THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 231 
completely exhausted. It is seldom that either is 
left dead on the field, and the wounds they inflict, 
however deep, heal with inconceivable rapidity. The 
object of these encounters is to obtain the lordship 
of a herd of females, by which a male is always 
accompanied, and over which he rules with undi- 
vided empire.” 
While on land, the motions of these animals are 
slow and unwieldy, and apparently productive of 
much fatigue. Their gait is described as singular: 
as they crawl along, the vast body trembles like a 
great bag of jelly, owing to the mass of blubber by 
which the whole animal is invested, and which is 
as thick as it is in a whale. After having proceeded 
thus for fifteen or twenty yards, they halt to rest; 
and if forced to go forward by repeated blows, their 
appearance presently manifests the distress to which 
they are subjected by the increased exertion. It is 
remarkable that, in these circumstances, the pupil 
of the eye, which ordinarily is bluish-green, becomes 
blood-red. They do not, therefore, commonly wan- 
der far from the sea, but generally choose low sandy 
shores, or the mouths of rivers, for their haunts; 
though they have been known to ascend hills of 
twenty feet elevation, in search of some pools of 
water. They appear to be incommoded by the 
direct beams of the sun; and, to shelter themselves 
from its influence, they have the habit of scooping 
up the wet sand with their forepaws, and throwing 
it over their bodies, until they are entirely enveloped 
by it. 
It is for the oil which is produced by this species 
