184f 
REIN DEER . 
near the pole ; neither the coldness of the winter, 
nor the length of the nights ; neither the wildness 
of the forests, nor the vagrant disposition of the 
herd, interrupt the even tenor of the Laplander’s 
life. By night and day he is seen attending- his 
favourite cattle, and remains unaffected, in a 'season 
which would be speedy death to those bred up in 
a milder climate. He gives himself no uneasiness 
to house his herds, or to; provide a winter subsis- 
tence for them ; he is at the trouble neither of 
manuring his grounds nor bringing in his harvest ; 
he is not the hireling of another’s luxury; all his 
labours are to bbviate the necessities of his own 
situation ; and these he undergoes with cheerful- 
ness, as he is sure to enjoy the fruits of his own 
industry. If, therefore, we compare the Laplan- 
der with the peasant of more southern climates, 
we shall have little reason to pity his situation ; 
the climate in which he lives is rather terrible to 
us than to him ; and as for the rest, he is blessed 
with liberty, plenty, and ease. The rein deer alone 
supplies him with all the wants of life, and some 
of the conveniences ; serving to show how many 
advantages nature is capable of supplying, when 
necessity gives the call. Thus the poor little 
helpless native,, who was originally, perhaps, driven 
by fear or famine into those inhospitable climates, 
would seem, at first .view, to Jbe the most wretch- 
ed of mankind ; but it is far otherwise ; he looks 
round among ihe few wild animals that his barren 
country can maintain, and singles out one from 
among them, and that of a kind which the rest of 
mankind have not thought worth taking from a 
state of nature ; this he cultivates, propagates, 
and multiplies ; and from this alone derives every 
comfort that can soften the severity of his situa- 
tion. 
The rein deer of this country are of two kinds. 
