Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1874-01-01
DOWN THE CHIMNEY.
BY HELEN G. WEEKS.

aOUAY way sanee NOW ee!'' SAID LoZet-
tee. confidentially, leaving her seam and
creeping up behind me. "Kaget NOW
: ee!n ("1'ruly the boy is cryingrD with a
little scornful look, as if crying was all
that could be expected from white boy.
But as sob escaped, and then another,
sympathy stirred her fierce little heart,
and she ran to the lounge and sat down
by him. -,
csDon't cry. What's the matter she
said.
.sGet outl" Harry returned, f1ouncing
over with his face to the wall and, though
Lozette knew no English, kick and tone
did not need Interpretation. For a mo-
ment she looked ready to kick back then,
deciding here was something she could
not understand, went back to her work
"What is the trouble, Harry? ?" / ask
ed. And, with another founce, Harry
rolled over and showed very red and un-
happy face.
aWhy, Christmas is most here.''
"And that is something to cry about,
is itg"
so course it is, if you're way off where
you cant keep it. | always hung up my
stocking, and had things in it; and now
fathers gone below, an shan't have a
thing. Oh-h-h."
Once more Harry rolled over to the
wall, and laid silent, as if this grief were
too great for words.
"Hang up your stocking just the same,
Harry l said. There will be some
thing in it, promise you. And now run
out and see how good bargain you can
make with Beshkway for those rabbits
Gee he has string of them"
Harry ran, and Lozette followed, her
black locks streaming behind and her lit
tie red blanket dragged by one corner
After her followed Stars and Stripes, our
Indian cat, and good judge of rabbits in
any form; and after him would have run
Nub, smallest and wisest, as well as fat
test of gray kittens, had not the door shut
suddenly and driven her back to the win
dow, where she sat and watched all that
could be seen Of the children.
1t did seem lonely Christmas for this
lite fellow, only nine years old, and
many days journey through dark pine
wood and over frozen lake, from the
mother who, till now, had always had
him close under her wing. Too close,
perhaps; for bones and eyes were all that
could be seen of him when, two months
before, he had rolled off the ox-team
which brought him all the long way from
st. Cloud A grist and saw -mill had long
been promised our Red Lake Indians,
and Harry's father had taken the contract
for building it, and come up with his men
to cut timber for the dam, and make ready
for the spring work At the last moment,
fired with enthusiasm at the sight of the
great teams, the gayly- dressed guides, and
his fathers gun and knife, Harry pleaded
to be taken, too; and was, on half an
hours notice, to the utter bewilderment
of Polly, aged three, who decided he was
dead and would never be seen again, and
who wept big tears many times a day.
So it CHANGED that, as we walked down
the clearing to meet the teams, said to be
close at hand, and thought of the home
letters, which came so seldom and only in
this way, we were startled to see rising up
from the blankets this greateyed, fair
faced child, who shouted, as he looked:
"Why, pal / see white woman! l
thought there wasn't anything but In
dians Can you make doughnuts, ma'am?"
eyes, sir,' | said, land small pies, too"
This was our introduction; and the &C
quaintance was continued by all the party
sleeping on our floor that night. BY after
noon of the next day house was builded :
IT,
one side and filled with spruce twigs, a
great fire started in the middle OF the
room, and everything ready for house
keeping. Don't be frightened at the idea
of fire in the middle of the room, for
nothing else would satisfy logging
camp. To begin with, the floor is earth,
you know, and the chimney not much
more than a great square hole in the roof,
The fireplace is made by piling up earth
underneath it and putting four logs in a
square about it. Then such fire is start
ed as you have never seen. Whole trees
feed it, and as the ashes accumulate they
pack down from the weight of the logs,
and make wonderful nests, in which are
buried pots of beans, eaten never less
than three times day, and baked to just
the color and flavor given by our grand
mothers brick ovens.
In these same hot ashes the Indian boys
roast potatoes, snow-birds with the feath-
ers on, and even rabbits; and in taking
lessons in all these accomplishments ar-
ry had till now almost forgotten to be
homesick. To-day one of his old head.
aches had kept him prisoner and given
him time for thinking His father had
been gone for week, having left to over
see the sending up of more supplies: and,
though Harry had not yet quite settled
whether Father or Santa Claus had most
to do with stockings, it was certain they
held communication OF some sort, and
were, on the whole, rather necessary to
each other.
With evening, which began about four
O'clock, we gathered around the open fire:
and Harry looked critically at the mud
chimney, made, in Indian fashion, OF a
framework of sticks, plastered over and
held together by clay.
Its a shaky old thing" he said, "and
] don't believe Santa Claus could get
sdown there, if he tried. Besides, I'm sure
he never came up SO far"
"Why, he starts from here" said /.
don't you know he drives reindeer, and
they live further north than we are-close
up to Hudson's Bay"
"Well, but he has to drive down to
some town or city for his toys and things.
He has to see ali our fathers and find out
what we want. No, he don't either.
don't believe there Is Santa Claus. ANY
way, he wouldn't come among Indians.
They don't hang up their stockings
"Ahl but they would, if they had