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REFERENCE
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THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY |
CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT
PRESENTED BY
Mrs. Edith Achilles
THE SNOW BABY
Marie in Fur Costume
THE SNOW BABY
A TRUE S TOR T WITH
TRUE PICTURES - By
JOSEPHINE DIEBITSCH PEARY
NE//' TORK FREDERICK A.
STOKES COMPANY PUBLISHERS
Copyright,
by Frederick A. Stokes Company
Published October,
FOURTH EDITION
The University Press, John Wilson & Son
Cambridge, U. S. A.
)PERTYOFTHE
Dedicated to
Her Grossmamma "
THE SNOW BABY
^ A Wonderful Land of . . . Mountains, Glaciers^ and Icebergs"
Hundreds and hundreds of miles away
in the white frozen north, far beyond
where the big ships go to hunt huge
black whales, there is a wonderful land of snow
and ice, mountains, glaciers, and icebergs; where
strange little brown people called Eskimos, dressed
all in the skins of animals, live in snow houses.
In summer in this wonderful land the sun never
sets, but shines all the time day and night; the snow
melts off the ground; blue and white and yellow
flowers spring up; and soft-eyed^ brown-coated
reindeer wander about, cropping the short grass.
9
THE SNOW BABY
The ice breaks up and drifts out
to sea ; the glaciers or rivers of ice
push forward, creaking and groan-
^ ing, into the water, till enormous
icebergs break off from them and
o
Moat away like white ships. The blue waves
dance and sparkle in the sun, and everywhere
singing brooks rush down the mountains or fall
in silvery cascades over the cliffs, where millions
and millions of noisy seabirds come to lay their
e gg s ;
Big black walrus, larger than oxen, crawl out
upon the ice, and sleep in the sun, or fight with
their long ivory tusks, and bellow till you can
hear them
miles away.
Glossy
mottled seals
swim in the
water, and
schools of
narwhal,
"Live in Snow Houses"
10
THE SNOW BABY
u In Summer in this Wonderful Land "
which used to be called unicorns, dart from place
to place faster than the fastest steam yacht; with
their long white ivory horns, longer than a man
is tall, flashing like spears in and out of the
water.
Once in a while a fierce shaggy white bear goes
running over the ice-cakes, or swimming through
the water in search of a poor little seal on which
to dine.
The Eskimos, paddling swiftly through the
water in their strange skin boats, or kayaks, pur-
sue all these animals, and kill them with har-
poons and lances.
n
THE SNOW BABY
In winter there is no sun at all, and
for four long, long months it is dark
all the time, day and night, just
as it is here in the night, only the
moon and stars giving light. The
ground is covered deep with snow, through which
the poor deer have to dig with their hoofs for a
few mouthfuls of grass and moss, the sea is covered
with ice five or six feet thick, the birds have flown
away, and the walrus and narwhal have gone far
off to the open water. Only a few hungry bears
and the Eskimos with their dogs are left; and the
cold is so terrible that these would freeze to death
in an hour it it were not for their thick warm fur
coats, and the r
blanket of
blubber under-
neath.
Far to the
north of us,
beyond the
Arctic Circle,
" The Ice breaks up and drifts out to Sea "
12
THE SNOW BABY
" Big Ships that go to hunt Huge Whales "
lies a land inhabited by a little tribe of Eskimos,
called Arctic Highlanders. These are the most
northerly known people on the globe.
They are entirely dependent on their country
for everything they need, and as it is very cold,
and part of the year entirely without sunshine,
there is very little 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
THE SNOW BABY
and flowers grow rapidly, the
birds come back and build their
nests, and, alas ! the mosquitoes
come forth in swarms. But this
lasts only a short time.
Here in this wonderful land, in a little black
house, under a great brown mountain, was found,
one bright September day, a little snow-white
baby girl with big blue eyes.
And such a funny house it was where she was
found. It was only one story high, the outside
was covered with
thick, black tarred
paper, the walls were
more than a 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 like a hot-house.
" With their Long Ivory Tusks "
THE SNO\Y BABY
This was to enable the inmates to enjoy the sun-
shine just as long as it lasted.
All round the house was a close veranda, the
walls of which were built of boxes of food, biscuits,
sugar, coffee, and tea ; for none of these things,
in fact, nothing but meat could be bought in the
country.
Inside the house the little room where the baby
was found was lined with soft warm blankets, and
there was a bright carpet on the floor, and lots
of books, and a sewing-machine, and pictures on
the walls. All these things, like the boxes of food
outside, had been brought in the big ship which
had brought the baby's father and mother to this
strange country.
The bed on which the baby lay was covered
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 a great glacier or river of ice, and the other
upon high red and brown mountains surround-
THE SNOW BABY
u // alms Larger than Oxen "
the Frost King himself.
When the strange people of
the land heard that a baby had
been found in this house, 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.
These people are brown, with u
16
ing a bay in which floated
lots and lots of icebergs,
of the strangest anc j mos t
O
fantastic shapes, so that
you might easily imagine
some of them to be the
palace of the Frost King,
others white ships, and in
still others you might see
the cruel white face of
Jt'hite Ivorv Horns Longer
than a Man is Tall "
THE SNOW BABY
black shaggy hair ? and dress entirely in furs both
summer and winter.
They said OW-NAY '" and "AH-NAN-
NAN" to her, at which she stared with wide-open
eyes; and then they wanted to touch her to see if
" Eskimos in their Strange Skin Boats "
she was warm and not made of snow, she was
so white.
And if by chance she happened to smile when
looking at one of them, then there was great
rejoicing, for this was counted very lucky.
So they called her "AH -POO-MIK-A-NIN-
NY (the Snow Baby), and brought her presents
THE SNOW BABY
of fur mittens, little sealskin boots,
walrus tusks, baby bear and seal
skins, and many other things.
It was near the end of the Snow-
land summer when the baby was
J
born, and six weeks afterwards the sun went
away to be gone all through the long winter
night of four months.
Just before he went baby was taken for her first
outing. It was very, very cold, the thermometer
far below the freezing-point,
and the ground was covered
deep with snow ; but baby
was tucked into a little
reindeer-skin bag, which
covered her completely all
except her head. This was
covered with a little foxskin
hood; then baby, bag, and
all were wrapped in the
stars and stripes, and taken
out of doors.
18
" Wrapped In the Stars and Stripes "
THE 8 N O \V BABY
Ahmgbito 's Birthplace " Such a Funny House it was "
Then the sun went away, and for
days and weeks baby lived in the
little room where a lamp was burn-
ing night and day.
