Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-01-22
SEAL FISHERIES.
Their Location i'm the Eorth Atlantic
HI Ovy the nimaIs Are KILLED.
The London Standard

The London Standard.
The seal fishery DIS at present pur
sued in the north Atlantic is practi-
cally confined to the ice foes In the
vicinity of Jan Mayen island, and
those not far from the shores of New
foundland and Labrador. The Els
kimO and other Arctic tribes kill
large numbers along the shores Of
Greenland, the Arctic archipelago,
Labrador, and Siberia. The New
foundland sealers are numerous,
though, as a rule, their vessels are of
a smaller tonnage than those employ
ed in the Jan Mayhem hunt. Yet,
being nearer port than the latter, the
former, by making several trips in a
season, are able to laud greater aggre-
gate cargoes. The Dundee mentor
the trade, is all but concentrated in
that port-leave home in the month
of March, and by the aid of steam or
fair winds reach the southern extern
sion of the ice-felds IN eight or ten
days. Every eye is now on the alert.
The captain passes half the day in the
''crows nest" on the main royal mast
head, and as every man on board is a
direct sharer N the cargo, and a di-
rect loser by the il success of the ad-
venture, there is little chance of a
litter of seals escaping the keen
scrutiny which is every moment di-
rected to the ice fields along the
margin of which the vessel is running.
The business is, nevertheless, not
without danger. The seal, it is true,
is small animal, and timid one
compared with the great whalebone
whale. But IN April the long summer
day of the Arctic regions has not yet
begun, and during the dark nights
the vessel runs constant risks from
the ice, from the storms which at this
season are frequent, and the other
mishaps to which a cruiser 10 the
seventieth parallel of north latitude is
constantly liable. Even when the
seals are sighted they may be so far
in on the endless ice field that the
crew must regard them as forbidden
fruit, and spend the fleeing day in
vainly searching for ''lead" through
which they might penetrate to the
living fortune beyond. If, however,
the herd is within a snort distance of
the ice edge, then the slaughter begins
at once. The old ones are shot, or,
should they cling by their helpless
young, unable to take to the water for
some days yet, or arc too far from it
to escape their enemies, are dubbed.
The mewing "white coats" as the
pups are called from tee color Of their
first pelt, are either kicked on the
muzzle or dispatched with blow of
the heavy iron spiked mallet. Mean
time, while one party are killing, an
other are rapidly faying them, or
dragging the hides and blubber to the
margin of the foe, where the boats are
waiting to convey the cargo to the
ship cruising little way off, or, 1t
may be, anchored to the edge of the
field on which this carnage is proceed
ing. Then, in a few hours, the ice is
scarlet with blood and earcasses, and,
this flock destroyed, the vessel gets
under steam in search OF another.
The Indianapolis Journal, speaking
OF the fine new Court House there,
says: Every little while new beau
ties develop Ia our grand So, 900, 900 !
Court House. It now transpires that 4