Note 21 — MYTHOLOGY, SUPERSTITIONS, AND RELIGION OF THE ALGONQUINS.

In giving the particle wa, the various meanings of "flitting," "waving," and "dancing," the Indian idiom is fully preserved. The final particle see, in the term wa wa tai see, is from the generic root asee, meaning a living creature, or created form, not man. By prefixing Ahw to the root, we have the whole class of quadrupeds, and by pen, the whole class of birds, &c. The Odjibwa Algonquin term for a candle, was sa koon ain je gun, is literally rendered from its elements—"bright—white—flamed—instrument." It is by the very concrete character of these compounds that so much meaning results from a few words, and so considerable a latitude in translation is given to Indian words generally.