Here she had her daily bath,
and slept and crowed at the lamp and the
pictures on the wall, and grew bigger and whiter
every day. How she did enjoy these baths after
she got to be a little older, when her mother
closed every door in the room, put an oil stove
inside the bed curtains which were drawn close,
then sponged the baby with warm water, and after
she was dry let her roll for a little while in the
pile of soft warm bear and deer skins on the bed.
19
THE SNOW BABY
" ./ Little Snow Ifhite-Baby Girl u'ltb Big Blue Eyes "
Her Eskimo friends kept coming to see her
whenever they could, though they did not always
come in to the room, as they were not very clean.
After a long, long time the terrible night began
to draw to an end, and every clear day at noon
there was an hour or two of daylight.
It was decided that when the sun did return, no
matter how cold it might be, baby was to go out
.o
THE SNOW BABY
Bed on which Baby Lived
every day, so one of the Eskimo
women was busy making a little
Eskimo suit for her, all of furs.
There were only two pieces in
this suit, a little hooded coat,
and a pair of little trousers and boots in one.
Boys and girls, and men and women, all wear
trousers in this Snowland.
The softest and warmest fox and baby- deer
skins were selected for these clothes. The little
trousers or nannookies were made with the fur on
the outside, and reached from her waist, where
21
THE SNOW BABY
they were fastened with a draw-
/ \ string to her ankles, where a fur
5*V boot made of the same warm deer-
' skin, but with the fur on the inside,
next the foot, was sewed to each
leg, thus making it impossible for the cold air to
get to her little feet and legs.
The kapetah, or foxskin coat, was after the same
pattern as your sweaters, that is, without any open-
ing down the front or back, and to the neck was
sewed a round hood, the opening made to just fit
about her little face. This coat her mother pulled
on over baby's head and well down over her nan-
nookies, so that here
too no cold air could
chill the little girl.
About the wrists and
around the face open-
ing of the hood, fox-
tails were sewed, which
helped very much to
keep her face and hands
" They were not very Clean "
22
THE SNOW BABY
" There u-t~re only two Pieces in this Suit "
warm. This costume was made by a woman
named AH-NI-GHI-TO; so, when the baby was
christened, she too was called AH-NI-GHI-TO.
She was also named Marie for her only aunt, who
was waiting in the far-off home land to greet her
little niece.
THE SNOW BABY
At last, one day about the
* J
middle of February, the great yellow
I sun popped up above the tops of
the mountains and covered every-
thing with the brightest sunlight.
Little AH-NI-GHI-TO was asleep when the
sun first looked into the room, but in a few minutes
she woke up, and as the room had been specially
warmed to give her a sun bath, her mother took
O '
her out of her little nest and placed her, all white
and naked, in the sunlight on the bed.
How the big blue eyes did open at the strange
sight. How she laughed and jumped and
stretched her little hands out in the yellow light,
just as if she was bathing
in perfumed golden
water. It was the first
time she had ever seen
the sun.
After this, every sun-
shiny day she had her
sun bath, when she
THE SNOW BABY
" Stretched her Little Hands out in the Yellow Light "
would try to seize the sunbeams slanting through
the room, and failing in this would try to pick up
bits of sunlight on the bed.
&
On every pleasant day she was dressed in her
little fur suit, tucked into her deerskin bag, and
carried out.
Do you know how the tulip and hyacinth and
narcissus bulbs grow and blossom after they are
brought out of the cold, dark cellar into the warm,
sunny window ?
THE SNOW BABY
" Some Dogs were bought for Her "
Well, little AH-NI-GHI-TO
was just a little human bulb that
had been kept in the cold and dark
for five months and now was
brought out into the bright sun-
light; and she grew like a tulip, and her eyes grew
brighter and bluer, and her cheeks were like
o '
Jack" roses. So rapidly did she grow that very
soon she was too heavy for mother to carry.
Then some dos;s and a little Eskimo sledge
were bought for her, with a knife and some biscuit
and coffee, and a snug little box, just large enough
26
THE SNOW BABY
for her to sit in, fastened on the sledge. After that
AH-NI-GHI-TO had a sleigh-ride every day.
You should have seen her team, with their bright
eyes, sharp pointed ears, and big bushy tails.
There was "Lassie," and "Lady," and sometimes
steady old black Panikpah, who had been far to the
north here, across the "great ice," and had eaten
musk-ox meat.
Sometimes they would walk along with heads
and tails up, every now and then looking round at
the baby.
Then at the crack of the whip they would dash
off at a gallop, with the driver running beside the
sledge and guiding it past the rocks and lumps of
ice.
But they always seemed to understand that they
were drawing a little baby, for they never attempted
to run away, as they often did with their Eskimo
masters.
It was very, very cold now, colder even than
during the long winter night; but, wrapped up in
her warm furs^ little AH-NI-GHI-TO did not
feel it.
THE SNOW BABY
" The II 'omen kissed her Hands '
A great many of the natives
came to see the little white girl.
The women kissed her hands, and
she made friends with all the queer
little brown babies sticking their
heads out of their mothers' hoods, for the Eskimo
babies have no cradles or anything of the kind, but
are just carried all the time by their mothers in
reat fur hoods on their backs.
28
THE SNOW BABY
Soon AH-NI-GHI-TO
began to talk Eskimo, and
would say "Takoo' (look),
"Atudo" (more), and she
never said yes and no, but
"Ah'-py" and "Nag'-ga."
Then she had a playmate, a little Eskimo boy
about five or six years old, whose father had
been killed by a savage walrus which he had
harpooned and which had
dragged him into the water
and drowned him. His
mother, too, was dead.
His name was Nip-San-
Gwah, though every one
called him Kood-Look-Too,
which means "the little orphan
boy."
He was very fond of AH-
NI-GHI-TO and would try
to follow her when she went in
her sledge. How queer he
Kood-Look'- Too
THE SNOW BABY
looked with his little round fat face,
bright black eyes, and little short
1 bearskin trousers. Then he would
make little snow igloos, or houses,
for her, just like the one his father
and mother had lived in, and would get a whip
and try to show her how he would drive her dogs
for her after he got a little larger.
Sometimes Kood-Look'-Too would make
believe he was a white boy, and would dress him-
self up in cast-off clothes, to look, as he thought,
like such a boy.
Whether he succeeded or not
you can see for yourself in the
picture.
