第29章
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  LivesofGreatHungarianCitizens。HewasdeadbeforeIwasborn,butIfoundhisbook,whenIwasachild,inthesolitaryhomeofmyfather,whichstoodontheconfinesofapuszta,orwilderness,andthatbookIusedtodevourinwinternightswhenthewindswerewhistlingaroundthehouse。

  OhIhowmybloodusedtoglowatthedescriptionsofMagyarvalour,andlikewiseofTurkish;forFlorentiushasalwaysdonejusticetotheTurk。ManyapassagesimilartothishaveIgotbyheart;itisconnectedwithabattleontheplainofRigo,whichHunyadilost:—\"Thenextday,whichwasFriday,asthetwoarmiesweredrawnupinbattlearray,aMagyarheroridingforth,gallopedupanddown,challengingtheTurkstosinglecombat。ThencameouttomeethimthesonofarenownedbashawofAsia;rushinguponeachother,bothbroketheirlances,buttheMagyarheroandhishorserolledoverupontheground,fortheTurkshadalwaysthebesthorses。\"OyoungmanofHorncastle!ifeveryoulearnHungarian—andlearnitassuredlyyouwillafterwhatIhavetoldyou—readthebookofFlorentiusofBuda,evenifyougotoHungarytogetit,foryouwillscarcelyfinditelsewhere,andeventherewithdifficulty,forthebookhasbeenlongoutofprint。ItdescribestheactionsofthegreatmenofHungarydowntothemiddleofthesixteenthcentury;andbesidesbeingwritteninthepurestHungarian,hasthemeritofhavingforitsauthoraprofessoroftheReformedCollegeofDebreczen。

  MYSELF。IwillgotoHungaryratherthannotreadit。IamgladthattheTurkbeattheMagyar。WhenIusedtoreadtheballadsofSpainIalwayssidedwiththeMooragainsttheChristian。

  HUNGARIAN。Itwasadrawnfightafterall,fortheterriblehorseoftheTurkpresentlyflunghisownmaster,whereuponthetwochampionsreturnedtotheirrespectivearmies;butinthegrandconflictwhichensued,theTurksbeattheMagyars,pursuingthemtillnight,andstrikingthemontheneckswiththeirscymetars。TheTurkisanoblefellow;IshouldwishtobeaTurk,wereInotaMagyar。

  MYSELF。TheTurkalwayskeepshisword,Iamtold。

  HUNGARIAN。WhichtheChristianveryseldomdoes,andeventheHungariandoesnotalways。In1444Ulaszlomade,atSzeged,peacewithAmurathfortenyears,whichhesworewithanoathtokeep,butattheinstigationofthePopeJulianhebrokeit,andinducedhisgreatcaptain,HunyadiJohn,toshareintheperjury。TheconsequencewasthebattleofVarna,ofthe10thofNovember,inwhichHunyadiwasrouted,andUlaszloslain。Didyoueverhearhisepitaph?itisbothsolemnandedifying:—

  RomulidaeCannasegoVarnamcladenotavi;

  Disciternortalesnontemerarefidem:

  MenisiPontificesjussissentrumperefoedusNonferretScythicumPannonisorajugum。\"

  \"Halloo!\"saidthejockey,startingupfromadozeinwhichhehadbeenindulgingforthelasthour,hisheadleaninguponhisbreast,\"whatisthat?That’snothighDutch;I

  bargainedforhighDutch,andIleftyouspeakinghighDutch,asitsoundedverymuchlikethelanguageofhorses,asI

  havebeentoldhighDutchdoes;butasforwhatyouarespeakingnow,whateveryoumaycallit,itsoundsmorelikethelanguageofanotherkindofanimal。Isupposeyouwanttoinsultme,becauseIwasonceadicky—boy。\"

  \"Nothingofthekind,\"saidI;\"thegentlemanwasmakingaquotationinLatin。\"

  \"Latin,wasit?\"saidthejockey;\"thataltersthecase。

  Latinisgenteel,andIhavesentmyeldestboytoanacademytolearnit。Come,letushearyoufireawayinLatin,\"hecontinued,proceedingtore—lighthispipe,which,beforegoingtosleep,hehadlaidonthetable。

  \"IfyouwishtofollowthediscourseinLatin,\"saidtheHungarian,inverybadEnglish,\"Icanobligeyou;IlearnedtospeakverygoodLatininthecollegeofDebreczen。\"

