CONNECTICUT PAUGAUSSETT INDIANS

THE HISTORY OF STRATFORD

Golden Hill Indians
The Housatonic
The Wepawaug
Cupheags and Pequannock
Weantinock
Goodyear's Island
Indian Slaves
Indian Remnants
Indian Troubles
New Indian Papers

THE HISTORY OF STRATFORD

Wm.Howard Wilcoxson

Stratford Indians

Trouble with the Indians

Establishing Title to the Land

Indian Deeds and Relics

White Hills Purchase

FORREST MORGAN

Lifestyles, Government, Religion and War

Indian Titles and Mohegan Land Troubles

Sowheag, Uncas, and Miantonomo

Owenoco, the Son of Uncas

THE HOUSATONIC

CHARD POWERS SMITH

The Promised Land
Heathen in the Land
The Lord's Scouts

The Land and The Lord

The Next Seven Tribes

ALEXANDER JOHNSTON

Connecticut Indian History

The Pequot War

Benjamin Trumbull- The History of Connecticut

Language

The Indians of Connecticut and New-England, although consisting of a great number of different nations and clans, appear to have spoken radically the same language. From Piscataqua to Connecticut, it was so nearly the same, that the different tribes could converse tolerably together.The Moheagan or Pequot language was essentially that of all the Indians in New-England, and of a great part of the Indians of the United States. The word Moheagans is a corruption of Muhhekaneew, in he singular, or of Muhhekaneok in the plural number. Not only the natives of New-England, but the Penobscots, bordering on Nova Scotia, the Indians of St. Francis, in Canada, the Delawares, in Pennsylvania, the Shawanese, on the Ohio, and the Chippewans, at the westward of lake Huron, all spoke the same radical language.? The same appears evident also with respect to the Ottowaus, Nanticooks, Munsees, Menomonees, Missifaigas, Saukies, Ottguamies, Killistinoes, Nipegons, Algonkins, Winnebagoes and other Indians. The various tribes who evidently spoke the same original language, had different dialects; yet, perhaps, they differed little more from each other, than the style of a Londoner now does from that of his great grandfather.The want of letters and of a sufficient correspondence between the several nations may well account for all the variations to be found among the natives in New England, and between them and the other tribes which have been mentioned. All the new England Indians expressed the pronouns both substantive and adjective by prefixes and suffixes, or by letters or syllables added at the beginnings of ends of their nouns. In this respect there is a remarkable coincidence between this and the Hebrew language, in an instance in which the Hebrew entirely differs from all the ancient and modern languages of Europe.

From this affinity of the Indian language, with the Hebrew, from their anointing their heads with oil, their dancing in their devotions, their excessive howlings and morning for their dead, their computing time by nights and moons, their giving dowries to their wives, and causing their women at certain seasons to dwell by themselves, and some other circumstances, the famous Mr. John Eliot, the Indian apostle, was led to imagine that the American Indians were the posterity of the dispersed Israelites. They used many figures and parables in their discourses, and some have reported that at certain seasons, they used no knives, and never brake the bones of the creatures which they ate. It has also been reported, that in some of their songs the word Hallelujah might be distinguished.

The Indian language abounds with gutturals and strong aspirations, and their words are generally of great length, which render it peculiarly bold and sonorous. The Indians speeches, like those of the eastern nations, generally were adorned with the most bold and striking figures, and have not been inferior to any which either the English or French have been able to make to them. The Indians in general, throughout the continent, were much given to speech making. As eloquence and war were, with them, with them, the foundations of all consequence, the whole force of their genius was directed to these acquisitions.In council, their opinions were always given in set speeches; and to persons whom they highly respected, it was not unusual, on meeting and parting, or on matters of more than common importance, to address their compliments and opinions in formal harangues.? The Indians commonly spake with an unusual animation and vehemence.

The Indians in New England, rarely if ever admitted the letters L and R into their dialect; but the Mohawks, whose language was entirely different, used them both. Some of the western Indians, who speak the same language radically, with the Moheagans, use the L. The Moheagan language abounds with labials but the Mohawk differs entirely from this, and perhaps from every other, in this respect, that it is wholly destitute of labials. The Mohawks esteemed it a laughable matter indeed, for men to shut their mouths that they might speak.

THE HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT

BENJAMIN TRUMBULL