Washington, D. C, April 5, 1878. 



Dear Sir: Your request that I should arrange the linguistic material 

 gathered by members of your Survey in harmony with the principles of 

 science, and preface it with an introduction appropriate to the subject, 

 gives me the welcome opportunity of presenting to the public the first 

 comprehensive classification of the extensive family of Nuraa or Shoshoni 

 dialects ever attempted, and hence I comply with pleasure. Portions of 

 the linguistic collection which are offered to scientists in your volume are 

 very valuable on account of their novelty. The Pa-Uta branch of Numa, 

 for instance, of which no less than six vocabularies are given below, is 

 a linguistic field new to investigators, and I do not know of any publica- 

 tion in existence treating of these dialects, with the sole exception of the 

 Chemehuevi. 



Eespectfully submitted. 



ALBERT S. GATSCHET. 



Lieut. Geo. M. Wheeler, 



Corps of Engineers, in charge. 



26 O I 401 



