THE LITERATURE AND LANGUAGE OF THE LENAPE.
§ 1. Literature of the Lenape Tongue--Campanius; Penn; Thomas,
Zeisberger; Heckeweider, Roth, Ettwein; Grube, Dencke; Luckenbach;
Henry; Vocabularies, a native letter.
§ 2. General Remarks on the Lenape.
§ 3. Dialects of the Lenape.
§ 4. Special Structure of the Lenape.--The Root and the Theme;
Prefixes; Suffixes; Derivatives, Grammatical Notes.
§ 1. _Literature of the Lenape Tongue._
The first study of the Delaware language was undertaken by the Rev.
Thomas Campanius (Holm), who was chaplain to the Swedish settlements,
1642-1649. He collected a vocabulary, wrote out a number of dialogues
in Delaware and Swedish, and even completed a translation of the
Lutheran catechism into the tongue. The last mentioned was published
in Stockholm, in 1696, through the efforts of his grandson, under the
title, LUTHERI CATECHISMUS, _Ofwersatt pä American-Virginiske Spräket_,
1 vol., sm. 8vo, pp. 160. On pages 133-154 it has a _Vocabularium
Barbaro-Virgineorum_, and on pages 155-160, _Vocabula Mahakuassica_.
The first is the Delaware as then current on the lower river, the
second the dialect of the Susquehannocks or Minquas, who frequently
visited the Swedish settlements.
Although he managed to render all the Catechism into something which
looks like Delaware, Campanius' knowledge of the tongue was exceedingly
superficial. Dr. Trumbull says of his work: "The translator had not
learned even so much of the grammar as to distinguish the plural of a
noun or verb from the singular, and knew nothing of the "transitions"
by which the pronouns of the subject and object are blended with the
verb."[151]
At the close of his "History of New Sweden," Campanius adds further
linguistic material, including an imaginary conversation in Lenape, and
the oration of a sachem. It is of the same character as that found in
the Catechism.
After the English occupation very little attention was given to the
tongue beyond what was indispensable to trading. William Penn, indeed,
professed to have acquired a mastery of it. He writes: "I have made it
my business to understand it, that I might not want an interpreter on
any occasion."[152] But it is evident, from the specimens he gives,
that all he studied was the trader's jargon, which scorned etymology,
syntax and prosody, and was about as near pure Lenape as pigeon English
is to the periods of Macaulay.
An ample specimen of this jargon is furnished us by Gabriel Thomas, in
his "Historical and Geographical Account of the Province and Country
of Pensilvania; and of West-New-Jersey in America," London, 1698,
dedicated to Penn. Thomas tells us that he lived in the country fifteen
years, and supplies, for the convenience of those who propose visiting
the province, some forms of conversation, Indian and English. I subjoin
a short specimen, with a brief commentary:--
1. _Hitah takoman?_ Friend, from whence com'st?
2. _Andogowa nee weekin._ Yonder.
3. _Tony andogowa kee weekin?_ Where Yonder?
4. _Arwaymouse._ At Arwaymouse.
5. _Keco kee hatah weekin?_ What hast got in thy house?
6. _Nee hatah huska weesyouse og_ I have very fat venison and
_huska chetena chase og huska_ good strong skins, with very
_orit chekenip._ good turkeys.
7. _Chingo kee beto nee chasa ag_ When wilt thou bring me skins
_yousa elka chekenip?_ and venison, with turkeys?
8. _Haiapa etka nisha kishquicka._ To morrow, or two days hence.
1. _Hitah_ for _n'ischu_ (Mohegan, _nitap_), my friend; _takoman_,
Zeis. _takomun_, from _ta_, where, _k_, 2d pers. sing.
2. _Andogowa_, similar to _undachwe_, he comes, Heck.; _nee_, pron.
possess. 1st person; _weekin_ = _wikwam_, or wigwam. "I come from
my house."
3. _Tony_, = Zeis. _tani_, where? _kee_, pron. possess. 2d person.
4. _Arwaymouse_ was the name of an Indian village,
near Burlington, N.J.
5. _Keco_, Zeis. _koecu_, what? _hatah_, Zeis. _hattin_, to have.
6. _Huska_, Zeis. _husca_, "very, truly;" _wees_, Zeis. _wisu_,
fatty flesh, _youse_, R. W. _jous_, deer meat; _og_, Camp. _ock_,
Zeis. _woak_ and; _chetena_, Zeis. _tschitani_, strong; _chase_, Z.
_chessak_, deerskin; _orit_, Zeis. _wulit_, good; _chekenip_, Z.
_tschekenum_, turkey.
7. _Chingo_, Zeis. _tschingatsch_, when; _beto_, Z. _peten_, to bring;
_etka_, R. W., _ka_, and.
8. _Halapa_, Z. _alappa_, to-morrow; _nisha_, two; _kishquicka_,
Z. _gischgu_, day, _gischguik_, by day.
The principal authority on the Delaware language is the Rev. David
Zeisberger, the eminent Moravian missionary, whose long and devoted
labors may be accepted as fixing the standard of the tongue.
Before him, no one had seriously set to work to master the structure
of the language, and reduce it to a uniform orthography. With him, it
was almost a lifelong study, as for more than sixty years it engaged
his attention. To his devotion to the cause in which he was engaged, he
added considerable natural talent for languages, and learned to speak,
with almost equal fluency, English, German, Delaware and the Onondaga
and Mohawk dialects of the Iroquois.
The first work he gave to the press was a "Delaware Indian and
English Spelling Book for the Schools of the Mission of the United
Brethren," printed in Philadelphia, 1776. As he did not himself see the
proofs, he complained that both in its arrangement and typographical
accuracy it was disappointing. Shortly before his death, in 1806, the
second edition appeared, amended in these respects. A "Hymn Book,"
in Delaware, which he finished in 1802, was printed the following
year, and the last work of his life, a translation into Delaware of
Lieberkuhn's "History of Christ," was published at New York in 1821.
These, however, formed but a small part of the manuscript materials he
had prepared on and in the language. The most important of these were
his Delaware Grammar, and his Dictionary in four languages, English,
German, Onondaga and Delaware.
The MS. of the Grammar was deposited in the Archives of the Moravian
Society at Bethlehem, Pa. A translation of it was prepared by Mr. Peter
Stephen Duponceau, and published in the "Transactions of the American
Philosophical Society," in 1827.
The quadrilingual dictionary has never been printed. The MS. was
presented, along with others, in 1850, to the library of Harvard
College, where it now is. The volume is an oblong octavo of 362 pages,
containing about 9000 words in the English and German columns, but not
more than half that number in the Delaware.
