384 FARTHEST NORTH 



pline, and dragged behind, so that it could only shuffle 

 alonor on its fore-les^s, o-oins^ round in a rino-. A ball 

 through the skull put an end to its sufferings. 



When we had skinned it we made an excursion in- 

 land to inspect our new domain, and were now not a 

 little surprised to see two walruses lying quietly on the 

 ice close to the spot where I had first caught sight of 

 the bear. This seemed to me to show how little heed 

 walruses pay to bears, who will never attack them if 

 they can help it. I had more decisive proofs of this sub- 

 sequently. In the sea beyond we also saw a walrus, 

 which kept putting up its head and breathing so hard 

 that it could be heard a long way off. A little later 1 

 saw him approach the edge of the ice and disappear, 

 only to appear again in the tidal channel close to the 

 shore, a good way from the edge of the ice. He struck 

 his great tusks into the edge of the ice, while he lay 

 breathing hard, just like an exhausted swimmer. Then 

 he raised himself high up on his tusks, and looked across 

 the ice towards the others lying there, and then dived 

 down again. He soon reappeared, with a great deal of 

 noise, farther in, and the same performance was gone 

 through again. A walrus's head is not a beautiful ob- 

 ject as it appears above the ice. With its huge tusks, 

 its coarse whisker bristles, and clumsy shape, there is 

 something wild and goblin-like about it which, I can 

 easily understand, might inspire fear in more supersti- 

 tious times, and o-ive rise to the idea of fabulous mon- 



