Some Eskimos taught reindeer to pull sleds.
By now, Eskimos had learned to need the things they got from traders, and they were almost starving because so many of their food animals were gone. They needed a new way to make a living. What could they do?
At last the head of the American school for Eskimo children had an idea. He thought of bringing reindeer from Siberia to Alaska. Reindeer are a kind of caribou that has been trained to live with men.
Laplanders from Scandinavia came to teach the Eskimos how to herd reindeer.
He persuaded the government and some individual people to try his plan. The reindeer could eat the grass that grew thick in the hot Alaskan summer. In winter they could use their horns and hoofs to dig down through the thin Arctic snow and eat lichens. A reindeer was a sort of combination horse and cow! It provided meat to eat, milk to drink and strength to pull heavy loads. Its skin was valuable, too.
Alaskan Eskimo children often wear dresses to keep their fur clothes clean.
Reindeer were first brought to Alaska in 1891. Now there are many, many thousands of them.