CHAPTER X.

WHALING.

The pursuit of the Right whale in the Arctic seas calls into play all the instincts and resources of the hunter; the dangers of ice and climate add zest to the chase, while the value of the quarry is the incentive which has brought forth all the daring and ingenuity of the whaler in his efforts to capture this most valuable and wary animal, and has caused him to assume risks unequalled in any other calling. The capture of a single whale repays the expenditure incurred in outfitting a steam whaling ship, and if more than one is killed on the voyage, it means large dividends to the owners and small ones to the officers and crew of the ship.

Several species of whales are found in the waters of the northern ice-laden seas, but there is only one prize, known amongst other common names as the Greenland whale, Right whale and Bowhead whale, and scientifically called the _Balaena mysticetus_, L. From its mouth is obtained the precious whalebone. An average whale carries nearly a ton of this material, which at present is worth about $15,000 a ton, with the price rising from year to year. The principal uses of the whalebone are to stiffen the bodices of the better-made gowns, and to weave into expensive silk fabrics. The wealth of the world is increasing and the supply of whales is decreasing; no idea, therefore, can be formed of the value of whalebone in the future, as no good substitute has been discovered. An adult female whale will furnish blubber sufficient for nearly thirty tons of oil, while a male will supply about twenty tons; the value of oil also is on the increase, and may be taken at about $100 per ton. Thus, the total value of a large whale varies from $15,000 to $20,000, but even at that the chase is becoming unprofitable, owing to the few whales remaining, and to the frequent ‘empty’ voyages made of late years.

The whaling ‘grounds’ of the eastern side of America are situated in Davis strait and Baffin bay and in the northern parts of Hudson bay.

The memorable voyage of Baffin, in 1616, first showed the value of the whale fishery of Davis strait, and as early as 1619 the first Dutch whaler was fishing in those waters. A few years later they were joined by British whaling vessels, but their operations were confined to the waters off the south coast of Greenland for nearly two hundred years, until the voyages of Ross and Parry disclosed the more valuable waters of Baffin bay and of the western side of Davis strait.

These discoveries led to a rapid increase of the British whaling fleet, and vessels were fitted out from the ports of Hull, Dundee, Kirkcaldy, Peterhead, Fraserburg and Aberdeen.

The introduction of steamships in the early sixties, and the combination of the whale fishery with the sealing industry of Newfoundland and eastern Greenland, led to further increases in the fleet, which, in 1868, totalled thirty steam and sailing vessels as follows: Dundee, 13 steam and 1 sailing ship; Peterhead, 4 steam and 8 sailing ships; Fraserburg, 2 sailing ships; Aberdeen, 1 sailing ship; Hull, 1 steamship. This was the last year in which ships sailed from Hull; since then the British whaling fleet has been from Scotch ports only. Steam soon altogether replaced sails, so that in 1877 only the former was employed. The fleet at that time had been reduced to thirteen vessels, all sailing from the port of Dundee. No new ships have been built during the past twenty-five years, and the construction of these strong oak vessels, sheathed with greenheart or ironbark, is fast becoming a lost art in these days of steel and iron ships. The Dundee fleet is now reduced to five, without much prospect of their being replaced by British-built ships. The future ships of the whaling fleet will probably be Norwegian-built. Four of the above vessels were, in 1904, whaling in Baffin bay, the fifth was in Hudson bay.

The American whalers did not attempt Arctic whaling until 1846, and have since confined their operations to the waters on the west side of Davis strait (Cumberland gulf and southward) and to those of Hudson strait and Hudson bay.

The American ships have always been sailing vessels, and the American methods differ considerably from those of the Scotch whalers, the chief difference being that their ships are provisioned for two years, and remain one or two winters in the north on each voyage. Americans were the first to erect permanent stations in the eastern Arctics.

The attention of the Hudson’s Bay Company was early directed to the whale fishery of Hudson bay. In 1719 a frigate and sloop, under the command of Knight, were despatched from Churchill, to explore the western shores of the bay to the northward and to prosecute the whale fishery in those waters. The disastrous ending of this venture, the entire crews dying of scurvy and starvation on Marble island, put a stop to all projects of the Company as regards whale fishing, until one was undertaken in recent years, but so little success attended the venture that it was abandoned after three years’ trial.

Public attention was first called to the whale fishery of Hudson bay by Dr. Rae, in the publications on his voyages in 1846 and 1854 along the northwestern coast of the bay in search of traces of the Franklin expedition.

In 1860 the first American ships visited the northwestern part of Hudson bay, wintered there, and returned with full cargoes. Their success led other whalers to the same waters, so that in 1864 there were fourteen American ships in Hudson bay and Cumberland strait.

Whaling in Hudson bay has since been almost wholly in the hands of the Americans, and an idea of the value taken by them from those waters may be obtained from the tabulated statement at the end of this article.

The first British vessel of modern times to visit Hudson bay for whales was the Newfoundland steamer _Nimrod_, which, according to Hall, was at Repulse bay in 1867. The Scotch steamer _Arctic_ made two or three voyages to the bay, the last being in 1897, when she struck a rock in Hudson strait, and was damaged to such an extent that she subsequently sunk in Cumberland gulf. The Hudson’s Bay Company’s ship _Perseverance_, already alluded to, was in Hudson bay from 1894 to 1896, and only took five small whales. Changing hands, a couple of years later, this ship was at Cumberland gulf, and sailing from there for Scotland must have struck an iceberg, as no tidings have since been had of her. This, or being crushed in the ice or being wrecked by striking sunken rocks upon these uncharted coasts, is the usual fate of the whaling vessels, and some such loss, entailing excessive hardships and often death upon the crews, is almost an annual occurrence in these Arctic waters, so that a high rate of remuneration is necessary to compensate for the risks.

Since 1898 the Scotch steamer _Active_ has made annual voyages to Hudson bay, and has established two stations, one on the north side of Hudson strait and the other first at Southampton island, but later removed to Repulse bay. Walrus hunting was the first object of this undertaking, with whaling as a secondary consideration. Success appears to have crowned this enterprise, as in addition to a few whales, a goodly number of walrus are taken annually, and the profits of these are enhanced by the furs obtained from the natives, and by mica from a mine worked on the north shore of Hudson strait.

Whaling in Hudson bay appears to have reached its height about 1870, after which the disappearance of the whales from the more accessible waters led to a diminution of the catch, and many of the American whaling vessels were transferred to the Arctic whaling waters reached from the Pacific, which were also discovered and made known by the British ships in search of the ill-fated Franklin. At present only one of the American whalers is in Hudson bay, and none of them have visited Cumberland gulf for some years past; the only connection with the industry now on that coast is the small and unprofitable station at Cape Haven, on Cyrus Field bay, owned by a firm in Boston.

