bunyan’s family and fame—The popularity of the Pil¬ 
 grim’s Progress. 51G 
 
 Bunyan’s reserve—His friends and enemies—He cannot get justice 
 
 done to him. 517 
 
 Bunyan and the Gipsy language—He was perhaps capable of writ¬ 
 ing in it. 517 
 
 The prejudice of the present day—Bunsen on sound judgment and 
 
 shallow minds, n . 513 
 
 The world should feel relieved by it being shown that Bunyan was 
 
 a Gipsy. 518 
 
 Bunyan’s pedigree—He had very probably no English blood in his 
 
 veins. 518 
 
 The world claims Bunyan as a man; England, the formation of his 
 
 character. 519 
 
 Bunyan’s biographers unjust to his memory—His general as well 
 
 as moral character. 519 
 
 Though pious and peaceable, he yet repelled slanders with indigna¬ 
 tion . 520 
 
 The style of Bunyan’s language indicates the Gipsy in some degree. 520 
 
 The indignities cast upon Bunyan—The way in which he treated 
 
 them. 521 
 
 Remarks upon Bunyan’s enemies, who professed themselves to be 
 
 servants of Christ. w521 
 
 The prejudice of caste in Great Britain exists against the Gipsies 
 
 exclusively. 521 
 
 The day is gone by when it cannot be said who John Bunyan was. 523 
 Scantiness of information in Mr. Borrow’s works on the subject of 
 
 the Gipsies.523 
 
 American people are not expected to indulge in the popular prejudice 
 
 against the Gipsies. 524 
 
 American religion journals decline to entertain the question : “Was 
 
 John Bunyan a Gipsy ?”. 525 
 
 The peculiarities of Scottish people unfavourable to tbe Gipsies 
 
 owning themselves up in Scotland. 525 
 
 The nature of Scottish quarrelsomeness, 526—The classes favourable 
 
 and unfavourable to the Gipsies. 527 
 
 A “model Scot,” after his kind, 528—No one in particular to blame 
 
 for the position occupied by the Gipsies. 529 
 
 Tbe Gipsy subject interesting, and not necessarily low or vulgar, 
 
 though more or less barbarous........... 529 
 
 Tbe wild Gipsies should be reached indirectly—Their high opinion 
 
 John Bunyan’s celebrity—His name of great use in raising up that 
 of tbe Gipsies. 530 
 
INDEX. 
 
 555 
 
 PAGE 
 
 A little judgment is necessary in dealing with wild or any kind of 
 
 Gipsies. 530 
 
 The peculiar sensations felt in coming in contact with wild Gipsies.. 531 
 
 Gipsies are Gipsies to the last drop of the original blood. 532 
 
 The history of the Gipsies a singular work of Providence. 532 
 
 It would have been a miracle had the Jews been lost among mankind. 533 
 What a miracle is—The existence of the Jews is in exact harmony 
 
 with every natural law. 533 
 
 A prophecy of Moses regarding a people who are to provoke and 
 
 anger tire Jews. 533 
 
 A thousand years hence the Gipsies will be found existing in the world 534 
 A word or two to the Gipsies, aud especially the Scottish Gipsies ... 534 
 
 A word or two to the Church, and people generally: “Was John 
 
 Bunyan a Gipsy?”. i _ 535 
 
 The reason why we know so little about the Gipsies. 536 
 
 A word or two to some of the critics. 537 
 
 A criticism on the present work, while in prospect. 537 
 
 DISRAELI, the present, a Jew, though a Christian. 497 
 
 DIVORCE CEREMONIES OF THE GIPSIES, AND SACRIFICE OF 
 HORSES. 
 
 The Gipsies not licentious in their personal morals—They are strict 
 
 with their wives, in the matter of chastity. 266 
 
 Divorces among the Gipsies are attended with much grief and mourn¬ 
 ing. 267 
 
 Natural that the Gipsies should have as singular a form of divorce as 
 
 that of marriage. 267 
 
 The nature of sacrifices—Their universality among mankind. 267 
 
 Why was the Gipsy sacrifice of the horse not known in Scotland be¬ 
 fore ?. 267 
 
 The Gipsies have a great affection for the horse—They will not eat of 
 
 that animal, n . 268 
 
 Writers have made no discovery, among the Gipsies, of a religious 
 
 nature. 268 
 
 The Gipsy sacrifice of the horse a proof that the people come from 
 
 Uindostan. 268 
 
 The idea of Gipsies being Tartars strengthened by their sacrifice of 
 
 the horse. 269 
 
 Other natious who have sacrificed horses—The Jews in the time of 
 
 Josiah, n . 269 
 
 Popular tradition, among the natives, that Gipsies separated over dead 
 
 horses. 270 
 
 Instances accidentally aud partially noticed by the natives. 270 
 
 “ Patricos” performed ceremonies over dead horses, in England, prior 
 
 to 1674 . : 271 
 
 Preliminary remarks on the sacrifice of horses—“ The sun must be at 
 
 its height”. 271 
 
 A description of the ceremony of sacrifice and divorce. 272 
 
 The horse considered in the place of the woman, 272—Sometimes 
 
 both are sacrificed. 273 
 
 The woman dismissed, with a bill of divorce—The husband and his 
 
 friends then eat the heart of the horse. 274 
 
 The husband may marry again, but the wife never. 274 
 
 Her fate, if she loses her bill of divorce, or passes herself off’ as never 
 
 having been married. 274 
 
 Spanish Gipsy widows, according to Dr. Bright. «274 
 
 A Gipsy, in a passion, shoots his horse, and performs the ceremony of 
 
 divorce, forthwith. 274 
 
 The sacrifice of the horse observed by the Gipsies in Russia. 275 
 
 They do it in the woods, under night, for fear of the police. 275 
 
 The Gipsies, of Yetholm, knock down their asses, when they sepa¬ 
 rate from their wives.i. 276 
 
556 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The sacrifice of the horse in ancient India, known as the Assummeed 
 
 Jugg ..... ... 276 
 
 The explanation of the mystic meaning contained in that sacrifice ... 277 
 
 The very acme and enthusiasm of allegory in an Asiatic genius. 279 
 
 The ancient Hindoo sacrifice of the horse and the scape-goat of the 
 
 Jews compared.. 279 
 
 The Gipsy and ancient Hindoo sacrifice of the horse compared. 279 
 
 Both offered to the sun—Travelling Gipsies change their names at 
 
 noon.. 280 
 
 Robert Southey aud Colonel Tod on the sacrifice of the horse in 
 
 India. 280 
 
 The sacrifice of the horse by the Gipsies, a proof that the people came 
 
 from India. 280 
 
 DRESS OF THE GIPSIES, 43, 77, 79, 108, 116, 129, 145, 149, 154, 157, 
 
 162, 171, 177, 182, 186, 197, 202, 209, 213, 214. 
 
 DRUIDS, destruction of the, in the Island of Anglesey. w479 
 
 DUBLIN UNIVERSITY MAGAZINE. 
 
 The number of words sufficient for every-day use, in any language . »432 
 
 Runyan's nationality : “ Was John Bunyan a Gipsy”. 512 
 
 EDINBURGH REVIEW, The, on the purity of Gipsy blood—Mr. Bor- 
 
 row’s “ Gipsies in Spain ”. 374 
 
 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The discovery aud history of barbarous races illustrate the history of 
 
 man, and natural and revealed religion. 27 
 
 Barbarism within, and barbarism without, the circle of civilization.. 27 
 The Gipsies an anomaly in the history of civilization, and merit great 
 
 consideration. 27 
 
 European civilization progressive, and homogeneous in its nature ... 28 
 
 Asiatic civilization stationary and, in some countries, divided into 
 
 castes. 28 
 
 The nature of caste in India, 28—The natives of certain parts of 
 
 Oceanic Asia. 29 
 
 The condition of the most original kind of Gipsies, in Great Britain— 
 
 Their secrecy. . 29 
 
 Description of Gipsy life in England, by Dr. Bright. 30 
 
 The first appearance of the Gipsies in Europe—Attempts at elucidat¬ 
 ing their history. 31 
 
 The political state of Europe at the beginning of the fifteenth century 31 
 The great schism in the church—Three Popes reigning at one time .. 32 
 
 The educational and social condition of Europe about that time. 33 
 
 The manner in which the Gipsies stole into Europe. 35 
 
 The influx of the Greeks into Europe—The literary pursuits of the 
 
 age, 37—English travellers .. 38 
 
 The Gipsies not Sudras—Timour—The Gipsies at Samarcand pre¬ 
 vious to his invasion of India. 39 
 
 The Gipsies did not obtain the name of Egyptians from others, as 
 
 Mr. Borrow supposes. 39 
 
 The Gipsies are not the Egyptians mentioned by the Prophet Ezekiel, 40 
 What misleads writers in their ideas that the Gipsies are not Egypt¬ 
 ians . 41 
 
 The relative position borne by the early Gipsies to the various classes 
 
 of society. 41 
 
 The travelling Gipsies much fallen below those of the olden times ... 43 
 
 The dread always entertained for the tribe, 44—File-raising and child¬ 
 stealing. 45 
 
 The Gipsies frighten children, 46—And act as police, or scare-crows, 
 
 for farmers. 47 
 
 The ferocity of Gipsy women, 47—Sir Walter Scott’s recollections of 
 
 the original of Meg Merrilies. 48 
 
 The intercourse between the tribe and the farmers, in pastoral dis¬ 
 tricts. 48 
 
INDEX. 
 
 557 
 
 PAOE 
 
 The timidity of the Gipsies, when accosted under certain circum¬ 
 stances . 49 
 
 Comparison between Africans, in America, and the Gipsy race gen¬ 
 erally . £0 
 
 Some of the causes of the isolation of the Gipsies from the rest of the 
 
 world. 51 
 
 The history of the Gipsies somewhat illustrated by that of the Am¬ 
 erican Indians. 53 
 
 The prejudice agaiust Africans and Gipsies contrasted. 54 
 
 EDITOR’S PREFACE. 
 