A number of other MSS. of Zeisberger are also in that library, received
from the same source. Among these are a German-Delaware Glossary,
containing 51 pages and about 600 words; a Delaware-German Phrase
Book of about 200 pages; Sermons in Delaware, etc., mostly incomplete
studies, but of considerable value to the student of the tongue.[153]
Associated with Zeisberger for many years was the genial Rev. John
Heckewelder, so well known for his pleasant "History of the Indian
Nations of Pennsylvania," his interpretations of the Indian names of
the State, and his correspondence with Mr. Duponceau. He certainly had
a fluent, practical knowledge of the Delaware, but it has repeatedly
been shown that he lacked analytical power in it, and that many of his
etymologies as well as some of his grammatical statements are erroneous.
Another competent Lenapist was the Rev. Johannes Roth. He was born in
Prussia in 1726, and educated a Catholic. Joining the Moravians in
1748, he emigrated to America in 1756, and in 1759 took charge of the
missionary station called Schechschiquanuk, on the west bank of the
Susquehanna, opposite and a little below Shesequin, in Bradford county,
Pennsylvania. There he remained until 1772, when, with his flock,
fifty-three in number, he proceeded to the new Gnadenhütten, in Ohio.
There a son was born to him, the first white child in the area of the
present State of Ohio. In 1774 he returned to Pennsylvania, and after
occupying various pastorates, he died at York, July 22d, 1791.
Roth has left us a most important work, and one hitherto entirely
unknown to bibliographers. He made an especial study of the _Unami
dialect_ of the Lenape, and composed in it an extensive religious work,
of which only the fifth part remains. It is now in the possession of
the American Philosophical Society, and bears the title:--
EIN VERSUCH!
der Geschichte unsers Herrn u. Heylandes
JESU CHRISTI
in dass Delawarische übersetzt der _Unami_
_von der Marter Woche an_
bis zur
Himmelfahrt unsers Herrn
im
Yahr 1770 u. 72 zu Tschechschequanüng
an
der Susquehanna.
Wuntschi mesettschawi tipatta lammowewoagan sekauchsianup.
Wulapensuhalinen, Woehowaolan Nihillalijeng mPatamauwoss.
The next page begins, "Der fünfte Theil," and § 86, and proceeds to §
139. It forms a quarto volume, of title, 9 pages of contents in German
and English, and 268 pages of text in Unami, written in a clear hand,
with many corrections and interlineations.
This is the only work known to me as composed distinctively in the
Unami, and its value is proportionately great as providing the means
of studying this, the acknowledged most cultivated and admired of the
Lenape dialects.
It will be the task of some future Lenape scholar to edit its text and
analyze its grammatical forms. But I believe that Algonkin students
will be glad to see at this time an extract from its pages.
I select § 96, which is the parable of the marriage feast of the king's
son, as given in Matthew xxii, 1-14.
1. Woak Jesus wtabptonalawoll woak lapi nuwuntschi
And Jesus he-spoke-with-them and again he-began
Enendhackewoagannall nelih woak wtellawoll.
parables them-to and he-said-to-them.
2. Ne Wusakimawoagan Patamauwoss wtellgigui}
mallaschi}
The his-kingdom God it-is-like
mejauchsid Sakima, na Quisall mall'mtauwan
certain king, his-son be-made-for-him
Witachpungewiwuladtpoàgan.
marriage.
3. Woak wtellallocàlan wtallocacannall, wentschitsch nek
And he-sent-out his-servants the-bidding the
Elendpannik lih Witachpungewiwuladtpoàgannung
those-bidden to marriage
wentschimcussowoak;
those-who-were-bidden,
tschuk necamawa schingipawak.
but they they-were-unwilling.
4. Woak lapi wtellallocàlan pih wtallocacannall woak
And again he-sent-out other servants and
wtella {panni} Mauwnoh nen Elendpanmk, {penna }
{wolli}; {schita}
he-said-to-them those the-bidden
Nolachtuppoágan 'nkischachtuppui, nihillalachkik Wisuhengpannik
The-feast I-have-made-the-feast, they-are-killed they-fattened-them
auwessissak nemætschi nhillapannick woak weemi
beasts the-whole I-killed-them and all
ktakocku 'ngischachtuppui, peeltik lih
I-have-finished come to
Witachpungkewiwuladtpoàgannung.
marriage.
5. Tschuk necamawa mattelemawoawollnenni, woak ewak
But they they-esteemed-it-not and went
ika, mejauchsid enda wtakihàcannung, napilli nihillatschi
away certain thither to-his-plantation-place other
{M'hallamawachtowoagannung}
{ Nundauchsowoagannung }.
to-merchandise-place
6. Tschuk allende wtahunnawoawoll neca allocacannall
But some they-seized-them those servants
{ quochkikimawoawoll }
{popochpoalimawoawoll} woak wumhillawoawoll necamawa.
they-beat-them and they-killed-them they.
7. Elinenni na Sakima pentanke, nannen lachxu,
When the king heard therefore he-was-angry,
woak wtellallokalan Ndopaluwinuwak, woak wumhillawunga
and he-sent-them warriors and he-slew
jok Nehhillowetschik, woak wulusumen Wtutèn'nejuwaowoll.
these murderers, and he-destroyed their-cities.
{woll }
8. Nannen wtella {panni} nelih wtallocacannall: Ne
Then he-said-to-them to his-servants The
Witachpungkewiwuladtpoagan khella nkischachtuppui, tschuk
marriage truly I-have-prepared-it but
{attacu uchtàpsiwunewo }
nek Elendpannick { wtopielgique juwunewo}.
the those-bidden are-not-to-sit-down-worthy.
9. Nowentschi allmussin ikali mengichungi Ansijall, woak
Therefore go-ye-away thither to-some-places roads and
winawammoh lih Witachpungkewiwuladtpoagan; na natta
ask-ye-them to marriage those
aween _kiluwa_ mechkaweek (oh).
whom ye find.
10. Woak nek Allocacannak iwak ikali menggichüngi
And the servants they-went thither to-some-places
Aneijall, woak mawehawoawoll peschuwoawak na natta
roads and they-brought-them-together those
aween machkawoachtid, Memannungsitschik woak Wewulilossitschik,
whom they-found-them the-bad-ones and the good-ones
woak nel Ehendachpuingkill weemi tæphikkawachtinewo.
and the at-the-tables all they-seated.
