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TUNDRA TIMESPage SFear. Gripped the VillageThe Day the Game Wardens CameBy Thomas A. Snapp Times Staff Writer(Editor's note: Though names ofpersons and places have been changed in the following story, it is based on actual happening in an Interior Indian village in the relatively recent past.)Fear gripped The small remotevillage oi Gut la k like electricity, People sensing impending doom darted here and there nervously, Three game wardens had come strutting into the village seeking illegal game and in practically every family food cache in the village there was fresh moose meat takenout of season,' Father! Father! What shall wedo?” se me of the villagers breathlessly inquired of the village* pricsl.Thp wardens are lure and inlt;y art looking around everywhere and asking all kinds of questions.Just keep your wits,” Father Travenac calmly answered as he put on his heavy clothing to investigate.The Indian village of interior Alaska had had a splendid early moose season. Practically every eligible huntei had gotten his limit of onemoose.But then the villagers were plagued with a late, late fall. It became so warm that their moose meat witnout refrigeration began to spoil.In a desperate attempt to savethe meat, tremendous amounts ofthe meat was cooked and for about two weeks the villagers realty stuffed themselves. By the time the warm spell was over, the winter moose supply had dwindled practically out of existence.As the cold dark winter drew on, the caches became bare except for fish.Fish . , . fish . , . fish . . . three times a day This became the monotonous steady diet of the villagers. Of course there were canned goods in the smal village store, but at Gallak. who had the money to buy it? To get money, one must have a job and jobs at Gatlak were as scarce as hen’s teeth.Just a day or two before the gamewardens arrived, one of the youngmen of Gatlak returning from bis beaver trap line, had spotted four moose by the lake about a mile from the village.Thinking more about hunger than the strict game laws, the animals were killed and the news, Fresh meat!” proudly announced to the village. Everybody pitched in, the animals were skinned and dressed. and divided and the village was in good spirits for a change of diet.That is. until the game wardens came unun the ?ceno airing tht • suspicious and mumbling sorm thing abrut search warrants. They left saying they would return the following day.That night the p op]r got excited and jittery. Father Travanac assured them they had nothing to befrightened about.Let's just do what the Barrow Eskimos did with the eider ducks Let’s just all open our caches and show them the meat. They can't take us all to jail.But tile peoph could not be Calmed. Some suggested taking the i. ■ r out into the wlt; 'ds and hiding itNo. mi. Father Tn.vanae said In that fresh, dt * p mow you tan’1! make a new trail. You'll lead thenright to the spot.”That night The scored villagt rs took another course. They ehipj t 3out a cache in thi ice of tht nvt i right beside the much .raveled trail into the villugi . The meat wan covered with chipped ice.The next clay the came warden showed up on schedule, this lime scrutinizing every inch of the village for traces of hair or blood.One of the wiardcns found a bloody hair on a dog sled and rushed to the other end of the villageto get the other wardens as witnesses, But when ho returned the dog sled was nowhere to be found.By this time the game wardens were openly charging that someone in the village had killed threemoose — that they knew if from the markings at the lake. The villagers were laughing to themselves because they knew the wardens hadnot been able to correctly decipherthe markings, since there were imiranimals taken instead of three.That night Father Travanac talked with the game wardens.What makes you think someone from here has been killing muosi out of season? he asked.Are you kidding. Father, wo would come 60 miles To get m* ■ e a mile from your village?” he implied.All right, someone from the village has been killing moose nut if season. What about the subsistance hunting law?”The warden explained he was only following the law, ihal f d was available at the village .-tor-1.But we have not seen a piece of meat since last October: * ecouldn’t keep it, I low would voir youngsters like eating bdi three times a day?”The warden did not ans\vlt; r,Father Travanac then told the warden, 1 hope you du bringchai Jo . I’d b Vi P h.i Vi * a c i • • ■ L court on the ipa stu n m - ib.o- ■ .o. ghunting,”The next d‘v thi g w ■- ward* s'quietly departed Gatlak taking Aitlt them then unseiweu r, uch v. a -rants.Santa Claus is the gat bled *\m-i ric.ui version oi San Nichola s, the Dutch itiitv.i■ fora Roman Lath i-lic bishop who became the patronsaint of schoolboys during the Middle Ages.Subscribe Todayto theTUNDRA TIMESAlaska's Newest and Fastest Growing NewspaperAdler's Book ShopOut-of-(own orders solicitedand filled promptlyBox HSU, FairbanksGive a Hobby for Christinas# Plastic model cars, planes, ships0 Art suppliesm Plastic motorized engines+ Games—(Ttess. Monopoly 0 HO model railroad sets # Car racing setsWrite us for a catalog — Mail orders filled promptlyHOBBY HOUSE419 2nd Ave, — Fairbanks, Alaska
Newspaper Details
Tundra Times
Fairbanks, Alaska, US
Mon, Dec 03, 1962
Page 5
Full Page
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Anonymous
USA 13 Apr 2022
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