And E-Klay-I-Shoo- -or
"Miss Bill,' as she was called
must not be forgotten.
o
She was an Eskimo girl,
about twelve years old, who
used to take care of AH-NI-
GHI-TO.
MMKfe
3
,- bfliri'? bf
ll'hite Boy"
THE SNOW BABY
"Miss Bill"
the wind from blow-
ing it away.
The sun kept
getting higher in the
sky and warmer
everyday, till finally
it did not set at all *
day or night, the
snow was melting,
and the rocks and
ground getting dry.
" Miss Bill" never had a dress or
a hat in her life, but dressed in a seal-
skin coat, short foxskin trousers, or
nannookies, and long-legged
kamiks, or sealskin boots. She
and Kood-Look -Too and her
father Nook-Tal, with the rest of
the family, lived in a small round
tent, or tupic, of sealskins, with big
stones all around the edge of it, to
keep
" A Tuple of Seahkin "
3 1
THE SNOW BABY
" In her Grav Gown she kokfil like a Little Aloiik "
Such a trood time as AH-NI-GHI-TO had now.
o
Her furs were put away, and in thick, warm
woollen gowns, with a sunbonnet to protect her
tender face for even up here the sun and wind
in summer may burn the skin- -she was out
doors nearly all the time. She could creep and
roll about a little now, and she had so much to do.
There was the gravel slope back of the house,
in which to search for pretty round red and white
pebbles. As she rolled about over this in her
gray gown, she looked like a little monk.
THE SNOW BABY
" There were Lots of Little Puppies to feed and play icitb "
There were lots of little puppies
to feed and play with, such plump,
round, soft, playful little puppies,
you could not believe that when
they grew up, they would be great,
strong dogs, who could draw their masters on
a sledge forty and fifty miles in a day, and even
fight the great white polar bear.
There was Hector, the big St. Bernard, who
would come to have his head patted by the baby.
n <
3 J
THE SNOW BABY
" Hector, the big St. Bernard "
She was a little afraid of Hector, however, he
was so bi^ and strong, and rough in his play-
fulness.
Finally,
there were
the flowers,
yellow and
purple and
white, which
must be
picked and
played with.
" To be picked and played with"
34
THE SNOW BABY
" She rolled about, tossing the Bright Pebbles "
Days when there was not a bit
of wind, and the sun was shining
brightly, AH-NI-GHI-TO took
her sun bath out of doors. A
deerskin was spread on the gravel,
to keep the sharp stones from hurting the tender
little limbs, and on this, with all her clothes taken
off, she rolled about, tossing the bright pebbles
and talking to the sun, the puppies, and the
n r
35
THE SNOW BABY
''Baby Lake, a Beautiful Little Pond"
flowers, till her skin was rosy as
the morning. So all through the
summer months- June, July,
and well into August- -AH-NI-
GHI-TO passed the sunny days.
Sometimes she was taken to Baby Lake, a
beautiful little pond that lay in the valley, a few
hundred yards back of the house, and from which
a murmuring brook ran through moss and over
rocks, down to the head of the bay.
And during her sun baths she must have ab-
sorbed the bright summer sunlight, for never was
there a happier, sunnier-tempered, more smiling
baby than she.
*6
THE SNOW BABY
At last, one day late
in August, the same big
black ship which had
brought AH-NI-GHI-
TO'S father and mother
to the Snowland, came
up the bay, forcing her
way through the ice and
throwing it in every
, JUSt the
Ah-ni-gh^-to and her Mother
a snow-plough drives through a big drift, and
stopped just in front of the house.
Then AH-NI-GHI'-TO and her mother took
"Bill" and some of the puppies on board the ship,
and it steamed away south again, to bring AH-
NI-GHI-TO to her grandmothers and aunt, who
had never seen
her.
When "Miss
Bill" left her
Snowland to
come to the
" The Ship steamed away "
7
THE SNOW BABY
United States with AH-NI-GHI-
TO and her mother, she left her
father and mother and two sisters,
/who were very proud to have her
go to the land of the white man,
and see the animals and trees and houses and
people whose pictures they had seen in
magazines.
In a year, when the ship returned for AH-
NI-GHI-TO'S father, "Miss Bill" would come
back and tell her people all about the strange things
she had seen.
By the time Philadelphia
was reached, AH-NI-
GHI-TO had begun to
talk, and called "Miss
Bill" "Billy-Bah." By
this name she is known
among her people to-day.
"Billy-Bah" was about
twelve years old, and never
in her life had she seen a
i^^ss
Abtungabnaksoab
THE SNOW BABY
" Then the Sun ivent away "
house larger than the little one-
story black house where the stork
brought AH-NI-GHI-TO as a
baby; never had she seen a bush
or a tree, and never a horse or a
cow, a wagon or a carriage, a train of cars or
a steam-engine.
She had never had a bath until AH-NI-GHI-
TO'S mother gave her one on board ship, and she
could not understand why she must wash herself
and brush her hair every morning.
On reaching Philadelphia, AH-NI-GHI-TO,
with her mother and " Billy- Bah,' : drove to the
39
THE SNOW BABY
railroad station, and " Billy- Ban's' eyes nearly
danced out of her head, at the sight of what she
called the bio; dogs (horses) which pulled the car-
nage, and the high igloos (Eskimo houses) that
lined the streets. The station, she said, was the
lamest and finest io-loo she had ever seen, and she
c> &
was loath to leave it. When she saw an engine pull
out atrain of cars, she clung to AH-NI-GH I-TO'S
mother and asked what sort of an animal it was, and
would it eat people. Long after the train which
was taking the little party to AH-NI-GHI-TO'S
grandmother and aunt had started, "Billy- Bah"
sat with both hands clutching the seat in front of
^
her, and gazed in amazement at the trees and
fences which seemed to My past.
This little dusky maiden, who was the youngest
of her people to reach the land of sunshine and
plenty, had everything to learn, just the same as
AH-NI-GHI-TO.
First, she must learn to talk, for of course she
could not speak English; then she must learn to
eat, for in the Snowland her people eat nothing
but meat.
40
THE SNOW BABY
She must learn that meals were
^served at regular times, that we
m bathed daily, and retired and arose
pat given 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
never prepare meals. Sometimes, when it is
very cold, they will cut slices off 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 saw AH-NI-GHI -TO'S father and
mother; indeed, they never even washed their
faces, but perhaps this was because water is very
scarce during the greater part of the year. Every-
thing is frozen, and their only fire and light is
what they get from their ikkimer (lamp).
