Part 37 (1/2)
Miss Miller had them take up knitting for the soldiers and required them to do a certain stint every day. They also completed the bead bandings for their ceremonial costumes. Nita loaned the Guide the pattern for a dancing costume and each girl cut out, fitted, and made, of cheap cotton crepe bloomers, blouse, and skirt for dancing.
Besides designing belts, banding, and costumes, the girls began regular weekly lessons with Elizabeth as teacher, in sketching and designing.
Elizabeth attended a New York School of Design and could tell the girls whatever she had learned. Many pretty patterns in cross-st.i.tch and other work were thus made and applied to use.
[Ill.u.s.tration: _ZAN'S CEREMONIAL COSTUME._]
”I'm going to ask Dad to send me to school next Winter,” declared Jane, who enjoyed the work immensely.
”And Elena, Nita, and May ought to go, too,” added Miss Miller, admiring the dainty work done by these girls.
One afternoon the Guide said: ”Girls, have any of you entered blue prints in your Tally Books?”
No one had, so she added: ”Just as soon as Spring comes with its first flowers, I want you to start a blue print alb.u.m. I think it is one of the most interesting and instructive of pursuits. I have a book that I completed during a trip through the Canadian Northwest, and I wouldn't sell those blue prints for any price-they are so beautiful and the wild flowers so interesting.”
The Sat.u.r.days during November were spent in New York, the Guide taking the girls to the splendid public libraries; lectures ill.u.s.trated with motion pictures were given by white men who had spent many years with the Indians; and the unusual series of talks given at the Museum on Central Park West and 79th Street proved most interesting. Here also the Woodcrafters saw life-sized groups of Indians in wax, the individual costumes and customs of each Tribe being faithfully depicted by the clothes, items of camping outfits, and other things. In these exhibitions the girls found many suggestions that they could apply to pottery work, bead work, and other things pertaining to Indian life.
One afternoon, while visiting the large library on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, Miss Miller said: ”Who knows where the first public library was founded-and when?”
No one knew, so the Guide told them.
”The first on record-there may have been private collections then as now, but it was not recorded-was founded at Athens by Hipparchus in 526 B. C.
”The second of note was founded at Alexandria by Ptolemy Philadelphus, but it was burnt when Julius Caesar set fire to Alexandria in 47 B. C.
It is said that 400,000 rare and valuable books were destroyed in that disaster.
”A second library was formed from the remains of the books in this first one, and this second was reputed to have held over 700,000 volumes, but this was captured by the Saracens who used the books for fuel instead of working to gather wood.
”In 1446 A. D. the next large library was formed and from that time on collections of important books were made and offered to the public for free use.”
Such comments by Miss Miller always made the visits to public buildings very interesting to the girls, who acquired a general knowledge of things worth knowing in this manner.
One Sat.u.r.day before the weather was too cold, they all went to Bedloe's Island, now renamed Liberty Island, in New York Harbour. Here they climbed the endless round of narrow iron steps until they regretted having started the ascent. But there was no turning back, as the descent was on the other side and no one could go down when once started up.
Having wearily climbed to the crown of the head in the Liberty G.o.ddess Statue, they were disappointed at not finding the view any better than that seen from the balcony where the elevator stopped, but which was wonderful from that vantage point. From the Statue they walked about the Island and then took the small boat back to Battery Park.
The Aquarium was visited next, and here the girls found many odd and interesting fish. One funny fish, grey in colour and about fifteen inches in length, kept b.u.mping his nose against the gla.s.s side as if to come through. At each b.u.mp he slid back in the water and tried again.
”'Constant dripping wears the rock away,'” said Zan, watching him come back again and again to strike the gla.s.s.
”He is only playing tag with his nose,” explained Jane.
”But why should he always keep his mouth open half-way, as if he had difficulty in breathing?” asked Nita.
”Maybe he has-that constant b.u.mping on his nose will cause a swelling and close up the nostrils,” ventured Elena.
”Oh, I have it!” cried Zan, nodding her head vigourously. ”The poor thing has asthma from that damp atmosphere! He gasps through his open mouth and tries to break down the screen of gla.s.s to get more air!”
This explanation brought a laugh not only from the girls who crowded about the gla.s.s case, but from some observers who also stood watching the queer fish.