Chapter X (1)

PRESENT CONDITION AND NUMBER OF THE GIPSIES IN SCOTLAND.

Every author who has written on the subject of the Gipsies has, I believe, represented them as all having remarkably dark hair, black eyes, and swarthy complexions. This notion has been carried to such an extent, that Hume, on the criminal laws of Scotland, thinks the black eyes should make part of the evidence in proving an individual to be of the Gipsy race. The Gipsies, in Scotland, of the last century, were of all complexions, varying from light flaxen hair, and blue eyes, and corresponding complexions, to hair of raven black, dark eyes, and swarthy countenances. Many of them had deep-red and light-yellow hair, with very fair complexions. I am convinced that one-half of the Gipsies in Scotland, at the present day, have blue eyes, instead of black ones. According to the statistical account of the parish of Borthwick, Mid-Lothian, (1839,) the Baillies, Wilsons, and Taits, at Middleton, the descendants of the old Tweed-dale Gipsies, are described as, "in general, of a colour rather cadaverous, or of a darkish pale; their cheek-bones high; their eyes small, and light coloured; their hair of a dingy white or red colour, and wiry; and their skin, drier and of a tougher texture than that of the people of this country." This question of colour has been illustrated in my enquiry into the history of the Gipsy language; for the language is the only satisfactory thing by which to test a Gipsy, let his colour be what it may.

In other countries, besides Scotland, the Gipsies are not all of one uniform swarthy hue. A Russian gentleman stated to me that many of the Gipsies in Finland have light hair, and fair complexions. I am also informed there are Gipsies in Arabia with fair hair.

Among many other mal-practices, the Gipsies have, in all countries, been accused of stealing children; but what became of these kidnapped infants, no one appears to have given any account, that I am aware of. To satisfy myself on this trait of their character, I enquired of a Gipsy the reasons which induced his tribe to steal children. He candidly acknowledged the practice, and said that the stolen children were adopted as members of the tribe, and instructed in the language, and all the mysteries of the body. They became, he said, equally hardy, clever, and expert in all the practices of the fraternity. The male Gipsies were very fond of marrying the stolen females. Some of the kidnapped children were made servants, or, rather, a sort of slaves, to the tribe. They considered that the occasional introduction of another race into their own, and mixing the Gipsy blood, in that manner, invigorated and strengthened their race. In this manner would the Gipsies alter the complexion of their race, by the introduction of foreign blood among them.[225]

[225] An objection is perhaps started, that these incorporated
individuals are not Gipsies. They have been brought into the body at
such an age as to leave no trace of past recollections, leaving alone
past associations. There was no occasion for such children being
either "squalling infants," or of such an age as was likely to lead
them to "betray the Gipsies," as Mr. Borrow supposes would be the
case, when he says that Gipsies have never stolen children, to bring
them up as Gipsies. How are they to discover their origin, when so
many of the body around them have the same colour of hair and
complexion? If the idea has ever entered into their imaginations, it
has led to a greater antipathy towards their own race, and attachment
to the tribe, from the special education which they have received to
those ends. So far as the matter of blood is concerned, they are not
what may be physiologically called Gipsies; and, by being married to
Gipsies, they become doubly attached to the body. What has been said
of children introduced among the Gipsies, in the way described,
applies with infinitely greater force to those born of one of such
parents.

Suppose, for instance, that the Spanish race was originally of an
exclusively _dark_ hair and complexion: should we therefore say that a
_fair_ Spaniard, at the present day, was no Spaniard? Or that the
Turks of Constantinople, on account of the mixture of their blood,
were not Turks? In the same manner are Gipsies with white blood in
their veins Gipsies. They may be half-breed, but it would be improper
to call them half-caste, Gipsies. But what are full-blood Gipsies, to
commence with? The idea itself is intangible; for, by adopting, more
or less, wherever they have been, others into their body, during their
singular history, a pure Gipsy, like the pure Gipsy language, is
doubtless nowhere to be found.

An English Gipsy acquaintance, of perfect European appearance, who,
for love of race and language, may be termed "a Gipsy of the Gipsies,"
admitted that he was only one-eighth Gipsy; his father, a full-blood
white, having married a quadroon Gipsy. He spoke Gipsy with great
fluency. He married a seven-eighths Gipsy. Were his descendants to
marry what are supposed to be pure Gipsies, the result would be as
follows: the first generation, (his children,) would be one-half
Gipsy; the second, three-fourths; the third, seven-eighths; the
fourth, fifteen-sixteenths; the fifth, thirty-one thirty-seconds; and
the sixth, sixty-three sixty-fourths. If this were to go on _ad
infinitum_, the issue would always lack the one part to make the full
blood. But the Gipsies do not calculate their vulgar fractions so
closely as that; the division of the blood doubtless bothers them, so
that they "lump" the question. What has been said, is breeding _up_.
Sometimes they breed _down_, and sometimes _across_. Mixing the blood,
in this way, is quite a peculiarity among the English Gipsies. I asked
my friend, if he was sure his wife was a pure Gipsy. He said she was
considered such, (I have put her down at seven-eighths,) but that one
of her forefathers was a fair-haired French Gipsy. According to a
well-admitted principle in physiology, a fair-haired Gipsy, of almost
full blood, is by no means so _rara avis in terris_ as a white crow.
Some of the children of my acquaintance took after himself, and had
blue eyes; and others after the mother, and had black ones. But the
English Gipsies, (the tented ones at least,) are much purer, in point
of blood, than their brethren in Scotland. Many of the Irish Gipsies
have very red hair--fiery and shaggy in the extreme. Indeed, they seem
to be pretty much all of a fairish kind.--ED.

