The sailor who captured the bear said it fought nobly for freedom, and in the conflict he was unfortunate enough to have been bitten. The mother lost her life in the fight, and the hide hung near by to tell the story. In loud, pitiful tones the orphaned bear called for its mother; but no answer came back to it. I do not know where the cub found a home; but it was shipped to Throndhjem, and from there was to be sent to a museum. We were glad to leave the Spitzbergen ship and return to our own, for the mournful sound of the motherless white polar bear was not agreeable to us. There had been a great fire in the town of Hammerfest, completely destroying the finest residences and best hotels just the winter before we reached there. It was thought the whole town would surely succumb and be burned to ashes. Our ship was the best hotel, and we were fortunate to get plenty to eat and a comfortable bed to sleep in. A change of quarters would have been pleasant if a good hotel could have been found; but as it was we were very well satisfied. Hammerfest was the last stopping place along the line, and some of the sailors were off duty while the ship lay by at this place. About the first thing searched for is usually a saloon, and there is never any trouble to find one, for there are plenty of places where the poor fellows may find entertainment with cards and strong drink. We had been on land a few hours and returned for luncheon, when our attention was attracted to a sailor upon the street who had indulged too freely in the use of whisky. He walked with unsteady gait to the ship landing, where eight or a dozen steps led to the boats in the water below. No one could reach the steamer without descending the stairway and going in the rowboats; and we wondered how any person with such tottering steps could descend without falling into the water. So we watched, and he went down step by step stumbling, yet catching himself again and again. His comrades saw him, and taking one of the ship’s boats rowed for the drunken sailor, reaching him just as his weakened knees gave way. Headlong he pitched into the boat, and with a splash his feet went into the water. That was a trying time for the boatman, but he seemed equal to the occasion, and by tugging and pulling succeeded in getting the poor fellow into the boat, feet and all. With a steady row and in silence the side of the steamer was gained, and with plenty of help the unfortunate one was pulled through a small door in the side of the ship. He disappeared, and nothing more was seen of him till the next day, when, rather long faced, he was seen on duty.