The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-10-28
REINDEER MAIL CARRIERS.
THEIR VALUE PROYED BY TESTS
 MADE IN ALASKA,

tho Snow Between Reindeer and Do
 Tcams-Frlendship Between Thes
 Animals and sibcrians-America,
 Efforts to Introduce tho Reindee
 Into Alaska.
 When reindeer were first propose,
 Tor use in the mail service in flask;
 the idea was ridiculed. Since then ex
 periments have demonstrated the ami
 maPs value for this purpose. The frs
 test showed it's superIority over dos
 teams for travelling through the snow
 A reindeer team with a Lapp drivel
 was selected to carry one of the mai
 bags over the Nome route, and to re
 turn with the outgoing mail, the round
 trip being about five hundred miles
 Two days before the reindeer start et
 three well-equipped dog teams set out
 The route lay through a country with
 put road or trail and the conditions
 were as bad as heavy snow falls coulc
 make them.
 Early on the fifth day out the rein
 deer team caught up with the slowest
 of the dog outfits, in stretch of soft
 drifted snow. Tn this the dogs had
 been stalled, and their desperate floun-
 derings had so wearied them that they were making little progress. The rein
 deer ploughed through the drifts with
 little difficulty. That afternoon they passed the second dog team.
 The Lapp brought his mail to it's des- tination, 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 mail trip of 1,240 miles through a trackless wilderness made by reindeer, the teams making as much as one hun dred and ten miles day under favora- ble conditions.
 Now that the value of these animals has been fully established the United States have become an importer and breeder of stock and will bring in the next few years thousands of reindeer into their northernward possession. There are now in Alaska eight herds comprising about thirty-fve hundred head By January this number will be increased, through importation, to more than five thousand.
 At first the whites in Alaska were not successful in handling the animals. They are scarcely comprehensible by the Caucasian. The reindeer is easily frightened and easily offended, and it is impossible to tell how he will behave in either case Sometimes he will rush at the offending person and strike him bfc -l, orf, ,tJ hoofs or endeavor to rip him open with a quick descent of his formidable ant lers Again he will balk sulk and even pine away.
 { Between the Siberian and the rein deer there exists sort of affinity; the animal will obey his accustomed mas ter when a white-skinned man can do nothing with him. So number of herders were brought over from Siberia and young Alaskan Fsquimaux~ put under them to learn the business. The Alaskan natives have taken the great est interest in the introduction of the reindeer and on many occasions dele gations have travelled from three to four hundred miles to inspect herd, which Is looked upon as opening new ctCiluC UL WCdllil lOI llltHl.
 For time it was feared that the Alaskan dogs, unless checked, would manifest a disposition to scatter and destroy the reindeer herds, but the herders were armed and had strict or ders to fire upon any dog interfering with herd, and after number of dogs had been shot this source of annoyance disappeared al most altogether A few reindeer are killed each year by wolves.
 Even more expert than the Siberians n the care and training of reindeer are the natives of Lapland. Accordingly @ score of full-booded Lapps have been induced by liberal offers to emigrate to Alaska, where they form a little colo 1 ny. With them have come a number of | heir dogs, remarkably intelligent anil nals, that not only herd and guard the | 'eindeer, but also assist in training and | breaking them to harness. The dogs | ire very courageous and will fight | wolves, mountain lions or any other oeast of prey that may attack the herd i
 Any of the Lapps may, upon appli- ,ation to the government, have the oan of one hundred head of reindeer or period of from three to five years, tt the end of which time the borrower eturns the one hundred head of deer 0 the government, retaining the in rease as his private property. Nearly very one of the Lapps has fastened o take advantage of this offer. The government has given, lent or sold erds of reindeer to mission stations all yer Alaska.
 The reindeer has also been introduced $ pack animal. One of the pioneers n this movement was Hank Summers, vho for nearly a score of years has cen a miner and prospector in Alaska. his veteran some months ago pro- ured reindeer from one of the mis- lon stations and upon this deer he acked his tent blankets provision and ,ols for the summers prospecting. .fter brief experience with his new ssistant he declared that he would ever again bother with dog teams. 4 The breaking of a reindeer is only lightly less exciting than the same peration in the case of bronco on le western plains. When the deer is ssoed, the loop being thrown over the ntlers. he often becomes infuriated, nd, rising upon his hind legs, strikes { if viciously with his forefeet. It is ,an in order for the man to beat