The Topeka state journal., 1897-11-10
HOSPITALS ESKIMO PET.
Meensey is Studying English and
Teaching His Sister at Bellevue.

A0SAS0y 4S SCuOyluS EHSAiSA SAN
Teaching His Sister at Bellevue.
New York, Nov. 1O.-The six Eskimos
who have been laid up in Bellevue hos
pital with pulmonary troubles, are re-
ported to be doing nicely-all but Nook
tur, whose bronchitis has developed in
to pneumonia.
His wife, who had pneumonia, when
admitted, is slowly improving. The
other two men and the boy and girl
are considered out of danger.
The young doctors at Bellevue have
not for long time had 50 interesting
a lot of patients on hand as these fat
and stOlid little persons from the land
where the icebergS grow. The patients
have been under the special care of
Or. Robert NJ. Baly, but every doctor in
the institution has taken pains to study
them.
At first the Eskimos were cross and
shy. Hospital life was an unheard of
routine to them and they couldn't un-
derstand it any more than they did
their coughs, which they had never
known before.
In a day or two, however, they got
wOnted to both, and now they are as
cheerful a lot of invalids as Superin-
tendent Murphy can boast of.
The pride of the party is Meensey,
the 10 year old son of Nooktur He is
not much higher than one of the hos
pital beds. Since his cold has began to
leave him he is as clipper as a lark,
and has been racing all over the wards.
He is very bright and observing, and
while like all his race. not inclined to
be talkative, he is picking up bit of
English.
Nooktur is as proud of Meensey as
any American father ever was of his
first born. When visitors come into the
ward where he lies, they are invariably
attracted to the boy. The father notices
it and his eyes sparkle.
Me daddy he grunts, pointing to
himself and then pointing to the child
adds, me pickaninny."
This latter expression he got from
Mat Hanson, Mr.. Peary'S interpreter,
who is a mulattO.
On Friday afternoon Meensey follow
ed DR.. .Baly in his visit to the cots of all
the patients. By and by they came to
the cot of a coal black negro. The
doctor felt the patients pulse and when
he let the arm fall it lay on the white
cOverlet within easy reach of the little
Eskimo lad. Meensey eyed it curioUsly
for a moment, and then, wetting the tip
of his finger at his lips, he stroked the
negro's hand smartly once or twice.
Then he looked at his finger to see if
the black had come off. DR.. Baly said
nothing, but drew back the covers, ex-
posing the bare, black breast Of the pa
tient-
Ugh" grunted little Meensey in
some alarm, as he backed away. He
had never seen a man like this before,
and he wasn't sure it was all right. Mat,
the interpreter, might pass for a darky
down here, but it evidently did not
strike Meensey that the Interpreter be
lOnged to the same race as the black
man on the bed.
Every day Meensey goes to see his u
year old sister, Ahwhar, who is in the
WOmenS ward with her mother. He
takes with him piece of paper on
which one of the attendants has drawn
the picture of an elephant, a monkey.
a tiger and a giraffe. He has learned
the names of all these beasts and he is
now trying to teach them to his sister
On the first three he is getting along
very nicely, but giraffe" is too much
for his Eskimo larynx. When he tries
to pronounce it, the sound that issues
from his throat is like steaIthy
sneeze. AS the whole party are likely
to be in the hospital for some time, the
doctors say they will make a thorough
American out of the yOungster before
he leaves them.