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LETTER XIX. 



mesticated animal. In temperate regions, the un- 

 bounded liberality of nature furnishes a profusion of 

 conveniences and comforts,, and a variety of supplies 

 for almost every want ; but to the Laplander, in his 

 hyberborc.m abode, the horse, the cow, the sheep, 

 and the goat, are all unlyiow r n. The rein-deer, how- 

 ever, supplies the place of all these useful animals. 

 .From this single quadruped the Laplanders, and other 

 inhabitants of these frozen regions, derive all those 

 comforts that can render existence supportable in that 

 inhospitable climate. It supplies the place of the 

 horse, in conveying them over tracks that would 

 otherwise be impassable ; ^hat of the cow, in afford- 

 ing them milk ; and that of the sheep, iri clothing 

 them, not with its. fleece, but with its skin : its very 

 sinews supply them with thread, and there is scarcely 

 any part of this animal that is not in some degree, 

 conducive to their comfort. 



The rein-deer, in Lapland, are of two kinds, the 

 wild and the tame ; awdjhe former being the stroijo- 

 c-st and most hardy, the laticr arc frequently turned 

 into the woods iu. order to produce a mixed breed, 

 which is generally preferred, especially ibr drawing 

 the sledge, to which they are trained at an early 

 age. They are yoked by a collar, from which ;i 

 trace passes under the belly to the fore-part of the 

 vehicle. These carriages are extremely light, and 

 covered at the bottom with a rein deer's skin. The 

 person, who sits in the sledge, guides the animal witji 

 a cord fastened to its horns, and drives it with a sroad. 

 The wild kind, when yoked, sometimes prove refrac- 

 tory, turn against their master, and strike so furiously 

 with their feet, thut he is obliged to cover himself 

 with his sledge, until the enraged creatu-rp has ex- 

 hausted his fury; but the tame ones are active, and 

 patient. A Laplander will, in this manner, travel 

 about thirty miles a day, without forcing the rein-deer 

 to make any extraordinary effort. This mode of -travel- 

 ling can be used onlv in the winter, when the country 

 is covered with snow ; and though it is expeditious, 

 it is troublesome and somc-tiiiies dangerous. 

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