This ikkimer, or lamp, is a shallow stone dish,
on the centre of which are heaped pieces of
4 1
THE SNOW BABY
blubber (fat), and across the
front edge is placed dried moss.
This moss acts as a wick, and
as the fat melts it is absorbed
by the moss, and this is lit with
flint and steel. This is the only
heat and li^ht that is to be found in an Eskimo
c?
hut at any time.
Billy- Bah has had to learn by sad experience
that she could not put her toys down anywhere
in the streets of Washington and find them again
hours afterward, as she could do in her own
country.
When Santa Glaus visited AH-NI-GHI'-TO,
he also visited Billy-Bah for the first time in her
life. He brought her many toys and also useful
things.
She was pleased with the Christmas tree and
with AH-NI-GHI-TO'S toys, but did not seem
to care for hers at all, hardly looking at them.
But when she was told it was time for her to go to
bed, she asked if she might take all of her pres-
ents to her room; permission was given, and she
42,
THE SNOW BABY
trotted off, making three trips
before she had all her things
safely upstairs. An hour later
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S mother
noticed a bright light in Billy-
Bah's room, and on opening the
door she beheld the little Eskimo seated on the
Moor with all her treasures about her, celebrating
her first Christmas.
She took great pleasure in sewing for her doll,
and whenever anything was made for AH-NI-
GHI-TO, Billy-Bah would make the same for
her doll. By the time she returned to her home
she was quite a little seamstress.
Her trunk was a regular Noah's Ark. A bit
of everything that 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 AH-NI-
GHI-TO'S father home, and Billy-Bah would
return to her family.
43
THE SNOW BABY
" Rifling ivith Eskimo Bear-Hunters"
She was very happy at the thought of home,
but wished AH-NI-GHI-TO might go too.
When she reached the Snowland, there was
great rejoicing among her people, and feasts were
given of fine raw walrus, seal, and bear meat,
in honor of the young member of the tribe who
had seen the sun rise and set every day for a
whole year.
About two hours after landing, Billy- Bah was
seen with a piece of meat weighing about five
pounds, enjoying her first meal in a year.
While AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father remained
behind in the Snowland, one day after he had
been riding on his sledge for days with some of
his Eskimo bear-hunters, he came to a mountain,
44
THE SNOW BABY
The Great Brown ll'oman "
where he found a great piece of brown iron which
many years ago had fallen from the sky and from
which the Eskimos had made their knives.
The Eskimos called this piece of iron a woman,
because their great-grandfathers had told them
that their great-grandfathers had said that when
it first fell from the sky it looked like a great
brown woman. Now so much of it had been
pounded off for knives that its shape was gone,
but the Eskimos believed that the spirit of the
woman still remained. Near by was a smaller
45
THE SNOW BABY
" 11 'ere hauled over Rocks and Snow"
piece of iron which had been her dog some-
where up among the stars.
These great pieces of iron were so wonderful
thatAH-NI-GHI-TO'S father thought he would
like to take them back
to America, where every
* J
one might see them;
so when the ship came
back after him the
brown woman and her
dog were hauled over
the rocks and snow and
ice to the ship, and
"A Smaller Piece which had been her Dog"
THE SNOW BABY
hoisted on board. When AH-NI-GHI -TO'S
father had brought home the two heaven-born
stones, the woman and the dog, he told several
scientific gentlemen in New York that there still
remained in the Snowland another and much larger
stone which had fallen from the sky together
with the woman and her dog. This the natives
call the woman's tupic, or tent. These gentlemen
called the stones meteorites, and were very
anxious to have the largest one also.
So in 1897 AH-NI-GHI'-TO, with her father
and mother and her good colored nurse Laura,
boarded the ship and sailed for the Snowland to
bring home the last of the stones.
AH-NI-GHI-TO was now nearly four years
old, and looked forward with pleasure to seeing the
Snowland and all the queer little brown people
again.
On the way north AH-NI-GHI-TO, who was
not seasick, enjoyed the brisk cool wind, and
never tired of the beautiful icebergs which floated
past. A stop was made at Godhavn in South
Greenland to get a supply of drinking water.
47
THE SNOW BABY
Afar if
Here the natives are almost like white people.
They have been living with the Danish families
who occupy this part of Greenland for such a
long time that they have become quite civilized
both in looks and manners.
The Danes compel them to go to school and
also to church; in this way they are growing
more knowing every day.
They had seen AH-NI-GHI'-TO when she
48
THE SNOW BABY
" On the Il'av North"
and her mother came from the Snowland three
years ago and AH-NI-GHI'-TO was only one
year old; now they were anxious to see her again,
and crowded to the ship, bringing her all sorts of
presents and receiving others in return.
The nurse Laura was the first colored woman
these natives had ever seen, and they thought
her a great curiosity. She was invited every-
where with AH-NI-GHI-TO, but Laura was
afraid to accept anything from these queer -look-
ing people until AH-NI-GHI-TO and her
49
THE SNOW BABY
mother went with her and she found
how kind every one was and
lanxious to please her.
It happened that there were no
Danish children in this place, but
many little Eskimos, all eager to see AH-NI-GHI-
TO'S doll and to play with her. Only a few
hours were spent here, and then AH-NI-GHI-
TO and Laura were brought to the vessel in a
little boat and the great ship pushed toward the
north again.
The sun did not set at all now, and at any
time AH-NT-GHI-TO could see his bi^ face
~
shining down upon her. This was very pleasant,
for although it was quite cold AH-NI-GHI-
TO, wrapped in her furs, spent most of her time
on deck watching the gulls that were circling about
the ship, and the seals that kept popping up their
black heads to gaze in open-eyed astonishment
at the big black ship that came rushing through
the water toward them. These seals are funny
little creatures, so full of curiosity that when they
see anything coming toward them they keep their
5
THE SNOW BABY
heads above water until the object is close to
them; then they quickly dive, but come up again at
a safer distance to resume their gazing. They are
often harpooned by the natives, who fasten a white
sail across the front of the kayak (skin boat) in
such a way as to make it look as if a white piece
of ice were floating along. In this sail a tiny
hole is made through which the hunter watches
his chance. The seal's curiosity gets the best
of him, and he does not dive in time to dodge
the harpoon which is thrown
from behind the white cloth.
The Eskimos are very fond
of seal meat, and the skins
are used for their clothing.
