162 FUK-SEAL FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 



warm, sunshiny day; then the cows nearly all take to the water, leav- 

 ing- tlieir pups with the bulls, behind them. They do not go tar away, 

 but lay in the rollers, idly scratching and swimming in the cool embrace 

 of the sea. 



I noti(!ed one action this afternoon which has hitherto completely 

 escaped my eyes. A young pup near these "bath tubs" under the 

 bhifls, was eagerly endeavoring to get over the rocks and join those 

 sporting pups which were so Joyously splurging in and out of the pools 

 there. But no sooner did the little fellow get fairly started than its 

 mother would lunge after, and, catcliing the pu^) precisely as a cat does 

 a kitten, would pitch it rudely back, sometimes full 3 feet at a swing, 

 bumping it without mercy on the bowlders. The pup would then, for 

 a few moments, lay perfectly quiet, then start up suddenly, get a few 

 feet under way for the pools again, when the mother would repeat the 

 lesson just cited. I watched her check and bump this pup of hers 

 against the rocks for nearlj- half an hour. Then seeing no sign of cessa- 

 tion of this action of the mother, or lack of desire of the pup to have its 

 own way, 1 did not wait for the ending of the controversy. It shows 

 very i>lainly, however, that so far from teaching their pups to swim, the 

 mother seals try to keep them from rough w\ater as long as they can, 

 seeming to have an instinctive appreciation of the fact that a heavy 

 swell and surf could and would drowu their offspring when so young, 

 shouhl tliese little creatures happen to get out and within the reach of 

 its breaking force. 



GREAT EASTERN. 



July 23, 1890. — T passed up above this rookery in going to Tolstoi 

 Mees and the sea-lion rookery this morning. Xo holluschickie, save a 

 small i)od, hauled out. I also observed that the holluschickie have not 

 put in an ai)pearance on the North rookery either — have not hauled 

 since the 20th instant: simply, because there are none left to haul. 

 There are very few seals in the water. No " killer whales" about either. 

 They were here in large numbers up to the 20th of ,Iuue, then suddeidy 

 de})arted. Captain Lavender informs me that he has seen schools of 

 "killers," hundreds of them, skimming along close to the shore between 

 the village landing and the North rookery; that thej^ have probably 

 gone north into some of the bays there or river estuaries where shoal 

 water permits them to calve and get food : and, then returning this way 

 they hang around these islands for several weeks in October : then leave 

 for the North Pacific; that they suddenly left this island on the 20th 

 of June, this year. I, myself, have not been able to see one of these 

 animals thus far this season : beginning at St. Paul, May 21, up to date. 



July 26, 1890. — 1 made a thorough survey of this Eastern rookery in 

 the morning, since now is the proper time to look for a showing of last 

 years' pu])s or yearlings. I saw only about 600 of them (500 in one pod 

 and the others scattered). There were also about 100 2-year olds and 

 a few .'] and 4 year olds — very few. 



Some 6,000 pups must have been born on this rookery last June and 

 July (1880j, and half of them should be back this summer. Perhaps 

 they will show up better. It is, however, not reasonable to expect to 

 see more than half of them hauled (mt at any time, even now in the 

 very height of their hauling season. I was much impressed, when 

 viewing them at this time in 1872-1874 on St. Paul, by their habit of 

 ceaseless travel out from, and then back into the sea; i. e., they were 

 constantly coming up from the surf to haul 1,000 or 2,000 feet back, and 



