Morning journal and courier., 1889-08-31

rare chor (thieD e would made, to be surel"
 But the most seductive eloquence on my own part could not secure word of praise for the grander zeke who had given his life for that of the little gipsy child who played at my knees as we talked. This was be- cause of the universal fatalism of gipsies. It would have been precisely the same in their strange minds if the shiftless fellow had fallen from ledge and had been or from horse and broken his neck.
 When gipsy dies that is the end. Every of the race has horror of death because no gipsy lives who has faith in a hereafter. They cannot be induced to con- ed Christianity. Borrow in his many years of Bible and missionary work among them never claimed to have converted one. In all countries, as is true of goodly number of other folk, they occasionally profess 0 sort of attachment to the ruling creed. For in- stance we hear of "gipsy exhorter" in Ohio, and the other day a good Bishop of Delaware was allowed to christen gipsy child in a camp near Wilmington. But these little hypooricies are all in the way of gipsy thrift. The entire race belongs to the lowest order of agnostics and although that is very low place among intellects, the truth must be spoken even about my roman tic and picturesque friends. So when death comes to one of their number, hope and faith being unknown and impossible of con- caption in the gipsy mind, 1t is something to be got out of sight speedily, as a hurt or disease.
 have witnessed a great many gipsy fu- nersls. At some, especially in the case of the burial of "king" or queen" of a tribe, there is much gipsy pomp and display. Yet On al nf fhara ia a ty of action in getting the remains under ground and leaving the place of interment, which are both cowardly and ludicrous. When old "King" Faa was buried in Scot- land some forty years since, over three hun dred asses and shelties were in the cortege, and yet 80 dismayed were the Ripsies when the remains of the merry old rascal were lowered into the ground that they all took flight, many running their donkeys to death to escape to their homes, so that for days there was none brave enough to decently cover his coffin.
 In gipsy funerals the world over there are three distinct rites, or features of one rite. These comprise the burial; burning the eff fects of the dead; and the ping droming, ol away the evil spirit of mourning and melan- choly from the tents and hearts of those who have lost relatives or friends by death. It is singular fact that while gipsies are universally disbelievers, they will resort to all manner of shifts to secure at least final interment of their dead in some church. yard cemetery. Their reverence for the can- onical, or authorized, cemetery Is only equaled by their utter disregard and con holds as sacred. I have no doubt I have a thousand times questioned them on this point of absurd inconsistency. Driven tc the wall, for escape they would blurt out, "Graveyards is ftt'nl" or "Howsomdever, mebby as corpses is lonesome by their. selvesl" And yet there Is no greater coward on earth than the gipsy when near a church yard. The camp Is never made within sight of one; all manner of pains are taken suddenly find himself abreast of one al l night, the flight of "Tam O'Shanter" Is al | most equaled.
 The burning of poor old Zeke's effects i' sufficiently illustrative of all similar scenes | which are seldom witnessed by Gorgios, o ! non n-gipsies, as the rite is held to be a score and sacred one transmitted from Aryal
 haunts, as Ripsy tradition has it, and prsc
 tised for thousands of years. Though m. l relations with this particular band wer ! those of the greatest intimacy and trustful
 ness, no information was given me of wha
 was to occur, and I should have missed 1
 altogether had not laid awake in my ten determined not to be cheated. About mid | night heard low voices in the tents abou
 me; could soon distinguish the sounds as o
 the gipsies all gathering at one spot in tn
 camp; and could see the flicker of freligh l shining upon tent-cover, wagon-top and tn
 lessly to the side of a most intimate gips
 friend, who regarded my coming with anz
 ious concern, but without actual objectio
 to my presence. In the dim light saw ths
 all the occupants of the camp were standin
 in circle about the cart, grinders vince
 forge and chests which had accompanie
 tinker Zeke on numberless merry and proft
 less pilgrimings. Beneath and about the a
 tioles were piled dead pine branches an
 punches of dry cones and needles. Suddel | ly the wife of the dead tinker emerged frol
 the circle, and, as hush fell upon tt
 throng, mourning aloud in some plaintiy
 words she walked slowly around the article
 four times, each time pausing for a momer
 and kneeling at the eastern side, when sf
 at once resumed her place in the silent ci
 ole. Instantly there was . rush from u
 single burning camp fire, and dashir . through the crowd came an old gipsy ha
 the oldest spae-wife or fortune teller of u band, who with faring pine torch set u
 waiting pile ablrze in many different plac with wondrous celerity. The flames i
 stantly lesped to the tree tops, disclosir mute and apparently awe-struok faces su rounding the sacrifice. The old hag repes
 ed the movements of the widow, torch , hand, the meanwhile uttering shrill lament . | tions in Romany, and disappeared as su denly as she had come. Then the enti |; band stood speechless and motionless uni . the flames had consumed the articles, wh, in the fickering light of the dying embe |. each male gipsy greeted the widow hearti and quietly passed to his wagon or tent, the women of the band finally escorting u widow to her own tent, where after a bit i; oheery chattering she was left in quite CO tented mood for the night.
 Bing Droming, always occurs the succee l ing night, as it did in our Lake Ssbal camp. The devil "is given the road" wi 3 the utmost hilarity and merry making, a, :. registering, which occasionally takes on ou landish aspects. On more than one oooasit $ have I seen man of straw, provided wi I horns and hideously painted, tossed abo the gipsy camp, the subject of terrible mi B use, and finally, when the revelries were , their height, kicked and thumped for mil ? dewn some dusty highway, to at last
 pitched into some poisonous pool, wi l. stones, sticks And clouts of mud cast up :, and after his diabolical highness. If aft : this sacrifice and expnrgation gipsies oonti ue to mourn they always suffer contume ' and contempt. "Hus does wat we can :, l cheer sorrow" these strange folk say, "s :; then doesn't abear chitterin' an sni film 2 longer" EDGAR L. WAKEMAN.