The San Francisco call., 1896-01-02

twenty years he was in the saddle every
day, and travelled over a vast expanse OF
very wild countryj. teaching the Indians
and rendering aid to pioneer whites,
p. 1t is conceded that the reverend gentle
man has done more to subdue the Indians
than all other agencies comb mbined.
= canon Good has been thirty-fve years in
general mission and church work in Brit
. ish-Columbia, he having come from Eng
Iaai, via San Francisco, in 1861. Though
for some years past rector OF st. Paul's
Church at Nanaimo, he has always main
tanned q deep interest in the Indians there
abolti who were his original proteges.
.Thelntrepid missionary some years ago
publisheda a dictionary. and grammar OF
the Indian language The book gave. him
high standing, which he has ever since
maintained, and has been sought for far
and. near. The Smithsonian Institution at
Washington D. c., has been specially in
terested in. his researches and conclusions,
and at his suggestion has sent men to
British Columbia to collect the folklore Of
the Indians. . -. 49,
Al first went to Nanaimo,'' said the dis
tiuguished. missionary preacher, and re-
mained there till 1865. After that l was
twenty years on the main land in charge
OF q large area. 1 founded the mission at
Lytton, atthe junction of the Thompson
River with the Fraser. 1t is large mis-
sion now. The Thompson River Indians
are all civilized and Christlanized. They
mine, farm, raise cattle and do everything
that white men do, being useful factors in
civilization. There are industrial schools
all through the country, and there is quite
staff OF clergymen and teachers now
where I once had so much to do alone.
"There are $500 of the Thompson River
Indians, and besides these there are several
hundred Shuswap and Liiooets The lat
ter tribes speak cognate tongues. The
Dominion Government now gives large
1ounts annually in support of the In
dians, IL IS turned over to whatever de-
nomination is working among them. This
plan has been found to work exceedingly
we'll"
The missionary is an able Greek, He
brew and Latin scholar. He says his
study of the language of the Indians OF
that section has convinced him that they
are Of Assyrian origin, and are to all in
tents and purposes Assyrians as they now
are. Many of their words now in use are
Assyrian.
Il was astonished at the richness of this
language" he said, '"and its wonderful
capacity for accurate expression. The
language was metaphysical in the highest
degree The more l studied it the more l
was charmed with it. The language was
Developing all the time new beauties.
81 found many pure Syrian words in it,
as, for instance, Eneasand Solomon Chute,
among proper names. The words of the
language are historical and traditional,
and observe the same laws as those of the
Syrian language.
Il think the language of the Thompson
River Indians Is one of the Toranian
tongues. There are direct Syrian words
in it.
'Then there are other evidences that
these Indians are the Syrian descendants
Their medicine man is the same as the
Syrian seer The burial customs are to
this day the same Besides this there is
the character of the people, who are Syr-
lans IN thought, habits OF life and general
customs.
In studying their language one can see
that dynasties have risen and fallen; that
there have been great governments and
aoie men and high state OF civilization
at times. The indications are all there. 1t
Is the language Of a'resined people. 1t has
fallen now TO a low state; lis probabfv