64 REPORT ON THE INTRODUCTION OF 



aud a dozen raisins, not a very appropriate assortment for a Christmas 

 present for a white child, but it was the best we had, and I found after- 

 wards the selection was much appreciated by the little Eskimo. 



Although our supplies were very limited I concluded to take enough 

 from such as we had, and give each family the same assortment. It 

 was made up of a tin can filled with flour, eight navy biscuits, one pint 

 of rice, one-half pound of sugar, and one third pound of tea. 



There are ten houses in the village and about 100 persons all told. 

 The supplies above enumerated were made up into ten packages. 



I had the herders harness one of our deer-teams to a sled, and at 12 

 o'clock started with four natives for the village, a half mile west of the 

 station. When we reached the first house, 1 took a flash-light view of 

 the deer standing just by the little skin window, through which a faint 

 gleam of light was thrown from the oil lamp burning below. It occurred 

 to me that perhaps this was the first time in the history of civilization 

 that a live Santa Claus made his midnight visit upon an errand of mercy 

 with a team of reindeer, and that the Eskimo were the first to actually 

 experience what throughout Christendom is only a myth. 



It became necessary to dig away the frost from one corner of the 

 window, in order to get the packages through, and in nearly every 

 instance the operation alarmed those below, when a package was imme- 

 diately dropped down and they became quiet. 



While in my stooping position at the first house, I suddenly lifted 

 my eyes to the north and beheld the most gorgeous aurora I witnessed 

 at any time during the winter. The night was a glorious one, cold and 

 crisp, with the stars shining in lustrous splendor from the pale blue 

 canopy above, and not a breath of air was stirring. Across the whole 

 northern horizon floods of wavy light surged and swept from east to 

 west, sending further up into the heavens streams of vapory light 

 dancing up and down in graceful shadows, that easily led me to imagine 

 they were caused by invisible spirits. For a time I forgot the object 

 of my visit, and lay watching the play of the aurora as it shot forwards 

 and backwards, and when I finally came to myself I looked around and 

 found the natives lost in deep and silent awe at the spectacle. 



The hour I spent in this service was one of supreme delight to me> 

 especially so as the little handful of food I distributed made the bright 

 eyes of a hundred people glisten with happiness and supplied as many 

 stomachs with a feast they enjoyed before they again closed their eyes 

 in sleep. 



It will take too much space to record all the items I gathered in the 

 short hour, as I peeped through their little skin windows and saw them 

 dancing around in high glee, old and young, and expressing their 

 thankfulness for the many good things received, the like of which they 

 had never before eaten. 



The few dollars expended in this way will doubtless bring back many 

 fold in deeds of kindness from these poor creatures, in whom there is 

 much to admire and little to blame. 