  \"That’smore,\"saidI,\"thanIhavedoneinthecollegeswhereIhavebeen;inanylittleconversationwhichwemayyethave,IwishyouwoulduseGerman。\"

  \"Well,\"saidthejockey,takingawhiff,\"makeyourconversationasshortaspossible,whetherinLatinorDutch,for,totellyouthetruth,Iamrathertiredofmerelyplayinglistener。\"

  \"YouweresayingyouhadbeeninRussia,\"saidI;\"IbelievetheRussiansarepartoftheSclavonianrace。\"

  HUNGARIAN。Yes,partofthegreatSclavonianfamily;oneofthemostnumerousracesintheworld。TheRussiansthemselvesareverynumerous;wouldthattheMagyarscouldboastofthefifthpartoftheirnumber!

  MYSELF。WhatisthenumberoftheMagyars?

  HUNGARIAN。Barelyfourmillions。WecameatribeofTartarsintoEurope,andsettleddownamongstSclavonians,whomweconquered,butwhonevercoalescedwithus。TheAustrianatpresentplaysinPannoniatheSclavonianagainstus,andusagainsttheSclavonian;butthedownfalloftheAustrianisathand;they,likeus,arenotanumerouspeople。

  MYSELF。Whowillbringabouthisdownfall?

  HUNGARIAN。TheRussians。TheRysckieTsarwillleadhispeopleforth,alltheSclavonianswilljoinhim,hewillconquerallbeforehim。

  MYSELF。AretheRussiansgoodsoldiers?

  HUNGARIAN。Theyarestubbornandunflinchingtoanastonishingdegree,andtheirfidelitytotheirTsarisquiteadmirable。SeehowtheRussiansbehavedatPlescova,inLivonia,intheoldtime,againstourgreatBatoryStephen;

  theydefendedtheplacetillitwasaheapofrubbish,andmarkhowtheybehavedaftertheyhadbeenmadeprisoners。

  Stephenofferedthemtwoalternatives:—toenterintohisservice,inwhichtheywouldhavegoodpay,clothing,andfairtreatment;ortobeallowedtoreturntoRussia。

  Withouttheslightesthesitationthey,toaman,chosethelatter,thoughwellawarethattheirbelovedTsar,thecruelIvanBasilowits,wouldputthemalltodeath,amidsttorturesthemosthorrible,fornotdoingwhatwasimpossible—

  preservingthetown。

  MYSELF。YouspeakRussian?

  HUNGARIAN。Alittle。IwasborninthevicinityofaSclavoniantribe;theservantsofourhousewereSclavonians,andIearlyacquiredsomethingoftheirlanguage,whichdiffersnotmuchfromthatofRussia;wheninthatcountryI

  quicklyunderstoodwhatwassaid。

  MYSELF。HavetheRussiansanyliterature?

  HUNGARIAN。Doubtless;butIamnotacquaintedwithit,asI

  donotreadtheirlanguage;butIknowsomethingoftheirpopulartales,towhichIusedtolistenintheirizbushkas;

  aprincipalpersonageintheseisacreationquiteoriginal—

  calledBabaYaga。

  MYSELF。WhoistheBabaYaga?

  HUNGARIAN。Afemalephantom,whoisdescribedashurryingalongthepuszta,orsteppe,inamortar,poundingwithapestleatatremendousrate,andleavingalongtraceonthegroundbehindherwithhertongue,whichisthreeyardslong,andwithwhichsheseizesanymenandhorsescominginherway,swallowingthemdownintohercapaciousbelly。Shehasseveraldaughters,veryhandsome,andwithplentyofmoney;

  happytheyoungMujikwhocatchesandmarriesoneofthem,fortheymakeexcellentwives。

  \"Manythanks,\"saidI,\"fortheinformationyouhaveaffordedme:thisisratherpoorwine,\"Iobserved,asIpouredoutaglass—\"IsupposeyouhavebetterwineinHungary?\"

  \"Yes,wehavebetterwineinHungary。FirstofallthereisTokay,themostcelebratedintheworld,thoughIconfessI

  preferthewineofEger—Tokayistoosweet。\"

  \"HaveyoueverbeenatTokay?\"

  \"Ihave,\"saidtheHungarian。

  \"WhatkindofplaceisTokay?\"

