882 



BUREAU OP AMEEICAN ETHNOLOGY 



[BULL. 40 



We are not quite certain whether the sounds s and s occur in Ponca. 

 The sounds ,<? and c of Ponca have been rendered here by analog^}' by 

 s' and s\ but their character has not been definitely ascertained. 



In Santee consonantic clusters in initial position are common, while 

 they are absent in terminal position. In these consonantic clusters 

 three groups ma}^ be distinguished, — clusters with initial surd stops; 

 those with initial ta and It ; and those with initial 6', s, li. The first 

 of these groups never occurs in Ponca, the second shows a remarkable 

 variability in different dialects, while the third seems to be common 

 to Dakota, Ponca, and Winnebago. 



The following table illustrates these three groups of consonantic 

 clusters : 



Besides these clusters which belong to the stem, or to pronominal 

 forms, others are admissible. These originate by composition of a 

 stem ending in a consonant with another stem beginning with a con- 

 sonant. We have found in this series — 



m,t 



np 

 and it is likely that others occur. 



It will be noticed that in the stem, sonants, affricatives, and n do not 

 occur as the first sound of a consonantic cluster; that sonants, except d 

 and J, and Z;", do not appear at the end of a consonantic cluster. Fortes 

 occur neither in initial nor in terminal position. No sound except 



§2 



