254 
LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. 
the expedition to shoot at with their eyes bandaged. 
Fortunate is she whose arrow pierces the trophy,—not 
only does it become her prize, but in the eyes of the 
whole settlement, her husband is looked upon thence¬ 
forth as the most fortunate of men. As long as the 
chase is going on, the women are not allowed to stir 
abroad; but as soon as the party have safely brought 
home their booty, the whole female population issues 
from the tents, and having deliberately chewed some 
bark of a species of alder, they spit the red juice into 
their husbands’ faces, typifying thereby the bear’s blood 
which has been shed in the honourable encounter. 
Although the forest, the rivers, and the sea supply 
them in a great measure with their food, it is upon the 
reindeer that the Laplander is dependant for every other 
comfort in life. The reindeer is his estate, his horse, his 
cow, his companion, and his friend. He has twenty- 
two different names for him. His coat, trousers, and 
shoes, are made of reindeer’s skin, stitched with thread 
manufactured from the nerves and sinews of the rein¬ 
deer. Reindeer milk is the most important item in 
his diet. Out of reindeer horns are made almost all 
the utensils used in his domestic economy; and it is 
