130 FILIAL INGRATITUDE. 



I before mentioned a strong instance of 

 maternal affection on the part of a walrus, and 

 this old bear had also sacrificed her life to her 

 cubs, as she could have escaped without dif 

 ficulty if she had not so magnanimously re 

 mained with them ; but I am sorry now to have 

 to record the most horrible case of filial ingra 

 titude that ever came under my observation. 

 When we proceeded to open the old bear for 

 the purpose of skinning her, the two young 

 demons of cubs having now, by a good 

 mutual worrying, settled their differences with 

 one another began to devour their unfor 

 tunate and too-devoted parent, and actually 

 made a hearty meal off her smoking entrails ! 



When we finished skinning her, the cubs sat 

 down upon the skin and resolutely refused to 

 leave it, so we dragged the skin with the cubs 

 sitting on it like a sledge to the boat, and after 

 another tussle with them, in the course of which 

 they severely bit and scratched some of the 

 men, we got them tied down under the thwarts 

 of the boat and conveyed them on board the 

 sloop. On deck there lay the skin of the bear 

 I had shot the day before, and the two cubs on 

 being hoisted up seemed at once to recognise in 

 it the jacket of an acquaintance perhaps their 