The movements of the whales appear to depend largely upon the ice of these northern waters, and that in turn is modified by the currents and configuration of the seas, so that a short geographical description is necessary to a proper understanding of the movements and habits of these animals.

Davis strait and Baffin bay separate Greenland from the great Arctic islands of Baffin, Bylot, North Devon and Ellesmere. Their combined length stretches from the mouth of Hudson strait to the entrance of Smith sound, or from latitude 60° N. to latitude 78° N., a distance of 1,200 miles. In shape they may be compared to a sack loosely drawn in about a third of the distance from its mouth, which opens widely to the southward, where it has a breadth of nearly 500 miles between the southern part of Greenland and the island of Resolution on the north side of Hudson strait. Both shores then gradually approach, until in the neighbourhood of latitude 66° N. the distance across is 200 miles. To the northward of this the Greenland coast runs nearly due north, while the western coast trends towards the northwest, and in consequence when latitude 75° N. is reached Baffin bay is nearly 400 miles wide from the Greenland coast to the shores of North Devon. Beyond this the Greenland coast sweeps to the westward, around Melville bay, and after Cape York is passed turns northwest until Cape Alexander, at the entrance to Smith sound, is reached. The western coast, in the meanwhile, first runs north and then northeast to Cape Isabella, which is only twenty-five miles distant from Cape Alexander on the Greenland coast.

Like all the great northern bays, Baffin bay has a current flowing northward along the eastern or Greenland coast, and a cold Arctic current setting southward along the western shores. These currents have a considerable influence upon the climate of the adjoining land, and the mean annual temperature at points of corresponding latitude is several degrees higher on the Greenland side. This difference of climate is marked along the middle and northern coasts, that of Greenland being practically free from ice and snow, except where glaciers from the great central ice-cap flow down into the sea. The fiords and bays are open early in summer, while the current sweeps northward all the ice accumulated along the coast during the winter, leaving an open sea, usually early in July, as far as Melville bay.

A portion of this southern current evidently comes from the North Atlantic, and the remainder sweeps around the southern end of Greenland, bringing with it a stream of Arctic ice brought south on the Arctic current of east Greenland. This stream of ice is soon deflected from the west coast, and appears to melt in the southeastern part of Davis strait, as there is a lane of open water separating the southern ice from that of the west coast.

The distance from Wilcox head to Cape York, across Melville bay, is 180 miles; that from the centre of this line to the head of the bay is upwards of 100 miles. Much of the shore-line of the bay is still unexplored, but sufficient is known to state that it is an almost unbroken line of glaciers, which constantly discharge large icebergs into the waters of the bay. A large number of rocky islands break its surface, and the bottom appears to be very uneven, with much shallow water; in consequence, many of the icebergs are grounded in the shallower parts of the bay. The islands and grounded bergs break the winds and waves, and so allow of the formation of heavy sheets of ice between them during the winter months, while in the summer they act as anchors for this sheet, or floe ice. As before stated, the southerly current carries a great part of the shore ice of central Greenland north to Melville bay, where it acts as an aggravation to the congestion of ice there, so that it is always late in the season before the bay is even partly clear of ice, which must pass westward, until being influenced by the northern current from Smith sound, it is deflected south and goes to increase the great mass of ice known as the ‘middle pack,’ which all summer fills the southwestern part of Baffin bay. In the days of sailing ships the whalers made their way across the bay by tracking, or sailing along the edge of the solid land-ice, and many a vessel was lost there. Even with steam-power this is a place of terror to the whalers, and they never feel safe until they have reached the ‘north water’ at Cape York. As an illustration of the dangers and difficulties of this crossing, the _Vega_ was crushed and sunk in the summer of 1903, and the _Balaena_ was at the same time eighty days tightly jammed in the ice. In 1904 the _Eclipse_ took thirty days to cross the bay, and the _Diana_ was thirty-five days in crossing. The _Neptune_, on the 8th of August, crossed in twenty hours, when little ice was seen until within a few miles of Cape York; and from there to Cape Alexander, at the entrance to Smith sound, only ‘pan’ or sheet ice was observed at the heads of the larger bays, all the eastern side of the northern part of Baffin bay being free of ice. This open ‘north water’ is caused as follows: The ice to the southward of Cape Alexander breaks up towards the end of June or early in July, and is soon carried southward on the southerly current of the west side. Smith sound and its continuation northward remain tightly frozen until August, when it sends its heavy ice southward; in consequence there is always a wide interval of open water between these two streams of ice from the north. The Smith sound ice continues to pour out in heavy floes, often square miles in area, until the end of the year, and this stream finally joins the earlier ice in the western part of Baffin bay, where other streams of Arctic ice gather from Jones, Lancaster and Ponds inlet sounds. All these form the great mass of the ‘middle pack,’ which slowly empties on the northern current, flowing southward along the west side of Davis strait, blocking the mouths of Cumberland gulf and Frobisher bay in the late summer, later appearing on the coast of Labrador, and finally forming the heavy pack upon which the seals are found in March and April off the shores of Newfoundland.

The whaling grounds of Hudson bay have been confined to the north side of Hudson strait and to the northwestern part of the bay. The great island of Southampton lies in the north part of the bay and divides it into two unequal portions. The eastern or Fox channel is by far the larger, extending northward from latitude 64° to latitude 70°, and exceeds 200 miles in width. The western, or Roes Welcome, is much smaller; its length from Cape Fullerton to the head of Repulse bay is 150 miles, while it rarely exceeds 40 miles across.

In the early days of the Hudson bay fishery, whales were plentiful as far south as Marble island, and from there northward to Repulse bay. Of late years few whales have been taken in these southern waters, and the whalers now confine themselves to the southern shores of Southampton and the waters of Roes Welcome.

The northern and eastern parts of Fox channel are still unexplored, and owing to the large masses of ice found there continuously, and to the numerous shoals and reefs in the known parts, it has never been a favourite place for whalers, its waters being the only portion of the bay where the whales have been left undisturbed.

The favourite resort for whales both in Baffin and Hudson bays is along the edge of the ice still fast to the shore, with an abundance of loose ice outside. When the shore ice is all melted or loosened they prefer to remain about the edge of the large masses of floating ice. This habit of remaining close to the ice-masses appears to be due to two causes—food and protection. The whale is a very timid animal, and is easily frightened by anything out of the ordinary; it then either takes to the protection of the tightly packed ice, or leaves for distant parts. The food of the whale consists of small crustaceans (called sealice by the whalers), and swimming pterepods known as ‘whale-food’ and ‘blackberries.’ These creatures in turn feed upon minute animal organisms, known as diatoms, which are found in countless numbers in these northern waters, where they are so numerous as to discolour large areas of the sea, giving it a light-green, or a brownish hue. The diatoms are known to be propagated in the fresh-water pools upon the large pans of ice, and it would appear that they thrive best in the comparatively fresh surface-water in the vicinity of melting ice; this may be the chief reason for the whales frequenting such localities.