Before going into details to show the condition in which the Gipsies are at the present day, I will consider, shortly, the causes which have contributed to the change that has come over their outward circumstances, and driven so many of them, as it were, "to cover," in consequence of the unfortunate times on which they had fallen; a state of things which, however unfortunate to them, in their peculiar way of thinking, has been of so much benefit to civilization, and society at large.

About the commencement of the American war of independence, in 1775, the Gipsies, in Scotland, occupied a very singular position in society. Instead of being the proscribed, and, as they thought, persecuted, members of the community, many of them then became the _preservers_ of the peace and good order of the country. The country, as appears by the periodical publications of the day, was, about this time, greatly pestered by rogues and vagabonds. The Gipsies had art enough to get a number of their chiefs appointed constables, peace-officers, and _country-keepers_, in several counties in Scotland. These public officers were to clear the country of all idle vagrants, vagabonds, and disturbers of the peace. This was, sure enough, a very extraordinary employment for the Gipsies. The situation of country-keeper was, of all others, the office in society the most completely to their liking. It gave them authority over every rogue in the country, and they certainly followed out their instructions to the very letter. They hunted down, with the utmost vigilance, every delinquent who was not of their tribe; but, on the other hand, they took especial care to protect every individual of their own fraternity, excepting those that were obnoxious to themselves. When it agreed with their inclinations, these Gipsy country-keepers sometimes caused stolen property to be returned to the owners, as if it had been done by magic. It is needless to observe that they were themselves the very chiefs of the depredators, but had generally the dexterity never to be seen in the transactions.[226]

[226] The following extract from the Fife Herald, for the 18th June,
1829, will give the reader an idea of a Scotch "country-keeper," at
the time alluded to: "A Gipsy chief, of the name of Pat Gillespie, was
keeper for the county of Fife. He rode on horse-back, armed with a
sword and pistols attended by four men, on foot, carrying staves and
batons. He appears to have been a sort of travelling justice of the
peace. The practice seems to have been general. About the commencement
of the late French war, a man, of the name of Robert Scott, (Rob the
Laird,) was keeper for the counties of Peebles, Selkirk, and
Roxburgh."

A Gipsy country-keeper was at the height of his vanity and glory, when he got an unfortunate individual of the community into his clutches. In the presence of his captive, he would draw his sword, flourish it in the air, and swear a terrible oath, that he would, at a blow, cut the head from his body, if he made the least attempt at escape.

The public services of the Gipsies were in a short time discontinued, as their conduct only made matters a great deal worse. A friend of mine[227] saw those Gipsy constables, for Peebles-shire, sworn into office, at the town of Peebles, when they were first appointed. He said he never saw such a set of gloomy, strange-looking fellows, in his life; and expressed his surprise at the conduct of the county magistrates, for employing such banditti as conservators of the public peace. The most extraordinary circumstance attending their appointment, he said, was, that not one of them had a permanent residence within the county.

[227] The late Mr. Charles Alexander, tenant of Happrew.

During the American war, however, the tide of fortune again completely turned against the Gipsies. The Government was in need of soldiers and sailors; the Gipsies were a proscribed race; their peculiar habits were continually involving them in serious scrapes and difficulties; the consequence was, that the Tinklers were apprehended all over the country, and forced into our fleets and armies then serving in America. All the aged persons of intelligence with whom I have conversed on this subject, agree in representing that the kidnapping system at that period was the means of greatly breaking up and dispersing the Gipsy bands in Scotland. From this blow these unruly vagrants have never recovered their former position in the country.[228]

[228] We may very readily believe that almost all of the Gipsies would
desert the army, on landing in America, and marry Gipsy women in the
colonies, or bring others out from home, or marry with common natives,
or return home. Indeed, native-born American Gipsies say that many of
the British Gipsies voluntarily accepted the bounty, and a passage to
the colonies, during the war of the Revolution, and deserted the army
on landing. This would lead to a migration of the tribe generally to
America.--ED.

The war in America had been concluded only a few years before that with France broke out. Our army and navy were, of necessity, again augmented to an extent beyond precedent. It was not difficult to find pretences for renewing the chase of the Gipsies, and apprehending them, under the name of vagrants and disorderly persons. They were again compelled to enlist into our regiments, and embark on board our ships of war, as sailors and marines. An individual stated to me that, about the commencement of this war, he had seen English Gipsies sent, in scores at a time, on board of men-of-war, in the Downs.

But, rather than be forced into a service so much against their inclinations, numerous instances occurred of Gipsies voluntarily mutilating themselves. In the very custody of press-gangs, and other hardened kidnappers, the determined Gipsies have, with hatchets, razors, and other sharp instruments, struck from their hands a thumb, or finger or two, to render them unfit for a military life. Several instances have come to my knowledge of these resolute acts of the Scottish Gipsies. I have myself seen several of the tribe without fingers; and, on enquiry, I found that they themselves had struck them from their hands, in consequence of their aversion to become soldiers and sailors. One man, of the name of Graham, during the last war, laid his hand upon a block of wood, and, in a twinkling, struck, with a hatchet, his thumb from one of his hands. Another, of the name of Gordon, struck two of his fingers from one of his hands with a razor. Such, indeed, was the aversion which the whole Gipsy race had to a military life, that even mothers sometimes mutilated their infants, by cutting off certain fingers, to render them, when they became men, entirely incapable of serving in either the army or navy.[229]

