WE ENCOUNTER MORE WOLVES.--MY GUIDE KILLS TWO WITH HIS BLUDGEON.--A
VISITING TRIP WITH A LAPP FAMILY.--EXTRAORDINARY SPEED OF
REINDEER.--WE STRIKE A BOULDER.--LAKE GIVIJAeRVI.--EASTWARD AGAIN.
Now I kept a sharp lookout over the horizon as we drove along, for I
thought wolves might make their appearance again at any moment. My Lapp
guide was also apprehensive.
When we stopped for our meals he said to me, "If our reindeer scent or
see wolves, they will become uncontrollable. It will be impossible for
us to stop them, and if we try to keep in our sleighs we shall be surely
upset, for the animals will be so wild from fright. We had better have
our skees handy, so that we can throw them out of our sleighs and then
jump out ourselves."
Then, brandishing his bludgeon, he said fiercely, "I will make short
work of some of them. They will never run after any more reindeer."
I brandished my gun, and cried, "Woe to the wolves if they come near us.
I will give them enough buckshot to make them jump."
We continued our journey, the Lapp keeping close to me. Suddenly he
stopped and said, "Paulus, I am going to tie your sleigh behind mine
and fasten your reindeer to it. I do not know why, but I have an idea,
somehow, that there are wolves around, and I expect to see them at any
moment. At any rate it is better to be prepared for them."
After my sleigh was attached as he had said, we resumed our journey, I,
quietly seated in my sleigh, having no reindeer to drive, only using my
stick as a rudder. About two hours afterwards as we skirted a forest of
fir trees we suddenly saw two wolves skulking in the distance.
Fortunately we discovered them before the reindeer did. We threw out our
skees, and then the Lapp with his bludgeon and I with my gun jumped out.
We were hardly out when our reindeer scented the wolves and plunged
wildly in their efforts to escape, and we had to let them go, for we
could not hold them.
The Lapp in an instant was on his skees armed with his bludgeon. He made
directly for the wolves at tremendous speed. He seemed to fly over the
snow, and before I knew it he had slain a wolf by giving him a mighty
blow on his skull. Then like a bird of prey he made for the other wolf.
The animal stood still, ready to bite him, but the Lapp passed by him
like a flash and gave him a terrible blow on his mouth which broke his
teeth. Then after he had stopped the speed of his skees, he turned back
and gave him his deathblow.
After he had taken breath, he said to me, "Paulus, wait here, for you
cannot 'skee' fast enough. I must go after our runaway reindeer and our
sleighs," and off he went. He followed the tracks they had left behind
them.
I waited one hour, two hours,--I thought he would never come back.
Finally I saw a little black speck over the snow. It was my Lapp, and
soon he was by my side with reindeer and sleighs.
In the afternoon we came to a tent, where we were kindly received, and
there we slept. The next morning the owner of the tent said to me, "The
snow is very fine for sleighing, for it is crisp and well packed. The
weather is cold and travelling with reindeer could not be better, for
the animals will feel fine. Some of my people and I want to go and visit
my brother and his family. Will you come with us?"
"Yes," I replied, "I shall be very glad to go with you."
A short time after this five reindeer made their appearance; they were
all males, and splendid animals,--Samoyeds, the finest and largest I had
thus far seen. Their antlers were superb.
"These reindeer," said their owner, "are the fastest I have, and are in
their prime for driving, for they are between six and eight years old,
the age when they are the strongest. They have not been used for two
weeks, so they feel very frisky; and it being so cold they will run at a
rate that will perhaps scare you, and I am sure they will go as fast as
they ever did. No reindeer that I know of can keep pace with them. I
have taken great care in training them."
I was delighted at the thought of travelling with such fast animals, and
I replied, "I am sure I shall enjoy the drive."
Then everybody got ready for the start. My host, pointing to one of the
biggest reindeer, said to me, "This one will be yours, and you will
follow me."
We were hardly ready when the reindeer started at a furious rate and in
the wildest way. The Lapps held their reins as hard as they could and
threw themselves across their sleighs and were carried in that way for a
little distance. It was a most ludicrous sight, the like of which I had
never seen! But they all succeeded in getting in--they were masters of
the situation.
How they succeeded in getting in I could not tell, it was certainly a
great feat of gymnastics. My reindeer had started with the rest and was
ahead of them all, but soon the Lapps overtook me.
We went on at a tremendous rate. These were indeed the fastest reindeer
I had ever travelled with. It was a good thing that I had learned how to
balance myself in those little Lapp sleighs. I did not mind any more
their swinging to and fro. I rather liked the excitement. And it was
exciting enough! We went so fast that things appeared and disappeared
almost before I had time to look at them.
We sped with such rapidity that I fancied I was travelling on the
Pennsylvania railroad, as I often had done on the Limited to Chicago on
the way to see my Scandinavian friends and others. I was thinking of
that splendid train with its luxurious cars--of the observation cars
with their comfortable chairs, sofas, library; of the bath room,
stenographer, and barber, and polite employees, and all the comforts
travellers had. Suddenly I thought of its fine dining-room cars, and as
I was hungry I imagined I was seated before one of its tables, with
snowy-white linen, and enjoying a glorious meal,--oysters, capon, roast
beef, vegetables of several kinds, and puddings and fruits; the ice
cream I dismissed, for I did not feel like having any, it was so cold.
Then I thought of its comfortable beds--when suddenly a tremendous
bumping, which almost threw me out, reminded me that I was not on that
luxurious train. I had struck a snag or boulder. This made it clear at
once that I was dreaming and was not on the Chicago Limited, but that I
was travelling in "The Land of the Long Night."
The air was so rarefied, the drive so exciting, that I shouted with all
my might, "Go on, reindeer, go on. This is fine, I never had such a
drive in my life."
After two hours, and a drive of nearly fifty miles, we alighted before a
Lapp tent. The dogs, and there were many, announced our arrival by
fierce barking, and the inmates of the tent came out to see who the
strangers were. They recognized my friends and received them with
demonstrations of joy, which was the more remarkable as the Lapps are
far from being demonstrative.
The next day in the afternoon we returned to our tent, the reindeer as
frisky as the day before and running as fast. I have never forgotten
those two glorious rides, and I shall remember them as long as I live.
Bidding my Lapp friends good-bye I came one day to Lake Givijaervi and
further on to Lake Aitijaervi. There I saw a lonely farm with a
comfortable dwelling-house of logs. How pleasant this habitation seemed
in that snow land. The smoke curling over the chimney told that there
were people there, and soon after we were in front of the house, and I
entered a large room, and saw a man with long black shaggy hair tinged
with grey. His name was Adam Triump. Then a woman, his wife, came in,
also with loose shaggy black hair falling over her shoulders. My guide
and I were made welcome.
From there I travelled once more eastward, driving over the Ivalajoki,
which falls into the Enarejaervi. If I had been travelling alone I should
certainly have perished, for I did not know where to find the people of
the thinly inhabited country.