LAPLAND. 



791 



islandicus) , reindeer moss, cudbear (L. tartareus), collected for the dyers, the crowfoot 

 (ranunculus)^ saxifrages, cranberry (empetrum), ling, winter-green, &c. are among the last 

 remnants of expiring vegetation. The root of the calla palustris, a plant of a poisonous 

 family, affords the Laplanders a kind of substitute for bread, called Missenbrod, or bread of 

 famine. 



6. Minerals. Lapland abounds in metals and minerals. Native gold has been found at 

 Svappawara ; copper, iron, lead, zinc, and plumbago are found in various parts. Limestone, 

 marble, gypsum, rock-crystal, jasper, amethysts, and garnets, are also among the mineral pro- 

 ductions of this country. 



7. Animals. The reindeer is the most useful animal to the Laplander, and seems to have 

 been provided by nature to recompense him for the want of the other comforts of life. In 

 summer it provides itself with leaves and grass, and in winter hves upon moss ; and its milk 

 and flesh afford excellent nutriment, while its skin forms the chief clothing of its master. Its 

 speed is scarcely credible ; for it can run 200 miles in a day. In a kind of sledge, shaped 

 like a small boat, and with the reins fastened to the horns of the deer, the traveler may journey 

 with ease almost any distance. Besides this animal, bears, wolves, lynxes, and beavers are 

 often met with in Lapland. Innumerable insects are produced in summer ; and the inhabitants 

 are infested with mosquitoes to an intolerable degree. 



S. Agriculture. Except in a few sheltered valleys, and on the banks of the rivers in the 

 southern districts, there is little cultivation. The grain which grows best, and is chiefly sown, 

 is barley, or rather bigg ; and oats are raised in small quantities. The tobacco plant flourishes 

 well. 



9. Commerce. The Laplanders carry on some trade in the skins and furs of quadrupeds ; 

 such as ermines, sables, squirrels, foxes, bears, lynxes, and wolves, which they transport from 



Tracclmg hi Lnplanil. I'railing Comjniiiij of Laplanders. 



the interior to the coast by means of theii' reindeer. In return, they receive meal, cloth, 

 various utensils, spirituous liquors, 8lc. As the furs are of extreme fineness, they bear a high 

 price. 



10. Population. Lapland is very thinly peopled. The whole population probably does 

 not exceed 60,000. 



11. Inliabitcmts. The Laplanders are generally short in stature, and they have sharp chins 

 and prominent cheek bones. They difler from the Fins in having dark hair, though the com- 

 plexions are frequently light. They have a tolerable share of strength, with great suppleness 

 and agility, and they endure much hardship with patience. 



12. Dress. The materials are generally the skins of animals ; though the Laplanders who 

 have permanent habitations, wear in summer, woolen stuffs, and shirts, which the wandering 

 inhabitants have not. The men wear a conical cap, and in hunting, a hood, covering the 

 breast and shoulders, and with only a small opening for the eyes. They rarely wear any cov- 

 ering round their necks, which are exposed in the severest weather, or defended only by a 

 piece of narrow cloth, going once round. They wear a tunic, or short coat of sheep-skin. 