 When this work should have been published—It has been brought 
 
 down to the present time. 5 
 
 Inducements to hazard a publication of it at one time. 5 
 
 Sir Walter Scott’s judicious advice regarding the publication of the 
 
 work. 5 
 
 The abuse of reviewers and the ire of wandering Egvptians deprecated 5 
 
 Mr. Borrow’s publications since this work was written. t> 
 
 Scottish Church Gipsy mission—Scottish Gipsy clergyman of eminence 6 
 The Gipsies have encreased since the peace of 1815, but have retired 
 
 from observation. 6 
 
 The reason for this work being published in America—Popular preju¬ 
 dice against the Gipsies. 6 
 
 Scottish antiquaries—Their apathy aud contempt for the subject of 
 
 the Gipsies. nl 
 
 The present work illustrates the Gipsies everywhere—The subject 
 
 hardly known to the world. 7 
 
 Tinkler the name generally applied to the Scottish Gipsies—tinker a 
 
 Gipsy word. nl 
 
 The subject interesting—Observation necessary to solve the problem. 8 
 
 Professor Wilson travels with the Gipsies—The author’s associations 
 
 with them. 8 
 
 The nomadic Gipsies only a part of the race, 8—The blood of the tribe 
 
 much mixed—Causes thereof.. 9 
 
 Persecutions—Children stolen and incorporated with the tribe—Mr. 
 
 Borrow’s remarks thereon, . j . 
 
 Prejudices against the Gipsies—Their love of race and language_ 10 
 
 The primitive state of the tribe—Causes and manner of leaving the 
 
 tent. 10 
 
 Associations after leaving the tent, and feelings towards the com¬ 
 munity. 11 
 
 Their resentment of the popular prejudice—Their boast of ancestry.. 11 
 Ideas and feelings of the natives, 12—The Gipsy’s love of language— 
 
 His associations. 13 
 
 Speculations on the origin of the Gipsies, 13—They are the “ mixed 
 
 multitude” of the Exodus. 11 
 
 Mode of escape from Egypt, 17—Entrance into India, aud formation 
 
 of their character as a people. 21 
 
 Their present language acquired in India—Mr. Borrow’s remarks on 
 
 its antiquity. 23 
 
 The philosophy of the preservation of the Gipsy language in Europe 
 
 till now. 33 
 
 Sir Walter Scott’s intended account of the Gipsies—The difficulty as 
 
 to their language. 25 
 
 He urges the publication of the present work—Its character as a his¬ 
 tory of the tribe. 25 
 
 It is a contribution towards the filling up of a void in literature. 25 
 
 EDUCATION AMONG THE GIPSIES.65, 125, 248, 254. 303, 364, 369 
 
 EGYPT. 
 
 The Gipsies originated in, 14, 39—They are the ‘‘mixed multitude” 
 
 of the Exodus.14, 494 
 
658 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ENGLISH GIPSIES. 
 
 Their arrival about the year 1512—A description of them in a wort, 
 
 published in 1(112. 90 
 
 Act of 22d Henry VIII.—Burnet’s allusion to English Gipsies, in 1549 91 
 
 Act of 27th Henry VIII.—A fine of forty pounds for every Gipsy im¬ 
 ported. 91 
 
 Act of Queen Elizabeth—Felony for strangers to associate with the 
 
 Gipsies. 92 
 
 Last of the executions under Charles II.—The Gipsies still liable under 
 
 the Vagrant Act. 92 
 
 Number of Gipsies in England during the time of Queen Elizabeth.. 92 
 
 Estimate of their present number, by Mr. Hoylaud, and a member of 
 
 parliament. 92 
 
 Author’s remarks, and editor’s comments thereon. m93 
 
 Mr. Borrow’s description of the English Gipsies, and the English 
 
 dialect spoken by them. »93 
 
 English Gipsies travel in Scotland—A description of a camp of them 93 
 
 Adventure of a Scotchman among the Gipsies in England. 95 
 
 Crime among the English Gipsies—Report on the prisons in North¬ 
 umberland. 9G 
 
 Sketch of an English Gipsy family arriving iu Scotland, by Sir Wal- • 
 
 ter Scott. 96 
 
 EXECUTIONS AMONG THE GIPSIES.85, 119, 133, 143, 201, 513 
 
 FALLS, Merchants, of Dunbar, Gipsies. 108, 237-241, 251, 252, 406 
 
 Will Faa, the Gipsy king, claims them as his relatives. »238, 251 
 
 FARMERS. 
 
 Their property protected by the Gipsies. » . 47, 363, 434 
 
 How they sometimes treat the Gipsies . .48, 55, 56, 187, ?H79, 220, 221, 226, 
 
 242, 361 
 
 FIFE AND STIRLINGSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 The county of Fife contained, at one time, a great many nomadic 
 
 Gipsies. 140 
 
 The tribe, at one time, possessed a foundry near St. Andrews, called 
 
 “ Little Carron ”. 140 
 
 Locligellie Gipsies more particularly described. 140 
 
 Description of Locbgellie and other places, illustrative of Gipsy quar¬ 
 ters, in olden times... 140 
 
 Description of Falkland “ scrapies ” . »140 
 
 Principal names of Locligellie Gipsies and their connexions. 141 
 
 The tribe feared all over the shires of Fife, Kinross, Perth, Angus, 
 
 and Aberdeen. 141 
 
 Old Charles Graham—“ The auld thing again, my lord, but nae proof” 142 
 His wife banished to Botany Bay—Marries a Gipsy there, and returns 
 
 rich. 142 
 
 Young Charles Graham apprehended—His irritation at the crowd 
 staring at him—He steals a farmer’s horse, sells it, steals it again, 
 and returns it to the original owner, 142—Robs a factor, and gives 
 the money to a needy widow—He is apparently penitent at the gal¬ 
 lows, 143—But kicks off his shoes, and addresses the people. 144 
 
 Hugh Graham stabbed by John Young, who is hunted like a fox, 
 
 before he is apprehended. 145 
 
 Jenny Graham leaves her protector, to follow the gang, and take 
 
 care of its stolen articles. 145 
 
 Margaret Graham, a woman of uncommon bodily strength. 145 
 
 John Young, who stabbed Hugh Graham, although five feet ten inches 
 in height, is called by his mother, “ The dwarf o’ a’ my bairns ”... 145 
 
 Peter Young, a generous man—He breaks out of many prisons before 
 
 he is hanged. 145 
 
 Old John Young, on being asked where his sons were, replied, “ They 
 
 are all hanged”. 145 
 
 Charles Brown, killed in a Gipsy battle at Ruploch, near Stirling_ 147 
 
INDEX. 
 
 559 
 
 rAQB 
 
 Alexander Brown steals and carries off an ox in disguise. 148 
 
 Billy Marshall robs the Laird of Bargally, and saves an innocent man 
 
 from the gallows. »148 
 
 He is nearly frightened out of his wits, under very ludicrous circum¬ 
 stances. nl48 
 
 Alexander Brown’s capture and audacious escape—His style when in 
 full dress, 149—His disguise as a mounted man of quality, 150— 
 
 His capture by Highlanders, and desperate resistance, and execu¬ 
 tion . r51 
 
 Martha, mother of Alexander Brown, steals sheets while attending 
 
 his execution. 152 
 
 William Brown is run down by the military—His threatened rescue 
 by the tribe—He sets fire to the jail, but is put in irons by a soldier 
 
 —His execution. 152 
 
 Lizzie Brown, in a Gipsy fray—“ In the middle o’ the meantime, 
 
 where’s my nose V”. 153 
 
 The connexions of the Gipsies, and the ramifications of their society, 153 
 Charles Stewart—His royal blood, style of dress, and audacity of con¬ 
 duct. 153 
 
 Grellmann’s description of the attire of a Gipsy . al54 
 
 The unabashed hardihood of Gipsies in the face of suspicion. »155 
 
 Jamie Robertson, a great musician—He resents an imagined uffrout 
 
 to an absent friend. 155 
 
 His wife sentenced to Botany Bay, but, owing to her advanced age, 
 
 set at liberty. 156 
 
 Joyce Robertson’s daring robbery while in prison—His deliberate 
 escape—He steals a watch, and has the crowd at his heels. 156 
 
 Charles Wilson, very respectable in his appearance and character, as 
 a horse-dealer, 157—Received and vended stolen goods through the 
 country—Was chief of his tribe, and, as such, issued passes, 158— 
 lie returns money stolen from a young countryman—Becomes re¬ 
 duced to poverty in bis old age, aud dies in full communion with 
 
 the church. 161 
 
 Charles Wilson’s daughters—One of them kept bv an Adjutant—Their 
 
 disguises aud pilferings-y-The Brae Laird of Kinross-shire. 162 
 
 Stirlingshire Gipsies contributed their full share to the gallows. 163 
 
 The Gipsies a predatory tribe originally—Two kinds of them at the 
 
 present day... 164 
 
 Other people robbers besides the Gipsies—Spartans, Abyssinians, 
 
 Moors, East Indians, Coords, Kamtschadales, Scotch, n . 164 
 
 Training of the Gipsies to theft by the women, 167—A Gipsy picks a 
 
 countryman’s pocket with great dexterity. 168 
 
 Thieves formed into bands—Modes of operation, and division of the 
 
 spoil. 169 
 
 Vidocq on the pilfering habits of the Continental Gipsies. »169 
 
 Male Gipsies cut purses with palms, the females with rings. 170 
 
 Mode of thieving among the Gipsies in Hungary. 171 
 
 A magistrate, in the West of Fife, locks up the Gipsies during the fair 171 
 Stylish habits of the Gipsies at the inn of the North Queensferry .... 171 
 
