| BELLACOOLA. | CHIMSYAN. | |
| I | untsh | newyo |
| Thou | eno | noone |
| Mine | untshil | nawhawae |
| We | unshto | neuhami |
| Ye | enooh | neumi |
| He | teechtil taigh | qua |
| They | teech til tin no mo taight | queet |
| Man | tlimsdah | tzib |
| Knife | teech tah | ilth-a-peesh |
| Water | kull ah | use |
| Stone | quils tolomick | loap |
| Sun | skin nuch | kium uk |
| Moon | tlooki | kium ugum aat uk |
| Good | teeah | aam |
| Bad | ushee | atuchk |
The Hailtzas and the Bellacoolas have the following words in common;—watz, dog; poe, halibut; tlah, black bear; nun, grizzly bear.[III'-13]
LANGUAGES OF VANCOUVER ISLAND.
On Vancouver Island a multitude of dialects are spoken, and various and contradictory classifications have been made, none of which, in my opinion, are correct. From the evidence, dialetic diversity prevails to such an extent that almost every petty tribe has its idiom; so that, even if affinities do exist, sufficient to justify a classification into languages and dialects, so meagre is our knowledge that it is impossible in many instances to say which are languages and which dialects. Hence in my classification I cannot do better than to make of the Nootka one language, and give a list of the dialects on the island, with all the information concerning them at my command. Four languages of the island—the Quackoll in the north, the Cowichin on the east, the Clallam at the south, and the Makah on the west, are said to be "totally distinct from each other, both in sound, formation, and modes of expression." The one last mentioned is said to bear some affinity to the language spoken at the mouth of the Columbia River,[III'-14] and is called by Sproat the Aht language, for which he claims in like manner that it "can be traced through all the tribes on the ocean coast, as far south as the mouth of the Columbia." The Comux, which people he locates on the east coast between the Cowichins and Quackolls, migrated thither, he says, from the main land, and the tribes "do not readily understand one another's language;" from all of which we may infer that in reality there is only one language, of which these four are the chief dialects.[III'-15] Yet this is partially contradicted by Grant, who affirms that the Cowichins and Clallams can communicate with each other, though not very easily, but that the Makahs and Quackolls cannot converse with each other or with any of the other nations.[III'-16] Another authority, who certainly ought to be entitled to an opinion, having been a captive among these nations for some years, also intimates that in reality there was only one language dominant on the island. After enumerating the different tribes he concludes; "all of whom speak the same language. But the Newchemass who come from a great way Northward, and from some distance inland, speak quite a different language, although it is well understood by those of Nootka."[III'-17]
National differences appear to consist more in pronunciation than in grammatical construction. Thus the articulation of the Klaizzahts is hoarser and more guttural than that of the people of Nootka Sound.[III'-18] Dialectic differences sometimes go so far that the several bands of the same tribe find difficulty in making themselves understood; as for instance the Nitinaht tribes when conversing with one another, have frequently to repeat their sentences differently accented to make them intelligible. The chief peculiarity of the Nitinaht dialect is the transmutation of the letters m and n, which are in universal use throughout the island, for which it substitutes b and d. Thus for mamook, to work, the Nitinahts say baboik; nismah, country, they pronounce dissibach, and so on.[III'-19]
As compared with that of the Thlinkeets, the Nootka language is neither harsh nor disagreeable. Its most curious feature is the predominance of labials and dentals over gutturals. The Nootkas possess fine oratorical powers, lending assistance to their words by shaking their head, gesticulating forcibly, and even jumping at each other. A singular sound, and one which it is hardly possible to express by any combination of letters, happens in many of their words. Spreading the corners of the mouth to their widest extent, and raising the point of the tongue against the palate, they expel the air from the sides of the mouth, at the same time bringing the tongue down strongly, which obviously produces a sound altogether foreign to the English vocabulary. Captain Cook says of this sound, "it is formed, in a particular manner, by clashing the tongue partly against the roof of the mouth, with considerable force; and may be compared to a very coarse or harsh method of lisping," and he attempts to give the sound by the letters lszthl. Many words end with this sound, and also with a tl, z, or ss;—as opulszthl, sun; onulszthl, moon; kahsheetl, dead; teeshcheetl, to throw a stone; kooomitz, a human skull; quahmiss, fish-roe. Captain Cook further remarks upon their language that it "can only be inferred, from their method of speaking, which is very slow and distinct, that it has few prepositions or conjunctions; and, as far as we could discover, is destitute of even a single interjection, to express admiration or surprize."[III'-20]
Furthermore, I may add, there is no case, nor gender, nor tense, and number is expressed only in the personal pronoun and in the inflection of verbs. In the first persons singular and plural, verbs end in a or mah; in the second persons, huk or ayts; and in the third persons, in mah, win, or utlma. Sometimes these endings go over to the adverb which accompanies the verb, and they are subject to phonetic rules, according to which syllables are sometimes changed or left out altogether. We have wik, not; and kumotop, to understand; wikahkumotop or wimmutomah, I do not understand; the latter mode being a change for the sake of euphony. Plurals, and particularly frequentative plurals, are expressed by duplication: as mahte or mahs, house; mahtmahs, all the houses. Different classes of words appear to have different terminals: for example, instruments end with ik—hukkaik, a knife; hissik, a saw. Colors end in uk or ook—eyyohquk, green; kistokkuk, blue; klayhook, purple; kleesook, white; toopkook, black. Hissit, red, forms an exception. Trees and plants end in pt—kowwhipt, seewhipt, ootsmupt, klakkupt, etc. Verbs end in shitl, shetl, and chitl, although some exceptions occur. Another distinctive ending is up—châtayup, to cut off with a knife; kââsup, to hurt or wound; hyyusatyup, to diminish; ashsup, to break a string or cord; quoyup, to break a stick, etc.[III'-21] As a specimen of the language, I give the first three of the Ten Commandments, and the Lord's Prayer, in the dialect of the Nanaimos.[III'-22]
NANAIMO COMMANDMENTS.
NUTSA.