Page:Archæologia Americana—volume 2, 1836.djvu/267

 APP. NO. I.J GRAMMATICAL NOTICES. MICMACS. 231 When the noun begins with a vowel, t is inserted between it and the pronoun. N'teleguem, l my king,' instead of vHele- guem. Relative Pronouns, Hen, c he who ' ; past tense aenak ; plural, senik, and for the past tense sennkik. Tan is also used for ' he who,' declined as sen both in the plural and past in the animate gender. But tan is also used for the inanimate gender, meaning ' that which ' ; in which case it is declined for the past tense tanek, and in the plural tanel, in the past tense tannkel. Tan means also ' when ' applied to the past ; but if ' when ' is used in the future, you must say tanak. Father Maynard has given several paradigms of the simple conjugation of verbs, but none of transitions. He generally omits the characteristic initials of the personal pronoun, some- times writes them at large, and sometimes in the same abbre- viated form as is used in the possessive pronouns, but omitting the syllable aye. In some instances, he distinguishes the two plurals of the first person ; generally he gives but one of the forms. In the first case there is a different inflection in the verbal termination, as well as in the initial of the pronoun. He gives the conjugation of the verb nildelei, ( I am'; but he afterwards explains that it means, ' to be like,' l to resemble.' From almost all simple verbs, words are extracted, which, united to other verbs, serve as adverbs or prepositions. Thus from delei, c I am like,' del is extracted, and may be united with many other verbs. Thus, from clsgsei, ' I work,' is formed deVlxgxei, c it is thus I work.' And from paxetem, ( I will,' is formed delipasetem, ' I will have it thus.' From the verb nakshashi, ' I am quick,' and from the verbs migishi, ' I eat,' pemiei, ' I walk,' are formed nakshimigishi, nachipeniei, 1 1 eat, I walk, quickly.' Verbs also express, by a simple variation of inflection, the various modifications of the action. Thus, nemidx, ' I see some one far off' ; nemik, l I see some one near ' ; nenak, ' I see some one I know ' : and each of these, as a new verb, is conjugated through all the persons, moods, and tenses. He gives also a list of impersonal verbs, many derived from