THE, CAPE SEA LION 
great slaughter of seals had taken place at some 
special time, as the remains were not mixed at 
different levels with the shells and other debris, 
but were all on the same level. In every instance 
the skull had been broken open to obtain the brain 
for food. The mouth of the Zwartkops River, no 
doubt, in the past furnished a favourite breeding- 
ground: of these seals, but incessant persecution 
drove them to the various islands off the coast, 
where they were secure from the attacks of these 
South African aborigines, for none possessed boats. 
At Bird Island, near Algoa Bay, there is a large 
herd of Sea Lions which may be seen at any time 
of year on or about great masses of rock jutting out 
of the ocean near the island. I visited Bird Island 
one day, and so tame were the seals that they took 
little or no notice of the tug. Several large shaggy- 
maned males, almost as large as oxen, were fighting 
fiercely with one another. A couple, locked in a 
fierce embrace, rolled over and over down the 
ragged rocks into the water, where they continued 
their battle. When the tug whistle was blown 
several times in quick succession, the Sea Lions of 
all sizes made for the water in great alarm, rolling, 
tumbling, and climbing down the rocks in their 
haste to reach their native element, where they 
dived and swam with the greatest of ease and 
grace. These seals were in the past strictly pro- 
tected, and in consequence their numbers increased 
rapidly, so much so that they became a menace 
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