Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1908-04-07

Each rookery consisted Of one tre-
mendous bull who officiated apparent
ly as the standing army, number of
smaller bulls, his direct descendants;
the cows and pups. The big bull held
his position by force of arms Occa-
sionally other unattached bulls would
come swimming by On arriving on
posite the rookery the stranger would
utter peculiar challenge. 1t was
never refused by the resident cham
pion. who promptly slid into the sea
and engaged battle. If he conquered,
the stranger went on his way II.
however, the stranger won, the big
bull Immediately struck out to sea,
abandoning his rookery. while the
newcomer swan in and attempted to
make his title good with all the young
err bulls. have seen some fierce COM
bats out there in the blue water. They
gashed each other deep.
You can see by this how our hunt
Ing was never at an end. On Tuesday "
we would kill the boss bull of Ger.
tain establishment. BY Thursday al
latest another would be installed.
l learned curious facts about seals in
those days. The hunting did not an.
( peal to me particularly, because II
seemed to me useless to kill so large
an animal for so small spoil. Still
1t was means to my all absorbing
end, and l confess that the stalking
the lying belly down on the sun warm.
ed grass over the surge and under the
clear sky was extremely pleasant
While awaiting the return of the big
bull often we had opportunity to
watch the others at their daily affairs
and even the unresponsiye Thrackles
was struck with their almost human
intelligence. Did you know that seals
kiss each other and weep tears when
grieved?
The men often discussed among
themselves the narrow, dry cave. There
the animals We're practically penned
In. They agreed that great killing
could be made there. bdt the impossi.
btlity of distinguishing between the
bulls and the cows deferred them. The
cave was quite dark.
Immersed in our own affairs thus
the days, weeks and months went by.
Events had slipped beyond my con.
troll had embarked on Journals
tic enterprise, and now that purpose
was entirely out of my reach.
Up the valley DR.. Schermerhorn and
his assistant were engaged in some ex.
pertinent of whose very nature | was
still ignorant; also was likely to re.
main so. The precautions taken
against interference by the men were
equally effective against me. AS il
that were not enough, any move of
investigation on my part would be
radically misinterpreted and to my
own danger by the men. 1 might as
we'll have been in London.
However, as to my first purpose In
this adventure l had evolved another
plan and therefore was content.
made up my mind that on the voyage
home, if nothing prevented, would
tell my story to Percy barrow and
throw myself on his mercy. The re-
suits of the experiment would proba-
bly, by then be ready for the public,
and there was no reason, as far as
could see, why should not get the
scoop" at first hand
Certainly my sincerity would be
without question, and hoped that
two years or more of service such as
l had rendered would tickle DR.. Scher.
merhorn's sense of his own impor-
lance. So adequate did this plan
seem that gave up thought on the
subject.
My whole life now lay on the shores.
was not again permitted to board
the Laughing Lass. Captain Seloyer
l saw twice at a distance. Both times
he seemed to be rather uncertain. The
men did not remark it, The days
went by. relapsed into that state so
well known to you all when one seems
caught In the meshes of dream ex-
istence which has had no beginning
and which Is destined never to have
an end.
We We're to hunt seals and fish and
pry bivalves from the rocks at low
tide and build fires and talk and al
ternate between suspicion and securi.
ty, between the danger of sedition and
the insanity of men without defined
purpose, world without end forever.