11. Nannen mattemikæùh na Sakima, nek Elendpannik
Then he-entered-in the king the those-bidden
mauwi pennawoawoll, woak wunewoawoll uchtenda mejauchsid
he-saw-them and he-saw-him there certain
Lenno, na matta uchtellachquiwon witachpungkewi
man the not wearing a marriage
Schakhokquiwan.
coat.
12. Woak wtellawoll neli, Elanggomêllen, ktelgiquiki
And he-said-to-him to-him Friend like
matte attemikēn jun (_or_ tá elinàquo wentschi jun
not ashamed here not like therefore here
k'mattîmikeen,); woak {müngachsa} mattacu witachpungkewi
thou-art-ashamed and { ilik } not marriage
Schakhokquiwan ktellachquiwon? Necama tschuk k'pettúneù.
coat thou wearest He but He-mouth-shuts.
13. Nannen w'tellawoll na Sakima nelih Wtallocacannüng;
Then he-said-to-them the king to-them his-servants
Kachpiluh nan/woan Wunachkall woak W'sittall, woak
Fasten-ye-him his-hands and his-feet and
lannéhewik quatschemung enda achwipegnunk, nitschlenda
throw-him where in pitch-darkness even-some
Lipackcuwoagan woak Tschætschak koalochinen.
weeping and teeth-gnashing
14. Ntitechquoh macheli moetschi wentschimcussuwak,
Because many they-are-called
tschuk tatthiluwak achnaeknuksitschik.
but they-are-few the-chosen
The asterisk occurs in the original apparently to indicate that a word
is superfluous or doubtful. The interlined translation I have supplied
from the materials in the mission-Delaware dialect, but my resources
have not been sufficient to analyze each word; and this, indeed, is not
necessary for my purpose, which is merely to present an example of the
true Unami dialect.
The Moravian Bishop, John Ettwein, was another of their fraternity
who applied himself to the study of the Delaware. Born in Europe in
1712, he came to the New World in 1754, and died at the great age of
ninety years in 1802. He prepared a small dictionary and phrase book,
especially rich in verbal forms. It is an octavo MS. of 88 pages,
without title, and comprises about 1300 entries. This manuscript exists
in one copy only, in the Moravian Archives at Bethlehem.
Bishop Ettwein also prepared for General Washington, in 1788, an
account of the traditions and language of the natives, including a
vocabulary. This was found among the Washington papers by Mr. Jared
Sparks, and was published in the "Bulletin of the Pennsylvania
Historical Society," 1848.
One of the most laborious of the Moravian missionaries was the Rev.
Adam Grube. His life spanned nearly a century, from 1715, when he was
born in Germany, until 1808, when he died in Bethlehem, Pa. Many years
of this were spent among the Delawares in Pennsylvania and Ohio. He
was familiar with their language, but the only evidence of his study
of it that has come to my knowledge is a MS. in the Harvard College
Library, entitled, "Einige Delawarische Redensarten und Worte." It has
seventy-five useful leaves, the entries without alphabetic arrangement,
some of the verbs accompanied by partial inflections. The only date
it bears is "Oct. 10, 1800," when he presented it to the Rev. Mr.
Luckenbach, soon to be mentioned.
After the War of 1812 the Moravian brother, Rev. C. F. Dencke, who,
ten years before had attempted to teach the Gospel to the Chipeways,
gathered together the scattered converts among the Delawares at New
Fairfield, Canada West. In 1818 he completed and forwarded to the
Publication Board of the American Bible Society a translation of the
Epistles of John, which was published the same year.
He also stated to the Board that at that time he had finished a
translation of John's Gospel and commenced that of Matthew, both of
which he expected to send to the Board in that year. A donation of
one hundred dollars was made to him to encourage him in his work, but
for some reason the prosecution of his labors was suspended, and the
translation of the Gospels never appeared (contrary to the statements
in some bibliographies).
It is probable that Mr. Dencke was the compiler of the Delaware
Dictionary which is preserved in the Moravian Archives at Bethlehem.
The MS. is an oblong octavo, in a fine, but beautifully clear hand,
and comprises about 3700 words. The handwriting is that of the late
Rev. Mr. Kampman, from 1840 to 1842 missionary to the Delawares on the
Canada Reservation. On inquiring the circumstances connected with this
MS., he stated to me that it was written at the period named, and was a
copy of some older work, probably by Mr. Dencke, but of this he was not
certain.
While the greater part of this dictionary is identical in words and
rendering with the second edition of Zeisberger's "Spelling Book" (with
which I have carefully compared it), it also includes a number of other
words, and the whole is arranged in accurate alphabetical order.
Mr. Dencke also prepared a grammar of the Delaware, as I am informed
by his old personal friend, Rev. F. R. Holland, of Hope, Indiana; but
the most persistent inquiry through residents at Salem, N. C., where
he died in 1839, and at the Missionary Archives at Bethlehem, Pa.,
and Moraviantown, Canada, have failed to furnish me a clue to its
whereabouts. I fear that this precious document was "sold as paper
stock," as I am informed were most of the MSS. which he left at his
decease! A sad instance of the total absence of intelligent interest in
such subjects in our country.
The Rev. Abraham Luckenbach may be called the last of the Moravian
Lenapists. With him, in 1854, died out the traditions of native
philology. Born in 1777, in Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, he became
a missionary among the Indians in 1800, and until his retirement,
forty-three years later, was a zealous pastor to his flock on the White
river, Indiana, and later, on the Canada Reservation. His published
work is entitled "Forty-six Select Scripture Narratives from the Old
Testament, embellished with Engravings, for the Use of Indian Youth.
Translated into Delaware Indian, by A. Luckenbach. New York. Printed
by Daniel Fanshaw, 1838." 8vo, pp. xvi, 304.
After his retirement in Bethlehem, he edited, in 1847, the second
edition of Zeisberger's "Collection of Hymns," the first of which has
already been mentioned.
A short MS. vocabulary, in German and Delaware, is in the possession of
his family, in Bethlehem, and some loose papers in the language.
One of the most recent students of the Delaware was Mr. Matthew G.
Henry, of Philadelphia. In 1859 and 1860 he compiled, with no little
labor, a "Delaware Indian Dictionary," the MS. of which, in the library
of the American Philosophical Society, forms a thick quarto volume of
843 pages, with a number of maps. It is in three parts; 1, English and
Delaware; 2, Delaware and English; 3, Delaware Proper Names and their
Translations.
