ALASKA. 127 



noss of the land as a icholcj and no especial fondness for any 

 pariicidar ftpot. 



The landinfjj of the seals ui)()n tlie respective rookciifs is in- 

 Ihienccd <i^reatly by the direction of tlie wind at the time of 

 approach to the islands. Tlie prevailing winds, coming from 

 the northeast, north, and northwest, carr^- far out to sea the 

 odor or s(;ent of the pioneer bulls, wliicii have lo(;ated them- 

 selves on dillcrent breeding-grounds three or four weeks usually 

 in advance of the masses ; and hence it will be seen that the 

 rookeries on the south and southeastern shores of Saint Paul's 

 Island receive nearly all the seal-life, although there are miles 

 of eligible ground on the north shore. 



To settle this question, however, is an exceedingly diflicult 

 matter ; for the identiticjition of individuals, from one season to 

 another, among the hundreds of thousands, and even millions, 

 that come under the eye on a single one of these great rook- 

 eries, is really impossible. 



From the time of the first arrivals in IMay up to the 1st of 

 June, or as late as the middle of this month, if the weather be 

 clear, is an interval in which everything seems quiet j very few 

 seals are added to the pioneers. By the 1st of June, however, 

 or thereabouts, the foggy, humid weather of summer sets in, 

 and with it the bull seals come up by hundreds and thousands, 

 and locate themselves in advantageous positions for the recep- 

 tion of the females, which are generally three weeks or a month 

 later, as a rule. 



Tlie labor of locating and maintaining a position in the rook- 

 ery is really a serious business for those bulls which come in 

 last, and for those that occupy the water-line, frequently result- 

 ing in death from severe wounds in combat sustained. 



It api)ears to be a well-understood principle among the able- 

 bodied bulls that each one shall remain undisturbed on his 

 ground, which is usually about ten feet square, provided he is 

 strong enough to hold it agjiinst all comers ] for the crowding 

 in of fresh bulls often causes the removal of many of those 

 who, though equally able bodied at first, have exhausted them- 

 selves by fighting earlier, and are driven by the fresher animals 

 back farther and higher up on the rookery. 



Some of these bulls show wouderful strength and courage. 

 I have marked one veteran, who was among the first to take up 

 his position, and that one on the water line, where at least fifty 

 or sixty desperate battles were fought victoriously by him' 



