Kansas City daily journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1892-1897, 1896-12-24
a ROMANY.
Some of Charles -. Leland's Experi-
ences Among the Gypsies.


ences Among the Gypsies.
From the New York Sun
Part of the glory of knowing Romany lies
in the fact that it is not in books and must
be learned from the gypsies themselves,
and the gypsies the world over make it a
kind of secret and will speak it or teach it
| only when they are very good friends with
you. They like to have 1t as a mystery
just as children like to make up gibberish
| that they talk with their chums and out
siders don't understand
Charles G. Leland, the author of the
Hans Breitman ballads, knows more of
these people and their language than any
other American; and there are very few
people in the world that know so much,
and gypsies in America and England and
Austria and Russia know him and love him
and call him the Romany Rye. that Is,
gypsie gentleman, because they think that
no one can understand them so well who is
not partly gypsy himself
Mr.. Leland loves to meet strange gypsies
and speak to them in Romany just to see
their astonishment and delight, and he has
had great many funny experiences in
hat way.
One time he was making a walking tour
In wales with Professor Palmer, of Cam
bridge university, and as they lunched by
the roadside there came by the decentest
and poorest of old women; she acted as il
she were going to pass them, but they
spoke to her and asked her about herself.
She said she was walking to town twenty
miles away to see her daughter who was
dying in the hospital there; she seemed
very sad but quite resigned. for she was
very religious; she was Methodist, she
said, and had a letter from her pastor in
her pocket; she said she had been a
washerwoman for forty years; the gentle
slraI
she said no, but she did not beg; of course
their hands started for their pockets, but
just then Mr.. Leland, looking up suddenly
caught very gipsy-like gleam in her
eyes. and he paused with dawning wonder
in his mind; he said suddenly:
can tute rakker Romanes. miri dye?'
which, being interpreted. means, Can you
speak Romany, my mother?" and she an
swered bewilderedIy:
The Lord forbid. sir. that l should speak
any of them wicked languages.
Professor Palmer is great Romany
scholar himself, and he now drew his hand
out of his pocket and waited with bright
enint eyes. Mr.. Leland now said in Ro-
many:
You need not he afraid; I've been on
the road myself"
la, sir, you be upon the road now"
exclaimed the old woman in confusion,
wLcreupon Professor Palmer cried out:
ut seems to me. old lady, that you under
stand Romany remarkably we'll for such
deyCut Methodist
The simple old Christian looked from one
to the other, speechless. and then Mr.. Le-
land took out one penny and said:
There, I'll give you this because you
are such n very poor person. but I'll give
you a pocketful If you'll rakker," that is.
talk Romany. .
When the gypsy saw that she was not
going to get into trouble but that the gem
tatN~
trick. her face frightened with witchlikc
fun, and she put a hand on her hip and
said in Romany:
Gentlemen, I'll have you know when
you talk to me you talk to regular
shire wd old trickster" and then she turned
to Mr.. Leland and cried joyously. II know
who You are now; you're the baro Roman
Rye (the tail gypsy gentleman) I've heard
aECut. I've wanted to see YOU and now
you can go your way and brag about it
in your house that Old MolI of the Roads
couldn't take you in that YOU found her
out: and well you may -brag. for never
another rye win say as much. Never"
And after she had played at telling their
fortunes, because she did not try to make
gentlemen who knew so much believe in
such doings. she danced away backward
in the sunshine, rafting her money in her
hands. as agile and happy as a deer in the
fCrest.
But though gypsies never believe in their
own fortune telling, and will never try TO
palm OFF their prophecies on those who
know their tongue and their ways they
always think there is such II thing as true
fortune telling. and sometimes when they
find that Mr.. Leland knows more Romany
than they do, and more about gypses the
world over, they will beg him TO tell their
fortunes-and he will look at their palms
studiously and do It, His friends tell him
that this is the height of all cheek-to start
in TO tell gypsy girls their fortunes,
Leland delights In playing many tricks
that are very gypsylike in spirit. Wood is