76 HISTORY OF 



manner. They make use of skates, which are 

 made of fir, of near three feet long, and half a 

 foot broad ; these are pointed, and raised before, 

 and tied to the foot by straps of leather. With 

 these they skate upon the icy snow with such ve- 

 locity, that they very easily overtake the swiftest 

 animals. They make use also of a pole, pointed 

 with iron at one end, and rounded at the other. 

 This pole serves to push them along, to direct 

 their course, to support them from falling, to stop 

 the impetuosity of their motion, and to kill that 

 game which they have overtaken. Upon these 

 skates they descend the steepest mountains, and 

 scale the most craggy precipices ; and in these 

 exercises the women are not less skilful than the 

 men. They have all the use of the bow and arrow, 

 which seems to be a contrivance common to all 

 barbarous nations ; and which, however, at first, 

 required no small skill to invent. They launch a 

 javelin also with great force ; and some say that 

 they can hit a mark, no larger than a crown, at 

 thirty yards distance, and with such force as would 

 pierce a man through. They are all hunters ; and 

 particularly pursue the ermine, the fox, the ounce, 

 and the martin, for the sake of their skins. These 

 they barter with their southern neighbours for 

 brandy and tobacco, both which they are fond 

 of to excess. Their food is principally dried fish, 

 the flesh of rein-deer and bears. Their bread is 

 composed of the bones of fishes, pounded and 

 mixed with the inside tender bark of the pine tree. 

 Their drink is train-oil and brandy, and when de- 

 prived of these, water in which juniper berries 



