DOMESTICATED REINDEER INTO ALASKA. 43 



I do not think there is nearly as much to be dreaded from dogs injuring 

 reindeer as there would be from a flock of sheep being injured by dogs 

 in the States. 



In the former case, nature has provided antlers with which to gore 

 and fore feet with which to strike, besides limbs with the fleetness of 

 the wind to carry him out of harm's way, if free to go at his pleasure, 

 while the latter are weak, innocent things, that only have to be attacked 

 to yield themselves a ready sacrifice. 



Within a half mile of the station headquarters is a native village of 

 one hundred persons, and on the first impulse, I would say, as many docs. 

 It is safe to fix the number at fifty, however, and only on five or six 

 occasions have the dogs made an attempt to reach the reindeer. On 

 these occasions the dogs were shot by the herders before they reached 

 the reindeer, and at other times they were frightened away by the shouts 

 of the herders. 



On many occasions the reindeer have grazed so near the village that 

 the whites of their eyes could almost be seen by the dogs lying about 

 untied, and they seemed as oblivious to danger as the herders were 

 unconscious of any harm that could possibly happen to them. 



I will state here that in a number of instances risks were purposely 

 taken in order to test this matter, and the accidents that did occur 

 might have been averted by simply exercising that caution one would 

 naturally bring into play when in the vicinity of a known danger. 



Reindeer are afraid of dogs naturally, and upon several occasions, 

 when driving them in the sled, I have gone near enough to a team of 

 dogs to give them a smell of what a feast they might enjoy if they could 

 but fasten their molars into the flesh of the reindeer; when off they 

 would start, and in a race of 2 or 3 miles it would be nip and tuck, but 

 the dogs were first winded and were gradually hauled up. 



On March 1, I started for Cape Prince of Wales, iu company with a 

 white man who brought some mail from the station from St. Michael's 

 a short time before. Each of us had a pair of deer, and were driving 

 quietly along, when I, who happened to be in the rear, heard my name 

 called and, looking around, saw a native sitting astride of a light sled 

 drawn by four dogs, and they were coming toward us full tilt. The 

 native was pulling on the line by which the sled was drawn, as hard 

 as he could, but was powerless to hold them. The deer suddenly 

 started, and it looked as if it would be a matter of endurance as to 

 whether we would be overtaken by the dogs or not. The dogs were so 

 near us when they were first observed that in a few jumps they were 

 just behind my sled. I thought I would rather risk an encounter with 

 them than be chased 4 or o miles, and then have to fight it out. and 

 perhaps be left with a team too tired to continue the long journey 

 before us. I therefore suddenly wheeled them about and jumped to 

 their heads. As the dogs came up the reindeer struck at them, and 

 I used my whip while the native pulled and tugged at the reins, but 



