Indian Languages in JS^ortTi America, 



their paternal inheritance except their language, have 

 only the contempt of tbe people of Europe 



3Si 



(1 



ami their descend 



ants on this continent; all of whom, with less justice than Is 

 commonly supposed, have proudly hoasted of the superiovily 



cultivated languages as well 



manners. 



w 



But, at length, in consequence of the impulse origin- 



ally given hy the Empress Catherine of Russia, and subsequent- 

 ly by the illustrious Adelung, Vater, and other German literati, 

 whose indefatigable dilisience and zeal will not suffer the remot- 



est corner of the globe nor the most uninviting department of hu- 

 man knowledge to remain unexplored, we are beginning (o in- 

 quire into the history and character of onr degraded fellow-men 

 of this continent, and to investigate the wonderful structure of 

 their various dialects ; which, indeed, to the philosophical inquir- 

 er, will now perhaps be found to be the most curious and interest, 

 ing of all the languages of man.* 



* Mj learned friend, Mr. Du Ponceau, first directed my attention to the 

 fact here stated respecting the Empress Catherine ; and I am indebted to him for 

 the perusal of tliat interesting account of the eminent services rendered to lite- 

 rature by this extroardlnarj princess, entitled *^ Catherinens der Grossen Ver- 

 diensteum die Vergleichende Sprachenkunde :" which maj be rendered, Tlie 

 Merits of Catherine the Great in promoting the Comparative Science of Lan- 

 guages^ This work was published at St. Petersburg in the year 1815, by the 

 Hon. Frederick Adelung, whom Mr. Du Ponceau, in his Report on the Indian 

 Languages (p. xix ) states to be " the nephew and worthy successor of the great 

 Adelung," and " not inferior to his predecessor." The volume contains a par- 

 ticular account of the extensive plan of the Empress, and the measures taken by 

 her to obtain vocabularies of all the lan^ruases in the world. She directed her 

 Secretary of State to write to the powers of Europe, Asia, and America; and 

 aonlication was accordinslv made to President Wablmmton for our /wrfiflw Ian- 



/ 