[229] "When Paris was garrisoned by the allied troops, in the year
1815, I was walking with a British officer, near a post held by the
Prussian troops. He happened, at the time, to smoke a cigar, and was
about, while passing the sentinel, to take it out of his mouth, in
compliance with a general regulation to that effect; when, greatly to
the astonishment of the passengers, the soldier addressed him in these
words; 'Rauchen Sie immer fort; verdamt sey der Preussische Dienst;'
that is: 'Smoke away; may the Prussian service be d----d.' Upon
looking closer at the man, he seemed plainly to be a _Zigeuner_, or
Gipsy, who took this method of expressing his detestation of the duty
imposed on him. When the risk he ran, by doing so, is considered, it
will be found to argue a deep degree of dislike which could make him
commit himself so unwarily. If he had been overheard by a sergeant or
corporal, the _prugel_ would have been the slightest instrument of
punishment employed."--_Sir Walter Scott: Note to Quentin Durward._

Mutilation was also very common among the English Gipsies, during the
French war. Strange as it may appear, the same took place among them,
at the commencement of the late Russian war; from which we may
conclude, that they had suffered severely during the previous war, or
they would not have resorted to so extreme a measure for escaping
military duty, when a press-gang was not even thought of. An English
Gipsy, at the latter time, laid two of his fingers on a block of wood,
and, handing his broom-knife to his neighbour, said, "Now, take off
these fingers, or I'll take off your head with this other hand!"

During the French war, Gipsies again and again accepted the bounty for
recruits, but took "French leave" of the service. The idea is finely
illustrated in Burns' "Jolly Beggars:"

"TUNE--_Clout the caudron_.

"My bonny lass, I work in brass,
A Tinkler is my station:
I've travell'd round all Christian ground,
In this my occupation.
I've ta'en the gold, an' been enroll'd
In many a noble squadron:
But vain they searched when off I march'd
To go and clout the caudron."

Poosie Nancie and her reputed daughter, Racer Jess, were very probably
Gipsies, who kept a poor "Tinkler Howff" at Mauchline.

Gipsies sometimes voluntarily join the navy, as musicians. Here their
vanity will have a field for conspicuous display; for a good fifer, on
board of a man-of-war, in accompanying certain work with his music, is
equal to the services of ten men. There were some Gipsy musicians in
the fleet at Sebastopol. But, generally speaking, Gipsies are like
cats--not very fond of the water.--ED.

Such causes as these, taken in connection with the improved internal administration of the country, and the progression of the age, have cast a complexion over the outward aspect of the bulk of the Scottish Gipsy race, entirely different from what it was before they came into existence.

Many of the Gipsies now keep shops of earthen-ware, china, and crystal. Some of them, I am informed on the best authority, have from one to eight thousand pounds invested in this line of business.[230] I am disposed to think that few of these shops were established prior to the commencement of the French war; as I find that several of their owners travelled the country in their early years. Perhaps the fear of being apprehended as vagrants, and compelled to enter the army or navy, forced some of the better sort to settle in towns.[231] Like their tribe in other countries, numbers of our Scottish Gipsies deal in horses; others keep public-houses; and some of them, as innkeepers, will, in heritable and moveable property, possess, perhaps, two or three thousand pounds. These innkeepers and stone-ware merchants are scarcely to be distinguished as Gipsies; yet they all retain the language, and converse in it, among themselves. The females, as is their custom, are particularly active in managing the affairs of their respective concerns.

[230] Mr. Borrow mentions having observed, at a fair in Spain, a
family of Gipsies, richly dressed, after the fashion of their nation.
They had come a distance of upwards of a hundred leagues. Some
merchants, to whom he was recommended, informed him, that they had a
credit on their house, to the amount of twenty thousand dollars.--ED.

[231] In his enquiry into the present condition of the Gipsies, our
author has apparently confined his remarks exclusively to the body in
its present wandering state, and such part of it as left the tent
subsequently to the commencement of the French war. In the
Disquisition on the Gipsies, the subject will be fully reviewed, from
the date of arrival of the race in the country.--ED.

Many of them have betaken themselves to some of the regular occupations of the country, such as coopers, shoemakers, and plumbers; some are masons--an occupation to which they seem to have a partiality. Some of them are members of masons' lodges. There are many of them itinerant bell-hangers, and umbrella-menders. Among them there are tin-smiths, braziers, and cutlers, in great numbers; and the tribe also furnish a proportion of chimney-sweeps. I recollect of a Gipsy, who travelled the country, selling earthen-ware, becoming, in the end, a master-sweep. Several were, and I believe are, constables; and I am inclined to think that the police establishments, in large as well as small towns, contain some of the fraternity.[232] Individuals of the female Gipsies are employed as servants, in the families of respectable persons, in town and country. Some of them have been ladies' maids, and even house-keepers to clergymen and farmers.[233] I heard of one, in a very respectable family, who was constantly boasting of her ancient and high descent; her father being a Baillie, and her mother a Faa--the two principal families in Scotland. Some of those persons who sell gingerbread at fairs, or what the country-people call _rowly-powly-men_, are also of the Gipsy race. Almost all these individuals hawking earthen-ware through the country, with carts, and a large proportion of those hawking japan and white-iron goods, are Gipsies.

