Los Angeles herald., 1892-11-12
LIFE OF THE ENGLISH G|PS|ES,
Wakeman's Good Words for the
Romany Folk.
MANY OF THEIR CHARACTERISTICS
HIGHLY PRAISED.
Their Winter Quarters in London and
Their WOrk-HOw the Donkey Is
HOisted Up Into the Fam
lily Loft.
Special Correspondence of the EXPRESS.

Special Correspondence of the EXPRESS.
LONDON, Oct. 3l.-To me there is
something inexpressibly pathetic in
the unvarying good humor and kind
heartedness of English Gipsies when
their hard and bitter, though self
chosen, mode of life is considered
And this is nowhere on earth made so
plain and emphatic as when you find
them in and about London, all the
lanes but memory, and the cruel de-
privations of winter-generally win
ter's battle for existence with mil
lion other lowly-staring them squarely
in their stoical faces.
Crafty, wary, hard, unworthy vaga-
bond though you deem him, as he con-
fronts you and mankind in this battle
for life and those he loves, he truly has
another side, a CHEEKY, good and manly
one, too, that without one iota of the
prompting to which all modern society
stands indebted, often glows with kind
ness, generosity, helpfullness, good
cheer and spirit of positive loveliness
An ugly word is never heard in a
Gipsy camp or band. A selfish act is
never seen. The eternal goading of a
mean woman, the brutal obscenity of a
bad man, the hateful jealousies of
neighbors, the contemplate rivalries
of pretended friends, each and all are
as unknown as poison in the pure air
of heaven they breathe in tent or upon
the road.
There is a quality of sincerity and ten
derness in their doings with each other
that is very simple, childlike and
beautiful. Their mirth merriment
and jollity are all considerate. Rail-
cry is tolerant; wit never a murderous
weapon. With them good cheer is sell
dom license; merrymaking leaves little
sting; liberty never knows lewdness.
Ignorant as they may be of your
civilization" of which we boast !;
secretly proud as they are of the
ostracism which brands them as an
outlaw race; heathenish as you must
consistently call them because they
hold your creeds in contempt; they are
yet more than the peers of any living
people in everything tender and true
and loyal, growing into and out of the
domestic relation, and in all that which
yields, without law or force, and as if
unconsciously, the helpful goodness
which ever prompts and always exceeds
exact justice to ones fellows.
There are undoubtedly hundreds of
localities which may be termed "Gipsy
ground" in London and it's farreach-
ing suburbs. l have visited nearly
three score of these places within the
past few years. In some instances they
are in the most densely and forlornly
populated sections of the metropolis.
Here in perhaps the stable yard of
some ancient historic inn, among the
sheds and outbuildings of an abandon
ed warehouse or manufactory, in the
mouldy, cobwebbed precincts of some
habitation which has got into chancery
and inevitable decay, and even in
Whitechapel purlieus, and upon the
roofs of houses at the edge of the huge
masonry sustaining some of the rail-
ways, many of which pass out of the
city above instead of through or be-
meath it, will be found single families
or little communities of the Romany
folk. All are working in their way as
if for dear life to sustain life until the
springtime exodus shall free them from
their hateful prisonment; and contrary
to general belief, or what any one may
say, none of them are idle.
Following up the trail and traits of
Gypsies while in their London winter
quarters, brought me originally among
the almost as curious costermonger
folk; and 1 found that there were hun
dreds of Gypsy families owning kindred
ties to costers who sought quarters
among this class and at once fell into
their manner OF work and ways. Ac-
quaintance and confidence soon
brought me to many of these almost
unknown Gypsy and coster communi-
ties in the very heart of London.
Two of them are very interesting and
historic. If you were wandering about
London up Holborn way and should
come to ancient Furnival's Inn, you
might notice that it's decrepit back
hangs over the entrance to a narrow
lane. This is Leather Lane. Scarcely
wide enough beneath the back windows
of Furnival's Inn to permit the en-
trance of a donkey and cart, it grad
ually widens towards Theobolds Row,
and to the east and west is itself
entered by almost numberless closes
and courts. No casual frequenter of
Holborn would notice it, but the local
ity is one of the densest in London in
point of population. Among the
thousands of lowly humans living
here are fully 500 costermongers, and
in the winter time half as many
Gipsies. The great resort of all these
folk is the "Leather Bottle" public
house within the shadowy precinct.
There are many odd places and stud
les here. The former class rather pride
themselves on their utter recklessness
in the matter of gambling, carousing
and drinking. While they live in entire
harmony with their Romany friends and
possess certain respect for their win
ter companions which permits of no
trifiing, it was easy to see that from
the cOster standpoint of ethics the
tawny folk are not considered fairly
progressive. They are too quiet. They
attend closely to work and minimize
the i'll effects of poverty in London.
'Gor bli meF' said friendly coster,
Sow can ye ave comfort hout O. yer
neighbors, less ye can 'elp carry 'em
'ome now an agin from the Leather
Bottle?' Strike me lucky! if Hi doan't
believe they'd rather heat wittles than
lick pewterP Clicking pewter" it
must be known, is coster for guzzling
"four aleu- "God's truth, but ye awsk
one on 'em for the loan O. a bob (shill-
ing) for few pots at tn Bottle an
their bloody heyes stick hout like
bleedin' muscles, Cor bli me, so they
do!'
Most of the Gipsies in this locality
live from half dozen to score in n
room. They possess the scantiest ar
ray of household utensils. Their ma