ABSTRACT
IN this picture are shown two kinds of men rushing swiftly over a racecourse for a prize, by means of the art described earlier. 1 The first are men of the wild, 2 or Lapps, who, with curving planks or long stakes attached to the soles of their feet, move over the snow in valleys and on mountains, steering a headlong course in their winding but calculated progress. This they do with the most perfect skill, no matter whether they have to contend with dangerous situations or engage in pleasant hunting expeditions, from which they gain their livelihood; they achieve abundant fortunes, whether they pursue it for the sake of a prize or fame. This kind of person is found especially among the Scricfinns, whose more important 58qualities have been related in Chs. 4 and 5 of this book; later I shall proceed to recall something of their valour in war. Here it is enough to say that these men, when they traverse the peaks of snow-covered mountains, which they even do in competition, have a speed and nimbleness that others can hardly attain with the support of flatter and shorter implements on smooth, level ice. 3 Indeed, those who travel over the snow will even shoot down with their arrows a wild animal that runs in their way and still reach the set mark. Yet anyone who persists in skimming over the ice is hardly safe from the fissures that lurk beneath, as I shall tell later in the passage about wars waged on the ice. 4
Course winding but calculated
Very swift progress over mountain peaks
Racing on ice dangerous
