THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
203 
Lever. The body is about four feet and a half long, and a 1779. 
foot wide, made in the form of a crefcent, of light tough 
wood, ftrongly bound together with wicker-work; which, in 
thofe belonging to the better fort of people, is elegantly ftain- 
ed of a red and blue colour, and the feat covered with bear-, 
Ikins, or other furs. It is fupported by four legs, about two 
feet high, which reft on two long flat pieces of wood, five or 
fix inches broad, extending a foot at each end beyond the 
body of the fledge. Thefe are turned up before in the man¬ 
ner of a fkate, and fhod with the bone of fome fea-animal. 
The fore-part of the carriage is ornamented with thongs of 
leather and taflels of coloured cloth; and from the crofs- 
bar, to which the harnefs is joined, are hung links of iron, 
or fmall bells, the jingling of which they conceive to be en¬ 
couraging to the dogs. They are feldom ufed to carry more 
than one perfon at a time, who fits afide, refting his feet on 
the lower part of the fledge, and carrying his provifions and 
other neceflaries, wrapped up in a bundle, behind him. The 
dogs are ufually five in number, yoked two and two, with 
a leader. The reins, not being faftened to the head of the 
dogs, but to the collar, have little power over them, and are 
therefore generally hung upon the fledge, whilft the driver 
depends entirely on their obedience to his voice for the 
direction of them. With this view, the leader is always 
trained up wifh a particular degree of care and attention ; 
fome of them riling to a moft extraordinary value on account 
of their docility and fteadinefs ; infomuch, that for one of 
thefe, I am well allured, forty roubles (or ten pounds) was no 
unufual price. The driver is alfo provided with a crooked 
flick, which anfwers the purpofe both of whip and reins; 
as by ftriking it into the fnow, he is enabled to moderate the 
fpeed of the dogs, or even to flop them entirely ; and when 
D d 2 they 
