I have seen
this individual in more countries than one, for he flits over the
world like the shadow of a cloud; the last time at Granada in
Spain, whither he had come after paying a visit to his Gitano
brethren in the presidio of Ceuta.
Few Eastern authors have spoken of the Zingarri, notwithstanding
they have been known in the East for many centuries; amongst the
few, none has made more curious mention of them than Arabschah, in
a chapter of his life of Timour or Tamerlane, which is deservedly
considered as one of the three classic works of Arabian literature.
This passage, which, while it serves to illustrate the craft, if
not the valour of the conqueror of half the world, offers some
curious particulars as to Gypsy life in the East at a remote
period, will scarcely be considered out of place if reproduced
here, and the following is as close a translation of it as the
metaphorical style of the original will allow.
'There were in Samarcand numerous families of Zingarri of various
descriptions: some were wrestlers, others gladiators, others
pugilists. These people were much at variance, so that hostilities
and battling were continually arising amongst them.
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