HOW WE HUNT POLAR BEARS 299 



muzzle, was nearly on top of us. Stefansson and I were 

 crouched down behind the sled about three yards apart 

 with only our heads showing. The bear was headed 

 directly for Stefansson, giving me a quartering view. He 

 was coming so fast that he had covered more than half 

 the distance to us when I fired. At the report of my rifle 

 the bear rolled over, turning a somersault towards us 

 before he stopped, for he was going so fast. Stefansson 

 told me to fire again, for our now frantically barking dogs 

 were in danger should the wounded bear turn towards 

 where they were tied. I pulled on the trigger, but it 

 would not budge — my gun was jammed. The Com- 

 mander then used his Mannlicher-Schoenauer and 

 finished the job. I found later that sand had become 

 lodged under the rim of my cartridge and had prevented 

 it from slipping all the way into the chamber. The 

 Winchester safety device had therefore prevented the 

 hammer from falling when I pulled on the trigger — other- 

 wise the gun would have back-fired and I might not have 

 been able to write this story. 



"After the bear had been killed, Charlie started to 

 laugh at me for getting 'buck-fever' and hitting the bear 

 in the leg. Now this was the first bear I had ever shot 

 at, and as our Commander had shot dozens during his 

 many years of hunting in the North, he had said I might 

 kill this one. It might seem you could not miss so huge 

 an animal as a bear coming almost straight at you, but 

 you must remember I was pretty excited. The muzzle 

 of my gun was probably describing wobbly curves when 

 I was about to fire, for my heart was thumping about 

 one hundred to the minute. It was therefore largely a 

 matter of luck whether my bullet hit the bear's head or 

 his feet, or missed him entirely. I knew this, but still 



