12% THE ZOOLOGIST. 



the pelts averaging 53 lbs. each. On March 28th it was found that 

 the vessel had sustained serious injury to her bows,— a number 

 of the ice-plates having been carried away and the wood-work cut 

 through, so that the vessel was leaking,— Capt. Milne was there- 

 fore reluctantly compelled to relinquish fishing. Temporary 

 repairs were effected, and the vessel steamed back to St. John's. 

 On the way a large body of old Seals was found, and 400 were taken 

 on board, when the leak broke out afresh, and the passage had 



to be resumed, St. John's being reached on the 31st March 



Capt. Milne reports the death of one of his crew, Kobert Peterson, 

 a native of Shetland. On March 26th, Peterson was sealing by 

 himself at a distance from any other men, and unfortunately 

 slipped through a hole in the ice. He caught hold of the edge of 

 the ice, but was unable to raise himself. One of the crew of the 

 steamer 'Wolf happened to come upon Peterson, who was still 

 clinging to the ice, but by that time he had suffered so much from 

 exhaustion and cold that the efforts to resuscitate him failed. He 

 was taken on board the ' Wolf,' where he died, and his body was 

 subsequently transferred to the 'Esquimaux' and buried at sea." 

 Such are some of the dangers of sealing on the Newfoundland ice. 

 The young sealing in the Greenland Seas was a perfect 

 failure, owing to the exceptional weather experienced, of which 

 I shall have more to say further on. Both Scotch and Nor- 

 wegian vessels entirely missed the breeding pack, and many of 

 them were frozen fast in the ice for six to eight weeks. On their 

 release they were scarcely more successful with the old sealing : 

 there were plenty of Hooded Seals seen, but owing to the 

 nature of the ice they were too much exposed to be approached 

 successfully, and took to the water on the approach of the 

 boats * The total number of Seals brought home by seven 

 vessels from Greenland was 4376 only, and from Cumberland 

 Gulf the sailing ship ' Alert' arrived with 2227, making a total of 

 6603 only, against 15,079 in the previous season. This section 



* Nansen ('The First Crossing of Greenland,' chapter vi. p. 158) is of 

 opinion that the recent scarcity of Hooded Seals is more apparent than real ; 

 he believes that these animals, which were formerly found near the sea edge 

 of the ice, have changed their habits in consequence of the persecution to 

 which they have been subjected, and now frequent the ice lying nearer the 

 shore, and unapproachable by the sealers ; and in such situations he found 

 them in undiminished numbers. 