[232] This is quite common. An English mixed Gipsy spontaneously
informed me that he had been a constable In L----, and that he had a
cousin who was lately a _runner_ in the police establishment of M----.
Among other motives for the Gipsies joining the police is the
following: that such is their dislike for the people among whom they
live, owing to the prejudice which is entertained against them, that
nothing gives them greater satisfaction than being the instruments of
affronting and punishing their hereditary enemies. Besides this, the
lounging and idle kind of life, coupled with the activity, of a
constable, is pretty much to their natural disposition. An intelligent
mixed Gipsy is calculated to make a first-rate constable and
thief-catcher. Of course, he will not be very hard on those of his own
race who come in his way.--ED.

[233] Our author frequently spoke of a dissenting Scottish clergyman
having been married to a Gipsy, but was not aware, as far as I know,
of the circumstances under which the marriage took place. The
clergyman was not, in all probability, aware that he was taking a
Gipsy to his bosom; and as little did the public generally; but it was
well known to the initiated that both her father and mother had cut
and divided many a purse. The unquestionable character and standing of
the father, and the prudent conduct of the mother, protected the
children. One of the daughters married another dissenting clergyman,
which fairly disarmed those not of the Gipsy race of any prejudice
towards the grand-children. The issue of these marriages would pass
into Gipsydom, as explained in the Disquisition on the Gipsies.--ED.

Some of the itinerant venders of inferior sorts of jewelry, part of which they also manufacture, and carry about in boxes on their shoulders, are of the tribe; and some of them even carry these articles in small, handsome, light-made carts. I had frequently observed, in my neighbourhood, a very smart-looking and well-dressed man, who, with his wife and family, and a servant to take care of his children, travelled the country, in a neat, light cart, selling jewelry. All the family were well dressed. I was curious to know the origin of this man, and, upon enquiring of one of the tribe, but of a different clan, I found that he was a Gipsy, of the name of Robertson, descended from the old _horners_ who traversed the kingdom, about half a century ago. He still retained the speech, peculiar dance, and manner of handling the cudgel, the practices and roguish tricks of his ancestors. I believe he also practised chain-dropping. To show the line of life which some of the descendants of the old style of Gipsies are now pursuing, in Scotland, I will give the following anecdote, which I witnessed, relative to this Gipsy jeweller.

I happened to be conversing, about twenty years ago, with four or five individuals, on a public quay in Fifeshire, when a smart, well-dressed sailor, apparently of the rank of a mate, obtruded himself on our company. He said he was "a sailor, and had spent all his money in a frolic, as many thoughtless sailors had done;" and, pulling out a watch, he continued, "he would give his gold watch for a mere trifle, to supply his immediate wants." One of the company at once thought he was an impostor, and told him his watch was not gold at all, and worth very little money. "Not worth much money!" he exclaimed; "why, I paid not less than ten francs for it, in France, the other day!" At this assertion, all present burst out a laughing at the impostor's ignorance in exposing his own trick. "Why, friend," said a ship-master, who was one of the company, "a franc is only worth tenpence; so you have paid just eight and fourpence for this valuable watch of yours. Do not attempt to cheat us in this manner." At finding himself so completely exposed, the villain became furious, and stepping close up to the ship-master, with abusive language, _chucked_ him under the chin, to provoke him to fight. I at once perceived that the feigned sailor was a professional boxer and cudgelist, and entreated the ship-master not to touch him, notwithstanding his insolence. The "sailor," now disappointed on all hands, brandished his bludgeon, and retreated backwards, dancing in the Gipsy manner, and twirling his weapon before him, till he got his back to a wall. Here he set all at defiance, with a design that some one should strike at him, that he might avenge the affront he had received. But he was allowed to go away without interruption. This man was, in short, Robertson, the Gipsy travelling jeweller, disguised as a sailor, and a well-known prize-fighter.

Almost all those cheats called thimble-riggers, who infest thoroughfares, highways and byways, are also Gipsies, of a superior class. I have tried them by the language, and found they understood it, as has been seen in my account of the Gipsy language.

I need scarcely say, that all those females who travel the country in families, selling articles made from horn, while the males practise the mysteries of the tinker, are that portion of the Gipsies who adhere more strictly to their ancient customs and manner of life. Some of the principal families of these nomadic horner bands have yet districts on which none others of the tribe dare encroach. This division of the Gipsies are, by superficial observers, considered the only Gipsies in existence in Scotland; which is a great mistake. The author of Guy Mannering, himself, seems to have had this class of Gipsies, only, in view, when he says, "There are not now above five hundred of the tribe in Scotland." Those who deal in earthen-ware, and work at the tinsmith business, call these horners Gipsies; and nothing can give greater offence to these Gipsy potters and smiths than to ask them if they ever _made horn spoons_; for, by asking them this question, you indirectly call them Gipsies, an appellation that alarms them exceedingly.[234]

[234] It is only within these forty years that spoon-making from horn
became a regular trade. It would seem the Gipsies had a monopoly of
the business; for I am informed that the first man in Scotland who
served a regular apprenticeship to it was alive, in Glasgow, in 1836.
[There is nothing in this remark to imply that the manufacturing of
spoons, and other articles, from horn, may not be monopolized by the
Gipsies yet, whatever the way in which it may be carried on.--ED.]

