The record-union., 1893-05-27
Especial Cores spondence of the RECORD
UNION. Copyright. 1891


wrought wonderful change for the bet
ter with majority of all British gypsies
who have been content to remain in their
own land. In 1867. while in England, 1
had means of knowing from personal OBJ
servation that almost universal squalor
and wretchedness was characteristic of
Irish and English, and particularly of
London gypsies. No one can make of a
gypsy anything but gypsy, but a gem
Grafton OF change here has effected more
marked advancement IN a rugged sort of
prosperity with this than with any other
lowly class.
1t has not seized the gypsy bodily and
IN moment. or a year, or a decade, put
hne clothing upon him and made him a
man Of affairs, but something, as with
the destitute Italians who have landed
upon American shores, who we directly
ma as hawkers, willing labOrers, restau-
rant Keepers, newsbOyS, bOOtblacks, con-
trOilers OF retail and wholesale fruit and
nut trades, and on the high road TO pros
perlty, because they are quick witted and
willing to labor-the British gypsy has
found, along with old makeShilts Tor live
Hhood many new, though rude occupa-
lions, and means OF getting on in the
world, all after his own mind and heart.
With the race characteristics of these
fOik Will require many generations in
which TO undergo radical change, their
conditions and environment are in the
main entirely different from those in
which Crabbe, Hoyland, Borrow and
Simson found them and of which they
wrote. In other words, there is to-day
little or nothing in book literature alto
gether true OF British gypsies. OF the
tour standard authors named, Borrow
10 a
ineXorably true. ct both write OF a
time and merrlpen, or gypsy life which,
with few exceptions, has wholly passed
away. These exceptions comprise the
poorest English and Scottish gypsies of
to-day; some families in the north of
England, whose members have contin-
ued almost literally the old form Of wan
dering life by the roadside, the tinker
ing, the dlckering, the dukkering, or for
tune telling, and often the tiny sales of
imperfect delft and tinware, and content
with ''whummeled, or upturned cart,
for roof in summer, ana any sort OF
town tenementln winter; the Tiny, Strag-
Cling bands in Devonshire and Cornwall,
where there has been little change in all
social conditions for the past nifty years;
the few remaining gypsies of Perthshire,
a berdeenshire ana the Highland dis
tricts OF ScOtland; and the gypsies Of
Wales, where is found the most primi-
y
naming IN Britain. The " elsh gypsies
rarely leave Na.es. All " elsh people
are 1ond of them, and they are almost as
much an integral part of the concrete
rural social structure as are the Welsh
people themselves.
The fact is that British gypsies, as well
as our American gypsles hundreds of
whom l could name, who are worth from
$4,000 to 100000 in landed property,
have, during the past quarter of centu-
ry, developed d remarkable ability Tor
certain iowIy kinds OF trade. These have
been a natural Outgrowth, in most in
stances, of the petty wayside dick ering
OF less fortunate times, but they are still
pursuits requiring the exercise OF good
thrift and Judgment and OF a genuine
probity that make the gypsy middleman
welcome both where occasional credit is
necessary and among his countryside GUS
toners. In the main they are van
dwellers, in the summer time, as with
US, travelling certain Well-dehned routes
and purVeylng in villages, and even in
the outskirts OF towns and cities, articles
whose annual aggregate value amount to
a stupendOus sum.
Their cavalcades at the outset may
comprise one or more vans. These are,
briefly described, tiny houses upon
wheels. They are drawn by donkeys, or
often by broken down city tram horses
which the gypsies get i'll the cities for
song, and which, with care, are finally
transformed into excellent cattle Fol-
lowing these may be three or four, or
half dozen, little donkey carts, after the
fashion OF the costermongers' city carts
These Will hold the real resources of the
band. An examination of the latter
would reveal almost enough in quantity,
certainly enough in variety, to stock a
little country store.
This stock in trade has not been picked
up at random. in the London White
chapel district there are great storehOuses
of Travellers Goods" Their owners.
who, find, include wealthy gypsies,
could not continue in business without
the gypsies' trade. The goods handled
are somewhat similar to our American
bargain counter odds and ends, espe-
cIally in tinware and metal goods, hard
ware, crockery, cheap oilcloths and
household knick knacks, with the coarsest
beads and gilded jewelry. 1t would be
revelation 10 ordinary English trades
men to realize the enormous quantities
OF stuff annually disposed ofin this man
ner throughout England, Scotland and
Wales, and the integrity OF these gypsy
wanderers where they ask and receive
credit for their supplies, as they often do.
Smaller "Travelers' Goods'' stores may
be found near the Bull Ring in Birming-
ham, where carts may be refiIled in the
lazy journeyings, but small shipments
from time to time are forwarded by rail
from London.
/ have friends in the fruit and nut trade
in the Drury Lane quarter of London
who have supplied gypsies in all parts
of the provinces for the past twenty
years. Half OF this trade is done on
credit, and the fruiterers all inform me
they have never lost penny at the hands
OF their thousands of gypsy small custom
ers. All these goods, fruits and nuts.
are hawked in little villages and sold at
fairs and on market days. Indeed the
English country lair OF TODAY would
lose ali its picturesqueness and most of
its attractions Tor younger people were
the petty gypsy booths and gypsy show
men Withdrawn.
About the middle of the century. when
the British Rural Police Act which was
directed against gypsies and all wander
ing folk OF the ROAD came in force. we
ind Borrow lamenting that the ''pyUsy
had nowhere TO lay his head" The
oppressive measure undoubtedly sent
America $4,000 English gypsies within a
period Of ten years. Indeed it almost
extirpated gypsydom in Great Britain.
but the coming gypsy soon saw way to
mend his fortunes. He took out a IL
cense to become q travelling merchant.
"Two-and-siXpence" gives him this right
for the period of one year. He could sull
remain gypsy in every other particular.
InsensibIY, and by degrees, he actually
became the fellow whose vocation he
originally assumed in order TO merely
exist.
There gradually followed a system
among the wanderers OF providing
gypsy ground' on which to camp in
safety from the raids of the mounted
coustabulary. Gypsies here and there,
who had got a footing and could be
trusted, bought or leased BITS OF waste
land, unused lanes, idle tracts at the out