Morning journal and courier., 1884-03-17

them; but when one was injured it is said that they displayed much bravery in its de- fence. Such was the state of things in the year 1742. At this time vessel was wrecked in the Arctic sea, the crew escaping and mak- ing their way to Behring leland. For some time they snbsisted upon fish and birds. but finally the game became scarce, and on the 1st of June in the year mentioned they began warfare upon the sea COW that has since been named after Steller, one of the party. The animals were killed with hsrpoons, and each was 50 large that forty men could scarcely drag it through the water.
 The men were finally rescued from Behring Island, but in 1754 vessel commanded by 8 Russian, Ivan Krassilnikoff, arrived there, and destroyed large numbers of the animals In the succe eding year an explorer named Jakoolev, seeing that they were about to be. come exterminated, laid petition before the authorities at Kemchatks asking that the ani mals be protected by law. He was not heed ed, however, and in 1757 another expedition landed at the islands, and others in 1758 and 1762, and until 178O, when the last living sea COW was seen by native of Volhynia. Thus in thirty-eight years from the time these monstrous animals were discovered they were totally exterminated, and to-day not 8 single skin and only @ number of skeletons remain in the possession of naturalists to tell the story of the destruction of an entire race of large and powerful beasts. Much inter
 
 was obtained during the recent Swedish petition to the north, and Prof. Nordenskjold found numbers of deposits of their bones that are now utilized by the natives for various purposes, the ribs being used for shoeing the runners of sledges When alive, the fur or hide of the animal was made by the natives into boats called baydars.
 It is supposed by some writers that the ex termination of the great mammoth was hastened by early man who was of necessity a hunter, and that the great elephant existed at the same time with our ancestors Is shown by the fact that in France their bones, to gether with those of man and many animals now extinct, have been found As late as 1884, Nuttall, the famous authority on birds, wrote concerning the great suk:
 "As diver he is unrivalled, having almost the velocity of birds in the air. They breed in the Farce Islands, and in Iceland, Green land. and Newfoundland, nesting among the cliffs, and laying but one egg each They are so unprolifc that if this egg be destroyed, no other is laid during that season. The auk is known sometimes to breed in the isle of St. Kilda, and in Papa Westra, according to Mir. Bullock, for several years past no more than single pair had made their appearance.
 To-day not g single individual of this species of auk is alive, and the skin in the Museum of Natural History in Central Park, that is valued at over one thousand dollars, one at Vassar college. and several others, probably not over twelve in all, are the only specimens known in the world. Sixty or one hundred years ago they were extremely common along the northern coast, coming as far south as Nshant; but warfare was begun upon them also, and, though it hardly seems possible, their extermination is undoubtedly complete, the last living bird having been killed in 1S44 on @ group of islands called Funglasker, on the southwest coast of Iceland In the last century these birds which were large, handsome, and striking in appearance, were very common at the Farce Islands. They were found to be good eating, and were slaughtered by the boat load, not only for i'm mediate use, but to preserve or dry. They were finally driven to desolate rock that was considered inaccessible, but on 8 calm day 8 Faroese vessel succeeded in landing, and the crew destroyed nearly the entire rookery. A few escaped to sea and returned after the departure of the men, and were for time unmolested, but as if nature herself was in league against them, the rock was in few years engulfed by submarine eruption. The few remaining great auks assembled and formed 8 rookery on 8 rock called Eldey, where for fourteen years they lived preca- rious existence. During this time sixty of their number were captured, and finally the last pair were destroyed. The history of other localities is very similar. That the birds were once frequent on the Maine coast is shown by their bones, that are found in the oyster shell heaps of that region.
 At this time there lived in the same locali- ties the Labrador duck, fine bird, stuffed specimens of which are quite rare even in collections. The last known living specimen was killed by Col. Wedderburn of Halifax in 1852. In similar manner the curious dodo, giant pigeon, was exterminated, the sailors who visited the island of Mauritius killing them in mere wanton amusement, or to ob- tain the legs for pipe stems, and the curious stones found in the gullet. In our own time we have seen the buffalo crowded to the West Civilization is also advancing from there, and before many years the buffalo, the mountain sheep, the prong horn, and all the noble game animals of the great West will be repre- sented only by the stuffed skins and dried bones of our museums.