Chapter IX

After the stone igloos had all been built, the men built snow huts in which their dogs could find shelter from the fierce north winds, for, except when the wind blew, the Eskimo dog would rather curl up on the snow than be housed.

The sledges and harnesses were put on top of these huts, where the dogs could not reach them. When they get loose the Eskimo dogs chew up everything they can get hold of, no matter how well fed they may be.

The Eskimos on shore made quite a little settlement, and their visits to the ship made things lively on board.

“_She dressed exactly as the Eskimos did_”
]

AH-NI-GHI´-TO now spoke the Eskimo language perfectly, and every native was her friend. She dressed exactly as they did, except that she wore a woollen union suit instead of the bird-skin shirt. Often her mother looked for her several minutes before noticing that she was right alongside the ship with her Eskimo companions. But when her back was turned it was not an easy matter to know the little white girl among the fur-clad children.

“_The Eskimo dog chews up everything_”
]

In February her mother sent letters for the dear ones at home, by the Eskimos, to a place where the whaling ships would stop on their way to catch the big black whales. Then, if the old “Windward” should be held by the ice until it was too late to return home the coming summer, the grandmothers and uncles and aunt would know that all were well, and did not return because the ship could not get out of the ice.

AH-NI-GHI´-TO sent this letter home:

_February_ 21, 1901.

MY DEAR GROSSY AND TANTE AND UNCLE,—I am afraid you will be worried
not to hear from me for so long a time, so I take this first chance
to write this letter to you. I will come to see you soon, I hope. I
want to see you all very much. I play on the ice every day and have
a fine time with Billy and the Eskimo children. We have been in the
ice for ever so many days. We have had a good time most always, but
I want to see you all.

I will tell you how I spent my Christmas. A week before, we began to
get ready for the holidays. Mother baked a whole stack of raisin
loaves and cut fifteen stockings out of some canopy lace, and I
worked them round with red worsted. These we filled with dates,
peanuts, chocolates, home-made taffy, mixed candy, a silver dollar,
popcorn, prunes, and oranges.

At eight o’clock on Christmas eve I went down into the forecastle
with Charley and gave each man half a loaf of raisin cake, and a big
pot of chocolate for all. They cheered and clapped and I left them
to enjoy their feast.

I played parchesi with mother and the Captain until ten o’clock,
then I hung up my stocking and went to bed.

In the morning it was full. I jumped out of bed and found in it
several pieces of money, two pieces of pink ribbon, a book, a paper
doll and her dresses, and a box of chocolates. I was delighted, and
could only wish father and Grossy and tante and uncle were here to
see how happy I am.

While on deck a little later, playing with the Eskimo children and
Billy, Maksangwah handed me a lovely card and a box of beads from
Mr. Warmbath.

About two P. M. mother called to me that it was time to invite all
hands down into the cabin to get their Christmas stockings.

When we all came down, there, in the middle of the table blazed a
beautiful Christmas tree, which Mr. Warmbath had made for me as a
surprise. It looked as if it had just been cut in the woods, and yet
he made every bit of it. I will tell you how.

First he made a skeleton tree, using a broomstick for the trunk and
making the branches out of heavy wire; then he covered the wire with
softened wax, until some of the branches were one half an inch thick
and others not so big. Some wax was also put on the broomstick, and
when trunk and branches were entirely covered with wax, they were
all thickly sprinkled with coffee-grounds, well pressed into the
wax. This made them look just like the branches of a pine tree
without its needles. Next he took some hay and laid it out straight
on a box and painted it green. When the paint was dry he cut it into
pieces about as long as pine needles and with melted wax stuck them
all over the branches of the tree. It looked so real that I thought
I could smell the lovely pine woods at home.

All around the tree mother had put the stockings. It was a fine
sight.

The tree was trimmed in chains made of popcorn, and some of
tin-foil, cornucopias, “silver dollars,” and two dozen candles.

The Eskimos were very sober at first because they thought we were
worshipping it, but when they saw us laughing and I gave each a
stocking, they too shouted and laughed and said “peuk! peuk!” many
times. Mother gave them cake and coffee, and I tried to tell them
that trees like this grew in the ground where the white man lived;
but this they did not believe, and said, “Oh, you can’t fool us, we
saw Mr. Warmbath make this one.”

For our Christmas dinner we had roast beef (canned), stewed tomatoes
(canned), dandelion greens and corn (canned), and baked beans. Then
plum pudding with sauce.

After dinner we had songs and games, and for a little while I quite
forgot that I was thousands of miles away from home and hundreds of
miles from any other white people. Mother and I had been invited to
take tea with Captain Sam in the forward saloon, and we spent a
pleasant evening. I wondered if father had a good Christmas and if
he was coming to us soon. This is the first real Christmas tree
celebration the natives have ever seen, and I am sure they will
never forget it.

So you see I had a good time, only I wanted you all to be with me
too. I send you much love and many, many kisses.

Your loving

SNOWBABY.