The whales are known to enter Hudson strait early in the spring; they have been captured around Big island in April and May, and at the western end of the strait in the latter part of May. They then cross to the west side of the bay along the edge of the open water, being found in June and early July along the land-floe on both sides of the southern part of Roes Welcome. As the Welcome clears of ice they proceed north to Repulse bay, and, still later, pass through Frozen strait into Fox channel. Late in the autumn they again pass through Hudson strait going eastward. By far the greater number of whales taken in Hudson bay have been killed in the vicinity of Whale point near the southern entrance to the Welcome.

Some whales are supposed to remain during the winter in the waters of Hudson bay, as they have been reported by the Eskimos as being seen in the depth of winter off Mansfield and some of the more southern islands of the east side of the bay.

The migration of the whales in Davis strait and Baffin bay is fairly well known. In March they are found along the edge of the land-floe of Cumberland gulf and Frobisher bay, where they remain until the beginning of May, when they cross to the Greenland coast, and in June are found on the ‘middle ground’ to the south of Disko. From there they follow the shore ice north to Melville bay, and then cross along the southern edge of the ‘north water’ to the western shores of Baffin bay. Should there be a good land-floe in Jones and Lancaster sounds, they are found there late in July and in the beginning of August, but the greater number go south to the mouth of Ponds inlet, where the principal summer catch is made. During September and October they are found along the western edge of the ‘middle pack,’ and the whalers pass southward from Ponds inlet, making use of a number of good harbours known only to themselves on the eastern side of Baffin island, and going out only in fine weather. According to the season they remain on that coast, to the northward of Cumberland gulf, until the middle or end of October, when they leave for Scotland. In October the whales again enter Cumberland gulf, and remain along the edge of the newly-formed land ice until December, when their position is unknown until their return in the following March. They are supposed to go in the meantime, to the southward, off the mouth of Hudson strait and along the northern Atlantic coast of Labrador, but the weather then is too severe to permit of the use of open whaleboats.

The Greenland whale, commonly called a ‘fish’ by the whalers, is, as all know, a mammal, warm-blooded, reproducing and suckling its young like any of the land mammals. Its outward resemblance to a fish is merely a provision of nature, whereby its shape is adapted to the conditions in which it lives; that is, for a wholly marine life. Its swimming ‘fins’ when stripped of their covering, are found to correspond to the fore-limbs of quadrupeds, and although the whale does not possess any hind-limbs, there are rudiments of such to be found in their place, or at least the rudiments of the pelvis to which the after limbs were attached.

In colour the whale is usually black or bluish-black above, and whitish or piebald below. Sometimes white spots occur on the upper parts, and the markings frequently vary with the individual. The young are lighter-coloured, being bluish.

An adult whale varies from forty to sixty feet in length; extra large ones run to sixty-five feet, and the largest recorded reached eighty feet in length.

The whalers have different names for differently sized whales. _Suckers_ are the young under a year old; _Shortheads_ is also applied to the young as long as they continue to be suckled. _Stunts_ are two years old; _Scull-fish_ have bone less than six feet in length; _Size-fish_ have the bone exceeding that length.

The following are the measurements given by Dr. Robert Goodsir of a large female whale killed in Ponds bay:—

ft. in. Length from the fork of the tail, along the abdomen, to tip of lower jaw 65 0 Girth behind swimming-paws 30 0 Breadth of tail, from tip to tip 24 0 Greatest breadth between lower jaws 10 0 Length of head, measured in a line from articulation of lower jaw 21 0 Length of vulva 1 2 From posterior end of vulva to anus 0 6 From anterior end of vulva to umbilicus 8 0 Mammæe placed opposite the anterior third of vulva and six inches from tip of it. Length of sulcus of mammæ 0 3 Breadth of sulcus, on each side of it 0 2 From tuberosity of humerus to point of pectoral fin 8 0 Greatest breadth of fin 3 11 Depth of lip (interior of lower) 4 7 From the inner canthus of eye to extreme angle of fold of mouth 1 5 From inner to outer canthus 0 6 Length of block of laminæ beleen, measuring round the curve of the gum, after being removed from the head 16 6 Length of longest lamina on each side 10 6 Distance between the laminæ at the gum 0 0⅞ Breadth of pulp cavity of largest lamina 1 0 Average length of pulp when extracted from one side of the largest laminæ 0 5 Number of laminae on either side, about 360.

Female whales are larger and fatter than the males, so that a female will have an average of about ten more tons of blubber than an ordinary male. As will be seen from the above measurements, the head equals about a third of the length of the body, and the upper jaw, which carries the baleen or whalebone, is only a few feet shorter. The baleen is in the form of thin slabs or ‘splits’ set close together in the gum at right-angles to the length of the jaw-bone. At the base the splits are from six to twelve inches wide and from a quarter to nearly an inch in thickness. They taper slowly to their free end, and terminate in long hairs which extend upwards of six inches beyond the solid bone. Similar hairs are found along the inside of the bone. There are about 360 of these splits on each side of the jaw, and they are placed so as to slope backwards. The longest or ‘size split’ is in the middle of the side of the jaw, and the others decrease in length in front and behind. It derives its name from being the split by which the length and weight of the bone is computed. The longest split recorded measured fourteen feet in length, but the ordinary length in adult whales is from nine to ten feet. Bone of that length will average nearly a ton weight to a whale. Bone six feet and under brings only half the price of longer bone. The laminæ are usually pale-blue; in the young they are sometimes green and black; in older whales nearly black, and occasionally striped white and black.

This bone in the whale’s mouth acts as a swab or sieve to entangle and collect the small animals upon which it feeds. The lower lip is very deep, and when closed fits close to the head, the edge forming a bow as it curves backwards from the front. When feeding, this lip is let down, so that it projects nearly at right-angles, forming a sort of trough and conducting the water, as the whale moves through it, to the tangle of hairs of the exposed bone. When sufficient food has been collected the lip is closed and the food removed from the baleen by the broad tongue. A whale when feeding travels at, or near the surface, at a rate varying from two to four miles an hour. The speed at which a free whale travels through the water appears to have been greatly exaggerated. When harpooned, and dragging a whaleboat, the speed rarely exceeds six miles an hour, and as the mass of the whale greatly exceeds that of the boat the latter cannot to any great extent retard its speed, especially as the whale is then exerting its utmost power in its efforts to escape.

The body is everywhere covered with a thick skin, which varies from an inch to an inch and a half in thickness. This thick ‘blackskin’ forms a luxury in the diet of the Eskimos and whalers. It is eaten boiled, a small amount of blubber being attached to give it flavour. When cooked it has the appearance of thick black india-rubber, and is soft and glutinous, while its flavour approaches that of the clam.

