HOW I LEARNED TO HUNT SEALS 269 



around in all directions, and moved as if I were squirm- 

 ing seal-fashion on the ice. After spending about five 

 seconds looking around, I al lowed my head to drop on 

 the ice. I then counted ten of my breaths and raised 

 my head a second time, dropping it after a suitable inter- 

 val. Occasionally I would flex my legs at the knee so 

 as to imitate a seal scratching with his hind flippers. 



In about ten or fifteen minutes of this sort of acting 

 I had the seal convinced that I was another seal. After 

 that the whole thing was easy. I have since found by 

 long experience that most of the seals you lose are lost 

 at this critical time. It may be that they are of a 

 specially nervous temperament, perhaps they have had 

 a narrow escape from a bear just recently, or possibly 

 they may have been lying up on the ice so long that they 

 are hungry and ready to dive into the sea in search of 

 the next meal. I should say that one seal out of four 

 will dive at this stage, no matter how good a seal hunter 

 you are. To lose a seal that way is nobody's fault. If 

 you lose him thereafter, it is your fault or because some 

 accident happens. It may be that a sudden gust of wind 

 flaps your clothing so that he notices it. There is nothing 

 about a real seal that flaps in the wind, so he will rec- 

 ognize this as a danger sign. Possibly you may make 

 some loud noise by carelessly breaking a snag of thin 

 ice. Still, that should do no more than make him sus- 

 picious over again for seals do break ice snags sometimes, 

 and a few minutes of playing seal should put him at his 

 ease. 



I do not know how to explain it, but a seal certainly 

 cannot tell a man from a seal by merely looking at him 

 even at so short a distance as five yards. But if he is 

 stupid as to a man's appearance, he is very keen as to 



