CHAPTER ELEVEN.
A HUNTING EXPEDITION, IN THE COURSE OF WHICH THE HUNTERS MEET WITH MANYINTERESTING, DANGEROUS, PECULIAR, AND REMARKABLE EXPERIENCES, AND MAKEACQUAINTANCE WITH SEALS, WALRUS, DEER, AND RABBITS.
We must now return to Fred Ellice and his companions, Meetuck theEsquimaux, O'Riley, and Joseph West, whom we left while they were on thepoint of starting on a hunting expedition.
They took the direction of the ice hummocks out to the sea, and, seatedcomfortably on a large sledge, were dragged by the team of dogs over theice at the rate of ten miles an hour.
"Well! did I iver expect to ride in a carriage and six?" exclaimedO'Riley in a state of great glee as the dogs dashed forward at fullspeed, while Meetuck flourished his awful whip, making it crack like apistol-shot ever and anon.
The sledge on which they travelled was of the very curious and simpleconstruction peculiar to the Esquimaux, and was built by Peter Grimunder the direction of Meetuck. It consisted of two runners of aboutten feet in length, six inches high, two inches broad, and three feetapart. They were made of tough hickory, slightly curved in front, andwere attached to each other by cross bars. At the stem of the vehiclethere was a low back composed of two uprights and a single bar across.The whole machine was fastened together by means of tough lashings ofraw seal-hide, so that, to all appearance, it was a rickety affair,ready to fall to pieces. In reality, however, it was very strong. Nometal nails of any kind could have held in the keen frost; they wouldhave snapped like glass at the first jolt; but the seal-skin fasteningsyielded to the rude shocks and twistings, to which the sledge wassubjected, and seldom gave way, or, if they did, were easily andspeedily renewed without the aid of any other implement than a knife.
But the whip was the most remarkable part of the equipage. The handlewas only sixteen inches in length, but the lash was twenty _feet_ long,made of the toughest seal-skin, and as thick as a man's wrist near thehandle, whence it tapered off to a fine point. The labour of using sucha formidable weapon is so great that Esquimaux usually, whenpracticable, travel in couples, one sledge behind the other. The dogsof the last sledge follow mechanically and require no whip, and theriders change about so as to relieve each other. When travelling, thewhip trails behind, and can be brought with a tremendous crack thatmakes the hair fly from the wretch that is struck--and Esquimaux aresplendid _shots_, so to speak. They can hit any part of a dog withcertainty, but usually rest satisfied with simply cracking the whip, asound that produces an answering yell of terror whether the lash takeseffect or not.
Our hunters were clothed in their Esquimaux garments, and cut the oddestimaginable figures. They had a soft, rotund, cuddled-up appearance thatwas powerfully suggestive of comfort. The sled carried one day'sprovisions, a couple of walrus harpoons, with a sufficient quantity ofrope, four muskets, with the requisite ammunition, an Esquimauxcooking-lamp, two stout spears, two tarpaulins to spread on the snow,and four blanket sleeping-bags. These last were six feet long, and justwide enough for a man to crawl into at night, feet first.
"What a jolly style of travelling, isn't it?" cried Fred, as the dogssprang wildly forward, tearing the sledge behind them, Dumps and Pokerleading, and looking as lively as crickets.
"Well now, isn't it true that wits jump?--that's jist what I was sayin'to meself," remarked O'Riley, grinning from ear to ear as he pulled thefur hood farther over his head, crossed his arms more firmly on hisbreast, and tried to double himself up as he sat there like an overgrownrat. "I wouldn't exchange it with the Lord Mayor o' London and hiscoach an' six--so I wouldn't. Arrah! have a care, Meetuck, ye baste, orye'll have us kilt."
This last exclamation was caused by the reckless driver dashing over apiece of rough ice that nearly capsized the sledge. Meetuck did notanswer, but he looked over his shoulder with a quiet smile on his oilycountenance.
"Ah, then, ye may laugh!" said O'Riley, with a menacing look, "but av yebreak a bone o' me body I'll--"
Down went the dogs into a crack in the ice as he spoke, over went thesledge, and hurled them all out upon the ice.
"Musha! but ye've done it!"
"Hallo, West, are you hurt?" cried Fred anxiously, as he observed thesailor fall heavily on the ice.
"Oh no, sir; all right, thank you!" replied the man, rising alertly andlimping to the sledge. "Only knocked the skin off my shin, sir."
