The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-25 00:00:00

The Death in a Gipsy's Tent.

Mr John Humphreys, the coroner for Middlesex, held an
inquest on Tuesday at the Greyhound Tavern, Old Ford-
road, Victoria-park, respecting the death of Barbara Lee,
aged 90 years, a celebrated member of the gipsy tribe, who
died in a tent under the following circumstances :
The jury having been sworn, proceeded with the coroner
across a meadow to a low tent which was protected from the
weather by a dwarf wall abutting on Sir George Duckett's
Canal, when Mr Burrows, the summoning officer, removed
several wooden skewers from the dingy woollen covering,
the body of deceased was found lying on the turf covered
with a white sheet, and near the corpse lay a rough or wild
sheep dog, and it was stated that deceased had formerly been
the Gipsy Queen,
The first witness called was

Keziah Lee, a young gipsy, who said she was a traveller
and had no settled residence. She lived in a field near Mr
Bowen's, the Crown Hotel, Old Ford-road. Witness was
the wife of Benjamin Lee, a gipsy, who attended races and
fairs, and obtained a livelihood by keeping " Old Aunt
Sallys" and " Cockshies." The deceased was a widow, and
witness was her daughter-in-law. She lived with witness
as she had no home nor friends to assist her. Sometimes
they had six or seven in the earns tent, but they never had
any sickness, the air was so pure, and although deceased
was so aged she walked or tramped from the encampment
on Wandsworth-common. She was very weak and care-
worn, but was not ailing or in bad health. She could eat
anything when she could get it. On Saturday night the
deceased ate a hearty supper in the tent, and there were
several persons present who slept there all night. There
was a fire burning until the morning. About 8 o'clock wit-
ness awoke and heard deceased making a gurgling noise in
the throat. Witness got up and ran for Dr Davey, who
immediately attended and pronounced life extinct. The
deceased was then upon the face of the earth, but well
wrapped up.

Coroner (to witness)—lionr tribe live longer in such
places, do they not ?

Witness, smiling—Oh, yes, sir. Why, if she had gone to
the workhouse she would have been dead years ago.
Coroner—l believe that, for a gipsy's tent is a palace to
some of the overcrowded and pestilential dwellinga at this
part of the great metropolis.

Charlotte Lee, another gipsy, with a brown and sharp
countenance, said that she lived in White's brickfield, Old.
Ford-load. She called to see the old lady, and. stopped in
the tent all night. Deceased was then very poorly, and
could not get up. She could speak and knew witness, who
had travelled from Kingston to see her. The deceased never
complained while witness was present, and she had what
they could afford to give her. A surgeon was not called, as
deceased had never had a day's illness.
II Coroner—Are you not related to the family of the Gipsy
Queen ?

Witness—Yes, sir, but she is no more than our own,
humble tribe. Why, our Queen ifi your Queen, and we bow
to her as her loyal subjects.

Dr Davey, of Florence-villa, Old Ford-road, said that ho
was called to the deceased, and found her in a tent lying
upon the ground. She was still warm, but had only been
dead about a quarter of an hour. He examined the body,
which was pretty well nourished, and he believed, as there
were no marks of violence, that she had died from exhaus-
tion upon old age.

The coroner said the case was one of an unusual cha-
racter, and he should not have troubled the jury but that
the deceased had died in such a sudden and strange manner.
There was, however, no doubt that the habit of living in
such open-air places was beneficial, and had in this instance
prolonged the life of the deceased, who had almost rec.ched
100 years.

The jury returned the following verdict:—" That the
deceased was found dying and did die in a certain tent
erected in a field at Old Ford, Victoria Park, and the
jurors further say that the said death was from natural
causes."
The body was afterwards buried by the Gipsy tribe at
the Victoria Park Cemetery, followed by a large crowd of
persons.