The sullen host became bright and cheerful and wanted Paul to go out elk hunting with him every day. His strange conduct at first was explained; he had been under the impression that his visitors were spies in search of violators of the game laws.
The nets were finally unpacked and Boyton with his assistant and three men from the ranch, started for the rocks. As they proceeded through the forest, they could hear the lions' bellowing above the noise of the breakers.
They reached the cliff which towers several hundred feet above the beach, and from which they had a glorious view of the rocks and rookeries below that were literally alive with sea lions. Finding a break in the cliff, they made an easy descent. Paul then donned the rubber dress and taking one of the nets, succeeded in passing the first line of breakers without much trouble; but he reached the island with considerable difficulty. His appearance did not seem to create any alarm among the horde of mammals on the rock, even when he approached near them. He went around the island to see where he could make the safest landing. Having gained the shore he cast loose the net and then worked cautiously toward a promising young lion, about a yearling, that was sleeping, and had no difficulty in throwing the snare over it. It beat around for a time, but quieted down as the running line was pulled that tightened the meshes. Making fast, Paul returned to the mainland where he joined a rope to the line of the snare and gave the signal for his assistants on shore to pull away, at the same time pushing the captured lion off the rocks. It snapped viciously at him but did not bellow or make a noise, and was landed without disturbing the others.
In half an hour another was captured and landed by the same process and two others quickly followed. Just before capturing the last one, Paul crawled into a large ravine where there were a number of lions. There was a magnificent one, about five or six years old and fully developed; but however much Boyton would have liked to capture it, he did not have confidence in the strength of the net or his own ability to hold it. He was going to make the attempt, nevertheless, when in his excitement, he arose from a recumbent position and frightened the prize away. He says he can never forget the malevolent look of those green eyes as the lion rolled off the rock and snapped at him.
The fourth net was followed ashore and they began to devise means to get their catch up the face of the cliff. They first tried to pack them up; but the effort was futile as the earth gave way under their feet. Finally three men went to the top of the cliff and let down a half inch cotton rope which was attached to the leading string of one of the nets. The men pulled and succeeded in lifting it half way up, when it caught on a stunted bush that grew out from the rocks. They tried hard to free it, when the rope which had been worn weak in places, from contact with sharp rocks, parted and the sea lion dropped like a shot and was smashed into a jelly on the boulders one hundred feet below. As darkness was coming on, with a storm brewing, they decided to leave the other lions in the nets where they were until morning, when they could get the horses to the edge of the cliff to draw them up.
That night, a terrible gale, which left many wrecks on the coast, sprang up and next day the trail was impassible by reason of fallen timber. Late in the afternoon, they reached the beach again and finding it impossible to pull the three lions up, or to get them to civilization if they did, Paul took off the traps and liberated them.
At daylight next morning, they started back across the trail to Seaside. It was in a much worse condition than when they went in, and they were until dark traversing the seven miles. Every time they missed stepping on a root or stone, they sank in the mud to their knees, until they became so tired that they thought seriously of abandoning their apparatus.
Fishermen at the mouth of the Columbia river consider the sea lion to be more dangerous and cruel than a shark. They accuse it of mutilating in the most horrible manner, bodies that have been drowned off the bar. An incident of its vicious nature came under Boyton's notice during his stay in that vicinity. An old Indian who wished to secure the skin of a lion, went out to the rocks at low tide. He was barefooted and walked noiselessly to where a lion lay asleep. He had just raised his ax to strike it over the head when his foot slipped and he fell. In an instant the animal was awake and upon him and fastening its teeth in his shoulder, stripped his arm bare to the bone down to the finger nails. The lion then jumped off into the sea and the Indian was rescued and carried ashore where he died soon after.
On Paul's return to Astoria, he determined to visit the North Beach. He and his companion missed the regular steamer and as they were impatient, they decided to risk the trip across the bar and along the coast in a small boat. The trip to Ilwaco was made without any startling adventure and the next day they visited Sand Island and captured several seals. On Sunday they were storm bound; but Monday they proceeded on their voyage up the coast in the small boat. They started against the advice of the fishermen, the men at the life saving station and everybody else.
They made it all right through the heavy sea until they passed Sand Island, when the waves struck them. To save the boat from being swamped, they had to throw her bow up and drift "nose on." They were tossed about on the turbulent water, and to add to their discomforts, they had neither food nor drink and were drenched to the skin. That night they got under Scarborough Head where they had smoother water and succeeded in making a landing. A blazing fire and a square meal put them in excellent spirits and the following day they returned to Astoria, to disprove in person a story that had been published along the coast to the effect that they were gone to "Davy Jones' Locker."