﻿MINOR 
  FUE-BEAEING 
  ANIMALS. 
  87 
  

  

  They 
  will 
  make 
  no 
  accusations 
  against 
  each 
  other, 
  but 
  will 
  do 
  all 
  in 
  

   their 
  power 
  to 
  make 
  trouble 
  for 
  the 
  white 
  trapper. 
  White 
  trappers 
  

   sometimes 
  bring 
  charges 
  against 
  other 
  trappers, 
  presumabty 
  with 
  the 
  

   desire 
  to 
  get 
  them 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  region. 
  It 
  would 
  appear, 
  also, 
  that 
  

   charges 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  b}- 
  the 
  Indians 
  and 
  wliite 
  men 
  with 
  the 
  

   expectation 
  of 
  securing 
  appointments 
  as 
  guides 
  to 
  take 
  a 
  warden 
  to 
  

   the 
  district 
  where 
  the 
  violation 
  is 
  supposed 
  to 
  have 
  occurred. 
  Last 
  

   summer 
  the 
  Bureau 
  received 
  a 
  detailed 
  account 
  of 
  an 
  alleged 
  flagrant 
  

   violation 
  of 
  the 
  law 
  in 
  respect 
  to 
  the 
  taking 
  of 
  sea 
  otter 
  in 
  the 
  Prince 
  

   WiUiam 
  Sound 
  region. 
  The 
  Bureau 
  made 
  a 
  special 
  effort 
  to 
  investi- 
  

   gate 
  the 
  report 
  and 
  one 
  interesting 
  fact 
  was 
  brought 
  to 
  light. 
  The 
  

   person 
  who 
  made 
  the 
  charge 
  stated 
  that 
  he 
  would 
  not 
  have 
  reported 
  

   the 
  case 
  if 
  he 
  had 
  not 
  hoped 
  thereby 
  to 
  be 
  appointed 
  a 
  warden. 
  On 
  

   August 
  30, 
  1914, 
  Warden 
  Walker 
  investigated 
  a 
  report 
  at 
  Hoonah 
  of 
  

   fishermen 
  having 
  seal 
  and 
  sea 
  otter 
  skins, 
  and 
  he 
  learned 
  that 
  the 
  

   report 
  started 
  in 
  a 
  joke. 
  The 
  Bureau 
  would 
  not 
  state 
  that 
  there 
  are 
  

   not 
  many 
  violations 
  of 
  the 
  law 
  and 
  regulations, 
  but 
  it 
  does 
  believe 
  

   that 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  such 
  violations 
  is 
  greatly 
  exaggerated. 
  

  

  In 
  January, 
  1914, 
  26 
  beaver 
  skins 
  were 
  confiscated 
  from 
  a 
  Nenana 
  

   trader. 
  The 
  trader, 
  several 
  months 
  later, 
  made 
  out 
  an 
  affidavit 
  

   to 
  the 
  effect 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  purchased 
  the 
  said 
  26 
  beaver 
  skins 
  .from 
  

   the 
  Northern 
  Commercial 
  Co. 
  in 
  1909, 
  through 
  a 
  captain 
  of 
  one 
  

   of 
  the 
  river 
  boats. 
  The 
  captain 
  stated 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  purchased 
  a 
  

   number 
  of 
  beaver 
  skins 
  for 
  the 
  said 
  trader 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  stated, 
  though, 
  

   of 
  course, 
  he 
  could 
  not 
  say 
  as 
  to 
  whether 
  or 
  not 
  they 
  were 
  the 
  same 
  

   skins 
  as 
  those 
  seized. 
  As 
  reliable 
  evidence 
  contrary 
  to 
  the 
  above 
  

   could 
  not 
  be 
  obtained, 
  the 
  skhis 
  were 
  finally 
  returned 
  to 
  the 
  Nenana 
  

   trader. 
  

  

  In 
  February, 
  1914, 
  two 
  persons 
  were 
  convicted 
  jointly 
  in 
  the 
  

   commissioner's 
  court 
  at 
  Haines 
  of 
  having 
  unlawfully 
  killed 
  four 
  

   foxes 
  by 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  poison. 
  

  

  NOTES 
  ON 
  FUR-BEARING 
  ANIMALS. 
  

  

  Beaver. 
  — 
  In 
  southeastern 
  Alaska 
  beavers 
  have 
  increased 
  rapidly 
  

   in 
  numbers. 
  Not 
  only 
  have 
  the 
  old 
  colonies 
  been 
  augmented 
  but 
  

   new 
  ones 
  have 
  been 
  established, 
  with 
  the 
  result 
  that 
  lakes 
  and 
  

   cieeks 
  formerly 
  unoccupied 
  are 
  now 
  inhabited 
  by 
  them. 
  They 
  are 
  

   becoming 
  quite 
  plentiful 
  in 
  certain 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  interior 
  of 
  Alaska, 
  

   especially 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  Yukon 
  region. 
  The 
  killing 
  of 
  the 
  beaver 
  

   throughout 
  Alaska 
  is 
  prohibited 
  until 
  November 
  1, 
  1918. 
  Tlie 
  indi- 
  

   cations 
  are 
  that 
  by 
  that 
  time 
  these 
  animals 
  wiU 
  have 
  reestablished 
  

   themselves 
  in 
  such 
  numbers 
  that 
  an 
  open 
  season 
  for 
  their 
  killing 
  

   may 
  be 
  desirable. 
  Owing 
  to 
  their 
  peculiar 
  habit 
  of 
  associating 
  them- 
  

   selves 
  in 
  colonies 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  completely 
  exterminated 
  readily, 
  the 
  

   problem 
  of 
  how 
  to 
  permit 
  killing 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  to 
  preserve 
  

   these 
  animals 
  from 
  practical 
  extinction, 
  is 
  a 
  difficult 
  one. 
  

   9497°— 
  15 
  35 
  

  

  