Show EDWARD AnD n. n SMITH I I TU s dead in Jersey A King Mead dead d ad in the ripeness of ot too 1 years rears and I have been to too toi toa i o e a grief ef of the tho gentle wild arbiter he was for a long m on and to sit st by their errie esin n the pregnant silence ofner of ner mer night but newly laid the King yaye arve and made a funeral pyre earthly properties They ha harmal hady had y formal words of tho the formal these wild people e en rOUght brought by the press pres of ot the I bout them but in the quiet atlon of the camps and the f f their hearts they were cele- cele Mo the ancient and mysterious ey have carried with them out l Jl l times mes nes and lands of the earth f i to 16 dawn lawn of their wanderings s King ing was a Gypsy GYPsa a bars Bora barar r f that hat restless and ancient has carried its traditions II 3 i the slope before u us lay the tenia of the RomanI ven vent as far ar as the peregrine of the demesne of this mood moo mon d his s summer residence are aret not t far from the busy townSon town Son SonIN N. N J. J which town knew i lyas as William Wells horse i ind dr cared ared little to note that autocrat of or the destinies anda and a be of perhaps a hundred outs that Ills his life concealed or even even that he was a rich the plain terms of a silk mil lull toe the bank ank teller Most did Mourning g ga a Gipsy Monarch the e Well-to-Do Well King William Wells of the fhe English Gypsy Family Died at His Tent Demesne Near Paterson N. N j. j His Effects Valued at 0 Were Burned on a Funeral Pyre According to a Tribal Custom and andillY isy illY Queen as an Evidence of Her Grief Had Read the Last Fortune not even know definitely where his tribe could fee Ibe found Through John Blauvelt embalmer and funeral director director tor who had just laid the king to rest in the Laurel Grove Cemetery south of ot Paterson I d found round tho the way yay I If r s t tf s. s r r it HG y iW fr Wj a LA Ea n f 4 r p A v tc y 4 J JI t I QUEEN RHODA Widow 0 of f the Gypsy King to the gypsy camping ground I We whirled away over over ver tortuous unsteady un un- steady roads crossing streams flashing flashing flash flash- ing past roadhouses and emerging merging into the dim open country with the Indigo hills glowing faintly in n the distance and the great reat trees brooding over the ways There on the slope before us lay laythe laythe laythe the tents of the Roman RomanI their evenIng evening even even- I Ing fires g gleaming faintly through the I canvas and casting a mystical radiance radi radi- radiance ance into the black night I Introductions followed and we sat I down before the hearth of Mrs Anna Wells wife of Joseph Wells and daughter of the dead king The IThe interior of or a modern Gypsy tent is worth noting The old open camp amp fire fine had been replaced with a portable stove of good size which had lately warmed the supper of the camp and was still glowing with wood em em- bers hers A three-Inch three stove pipe led from this through the gable of or the tent and sent a small plume of smoke toward the stars On a bench above and beside beside beside be be- side the stove were the dishes all brightly washed and dripping in their pans Beside them stood a g ware bucket of drinking water from which occasional draughts were dipped dipped dipped dip dip- ped with a stein On the same bench stood A large oil lamp amp filling the tent with radiance Two or three plain worn chairs stood to toone toone toone one side in the shadows in the rear a sewing machine In a corner was piled d the bedding all immaculately white fringed with embroidery and strikingly lace lace lace strikingly clean dean for a tent Mrs Wells a woman in the late generously with witha a striking open face and merry blue blueeyes blueeyes blueeyes eyes dropped to the canvas on the ground and invited us to sitI sit sit- I squatted squatted squat squat- ted beside her like a Turk waited until until un un- til the friendly Boston terrier puppy got himself satisfactorily arranged In n my lap and began Yes we burled buried father only yesterday yesterday yesterday yester yester- day Mrs furs Wells answered in an English English Eng Eng- ng lish clean of or both accent and tion He was very old past eighty eighty- five Ive and we had bad rather expected his end Mother misses him worst of ot all of course Th They y had bad been together six fifty years A iA dog barked tUe voIce of a child silenced it The flap of the tent was drawn aside and Mrs Rhoda Wells walked in a remarkable and compelling compelling compel compel- ling lint figure that bra bT Ht it us IUS all to our r feet n a semblance of that formal manner manner man man- ner more moro at home borne under under- permanent roofs She was a large woman straight heavy and reposeful clad all allIn allin in black with a a. circlet of black rib bon hon about her ber snowy hair and a black edged handkerchief clutched in one hand that was gnarled with charac charac- ter She sat down on one of the chairs vacated for her folded her hands In Inh inh h her r lap and looked straight before r her into the l lamp glare glare p-glare silent sphinx sphinx- like Our eyes went to h her face watching her lips for speech 1 I have not often otten seen such a Mace face ancient but not decrepit strong rough hewn powerful and tragic An inexpressible sorrow sat eat ur upon on tho the eyes and face Rembrandt had painted such faces The face was utterly absorbing