Inhabiting the North^West Coast of America. 181 



into hunters if they penetrated across the mountains, and 

 occupied the country of the Athabascans. This circumstance 

 is unquestionably favourable to the production and preserva- 

 tion of a variety of dialects, although it is by no means a 

 proof that they were not originally derived from a common 

 source. When, to ascertain this, w^e compare the different 

 vocabularies, vre find a source of perplexity which does not 

 occur to any thing like the same extent among the languages 

 spoken to the east of the mountains. In the Irriquois, Che- 

 rokee, Sioux, and Algonquin, we find very few words com- 

 mon to all or to any two of them ; the term expressing num- 

 bers, the common objects of nature, articles of indispensable 

 necessity, or of family relationship, are perfectly distinct. In 

 the languages of the north-west coast, on the contrary, there 

 seem to be an equal balance of divergences and resem- 

 blances ; the same words reappear in the most remote lan- 

 guages, and these frequently numerals or other terms of the 

 first necessity. The similarity with respect to numerals, 

 may be at once seen on inspecting the vocabularies published 

 in the Proceedings of the Geographical Society. 



The following instances will explain the same fact : — 



Jfan, Tillicham, Columbia River ; Boy, Tchileque, Carrier. 

 Woman, Shewat, Koluschian ; Aiat, Shahaptan. 

 Water, Tchuk, Nootkan ; Tshush, Wallawalla. 

 Child, Munna, Bellichoola ; Mumunna, Kawitchen. 

 Child, Tillcoole, Chlmmesyan ; Tool, Cheenook. 



The source of strange confusion, so to speak, appears to 

 depend on the following circumstances. The Indians of the 

 northward possess a very different natural character from 

 that of the eastern tribes ; they are more sedentary, of a mild- 

 er nature, their wars are far less cruel^ the prisoners are 

 usually detained in a state of mild slavery, and ultimately 

 incorporated into the conquering tribe ; and this circumstance 

 alone will tend to produce an intermixture of dialects. An- 

 other modifying cause results from the extensive commercial 

 intercourse carried on between even very remote tribes. 

 Baron Wrangell has given an interesting account of the ac- 

 tive trade carried on, from time immemorial, among the tribes 

 from Behring's Straits to Queen Charlotte's Island, and even 