It includes, without analysis or correction, the words in Zeisberger's
"Spelling Book," Roger William's "Key," Companius' Vocabulary, those in
Smith's and Strachey's "Virginia" and various Nanticoke, Mohegan, Minsi
and other vocabularies. The derivations of the proper names are chiefly
from Heckewelder, and in other cases are venturesome. The compilation,
therefore, while often useful, lacks the salutary check of a critical,
grammatical erudition, and in its present form is of limited value.
Some of the later vocabularies collected by various travelers offer
points for comparison, and may be mentioned here.
In 1786 Major Denny[154] at Fort McIntosh, Ohio, collected a number of
Delaware words, principally from Shawnee Indians. A comparison shows
many of them to be in a corrupt form, owing either to the ignorance of
the Shawnee authority, or to the inaccuracy of Major Denny in catching
the sounds.
While engaged on the Pacific Railroad survey, in 1853, Lieut.
Whipple[155] collected a vocabulary of a little over 200 words from
a Delaware chief, named Black Beaver, in the Indian Territory, which
was edited, in 1856, by Prof. Turner. It is evidently a pure specimen,
and, as the editor observes, "agrees remarkably" with earlier authentic
vocabularies.
In the second volume of Schoolcraft's large work[156] is a vocabulary
of about 350 words, obtained by Mr. Cummings, U. S. Indian Agent. The
precise source, date and locality are not given, but it is evidently
from some trustworthy native, and is quite correct.
Some small works for the schools of the Baptist missions among the
Delawares in Kansas were prepared by the Rev. J. Meeker. They appear to
be entirely elementary in character.
It will be observed that in this list not a single native writer is
named. So far as I have ascertained, though many learned to write their
native tongue, not one attempted any composition in it beyond the needs
of daily life.
To make some amends for this, and as I wished to obtain an example of
the Lenape of to-day, I asked Chief Gottlieb Tobias, an educated native
on the Moravian Reservation in Canada, to give me in writing his
opinion of the Delaware text of the WALUM OLUM, which I had sent him.
This he obligingly did, and added a translation of his letter. The two
are as follows, without alteration:--
MORAVIANTOWN, Sept. 26, 1884.
I, GOTTLIEB TOBIAS,
Nanne ni ngutschi nachguttemin, jun awen eet ma elekhigetup.
Woak alende nenostamen woak alende taku eli wtallichsin
elewondasik wiwonalatokowo pachsi wonamii lichsu woak pachsi
pilli lichsoagan. Taku ni nenostamowin. Lamoe nemochomsinga
achpami eet newinachke woak chash tichi kachtin nbibindameneb
nin lichsoagan. Mauchso lenno woak mauchso chauchshissis woak
juque mauchso chauchshissis achpo pomauchsu igabtshi lue
wiwonallatokowo won bambil alachshe. Woak lue lamoe ni enda.
Mimensiane ntelsitam alowi ayachichson won elhagewit woak ehelop
ne likhiqui. Gichgi wonami lichso shuk tatcamse woak gichgi
minsiwi lichso.
TRANSLATION.
Then I will try to answer this (which) some one at some time
wrote. And some I understand, and some not, because his language
is called Wonalatoko, half Unami and half another language. I
do not understand it. Long ago my grandfather about 48 years
ago I heard it that language. One man and one old woman and
now another old woman here lives yet who uses this Wonalatoko
language just like this book and she said, I of old time when
I was a child heard more difficult dialect than the present,
and many at that time partly Unami he speak, but sometimes also
partly Minsi he speak.
The drift of Chief Tobias' letter is highly important to this
present work, though his expressions are not couched in the most
perfect English. It will be noted that he recognizes the text of the
WALUM OLUM to be a native production composed in one of the ancient
southern dialects of the tongue, the Unami (Wonami) or the Unalachtgo
(Wonalatoko). I shall recur to this when discussing the authenticity of
that document on a later page.
§ 2. _General Remarks on the Lenape._
The Lenape language is a well-defined and quite pure member of the
great Algonkin stock, revealing markedly the linguistic traits of this
group, and standing philologically, as well as geographically, between
the Micmac of the extreme east and the Chipeway of the far West.
These linguistic traits, common to the whole stock, I may briefly
enumerate as follows:--
1. All words are derived from simple, monosyllabic roots, by means of
affixes and suffixes.
2. The words do not come within the grammatical categories of the Aryan
language, as nouns, adjectives, verbs and other "parts of speech,"
but are "indifferent themes," which may be used at will as one or the
other. To this there appear to be a few exceptions.
3. Expressions of being (_i.e._, nominal themes) undergo modifications
depending on the ontological conception as to whether the thing spoken
of is a living or a lifeless object. This forms the "animate and
inanimate," or the "noble and ignoble" declensions and conjugations.
The distinction is not strictly logical, but largely grammatical, many
lifeless objects being considered living, and the reverse. This is
the only modification of the kind known, true grammatical gender not
appearing in any of these tongues.
4. Expressions of action (_i. e._, verbal themes) undergo modifications
depending on the abstract assumption as to whether the action is real
or conjectural. If the latter, it is indicated by a change in the vowel
of the root. This leads to a fundamental division of verbal modes into
_positive_ and _suppositive_ modes.
5. The expression of action is subordinate to that of being, so that
the verbal elements of a proposition are secondary to the nominal or
pronominal elements, and the subjective relation becomes closely akin
to, or identical with, that of possession.[157]
6. The conception of number is feebly developed in its application
to inanimate objects, which often have no grammatical plurals. The
inclusive and exclusive plurals are used in the first person.
7. The genius of the language is _holophrastic_--that is, its effort is
to express the relationship of several ideas by combining them in one
word. This is displayed: 1, in nominal themes, by _polysynthesis_, by
which several such themes are welded into one, according to fixed laws
of elision and euphony; and 2, by _incorporation_, where the object (or
a pronoun representing it) and the subject are united with the verb,
forming the so-called "transitions," or "objective conjugations."
8. There is no relative pronoun, so that the relation of minor to major
clauses is left to be indicated either by position or the offices of a
simple connective.
9. The language of both sexes is identical, those differences of speech
between the males and females, so frequently observed in other American
tongues, finding no place in the Algonkin.
10. No independent verb-substantive is found, and, as might be
anticipated, no means of predicating existence apart from quality and
attribute.
§ 3. _Dialects of the Lenape._
Two slightly different dialects prevailed among the Delawares
themselves, the one spoken by the Unami and Unalachtgo, the other by
the Minsi. The former is stated by the Moravian missionaries to have
had an uncommonly soft and pleasant sound to the ear[158], and William
Penn made the same remark. It was also considered to be the purer and
more elegant dialect, and was preferred by the missionaries as the
vehicle for their translations.
