590 INVESTMENTS. 



CANADIAN INVESTMENT QUESTIONABLE. 



Page 281 of The Case. 



But tL ere is really not one dollar actually invested in the Bering Sea 

 sealing, and for these reasons: 



(1) All the schooners are engaged in other busi- 

 T. Williams, p. 500. ness, such as hunting and fishing down the west 

 coast and in the North Pacific. 



(2) If the sealing business was stopped entirely the schooners would 

 not depreciate a dollar in value. 



(3) The sealing business requires no special plant, weapons, or uten- 

 sils. The schooners are common schooners, the boats common boats, 

 and the guns common guns which will bring their value at auy time 

 for any other purpose. 



(4) Less than one-third of a sealing schooner's cruise is in the Bering. 



PELAGIC SEALING A SPECULATION. 



Page 282 of The Case. 



There is very little in the sealing business now, the cost of fitting out 

 a vessel being from $5,000 to $0,000, and you have 

 Wm. Bendt, p. 405. to take the risk of having your vessel confiscated. 

 I sent my vessel this year over to the coast of Japan. 

 There wore some seventy-odd schooners fitted out last year from Vic- 

 toria- and they all got good catches, while from here there were only 

 from ten to fifteen schooners fitted out, and they did not do as well. 



If a vessel hunts seals from January to May along the coast and pays 

 expenses it does well at the present time, and very 

 miliamBrennan,p. 360. few do it. Nearly all would lose money if the 

 hunting was confined to the Pacific Ocean, but 

 they depend on the Bering Sea- catch, where the seals are more plenti- 

 ful and occupy a more limited space as a feeding ground. 



The increased value of skins in the last few years has stimulated 

 inexperienced men to go into the business, and 



Geo. Fogel, i>. 421. they slaughter everything in sight without regard 

 to sex. 



And it is a common remark among seamen who ship on sealing ves- 

 sels that they do not care about going, for there 



Jas. Laflin, p. 452. is nothing in it, and only those will ship that are 



hard up and can get nothing else to do. 



The seals taken by schooners do not bring in the London market more 



than one-half realized by the lessees of the Pribi- 



Morria l\r<>*s, p. 312. lof Islands. The reason for this is the company's 



are all young balls and are killed by being clubbed 



on the head, while those killed by the schooners are of all kinds and 



sizes and are perforated with shot; consequently are not perfect skins. 



I held the position of chief bookkeeper and cashier for H. Liebes & 

 Co. during said period of time [from 1883 to 1892, 

 S. W. Saalburg,p. 521. inclusive] and know of my own personal knowl- 

 edge that the number of skins set forth below were 

 duly purchased by said firm at the average prices stated, and that 

 payment therefor is regularly entered on the firm's cash books of the 

 respective years. 