West was a quiet, serious, polite man, an American by birth, who wasmuch liked by the crew in consequence of a union of politeness andmodesty with a disposition to work far beyond his strength. He was notvery robust, however, and in powers of physical endurance scarcelyfitted to engage in an Arctic expedition.
"An' don't ye think it's worth makin' enquiries about _me_?" criedO'Riley, who had been tossed into a crevice in a hummock, where he layjammed and utterly unable to move.
Fred and the Esquimaux laughed heartily, while O'Riley extricatedhimself from his awkward position. Fortunately no damage was done, andin five minutes they were flying over the frozen sea as madly as ever inthe direction of the point at the opposite side of Red-snow Valley,where a cloud of frost-smoke indicated open water.
"Now, look you, Mr Meetuck, av ye do that again ye'll better don't, letme tell ye. Sure the back o' me's track entirely," said O'Riley, as herearranged himself with a look of comfort that belied his words. "Och,there ye go again," he cried, as the sled suddenly fell about sixinches, from a higher level to a lower, where the floe had cracked,causing the teeth of the whole party to come together with a snap. "Aman dursen't spake for fear o' bitin' his tongue off."
"No fee," said Meetuck, looking over his shoulder with a broader smirk.
"No fee, ye lump of pork! it's a double fee I'll have to pay the dacteran ye go on like that."
_No fee_ was Meetuck's best attempt at the words _no fear_. He hadpicked up a little English during his brief sojourn with the sailors,and already understood much of what was said to him, but words were asyet few, and his manner of pronouncing them peculiar.
"Holo! look! look!" cried the Esquimaux, leaping suddenly off the sledgeand checking the dogs.
"Eh! what! where?" ejaculated Fred, seizing his musket.
"I think I see something, sir," cried West, shading his eyes with hishand, and gazing earnestly in the direction indicated by Meetuck.
"So do I, be the mortial!" said O'Riley in a hoarse whisper. "I see themountains and the sky, I do, as plain as the nose on me face!"
"Hush! stop your nonsense, man," said Fred. "I see a deer, I'm certainof it."
Meetuck nodded violently to indicate that Fred was right.
"Well, what's to be done? luckily we are well to leeward, and it hasneither sighted nor scented us."
Meetuck replied by gestures and words to the effect that West andO'Riley should remain with the dogs, and keep them quiet, under theshelter of a hummock, while he and Fred should go after the reindeer.Accordingly, away they went making a pretty long detour in order to gainthe shore, and come upon it under the shelter of the grounded floes,behind which they might approach without being seen. In hurrying alongthe coast they observed the footprints of a musk ox, and also of severalArctic hares and foxes, which delighted them much, for hitherto they hadseen none of those animals, and were beginning to be fearful lest theyshould not visit that part of the coast at all. Of course Fred knew notwhat sort of animals had made the tracks in question, but he was anadept at guessing, and the satisfied looks of his companion gave himreason to believe that he was correct in his surmises.
In half an hour they came within range, and Fred, after debating withhimself for some time as to the propriety of taking the first shot,triumphed over himself, and, stepping back a pace, motioned to theEsquimaux to fire. But Meetuck was an innate gentleman, and modestlydeclined, so Fred advanced, took a good aim, and fired.
The deer bounded away, but stumbled as it went, showing that it waswounded.
"Ha! ha! Meetuck," exclaimed Fred, as he recharged in tremendousexcitement (taking twice
as long to load in consequence), "I've improveda little you see in my shoot--, o' bother this--ramrod!--tut! tut!there, that's it."
Bang went Meetuck's musket at that moment, and the deer tumbled overupon the snow.
"Well done, old fellow!" cried Fred, springing forward. At the sameinstant a white hare darted across his path, at which he fired, withouteven putting the gun to his shoulder, and knocked it over, to his ownintense amazement.
The three shots were the signal for the men to come up with the sledge,which they did at full gallop, O'Riley driving, and flourishing the longwhip about in a way that soon entangled it hopelessly with the dogs'traces.
"Ah, then, ye've done it this time, ye have, sure enough! Musha! what apurty crature it is. Now, isn't it, West? Stop, then, won't ye (to therestive dogs), ye've broke my heart entirely, and the whip's tied upinto iver so many knots. Arrah, Meetuck! ye may drive yer coach yerselffor me, you may; I've had more nor enough of it."
In a few minutes the deer and the hare were lashed to the sledge--whichthe Irishman asserted was a great improvement, inasmuch as the carcassof the former made an excellent seat--and they were off again at fullgallop over the floes. They travelled without further interruption ormishap until they drew near to the open water, when suddenly they cameupon a deep fissure or crack in the ice, about four feet wide, withwater in the bottom. Here they came to a dead stop.
