﻿CXVIII 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  landed 
  at 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  Islands 
  on 
  Jnly 
  8 
  and 
  spent 
  the 
  ten 
  days 
  follow- 
  

   ing 
  in 
  observations 
  on 
  the 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  rookeries. 
  On 
  Jnly 
  18 
  the 
  

   Albatross 
  proceeded 
  westward 
  with 
  Dr. 
  Stejneger 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  

   making 
  similar 
  investigations 
  respecting 
  the 
  seal 
  herds 
  on 
  the 
  Com- 
  

   mander 
  and 
  Kuril 
  islands; 
  the 
  rookeries 
  of 
  the 
  Commander 
  Islands 
  

   being 
  inspected 
  from 
  July 
  30 
  to 
  August 
  9, 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Kuril 
  Islands 
  

   from 
  August 
  22 
  to 
  August 
  26, 
  and 
  the 
  herd 
  on 
  Eobben 
  Island 
  from 
  

   August 
  28 
  to 
  September 
  2. 
  The 
  Albatross 
  tlien 
  proceeded 
  to 
  Hakodate, 
  

   Japan, 
  to 
  refit 
  and 
  to 
  enable 
  Dr. 
  Stejneger 
  to 
  make 
  further 
  inquiries 
  

   regarding 
  the 
  seals 
  of 
  the 
  Asiatic 
  herd. 
  The 
  vessel 
  then 
  sailed 
  for 
  

   San 
  Francisco, 
  touching 
  at 
  the 
  Hawaiian 
  Islands. 
  

  

  The 
  commissioners 
  remaining 
  on 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  Islands 
  were 
  engaged 
  

   in 
  studying 
  the 
  conditions 
  of 
  seal 
  life, 
  in 
  mapping 
  and 
  photographing 
  

   the 
  rookeries, 
  and 
  in 
  making 
  inquiries 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  methods 
  of 
  the 
  sealing 
  

   fleet 
  in 
  the 
  adjacent 
  waters. 
  The 
  last-named 
  work 
  was 
  assigned 
  to 
  

   Messrs. 
  Townsend 
  and 
  Lucas, 
  who 
  cruised 
  among 
  the 
  pelagic 
  sealing 
  

   vessels 
  on 
  the 
  U. 
  S. 
  revenue 
  cutter 
  Rush, 
  examining 
  their 
  catch, 
  noting 
  

   the 
  sexes 
  of 
  the 
  seals 
  killed, 
  and 
  making 
  dissections 
  intended 
  to 
  throw 
  

   light 
  on 
  the 
  feeding 
  and 
  breeding 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  seals. 
  Other 
  investi- 
  

   gations 
  relating 
  to 
  pelagic 
  sealing 
  were 
  made 
  later 
  in 
  the 
  season 
  by 
  

   Messrs. 
  Lucas, 
  Macoun, 
  and 
  Barrett-Hamilton. 
  On 
  August 
  16 
  Dr. 
  

   Jordan 
  and 
  Professor 
  Thompson 
  sailed 
  in 
  the 
  British 
  vessel 
  SdtelUte 
  

   to 
  make 
  a 
  further 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  rookeries 
  on 
  the 
  Commander 
  

   Islands, 
  then 
  returned 
  to 
  the 
  Pribilofs 
  September 
  1, 
  bringing 
  with 
  them 
  

   Mr. 
  Barrett-Hamilton. 
  Mr. 
  Townsend 
  returned 
  to 
  San 
  Francisco 
  on 
  

   August 
  23 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  collecting 
  statistics 
  relative 
  to 
  pelagic 
  

   sealing. 
  

  

  Messrs. 
  Jordan, 
  Thompson, 
  and 
  Lucas 
  started 
  home 
  from 
  the 
  Pribi- 
  

   lofs 
  on 
  September 
  8, 
  the 
  other 
  commissioners 
  remaining 
  on 
  the 
  islands 
  

   until 
  October 
  22, 
  with 
  the 
  object 
  of 
  ascertaining 
  the 
  efiect 
  of 
  pelagic 
  

   sealing 
  on 
  the 
  young 
  seals 
  born 
  during 
  the 
  summer. 
  

  

  The 
  result 
  of 
  the 
  season's 
  investigations 
  of 
  the 
  fur-seal 
  fisheries 
  have 
  

   been 
  published 
  in 
  a 
  preliminary 
  report.* 
  A 
  further 
  decrease 
  in 
  the 
  

   number 
  of 
  breeding 
  seals 
  on 
  the 
  rookeries 
  of 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  and 
  Comman- 
  

   der 
  islands 
  was 
  disclosed, 
  additional 
  evidence 
  on 
  the 
  destructiveness 
  

   of 
  pelagic 
  sealing 
  was 
  procured, 
  and 
  the 
  resulting 
  starvation 
  of 
  young 
  

   seals 
  was 
  observed 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  season 
  by 
  representatives 
  of 
  both 
  

   governments. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  time 
  that 
  the 
  Albatross 
  remained 
  at 
  the 
  Pribilofs 
  Captain 
  

   Moser 
  was 
  engaged 
  in 
  making 
  a 
  survey 
  of 
  the 
  different 
  rookeries, 
  with 
  

   a 
  view 
  to 
  test 
  the 
  correctness 
  of 
  the 
  mai^s 
  that 
  had 
  been 
  prepared 
  by 
  

   earlier 
  investigators. 
  During 
  the 
  cruise 
  from 
  the 
  Commander 
  Islands 
  

   to 
  Japan 
  the 
  Albatross 
  took 
  many 
  soundings 
  in 
  the 
  little-known 
  waters 
  

   about 
  the 
  Kuril 
  Islands 
  and 
  in 
  Okhotsk 
  Sea 
  and 
  secured 
  at 
  some 
  of 
  

   the 
  more 
  remote 
  localities 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  hitherto 
  unknown 
  fishes. 
  

  

  * 
  Obserrations 
  on 
  the 
  fur-seals 
  of 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  Islands, 
  Treasury 
  Document 
  1913. 
  

  

  