REIN DEER. 
181 
enter., from their numbers and minuteness, into the 
nostrils and the eyes, and do not leave the sufferer 
a moment at his ease. But they are chiefly enemies 
to the rein-deer ; the horns of that animal being 
then in their tender state, and possessed of extreme, 
sensibility ; a famished cloud of insects' instantly 
settle upon them, and drive the poor animal almost 
to. distraction. In this extremity, there are but 
two remedies to which the quadruped, as well as 
its master, are obliged to have recourse. The one 
is, for both to take shelter near their cottage, 
where a large fire of tree-moss, is prepared, which 
filling the whole place with smoke, keeps off the 
gnat, and thus, by one inconvenience, expels a 
greater ; the other is, to ascend to the highest sum- 
mit of the mountains, where the air is too thin, 
and the weather too- cold, for the gnats to come. 
There the rein deer are seen to continue the whole 
day, although without food, rather than to ven- 
ture down to the lower parts, where they can 
have no defence against their unceasing persecu- 
tors. 
Besides the gnat, there is also a gadfly, that, 
during the summer season, is no less formidable 
to them. This insect is bred under their skins, 
where the egg has been deposited the preceding 
summer ; and it is no sooner produced as a fly, 
than it again endeavours to deposit its eggs in some 
place similar to that from whence it came. When- 
ever, therefore, it appears flying over a herd of 
rein-deer, it puts the whole body, how numerous 
soever, into motion ; they know their enemy, and 
do all they can, by tossing their horns, and r mi- 
ning among each other, to terrify or avoid it. All 
their endeavours, however, are too generally with- 
out effect ; the gadfly is seen to deposit its eggs, 
which, burrowing under the skin, wound it in seve- 
ral places, and often bring on an incurable dis- 
