The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1877-05-11

"Stern all! shouted he, as he darted
his iron into back as broad as a sperm
whales.
''Stern all Back water-back water,
every manw And the Infatuated beast
made desperate lunges in every direc-
ton, making the white water fly almost
equal to whale.
We could now see the whole shape of
the creature, as in his agony and surprise
he raised himself high above the surface.
We all recognized at once the hippopota-
mus, as he is represented in the books Of
natural history.
Our subject soon got little cooler,
and giving \ savage roar, bent his head
round as he seized the shank of the iron
between his teeth. With one jerk he
drew it out of his bleeding quarter, and
shaking it savagely, sank down to the
bottom. The water was here but about
two fathoms deep, and we could see the
direction in which he was travelling along
by line of blood, as we'll as by the air
bubbles which rose to the surface as he
breathed.
"Give me another iron, Charley; and
We'll not give him chance to pull it out
next time"
The iron was handed up, and we slow
ly sailed in the direction which our prize
was following along the bottom.
"Here's two or three of them astern Of
u.s." said the boat-steerer.
Just then two more rose, one on either
side of the boat, and in rather unpleasant
proximity, and before we had begun to
realize our situation, the wounded beast,
unable any longer to stay beneath the
surface, came up to breathe just ahead
of us.
"Pull ahead little-let us get out of
this snarl. Lay the boat around, so-now,
stern all" and the iron was planted deep
in the neck of our victim.
With roar louder than dozen of the
wild bulls of Madagascar, the now mad
dened beast made for the boat.
"Back water hack water, say Take
down this boat-sail, and stern all-stern
all, for your lives !" as two more appeared
by the bows, evidently prepared to assist
their comrade. He was making the
water fly in all directions, and having
failed to reach the boat, was now vainly
essaying to grasp the iron, which the
mate had purposely put into his short
neck, so close to his head that he could
not get it into his mouth.
''Stick out line till we get clear of the
shoal, and then we'll pull up on the other
side of this fellow, and I'll settle him with
a lancet"
This was done; aud as we again hauled
upon the still furious beast, the mate
poised his bright lance for moment,
then sent it deep into his heart.
With tremendous roar and desper-
ate final struggle of scarcely a minutes
duration, our prize gave up the ghost,
and after sinking most summarily,
rose again to the surface, lying upon
his side, just as the whale does when he
dies.
His companions had left us, and we
now, giving three cheers for victory,
lowed the carcass to the not far-distant
shore. 1t was luckily high tide, and we
got the body up to high-water mark,
where the speedily receding tide left it
ashore.
On measuring, we found our prize to
be few inches less than fifteen feet long,
from his head to the commencement of
his short, hairless tail. We could not
measure his girth, but his bulk was enor
nous. His legs were disproportionately
short, giving him, conformity with his
short neck and very large head, an
awkward, stolid appearance, which the
agility he displayed in the water by no
means justified.
We had not been long on shore, when
several natives made their appearance.
They testified much JOY at the sight of
this prize, and went through a most lively
pantomime, from which we gathered that
the beasts were great plague to them,
that the peat was good to eat, and that
they would like portion. The hint was
not lost upon Us, who had not tasted fresh
beef for six months.
"What say you, boys-will you try a
piece of hippopotamus steak?" proposed
the mate; and as no one dissented, we
got the axes, and after considerable chop
ping and hacking, got off the head, when
We were enabled to cut ourselves about
twenty five pounds of what appeared to
be tolerably tender meat, off the fore
quarter of the animal. Our steaks were
cooked for supper, and whether it was that
we were blessed with an unusually good
appetite, or that the meat was actually
we'll favored, certain it is that they tasted
delicious, and that we ate heartily of
them.
COMB FoUNDATIONs.-The american
R.l .Tournnf thus anawar. the uuestiOu