Since the termination of the long-protracted French war, the Gipsies have, to some extent, resumed their ancient manners; and many of them are to be seen encamped in the open fields. There are six tents to be observed at present, for one during the war. To substantiate what I have said of the numbers and manners of the nomadic Gipsies since the peace, I will give the two following paragraphs, taken from the Caledonian Mercury newspaper:

"_Tinklers and vagabonds_: The country has been much infested, of late years, by wandering hordes of vagabonds, who, under pretence of following the serviceable calling of tinkers, assume the name and appearance of such, merely to extort contributions of victuals, and other articles of value, from the country-people, particularly in lonely districts. The evil has encreased rapidly of late, and calls loudly for redress upon those in whose charge the police of the country districts is placed. They generally travel in bands, varying in number from ten to thirty; and wherever they pitch their camp, the neighbours are certain of suffering loss of cattle or poultry, unless they submit to pay a species of black-mail, to save themselves from heavier and more irregular contributions. These bands possess all the vices peculiar to the regular Gipsies, without any of the extenuating qualities which distinguish these foreign tribes. Unlike the latter, they do not settle in one place sufficiently long to attach themselves to the soil, or to particular families; and seem possessed of no industrious habits, but those of plunder, knavery, and riot. The chief headquarters of the hordes are at the caves of Auchmithie, on the east coast of Forfarshire; from which, to the wilds of Argyleshire, seems to be the usual route of their bands; small detachments being sent off, at intermediate places, to extend the scene of their plunder. Their numbers have been calculated by one who lives on the direct line of their passage, through the braes of Perthshire, and who has had frequent opportunities for observation; and he estimates them at several hundred."--_22d August, 1829._

"A horde of Gipsies and vagabonds encamped, last week, in a quarry, on the back of the hill opposite Cherry-bank. Their number amounted to about thirty. The inhabitants in that quarter became alarmed; and Provost Ross, whose mansion is in the vicinity of the new settlers, ordered out a strong posse of officers from Perth, to dislodge them; which they effected. The country is now kept in continual terror by these vagabonds, and it will really be imperative on the landed proprietors to adopt some decided measure for the suppression of this growing evil."--_3d October, 1829._[235]

[235] From the numerous enquiries I have made, I am fully satisfied
that the greater part of the vagrants mentioned in these notices are
Gipsies; at least most of them speak the Gipsy language. [It matters
not whether the people mentioned are wholly or only partly of Gipsy
blood; it is sufficient if they have been reared as Gipsies. There are
enough of the tribe in the country to follow the kind of life
mentioned, to the extent the people can afford to submit to, without
having their prerogatives infringed upon by ordinary natives. Where
will we find any of the latter, who would betake themselves to the
tent, and follow such a mode of life? Besides, the Gipsies, with their
organization, would not tolerate it; and far less would they allow any
common natives, of the lowest class, to travel in their
company.--ED.]

A gentleman informed me that, in the same year, he counted, in Aberdeenshire, thirty-five men, women, and children, in one band, with six asses and two carts, for carrying their luggage and articles of merchandise. Another individual stated to me, that upwards of three hundred of the Gipsies attended the funeral of one of their old females, who died near the bridge of Earn. So late as 1841, the sheriff of East Lothian addressed a representation to the justices of the peace of Mid-Lothian, recommending a new law for the suppression of the numerous Gipsy tents in the Lothians. I have, myself, during a walk of two hours, counted, in Edinburgh and its suburbs, upwards of fifty of these vagrants, strolling about.[236]

[236] Owing to such causes as these, many of the Gipsies have been
again driven into their holes. It is amusing to notice the tricks
which some of them resort to, in evading the letter of the Vagrant
Act. They generally encamp on the borders of two counties, which they
will cross--passing over into the other--to avoid being taken up: for
county officers have no jurisdiction over them, beyond the boundaries
of their respective shires.--ED.

When I visited St. Boswell's, I felt convinced, as mentioned in the last chapter, that there were upwards of three hundred Gipsies in the fair held at that place. Part of them formed their carts, laden with earthen-ware, into two lines, leaving a space between them, like a street. In the rear of the carts were a few small tents, in which were Gipsies, sleeping in the midst of the noise and bustle of the market; and numbers of children, horses, asses, and dogs, hanging around them. There were also kettles, suspended from triangles, in which victuals were cooking; and many of the Gipsies enjoyed a warm meal, while others at the market had to content themselves with a cold repast. In the midst of the throng of this large and crowded fair, I noticed, without the least discomposure on their part, some of the male Gipsies changing their dirty, greasy-looking shirts for clean ones, leaving no covering on their tawny persons, but their breeches; and some of the old females, with bare shoulders and breasts, combing their dark locks, like black horses' tails, mixed with grey. "Ae whow! look at that," exclaimed a countryman to his companion; and, without waiting for his friend's reply, he gravely added: "Everything after its kind." The Gipsies were, in short, dressing themselves for the fair, in the midst of the crowd, regardless of everything passing around them.

On my return from the English Border, I passed over the field where the fair had been held, two days before, and found, to my surprise, the Gipsies occupying their original encampment. They, alone, were in possession of St. Boswell's Green. I counted twenty-four carts, thirty horses, twenty asses, and about thirty dogs; and I thought there were upwards of a hundred men, women, and children, on the spot. The horses were, in general, complete rosinantes--as lean, worn-out, wretched-looking animals, as possibly could be imagined. The field trampled almost to mortar, by the multitude of horses, cattle, and sheep, and human beings, at the fair; the lean, jaded and lame horses, braying asses, and surly-looking dogs; the groups of miserable furniture, ragged children, and gloomy-looking parents; a fire, here and there, smoking before as many miserable tents--when contrasted with the gaily-dressed multitude, of both sexes, on the spot, two days before--presented a scene unequalled for its wretched, squalid and desolate appearance. Any one desirous of viewing an Asiatic encampment, in Scotland, should visit St. Boswell's Green, a day or two after the fair.[237]

