140 THE REIN-DEER. 



the Norwegians making a sudden irruption into the 

 Swedish territories, an officer was despatched, with 

 a sledge and single deer, to convey the intelligence 

 to Stockholm. The distance, 124 Swedish, or 800 

 English miles, was performed in forty-eight hours ; 

 but the deer dropped down lifeless on its arrival. * 

 This relation of speed is always spoken of as a cer- 

 tainly authenticated fact ; but we cannot help sus- 

 pecting that there is some error in the time ; both 

 the time and distance appear incredible ; and, at all 

 events, it will prove the exception to the general rate 

 of speed. Sir Arthur de Capel Brooke observed, that 

 a deer can easily trot ten miles, and perhaps gallop 

 nearly double the space in an hour, if put to extreme 

 speed ; but he would be unable to keep it up longer. 

 That traveller has also given the details of a race, in- 

 stituted for the purpose of ascertaining the compara- 

 tive speed , and, as the details are short and simple, 

 we shall insert them : Four deer were used ; the 

 first accomplished 5397 Paris feet in six minutes ; 

 the second performed the same distance in seven 

 minutes thirty seconds ; the others were distanced. 

 This race was performed while the snow was deep, 

 and consequently a considerable impediment to the 

 running. Another experiment was afterwards tried 

 on more favourable ground. The first deer per- 

 formed 3089 feet 8 inches in two minutes, being at 

 the rate of nearly nineteen miles in an hour, and 



Capel Brooke, p. 15, 



