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SEAL.

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SEAL (Phoca), a Linnæan genus of Mammalia, an outer covering. Another adaptation to aquatic now forming the family Phocide, and including all life and cold climates appears in a layer of fat that family except the Morse (q. v.), or Walrus. immediately under the skin-from which Seal Oil The name S. is from the Anglo-Saxon Seol. The is obtained-serving not only for support when food Phocida constitute, in Cuvier's system, a section is scarce, but for protection from cold, and at the of Carnivora (q. v.) designated Amphibia. Their same time rendering the whole body lighter. The nostrils are capable of being readily and completely closed, and are so whilst the S. is under water; and there is a similar provision for the ears; whilst the eye, which is large, exhibits remarkable peculiarities, supposed to be intended for its adaptation to use both in air and water. The face is provided with strong whiskers, connected at their base with large

tail

Skeleton of Seal, with outline of the figure.

Seals produce their young only once a year; sometimes one, sometimes two, at a birth. Not long after their birth, the young are conducted by the mother into the sea. Many, if not all, of the species are polygamous. Terrible fights occur among the males.

structure is most perfectly adapted to an aquatic life, and they live chiefly in water, but spend part approach of man, where they have been much Seals are very much on their guard against the of their time on shore, reposing and basking in the molested; but where they have been subjected to sunshine on rocks, sand-banks, icefields, or beaches; no molestation, they are far from being shy, and and they bring forth their young on shore. The body is elongated, and tapers from the chest to the approach very close to boats, or to men on shore, as if animated by curiosity. They are much affected the head somewhat resembles that of a dog, by musical sounds. ; A flute is said to attract seals and in most of the species the brain is large; to a boat, where they have not learned caution from the feet are short, and little more than the paw sore experience; and the ringing of the church bell projects beyond the skin of the body; all the feet at Hoy, in Orkney, has very often caused the are thoroughly webbed, and five-toed; the fore-feet are placed like those of other quadrupeds; but the Seals possess all the five senses in great perfection. appearance of numerous seals in the little bay. hind-feet are directed backwards, like a prolongation of the body, and between them is a short tail. The toes, particularly those of the hind-feet, are capable of being spread out very widely in swimming, so as to give great propulsive power. The movements of seals in the water are very rapid and graceful; on land, they are very peculiar; even the fore-feet being little used or not at all, but the body contracted by an upward bending of the spine, and so thrown forward by a succession of jerks; in which way, however, a S. makes its escape very rapidly from an assailant. The flexibility of the spine in seals is very remarkable, and depends on the very large intervertebral cartilages, formed of fibrous concentric rings. The muscles, which are connected with the spine on all sides, are of great strength.

The Common S. and some of the other species are very intelligent; but there is considerable difference in this respect among the species. The Common S. and some others have often been tamed, and are capable of living long in domestication, if freely supplied with water. They become very familiar with those who attend to them, are very fond of caresses and of notice, recognise their name like dogs, and readily learn many little tricks, of which advantage has been taken for exhibitions.

Seals are found in all the colder parts of the world, most abundantly in the arctic and antarctic regions; some of them also in temperate climates, as far south as the Mediterranean, and as far north as the La Plata. Some of them ascend rivers to some distance in pursuit of salmon and other fish. They are found in the Caspian Sea, and even in the freshwater Lake Baikal.

