Vermont telegraph. [volume] (Brandon [Vt.]) 1828-1843, 1838-01-31
VOL. X. NO. 10.

| midst Vi ILLS tea COuntfy, HAS peen men
toned as offering a good location for
missionary. ~. ~
The Abors are the great family of the
north. This race includes also the Bor.
Abors and Miris, who speak the same
language. Mari is term applied to
those who have descended toethe plains,
and, mingling with the Asamese and
other races, have partially adopted The
habits Of more civilized life. The term
Abor (signifying Indepemdemt is applied
to those who live on the highlands in a
savage state, and have never acknowl-
edged the supremacy of the Asam rajas;
but on the contrary have heretofore been
in the habit of descending annually to levy
tribute on the people of the plains, and not
unfrequentty carrying off many of them
as slaves. Dor AbOrs, Tor Great Abors,)
is a term used to denote the main body of
this people, who occupy the higher and
more distant ranges of the north, and
stretch far on to the borders of the Tibet.
The banks of the great river Dihong, (the
Sampou of geographers,) are entirely oc-
cupied by this race, and all the eastern
ranges of mountains, as far as the river
Dibong.
| 1t would of course be imprudent for a
: missionary to proceed at dice into the
midst of this savage people. His first
efforts would naturally be amongst the
t Miris, settled about Sadiya, from whom
he would learn the language He might
then advance without danger to the Aber
r villages or the precincts of the sadiya
valley, and afterwards to those which
. were more remote, according as he should
find the disposition of the people favorable.
Neither the Singphos nor Abors have
any books, or anv knowledge of letters
whatever. The first thing to be done is
to give them a eorattem languages The
foundation OF their literature is to be laid.
). This you will at once perceive to be
y very important circumstance. Those
e who shall first give them a written and
l. printed language, and select their books
n for fifty years to come, will give charac-
e ter to all their future literature They
J. will open the fountain, whose properties,
either good or evil, will assuredly be
communicated to all the streams that flow
i from it in after ages. How important
Il then that in the outset We should lay for
y them the foundation of a literature truly
d Christian-that their first books should
n be pure truth, the truth revealed in Gods
= word. Mankind in the rude state ofthese
e ltribes, look up to their literature, if they
If have one, as their oracle; and it is an
undeniable fact, that the grand prop of
y almost every heather religion is the hea-
M then literature connected with it.
AS an encouragement to immediate eff
K forts towards giving the Singphos and
H. Abors a wriasn language, it will be graft
is flying TO the Board to learn that G. A.
% Bruce, Esq, superintendent of the Gov
as eminent Tea Plantations, has offered one
el hundred rupees towards defraying the
III expense of the first book that shall be print
s. ed in the Singpho language, and the like
er sum for the first book that shall be printed
he IN the language of the Abors. Mr..
&c Bruce has been resident in this place for
a many years, and no person can have a
Isl better acquaintance with the wants of these
nd tribes, in moral and Intellectual point of
view, or be better prepared to appreciate
IN the blessings which Christian instruction
ly would bring to them. Mr.. Bruce gave
"a it as his decided opinion, that it would be
ID, perfectly safe for missionaries, at the
re present moment, to commence operations
Of both among the Singphos and Abors.
W. By adapting the Roman letters to the
Iy, Singpho and Abor languages, on the plan
"a, used for writing the other East Indian
us dialects the time occupied in teaching the
natives to read, and of course the expense
mt will be very trif1ing, compared with that OF
'ut teaching scholars to read English or Bur
5e. rnese, or any other language, where the
to sounds of the letters vary. BY using
ey each letter to express one invariable sound
VS. children will learn to read, In tqoo months
cir better than they could, on different plan
lr in tuelve.
or There is another extensive tribe living
ess on the hills to the northeast of this place
On. viz: the Mishmis, to whom | hope the
we attention of the Board will be eventually
ID, directed. They come down to Sadiys
ity every year, in companies of thirty or forty
pei men each, for the purpose Of trading. Ii
en- is impossible to form any estimate oftheir
he numbers, but they are generally supposed
he to be less numerous than the Abors
raj The system of Romanizing, spoken Of
nd above, was applied to the Asamese and
he Shyan languages by Mr.. Brown, in the
In works mentioned in the first extracts. Ia
la later communication Mr. B. writcs,-in
ric regard to the
Adoptation Of Roman Characters to Easl
ion Indian L0UguascS.
ce We are glad to learn that the Board
ing approve of the application of the Roman
Of characters to the Shyan language. In
,ho regard to any objections being offered to
,fv it by the natives, | do not think there j:
in reason to apprehend any thing ofthe kind
will The Shyans are scattered and suhduec
~; | rnce and havinn no nnntraI O,,.. G.