Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1889-10-11
SHEPHERDsIOWN, VA, FRIDAY, OCTOBER II, 1889

number One of the males nearest
the water coaxes the first conner to
him with gurglings and wabblings of
seal endearment, and guards her jeal-
ously once he gets her into his town
| lot. He also makes an effort for the
next arrival, and the chances are that
while he is thus engaged Mr.. Seal on
lot number two reaches oyer, and
grabbing Mrs. Seal by the nape of
the neck, as cat does kitten, trans
fers her to his own harem one lot
further inland. There is fight over
that, of course. during which Mrs.
Seal is probably appropriated by Mr..
Seal number three, and gets one lot
further back. Eventually she will
probably land in the possession Of Mr..
Seal number fifteen or twenty, way
back on the inner row, unless the
rough handling she receives kills her
before she gets so far. This is rare.
however, as seals are endowed with
remarkable vitality. a newborn seal
pup will live nine days without ever
having tasted food. A female seal
will submit without even a murmur
TO being caught by two males and
pulled until her skin gives way on
one side or the other, and great
piece of skin and flesh is torn out
Such wounds heal rapidly, and seem
to cause no inconvenience. From
the 23d of June 70 the 10th of July
the female seals arrive by the hun
dred thousand, and there are plenty
! for all the males who have lots on
the rookeries. There is still continual
vuarreling, however, between the
males, and occasionally bachelor on
his way by the specified and narrow
path through the rookeries, which he
is allowed to use in order to reach his
hauling grounds, may have TO be torn
in pieces alive to discourage the prac-
tice of flirting with females as he
passes The infiction of such pun
ishment upon presumptuous young
ster is the only purpose for which the
old males will unite. By the time the
last of the females arrive the males
near the water have from dozen to
forty or fifty wives each, and even
the males on the inner row have from
two to fifteen apice.
YOUNG SEALS
Very soon after landing the females
are delivered of a young scala pup
it is called. 1t is said that no case Of
twins has ever been recorded. After
that she has more or less Of loose
foot, going to the sea for food when
ever she wishes, and only taking care
to come back once every three or four
days to suckle her young. The old
male remains in his harem and fights.
The lines of each males lots are as
rigidly fixed as though by a survey.
Everything within those lines is his,
and any other male takes no further
interest in it, and will not pay any
attention to it until it returns. The
young seals have a fondness for hud-
ding together in groups of fifty or
hundred. The mother seal, returning
from the sea and seeing her own pup,
will go up to the group nearest the
harem to which she belongs and will
utter call. By wise provision Of
nature the young seal is perpetually
uttering peculiar cry like the bleat
Of sheep. Thousands of such bleats
will be going up all around, but the
mother can pick her own pups cry
from them all, and as soon as she
hears it, rushes into the group and
seizing the young seal, lugs it off to
dinner. If she doesn't hear it after
two or three calls she takes a nap
and then tries again. No seal pup
can tell its own mother; when it feels
hungry it goes around trying differ
ent females until it finds the right
one. No mother will suckle any but
her own.
Early in August the young seals
learn to swim. In early life they are
helpless in the water and will drown
if it is over their heads. They get the
idea of swimming by playing in the
surf. AT first they struggle in the
water like dog. After one effort
they will lie down and take nap.
When they wake they will try again,
and in day or two are perfectly at
home in the water.
By the middle Of September the
great body OF seals have left the
islands, although a few stragglers re-
main until ice and snow comes.