The teeth differ considerably in the different genera, but in all are adapted for the seizure of slippery prey. the chief food of seals being fishes, The species are numerous, but in no group of although they do not reject other animal food, and Mammalia does more remain for further investigaare said even to feed in part on vegetable substances. tion. Seals are divided into two principal groupsTheir incisors are either six in the upper jaw and Seals, more strictly so called, and Otaries (q. v.); the four in the lower, or four in the upper and two in former distinguished by the complete want of the lower; they all have large and strong canine external ears, which the latter possess, and by their teeth; and the molars, usually five or six on each dentition. The true seals have been further sub| side in each jaw, are either sharp-edged or conical, divided into genera, chiefly characterised by their and beset with points. Seals have a remarkable dentition. In the restricted genus Phoca, or Calohabit of swallowing large stones, for which no cephalus, the incisors are pointed and sharp-edged, probable reason has yet been conjectured. Their six above and four below. The Common S. (Phoco stomachs are very often found to be in part filled vitulina) is found in the northern parts of the with stones. The stomach is quite simple; the Atlantic Ocean, and in the Arctic Ocean. It is gullet (œsophagus) enters it at the left extremity; common on the wilder and more unfrequented parts the cœcum is short, the intestinal canal long. of the British coast, particularly in the north. It is The respiration of seals is extremely slow, about remarkably distinguished, even among its nearest two minutes intervening between one breath and congeners, by the oblique position of the molar another, when the animal is on land and in full teeth. The fur is yellowish, variously spotted, and activity. A S. has been known to remain twenty-marked with brown. The whole length is from 3 five minutes under water. Their slowness of respira- to 5 feet. Their slowness of respira- to 5 feet. Its love of salmon is so great that it tion, and power of suspending it for a considerable has been known to haunt the neighbourhood of time, are of great use, as enabling them to pursue a salmon-net for a long time, and to take the fish their prey under water. The fur of seals is very smooth, and abundantly lubricated with an oily secretion. There is generally an inner coating of rich fur, through which grow long hairs, forming

after they were entrapped in it. The Common S. is generally seen in small herds. Its skin and oil are of considerable mercantile importance. The skin is dressed with the fur on, to make caps, &c., or is

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SEALING-WAX-SEAL OF CONFESSION.

tanned and used as leather. The oil, when made (Leptonyx Weddellii), so called from its spotted fur.

before decay has begun, is colourless and nearly inodorous; it is much superior to whale-oil. The flesh is much used for food in very northern countries, as is that of all the other species which they produce. It is not easy to shoot a seal. Whilst flint-locks were in use, the S. always dived so quickly on seeing the flash as generally to escape the ball. The popular name SEA-CALF, and the specific name vitulina, have reference to a supposed resemblance of the voice to that of a calf.-The HARP S. (P. Grænlandica) receives its popular

Harp Seal (Phoca Grænlandica), attitude on land.

name from a large, black, crescent-shaped mark on each side of the back. It is sometimes seen on the British coasts, but belongs chiefly to more northern regions. It is from 6 to 8 or even 9 feet in length. The GREAT S., or BEARDED S. (P. barbata), also found on the British coasts, and plentiful on the coasts of Greenland, is generally about 9 or 10 feet long, sometimes more. The ROUGH or BRISTLED S. P. hispida) frequents quiet bays on the coasts of Greenland, where many thousands are annually killed for their skins and oil. It is the smallest of

the northern species.-The GRAY S. (Halichoerus griseus), which has a very flat head, and attains a

Common Seal (P. vitulina), attitude when swimming. size nearly equal to the Great S., occurs on the British coasts, but is much more common in more northern latitudes, and in the Baltic Sea. The CRESTED S. (Stemmatopus cristatus) is remarkable for the elevation of the septum of the nose of the adult male into a crest, which supports a hood covering the head, and capable of being distended and elevated or depressed at pleasure. The use of this appendage is not known. This S. is plentiful on the coasts of Greenland and the northern parts of North America. The seals of the southern seas are quite distinct from those of the northern. One of them is the SEA LEOPARD, or LEOPARD S.

It is found on the South Orkneys and other very southern islands. By far the largest of all the seals is the ELEPHANT S. or Sea Elephant of the southern seas. See ELEPHANT, SEA.

Seals are to some extent migratory, although their migrations do not extend to very great distances, and are probably regulated by the abundance or scarcity of food. The time of the return of certain species to certain coasts is very confidently reckone‹] upon by the natives of the north and by seal hunters.

