News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-02-25
FACTS ABOUT GYPSIES
A Vagabond People Found All
Over the World.
speculations as to their Origin, their
Wanderings and Habits.

The gypsies are a vagabond people
found in nearly all parts of the world.
They are themselves ignorant of their
origin, and no historical record exists Of
their earlier migrations. So there are
different theories about them among
writers. Some consider that they came
originally from Egypt-the name gypsy
is simply q corruption of Egyptian
Others that they came from Persia, Ara
bia, or India. The weight of evidence
in the language, physiognomy, and habits
of this vagrant people is in favor of their
Indian origin. There is to-day wander
ing tribe in Upper India known as the
Zingarro, and the name of the gypsies in
the first European country which they
visited was the Zingari. 1t is impossible
that this similarity of names should be
chance coincidence. Further, the first
appearance of the gypsies in Europe oc-
CURED when the Mongol conqueror,
Timour, was laying waste the fruitful
countries of Southern Asia, and marking
the trail over which his army passed with
rivers of human blood. Over 90, 600
men, women, and children were slaught-
cred in the province of Bagdad; 100, 900
between the Indus and Delhi. The Zin-
garro, the tramps of Oriental society, the
poorer classes, who had no possessi.ns 20
excite the curiosity of the invaders, fed
in bands to the westward, while the con-
quering party marched toward the east.
The hrst bands of these people came to
Italy in the first decade of the fifteenth
century. In 1929 there were about A.
900 of them in that country. They ma le
their first appearance in the province of
the Danube in 1417. August II, 1927,
band of them came to Paris. They had
caught enough of European speech to
make themse, yes understood, and claimed
to be Christians who had been driven
from Egypt by the invasion of the Sara
Gems. The Parisians were disposed to re-
ceive them Hospitality, but as they proved
to be great thieves they were soon after
expelled from the city. They continued,
however, to wander in France, and
other bands joined them. They appear
ed in England about 1900, and in Saed-
en- in 1914. Wherever they went they
pretended to the arts of palnistry, and
une-telling to get better opportunity
to carry on their thieving practices.
Spain banished them in 1892, and a CEN
tury later renewed the decree strenuous
ly. In England they were exiled by
special proclamation by Henry VIII,
and also by Elizabeth. Italy, Denmark,
Sweden, and Holland also took measures
against them. In Scotland they were
treated kindly, and efforts were made to
civilize them, though without much sue
cess. Germany also made like efforts,
and so did Austria, but these have only
been successful since Joseph II. of the
latter country, in 1882, made and enforced
severe laws against vagrants. There arc
about 100000 gypsies in Europe, the
most of them being in Southern Russia,
the Danubian provinces, Austro-H Hungary,
and Spain. The severe laws against
them have generally been repealed. The
gypSes have intermarried but little with
other races, and the proximity of civiliz-
ed races for four centuries and more has
made but little impression on their orig
inal barbarity. The language of the
gypsies, though everywhere preserving
forms of an unmistalable Indian origin,
differs greatly in different countries, as
| these people are very much inclined to
| incorporate words of other tongues with
their own.-L7ter- Ocean.