  \"AsmalltownsituatedontheTyzza,arapidriverdescendingfromthenorth;theTokayMountainisjustbehindthetown,whichstandsontherightbank。ThetopofthemountainiscalledKopacsTeto,orthebaldtip;thehillissosteepthatduringthunder—stormspiecesfrequentlyfalldownupontheroofsofthehouses。ItwasplantedwithvinesbyKingLajos,whoascendedthethronein1342。ThebestwinecalledTokayis,however,notmadeatTokay,butatKassau,twoleaguesfartherintotheCarpathians,ofwhichTokayisaspur。IfyouwishtodrinkthebestTokay,youmustgotoVienna,towhichplacealltheprimeissent。ForthethirdtimeIaskyou,OyoungmanofHorncastle!whydoesyourGovernmentalwayssendfoolstorepresentitatVienna?\"

  \"AndforthethirdtimeItellyou,OsonofAlmus!thatI

  cannotsay;perhaps,however,todrinkthesweetTokaywine;

  fools,youknow,alwayslikesweetthings。\"

  \"Good,\"saidtheHungarian;\"itmustbeso,andwhenIreturntoHungary,Iwillstatetomycountrymenyourexplanationofacircumstancewhichhasfrequentlycausedthemgreatperplexity。Oh!theEnglishareacleverpeople,andhaveadeepmeaninginalltheydo。Whatavisionofdeeppolicyopensitselftomyview!theydonotsendtheirfooltoViennainordertogapeatprocessions,andtobowandscrapeatabasePapistcourt,buttodrinkatthegreatdinnersthecelebratedTokayofHungary,whichtheHungarians,thoughtheydonotdrinkit,areveryproudof,andbydoingsotointimatethesympathywhichtheEnglishentertainfortheirfellowreligionistsofHungary。Oh!theEnglishareadeeppeople。\"

  CHAPTERXL

  TheHorncastleWelcome—TzernebockandBielebock。

  THEpipeoftheHungarianhad,forsometimepast,exhibitedconsiderablesymptomsofexhaustion,littleornoruttlinghavingbeenheardinthetube,andscarcelyaparticleofsmoke,drawnthroughthesyphon,havingbeenemittedfromthelipsofthepossessor。Henowrosefromhisseat,andgoingtoacorneroftheroom,placedhispipeagainstthewall,thenstridingupanddowntheroom,hecrackedhisfingersseveraltimes,exclaiming,inahalf—musingmanner,\"Oh,thedeepnation,which,inordertodisplayitssympathyforHungary,sendsitsfooltoVienna,todrinkthesweetwineofTokay!\"

  Thejockey,havinglookedforsometimeatthetallfigurewithevidentapprobation,winkedatmewiththatbrillianteyeofhisonwhichtherewasnospeck,saying,\"’Didyoueverseeatallerfellow?\"

  \"Never,\"saidI。

  \"Orafiner?\"

  \"That’sanotherquestion,\"saidI,\"whichIamnotsowillingtoanswer;however,asIamfondoftruth,andscorntoflatter,IwilltakethelibertyofsayingthatIhaveseenafiner。\"

  \"Afiner!where?\"saidthejockey;whilsttheHungarian,whoappearedtounderstandwhatwesaid,stoodstill,andlookedfullatme。

  \"Amongstastrangesetofpeople,\"saidI,\"whom,ifIweretoname,youwould,Idaresay,onlylaughatme。\"

  \"Whobethey?\"saidthejockey。\"Come,don’tbeashamed;I

  haveoccasionallykeptqueerishcompanymyself。\"

  \"Thepeoplewhomwecallgypsies,\"saidI;\"whomtheGermanscallZigeuner,andwhocallthemselvesRomanychals。\"

  \"Zigeuner!\"saidtheHungarian;\"byIsten!Idoknowthosepeople。\"

  \"Romanychals!\"saidthejockey;\"whew!Ibegintosmellarat。\"

  \"Whatdoyoumeanbysmellingarat?\"saidI。

  \"I’llbetacrown,\"saidthejockey,\"thatyoubetheyoungchapwhatcertainfolkscall’theRomanyRye。’\"

  \"Ah!\"saidI,\"howcameyoutoknowthatname?\"

  \"Benotyouhe?\"saidthejockey。

  \"Why,Icertainlyhavebeencalledbythatname。\"

