The Savannah morning news., 1901-03-10

a white Child Born in the Frozen
North, and Its Eskimo Companion.
Ahnighito and BIIIybah.

In the March St. Nicholas, Mrs. Peary
tells of the infancy of the daughter born
to her in the Arctic Circle. and of the
Eskimo child she brought back to the
United States.
Far 90 the north of us, beyond the Arc
tic Circle, she writes, lies land inhabit-
ed by a little tribe of Eskimos called
Arctic Highianders. These are the most
northerly people Known on the globe.
They are entirely dependent on their
country for everything uley need, and as
il is very cold, and part of the year en-
tirely without sunshine, there is very lit
tie plant life, and they live only upon the
animals, using the meat for food and the
skins for their clothing. During the short
summer season, when the sun shines. the
grass and flowers grow rapidly, the birds
come back and build their nests, and alasi
the mosquitoes come forth in swarms. But
this lasts only for short time.
Here in this wonderful land, in little
black house under a great brown noun
tain. was found, one bright September
day, little snow-white baby girl with big
blue eyes.
And such funny house 1t was where
she was found! IL was only one story
high. the outside was covered with thick,
black tarred paper the walls were more
than foot thick. and there were lots of
windows for such a small house. one wide
one running right across the top of the
house, just as in hot house; this was to
enable the inmates to enjoy the sunshine
just as long as it lasted.
All round the house was a close veranda,
the walls of which were built of boxes of
food-biscuit, sugar, coffee, and tea; for
none Of these things, in fact nothing bu:
meat, could be bought in the country.
10
the baby was found was lined with soft
warm blankets, and there was a bright
carpet on the floor. and lots of books, and
sewing machine, and pictures on the
walls. All these things, like the boxes of
food outside, had been carried in the big
ship which had brought the babys father
and mother to this strange country.
The bed on which the baby lay was COW
cred with soft warm reindeer skins,
through which even the terrible cold of
the long dark night could not penetrate.
One window of the baby's room looked
out upon great glacier, or river of ice,
and the other upon high red-and- brown
mountains surrounding a bay in which
f1oated lots and lots of icebergs OF the
strangest and most fantastic shapes, so
that you might easily imagine one to be
the palace of the Frost King. others white
ships. and in still others you might see
the white face of the Frost King him
self.
And when the strange people of the land
heard that baby had been found in this
home, and that, wonderful to relate this
baby was perfectly white, they came,
men, women and children, hundreds of
miles, riding upon sledges drawn by wild,
| shaggy dogs which looked like wolves, to
see the little stranger.
At last, one day late in August, the
same big black ship which had brought
Ahnighito's father and mother to the
snow-land came up the bay-forcing her
way through the ice, and throwing it in
every direction, just as a snowplow drives
through a big drift-and stopped just in
front of the house.
Then Ahnighito and her mother took
Miss Bill and some of the puppies on
board the ship, and it steamed away south
again to bring Ahnighito to her grand
| mothers and to the aunt who had never
seen her. BY the time that Phil
adelphia was reached, Ahnighito had be-
| gun to talk, and she called Miss Bill
Billy bah" By this name she is known
| among her people to-day Billybah was
| about u years Old and never in her life
| had she seen a house larger than the lit
! tie one-story black house where Ahnighito
was born; never had she seen a bush or a
| tree, and never a horse or COW, a wag-
on or a carriage, and, of course never a
never had bath until Ahnighito's moth
er gave her one on board ship; and she
| could not understand why she must wash
herself and brush her hair every morn
ing.
| This little dusky maiden who was the
! youngest of her people to reach the land
of sunshine and plenty, had everything
to learn, just as much as Ahnighito. First
| she must learn to talk, for OF course she
could not speak English then she must
learn to eat, for in the snow-land her peo-
| pie eat nothing but meat She must learn
! that meals are served at regular times,
| that we battle daily, and retire and arise
at certain times. All this was new to
| her, for in her country the people eat
whenever they are hungry; they have no
tables or chairs, and they never prepare
meals. Sometimes when it is very cold,
they will cut slices from the chunks of
| frozen meat which are lying about on
| the floors of their iglooS, and steep them
in water heated over their lamps. When
| they are sleepy they curl up anywhere
and go to sleep. Bathing was unknown
to them until they say Ahnighito's faith
er and mother; indeed, they never wash
! ed even their faces. But perhaps this was
because water is very scarce during the
| greater part of the year; everything is
| frozen, and their only fire and light is
! what they get from their ikkimer damp
And this ikkimer, or lamp, is shallow
stone dish, on the center of which are
heaped pieces of blubber QaO, and cross
the front edge is packed dried moss. This
moss acts as wick, and as the fat melts
! 1t is absorbed by the moss, and this IS
lit with flint and steel This is the only
heat and light to be found in en- Eskimo
! hut at any time.
Billybah had to learn, by sad experience
that she could not put her toys down
anywhere in the streets of Washingtc
and find them again hounrs afterward, as
she could do in her own country.
Her trunk was regular Noah's ark. A
bit of whatever was given her during her
stay was always carefully put into it. to
be carried back home and explained to
her friends.
In July, it was decided, the great ship
should sail to the Land of the Midnight
Sun to bring home Ahnighitos father,
and that Billybah would return to her
family.
She was very happy at the thought of
home, but wished Ahnighito might go,
too. When she reached the snow-land
there was great rejoicing among her peo-
pie. and feasts of fine raw walrus, seal
and bear meat in honor of the young
member of the tribe who had been to the
land of white folks and had seen the run
rise and set every day for whole year.
About two hours after landing, Billy
bab WAS qaap with a y,iaoa Or v,,aat ~.os-h