Evening star., 1898-04-29
third congress in Washington in the spring
of 1899. Toledo has already spoken for the
fourth congress, and Boston claims the
TAKING SEALS.
Wonderful Vitality and Courage Oi
the Old Dog Hood.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
Now, 1 had great opportunities OF watch
ing the young. seals. Balls of snOwwhite
fluff, these innocent-looking babies lie bask-
ing in their icy cradles, equally happy in
sunshine or falling snow, sometimes for
hours on their backs. tapping their flippers
irlpotently like fans, unable from sheer fat
to get over again. In the coolest, stormiest
season they grow fastest and fattest, so
marvelously does nature provide for their
necessities. Nor does she do less for the
old seals. So thin that they sink at once if
shot in the water in summer, as winter ap-
proaches they fatten and fatten up, till now
they enjoy this terribly cold weather as We
would a bath in summer. They dive in off
the ice. paddle to and fro in the water,
throw themselves on their backs and float,
putting out their chests and throwing show
ers of water over their upturned noses with
forefiippers- Side stroke and breast stroke
diving and sounding, they sport about, till
one almost feels tempted to follow and
share their rapturouS pleasures.
The killing of the young seals has been
frequently described as brutal and brutal
izing. and the seal hunters depicted as
savages. But, to my mind. the work IS
not nearly SO brutalizing the ordinary
killing of sheep, pigs, or oxen.
Here the animal is too young to feel
lear, and eVlnces no signs of it. no ami
NAL is wounded and left to die in vain.
The crying of young seals is not from
fear. but hunger One often hears them
cry all night for their DAMS while they
| never give tongue at mans approach.
1t is only in killing the old dog hood
seals that one feels the savagery of killing
anything, for the hoods marvellous vitality
is only eQualed by his pluck. 1 watched
four men fight an old dog hood one day
on small pan. Reared up on his haunch-
es, with his hood blown up he awaited
the attack. The first blow, struck on his
hood, might as well have hft stone wall
while catching the second gaff-end cIeyerly
in his teeth, he shook its long handle TO
such good purpose that he cleared the pan
OF his enemies in an instant. Though he
could at any moment have slipped of into
the water. he would not do so, and soon
a lucky blow under the Jaw stretched him
out. A perfect shower of blows on the
head seemed to finish him of and a heavy
strap being placed around him, he was
hauled to the bulwarks by the steam
winch.
Just as he got there his immense weight
broke 1t down. and he disappeared, we
thought for good. But in minute or So
ne suddenly appeared again, and refresh
ed by the cold water. he climbed out on
TO the very same pan, where the hunters
were ungallant enough to return and dis
patch him with their long knives Nor
does the hunter by any means have It all
his own way. So agile and powerful are
these beasts that they will Jump clear
out of the water on to a pan six to ten
feet high without touching the edge when
in no other way they could climb on to it,
anc many a man has been badly mauied
and bitten and dragged into the water in
endeavoring to capture the valiant old fel-
lows