Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-28
FELT LURE or YUKON.
Nine. Labadie Heard Fragments of
Indian Legends and Saw Religious
Rites.

Rites.
To read Ibseh to Indians and te
learn cugenics from Eskimos sounds
delightfully."- impossible and pretentious,
but it has been done. Mime. Harriet
I.a5adie who has just returned from
q fenr-year tour of the United States,
| Canada. and Alaska. tells the story
herself. and no one who listens to her
| voice and feels her intense interest in
human nature, and her deep love of
her work, mas any surprise that her ex-
pefiments have been successful and
| that the last four years have been
| full of beautiful adventure fer her.
| Probably never before has woman
made trip of more interest; artistic,
| human. experimental
| Her experiences in Alaska meant
NEST to her.
1t is the most wonderful country
| in the world says Nine. Labadie,
and so few Americans really know
about it. for so few go above the Are
tie Circle Mine was most unusual
trip. / wanted to test dramatic ex-
preston to know how it would appeal
to an untutored people And SO I went
to Alaska There are ali kinds of peo-
pie there-many very cultivated white
people, of course, the result of the
Klondike rush. as well as Indians and
Eskifnos. And we found white peo-
pie dcing strange and amusing things
they are held fast there by the lure
of the country. and that lure is a
very real thing. People forget all that
they have left behind them. Nothing
matters except the lure of the Yukon.
2oco Miles on the Yukon.
There is an artist up there, the sen
OF a very well-known artist, and he is
keeping a wallpaper store. He went
up with the rush and he found that the
people of Dawson needed, more than
anything else. someone to paint signs.
So he painted them and gradually
evolved a paper shop. and he stays on
end on. He is IN the very heart of the
KIendike. and he will probably stay
there. Ny trip was in the summer,
and was really my summer vacation.
for am on tour every year from Sep
tcmber to May We left Vancouver
the 9th of June. and went up by the
inside passage We took the mountain
railroad. the highest railroad in the
world, which spans the Klondike val
ley, and then took boats down the 1u-
kon River for 1000 miles. That trip
took six and half days. We crossed
the Arctic Circle. saw the midnight
sun, and in all that trip down the riv-
or which. to be exact, was 2,lss miles,
we saw no TOM. for there was no
town 10 see.
-0n the same boat were miners rush
ing To the Iditared. north of the Are
tic Circle. where gold had been discoN-
cred II vas the saimon-drying sea-
son. and tons OF salmon were drying
i'm tire sun on great racks. Tie only
spot Of color was the relocated po-
lice. mounted. whom we would see
aashing along in the distance, chasing
some thief. / suppose And every
mountain was an extinct volcano We
gave ourselves Up 10 the witchery OF
the country.
The Athahas6an Indians ara of
very different 4sFse from cur Western
Trs.Ians. IN fact they seemed 20 BE
marked b sHE4 Jap.4Eesse- II : B-'oss-
tie that sszeEs L. ar 6rEe-E-alxzzre .
she two RACES f1r TIE JaEsanass asseasz1
in Alaskan. sEat4rs faE years zsse "a
ra neS4 note Is xe-y pronounced n
.aeHs. in their looks and in thssr tastes
and abilities They % wonderful cary
ing. with no tools except the home
made blade % a jaek-knife-
Wonderful Collection of indian Work.
Nine. Laoadie has unique and fas-
cinating collection. which is her most
precious possession. In 1t are baskets.
no two alike. one from each tribe, ana
some from the Aleutian Islands, Just
of Alaska. These baskets are woven
under water, woven from maiden hair
fern roots, and colored with vegetable
dye in exquisite shades. one OF the
best bits of oddity is Chilcat bian-
ket, which Nine. Labadie obtained,
from "A 1.-the, lean, long, obdurate, ola
Indian man, who was loath to part
with il. But "Sheepcrick Mary. MS
sauaW. unlike her usual suspicious. re-
tentive self wanted Nine. Labadie TO
have it. and after days of pleading,
she came running to the wharf Just
as the steamship was pulling out, and
put the precious thing over Nine La
hadie.s arm. The story is a beautiful
one as she tells il. why did she do
|it?-iust because she liked your Nine
Iabadie was asked.
Il do not know" she answered, sim
ply. | like to think that was the
reason
Of course. pink taffy and ice cream
will buy much from this barterinS
Ipeople, but it takes more than pink
taffy to buysa Chilcat blanket, and Ma
dame I.abadie gave extra-the friend
| ship OF one woman for another IL Is
not remarkable that they part hesitat-
| ingly with one of these blankets to a
member OF "a hostile as they believe,
nation: each one represents the his
tory of a family, and it is woven full
of traditions. wars and peace, dances
| and dirges of a<proud. silent iong-liv-
ed tribe.
! Catching Fragments of Legends.
| "Ah, the legends which they know.
saws Madame Labadie. But they
will not talk-only fragment OF a
| tale now and then. The fear of the
| ,,1an ia in1badGnu in them. III