10 BTJLLETI2^ 1089, r. S. DEPAETMEKT OF AGRICULTUEE. 



The Norwegian animals had just landed after a long, rough 

 voyage, but even when fed they would fall short of the average 

 weight of Alaskan reindeer, which for steers average 150 pounds 

 dressed. The ages of the Norwegian animals ran between 3 and 

 4 years. 



The Norway reindeer differs a little from the Alaskan animal in 

 being lighter colored. At first sight more white was noticeable 

 around the feet and legs, and in some instances the belly was almost 

 white. As a rule, the sides of the belly in Alaskan reindeer are very 

 dark and in some cases almost black. In other respects the marks 

 are almost identical. 



REINDEER AS RANGE STOCK. 



OWNERSHIP OF REINDEER. 



The ownership of the reindeer herds in Alaska now falls largely 

 into three classes: Eskimos, white men married to Eskimo women, 

 and other white men, including Lapps. Formerly herds were also 

 owned by the Government and by the various missions located in 

 Alaska, but these owners have practically dropped out, as also have 

 many of the Lapps. While no complete information as to exact 

 numbers of reindeer or exact ownership is available, it is generally 

 considered that, on the basis of an estimated total of 130,000 animals, 

 the whites, including Lapps, now own about 40,000 to 45,000, and the 

 Eskimos the remainder, or some 85,000 to 90,000. In 1917, the Bu- • 

 reau of Education reported the Eskimo ownership to be distributed 

 among 1.568 natives. 



The ownership of reindeer among the natives is not uniform. 

 There are numerous small owners, each with a few head, often only 

 2 or 3, and a few Eskimos are large owners, with several hundred 

 to a thousand animals. Among the whites, aside from the Lapps, 

 and those married to native women, who for these purposes are 

 classed as natives, ownership is as yet limited, being largely confined 

 to the relatively few who have been able to buy the herds that had 

 been acquired by the Lapps and the missions. 



Up to within a few years, the Alaska reindeer industry had oeen 

 largely a native enterprise and development has been entirely under 

 the supervision of the Bureau of Education. The Eskimos were 

 taught herding and given ownership in reindeer through a system 

 of progressive apprenticeship under instruction of the Lapps 

 brought over from northern Norway for the purpose. The reindeer 

 were originally imported for the Eskimo, and the policy of the 

 Government was to limit ownership as much as possible to the na- 

 tives, but an exception was made in the case of the Lapp herders 

 and of missions. Largely through recent purchases of herds from 



