Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1897-07-03
A SEAL BOUNTY.
Massachusetts, Gives 81 n Head For the

To good many persons who i've
inland and have nothing winch
brings them to the COST much 1t
would he Il surprise to learn that
there are any seals along the coasts
OF Massachusetts, and especially
that they are sufficiently nulncrou.
and destructive TO have made it adj
visulla to lace a bounty Oh them
in order that their number may be
kept down. 70 the ordinary dwcller
in tho inland districts the seal Is an
animal connected in Il Vague way
with frozen chimes and internatlon-
al arbitration. These are the fur
seals, which provide such of the
sealskin sacks as are not made III
the plush factories, but the seals OF
the New England coasts are crca-
lures OF an entirely different stamp.
Their skins are heavy and tough
and are OF no use for making sacks,
unless they are m;il sacks, and they
are such useless and unpleasant ami
mails that no one would go to the
trouble of killing them if it were
not for the bounty which has been
placed on their heads by the Off
Gals.
This bounty is So Il head, and it is
paid heruj.;e there are SO many of
the seals, and they have such an
Unsuitable appetite for fish that II
they were allowed to increase and
multiply and train up their children
to eat fish hey would have disns-
trous effect on tie sAor" fisheries.
It has been proved by experiments
that IL seal with a normal appetite
will eat fro:M 20 TO % pounds Of fish
Il day, and it can be seen that mt this
rate it does not take Il very large
number OF seals to produce a fish
famine of no small proportions.
Last year the county commission
ers of Essex county alone paid boun-
ties aggregatiug &450 for seals, which
would mean thut $50 were killed. as
the bounty is So Il head This, it is
probable, does not represent more
than half of those actually destroy
ed, as only ahout half are recovered,
for tie reason that, unless killed at
once, they nearly always manage to
reach the water when shot and sink
to the bottom when they are dead.
It is probable that there are along
the coast OF Essex county 1000 seals
at least, and these, figuring 25
pounds of fish day for each seal,
would use up 0,l25, 600 pounds of
fish in the year, or enough to sup
ply 175, 600 persons with four fish
balls every Sunday through the en-
tire year This only represents a
small part of the fish which would
be consumed by the Massachusetts
seals in the course OF the year, as
they ARE thick all along the south
shore until the sand begins at the
head of Cape Cod, for the seals are
not found to any extent where the
shore is sandy They prefer the
rocks.
These seals are what are known
as dog seals and are entirely differ
ent in outward appearance from the
fur seals of The north. Their skin is
smooth and leathery, Il good deal
like that of Il rorpoisc, only tough
Ell. In their general shape, however,
they area good deal like their north.
ern con2cners, having the same
round head and large, soulful eyes
which make it Il matter of consider
able difficulty for tender hearted
person to shoot one, even for So
There is no regular method of kill
ing the seals, and it is almost all
done fortuitously, and by persons
usually srortsmen, who are out fol
some Other reason than the deliber
ate slaughter of seals for mercenary
purposes Most of the killing is done
in the spring. when the seals are
rutting aud como out on the rocks
in large numbers Even then, how
ever, it is not at I'LL an easy matter
to kill them, as they alc very shy
and unless killed ut the first shot
will wriggle Off into the water an(
die there, sinking to the bottom
The only time at which there was
any organized sealing expedition
was several years ago, when about
90 seals got up into Il river back OF
Plum island, near Newburyport. A
party of epterprising fishermen
stretched Il seine across the moutl
of tho river, and at low lido Wen
and killed all the seals with clubs.
Outside of the bounty the seals
are of little value There is goot
deal of oil in them, as. on account
of their unrestricted indulgence il
fish, most Of them are very fat, ant
their skin is worth something fol
leather. The bounty was originated
in 1883, when it was placed at 81
head, but IA it WAS found that the
seals were increasing in number i
was raised to So. which is the sun
at present paid. Boston Transcript
Solved the Difficulty
In some of the farming district.
ut China pigs are harnessed to small
wagons and made to draw them
The well known tendency OF the pis