 Fashionable cavalcade of female Gipsies departing from the ferry ... 173 
 
 Intimacy between the boatmen and their friends—“ The lads that 
 
 take the purses”. 173 
 
 Trick of a gillie of a Gipsv horse-dealer, played upon an Highlander. 173 
 
 Counterfeiting—Au audacious Gipsy counterfeiter. 174 
 
 The Gipsies not murderers—They are accurate in their journeys and 
 
 halting places. 175 
 
 Pursuit, capture, escape, and recapture of a Gipsy murderer. 176 
 
 Indecent trick of a Gipsy woman to obtain clothes from the natives.. 177 
 A handsomely dressed female Gipsy, from gratitude, saves a native 
 
 from destruction. 177 
 
 Old Will of I'haun’s five years’ war with the Gipsies. nl79 
 
560 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 Gipsy Dances—Charles Stewart, 179—George Drummond—Gipsy 
 
 dance at Moscow.. . 180 
 
 Afghan dance n —George Drummond a singular Gipsy. 1S1 
 
 Janies Robertson, his wife, and sisters dance like bacchanalians. 182 
 
 Occupations, amusements, cock-fighting, dress, and generous habits 
 
 of the Gipsies. 182 
 
 The Gipsies sometimes attend church, and baptize their own children 183 
 Their disputes with clergymen on points of morals—Government—di¬ 
 vision of property. 183 
 
 A landed gentleman went off with the Gipsies, 183—liis daughters 
 
 common Gipsies . 184 
 
 FIGHTING AMONG THE GIPSIES—(Nee also Battles.) 125| 144, 188, »193, 
 
 Til95, 206, 215, 253 
 
 FLETCHER OF SALTOUN on Scottish vagabonds, in 1680.will, «417 
 
 FORTUNE-TELLING. 
 
 Fortune-telling women frighten the Datives of the other sex. 47 
 
 See Tweed-dale Gipsies . . 228-231 
 
 Fortune-telling in America— See Disquisition on the Gipsies . 422 
 
 GENTOO CODE OF LAWS IN ANCIENT INDIA. 
 
 Division of plunder among thieves. 165 
 
 The elder married before the younger, 259—Sacrifice of the horse, 
 
 268—The scape-goat among the Jews. 279 
 
 GERMANS, how they become lost in the population of Great Britain and 
 
 America. 454 
 
 GERMANY, Gipsy bands in. 79 
 
 G1TANO, modification of the term. wll5 
 
 GORDON, THE DUCHESS OF, saves two Gipsies from the gallows_ 470 
 
 GOVERNMENT AMONG THE GIPSIES, 78, nl03, 183, 187, 218, 253, m256, 422 
 
 GRATITUDE OF THE GIPSIES FOR OTHER PEOPLE, ..63, 130, 138, 155, 
 
 164, 177, 187, 198, 211, 222, 225, 241 360, 434, 483 
 
 GRELLMANN. 
 
 Children frightened by the Gipsies. «46, 75 
 
 On the destiny of the French Gipsies. 76, 492 
 
 He divides the Gipsies iu Transylvania into four classes, 74—The 
 
 population of the Gipsies. 77, 493 
 
 Gipsy government, 78—Attire, ral54—Plundering, 171—Fighting.. .. »193 
 
 Gipsies under and after punishment.«204 
 
 The habit of Gipsy women after childbirth. n227 
 
 Gipsy working iu iron—Gipsy smiths in Hungary.«234 
 
 The Gipsies will eat of any animal but a horse. «268 
 
 The secrecy of the Gipsies in the matter of their language. «28l 
 
 The Gipsy language unintelligible to the comraou natives.«298 
 
 On the education of Hungarian Gipsies.. «303 
 
 The origin of the idea that the Gipsies came from India. 329 
 
 On the variations in the Gipsy language in different countries. n339 
 
 How the Gipsies resist the extremes of the weather. »354 
 
 The circumstances under which Gipsy women are confined. ?t357 
 
 The physical properties of the Gipsy race. n 358 
 
 Gipsies as soldiers, n3-‘>9—As spips. n.360 
 
 The religion of the Gipsies, »366—Their civilization . zi367 
 
 On the colour and appearance of Gipsies who change their habits... »377 
 
 The natural capacity of Gipsies, 398—Gipsy ingratitude. 435 
 
 Gipsies “ alwavs merry and blithe ”. 483 
 
 HALE, SIR MATTHEW 
 
 His touching interview with Btinyau’s wife. «313 
 
 He mentions the execution of thirteen Gipsies, at the Suffolk assizes, »513 
 HATRED OF THE GIPSIES FOR OTHER PEOPLE, ....63, 130, 164, 177, 
 
 See Disquisition . 433-436 
 
 HEBER, BISHOP, notices the Gipsies in India, Persia, Russia, and Eng¬ 
 land. 77 
 
INDEX. 
 
 561 
 
 PAGB 
 
 HINDOSTAN, the Gipsies supposed to originate in ... .13, 38, 40, 65, 268, 280, 
 
 329, 339 
 
 HOGG, JAMES 
 
 Motto — Title page. 
 
 He notices a Gipsy scuffle and murder in Blackwood’s Magazine. 216 
 
 lie says that Lochmaben is “stocked” with Gipsies. 71381 
 
 HOYLAND, JOHN. 
 
 The religious character of the Gipsies. 73 
 
 The capacity of the early Gipsies, »99—English Gipsy surnames_n219 
 
 Baillie Smith, of Kelso—Report on the Yetholm Gipsies. ... 245 
 
 The difficulty in Gipsies acquiring settled habits. ra368 
 
 Mr. George Offor says he was led captive by a Gipsy girl. n380 
 
 HUGUENOTS introduced into England and America. 455 
 
 HUME, BARON. 
 
 Scots acts of 1603, and 1609, against the Gipsies. Ill 
 
 Executions among the Gipsies, under these sanguinary laws.117, »41S 
 
 Trial of two Gipsies, in 1786, 139—Baillie, in 1714, 204—And Pinker¬ 
 ton, in 1726 . 207 
 
 He would make the black eyes evidence against the Gipsies. 341 
 
 HUNGARIANS, past and present, 413—They know nothing of their 
 
 origiu. 495 
 
 HURD, DR. 
 
 The appearance of the Gipsies when they first arrived in Paris. 70 
 
 The Gipsies called spies of the Turks. »72 
 
 Marriage customs among the Russians, and Christians of Mesopo¬ 
 tamia and Chaldea. »262 
 
 IMPROVEMENT OF THE GIPSIES..364, 367, 415, 436, 440, 443, 445, 539,534 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Attention directed towards the Gipsies by the publication of Guy 
 
 Manuering. 55 
 
 The classes interested—A mission founded by the Scottish Church 
 
 among the Gipsies. 55 
 
 Articles sent to Blackwood’s Magazine—Letters from Mr. Blackwood 56 
 Article by Sir Walter Scott on the Buckhaven fishermen—The zeal 
 of an antiquary. . »57 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies a branch of the same tribe to be found iu every 
 
 country. 61 
 
 Comparisons between the Gipsies and Jews—The Jews’ letters toVol- 
 
 taire. 61 
 
 Discontinuation of articles in Blackwood’s Magazine—The author’s 
 
 authorities. 64 
 
 The difficulties in the way of a research into the subject of the Gip¬ 
 sies . 65 
 
 A “ Blowing up ” from a Gipsy chief. 65 
 
 Notice from Professor Wilson, in Blackwood’s Magazine, and Sir 
 
 Walter Scott, in Quentin Durward. 66 
 
 1NVERKEITUING, GIPSY SCENES AT .. 284, 288, 292, 293, 298, 302, 304, 
 
 326, 328, 348, 353, 355 
 
 JEWS, THE 
 
 The Gipsies the “ mixed multitude” that left Egypt with the Jews 14, 494 
 
 They were separated from the Egyptians bv the prejudice of caste.. 15 
 
 They termed Jesus Christ “ Beelzebub”—the priuce of devils. 16 
 
 Their reception of Christ as the Messiah. 16 
 
 Their condition while in Egypt. 17 
 
 Theii contemptuous description of the “ mixed multitude” that fol¬ 
 lowed them. 19 
 
 Their circumstances after leaving Egypt, 20—The destiuy that awaited 
 them. 21 
 
662 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PASS 
 
 Comparisons between the Jews and the Gipsies. 55, 61, 62 
 
 Letters of the Jews to Voltaire—The universality and differences in 
 
 the Jews. 7i61 
 
 They change their names in various countries. nll7 
 
 The elder sister married before the younger, 259—Jewish marriages. 269 
 When they blow rams’ horns in September, they imagine they drive 
 
 away the devil. «265 
 
 They dedicated horses to the sun, in the time of Josiah. n.269 
 
 Hindoo sacrifice of the horse and the scape-goat in Leviticus com¬ 
 pared . 279 
 
 The language of the Jews during the seventy years’ captivity. »318 
 
 The Gipsies dislike the Jews, -»358, 452—Jews during time of war .. »360 
 
 Neglect of women among Jews—A Jew’s morning prayer. fl.365 
 
 Jews and Gipsies compared in a sermon by Mr. Borrow. »366 
 
 They marry among themselves, like the Gipsies. 369 
 
 The money that is squandered on the conversion of Jews. 443 
 
 The subject of the Jews more or less familiar to people from infancy 447 
 The Gipsies, without any necessary outward peculiarities, have yet a 
 
 nationality, like the Jews. 447, 457 
 
 The mixture of Gipsy and Jewish blood—A Jewish Gipsy possible .. 451 
 
 In what respect the existence of the Gipsies differs from that of the 
 
 Jews. 458 
 
 Philosophical historians on the existence of the Jews since the dis¬ 
 persion. 458 
 
