Georg Wilhelm Steller

Their capture used to be effected with a large iron hook whose point resembled an anchor’s fluke. The other end was secured by a very long, stout rope to an iron ring. A strong man took this hook and entered the boat with four or five others, and while one held the rudder three or four rowed gently toward the herd. The spearman stood in the prow of the boat holding the hook in his hand, and struck as soon as he was near enough. As soon as this was done, thirty men standing on the shore¹ with the other end of the rope in their hands held the animal, and in spite of its frantic efforts at resistance they dragged him laboriously toward the shore. The boat was held steady by another rope, and the men wore the animal out by constant blows, until, tired and rendered thoroughly passive by the spears, it was finished by their knives and other weapons and drawn to land. Great pieces were cut from the animal while still alive, but all that he did was to work his tail vigorously and to brace himself with his fore feet, so that great pieces of skin were often torn off. […]

But if one animal is caught with the hook and begins to plunge about rather violently those near him in the herd are thrown into commotion as well and endeavor to assist him. To this end some of them try to upset the boat with their backs, others bear down upon the rope and try to break it, or endeavor to extract the hook from the back of their wounded companion with a blow from their tails, and several times they proved successful. It is a very curious evidence of their nature and of their conjugal affection that when a female was caught the male, after trying with all his strength, but in vain, to free his captured mate, would follow her quite to the shore, even though we struck him many blows, and that when she was dead he would sometimes come up to her as unexpectedly and as swiftly as an arrow. When we came the next day, early in the morning, to cut up the flesh and take it home, we found the male still waiting near his mate; and I saw this again on the third day when I came alone for the purpose of examining the entrails.