Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-06-21

Ldtcho dDcas pToto lGood day,
brother)
"What is that ," he exclaimed, startled.
60 tn jines ldtcho adosta." You know
very welL) And then, with the expression
in his face of man VINO has been famil-
iarly addressed by brazen statue, or
asked by new. born babe, What o'clock
is it ?" but with great joy, he cried :
' RomanichaEi"
In an instant they were all around me,
marvelling greatly, and earnestly express
ing their marvel, at what new species of
gypsy might be, being in this quite un.
like those OF England, who, even when
they are asto1ished "out of their senses"
at being addressed in Romany by gentle.
man, make the most Red. Indian efforts to
conceal their amazement. But l speedily
found that these Russian gypsies were as
unaffected and child-like as they were gen.
tie in manner, and that they compared
with our own prize.fi ghting, sturdy beg.
ging, always-suspecting Romany roughs
and rufGnas as a delicate greyhound might
compare with very shrewd old bulldog,
trained by an unusually 'fiy" tramp.
But must sit down." | observed on
this and other occasions that Russian gyp.
sizes are very naif And as it Is in human
nature to prefer sitting by pretty girl,
these Slavonian Romanys so arrange it ac.
cording to the principles of natural selec.
tion-or natural politeness that, when
stranger is in their gates, the two pref
tiest girls in their possession sit at his right
and left, the two next attractive next
again, et seriatinl. So at once damsel OF
comely mien, arrayed in black silk attire,
of faultless elegance, cried to me, pointing
to a chair by her side, Z" Bersh tn alay rya'"
(Sit down, sir)-a phrase which would be
perfectly intelligible to any Romany in
England. admit that there was another
damsel, who is generally regarded by most
people as the true gypsy belle of the party,
who did not sit by me. But, as the one
who had "voted herself into the chair, :"
by my side, was more to my liking, being
the most intelligent and most gypsy, had
good cause to rejoice
The company sang for him, and he gives
an excellent description of the characteris-
tics of the wild music for which they are
famous. They seem to have exerted them
selves with special zeal for such an appre.
ciative listener
1--WE intend to sing only Romany for
you, rya." said the young lady on my left,
land you will hear our real gypsy airs. The
Gdji (Russians) often ask for songs in our
language, and don't get them. But you
are Romanichal, and when you go home,
far over the baro kaio PAM (tbe broad
black water, that is, the ocean,, you shall
tell the Romany how we can sing. Listen !"
And | listened to the strangest, widest
and sweetest singing | ever had heard
the singing Of Lurleis, OF sirens, of witches.
First, one damsel, with an exquisitely
clear, firm voice, began to sing verse OF
a love. ballad, and as it approached the end
the chorus stole in, softly and unperceived,
but with exquisite skill, until, in few
seconds, the summer breeze, murmuring
melody over a ripping lake, seemed
changed to a midnight tempest, roaring
over stormy sea, in which the basso Of
the kalo shureskro (the black captaiD)
pealed like thunder. Just as it died away
a second girl took up the melody, very
sweetly, but with little more excitement
it was like gleam of moonlight on the
still agitate1 waters, a strange contralto
witch CLEAN and then again the chorus
and the storm and then another solo yet
sweeter, sadder and stranger-the move.
ment continually increasing, until all was
fast, and wild, and mad-a locomotive
quickstep, and then a sudden silence-sun.
lieht-the storm had blown away.
Nothing on earsh is so like magic and
elin-work as when women burst forth
into improvised melody. the bird only
"siDgs as his bill grew" or what he learned
singing in woodland green, throwing out
-, LII h. fo,r II
what seems like audible sunshine, so well
does it match with summers light, you
think it is wonderful. 1t is mostly when
you forget the long training OF the prima
donna, in her ease and apparent naturalness,
that her song is sweetest. But there is q
charm, which was well known OF old,
though we know it not to day, which was
practiced by the bards and believed in by
their historians It was the feeling that
the song was born of the moment that it
came with the air, gushing and fresh from
the soul. In reading the strange stories Of
the professional bards and scalds and min
strels of the early Middle Age, one is con-
stantly bewildered at the feats of off-hand
composition which were exacted OF the
poets among CeIts or Norsemen And it
is evident enough that in some mysterious
way these singers know how to put strange
pnt'se pr IS - % y Sus ,na' 9 CIV - s,S ns
| been impossible at present.
Yet it fingers here and there on earth
among "iia' strange peopiecsais art OF
making melody az WIN. nrss heard 1t 1t
among Nubian noatmen on the Nile. 1t
was as manifest thas It was composed dur.
ing tine making as tnat the singers were
unconscious OF their power. One sung at
first what may have been weii-known
verse. While singing, another voice stole
in, and yet another, softly as shadows steal
into twilight and ere | knew it all were
IN great chorus, which fell away as mys-
teriously, to become duos, trios- changing
In melody In strange, sweet, fitful wise, as
the faces seen IL. the golden cloud in the
visioned aureole OF God blend, separate,
burn and fade away ever into fresher
glory and tints 'incarnadined.
Afterward Mr.. Leland Gang to mis- enter.
tanners a ballad from George Borrow's