WALRUS TUSKS. 143 



The calf has no tusks the first year, but the 

 second year, when he has attained to about 

 the size of a large seal, he has a pair about as 

 large as the canine teeth of a lion ; the third 

 year they are about six inches long. 



Tusks vary very much in size and shape, 

 according to the age and sex of the animal. 

 A good pair of bull s tusks may be stated as 

 twenty-four inches long, and four pounds apiece 

 in weight ; but we obtained several pairs 

 above these dimensions, and in particular one 

 pair, which measured thirty- one inches in 

 length when taken out of the head, and weigh 

 eight pounds each. Such a pair of tusks, how 

 ever, is extremely rare, and I never, to the 

 best of my belief, saw a pair nearly equal 

 to them amongst more than one thousand 

 walruses, although we took the utmost pains 

 to secure the best, and always inspected the 

 tusks carefully with the glass, before we fired 

 a shot or threw a harpoon. 



Cows tusks will average fully as long as 

 bulls , from their being less liable to be 

 broken, but they are seldom more than twenty 

 inches long, and three pounds each in weight. 

 They are generally set much closer together 

 than the bull s tusks, sometimes even over- 