AH-NI-GHI-'TO thought
it very strange to have bed-
time come when the sun
was shining brightly. She
declared it would be quite
impossible to sleep at night
if there was no night; so her
_ T Harpoons and Lanct
THE SNOW BABY
mother made night for her in their little state-
room by taking a big soft felt hat belonging to her
father and pushing it into the port hole through
which the light came. AH-NI-GHI-TO was
now quite satisfied, and slept soundly until break-
fast time. When it was time to rise, the hat was
pulled out, and lo! the room was flooded with
sunlight. In a little while AH-NI-GHI-TO
would call, "Mother, it is daylight, time to get
up."
A bright fire was kept burning in the cabin,
and Laura thought it wonderful that she should
be quite comfortable beside a fire in midsummer;
but when she awoke one morning and found it
snowing hard, she said this was surely the most
extraordinary thing she had ever known. Snow
in August! "Why, if I tell this to my home
folks, they won't believe me, but will think I am
joking," she said.
Finally the Snowland was reached, and the
Eskimos were wild with joy when they caught
sight of the ship, for they all loved AH-NI-GHI -
TO'S father, and knew he had brought them
THE SNOW BABY
" // is no II onder the Snoiv Baby is so Tali "
many useful presents. All wanted to see AH-NI-
GHI-TO, and the women were particularly
anxious to see how much she had grown, and if
she still looked so white. One woman brought
her baby, a wee boy, whose birthday was the same
as AH-NI-GHI-TO'S, to compare the children.
When she saw how much larger AH-NI-GHI-
TO was than her boy, she smilingly stepped up
beside AH-NI-GHI-TO'S mother and showed
how much taller the American woman was than
53
THE SNOW BABY
''Another Boat-load of Eskimos came aboard''''
she, and pointing to AH-NI-GHI -TO'S tall
father, said: "It is no wonder the Snow Baby is so
tall." Another boat-load of Eskimos just then
came aboard, and who should be among them but
"Billy-Bah"? How glad she was to see AH-NI-
GHI-TO, and how much she had to tell her.
She did not want to stay on deck where the others
were, but asked if she mi^ht go down in the
cabin with AH-NI-GHI -TO. Once away from
54
THE SNOW BABY
her people "Billy-Bah" talked
English with AH-NI-GHI -TO,
jabout the people she had known at
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S home; she
asked how Hector the big St. Bernard
dog was, and if AH-NI-GHI -TO still had the
little kitty "Billy-Bah" used to take to bed every
night. Then they played with the dolls and
looked at the picture books together. "Billy-Bah"
gave AH-NI-GHI -TO a number of ivory figures
of men, women, dogs, bears, walrus, and seals,
which she had carved from the teeth of walrus.
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father now had several
barrels of ship's biscuit taken ashore, to be dis-
tributed among the natives. Everyone on board
was anxious to get ashore, that he might get his
share. "Billy-Bah" had been told that AH-NI-
GHI-TO would give her biscuit and tea and
sugar, so she was content to remain in the cabin.
Only one man refused to go, when he was told
if he did not go he would not get any biscuit.
Upon talking with him it was learned that he was
"Billy- Bah' s' husband, and he was afraid the ship
55
THE SNOW BABY
might sail away with his wife and
without him, if he went ashore.
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father as-
sured him this would not be the
case, and he speedily followed the
others in the boats.
"Billy-Bah's 9 husband was very proud of his
wife, for besides having travelled to the white
man's country and seen wonderful things, she
was one of the best seamstresses in the tribe, and
kept her husband's clothing, as well as her own,
in good order, though she was now only fifteen
years old. But AH-NI-GHI-TO was sorry to
see that she kept herself just as dirty as her com-
panions. It seemed as though she thought she
had bathed enough, while in AH-NI-GHI-TO'S
home, to last her during her lifetime.
After AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father had selected
the Eskimos who were to help him move the
great heaven-born stone, the old ship turned her
nose toward Meteorite Island, where this mass
of iron lay. It was snowing so thick and fast
that one could not see any distance ahead, and
THE SNOW BABY
AH-NI-GHI-TO thought she must be sailing
through the clouds, because, when she looked
beyond the ship, she could see nothing but whirl-
ing snow-flakes above, below, and all about her.
The ship moved along very slowly, feeling her
way carefully, to avoid collision with the floating
icebergs, numbers of which were to be seen be-
fore the snow descended. At last the island was
safely reached, and AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father,
with the help of the Eskimos, at once began his
search for the great meteorite. Everything was
now buried under the snow, which was still falling
fast. The great iron rock was soon found, how-
ever, and the snow removed; then the work of
getting it alongside the ship was begun. This
was no easy thing, for it was found to weigh
nearly one hundred tons.
For a week everybody worked. The Eskimos,
with AH-NI-GHI -TO'S father to lead them,
worked by night,- -for you know it was daylight
all the time, even when the sun was behind the
clouds, - - and the captain of the ship, with his
men, worked during the day.
57
THE SNOW BABY
The great iron stone was shaped like one of the
Eskimo tents, and for that reason the natives
called it "tupic." They chatted all the time
they were at work, wondering what the woman
could have done that she should have been cast
out of the sky with her dog and her tent.
"Billy-Bah" told AH-NI-GHI -TO that she had
heard her great-grandfather say that his grand-
father told him when these stones first fell from
the heavens they were red-hot, but after they had
cooled, they looked just like other rocks about
them, and none of his people thought they were
any different, until one day one of the dusky
hunters of the tribe had shot his last arrow into
a polar bear, and the animal, though wounded,
had managed to escape, leaving the hunter without
any arrows.
He hastened to the shore, and began looking
for sharp stones from which to make new arrow-
heads. As he came upon the heaven-born stones,
it occurred to him that perhaps these would give
him luck, and picking up a large stone, he began
to pound down upon one of the sharp brown ridges
58
THE SNOW BABY
of the iron stone. Wherever he struck the brown
coat became spotted with silver, but instead of
knocking off a splinter, the stone with which he
struck flew into fragments. He then searched far
and near for a piece of rock harder than the one
he had been using, and after a long time he found
a piece. Hurrying again to the meteorite, he be-
gan to pound and chip, and to his joy he saw that
he was making an impression on the iron stone.
After hours and hours of hard work, he succeeded
in getting off a splinter. How it glittered in the
sunlight; and when he ran his finger over the edge,
the spurting blood taught him how sharp it was.
