102 HUNTERS AND HUNTING IN THE ARCTIC 



orphan declined to desert the body over which 

 it stood guard. The men advanced towards 

 it, shouting ; still the cub refused to move, 

 hiding always behind its mother, bellowing 

 furiously, and making as though to charge the 

 men. Merite and Rachlew made exposures 

 three yards from it, while Joe and I also 

 photographed it from the bridge of the ship. 



As soon as it became evident that the cub 

 would not take to the water, one of the men 

 contrived with the aid of his alpenstock to 

 slip a running knot about its neck. The 

 men then dragged it a few yards, despite its 

 frantic struggles. The knot broke, however, 

 and the cub ran back to take up its former 

 defensive position over its mother's body. 

 Another lasso was prepared. The men, hold- 

 ing it open with their alpenstocks, passed 

 it over the cub's head and again secured it. 

 The end of the lasso was made fast to the boat, 

 and in this way the little bear, fighting madly, 

 was hauled over the snow into the sea, and 

 compelled to swim to the Belgica. According 

 to all precedents, it should have been left swim- 

 ming until the mother's body had been hoisted 

 aboard, or at least until a cage had been prepared 

 for it. Not doubting for a moment that this 

 would be done, I entered my cabin to obtain 



