204 



CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



56 No. 19. 



'* Minnie." — Seized by United States steamship "Richard Rush," July 5, JSS9. 



For— 



Aranunt of 



claim as 



put forward 



bv owner. 



420 skins spizod 



Balance of citcli 



Guns, spears, salt seized 



Legal and other expenses 



Claim of owner, witb interest at 7 per cent, to 

 date of payment. 



, 360. 00 



, 752. 00 



98.00 



250. 00 



16, 460. 00 



Evidenco in support of claim. 



Affidavit of Victor Jacobson. 

 Do. 

 Do. 

 Do. 



DECLARATION OF VICTOR JACOESON. 



City of Victoria, Province of British Columbia, Dominion of Canada. 

 I, Victor Jacobson, of tlie city of Victoria, in the Province of British 

 Colainbia, Dominion of Canada, master mariner, do solemnly and sin- 

 cerely declare as follows: 



1. That I am the owner and master of the British vessel " Minnie," 

 50 tons burden, registered at the port of Victoria aforesaid. 



2. That in the first part of the month of May last 1 cleared the said 

 "Minnie" at the port of Victoria for a sealing- and limiting voyage in 

 the North Pacific Ocean and Behring Sea, and sailed immediately 

 afterwards. 



3. I had a crew of five white men and sixteen Indians, with two boats 

 for white hunters, eight canoes for Indian hunters, and completely 

 provisioned and equipped for a full season's hunting and sealing in 

 northern waters. 



4. On the 2<th day of June last I enter(Hl the Behring Sea, through 

 Ounimak Pass, having then on board ab(mt 150 seal-skins caught on 

 the way u]) from V^ictoiiu. 



5. I immediately engaged in hunting and sealing, and continued to 

 do so until the 15th July last, at which date I had on board 420 seal- 

 skins in all. 



0. On that day, the 15th July last, about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, 

 I sighted a steamer bearing down upon us, which ])roved to be the 

 United States revenue sieamer "Richard liiish." When within hail- 

 ing distance, an oflicer of the said " Ifush" called out to me to heave-to, 

 and I did so, a boat was sent oft from the " Bush " with two oflicers and 

 ten or twelve men. The officer and five or six men came on board the 

 "Minnie," Tlie otificer in command asked me for my papers, which I 

 handed to him. He then asked me when I entered the sea, and how 

 many skins I had. I told him, and he went back to the "Rush." In a 

 short time he returned and told me he would take all the skins, seize 

 my vessel, and send her to Sitka in charge of a man from the "Rush." 

 He tlien ordered his men to open the hatches and take all the seal skins, 

 420 in nninber, on board the " Rush," which was done. He also took 

 two guns and all tlie Indian s])ears. He then went back to the " Rush." 

 but soon returned to my vessel with a man, and said to me that this 

 man would take charge of the vessel, except navigating her, and take 

 her to Sitka. 



7. At the time of the seizure the " Minnie" was about 65 miles north- 

 west by west from Ounimak Pass, and about the same distance from 

 Ounimak Island, the nearest land. 



8. An hour or so after the " Rush" went away the man left in charge 

 showed me his written instructions from Captain Shepard, of the 



