OCR Text |
Show STRANGEST OF SEA MAMMALS Grotesque Walrua, as Navigators Will Testify, Has Strongly Developed Maternal Instinct. The walruses or "sea horses" of the old navigators are the .strangest and most grotesque of all sea mammals. Their lurge, rugged heads, armed with two long Ivory tusks, und their huge swollen bodies, covered with hairless, wrinkled and warty skin, give them a formidable uppeurunce unlike thut of any other mummiil. They are much larger than most souls, the old males weighing from 2.U00 to 8.000 pounds and the femules about two-thirds us much. Walruses have a strongly developed maternal instinct und show grct devotion de-votion and disregurd of their own safety safe-ty In defending the young. Tho Eskimos Es-kimos ut ('upe Vancouver, Bering sea, hunt them In frail skin-covered kyuks, using ivory or bono pointed spears and sealskin (louts. Several hunters told mo of exciting and dangerous en-counters en-counters they hud experienced with mot her walruses. If the young ure attacked, at-tacked, or even approached, the mother moth-er does not hesitate to charge furiously. furi-ously. The hunters confess thut on such occasions there Is no option but to paddle for one's life. Occasionally an old walrus Is unusually vindictive mid, after forcing u hunter to take refuge on tho Ice, will remain patrol lug the vicinity for it long time, roaring roar-ing and no -.i.n in;; the object of her ungcr. |