The zoology is the only remaining subject of importance in the description of this country to be here considered. After giving an account of the bear, deer, and fox, I shall notice the seal and walrus, and conclude with describing a few of the birds. Afterwards I shall give a short history of its discovery; and then pursue the account of our voyage.
The Ursus maritimus, or Polar bear, may with great propriety be termed the sovereign of the land animals of Spitzbergen, or even of the Arctic circle. Unlike the lion of Africa, his dominion is not confined solely to the land; for, by means of the ice, he extends his ravages far from any continent, and disputes the supremacy of the ocean with the walrus himself, even in his own element. Here, says the poet just quoted,
—— “The shapeless bear,
With dangling ice all horrid, stalks forlorn;
Slow pac’d, and sourer as the storms increase,
He makes his bed beneath the inclement drift,
And, with stern patience, scorning weak complaint,
Hardens his heart against assailing want.”
The Polar bear is the largest of the species, and has frequently been found of an immense size. Barentz killed one thirteen feet in length, and it is asserted they have been found of a much larger size, but not on equally good authority. The one which Captain Phipps describes was only seven feet one inch long, and the largest we got on board did not exceed seven feet six inches; though we killed one apparently much larger, but a gale coming on, we were obliged to bear away, and leave it on the ice.
The hair of this species is very long, woolly, and of a yellowish white colour. Its teeth lock into each other like those of a rat-trap, and are so remarkably strong and sharp, that it has been known to shiver lances made of steel. Its head is small, and a good deal elongated; nose black, and without hair; ears short, erect, and rounded; neck slender. Its limbs are of a vast thickness, and each foot is armed with five exceedingly strong black claws. The carcass of the one mentioned by Captain Phipps, though without the skin, head, and entrails, weighed 610 lbs. The flesh is white, and though of a coarse texture, is prized by some as equally delicious with mutton, especially when boiled; for when roasted it is of an oily taste. The liver, it would seem, is of a poisonous nature, as some Dutch sailors who ate part of one were taken so extremely ill, that, after recovering, the skin all over their bodies fell off in scales.