THE RAMARKABLE STORY A GIPSY TOLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 6948, 23 February 1884, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE RAMARKABLE STORY A GIPSY TOLD.

■'IdsEbHhe crowdi ,, in the Daily Telegraph,'■■■ teils'.the following story,:told him while on a ■; I visit; to , Some gipsies':— .'J.! Bnt talk about fortune.telling," remarked :\Mr Lee";:" that go' of/old upS Westminster: , iway, 'banged;: every thing ;I; ever, heard of in--ithat line;of.;business;'-,, iShe showed hertelf »'' Jiioj.-niietake." " "What' ;etuff!" observed "one , ;ipf.'theiwomen scorn--■fully;;; of all:'' ..Mother Himmel's bragging; bat a slice o' luck that might'come^tb'any oi.e of us any day!" "''Ati,. ! butJt was clever," pewiated thegipey,"; " ariybpdy»!who,makesjout of nothing, in * imanner'of a bunch of gold as large: M'a baby's head a|mbafr?fib it was, for I saw. ;it-^can"olaim. to be; called clever, say what yoii like.; Tell him about it, missus. It's » goodishtime'ago,■■butl daresay you rememi.ber,;":' ■ '.'..0h;;1 remember well enough, though :;itis:a..dbzeh years ago and more,"hie wife re-' : spbrided. '■Vlt : ;was > Old Peg} f old game at thereat her ilucki being out, aheV ithoughVtoiputiSp ,/with'a bit of bread and 1 :cheese;and> half-pint for her dinner, and she; went into a baker's shop to buy a penny loaf.' ■ The^baker'siwifejwas in the shop and thai : baker .aa well, .leafltwaye'helwas just going out ofvtbfe..shop, and into,; the ■ parlour. They ■ were .quarreUing/and Peg heard him say, ' I'd better haye;. chopped my. right hand off than : put.it.ori'ybur;finger,:-rr:you J'and then he' y/ent.'away,' slamming the door/'; The woman was:.crying,f;and when she saw that Peg had ::nptioed:it I rshe , was •': pretty,thing;tb'.say Jto .-a*! wife, "when he eaidj .that he had better have chopped off his hand . it on iny linger. And hei i,is;.oli :enbugh« to -be} thinking of bis grave !v But iny.-::pwn>fault/for being fool. enough to marrylttm.^:;lt isn't all gold that' glitters;- they ; sayjxi'and swell; I know it.";.:- : ••■ ; :you?ire;'■;:'Don't}, that, make goot :whati;l said ?" r put in the woman who so-muot; ■ I rOTented;'Peg/' ; ;'flimmel?. being. called clever/ tells.her straight away that shfc,; married an old man for his money, and thai each,wishes;the other dead.'; Waen't that a chance for;:a'woman like Peg to put infor?" ; . «'.' : :Ah,;.:\my:: , continued fHirem's: wife,'": without- heeding the interuptibnV;"'t!iat proverb you speak of is like that;: other one that eaya it is: better to be an eld man's darling than; a young man's slave,;; ;;Merriagee';J;aTe'-.'"'niadeiinKheavea,:. they say. V the itare, so it' fit miioh the same.' It wasn't till Peg had said thiß;that.the baker's wife looked much at her, arid then'she said,;*.You : ;talk like a fortuneteller. 1 went to a fortune-teller once, and; aho proved to be a liar, for ihe said that I. should marry a man much older than myself,"; Sand be happy Rafter,!.?; , . , * Well, there's time for it •to comei'true yet; isn'tthere; my dear?' said r Peg;;' a minute if' ■ you lei irie look at your hand; J; Well, to cut iailbng;storyOahort^:after, aSwhile.the baker's j enough, wishirig;;"to r make theCmbst;iof"a onstomer,; ;i>rbmi{ied< to.. :bring;,heri next';, day a bottle of ; rainbow,; swater;/,:; which' f;wbnld: ;; make her, ■husband tum : m; kindness" towards her. So so it was, andrnbthing'else!, yon may take your e»th—and'; : charfi;es,her<nve shillings for it. ; ; Well, Peg . didnlt:g'6; ■ that, ; way; again■; for nearly three rweekß,'and-wheff she shesaw a coupleV (of black boards iip puteide the .baker's shop, 1 .showing'; that some/; one was'? dead there. Wouiering ;whether'it'*w«s the old manor th<\ yyoung wife,'Peg;went in—it' was : just about - •dusk of evening, arid iii the winter time—and whbj.shdnld come! butpf the.shop parlour butr; ' theiwpmah..hersyf,.arid soon as ahe saw Peg; .'h'er..face.'jwentV.as. white "as:. flour, and. she.. ■caught atithe edgei of .the-abunter as thought; tb: : saveiheraelfSfTpiri ■;failing;?/She showed/ herself to''be^iustithe jsame f foolish sort b£ ■■ party/as /when, she ;bpened and told Peg so% .'nauch 6t -Ker-business at the first.'' * There wa»; : no one else in the shop; and, beckoning Peg ; to. lean over the counter that she might wine-' ;\peritb/ : what was in; /that".bottle.. , Don't'speak;loud}';' only tell me what :arid ! Tll giyejypu'a. sovereign if :!; you'li : promise; never/, to ccine /here again.*': Peg,h'ad'W-feel her , iWay.. .'.ljcan't toll you-. thaty iny ,dear.. It is a seoret of bur tribe what .tbat:water;is iriade of.:', .;'-But I ;J can tell you'. it.. : ;ia .poiapn,' , the ;bther;whispers back,' VHe'Bdea<l; I^gavejit' l himvin'i'hia drinking inpthree doses,^^?as'ybu' ; told me, andi he's .dead..' 'And what did he die of ? • What" did jth'ekd'o , qt»rs\; : say ,, .?? , -' , j:",'They've examined his .body; and'they, baye brought it in that he i died;of i.heart diaeasb;.;.:' You said that it would- : touch/..his;: heart;-.. 1 you .remember;' and th& .siidiipletpii;began Bobbing;-and saying wb»r». wicked ; woman she-had beeni-and th»t ahe: wduldjwillingly give all'the money her hu»-band'.had!left-her^'.■.tp'Jbring him back to life ;agaih. iiSpfoldPeg—she; was an artful one— :jiffyi ,^sShe;pretended'v to , fall a trembling and,shaking,• and to look scared^' '-My dear''''woman",'-' says ahe, ' wai.'it'';a.regular. Coroner's 'jury that brought it ,inv :.died:bf heart disease !';.:> Yes~ but they didn't replies the '. foolish/wonianV r'\Well,sil:;ahall'go to the' Cbronerj'aud tell himall about it,' says Peg ;': ; '.I'd/rather.-face"itbut,*iand know the weret, '-tUan-have r/itj.'o&^myVcbn's'cienoe'J , You may ; be. ' sure... „ the[■. .'..baker's .- Vife. -got' into ■ an. ': ■ awful;fright/whentshe^heard r ;Peg say this./ ' : says; «we shall:bpth be; hangedi'orip'raps sent to prison :forithe;rest of our lives,, if "you do.' • Well, ']■ I shall chance it,'says Peg, and she made as .though : :SheJwas:leaving ! the shop, to goto the! 'Coroner there and then, ■''but the other etopj»ed >heri and ;had;Her;;in the'parlour, and Peg fallowed \herself.;to;be persuaded to take half i : thembney man had left to keep mum.C ;fifteen/hundred'ppuride'wae the sum the old\ ibakerihad left;',;and Peg wouldn't have any-' thing but gold for her share.vand in less than a...fortnight'.afterwards; the-, other got the mpriey.: for; ; iPeg' brought it away'■, , 4-riseyen' hundred and. fifty ;'soyerei({ns tied in - 'a;redf handkerchief."/lM ; I saw it with" ; . shy;■ own eyes,"-:.e^aid'Mfi. ?.liee,;.' ? j6ining, in the : laugh V.with .'tlie, women ; ■■'.' a "-'rare lump of ■-. money ta , make'Jso./easUyVv wasn't it?" : "And what: camelbf-Hbtie baker's wife?" I ;, asked. " Lor'-si'mighty knows," returned the :gipßyjlightly; as he puffed at his pipe ; " she hooked.;it -'off.- to- Auatrally shortly after*: ■ wards, and- Peg didn't make'inquiries after her.you mayftake,your davy." ; > '' : ;. ,:..