300 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



un> also (lie only ones Avhose outjjut 1ms contimicd iiiHrmiinislicd to 

 the present time. 



The general color of the South Shetland or Cape Horn lui--seal, 

 according to Mr. Henry Poland, is light gra}- with a silvery hue; the 

 neck and cheeks are whitish, and the sides and l)elly are of a rii-h 

 brown. The fur is thick and heavy, and of a reddish or deep pink 

 color. The habitat of this seal is the islands in the Antarctic Ocean, 

 and it is more numerous on South Shetland Island than elsewhere. 

 When in good condition this fur is the choicest on the market, its 

 quality being much superior to that of the Alaskan seal, the high 

 latitude and the rigor of the climate developing the fur into full per- 

 fection at the time when the seals seek those shores. During the 

 seventies the skins of the South Shetland fur-seals sold for nearly 

 twice the price of Alaskan skins, although, owing to the inferior (jualit}^ 

 of the leather, they are less durable. Since 1SS2 the receipts of Cape 

 Horn skins have been small and irregular, i-anging from (),()0() to less 

 than 100 a year. The high prices of the })elts ha\e residted in the 

 searching of every accessible beach and rock in the southern oceans 

 and the removal of all fur-seals that could be secured, their only pro- 

 tection l)eing the severe weather, which often makes it impossible to 

 efi'ect a landing on the rookeries. 



The total number of fur-seal skins marketed since their introduc- 

 tion in the early part of the eighteenth century aggregates prol)a')ly 

 13,000,000, of which 5,000,000 were secured from northern localities 

 and the remaining 8,000,000 from the rookeries of the southern seas, 

 the great bulk of the latter being marketed at Canton, China, a hun- 

 dred years ago. At the present market price the total Aalue of these 

 pelts would approximate $500,000,000, but owing to their cheapness 

 in the early years, when the greater part of them were obtained, the 

 actual returns have proljably not exceeded a tenth of that amount. 



In curing fur-seal skins preparatory to shipment it was formerly 

 customary to dry them while held stretched upon the ground by the 

 use of stakes and twine or by means of wooden pegs driven through 

 the edges. It was often impossible to dr}- the skins thoroughl}^ in 

 the damp climate of Alaska; and even when artiticial drying was 

 resorted to, it was frequentl}^ dithcult to prevent them from dete- 

 riorating while en route to market. The drying process also made it 

 difficult to unhair the pelt in dressing. This led, about 1855, to the 

 salting of the skins, which is now the general practice. However, a 

 fevv are. dried by the natives along the mainland and on the adjacent 

 islands of Alaska, a thousand or more being marketed each year, 



FUR-SEAL MARKETS. 



Previous to 1855 fur-seal skins were in little demand in Europe or 

 America. The fur was not fashionable and the skins were made into 

 gloves and riding rugs, caps for cabmen and street peddlers, and even 



