Part 6 (2/2)
”Pretty things, seals,” said the boy
”Where did you ever see any?” his friend queried
”Oh, lots of places,” Colin answered, ”circuses and aquariums and places like that I even saw a troupe of theame, too”
”Those weren't the real fur seals,” Hank replied; ”what you saere the common hair seals, an' they're not the same at all You can't keep fur seals alive in a tank!”
”There are two fur seals in the aquariuton,” interposed the captain, ”but those are the only two”
”There!” cried the boy, pointing at the water; ”there's one now!”
”You'll see them by hundreds in a few minutes, boy,” the captain said
”I think I make out land”
As he spoke, an eddy of wind blew aside part of the fog, revealing through the rift a low-lying island Within a lis The noise fro, so that the men had to shout to one another in the boat and presently--and quite unexpectedly--the boat was in thethe on their hind flippers, turning so all manner of antics
”Why don't we land?” asked Colin, as he noticed that the boat was running parallel with the shore instead of heading directly for it
”Land on a seal-rookery?” said Hank ”Haven't you had trouble enough hales so far?”
”Would seals attack a boat?” asked Colin in surprise
”No, you couldn't make 'em,” was the instant reply, ”but I never heard of a boat landin' at a rookery The roould begin when you got ashore”
Gradually the boat drew closer to the land, as close, indeed, as was possible along the rocky shore, and then the land receded, for a shallow bay flanked by t hills on one side and one sharper hill on the other The captain rolled up his chart and headed straight for the shore
”St Paul, I reckon,” said Hank, as the outlines of the land showed clearly, ”but I don't jus' seem to rereed ”It has changed since your tiovernment took hold”
”Why, it looks quite civilized!” exclaimed Colin in surprise, as he saw the well-built, comfortable frame houses and a stone church-spire which stood out boldly from the hill above the wharf
”When I first saw St Paul,” said the old whaler, ”it looked just about the way it hen the Russians left it--huts and shacks o' the worst kind an' the natives were kep' just about half starved”
”It's different nowadays,” said the captain as they drew near the wharf, putting under his arm the tin box that held the shi+p's papers ”The Aleuts are regular governood ho is done to make them comfortable
I was here last year and could hardly believe it was the sao”
It was still earlywhen the boat was s after having slept in a cra lay heavily over everything, but the villagers had been aroused and the group of sailors was soon surrounded by a crowd, curious to knohat had happened Hank, who could speak a 'pigeon' language of roup coraphically described to all those who knew English (the larger proportion) the fight with the gray whale, and told of the sinking of the _Gull_ by the big finback, maddened by the attack of the killers He had just finished a stirring recital of the adventures when the other two boats fro andthat the only breakfast the shi+pwrecked et was some cold and water-soaked provender from the boat, two or three of the residents hurried to their homes on hospitable errands bent, and in a few s of hunger with steas of hot coffee and a solid ht take hient's house, he found the lad--as thoroughly de happily with the sailors and recounting for the second ti day
Rejoining the captain an hour or so later at the house to which he had been directed, Colin was effusively greeted by the assistant to the agent, a young fellow full of enthusiasard to fur seals A natural delicacy had kept hi Captain Murchison, but as soon as he discovered that Colin was interested in the question and anxious to find out all he could about seals, he hailed the opportunity with delight
”I've just been aching for a chance to blow off steam,” he said ”It's an old story to the people here Obviously! I don't think they half realize hoorth while it all is I'lad to have you here,” he continued, ”not only so that we can help you after all your dangers, but so that I can show you e do”