THE DEER KIND. 



273 



body. The feet, just at the insertion of the 

 hoof, are surrounded with a ring of white. 

 The hair in general stands so thick over the 

 whole body, that if one should attempt to se- 

 parate it, the skin will no where appear un- 

 covered : whenever it falls also, it is not seen 

 to drop from the root, as in other quadrupeds, 

 but seems broken short near the bottom ; so 

 that the lower part of the hair is seen growing, 

 while the upper falls away. The horns of the 

 female are made like those of the male, except 

 that they are smaller and less branching. As 

 in the rest of the deer kind, they sprout from 

 the points; and also in the beginning are fur- 

 nished with an hairy crust, which supports 

 the blood-vessels of most exquisite sensibility. 

 The rein-deer shed their horns, after rutting 

 time, at the latter end of November ; and they 

 are not completely furnished again till towards 

 autumn. The female always retains hers till 

 she brings forth, and then sheds them about 

 the beginning of November. If she be bar- 

 ren, however, which is not unfrequently the 

 case, she does not shed them till winter. The 

 castration of the rein-deer does not prevent 

 the shedding of their horns : those which are 

 the strongest cast them early in winter; those 

 which are more weakly not so soon. Thus, 

 from all these circumstances, we see how great- 

 ly this animal differs from the common stag. 

 The female of the rein-deer has horns, which 

 the hind is never seen to have ; the rein-deer, 

 when castrated, renews its horns, which we 

 are assured the stag never does : it differs not 

 less in its habits and manner of living, being 

 tame, submissive, and patient ; while the stag 

 is wild, capricious, and unmanageable. 



The rein-deer, as was said, is naturally an 

 inhabitant of the countries bordering on the 

 arctic circle. It is not unknown to the natives 

 of Siberia. The North Americans also hunt 

 it under the name of the caribou. But in Lap- 

 land, this animal is converted to the utmost 

 advantage ; and some herdsmen of that coun- 

 try are known to possess above a thousand in 

 a single herd. 



Lapland is divided into two districts, the 

 mountainous and the woody. The mountain- 

 ous part of the country is at best barren and 

 bleak.excessively cold, and uninhabitable du- 

 ring the winter; still, however, it is the most 

 desirable part of this frightful region, and is 



most thickly peopled during the summer. 

 The natives generally reside on the declivity 

 of the mountains, three or four cottages toge- 

 ther, and lead a cheerful and social life. 

 Upon the approach of winter, they are oblig- 

 ed to migrate into the plains below, each 

 bringing down his whole herd, which often 

 amounts to more than a thousand, and leading 

 them where the pasture is in greatest plenty. 

 The woody part of the country is much more 

 desolate and hideous. The whole face of 

 nature there presents a frightful scene of trees 

 without fruit, and plains without verdure. As 

 far as the eye can reach, nothing is to be seen, 

 even in the midst of summer, but barren fields, 

 covered only with a moss, almost as white as 

 snow ; no grass, no flowery landscapes, only 

 here and there a pine-tree, which may have 

 escaped the frequent conflagrations by which 

 the natives burn down their forests. But what 

 is very extraordinary, as the whole surface of 

 the country is clothed in white, so, on the con- 

 trary, the forests seem to the last degree dark 

 and gloomy. While one kind of moss makes 

 the fields look as if they were covered with 

 snow, another kind blackens over all their 

 trees, and even hides their verdure. This 

 moss, however, which deforms the country, 

 serves for its only support, as upon it alone 

 the rein-deer can subsist. The inhabitants, 

 who, during the summer, lived among the 

 mountains, drive down their herds in winter, 

 and people the plains and woods below. 

 Such of the Laplanders as inhabit the woods 

 and the plains all the year round, live remote 

 from each other, and having been used to so- 

 litude, are melancholy, ignorant, and helpless. 

 They are much poorer also than the moun- 

 taineers ; for, while one of those is found to 

 possess a thousand rein-deer at a time, none 

 of these are ever known to rear the tenth part 

 of that number. The rein-deer makes the 

 riches of this people ; arid the cold mountain- 

 ous parts of the country agree best with its 

 constitution. It is for this reason, therefore, 

 that the mountains of Lapland are preferred 

 to the woods ; and that many claim an exclu- 

 sive right to tho tops of hills, covered in al- 

 most eternal snow. As soon as the summer 

 begins to appear, the Laplander, who had fed 

 his rein-deer upon the lower grounds during 

 ; the winter, then drives them up to the moun- 