  \"Icouldhaveswornit,\"saidthejockey;thenrisingfromhischair,helaidhispipeonthetable,tookalargehand—

  bellwhichstoodontheside—board,andgoingtothedoor,openedit,andcommencedringinginamosttremendousmanneronthestaircase。Thenoisepresentlybroughtupawaiter,towhomthejockeyvociferated,\"Gotoyourmaster,andtellhimtosendimmediatelythreebottlesofchampagne,ofthepinkkind,mindyou,whichistwelveguineasadozen;\"thewaiterhurriedaway,andthejockeyresumedhisseatandhispipe。Isatinsilentastonishmentuntilthewaiterreturnedwithabasketcontainingthewine,which,withthreelongglasses,heplacedonthetable。Thejockeythengotup,andgoingtoalargebow—windowattheendoftheroom,whichlookedintoacourt—yard,peepedout;thensaying,\"thecoastisclear,\"heshutdowntheprincipalsashwhichwasopenforthesakeoftheair,andtakingupabottleofchampagne,heplacedanotherinthehandsoftheHungarian,towhomhesaidsomethinginprivate。Thelatter,whoseemedtounderstandhim,answeredbyanod。Thetwothengoingtotheendofthetablefrontingthewindow,andabouteightpacesfromit,stoodbeforeit,holdingthebottlesbytheirnecks;suddenlythejockeylifteduphisarm。\"Surely,\"saidI,\"youarenotmadenoughtoflingthatbottlethroughthewindow?\"\"Here’stotheRomanyRye;here’stothesweetmaster,\"saidthejockey,dashingthebottlethroughthepaneinsoneatamannerthatscarcelyaparticleofglassfellintotheroom。

  \"Eljenedescsiganyur—eljenguleray!\"saidtheHungarian,swingingroundhisbottle,anddischargingitatthewindow;

  but,eithernotpossessingthejockey’saccuracyofaim,orrecklessoftheconsequences,heflunghisbottleso,thatitstruckagainstpartofthewoodensettingofthepanes,breakingalongwiththewoodanditselfthreeorfourpanestopieces。Thecrashwashorrid,andwineandparticlesofglassflewbackintotheroom,tothenosmalldangerofitsinmates。\"Whatdoyouthinkofthat?\"saidthejockey;\"wereyoueversohonouredbefore?\"\"Honoured!\"saidI。\"Godpreservemeinfuturefromsuchhonour;\"andIputmyfingertomycheek,whichwasslightlyhurtbyaparticleoftheglass。\"That’sthewayweofthecofradyhonourgreatmenatHorncastle,\"saidthejockey。\"What,youarehurt!nevermind;allthebetter;yourscratchshowsthatyouarethebodythecomplimentwaspaidto。\"\"Andwhatareyougoingtodowiththeotherbottle?\"saidI。\"Dowithit!\"saidthejockey,\"why,drinkit,cosilyandcomfortably,whilstholdingalittlequiettalk。TheRomanyRyeatHorncastle,whatanidea!\"

  \"Andwhatwillthemasterofthehousesaytoallthisdamagewhichyouhavecausedhim!\"

  \"Whatwillyourmastersay,William?\"saidthejockeytothewaiter,whohadwitnessedthesingularscenejustdescribedwithoutexhibitingtheslightestmarkofsurprise。Williamsmiled,andslightlyshrugginghisshoulders,replied,\"Verylittle,Idaresay,sir;thisa’n’tthefirsttimeyourhonourhasdoneathingofthiskind。\"\"NorwillitbethefirsttimethatIshallhavepaidforit,\"saidthejockey;

  \"well,IshallneverhavepaidforacertainiteminthebillwithmorepleasurethanIshallpayforitnow。Come,William,drawthecork,andletustastethepinkchampagne。\"

  Thewaiterdrewthecork,andfilledtheglasseswithapinkyliquor,whichbubbled,hissed,andfoamed。\"Howdoyoulikeit?\"saidthejockey,afterIhadimitatedtheexampleofmycompanions,bydespatchingmyportionatadraught。

  \"Itiswonderfulwine,\"saidI;\"Ihavenevertastedchampagnebefore,thoughIhavefrequentlyhearditpraised;

  itmorethananswersmyexpectations;but,Iconfess,I

  shouldnotwishtobeobligedtodrinkiteveryday。\"

  \"NorI,\"saidthejockey,\"forevery—daydrinkinggivemeaglassofoldport,or—\"

