GREENLAND BY THE POLAR SEA 



with eggs in his mouth, and by following him one may discover 

 quite considerable depots covered with moss and turf. 



These foxes were previously caught in native traps, of which 

 several different types existed ; but now they are caught in 

 American steel traps. 



After this survey of the chances which the summer offers, 

 I will give a corresponding summary of the winter's hunting. 



Already by the end of September the ice lies on fjord and 

 bay, and in October hunting on the ice begins. If the ice lies 

 shiny and uncovered by snow for a period, a rich hunt of seals 

 takes place. The hunter ties a piece of bear-skin under his feet 

 and moves along the ice quite noiselessly, occasionally stopping 

 to listen, for in his approach to the seals he depends solely upon 

 his sense of sound. When the seals come up to breathe through 

 the holes in the ice, they blow so loudly that they can be heard 

 a considerable distance. The hunter now moves towards the 

 sound, taking great care to move only when the seal breathes. 

 When it ceases he also stops, as otherwise it would hear him. 

 The seal as a rule remains by its breathing-hole for some time in 

 order to store as much air as possible in its lungs before diving 

 into the deeps again, and thus, by taking advantage of the seal's 

 respiration, the hunter is enabled to get right up to the hole. 

 He then harpoons it with the greatest skill through an orifice 

 which is so small that it barely allows the harpoon to pass 

 through. It is obvious that the aim must be a sure one. But 

 the senses of the Eskimo are so keen that even at night he is 

 able to spot his prey and kill it by moonlight. 



This way of catching the fjord-seal and the bearded-seal 

 yields not only a rich catch in a short time, but is also con- 

 sidered the most amusing of all branches of hunting-sport. 



In several places walrus is caught on the new ice, and in this 

 case it does not matter whether snow has fallen, as these big 

 animals are not so sensitive as the seals. 



In November the ice between Saunders and Westenholme 

 islands is so thin as to allow the walrus to shove its skull through 

 it when, during its meal of mussels, it wants to breathe. The 

 Eskimos then sneak towards it while it breathes, and no sooner 

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