Moccasins = "sail shoes"?

[David Robertson]

Have you ever come across a phrase "sail shoes" (sil shu[sh]) in Jargon, 
for "moccasins"?

Sam Johnson's dissertation lists phrases "stick shoes", "chickamin shoes", 
and "skin shoes" for various items, plus the word "moccasin".  But I 
haven't found "sail shoes".

I ask because I'm trying to figure out a Thompson Salish word that's given 
as an unanalyzable root (unknown origin) in the dictionary of that 
language.  The word is /siLts'u7/.  (L=voiceless lateral "barred l", 
ts'=ejective alveolar affricate, 7=glottal stop.)

Looking for a Jargon etymology for it is a bit of a stretch, but may be 
worth considering.  Sometimes in Salish, /l/ has become /L/.  And if I 
squint I can picture earlier Thompson speakers learning CJ /sil/ "fabric" 
and /shu(sh)/ "shoe(s)", then compounding them in a Salish way, with the 
connector /-L-/.  

Another idea could be that the Salish lexical suffix /-(i)ts'e7/ "covering, 
skin, etc." influenced the way /shu(sh)/ was understood by locals.  

Circumstantial support for these ideas can be found in a number of other CJ 
loans into Thompson, which show signs of having been reanalyzed as having 
Salish morphemes.  Two examples that come to mind are /liplit/ "priest" 
and /lEpel/ "shovel", both reanalyzed as having /n-/ "in, at, etc." 
[understood to be pronounced as /l/ due to a Halkomelem Salish {n-less} 
accent!].  (This suggests close contact with Halkomelem speakers, from 
whose downriver territory CJ probably came to Thompson lands.)

Any of your ideas about this would be welcome.

--Dave R

To respond to the CHINOOK list, click 'REPLY ALL'.  To respond privately to the sender of a message, click 'REPLY'.  Hayu masi!