The fat or blubber is found everywhere directly below the skin, and is thickest towards the tail. It bears a resemblance to very fat pork, and is from twelve to eighteen inches in thickness. The flesh of the whale is coarse and tough, and is used largely for dog-food; although often eaten by the Eskimos, it is only when seal or walrus meat cannot be obtained.

Whales are gregarious, and when plentiful travel in large bands, but they are now so rare that a band of three or four is the greatest number seen together of late years.

There are two methods employed in the chase after whales. The Scotch whalers of Baffin bay cruise about in small steamers, and depend wholly upon their own white crew to man their boats. The American whalers and the stations depend more or less upon the Eskimos to form their boats’ crews.

The Scotch steamers are small, stout vessels, from 300 to 400 tons register. Those, British-built, are of hardwood throughout, while the Norwegian ships have hardwood frames and softwood planking. The timbers and planking in all are very heavy, and the sides are further strengthened by a sheathing of greenheart or ironbark, both exceedingly hard, tough woods. This sheathing extends from above the water-line to near the keel; the planks forming it are from three to six inches thick, and are capable of resisting great pressure from the ice, as well as withstanding its cutting action which would soon wear through unprotected sides. The bows are further strengthened by being backed by several feet of solid timber, while, outside, thick plates and bands of iron protect the bow and stem. The sides are also strengthened by a layer of rock-salt, filled in between the timbers and between the skin of the ship, and by an inside sheathing fastened to the timber, so that with the outside sheathing of greenheart, the planking and the salt-filling, the sides are from eighteen to twenty-four inches thick. Notwithstanding this great strength, the usual fate of these ships is to be crushed in the ice.

The ships are three-masted and barque rigged, differing in appearance from an ordinary wooden barque by the presence of large barrels fitted to the tops of the fore and main masts, and used for observation stations when working the ship through ice or when chasing whales. The small engine and boiler are placed aft, between the main and mizzen masts, where the strong deck beams can be best spared. The engine works a two-bladed propeller, which drives the ships at rates varying from four to seven knots an hour.

The lower hold of the ship is filled with a number of iron tanks that rise to the level of the middle deck, and which are used to store the blubber. On leaving home all these tanks are filled with coal, which is also stowed in every other available space, the usual amount of coal for the voyage being from 250 to 300 tons. The between-deck space is used for stowing provisions, and for the quarters of part of the crew.

The officers and crew usually number about fifty persons, sufficient to man six whaleboats and to leave men on board to work the vessel.

The boats are narrow, and are pointed at both ends. Their length is about twenty-six feet. They are propelled by five oars, or by sail. When rowing the steersman uses a long sweep oar, and when sailing a rudder, so arranged as to be easily unshipped and hung on the side of the boat. Scotch whaleboats are built of larch, while the American are made of cedar. Another difference is that the latter are centre-board boats, while the former have fixed keels.

On the whaling grounds the boats hang ready in davits, three on a side, with all their whaling gear in place, and ready to be lowered at a moment’s notice. A man is always on the lookout in the barrel, and when a whale is sighted the captain takes his place there and directs the movements of the boats from the ship by signals made with sails and other signs. He is also in connection with the engine-room, and controls the ship from that lofty perch.

A whale is usually sighted by the column of spray which it throws up in breathing, and which often rises twenty feet in the air, accompanied by a puffing sound. A whale usually spouts or breathes five or six times when it comes to the surface for that purpose, and so remains up for several minutes. It then goes down to feed, and remains under the water for fifteen or twenty minutes, during that time travelling perhaps at most a mile. If possible, advantage is taken of the wind to approach the whale, to avoid the noise made in rowing. For that purpose ordinary metal row-locks are not used, their place being taken by stout pins, to which the oar is attached by a ‘grummet’ or loop of rope. Both ear and eye of the whale are very small, but in the water they are very acute, and any strange noise instantly arouses suspicion. The eye is so placed that the animal can only see ahead, and care is therefore taken to approach it from behind.

The Scotch whalers use guns, both for the harpoon and for the bomb, with which the whale is killed after the harpoon is fast. The harpoon has but one barb, and is so attached to the shank that when it has entered the skin and the line begins to pull, it swings at right-angles to the wound, and cannot be removed without cutting a large hole. The shank is about two feet long, and is split from the head to butt. In this split runs a ring to which the line is attached. The butt is a circular disc the diameter of the bore of the harpoon gun. This gun is mounted on a stanchion in the bow of the boat, and, working on a swivel, may be pointed in any direction. It is a muzzle-loader, and its discharge is insured by a double primer. When the gun is loaded, only the head of the harpoon and a short length of the stock protrude, sufficient for the ring with attached line. When it is fired the ring slips back to the butt and the head is buried deep into the side of the whale.

The harpoon line is generally made of manilla, and has a circumference of about three inches. It is carefully coiled in tubs between the seats, each tub holding a line 120 fathoms long. After the whale has been struck, the line is passed aft and a turn taken around a post in the stern, from which the line is payed out as required. The bomb gun has a bore about an inch in diameter, and fires an explosive shell, so arranged as to explode shortly after coming in contact with the body of the whale, and thus well inside. This gun is rarely used before the whale makes its first plunge, and frequently several dives are made before the boat can get close enough to give this _coup de grâce_.

As soon as life is extinct, the boats form in line and tow the whale, tail first, to the ship, where its tail is made fast to the quarter, and an effort is made to reach a harbour, where the carcass may be stripped with safety. When this is impossible, the body is brought alongside the ship and secured by the head and tail. Work is then commenced with long-handled blubber spades, about six inches wide and very sharp. The blubber is removed in long strips cut around the body, and when one side is finished the whale is turned over. The great lips are cut away, and then, with cheers, the prize in the upper jaw is hoisted on board. The blubber, as it is taken from the whale, is stored in the empty tanks and is taken home in this condition. It is not reduced to oil immediately, as is the practice with the Americans.

The Scotch whalers of Hudson bay differ in their methods from those of Baffin bay only in the employment of Eskimos to man a part of their boats, and consequently they do not carry so large a white crew. The natives employed by the _Active_ belong to the north side of Hudson strait and come from the vicinity of Big island. Several families of these Eskimos are taken on board the ship when she arrives in the early summer, and remain on board until she leaves for home in October. These natives are employed partly in whaling and walrus hunting, and are very useful in skinning and preparing the hides of the walrus.

At present there is only one American vessel engaged in whaling on the eastern side of America, the topsail schooner _Era_ of New Bedford. This ship entered Hudson bay during the summer of 1903, wintered in the harbour of Fullerton, and intended to pass the winter of 1904 in the same harbour, returning home in the following September. As the _Neptune_ wintered alongside at Fullerton, and as the writer made a trip lasting two weeks to Southampton island, in June, 1904, in company with four of the whaleboats belonging to the _Era_, he is personally better acquainted with the life and methods of the American than with those of the Scotch whalers.

