The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1869-02-25
25.

birds, beasts, &c, which approximated
with the sounds, and served best as a re-
presentation. But the mind, before il
could realize such a category. would re-
qure an immense amount of training.
tie looked over the extensive list with
some dismay, and endeavored to modify
1t. lie was successful enough TO abbreyi-
ate 1t to eighty-siX. He was able to ac.
complish this, because in Cherokee all syl-
iables have vowel ending An enumer-
alton and classification of these syllables
made, and sign for each, would complete
it. Thus there needed no distinction he.
tween yowels and consonants. A rather
unwieldly affair, no doubt; but when the
system was learned, easier to spell by than
by using EliOt's method. The longest
word OF this system contains but fourteen
signs or syllables, while the longest words
CT Eliot'S have often over thirty.
lt took the ancient world ages before it
could entirely discard the picture signs
for letters The idea of simple letters
stole on imperceptibly, and is enveloped
m inexplicable mystery; But this poor
indian at one stroke discarded his picture
signs, and invented an alphabet almost as
commodlous as those Of European nations.
It's next difficulty was to make so MANY
signs dlsslmilar to each other. Perhaps
he might have seen some English printed
matter, for son3c Of his signs greatly re.
semble our letters. The figure 4 is nromi.
nently used. Some sigus are like Greek
or Asiatic letters, others ike Slayonian.
But they have far different sound from
their prototypes, if such they were. The
sign > sounds like Mu, NJ like Zu, and the
rest are equally different. But most of
them are pure inventions All are used
over again IN different pOstures, so to
speak-dlstorted, inverted or abbreviated.
His pen was nail; he wrote on bark
Eventually (abOut 1920 he obtained pen
ana some paper from one of those frontier
traders, but the pen was carefully pre-
served as guide to manufacture others
by. His ink he made himself from barks.
His first pupil was his daughter.
But, ike Roger Bacon, Gutenberg,
Calico, and others, his neighbors sus-
pected him of practising the black art.
Doubtless he seldom lett his hut his
mind being in his work, his time would
be taken up with it. His tribe Stunned
him; but his i1offensiye, as well as his
pitiable condition, preserved lin from any
dire consequences.
lie was It'd that they would see the
fruits OF his labOrs before they Judged too
harshiy. Tie following year he brought
his invention before the sachems of his
tribe, causing his daughter to write from
his dictation in IN adjoining apartment,
and cice c6rso. The tribe were astonished !;
and after li't;e Wayering, and his assur.
ance Of using TO supernatural power, they
allowed him TO instruct some of the youths
OF the tribe. After several months inter-
val, the youths were brought forward,
and amid great popular excitement, were
tested and examined in as many ingenious
ways "a the cunning Indians could sug-
gest; but the youths proved themselves
masters Of The new art.
Ills discovery led to the printing of the
New Testament in the Cherokee language !;
in 1925, the United States cast fount of
type from his invention, and even printed a
newspaper from it { The Ph9nir) The cap
ltals diIer from the small letters only in
being a little larger The missionaries
brought in use the Arabic numerals, al
! though See-quo-lah had invented numerals
+ to correspond.
lie afterwards expressed his regret that
! his invention should have been promoted
to undermine the principles of his Indian
religion. He never became a Christian.
/ When mis- tribe were obliged to move out
OF Georgia, he accompanied them to their
new home in Arkansas. We next hear
of him in Northern Mexico, and then at
San Francisco, where he died at the age of
seventy-eight, IL August, 3.-Chdm6ers'
Journal