[237] St. Boswell's fair "is the resort of many salesmen of goods,
and, in particular, of _tinkers_. Bands of these very peculiar people,
the direct descendants of the original Gipsies, who so much annoyed
the country in the fifteenth century, haunt the fair, for the disposal
of earthen-ware, horn spoons, and tin culinary utensils. They possess,
in general, horses and carts, and they form their temporary camp by
each _whomling_ his cart upside down, and forming a lodgement with
straw and bedding beneath. Cooking is performed outside the
_craal_, in Gipsy fashion. There could not, perhaps, be witnessed,
at the present day, in Britain, a more amusing and interesting
scene, illustrative of a rude period, than is here annually
exhibited."--_Chambers' Gazetteer of Scotland._ [This writer is in
error as to the Gipsies annoying the country in the _fifteenth_
century: that occurred during the three following centuries.--ED.]

The following may be said to be about the condition in which the present race of Scottish _tinkering_ Gipsies are to be found: I visited, at one time, a horde of Gipsy tinsmiths, bivouacked by the side of a small streamlet, about half a mile from the town of Inverkeithing. It consisted of three married couples, the heads of as many families, one grown-up, unmarried female, and six half-clad children below six years of age. Including the more grown-up members, scattered about in the neighbourhood, begging victuals, there must have been above twenty souls belonging to this band. The tinsmiths had two horses and one ass, for carrying their luggage, and several dogs. They remained, during three cold and frosty nights, encamped in the open fields, with no tents or covering, for twenty individuals, but two pairs of old blankets.[238] Some of the youngest children, however, were pretty comfortably lodged at night. The band had several boxes, or rather old chests, each about four feet long, two broad, and two deep, in which they carried their white-iron plates, working tools, and some of their infants, on the backs of their horses. In these chests the children passed the night, the lids being raised a little, to prevent suffocation. The stock of working tools, for each family, consisted of two or three files, as many small hammers, a pair of bellows, a wooden mallet, a pair of pincers, a pair of large shears, a crucible, a soldering-iron or two, and a small anvil, of a long shape, which was stuck into the ground.

[238] The Gipsies' supreme luxury is to lie, day and night, so near
the fire as to be in danger of burning. At the same time, they can
bear to travel in the severest cold, bare-headed, with no other
covering than a torn shirt, or some old rags carelessly thrown over
them, without fear of catching cold, cough, or any other disorder.
They are a people blessed with an iron constitution. Neither wet nor
dry weather, heat nor cold, let the extremes follow each other ever so
close, seems to have any effect upon them.--_Grellmann on the
Hungarian Gipsies._

Their power of resisting cold is truly wonderful, as it is not
uncommon to find them encamped, in the midst of the snow, in light
canvas tents, when the temperature is 25 or 30 degrees below freezing
point, according to Raumer.--_Borrow on the Russian Gipsies._

It is no uncommon thing to see a poor Scottish Gipsy wrap himself and
wife in a thin, torn blanket, and pass the night, in the cold of
December, in the open air, by the wayside. On rising up in the
morning, they will shake themselves in their rags, as birds of prey,
in coming off their perch, do their feathers; make for the nearest
public-house, with, perhaps, their last copper, for a gill; and, like
the ravens, go in search of a breakfast, wherever and whenever
Providence may send it to them.--ED.

The females as well as the males of this horde of Gipsies were busily employed in manufacturing white-iron into household utensils, and the clink of their hammers was heard from daybreak till dark.[239] The males formed the plates into the shapes of the different utensils required, and the females soldered and otherwise completed them, while the younger branches of the families presented them for sale in the neighbourhood. The breakfast of the band consisted of potatoes and herrings, which the females and children had collected in the immediate neighbourhood by begging. I noticed that each family ate their meals by themselves, wrought at their calling by themselves, and sold their goods for themselves. The name of the chief of the gang was Williamson, who said he travelled in the counties of Fife and Perth. When I turned to leave them, they heaped upon me the most fulsome praises, and so loud, that I might distinctly hear them, exactly in the manner as those in Spain, mentioned by Dr. Bright.

[239] Some of the itinerant Gipsies, doubtless, use their trades, in a
great measure, as a cover for living by means such as society deems
very objectionable. Many of them work hard while they are at it,
as in the above instance, when "the clink of their hammers was
heard from daybreak till dark;" and as has been said of those in
Tweed-dale--"however early the farm servants rose to their ordinary
employments, they always found the Tinklers at work."--ED.