  \"Ofhardoldale,\"Iinterposed,\"which,accordingtomymind,isbetterthanallthewineintheworld。\"

  \"Wellsaid,RomanyRye,\"saidthejockey,\"justmyownopinion;now,William,makeyourselfscarce。\"

  Thewaiterwithdrew,andIsaidtothejockey,\"HowdidyoubecomeacquaintedwiththeRomanychals?\"

  \"Ifirstbecameacquaintedwiththem,\"saidthejockey,\"whenIlivedwitholdFulcherthebasketmaker,whotookmeupwhenIwasadriftupontheworld;IdonotmeanthepresentFulcher,whoislikewisecalledoldFulcher,buthisfather,whohasbeendeadthismanyayear;whilelivingwithhiminthecaravan,Ifrequentlymettheminthegreenlanes,andoflatteryearsIhavehadoccasionaldealingswiththeminthehorseline。\"

  \"Andthegypsieshavementionedmetoyou?\"saidI。

  \"Frequently,\"saidthejockey,\"andnotonlythoseoftheseparts;why,there’sscarcelyapartofEnglandinwhichI

  havenotheardthenameoftheRomanyRyementionedbythesepeople。Thepoweryouhaveoverthemiswonderful;thatis,Ishouldhavethoughtitwonderful,hadtheynotmorethanoncetoldmethecause。\"

  \"Andwhatisthecause?\"saidI,\"forIamsureIdonotknow。\"

  \"Thecauseisthis,\"saidthejockey,\"theyneverheardabadwordproceedfromyourmouth,andneverknewyoudoabadthing。\"

  \"Theyareasingularpeople,\"saidI。

  \"Andwhatasingularlanguagetheyhavegot,\"saidthejockey。

  \"Doyouknowit?\"saidI。

  \"Onlyafewwords,\"saidthejockey,\"theywerealwayscharyinteachingmeany。\"

  \"Theywerevarysherrytometoo,\"saidtheHungarian,speakinginbrokenEnglish;\"Ionlycouldlearnfromthemhalf—a—dozenwords,forexample,guleray,which,inthecziganyofmycountry,meanssweetgentleman;oredesurinmyownMagyar。\"

  \"GudloRye,intheRomanyofmine,meansasugar’dgentleman,\"saidI;\"thentherearegypsiesinyourcountry?\"

  \"Plenty,\"saidtheHungarian,speakingGerman,\"andinRussiaandTurkeytoo;andwherevertheyarefound,theyarealikeintheirwaysandlanguage。Oh,theyareastrangerace,andhowlittleknown!Iknowlittleofthem,butenoughtosay,thatonehorse—loadofnonsensehasbeenwrittenaboutthem;

  thereisoneValterScott—\"

  \"Mindwhatyousayabouthim,\"saidI;\"heisourgrandauthorityinmattersofphilologyandhistory。\"

  \"Aprettyphilologist,\"saidtheHungarian,\"whomakesthegypsiesspeakRoth—Welsch,thedialectofthieves;aprettyhistorian,whocouplestogetherThorandTzernebock。\"

  \"Wheredoeshedothat?\"saidI。

  \"Inhisconceitedromanceof’Ivanhoe,’hecouplesThorandTzernebocktogether,andcallsthemgodsoftheheathenSaxons。\"

  \"Well,\"saidI,\"ThurorThorwascertainlyagodoftheheathenSaxons。\"

  \"True,\"saidtheHungarian;\"butwhycouplehimwithTzernebock?TzernebockwasawordwhichyourValterhadpickedupsomewherewithoutknowingthemeaning。TzernebockwasnogodoftheSaxons,butoneofthegodsoftheSclaves,onthesouthernsideoftheBaltic。TheSclaveshadtwograndgodstowhomtheysacrificed,TzernebockandBielebock;

