Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 23.djvu/52

40 different vowel sounds ordinarily expressed in English by the same letter.

He had also written to Honolulu requesting the donation of a second-hand press and that the Sandwich Islands Mission should instruct someone, to be sent there from Oregon, in the art of printing, and in the meantime print a few small books in Nez Perces.

On March 15, 1838, he reports as follows:

"I have completed an alphabet in the Nez-Perces language, & a spelling book with some 60 or 70 scripture & animal cuts explained, which I shall send to the Islands to be printed, by the first opportunity. I hope to complete a small elementary work to accompany it, & a large one during the year to be printed at Boston—

A sound of a in Father N n in Note

B "am Hawk O o in Not

C a in Man P p in Paint

D e in Men Q " qu in Question

E e in We R i in time

F u in Sun S s in Small

G Soft T t in Time

H h in He U " oo in Moon

I i in Pin V o in Note

J a in Name W " w in World

K k in Hawk X u in Use

L 1 in Lamb Y y in Yoke

M " m in Man " ou in South.

I have given no character two sounds. I have taken the English alphabet, as I see no reason why characters very extensively used throughout the world, should be cast away & others substituted as in the case of the Chocktaw & Ojibwa. The sounds represented by nine characters, viz, b. c. d. f. j. r. v. x. z. are not found in this language. The sounds represented in English by the consonants h klmnpqustwy are found, I have retained the characters. To the vowels a e i o & u. I have given the five vowel sounds that occur most frequently, for convenience sake, as these letters are most abundant in every printing establishment, especially, at the one we expect to get our printing done at present. I have taken 8 of the 9 consonants not required to represent the remaining 8 vowel sounds. There is but one dipthongal sound, which I have represented by the letter z. The hint, respecting the