86 FISHERY AND FUE INDUSTBIES OP ALASKA IN 1912. 



familiar with the subject it has been contended that the skin when 

 green is so elastic and pliable that by the smallest pressure it can 

 be made to stretch inches; also that the tendency of the green skin 

 is to retreat or curl into itself, and merely to uncurl it requires pressure 

 enough to stretch the skin in any direction the pressure may be appHed. 

 To have actual experiments made in attempts to measure green 

 skins was the only exact method known of determining the question 

 raised, and was the object of the work about to be detailed. 



On July 9, 110 large 2-year-old seals were killed for this purpose 

 and to furnish food for the natives. The method employed was as 

 f oUows : 



The seals were first stunned by clubbing and laid in a row. One 

 of the serially numbered leather tags already mentioned was then 

 affixed to the hind flipper of each seal. This remained until the 

 skin was removed, when the tag was at once taken off the flipper 

 and tied to the skin in the flipper hole, from which place it was not 

 thereafter removed. This insured the identification of the skin with 

 the weights and measurements made before skinning. The length 

 of each animal from tip of nose to root of tail was then ascertained 

 by means of a steel tape laid along the middle of the back. The 

 girth was next ascertained by drawing the tape around the animal 

 just back of the fore flippers. The weight of the entire animal was 

 then ascertained, after which it was bled to death. 



When dead, the usual incisions were made preparatory to removing 

 the skin from the carcass, as follows: One incision along the belly 

 from the jaw to the anus; another, a circular incision, beginning at 

 the jaw completely aromid tiie head and as close to the eyes as possible; 

 another circular incision beginning at the anus around the posterior 

 end of the body, completely denuding that portion of the body of 

 fur and leaving the entire tail appended to the skin, and also cuts 

 around each fore flipper near the elbow, just beyond the fur. 



After the circular incision was made about the head, the length of 

 the "mask," as is termed the fur remaining on the animal after it 

 has been skinned, was ascertained. This was done by laying a steel 

 tape on the back of the head on the same line on which the length of 

 the animal was ascertained, and measuring the mask from the circular 

 incision to the tip of the nose. By these means were ascertamed the 

 length and width of the pelt while on the animal, and the length of 

 the area of the fur left on the animal after the skin was removed. 

 If no changes occurred in the size of the skin through the operation 

 of removing the pelt, or through salting, it would foUow that the 

 length of the skin should equal the total length of the animal from 

 tip of nose to root of tail, after deducting the length of tliat portion 

 of the skin left on the head by the skinners. Tlie width of the skin 

 should equal the girth of the animal. 



