252 THE BOOK OF MIGRATORY BIRDS 



white beard. In coloration it is a dull brown, and it is the 

 heaviest of the seal tribe. Its food consists mostly of 

 prawns. 



The fourth and smallest species is the "floe" seal, or 

 its nickname, "floe-rat," the ordinary nomenclature of 

 sailors. They presumably get their name from the habit 

 of always lying on the field ice, and having holes ready 

 to pop into when alarmed. Their great enemy is the 

 Polar bear, for they are his principal food. The "floe" 

 seal is a remarkably pretty little animal. Its hair is short, 

 with grey, irregular stripes down the back. 



In the capture of these animals the "modus operandi" 

 is for the ships to cruise along the coast margin, following 

 the well-known rule that if it lies to the eastward of the 

 meridian of Greenwich in lat. 73, deg. N., the seals will 

 be found to the north of the Island of Jan Mayen, but if 

 it is much to the west of this line the seals will be to the 

 south and west of the island, for well-known reasons. 

 Having ascertained this, the longitude of the pack is first 

 ascertained before starting to look for the seals. This 

 being found, the ice is taken and the ships forced through 

 the pack under steam and canvas, very frequently receiving 

 severe shocks and sometimes getting their bows stove in. 

 Every effort must now be used to force the ships through 

 the ice in the desired direction. All hands had often to be 

 on deck to roll the ship from side to side to break the ice 

 down, heaving at windlass and capstan, on stout hawsers 

 attached to the ice, using ice-saws to cut, and powder to 

 blast a passage. 



Some years ago a pack of seals would have extended in 

 every direction as far as could be seen with a good tele- 

 scope from a ship's mast-head, and lying as close as a 

 flock of sheep, their reflection darkening the sky above 

 them. In those days a ship, falling in amongst them 

 about April i, had no difficulty in getting as many as she 

 could hold. The case is greatly altered now ; a pack very 

 rarely exceeds a twentieth part of the above size, owing to 

 the cruel manner in which they have been destroyed. 



