378 ARTICLE BY DR. J. A. ALLEN. 



selves into the water tlic moment tliey perceive the approaoh of thcii 

 arch enemy. 



" Whik> encamped in their rookeries tliree or four sentinels are always 

 Sentinels postci by postcd to kccp a loolvout while the others slec]); anil 

 pcais for seif-piotec- the moment a boat makes its appearance, though it be 

 ^'"°' a mile from the shore, these faithful watchmen promptly 



give the alarm, when in an instant the whole rookery is in motion. 

 Every one makes for the surf with all x>ossible expeditiou, so that by 

 the time the boat reaches the shore they will nearly all be in the water, 

 with the exception of a few females that have pups or young; ones to 

 take care of. These will remain to defend and jn'otect their charge until 

 the last moment, when, if hard pushed, they will seize their pups by the 

 back of the neck with their teeth and dive into the surt^ where they 

 arc obliged to hold the heads of the pups above water to prevent their 

 suffocation. * * * The males, many of them, will also stand their 

 ground and fight very hard for the young seals; often they will perish 

 in the noble cause. * * * 



" When excited their motions are very quick, like the flash of a gun on 



touchingthematch; hence the name of c/flj»»rtfc7<, which 

 mo ions. sailors apply to the female. In pursuit, their speed (on 

 land) is nearly equal to that of a nmn, and much swifter on the rocks 

 than could be anticipated from their api)earance. 



" About the latter end of February the dog-seals go on shore. These 



are the young male seals of the two preceding years; 

 °^ ^^ *■ l)ut, owing to their youth and inexi)erieuce, are not yet al- 



lowed to attend the pregnant females or " clapmatches."* The purposes 

 for which they now seek dry land are to shed their coats, ami give the 

 new-starting crop of fine- hair a chance to grow. By the 1st of May 

 these objects are effected, wiien they again take to the ocean, and are 

 seldom seen near the shores again until the 1st of July, when they ap- 

 l^ear and disappear alternately, without order or any ostensible pur- 

 l)ose, for the jieriod of a month; alter which they are seen no more 

 until the 1st of September following. During this month a herd of 



young seals, male and female, resort to the shore; and 

 Seai"'^'^^ "^ mature ^^j^^jj they retire again to their favorite element, the 



wigs, or large male seals, make their appearance on 

 the land, for the purpose of selecting a suitable spot for their rook- 

 eries, where they are to receive the clapmatches, or females of age. 

 This completes the annual round of visits made to the land by fur-seals 

 of all classes." (Morrell Voyages and Discoveries, pp. 74-76.) 



Captain Weddell, writing of the fur-seals of the South Shetland 

 Islands, says: " Nothing in this class of animals, and more particularly 



in tho, fur-seal of Shetland, is more astonishing than 

 nirifs^and)emVi<^s. "'^ ^1'*^ disproportion in the size of the male and female. 



A large grown male, from the tip of the nose to the ex- 

 tremity of the tail, isO feet 9 inches, whilst the female is not more than 

 ,'>.^ feet. This class of males is not, however, the most numerous, but 

 being physically the most powerful they kecj) in thcii- ])ossession all 

 the females, to the exclusion of the younger brandies; hence, at the 

 time of i)arturi(ion the males attending tlic females may be computed 

 as one to twenty, which shows this to be, perhaps, the most polygamous 

 of large animals. They are in their nature c()m])letely gregarious, 

 buttltey flock together and assemble on the coast at diffcient ])eri(Kls, 



and in distinct classes. '^Flic males of the largest size 

 Landing of Seals. ^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^.^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^ middle of Noveiiibcr to wait the 



