The Nome nugget., 1901-11-23
Hast Herds Stilf to be Found 4~ iO These Waters.
SOURCE OF PROFIT
Bunting ot These Animals Has De- d Large'y in tie P.st Few Years, But it Sill Nay be Made . Profitable Id Sry.

Many of t,e geld huntt rs toiring
 Nome on the early bats in the spring must have passed by fie ds oi e. cover sd and black wit wa.ru.- ly n; loosely crowded together either leepins es Azily raisi |. their heads and hsar ely believing at the passing st, amer- The hunters must have felt thu iY fingers itching and perhays they went and HsIed out their new rifles, part of uhelr mining LutiiI, and took slot a. these clumsy aa,Aina! ;, a',d they watch vd them tuai le ii sbiSs i.lil! into II water. Some oi ths arsDni l.. |, doubt, pro.Aissd thsll,eive9 tu go aoL day on q good humtiny trip aud aiaI number ui waJrlS tor sport-ot couret. after thelr p.ie had been made, tut will wager It did not strike single Un' of them that if they had only taken lEt money they had invested in pateut gtlG Nasher-, pumping machines, etc.. and had put it iulo a little sailing vessel xnd a huniiny outfit, they woaid have been today On a surer and quicker road to fortune than they are n hunting ioi ths, elusive rich gold mine.
 There is E. od money to lae made .n hunting the walrus, whMh every -prinl drift in endless numbei s, az y iyin. oh the ice, through the Beilns straits anu in ilkl wAy dlsport thenl,e. We, rl- ht z shro ,gh tl.e suhiiu.er. within easy reach in the Arctic ocean,
 About twenty year, ago the whalcrs phous h, tha. they hal tne>e ini,a Htanis of bhe Alaskan wal. r, wei n'Gh eA- hauslsd. IL looked v.gy much like il hy d while, at least to the poor ltshi- mss on these shores, who hal tu go hun gry maDy winter, because ths whalers had made it tha,r bsl-lneSs for many sIminers to p,t-sh@,L the warus in in- eredibiy large nuLbers. But to tte biggest part the animals had only sought his her latitudes for safety and ths time beinsr an $ they have bceH allowed for nearly twenty years nuw [" increase undisturbed, they are again Htoxa as numerous as ever n their most esnxsnial teeding and paying gro-Lds.
 Ln l8Sl was ab, ard Oi whaler wi 6
 we kll.ed close on to 2OOO walrus witt lh a.week. Two men, leneraliy the cal . tain and the mate of the vessel, wouit |. get into . small b.,xt. all masked with canvas, so as to give It the appearance ss \ s,nall cake Ot ice, the men too, hav- iag on yarkxs sf whiae drilling, and would dr,fl and scuil slowly and noise- lessly al4,nesi..e le6eid of ice, covered by the sleeping wai,us. An old bull . vas always awake and on watch, lying handy to the water Every once m while he would la.se his head aud care . fully sean around fOr possible danger. He must be killed first, by all means. Should hs but suspect the least harn 1, he would euAckly throw himself into the water. The splash would awaken the whole herd. which would tumble in at,er him pc .l-mell lu a surprlslnSl! sh rL spA.:e of time A sht in the nech would generally instant y kll hun. Next in qu.cX s.cces>iOn all the wa!rus forming the ou,er fringe Of the herd would be shot anl their carcasses would t,rm a corral in,lrln )ant;tble for the re t uf the herd, winch eou.d then be slaugiiterea at iea>ure- l have cOunted ever 5UO walrus 50 slain on one held ot ice. Su.n xfteY the. crew oi the vessel !; would come a.ong with their knives and axes and rip off the h de@ and blub- : her and chop of the heals for the ivory. The sa Tor, we've kept bu y day ln and a,,y out and got but llttle slee., when the ship xss walru1ing. The me-, would be left to the. guil' and polar . bears. The nent to eke out their scanly ~ mess. would take some of the livers and tongues, which are very palatable.
 A 4]-7O, heavy barrel. Sliarp's old reliable, was the favorite gun of the valrus hunter in those day, a modern : smokeless powdsr rife would. DO doubt,
 hpore seryicable.
 The hiub,,er today is nearly vAlueless. Locally, however, there will always be sui.e a demand for it and sOlLe Oi the meat for dog feed The ivory has a steady market in San Francisco, where L is nearly all bought up by the Chi nese and exported to China Its value fluctuaAes with. the value of Chinese ex. change, thersfSs with silver. In the early eighties, when silver was high, 1t brought as much ss Sl.20 per pound, to- day is will only average about eo cents Fer pound. The hides hsve been ex. per.mep,ed with good deal in San Francisco in days gone by. wishA'n' nuch success. Ou Mcasions We have received as high as IA cents per pound &nss arzso0xa S4aicil; hides and ;iS lhSsae