ALASKA FISHERY AND FUR-SEAL INDUSTRIES, 1921. 55 



abdomen and to cut around the head and flipper holes. Each carcass 

 was pinned to the ground by an iron bar and the skin pulled off. 

 All skins taken by this stripping method have a layer of blubber 

 and meat remaining on them which must be removed before salting. 

 The elimination of the knife in skinning is very important in that it 

 lessens the chances of cutting or flaying the skins by the workmen and 

 results in a better product. 



A natural corollary of this improved method is that of washing the 

 skins and blubbering them at the islands. Approximately 11,000 

 skins were treated in this manner at St. Paul village in the season of 

 1921. This work was carried on by a party of eight special sealing 

 assistants, headed by W. P. Zschorna, from the Fouke Fur Co., St. 

 Louis, Mo. Their efforts were devoted, primarily, to the blubbering, 

 washing, and salting of the skins taken at St. Paul village. The skins 

 thus handled are undoubtedly of superior quality, as evidenced by 

 results in dressing, dyeing, and macliining at the plant at St. Louis. 

 This naturally means increased revenue when the skins are marketed. 

 It is the pm'pose to expand the use of the improved methods at the 

 islands. 



NATIVES. 



HEALTH CONDITIONS. 



In general, the health of the natives of the islands during the cal- 

 endar year was good. No serious epidemic of any kind occmTed. 

 Dm'ing the year there were eight births on St. George Island and no 

 deaths and seven bu'ths on St. Paul Island and five deaths. Owing 

 to the inability of Dr. Bowlby to land at St. Paul Island imtil March 

 1 1 , the island was w^ithout a physician from the time of the departure 

 of Dr. Richstein and Dr. Huyler in ,the previous November. Very 

 fortunately there were no deaths on the island during this period. 

 A dentist was sent to the islands in August and has remained over 

 the winter, carrying on the work so well started in the previous 

 summer. 



SCHOOLS. 



St. Paul Island reported an attendance of 12 boys and 13 girls in 

 the senior school and 11 girls and 15 boys in the junior school at the 

 term beginning November 15, 1920. School sessions were held on 

 105 days. General textbooks were used, with special emphasis on 

 the speaking and writing of English, which is the urgent need of the 

 Aleut children. Suitable forms of athletics were encouraged and 

 directed by the teachers, and the teaching of hygiene was given 

 attention. 



St. George Island reported an attendance of 15 boys and 22 girls 

 in the senior school and 4 girls and 3 boys in the junior school at the 

 term beginning in the fall of 1920. The schools were closed during 

 November on account of a shortage of coal. Only one regular full- 

 time teacher is employed on St. George Island. The so-called junior 

 school consists of a few very smaU children who are given some 

 preparatory training by a part-time teacher to help them become 

 accustomed to school routine. One peculiarity distinguishing the 

 Aleut child from the average white child is the greater individual 

 attention requu*ed to enable them to grasp the meaning of things 

 taught. A second full-time teacher is greatly needed on St. George 



