iN; TREY SHETEANDS 343 
I was right, I think, about the fore-feet. They are 
certainly more elongated and fin-like than in the 
common seal, but, which is curious, neither they nor 
his hind ones seem to me so large, in proportion 
to his size, as they are in the latter species. The tail, 
if not lengthened, looks broadened, and it is fringed 
with hair round the edges. Though the shape is 
oval, it reminds me of the last joint of a lobster’s tail. 
Perhaps, therefore, it may be an aid to the feet in 
swimming. In the fold of skin between the two 
hind feet, there is something which I, at first, thought 
was a mussel, but am now not so sure about. In 
colour and sheen it answers perfectly, but now looks 
more like something membranous, hanging down on 
one side. There is something peculiar in two of the 
toes of the left front flipper—which is the one I see. 
Three out of the five claws are black, but the second 
and third—counting from the marginal one which 
lies towards the chest, are, if it is really the claws— 
white or whitish, and visible only to about half the 
length of the others, the rest of them being hidden 
by hair or fur. These claws have a peculiar rough, 
irregular appearance, different from the others, which 
seem smooth and shapely. The whiskers, which are 
white, are both long and thick. They are often shot 
out, so as to project almost straight forwards, and 
then brought back to their usual position, where they 
droop parallel with the line of the head and throat. 
The great blubbery lips from which they spring are 
thick and swollen, and have a soft, cushiony appear- 
