DIFFERENCE IN MIXED GIPSIES AND ORDINAR Y NA TIVES. 



145 



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 satisfaction of knowing 

 that he had others to keep him com- 

 pany ; men occupying respectable posi- 

 tions in life, and respected, by the world 

 at large, as individuals (Ed., p. 464). 



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 him- 

 self in whatever direction he may, he 

 imagines he sees, and perhaps does see, 

 nothing but a dark mountain of preju- 

 dice 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 shroud- 

 ed in its present mystery (Ed., p. 426). 

 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 (Ed., p. 427). 



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 in- 

 deed any outward thing. The reader 

 may say : " It must be a difficult mat- 

 ter to detect such mixed and educated 

 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 

 (Ed., p. 428). 



For all these reasons, the most appro- 

 priate word to apply to modern Gipsy- 

 ism, and especially British Gipsyism, 

 and more especially Scottish Gipsyism, 

 is to call it a caste, and a kind of ma- 

 sonic 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 con- 

 tradictory (Ed., p. 12). 

 IO 



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 ?iof 

 expect to meet with Gipsies, in Scotland, 

 at the present day ? And I reply, that 

 we will meet with 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 edu- 

 cation and character, and who follow 

 very respectable occupations, that are 

 Gipsies, and who admit that <hey 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 thereafter, 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 ! Such deep- 

 toned, sonorous piety ! Such candour ! 

 Such judgment ! Such amiability of 

 manners ! How much respected ! How 

 worthy of respect ! The good, the godly, 

 the saintly doctor ! When will we meet 

 his like again?* (Ed. p. 405.) 



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 exposi- 

 tion 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 distinguished from the various classes 

 into which it may be divided, or, I 

 should rather say, the personal conduct 



" 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." 

 (Ed., p. 405.) 



