Brinton.] dUo [Marcli 4, 



The tense-signs are as follows : 



Pi-esent, es, the e dropped in the first person singular, and 



lengthened in the first person plural. 



Imperfect, first, is 



second, vnks 



thii'd, emvtes, emvtvs, or emvts, the e dropped in the first 



person singular, 

 fourth, vntvs 

 fifth, vtes 



Future, simple, vres, the v dropped in first sing. 



compound, tares, used after the fifth imperfect with its final s 



dropped, e. g. nvfkvyvte tares. 

 progressive, vran added to the root. 



Perfect, is, to second root, the i shortened to v when it 



comes before y. 



Persons, The persons are indicated by inseparable personal pronouns 

 between the root and the tense sign. They vary in the diff"erent tenses 

 according to the following table : Sing. 1st pers. 2nd, PI. 1st 2nd 3d 



Present, and third imp., i etsk e atsk ak 



First, second, fourth, and fifth imj). vy etsk ey atsk ak 



Simple future, a etsk ey atsk vk 



The third singular is wanting. 



There is a dual form of the verb when two persons or things are spoken 

 of, — an objective dual, in a sense. It is formed by prefixing torkor (proba- 

 bly a corruption of the Choctaw tuklo, two) and making changes in the first 

 syllable of the root, according to rules with which I am not acquainted. 

 The pronouns remain in the singular form, as letkis I run, torkorkis we 

 two run. 



Negative form. The negative form of the verb is made by inserting the 

 negative particle ak (Choctaw, ik), after the root, which latter may under- 

 go euphonic changes, e. g. kicis, I say, kicakis, I do not say. 



It was my intention to give a complete paradigm of the active, affirma- 

 tive, simple verb, in the first transition, but as I am not able to exhibit 

 this satisfactorily at present, I shall omit it. I shall therefore conclude 

 this article by a partial analysis of a specimen sentence in the language, 

 and a comparison of it with the same in Choctaw, thus showing the af- 

 finities of these tongues. 



V. Specimen Sentence. 



Acts. ch. XIV, verse 11: 



And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifte(J up their 

 voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia: The gods are come down to us 

 in the likeness of men. 



In Muskokee: 



Momen estet, nake Pal momecaten hecakof em opunvkv-en-haken 

 kvwvpa kvtes, Likeonv em punvkv ofvn, Hesake tvmese este omvket 

 ye pun hvtvpeces, mahaket. 



