THE SEAL. 36'/ 



that of the otter ; the teeth like those of a dog ; the eyes 

 large and sparkling ; no external ears, but holes that serve 

 for that purpose ; the neck is well proportioned, and of a 

 moderate length; but the body thickest where the neck is 

 joined to it. From thence the animal tapers down to the 

 tail, growing all the way smaller like a fish. The whole 

 body is covered with a thick, bristly shining hair, which 

 looks as if it were entirely rubbed over with oil ; and thus 

 far the quadruped prevails over the aquatic. But it is in 

 the feet that this animal greatly differs from all the rest of 

 the quadruped kind; for though furnished with the same 

 number of bones with other quadrupeds, yet they are so 

 stuck on the body, and so covered ^vith a membrane, that 

 they more resemble fins than feet ; and might be taken for 

 such, did not the claws with which they are pointed show 

 their proper analogy. In the fore feet, or rather hands, all 

 the arm and the cubit are hid under the skin, and nothing 

 appears but the hand from the wrist downwards; so that 

 if we imagine a child with its arms swathed down, and 

 nothing appearing but its hands at each side of the body, 

 towards the breast, we may have some idea of the forma- 

 tion of this animal in that part. These hands are covered 

 in a thick skin, which serves like a fin for swimming; and 

 are distinguished by five claws, which are long, black, 

 and piercing As to the hind feet, they are stretched out 

 on each side of the short tail, covered with a hairy skin 

 like the former, and both together almost joining at the 

 tail ; the whole looks like the broad, flat tail of a fish ; and, 

 were it not for five claws which appear, might be con- 

 sidered as such. The dimensions of this animal are vari- 

 ous, being found from four feet long to nine. They differ 

 also in their colors ; some being black, others spotted, some 

 white, and many more yellow. It would, therefore, be 

 almost endless to mention the varieties of this animal. 

 Buftbn describes three ; and Krantz mentions five, all dif- 

 ferent from those described by the other. I rnight, were I 