The Minsi was harsher and more difficult to learn, but would seem to
have been the more archaic branch, as it is stated to be a key to the
other, and to preserve many words in their integrity and original form,
which in the Unami were abbreviated or altogether dropped. The Minsi
dialect was closely akin to the Mohegan.
How far the separation of the Delaware dialects had extended may be
judged from the subjoined list of words. They are selected, as showing
the greatest variation, from a list of over one hundred, prepared by
Mr. Heckewelder for the American Philosophical Society, and preserved
in MS. in its library.
The comparison proves that the differences are far from extensive, and
chiefly result from a greater use of gutturals.
COMPARISON OF THE UNAMI AND MINSI DIALECTS.
_Unami_. _Minsi_.
God Patamawos Pachtamawos
Earth hacki achgi
Valley pasaeck pachsajech
Beard wuttoney wuchtoney
Tooth wipit wichpit
Blood mocum mochcum
Night ipocu ipochcu
Pretty schiki pschickki
Small tangeto tschankschisu
Stone assinn achsun
The Sea kithanne gichthanne
Light woacheu woashe´jeek
Black süksit neesachgissit
Chief saki´ma wajauwe
Green asgask asgasku
No, not matta machta
What differences there were have been retained and perhaps accentuated
in modern times, if we may judge from the names of consanguinity
obtained by Mr. Lewis H. Morgan on the Kansas Reservation in 1860.
These are given in part in the annexed table, and the Mohegan is added
for the sake of extending the comparison.
_Delaware._ _Minsi._ _Mohegan._
My grandfather no mohómus na māhomis´ nuh māhome´
My grandmother noo home´ na nóhome no ome´
My father noh´h na no´uh noh
My mother ugā´hase nain guk´ n'guk
My son n'kweese´ nain gwase´ n'diome´
My daughter n´dānuss nain dāness´ ne chune´
My grandchild noh whese´ nain no whasé nā hise´
My elder brother nah hāns nain n´hans n tā kun´
My elder sister na mese´ nain nawesé nā mees
My younger brother nah eese umiss nain hisesamus´ nhisum
A noteworthy difference in the Northern and Southern Lenape dialects
was that the latter possessed the three phonetic elements _n_, _l_ and
_r_, while the former could not pronounce the _r_, and their neighbors,
the Mohegans, neither the _l_ nor the _r_.
The dialect studied by Campanius and Penn, and that in southern New
Jersey presented the _r_ sound where the Upper Unami and Minsi had the
_l_. Thus Campanius gives _rhenus_, for _lenno_, man; and Penn _oret_,
for the Unami _wulit_, good.
The dialectic substitution of one of these elements for another is a
widespread characteristic of Algonkin phonology. Roger Williams early
called attention to it among the tribes of New England.[159]
Tracing it to its origin, it clearly arises from the use of
"alternating consonants," so extensive in American languages. In very
many of them it is optional with the speaker to employ any one of
several sounds of the same class. This is the case with these letters
in Cree, which, for various reasons, may be considered the most archaic
of all the Algonkin dialects. In its phonetics, the _th_, _y_, _l_, _n_
and _r_ are "permuting" or "alternating" letters.[160]
Often, too, the sound falls between these letters, so that the foreign
ear is left in doubt which to write.
That this is the case with the Delaware is evident from some of the
more recent vocabularies where the _r_ is not infrequent. The following
words, from the vocabulary in Major Denny's _Memoir_, illustrate this:--
Stone _seegriana_
Buffalo _serelea_
Beaver _thomagru_
Above _hoqrunog_, etc.
Even Mr. Lewis A. Morgan, who had considerable practice in writing the
sounds of the Indian languages, inserts the _r_ in a number of pure
Delaware words he collected in Kansas.[161]
Another difficulty presents itself in the sibilants. They are not
always distinguished.
Mr. Horatio Hale writes me on this point: "In Minsi, and perhaps in all
the Lenape dialects, the sound written _s_ is intermediate between _s_
and _th_ (the Greek _Θ_). This element is pronounced by placing the
tongue and teeth in the position of the theta, and then endeavoring to
utter _s_".
The guttural, represented in the Moravian vocabularies by _ch_, was
softened by the English likewise to the _s_ sound, as it appears also
to have been by the New Jersey tribes.[162]
In connection with dialectic variation, the interesting question arises
as to the rapidity of change in language. With regard to the Lenape
we are enabled to compare this for a period covering more than two
centuries. To test it, I have arranged the subjoined table of words
culled from three writers at about equidistant points in this period.
Each wrote in the orthography of his own tongue, and this I have not
altered. The words from Campanius are from the southern dialect, which
preferred the _r_ to the _l_, and this substitution should be allowed
for in a fair comparison.
COMPARISON OF THE DELAWARE AT INTERVALS DURING 210 YEARS.
_Campanius._ _Zeisberger_ _Whipple._
1645. 1778. 1855.
Swedish German English
Orthography. Orthography. Orthography.
Man rhenus lenno lenno
Woman âquaeo ochque h'que'i
Father nωk nooch (my) nuuh
Mother kahaess gahowes gaiez
Head kwijl wil wil
Hair mijrack milach milakh
Ear hittaock w'hittawak (pl.) howitow
Eye schinck w'ushgink tukque´ling
Nose wiküwan w'ikiwan ouiki´o
Mouth tωn w'doon ouitun
Tongue hijrano w'ilano ouilano
Tooth wippit w'epit ouipita
Hand alænskan w'anach puck-alenge
Foot zijt sit zit
Heart chitto, kitte ktee (thy) huté
House wickωmen wiquoam ouigwam
Pipe hopockan hopenican haboca
Sun chisogh gischuch kishu'h
Star aranck alank alanq'
Fire taenda tindey tundaih
Water bij mbi bih
Snow kuun guhn ku´no
COMPARISON OF DELAWARE NUMERALS.
_Campanius._ _Thomas._ _Zeisberger._ _Whipple._
1645. 1695. 1750. 1855.
