22 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [boll. 47 



NOTES 



Owing to the difficulty of obtaining a Biloxi text it occurred to the 

 author that he might read an Omaha letter, sentence by sentence, to 

 the Biloxi and obtain the corresponding sentences in their language. 

 As his informants could not give the Biloxi equivalents for about half 

 of the sentences in the Omaha letters the author was obliged to vary 

 the phraseology now and then. In this manner he obtained two short 

 texts, the one just given and the following one." 



1. dehinhiye {de). 



2. Yaxkitcadaha {Mtca); inhtcatuni {Mtca); yindd^ha may be from 

 dd^hi. 



3. -yd^ may refer to objects at a remote place. 



4. yankukutiki {kuU); Jiuyaxkiy^ {^u); nyayi^ naxS (hayi^). 

 6. hi'^yandihi"' (yihi). 



TRANSLATION 



friend, I write a short letter which I send you. O friend, I wish 

 to hear how you are. You have forgotten us, but we have not for- 

 gotten you. We may see you in the autumn. I hope to hear that 

 you have bought deer skins. I hope that you will tell me just how 

 things are. I hope that you will send me a letter very soon. I wish 

 to ask you a question. I will think of you each day [until I receive 

 your reply?]. 



5. A Letter 



Hinkso'^'tkaka', akutxyi' ayo'" no°'d ndo°hi'. Kitsa°'yatu', 



O younger brother (m. sp.) letter you made it to-day I saw it. O ye Americans, 



nyi'do°-daha' kikna'ni. Yata'mitu' kikine'pixti' nkint-he' etanko"^'. 



I see you (all) perhaps. You work for your- I like it (sic) I too I do so. 



selves 



So^pxo'^ni ufiktcu' de'di pixti'hiiike'. Aye'ki unktcu'di; ato' po'tcka 



Wheat I sowed it I did very well. Corn I planted; Irish potatoes 



uiiktcu'di; unktci°' sayi' uiiktcu'di; awi'ska tu'do'^ni' imktcu'di; 



1 planted; onions I planted; turnips I planted; 



5 ta'tka yinka' iinktcu'di; panaxti' pixti'hinke'. Nkti'ya"^ nko°'ni 



peas small I planted; all I did very well. My house I made 



[= beans] 



pixti' xye'ni, ya^'xkiha'taxni'. Kci'xka ohi' iiikta', wa'k so^'sa 



very good, but ' it was burned for me. Hog ten I have, cow one 



ifikta', a'kikune' topa' inkta, ma' so^'sa ifikta'. Hinkso'^'tkaka', 



I%ave, geese four I have, turkey one I have. O younger brother, 



naxa'xa nyu'kutiki. Ka'wa nkye'ho°tuni' naxo' nka'^'yasa'xtu 



now I have told it to you. What we knew not heretofore we were Indians 



hi'. Tci'waxti' ndo'^xt o"^'. Ku'timankde' kihi'yeho°hi'ye etuke' 



when Great trouble we have seen (in Being up above he taught jou (sing.) because 



(?). the past). 



10 ka'hena'n iy^ho'^'ni. 



everything you (sing.) know. 



oThe original of this (first) letter may be found in Omaha and Ponka Letters, pp. 15, 16, Bureau of 

 American Ethnology, Washington, 1891. 