The _Era_ is over fifty years old, and was originally built for a coasting packet. When her usefulness in that trade was passed, some thirty years ago, she was sheathed with about three inches of hardwood, and further reinforced with iron plate in the bow. Little expenditure seems to have since been made by the owners. The ship is now very leaky, and in such a condition that she could not get a British rating. During the winter, when tightly frozen in, the pumps were going daily, and when at sea they are almost constantly going to keep the vessel afloat, while the forecastle, the home of a crew of twelve men, has several inches of water on the floor, and every bunk is soaking wet. This forecastle is very small, and when the small stove and table are set up, the men have to crawl over one another to get to their small double-decked bunks. The air is exceedingly bad, and these quarters probably account, in part, for the scurvy prevalent amongst the crew. The food is as antiquated as the accommodation, and is confined to the staples, barrelled pork and beef with biscuit left over from the Spanish-American war, and returned from Cuba more or less alive; to these are added coffee and molasses of the cheapest kind, and a small quantity of tinned meats, preserved potatoes and dried apples, none in quantities sufficient for anything approaching a daily ration; no antiscorbutics, such as lime-juice, are carried. These antiquated rations are supplemented by fresh meat of the deer, seal and walrus obtained from the natives, but during the winter this supply is often very inadequate.

The officers and crew numbered twenty on leaving New Bedford. They consist of the captain, two mates, three boat-steerers, cook, steward and twelve seamen. None of the officers hold certificates, and as far as their qualifications to navigate the ship are concerned, have passed no official test.

The officers and boat-steerers are ‘old hands,’ having made previous voyages, either to Hudson bay or to the western whaling. The crew are all landsmen without any knowledge of the sea, and are obtained for the voyage through the agency of crimps. Some were signed on under false statements and others put on board while drunk. In some cases the ship’s articles were signed after the vessel was at sea, and the majority of the men when they signed had not had the articles read to them. Advances made by the crimps at extravagant rates are paid by the owners without the knowledge or consent of the crew as soon as the vessel leaves port. No wages are paid, all being on shares; and the share of the crew is so small and the advance account and articles supplied from the ‘slop-chest’ so great that it is the usual thing for each man to find himself in debt to the owners on his return from no matter how successful a voyage. None of these practices are allowed on board the British vessel, and the crew are not only paid monthly wages, but participate in the profits of the voyage.

The _Era’s_ crew was composed of a gunsmith, a clerk in a wholesale drug business, an iron moulder, a mechanic, an ex-soldier, a railway brakesman, an Armenian and several nondescripts ‘about town.’ Of the entire lot only one had ever been to sea before.

The treatment of the crew by the officers was as good as circumstances permitted, and was in strong contrast to their general treatment by the owners.

The methods of the American whalers differ considerably from those already described. When the ship arrives in the northwestern part of the bay, the Aivillik Eskimos are looked for somewhere in the vicinity of Whale point, and enough men, practically half of the tribe, are engaged for the time the ship remains in the bay. The ship’s crew are sufficient to man three whaleboats, and three others are manned by the natives. Four boats are brought on the ship every voyage, and only two are taken home, the other two, equipped for whaling, being left with the natives, and any whales caught during the ship’s absence are supposed to belong to the ship furnishing the boats.

The natives and their families and dogs are taken on board the schooner and conveyed to the harbour where it is proposed to spend the winter. About seventy persons of this tribe were at Fullerton during the winter of 1903-04, and twice a day received a meal of biscuit and coffee on the ship. These people were fed in the cabin after the officers, and two or three extra tables were required to accommodate all, so that the meal continued for nearly two hours, and the atmosphere of the cabin was anything but sweet. No regular wages are paid to the natives either during the winter when hunting, or when in the boats in the summer, but they are given such articles as the captain thinks they should have or deserve, everything being left to his judgment or caprice. On the whole they are fairly well treated, and although they only get a very small percentage of their catch, still the presence of the whaler ensures them from starvation, and provides them with boats, guns and ammunition, all of which would otherwise be difficult or impossible to obtain.

While with the ship the entire hunt of the natives is supposed to belong to the ship, and no definite payment is made for whales or fur taken during that period.

During past years a goodly number of boats have been left to the natives by the American whalers, and at the present time the Eskimos scattered from Chesterfield inlet to Repulse bay must have upwards of twenty serviceable boats. The Aivilliks have for so long become possessed of boats in this manner, that they have lost the art of building kyaks, and none of the younger men know anything about handling these craft.

Very little use is made of the ship in the catching of whales, and it usually only serves as a convenient base of supply, or as a means of transport from one locality to another.

As the crews live during the greater part of the open season in the boats, these are fitted with cotton covers supported on hoops, and are thus completely roofed in, affording very comfortable if somewhat cramped quarters. Cooking is done with oil stoves, and sleeping is arranged for by placing wide boards across the intervals between seats. The boats leave the ship early in May, long before the ice along the coast begins to break up, and they cruise up and down along the edge of the solid land-floe looking for whales. During stormy weather, and at night, the boats are drawn out on the smooth ice, props are placed on each side to keep them upright, and the cover being drawn on and snugly secured, afford secure and comfortable quarters, provided that the temperature does not drop too low; in that case, resort is made to the deerskin sleeping bags for greater warmth.

The west coast of the bay is patrolled in this manner until about the middle of June, the cruise extending from Chesterfield inlet to Whale point, supplies being renewed every week or so. Each of the ship’s boats is in charge of an officer, who always attends to the steering. The ‘boat-steerers’ are in reality the harpooners, and have nothing to do with the steering of the boat.

Towards the end of June the boats cross through the floating ice to Southampton island, where they remain until compelled to return for fresh supplies, usually about three weeks. A second trip to that island is sometimes made, and in August the ship, now free from the ice, is taken to Repulse bay or the Frozen strait connecting it with Fox channel. The ship is again left in harbour under the charge of the cook and steward, and the boats cruise about until the beginning of September, when the ship is taken to winter quarters or sails for home. If the intention is to remain all winter, the harbour is reached before the middle of the month.

This is the routine, and it is only varied by the capture of a whale. As will be seen from the above description, the boats cruise nearly all the time in the in-shore waters, and the greater number of whales are taken within the three-mile limit, and not on the high seas as is the rule in Baffin bay. If the whale is killed within reasonable distance of the ship, it is either towed alongside by the boats, or the ship comes for it, and an endeavour is made to get the body into a safe harbour in order to save the blubber. A number of whales are killed in inconvenient places, and only the bone is then taken, all the blubber going to waste. When the blubber is taken, it is immediately cut up and ‘tried out’ into oil on board the ship, a large boiler being carried for that purpose. The hold of the schooner is filled with large casks, made in different sizes to fit the shape of the hold. On the outward voyage these are partly filled with the provisions; returning, they carry the oil and furs collected on the voyage.

