ARCTIC HUNTING 3 



should engage during the winter, through the British vice- 

 consul at Tromso, a good harpooner and three men used to 

 arctic work, and buy a hunting boat (fangstbaad), to the use 

 of which they are accustomed, together with the necessary 

 harpoons, lines, lances, knives, &c. 



[n either case he should sail from Tromso early in May if 

 bound for Spitzbergen, where he would in ordinary seasons be 

 able to hunt until the middle of September. In that time, 

 with fair luck, he may expect to kill from five to ten bears, 

 about twenty walrus, thirty reindeer, and from three to four 

 hundred seals. If only small attention is paid to the seals, the 

 number of walrus and bear obtained should be considerably 

 larger. 



No especial personal outfit is necessary. 



As most of the shooting will be done from a boat that is 

 seldom stationary, the rifle to which the sportsman is most 

 accustomed is the best. A '450 Express, with soHd hardened 

 bullet for walrus, and * small-holed ' for bear, is a very good 

 weapon. A fowling-piece for geese and a small-bore rifle for 

 practice at seals would also be useful. Whatever weapons are 

 taken, they should be of simple construction and strongly 

 made, for they are liable to receive hard knocks in the rough, 

 wet work incidental to walrus hunting. 



As regards clothing, a light-coloured stalking suit (the writer 

 prefers grey), underclothing of the same weight as the sports- 

 man is accustomed to wear during an English winter, and 

 knee-boots, will answer every purpose. For hand covering the 

 mittens (' vanter ') used by the Norwegian fishermen are most 

 suitable. The sportsman had better lay in his stock of canned 

 provisions and tea in England, but coffee, sugar, &c., can be 

 -obtained of good quality and equally cheap at his starting 

 point in Norway. 



I. WALRUS {Rosinartis trichechus) 



The walrus is one of the largest animals still extant, and 

 although the element of personal danger is not as great in 



B 2 



