in the Arctic seas. They seem in about a fortnight after their
birth to attain nearly the size of their mothers. The same has been
recorded of the whale order. Both seals and whales have powers of
assimilating food and making fat that are unparalleled even by pigs. The
intelligence of seals is marvellous. Many who visited the Zoological
Gardens in the Regent's Park in May and June 1866 witnessed instances of
this in a seal from the South Seas, recently exhibited in London.
Persons on the sea-side might readily domesticate these interesting and
truly affectionate creatures. Hooker's sea-bear, the species exhibited
in London, was at first, so the kind Frenchman told us, very fierce, but
soon got reconciled to him, and, when I saw it, great was the mutual
attachment. It was a strangely interesting sight to see the great
creature walk on its fin-like legs, and clamber up and kiss the
genial-bearded French sailor.

DR ADAM CLARKE ON SHETLAND SEALS.

In Shetland, Dr Adam Clarke tells us the popular belief is that the
seals, or, as they call them, _selkies_, are fallen spirits, and that it
is dangerous to kill any of them, as evil will assuredly happen to him
who does. They think that when the blood of a seal touches the water,
the sea begins to rise and swell. Those who shoot them notice that gulls
appear to watch carefully over them; and Mr Edmonston assured him that
he has known a gull scratch, a seal to warn it of his approach. Dr
Clarke, in the second of his voyages to Shetland, had a seal on board,
which was caught on the Island of Papa. He says:--"It refuses all
nourishment; it is very young, and about three feet long; it roars
nearly like a calf, but not so loud, and continually crawls about the
deck, seeking to get again to sea. As I cannot bear its cries, I intend
to return it to the giver. Several of them have been tamed by the
Shetlanders, and these will attend their owners to the place where the
cows are milked, in order to get a drink. This was the case with one Mr
Henry of Burrastow brought up. When it thought proper it would go to sea
and forage there, but was sure to return to land, and to its owner. They
tell me that it is a creature of considerable sagacity. The young seal
mentioned above made his escape over the gangway, and got to sea. I am
glad of it; for its plaintive lowing was painful to me. We saw it
afterwards making its way to the ocean."[145]

DR EDMONSTON ON SHETLAND SEALS.

Every one fam