THE STORMY PETREL. 
871 
Stormy Petrels have been observed, on the fourth or 
fifth day of a gale, hawking for hours near the ship, 
looking anxiously at the water; and they will often fly on 
the deck as though they, used as they are to the impe¬ 
tuosity of the stormy ocean, would seek help at the hands 
of the powerless sons of the earth. Under circumstances 
such as we have described they will assemble in flocks of 
thousands along the coast, and a few will take to the land 
as a last resource. Stormy Petrels have on several occa¬ 
sions been picked up, either dead or starving, along the 
French and Dutch coasts. 
And yet the shore is not a friendly asylum, but brings 
with it, rather, the misery of a foreign land,—to them, at 
least: destruction in various forms stares these poor 
children of the sea in the face. It is true, with tottering- 
steps they seek, as soon as possible, some hole or rift in 
which to hide: but death still follows in the garb of 
want; while outside, in the open, there is danger. It 
would seem as though on land they lost their senses, their 
courage, their very life. Simple-hearted and confiding, 
they let an enemy approach without attempting to defend 
themselves, or seeking safety in flight: the most they do 
is to cast up the oily matter they have in their stomachs; 
but this soon conies to an end, and with it the little 
creature's last and only weapon. Graba, to whom we are 
indebted for the most reliable and exhaustive information 
on the subject of the life of the Petrel on shore, says, 
that sound, healthy birds, even, possess no sense of fear 
or danger; how then can one expect sickly, that is to 
say, half-starved individuals to try to evade the attacks 
of land birds,—enemies possessed of any amount of sly 
cunning. They do not even recognize an enemy when 
they see him, and will allow themselves to be taken with 
5 Y 
