FUR-FARMING IN CANADA 95 



'' From the end of the steel to Atliabaska Landinsj, something over 

 fifty miles, the deer were conveyed in waggons and were then loaded ou 

 scows for the trip down to Fort Smith. This turned out to be the most 

 difficult part of the trip. The scows were hard to manage and a great 

 deal of ice was encountered wliich hindered progress. In the end it 

 was found impossible to get as far as Fort Smith, and it was decided to 

 remain at a point seventy miles from the fort, where reindeer moss 

 was plentiful, until such time as the deer could be driven to their 

 destination, or until the spring, when they could be conveyed down the 

 river. The herd was kept here very comfortably until the spring, and 

 on the 20th May, 1912, reached Fort Smith, the total loss of deer en 

 route being nineteen. 



'■' The herd wintered satisfactorily and were in good condition in 

 the spring. The chief herder had selected a suitable place for them west 

 of Fort Smith on a point jutting out into a lake lying south of Great 

 Slave lake. There is plenty of reindeer moss in this locality and it 

 seemed in every way suitable for the keeping of the hertl. However, the 

 flies became so troublesome to the herd in the summer that they stam- 

 peded and, at last reports, had not all been gathered together again. 



" A new range for the deer has been selected on a large island in 

 Great Slave lake and it is the intention to move the remainder of the 

 herd there in the spring. 



" Considering the difficulties of transportation, the shipment was 

 taken through with comparatively small loss, but the saiccess of the herd 

 is not fully assured until it is certain that they can be controlled an<l 

 prevented from stampeding at the time when the flies are most active. 

 If matters go satisfactorily witli them for another year, it may be advis- 

 able to consider increasing the number by a further shipment." 



MOOSE 



The European moose was formerly under domestication and proved 

 valuable for transportation purjwses in the cold northern countries. It 

 is on record that it once hauled a sleigh 234 miles in one day. For 

 divers reasons — the chief one being that exiles in Siberia used it to 

 effect their escape — it became unlawful to maintain the moose in cap- 

 tivity in Russia. Probably it would have developed into a valuable 

 domestic animal for northern latitudes had this prohibition not been 

 imposed. It is possible, also, that the Canadian moose, which is of 

 greater size and strength, could be developed into a domestic 

 animal of value. Several cases are recorded of its being suc- 

 cessfully used for draught puri)08es, in the first generation from the 

 wild state. It is but jusit to add, however, that the moose has not yet 

 been bred in captivity. 