I have, for many months running, counted above twenty Gipsies depart out of the town of Inverkeithing, about ten o'clock in the forenoon, every day, on their way to various parts of the country; and I have been informed that from twenty to thirty vagrants lodged in this small burgh nightly. Some of the bakers declared that the persons who were the worst to please with hot rolls for breakfast, were the beggars, or rather Gipsies, who frequented the place. On one occasion, I observed twelve females, without a single male among them, decamp out of the town, all travelling in and around a cart, drawn by a shagged pony. The whole party were neatly attired, some of the young girls having trowsers, with frills about their ankles; and very few would have taken them for Gipsies. A large proportion of those miserable-looking females, who are accompanied by a number of ragged children, and scatter themselves through the streets, and beg from door to door, are Gipsies. I do not recollect, distressing as the times ever have been, of having seen reduced Scotch tradesmen _begging in families_. I remember once seeing a man with a white apron wrapped around his waist, his coat off, an infant in his arms, and two others at his feet, accompanied by a dark-looking fellow of about twenty, singing through the town mentioned. They represented themselves as broken-down tradesmen, and had the appearance of having just left their looms, to sing for bread; and many half-pence they received. Suspecting them to be impostors, I observed their motions, and soon saw them join other vagrants, outside of the town, among whom were females. The poor tradesmen were now dressed in very substantial drab surtouts. They were nothing but a family of Tinklers. They were proceeding, with great speed, to the next town, to practise their impositions on the inhabitants; and I learned that they had, in this manner, traversed several counties in Scotland. At a subsequent period, I fell in with another family, consisting of five children and their parents, driving an ass and its colt, near the South Queensferry. Upon the back of the ass were two stone-hammers, and two reaping-hooks, placed in such a manner as any one, in passing, might observe them. I enquired where they had been. "We have been in England, sir, seeking work, but could find none." Few would have taken them for anything but country labourers; but the truth was, they were a family of Gipsies, of the well-known name of Marshall, from about Stranraer. Their implements of industry, so conspicuously exhibited on the back of their ass, was all deception.

It is only about twenty-five years since the Irish Gipsies, in bands, made their appearance in Scotland. Many severe conflicts they had with our Scottish tribes, before they obtained a footing in the country. But there is a new swarm of Irish Gipsies at present scattered, in bands, over Scotland, all acquainted with the Gipsy language. They are a set of the most wretched creatures on the face of the earth. A horde of them, consisting of several families, encamped, at one time, at Port Edgar, on the banks of the Forth, near South Queensferry. They had three small tents, two horses, and four asses, and trafficked in an inferior sort of earthen-ware. On the outside of one of the tents, in the open air, with nothing but the canopy of heaven above her, and the greensward beneath her, one of the females, like the deer in the forest, brought forth a child, without either the infant or mother receiving the slightest injury.[240] The woman, however, was attended by a midwife from Queensferry, who said that these Irish Gipsies were so completely covered with filth and vermin, that she durst not enter one of their tents, to assist the female in labour. Several individuals were attracted to the spot, by the novelty of such an occurrence, in so unusual a place as the open fields. Immediately after the child was born, it was handed about to every one of the band, that they might look at the "young donkey," as they called it. In about two days after the accouchement, the horde proceeded on their journey, as if nothing had happened.[241]

[240] I know another instance of a Gipsy having a child in the open
fields. It took place among the rushes on Stanhope-hangh, on the banks
of the Tweed. In the forenoon, she was delivered of her child, without
the assistance of a midwife, and in the afternoon the hardy Gipsy
resumed her journey. The infant was a daughter, named Mary Baillie.

[When a Gipsy woman is confined, it is either in a miserable hut or in
the open air, but always easily and fortunately. True Gipsy-like, for
want of some vessel, a hole is dug in the ground, which is filled with
cold water, and the new-born child is washed in it--_Grellmann, on the
Hungarian Gipsies._ We may readily believe that a child coming into
the world under the circumstances mentioned, would have some of the
peculiarities of a wild duck. Mr. Hoyland says that "on the first
introduction of a Gipsy child to school, he flew like a bird against
the sides of its cage; but by a steady care, and the influence of the
example of the other children, he soon became settled, and fell into
the ranks." It pleases the Gipsies to know that their ancestors came
into the world "like the deer in the forest," and, when put to school,
"flew like a bird against the sides of its cage."--ED.]

[241] This invasion of Scotland by Irish Gipsies has, of late years,
greatly altered the condition of the nomadic Scottish tribes; for this
reason, that as Scotland, no less than any other country, can support
only a certain number of such people who "live on the road," so many
of the Scottish Gipsies have been forced to betake themselves to other
modes of making a living. To such an extent has this been the case,
that Gipsies, speaking the Scottish dialect, are in some districts
comparatively rarely to be met with, where they were formerly
numerous. The same cause may even lead to the extinction of the
Scottish Gipsies as wanderers; but as the descendants of the Irish
Gipsies will acquire the Scottish vernacular in the second generation,
(a remarkably short period among the Gipsies,) what will then pass for
Scottish Gipsies will be Irish by descent. The Irish Gipsies are
allowed, by their English brethren, to speak good Gipsy, but with a
broad and vulgar accent; so that the language in Scotland will have a
still better chance of being preserved.

England has likewise been invaded by these Irish swarms. The English
Gipsies complain bitterly of them. "They have no law among them," they
say; "they have fairly destroyed Scotland as a country to travel in;
if they get a loan of anything from the country-people, to wrap
themselves in, in the barn, at night, they will decamp with it in the
morning. They have brought a disgrace upon the very name of Gipsy, in
Scotland, and are heartily disliked by both English and Scotch."
"There is a family of Irish Gipsies living across the road there, whom
I would not be seen speaking to," said a superior English Gipsy; "I
hate a Jew, and I dislike an Irish Gipsy." But English and Scottish
Gipsies pull well together; and are on very friendly terms in America,
and frequently visit each other. The English sympathise with the
Scottish, under the wrongs they have experienced at the hands of the
Irish, as well as on account of the persecutions they experienced in
Scotland, so long after such had ceased in England.

Twenty-five years ago, there were many Gipsies to be found between
Londonderry and Belfast, following the style of life described under
the chapter of Tweed-dale and Clydesdale Gipsies. Their names were
Docherty, McCurdy, McCloskey, McGuire, McKay, Holmes, Dinsmore,
Morrow, Allan, Stewart, Lindsay, Cochrane, and Williamson. Some of
these seem to have migrated from Scotland and the North of
England.--ED.

