The English Gipsies and Their Language Part 24

"Savo's tute's rye?" putched a ryas mush of a Rommany chal. "I've dui ryas," pooked the Rommany chal: "Duvel's the yeck an' beng's the waver.

Mandy kairs booti for the beng till I've lelled my yeckora habben, an'

pallers mi Duvel pauli ajaw."

TRANSLATION.

"Who is your master?" asked a gentleman's servant of a Gipsy. "I've two masters," said the Gipsy: "G.o.d is the one, and the devil is the other. I work for the devil till I have got my dinner (one-o'clock food), and after that follow the Lord."

GUDLO x.x.xI. THE LITTLE GIPSY BOY AT THE SILVERSMITH'S.

A bitti chavo jalled adree the boro gav pash his dadas, an' they hatched taller the hev of a ruppenomengro's buddika sar pordo o' kushti-d.i.c.kin covvas. "O dadas," sh.e.l.led the tikno chavo, "what a boro choromengro dovo mush must be to a' lelled so boot adusta rooys an' horas!"

A tacho covva often d.i.c.ks sar a hokkeny (huckeny) covva; an dovo's sim of a tacho mush, but a juva often d.i.c.ks tacho when she isn't.

TRANSLATION.

A little boy went to the great village (_i.e_., London) with his father, and they stopped before the window of a silversmith's shop all full of pretty things. "O father," cried the small boy, "what a great thief that man must be to have got so many spoons and watches!"

A true thing often looks like a false one; and the same is true (and that's _same_) of a true man, but a girl often looks right when she is not.

GUDLO x.x.xII. THE GIPSY'S DREAM.

Mandy sutto'd I was pirraben lang o' tute, an' I d.i.c.ked mandy's pen odoi 'pre the choomber. Then I was pirryin' ajaw parl the puvius, an' I welled to the panni paul' the Beng's Choomber, an' adoi I d.i.c.ked some ranis, saw nango barrin' a pauno plachta 'pre lengis sherros, adree the panni pash their bukkos. An' I pookered lengis, "Mi-ranis, I putch tute's cammoben; I didn't jin tute sus acai." But yeck pre the wavers penned mandy boot kushti cammoben, "Chichi, mor dukker your-kokero; we just welled alay acai from the ker to lel a bitti bath." An' she savvy'd sa kushto, but they all jalled avree glan mandy sar the bavol, an' tute was hatchin' pash a maudy sar the cheirus.

So it pens, "when you d.i.c.k ranis sar dovo, you'll muller kushto." Well, if it's to be akovo, I kaum it'll be a booti cheirus a-wellin.' Tacho!

TRANSLATION.

I dreamed I was walking with you, and I saw my sister (a fortune-teller) there upon the hill. Then I (found myself) walking again over the field, and I came to the water near the Devil's d.y.k.e, and there I saw some ladies, quite naked excepting a white cloth on their heads, in the water to the waists. And I said to them, "Ladies, I beg your pardon; I did not know you were here." But one among the rest said to me very kindly, "No matter, don't trouble yourself; we just came down here from the house to take a little bath." And she smiled sweetly, but they all vanished before me like the cloud (wind), and you were standing by me all the time.

So it means, "_when you see ladies like that, you will die happily_."

Well, if it's to be that, I hope it will be a long time coming. Yes, indeed.

GUDLO x.x.xIII. OF THE GIRL AND HER LOVER.

Yeckorus, boot hundred beshes the divvus acai, a juva was wellin' to ch.o.r.e a yora. "Mukk mandy hatch," penned the yora, "an' I'll sikker tute ki tute can lel a tikno pappni." So the juva lelled the tikno pappni, and it pookered laki, "Mukk mandy jal an' I'll sikker tute ki tute can ch.o.r.e a bori kani." Then she ch.o.r.ed the bori kani, an' it sh.e.l.led avree, "Mukk mandy jal an' I'll sikker tute ki you can loure a rani-chillico."

And when she lelled the rani-chillico, it penned, "Mukk mandy jal an'

I'll sikker tute odoi ki tute can lel a guruvni's tikno." So she lelled the guruvni's tikno, an' it shokkered and ruvved, an' rakkered, "Mukk mandy jal an' I'll sikker tute where to lel a fino grai." An' when she loured the grai, it penned laki, "Mukk mandy jal an' I'll rikker tute to a kushto-d.i.c.k barvelo rye who kaums a pirreny." So she lelled the kushto tauno rye, an' she jivved with lester kushto yeck cooricus; but pash dovo he pookered her to jal avree, he didn't kaum her kekoomi. "Sa a wafro mush is tute," ruvved the rakli, "to b.i.t.c.her mandy avree! For tute's cammoben I delled avree a yora, a tikno pappni, a boro kani, a rani-chillico, a guruvni's tikno, an' a fino grai." "Is dovo tacho?"

putched the raklo. "'Pre my mullo dadas!" sovahalled the rakli," I del 'em sar apre for tute, yeck paul the waver, an' kenna tu b.i.t.c.hers mandy avree!" "So 'p mi-Duvel!" penned the rye, "if tute nashered sar booti covvas for mandy, I'll rummer tute." So they were rummobend.

