| Show CHANGING OF CO COMANCHE MANCHE LANGUAGE Names of Dead Never Used and New Words Must Be Invented 1 t e ek d t k BASIC FORM UNCHANGED OO CHES AND SHOSHONES OP orTHE THE SAME TRIBE N Newyork wy k May 14 According g to the definitions usually advanced by lin linguists and philologists generally a 8 alive alive live language Is one which Iso Iff chang ing while a dead language Is one whose form Is fixed find and unchangeable On the basis of Cr that definition the language lan language guage of the Comanche Indians must be bene one ne of the lIvest on earth for It change so rapidly ly that a Comanche who had been away from the reservation for ten years would have great dutt difficulty difficulty culty In understanding the language as It is 15 spoken today This condition of ot affairs Is due to the fact that when a chief or any prom promInent prominent m man man n of the tribe dies his name Is never spoken again by the members of at atthe the tribe All of or the Comanche obtain their names from objects of ot everyday association this means that the words which were used in the dead chiefs I name are dropped forever from the Comanche vocabulary For example if it ifa ifa a chief named Black Wolf were to die it would be necessary to invent new words for wolf and black to take the place of those formerly used This makes it necessary for a white whiteman whiteman whiteman man who has dealings with the In Indians Indians and attempts to speak their lan language language Language guage to keep close tab on the mortuary mortuary mortuary ary record as it Jt would be the gravest breach of ot etiquette for him to speak the name of any ID deceased member of ot the tribe In speaking to relatives he ho homay may refer to such uch a one as your father or your brother but never by byname byname byname name Believe in Future State While this custom is used in a way to Indicate that the dead man has bas passed out of or existence completely at atthe atthe the same time there Is a belief bellet among the in an existence after atter death and a great anxiety In regard to the comfort of the spirits of ot the de departed departed departed parted In many cases the traders who know the Indian character have traded on on their superstition in this respect to secure the collection of debts which an Indian may ma have hae owed at the time of his death by b representing to his chil children children 1 dren that their fathers spirit is not resting comfortably because of that un unpaid unpaid unpaid paid debt If It the representation can be pu put yut t forward in In a convincing way wa it nearly nead always alwa s succeeds su in getting etting the money mone While the Comanche vocabulary Is subject to great and continuing changes as cited above aboe the basic form format of at the language remains practically the same and lias has for foT hundreds of ot years ears It Ii was through the similarity of the languages that the discovery was made that the and the Shoshones of If the far northwest are really the same tribe A A young oung Shoshone who was uras In attendance at Carlisle noticed the great similarity between many of the words used by Comanche students there and those in his own language and during his vacation visited the Comanche to Investigate the matter It was found that the had a tradition that In one of their wars with hostile tribes long before the advent adent of the white man a de detachment detachment detachment of the tribe had been cut off and driven north into the mountains while the main body of the tribe had drifted south to their present location The members of the band thus cut off oft were referred to as a the lost Coman ches and were really supposed to have been annihilated by their th lr enemies but buta a n comparison of the traditions of ot the two tribes and the similarity between I their customs and language showed al almost almost most conclusively conclusive that the Shoshones were really reaU the lost Physical Marvels The of the older days were probably the most perfect specimens specimens specImens mens of physical manhood to be found anywhere in the southwest standing over six feet in height and weighing from to pounds but close ob observers observers observers servers claim that the tribe is degener degenerating degenerating degenerating physically due In considerable measure to the intermarriage with Mexicans who are usually of much in interior physique In fact It t Is claimed clah that there are only a very few Coman ches of absolutely pure blood to be among the present membership of Dr the tribe In spite of their bloodthirsty record In the past they the are usually of a kind nd rind gentle genUe disposition especially in the treatment of at the members of their own 1 families A Comanche father would never think of striking a child but In spite of the lack of corporal punish punishment punIshment punishment ment the children are usually pretty I I well behaved and obedient to their par parents parents parents Most of the children are In the government schools where they the are well fed and clothed but If the father comes Into a store with only a dollar to spend he will probably spend ten cents for the th child A Comanche Indian would never neer think of striking anyone with his fist He might take a shot at an enemy if it ithe he had sufficient provocation but would not use violence in any an other form The Apaches who are the Co manches closest neighbors nell are very cr different in that respect and will fight with fists clubs or anything that comes handy The In the hands handy of the government of the money derived from the sale of the Big Pasture lands is making the one of the wealthiest tribes of ot Indians in the southwest They The will probably never neer be able abl to come up with the who have oil and gas royalties to draw on in addition to their other sources of income but their Income is decidedly In excess of that enjoyed by most In Indiana Ind Indians diana d nL Indians Becoming Wealthy Th The Big Kier BI Pasture funds alone will i 7 soon be bringing In n an annual Income of at approximately per annum for each member of the tribe aside from the other funds held by b the govern government government government ment on which Interest Is paid to the Indians Then In addition all of them have Individual Incomes from leasing their allotments Practically none of the make any an effort to do any farming themselves but the lands which they the own are good farming lands end and nd there is no trouble about leasing them at a good figure Chief Quannah Parker has done much to Influence the members of ot his tribe toward a proper use of their incomes He is a financial genius ge lus himself when it If comes to making money mone and Is rated as a wealthy man ma although he has never been able to rid himself entirely of the Indian characteristic of prodigality prodigality prodigality In the expenditure of money when he has plenty plent of It on hand Par Parkers Parkers Parkers kers leadership has been very valuable for his people however as he is 15 a ave very wise old fellow in spite of his lack of education He Is only a Comanche Coman he but is wholly an Indian In InThis This his education and training As a result possibly of his white blood he has however always stood for a policy of ot progress He wants to tomake tomake tomake make useful citizens out of them wants them to learn to t vote and exer exercise exercise cise else all the of American citizenship wants them to throw off the tho blanket and assume the duties and I responsibilities of citizenship and his j efforts are slowly being crowned with success j |
