Page:Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant (1889) by Barrere & Leland.djvu/18

 slender one. But as C. J. Ribton Turner suggests, it was the arrival of the gypsies in England about 1505, speaking by themselves a perfect language, which stimulated the English nomads to greatly improve their own rude and scanty jargon. According to Samuel Rowlande, whose work, "The Runnagate's Race," appeared in 1610, one Cock Lorrell, a great rascal, but evidently a man of talents, became, in 1501, the acknowledged head of all the strollers in England. This person formed his followers into a regular guild or order, according to the spirit of the time in which he lived, and observing that the gypsies, under their leader, Giles Hathor, were a powerful and rapidly increasing body, he proposed to them a general council and union of interests and language.

"After a time that these vp-start Lossels had got vnto a head, the two chief Commaunders of both these regiments met at the Diuels-arse-a-peak, there to parle and intreete of matters that might tend to the establishing of this their new found gouernment; and first of all they think it fit to deuise a certaine kinde of Language, to the end that their cousenings, knaueries, and villainies might not be so easily perceiued and knowne in places where they come."

Here Samuel Rowlande, speaking ignorantly, says that this tongue was made up out of Latin, English, and Dutch, with a few words borrowed from Spanish and French. To this day it is common enough for "travellers," or gypsies, to tell the ignorant that the language which they speak is Latin, French, or Dutch, &c. From the language itself, as given by Robert Copland (1535), and Harman ("Caveat for Cursitors") in 1567, it appears that the gypsies actually contributed a certain amount of Romany, but that with their natural dislike to teach it, they made this contribution as small as possible—though it is larger than Mr. Turner supposes. He has, however, with very approximate accuracy, shown the various Celtic origins of the terms not reducible to English or Saxon. Of Latin he finds only eight words, of which two are very doubtful, while two others, gerry (i.e. jerry), excrement, and peck, meat, are plainly from the Romany jirr (rectum vel excrementum), and pekker, roast, i.e., roast meat. It is too far afield to seek these common gypsy words in the Latin gerræ, trifles, and pecus, cattle.

This was the beginning made of the canting or thieves' tongue, and it must be admitted that the first meeting of this Philological Oriental Congress for the purpose of forming a language was probably not deficient in a certain picturesque element, and an able artist might find a worse subject than this grand council of the