Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-03-25
FORMER RESIDENT
WRITES COURIER.
HENRY COPPLE SENDS DEScRlP.
TON OF COUNTRY FROM
koTzEsUE, ALASKA.

A letter from Henry Couple, a form
err resident once we'll known in and
about Ottumwa, who was police Of
f1cer and turnkey in the county jail
before leaving here for Alaska score
of years ago, has been received by Jas.
F. Powell. Despite the fact that the
letter has but recently been received,
it was written November Z, and post
ed at Kotzebue, Alaska, twenty-three
days later. The letter follows:
Kotzebue, Alaska, Nov. Z. 1915.
Mr.. James F. Powell.
Ottumwa, Iowa.
Dear Friend Jim: ..'f.
I received your most welcome letter
some time ago-very glad to hear from
you. Thanks for The Courier. sure
ly am very glad to get it. can find
out from it about a great many of my
friends. l loan it to the neighbors to
read. Nobody up this way gets very
much reading matter-takes every
cent they can rake and scrape togeth-
err to buy grub with and then they
don't have so very much white mans
grub" as we call the grub from the
states that is shipped in this country
We get fish, rabbits, ptarmigan and
reindeer, meat. Fish. however. is the
main standby. .
Kotzebue is a very small place in
winter as far as the white man is con-
cerned. Quite lot of Esquimos live
there, winter and summer. This win
ter there are the missionary and his
wife, and two children, a government
doctor, three storekeepers, one squaw
man and his family. The squaW man
Is an Iowan from near Marshalltown.
am not married yet. There was
white man married to a white woman
in Kotzebue last fall-she was gov
eminent school teacher. There is no
school at Kotzebue this winter. So
you see how many white men there
are in Kotzebue-six men, one woman
and two children. In summer there
are quite lot of people here.
1t froze up early last fall. had
hard time getting home-had to break
lots of ice to get there with my boat
and part of my stuff. The other part
l left a few miles below and sledded it
home. Been very cold so far. Not
very much snow yet, just think, "a de-
grees below zero this morning. That
is the coolest so far. Was 26 yester.
day and up to "a below at II o'clock
noon today, but 1t is getting colder
now. Been a very fine day. I have
one of the thermometers that registers
the coolest during the twenty-four
hours.
O yes, what ever became OF Joe
Byrne that used to be pressman at
The Courier when l was In Ottumwa?
All the fellows that I knew when |
was there are married, suppose. Tell
Claude Myers to write to me-he has
never answered by last letter to him.
I don't know what is wrong with him
since he got married, he doesn't write
very often. Well. the war has made
hard times in this country-gruD is
very high and furs are very cheap and
no money in this part of Alaska to
amount to much has yet been found. l
have always been In hopes that l
would make strike, but alas, it looks
like Give in hope, die in despair for
me. l live about sixty-five or seventy
miles from kotzebue In winter time.
It takes two days with dog team to
70 there, Take a look at your map
find Kotzebue Sound, then Hotham In
let, and the Noatak river. 20 up II
sixty-five or seventy m1les-there Is
where l live. Come up and take ride
with me. It's just fine to take a ride
when the trail is good and the dogs
are feeling good. Nothing like 1t, for
the dogs can sure go some for couple
of hours. I don't know just when
shall 20 to Kotzebue, perhaps in few
days. Will mail this letter then. The
trapping season opens November 10.
Then every one is busy for few days.
I trap in winter time and prospect in
the summer-that is part of the sum-
mer: the other part of the summer
go up the Kotzebue and look wise, get
a little grub and go back up the river.
There Is no money in circulation IN
this country-just furs and fish. Furs
in winter time, dried fish for dog feed
in summer. The stores trade for furs
and send them to the States. Dried
fish for dog feed is sent to Nome, so
you see how it is. Well, Jim, write me
q long letter telling me how things are
in old Ottumwa.
Again thanking you for sending me
The Courier, + will close. remain.
Yours respectfully,
Henry Copple,
Kotzebue, Alaska.
P. S.-Give my best regards to all
my old Ottumwa friends. l will write
you again by and by-a good letter for
YOU to publish in the paper. Well, so