 No analogy between the Jews and any other people but the Gipsies.. 459 
 
 A Christian writer on the existence of the Jews since the dispersion. 459 
 His description thereof, though erroneous, very applicable to the 
 
 Gipsies. 460 
 
 The attachment of Jewesses and Gipsies to their respective races.... 470 
 How the Jewish race is perpetuated—Religion of secondary import¬ 
 ance. 473 
 
 Jewish Chiistians—Their feelings of nationality, and social position . 474 
 
 The rearing of Gipsies resembles that of Jews—The purity of Jewish 
 
 blood a figment. 475 
 
 Half-blood Jews sometimes follow the synagogue, and sometimes the 
 
 Christian church. 476 
 
 Many Jews who are not known to the world as such. 477 
 
 Jewish physiogomy—What may be termed a “ pure Jew ”. 477 
 
 The relative position of Jews and Gipsies. 477-480 
 
 The Jews have a church, a history, and a literature. 480 
 
 Public sympathy for the Gipsies, in preference to the Jews. 483 
 
 The philosophy of the existence of the Jew's since the dispersion See 
 
 Disquisition on the Gijjsies . 484-505 
 
 John Bunyan asked himself whether he was of the Israelites. 511 
 
 The Jews readmitted into England, under Cromwell—Manasseh Ben 
 
 Israel. 511 
 
 The natural curiosity of the Gipsies regarding the Jews. 511 
 
 The Gipsies have existed, in Europe, a greater length of time than 
 
 the Jews dwelt in Egypt. 532 
 
 It would have been a miracle had the Jews been lost among man¬ 
 kind. 533 
 
 A prophecy of Moses regarding a people who are to provoke and 
 
 anger the Jews. «491, 533 
 
 LAIDLAW, WILLIAM 
 
 His letter to the author, 5S—A Gipsy “ blowing up,” alluded to by 
 
 him. 65, 309 
 
 LANGUAGE OE THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The love of Gipsies for their language, 10, 13—They keep it a pro¬ 
 found secret.. 12, 13, 25 
 
 It is for the most part Hindostanee—Mr. Borrow’s remarks on its 
 antiquity. 23 
 
INDEX. 
 
 563 
 
 PAQB 
 
 The philosophy of the preservation of the Gipsy language .. 24, 408, 433 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies very reserved and tenacious in the matter of 
 
 their language.. 281 
 
 Its existence, but as slang, scarcely credited by people of the greatest 
 
 intelligence. 281 
 
 Grellmann, Bright, and Borrow on the difficulties in acquiring the 
 
 Gipsy language. n28I 
 
 The Gipsies have excellent memories, but shuffle when bored by 
 
 people of whom they expect money. n282 
 
 The causes of the reserve among the Scottish Gipsies: 1st. The san¬ 
 guinary laws. 2d. The popular prejudice, 3d. Their natural se¬ 
 crecy . 282 
 
 A Scottish Gipsy works all his life in a shop, and no one discovers 
 
 him to be a Gipsy. 283 
 
 Two Gipsy women nearly killed by colliers, for not explaining the 
 
 meaning of two Gipsy words. 283 
 
 As the Gipsies become civilized, they avoid intercourse with the 
 
 barbarous part of the race. »283 
 
 The Scottish peasantry, in some places, do not greatly despise the 
 
 Gipsies. ti284 
 
 The use of the Gipsy language in markets—The pride of the people 
 
 as linguists. 284 
 
 Seven years’ trouble in getting a Gipsy woman to own up to her lan¬ 
 guage . 284 
 
 She is afraid the public would treat her with horror and contempt, 
 
 for knowing the language. 285 
 
 The character of Spanish Gipsy women, according to Mr. Borrow... »285 
 A Gipsy woman maintains she was speaking Latin, when discovered 
 
 conversing in Gipsy. 285 
 
 The general difficulties in the way of acquiring the Gipsy language.. 286 
 The way in which the author learned what he knew of the Gipsy 
 
 language. 286 
 
 IIow the use of Gipsy affected the tribe—Ludicrous scenes. 287 
 
 How old Gipsy women were affected—“ You are no gentleman, sir, 
 
 otherwise you would not insult us in that way ”. 288 
 
 A woman, in a dreadful passion, threatens the author with apprehen¬ 
 sion, as the head of a band of thieves, for asking her, if her c/iavo 
 
 (son) was a chor (thief).>. 288 
 
 A female Gipsy “ blabs ” with the author, but expresses great sur¬ 
 prise, when addressed in Gipsy, before a third party. 288 
 
 These people afraid of the sanguinary laws passed against the tribe . 290 
 
 Sir Walter iocott’s advice in prosecuting an enquiry into the Gipsy 
 
 language. 291 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies a branch of the tribe to be found everywhere... 291 
 A Gipsy as distinguished from his language—The race comes before 
 
 the speech.'.a292 
 
 An old woman and her two daughters—“ No harm in the least, sir, 
 
 Two girls, oi'the name of Jamieson—“You gentlemen understand 
 
 .. 11 1 ___ ___ .1_*> --- ’__ 
 
 Four or live children—“ You are a Gipsy, yourself, sir, or you never 
 
 Ruthvcn addresses her child in Gipsy—“ I know that the public are 
 
 trying to find out the secrets of the Gipsies, but it is in vain ”_ 293 
 
 The threats of the tribe against those teaching the language to 
 
 “ strangers ” . n294 
 
 A female Gipsy, with three or four children, begging—“ Curse you, 
 take the road ”—“ Mother, mother, come away ”—An innkeeper 
 
 anxious to learn the words that dismiss importunate beggars. 294 
 
 Young Andrew Steedman, of Lochgellie, communicative—Old Andrew 
 shakes and trembles in his stable—“ Rob that person ”.. .specimens 295 
 
564 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 The woman who baffled the author for seven years—“ It is in our 
 hearts, and as long as a single Tinkler exists, it will be remem¬ 
 bered ”. specimens 
 
 A woman and four children—“ You know quite well what he says”—• 
 “ I am sure he is a tramper, and can speak as good cant as any of 
 
 us ”. specimens 
 
 A brother and a cousin of the Jamieson girls—“So I saw, for . . . . 
 he understood what I said ”—“ To show you I am no impostor, I 
 will give you the names of everything in your house ”—“ My speech 
 is not the cant of packmen, nor the slang of common thieves”.... 
 
 Gipsy-hunting like deer stalking—Modern Gipsy-hunting. 
 
 Jamieson returns—“ I have been bred in that line all my life— You 
 are welcome to as many as you please ”—“ We can converse and 
 have a word for everything in our speech ”—He sings a song in 
 English, and turns it into Gipsy—“ Had I, at first, been aware you 
 did not know my speech, 1 would not have given you a word 
 
 of it”. specimens 
 
 The songs composed by the Gipsies illustrate their plunderings, rob¬ 
 beries and sufferings, and quarrels among themselves. 
 
 The Gipsies very fond of the Border marauding songs—“Hughie the 
 
 Graeme,” as a specimen. 
 
 Sophia Scott, afterwards Mrs. Lockhart, sings “ Hughie the Graeme” 
 
 to the author, at Abbotsford. 
 
 Sir Walter Scott interested in the Gipsies—He is afraid they might 
 
 injure bis plantations. 
 
 The author visits St, Boswell’s fair, and becomes acquainted with a 
 
 Gipsy family there. 
 
 He introduces himself by saying who his ancestors were—“God 
 bless you 1 Ay, those days are gone ; Christian charity has now 
 
 left the land ”. 
 
 The head of the family a very superior man ; merry and jocular, 
 
 like many of his race. 
 
 Their language—" The Tinklers have no language of their own, 
 
 except a few cant words ”. 
 
 The author addresses them in Gipsy—“ Preserve me, he kens a’ 
 
 about us 1”. 
 
 He enumerates their clan—“ Say not another word, but call at-” 
 
 The surprise among the natives—“ Yon was queer looking wark 
 
 wi’ the Tinklers”. 
 
 An innkeeper ashamed, or afraid, of a customer that is a gentle¬ 
 man . 
 
 A little factory of horn-spoons—“ No such language exists, except a 
 
 few cant words ”. 
 
 Gipsy obstinacy—The word “Gipsy” a terror to the tribe—The 
 
 Gipsy forfeits his promise. 
 
 Laughter from another apartment—The Gipsy starts to his feet, and 
 takes hold of the author—“ Farewell, I will know you when I 
 
 see you again ”. 
 
 Revisit to the factory of horn-spoons—The Gipsy ashamed to give 
 
 his language. 
 
 A promise of secrecy—The Gipsy cheerful, he hesitates, but at last 
 
 fulfills his oath. specimens 
 
 Circumstances illustrative of the history of the family of John 
 
 Bunyan. 
 
 The Gipsies a tribe of Ethiopian thieves and robbers, 815—The 
 pronunciation of their speech—It is copious, but not written— 
 “ So long as there exist two Gipsies in Scotland, it will never be 
 
 lost ”. 
 
 Gipsy horse-dealers—“ Several thousand in Scotland acquainted 
 
 with the Gipsy tongue”. 
 
 The children of Gipsies instructed in Gipsy, from their infancy- - 
 
 P AG H 
 
 296 
 
 293 
 
 301 
 
 302 
 
 304 
 
 306 
 
 308 
 «308 
 »309 
 
 309 
 
 309 
 
 309 
 
 310 
 
 310 
 
 310 
 
 310 
 
 311 
 311 
 311 
 
 311 
 
 312 
 312 
 
 »313 
 
 31G 
 
 316 
 
INDEX. 
 