"Arrah! what's to be done now?" enquired O'Riley.
"Indeed I don't know," replied Fred, looking toward Meetuck for advice.
"Hup, cut-up ice, mush, hurroo!" said that fat individual. Fortunatelyhe followed his advice with a practical illustration of its meaning.Seizing an axe he ran to the nearest hummock, and, chopping it down,rolled the heaviest pieces he could move into the chasm. The othersfollowed his example, and, in the course of an hour, the place wasbridged across, and the sledge passed over. But the dogs required agood deal of coaxing to get them to trust to this rude bridge, whichtheir sagacity taught them was not to be depended on like the works ofnature.
A quarter of an hour's drive brought them to a place where there wasanother crack of little more than two feet across. Meetuck stretchedhis neck and took a steady look at this as they approached it at fullgallop. Being apparently satisfied with his scrutiny, he resumed hislook of self-satisfied placidity.
"Look out, Meetuck, pull up!" cried Fred in some alarm; but theEsquimaux paid no attention.
"O morther, we're gone now, for iver," exclaimed O'Riley, shutting hiseyes and clenching his teeth as he laid fast hold of the sides of thesledge.
The feet of the dogs went faster and faster until they pattered on thehard surface of the snow like rain. Round came the long whip, asO'Riley said, "like the shot of a young cannon," and the next momentthey were across, skimming over the ice on the other side like the wind.
It happened that there had been a break in the ice at this point on theprevious night, and the floes had been cemented by a sheet of ice onlyan inch thick. Upon this, to the consternation even of Meetuck himself,they now passed, and in a moment, ere they were aware, they were passingover a smooth, black surface that undulated beneath them like the wavesof the sea and crackled fearfully. There was nothing for it but to goon. A moment's halt would have allowed the sledge to break through andleave them struggling in the water. There was no time for remark. Eachman held his breath. Meetuck sent the heavy lash with a tremendouscrack over the backs of the whole team, but just as they neared thesolid floe, the left runner broke through. In a moment the men flungthemselves horizontally upon their breasts, and scrambled over thesmooth surface until they gained the white ice, while the sledge and thedogs nearest to it were sinking. One vigorous pull, however, by dogsand men together, dragged the sledge upon the solid floe, even beforethe things in it had got wet.
"Safe!" cried Fred, as he hauled on the sledge rope to drag it fartherout of danger.
"So we are," replied O'Riley, breathing very hard, "and it's meselfthought to have had a wet skin at this minute. Come, West, lind a handto fix the dogs, will ye?"
A few minutes sufficed to put all to rights and enable them to startafresh. Being now in the neighbourhood of dangerous ice, they advancedwith a little more caution; the possibility of seals being in theneighbourhood also rendered them more circumspect. It was well thatthey were on the alert, for a band of seals were soon after descried ina pool of open water not far ahead, and one of them was lying on theice.
There were no hummocks, however, in the neighbourhood to enable them toapproach unseen; but the Esquimaux was prepared for such a contingency.He had brought a small sledge, of about two feet in length by a foot anda half in breadth, which he now unfastened from the large sledge, andproceeded quietly to arrange it, to the surprise of his companions, whohad not the least idea what he was about to do, and watched hisproceedings with much interest.
"Is it to sail on the ice ye're goin', boy?" enquired O'Riley, at last,when he saw Meetuck fix a couple of poles, about four feet long, into ahole in the little sledge, like two masts, and upon these spread a pieceof canvas upwards of a yard square, with a small hole in the centre ofit. But Meetuck answered not. He fastened the canvas "sail" to across-yard above and below. Then, placing a harpoon and coil of rope onthe sledge, and taking up his musket, he made signs to the party to keepunder the cover of a hummock, and, pushing the sledge before him,advanced towards the seals in a stooping posture, so as to be completelyhid behind the bit of canvas.
"Oh the haythen, I see it now!" exclaimed O'Riley, his face puckering upwith fun. "Ah, but it's a cliver trick, no doubt of it!"
"What a capital dodge!" said Fred, crouching behind the hummock, andwatching the movements of the Esquimaux with deep interest.
"West, hand me the little telescope; you'll find it in the pack."
"Here it is, sir," said the man, pulling out a glass of about six incheslong, and handing it to Fred.
"How many is there, an' ye plaze?"
