THE UNIVERSALITY OF THE GIPSIES. 



141 



The following facts will explain 

 the idea the Gipsies have of the uni- 

 versality of their race : 



A word upon the universality of the 

 Gipsies. English Gipsies, on arriving 

 in America, feel quite taken aback, on 

 coming across a tent or wigwam of In- 

 dians. " 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 Mis- 

 souri ; who, in travelling to market, in 

 the summer, will, to save expenses, un- 

 yoke his horses, at mid-day or evening, 

 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 Russian Gipsies have visit- 

 ed China, by the route taken by Rus- 

 sian traders, and met with Gipsies 

 there.* But it tickles the Gipsy most, 

 when it is insinuated, that if Sir John 

 Franklin had been fortunate in his expe- 

 dition, he would have found a Gipsy tin- 



* Bell, in an account of his journey to 

 Pekin [17*1], 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 (Ed., p. 430). 



kering a kettle at the North Pole (Ed., 

 p. 430). 



The particulars of a meeting between 

 English and American Gipsies are in- 

 teresting. Some English Gipsies were 

 endeavouring to sell some horses in An- 

 napolis, 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 lan- 

 guage, 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 Gip- 

 sy in their appearance, they would not 

 have caused such a consternation to 

 their American brethren, who showed 

 much of " the blood " in their counte- 

 nances ; but as, from their blood being 

 much mixed, they did not look like Gip- 

 sies, they gave the others a terrible 

 fright, on their being found out. The 

 English Gipsies said they felt disgusted 

 at the others not acknowledging them- 

 selves. But I told them they ought 

 rather to have felt proud of the Ameri- 

 cans speaking Gipsy, as it was the pre- 

 judice of the world that led them to 

 hide their nationality. On making in- 

 quiry 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 (Ed., p. 431). 



I accidentally got into conversation 

 with an Irishman, in the city of New 

 York, about secret societies, when he 

 mentioned that he was a member of a 

 great many such, indeed, "all of them," 

 as he expressed it. I said there was 

 one society of which he was not a mem- 

 ber, when he began to enumerate them, 

 and at last came to the Zincali. " What," 

 said I, " are you a member of this so- 

 ciety ? " " 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 out- 

 posts, if I may so express it. The prin- 

 cipal or Arch-gipsy for the city, he said, 



was a merchant, 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 conver- 



