WALRUS. 273 



The Walrus is an animal of considerable intelligence 

 and docility. In Hakluyt's " Pilgrimes " (1634) an 

 account is given of a young one brought to England by 

 Master Thomas Weldon, of the " God-speed " and ex- 

 hibited at court — " As the beaste in shape is very strange, 

 so it is of strange docilitie and apt to be taught, as by 

 good experience we often proued." Dr. Brown mentions 

 one he saw in Greenland which was perfectly tame and 

 seemingly happy, answering to its name and returning to 

 call even when let loose in the sea. Two examples have 

 been exhibited of late years in the gardens of the 

 Zoological Society, but neither of them survived long. 

 The first was purchased in 1853, but only survived a few 

 days; the second, captured in Davis Strait in August, 

 1866, was brought to London in November, 1867, and 

 lived in the gardens about six weeks. We had the 

 pleasure of seeing this specimen, which was a young male 

 of about eight feet in length, with partially developed 

 tusks. In its gait and general appearance its relation- 

 ship to the Sea-Bears was very striking. It was fed 

 principally on mussels and whelks, and also on sprats and 

 other fish, but it steadily refused the most tempting 

 proffers of sea-weed. It soon came to know its keeper, 

 and to answer to his call, but unfortunately it died on 

 the 19th December. On dissection, Dr. Murie found 

 that its stomach was extensively ulcerated and contained 

 an immense quantity of intestinal worms of an unde- 

 scribed species, which has since been named Ascaris 

 bicolor by Dr. Baird. 



The name Walrus is from the Norse Hval-ros, " whale- 

 horse " or " horse-whale." Thus in Alfred the Great's 

 Saxon version of Oronius we read that Oether, the 

 Norwegian voyager, " told the King that he went to the 

 north chiefly on account of the horse-whales {hors- 



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