The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-13
A FIGHT WITH WALRUSES.
AN EXCITING ADVENTURE IN THE
WATERS OF GREENLAND.

Narrow Escape of n Boats Crew.
They Were From Peary's Relief
Ship Kite, and Had to Fight Their
Way Back to the Vessel Through
Herds of the King of the Northern
Seas.
From the Youths Companion.
A walrus hunt is distinctly an Arctic ad-
venture. Some other experiences that
one may have in Greenland one can have
in a modified form elsewhere. One can
fall into a erevasse in a Swiss as we'll a
in a Greenland glacier. One can be caught
in a terrible snowstorm and frozen 10
death in Dakota, or even occasionally in
New York city. One can sometimes be
shipwrecked among ice foes in the Mis-
sissippi river. But nowhere except in
very high ATTITUDES can one find any crea-
ture like the walrus.
doubt whether hunting the tiger him
self is more exciting than hunting this ILL
tempered amphibian, for there is usually
only one tiger at a time to attack the
hunter, but there are a hundred walrus.
a fight, but walrus-neverl
The Peary relief expedition of 1892 first
hunted walrus about midnight on July 25
when we had just reached our most
northerly point. Our progress in the Kite
toward the Humboldt glacier was check
ed at the southern entrance of Kane Ba-
sin by the solid ice pack.
1t was one Of those still, sunlit Arctic
nights when all the world seems to be
waiting for something to happen. Not a
breath of air was stirring; the black wa
ter was smooth as a cup of after-dinner
coffee. The sun was very low, his rays,
striking almost horizontally across the
illimitable white fields, fell upon vast,
strange ice shapes floating at the edge of
the solid pack. 1t tinged their northern
sides with rose, and caused long gro
tesque shadows to fall behind them on the
water.
Creatures were moving about; gulIs
swept around the ship; little auks dived
and swan, seals raised their heads to peer
at us-but all in absolute, oppressive
silence.
Suddenly. from the direction of the dis
tant shore, rang out a series of sharp
banks. Every member of our party was
on deck in a moment. Nearly every one
had theory about the noise. Some one
said it was made by one of Pearys dogs
which had escaped from the team over
on the inland ice, and by long journey
across country had come to the shore
Others said the dog belonged TO some
Eskimo family, but, as for that, we knew
there were no Eskimos so far north.
No one thought of any other animal
than a dog, for none of US had ever yet
heard walrus barking. Long before we
left Greenland waters we had learned to
know that noise very well.
While, gathered in the ships waist, we
were listening, Of a sudden came the
whish of water falling from some sea
animals back. Not hundred feet away.
upon the starboard side, was poised a big
black head fierce with bristly moustaches,
white tusks, and glaring eyes. Before any
one could level rife the head went down /:
there was a good deal of waving about the
hind fiippers, and the next thing we saw
was the back OF the black head a rod
or two away, evidently making for some
low floating ice-pans in the distance.
BY this time our second mate, Mr.. Dun
ply, the keen-eyed, had deserted upon
these pans more walrus He pointed them
out to us-black spots on the white foes,
like slugs on lily petals Before we had
well made them out the small whaleboat
was in the water and six of us tumbled in
Our Eskimo interpreter, Daniel-if he
mad native name II was doubtless poly
syllable, full of ks and quite unpro-
nounceable for the white man-perched
himself in the bow with his harpoon. Mr..
Bryant took the steering oar and we pull
ed away
We took to the small boats because wal
rus are shy OF big ships. Daniel had hunt
ed walrus before but not often. for he
lived at Disko. and the herd rarely swirns
as far south as that. The rest Of US had
seen only the stuffed walrus in museums
and. despite our intimate acquaintance
with Schwatka's tales did not quite re-
alize that the live animals are not az
tame as the stuffed ones.
As we drew near the ice pans. one or
two OF the huge beasts stretched up their
heads and regarded us with most insolent
stares. A walrus has imperious manners
because he knows that no creature in the
Arctic dares modest him while he is sur
rounded by friends.
The attitude he strikes In order 10 ou,z
an approaching boat is one Of exceeding
hauteur. 1t exposes his neck however
and the back or side OF the neck Is ME
vulnerable spot. Even "4O-s2' Winches-
ter bullet will not penetrate the skin ana
underlying blubber Of the breast so as 10
reach vital spot. and OF course nothing
less than small canon ball would. from
in front, reach the brain. protected as n
Is by the roots Of the tusks and two or