"Six, I think; yes--one, two, three,--I can't make them out quite, but Ithink there are six, besides the one on the ice. Hist! there he seeshim. Ah! Meetuck, he's too quick for you."
As he spoke, the seal on the ice began to show symptoms of alarm.Meetuck had approached to within shot, but he did not fire; the waryEsquimaux had caught sight of another object which a lump of ice hadhitherto concealed from view. This was no less a creature than awalrus, who chanced at that time to come up to take a gulp of fresh air,and lave his shaggy front in the brine, before going down again to thedepths of his ocean home. Meetuck, therefore, allowed the seal to glidequietly into the sea, and advanced towards this new object of attack.At length he took a steady aim through the hole in the canvas screen,and fired. Instantly the seal dived, and at the same time the waterround the walrus was lashed into foam, and tinged with red. It wasevidently badly wounded, for had it been only slightly hurt it wouldprobably have dived.
Meetuck immediately seized his harpoon, and rushed towards thestruggling monster, while Fred grasped a gun, and O'Riley a harpoon, andran to his assistance. West remained to keep back the dogs. As Meetuckgained the edge of the ice the walrus recovered partially and tried,with savage fury, to reach his assailant, who planted the harpoon deepin its breast, and held on to the rope while the animal dived.
"Whereabouts is he?" cried O'Riley, as he came panting to the scene ofaction.
As he spoke, the walrus ascended almost under his nose, with a loudbellow, and the Irishman started back in terror as he surveyed at closequarters, for the first time, the colossal and horrible countenance ofthis elephant of the northern sea. O'Riley was no coward, but thesuddenness of the apparition was too much for him, and we need notwonder that in his haste he darted the harpoon far over the animal'shead into the sea beyond. Neither need we feel surprised that when Fredtook aim at its forehead, the sight of its broad muzzle, fringed withbristling moustache and defended by huge tusks, caused him to miss italtogether. But O'Riley recovered, hauled his harpoon
back, andsucceeded in planting it deep under the creature's left flipper, andFred, reloading, lodged a ball in its head which finished it. Withgreat labour the four men, aided by the dogs, drew it out upon the ice.
This was a great prize, for walrus flesh is not much inferior to beef,and would be an acceptable addition of fresh meat for the use of the_Dolphin's_ crew, and there was no chance of it spoiling, for the frostwas now severe enough to freeze every animal solid almost immediatelyafter it was killed.
The body of this walrus was not less than eighteen feet long and elevenin circumference. It was more like an elephant in bulk and rotunditythan any other creature. It partook very much of the form of a seal,having two large paw-like flippers, with which, when struggling forlife, it had more than once nearly succeeded in getting upon the ice.Its upper face had a square, bluff aspect, and its broad muzzle andcheeks were completely covered by a coarse, quill-like beard ofbristles, which gave to it a peculiarly ferocious appearance. Thenotion that the walrus resembles man is very much overrated. Thesquare, bluff shape of the head already referred to, destroys theresemblance to humanity when distant, and its colossal size does thesame when near. Some of the seals deserve this distinction more, theirdrooping shoulders and oval faces being strikingly like to those of manwhen at a distance. The white ivory tusks of this creature werecarefully measured by Fred, and found to be thirty inches long.
The resemblance of the walrus to our domestic land-animals has obtainedfor it, among sailors, the names of the sea-horse and sea-cow, and therecords of its ferocity when attacked are numerous. Its hide is nearlyan inch thick, and is put to many useful purposes by the Esquimaux, wholive to a great extent on the flesh of this creature. They cut up hishide into long lines, to attach to the harpoons, with which they catchhimself, the said harpoons being pointed with his own tusks. This toughhide is not the only garment the walrus wears to protect him from thecold. He also wears under-flannels of thick fat and a top-coat of closehair, so that he can take a siesta on an iceberg without the leastinconvenience. Talking of siestas, by the way, the walrus is sometimes"caught napping". Occasionally, when the weather is intensely cold, thehole through which he crawls upon the ice gets frozen over so solidlythat, on waking, he finds it beyond even his enormous power to break it.In this extremity there is no alternative but to go to sleep again,and--die! which he does as comfortably as he can. The polar bears,however, are quick to smell him out, and assembling round his carcassfor a feast, they dispose of him, body and bones, without ceremony.
As it was impossible to drag this unwieldy animal to the ship thatnight, for the days had now shortened very considerably, the huntershauled it towards the land, and, having reached the secure ice, preparedto encamp for the night under the lee of a small iceberg.