But there are Irish Gipsies of a class much superior to the above, in Scotland. In 1836, a very respectable and wealthy master-tradesman informed me that the whole of the individuals employed in his manufactory, in Edinburgh, were Irish Gipsies.[242]

[242] In England, some of the Irish Gipsies send their children to
learn trades. There are many of such Irish mechanic Gipsies in
America. A short time ago, a company of them landed in New York, and
proceeded on to Chicago. Their occupations, among others, were those
of hatters and tailors.--ED.

The Gipsies do not appear to have been altogether free from the crime of destroying their offspring, when, by infirmities, they could not be carried along with them in their wanderings, and thereby became an encumbrance to them. It has, indeed, been often noticed that few, or no, deformed or sickly individuals are to be found among them.[243] The following appears to be an instance of something like the practice in question. A family of Gipsies were in the habit of calling periodically, in their peregrinations over the country, at the house of a lady in Argyleshire. They frequently brought with them a daughter, who was ailing of some lingering disorder. The lady noticed the sickly child, and often spoke kindly to her parents about her condition. On one occasion, when the family arrived on her premises, she missed the child, and enquired what had become of her, and whether she had recovered. The father said his daughter was "a poor sickly thing, not worth carrying about with them," and that he had "made away with her." Whether any notice was taken of this murder, by the authorities, is not mentioned. The Gipsies, however, are generally noted for a remarkable attachment to their children.[244]

[243] They are neither overgrown giants nor diminutive dwarfs; and
their limbs are formed in the justest proportions. Large bellies are
as uncommon among them as humpbacks, blindness, or other corporeal
defects.--_Grellmann on the Hungarian Gipsies._--ED.

[244] The _Ross-shire Advertiser_, for April, 1842, says: "Gipsy
Recklessness.--Last week, two Gipsy women, who were begging through
the country, each with a child on her back, having got intoxicated,
took up their lodgings, for the night, in an old sawpit, in the parish
of Logie-Easter. It is supposed that they forgot to take the children
off their backs, when going to rest; for, in the morning, they were
found to be both dead, having been smothered by their miserable
mothers lying upon them through the night. One of the women, upon
awakening in the morning, called to the other, 'that her baby was
dead,' to which the reply was, 'that it could not be helped.' Having
dug a hole, they procured some straw, rolled up the children in it,
put them in the hole, and then filled it up with the earth."

Several authors have brought a general charge of cowardice against the Gipsies, in some of the countries of Europe; but I never saw or heard of any grounds for bringing such a charge against the Scottish Gipsies. On the contrary, I always considered our Tinklers the very reverse of cowards. Heron, in his journey through part of Scotland, before the year 1793, when speaking of the Gipsies in general, says: "They make excellent soldiers, whenever the habit of military discipline can be sufficiently impressed upon them." Several of our Scottish Gipsies have even enjoyed commissions, as has already been noticed.[245] But the military is not a life to their taste, as we have already seen; for, rather than enter it, they will submit to even personal mutilation. There is even danger in employing them in our regiments at the seat of war; as I am convinced that, if there are any Gipsies in the ranks of the enemy, an improper intercourse will exist between them in both armies. During the last rebellion in Ireland, the Gipsy soldiers in our regiments kept up an intimate and friendly correspondence with their brethren among the Irish rebels.[246]

[245] Though Gipsies everywhere, they differ, in some respects, in the
various countries which they inhabit. For example, an English Gipsy,
of pugilistic tendencies, will, in a vapouring way, engage to _thrash_
a dozen of his Hungarian brethren. The following is the substance of
what Grellmann says on this feature of their character:

Sulzer says a Gipsy requires to have been a long time in the army
before he can meet an enemy's balls with decent soldiers' resolution.
They have often been employed in military expeditions, but never as
regular soldiers. In the thirty years' war, the Swedes had a body of
them in the army; and the Danes had three companies of them at the
siege of Hamburg, in 1686. They were chiefly employed in flying
parties, to burn, plunder, or lay waste the enemy's country.

In two Hungarian regiments, nearly every eighth man is a Gipsy. In
order to prevent either them(!) or any others from remembering their
descent, it is ordered, by the Government, that as soon as a Gipsy
joins the regiment, he is no longer to be called by that appellation.
Here he is placed promiscuously with other men. But whether he would
be adequate to a soldier's station--unmixed with strangers, in the
company of his equals only--is very doubtful. He has every outward
essential for a soldier, yet his innate properties, his levity, and
want of foresight, render him incompatible for the services of one, as
an instance may illustrate. Francis von Perenyi, who commanded at the
siege of Nagy Ida, being short of men, was obliged to have recourse to
the Gipsies, of whom he collected a thousand. These he stationed
behind the entrenchments, while he reserved his own men to garrison
the citadel. The Gipsies supported the attack with so much resolution,
and returned the fire of the enemy with such alacrity, that the
assailants--little suspecting who were the defendants--were compelled
to retreat. But the Gipsies, elated with victory, immediately crept
out of their holes, and cried after them, "Go, and be hanged, you
rascals! and thank God that we had no more powder and shot, or we
would have played the devil with you!" "What!" they exclaimed, bearing
in mind the proverb, "You can drive fifty Gipsies before you with a
wet rag," "What! are _you_ the heroes?" and, so saying, the besiegers
immediately wheeled about, and, sword in hand, drove the black crew
back to their works, entered them along with them, and in a few
minutes totally routed them.--ED.