138 
ORDERS OF MAMMALS— HOOFED ANIMALS 
Notwithstanding all the tall stories that are told 
of their numbers [the buffaloes], I cannot be- 
lieve that the herds on the prairie ever surpassed 
in size La joule of the Caribou.” 
Size and Antlers. — At present the size of the 
Barren Ground Caribou appears to be a matter 
of opinion rather than of observation and record. 
In the hope that some one will come forward 
and disprove it, I venture to make the asser- 
tion that no one ever has weighed a whole, full- 
grown male specimen. We have a few figures 
of “dressed” weight, and various “abouts,” but 
really useful facts are lacking. It is currently 
believed that the Barren Ground Caribou of 
northern Canada is about one-third lighter than 
the woodland species of Ontario and Quebec. 
If this be true, and we may judge by our own 
woodland bull, which unquestionably was a 
large one (48 inches high, weight, 261 pounds), 
then the male Barren Ground animal may be 
set down as weighing 174 pounds. For the 
Greenland caribou and Grant’s caribou, this 
weight surely is too low; for the skulls and skins 
of both those species indicate a greater weight. 
On the Alaska Peninsula Mr. C. H. Townsend 
weighed a dressed specimen of Rangifer granti 
and estimated very carefully the weight of the 
viscera, with the conclusion that the live weight 
of the animal was 410 pounds. 
For their body size, Barren Ground Caribou 
have very large antlers. They sweep back so 
far, rise so high and spread so widely that they 
have the effect of magnifying the height and 
bulk of the wearer. As will be seen by the fol- 
lowing measurements, the antlers of the Barren 
Ground species are longer than those of the 
woodland, but with fewer points, and in most 
cases less palmation. In the series of plates of all 
species published by Mr. Madison Grant in his 
valuable paper on “The Caribou” (Report of the 
New York Zoological Society, 1902), one of the 
most striking differences between the two groups 
is the tree-top appearance of all woodland ant- 
lers, and the open, arm-chair effect of the Barren 
Ground types. 
The Reindeer in Alaska. — In 1887 Mr. 
Charles H. Townsend advised the government 1 
that it would be a very beneficial and humane 
proceeding toward the Eskimo tribes of western 
Alaska to import a large number of domestic 
Reindeer from Siberia, and teach the natives 
how to care for and use them. Through the 
heroic efforts of Dr. Sheldon Jackson, General 
Agent of Education in Alaska, this advice was 
promptly followed under the auspices of the 
Bureau of Education; but the first fund of $2,000 
came from private sources, and was expended 
in 1892-3. The initial Congressional appropria- 
tion, of $6,000, was expended in 1894, but since 
1 The Cruise of the Corwin in 1885, p. 88. 
MEASUREMENTS OF LARGE ANTLERS. 
All measurements in inches. 
LENGTH 
OF MAIN 
WIDEST 
POINTS 
OWNER. 
Greenland Car- 
ibou . . . 
R. groenlandicus, 
W. Greenland, . . 
BEAM. 
52 
SPREAD. 
414 
21 
Author’s collection. 
Barren Ground 
Caribou . . 
R. arcticus, . . 
N. Labrador, . . 
60 
34 
18 
National Museum. 2 
Barren Ground 
Caribou . 
R. arcticus, . . 
Circle City, Alaska, 
54] 
36 
16 
G. R. Anchors. 
Grant’s Car- 
ibou . . . 
R. granti, . . . 
Alaska Peninsula, 
33] 
35] 
27 
American Museum. 2 
Newfoundland 
Caribou . . 
R. terraenovae, . 
Newfoundland, 
41 
36 
36 
Madison Grant. 
Woodland Car- 
ibou . . . 
R. caribou, . . 
Northern Canada, 
35] 
21 
30 
Robert Gilfort. 
Mountain Car- 
ibou . . . 
R. montanus, 
S. Brit. Columbia, 
35 
21 
31 
Osborn’s Car- 
ibou . . . 
R. osborni, . . 
N. Brit. Columbia, 
444 
38] 
43 
Daniel Carter Beard. 
Kenai Caribou. 
R. stonei, . . . 
Kenai Peninsula, 
45] 
34] 
56 
Harry E. Lee. 
2 From “ The Caribou,” by Madison Grant. Report of 
the New York Zoological Society, 1902. 
