Travelling quack-doctors, against whom Luther cautions his readers, were common in this country up to the beginning of the present century.[10] And it is not long ago since the credulous countrymen in our rural districts, were cheated by fellows—“wise-men” they preferred being termed—who pretended to divine dreams, and say under which tree or wall the hidden treasure, so plainly seen by Hodge in his sleep carefully deposited in a crock, was to be found. This pleasant idea of a pot full of gold, being buried near everybody, seems to have possessed people in all ages. In Luther’s time the nobility and clergy appear to have been sadly troubled with it, and it is very amusing to learn that so simple in this respect were the latter, that after they had given “gold and silver” to the cunning treasure-seeker, this worthy would insist upon their offering up masses in order that the digging might be attended with success! And lastly, the travelling tinkers,—who appear to have had no better name for honesty in the fifteenth century than they have now,—“going about breaking holes in people’s kettles to give work to a multitude of others,” says the little book. With regard to the Rothwelsch Sprache, or cant language used by these vagrants, it appears, like nearly all similar systems of speech, to be founded on allegory. Many of the terms, as in the case of the ancient cant of this country, appear to be compound corruptions,—two or more words, in ordinary use, twisted and pronounced in such a way as to hide their original meaning. As Luther states, in his preface, the Hebrew appears to be a principal element. Occasionally a term from a neighbouring country, or from a dead language may be observed, but not frequently. As they occur in the original I have retained those cant words which are to be found here and there in the text. Perhaps it would have rendered a perusal less tedious had they been placed as foot-notes; but I preferred to adhere to the form in which Luther was content the little book should go forth to the world. The simple form of these secret terms has generally been given, there being no established rule for their inflection. In a few instances I found myself unable to give English equivalents to the cant words in the Vocabulary, so was compelled to leave them unexplained, but with the old German meanings (not easy to be unravelled) attached. JOHN CAMDEN HOTTEN. _Piccadilly, June, 1860._ [Illustration] +Liber Vagatorum+ THE BOOK OF VAGABONDS AND BEGGARS WITH A PREFACE BY MARTIN LUTHER [Illustration] _Printed at_ WITTEMBERG _in the year_ M.D.XXIX. _MARTIN LUTHER’S PREFACE._ _This little book about the knaveries of beggars was first printed by one who called himself_ Expertus in Truffis, _that is, a fellow right expert in roguery,—which the little work very well proves, even though he had not given himself such a name._