i 86 
GENERAL REMARKS 
vary his diet, the Laplander fometimes fmokes his venifon. To 
do this, they have only to make pretty deep incifions in the pieces 
that fmoke may enter the meat, and to hang the joints on the top 
of the tent, where it is foon cured. 
Venifon is the chief food of the inhabitants of the mountains ; 
but thofe on the fea coaft have beef and mutton, and both eat the 
flefh of bears, wolves, foxes, otters, feals, and in fhort of all ani¬ 
mals but fwine ; pork being to a Laplander an abomination. 
The Laplanders who are employed in catching falmon, live 
upon that fifh fplit and dried. Dried fifh is eaten by them with¬ 
out any preparatory cooking; but before they put it into their 
mouth, they dip each piece in train oil. Fifh with this kind 
of fiuce is given to children at the bread:; and to prepare it for 
their tender mouths, the mother firfl puts it into her own, and 
maflicates it before fhe prefents it to the infant: thus they are ac- 
cuftomed to the luxury of train oil from their birth, for fuch 
every Laplander efleems it, and confiders its flavour as far fuperior 
to that of butter. But it is not true, as has been afferted, that 
they take off a pint of train oil at a meal, or that women in la¬ 
bour fwallow a quantity of it in order to eafe their pains. 
When their flock of dried fifh is reduced, they collect the 
heads and bones of fifh which have any thing on them, and thefe, 
when roafted before the fire, are put into a kettle with flices of 
the blubber of feal, the bones having been previoufly inferted in 
the belly of the feal, where they remain fome little time, that 
they may be impregnated with the oil. Thefe ingredients are 
fuffered 
