118 ODOB^NUS ROSMARUS ATLANTIC WALRUS. 



of their slaughtered friends, and curious to see what we were 

 doing to them now. They were so close that I might have shot 

 a dozen of them ; but, as they would have been sure to sink be- 

 fore the boat could get to them, I was not so cruel as wantonly 

 to take their lives. When the Walruses were all skinned, we 

 followed the herd again with success ; and when we left off, in 

 consequence of dense fog suddenly coming on, we had secured 

 nine altogether a very fair morning's bag we thought. . . . 

 During this morning's proceedings I realized the immense 

 advantage of striking a junger first, when practicable. This 

 curious clannish practice of coming to assist a calf in distress 

 arises from their being in the habit of combining to resist the 

 attacks of the Polar Bear, which is said often to succeed in kill- 

 ing a Walrus. If, however, Bruin, pressed by hunger and a 

 tempting opportunity, is so illadvised as to snap a calf, the 

 whole herd come upon him, drag him under water, and tear 

 him to pieces with their long sharp tusks. I am told this has 

 been seen to occur, and I quite believe it."* 



Capt. William Edward Parry, in his narrative of his second 

 voyage for the discovery of a northwest passage, makes frequent 

 reference to the Walrus, and his report of encounters with them 

 shows that serious and even fatal consequences sometimes re- 

 sult to the boats' crews who venture to attack them. 



"In the course of this day [July 15, 1822, in Fox Channel] 

 the Walruses," says Captain Parry, "became more and more 

 numerous every hour, lying in large herds upon loose pieces of 

 drift-ice ; and it having fallen calm at one P. M., we despatched 

 our boats to endeavor to kill some for the sake of the oil they 

 afford. On approaching the ice our people found them huddled 

 in droves of from twelve to thirty, the whole number near the 

 boats being perhaps about two hundred. Most of them waited 

 quietly to be fired at, and even after one or two discharges did 

 not seem to be greatly disturbed but allowed the people to land 

 on the ice near them, and, when approached, shewed an evident 

 disposition to give battle. After they had got into the water, 

 three were struck with harpoons and killed from the boats. 

 When first wounded they became quite furious, and one, which 

 had been struck from Captain Lyon's boat, made a resolute 

 attack upon her, and injured several of the planks with its enor- 

 mous tusks. A number of the others came round them, also 

 repeatedly striking the wounded animals with their tusks, with 

 * Seasons with the Sea-horses, pp. 81-83, 84. 



