THE SEA-ELEPHANT. 195 
very tenacious of life, and able to survive even when shockingly 
mangled. According to Dr. Scoresby, the island of Jan Mayen 
affords excellent seal fishing in March and April. When on 
detached pieces of drift ice, they are captured by the use of 
boats, each boat making a descent upon a different herd. When 
the seals observe the boat, they endeavour to escape before it 
reaches the ice; the sailors, however, raise a long-continued 
shout, which frequently causes the amazed animals to delay 
their retreat until arrested by blows. When seais are abundant, 
the boat immediately pushes off after the slaughter is finished, 
and proceeds to another piece of ice for the increase of its 
harvest, leaving one man to flay off the skins and fat. But in 
situations where boats cannot navigate, the seal fishers have to 
pursue them over the ice, leaping from piece to piece until the 
capture is made; every man then flenses his own, and drags the 
skins and blubber to his boat or ship. Ships fitted out for 
seal fishing have occasionally procured cargoes of four or five 
thousand, yielding nearly a hundred tons of oil; but such enter- 
prises are very hazardous, from the exposed nature of that dreary 
island, and the liability to heavy and sudden storms. 
The Sea-Elephant (Cystophora proboscidea) deserves his 
name, not only from his immense size, attaining a length of 
twenty, twenty-five, or even thirty feet, but also from the sin- 
gular structure of his elongated nostrils, which hang down when 
he is in a state of repose, but swell out to a foot-long proboscis 
when he is enraged. Then the beast has a most formidable 
appearance, which, along with its gaping jaws and dreadful 
roar, might strike terror into the boldest huntsman. But total 
helplessness and weakness conceal themselves behind this terrible 
mask, for a single blow upon the snout with a club suffices to 
fell the giant. Between 35° and 55° S. lat. is the home 
of the sea-elephant, where he frequents desert islands and 
uninhabited coasts. But even here, as I have aiready mentioned, 
he could not escape the rapacity of man, for his tough hide and 
the thick layer of blubber beneath were too tempting to remain 
unnoticed. 
The Hooded Seal of the northern seas, (Cystophora borealis,) 
enjoys the same faculty of inflating a folding, skinny crest ex- 
tending on each side from the snout to the eyes. But in 
spite of the menacing appearance of these wind-bags, the seal 
K 2 