Seal-hunting-or fishing, as it is often called— requires great patience and skill. Most of the seals, if not all, are gregarious, and one seems to be always placed on the watch, where danger is to be apprehended from bears or from hunters. They climb up through holes in the ice-fields of the polar seas, even when there is a height of several feet from the water, but it is difficult for the hunter to get between them and the hole. Nor is seal-hunting unattended with danger, an enraged S. being a formidable antagonist, at least to the inexperienced.

Seal-hunting is the great occupation of the Greenlanders, but it is also extensively prosecuted in other northern parts of the world; great numbers are taken on the coasts of Newfoundland and other northern parts of America; whale-fishers kill seals as they find opportunity; and vessels are fitted out expressly for the purpose, from the northern parts of Europe and of America.

SEALING-WAX. A composition of hard resinimpressions of seals. Simple as it may appear, its ous materials used for receiving and retaining the manufacture is one of great importance, and formerly was far more gummed envelopes having to a great extent superso than at present--the use of seded it. Common beeswax was first used in Great Britain and in Europe generally, being mixed with earthy materials to give it consistency. less, it was difficult to preserve it, as a very small amount of heat softened it.

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ing-wax to Europe, and the Spaniards received it The Venetians, however, brought the Indian sealfrom the Venetians, and made it a very important branch of their commerce. The great value of the Indian wax consisted in the fact that it was made only of shell-lac, covered with vermilion or some other pigment, and this has been found superior to all other materials. In addition to the shell-lac and colouring material, there is always added to the wax made in Europe a portion of Venetian turpentine (see TURPENTINE), and of resin.

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SEA-LION. See OTARY.

SEA-LION, in Heraldry, a monster consisting of the upper part of a lion combined with the tail of a fish.

SEAL ISLANDS, or LOBOS ISLANDS. See PERU.

SEALKOTE, a town in the Punjab, near the left bank of the Chenab, 65 miles north-north-east from Lahore. It contains about 20,000 inhabitants, and carries on the manufacture of paper. S. was formerly a military station, and at the period of the outbreak of the Indian mutiny, there was a rifle. practice dépôt here. All the European troops had been removed in July 1857 to repress disturbances that had broken out elsewhere, and on the 9th of that month the native troops fired on their officers. A considerable number of Europeans were killed, and the survivors suffered great privations until the sepoys, having plundered the station, started off in the direction of Delhi.

SEAL OF CONFESSION. and CONFIDENTIALITY.

See CONFESSION

SEAMEN-SEA-SERPENT.

SEAMEN are technically those persons below the rank of officer, who are employed in navigating decked vessels on the high seas-men working on men working on lakes and rivers being usually styled 'watermen.' Two opposite conditions are essential to the wellbeing of the vessel-first, the absolute subordination and perfect obedience of the crew to the master; and secondly, their protection against tyranny or caprice on his part. For this purpose the law of England is extremely minute in the rules laid down for both masters and seamen.

By an act of 1845, specially levelled against pimps and swindling agents, no person may hire seamen except the owner or master of a ship, and individuals licensed for that purpose by the Board of Trade. Under the Mercantile Marine Act of 1850, a written agreement must be made when a man is engaged, setting forth the nature and length of voyage, the capacity in which the man is to be employed, wages, fines, provisions, punishments, &c. If the ship be going abroad, this agreement must be attested before a shipping-master, who has a power of periodical inspection over the agreements of all seamen in vessels in his port. Any clause in the agreement would be inoperative which deprives the sailor of a lien upon his ship, or of other recovery for his wages, or of rights of salvage. In virtue of this agreement the seaman is bound to do his utmost in the service of the vessel; and consequently, if a master of a ship in distress promise his men extra pay for extraordinary exertions, the men cannot compel him to fulfil his promise.

In the event of disobedience or insubordination the master may administer correction, the law holding him responsible that such correction is reasonable. Desertion from the ship is punishable by imprisonment; and deserters may be hended on the information of the master without warrant. In case of open mutiny, the master may adopt the most stringent measures.

