GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. 67 



as good meat as Yeale. And with tlie bellies of five of the 

 saide fishes they make a hogshead of Traine, which Traine is 

 very sweet, which if it will make sope, the king of Spaine may 

 burne some of his Olive trees."* Charlevoix also alludes to the 

 Walrus fishery at Sable Island, which the Enghsh at one time 

 established there, but says it was soon abandoned, being found 

 unproiltable.t 



Molineux Shuldham has left us quite a full account (and one 

 that has been often quoted) of the habits of these animals, and of 

 the wholesale destruction by which they were speedily extirpated 

 from the Atlantic coast south of Labrador. This account, writ- 

 ten in 1775, says: "The sea-cow is a native of the Magdalen 

 Islands, St. John's, and Anticosti in the Gulph of St. Lawrence. 

 They resort very early in the spring to the former of these 

 places, which seems to be by nature particularly adapted to the 

 wants of these animals, abounding with clams of a very large 

 size, and the most convenient landing-places, called Echouries. 

 Here they crawl up in great numbers, and sometimes remain 

 for fourteen days together without food, when the weather 

 is fair; but on the first appearance of rain, they immediately 

 retreat to the water with great precipitation. They are, when 

 out of the water, very unwieldy, and move with great difficulty. 

 They weigh from 1500 to 2000 pounds, producing, according 

 to their size, from one to two barrels of oil, which is boiled out of 

 a fat substance that lies between the skin and the flesh. Im- 

 mediately on their arrival they calf, and engender again about 

 two months after; so that they carry their young about nine 

 months. They never have more than two at a time, and seldom 

 more than one. 



" The echouries are formed principally by nature, being a grad- 

 ual slope of soft rock, with which the Magdalen Islands abound; 

 about 80 to 100 yards wide at the water side, and spreading so 

 as to contain, near the summit, a very considerable number. 

 Here they are suffered to come and amuse themselves for a con- 

 siderable time, till they acquire a boldness, being at their first 

 landing so exceedingly timid as to make if impossible for any 

 person to ^proach them. In a few weeks they assemble in 

 great numbers ; formerly, when undisturbed by the Americans, 

 to the amount of seven or eight thousand ; and the form of the 

 echourie not allowing them to remain contiguous to the water, the 

 foremost ones are insensibly pushed above the slope. When 



* Hakluyt, Voyages, vol. iii, ^. 237. t Charlevois, vol. v, -p. 216. 