This was more than he had hoped for; if it cut
his ringer by simply passing it over the edge, how
much more apt would it be to cut into an animal
when it was sent from the bow! On and on he
worked, until he had enough splinters or scales to
make the arrow-head; then forth he went to try
his luck. Not an animal escaped. Just as sure
as he struck a bear, or a fox, or a seal, with the
arrow, just so sure the animal was his; and the
more he used the arrow the sharper it became,
59
THE SNOW BABY
until the thought came to him that this iron stone
e">
would make better knives than those of stone and
ivory which his people now used, it he could only
succeed in getting the pieces or}.
He returned to his people, and told them of the
good luck the heaven-born stone had brought
him, and then he showed them the bright, sharp
arrow-head, and they all agreed that good knives
could be made of this iron stone. Then all the
natives of this village set out at once, and travelled
many miles, until they came to the front of a great
river of ice called a glacier. This great ice stream
comes creeping slowly down the mountain side, and
pushes in front of it great heaps of stones and
dirt. From among these stones the natives selected
the hard smooth cobbles of what we call trap-
rock, but which they knew only as very hard
stones.
Loading their sledges with their tents and as
many of these stones as they could carry, they
travelled over the snow and ice to Meteorite
Island. Here they camped, and while the women
put up the tents, and got them ready, the men
60
THE SNOW BABY
" Then for the Hunt "
cleared away the snow from the stones and began
to work. For many "sleeps," as the Eskimos say,
they pounded and hammered and worked, until
they had fashioned a few arrow-heads and also
some rude knives. Then for the hunt, which
lasted a week. They could hardly believe their
eyes, when at the end of that time they saw the
number of slaughtered animals, more than had
t? *
ever before fallen to their lot in a whole season.
Nearly all the hunters would be able to have new
61
THE SNOW BABY
" Dogs that could draw their Masters on a Sledge "
fur clothing, and every family would have a new,
soft, warm deerskin for the bed.
The Eskimos living hundreds of miles up the
coast from here heard of the wonderful arrows
and knives made from the heaven-sent stones;
but as they did not have dogs and sledges enough
to brincr all the hunters and their families down
where the stones lay, half a dozen of the strongest
men took the best dogs and sleds and started for
the iron mountain, promising to bring back a
piece of the iron large enough to make knives and
arrow-heads for all. First they stopped at one of
61
THE SNOW BABY
the great glaciers, and gathered a sledge-load of
the trap rocks; then on they went to Meteorite
Island. They were delighted with the knives and
arrow-heads which their friends proudly brought
forth, and when they were told how deadly the
arrow-head was, and shown the pile of meat pro-
cured in the hunt, they could wait to hear no more,
but hurried over to the iron woman, eager to begin
their work. By working steadily, they were able
to secure enough scales of the metal to tip their
arrow-heads and make their knives, but it seemed
impossible to pound off the large piece which they
had promised to bring back with them. Long
and patiently they worked, chipping and pounding
day after day, while the returning sun kept getting
higher in the sky, the days grew longer, and the
air warmer. The great sheet of snow-covered
sea-ice over which the hunters had driven their
dogs and sledges was beginning to soften under
the caresses of the summer sun. Pools of water
began to collect like cool green shadows on the
white rolling surface, while numerous black
specks on the white sheet showed where sleeping
61
THE SNOW BABY
r
A Short Rest
seals were sunning themselves beside their front
doors, which opened into the deep sea. Soon the
ice would break up and move out, and then the
hunters could not return to their families until
the Arctic winter set in again, which would not
be for three or four months. This idea did not
please them, so they redoubled their efforts to
break off the large lump upon which they had
been working; and just as they were about to
give up, the head of the iron woman came off.
This head must have weighed five hundred
pounds, and would supply the people up the coast
with all the iron they would need for arrows and
J
knives for a long while. The precious package
THE SNOW BABY
Homeward Bound
was carefully done up in sealskins, and placed
on one of the sledges, and two of the hunters
rode beside it, to take care that it did not slide
off. and also to drive the dogs, ten of the finest
' ~ '
and strongest animals in the pack. The other
sledges were loaded with the meat and furs of the
animals which had been killed during their stay
at the island, and then the little party joyfully
started for home.
They found the ice very rotten in places, and
often it was covered four or five inches deep with
water, through which the dogs had almost to swim
and pull the sledges. While crossing one of these
65
THE SNOW BABY
places, the dogs drawing the sledge on which the
treasured iron lay, suddenly broke through the
ice. For a brief moment they struggled to get a
foothold amid the broken ice, yelping pitifully
with terror, but in the next instant the sledge with
its heavy load of men and iron came crashing
among them, and shot beneath the water, carrying
men and iron and dogs with it. The force and
weight of the sledge must have carried it under
the unbroken ice, for neither men nor dogs were
seen again.
This the natives considered the punishment of
the spirit of the iron woman for destroying the
stone, and from that time to the present it has
been looked upon as bad luck to try to move
either of the stones.
It was for this reason that the Eskimos warned
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father, when he told them
he would take the wonderful stones to his country,
not to touch them, for something dreadful would
surely happen to him. When they found he was
determined, nevertheless, to take away the meteor-
ites, they helped him loosen them and take them
66
THE SNOW BABY
Ab-ni-ghi'-to and One of her Brown Fur-clad Friends
down to the ship, but refused to assist him in put-
ting them on board.
While the work of getting the iron tent along-
side the ship was going on, AH-NI-GHI-TO
had a merry time. After the sun shone again, the
THE SNOW BABY
snow melted rapidly, and she spent her time on
shore, picking flowers and berries, which grew
among the rocks and on the hillsides; and the
Eskimo women built her play "igloos r (houses)
just like their own, and taught her different games
which she and Laura played with the brown fur-
clad children of the North.
After many days the iron tupic was ready to be
put on board. Everything in the ship had been
stowed, and the ship's hold filled with rocks, on
which the iron stone should rest.
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father had built a bridge
from the shore to the middle of the ship, where
a big opening in the deck, called the hatch, gave
an entrance for the big stone to the hold of the
ship. This bridge was built of great oak timbers
as long as a tree is tall, and on top of the
timbers a railroad track was laid. When the
iron stone was dug from the frozen bed in which
it had lain so long, it was lifted high enough to-
slip under it a heavy sled of strong oak timbers,
bolted together with long iron bolts and shod with
iron.
