Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1891-12-04


ignorant of any other language but his
own.
The exact time and place of Se-quo-yah's
death is somewhat merged in obscurity,
but from the best authority it appears to
have occurred about 1915. and Indian ira
dtion tells us he died away from his PEG
pie and in the heart of old Mexico, where
he had gone to join some friend in that
country. At any rate, a delegation of
Cherokees were sent to Mexico some years
later to find and bring his remains back
to his native country, but they were totally
unsuccessful in their search and the grave
of Se-quoyah is unknown to this day.
SE-QUO-YAH BEGINS.
The immediate circumstance which in
duced Se-quo-yah to undertake the great
task of inventing an alphabet appears to
be based upon a conversation between
himself and a few companions upon the
subject of writing, or the talking leaf =
as they called it, at a certain town in the
old Cherokee nation. east of the Missis
sippi, called Saunta Some young men
were remarking on the wonderful and SUI
perior talents of the white men.
One of the company said that the white
man could put a talk on paper and send it
understood by those who would receive it.
All admitted that this was indeed wonder
full, an art far beyond the reach of the red
man, and they were utterly at a loss to
conceive in what way it was done.
Se-quo-yah after listening to the CONVEX
sation awhile in silence, raised himself
and putting on an air of great Importance
observed: "You are all fools! Why. the
thing is very easy; can do it myself
And taking up a fiat stone that lay near
him he commenced making words on it
with a sharp instrument of some kind
After few minutes he told them what he
had written by making mark for each
word, etc. This produced a laugh. and the
conversation on the subject ended.
After the interview at Saunta he went
home, obtained some paper and paint and
began in earnest to paint the Cherokee
language on paper" From the cries of
wild beasts, from the talents of the mock
ing bird, from the voices Of his children
and companions, he knew that feelings and
passions were conveyed from one intell
gent being to another The thought ther
occurred to him to try and ascertain all the
sounds in the Cherokee language.
HOW HE INVENTED HIS ALPHABET.
When he thought he had distinguished
all the different sounds in his language he
attempted to use pictorial signs-images Of
birds and beasts-to convey these signs to
others, or to mark them in his own mind
In this and several other methods he failed
i'll his attempts to perfect his great under
taking, but he was not in the least discour
aged. He at length hit upon the idea of
dividing the words into parts, or syllables,
and he had proceeded in this direction but
short time when, to his great satisfaction.
he had the written language of his country
After completing his alphabet he found
much difficulty in getting his people to
learn it. Nor could he succeed until he
came out to this country and taught few
persons here, one OF whom wrote a letter
back to one of Se-quoyah's friends in the
old nation, who read it to his neighbors.
When the usefulness of the Cherokee al
phabet became fully acknowledged, it
spread throughout the nation in q manner
unprecedented. Reading and writing in
the Cherokee language soon became com
mon, for within a few months after it's in
production there were Cherokees in vari
Gus parts of the nation who could use the
talking leaf"
at first confined to the more obscure indi
viduals of the Cherokees. nor did the more
intelligent class consider it of any impor
lance until their senses gave evidence of
the existence and utility of this remark
able invention, and they saw Cherokees
read and write in their own language.
CHEROKEE PUBLICATIONS.
The number of characters in Se-quo-yah's
alphabet is eightyfive. The arrangement,
like that of all other alphabets with which
am acquainted, is entirely without sys
tenn, and appear to have been placed in
the order in which they presented them
selves to the inventor when he was put
ting the finishing strokes to his work, by
embodying his sign of sounds, after finish
ing the number sufficient for writing all
the words of the Cherokee language. The
figures used were the Arabic, or the same
that we use.
In order to increase the utility of Sc
quo-yah's great invention, the Cherokee
legislature appropriated a sum of money
to have type and a printing press con
structed. The Advocate, a newspaper
printed in both the Cherokee and English
language, was established, and is still in
operation. About 800 copies of this paper
are circulated and read by hundreds of
full bloods who cannot read English at all.
On the same press have been printed i'll the
Cherokee language the New Testament, a
hymn book and many tracts containing
portions of the Holy Scriptures.
These publications are read with inter
est, and in many places weekly meetings
are held to read The Advocate. | am con
vinced that there is no exaggeration in the
assertion that there is not full blood
terokee Indian of fifteen years of age who
1 unot read and write his own language.
That the mass of people without schools
or books should by mutual assistance, and
without extraneous impulse or aid, acquire
the arts of reading and writing-;lnd that
in characters wholly originals, believe,
Il phenomenon unexampled in the worlds
history-Indian Territory Cor. Fort Worth
Gazette.