THE GOOSING 237 



waistcoat (of all things) over his shirt, and with his lono- 

 black hair and thin moustache looked just like a super 

 in Hamlet. 



We entered to-day on a new phase of reindeer life. 

 For the first time the fly appeared [Hypoderma tarandi), 

 known to the Samoyeds as ' Pi-liur,' and to the Russians 

 as 'Orwot.' The first I noticed was probing the cracks 

 in my boat with its ovipositor ; no doubt the grease 



1. reindeer fly {Hypoderma tarandi) 2. same, with ovipositor extended 



tin! 1 1 it© 



3. LARVA OF SAME 4. ADVANCED LARVA OF SAME 



would make a fair nursery. This fly, which has a 

 general resemblance to a humble-bee, lays its eggs on 

 the back of the deer, where it is out of reach, and these 

 eggs develop into larvae (' Oograh ' in Russian, ' Sivia ' in 

 Samoyed), which, burrowing into the creature, worry it 

 terribly. The deer have therefore to be often caught and 

 examined ; and this catching is done with the 'di-zha.' 



The di-zha is simply a lasso or lariat of plaited hide, 

 the noose of which runs through a block of reindeer 

 horn. I practised throwing it at a stump. The Samoyeds 



