1868, WA: A Lost Chapter of Judges
Here’s a totally fascinating political satire from Territorial days here in Washington.
I imagine an industrious history student can decipher all of the personal and biblical references here, and earn an honors degree.
For the rest of our readers, I’ll show the Chinook Jargon-related portions of “A Lost Chapter of Judges”…
This:
4. And Joseph, a man of the people.
who had translated the ten tablets into the
Chenook which was the language of those
days, put forth his eleventh commandment
in the Assembly of thirty and nine, and it
became a law unto the Province and to the
judges and the people thereof.
And this:
24. And Neph the scribe seeing
Wyche the judge afar off that he was
wroth against him, girded on his armor,
taking his sling and stones in his hand, he
mounted upon his charger which being hard
of mouth and of great mettle, again wheel-
ed about and bore him from the field of
battle a great distance, even unto the tent
of Tenas Tihee who was a captain over {Minor Official}
one of the lost tribes of Israel.
As well as this:
26. And Tenas Tihee spoke unto him {Minor Official}
in the language of his tribe saying: Klax- {Who}
ta mika? pe icta mika chaco copa nika {are you? and why do you come to my}
illehe? Ancota nika kumtux mika. Spose {place? I used to know you. When}
Boston telecum patlach nika lum, mika {White folks gave me liquor, you}
mamook papel copa shelif, pe yaka mam- {wrote to the sheriff, and he}
ook lum tihee copa skookum house. Cul- {put the alcohol dealer in jail.}
tus mika tumtum, close mika hiac klatawa. {Your heart is no-good; get right out of here.}27. And Neph the scribe who was a
writer of books and skilled in the lan-
guages of the barbarians, answered him
after his own folly in many words. And
he showed him the signet and said unto
him that he was hungry and tickeed muck- {wanted to eat}
amuck, and that he was sleepy and tick- {wanted}
eed tenas moosum. {a “nap”/sex.}28. And when Tenas Tihee had look- {Minor Official}
ed upon the great tamanawus of the Bos- {guardian-spirit of the Whites/Americans}
tons with his eyes and seen that it was
delate chickamen he fell down and wor- {real money}
shipped it.
— from the Olympia (Washington Territory) Washington Standard of March 7, 1868, page 2, columns 4-6
