124 THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 
THE WALRUS. 
The distinguishing features of the walrus 
have been mentioned in the introductory re- 
marks to this chapter. It should be added 
that it has an external ear-passage, though no 
external ears, and very thick and bristly whis-: 
kers. It is practically confined to the Arctic 
Circle, though once its range extended to the 
British coasts (where its bones are found in 
the Suffolk Crag) and to Virginia. The skull 
PP : of one was found in the peat at Ely—evidence 
"By permission of the Mas Water Rothschild} [Tring that it once ascended rivers. 
MALE WALRUS The walrus stands alone; it is a real mon- 
The ‘* tusks”” of the walrus are put to many practical uses during life, ster of the deep. Strange and awful stories 
SEE ED REN BRIE Soe CEE Ee were told of it by some of the early voyagersi 
to the Arctic Seas; but Captain Cook gave a very different account of his impressions of. 
the walruses which he saw on the north coast of America: “ They lie in herds of many 
hundreds on the ice, huddling over one another like swine. (They lie just like a lot of pigs 
in a yard.) They roar and bray so very loud, that in the night, or in foggy weather, they 
gave us notice of the vicinity of the ice before we could see. it. We never found the whole 
herd asleep, some being always on the watch These, on the approach of the boat, would 
awaken those next to them; and the alarm being thus gradually communicated, the whole 
herd would awake presently. But they were seldom ina hurry to get away, till after they had 
been once fired at; they then would tumble over one another into the sea in the utmost con- 
fusion They did not appear to us to be that dangerous animal which authors have described, 
not even when attacked. Vast numbers of them would follow us, and come close up to the 
boats ; but the flash of the musket in the pan, or the bare pointing of it, would send them down 
in an instant. The female will defend her young to the last, and at the expense of her own life, 
whether in the water or upon the ice; nor will the young one quit the dam, though she be dead ; 
so that if one be killed the other is certain prey.” The long pendent tusks, bristly whiskers, 
small bloodshot eyes, and great size lent colour to the terrifying tales of the walrus. But more 
ancient voyagers than Captain Cook told the truth—that the “ morses,” as they called them, were 
harmless creatures, which often followed the ships from sheer curiosity. They sleep on the ice 
like elephantine pigs, and dive and rout on the sea-bottom for clams, cuttle-fish, and seaweeds. 
Probably the long tusks are used to rake up mussels and clams; they also help the walrus to 
climb on to the ice. A young walrus was kept for some time by the members of the Jackson- 
Harmsworth Expedition, and was found to be an amusing pet. One kept on board a Dundee 
whaler used to sleep with an Eskimo dog, and got into the same kennel with it. It ate blubber 
and salt pork, but liked the sailors’ pea soup better than anything else; it was most sociable, and 
could not bear to be alone—would tumble down the hatchway to seek the society of its beloved 
sailors, and scramble into the cabin if the door were open. When it fell ill and before it died, it 
seemed most grateful for any attention shown to it. The parent walrus shows the greatest cour- 
age in trying to defend the young one. Walruses are now scarce; but as the ivory is the only 
part of them of much present value, there is a chance that they may not be killed off entirely. 
Tue True SEALS. 
The True SEALs, with their greatly modified forms, heads set almost on to their shoulders, 
with no neck visible, have well-developed claws on all the toes, and in the typical species have 
double-rooted and small cheek teeth. The number of the incisors is variable. The Gray SEAL 
of the North Atlantic is a large species which visits the North British coasts and the Hebrides. 