 565 
 
 Their pride in their language. 316 
 
 The character of an intelligent Gipsy chief. 316 
 
 The Gipsy sings a song in Gipsy—The Gipsies have doubtless an 
 
 oral literature n . 317 
 
 A great alarm in the family, 317—“ Give to the world what had 
 
 been theirs for 350 years ”. 318 
 
 Smith on the language of the Jews during the captivity—How the 
 
 Gipsy tribe will relish the present work. ?i318 
 
 A tinker at Grangemouth —“ Yes, the dog is not bad”—“ What do 
 
 you mean ? I don’t understand you—Yes, the dog is hairy ”. 319 
 
 Thimbling Gipsies—“ Chee, ckee," (hold your tongue)—“But, sir, 
 
 what was that you said to them, for they seem afraid ?”. 319 
 
 The author taken for a Thimbler—“ 1 tell ye, woman, the man you 
 
 spoke to was nothing but one of these villains”. w321 
 
 A Thimbler’s sign—“ Where can you find a shop without a sign ? 
 and where’s the other person that gets a sign from the publicvfor 
 
 nothing?”. »321 
 
 Thimblers’ traps, 321—A victim drowns himself. 322 
 
 Thimblers’ conversation—“Bloody swells”—“ I will require three 
 
 men to take care of that boat”. 323 
 
 Is that man a Gipsy ?—“ Ask himself, sir ”. 323 
 
 An old thimbling Gipsy attempts to inveigle some youths on Arthur’s 
 
 Seat—“ Was’ut he a slippery old serpent, after all?”.»323 
 
 The science of thimbling, »324—Thimble-riggers, and their ancestry 
 
 —Ancient Egyptian thimbling n. . 325 
 
 English, Scottish, and Irish Gipsies speak the same language, and 
 
 assist each other, when they meet. 324 
 
 An Irish Gipsy family—An ass bearing a “bundle of bones”— 
 
 “ Good-day, sir, God bless you ” . 326 
 
 Two Irish Gipsies in court—“ Three days, and be banished the 
 
 town”. 326 
 
 A Gipsy wife a go-between—“ The scoundrel shall lie in prison till 
 
 the last hour of his sentence ”. . 327 
 
 An escape, and a “ banishing the town,” 327—“ A fight for the sake 
 
 of friendship ”. specimens 
 
 A horde of Irish Gipsies—The town-clerk ashamed of his company.. 
 
 A Gipsy quizzes his friend—” Y'ou will put me out, by speaking to me 
 
 in that language”. specimens 
 
 Irish Gipsies in Scotland—Their number, appearance, and occupa¬ 
 tions . 
 
 The origin of the idea that the Gipsies came from India. 329 
 
 Scottish Gipsy words collated with vulgar Hindostanee. 330 
 
 John Lobbs, a low caste native of Bombay, examined. specimens 330 
 
 Rev. Mr. Crabb’s annual Gipsy festival—The Hindostanee and Gipsy 
 
 languages. »334 
 
 Gipsy words sent to Sir Walter Scott, collated with the Rev. Mr. 
 
 Baird’s collection . 334 
 
 Scottish Gipsy words that bear a relation to Sanscrit. 336 
 
 A comparison between Gipsy and various oriental languages. 337 
 
 The language of the Gipsies mixed—How it has got corrupted. 338 
 
 Rev. Mr. Baird’s remarks thereon—The language of the Gipsies in 
 
 the Scottish Highlands. »338 
 
 The Sclavonic in the Gipsy language—Variations iu the Gipsy of 
 
 different countries. »338 
 
 The Gipsies supposed to originate in India—The tribe originally 
 
 thieves and robbers. 339 
 
 The Nuts, or Bazegurs, supposed to be the parent stock of the Gip¬ 
 sies . 339 
 
 See Disquisition on the Gipsies . 431-433 
 
 LINLITHGOWSHIRE GIPSIES. 
 
 The Gipsies of this county more daring than the other bands in 
 Scotland. 123 
 
 328 
 
 328 
 
 329 
 
 329 
 
G66 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 FAOH 
 
 They take up their quarters near the Bridge of Linlithgow. 123 
 
 Their sagacity—The district populous—Much business passes through 
 
 it.. 124 
 
 The names of the tribe—They have no connection with native va¬ 
 grants. 124 
 
 Their occupations—Horses, music, feasting, and dancing. 124 
 
 The Gipsies very civil and honest with their neighbours, but plunder 
 
 others at a distance... 124 
 
 A Gipsy unintentionally attempts to rob his own clergyman. »124 
 
 The tribe form strong attachments to individuals of the community. 125 
 
 Terrific fighting among themselves, on dividing their spoil. 125 
 
 Their children attend school—None dare taunt them, or their pa¬ 
 rents, though thieves and robbers. 125 
 
 The magistrates of Linlithgow dare not interfere with the tribe. 126 
 
 They play with them at golf, and admit them to social meetings aDd 
 
 dinnerparties. 126 
 
 The authorities being passive, the Gipsies plunder at pleasure. 127 
 
 The chief of the tribe taken off, when attempting highway robbery.. 127 
 His funeral attended by the magistrates, and other people of respect¬ 
 ability.*. 128 
 
 The Gipsy mode of burying the dead. 128 
 
 The deceased chieftain succeeded by his son, who exceeds him iu uu- 
 
 dacity and daring. 129 
 
 The baud very numerous, having lieutenants, like a military com¬ 
 pany . 129 
 
 Appearance, acquirements, and habits of the new chieftain, and his 
 
 brother in-law. 129 
 
 By means of trained horses, the chief plays many tricks. 129 
 
 Description of his wife, and for what she was greatly respected.. 130, 137 
 The Gipsies protect their friends, but vindictively torment their 
 
 enemies. 130 
 
 Peculiarities of the Gipsies in the matter of robbing people—Gipsy 
 
 passports. 131 
 
 The chief and bis brother-in-law condemned to be hung. 133 
 
 Threatened rescue by the tribe—Precautions taken, 133—Execution 
 
 of the criminals. 135 
 
 The chief’s wife before, and after, the execution—Touching and terri¬ 
 ble scenes. . 135, 136 
 
 Attempted resuscitation of the bodies—They are interred in the 
 
 church-yard of Linlithgow. 137 
 
 They are torn up by the populace, and buried in a moor, in the neigh¬ 
 bourhood . 137 
 
 The chief divorced from his first wife, over a horse, sacrificed for the 
 
 occasion. 137 
 
 Her character, and that of her successor, who continues her old prac¬ 
 tices . 137 
 
 She returns to a friend a purse, stojen by the tribe in a fair. 138 
 
 Her two nephews pursued, tried, and executed for robbing the mail. 139 
 
 Sizes of these two Gipsies—Mixed Gipsies a strong race of men .... »139 
 LOCHGELLIE once the headquarters of Gipsies, 140—Description of the 
 
 neighbourhood, 141—Scenes among the Lochgellie Gipsies. 159, 167, 295 
 
 LOCHMABEN is said, by James Hogg, to be stocked with Gipsies. «381 
 
 MACAULAY, LORD 
 
 John Bunyan’s tribe and nationality, 507, 516—The Pilgrim’s Prog¬ 
 ress . 514 
 
 McLAURtN’S CRIMINAL TRIALS. 
 
 He speaks of John Faw, “ Earl of Little Egypt,” as “ this peer” ... 107 
 
 On the trial of William Baillie, in 1714, 204—On the mercy shown to 
 
 James Baillie. 218 
 
 MARRIAGE CEREMONIES OF THE GIPSIES. 
 
 The Gipsies all marry young—Few or no illegitimate children among 
 them..".. 257 
 
INDEX. 
 
 567- 
 
 page 
 
 A Gipsy stabs another, for seducing his sister, who is afterwards 
 
 married to him. 257 
 
 The virtue of young Spanish Gipsy females—They are dressed in a 
 
 kind of drapery. »257 
 
 Gipsy courtships—The younger sister not married before the elder .. 258 
 
 The Gipsy multiplication table—The Gipsies obey one of the divine 
 
 laws at least. 7)258 
 
 A parallel between the ancient Hindoos and the Jews during the 
 
 time of Laban. 259 
 
 The nuptial ceremony of the Gipsies of great antiquity, and one the 
 
 longest to be observed.. 259 
 
 Marriage customs generally—Those of the Gipsies should be made 
 
 public. 260 
 
 Sir Walter Scott not squeamish about delicacies, when knowledge is 
 
 to be acquired. 260 
 
 The ideas of prudes and snobs on this chapter. »260 
 
 fp l . , V O ^ i . t I . . 1 . / I ■ n a a* m »■ a .. . A n r. » n .^ a a . 1 . . . n a. . l . A . ] tt t? A O A? O 
 
 The Spanish Gipsy marriage ceremouy, according to Bright, »261— 
 
 and Borrow. 7i262 
 
 Singular marriage customs among other tribes—“Hand-fasting” 
 
 among Scottish Highland chiefs. w262 
 
 Recent instances of Scottish Gipsy marriages, 263—A Gipsy on the 
 
 Presbyterian form of marriage. »264 
 
 Bescription of Peter Robertson, a famous celebrator of Gipsy mar¬ 
 riages . 264 
 
 In his will, he gives away, during his life, more than a county, but 
 reserves to himself a “ pendicle," and the town of Dunfermline.... 265 
 
 Remarks on rams and rams’ horns. »265 
 
 The Gipsy priest given to good ale, and chastising his tribe without 
 
 mercv. 266 
 
 MILLER, HUGH, on the slavery of Scotch colliers and salters. »121 
 
 MINSTRELSY OF THE SCOTTISH BORDER. 
 
 The Scott clan agree to give up all friendship with common thieves, Ac. 113 
 Song of “ Johnny Faa, the Gipsy Laddie,”* 239—Of “ Hughie the 
 
 Graeme ”. 807 
 
 MIRACLES. 
 
