The Monmouth inquirer. [volume] (Freehold, N.J.) 1865-1933, 1924-09-18
HUNTING sEA ELEPHANTS.
A Sport or Business with Elements
$3.50 of Danger.

A Sport or Business With Elements
nnsax.2,,i of Danger
An occupation. with few followers
Is the hunting Of sea elephants. which
are found in great but rapidly de-
creasing droves in the Antarctic re-
gions, especially on or near Kerguelen
Land
Elm November, the beginning Of the
mating season" writes Capt. Cleve-
land in Hampton's Magazine, the
male and female elephants drag them
selves onto the beaches, where they
lie in great pods I have seen as
many as seventy-fve or q hundred
massed in such bunch. This is also
the shedding season, and the animals
rub the hair from their thick hides In
preparation for the new coat.
'sThe females and the young have
no Distinguishing trunk; and the
trunk. the mark Of the elephant. grows
upon the male only after he has reach
cd the age Of three years. Il IS scarce
" trunk; it is more like fabby
xnout and is only about fifteen inches
n length Il elongates when the AMI
nal gets excited
'sThis formidable looking money
yielding brute Is often confused with
the walrus, which as a matter Of fact
It resembles only in size. It's two
rows OF teeth or tusks-those OF the
bull-are between six and seven inches
long in front and grow shorter toward
the back Of the Jaws The tusks Do
not project ike those OF the walrns-
The largest elephant ever encounter
ed vas sixteen feet In length and SIX
feet high al the shoulders.
THE sea elephant has large eyes,
Eurmounted by huge broEs- It's for
ward fippers two in number, are
armed with five nails each, but the
aft fiippers have not even rudimentaTy
nails. The animal when on shore
moves with g hoDbhng. rolling mo-
ton. Its whole body quivering Ike
Jelly, but It navigates the water with
almost the agility OF, an eel 1t feeds
On cuttlefish and mollusks.
when you stop to think that the
euttIefsh OF tropical waters some
times attains a weight Of two tons
you viii realize the prowess Of the sea
elephant and the strength Of its jaws.
Having Toasted for many months
upon these grim Gelieacies OF the deep.
the bull elephants hobbie out ONO
the beaches and In the mating season
engage In fierce battles.
Our purpose Is to reach the Island
about the time that the sea elephant
lands, His blubber-the layer OF far
Immediately under the hide-is then
seven inches thick on an average. Up
on this fat the animal subsists for
six or eight weeks, at the end OF which
time It Is reduced 10 thickness OF
barely two inches.
THE fat of the female Is by no
means so thick pToportionately and
she Is little more than half as large
as her lord and master. The female
gives birth to young twice year and
suekIes them like whale. 1t Is best
to kill the female first, as the males
will then lie around supinely; while
II tho male IS killed first the females
take helterskelter fight
The chief danger attending the kill
ing of the sea elephant is in approach
ing too near its terrible jaws which
are capable of biting in two an iron
rod the thickness Of ones finger. The
hunter, however, must get pretty close
as the thick hide and blubber have
rendered the animal practically I'M
parvious to attack,th only vulnerable
point being a spot the size of walnut
above each eye
Careless hunters have at times got
within reach of the brute's teeth and
have escaped only by dexterously
wriggling from their clothes. had
occasion once to shed my coat with
great agility. one Of the smaller beasts
having caught me by the sleeve"