336 Languages of the various tribes inhabiting the [April, 



Nang tirklong, ne tirklong kiding, my spear is longer than yours. 

 Wo wokak prege bi, put the fowls and ducks apart. 

 Ialang-so a-bi alo ma ape? is this a male or a female goat ? 

 Ne ngo do nang ne, do not stand before me. 



Ne mu-ayok taramo wangye iongo, I have called my brother, he will 

 not come. 



Alang thaadoh minap wangye, he says he will come to-morrow. 

 Minap adaprang wang no/*, come early to-morrow morning. 

 I wot arleng asopenso bang hini, one man (had) two sons. 

 Sopo apibiso abithang a-nang apo-ayok thalo^, the younger said to 

 his father. 



La a-nang apo, O ! my father ! 



Ne apo a-dhon a-bhag neta hrong he, give me the share of my 

 father s wealth that falls to me, 



Alang apo la. a bolor ji dbon kadak kiding laprak-e thag \oh, his 

 father then divided between them his wealth and substance. 

 Timi timidi nigan hini nigan githom, after a few days. 

 La a, para asopo amuso jidhon kadak kiding ensi deh sari damo^ the 

 younger son taking his wealth and substance departed thence to a far 

 country. 



The Kassia. 



The tract of mountain territory inhabited by the Kassias borders on 

 Kachar to the east ; the district of Sylhet to the south ; the Garo hills to 

 the west ; and the valley of Asam to the north. It forms an irregular pa- 

 rallelogram, the length of which, from north to south, may be assumed 

 at about 70 miles, and its average breadth at 50, giving an area of about 

 three thousand five hundred square miles. 



The language spoken by the Kassias is very simple both in structure 

 and expression ; but it abounds with those intonations that form so 

 striking a feature in the languages allied to the Chinese. The short, 

 abrupt sound at the termination of a word or syllable, is especially fre- 

 quent. The Kassias are also very lavish of words to express their most 

 common ideas, and often make use of terms very specific in their appli- 

 cation. For instance the verb to wash, has no less than six synonymes 

 in this language. Tet, to wash the hands ; Bata, to wash the face ; 

 Sleh, to wash the head; Sum, to wash the body ; Klhig, to wash a 

 vessel ; and Sait, to wash clothes. 



