Washington sentinel., 1898-05-07
Pe,sin the sea.
6. =. H,laer. fn hhe oOnk0ok."

andS OIL the coast Oh SouAhCIh Sal-
ifornia | found that the fishermen
were in the habit of feeding certain
wild ANIMALS, which in time became
so tame that strangers might al
most think they were domestlcated.
The fishermen fed the gulls every
morning when cleaning their fish,
some of the birds becoming so
friendly that they allo " the men to
touch them, while others follow
them out to sea, alighting on their
boats, and exhibiting remarkable
confidence. Among the animals
which frequently came into the lit
tie bay to feed was large seal. 1t
sometimes followed fishing boats
in, and once, when rows OF hsh
were hung up to be photographed
by their { rtunate captors, II raised
its head high out Of the water, APP
parently eying the fish so eagerly
that the boatmen gave il share.
The fishermen usually went gill
fishing late in the afternoon, and
the seal, perhaps conceiving that
the whole operation was for its
benefit, began to accompany them;
and as soon as a fish became en-
tangled it would dive down and
take it out Of the net, returning to
the surface to toss it in the air in
high glee before the eyes Of the
fisherman. In this way the seal
robbed the nets, growing bolder
and boldeT. AT last, one day when
one Of the fishermen had returned
from the banks and was washing
his catch from a boat not far from
the spot where the writer ood,
splashlng the big red hsh to and
tro, suddenly a large black form
darted up from below, two black
eyes looked at the amazed fisher
man for a moment, and then the
seal snatched the fish from his
hands, and swan away amid the
shouts of laughter from the look
ers on. A few days later, presum-
ably the same seal appeared offthe
wharf where several anglers were
fishing. and deity carried off their
bait without being hooked. In the
latter sport the seal was joined by
a black diver-a bird with long,
snakelike neck and pointed bill
which was as much at home be-
meath the water as above, and
Which watched the fishermen with
eager glance. The moment the
bait struck the water, the bird
plunged beneath the surface and
seized it, Finally it woo heol.ed
and hauled ashore-an operation
that did not prevent it, on being
released, from renewing the pllter-
ing on the following day.
A fisherman on the Maine coast
once claimed to own a remarkable
ret, though it must be confessed
that the question OF proprietorship
was open to doubt. The man was
in the habit OF fishing about ten
miles of shore on what was known
as the cod banks, and often took
fish of little use, which he tossed
over. One day he noticed funny
playing about the boat, and tossing
a doghsh at it, he was surprised to
see the big fish turn and seize It.
Wishing to see how near the fish
would approach, he threw another,
bringing the funny within few feet
OF him. On another day he saw
what he assumed was the same fish
in the same locality, and fed it
again, repeating the act until the
ish displayed no fear, and finally
approached to the very side of the
boat. The writer once had num-
Der of singular pets in the guise OF
loggerhead turtles He had led an
expedition to capture them on
Loggerhead Key, about seventy
miles ircm Cuba--a locality some
what remarkable for The animals
and gradually they had accumu-
lated until nearly dozen were liv-
ing in an inclosure about sixty feet
wide and an eighth of mile long,
into which the sea water flowed
freely. 1t was desirable to learn
whether the turtles were suscepti-
BILE to the tanning process; so a
system Of educ cation was begun that
was fruitful oil some exciting cpl
sodes. The turtles, when not iced
ing, lay at the bottom in water eight
or ten feet deep, their huge bodies
plainly outlined against the sand
Here they undoubtedly slept or
dozed, and is was comparatively
an easy matter to swim down and
prasp them from behind by the
back OF shell just over the head.
The moment the turtle ielt the
prasp it bounded to the surface and
took a long breath, then dived
again, dragging the rider along at
a rapid pace, now under water,
again at the surface, endeavoring
in vain to shake off by desperate
plunges the enemy, who. like the
old man Of the sea, clung closely
TO its back. II the turtle had been
left to its own devices, it would
soon have escaped; but, by placing
the knee upon its back, enough re-
sistance was brought into play to
force il to the surface, and after a
number OF rushes up and down the
inclosure il was reduced to sub
mission. This experiment was
tried many times with view to
domesticating the huge logger
heads, who finally apparently sub
mitted with some degree oil grace
to the daily exercise, and would
gather at one end Of ths inclosure
to be=fed. The strength Of these
reptiles was marvellous. Not only
could one OF the largest size tow a
man through the water and be.