I was
born in an island in the West Sea, called England, which I suppose
you have heard spoken of.'
FIRST GYPSY. - 'Yes, yes, I have a right to know something of the
English. I was born in this foros, and remember the day when the
English hundunares clambered over the walls, and took the town from
the Gabine: well do I remember that day, though I was but a child;
the streets ran red with blood and wine! Are there Gitanos then
amongst the English?'
MYSELF. - 'There are numbers, and so there are amongst most nations
of the world.'
SECOND GYPSY. - 'Vaya! And do the English Calore gain their bread
in the same way as those of Spain? Do they shear and trim? Do
they buy and change beasts, and (lowering his voice) do they now
and then chore a gras?' (42)
MYSELF. - 'They do most of these things: the men frequent fairs
and markets with horses, many of which they steal; and the women
tell fortunes and perform all kinds of tricks, by which they gain
more money than their husbands.'
FIRST GYPSY. - 'They would not be callees if they did not: I have
known a Gitana gain twenty ounces of gold, by means of the hokkano
baro, in a few hours, whilst the silly Gypsy, her husband, would be
toiling with his shears for a fortnight, trimming the horses of the
Busne, and yet not be a dollar richer at the end of the time.
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