mmediately translated.

"Long Isaac says," he shouted, "that the deer will go well enough, if
you knew how to drive him." "Long Isaac may go to the devil!" was, I am
sorry to say, my profane reply, which Anton at once translated to him.

Seating myself in the pulk again, I gave the deer the rein, and for a
time kept him to the top of his speed, following the Lapp, who drove
rapidly down the windings of the stream. It was quite dark, but our road
was now somewhat broken, and for three hours our caravan swiftly and
silently sped on its way. Then, some scattered lights appeared in the
distance; our tired deers leaped forward with fresher spirit, and soon
brought us to the low wooden huts of Kautokeino. We had travelled
upwards of sixty miles since leaving Lippajarvi, breaking our own road
through deep snow for a great part of the way. During this time our
deers had not been changed. I cannot but respect the provoking animals
after such a feat.

CHAPTER XI.

KAUTOKEINO.--A DAY WITHOUT A SUN.

While in Dresden, my friend Ziegler had transferred to me a letter of
introduction from Herr Berger, a merchant of Hammerfest, to his
housekeeper in Kautokeino. Such a transfer might be considered a great
stretch of etiquette in those enlightened regions of the world where
hospitality requires certificates of character; but, in a benighted
country like Lapland, there was no danger of very fine distinctions
being drawn, and Ziegler judged that the house which was to have been
placed at his disposal had he made the journey, would as readily open
its doors to me. At Muoniovara, I learned that Berger himself was now in
Kautokeino, so that I needed only to present him with his own letter. We
arrived so late, however, that I directed Long Isaac to take us to the
inn until morning. He seemed reluctant to do this, and I could not
fathom the reason of his hesitation, until I had entered the hovel to
which we were conducted. A single room, filled with smoke from a fire of
damp birch sticks, was crammed with Lapps of all sizes, and of both
sexes. There was scarcely room to spread a deerskin on the floor while
the smell exhaled from their greasy garments and their unwashed bodies
was absolutely stifling. I have travelled too much to be particularly
nice in my choice of lodgings, but in this instance I instantly
retreated, determined to lie on the snow, under my overturned pulk,
rather than pass the night among such bed-fellows.

We