The Common Seal. 71 
In Newfoundland the Seal-fishery forms an important 
source of wealth, and numerous ships are sent out every 
season among the ice in search of Seals. One ship has 
been known to catch five thousand Seals, but about half 
that number is the usual quantity taken. As soon as the 
Seal is killed, it is skinned, and the pelt, as the skin and 
blubber together is called, being preserved, the body of 
the Seal is either eaten by the sailors, or left on the ice 
for the polar bears. 
The aboriginal inhabitants of the northern regions 
have several strange superstitions about Seals. They 
believe that Seals delight in thunder-storms; and say, 
that during these times they will sit on the rocks, and 
contemplate, with apparent pleasure and gratification, 
the convulsion of the elements. The Icelanders, in par- 
ticular, are said to believe that these animals are the 
offspring of Pharaoh and his host, who were converted 
into Seals when they were overwhelmed in the Bed iSea. 
Several species of Seals are distinguished by curious 
appendages to the head, sometimes in the form of a 
hood, sometimes in that of a projection from the nose. 
One of the most singular is the Sea Elephant (Morunga 
proboscidea), an inhabitant of the shores of the numerous 
islands scattered over the great Southern Ocean. In this 
curious animal, which often measures twenty-four feet 
in length, the nose of the male forms a proboscis about a 
foot long and capable of considerable distension. The 
female has no such appendage. The young of the Sea 
Elephant, when just born, is said to be as large as a full 
grown seal of the common species. The skin in the old 
animals is very thick, and forms an excellent leather for 
harness. 
