Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1916-10-03

Upwards of TOUR tuo tuousahu peopte
were at the tent last night to listen
"a Evangelist Gypsy Smiths lee
t,re and bid him good bye.
eI,d like to shake hands with all OF
vou but / can't, so while we sing our
closing hymn III wave my ha1ldker-
chief to you and you can wave back
to me- said he, and the air seemed
filed with waves Of white as every
one stood up and sang and waved him
farewell. 1t was demonstration
such as has not been seen here before,
showing the high esteem and re-
gard in which he is held by people OF
all denominations.
Previous to the service he was the
recipient of several handsome gifts
for himself and wife, including a
travelling bag and silver bread tray
and Miss Hoagland was remembered
with gold and pearl brooch. Revs.
Allison, Carpenter and VIM. Melchoir
made the presentation addresses.
Eight-four went forward at the
close of the service, making total
of TIA who have professed faith dur
ing the meetings.
Evangelist Smith was presented
with a total voluntary contribution
in cash from the people of $3.50.
"Who are the gypsies and where
did they come from? We don't know,
but some people think they know"
said Mr.. Smith in opening the lee
ture on "From a Gypsy tent to the
Pulpit"
zone little girl who was asked who
the gypsies are said they were people
who, s1fipe kids. My uncle. LIVED to
be 1O1 years old and was the father
of S4 children and never heard of his
swiping kids! No, they don't have
to swipe them-they always have
enough of their own.
"Our people are like you folk, with
the same longing and desires, but as
people they had no god no reli-
gion, except the dictates of their
pwn conscience. And yet the records
do not show that there was ever a
murder committed by one of them
and never a divorce to my knowledge
But here if a man doesn't like the
color of his wife's hair he gets q
divorce.
"The gypsies are good finders, and
il. they come across a piece of rope
and take it home with them and there
happens to be horse on the other
end of it, why they don't mind.
eve can trace our ancestors back
to the plains of Persia, 1400 years
before Christ, but there all trace of
them is lost. We have no way Of
finding out definitely, still it is be-
Eeved by our people that we are
Jews and that we are one of the lost
tribes of Israel. Our reason for that
belief is that the gypsies nearly all
! have bible names, and where did we
get those names if they were not
handed down from generation to
generation? We did not get them
from the bible for no gypsy can read,
neither did we get them from any
other people for gypsy never as
sociates with any one outside OF
their own people. Then too, the
gypsy is like the Jew in that he will
not work on the Sabbath; He will not
travel on the Sabbath; or even bring
water for his horses if it is possible
thing to get it the day before.
The gypsies are the most devoted
people on earth. From the time a
couple marries until one of them dies,
they are never separated. His in
terests are her interests and where
ever he goes she goes with him.
Even when he goes into saloon for
a drink, she follows and drinks with
him.
"There are between three and fou,
million gypsies in the world and
forty thousand in England alone, yet
no one ever heard of a gypsy com,
mitting murder or securing divorce
aI do not say there are no bad mer
or women among the gypsies but I dc
say that no one ever heard OF one
of our girls peddling her virture or
the streets. Our boys and girls are
brought up to obey their parents
and, although the father and mother
4 may both drink and swear, the chill.
dren are not allowed to do either one
until they are twenty-one years old