182 INTRODUCTION OF DOMESTIC REINDEER INTO ALASKA. 



against us and juitivcs who had befriended us kept coming with ominous 

 frequency. 



Factions for and against us had sprung into existence all over the 

 country. These, with the dissensions naturally frequent among this 

 anarchical people, created storm upon storm, of which we seemed to 

 form the center, and which made us wish ourselves well out of the 

 country. We tried by a liberal use of our trade goods to conciliate 

 the population (morally oliliged to adopt this course in support of our 

 native friends) and to continue the buying of deer, but ever}- move 

 we made became the cause of renewed howls. It became evident soon 

 that our very presence in the country was antagonistic to success. 

 There were no means by which we could gain control and command 

 the elements of success we had found on our landing. I have read that 

 Charles XII of Sweden used to din-lare that he could send his boots to 

 preside over his Parliament and have it do his bidding. I believe it; 

 and though it mny sound paradoxical. I will go even further and say 

 that his boots were bound to prove themselves more effective with his 

 Parliament than ho himself would have been. Why? The answer is 

 simple. Charles XII absent, waging successful war abroad, was an 

 unknown quantity and well worth propitiating. Therefore all the 

 factions in his Kingdom, in the hope of future favors, would vie in 

 doing him service. But Charles XII present would have been quickly 

 forced to take sides, and would soon have had his hands full in quelling 

 internecine troubles. 



A certain similarity between this and our position in this c-ountry 

 struck me at the time. Present, we would always form a cause of 

 contention. To conciliate everybody was out of the question, even 

 if the use of trade goods to that end would not have been positively 

 detiimental to the buying of deer by putting premiums on dishonesty 

 and I'ascality. Force, or an}" show of force, even if our position on 

 foreign territory" had not forbidden it, would have quickly brought 

 on a climax and effectiveh" stopped the buying and selling of deer. 

 But absent, and proceecling in the right way, we might have l)een 

 able to utilize the existing advantageous conditions. As soon as I 

 perceived that the continuance of the deer business would be impos- 

 sible on present lines, I began to gather information about and to 

 stud}' the character, internal relations, and general conditions of this 

 population. Avith the object of ascertaining the feasibility of pursuing 

 this luidertaking with the help of native agents. I came to the con- 

 clusion that if it would be kept up in the right way and with the 

 right means on these lines there would be nothing to prevent making 

 the exportation of reindeer out of this section of Siberia into Alaska 

 beneficial to both countries. 



I have had alrtnidy occasion to stjitc that we found it advisable to 

 make certiiin experiments for a continuance of the undertaking in that 