During the long winter a part of the natives remain at the ship, and are employed hunting seals, walrus, and deer to help feed the women and children and the crew of the ship. The remainder are sent away after musk-ox, and remain away several months, having to go a long distance before reaching the country where those animals are found. A successful party will return with at least twenty musk-ox skins, and these add to the profits of the voyage. Stranger Eskimos also visit the ship to trade, and in this manner a considerable number of musk-ox, fox, wolf, bear and wolverine skins are added.

Unlike the Scotch whalers, where the captain remains on board ship to direct the movements of the boats from the barrel, the American captain goes in charge of one of the boats. This works well in open water, but when the whale is among loose ice very little can be seen from the boats.

The Americans make use of a hand harpoon, and as it is very heavy and has a gun attached to it, the boat must approach within a few feet of the whale before it can be thrown with any certainty of success; otherwise the manner of capture is similar to that already described.

Station whaling, which is very similar to that practised by the American ships, is carried on both in Baffin bay and Hudson bay. The stations are either permanent establishments on land, or are small ships that remain constantly in the country, and serve only as a convenient dwelling for the small number of whites with each.

At the present time land stations are operated at Kekerten and Blacklead, in Cumberland gulf and at Cape Haven, all on the east side of Davis strait. At the mouth of Ponds inlet in Baffin bay a small ketch is stationed; in Repulse bay a similar vessel is used as a whaling station. With the exception of Cape Haven these are owned in Scotland, the Cape Haven station belonging to a firm in Boston, U.S.

Only one or two white men are employed at each, and the whaling is altogether in the hands of the natives.

None of these stations are making great profits, and some of them are being maintained at a loss. They are of great assistance to the natives, and it is to be hoped that nothing will be done to discourage the owners, who according to present returns should be helped rather than hindered in their work.

The natives have for years looked for assistance to the whalers both on Baffin island and Hudson bay. They have quite given up the use of their primitive weapons, and there is no doubt that a withdrawal of the whalers would lead to great hardship and many deaths among these people if the Government did not in some manner take their place and supply the Eskimos with the necessary guns and ammunition.

The influence of the whalers upon the natives does not appear to have been as bad as in the western part of the Arctics. The excessive use of alcohol has never been practised, and has now been totally stopped. Disease due to sexual intercourse has been introduced and has, no doubt, led to many deaths. Other diseases introduced have carried away numbers of these people. It is doubtful if the morals of the Eskimo, which are of a different standard from those of Europeans, have deteriorated through sexual intercourse with the sailors.

The future of the whaling industry appears to be very gloomy. The annual catch is decreasing regularly, and only the high price of whalebone makes it at all profitable. No certainty of a single whale can be had, and the enterprise is reduced to almost a gambling chance. During the past season the following returns were collected from the various ships and stations visited:—

_Era._—One small whale taken at Southampton up to the 20th July. To this must be added the bone of a large and small whale taken by natives before the _Era’s_ arrival in 1903.

_Balaena._—One medium whale, three-quarters of a ton of whalebone, to 23rd August.

_Diana._—Three whales, two and a quarter tons of whalebone to 23rd August.

_Eclipse._—Two whales, one and a half tons of whalebone, to 23rd August.

_Windward._—One whale, three-quarters of a ton of whalebone, to 23rd August.

Ponds inlet station.—Two small whales, a quarter of a ton of short whalebone, to 23rd August.

Kekerten station.—No whales to 1st September.

Blacklead station.—No whales to 1st September.

Cape Haven station.—No whales to 1st September.

_Active._—One whale, 1,300 pounds bone.

Repulse bay station.—One small whale, 500 pounds bone.

Several other species of the larger whales are known to frequent the southern and eastern waters of Davis strait and Baffin bay, but do not go into the densely ice-covered seas of the western side, nor are they found in Hudson strait or bay.

None of these whales possess the precious whalebone. They are also of comparatively little value for oil, and only when hunted by steamers in conjunction with shore factories, where all the products can be turned to profitable account, as is done in Norway and Newfoundland, can the chase for them be profitable. Such ships and stations will require to be operated from the Greenland coast.

The following species of whales are the most common and important:—

_Physalus antiquorum_, Flem.—Big Finner, is found in Davis strait, chiefly on the cod-banks, where it devours immense numbers of fish. For its size it gives a remarkably small quantity of oil. On this account it is not killed by the whalers, and seldom by the natives.

_Balaenoptera sibbaldii._ Gray.—This whale is usually confounded with the one last mentioned; has the same range and habits, and is rarely killed by the natives.

_Balaenoptera rostrata_, Fab.—The Little Finner has the same range as the above, being well known to the Eskimos of Greenland and unknown to those of Baffin island.

_Megaptera longimana_, Gray.—The Humpback, appears on the Greenland coast in summer. Its whalebone is very short and of a poor quality, so that its price in no way compares with that of the Right whale. The blubber also is poor and makes little oil in comparison to its size.

_Orca gladiator_, Sund.—The Killer (Grampus, or Swordfish), is very voracious, and lives largely upon fish, seals, porpoises and white whales. It also attacks large Right whales, and on this account is disliked by the whalers, as the presence of a single Killer means the immediate flight of all creatures in that vicinity. Luckily it will not penetrate among the heavy floes, where the Right whales retreat for safety. Some idea of the destruction to life caused by the Killer may be formed from the fact that in the stomach of one were found fourteen porpoises and fourteen large seals; it choked to death swallowing the fifteenth. They chase seals and White whales on shore, and the seals are often seen jumping clear out of water in their endeavour to escape.

PORPOISES.

_Phocaena communis_, Brookes.—The porpoise arrives on the Greenland coast early in the spring, but does not go north of latitude 69° N., nor does it frequent the ice-laden seas of Baffin bay; it is unknown in Hudson strait and bay.

_Beluga catadon_, Gray.—The White whale or White porpoise (Kellulauak, Eskimo) is common to all the Arctic coasts, and remains throughout the year. It usually travels in large schools, frequenting the bays and mouths of rivers. In the north large numbers have been taken by the whalers along the coast of North Somerset, both in Prince Regent inlet and in Barrow strait. It is plentiful in the rivers at the heads of Cumberland gulf and Frobisher bay. Many are killed annually by the natives along the south shore of Hudson strait. The Hudson’s Bay Company has for several years past made successful fisheries in the mouth of the Koksoak river and in Leaf bay, both in the southwest part of Ungava bay. Similar fisheries were formerly conducted in the mouths of Great and Little Whale rivers on the east side of Hudson bay, but after some success the whales would not enter these rivers over the nets, and the fisheries were abandoned. The writer has seen great numbers of White whales in the mouths of the rivers to the northward of Little Whale river, notably so in that of the Nastapoka. The Eskimos depend upon the White whale for part of their food and lamp oil. The meat is coarse and dark, being, like that of the seals, highly charged with blood and having a fishy flavour. The boiled skin is a native dainty, and is in the same class as beaver-tail or moose nose, soft and gelatinous. There is little doubt that, with the opening of Hudson bay, the White whale fishery will become an important industry in many places in the bay and strait, and also along the coast to the northward.