1 Ciútte Kooty Ngutti Co´te
2 Nissa Nisha Nischa Ni´sha
3 Náha Natcha Nacha Naha´
4 Nævvo Neo Newo Ne´ewah
5 Pareenach Pelenach Palenach Pahle´nah'k
6 Ciuttas Kootash Guttasch Cot´tasch
7 Nissas Nishash Nischasch Ni´shasch
8 Haas Choesh Chasch Hasch
9 Paeschum Peshonk Peschkonk Pes´co
10 Thæren Telen Tellen Te´len
I have no doubt that if a Swede, a German and an Englishman were
to-day to take down these words from the mouth of a Delaware Indian,
each writing them in the orthography of his own tongue, the variations
would be as numerous as in the above list, except, perhaps, the ancient
and now disused _r_ sound. The comparison goes to show that there has
probably been but a very slight change in the Delaware, in spite of the
many migrations and disturbances they have undergone. They speak the
language of their forefathers as closely as do the English, although
no written documents have aided them in keeping it alive. This is but
another proof added to an already long list, showing that the belief
that American languages undergo rapid changes is an error.
The dialect which the Moravian missionaries learned, and in which
they composed their works, was that of the Lehigh Valley. That it
was not an impure Minsi mixed with Mohegan, as Dr. Trumbull seems to
think[163], is evident from the direct statements of the missionaries
themselves, as well as from Heckewelder's Minsi vocabularies, which
show many points of divergence from the printed books. Moreover, among
the first converts from the Delaware nation were members of the Unami
or Turtle tribe, and Zeisberger was brought into immediate contact with
them[164]. We may fairly consider it to have been the upper or inland
Unami, which, as I have said, was recognized by the nation as the
purest, or at least the most polished dialect of their tongue. It stood
midway between the Unalachtgo and Southern Unami and the true Minsi.
FOOTNOTES:
[151] _Transactions of the American Philological Association_, 1872, p.
158.
[152] Penn, Letter to the Free Society of Traders, 1683, Sec. xii.
[153] On the literary works of Zeisberger, see Rev. E. de Schweinitz,
_Life of Zeisberger_, chap, xlviii, who gives a full account of all the
printed works, but does not describe the MSS.
[154] Major Ebenezer Denny's "Journal" in _Memoirs of the Hist. Soc. of
Penna_., Vol. VII, pp. 481-86.
[155] _Report upon the Indian Tribes_, by Whipple, Ewbank and Turner,
p. 56 (Washington, 1855).
[156] _History and Statistics of the Indian Tribes_, Vol. II, p. 470.
[157] I am aware that in this proposition I am following the German
and French linguists, Steinthal, F. Müller, Adam, Henry, etc., and
not our own distinguished authority on Algonkin grammar, Dr J Hammond
Trumbull, who, in his essay "On the Algonkin Verb," has learnedly
maintained another opinion (_Transactions of the American Philological
Association_, 1876, p. 146). I have not been able, however, to convince
myself that his position is correct. The formative elements of the
Algonkin paradigms appear to me simply attached particles, and not true
inflections Their real character is obscured by phonetic laws, just as
in the Finnish when compared with the Hungarian.
[158] "Ungemein wohlkhngend." Loskiel, _Geschichte der Mission_, p.
24. An early traveler of English nationality pronounced it "sweet, of
noble sound and accent." Gabriel Thomas, _Hist. and Geog. Account of
Pensilvania and West New Jersey_, p. 47 (London, 1698).
[159] _Key into the Language of North America_, p. 129. See, also, Mr.
Bickering's remarks on the same subject, in his Appendix to Rasles'
_Dictionary of the Abnaki_.
[160] Howse, _Grammar of the Cree Language_, p. 316.
[161] See his _Ancient Society_, pp. 172-73.
[162] The native name of William Penn offers an instance of this
phonetic alteration. It is given as _Onas_. The proper form is
_Wonach_. It literally means the tip or extremity of anything; as
_wonach-sitall_, the tips of the toes; _wonach-gulinschall_, the tips
of the fingers. The inanimate plural form _wolanniall_, means the
tail feathers of a bird. To explain the name _Penn_ to the Indians a
feather was shown them, probably a quill pen, and hence they gave the
translation _Wonach_, corrupted into _Onas_.
[163] _Trans. Am. Philol. Assoc._, 1872, p. 157.
[164] De Schweinitz, _Life of Zeisberger_, p. 131.
§ 4. _Special Structure of the Lenape._
_The Root and the Formation of the Theme._--As they appear in the
language of to-day, the Lenape radicals are chiefly monosyllables,
which undergo more or less modifications in composition. They
cannot be used alone, the tongue having long since passed from that
interjectional condition where each of these roots conveyed a whole
sentence in itself.
Whether they can be resolved back into a few elementary sounds,
primitive elements of speech, I shall not discuss. This has been done
for the Cree roots by Mr. Joseph Howse[165], and most of the radicals
of that tongue are identical with those of the Lenape. Some of his
conclusions appear to me hazardous and hypothetical; and certainly many
of his supposed analogies drawn from European tongues are extravagant.
As in other idioms, so in Lenape, two or more radicals may be
compounded to form a combination, which, in turn, performs the offices
of a radical in the construction of themes.
This combination is formed either by prefixes or suffixes. The prefixes
are generally adjectival in signification, while the suffixes are
usually classificatory. A number of these are secondary roots, which
are themselves capable of further analysis.
As so much of the strength of the languages depends on this plan of
word building, I have drawn off a list of a few of the more frequent
affixes of the Lenape, with their signification:--
_Lenape Prefixes._
_awoss-_, beyond, the other side of.
_eluwi-_, most, a superlative form.
_gisch-_, see page 102.
_kit-_, great, large.
_lappi-_, again, indicates repetition.
_lenno-_, male, man.
_lippoe-_, wise, shrewd; as _lippoeweno_, a shrewd man.
_mach-_, evil, bad, hurt.
_matt-_, negative and depreciatory;
as _mattaptonen_, to speak uncivilly.
_ni-_, see page 101.
_ochque-_, she, female.
_pach-_, division, separation; _pachican_, a knife;
_pachat_, to split.
_pal-_, negative, as dis- or in-,
from _palli_ otherwheres.
_tach-_, pairs or doubles.
_tschitsch-_, indicates repetition.
_wit-_, with or in common.
_wul-_,
or _wel-_, see page 104.
Many of these are abbreviated to the extent that a single significant
letter is all that remains, as _min_ in _msim_, hickory nut; _pakihm_,
cranberry; and so _acki_ to _k_, _hanne_ to _an_, as _kitanink_
(Kittanning), from _gitschi_, great; _hanne_, flowing river; _ink_,
locative, "at the place of the great river."
_Lenape Suffixes._
_-ak_, wood, from _tachan_;
_kuwenchak_, pine wood.