 There is no miracle in the existence of the Jews since the dispersion 458, 
 
 459, 494, 533 
 
 They are to be found in the Old and New Testaments only. 494 
 
 They are things that are contrary to natural laws. 533 
 
 It would have been a miracle had the Jews been lost among mankind 533 
 MIXTURE OF GIPSY BLOOD. . 9, »80, »92, 341, 342, 374, 377-379, 399, 468 
 
 MIXED GIPSIES, PECULIARITIES OF 10,/»195, 372, 373, 375, 377, 381-385, 
 395, 397, 403, 412, 414, 427, 451, 455, 460-462, 470, 472, 498, 499, 508, »509, 532 
 
 391, 
 
 MOSES. 
 
 His difficulties in inducing the Jews to undertake the Exodus. 16 
 
 The difference between his rank and that of Jesus Christ. 16, 486 
 
 The character of Moses, 18—His troubles after leaving Egypt. 20 
 
 How he apparently got rid of the “ mixed multitude ” that followed him 20 
 OCCUPATIONS OF THE GIPSIES GENERALLY 124, 182, 215, 225, 226, 
 
 228, 234, 246, 347, 353, 401, 467 
 
 OFFOR, GEORGE, (Editor of Bunyan’s works). 
 
 He avoids the Gipsies—His advice to the editor—He says Mr. Hoy- 
 
 land was led captive by a Gipsy girl. »380 
 
 What he says about John Bunyan. 515 
 
 OWEN, JOHN, how he respected and appreciated John Bunyan. 521 
 
 PARE, MUNGO: Marriage customs among the natives of Africa. *260 
 
 ♦The song of “Johnny Faa, the Gipsy Laddie,” appears in the Waverly anecdotes. 
 It might have been included in the Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. 
 
5G8 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAM 
 
 PASSES. 
 
 The system of Passes among the Gipsies. 218 
 
 The use of passes granted to the friends of the Gipsies among the 
 
 community. 130, 131. 158, 159, 199 
 
 PENNECUIK, DR. ALEXANDER 
 
 He alludes to the Gipsies in his poems and history of Tweed-dale ... 185 
 
 He gives a description of a Gipsy battle, at Romanno. 188 
 
 He erects a dove-cot on the spot, to commemorate the battle. 189 
 
 PHILOLOGISTS AND THE GIPSY LANGUAGE.. 25, 56, 60, 291, 337, 338 
 
 PILGRIM’S PROGRESS, THE 
 
 What Lord Macaulay says of it, 514—What Bunyau himself wrote 
 
 of it. 517 
 
 PONS ASSINORUM, THE, OF THE GIPSY QUESTION.«383 
 
 POPULATION OF THE GIPSIES. 61, 77, 93, 297, 316, 367, 416, 493 
 
 PRESENT CONDITION AND NUMBER OF THE GIPSIES IN SCOTLAND. 
 Every author represents the Gipsies as all remarkably dark in their 
 
 appearance. 341 
 
 The Scottish Gipsies of all colours—Fair-haired Gipsies in Finland 
 
 and Arabia. 341 
 
 Children stolen and incorporated with the tribe—How its appearance 
 
 has been changed. 342 
 
 Peculiarity of mixing “ the blood ” with native, in England. »342 
 
 Gipsies formerly employed in Scotland as constables, peace-officers, 
 
 and “ country-keepers”. 343 
 
 The peculiarities of the tribe in such capacities—They make matters 
 
 a great deal worse. 344 
 
 Impressments during the American and French wars greatly break 
 
 up the Gipsy bands. 344 
 
 The tribe desert the ranks on landing in America. «345 
 
 The Gipsies prefer self-mutilation toaimpressment. 345 
 
 Sir Walter Scott meets a Prussian Gipsy soldier, a sentinel in Paris. «346 
 The Gipsies accept the bounty and desert—Burns’ “Jolly Beggars:” 
 
 “My bonny lass, I work in brass.”. «346 
 
 The Gipsies are now crockery-dealers, horse-dealers ? and innkeep¬ 
 ers; coopers, shoemakers, plumbers, and masons; tinsmiths, braz¬ 
 iers, cutlers, bell-hangers, umbrella-menders, and chimney-sweeps, 
 
 347—constables in large and small towns, female servants, lady’s 
 maids and housekeepers; ginger-bread dealers, crockery, japan, 
 
 and white-iron hawkers, Ac. 348 
 
 English Gipsy constables—A Scottish clergyman married to a Gipsy. n348 
 A travelling Gipsy jeweller, disguised as a sailor, offers for sale “a 
 valuable gold watch, that cost him not less than ten francs.”—“ Do 
 not attempt to cheat us in this manner”—The “sailor” makes his 
 exit dancing, and twirling his bludgeon, in the manner of his tribe 348 
 Thimble-riggers, tinkers, dealers in horn spoons—“ Did you ever 
 
 make horn spoons?”. 350 
 
 Popular ideas of Gipsies, and their numbers—Sir Walter Scott’s 
 
 opinion .. . 350 
 
 “ Tinklers and vagabonds,” since the peace of 1815. 350 
 
 The Gipsies at St. Boswell’s, 352—An Asiatic camp to be seen after 
 
 the fair. 353 
 
 Description of the tinkering Gipsies, at present in Scotland. 353 
 
 The hardy constitution of the Gipsy race in resisting the elements.. «354 
 Itinerant Gipsies—difficulty in pleasing them with hot rolls—Gipsy 
 
 beggars in towns. 355 
 
 Travelling singing Gipsy impostors, 355—Gipsy mock country 
 
 labourers._.. 356 
 
 Irish Gipsies in Scotland—A Gipsy woman gives birth to a child in 
 
 the open fields. 356 
 
 Irish Gipsies in Eng and—They are disliked by their English and 
 Scottish brethren. »357 
 
INDEX. 
 
 569 
 
 PAG! 
 
 Irish Gipsy mechanics in Edinburgh, England, and the United States 358 
 Infanticide among the Gipsies—The tribe physically, n.358—Female 
 
 Gipsy recklessness. »359 
 
 The Gipsies charged with cowardice—The Scottish Gipsies make ex¬ 
 cellent soldiers. 359 
 
 The Gipsies employed by European governments, as soldiers, w359, 
 
 and spies. n.360 
 
 An interesting meeting between a French and Spanish Gipsy, in the 
 
 heat of a battle. ra360 
 
 Supposed danger from Gipsies in time of war equally applicable to 
 
 Jews and Freemasons. »360 
 
 Scottish Gipsies distinguished for gratitude, in return for civility and 
 
 kindness. 360 
 
 “Terrible,” a Gipsy chief, offers to sell his all, to get a farmer out of 
 
 prison. 361 
 
 Terrible’s opinion of “writers” and lairds, but especially of the 
 
 writers. 362 
 
 The feelings of the Gipsies in regard to the prejudice that exists 
 
 against them. »362 
 
 Terrible’s character—His mother a witch—He believed she could have 
 
 set the farmer free. 363 
 
 The character of Gipsy chiefs generally—Education among the Scot¬ 
 tish Gipsies. 364 
 
 How a Gipsy child became “spoiled,” 364—Education among the 
 
 Spanish Gipsies, n —Female Gipsies. «365 
 
 Neglect of females among the Jews—A Jew’s morning prayer.m365 
 
 Keligiou among the Scottish Gipsies, 365—Their general political sen¬ 
 timents. 366 
 
 Grellmann on the religion of the Gipsies—Mr. Borrow preaches to 
 
 them in Spain. w366 
 
 The number of the Gipsies in Scotland—Gipsies in all the towns, and 
 
 many of the villages. 367 
 
 Few Gipsies now hanged—Their present punishment—They cannot 
 
 fail to encrease. n367 
 
 The civilization and improvement of the Gipsies—An Hungarian 
 
 nobleman’s opinion. 367 
 
 The restless nature of the Gipsies—How it is manifested. «368 
 
 The language of the Gipsies should be published, and the tribe en¬ 
 couraged to speak it openly. 369 
 
 The plan of the Rev. Mr. Crabb, m 368, and the Rev. Mr. Baird for the 
 
 civilization of the Gipsies. »369 
 
 The difficulty in distinguishing some of the tribe from common 
 
 natives. «369 
 
 The Gipsies marry among themselves, like the Jews, and “stick to 
 
 each other.”. 369 
 
 PRINCIPAL GIPSY FAMILIES IN SCOTLAND. 
 
 Faw.101, nll>3, 106, 107, 108, ?ill3, 118, 121, 188, 236, 250, 252, 255, 406 
 
 Baillie.. .101, »103, 118, 119, 120, 121, 185, 186, 188, 196, 197, 202-208,212, 
 
 213, 215, 219, 236, 411 
 
 PRITCHARD on the Hungarian race, past and present. 413 
 
 PROPHECIES. 
 
 “ Scattering of the Egyptians,” Ezek. xxix. 12-14, and xxx. 10, 23 
 
 and 26. 40 
 
 “ A people that are to provoke and anger the Jews,” Deut. xxxii. 21, 
 
 and Rom. x. 19.»491,533 
 
 PYRENEES, The Gipsies of the, resemble the inferior class of Scottish 
 
 Gipsies. 86 
 
 QUAKERS. 
 
 Gipsy-Quakers, or Quaker-Gipsies. «380 
 
 The result of their society being dissolved. 448 
 
 The nature of the perpetuation of their existence. 494 
 
570 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 QUEENSFERRY, NORTH 
 
 Stylish habits of Gipsy plunderers at the inn at. 171 
 
 Fashionable cavalcade of female Gipsies departing from. 173 
 
 The boatmen and their friends—“ the lads that take the purses”. 173 
 
 Gipsv scenes at. 288, 294 
 
 QUEENSFERRY, SOUTH 
 
 Adventure of a Gipsy with an ox at. 148 
 
 Gipsy scenes at. 356 
 
 RELIGION AMONG THE GIPSIES 52, 73, »74, 87, »89, 161, 183, 226, 248, 
 
 365, n366, 475, 477, 478, 502 
 
 ROME, THE CHURCH OF. 
 
