ZOOLOGY.-^SEAI.S. 509 



The voice of the young seal when in pain or dis- 

 tress, is a whining cry, resembling that of a child. 

 Seals appear to hear well when under water ; music, 

 or particularly a person whistling, draws them to the 

 surface, and induces them to stretch their necks to 

 the utmost extent, so as to prove a snare, by bring- 

 ino: them within reach of the shooter. The most 

 effectual way of shooting them is by the use of 

 small shot fired into their eyes ; when killed with a 

 bullet, they generally sink and are lost. Seals are of- 

 ten seen on their passage from one situation to ano- 

 ther, in very large shoals. In such cases, for the 

 sake of respiration, they all appear every now and 

 then at the surface together, springing up so as to 

 raise their heads and necks, and often their whole 

 bodies out of the water. Their progress is pretty 

 rapid ; their actions appear frisky ; and their general 

 conduct is productive of amusement to the spectator. 

 The sailors, when they observe such a shoal, call it 

 a " Seal's Wedding." 



The feet of seals are better adapted for their ad- 

 vancement in the water than on land. They can- 

 not be said to walk, as they do not raise their bo- 

 dies off the ground ; yet they shuffle along, espe- 

 cially over ice, with a surprising speed. 



Seals feed on birds, crabs, and small fishes. As, 

 in some respects, they eat up the food required by the 

 whale, whales are seldom to be found where they are 

 numerous. They are very tenacious of life; so 



