172 HARE-LIKE SEAL. 



neighbouring masses ot ice, and as soon as the Seals 

 have left the deep, and lie down to bask on the ice, 

 they pull the planks over the hole, by means of the 

 rope, and so prevent their return. They then des- 

 patch their victims.* 



A young Seal, taken on the West coast of Nor- 

 mandy, and brought to Paris, was suspected by Ba- 

 ron Cuvier to be a whelp of this species, and M. F. 

 Cuvier has arranged it as such. Though we have 

 great doubt of the accuracy of these conjectures, we 

 here supply the interesting remarks of the latter 

 gentleman. Its length was two feet nine inches. 

 It was of a yellowish-grey colour. " I had," says M. 

 F. Cuvier, "this animal under my care for a consider- 

 able time, and it was easily tamed. When it was 

 teased it puffed like a cat, and when much irritated it 

 barked feebly. It never attempted to bite in self-de- 

 fence, but scratched with its nails. It never ate ex- 

 cept when under water ; its nourishment was the fish 

 of the ocean, and we could never get-it to take those 

 of fresh water.f He was peculiarly attached to the 

 old woman who had care of him. He soon came 

 to recognise her at the greatest distance it was 

 possible for him to espy her; he kept his eye upon 

 her so long as she was in sight, and ran to her as 

 soon as she approached his enclosure. It may be 

 suspected that hunger augmented his apparent affec- 

 tion : and it was probably the cravings of that appe- 

 tite, and the attention he paid to every thing affecting 



See Voy. de Pallas, t. iv. 4to, 123. 

 t Diet. d'Hist. Nat. D. 545. 



