Part 8 (2/2)

In spite of all that he had heard before of the nu noise was in a sense a preparation, Colin was dazed at his first sight of a big seal rookery For aa wonderful beach of rounded boulders, s like polished steel; here and there pieces of gaunt gray rock projected above and at intervals of about every fifteen to forty feet towered a huge figure like a walrus with abristly yellohite whiskers For a moment the boy stood bewildered, then suddenly it flashed upon hilea seals

”Why, there are e back halfway to the cliffs, and as far as the eye could see into the white sea- at those closest to him, Colin noticed that they lay in any and every possible attitude, head up or down, on their backs or sides, or curled up in a ball; wedged in between sharp rocks or on a level stretch--position seemed to make no difference Nor were any of them still for a minute, for even those which were asleep twitched violently and wakened every few ray cow seals, the sea-catches, the lords of the harem, three or four tily

”Why do you herd theht there was lots of room on the beaches of the island”

”They herd theo anywhere unless it is crowded The et there Newcoo to empty harems Unhappy with only one or two other cows Try and find roo after thirty feroup which was nearest to hiet trodden on!”

”They are trodden on Often,” said the agent ”Can't be helped Only a few pups right in the harems and they are all small Obviously! Go ahen they are a week old Wander from the harem to find playfellows

Make up 'pods' or nurseries Sometimes four or five hundred in one nursery Stay until the end of the season There's a pod of pups,” he continued, pointing up the beach; ”about sixty of the? Clearly!”

”They look like big black kittens,” said Colin, as he watched the about on the pebbly beach, ”and just as full of fun Can they swie?”

”Seals have to learn to swim Same as boys,” he answered ”They teach the seal, thrown into deep water, will drown

Queer Beco does it take thein until they are three weeks old,” was the reply ”Practise several hours a day Sell in about a month”

”Why don't the father or the mother seals teach the outside the hareht on the instant if the baby is in danger Once it is in the nursery the bull seal forgets the little one's existence He couldn't leave, anyway Some other sea-catch would seize the hareet away at all?”

”Not at all,” was the reply

”Then what does he get to eat?” asked Colin in surprise, ”do the cow seals bring him food?”

”Not a bite No He doesn't eat at all Not all su? I should think he'd starve to death,”

cried the lad

”Fasts for nearly four months From the time a sea-catch hauls up in May and preempts the spot he has chosen for his hareht to sixteen feet square until late in August Stays right there He's active enough in soht on his own hareet away from it if he tried”

[Illustration: HOLLUSCHICKIE HAULING UP FROM THE SEA

Rare sketch, taken before ever a camera was seen on the Pribilof Islands This beach, with many others, is now deserted by the depletion of the seal herd

_Courtesy of the U S Bureau of Fisheries_]

[Illustration: OLD BULL-SEALS FIGHTING

Rare sketch, taken on the Gorbatch Rookery, St Paul's Island, forty years ago These corows smaller and the rivalry between the beach-masters is less intense The date on the sketch shows it to have been made before the cow-seals hauled up

_Courtesy of the U S Bureau of Fisheries_]