fUR-SEAL INDUSTRY. 103 
William G. Gibbins, who classified the branded skins, has been con- 
nected with the fur trade since 1873. For eight years he was with 
C. W. Martin, of the Alaska Factory, in London, and was trained as 
an unhairer of fur-seal pelts under the instruction of George Rice, a 
notable expert in that work. In 1882 he went with Mr. Rice as 
manager of his skin-dressing plant known as the Hudson Bay Works, 
Stratford, London, where he remained until September, 1915. All 
fur-seal skins that came into the factory in direct shipment were 
graded by Mr. Gibbins and their quality reported upon. For many 
years he was called in as an expert to grade all the sealskins which 
were sold by Messrs. C. M. Lampson & Co., the well-known fur auc- 
tioneers of London, and the catalogues were marked according to his 
judgment. 
It will be noted from the table that the classification of 100 branded 
skins of 3-year-old seals was as follows: 
DEIR D GR t 26 tei 2 = «4 Sees oe tBu bn aioe ce onic eels wenn de 7 
imc SRTUDA = (6)2)27-... 23 eee ee ee ee a kh 42 
WARES DUPRS)..- 4 Jono. «tds ook es JPN eset vesvar seein! 42 
STE ES a ee Ce hey See 1 ie Se eed pean yg ores 8 
Dui chines And Smee Scanian este Sata ne een ee dates eek sno 1 
otal. case ee se ewer hoe a cidin DA oes dio, gid me's oes mre 100 
Also that 15 branded skins of 2-year-old seals graded as follows: 
pecrey small pupett L250 SSMS © EGS! Bee Oe SE AO 3 
Smal papaian o.}jAoc. cade Ot Myostinuaty 2... thus due 8 
Maddiine- pupae... f> f-4<75.'3- 3 -se salts? <2 p- cal remar eee. Sekt +4 
FOXES. . 
The herds of blue foxes which inhabit St. Paul and St. George 
Islands constitute a source of considerable revenue to the Government. 
The supply of suitable food available under natural conditions is only 
sufficient to support herds of comparatively small numbers. Were 
an abundant supply of seal meat available for food and suitable facili- 
ties for its preservation afforded, the size of the fox herds could be 
increased to numbers limited only by the facilities and help available 
for distributing food or by other factors not now foreseen. At present 
the refuse seal meat contributes some of the food supply to the foxes 
on both islands. In addition salt or dried fish or whale meat is used 
on St. George Island, where feeding operations to maintain the existing 
herd are more essential than on St. Paul Island. The topography of 
St. Paul Island, affording as it does longer stretches of beaches acces- 
sible to the foxes, enables the animals to secure greater quantities of 
food from the sea. 
The trapping of foxes for their pelts in the season of 1915-16 was 
begun in November on St. George Island and early in December on 
St. Paul Island. The work on St. George Island was discontinued 
