10 



FUR-SEAL HERD OF ALASKA. 



How was that manipulation by Lembkey, in turn, done, so as to 

 get those "reserved" seals. I submit the following expose of the 

 deceit: 



THE LESSEES SUBORN LEMBKEY AND THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES, AND 

 THEN SECURE ALL OF THE "RESERVED" OR " SPARED " SEALS, IN 

 VIOLATION OF THE SWORN STATEMENTS OF THE LATTER. 



THE DEADLY PARALLEL. 



l^embkey declares that a ex- 

 pound limit to food skins is or- 

 dered by the bureau, and that 

 saves the ''reserved" seals from 

 subsequent killing by the lessees. 



Mr. Elliott. Now, Mr. Chairman, in 

 the matter of the nullification of the 

 Hitchcock rules, with this evidence duly 

 considered by your committee of the 

 illegal killing of those yearlings seals in 

 1910 (and that evidence of this guilt ap- 

 plies to every season's work on the Pribi- 

 lof Islands ever since 1890 down to May 

 1, 1910), I desire to present the following 

 testimony, which declares that ever since 

 May 1, 1904, when the "Hitchcock rules " 

 were first ordered by the Department of 

 Commerce and Labor, those rules have 

 been systematically and flagrantly vio- 

 lated by the agents of this department 

 who were specially sworn to obey and 

 enforce them. 



On February 4, 1911, Chief Special 

 Agent Lembkey was introduced by 

 Secretary Charles Nagel to the United 

 States Senate Committee on Conserva- 

 tion of National Resources, and during 

 his examination by that committee he 

 made the following statement, to wit, on 

 page 14 (hearings on Senate bill 9959, 

 February 4, 1911, Committee on Con- 

 servation of National Resources) : 



Dr. HoRNADAY. How many "short 2- 

 year-olds" were killed last year? 



Mr. Lembkey. I do not understand 

 your term. No seals under 2 years old, 

 to my knowledge, were killed. 



Dr. Hornaday. "What would be the 

 age of the smallest yearlings taken? 



Mr. Lembkey. Two-year-olds rarely, if 

 any. I may state here. Dr. Hornaday, 

 that a great difference of opinion exists 

 between Mr. Elliott and the remaining 

 people who understand this situation. 

 There is a great gulf between their 

 opinions, and it can never be reconciled 

 on the question of the weights of skins of 

 2-year-olds. 



Prof. Elliott. I will present my in- 

 formation in a moment. 



Dr. Hornaday. The minimum weight 

 is what? 



Mr. Lembkey. Five pounds. During 

 food drives made by the natives, when 



But the officia] instructions of 

 the bureau declare that that 6^- 

 pound limit has been raised to 

 82 pounds, and that Lembkey 

 has killed all seals having skins 

 under tliat limit. 



[Instructions issued Mar. 9, 1906.] 



Sec. 8. Sizes of killable seals. — No seals 

 shall be killed having skin weighing less 

 than 5 pounds nor more than 8| pounds. 

 Skins weighing mroe than 8^ pounds shall 

 not be shipped from the islands, but shall 

 be held there subject to such instructions 

 as may be furnished you hereafter by the 

 department. Skins weighing less than 

 5 pounds shall not be shipped from the 

 islands, unless, in your judgment, the 

 number thereof is so small as to justify 

 the belief that they have been taken only 

 through unavoidable accident, mistake, 

 or error in judgment. 



Sec. 10. Seals for food. — The number of 

 seals to be killed by the natives for food 

 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1906, 

 shall not exceed 1,700 on the island of 

 St. Paul and 500 on the island of St. 

 George, subject to the same limitations 

 and restrictions as apply to the killing 

 of seals by the company for the quota. 

 Care should be taken that no branded 

 seals be killed in the drives for food. 



[Instructions issued Apr. 15, 1907.] 



Identical with instructions of 1906. 



[Instructions issued Apr. 1, 1908.] 



Identical with instructions of 1907. 



[Instructions issued Mar. 27, 1909.] 



Sec. 10. Seals for food. — Identical with 

 instructions for 1906, 1907, and 1908, ex- 

 cept in addition is added "The maximum 

 weight for food skins shall not exceed 7 

 pounds." 



[Instructions issued May 9, 1910.] 



Sec. 11. Sealsfor food.— Dviving for na- 

 tives' food should not begin before Octo- 

 ber 20, and care should be exercised at 

 that date that the skins of seals killed be 

 no "stagey "to a degree that would im- 

 pair the commercial value of the skin. 



