NOTES ON THE ANATOMY OF A SEAL—SOMMERS. Ea 
she fled from her cub; it seems probable no maternal duties had 
bound it to her, Had Stephen Bradford, with his dirty gun, 
met her in May, he would have been only too happy to have 
escaped with his life instead of going to camp with her skin. 
In its production of young so comparatively small, and in its 
privacy during parturition, our bear has an affinity to the 
opossum, our sole North American marsupial, but without the 
pouch ; and from these facts, as well as its hibernation, and its 
capacity of sustaining life either as a vegetarian or a carnivora, 
may justly be considered in its Polar or fishing variety one of 
the first mammals that occupied this continent on rising from its 
glacial submergence. The Polar variety, but few shades above 
the walrus, might easily have sustained life for the few short 
summer months on fish and seals, ere yet the emergence of rock 
peaks, or swampy terraces; and when a tardy vegetation was 
clothing these plateaux, and before the herbiferous races ap- 
peared, his descendants straying landward thrived upon this 
vegetable diet, till these races appearing after their natural food 
had grown for them, allowed him again to become a carnivora. 
In this struggle of fish, vegetable and flesh life, his prolonged 
torpidity, perhaps at first much more prolonged in arctic regions, 
and destined as he advanced to warmer climates to cease, must 
have been of wonderful use in bis struggle for existence-—Coni- 
municated by the Author, Jan. 26, 1880. 
Art. V.—NOoTES ON THE ANATOMY OF A SEAL FROM MAGDALEN 
IsLANDS.—By J. Sommers, M. D. 
(Read Feb. 9, 1880.) 
In bringing to your notice the following points on the anatomy 
of a seal, I take occasion to express my sincere thanks to the 
gentleman through whose kindness I have Lecoime indebted for 
the opportunity to conduct an interesting investigation. 
The Seal was sent from Magdalen Islands by J. B. F. Pain- 
chaud, Esq., to Robt. Morrow, Esq., who conjointly with myself 
made the dissection. I wish also in this place, and feel that I 
carry the members of the Institute with me, to express the feel- 
ings of regard that I entertain for the spirit which actuated our 
