322 
“The substantive and adjective, which are indeclinable, are 
formed as in Bisaya ; ka-tapus-an, end, from tapus ; ka-usba-an, 
inheritance, from usba, heir, pa-mumukut, fisherman, from mu- 
mukut ; ma-tigas, from tigas, strong, stout; ma-haggud, from 
haggud, cold, cool ; ma-manis, from manis, beautiful.” 
“The comparative and superlative are formed either by the 
repetition of the positive, or by the word /adz, more, or else by 
the particles deni and sin.” 
‘«« Examples :—marayao, good; marayao-marayao, or mara- 
yao dent, better ; marayao sin, excellent.” 
“¢ Ing karut ini asibi, sagua in yatto in labin asibi, in kaimo 
labi pa asibi tund. This bag is small, but that one is smaller, 
and yours is the smallest of all.” 
“The mode of expressing a verbal sense is that of the Bisaya 
language. The auxiliaries to be and to have, expressed by the 
particles man, hay, awn, are very often left to be understood ; 
hay is sometimes contracted into y, which is used as a suffix. 
ako-y ma-sakit, lam ill. Ikao miskin na, you are poor. Ma- 
raun kavabao ako, I have a great many buffaloes. ‘The forma- 
tion of verbs, as mag-sumpan, to serve, mah-sasat, to counsel, 
encourage, and the conjugations appear to be in conformity 
with those found in Bisaya.” 
“Pronouns and adjectives only differ from those of the 
Bisaya language in certain trifling peculiarities.” 
“The panditas and datos of Sulu can all write with ease. 
Like the Malays, they use the Arabic character with slight 
modifications. The Malays hardly ever use the vowel signs, 
whereas the natives of Sulu never leave them out and even 
those among the latter who know Malay are unable to read 
works in which these signs are omitted. At least this is what 
I was assured of by the late Sultan of Sulu, who was the most 
distinguished scholar in his Empire.” 
“The Sulu dialect is spoken by all the Malays, or Moros, of 
Mindanao, Palawan, Balabac, Basilan, the archipelagoes of 
Sulu and Tawi-Tawi and of the North of Borneo.” 
W. Eo Me 
