ULLOA's voyage to south AMERICA. 66 1 



inward, embracing each other with their fins, which, on this occafion, fupply the place 

 of arms. The female brings forth and fuckles her young in the fame manner as ter- 

 reftrial creatures, but has never above one or two at a time. 



The largeft fpecies are by fome called fea-lions, but in thefe feas their general name 

 is Lobos de Aceyte, or oil-wolves : becaufe when they move, they appear like a fkin 

 full of oil, from the motion of the vaft quantity of fat, or blubber, of which their 

 enormous body confifts. And though oil is made from all the fpecies, none yield it in 

 proportion to thefe ; indeed they confift of little elfe. I was once entertained with a 

 particular circumftance relating to this fpecies. A failor having wounded one, it im- 

 mediately plunged itfelf into the fea ; but had hardly tinged the water with its blood, 

 when it was furrounded in an inftant by ftioals of the other two fpecies, who attacked 

 and devoured it in a few minutes, which was not the cafe with the other fpecies j 

 which, when wounded, though they alfo plunged into the water, yet the fight of their 

 blood had no eiFe£t on others ; nor were they ever attacked. They are mifchievous, 

 and their bite the more dangerous, as they never let go their hold; but they are 

 heavy, torpid, and fluggifh ; nor can they turn their heads without great difficulty. 

 They were fo far from avoiding our men, that they were obliged to ftrike them with 

 flicks to make them move out of their way. The cry of their young very nearly 

 refembles the bleating of a flieep ; but when they all join, as it were in concert, the 

 noife is infupportable. They are the chief food of the dogs, who, after killing them, 

 take off their fkin with great dexterity. In their attack, they aim always at the throat ; 

 and when they have destroyed the creature, they tear the fkin all round the neck ; 

 then feizing it by the head, and putting their fore-feet between the fkin and the flefh, 

 they ftrip it entirely off, and then devour the carcafe. 



The largefl kind, as we have already obferved, are, by the failors, called fea-lions, 

 the hgir of the neck diflinguifhing them from the others, and has fome refemblance to 

 a mane, though not much longer than that on the other parts of the animal j but as 

 their whole body has a greater fimilarity to that of the wolf, and being entirely 

 like the other fpecies, the name of fea-wolf feems to be more proper than that given 

 them by the feamen. 



All thefe kinds of fea-wolves have fo tender a fenfation at the extremity of their 

 noftrils, that though they will bear many wounds in other parts of the body, the 

 flightefl flroke on this difpatches them ; and that they are fenfible of it, is evident from 

 their making it their chief care to defend that part from any violence. 



A great fmgu'larity is alfo obfervable in the dogs of this ifland, namely, that they 

 never bark. We caught fome of them, and brought them on board ; but they 

 never made any noife till joined with fome tame dogs, and then indeed they began to 

 imitate them, but in a ftrange manner, as if learning a thing not natural to them. 



The Iflands of Juan Fernandes abound greatly in fifh, among which are two fpecies, 

 not obferved in any other part of this vafl fea. One is the cod, which, though not 

 abfolutely like that of Newfoundland, the difference is very minute, either with regard 

 to colour, form, tafle, and even the fmall fcales obfervable on that fifh. They are of 

 different fizes, but the largeft three or four feet in length. 



The other fpecies is a fiih refembling the tollo in fhape, but much more palatable. 

 From the fore part of each of the two fins on his back, grows a Idnd of triangular 

 fpur, a little bent, but round near the back, and terminating in a point. It has a fine 

 glois, and the hardnefs of a bone. At the root of it is a foft fpungy fubftance. 

 This fpur, or bone, for it refembles both, is fuch a prefent remedy for the tooth-ache, 



that. 



