4o6 FARTHEST NORTH 



ishment at us and at what we were doing. I suppose 

 that, seeing a comrade, it had come in to see what we 

 were doing with him. Quietly, slowly, and with dignity 

 it came right up to the edge where we stood. Fortu- 

 nately we had our guns with us, and when I approached 

 with mine it only rose up in the water and gazed long 

 and searchingly at me. I waited patiently until it turned 

 a little, and then sent a bullet into the back of its head. 

 It was stunned for a time, but soon began to move, so 

 that more shots were required. While Johansen ran for 

 cartridges and a harpoon I had to fight with it as I best 

 could, and try to prevent it, with a stick, from splashing 

 out of the channel again. At last Johansen returned, 

 and I did for this walrus. We were delighted over our 

 o;ood fortune; but what the walrus wanted in that narrow 

 channel we have always wondered. These animals must 

 be uncommonly curious. While we were skinning the 

 bears two days before, a walrus wdth its young one came 

 close in to the edge of the ice and gazed at us ; it dived 

 several times, but always returned, and at last drew the 

 whole of the forepart of its body up on to the ice in 

 order to see better. This it did several times, and my 

 approaching to within a few yards of it did not drive it 

 away ; it was only when I went up close to it with my 

 gun that it suddenly came to its senses and threw itself 

 backward into the water again, and we could see it far 

 below moving off with its young one by its side. 



We now had two great walruses with enormous tusks 



