72 THE WHALE HUNTERS 



lines until it broke surface exhausted after a deep dive. 

 This one did not escape them and once it was at bay the 

 ease with which the monster was despatched seemed 

 almost unbelievable. 



The Pilgrim was secured to the ice by means of a special 

 anchor in such a way that she was held by the wind in a 

 clear patch of open water. The whale was taken in tow 

 by the two boats and in line ahead the procession made 

 at a very slow pace for the ship, for even the combined 

 power of ten oars and two sails could make but little 

 impression on sixty- five tons of dead whale. 



Gutting in commenced at once and this proved much 

 easier with the ship in the shelter of the ice than it had 

 been in mid-ocean and by the end of the day all the 

 blubber was stowed in the barrels and the bundles of 

 whalebone in the hold where they would await a more 

 leisurely period before being scraped and cleaned. On 

 this occasion the whale's tongue was not stolen by the 

 killers and provided a valuable yield of blubber. 



In the clear Arctic air the scent of meat soon reached 

 the keen nostrils of several polar bears which usually feed 

 on seals. They came lumbering over the floes and 

 swimming through the water that divided them. When 

 these creatures ventured too near the boats Macy the 

 mate was forced to scare them off with musket shot but 

 they continued to linger expectantly on the nearby floes 

 and eventually he took one of the boats on an expedition 

 in which Jonathan proudly pulled an oar and carried 

 Macy's spare musket. When they had killed two bears 

 and scared off the rest Jonathan caught sight of an 

 animal that looked like a fierce overgrown seal with 

 long tusks and at once Macy ordered the boat into 

 pursuit. 



Tt is a sea morse,' said Macy, 'and I'll have his hide as 

 soon as you chummies can row me to him.' 



He landed on the floe and with Jonathan bringing up 