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The mariners' wages are contingent on the success of the voyage; consequently, if the ship be lost or taken, the seamen lose their claim on the owners. It is a misdemeanour for the master to leave a sailor on shore in foreign parts, unless through the man's wrongful act.

SEA MOUSE (Aphrodite), a genus of dorsibranchiate annelida, of the family Aphroditide, to all of

Sea Mouse (Aphrodite aculeata). which the popular name is extended. They are readily distinguished by two longitudinal ranges of broad membranous scales covering the back, under which are the gills in the form of little fleshy crests. The scales move up and down as the animal respires; and are concealed by a substance resembling tow or felt, which permits the access of water but excludes mud and sand. The head is furnished with tentacles; some have two eyes and some four. The body is edged with spines. Besides all this, its sides are covered with flexible bristles or silky hairs, which give to these creatures a wonderful beauty of colour, unsurpassed by that of hummingbirds or the most brilliant gems. Each hair, even

when viewed singly, and moved about in the sunshine, reflects all the hues of the rainbow. Yet sea-mice are generally to be found concealed under stones, and dwell amongst the mud at the bottom of the sea. Storms frequently throw them on the beach in great numbers. A very beautiful species, 4. aculeata, of an oval form, about 6 or 8 inches long, and 2 or 3 broad, is the Common S. M. of the British coasts.

SEA PIKE (Centropomus undecimalis), a fish, which, notwithstanding its popular name, belongs to the perch family. Its form, however, is elongated like that of the pike. The body is compressed; there are two dorsal fins; the mouth is not very large; and the teeth are numerous, small, and equal. The colour is silvery-white, tinged with green on the back. It is found on the western coasts of tropical America. It attains a large size, and is a valuable fish. On the British coasts, the name S. P. is sometimes given to the Garfish. SEA PINK. See THRIFT.

SEARCH OF ENCUMBRANCES means the

inquiry made by a purchaser or mortgagee of lands as to the burdens and state of the title, in order to see whether his purchase or investment is safe. Owing to the want of any general system of regis tration of deeds affecting land in England, it is not possible by any search to find out with certainty all these burdens; nevertheless, there are some special registers which are usually included in such searches, such as judgment debts, bankruptcies, disentailing deeds, annuity deeds, &c. The search usually goes back for 60 years. In Scotland, where all the deeds affecting land rights are registered, it is easy to discover the exact state of the title and

burdens on the land. The usual search is made only for 40 years. The registers are subdivided Register of Sasines, the Record of Abbreviates of into various kinds-as the general and particular Adjudications, Register of Inhibitions, &c.

RECORDS.

See

SEARCH-WARRANT is an authority granted to a constable by a justice of the peace to enter the premises of a person suspected of secreting stolen goods, in order to discover, and if found to seize the goods; and similar warrants are granted to discover property in respect of which other offences are committed. Before such a warrant can be issued, a credible witness must on oath prove a reasonable cause to suspect that the party proceeded against has the property in his possession or in his premises. The name of the person whose premises are to be searched must be correctly described in the warrant.

SEA-SERPENT. There are in the tropical and sub-tropical seas from the southern coasts of Asia to the South Sea Islands, numerous sea-serpents, which in so far as they are yet known, are all venomous, and belong to the family Hydridæ (q. v.). None of them, however, is known to exceed 5 feet or thereby in length, so that their existence cannot account for the stories which from time to time have been published of the appearance of a Great Sea-serpent, which, moreover, generally relate to the Atlantic Ocean, where none of the Hydride have yet been found. It is still doubtful whether or not the Great Sea-serpent ought to be reckoned among creatures merely fabulous or imaginary. Pontoppidan speaks of it in his Natural History of Norway, assigning to it a length of 600 feet, and describes it, not from personal observation, however, but from the testimony of others, as lying in the water in many folds, and appearing like many hogsheads floating in a line, at a considerable distance from each other. Such a creature is said to have

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