_-aki_, place, land.
_-ammen_, acceptance, adoption; _wulistamen_,
I accept it as good, I believe it. See page 104.
_-ape_, male, man. From a root _ap_, to cover
(carnally). In Chipeway applied only to
lower animals.
_-atton_,
or _hatton_, to have, to put somewhere. The radical is
_ãt_. Also a prefix, as, _hattape_,
the bow; lit., what the man has.
_-bi_, tree; _machtschibi_, papaw tree.
_-chum_, a quadruped.
_-elendam_, a verbal termination, signifying a disposition
of mind. The root is _en, ne, ni_,
I; "it is to me so."
_-goot_, a snake; from _achgook_, a serpent.
_-hanna_, properly _hannek_, a river; from the root,
which appears in Cree as _anask_, to
stretch out along the ground; _mechhannek_,
a large stream.
Heckewelder derives this from _amkamme_, a river. The terminal
_k_ is, however, part of the root, and not the locative
termination. The word is allied to Del. _quenek_, long.
_-hikan_, tidal water; _kittahikan_, the ocean;
_shajahikan_, the sea shore.
_-hilleu_, it is so, it is true; impersonal form from _lissin_.
_-hittuck_, river, water in motion.
_-igan_, instrumental; also _shican_ and _can_.
A participial termination used with
inanimate objects.
_-in_
or _ini_, of the kind; like; predicative form of the
demonstrative pronoun.
_-ink_
or _unk_, place where.
_-is_
or _-it_, diminutive termination.
_-leu_, it is so, it is true.
_-meek_, a fish; _maschilamek_, a trout.
_-min_, a fruit.
_-peek_, a body of still water; _menuppek_, a lake.
_-sacunk_, an outlet of a stream into another;
also _saquik_.
_-sipu_, stream; lit., stretched, extended.
_-tin_, with, or in common.
_-tit_, diminutive termination; _amentit_, a babe.
_-wagan_, abstract verbal termination; _machelemuxowagan_,
the being honored.
_-wehelleu_, a bird.
_-wi_, the verb-substantive termination, predicating
being; _tehek_, cold; _tehekwi_,
he or it is cold.
_-wi_, negative termination in certain verbal forms.
_-xit_, indicates the passive recipient of the action;
_machelemuxit_, the one who is honored.
The analysis of a series of derivatives from the same root offers a
most instructive subject for investigation in the Lenape. Not only
does it reveal the linguistic processes adapted, but it discloses the
psychology of the native mind, and teaches us the associations of its
ideas, and the range of its imaginative powers. By no other avenue can
we gain access to the intimate thought-life of this people. Here it is
unfolded to us by evidence which is irrefragable.
These considerations lead me to present a few examples of the
derivatives from roots of different classes.
EXAMPLES OF LENAPE DERIVATIVES.
_Subjective Root_ NI, _I, mine_.
1. In a good sense.
_Nihilleu_, it is I, _or_, mine.
_Nihillatschi_, self, oneself.
_Nihillapewi_, free (_ape_, man = I am my own man).
_Nihillapewit_, a freeman.
_Nihillasowagan_, freedom, liberty.
_Nihillapeuhen_, to make free, to redeem.
_Nihillapeuhoalid_, the Redeemer, the Saviour.
2. In a bad sense.
_Ni´hillan_, he is mine to beat, I beat him.
_Nihil´lan_, I beat him to death, I kill him.
_Nihillowen_, I put him to death, I murder him.
_Nihillowet_, a murderer.
_Nihillowewi_, murderous.
3. In a demonstrative sense.
_Ne_, pl. _nek_, or _nell_, this, that, the.
_Nall, nan, nanne, nanni_, this one, that one.
_Nill_, these.
_Naninga_, those gone, with reference to the dead.
4. In a possessive sense.
_Nitaton_, in-my-having, I can, I am able, I know how.
_Nitaus_, of-my-family, sister-in-law.
_Nitis_, of-mine, a friend, a companion.
_Nitsch!_ my child! exclamation of fondness.
The strangely conflicting ideas evolved from this root already
attracted the attention of Mr. Duponceau[166]. That the notions for
freedom and servitude, murderer and Saviour, should be expressed
by modifications of the same radical is indeed striking! But the
psychological process through which it came about is evident on
studying the above arrangement.
_Objective-intensive root_ GISCH _or_ KICH (_Cree_, KIS or KIK).
Signification--successful action.
1. Applied to persons.
A. Initial successful action.
_Gischigin_, to begin life, to be born.
_Gischihan_, to form, to make with the hands.
_Gischiton_, to make ready, to prepare.
_Gischeleman_, to create with the mind, to fancy.
_Gischelendam_, to meditate a plan, to lie.
B. Continuous successful action.
_Gischikenamen_, to increase, to produce fruit.
_Giken_, to grow better in health.
_Gikeowagan_, life, health.
_Gikey_, long-living, old, aged,
C. Final successful action.
_Gischatten_, finished, ready, done, cooked.
_Gischiton_, to make ready, to finish.
_Gischpuen_, to have eaten enough.
_Gischileu_, it has proved true.
_Gischatschimolsin_, to have resolved, to have decreed.
_Gischachpoanhe_, baked, cooked (the bread is).
2. Applied to things.
A. Initial successful action.
_Gischuch_, sun, moon, day, month. The idea appears
to be the beginning of a period of time with the
collateral notion of prosperous activity. The
correctness of the derivation is shown by the next word.
_Gischapan_, day-break, beginning day-light.
From _wapan_, the east, or light.
_Gischuchwipall_, the rays of the sun.
_Gischcu_, or _Gisckquik_, day.
B. Continuous successful action.
_Gischten_, clear, light, shining.
_Gischachsummen_, to shine, to enlighten.
_Gischuten_, warm, tepid.
Numerous other derivatives could be added, but the above are sufficient
to show the direction of thoughts flowing from this root. Howse
considers it identical with the root _kitch_, great, large[167]. This
would greatly increase its derivatives. They certainly appear allied.
In Cree, Lacombe gives _kitchi_, great, and _kije_, finished, perfect,
both being terms applied to divinity[168].
{L}
_General Algonkin root_ 8 {N} I. _Abnaki_, 8RI; _Micmac_, 8E´LI,
{R}
_Chippeway_, GWAN-; _Del., two forms_, WUL _and_ WIN.
_It conveys the idea of pleasurable sensation._
A. First form, _wul_.
_Wulit_, well, good, handsome, fine.
