280 WHALING AND BEAR-HUNTING 



two hundred pounds, but she rather trips than walks. I 

 wonder what a bear will think of her if he meets her. She is 

 broad and deep-chested, with round red cheeks, and has a 

 gentle voice and a gurgling laugh any time in the twenty-four 

 hours of daylight. There was also a little pipe-playing, so 

 the smooth floe with the blue pool was quite lively, till the 

 call came to bear arms ! Then everyone but Chee Chee 

 came on board, and it stood alone, with all hands saying 



endearing things to make it come on board. Whether it was 

 my seizing the lasso, the sight of which it hates, or one of the 

 men circumventing it, I would not like to say, but from one 

 reason or the other it came with a sudden bolt I think the 

 lasso did it ! 



I nearly forgot to put our Spanish friends into the picture ; 

 here they are, there is just room, right-hand top corner, 

 hilariously shooting skuas, those robber birds. The senors 

 are jolly the clock round ; what a fallacy that is, about 

 " solemn as a Spanish Don." 



