Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1914-01-02
CHEROKEE ALPHABET
Invented IN 1924,
HISTORY INDICATES

sequoyah. Noted Chief, Perfected sys.
fem for Transmission Of Thought
Two Papers Published in
Native Tongue.
No Indian nation on this continent
has such q remarkable journalistic his
tory a. the Cherokee. Sequoyah. their
great leader, perfected In 1924 an al
phabet for them, according to Cherokee
Indian history provided by Black
Fox" a famous members of the tribe,
to George E. Foster OF Weber Falls.
This alphabet was the first invented
by aborigines for more than 1000 years.
S~equoyah. like many inventors. a
been ridfculed M even accounted
crazy by his tribe, and on many a fine
morning his wife. who had little pa
thence with his meditative n philo-
ssophical ways. could be heard Gliding
position he ~persevered n having
spent nearly as much time in persua-
sion as he had in inventing, he at
length convinced his people of its util-
ity. Hence 1t was that. in November,
1926. the Cherokee council resolved to
WV Va ~ RSs AN
after ~Sequoyah's invention n the
other English. M also to procure a
printing press and the general furniture
necessary for a well equipped printing
office.
BY the following November the work
had SO far assumed shape that the
council resolved to erect "a printing
office, 34x2O feet, one-story high.
shingle roof, with n nre place. n
door in the end of the house. n floor
n a window in q side OF the house.
two lights deep n 10 feet long. to be
chinked and lined in the inside WITH
narrow plank"
February 81. 1928. the iron printing
press OF improved construction and
fonts Of Cherokee and English type, to-
gether with the entire outfit necessary
for publishing a newspaper. was set up
of the Cherokee Phoenix was given to
the world. The Phoenix was not only
the first aboriginal newspaper on this
continent, but 1t was printed in the
first photography. Elias Boudinot was
the first editor. He was aided by the
missionaries of the American board.
ons-Half in sequoyah.
The Phoenix was the average size of
the newspapers OF the day and one
half of 1t was printed In the Sequoyah
alphabet. BY resolution of the council,
the printers apprentices were boarded
n clothed at the expense of the coun-
Gil and the editor was forbidden to pub
lish scurrilOus communications. or any
thing of q religious nature that would
OF SectarianiSm. The first pros
pectus read as follows:
1.-The great object of the Phoenix will
be to benefit the Cherokees, and the
following subjects will occupy the col
| umns: First. the laws n public c
ments OF the nation: second, accounts
of III manners n customs of the
Cherokees and their progress in edu-
cation, religion and acts OF civilized
life. with such notices OF other Indians
as our limited means Of information
will allow; third. the principal interest
ing events of the day: fourth, miscel-
laneous articles calculated to promote
literature, civilization and religion
Such were the topics that were
| printed and that Sequoyah read in let
tiers of his own invention in the coll
umns OF the Poenix within two years
after the acceptance CT the alphabet
by the nation.
Received With Profound Wonder.
No publication vas " received
with such profound wonder by the
world as this. Copies were ordered
from all parts of the country. and the
London Times exchanged with 1t on
| equal terms. The publication OF the
Phoenix seemed to be the key which
was to unlock the intellectual faculties
| of the Cherokees. In November, nine
months after the first copy OF the
wrote from among them that In his
| opinion at least three-fourths Of the
nation could read nj write in their
new alphabet. Publications from the
press at New Echota were eagerly
sought.
Within five years Of the adoption
of ~Sequoyah's alphabet. the press at
New Echota had turned of 1884, 0
pages OF good reading which was Gag
erly read and reread by the Chero-
KEGS. Two years after h number had
increased to 1.513,so pages n before
1000, 900 pages of good literature had
been printed in Cherokee. and hat not
including the circulation of the Pkoe-
nix.
that was inevitably to follow. Ever
then the Cherokees had given up all
hope Of receiving Justice from the
hands of our government. February
10, 1881. the Phoenix appeared with
only a half sheet.
"one of our printers has left is and
we expect another who is a white
man, to quit us very soon either to be
dragged to the Georgia penitentiary
for a term Of years, or for his personal
safety to leave the nation to let us
shift for ourselves. But we will not
give up the ship while she is afloat.
We have intelligent youth enough in
the nation, and we hope before long
to make up u loss. Let our patrons
> bear in mind that we are in the woods.
and as 1t Is said by many in a savage
country. where printers are not plenty,
and therefore they must not expect to