About the year 1830 the principal chief of this settlement, by the name of “Drowning Bear” (or You-na-guskee) becoming convinced that intemperance would destroy himself and his people, determined, if possible, to bring about a work of reform.  He accordingly directed his clerk to write in the Indian language an agreement which translated reads as follows:  “The undersigned Cherokees, belonging to the town of Qualla, agree to abandon the use of spirituous liquors.”  This instrument of writing was immediately signed by the old and venerable chief, and the whole town.  This wise proceeding has worked a wonderful change for the better in their condition.  They are now a temperate, orderly, industrious and peaceable people.

One of the most wonderful achievements of our age is the invention of the Cherokee alphabet.  The invention was made in 1821 by Guess, (Se-qua-yah) a half breed Indian, his father being a white man and his mother a Cherokee.  He was at the time not only perfectly unacquainted with letters but entirely so with every other language except his own.  The first idea of the practicability of such a project was received by looking at an old piece of printed paper and reflecting upon the very singular manner (to him) by which the white people could place their thoughts on paper and communicate them to others at a distance.  A thought struck him that there surely must be some mode by which the Indians could do the same.  He first invented a distinct character for each word, but soon found the number so great that it was impossible to retain them in the memory.  After several months’ labor he reduced his original plan so as to give to each character a syllabic sound, and ascertained there were but eighty-six variations of sounds in the whole language; and when each of these was represented by some particular character or letter, the language was at once reduced to a system, and the extraordinary mode of now writing it crowned his labors with the most happy success.  Considerable improvement has been made in the formation of the characters, in order that they might be written with greater facility.  One of the characters, being found superfluous, has been discarded, reducing the number to eighty-five.  Guess emigrated to the West in 1824.  It has been much regretted that he did not remain in North Carolina to witness the advantages and blessings of his discovery.

The Bible, newspapers and other literature are now published in the musical Cherokee language.

The Catawba Indians, contiguous to our southern borders, and once so numerous and powerful, have dwindled down to a diminutive remnant—­mostly half breeds.  They inhabited in their palmiest days much of the territory south of the Tuscaroras, and adjoining the Cherokees.  For their general adherence to the patriots in the Revolution they have always received the fostering care of the State.  They own a tract of land ten miles square in the south-east corner of