68
THE SNOW BABY
To lift so heavy a mass of iron,- -for the tuple
weighed nearly one hundred tons,- -powerful
machines called jacks were used, and with their
assistance, too, the great sledge with its heavy load
was pushed on to the end of the bridge. The
rails were smeared with grease, and strong ropes
fastened from the steam-engine to the sledge to
help pull, while the powerful jacks pushed. The
meteorite was chained down to the sledge with
heavy chains and then covered over with a big
American flag. AH-NI-GHI-TO was now told
that she must christen the big brown stone with a
bottle of wine as soon as it began to move. So
she stood with her father just behind the car, when
the signal was given to start. Her mother and
the Captain began to pump at the jacks, the
engine snorted, the ropes straightened, and the
big bridge began to groan and creak. It seemed
as if nothing could make the meteorite leave its
home ; but at last a great shout from the men
told that the sledge was slowly moving, and then
crash went the wine-bottle, and "I name thee
AH-NI-GHI-TO," said the little godmother.
69
THE SNOW BABY
Having once started, the great stone moved
slowly and steadily along the greased track, until
it rested over the open hatch. Then the men
gave three cheers for AH-NI-GHI'-TO, the little
god mother, and three more for her father, who
c? ' '
had overcome all the obstacles and at last suc-
ceeded in getting the largest known meteorite
safely on board.
The Eskimos stood on shore and watched
everything with the greatest interest, but they
could not be persuaded to come on board ship.
They felt very sure the vessel would sink and all
be lost, as were the men, sledge, and dogs that
were taking away the iron woman's head.
It required a few more days of labor to get
the unwilling monster into the hold of the ship,
and then AH-NI-GHI -TO'S father said they
must not tarry longer, for already the new ice was
beginning to form in the bay, and in a short time
it would be too thick for the ship to force her way
through, and they would be obliged to spend the
winter in the Snowland. As no one was prepared
to do this, every one felt a little anxious until the
70
THE SNOW BABY
Winter in the Snnvland
open sea was again reached. But here a new
trouble awaited AH-NI-GHI-TO and her friends;
for a terrible storm arose, and the ship rolled and
tossed about until it seemed as if the iron stone
must surely dash through the ship's side. Of
course AH-NI-GHI -TO'S father had men watch-
ing all the time to notice the slightest change, but
everything had been so securely packed that noth-
ing moved. AH-NI-GHI-TO was very glad
THE SNOW BABY
when at last the storm was over and the big waves
calmed down, for she had had her first attack of
seasickness, and did not like it at all. After the
storm the weather grew milder, and A H -NI-
GH I'-TO'S father told her she might visit her
birthplace at the head of Bowdoin Bay, which
pleased her very much. She knew the little
black house where the stork had brought her had
o
been burned, but Baby Lake and the gravel
bank, the big black cliffs of Mt. Bartlett, and the
great white glacier were all old friends, and AH-
NI-GHI-TO wanted to see them again. Ere
C5
the bay was reached the snow had begun to fall,
and by the time AH-NI-GHI-TOVS birthplace
was reached several inches of snow covered every-
thing. Nevertheless she was taken ashore by
her father and mother, and on the spot where the
little black house once stood, she brushed the
snow away and picked a handful of big yellow
poppies. Up on the gravel bank she dug out a
few white round pebbles and then paid a visit to
the little lake. Here she found three pretty ducks
swimming about; but as soon as the little fur-clad
THE SNOW BABY
-<
a*
" ^^^>^sii
^iML ^
" * i
$* ^ ^ ,
5.^; *% i- .
- /Jb ^' . ^. -1^. ,
Ab-ni-gbi' -to on the Site of the Little Black House
figure appeared they flew away over the hills, and
only the steep brown cliffs of the great mountain
frowned down upon her, and in the distance the
surface of the white glacier gleamed through the
fast-falling snow. The storm was increasing in
violence, and AH-NI-GHI -TO was hurried back
to the ship.
73
THE SNOW BABY
Good-bye was said to all the Eskimos^ with
promises of a return some day, and the ship started
for home.
This had been a very unusual summer. Much
snow had fallen, and many storms took the place
of the usual sunshine. The natives laid all this
to the removing of the iron mountain, and told
AH-NI-GHI-TO'S father, when they bade him
good-bye, that they feared they would never see
him again, for they were sure the ship, with all on
board, would go to the bottom of the sea.
They were very much distressed, and begged
him to put the stone ashore here, and thus avoid
the ill luck which would surely befall him. He
tried to assure them that the ship would reach
home safely, but they seemed very sad when the
vessel steamed away.
For a time it seemed as if the weather had
united with the evil spirit which the Eskimos had
said protected the iron stones, and the wind and
sea together tried their best to set free the great
meteorite by pounding it through the ship's sides
or turning the vessel over.
74
THE SNOW BABY
But the good ship withstood all their attacks,
and finally the stormy wind became a favoring
breeze and smoothed the tumbling waves into a
smiling sea.
AH-NI-GHI-TO was now bound for home,
and the vessel steamed steadily toward the south,
stopping at one point to take on board a party of
gentlemen who had spent the summer studying the
rocks and ice rivers. Still farther south, another
stop was made to gather fossils. AH-NI-GHI-
TO'S father took her with him to the fossil-beds,
as the scientific men called the hillside where the
fossils were to be found, and showed her the flat
shaly stones which when split open had pictures of
leaves and twigs upon the inner surface. He told
her that many, many years ago, it was always
summer in this spot where now it was always
winter 5 that the ground on which she stood
was then covered with ferns and flowers instead
of snow and ice; and that, just as she had seen
her mother press the flowers she had gathered, in
the sunny places among the rocks, between the
leaves of books to preserve them that she might
75
THE SNOW BABY
show them to friends at home, so these ferns and
leaves of long, long ago had been pressed, by the
wind and rain, between sheets of mud which have
turned to stone, so that the learned men who were
now opening these stone books, or fossils, with
their hammers could see what kind of plants and
trees grew then in this country.