_Monodon monoceras_, Linn.—The Narwhal has habits very similar to those of the White whale. It generally travels in bands, and appears to prefer the proximity of ice, so that its summer range is more northern than that of the White whale. The Baffin bay whalers obtain a considerable number of narwhal horns from the natives of north Greenland, the best place being in the vicinity of Cape York, or to the eastward of Melville bay.

The narwhal appears to replace the White whale in the waters of Ponds inlet, only the former being killed there. Numbers are taken in the ice by the whalers of Baffin bay; they are not uncommon about Cumberland gulf when the ice still covers its waters. The natives of Hudson strait kill numbers of these animals in the early summer, and after the shore-ice has formed in the early winter, but none are seen on the south shore during the open waters of summer. The narwhal is only found in the northern waters of Hudson bay, where it is abundant in the ice-laden waters of Fox channel and Frozen strait.

The narwhal is distinguished in the water from the White whale by its darker colour, its white spots and its horn. The colour becomes lighter with age, so that very old individuals become dirty white. According to the Eskimos, the horn is confined to the males, and its chief use is for domestic battle. Only one horn is usually developed, growing out of the upper jaw, and projecting directly forward. A second horn on the other side of the jaw is not uncommon, but it is always shorter, and is often malformed or rudimentary. The horns vary in length up to eight feet, and are composed of a very fine quality of ivory. At the base the average thickness is from two to three inches; it tapers gradually to a point, having a spiral twist throughout the length. There is a large pith core at the base, which gradually fills after the horn has reached maturity, so that in old animals the horn is almost completely solid. This ivory is much more valuable than that obtained from the tusks of the walrus, being worth from $2.50 to $3 a pound. The ultimate destination of the ivory is China, where it is used for ornamental purposes as well as for medicine, and for the manufacture of cups supposed to absorb all poisons placed in them.

The flesh and skin of the narwhal are put to the same uses by the Eskimos as those of the White whale.

TABULATED STATEMENT of information concerning the Whale Fishery in Baffin bay and in Hudson bay.

BRITISH WHALING FLEET.*

━━━━━┯━━━━━━━━┯━━━━━┯━━━━━━━┯━━━━━┯━━━━━ Year.│Steamer.│Sail.│Whales.│Oil. │Bone. ─────┼────────┼─────┼───────┼─────┼───── │ │ │ │Tons.│ Cwt. 1865 │ 11│ 12│ 66│ 742│ 710 1866 │ 15│ 11│ 81│ 848│ 933 1867 │ 17│ 11│ 24│ 228│ 60 1868 │ 18│ 12│ 134│1,228│1,164 1869 │ 16│ 10│ 22│ 266│ 207 1870 │ 14│ 8│ 79│ 962│1,111 1871 │ 15│ 6│ 152│1,348│1,544 1872 │ 17│ 5│ 138│1,393│1,486 1873 │ 18│ 4│ 172│1,426│1,475 1874 │ 16│ 3│ 190│1,662│1,680 1875 │ 18│ 2│ 98│ 975│ 970 1876 │ 17│ 3│ 82│1,115│1,132 1877 │ 13│ ....│ 81│ 955│ 850 1881 │ 11│ ....│ 48│ 514│ 495 1882 │ 9│ ....│ 79│ 670│ 560 1883 │ 6│ ....│ 17│ 524│ 190 1884 │ 9│ ....│ 79│ 755│ 780 1885 │ 12│ ....│ 28│ 359│ 200 1886 │ 8│ ....│ 15│ 375│ 240 1887 │ 8│ ....│ ..│ 496│ 140 1888 │ 7│ ....│ 6│ 308│ 43 1889 │ 3│ ....│ 8│ 125│ 110 1890 │ 5│ ....│ 11│ 403│ 265 1891 │ 5│ ....│ 6│ 167│ 70 1892 │ 5│ ....│ 7│ 228│ 78 1893 │ 4│ ....│ 30│ 391│ 410 1894 │ 5│ ....│ 15│ 218│ 250 1895 │ 5│ ....│ 3│ 233│ 36 1896 │ 3│ ....│ 3│ 60│ 15 1897 │ 3│ ....│ 8│ 102│ 110 1898 │ 4│ ....│ 8│ 235│ 100 1899 │ 7│ ....│ 26│ 419│ 330 1900 │ 7│ ....│ 17│ 290│ 230 1901 │ 6│ ....│ 15│ 260│ 164 1902 │ 6│ ....│ 13│ 212│ 187 1903 │ 6│ ....│ 14│ 145│ 175 1904 │ 6│ ....│ 11│ 110│ 107

* The returns from 1865 to 1877, inclusive, are from the Report of the U. S. Consul at Dundee, 1877. The returns from 1881 to 1904 have been furnished by Captain W. F. Milne, of the British whaler _Eclipse_.

AMERICAN WHALING FLEET.

1846-52—One ship yearly to Cumberland gulf. 350 tons oil and 2·5 tons bone. 1853-58—Fiveships””750”5·75” 1860—First two ships to winter in Hudson bay. Value of catch $60,000. 1863—Fourteen ships in Hudson bay and Cumberland gulf. 1864—Fifteen ships in Hudson bay. 1865—Two ships in Repulse bay. Killed 8 whales. 1866—Four ships wintered in Repulse bay. Little success.

HUDSON BAY.

1889—One ship. 1890— 1891—One ship, 4 whales, 4,400 lbs. bone. 1892—One ship, 2 ” 1,600 ” 1893—Two ships, 8 ” 18,500 ” 1894—One ship, 8 ” 4,500 ” 1895—Three ships, 6 ” 10,300 ” 1896—Two ships, 4 ” 4,100 ” 1897—Three ships, 19 ” 20,175 ” 1898— 1899—One ship, 6 whales, 6,000 lbs. bone. 1900—One ship, 8 ” 7,500 ” 1901—One ship. Burnt. 1902— 1903—Two ships, 2 whales, 1,800 lbs. bone. 1904—One ship, 1 ” 500 ”

The information to 1866 has been taken from the narrative of C. F. Hall’s second Arctic expedition. That from 1889 to 1904 has been furnished by Captain George Comer, American whaler _Era_.

