I did so, and sent a 320-grain slug from my
Sharp's rifle through his skull. His head dropped to the ground and he
never moved a muscle. At the same time another shot was fired by one of
the Inuits; but the hunter's foot slipped at the same moment, and the
bullet whistled harmlessly over the heads of the herd. A grand rush was
then made by all the hunters, and the walruses were wriggling and
sliding down the slimy rocks into the sea. One of the Inuits darted his
harpoon into what he took to be a sleeping walrus, but it proved to be
the one I had already killed. I followed into the midst of the herd and
put a bullet through the head of another bull before they had all left
the rock. Had Oxeomadiddlee not struck a dead walrus we might have had
three, for an ahwahtah was attached to his line, so that we could have
regained it at any time with the boat. The walrus never appeared to me
the dangerous animal I have known him to be represented. If wounded and
brought to bay he will certainly turn upon his assailants, and many
Inuits have been killed in these encounters, while others still bear
scars received from the tusks of those which they were hunting. But as
long as there appears to be a chance to escape by flight the walrus
usually will seek safety in that way.
One of my companions in this hunt--Toogoolar, or Oxeomadiddlee, as he
is usually called--is a famous walrus hunter, and his success is
probably largely due to his immense physical strength.
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