The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-08-06
SEALION ATE BABY.
Said to Be Common Happening
where Creatures Are Confined.


"Hear that. Hear that!'
A low, queer moan. broken by plain
tive yelps. something as II from a dog
being whipped. was heard.
Come said the superintendent OF
the ZOO, starting across among the
trees, down through a picturesque IT.
tie vale and up a steep miniature
mountain. That's one OF the rarcst
sohnds in the world--one that mignty
few people ever hear. It's the cry OF a.
sea lioness when she has young. =
didn't know that any such an event
was coming. And yet that cry Is one
that never in all my experience heard
given under any other circumstance.
and I've handled sea lions bythe heru.
Two or three minutes later superin-
tendent and newspaper man reacneu
the great circular sea lion basin. Iney
found the female swimming feepy
back and forth In track that uc-
scribcd n crescent, while the male
much the larger and sturdier or the
two--was cavorting around ana unuer
| her in the most furious kind OF 1asnioh.
| After viewing them closely a moment
| or two the superintendent moved ahA-
| lously around to where he couiu peer
into The opening In the big stone rook-
| cry ereced in the centre of the great
| pool OF water, and that Is used by the
| sen lions for shelter from The, sun ana
| storm when either becomes TOO severe
| for them.
| II can't see any baby lion from here.
| said the animal man. "but from tne
| way the female Is acting ana sne
motherinc cry she is uttering / am
morally certain there's been pirtn.
Then he climbed up over the pridge
that leads from outside. the water den
on the top OF the rookery ana maoe
further examination.
But no baby was found.
..The male has evidently killed ahe
| swallowed i'll" said the superintendent
male sea lions i'm captivity will do
| bastard trick like that. No animal II
the world is more devilish to fool WIFI
| than a sea lion. I'd risk my life 1ort.
times over in cage with Jungle iloi
rather than with q sea Hon. Inere am
a more treacherous mammal tnat i've
, than the average sea lion. Tney ca,
,, never be got so that 1t liz safe 10 eve,
/ touch them. They have little saw.iik
teeth. and they bite and hang on IKE
| bulldog. They seem to breed in captlE
ity about as often as when in their ma
: | tive waters. Only one is born AT
time. and they suckle their young INK
other animals. A full-grown sea ITO
weighs from 400 TO 900 pouhus' a., a.,
: their average life In captivity ID ON
, about year and hair.
t.'Why are they called sea lionsg Fcc
| a reason that's no reason at all, manner
because of the barking noise wnic
3 they make. They eat nothing but hs
fish thrown at them from distant
: of twenty to thirty feet will be caugi
with the skill OF a league basepaiiis
: If they happen to catch 1t tailhrst the
!: will toss 1t into the air and eaten
n lagain head first. which Is the only wa
they can swallow IL. Dead, but Tres
| Ash are fed to them. When they g
of their feed we feed the fish to the
alive. When they become really sic
which is not infrequentlY. We part
~ dress a Ash. fill " with codliver oil al
J. feed II TO the sea lion. The male al
the female look lust alike, only e
male Is the larger. There are ty
colors of sea lions: one is dark brov
L. and the other a light red. The SIX
3, that Is covered with hair about hal1
:; inch long. can be tanned. but does n
make good leather. 1t Is too sponf
2 The meat IL black, tough and oily. +
zoo and other show purposes a $
lions value is between 5000 and $2
] said they live about year and HI
~ In cautiyity We had one here nam
Prince. that thousands OF people
at remember: that lived twelve years
L this zoo. but he was a notable exec
3; tion 1t Is widely claimed that sea lie
d. never drink. have seen our sea lie
Law on the brink OF the rookery a
,y drink water for FIVE minutes at tir
)h A sea lion Ia n dangerous thing
tackle on land or water. On land II
The sea lions in this country come fr
loff Santa barbara Islands. 200 mi
! from San Francisco. Cincinnati l
g l ri,irar