Page:Archæologia Americana—volume 2, 1836.djvu/292

256 Pisa tok. 'He did see,' 'he has seen'; referring to an action past and completed. The termination oke, is generally added to these, as pisa tuk oke.

Pisa kamo, or komo. 'He has seen'; referring to what is more recent. The most literal translation which can be given is, 'he sees it was so.'

Pisa chamo, 'He has seen'; referring to what is more remote, and admits of nearly the same translation as the above.

To express the future, the verb has two variations, viz. achi, and ahe, as,

Pisa chi, 'He will see,' 'he is going to see'; simply implying that the action will immediately take place.

Pisa he, 'He will see'; foretells that the action will take place at some future time. It also implies obligation and the determination of the mind; as, pisa he, 'he ought to see'; pisa he, 'he intends to see.'

The terminations for expressing the past and future tenses are variously combined, as,

Pisa-chin-tuk, 'He was about to see.'

Pisa-chin-tok, 'He was about to have seen.'

Pisa-he-tuk, 'He ought to see.'

Pisa-he-tok, 'He ought to have seen.'

The language has no prepositions. It has a few particles, used in the composition of other words, which are denominated in other languages inseparable prepositions. Most of the relations expressed by prepositions, in other languages, are, in this, expressed by verbs; as,

Auwantia, 'He goes with him'; literally, 'accompanying, he goes.'

Bvshpo ishit bvshti, 'He cuts with a knife,' or literally, 'a knife (being the) instrument, he cuts.'

Mr. Compere, from whom the large vocabulary was obtained, made that communication in the year 1827; at which time he