CHAPTER IT. 
SUBANU PHONETICS AND COMPOSITION MEMBERS. 
The alphabetical system employed in this work is neither consistent 
nor particularly to be commended. Its variety has indeed arisen in the 
variety of the sources from which the vocabulary has been derived and 
is conditioned by the various influences which have affected the col- 
lectors. It would be far preferable to present the results in some more 
acceptable alphabet; in view of the fact that print has either not at all 
as yet, or only very slightly, reached these Pagan tribes of Mindanao, it 
would have been well to employ the scientific alphabet. But in these 
studies, conducted at a distance, it has been found impracticable to 
make any change in the field notes as provided. 
We are grateful to Cadmus for the gift of letters, but gratitude 
toward a figure dimly seen in the dawn of culture can not blot out the 
sense of the unfitness of these things which must come over us in the 
attempt to represent new languages by the alphabetic system of our 
own. Letters are indeed a great gift; without them it is hard to con- 
ceive of civilization making headway. Cadmus wedded Harmony, but 
the inheritance comes not from the distaff side, rather the seed of the 
dragon’s teeth with strife—and spelling. Scant wonder is it that the 
marks, whatever they may have been, which Bellerophon bore were 
described as oypata huypd. 
Indeed it is a dismal task to seek to apply the six and twenty signs 
of our alphabet to the needs of a foreign speech, to employ but two 
dozen (bakers’ tale) symbols in representing to the eye a series of 
sounds which fall but little short of four score. In this work upon 
which we are entering we shall have to recognize that we can have no 
more than an approximation. Recorded in the Roman alphabet with 
no suggestion of diacritical marks the words in this vocabulary must 
be regarded as but sketches, not working plans drawn to scale; the 
whole topic of pronunciation, directions whereby this material might 
be placed to speech use, must necessarily be omitted. 
The influences affecting the collectors of this Subanu material vary 
in terms of European speech. All that part of the field notes which is 
in Colonel Finley’s manuscript is naturally reduced to conformity with 
the usage of the English alphabet, and doubtfully placed sounds are 
reproduced by the proximate English sound most familiar upon an 
Americanear. It is thus that we owe to this influence the employment 
of kin some few vocables where the other collectors employ c, and qu 
before e and 1. 
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