Avali, there's huckeny (hokkeny) tachobens and tacho huckabens. You can sovahall pre the lil adovo.

TRANSLATION.

Once, many hundred years ago (to-day now), a girl was going to steal an egg. "Let me be," said the egg, "and I will show you where you can get a duck." So the girl got the duck, and it said (told) to her, "Let me go and I will show you where you can get a goose" (large hen). Then she stole the goose, and it cried out, "Let me go and I'll show you where you can steal a turkey" (lady-bird). And when she took the turkey, it said, "Let me go and I'll show you where you can get a calf." So she got the calf, and it bawled and wept, and cried, "Let me go and I'll show you where to get a fine horse." And when she stole the horse, it said to her, "Let me go and I'll carry you to a handsome, rich gentleman who wants a sweetheart." So she got the nice young gentleman, and lived with him pleasantly one week; but then he told her to go away, he did not want her any more. "What a bad man you are," wept the girl, "to send me away!

For your sake I gave away an egg, a duck, a goose, a turkey, a calf, and a fine horse." "Is that true?" asked the youth. "By my dead father!"

swore the girl, "I gave them all up for you, one after the other, and now you send me away!" "So help me G.o.d!" said the gentleman, "if you lost so many things for me, I'll marry you." So they were married.

Yes, there are false truths and true lies. You may kiss the book on _that_.

GUDLO x.x.xIV. THE GIPSY TELLS OF WILL-O'-THE-WISP.

Does mandy jin the lav adree Rommanis for a Jack-o'-lantern--the dood that prasters, and hatches, an' kells o' the ratti, parl the panni, adree the puvs? _Avali_; some pens 'em the Momeli Mullos, and some the Bitti Mullos. They're bitti geeros who rikker tute adree the gogemars, an'

sikker tute a dood till you're all jalled apre a wafro drum an nashered, an' odoi they chiv their kokeros pauli an' savs at tute. Mandy's d.i.c.ked their doods adusta cheiruses, an' kekoomi; but my pal d.i.c.ked langis muis pash mungwe yeck ratti. He was jallin' langus an' d.i.c.ked their doods, and jinned it was the yag of lesters tan. So he pallered 'em, an' they tadered him dukker the drum, parl the bors, weshes, puvius, gogemars, till they lelled him adree the panni, an then savvy'd avree. And odoi he d.i.c.ked lender pre the waver rikk, ma lesters kokerus yakkis, an' they were bitti mushis, bitti chovihanis, about dui peeras boro. An' my pal was bengis hunnalo, an' sovahalled pal' lengis, "If I lelled you acai, you ratfolly juckos! if I nashered you, I'd chin tutes curros!" An' he jalled to tan ajaw an' pookered mandy saw dovo 'pre dovo rat. "Kun sus adovo?" Avali, rya; dovo was pash Kaulo Panni--near Blackwater.

TRANSLATION.

Do I know the word in Rommanis for a Jack-o'-lantern--the light that runs, and stops, and dances by night, over the water, in the fields? Yes; some call them the Light Ghosts, and some the Little Ghosts. They're little men who lead you into the waste and swampy places, and show you a light until you have gone astray and are lost, and then they turn themselves around and laugh at you. I have seen their lights many a time, and nothing more; but my brother saw their faces close and opposite to him (directly _vis-a-vis_) one night. He was going along and saw their lights, and thought it was the fire of his tent. So he followed them, and they drew him from the road over hedges, woods, fields, and lonely marshes till they got him in the water, and then laughed out loud.

And there he saw them with his own eyes, on the opposite side, and they were little fellows, little goblins, about two feet high. And my brother was devilish angry, and swore at them! "If I had you here, you wretched dogs! if I caught you, I'd cut your throats!" And he went home and told me all that that night. "_Where was it_?" Yes, sir; that was near Blackwater.

GUDLO x.x.xV. THE GIPSY EXPLAINS WHY THE FLOUNDER HAS HIS MOUTH ON ONE SIDE.

Yeckorus sar the matchis jalled an' suvved kettenescrus 'dree the panni.

And yeck penned as yuv was a boro mush, an' the waver rakkered ajaw sa yuv was a borodiro mush, and sar pookered sigan ket'nus how lengis were borodirer mushis. Adoi the flounder sh.e.l.led avree for his meriben "Mandy's the krallis of you sar!" an' he sh.e.l.led so surrelo he kaired his mui bongo, all o' yeck rikkorus. So to akovo divvus acai he's penned the Krallis o' the Matchis, and rikkers his mui bongo sar o' yeck sidus.

Mushis shouldn't sh.e.l.l too shunaben apre lengis kokeros.

TRANSLATION.

Once all the fish came and swam together in the water. And one said that he was a great person, and the other declared that he was a greater person, and (at last) all cried out at once what great characters (men) they all were. Then the flounder shouted for his life, "I'm the king of you all!" and he roared so violently he twisted his mouth all to one side. So to this day he is called the King of the Fishes, and bears his face crooked all on one side.

Men should not boast too loudly of themselves.