Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1912-11-09
GIRL VISITS CITY
FOR FIRST TIME

cat Snow Ball" Will come all OF the
way to Boise to attend school here
during the winter. Down the waters
of an Alaskan torrent she and her
mother floated in a little row boat
for II days and nights until they
reached civilization and the point
where they took the boat for Seattle
on the first stage of their long jour
ney to Boise.
The Seattle Times tells the story
of the child's wonderment when she
saw for the first time the brilliant
white lights Of a big city, the ele-
vators, the hotels, the street cars
and all OF the other things that she
had never seen before in her trav-
els through the wilds of the north
ern territory.
The story follows:
"Fairyland, with its princes and pal
aces and elves could hardly give
more wonder and delight to modern
city children than Seattle with its
street cars, tall buildings, gay shop
windows and hurrying crowds furn-
ishes to little Awaitha Smith, adopt
ed daughter of Mrs. Elmer Smith OF
Nixon Forks, whose home is on the
Tacotna river. tributary of the up
per Kuskowim, $50 miles from the
sea coast of Alaska. The little girl
and Mrs. Smith were passengers on
the power, schooner Bender Brothers,
which arrived here Friday from Bethel
$50 miles up the Kuskokwim river.
Miss Awaitha was born in Nome,
Alaska, II years ago, and had seen
few buildings larger than suburban
corner grocery before she landed in
Seattle, for most part of her life has
been spent on the upper Kuskokwim
She had never seen or ridden In a
street car or automobile. She had
never been in an elevator or seen an
electric light. Four years ago her
mother died and after that, until she
was adopted by the Smiths, she
'mushed' with her father from min
Ing camp to mining camp. She has
never had any playmate other than
her three malamute dogs, 'Brule' her
Gayorite; Danny and Ben Lindsay
and her cat Snow Ball.
"Awaitha didn't want to go to Seat
tie when told she would have to
leave her dogs that had grown up
with her and been her constant COM
panions, and she never would have
come here had she not been allowed
to take Snow Ball with her. Snow
Ball is an immense cat, IL pounds
of pure white fluffiness.
Snow Bali has history quite as
interesting as that of his mistress
and is just as much impressed with
his new surroundings. He is grand
son of Bunny the first cat taken
into northern Alaska.
"The Smith party came ashore from
the Bender Brothers In the evening,
when the lights of the city were be-
ginning to twinkle. A taxicab was
called and the excitement Of little
Awaitha hardly knew bounds. She
screamed when she saw the people
crossing in front of the taxi, and
gazed with open-eyed wonder at each
new development of the trip from the
waterfront to the Hotel Frye. She
couldn't say a word when taken in
to the marble decorated lobby. When
the little room she walked into be-
gan to go up she could only gasp her
surprise. The swapping on of the
electric lights in the hotel room
frightened her. She thought street
car had been wrecked when looking
out of her window, she saw 1t dive
right into the street at Fourth aven-
ue and Yesler Way, and was only
treasured when the car reappeared
on the other side of the bridge.
1.-THE trip out was a terrible or
deal to Mrs Smith, and In fact for ev-
eryone who made the voyage on the
Bender Brothers, except Awaitha.
Just nine weeks ago Mrs. Smith,
Awaitha and Senka Simute, q trust
ed Indian guide, left home In an OPP
en- row boat. They drifted down the
Takatna into the Kuskowim and 500
miles down the swirling tide of the
Kuskokwim to Bethel. 1t rained con-
tinually on the trip down the river.
There was constant danger OF going
aground on sand bars during the day
and from wild beasts at night. For
food they depended on shooting the
wild ducks and geese that abound on
the river, for the rowboat was too
small to carry many provisions. The
trip down the river to Bethel occu-
pied IL days and nights.
"But from Bethel to Seattle was