Told by the Pioneers - Washington Secretary of State

Told by the Pioneers
Chinook language, as it would have been quite a difficult matter to
haye acquired the original Indian language. The languages of the
Indians change within a short distance, so that it would have been difficult
for one who might have learned to speak the dialect of the Chehalis
Indians to understand inhabitants of Hood's Canal at all. As it
was, with the intermediary language, the Chinook, with a vocabulary
of two or three hundred words, we could converse, trade and traffic
with the Indians from California to British Columbia and Alaska,
without any inconvenience. There was no racking of the brains to
acquire proper grammatical expressions; at the same time, a profi.
cient would pride himself on knowing when to use "Claxto" (who),
instead of "leta" (what or that).
It has always seemed to me that a simple language of a few words
like the Chinook, would be a great benefit to people of all countries
in these present times of such great facilities for travel and intercourse
and mingling of the peoples of all nations on the face of the
earth. Supposing my soldier boy, Bert, when returning from the
Philippines, ·when taking an outing in a jinrickshaw with a comrade
in Yokohama, wanted the man to take them to a drug store to get
some medicine, could have said to the 'rickshaw man, "lemochine,"
and at the same time placed his fing'ers to his mouth and along down
his throat and strained his neck like one swallowing pills, the 'rickshaw
man would have understood at once. As it was, he ran them into
eating places and other resorts, until they met a foreign resident
who inquired what was wanted and directed the 'rickshaw man to a
drug store. "Cumtux," (understand), "tickey mucka muck", (I
want something to eat). "Ca mika clatawa1" (Where are you going)?
"Icta mika tickey" ("What do you want?) "Clahoua, six1" (How do
you do, sir.) These were as common phrases used among the old settlers
as between the settlers and the Indians. vVe just picked up the
language without very much effort, like a boy learning to eat peanuts.
I used to be called upon to explain and interpret the Sunday School
lessons to the Indians. ·While staying in Victoria the winter of 1870­
71, the Indians said "I mika clauck nesika calon, " (You opened our
ears.) So it was possible to do much g'ood with the poor little language.
About this time I attended the funeral of my Brother Thomas
At an en>ning meeting in the basement of the Pandora St. Church a
young Indian from Nanaimo arose and paid him tribute, "I followed
my good friend James to the graveyard today. He taught us good lessons
in the Sunday school," and quoted the scripture saying, "I am
the resurrection and the life. vVhosoever believeth in me shall not
perish but have everlasting life." I thonght after hearing this Indian
boy talk that way, my brother's mission on earth was for good.
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