After a few hours AH-NI-GHI -TO was
again on her way South; and the next stopping-
place was a little town called Umanak, made
up of only about a dozen habitations. There
were three Danish families in this place, but in
only one family were there children, and these
children, five in number, had never in all their
lives seen another white child before. They were
delighted with AH-NI-GH I -TO. Each one
tried to do more for her than the other, and while
AH-NI-GH I -TO could not understand one
word of their language and they could not under-
stand a word of hers, yet they had a happy after-
noon together. AH-NI-GH I-TO'S toys were
as new to them as their quaint and mostly home-
made ones were to her. They were dear, generous,
THE SNOW BABY
good-hearted little ones, and wanted to make AH-
NI-GHI-TO a present of everything she ad-
mired. They had funny little Eskimo dolls made
of rags, and dressed just like an Eskimo girl, with
long fur stockings, with the fur side next the leg,
and over these, tanned sealskin boots; short seal-
skin trousers, with the fur on the outside, and
trimmed down the front with bands of colored
leather. The body was covered with a woollen
blouse, shaped like one of our sweaters, and lined
with eiderdown. The bottom of the blouse was
trimmed with ribbon. Seaweed was used for the
hair, which was tied up in a top knot with a broad
piece of ribbon.
The dolls were not pretty, but very odd, and
unlike any AH-NI-GHI-TO had ever seen; and
these little children were just as fond of them as
AH-NI-GHI-TO was of her beautiful bisque
dolls, which have real hair and can open and shut
their eyes. They insisted on giving one of their
dolls to AH-NI-GHI-TO to take home with her.
AH-NI-GHI-TO felt very proud of this gift,
and said she would keep it always in remembrance
77
THE SNOW BABY
of the little strangers who were so kind to her.
She gave them oranges, the first they had ever
seen. It was not until she had peeled one and
broken it in pieces that she could make the eldest,
a little boy who was about seven years old, believe
it was not a ball, but a fruit, and good to eat.
When they had tasted of the orange, they
could hardly wait to peel others before eating them.
When AH-NI-GHI-TO saw that they liked
this new fruit, she sent them a basket full, all she
had left, as soon as she returned to the ship.
The Eskimos in this place brought pretty little
sealskin boots and slippers decorated with bits of
colored leather to AH-NI-GHI-TO, also toy
boats and sledges patterned after the large ones
which they used. Laura, too, received her share of
souvenirs, for she was a great curiosity, both to the
Eskimos as well as the white people. Some of the
natives had never even heard of colored people.
Towards evening AH-NI-GHI-TO bade all
her new friends good-bye, promising to surely
visit them if she ever made the voyage to the
Snowland again.
~
THE SNOW BABY
Ah-ni-ghl' -to on Deck
As the good ship sailed South, she gradually
came into the zone where the sun goes down
every evening and rises every morning. This
AH-NI-GHI -TO did not like at all, for now she
could not go on deck after supper as she had been
in the habit of doing, nor could she have day-
light in her cabin whenever she pleased by simply
pulling the old hat out of the tiny round window.
Instead, she had the moon and stars to keep her
company through the night.
One morning (it was the twelfth of September)
AH-NI-GHI-TO awoke and found on a little
stand by the side of her bed a beautiful cake all
79
THE SNOW BABY
Ab-ni-ghi '-to's Birthday
iced with chocolate, - - this was her favorite cake,
-and upon it four colored candles burning
brightly. What do you suppose this meant ?
It meant that four years ago that day the stork
had brought little AH-NI-GHI -TO to her father
and mother, in the little black house way up in
the Snowland; so this was her birthday. All the
gentlemen on board ship, whom she called her
"brothers,' 1 had remembered the little girl, and
her presents were different from any she had ever
received on her other birthdays. There were ivory
80
THE SNOW BABY
rings, an ivory locket and chain, and an ivory
cross; all these had been carved by the Eskimos.
Then there were two white-fox skins, and two
blue-fox skins; sealskin mittens, shoes, and
slippers; a mufFand neckpiece made of eiderdown,
and a lovely eiderdown quilt, with the beautiful
green and black skins of the necks of the birds
used as a border all around it. But the funniest
thing of all was a big Eskimo doll, almost as tall
as AH-NI-GHI-TO herself, dressed like an
Eskimo hunter, with his sealskin trousers and
coat, and his fur hood pulled over his face in
true Eskimo style. Such a happy little girl she
was that day. In the afternoon she invited her
friends, whom she called her brothers, to share her
cake and whatever else could be found in the
"goody' line. What a jolly time there was in the
little cabin! Every one wished AH-NI-GHI'-TO
"many happy returns of the day;' : the captain
hoisted the stars and stripes on the mainmast, and
the engineer blew four loud blasts with the whistle.
This, he said, would let all the seals and walrus,
and even the polar bears, if there were any within
81
THE SNOW BABY
hearing distance, know that there was a celebration
on board ship, and that AH-NI-GHI-TO, the
Snow Baby, was four years old that day. If they
heard the whistle, they did not make any sign, for
not an animal was to be seen.
It was still a week's sailing before the American
shore would be reached, and AH-NI-GHI-TO
began to grow eager to get home, where she had
left her family of dolls, taking only her eldest with
her, for, she said, "they must miss a mother's
care, poor things, and I am homesick for them
too. I wonder what they will say to the new
Eskimo sister and brother that I am bringing to
them. I hope they will be pleased, even if the
new children are not beauties. Then, too, I am
so anxious to tell all my dear ones what a good
time I have had, and to show them my new
presents and also to give them the curious things
I have brought from the Snowland for them."
At last the shore was in sight, and toward
evening it was reached. That night AH-NI-
GHI-TO slept in a hotel with her father and
mother; and very queer it felt to sleep in a bed
82
THE SNOW BABY
Home Again
that did not rock to and fro, and to wake in the
night and not hear the steady, even pulsing of the
engine, together with the swish of the waves
against the ship's sides, which had been her steady
company for nearly three months.
There was still a long journey to be made on
the railroad, and AH-NI-GHI-TO thought it
would never end. But at last, with a clanging
of bells and a puffing of steam, the long dusty
train rolled into the station, and there among the
eager crowd AH-NI-GHI-TO saw her "Tante"
and the gentle kindly face of "dear old Grossma,''
83
THE SNOW BABY
both glad to have their baby back again safe and
well.
Of course there was much to hear and much
to tell; presents to give, friends to see, and her
own family of dolls to look after and the new
ones to be introduced, until when night came it
was a very tired AH-NI-GHI-TO that mother
tucked away in the little white bed.
"Good night, mother dear," she said. "I have
had a very nice time, and I am glad to have seen
the Snowland again, and 'Billy-Bah,' and the
little brown Eskimos, and those dear little children
who gave me the Eskimo doll, even if they could
not speak English or German. The christening
of the meteorite was great fun, and I liked the
big ship and our funny little room, and I liked my
big brothers on the ship ; but I like Grossma's
house the very best of all, don't you?'
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