Page:The frozen North; an account of Arctic exploration for use in schools (IA frozennorthaccou00hort).pdf/125

 of their danger, they lower their heads again and lie quiet.

As the boats draw nearer, the seals sometimes slide off into the water. The hunters are quick to see any movement on the part of the seals. As soon as one moves toward the water, the men in the boat begin to shout as loudly as they can. The seal is so astonished by the unusual noise that he lies still awhile to think it over.

Then the hunter takes aim, and if he shoots the animal through the head, it drops down on the ice again and dies. The other seals near by are not disturbed. They seem to think that their companion has gone quietly to sleep again, and that there can be no danger. Often several seals are shot in this way before the rest become alarmed.

Sometimes the shooter misses his mark and wounds the seal instead of killing him instantly. The wounded seal in his pain splashes around on the ice and in the water, and the others take fright and plunge into the sea. A great deal, therefore, depends upon the skill of the shooters, most of whom are accurate marksmen.

When several seals have been shot, the men in the boat spring to the floes where they are lying and skin them. The skinning is done rapidly with long, sharp knives, and nothing is saved except the skin and the layer of blubber lying next it. The entire body of the seal is left on the ice. The Eskimos would think this practice very wasteful, for they make use of every part of the seal, including the bones.

As sealers sometimes return from a trip to Denmark strait with five thousand skins aboard, it is not surprising that seals are becoming scarce in that locality.

Nansen was glad when the haul of seals was over and the Jason steamed away again toward Greenland. Several times the coast had been sighted, but the ship had never