_Wullihilleu_, it is good, etc.
_Wuliken_, it grows well.
_Wulamoe_, he truth-speaks.
_Wulamoewagan_, truth.
_Wulistamen_, to believe, to accept as truth.
_Wulenensin_, to be fine in appearance, to dress.
_Wulenensen_, to be fine to oneself, to be proud.
B. Second form, _won_ or _win_.
_Winu_, ripe, good to eat.
_Wonita_, he is ripe for it, he can, he is able.
_Wingan_, sweet, savory.
_Winktek_, done, boiled, fit to eat.
_Winak_, sassafras. From its sweet leaves.
_Wingi_, gladly, willingly.
_Winginamen_, to delight in.
The figure 8 in the above represents the "whistled _w_," like the _wh_
in "which," when strongly pronounced.
From this root, as I have already said, is derived also the word WALAM,
red paint, from the sense "to be fine in appearance, to dress," as the
Indian accomplished that object by painting himself.
_Grammatical Structure of the Lenape._
It would not be worth while for me to enter into the intricacies of
Lenape grammar, particularly as I can add little to what is already
known.
The Delaware Grammar of Zeisberger remains our only authority, and
in spite of its manifest shortcomings and state of incompletion, the
unprejudiced student must acknowledge, with Albert Gallatin[169], that
it is "most honestly done," and showed the Delaware as it actually was
spoken, though perhaps not as scientific linguists think it ought to
have been spoken.
A few general observations will be sufficient.
As in other languages of the class, the theme is indifferently nominal,
verbal or adjectival; that is, it performs the functions of either of
these grammatical categories, according to its connection.
Nominal themes are either animate or inanimate. The characteristic of
all animate plurals is _k_ (_ak_, _ik_, _ek_). Inanimate plurals are
in _al_, _wall_ or _a_. As usual, the distinction between animate and
inanimate nouns is partly logical, partly grammatical, various objects
being conceived as animate which are in fact not so.
The possessive relation is generally indicated by placement alone, the
possessor preceding the thing possessed, as _lenno quisall_, the man's
son; but one could also say _lenno w'quisall_, the man his son.
Adjectives precede nouns, and when used attributively assume a verbal
form by adding the termination _wi_, which indicates objective
existence (like the Chip. _-win_). Thus, _scattek_, burning; _scattewi
w'dehin_, a burning-heart--literally, it-is-a-burning-thing his-heart.
The degrees of comparison are formed by prefixing _allowiwi_, more,
and _eluwi_, most. Both of these are from the same radical _ala_
which may perhaps come from the _admirationis particula_, _ala'_
(Abnaki, _ara'_) found in the northern dialects as expressive of
astonishment[170].
There being no relative pronoun in Delaware, dependent clauses are
either included in the verbal of the major clause, or include it as a
secondary.
The scheme of the simple sentence is usually subject-verb-object; but
emphasis allows departures from this, as in the following sentence from
Bishop Ettwein's MSS.:--
_Jesus wemi amemensall w'taholawak._
Jesus all children he-loved-them.
Of the formal affixes, the inseparable pronouns are the most prominent.
They are the same for nouns and verbs, and are--
1st. _n_, I, my, we, our.
2d. _k_, thou, thy, you, your.
3d. _w_ or _o_, he, she, it, his, their.
Past time is indicated by the terminal _p_, with a connective vowel,
and future time by _tsch_, which may be either a prefix or suffix, as--
_N'dellsin_, I am thus.
_N'dellsineep_, I was thus.
_N'dellsintschi_, }
or } I shall be thus.
_Nantsch n'dellsin_,}
The change or "flattening" of the vowel of the root in suppositive
propositions, was recognized as a fact of speech, but not grammatically
analyzed by Zeisberger.
Its effect on verbal forms may be seen from the following examples from
his _Grammar_:--
_Examples of Vowel Change in Lenape._
_N'dappin_, I am there. _Achpiya_, if I am there.
_Epia_, where I am.
_N'dellsin_, I am so. _Lissiye_, if I am so.
_N'gauwi_, I sleep. _Gewi_, he who sleeps.
_N'pommauchsi_, I walk or live. _Pemauchsit_, living.
_N'da_, I go. _Eyaya_, when I go.
_Eyat_, going.
Another omission in his Grammar is that of the "obviative" and
"super-obviative" forms of nouns. These are used in the Algonkin
dialects to define the relations of third persons. They prevent such
obscurity as appears in the following English sentence: "John's brother
called at Robert's, to see his wife." Whose wife is referred to is left
ambiguous; but in Algonkin these third persons would have different
forms, and there would be no room for ambiguity. In his writings in
Lenape, Zeisberger makes use of obviatives, with the terminations _al_
and _l_, but does not treat of them in his Grammar.
As a question in philosophical grammar, it may be doubted whether the
Lenape has any true passive voice. Cardinal Mezzofanti was accustomed
to deny the presence of any real passives in American languages; and he
had studied the Delaware among others.
The sign of the Delaware passive is the suffix _gussu_ or _cusso_. In
the Cree dialect, which, as I have already said, preserves the ancient
forms most closely, this is _k-ussu_, and is a particle expressing
likeness or similarity in animate objects[171]. Hence, probably, the
original sense of the Lenape word translated, "I am loved," is "I am
like the object of the action of loving."
FOOTNOTES:
[165] _A Grammar of the Cree Language, with which is combined an
Analysis of the Chippeway Dialect_, by Joseph Howse, Esq. (London,
1844).
[166] In a note to Zeisberger's _Grammar of the Delaware_, p. 141.
[167] _A Grammar of the Cree Language_, p. 175.
[168] _Dictionnaire de la Langue des Cris_, sub voce.
[169] In _Trans. Amer. Antiq. Society_, Vol. II, p. 223. Zeisberger's
statements were criticised by Joseph Howse, _Grammar of the Cree
Language_, pp. 109, 310, 313. His strictures and those of the Abbé
Cuoq, in his _Etudes Philologiques sur Quelques Langues Sauvages_,
Chap. I, were collected and extended by Dr. J. Hammond Trumbull, in his
paper on "Some Mistaken Notions of Algonquin Grammar," _Trans. of the
American Philological Association_, 1874. There is a needless degree of
severity in both these last named productions.
[170] Rasles, _Dictionary of the Abnaki_, p. 550. Dr. Trumbull
compares the Mass. _anue_, more than. _Trans. American Philological
Association_, 1872, p. 168.
[171] J. Howse: _Grammar of the Cree Language_, p. 111.