Page:St. Nicholas, vol. 40.1 (1912-1913).djvu/108

76 anchors; of hooks that may be single or double; of a long axle with a wheel-like body on one or both ends; of a long, tapering rod with a knob at one end roughened by projecting spikes, and various other graceful and beautiful shapes. In the Venus flower-basket these spicules are scattered throughout the sponge walls, and often are welded together or so interlaced as to form a very beautiful network. The specimen from which the accompanying illustrations were made, is about a foot in length; not quite all of one is shown in the illustration.

herding and breeding of domesticated reindeer, introduced as an experiment a number of years ago from a small herd imported by the Government from Siberia, have now become the most prominent feature of the industrial education of many thousands of the natives of arctic Alaska. The means of living, formerly obtained by hunting and fishing, have been greatly lessened by the destruction of the fish by canneries, and of the fur-bearing animals and game by white trappers. The reindeer industry is therefore an important part of life in many Eskimo villages. The total number of reindeer in Alaska is now over thirty-three thousand; of these the natives themselves own sixty per cent., or more than twenty thousand, and are always anxious to obtain more, preferring deer rather than cash for their services. The Government does not sell reindeer. This is done entirely by natives and the missions. It has been found necessary by the Government to put the young native Eskimo through a course of training, and those who get their deer directly from the Government have to serve as reindeer apprentices for four years. With careful training they make good herders. They are taught how to care for the reindeer, to harness and drive them, to throw the lasso, and to protect the fawns from the attacks of wolves and dogs. At the end of their apprenticeship, the herders have about fifty deer, which, with the