160 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
this vessel prior to March 15, and as early as February 15 50 seals 
were sighted off Willapa Bay. The seal patrol activities of the Onon- 
daga were continued until March 26, and were supplemented by 
frequent cruises of the patrol boat Atalanta in the Strait of Juan de 
Fuca and along the coast of Vancouver Island from March 14 to 81. 
On April 1 the cutter Redwing relieved the Onondaga and continued 
the patrol northward from Vancouver Island to Dixon Entrance and 
Clarence Strait. The Redwing was relieved on April 20 by the cutter 
Haida, which patrolled the waters from southeast Alaska to Kodiak 
until May 5. 
Vessels of the Coast Guard which participated in the seal patrol in 
the North Pacific west of Kodiak, and in Bering Sea, were the patrol 
boats Alert and Ariadne from April 20 to July 1 and July 10, respec- 
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tively; the cutter Haida from May 31 to June 29; the cutter Spencer _ 
from April 20 to July 31; the cutter Shoshone from June 15 to August 
15; the patrol boat Reliance from July 1 to September 10; the cutter 
Redwing from August 2 to September 10; the patrol boat Cyane from 
July 5 to September 20; and the cutter Hamilton from July 15 to 
November 1. The cutter Northland made its regular annual cruise 
to the Arctic Ocean, patrolling in Bering Sea and adjacent waters 
from May 20 to September 20. 
BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
The Bureau of Fisheries vessel Scoter was assigned to patrol the 
waters off the coast of Washington, principally in the vicinity of Neah 
Bay, during the period of sealing operations by the native Indians. 
The Scoter maintained a patrol in this area from March 16 to April 12. 
Morris Rafn and William B. Newcomb were detailed to Lapush, 
Wash., during the sealing season, as special agents of the Bureau to 
authenticate sealskins and to secure compliance with the treaty 
provisions which prohibit the use of firearms or motorboats in the 
taking of fur seals by the aborigines. 
SEALING PRIVILEGES ACCORDED ABORIGINES 
The North Pacific Sealing Convention of July 7, 1911, permits 
Indians and other aborigines dwelling on the coasts of North America 
to hunt for seals by primitive methods. In 1938 there were taken - 
and duly authenticated, by officials of the respective Governments, 
1,551 fur-seal skins, of which 184 were taken by Indians under the 
jurisdiction of the United States and 1,367 by Indians of Canada. 
The details are as follows: 
Washington.—A total of 92 sealskins were taken at Lapush and 
Neah Bay by the Indians of Washington State. Four of these skins 
were taken from male seals and 88 from females, during the months, 
of March, April, and May. The skins were authenticated by A. M. 
Rafn and W. B. Newcomb, special agents of the Bureau, and by Mr. 
Guy C. Coy, Collector of Customs at Neah Bay, acting as special 
agent of the Bureau of Fisheries. 
Alaska.—Ninety-two sealskins were taken by the natives of Sitka 
during April and May, and were authenticated by Bureau employees. 
Of these skins, 2 were from male and 90 from female seals. 
British Columbia.—Indians along the British Columbia coast took 
1,367 fur-seal skins in 1938, according to an official report. 
