American Fisheries Society 229 



other similar attempts, fixed the belief that fur-seals in 

 captivity could not be induced to take food. 



Recently, however, the experiment was again tried and 

 with complete success. The effort had its inception in the 

 desire of Dr. Fox, surgeon of the revenue cutter Bear, to 

 ascertain whether the fur-seals are infested with ectopar- 

 asites. For this purpose a starving pup, whose mother had 

 been killed by the pelagic pirates while feeding at sea, was 

 given to the Bear's surgeon. After having been examined 

 by Dr. Fox the half-starved little animal was turned over 

 to Mr. Judson Thurber, the Bears boatswain, who desired 

 to attempt feeding the pup by artificial means. He was so 

 far successful that he induced it to eat dried fish fron^ his 

 hand, and kept it for three weeks when it died in convulsions. 

 Desiring to have the experiment carried further two well- 

 conditioned fur-seal pups, a male and a female were 

 obtained on Gorbatch rookery, St. Paul Island, and 

 furnished to Boatswain Thurber on October 9, 1909. Mr. 

 Thurber began his experiments by forcing condensed milk 

 down the throat. On October 19, the female began eating 

 solid food. Each of the pups experienced some difficulty 

 in swallowing solid food, due, the boatswain thought, to 

 the fact that the tongue was tied down too firmly by the 

 membrane or frenum which binds it to the floor of the 

 mouth. He was led to this opinion by observing that the 

 female pup ate more easily after breaking the membrane 

 loose. He then tore loose the frenum of the male's tongue 

 with the result that he, too, began to take food more freely. 



In conducting the experiment Mr. Thurber showed no 

 little skill and infinite patience. At first he would hold 

 their mouths open, pour into them diluted evaporated cream 

 mixed with small bits of fish and then, holding the seal up 

 by the head shake the food down. In this way some of 

 the food reached their stomachs and the seals got the taste 

 of food. Then he would tie a small piece of fresh fish on 

 the end of a string and tease the seal by dangling it in front 



