Figure 23. — Vessel approaching sleeping seals. 



lower jaw to the tail, and another was made 

 around each flipper. The skin was then re- 

 moved, and an identifying number was at- 

 tached. Workers left only a small amount of 

 blubber or flesh on each skin and were careful 

 to avoid making cuts or flay marks. 



The seamen washed and cooled the skins 

 by towing them alongside the vessel (fig. 26). 

 Standard procedure has been to tie a line 

 through the eye and armholes and tow the 

 skins anterior end forward for a short period 

 of time. In 1967, some of the skins were 

 towed posterior end forward (a line was tied 

 through the eye hole as a safety precaution) 

 to determine if this method improved the 

 initial handling of raw skins aboard the vessels. 

 The Japanese biologist reasoned that the skins 

 would be washed and cooled better from the 

 furred side if towed so the water ran against 

 rather than with the lay of the fur. The results 

 of the experiment are unknown to us. 



When thoroughly washed and cooled in sea 

 water, the skins were placed in a saturated 

 solution of salt for 12 hours or longer (usually 

 until the following morning). The "waterlogged" 

 skins were removed from the brine, and 

 each was placed on a fleshing beam where 

 the water (brine solution) was pressed out 

 (fig. 27). The skins were then salted. 



Skins unloaded at the home port of Ozuchi 

 were shipped immediately to the processing 

 plant in Tokyo. All skins in the hold were 

 removed and placed on the dock. Agents from 

 the processing firm salted, folded, and pack- 

 aged the skins, five to a plastic bag that in 

 turn was put in a burlap bag (figs. 28 and 29). 



Table 35. --Total seals sighted, collected, killed and lost, and wounded and lost 



by Tenyu Maru, 23 April to 9 May 1967 



50 



