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al4 ACCOUNT OF DANISH LAPLAND BY LEEMS.
tumn, when the rein-deer meet for the purpofe of procreation, the Laplander goes with
fome of his rein-deer, tamed for that intent, where he knows that the wild ones meet,
and there faftening fome to trees with halters, fuffering others to {tray at large, he places
himfelf in ambufh. The wild rein-deer fcenting the females, inftantly flies to them,
but falls a prey to the Laplander lying in wait forhim. It happens fometimes that two
at once come: thefe fharply contending for the female, rufh in on each other with their
horns, with commonly no other termination of their conteft, than that each of the com-
petitors fhould fall under the arms of the Laplander.
The Laplander, when hunting the wild rein-deer, in winter, clofely follows the traces
of the ftraying animal until he comes up in view of her: on feeing her, he faftens the
rein-deer of his edge to the next tree, inftantly on foot to purfue. In fome parts of
Lapland wild rein-deer are taken in the following manner: the fnows being collected
in fuch heaps that the rein-deer cannot get over them, and the outfide of thefe heaps fo
incru{ted with ice, as to break under the tread of one of them, but yet able to bear the
weight of a man with wooden fhoes, the Laplander, furnifhed with fuch fhoes, goes out
to hunt the rein-deer, who while running over the fnow lightly incrufted, and difap-
pointing his fteps, gets entangled. In this ftate he cannot efcape the hunter, coming
fwiftly in his wooden fhoes upon him by his accuftomed celerity, but transfixed
with the hunting fpear, becomes his prey. The taking of the rein-deer is effected in
other places by the following method: in places where the faid beafts ufually range, a
certain opening, like a gate, is made, in which a loop is hung, made of the thicker fibres
taken from the finewy parts of the rein-deer; this the animal, ftraying without caution,
and fearing nothing, enters by chance, and inftantly falls into the {nare. In certain
tracts of Lapland the rein-deer were taken wild formerly in this manner: a very high
inclofure was erected from a piling of a great deal of wood, two greater arms or horns
alternately projecting themfelves, io that a great fpace fhould be open between the ex-
tremities of each arm, but behind fo gradually coming together, as to terminate in a
narrow aperture, in the appearance of a narrow gate. When this inclofure was ready,
the hunting, when an opportunity offered, was propofed, and in this very manner: the
wild rein-deer were compelled into the inclofure by a fpace, lying open between the two
arms that were feparated, who the farther they went in by flight, the nearer were they
to the inward extremities of the faid inclofure, where thele feparated arms again united
in the form of a narrow gate, from whence they neither would nor could eafily get
back, left prefied from behind they fhould fall among the hunters. A way out through
the faid narrow opening was therefore to be fought by them in this miferable plight,
which when found with difficulty, a ftooping hill foon prefented itfelf, along which they
ran in a precipitate manner, when a new inclofure again prefented itfelf, which feeing
they could not get over, nor, by reafon of the fteepnefs of the hill, pafs without difk-
culty, were forced to furrender. This mode of catching rein-deer was formerly in ufe
among the Varangriens, who even from that kind of chace are held to pay a tribute
of nine rein-deers, or in dcfe& of rein-deer, as many fox fkins, to the King’s governor
of the caftle of Wardhus. It was ufual alfo among the Laplanders formerly, that they
fhould drive the rein-deer they propofed to take into the next nearelt lake, having placed
men on the farther bank to attack them when fwimming over. It is related by fome
one, that the women of Lapland are not lefs addicted to hunting than the men ; this I
never obferved, and never even heard a word of. :
There are no deer nor elks in Finmark. That an elk, as a certain writer iays down,
much yields to the rein-deer in fize is very falfe; for it is fufficient!y well known that
one elk, of juft fize, at leaft equals three full grown rein-deer, and thofe the largelt of
their kind, in the bulk of the body.
Hares
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