216 PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



February, and having made up their full complement of hands 

 clear out from that port on the 10th March. They are allowed to 

 take Seals as soon after that date as they can come up with them. 



The close time terminates on the 2nd April. The main take of 

 Seals is speedily over, but some of the vessels continue to shoot 

 old Seals, or go south to Iceland to look for Hooded Seals, till the 

 20th May, when they take their departure for the Whale-fishery, 

 for which purpose they proceed to Davis Straits, or to the ice be- 

 tween Greenland and Spitsbergen. The Newfoundland vessels, if 

 successful in getting a cargo early, land their produce at St. John's, 

 and make a second trip to the ice before also going north to the 

 Whale-fishery. 



From Dundee, last season, there were six powerful steamers at 

 the Newfoundland sealing, and 139,885 Seals were taken. This 

 was considered a successful season so far as the Dundee vessels 

 were concerned, but I believe the total catch was not more than 

 an average. The export of Seal-skins from Newfoundland and 

 Labrador for the year ending 31st July, 1881, was 447,903. 



In the Greenland fishing there were nine steamers from Dundee, 

 and three steamers and two sailing vessels from Peterhead. These 

 fourteen Scotch vessels took 24,084 Seals, but they formed only a 

 small part of the total fleet, of which the ships of other nations, 

 more particularly the Norwegians, form a part. 



The weather proved very unfavourable, and many fewer Seals 

 were captured than would otherwise have been the case. The ice 

 was driven out to sea by heavy northerly gales, and the young Seals 

 were washed from their resting-places, and otherwise so scattered 

 that it was impossible to find them. Captain Gray's Log indicates 

 a constant succession of gales from the N. and N.E., with fogs and 

 snow. He met with Seals first on the 5th April; on the 8th he 

 killed his first Seals; between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. on that day, 

 counting old and young, 1353 were secured by him; on the 9th, 

 1164; on the 10th, 439; and on the 11th, 97 were captured. 



With regard to the close time which came into operation in 1877, 

 Captain Gray assures me that it is working beneficially, although 

 slowly, in improving the fishing, but that it will require many 

 years to remedy the mischief produced by the unfair and cruel 

 manner in which the Seals have been killed off, more particularly 

 since the introduction of steam. 



The state of the ice during the past year has been most unusual, 



