Show CHRISTMAS IN THEARTIC THE ARTIC an Int erestine account by frederick fica walka I 1 after the thanksgiving dinkez to t url eskimo friends in the village around us LIS of which I 1 told you la in no of flar harpers pers young people you may inay be sure that thai the heard of christmas c coming antin c with unfeigned 0 dc delight light esp eSaIl ly when it was known to be it another day rounded off with with a feast of course there was one essential element clement wanting to the perfection of Christ christmas inasi aud and that was a christmas ua tree around the edge edg me of tome some of th the low marshy reids not fir far from our village we had noticed before chef snow fell in ili september luid and october ind and covered the iho ground a few stunted arctic willows the thickest limb was not than ones olles little ringer finger while the trunk itself if it could properly be called such stich was no larger around llian han a thumb and not over a foot high hiigli apran sprawling it 0 over the ground in fat fact lie like some stunted trailing 0 plant at 1 I could not licup thinking these willows willow 9 looked very iauch like th the smaller lumps of sagebrush sage brush I 1 had seen on in the western plains when out hunting I 1 they might inight have served is as christmas trees for the Lilli puts of choin we rend read in ili Gid livers travels but for the present race of human beings to use them as such stich was out of the question A rood good sized christmas present tied to a little blittle limb would tear it off so at least wo we all thou thought lit until a member of my party parly su suggested stad that about a balf dozen of these willows be pulled up by the roots which could be done as readily as if they were so many cabb cabbages iff es the roots then to be put into the soft snow of tile the top of the snow house dome as far as they could be stuck in with the hie fingers and then a little blittle water dashed or sprinkled over the root roof to form a sort of cement of ice cc to hold the hie little willows in their place upside down of course so that lot the Christ christmas masi trees would dangle downward from the roof or stand on oil their leads heads so to speak on oil the hanin han hanging in branches could be in 0 tied the hie few simple but presents we should give away anay to our native friends and anar when nhen the ceremony no ny was tit all over the christmas trees coufol be torn out by the roots 0 once more and thrown n away we accordini accord iti gly asked two small boys to make inake a 1 I lisit asli dining doliny tile the 1 day I ay to the willow patch about 1 a I mile away and bring 0 us u a I 1 few of the largest a service which we ive intended w to repay by presents as well is as a good dinner should they V C successful away they went no doubt wondering what in the world a lot if willow blush could have to 10 lo with willi a proposed feast for no ca oth olber c r way of celebrating a day could enter cuter their minds than that something thin good must enter their sto stomach clito st and when moen that was over ove all was oter oer possibly llos sibly they thought that we wonted wanted to use the willows to cook sonic some of the christmas victuals for in the summer binic if they be near a pat path of these iiii willows oval tile Eskin eskimos los often wander nander anione among dwi nj to pick out the dead ones tc to build a ire reto to cook their food mi with th is no use for them whatever vei in I 1 alie tit winter as the natives then have plenty of seal and walrus oil with which they can call do their cooking cookin cooki ug ind and so I 1 our two little fellows buice their little braini brail nith ditl what we could want with the like until they lad hall thrown wein down at our feet the presents pre bents simple hiple but useful a can call of powder po ider a 1 box of musket bips or a 1 I bag boo of balls here and thereto ahr best hunters a jackknife or rubber box to the boys 1 a I pair of scissors or of a 1 few fen three cornered needles for all uie vinn R i ir allone on oil reindeer skins requiting loveral lover wl or three con berned needles I 1 d les to ilie ilia ronjen aud out some soine beads and cheap jewelry 0 o tile the little gills and 1 od better far better than nil all other things to these M malc nil natives nat ivea tives ajo think only of the pre ent we ave had a tremendous dinner looked iery ery smaller sisi aller if ter they hall had gotten through with it they trevare are enkoji iiii eaters caters captain of tile navy britts that in it eskimo boy in he fell while wintering among that people I 1 not lot 1 yet V fir all r frici froin ill my own aa winter hiter nar ter in ill tile part of hal hud sou son bay mana managed geI to t I 1 1 dei fur in one ilay day over ten pon pounds ads of ill food which lie walfird down doun liisi throat with a i gillon gallon wid a liala of tea cot cof fermila arc vf iter A man mail of the tamo banic tribe also ate ten tell pound of solid which include st lit 9 of tallow candles ca nilles and drank of if various vm ious liquids with which lie he was furnished I 1 1 i 1 gillon and 1 ii I liila and lilt yet 3 et theme aln e people devouring ali ill this thin food lire are only f broin roin four if to tour four and a half feet high when full glown capt parra I 1 irry does not my bay so in hi look lilt but pro biLly lie was giving thrill theta it s dinnat at alie tit e time little lit avast I 1 thought allou so when I 1 LI at 41 JIA jho lico bace iny lilice kutiner had IH bel ti ud ani an I I 1 considered calisi dered it hy clime boniv a 1 year tear although our friends frie ids biele no doubt will bo ba villing to have it come hundred and aut 1 i ixta five times 3 in that period tl w eskimo lis kiino of