The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1888-06-23
A SEAL HUNT.
Description of an Expedition in
Quest of Sealskin.
The Animals are Surprised and
Killed With Clubs.

! Seals once having taken to place
will never desert it unless frequently
alarmed. Here they periodically return
to breed, and thence the old ones never
wander far. Three expeditions, of two
nights on each occasion at most, are
made yearly, and as only one attack is
possible each time, great caution and ex-
perience are necessary to ensure good
bag.
The oars have to be muffled, and the
island approached according to the
wind; for seals are not the sleepy crea
lures one associates with the 200, but
post videttes in commanding positions,
and on the slightest alarm there is q
rush and splash, and goodbye to your
prospects for that night. Having dis
embarked in silence, the men, armed
with heavy clubs somewhat resem bling
though longer than a policeman's staff,
are posted at intervals of two or three
yards on the glacis by which the seals
invariably come and go. When all is
ready every one begins to shout, and
then comes rush like a thousand
sheep, and thwack, thwack, right and
left, as hard as you like, aud the more
the better, followed by splash, and
every one makes for the boats and
shoves off.
For the old bulls, often six feet and
seven feet long, are very dangerous and
will often follow boat knawing at the
gunwales. For purposes of commerce
the old ones are absolutely worthless,
and attention is only paid to the small
est and youngest. We started at one
a. M, the writer continues, for the
seal island. A glorious moon made
every object as clear as day, and in
about half an hour we found ourselves
alongside about as difficult a landing
place as can we'll be conceived. Imagine
then, rather steep glacis, as slippery
as slide and extending without one
friendly foothold for about twenty
yards.
But our nimble companions lost no
time in the ascent, and in less time
than it takes to write it, we found our
selves seized by sturdy arms and in po-
sition at the top of the glacis. Hoo,
hoo| intermingled with shouts such as
none but Afrikander lungs could posi-
bly, emit, then rent the air, and then
roar such as l can only describe as that
OF hundred oxen, followed by a
scampering of what seemed thousand
feet and literal avalanche of seals
came tumbling past US and dashed
furiously into the water.
Personally, was too excited to do
justice to my club; struck about, re-
gardless of all instructions, indiscumi-
nately at old and young that came
within reach, and was delighted to find
when tie counting began that was the
proud exterminator of four. The ex-
perts had, of course, done better, and
our nights work for thirty-two clubs
was represented by 316 seals. To make
for the boats and shove off was the work
OF an instant; and, having laid-to for a
short time in case of attack, we again
landed, collected our victims and re-
turned to the guano island.
The nights work, however, was by
no means over; and after hearty SUD-
per, the skinning process began and
continued till well into the afternoon.
The preliminary preparing Tor braying
as it is calleD of the skins is somewhat
peculiar; and as the fur known as SEAL
skin Is an underground, all the bristles
have to be removed,---i E.: pulled
from the inside. In the very
young animals these bristles have not
hence, the value of the seal
The younger he is, and the absolute
of the old bulls. On the
night the seals were to be left
N peace; but on the Thursday we re-
peated the attack, with much the same
experience and an addition of 2O7 to our
bag, makinga grand total of SEA
London Field.