42 



St. Paul, the Palata Pass is as steep as the cone of Bogoslof, twice as high, and is 

 ■witliont water. Compared witli the severest drive on St. Paul, it would stand as the 

 ascent of Mount iJlanc to a walk in the p;irk. It is a very fatiguin<r trip for a man. 

 It took me, walking rapidly, thirty-eiglit minutes (deducting stops) from Palata to 

 the grassy level 860 feet; thence twenty-eight minutes to the top, 1,22(3; lifteen 

 minutes down the upper slope, and fifteen uujre to Glinka."' 



And yet, notwithstanding the severity of the drives of the Commander Islands, no 

 harm has resulted to the breeding herds of these islands from this cause. 



EFFECT OF KILLING .SEALS ON THEIR FELLOWS. 



Among the evils of the process of killing the seals which have Ijcen dwelt upon is 

 the abject fear and terror supposed to be inspired in the seal by the killing of his 

 companions, the seals even "shedding tc:irs.'' As to this we may notice that the 

 males shed tears profusely when roaring or groaning in their ordinary affairs of life, 

 these tears forming wet strips a( ross the fnr of their cheeks. 



From lield notes of Mr. Lucas we take the following: 



"There is no doubt that the seals are frightened when driven up to the clubbers, 

 but they have just as much fear of the boy who is guarding one side of a group of 

 1,000 seals as they have of the men who are about to knock them or their compan- 

 ions on the head. Their fear is instinctive iind irrational, and is not (]nL' to any 

 reasoning ])roces8 or any dread of what is to con)e. It is largely caused by the dis- 

 comfort of being crowded together. So little true fear do these beasts possess that 

 the seals in a pod before the killers will snap at each other just the same as if they 

 were being crowded by their neighbors in the hauling grounds. So far from being 

 crazed with fright, when turned loose they are as liable as not to stop within 50 

 yards of the killing and there rest and scratch for half an hour. 



" The stolid behavior of the seals on the killing grounds has long been remarked, 

 and ])itifnl tales of their mad fright, being crazed liy the sight of their slaughtered 

 companions, and frantic efiorts to esca]ie are utter rubbish. The behavior of the lirst 

 seal turned loose determines the behavior of the rest of the herd. If he hurries, the 

 others hurry, and each one eggs on the other; if he stops to rest, all subsecjuently 

 rejected stop to rest. 



"Xor ddcs tile sight or smell of blood affect the animal more than a pebble or a 

 jiicce of driftwood would. 



"A bull was seen suifBng at a pool of blood without exhibiting either anger or 

 alarm. Evidently so long as the blood was not his own it did not matter." 



CHILLING OF SEALS. 



"It has also often been urged that great loss of life ensues from the sudden chill- 

 ing of overheated seals turned loose from their long drive and the excitement of the 

 killing. But, intentionally or unintentionally, it is not stated that these seals have 

 been absolutely quiet for half an hour to an hour, and that their "long drive" is in 

 reality only 100 to 200 yards from the drove of waiting seals to the killing gang. 

 Moreover, few of them return directly to the sea, for it is against the principles of a 

 fur seal to do any thing directly, the" majority resting from half an hour to an hour 

 before plunging into the water, which is not icy cold, but, like the air, has a temper- 

 ature of 45^ to -iS"^' F." 



AFTER EFFE( TS OF THE DKIVE. 



There is no evidence of any pnrticular evil after efilects of driving. The examina- 

 tion of mauy l)odies on the killing grounds shows no trace of injury other than in a 

 few cases a very slight congestion of the lungs arising from overheating. Hut three 

 dead bachelors have been found on St. Paul this summer. This and other consider- 

 ations sliow that the injuries resulting fnuii drives, unless immediately fatal, are 

 unimportant. A bull which can maintain himself on the rookeries is strong, virile, 

 and capable of meeting any demands made ui>on him. 



ALLEGED IMPAIRMENT OF VIRILITY. 



There is not the slightest foundation for the supposition that driving impairs the 

 virility of the bulls. This theory may have been based on the supposition that 

 owing to the exposed position of the testes in the male animal they were liable to 

 injury when he was in motion. The violent voluntary movements of the bulls on 

 the breeding grounds would be sufficient answer to this supposition. But it is 

 found as a matter of fact that the testes are under the control of the animal and are 



