258 EUMETOPIAS STELLERI STELLER's SEA LION. 



Captain Bryant states that the Fur Seal may be driven at the 

 rate of a mile and a half per hour, while, according to the same 

 authority, the Sea Lions can be driven with safety but about 

 two miles a day. 



Captain Scaimnon, in 1874, published a very interesting 

 account of the Sea Lions of the Aleutian Islands, particularly 

 as respects the methods employed in their capture, portions of 

 which will be quoted later. His account is devoted largely, 

 however, to the Sea Lions of the California coast, and certainly 

 includes the history of the smaller species, if in fact this part 

 does not relate mainly to the latter. At about the same time 

 appeared Mr. H. W. Elliott's more detailed history of the north- 

 ern species, which is so full and explicit that I transcribe it 

 almost entire. 



The Sea Lion, he says, "has a really leonine appearance and 

 bearing, greatly enhanced by the rich, golden-rufous of its coat, 

 ferocity of expression, and bull-dog-like muzzle and cast of eye, 

 not round and full, but showing the white, or sclerotic coat, 

 with a light, bright-brown iris. 



"Although provided with flippers to all external view as the 

 fur-seal, he cannot, however, make use of them in the same free 

 manner. While the fur-seal can be driven five or six miles in 

 twenty-four hours, the sea-lion can barely go two, the conditions 

 of weather and roadway being the same. The sea-lions balance 

 and swing their long, heavy necks to and fro, with every hitch 

 up behind of their posteriors, which they seldom raise from the 

 ground, drawing them up after the fore feet with a slide over 

 the grass or sand, rocks, &c., as the case may be, and pausing 

 frequently to take a sullen and ferocious survey of the field and 

 the drivers." 



"The sea-lion is polygamous, but does not maintain any such 

 regular system and method in preparing for and attention to 

 its harem like that so finely illustrated on the breeding-grounds 

 of the fur-seal. It is not numerous, comparatively speaking, 

 and does not ' haul ' more than a few rods back from the sea. 

 It cannot be visited and inspected by man, being so shy and 

 wary that on the slightest approach a stampede into the water 

 is the certain result. The males come out and locate on the 

 narrow belts of rookery-ground, preferred and selected by 

 them; the cows make their appearance three or four weeks 

 after them, (1st to 6th June,) and are not subjected to that 

 intense jealous supervision so characteristic of the fur-seal 



