Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-07-08
QUEER ABORIGINAL BOOKS.
Origin of Printing Books for the Indians
Facts About alphabets and Dialects.
washington Star)

Perhaps the most relndrkAOie sHlai
library in this country is the property OF
James c. Pilling, thu well-known ethnolo-
gist, Of Washington. IT is the largest ey-
listing collection OF books in Indian lam
guages, and Of these languages there are
no less than ffty-fve In North America
north of Mexico. All OF them are distinct
tongues. as different from one another as
Chinese and English.
More than one half Of the bCO dialects
into which the hfty-five languages referred
10 are divided are preserved In BOOKS
II IS believed that the first book printed
on this continent was In an Indlan IAN
Fuage-the "Nahuatl published at the
City OF Mexico in 1899. The FIRST Bible
printed n America was in an indian
torgue--the celebrated Eliot Bible. rms Is
one OF the most costly OF all rare BOOKS
About forty copies OF II were specially
prepared with a dedication TO Charles H.
one of these in good condition. Is now
worth about S2.CD.
The first printing done west OF the
Rocky Mountains was IN the Nes Perez
language. II was primer for Indian
children. turned Que from the mission
press at Clearwater, Idaho. In 1899 The
press that dld the work had been brought
by the missionaries all the way from
The Hawaiian Islands.
The first book printed in Dakota was
dictionary OF the Sioux language. produced
IN 1866 NJ Fort Laramie. II was prepared
by two officers OF the United States army.
Lieutenants Hyde and Starring, to pass
away the wary hours during A long and
cold winter ~ that lonely outpost Of
civilization. They were aided in their
work by an Interpreter and by the Indians
WHO loafed about the fort. Tho type WAS
set up by the soldiers, and fifty copies
were struck off on a crude hand-press
Only two copies are now known. enc Of
them belonging 10 General Starring, OF
New York. 9 brother Of the author, and
the other to A1r. Pillins.
THE CHEROKEE ALPHABET.
The only existing alphabet that is ths
product of one mans mind, and IN which a
literature has been printed. was the inven-
ton OF haif-breed Cherokes Indian. lis
name was Se-quo-yah. and he had 10 edu-
cation whatever: but 1t occurred 10 him
that he could express all the syllables IN
the Cherokee tongue by characters. Find
ing that there were eighty-siX syllable
sounds in the language ne devised for
each one OF them peculiar mark. For
so'le Of the marks he took characters II
our own alphabet turning them upside
-
writing letters. and by means Of them
q corresponience was soon maintained
between Indians OF his race IN Georgia
and their relatives 800 miles away.
At present this alphsbet-Or, more pro-
perry Speaking, syilabary-is in general
use among the Cherokees. In no other
language can the art Of reading lie
learned SO quickly. Whereas. a fairly
bright child learns to read well in English
in two and half years. n Cherokee
youngstCr IS able to acquire luency in
reading books written In this 5y!labary
within two months and half. In III
the American Board Of Foreign Missions
betrayed the cost Of casting a font o!
type Of the characters. The literature
composed with them is now very extern
sive, numerous books and some Of the
newspapers OF the Chorokees being pup
lished in the syllabdry.
BY SQUARES AND CIRCLES.
Later. in lSlo an improved syliabary
was devised by the Rev. James Evans
n missionary among the Crees. il was
phonetic, and the characters We're simpler
being composed OF squares and parts OF
squares and circles and parts OF circles
The Jealous clergyman cut his type out OF
! wood, AMI made castings from the or.gi.
nal blocks with head from. tea-chests
which he begged from officers OF the Hud-
son-Bay Company. lie manufactured inh
out of SCOT. and on hand press OF his
own construction printed many little
tracts and leaflets for the benefit of the
Indians. With some mCdiiIca tons hi
! characters have come into general use
not only among the CTees. but also among
many tribes of the Northwest which speak
languages in no wise akin TO that Of the
| Creos, and scores Of books have been
| printed in them.
IN THE CHINOOK. JARGON.
The queerest periodical in existence is g
weekly now published by French priest
| al kamiOOps, British Columbia. II Is
called tn. kamlOops Wa-wa, which means
"writing," and is in the Chinook jaTgOn
| This jargon Is sort Of international
| speech, composed Of half "a dozen different
! Indian tongues. mixed with fragments oil
| English, French. and German. 1t is the
| language of trade intercourse among al
| the people of the sparsely-settlcd North
west as far as Ala ka.
| The mission field Of the holy father who
/ publishes this periodical extends ovel
! about 800 square miles. Much OF his time
| is spent in making long journeys between
| distant settlements. and during his pause:
! for rest on the way he amuses himself
with editorial work. The weekly Is writ
| ten in three columns-the first column II
\ iargon, the second in shorthand charac'
| tiers. and the third In English. The mat
! ter is current news Of the mission, ser
mons. prayers, &c. 1t is multiplied by tn
nimeograph and distributed amcn g tn
| priests widely-scatteTed parlShioners
| The paper on which the printing H. don'
/ Is blue green. PINK, or yellow, according
| TO the taste or the people who give II tt
| the good father. Tho periodical Is de
| livered free Of charge, Mr.. Pilling being
! in all probability, the only paying sub
scriber
ORIGIN OF THE JARGON.
The iargon WAS started by the early
| white explorers who visited the Pacln'
coast. Lewis and Clarke, the first ad
yenturers in that direction. were followed
by the people Of the American Fur Com
| pany. sent out by John Jacob Astor. TIT
! passing OF these commercial traveller
| among the tribes Of Indians resulted in {
composite vocabulary, which is now use'
| by people who speak twenty differen
languages, not one OF them like unit
another. Yet they all understand thi
common business tongue which Ia man
ner corresponds TO the Asistic ''pdgiT
! English" Every Washington and Oregon
man talks Chinook.
In the Chinook jargon white men ar
! divided into two kinds-''wo-harS' anC
"goddams." The former Is Il term fo
Transfers and the like. the derivations be
Ing obvious. while the latter Is the dssig
nation for gentlemen. who as eyerybod,
knows, used to swear terribly In the OLE
days A name for the white man n
general IL Boston" This Is believed Il
| be derived from an historical incident
namely. the capture by the Nootka In
dams at Nootka sound Of vessel calleS
| the Boston, from the town OF Boston
Mass. In 1903. Every soul on board OF he
| was put to death. save only twe-a sail