24 REPORT OF BRITISH COMMISSIONERS. 



for"kiiifn ^ too ^^' "^'l^^''® ^'^'^ ^^ ^^o (loiibt that tliG iiuiiibei- fixed by law 

 Hgh/ '"^ ""and maintained for commercial killing on the breeding- 

 islands lias been much too great, and that tlie resulting 

 slaughter of more than 103,000 male seals in each year has 

 been more than the total volume of seal life could fairly 

 stand. The sparing of females in a degree prevented, for 

 the time being, the actual depletion of seals on the islands, 

 and this, with the fact that the killing of immature males 

 does not immediately produce its effect on the " rookeries," 

 caused the apparent decrease to be at first gradual. As, 

 however, this effect was of a cumulative character, it could 

 not very long escape observation, and it was observed by 

 the natives, as we personally ascertained from them, to be 

 distinct and serious at least as early as 1882 or 1883, while 

 Colonel JVIurray, the Government Agent, and Mr. Elliott, 

 the Special Treasury Agent, in their several reports to the 

 Treasury, trace the beginning of the notable diminution 

 back as far as 1879 or 1880. Other evidence of a circum- 

 stantial rather than a direct character, elsewhere detailed, 

 enables the earlier effects of the general decrease to be fol- 

 lowed still further back (§ 071 et seq.). 

 Not adaptable. 59. It is particularly necessary to note that the adoption 

 of a high fixed number to be killed each year, practically 

 prevented such a system of adaptable control, based 

 11 on the observed facts of each year, as would have 

 enabled the best results to have been obtained and 

 due provision to have been made in time to counteract the 

 effects of unfavourable seasons or of other extraneous con- 

 ditions affecting seal life. The system adopted was in fact 

 purely artificial, and one not suited to the natural require- 

 ments of the case. 



(C.) — Sealing at Sea. 



Pelagic sealing 60. From the circumstances above noted, the maintenance 

 teauife!" '''"''"''" of scal life lu the North Pacific was threatened and reduced 

 to a critical state in consequence of the methods adopted 

 on the breeding islands, where the seals were drawn upon 

 annually to, and even beyond, the utmost limits possible 

 apart from depletion, and where, in consequence of the 

 enlarged season of commercial killing and the allowance 

 of " food killiug" during the entire time in which any seals 

 resorted to the islands, these animals had i)i':>ctically no 

 undisturbed season of respite. At this time a new factor 

 also tending towards decrease appeared in the form of 

 •"pelagic sealing," a phrase applied specially to the hunt- 

 ing of the fur-seals on the open sea, schooners or other small 

 vessels being emi)loyed as a base of operations. 

 Its origin and 61. This particular method of sealing originated as a 

 eveopment. natural outgrowth from that practised from time imme- 

 morial by the natives of tlie coast of British Columbia, and 

 parts of South-eastern Alaska and the State of Washington. 

 In this industry these natives have from the first been 

 largely interested, though it has been taken up, fostered, 

 and directed by the Whites. It was thus in its mode of 

 origin a perfectly natural and legitimate development of 

 the native modes of hunting (§ 571 et seq.). 