 The seventy years schism—Three Popes anathematizing each other.. 32 
 
 The Gipsies tolerated in the dominions of the Church, "for the sake of 
 
 gain. ... 75 
 
 The Gipsies despised and tolerated by the Church, in Spain. 395 
 
 The attempted conversion of the Jews to the superstitions and impos¬ 
 tures of Rome. 502 
 
 ST. BOSWELL’S, The author’s visits to the fairs at—Gipsy scenes, 93, 309, 352 
 
 ST. JAMES on the gratitude of wild animals. 435 
 
 ST. PAUL before the Jewish Council—Gamaliel’s advice on the persecu¬ 
 tion of Christians. »494 
 
 “SCOTSMAN” NEWSPAPER; Lament on the death of Will Faa, king of 
 
 the Scottish Gipsies, in October, 1847..... 255 
 
 SCOTT, SIR WALTER. 
 
 His judicious advice to the author regarding this work... .5, 59, 60, 67, 291 
 The Gipsy language a “ great mystery,” 24, 58—His intended publi¬ 
 cation on the Gipsies. 25 
 
 He urges an enquiry into the subject of the Gipsies.25, 59 
 
 The original of Meg Merrilies, in Guy Mannering.44, 48, 242 
 
 An article on the Buekhaven fishermen—The zeal of an antiquary_«,57 
 
 His three letters to the author, 58-61—His opinion of the Gipsy lan¬ 
 guage .. ...58, 60 
 
 In a note to Quentin Durward, he urges a publication of the present 
 
 work. 66 
 
 His translated article, in Blackwood’s Magazine, on the Gipsies in 
 
 Germany. 79 
 
 His article in Blackwood’s Magazine—An English Gipsy family arriv¬ 
 ing in Scotland. 96 
 
 Billy Marshall the Gallowayshire Gipsy chief. nliS 
 
 In a letter to Captain Adam Ferguson, he alludes to the trial of Ken¬ 
 nedy, a tinker. nl92 
 
 He notices a scuffle and a murder among Gipsies.. 216 
 
 His description of a Gipsy feast. 232 
 
 Adventure of a relative among Gipsies—The original of Meg Mer¬ 
 rilies . 242 
 
 His grandfather feasted by the Gipsies on Charterhouse moor. 244 
 
 He discovers a Gipsy, when in the company of Baillie Smith, of Kelso 250 
 He is not squeamish about delicacies when knowledge is to be ac¬ 
 quired.....59, 260 
 
 His idea of the Scottish Gipsy population greatly erroneous, nSOl, 350, niU 
 He causes his eldest daughter to sing “ Hughie the Graeme” to the 
 
 author. »308 
 
 He is interested in the Gipsies, but afraid they might injure bis plan¬ 
 tations . . »309 
 
 A list of Gipsy words sent to him for inspection....59, 334 
 
 He meets a Prussian Gipsy soldier, in Paris. »346 
 
 Feudal robbers—Extract from his life by Lockhart. ra410 
 
 Highland robbers—Fitz James and Roderick Dhu, in the “ Lady of 
 
 the Lake,”... nil 1 
 
 On the disappearance of the Scottish Gipsies. n417 
 
 What he says about John Bunyan.. 515 
 
INDEX. 
 
 571 
 
 • PAGE 
 
 SCOTTISH GIPSIES, DOWN TO THE YEAR 1715. 
 
 Gipsies supposed to be in Scotland before the year 1460. 98 
 
 McLellan of Bombie kills a Gipsy chief, and recovers the Baroi y of 
 
 Bombie. 98 
 
 The Gipsies enter Scotland, from Spain, by way of Ireland. w98 
 
 Armorial bearings—Act of James II. against vagabonds. 99 
 
 Letter of James IV., in 1506, to the king of Denmark, in favour of 
 
 Anthonius Gawino, Earl of Little Egypt. 99 
 
 Capacity of the early Gipsies in passing for pilgrims and men of con¬ 
 sequence..,. w99 
 
 Treaty between James V. and John Faw, “Lord and Earl of Little 
 
 Egypt,” in 1540. 101 
 
 Policy of the Gipsies—The act of James V. the starting point in the 
 
 history of the Scoto-Egyptians. wl03 
 
 The Gipsies insult James V., and, for that reason, are ordered to 
 
 leave Scotland, in 1541. 104 
 
 Faw’s diplomacy on the occasion. wl06 
 
 Death of James V.—The Gipsies recover their position with his suc¬ 
 cessors. 107 
 
 Remission of Gipsies for the slaughter of Ninian Small. 107 
 
 Scottish Gipsy captains, and Spanish Gipsy counts. wl07 
 
 The Gipsies, at that time, men of importance, and allowed to live 
 
 under their own laws. 107 
 
 The Countess of Cassilis elopes with John Faa. 108 
 
 The Gipsies tolerated from 1506 till 1579, when James VI. assumes the 
 
 government. 109 
 
 Act of James VI. against vagabonds in general, and the Gipsies in 
 
 particular. 109 
 
 Mode prescribed for punishing the Gipsies and the other vagabonds 
 
 mentioned. 110 
 
 Statute confirmed in 1592, when the Gipsies are again referred to.... 110 
 
 Act of 1597 against “strong beggars, vagabonds, and Egyptians”... 110 
 
 Coal and salt masters might apprehend and put such to labour. will 
 
 Origin of the slavery in Scotland which was abolished during last 
 
 century. will 
 
 Gipsies now colliers in the Lothians. will 
 
 Fletcher of Saltoun’s estimate of the beggars and vagabonds in Scot¬ 
 land, in 16S0. will 
 
 Act of 1600 declares previous ones ineffectual. Ill 
 
 Acts of 1603 and 1609 banish the Gipsies forever, on pain of death... 112 
 Act of 1617 directs the authorities how to proceed against the Gipsies 113 
 
 Condition of the Scottish people generally, at this time. 113 
 
 Acts against “famous and unspotted gentlemen” for protecting the 
 
 Gipsies. 114 
 
 Similar acts passed against the nobility and commonalty in Spain... wll4 
 
 Gipsy policy and cunning—Modifications of the term Gitano. /»115 
 
 Great outward change in the Gipsies at that time—Surnames and gen¬ 
 eral policy. 116 
 
 English and German Gipsy and Jewish surnames. nll7 
 
 The Gipsies claim bastard kindred with the Scottish aristocracy and 
 
 gentry. 117 
 
 They have a profound regard for aristocracy. wll7 
 
 Trials and executions of the Gipsies in Scotland—Baron Hume’s 
 
 account. 117 
 
 The Faas and Baillies the principal Gipsy tribes in Scotland. 121 
 
 The influence of the Baillies, of Lamington, of great service to the 
 
 Scottish Gipsies. 121 
 
 Proscription of Gipsies, and enslavement of colliers and salters, in 
 
 Scotland. nl21 
 
 SHEPHERD KINGS, Gipsies probably the descendants of the.20, 415 
 
 I SHERIFFS OF SCOTLAND, their reports on the Gipsies in Scotland... n251 
 
572 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 SKENE, WM. F. 
 
 “ Iland-fasting,” previous 
 Highland chiefs. 
 
 to marriage, practised among Scottish 
 
 . ?r203 
 
 The plundering principles and habits of Scottish Highlanders. 410 
 
 SLANG, in connexion with the Gipsy language, 58, n59, 60, 281, 302, n338, 506 
 
 SLAVES, the religion of..."_.20, 21, 51, 496, »496 
 
 SMITH, ADAM, author of the “ Wealth of Nations,” carried off by the 
 
 Gipsies, when a child. 45 
 
 SMITH, BAILLIE, OF KELSO. 
 
 His contribution to Hoyland’s “Survey of the Gipsies,”. 245 
 
 SMITH’S HEBREW PEOPLE. 
 
 History of their language during the seventy years’ captivity. nZIS 
 
 SOLDIERS, Gipsies as.80, 182,' 208, 253, 344, 345, ra346, 359 
 
 SOUTHEY, ROBERT. 
 
 He says Bunyan was bred to the business of a brazier. n.265 
 
 On tinkering and Bunyan’s education. 512 
 
 Bunyan’s family history and fame. 516 
 
 He is unreasonable in styling Bunyan a “ blackguard,”. 519 
 
 SPIES, Gipsies as.»74, n360 
 
 STATISTICAL ACCOUNT OF SCOTLAND. 
 
 Description of Lochgellie, Fifeshire, and the Gipsies settled there... 141 
 
 Description of the Gipsies at Middleton, Mid-Lothian. 341 
 
 Allusion to the Falls, merchants, at Dunbar. . «406 
 
 STEALING AMONG THE GIPSIES, 52, 63, 72, 148, m.155, 163, 164, 166-174, 
 
 177, 197, 210, 211, 228, 315, 339, 364, 482 
 SURNAMES AMONG THE GIPSIES, 99, 101, 107, 117, 121, 124, 141, 153, 219, 
 
 252, 7i358 
 
 TACITUS on the destruction of the Druids «479—On the religion of slaves, n496 
 
 THIMBLE-RIGGERS AND THIMBLE-RIGGING.319-325 
 
 TIMOUR’S CRUELTIES on over-running India. 38 
 
 TITLES AMONG THE GIPSIES, 77, 78, 79, 90, 99, 101, 107, »155, 169, 187, 
 
 190, 218, 253, k256 
 
 TRENCK, BARON, 
 
 In his wanderings, comes in contact with a band of German Gipsies. 86 
 
 TWISS, RICHARD, on the religious character of the Gipsies. 73 
 
 On the virtue of Gipsy females, and honesty of Gipsy innkeepers, in 
 
 Spain. 524 
 
 TWEED-DALE AND CLYDESDALE GIPSIES. 
 
