SEALS ATTRACTED BY WHISTLING. 135 



between Halmanne (Half-moon) Island and 

 the mainland, but finding the passage jammed 

 with ice, we were obliged to lose half the day 

 going round outside the island. 



2Qth. — Going on a wind under favourable 

 circumstances, the " Anna Louise " seems to 

 gain about half a mile an hour, or twelve miles 

 a day ; with an adverse current, or if there is 

 too much or too little wind, she gains nothing, 

 or perhaps goes a little to leeward. The way 

 in which the beastly tub makes leeway is per- 

 fectly incredible. 



When I went on deck before breakfast, 

 there were four very large seals swimming 

 about, not far from the sloop. Lowered a 

 boat and went after them; shot two of them 

 dead, but lost them both by sinking. When 

 a seal is under water near the boat, it is cus- 

 tomary to whistle, or make a noise by rapping 

 gently on the gunwale of the boat with a 

 tholepin, or any other smallbit of stick, for 

 the purpose of attracting him to come to the 

 surface. I was sceptical about this at first, 

 but was at last compelled to admit that "there 

 was something it ; " of course it is not always 

 successful, but the practice is so universally 

 followed by the seal-hunters, and so thoroughly 



E 4 



