ORAL ARGUMENT OF HON EDWARD J. PHELPS. 99 



Mr. Phelps. — I will be ready in the morning to answer the qnestion 

 definitely, but I am not at tliis moment. It is not in my mind, and wbat 

 I have said is upon my general understanding of the subject and may 

 be somewhat inaccurate. My general understanding is that they are 

 not much on shore, and certainly do not breed on shore, but that they 

 may come on shore at certain times may be true, as my learned friend 

 says, and is true if Professor Allen says so, as he is an authority on the 

 subject; but in all this mass of evidence I recall no statement by any 

 witness about any hair seal being ashore in Behring Sea — certainly not 

 on the Commander or Pribilof Islands Avith the fur seals, and I do not 

 think there is a statement by anybody as to having seen one ashore 

 anywhere else. 



The propriety of those provisions is shown by the affidavits of a couple 

 of masters of sealing vessels which will be found at page 591 of the 2nd 

 United States A^jpendix. One of them says he has: 



Been twenty four years prosecuting the seal fisliery on the coast of Newfound- 

 land, Labrador, and Gulf of St. Lawrence, nine years of which I have corumanded 

 a steamer. 



I am opposed to second trips to the seal fishery, as I consider they are calculated 

 to destroy the, species, as all the seals killed on such trips are old and mature seals, 

 and at least 75 per cent of them are female seals. 



I am now speaking of harpseals; they are principally shot on the ice, hut when 

 the ice pachs tliey are killed with bats. When shot on open or floating ice a large 

 number of them escape into tiie water and die from bleeding. 



I should say that for every seal shot and captured three escape wounded to die in 

 the water. 



That is when they are shot on the ice where, of course, it is easier to 

 hit them than when shooting at the head of animal that is swimming in 

 the water. 



I have seen ten seals on one pan shot and wounded and all escaped. To kill and 

 capture the seal the bullet must lodge in the head ; if it strikes any part of the body, 

 the seal will manage to get to the edge of the pan and escape into the water. I 

 know from my own knowledge that the number of seals brought in on second trips 

 is yearly decreasing, and that tlie fishery is being depleted by the ])ro8ecution of 

 this trip. Apart from the number of old mature and female'seals destroyed, the 

 hunting necessary for their capture prevent the male and female coming together. 



Eichard Pike testifies to the same effect. 



1 cannot speak of the percentage of seals taken on a second trip, nor of the sex. 

 Nearly all the seals taken are bedlamors and old harps. The second trip generally 

 covers the month of April. Nearly all the seals taken on the second trip are shot oii 

 oi)en and floating ice. Very few are shot in the water, for if hit there is very little 

 chance of their capture as they sink immediately. They are seldom or never fired 

 at in the water for unless they are very close there is very little chance of their being 

 recovered. Fully one third of the seals shot on the ice are lost, for when wounded 

 they manage to crawl to the edge of the pan and into the water and when once in 

 the water tbey sink or die from their wouuds. 



Seals shot in the water in the month of March can be recovered, as they are fat 

 and in good condition, and float, but in the latter part of April when shot they sink 

 immediately. I am strongly against second trips, as in my opinion they are causing 

 a rapid decline in the industry, likely to lead to the extermination of the species 

 by the killing of old and mature seals and the destruction caused by the use of fire 

 arms. 



I refer to that to show what the point is of this statute enactment 

 against going out to the fishery before a certain period of the year and 

 against second trips. They are simply measures necessary for the 

 preservation of the seal. 



The Greenland Fisheries, to which Senator Morgan referred, will be 

 found stated in the United States Case at page 227. I have a reference 

 to the State Papers on that subject, but the book accidentally has been 