so that it was almost a 13 shock when her daughter rallied her These gentlemen came to ask about father You can tell them so much mu h more than I can mother The old eyes searched me Queen Rhoda shook her head I dont don't know to tell she answered He fie is gone The voice was as remarkable as ns the tho face It was old and depressed yet it had brad a a. youth and perhaps I because It was still lull fun and end deep con con- I d a persisted You have a regular minister at your funerals dont don't you 1 I asked The queen looked at me mo in aston aston- Of 0 course she said Iwo we weare are all good Methodists The daughter echoed her words In Inthe inthe the same breath Have you always been Surely said the queen We were never anything else We have been I Methodists for generations In Eng land I saw caw that she was grief stricken and tired that questions but hurt her It was better to give it ip up for the night and try again In the tho morning I carried out some roses for the grave of or King William cigarettes for the tho Wells men and small change hange for the tho children knowIng knowing knowing know- know Ing the heart is warmed with gifts If properly offered As I had expected the widow of King William was preparing to visit the grave once more before starting South for lor the autumnal gathering camp of her pC peo peo- vIe She took the roses with reserved graciousness thanked us and sat down downto to answer questions The Tho children and grandchildren gathered about herand her herand herand and aided the conversation King Icing William Wells of the Gypsy family of that name left his native country at five fhe years of age for America At twenty-nine twenty he had gone back to England met his bis queen in Bristol and married here there returning to America where ih he was It is the custom to burn the property property prop prop- J erty of the thc dead King prOD prOD-I already destined for tribal leadership He had made most of his money In horses during the War That was the time of plenty Business had been good too for many years after arter It failed somewhat with the coming of the automobile but King William had bad always kept busy he had always made money Undertaker Blauvelt and others in Paterson already had told 1 me that the Wells property near Paterson and his cash must amount to or more The land on which they camped was their own property and they leased land to far ar- ar mers mere This estimate is probably very vm low since the Wells tribe also owns own land in Delaware and elsewhere The Gypsy is a great hoarder of gold sold and andIn andin In late years has used bank bank accounts I and safe deposit boxes No one ever r gets any real knowledge of their I wealth He was a Just man lInan and a good I king said his widow tenderly I II I asked Joseph Wells nephew and son law of the old king g and queen how bow a Romani monarch exercised his lX power and what this power was Well WeH said Joseph he made the rules of the tribes he decided where the tribe was to go and when he lie settled all 1311 disputes he saw that there was fair play But the tribe is scattered You tell me there are camps of the Wells Wens tribe in Virginia and in the Dakotas How did he lie manage that by letter If It somo dispute came up out West each side would wrIte its version to tha the king He Ho would make all the inquiries he ho needed and then decide But there are I said When men get the beyond power of arbitration arbitration tion or control like the nations do What then 1 You mean when they have havo to fight Well the Gypsies have a good idea for that The J ing takes the two men out sees that there is absolute fair play and lets them fight it 11 out fair tair fist Thero There Is never ver aDY any gun OB oil knife play Tho The king has the power to see justice And how about domestic rows 7 We dont don't have them The Gypsies are aro a very moral and faithful people no divorces or anything like that and very little fuss in the families He paused a 13 moment while the tho theold old queen nodded her assent But they do have divorces once in a while nowadays interjected Mrs Joseph Wells Oh yes Not in this tribe but in others there thero have boon been divorces The Gypsy children are going going going go go- ing to high school and colleges now ow and tb they Y pull away way from the old Ideas The aged queen nodded sadly Itis It Itis Itis is true she deplored We moved out of the tent into the brilliant sunlight A little way off lay a small mound of wagon agon springs wheel hoops and other debris A little ring of smoke denoted that there had b been en a fire lire and I asked about it I It is the custom to burn bum the property property property prop prop- erty of the dead king said Mrs Jo Jo- seph Wells We Wo burned nearly 2000 worth of his belongings I Not lot his MB clothes though We burned everything else except a a. knitted rug mother made for him him- years ago He was fond o of that so sowe we placed it under him in his casket It Jt was now to read the future Of 01 course I want to be reil I said Will you OU read my fortune queen mother Th Tho ancient lady shook her hea l sadly He Is ls gone she said I 1 will read no more fortunes It was vas her form of mourning Per Per Perhaps haps in the cradle of her herl race among amon the Himalaya Aryans long ago it was forbidden the to 10 look again into the once the great mystic sibyl has h-as gathered home hoone h lier r mate |