ORAL ARGUMENT OF HON. EDWARD J. RHELPS. 247 



That is one. 



The other course is to tread down all merely personal and trade interest in pnr- 

 snit of an arrangement tliat will work and be fair all ronnd; and to sink all the 

 stupidities of national vanity and political self-seeking along with them. 



Sir Charles Russell. — Tliat refers to a sciieme for making the 

 Pribilof Islands an international concern. 



Mr. Phelps. — No. 



Sir Charles Russell. — I assnre you, yes. 



Mr. Phelps. — Now I cannot read all these letters, but in every one 

 of them that I shall notice I hope the context will be read, and it will 

 be of no avail for me to select ])assages. 



Dr. Sclater, Secretary of the Zoological Society of London, has given 

 an affidavit in whicli he says: 



1. Unless proper measures are taken to restrict the indiscriminate capture of the 

 fur-seal in the North Pacific he is of opinion that the extermination of this species 

 will take place in a few years as it has already done in the case of other species of 

 the same group in other parts of the world. 



2. It seems to him that the proper way of proceeding would be to stop the killing 

 of females and young of the fur-seal altogether, or as far ds possible, and to restrict 

 the killing of the males to a certain number in each year. 



3. The only way he can imagine by which these rules could be carried out is by 

 killing the seals only in the islands at the breeding time (at which time it appears 

 that the young moles keep apart from the females and old males), and by prevent- 

 ing altogether as far as possible, the destruction of the fur-seals at all other times 

 and in other places. 



I commend to the attention of the Tribunal an article which tins 

 gentleman, of his own motion, jHiblished in "The Nineteenth Century" 

 magazine, of London, since this argument commenced. It is in the 

 June number, entitled "A Naturalist's View of the Fur- Seal Question," 

 in which he says he has read this evidence, and he comes out with his 

 views. It is not in the Case, and I have not time to read it, but I quite 

 commend that to the attention of the Tribunal, as I did venture, on a 

 question of law, to commend an article by Mr. Tracy, in "The North 

 American Review," who is a very eminent lawyer in the United States. 

 Mr. Merriam addressed a circular letter of enquiry to various distin- 

 guished naturalists in ditferent parts of the world, in which he gave 

 them, as a foundation, certain statements in regard to the nature and 

 habits of the fur-seal, and the conditions of pelagic sealing. 



These occupy several pages, and in order fairly to understand the 

 answer of these naturalists it would be but fair to be tirst acquainted 

 with the facts that were presented in the letter of enquiry, because if 

 those facts have misled these gentlemen, then their opinion would be 

 good for nothing. I nmst not stop to read that, but I submit, with great 

 confidence, it will be found to be a correct statement of facts. On 

 page 419, there is a letter in French, and a translation of Mr. Milne 

 Edwards, of Paris. He is the director of the museum of natural his- 

 tory. This is but an extract and he refers to the extermination that 

 has taken place everywhere, and he goes on and says, 



It will soon be thus with the callorhimis ursinus in the North Pacific Ocean, and it 

 is time to ensure to these animals a security which may allow them regular repro- 

 duction. I have followed with much attention the investigations which haA'e been 

 made by the Government of the United States on this subject. The reports of the 

 Commissioners sent to the Pribilof Islands have made known to naturalists a A'^ery 

 large number of facts of great scientilic interest, and have demonstrated that a regu- 

 lated system of killing may be safely applied in the case of these herds of seals Avhen 

 there is a superfluity of males. What might be called a tax on celibacy was applied 

 in this way in the most satisfactory manner, and the indefinite preservation of the 

 species would have been assured if the emigrants on their way back to their breeding 

 places had not been attacked and pursued in every way. 



