him, in common with the peasantry in some parts of England, a peculiar
honour. For this reason I bade the Gipsy carefully repeat his words, and
wrote them down accurately. I give them in the original, with a
translation. Let me first state that my informant was not quite clear in
his mind as to whether the Boro Divvus, or Great Day, was Christmas or
New Year's, nor was he by any means certain on which Christ was born. But
he knew very well that when it came, the Gipsies took great pains to burn
an ash-wood fire.

"Avali--adusta cheirus I've had to jal dui or trin mees of a Boro Divvus
sig' in the sala, to lel ash-wood for the yag. That was when I was a
bitti chavo, for my dadas always would keravit.

"An' we kairs it because foki pens our Saviour, the tikno Duvel was born
apre the Boro Divvus, 'pre the puv, avree in the temm, like we Rommanis,
and he was brought 'pre pash an ash yag--(_Why you can dick dovo adree
the Scriptures_!).

"The ivy and holly an' pine rukks never pookered a lav when our Saviour
was gaverin' of his kokero, an' so they tools their jivaben saw (sar) the
wen, and dicks selno saw the besh; but the ash, like the surrelo rukk,
pukkered atut him, where he was gaverin, so they have to hatch mullo
adree the wen. And so we Rommany chals always hatchers an ash yag saw
the Boro Divvuses. For the tickno duvel was chivved a wadras 'pre the
puvius like a Rommany chal, and kistered apre a myla like a Rommany, an'
jalled pale the tem a mangin his moro like a Rom. An' he was always a
pauveri choro mush, like we, till he was nashered by the Gorgios.

"An' he kistered apre a myla? Avali. Yeckorus he putchered the pash-
grai if he might kister her, but she pookered him _kek_. So because the