Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-23
THE INDIANS CADMUS.
Movement on Foot to Erect Statue to
Sequoyah.

From the Kansas City Journal.
The effort on the part Of several promi-
nent Cherokee Indians to erect statue in
the capital square at Tahlequah, I. T., to
the memory Of Sequoyah has renewed in
terest in this wonderful Indian. He is I'M
questionably the greatest Indian this nation
ever produced. and is so revered by the full
blood Cherokees, but as these do not form
the most considerable part of the tribe and
the mixed-bloods control affairs in the ma
tional council, bills for a monument to per-
petuate his memory in marble have hereto
fore failed. number Of prominent men
have been interested in the project this
time, however, and 1t is hoped the bill will
pass. No one doubts that President Roose-
Welt will sign the bill making 1t possible to
erect the monument at once. Although
Sequoyah is the especial favorite of the
full-blooded CherokeeS, he was not one OF
their number. His lifework, however was
devoted to their interests. This work was
the formulating of an alphabet which con-
SfstS of eighty-fve characters. So simple
is 1t that 1t has been learned by students In
from three to four days, and 1t is grounded
on such thorough principles that when
learned by one knowing the spoken lam
guage no difficulty is experienced in read.
Ing. 1t has been pronounced one Of the
most complete alphabets in existence, and
for 1t Sequoyah has been dubbed "the
American Cadmus."
Sequoyah was born in ITO in Georgia
where the Cherokee tribe was then living
His mother was full-blooded Cherokee
and his father a German trader, known as
George Geist or Guess. In 1881, with other
members of the tribe. Sequoyah moved to
the Indian territory and lived on a little
farm in a district known by his name some
twelve miles north of Muldrow. There I,
was that he, though wholly uneducated
fashioned the letters for his alphabet, which
will doubtless live as study long after the
last Indian has passed away He was a
farmer and counted well-to-do, as he owned
cattle, hogs and horses. A personal descrip-
ton of him. secured several years ago from
houston Beng of Fort Gibson, who has
since died, Is that Sequoyah was a slender
man, with fine features and a pleasant ex.
preston. He was lame in one leg. due to q
white swelling he was afflicted with when a
boy. When he travelled abroad he rode a
white mule. In 1S43. in company with his
son and another Indian, he started on a triI
west. to try and find a band of Cherokees
which had gone there years before. The
party travelled in a cart, drawn by a yoke OF
oxen, but had horses with them. Somewhere
in the northern part of Mexico Sequoyat
became separated from his companions and
they were compelled to return without him
He was never heard of again, and II Is sup
posed persisted from want. At the time OF
his disappearance he wore. large silver
medal. presented to him by Congress ir
recognition Of his services toward the up
lifting of the Indians.
The written language he invented has
been of great use to people dealing with the
Indians. Soon after 1t was made public the
Bible and many other books were translated
into Cherokee. and paper known as ths
Cherokee Advocate, started. This news
paper is still in existence. One-half of II Is
printed In English and the other In Chero
kee. The office is located at Tahlequah
capital of the Cherokee nation