The Washington times., 1901-10-13
REINDEER MAIL CARRIERS.
Hardy Animals Doing POstofiice
Work in SnOw-BOund Alaska.
Vastly Superior to Dogs for Travel
ing Purposes-ImpOrted in Large
Herds From Siberia-Some Start
lin. Instances of Great Endurance.

Since the discovery and exploitation
| of the gold mines in the far north
west of the Continent has scattered
| ar the interior of Alaska small and
fer divided settlements of American
citizens the problem of the Govern
ment has been to establish and pre-
! serve lines of communication. 1t has
/ been principle of the Postofi1ce De
Dartment that wherever there is an
American settlement on American soil
there shall be a mail Sc vice.
PIT the carrying out of this principle
was 5eset with astounding difficulties
in country where for half of the year
! all trails are blotted out of existence
by ten feet of snow Horses are abso-
lutely useless under such circun-
| stances. Dog teams were tried with
| only partial success. Sometimes they
reached their destination with the precl-
| Gus mail bags safely, and on time.
More often they were days, or even
weeks, late Sometimes they didn't
come at all The Government cast
about for a substitute for the dog, and
hit upon the reindeer.
At first the idea was hailed with de-
rision by the Klondikers. Reindeer
couldn't do the work, they declared.
The animals couldn't get through the
unstable Alaskan snowdrifts. They
would fall an easy prey to wolves and
mountain lions. They would kill them
selves with the dried poison grass that
grows along the mountain passes No
white man could manage them. They
would balk, they would kick, they
would tire out, lie down and die, and SO
on, to limitless eXtents of criticism.
All Of which was based on the rather
unsatisfactory results of an importa-
ton or reindeer several years before.
Having once become interested in
project the Government is not easily
discouraged by criticism. A test was
determined upon and the outcome es-
tablished the pre-eminence of the rein
deer for Arctic mail delivery
A reindeer team with a Lapp driver
was selected to carry one of the mail
bags over the Nome route, and to re-
turn with the outgoing mail, the round
trip being about 500 miles. Two days
before the reindeer started three we'll
equipped dog teams started. The route
lay through a country without road or
trail, and the conditions We're as harsh
as heavy snowfalls could make them
Early on the fifth day out the reindeer
team caught up with the slower of the
dog outfits in a stretch of soft, drifted
snow. In this the dogs had been be-
mired, and their desperate fiounderings
had so wearied them that they were
making but little progress The power
ful reindeer plowed through the drifts
with little difficulty. That afternoon
they passed the second dog team. The
Lapp brought his mail into the ter
minus, rested his deer thirty hours,
started on the return trip, and fifty
miles out met the foremost of his com
petitOrs. Even more remarkable was a
mail trip of 1.240 miles through a track
less wilderness made by reindeer, the
teams making as high as 10 miles
day under the most favorable condi-
tions. Now that the value of these
animals has been fully established the
United States has entered upon a new
and curious field of industry and has
become an importer and breeder of
stock and viii bring in the next few
years thousands of reindeer into its
Northernward possession. There are
now in Alaska eight herds comprising
about $500 head. BY January this
number will be increased, through i'm
portation, to more than 5000 head
Getting possession of these draught |
horses of the northland is by no means
an easy matter. In the rst place,
money will not buy them. 1t will not
buy anything in that part of Siberia !
where the best reindeer are found, for
the simple reason that the Siberian is
too practical minded to care anything
about money. That hard, cold bit of |
rounded metal, or the fiimsy green pa
per that represents so much TO civilized |
man means nothing TO him. For what |
he gives up he wants a return in OBJ
viously utile form; so barter Is the only |
method of getting his reindeer from |
him, and bolts of cloth, knives, canned |
foods and various utensils must be |
shipped up there as medium of ex-
change. Even then he parts reluctant |
ly with his domestic animal. To the |
Siberian the reindeer is friend, mich |
cow and railroad all in one, when alive; |
and hundred other thi,.gs when dead. |
There was a general expression that |
the beast would not survive a sea voy- |
age, but the first experiment showed |
that they throve on IT. and large ex- |
portations from Siberia followed.
At first the whites in Alaska were not !
successful in handling the animals. |
They are scarcely comprehensive by |
the Caucasian. The reindeer is easily |
frightened and easily offended, and it |
is impossible to tell how he win behave |
in either case Sometimes he will rush |
at the offending person and strike him |
down with his sharp powerful fore |
hooYes, or endeavor to rip him open
with quick descent Of his formidable |
antlers. Again he will balk, sulk, and |
even pine away. Between the Siberian |
and the reindeer there exists a sort of |
affinity; the animal will obey his ac-
customed master when white skinned !
man can do nothing with him. So a |
number of herders were brought over |
from Siberia and young Alaskan Es-
kimos put under them to learn the |
business. The Alaskan natives have /
taken the greatest interest in the in
PRODUCTION of the reindeer.
Even more expert than the Siberians |
in the care and training OF reindeer are
the natives Of LapIand. Accordingly a |
score of full-blooded Lapps have been
induced by liberal offers to immigrate
TO Alaska, where they form little col