  thatis,theblackandwhitegods,whorepresentedthepowersofdarkandlight。TheywereoverturnedbyWaldemar,theDane,thegreatenemyoftheSclaves;theaccountofwhosewarsyouwillfindinonefineoldbook,writtenbySaxoGramaticus,whichIreadinthelibraryofthecollegeofDebreczen。TheSclaves,atonetime,weremastersofallthesouthernshoreoftheBaltic,wheretheirdescendantsarestilltobefound,thoughtheyhavelosttheirlanguage,andcallthemselvesGermans;butthewordZernevitznearDantzic,stillatteststhattheSclaviclanguagewasoncecommoninthoseparts。Zernevitzmeansthethingofblackness,asTzernebockmeansthegodofblackness。Prussiaitselfmerelymeans,inSclavish,LowerRussia。ThereisscarcelyaraceorlanguageintheworldmoreextendedthantheSclavic。OntheothersideoftheDunauyouwillfindtheSclavesandtheirlanguage。CzernavodaisSclavic,andmeansblackwater;inTurkish,karasu;evenasTzernebockmeansblackgod;andBelgrade,orBelograd,meansthewhitetown;evenasBielebock,orBielebog,meansthewhitegod。Oh!heisonegreatignorant,thatValter。Heisgoing,theysay,towriteonehistoryaboutNapoleon。IdohopethatinhishistoryhewillcouplehisThorandTzernebocktogether。BymyGod!itwouldbegooddiversionthat。\"

  \"WalterScottappearstobenoparticularfavouriteofyours,\"saidI。

  \"Heisnot,\"saidtheHungarian;\"Ihatehimforhisslavishprinciples。Hewishestoseeabsolutepowerrestoredinthiscountry,andPoperyalso—andIhatehimbecause—whatdoyouthink?Inoneofhisnovels,publishedafewmonthsago,hehastheinsolencetoinsultHungaryinthepresenceofoneofhersons。Hemakeshisgreatbraggart,CoeurdeLion,flingaMagyaroverhishead。Ha!itwaswellforRichardthatheneverfeltthegripeofaHungarian。Iwishthebraggartcouldhavefeltthegripeofme,whoam’a’magyarokkoztlegkissebb,’theleastamongtheMagyars。IdohatethatScott,andallhisvilegangofLowlandersandHighlanders。Theblackcorps,thefeketeregimentofMatyjasHunyadi,wasworthalltheScots,highorlow,thateverpretendedtobesoldiers;andwouldhavesentthemallheadlongintotheBlackSea,hadtheydaredtoconfrontitonitsshores;butwhybeangrywithanignorant,whocouplestogetherThorandTzernebock?Ha!Ha!\"

  \"Youhavereadhisnovels?\"saidI。

  \"Yes,Ireadthemnowandthen。IdonotspeakmuchEnglish,butIcanreaditwell,andIhavereadsomeofhisromances,andmeantoreadhis’Napoleon,’inthehopeoffindingThorandTzernebockcoupledtogetherinit,asinhishigh—flying’Ivanhoe。’\"

  \"Come,\"saidthejockey,\"nomoreDutch,whetherhighorlow。

  Iamtiredofit;unlesswecanhavesomeEnglish,Iamofftobed。\"

  \"IshouldbeverygladtohearsomeEnglish,\"saidI;

  \"especiallyfromyourmouth。Severalthingswhichyouhavementioned,haveawakenedmycuriosity。Supposeyougiveusyourhistory?\"

  \"Myhistory?\"saidthejockey。\"Arumidea!however,lestconversationshouldlag,I’llgiveityou。Firstofall,however,aglassofchampagnetoeach。\"

  Afterwehadeachtakenaglassofchampagne,thejockeycommencedhishistory。

  CHAPTERXLI

  TheJockey’sTale—Thieves’Latin—LibertieswithCoin—

  TheSmasherinPrison—OldFulcher—EveryOnehasHisGift—FashionoftheEnglish。

  \"MYgrandfatherwasashorter,andmyfatherwasasmasher;

  theonewasscragg’d,andtheotherlagg’d。\"

  Ihereinterruptedthejockeybyobservingthathisdiscoursewas,forthegreaterpart,unintelligibletome。

  \"IdonotunderstandmuchEnglish,\"saidtheHungarian,who,havingreplenishedandresumedhismightypipe,wasnowsmokingaway;\"but,byIsten,IbelieveitisthegibberishwhichthatgreatignorantValtherScottputsintothemouthsofthefolkshecallsgypsies。\"

  \"Somethinglikeit,Iconfess,\"saidI,\"thoughthissoundsmoregenuinethanhisdialect,whichhepickedupoutofthecantingvocabularyattheendofthe’EnglishRogue,’abookwhich,howeverdespised,waswrittenbyaremarkablegenius。

