A dictionary of the Chinook Jargon, or trade language of Oregon
Washington: Smithsonian Institution, 1863. 8vo, pp. xiv, [2], 43, [1]; quarter black morocco over marbled boards, patterned endpapers; joints and corners rubbed, title page a bit soiled; very good. An Ayer Linguistics duplicate, with label on upper cover and pastedown, and release stamp on flyleaf. Volume VII of the Smithsonian Institution Miscellaneous Collections. "The fur traders of the 18th century, and the early part of the present, in coasting along the shores of Vancouver's and Nootka Sounds, carried with them some of the words of each of the tribes who they visited; until at the mouth of the Columbia River they found a quick-witted people who adopted the mongrel jargon they heard from the lips of strangers, and blended the fragments of 12 native tongues, with some English and French terms, into a sort of language possessing nearly 500 words" (Field). Pilling, Proof-sheets, 1498; Pilling, Wakeshan, p. 25. Item #59914
Price: $250.00
