The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1872-02-02
The sea-Lfons of the Pacific Coast.

Grace Greenwood" ," writing to the
New York Times from San Francisco,
thus describes q visit to the Cliff
House," on the sea-coast, six miles
from the city:
The Cliff House has "a long, broad
verandah, facing the sea, and COM
manding fine views of the Golden
Gate, of the dark, bold bluff of the
peninsula, and of the rocky points be-
yond the curVing beach. On this
morning there were many sails in
sight, some passing through the grand
gateway, some coming up slowly be-
fore the soft wind, some melting into
dreams ofships down the misty hoH-
ZOn. The Seal Rocks, three sharp,
picturesque little islands Immediately
in front of the hotel, were crowded
with sea- liOns, their strange, dismal,
discOrdant barking filling the air.
These particU lar sea-lions are under
the protection of the law, and such
old customers, that Ha5itltes at the
Cliff House are able to single out the
leaders, the solid citizens, and have
given them distinctive and distin-
gujshed names.
l must confess watched them with
an eager, childish interest and enjoy
remarked with happy command Of
words, " What an extraordinary sight
Really, you know, I had no idea of it !!
What extraordinary creatures! and
what an extraordinary noise they
make W-which are my opinions bet
ter expressed.
Some of these sea-lions are mon
sters Of their kind, weighing LOCO to
l 200 pounds, they say. All seals,
queer, grOtesque, uncanny creatures,
have for me a strange fascination
seeming like sinful human souls in
wild tOTment--aen, perhaps who
have Warred and wasted, and lived
free hand high and fast, going through
an uncomfortable metempsycbosis,
pTisOned and piniOned in these flabby,
slippery and clumsy forms. As you
first see those on the coast, they seem
continually to be Topping over the
rocks or down into the water, aud you
say to yourself, What dr=ary thing
it must bean existence Of fiops ~
But, as you watch them further, you
see that a sea-liOn's life Is varieG, for
there is wallow IN the water, and the
hitch up on the rock, the sjestd in the
sun, and the bark. When he Is awake
that is ia sessRnt. Day and night his
g bark IS on the seaO Sometimes
when they are all barking at once it
pleasantly reminds one of the House
Of REPRESENTATIVES. Doubtless the sea-
lion has his mare-tal relations per-
haps the plural style Of marriage pre-
walls in the thriving community, and
all the middle-sized monsters grouped
around the big ones were their con
sorts sealed" to them. If so, the
ill-adjustment aud discomfort which
nowadays seem almost inseparable
from the blessed estate of WedlOck,
may account for some Of the little un-
p!easantness observable on the rocks
In the mildest and sleepiest times
Another reason why not here, more
than in Congress, do we find peace
and unity, is, perhaps, that here, also
they have q Sumner" and Ben
Butler" Another big seal has been
dubbed by some patriotic visitor,
tG General Grant, This is verV
auiet old fellow, and sleeps most Of
the time. He has a suilen " deep
naouthed bay" yet / saw enough TO
be convinced that bis bite is worse
than his bark, for while was regard
ing him as he lay IN profound slumber,
and enormous seal hitched himself up
out Of the water near by, made a care
fuI reconnaissance, and deliberately
HEla4I ADA A44AAAa VI ELEallu nave seen
the old RhOcid8n msjsstisally rear
himself on his fiippers, and heard his
roar Of angry defian0e, which rang
above the clash Of the waves, and was
echoed BY every loyal seal on the
rocks, except, perhaps, Sumner"
Then began one Of the most exciting
contests ever witnessed. It seemed
to come OF in " rounds" like q prize
fight, the frat assailant continually
getting the worst Of it. When he
was severely " punished" by the Cen
erals tusIzs, he invariably fell back
and lifted up his voice and wept. At
last, after half dozen disastrous At
tscks, ne fell so far back that he
Topped OF the rock into tho water,
where be laid his sore head on the
bosom Of the deep and subsidized. The
victor gave g triumphant bark,
turned over and went to sleep.