The Seward gateway and the Alaska evening post., 1917-10-08
REINDEER MEAT
 TO AID MARKET
 SAYS TACOMAN
Alaska Herds are Pointing that Way Reindeer are Easily Raised and Meat is Most
 Valuable

TACOMA, Oct. 1, (By MaiD.- Alaska reindeer meat will become a
 more productive source of our nation
 al meat supply to make up for the
 reduction in domestic livestock. This ls the opinion of c. O. Sutherland, who has just returned to Tacoma after spending two years in that Territory, where he was engaged in contracting and mining. lIr. Sutherland plans to return to Alaska in November.
 Cattle as a source of food are dis appearing from the face of the Amer ican continent" says Mr. Sutherland "The supply now does not equal the 1 demand. The tremendous increase in population during the last % years has forced the cattle ranges of the west under cultivation for production of . the cereals. The great cattle ranges ot twenty years ago are becoming only memory. With the sheep and cattle supply rapidly decreasing from year to year the American people are facing vegetarianism unless new source of meat supply can be found and deveI- oped in the near future.
 Reindeer and the great moss cov- cred plains of Alaska are the only hope of supplying this long-felt want, and it would seem that the necessity of the human race is to bring to light another unsuspected source of wealth in Alaska. The reindeer is valuable. not only for food but as a beast of burden and his skin is valuable for a great many purposes. He lives onI 
 grass in the summer and moss in the winter and the only shelter he needs is his own thick coat of hair. He re- Quires no artificial shelter in the win ter time and no prepared food. He is easily handled and herded, and two experienced men can handle from l,- 500 to 2,OOO deer. The experience of l the United States government has proved beyond all question of a doubt that he is the coming meat food of not only the the people of Alaska but of the United States as we'll Beginning in the year 1892 and ending in the year 1902 the government imported into Alaska I,2SO deer Growing from this small number the herds of Alaska have increased until at the present time there are over 100000 deer in Alaska.
 Tt is estimated that GO,OOO deer have been slaughtered for food for the natives, for clothing and for other purposes. Thus it will be seen that the original number of l,20O deer has increased until today if none had been slaughtered there would be nearly 100000 reindeer in Alaska. Reindeer meat is considered by many to be su- perior in taste and flavor to the noun tain sheep, which is considered the fin est meat of all game animals in Alas ka.
 Reindeer as an investment is notI a get-rich-quick scheme, but it is safe as any investment can possibly be, and still it will yield a large profit on the money invested.
 "At the close of the fiscal year 1915 the government had invested $8O7OOO' in Alaska reindeer and the returns from the investment, calculated up to the same time, show a total value and income of S2,248,OOO, showing a gain on the investment of 621 per cent. Now when you consider the enormous expense of the government in import ing the deer from Lapland to Alaska and compare it to the present time when the deer can be bought for from S2O to S36 per head it can readily be seen that the returns of the invest ment are large. Reindeer are ready for the market at the age of two and a half years and will dress from 19O to 1SO hounds. The meat is selling in