50 years ago in Expo history: Little Misty the Siberian tiger cub won hearts at only 15 pounds

Misty, a 9-week-old Siberian tiger cub, was one of the most popular attractions at Expo ’74’s Vanishing Species Pavilion.

She weighed in at 15 pounds, but when fully grown would weigh anywhere from 500 to 600 pounds. She was brought to Expo from the Olympic Game Farm in western Washington.

The animals on exhibit at the Pavilion changed periodically, but currently Misty’s companions included two cougars, an Asian leopard and several skunks.

In other Expo news, a tight race was underway between hamburgers and hot dogs at the fair’s concessions. So far, hamburgers were maintaining a “slight edge’” in sales. That was expected to continue, because the price of a hot dog had just been raised from 50 cents to 55 cents, while the hamburger price was holding steady at 65 cents.

From 100 years ago: A friendly little campfire feast beneath the Great Northern bridge near Natatorium Park ended badly for four itinerant laborers.

The four, described as “two Canadians and two Scotchmen,” were camped beneath the bridge after working in harvest fields and lumber camps. They were cooking an Irish stew, and two of them were dispatched to a store to buy some salt. They came back with the salt – and with two quarts of moonshine.

When police came upon them, three were “more or less crazy,” and the fourth was feared dead. They were just very, very drunk, and they were hauled in and fined for drunkenness.