The Seal Man

R.T. Carr, Editor

Editor's Introduction

I suppose it was because of the success and notoriety caused by Dusty Books, Frontier Librarian, or perhaps it was my analysis, but I find myself with a new 'Project'. Its working title so far is 'THE SEAL MAN', but perhaps during the writing and research a better title will be born. In any case I have by the usually somewhat roundabout process of Government Red Tape come into possession of another unique record and memoir of yet another incredible character. (ED. NOTE: I have also had recent proof that truth IS stranger than fiction...but I won't ruin the surprise!) With this document we are sure of the exact order of the pages, since the little notebook comprising THE SEAL MAN's diary is bound. To briefly summarize the contents, this is the first hand account of a fellow who decided to become for all intents and purposes a sea lion! It is narrative of his road from his gradual detachment from his human life, and briefly his residence as a part of a seal colony.

In comparison to my previous task, this memoir is much more meticulous, and truly a diary of an obsessive character. Dusty's handwriting was sometimes grandiose, often somewhat unreadable. This narrative is very small and tightly written by comparison.

After the Park Service scientists had their shot at it, so to speak, the entire text was photographed, and I have received excellent prints. I was allowed a brief time with the actual piece, but if anything it is more brittle and less preserved than Dusty's memoir, the location being a bit damp, so I am perfectly happy with dealing with the text in this format. The last few entries in the little diary were unfortunately made with a wax pencil. The wax over time had bonded the paper together, making reading the contents regrettably impossible. Thankfully it was only a few pages, and they may not have made much sense at any rate due to the fellows' obvious mental deterioration. It must have been done with great haste in a rare lucid moment. One is only allowed to guess what his side of the events leading to his 'capture' might be. In my unpublished research on Emperor Norton in the 1980's, I ran into a mention of the SEAL MAN in a few newspaper references from late August 1865. The story appeared briefly, and only as a good-natured oddity and then just as suddenly was quashed. Some commentators thought it a hoax of some sort designed to draw attention to a Cliff House Daredevil, since that continuing attraction used all sorts of performers and trumped up events to bring crowds on Mr. Sutro's railroad out to Lands End. In the narrative we find that the SEAL MAN's prominent family, which would explain the abrupt truncation of the story in the news, hushed up the incident.

After reading the text I am sure the reader will realize this is the story of a descent into madness, and a man who decided to become a seal with no accession to human comfort. That he seems less than sane is obvious, but he seems dead serious and unlike our old pard Dusty, seems to be telling the truth, at least as he saw it from his perspective. There is not a bit of evil in this fellow, and I come away from the work with a growing affection for him. He was more obsessive with his handwriting, thank the Lord! His script is no more than 1/4 inch high, very evenly spaced with very few spelling errors, or cross-outs. Of course there is a visible deterioration as the narrative progresses, no doubt due to his obvious distress.

We end up with a confirmation of one of those San Francisco stories. The SEAL MAN ranking along with Emperor Norton, OOFTI GOOFTI, and a myriad of other indigenous Bay Area crazies, who continue to live in our memories, and in the street people of the city of today. I will leave it to the serious student of this work to research the news accounts of this SEAL MAN, but they are there in1865 when a man in a seal suit attacked an acrobat as the performer was trying to rig a rope from the roof of the Cliff house to Seal Rock, and ultimately was forcibly removed from the other members of his 'herd'. The document is genuine, at least according to the Scientists, the dating coming back within limits, as is the quality and grade of paper and ink, even to the age of the wax bonding the last few pages together.

As mentioned above I was very lucky to find more bits and pieces as the research unfolded, and it is my opinion that with a little detective work, and a lot of good fortune this document goes a bit further towards solving a few mysteries about the SEAL MAN. I will only say, so as not to spoil the surprise that we will meet a few old friends in the course of this investigation. I hope we are also able to understand the nature of this man's 'madness', and thus explore the possibility of our own in the process.

R.T. Carr, editor/researcher.

Please note: The text follows a brief physical description of the find recovered just a few months ago from Seal Rock, San Francisco. After the text, in chronological order of discovery will be the texts of a few other documents of interest, with commentary by yours truly.