f the pirl part of Hu dudot dot 1 1111 ale nut wil J 1 ltd lor al quite 1 l yla often tile the american Auie i chalers whalers who couie come to ailese tilt wic ratu t catch whales winter thel allias them antl the natives gather HP ai pined like nic about a ugar sugar s barret barrel to gel ef little nead and sit ir weal ilk collee sacci cuell wilh villi theall sugar tor fur like all Sa yugeN they lune ii a ery erv baliet tooth in ill their su so we spent our fint Chrish ijas in ill lone nor UiL ilund the ise coul W vu LS enell cn imire linie baille boille and lew less alicei fill than the fint we etc V re sledging illig alling back bacic s ci florat ria ri A illia ivar boiu boing I 1 irom the attic ocean to ilay the dasy toll biily ii a couple bif of licurs liours li iny 0 iid awl evin if clial i at WL wa all twilight light coining froidl the south alie mill ought to be and andee w v were cre 1111 hi but bilt nt jila or ir six a dy 1 y floell olle oin allow houll to tile the other c r right gand 0 lad were weid we ave in ill filet fact if tile snow mow ho lhoir 11 ty iv had leit artt in lie morning mur niner 0 brits out ot of a bt beland hind sonic some friendly bend in c the ariy riy river er when we commenced building our new one as came on for nothing could lc be more discouraging than to see it staring us in the face this slow siony travel travelling tra velling lim was aviv 4 not cot altogether due to the stort short days but also to the intense cold and to bad sledging on the liver ice tile tho day before Chri christmas we ire lyntice but five miles and our igloo us as the natives call the snow house with a keen wind avind blowing from the northwest nort hvest although the high bluff baulf ot of the river protected us its caits ider ably that morning the thermometer toil had been sixty eight degrees below zero or jut jua ju t one hundred degrees degree helow the freezing point and you ran call niec that we wc were re cold enough to avi wish it we were at home for our christmas As n wind would spring up lip the thermometer would INY show that it was getting warmer wanner as id it did tins thili christmas christinas eve but it if a person got gol caught in such stich it 1 wind lie would bo be inclined to think link it was ten tell limes colder we knew by the alic wiy way the blick black storm came up ill that it NY was 11 ll going to lat a dar aln v or two and ami that we ave were going to til spend nur christmas indoors in iii doors if we C pek of being indoors in iii doors s in ill a snow house where there arc no doors doom an ail eskimo three or four feet of extra snow oil top foil of the file igloo knowing thit that it would need tills this additional d dit covering vering to but despite this we could feel tho the strong gale penetrating et the walla valls of our house ind antl ft a candle held to the windward wind wilid ward side had it ill flaque flame blown inward winivard very perceptible we did not have reindeer meat ind and the foil fish we had 0 gotten at the mouth month of hie file river were nvere rapidly diminishing so that our dogs were being aking fell fed only every third or fourth day we ind had intended to feed them next day or christmas lilt but that very night shortly after midnight they broke into the little snow house bmw built alongside 0 to store tile food IN dog Z harness and other thing ti lings aud and stole the food we are had intended for ourselves half dressed got out of the snow hut as boonas soon as lie heard them scrambling around and fighting over the spoils ip oils ind and secured the greater pai pait t of it again agail ill i i a i cold io that almost auy white man was frozen froen to death and this ii u the way the dogs got their christmas Chiist maa mas dinner we hall started april 1 18 9 on oil our sledge journey with avith only 1 a I month civilized provisions although 0 we knew we vc should be 0 gone alila almost st a ear expecting to live lire on oil t the ile 9 game c 0 of tho country try we our supply out Gi however vever with ille hie i of f ill alie e reindeer we wc killed until the alth of june when we ave at the lait of our civilized provisions and front from that time on oil until we got back to hudson bay a year lacking only ten daa daas w we e oil er 0 bucat with a few seals leali foia change cl iange Chiist ruai morning hc nry our cook slyly informed us that lie bud saved coalee for a mess iness also a 1 little fa at d condensed milk for it all and si onie ilie with which to thicken our soup esoup and make it 11 attic bauce tt ic for the big albion we ave had c caught civilized civili wd food which abich had liot no passed ii issod our lips before exactly acal six s ix li lacking only four daiy diy beaure wo ave sili tild taste aste 11 gaill ve e binl a very little fell 0 or s I 1 oil will which to to cook our alel delica tea CK wes S to 0 long blia we ave be been ellaway anway floell sea but stormy it in it was tomo sollie or 0 lite eskimo boys went out on oil tile lie hilli hill hid gathered some soine lack liioi iii oi beat the t ly vit fi byh j 4 the rocks 1111 V vitar ctet ter veo little oil sprinkled oer I 1 it we vu cooked our nurmon to serve for a 11 turkey bild and caffga d afe cornstarch crail beri y sauce d I 1 think we ave all believed it was vas the best christmas dinner we ave hall ever hall had we till nil felt so good over it simple as it wa tho eliat d we voted without tit a di dissenting ss enting voice to pound 11 nil 1 some sollie oe 0 llo f frozen I ozell hinc 11 aih 41 we I 1 had i ad in tile hie store talou 11 mcgive give t licila to the forty five half carved dog 4 i t loi igli 11 they did ill not de senoit niter alie via fey biad acted in the terrible stocal dining tiep hf hialit Hat haepers pers young |