204 ALASKA INDUSTRIES. 



the crew all agreeing in their statements to me that the firing of the 

 gun in the hands of tlie captain was an accident. 



I had the body of Captain Tulles moved on shore, the Alaska Com- 

 mercial Company's physician taking charge. The funeral took place the 

 following day, Kev. Father Weschtomoflf officiating. Joseph Spooner, 

 the wounded man, was taken on the island and made comfortable in 

 one of the company's houses, with one of his shipmates to attend him, 

 and is doing well. I sent the schooner to Unalaska in command of 

 Capt. Paul Porloff at an expense of $25, which sum the agftnt of the 

 Alaska Commercial Company paid him on my order, the captured crew 

 remaining on the schooner to Unalaska, where they are to be taken on 

 board the steamer St. Paul for San Francisco, at my request. 



The schooner Angel Dolly had on board 178 fur seal skins, 125 of 

 them cow seals. At Unalaska I turned over the schooner, cargo, and 

 papers to Capt. L. D. Sheppard, of the United States revenue cutter 

 Rush; also furnished him with depositions of Capt. A. P. Loud, seizing- 

 officer for the Government, and tlie crew of the seized schooner, together 

 with a full statement of the case by me, directed to the United States 

 district attorney at Sitka, which will obviate the necessity of our going 

 to Sitka. This makes the seventh capture so far tliis season, the cutter 

 Bush having taken six and sent them to Sitka for trial, their cargo of 

 seal skins stored here number 2,532, as follows: American schooner 

 Challenge, with 151 skins; British schooner Anna Beclc, with 336; Brit- 

 ish schooner W. P. Satcyer, with 479; British schooner Do/p/<M?, with 600; 

 British schooner Grace, with 769; American schooner Lottie L., with 

 197 ; a total of 2,532. 



The Department's attention is respectfully called to the operations of 

 the cutter Rush, Cai)t. L. D. Sheppard, sent to protect the seal islands 

 and seal life tliis season. He has been indefatigable in his efforts, and 

 will no doubt add at least six more to the list of his captures before he 

 leaves the waters, as there are at this time double that number of schoon- 

 ers around the islands. The British schooner Polphin had on board a 

 verylargelotof fineriflesandatonofflxedammunition. Her commander, 

 I. D. Warren, had five vessels sealing; four of them are among the cap 

 tured. He is one of the defiant Britishers who has no regard for the 

 laws of the United States Government. 



While the Rush was busy taking care of the marauders around St. 

 George, three schooners were killing seals near St. Paul, frequently in 

 sight but beyond the reach of the Treasury agent, as we have no 

 facilities for going out to sea, so far, to board vessels. What we should 

 have on St. Paul Island is a 20-ton steam yacht to draw not over 5 feet 

 of M^ater, provided with one small rifled gun. Such a steamer we 

 could run up in the lagoon at the village for good harbor, where she 

 would be perfectly safe against all kinds of weather. There is always 

 an engineer on the island competent to run a small steamer and natives 

 for crew always at hand, willing to serve the Treasury agent wlien 

 called on. In this way it would not cost the Government a dollar to 

 run the yacht. She could cruise all around the island, doing the work 

 of a cutter without any expense for crew. It is impossible for one 

 cutter to guard the two islands successfully — as, for example, the Rush 

 left this island the night of 15th instant and had not returned when we 

 left, on August 3 at 8 j). m. She had all she could do around St. George 

 and to the eastward. During her absence three schooners operating 

 at St. Paul must have secured large catches of seals. For the next 

 month I have no doubt the marauders will concentrate near the islands. 

 K the condition of the cutter Bear on her return from the Arctic will 



