Chinook phrase in song

[Jeffrey Kopp]

Hi.  I received an inquiry to translate the Jargon lyrics (two
phrases) in a mid-1800's song from B.C. which is to be recorded.  I
think I did OK.  I asked if he could send the details along for the
benefit of the list and here they are, the complete song and its
source.  Our exchange about the Jargon lyrics is in the quoted
portion at the bottom.

(If I muffed the translation, please be sure to let us know.)

Regards,

Jeff


On Fri, 31 Mar 2000 08:06:40 +0000, "rtwright at grassrootsgroup.com"
<rtwright at grassrootsgroup.com> wrote:

>Jeff;
>
>Thanks for your prompt and generous reply.
>I will include the song here. The tune is the old (1860s) Come Home Father.
>It appears in the Cariboo Sentinel Feb. 16 1869, penned by "Mosquito".
>Mosquito was a small town or camp a few miles from Barkerville.  What is
>fascinating to us is that all the people in the song are identifiable, from
>Mary to George and Yaco. Not the author however..
>The CD we are recording is all music and songs such as this that we have
>gathered and reclaimed from the Cariboo goldfields in the 1860s. It is the
>first in what we hope will be a series.  It is the only one we have found
>with more than one or two words or Chinook.
>In the recording we will repeat the last line of the verse with the
>translation, so I may have to play a bit to make it scan.
>
>Yes, by all means post it to the list.
>
>Again thanks
>
>Richard Wright
>*********
>
>Mary, Come Home
>
>Oh, Mary, dear Mary, come home with me now;
>The sleigh from Mosquito has come.
>You promised to live in my little board house
>As soon as the pap¹ring was done.
>The fire burns brightly in the sheet-iron stove
>And the bed is made up by the wall.
>But it¹s lonesome, you know, these long winter nights
>With no one to love me at all.
>
>Oh, Mary, dear Mary, come home with me now;
>Old George with his kuitan is here.
>You can, if you like, have your drink of old Tom,
>But I¹d rather you¹d drink lager beer.
>I¹ve come all this way through the cold drifting snow,
>And brought you a message from Yaco;
>And these were the very last words that she said:
>"Kloshe waw-waw delate mika chako" **[repeat line - translated]
>
>
>Oh, Mary, dear Mary, come home with me now;
>The time by the watch, love, is three.
>The night it grows colder, and George with the sleigh
>Down the road now is waiting for me.
>She stopped at a stump on her way up the hill
>And whispered for me not to follow;
>But pressing my hand ere I left her, she said,
>"Delate nika chako tomollo."
>
>
>
>kuitan - horse
>
>
>*****************************************************************
>GrassRoots Consulting Group Inc., Box 15 Miocene,
>Williams Lake, B.C., Canada, V2G 2P3
>Phone: 250-296-4432  Fax:250-296-4429
>Richard Wright & Cathryn Wellner
>Communications, Media Relations, Research, Community Development
>http://grassrootsgroup.com  email: rtwright at grassrootsgroup.com
>
>----------
>>From: Jeffrey Kopp <jeffkopp at uswest.net>
>>To: "Richard Wright" <rtwright at grassrootsgroup.com>
>>Subject: Re: Chinook phrase in song
>>Date: Fri, Mar 31, 2000, 8:21 AM
>>
>
>> Hi.  It appears to be idiomatic, which would seem somewhat
>> incongruous when translated word-for-word.  My own Jargon is a bit
>> shaky but I can give it a whirl.
>>
>> When "kloshe" precedes a verb it means "you'd better" or "you must"
>> rather than just "good."  So I'd say the first lyric is something
>> along the lines of "You'd better say [straight, true] you'll come."
>> It could be glossed as "Tell me truly you'll return."
>>
>> The second one is much easier as it is straightforward and can be
>> translated linearly: "Truly, I'll come tomorrow."
>>
>> I'm curious about the song.  What's the title?  Would you mind if I
>> passed your email on to the Jargon mailing list?  (I always ask first
>> because the posts also appear on the Web.)
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Jeff
>>
>> On Thu, 30 Mar 2000 22:02:36 +0000, "Richard Wright"
>> <rtwright at grassrootsgroup.com> wrote:
>>
>>>Mr. Kopp;
>>>
>>>Thanks for your wonderful site.
>>>I am trying to find a translation of two chinook phrases that appear in
>>>a song published in BC's Cariboo Sentinel in the 1860s. While I have
>>>been able to transplate the words the phrase is leaving me somewhat
>>>puzzled.
>>>
>>>The first says:
>>>And these were the very last words that she said:
>>>"Kloshe waw-waw delate mika chako."
>>>
>>>The second is:
>>>But pressing my had ere I left her she said.
>>>"Delate nika chako tomollo"
>>>
>>>We are recording this song next month and I would like to give a proper
>>>translation.
>>>
>>>Any help would be appreciated
>>>
>>>Thanks
>>>Richard Wright
>>>Williams Lake, B.C.
>>>
>>>
>>
>> 
>