When we got back to shore there was a big crowd waiting for us. There were a lot of people from the harbour and there was also some people from Mary's Harbour. News had spread fast about the walrus and everybody wanted to take a look at him. It was something rare and unique and something people had never seen before. I took some of the meat and so did Leroy and Steve. We also gave a lot of the meat away. I kept the heart for myself. I dressed it all up and cooked it in the oven. It was some good and we had some feed. I was going to make an axe handle out of his penis for a souvenir. I lodged it on the edge of the ice when I was offloading the meat and somebody accidentally knocked it overboard. The head of the walrus had two nice ivory tusks. They were each 16 inches long. I gave one to Leroy and kept one for myself. I chiselled out my tusk and hung it up on the wall for a souvenir. His teeth were also ivory. I took some of his teeth and so did Leroy and Steve. They made earrings and necklace pieces out of some of the teeth.

That was some day, one I won't forget very soon. That was a very rare kill. Walrus don't usually come this far south, they are found up north further. That walrus was the only one killed in this area of Labrador as far as I know.

I am a trapper. I do not use a ski-doo unless I want to dart(4) to Mary's Harbour or over to Fox Harbour. For walking in the country all day long, I wear my showshoes. Takin' snowshoes, you know your gonna get home. But you might go right up in the country with a skidoo and get broke down in the woods all night. I get up in the morning, take my snowshoes and rifle and goes on. I'll tell you this story about when we lived to Fox Harbour one time. In them days it wasn't so good as people got it nowadays. When we were first married this one time we never had no fresh for Sunday dinner. So I said to my wife, "I think I am going to go down to Deep Water Creek." It was a wonderful place for seals and that. So I took my gun, I only had one bullet for her. That was one good rifle. Anyway, my wife said, "Please yourself my dear." I thought there might be some kind of shell bird down there by the point. I left and went down to the Creek. When I almost got to the salt water there was a big pond there they called Creek Pond. So I walked around the pond where there was a real footpath where people had lived there for so long. I went down the hill. When I looked down in under there was a big old polar bear lied down on his belly. "Oh my god!" I said. I had only one bullet. So I stuck up my 44 rifle in my hand and I skivered right down along side of the bear. When he heard me randyin' down over on my stem, he jumped up and looked at me and snarled and growled and jumped down on the ballycatters on the rocks. He looked back at me and growled and I said, "You won't growl no more buddy." I thought the shell might have been damaged comin' up but I shot the bear. I also killed two white partridges on the pond on the way up. I thanked God that I got some fresh for the next day because I knew that the wife wasn't goin' to touch the bear. That I was sure of.

So I went over to Uncle Saul Curl's to get a piece of rope to carry the bear home. Once I got the piece of rope, I came over and cut out holes in the bear's lips and four flippers. I reaved the rope through and tied it all up together. There was an old paddle there. So I got the paddle and I pried the bear off the rocks over against the stage headrail. We launched off the boat, poor dad, my uncle and myself and hauled the bear aboard. When we got home, everything(5) from Fox Harbour Point was up to the bottom. Out around Frankie's Cove, all hands had a piece of bear for dinner on Sunday, all a clear of me and Charlotte. We was the only two that never touched it. I only killed it to say I killed a polar bear!

4 Dart - take a quick trip

5 Everything - everybody