tongue_? / _Can you play the
fiddle_? / _Can you eat the prison-loaf_? / _Can you cut and whittle_? /
London: / John Murray, Albemarle Street. / 1874.

Collation:--Crown octavo, pp. viii + 331; consisting of: Half-title (with
blank reverse) pp. i-ii; Title-page, as above (with imprint "_London_: /
_Printed by William Clowes and Sons_, / _Stamford Street and Charing
Cross_" upon the centre of the reverse) pp. iii-iv; Prefatory Note
regarding the _Vocabulary_ p. v; Advertisements of five _Works of George
Borrow_ p. vi; Table of _Contents_ pp. vii-viii; and Text pp. 1-331,
including Fly-titles (each with blank reverse) to each section of the
book. The reverse of p. 331 is blank. At the foot of p. 331 the imprint
is repeated thus, "_London_: _Printed by Wm. Clowes and Sons_, _Stamford
Street_ / _and Charing Cross_." There are head-lines throughout, each
page being headed with the title of the particular subject occupying it.
The signatures, are A (a half-sheet of 4 leaves), B to X (20 sheets, each
8 leaves), Y (a half-sheet of 4 leaves), and Z (a quarter-sheet of 2
leaves).

Issued in dark blue cloth boards, with white paper back-label, lettered
"_Romano Lavo-Lil_; / _Word-Book_ / _of_ / _The Romany_. / _By_ / _George
Borrow_." The leaves measure 7.75 x 4.875 inches. The published price
was 10_s._ 6_d._

One Thousand Copies were printed.

The book was set up in type towards the end of 1873, and published early
in 1874. Proof-sheets still exist bearing the earlier date upon the
title-page.

A considerable amount of Verse by Borrow made its first appearance in the
pages of _Romano Lavo-Lil_, as detailed in the following list:

_Contents_

PAGE

LITTLE SAYINGS:

1. [ _Whatever ignorance men may show_] 109

2. [_What must I do_, _mother_, _to make you well_?] 111

3. [_I would rather hear him speak than hear Lally 115
sing_]

ENGLISH GYPSY SONGS:

1. The Gypsy Meeting. [_Who's your mother_, _who's your 175
father_?]

2. Making a Fortune (1). [_Come along_, _my little 177
gypsy girl_]

3. Making a Fortune (2). [_Come along_, _my little 179
gypsy girl_]

THE TWO GYPSIES. [_Two gypsy lads were transported_] 181

MY ROMAN LASS. [_As I to the town was going one day