Eight American whaling ships have, to the knowledge of Captain Comer, been lost in Hudson Bay.

SEALS.

There exists at present considerable confusion in the number of species and the classification of the northern seals. A scientific argument on classification is beyond the province of this report, and it need only be mentioned that, after careful inquiry from the Eskimos of Baffin island and Hudson bay, there is no doubt that, including the walrus, there are but six species of seals in the northern seas of eastern America, and that the other species named are simply due to varieties of age, size and colour.

The present account is confined to the distribution, habits and uses of these animals.

_Callocephalus vitulinus_, Linn.—The Harbour seal, Freshwater seal, or Ranger (Kassigiak, Eskimo), is common but not plentiful on all the coasts. It is found usually about the mouths of rivers, and in bays and fiords. It is also found in some of the larger lakes of Labrador and Baffin island. These lakes are often far inland and high above the present level of the sea, and there is no doubt that in a number of them the seals reside permanently. The young, unlike those of the other seals, are produced in July on the rocks about the banks of rivers.

The skins are prized by the natives owing to their fur-like character and beauty of colour. They are dressed with the hair on, and are chiefly used for women’s garments, fancy bags and for the boot-legs of dandies.

The flesh and blubber, especially of the older and larger freshwater seals, have a disagreeable odour and taste, and consequently are not so highly prized by the natives as are those of the following species.

_Pagomys foetidus_, Fab.—The Ringed seal, or Jar (Nietshik, Eskimo), is the common small seal of all the coasts.

The variations in size, markings and colour, due to age, have led to this seal being classed under several species.

Its flesh is the chief article of diet of the natives the year round, while its skin when dressed with the hair is used for clothing, tentings and bags; when dressed by removing the hair, it is used as covering for the kyak and for boot-legs. The blubber, burned in stone lamps, is the chief source of artificial heat.

The young are born in March in snow-houses scraped out by the female from a snow-bank, close to an air-hole on the ice. When born they have a glistening white coat of soft hair.

_Pagophilus groenlandicus_, Mull.—The Harp seal, Saddle-back, Bedlamiers, (Kirolik, Eskimo,) supplies fully two-thirds of the seals taken annually off the coasts of Newfoundland in the spring, when the females give birth to their young on the floating ice of the Arctic pack. The Harp seal is more or less common on the northern coasts, and southward along the Atlantic coast of Labrador, at all seasons. In Hudson strait they are rare in summer, but are not uncommon after the shore-ice forms in the autumn, and before it leaves in the early summer. These seals commonly travel in bands, and are known by their habit of frequently leaping from the water. They are rare in Hudson bay, especially during the summer season, and are only occasionally seen at other times.

The flesh and blubber are used by the natives for food and fuel. The skins are used mostly for tentings and boot-legs, and where the skin of the Ground seal is not available for boot-bottoms.

_Phoco barbata,_ Fab.—The Bearded seal, Big seal, Ground seal, Square-flipper, (Oujuk, Eskimo,) is common on all the coasts, and is the most abundant seal at Cape Haven, and Cape Chidley on the eastern coast.

It brings forth its young, which are born near an opening in the shore-ice, about a month later than the Ringed seal. This seal is next in size to the walrus, and its capture always brings gladness to the Eskimos, providing, as it does, a large amount of meat and blubber, while from its hide is cut an exceedingly strong line used for dog-traces and other purposes. The dressed skin is used for the soles of boots, for covering kyaks and women’s boats, for tentings, and many other purposes. The flesh is coarser in texture, but less fishy in flavour, than that of the smaller seals. The liver is said to be somewhat poisonous, and is not often eaten.

_Cystophera cristata_, Erxl.—-The Hooded seal, or Bladder-nose, (Nietshivok, Eskimo,) is a large and ferocious seal, second in size only to the Big seal. It produces its young about two weeks later than the Harps, and usually on ice farther off the coast. These seals make up the remainder of the catch of the Newfoundland sealers. In the summer they are common at Ponds inlet, and become rarer along the coasts to the southward. The Hooded seal is unknown to the natives of Hudson bay, and is an exceedingly rare visitor in Hudson strait.

_Trichechus rosmarus_, Linn.—The walrus, (Aivik, Eskimo,) is found in all the northern waters, where it appears to prefer the presence of floating ice, and rarely or never comes out on the shore-ice. During the past voyage of the _Neptune_ many walrus were seen; the most northern locality was at the entrance to Smith sound, where large numbers were congregated on pans of floating ice, between Etah and Cape Sabine. Numbers were seen along the coast of Ellesmere island and in the waters of Lancaster sound. The whalers and natives report them as very plentiful in Wellington channel. They are common along the coast of Baffin island, a considerable number being killed annually at the station at Cape Haven, and in Cumberland gulf. They are very numerous in Fox channel and Frozen strait, where they are captured while on the floating ice usually found in these localities throughout the summer. When the ice leaves Hudson bay and Hudson strait, the walrus resort to favourite localities, usually small rocky islands, where they are frequently found in large numbers. Such islands are located in King sound, near Douglas harbour, on the south side of the strait; at the west end of Charles island, also in the strait; at Walrus island in Fisher strait, and at several small islands of the Belcher and other outer islands of the east coast of Hudson bay.

When the St. Lawrence was discovered the walrus was found as far south as the Magdalen islands, and, within a comparatively recent time, they were common on the Atlantic coast of Labrador; now they are only killed rarely at Cape Chidley, the northern point of that coast. On Hudson bay they were formerly found as far south as Paint islands on the east side of James bay, but now they do not frequent that coast south of latitude 60° N., and their southern limit is about latitude 57° N., on the Belcher islands. There has been a rapid diminution in the number of walrus in the northern part of the bay during the past few years, since the _Active_ has been engaged in their capture, and it is only a question of a few years, if the present methods of killing are continued, before the walrus will become as rare as the Right whale in the waters of Hudson bay. It is acknowledged that, with present methods of capture and the difficulties of the chase, only one in four or five of the animals killed is eventually secured. The walrus is necessary for the subsistence of the northern Eskimo and his dogs. The flesh is strong and sustaining, the blubber is abundant and good, while the tusks are of great use for shoeing sleds and the manufacture of spears and harpoons, and other hunting and domestic gear. The present value of the walrus to civilization is small. Oil is made from the blubber, and the skins are used chiefly for ‘buffing’ metal goods. The ivory of the tusks is inferior, and only worth about fifty cents a pound. The present price for hides is from eight to ten cents a pound, and consequently the entire products of a large walrus is under fifty dollars in value.

Taking into consideration the value of the animal to the native, the great waste of life in the killing, and the comparative small value to civilization, it might be well to pass regulations reserving this animal wholly for the use of the Eskimos.