. Alaska and the Klondike. owever, a verynourishing plant, and upon this wild caribou feed in win-ter, the summer forage of the caribou as well as of thereindeer consisting of the green growth of grass andshrubs. The imported reindeer, coming to conditions similar tothose from which they had been brought, throve and mul-tiplied, demonstrating the practicability of stocking theplains and hills of Alaska with herds of this exceedinglyuseful animal. The Government in 1894, satisfied withthe results accomplished, made an appropriation of $6,000for the further development of the reindeer
. Alaska and the Klondike. owever, a verynourishing plant, and upon this wild caribou feed in win-ter, the summer forage of the caribou as well as of thereindeer consisting of the green growth of grass andshrubs. The imported reindeer, coming to conditions similar tothose from which they had been brought, throve and mul-tiplied, demonstrating the practicability of stocking theplains and hills of Alaska with herds of this exceedinglyuseful animal. The Government in 1894, satisfied withthe results accomplished, made an appropriation of $6,000for the further development of the reindeer have been made annually ever since andin increasing amounts, until now they amount to $25,000,and the reindeer herds, which began 13 years ago withthe first lot of 16, have increased to over 7,000. Theseanimals are distributed in herds of various sizes fromPoint Barrow, the most northern habitation of the whiteman on the Arctic Ocean, to Bethel Mission, a thousandmiles south at the mouth of the Kuskokwim. ^tr. vskT^ 320 AO^K^ND THE KLONDIKE Of course, the Alaskan Eskimo, having never keptdomesticated reincleer, had to be taught how to care forthen-^ For this pul^k^he Government imported a num-ber of Laplanders and Finns, and also brought over fora short time several Siberians. As a rule reindeer stationshave been established by the Government in connectionwith some church mission, for the existence of the missionimplies the presence of an Eskimo village and a numberof young Eskimo men from whom may be selected thosebest qualified for this work. The Eskimo serves an ap-prenticeship of five years as a herder in connection withsome mission station, his wages consisting mainly of acertain number of deer set apart for him each year, sothat at the end of his apprenticeship he may start in thereindeer business on his own account. The object of theGovernment in introducing this industry being to benefitthe Eskimo and not the white man, it has forbidden thesale of female r
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidalaskak, booksubjectalaska