 Description of Tweed-dale, in the time of Queen Mary. 185 
 
 Dr. Pennecuik’s works—The Gipsies never had a permanent habita¬ 
 tion in the county. 185 
 
 The tribe attached to the district for three reasons: 1st, the Baillies 
 claimed it as their own, 185—2d, plenty of provisions—3d, freedom 
 
 from the laws. 186 
 
 Alleged relation of the Gipsies to the Baillies of Lamington. nl85 
 
 Braxy—Mr. Borrow on the Gipsies poisoning and eating swine. n.186 
 
 Fashionable appearance and mounting of the Baillie tribe—Their 
 
 children left in huts. 186 
 
 The Gipsies well treated by the tenantry, who accept dinners from them 187 
 The Baillies specially mentioned—They give kings and queens to the 
 
 tribe. 187 
 
 The quarrelsome disposition of the Gipsies—“A shower of horns, 
 
 hammers, knives, files, and fiery peats,”. 188 
 
 Dr. Pennecuik’s account of a Gipsy battle at Romanno. 188 
 
 He erects a dove-cot on the spot, to illustrate, by contrast, the nature 
 
 of the Gipsy. 189 
 
 The same battle noticed by Lord Fountainball, in his MS. 189 
 
 A Gipsy battle at Hawick—Terrific wounds, but no slain. 190 
 
 Sir Walter Scott’s allusion to this battle. nl92 
 
 Another and decisive battle between the hostile tribes, at Eskdale- 
 moor. 193 
 
INDEX. 
 
 573 
 
 PAG* 
 
 The country people horrified at the sight of the wounded Gipsies.... 193 
 
 Grellmann’s description of Hungarian Gipsies fighting. »193 
 
 Female Gipsies tight as well as males—'Becca Keith, the heroine of 
 
 Dumblane. 194 
 
 The trifling occasions of Gipsies fighting, and agreeing among them¬ 
 selves . j»195 
 
 The fencibles and the clergy called out to quell and disperse the 
 
 Gipsies. »195 
 
 Assault of the Gipsies on Pennicuik House. ml95 
 
 An insult offered to the mother of the Baillies resented, with drawn 
 
 swords. 196 
 
 Contribution from Mr. Blackwood towards a history of the Gipsies... 19(5 
 
 Pickpockets at Dumfries, headed by Will Baillie—How he and his 
 tribe travelled to fairs—He returns a farmer his purse, 197—The 
 farmer, when intoxicated, goes to visit him—Baillie pays a widow’s 
 rent, and saves her from ruin, 198—He borrows money, and gives 
 the lender a pass of protection, 199—The pass, after scrutiny by 
 two of the tribe, protects its bearer—Baillie repays his loan with 
 a large interest—The “ Jock Johnstone” gang of Gipsies, 200— 
 
 Jock, in a drunken squabble, kills a country ale-wife—His jack¬ 
 daw proves a bird of bad omen to hitn, and he a bird of bad omen 
 
 to his executioner. 201 
 
 Jock’s execution, as described bv Dr. Alexander Carlyle. ra201 
 
 William Baillie, a handsome, well-dressed, good-looking, well-bred 
 
 man, and an excellent swordsman . 202 
 
 Like a wild Arab, he distributes the wares of a trembling packman, 
 who extols, wherever be goes, “the extraordinary liberality of Cap¬ 
 tain Baillie,”. 203 
 
 Bruce on the protection given by Arabs to shipwrecked Christians... «203 
 In indulging his sarcastic wit, Baillie insults the judge on the 
 
 bench. 203 
 
 The deportment of Hungarian Gipsies during and after punishment.. r»204 
 
 Baillie’s numerous crimes and sentences. 204 
 
 The nature of “sorning,” m204—Gipsies carried arms in the olden 
 
 times. «205 
 
 Baillie’s policy in claiming kin with honourable families. 205 
 
 He is slain by one of the tribe while in the arms of his wife. 206 
 
 His murderer pursued by the tribe over the British Isles, till he is ap¬ 
 prehended and executed. 206 
 
 Legal enquiry regarding the slaughter of Baillie, 206—The trial of his 
 
 murderers. 208 
 
 William Baillie succeeded by Matthew Baillie—His descendants. 208 
 
 Mary Yorkston, wife of Matthew Baillie, a Gipsy queen and priestess 208 
 Her appearance and costume, un gala days, when advanced in years.. 209 
 Old Gipsy womeu strip people of their clothes, like the Arabs of the 
 
 desert. 209 
 
 Mary Yoi kston restores a stolen purse to a friend—Her husband first 
 counts its contents—“There is your purse, sir; you see what it is, 
 
 when honest people meet!”.....’. 210 
 
 A Gipsy chief chastises his wife fur want of diligence or success at a 
 
 fair... 211 
 
 Mary Yorkston and her particular friend, the good-man of Coulter- 
 
 park. 211 
 
 She scorns alms, but demands and takes by force a “ boontith,”. 211 
 
 Her son, James Baillie, condemned and pardoned again and again.... 212 
 
 The Baillies of Lamingtou’s influence successful in bis ease. 213 
 
 Stylish dress of the male head of the Kuthvens—The Gipsy costume 
 
 generally.... 213 
 
 Disguises of the tribe when plundering in fairs. 213 
 
 Vidocq on the disguises of the Continental Gipsies, on a similar occa¬ 
 sion . »213 
 
674 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 A couple of mounted Gipsies taken for men almost of the first 
 
 quality. 214 
 
 Straggling Gipsies—Their suspicious characters—A tinker aud a 
 
 tinker’s wife. 215 
 
 A quarrel among three Gipsy constables, 210—A murder, a capture, 
 
 and a lamentation. 217 
 
 One Gipsy constable murdered, another hanged, and the third banished 218 
 Great fuliing otf in the condition of the Scottish nomadic Gipsies.. .. 218 
 
 The internal polity of the Gipsies—Their general system of passes... 218 
 
 The country divided into districts, under a king and provincial chief¬ 
 tains—The pass of a Baillie conducts its hearer over all Scotland... 219 
 
 Surnames among the Tweed-dale Gipsies—Surnames among the Eng¬ 
 lish Gipsies, n . 219 
 
 Travelling Gipsies possess two and sometimes several names—Super¬ 
 stitious ideas when travelling. 219 
 
 Present condition of the Tweed-dale Gipsies—They dispense with 
 
 tents, but occupy kilns and outhouses. 220 
 
 The number of the tribe sometimes collected together, 220—How they 
 
 are sometimes treated. 221 
 
 How the Gipsies approach the farmers’ premises, 222—How they dis¬ 
 guise their numbers. 222 
 
 Their hones-ty, while on the farm—The resemblance between Gipsies 
 
 and ravens. n223 
 
 Personal habits of the tribe while in their encampment. 224 
 
 The males remaiu aloof, tinkering and manufacturing—The women 
 
 vend the goods. 224 
 
 Athletic amusements of the Gipsies, 224—They despise the peasantry, 
 
 but boast of their own tribe. 225 
 
 Their peaceable behaviour, 225—They do not attend church, or wor¬ 
 ship any thing whatever. 226 
 
 The musical talents of the Gipsies—Their pretensions to surgery—Dr. 
 
 Duds. 226 
 
 How Gipsy women vend their wares, 226—They sometimes take, by 
 
 force, a “ boontith,”. 227 
 
 • Habits of the Hungarian Gipsy after child-birth. . m227 
 
 Mary Yorkston and her “ boontith,” 227—Her terrible prediction. 228 
 
 Recent instances of “ sorning,” or masterful begging, among the 
 
 Scottish Gipsies. »228 
 
 Gipsy fortune-tellers, 228—How they frequently obtain important in¬ 
 formation . 229 
 
 Travelling Gipsies—Gipsy fiddlers at parties—Gipsy lady’s maids.... 229 
 
 Fortune-telling by palmistry and the'divining cup, 230—By the corn 
 
 riddle and scissors. 231 
 
 Fortune-telling in Kamtschatka and the ancient Eastern nations.«230 
 
 Fortune-telling punishable by Act of Parliament. »230 
 
 Anecdote of a Gipsy woman telling fortunes by the divining cup. 231 
 
 Gipsies’ meals—Sir Walter Scott’s description of a Gipsy feast. 232 
 
 The Gipsy mode of cooking poultry and butcher-meat. 233 
 
 The Gipsy mode of working in iron—Its antiquity—Hungarian Gipsy 
 
 smiths, n . 234 
 
 VIDOCQ. 
 
 On the disguises and plundering habits of the Continental Gipsies 
 
 »169, w213 
 
 WILKINSON, SIR J. GARDNER. 
 
 Thimble-rigging among the ancient Egyptians. w325 
 
 The appearance of the Jews in the East differs from that in Europe.. 477 
 
 WILSON, PROFESSOR. 
 
 He strolls with the Gipsies in his youth, 8—Was he then looking at 
 
 the “ old thing?”. 471 
 
 He notices the articles of the author in Blackwood’s Magazine. 66 
 
INDEX. 
 
 575 
 
 PAO* 
 
 YETHOLM. 
 
 Description of its situation. nl41 
 
 The Gipsies of Yetholm—Baillie Smith’s account, 245—Mr. Black 
 
 wood’s contribution.;. 251 
 
 Tradition of the first settlement of the Gipsies at Yetholm. n252 
 
 The author’s visit to Yetholm. 254 
 
 • The Gipsies at Yetholm knock down their asses, when they separate 
 
 from their wives. 276 
 
 Yetholm the metropolis of Scottish Gipsvdom, 426—“I come from 
 Yetholm”. 443 
 

 
 
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