FAR AND NEAR 



insect. They appear to be yet in a kind of sac or 

 envelope. The males wri<r(rle about like a man in a 

 hivr; but once in the water, they are a part of the 

 wave, as fleet and nim])le as a fish, or as a bird in the 

 air. In the sounds which they continually emitted 

 they did not remind me of bulls or cows, but of 

 sheep. The hoarse staccato bleating of the males 

 was hke that of old rams, while the shriller calls of 

 the females and the fine treble of the pups were 

 equally like those of ewes and lambs. Some be- 

 lated females were still arriving while we looked on. 

 They came in timidly, lifted themselves upon the 

 edge of the rocks, and looked about as if to find a 

 vacant place, or to receive a welcome. Much spar- 

 ring and threatening were going on among the males, 

 but I saw ncne actually come to blows. By careful 

 movements and low tones we went about without 

 much exciting them. 



On this island we first saw the yellow poppy. It 

 was scattered everywhere amid the grass, like the 

 scarlet poppy of Europe. A wonderful display of 

 other wild flowers was about our feet as we walked. 

 Here also the Eapland longspur was in song, and a 

 few snow buntings in white plumage drifted about 

 over the flowery meads. On a big w^indrow of boul- 

 ders along the beach near Avhere we landed w^ere 

 swarms of noisy water-birds, mainly least auklets, 

 called " choochkies " by the natives. 



106 



