THE MERMAID. 225 



unknown is quite unnecessary to account for the supposed 

 appearances of mermaids. 



We have in the form and habits of the Phocidcz, or earless 

 seals, a sufficient interpretation of almost every incident of 

 the kind that has occurred north of the Equator of those 

 in which protuberant mamma are described, we must 

 presently seek another explanation. The round, plump, 

 expressive face of a seal, the beautiful, limpid eyes, the 

 hand-like fore-paws, the sleek body, tapering towards the 

 flattened hinder fins, which are directed backwards, and 

 spread out in the form of a broad fin, like the tail of 

 a fish, might well give the idea of an animal having the 

 anterior part of its body human and the posterior half 

 piscine. 



In the habits of the seals, also, we may trace those of the 

 supposed mermaid, and the more easily the better we are 

 acquainted with them. All seals are fond of leaving the 

 water frequently. They always select the flattest and 

 most shelving rocks which have been covered at high tide, 

 and prefer those that are separated from the mainland. 

 They generally go ashore at half-tide, and invariably lie 

 with their heads towards the water, and seldom more than 

 a yard or two from it. There they will often remain, if 

 undisturbed, for six hours ; that is, until the returning tide 

 floats them off the rock. As for the sweet melody, " so 

 melting soft," that must depend much on the ear and 

 musical taste of the listener. I have never heard a seal 

 utter any vocal sounds but a porcine grunt, a plaintive 

 moan, and a pitiful whine. But another habit of the seals 

 has, probably more than anything else, caused them to be 

 mistaken for semi-human beings namely, that of poising 

 themselves upright in the water with the head and the 

 upper third part of the body above the surface. 



VOL. III. H. ' V 