  Whatdoyoucallthespeechyouwereusing?\"saidI,addressingmyselftothejockey。

  \"Latin,\"saidthejockey,verycoolly,\"thatis,thatdialectofitwhichisusedbythelight—fingeredgentry。\"

  \"Heisright,\"saidtheHungarian;\"itiswhattheGermanscallRoth—Welsch:theycallitsobecausethereareagreatmanyLatinwordsinit,introducedbythepriests,who,atthetimeoftheReformation,beingtoolazytoworkandtoostupidtopreach,joinedthebandsofthievesandrobberswhoprowledaboutthecountry。Italy,asyouareaware,iscalledbytheGermansWelschland,orthelandoftheWelschers;andImayaddthatWallachiaderivesitsnamefromacolonyofWelscherswhichTrajansentthere。WelschandWallackbeingoneandthesameword,andtantamounttoLatin。\"

  \"Idaresayyouareright,\"saidI;\"butwhywasItalytermedWelschland?\"

  \"Idonotknow,\"saidtheHungarian。

  \"ThenIthinkIcantellyou,\"saidI;\"itwascalledsobecausetheoriginalinhabitantswereaCimbrictribe,whowerecalledGwyltiad,thatis,araceofwildpeople,livingincoverts,whowereofthesameblood,andspokethesamelanguageasthepresentinhabitantsofWales。WelshseemsmerelyamodificationofGwyltiad。Praycontinueyourhistory,\"saidItothejockey,\"onlypleasetodosoinalanguagewhichwecanunderstand,andfirstofallinterpretthesentencewithwhichyoubeganit。\"

  \"Itoldyouthatmygrandfatherwasashorter,\"saidthejockey,\"bywhichismeantagentlemanwhoshortensorreducesthecurrentcoinoftheserealms,forwhichpracticehewasscragged,thatis,hungbythescragoftheneck。AndwhenIsaidthatmyfatherwasasmasher,Imeantonewhopassesforgednotes,therebydoinghisbesttosmashtheBankofEngland;bybeinglagged,Imeanthewaslaidfast,thatis,hadachainputroundhislegandthentransported。\"

  \"Yourexplanationsarequitesatisfactory,\"saidI;\"thethreefirstwordsaremetaphorical,andthefourth,lagged,istheoldgenuineNorseterm,lagda,whichsignifieslaid,whetherindurance,orinbed,hasnothingtodowiththematter。WhatyouhavetoldmeconfirmsmeinanopinionwhichIhavelongentertained,thatthieves’Latinisastrangemysteriousspeech,formedofmetaphoricalterms,andwordsderivedfromthevariousancientlanguages。Praytellme,now,howthegentleman,yourgrandfather,contrivedtoshortenthecoinoftheserealms?\"

  \"Youshallhear,\"saidthejockey;\"butIhaveonethingtobegofyou,whichis,thatwhenIhaveoncebegunmyhistoryyouwillnotinterruptmewithquestions,Idon’tlikethem,theystopsone,andputsoneoutofone’stale,andarenotwanted;foranythingwhichIthinkcan’tbeunderstood,I

  shouldmyselfexplain,withoutbeingasked。Mygrandfatherreducedorshortenedthecoinofthiscountrybythreeprocesses。Byaquafortis,byclipping,andbyfiling。

  Filingandclippingheemployedinreducingallsortsofcoin,whethergoldorsilver;butaquafortisheusedmerelyinreducinggoldcoin,whetherguineas,jacobuses,orPortugalpieces,otherwisecalledmoidores,whichwereatonetimeascurrentasguineas。Bylayingaguineainaquafortisfortwelvehours,hecouldfilchfromittothevalueofninepence,andbylettingitremaintherefortwenty—fourtothevalueofeighteenpence,theaquafortiseatingthegoldaway,andleavingitlikeasedimentinthevessel。Hewasgenerallysatisfiedwithtakingthevalueofninepencefromaguinea,ofeighteenpencefromajacobusormoidore,orhalf—

  a—crownfromabroadSpanishpiece,whetherhereducedthembyaquafortis,filing,orclipping。Fromafive—shillingpiece,whichiscalledabullinLatinbecauseitisroundlikeabull’shead,hewouldfileorcliptothevalueoffivepence,andfromlessercoininproportion。Hewasconnectedwithanumerousgang,orset,ofpeople,whohadgivenuptheirmindsandtalentsentirelytoshortening。\"

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