They listened with admiration; but, alas! not of the truths, the
eternal truths, I was telling them, but to find that their broken
jargon could be written and read. The only words denoting anything
like assent to my doctrine which I ever obtained, were the
following from the mouth of a woman: 'Brother, you tell us strange
things, though perhaps you do not lie; a month since I would sooner
have believed these tales, than that this day I should see one who
could write Rommany.'
Two or three days after my arrival, I was again visited by the
Gypsy of the withered arm, who I found was generally termed Paco,
which is the diminutive of Francisco; he was accompanied by his
wife, a rather good-looking young woman with sharp intelligent
features, and who appeared in every respect to be what her husband
had represented her on the former visit. She was very poorly clad,
and notwithstanding the extreme sharpness of the weather, carried
no mantle to protect herself from its inclemency, - her raven black
hair depended behind as far down as her hips. Another Gypsy came
with them, but not the old fellow whom I had before seen. This was
a man about forty-five, dressed in a zamarra of sheep-skin, with a
high-crowned Andalusian hat; his complexion was dark as pepper, and
his eyes were full of sullen fire.
Pages:
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230