In this citation Padre Clavigero succinctly portrays the cumbersome number series of the Cochimi and other Amerinds of the Californian peninsula. Moreover, the Cochimi terms of Clavijero and those cited from Hervas by Herr Buschmann seemingly suggest a common source of information.
Ducrue (in Murr, Journal zur Kunstgeschichte, Nürnberg, 1787, vol. XII, pp. 294) expresses doubt as to the nauwi of the Laymon column, not knowing whether it is Nahuatlan or vernacular to the Laymon language. It certainly has an alien aspect. Of Laymonic number names Ducrue says that the Laymon can count singly to five, and then they repeat themselves.
The following citation may be of interest here:
“The Californians know very little of arithmetic, some of them being unable to count further than six, while others can not number beyond three, insomuch that none of them can say how many fingers he has. They do not possess anything that is worth counting, and hence their indifference. It is all the same to them whether the year has six or twelve months, and the month three or thirty days, for every day is a holiday with them. They care not whether they have one or two or twelve children, or none at all, since twelve cause them no more expense or trouble than one, and the inheritance is not lessened by a plurality of heirs. Any number beyond six they express in their language by much, leaving it to their confessor to make out whether that number amounts to seven, seventy, or seven hundred.”—Jacob Baegert, in Smithsonian Report, 1864, p. 388.
[335] In Dr Gabb’s alphabet, an underscored c̲h̲ occurs, which, he states, sounds “like soft German ‘ch’ as in ‘ich’”, and also an underscored ẖ, which is, he says, “heavily aspirated”. For convenience the character χ has been substituted for both these sounds, except that for the former it is accented thus χ´.
[336] This signifies, “let us see”; Dr Loew also writes, iyó-ok, “to see you”.
[337] Mr Bartlett wrote schek-aipch, “bird’s egg”, and ahano-hraîk, “a duck”, literally, “water bird”, thus showing that hrek in the term “feather” signifies “bird”. M Pinart wrote shiik-immen, “bird’s nest”, and ipχ´`, “egg “. In both, the spellings here differ somewhat from the terms in the list. In the term for “duck” and “feather”, Mr Bartlett substitutes hr for the sch in his spelling of the name for a “bird”.
[338] In 20 etsiyerre signifies “bird”.
[339] From Bartlett’s Kutchan or Yuma Vocabulary, MS.
[340] From Parker’s San Tomas Mission Vocabulary, MS. 1876.