St. Landry democrat., 1893-06-10
FROM THE LAND OF ICE.
THE EXHIBIT OF ALASKA AT
THE WORLDS FAIR.


Displays of Furs, Minerals and Native
Woods-War Canoes and Other
Things.
Anthropologists as we'll as people who
do not care much for pottery, fetiches
and such things will find many object:
in Alaska's exhibit Gin charge of Lieuten
ant Emmons, of Uncle Sans Navy to i'll
terest them. The fish display alone will
embrace seventy or more specimens.
These have been stuffed and mounted by
F. Z. Frobese, taxidermist to the Alaska
chronological society. There will be seen
in the collection halibut weighing $50
pounds each and tiny korishky scarcely
two inches in length. Then there will
be needle fish, many specimans of trout
found in the waters of Alaska and salmon
weighing seventy pounds each.
The display of turs will be one Of the
richest exhibited by any country. 1t
has been loaned to the government by
Messrs. Koehler and James, of Juneau,
Alaska, and includes sea offers, silver
fox, seal, bear, wolf, mink, lynx and
wolverine. A single pelt of sea otter
in the exhibit is worth $500. The fur of
the blue or glacial bear will also be a
feature of the display. A box scarcely
larger than q tomato crate holds s., 1000
worth of these valuable furs. 1t stands
in the lieutenant's office with its cover
ing of boards held together by hun
dred nails and the eyes of guard glar-
ing down upon it when strangers in
that portion of the building are numer-
Gus.
The exhibit of the native woods of
Alaska will surely be of interest to lum
bermen in all parts of the world. There
has been vague idea in the minds of
many people that the faraway territory
of America is scarcely more than coun
try locked in ice and snow, with bears
grinning down from glacial heights.
Lieutenant Emmons' exhibit will serve
to dispel this popular but ignorant be-
lief. There will be seen in the display
: all the woods of Southeastern Alaska,
shich include alder, hemlock, red and
snalow cedar and spruce. Sections of
Fase trees, with the bark still clinging
g them, will be exhibited in the forestry
/. department of the collection. There will
also be displayed specimens of yellow
cedar, which will be remarkable for their
polish. This wood, Lieutenant Emmons
says, is excellently adapted to the most
intricate designs in carving and cabinet
work, and is popularity called the sandal
wood of the North. Unfortunately, how
ever, the woods of Alaska are not per-
mitted to leave the country, and thus
the giant forests remain in all their pri
meyal beauty and vastness. Were it not
for this restriction the spruce would find
a ready sale IN California, where it is
greatly needed for fruit boxes and crates.
The mi peral collection is contributed
by the mining districts of Harris, Be-
mers Bay, Sumdrin and Sitka, and con-
sists of 1, 700 panels. The southeastern
section of the territory and the valley of
the Yukon are rich in gold and silver,
but owing to the mountainous country
and the almost tropical growth OF under
brush, induced by the humidity of the
climate, the minerals are difficult of &C
cess. Gold is to be found in almost every
mountain stream and there are rich
lodges in the Juneau and Sitka districts.
Along the coast there is little or no placer
mining. Quartz crops out of the hill
side, but Notwithstanding these induce
ments to the ever-plodding prospector
Lieutenant Emmons says that poor
man stands but little show Of lettering
his condition there. 1t is capital that is
needed, he says and until this is brought
into the country the development of the
mineral resources will be slow and I'M
satisfactory.
Besides the display of gold aud silver
there will be a fine exhibit of coal, as
bestos and copper. The Alaska Tread
well Gold and Mining Company, which
operates 24O stamps, will display several
bricks of lead, heavily plated with gold.
The chronological exhibit is the per-
sonal property of Lieutenant Emmons,
and was gathered during his long term
of service as a naval officer stationed in
Alaska. 1t is probably one of the most
complete of its character to be found at
the fair. 1t will illustrate the life, man
ners, habits, traditions and practices of
the native tribes from DiAon's entrance
on the south to and through the arctic,
and will consist of building and fishing
implements, stone, ivory, bone and cop
per utensils, ceremonial and feast dresses,
basketry and mat work and the articles
used by the medicine men or doctors in
effecting cures.
Still another feature of this collection
will be war canoes, sea otter canoes from
the Mount Elias district, birch bark
canoes from the Yukon, and skin canoe
from Boring Sea- The war canoe, which
will attract much attention, is 80 feet
long with 6foot beam, and is capable
of seating fifty warriors. 1t is of ancient
and barbaric pattern, made from one
log, and belonged years and years ago to
Shakes, the hereditary chief of the Stick
heenan tribe. When old Shakes went to
war in this boat it was with ferocious
display of bear heads at the bow and
stern. These were carved in wood, but
the teeth were those of the beast himself.
The carvings are in the possession of
Lieutenant Emmons, and will be at
tached to their proper places when the
exhibit is finally installed in the govern
ment building Chicago Herald.