186 REPORT OF BRITISH COMMISSIONERS. 



men thus referred to emiie from N"ew Zealand itself, but the only vessel 

 specifically alluded to in 1889 is the "Sarah A. Hunt," a seal-poacher 

 from America (p. 5V2). 



733. Again, in the Straits of Magellan, the British Viee-Consul at 

 Sandy Point reports in April 1889, that tlie TTnited States schooners 

 pay no attention to the interdiction on sealing enacted by the Chilean 

 Government. Indeed, the frequent presence of sealing- vessels, most of 

 them hailing from ports in the New England States of North America, 

 is a matter of much concern to the different Governments now endeav- 

 ouring to preserve the seals in these waters. 



734. There has been wholesale and most destructive raiding on Rob- 

 ben Island, and other islands in the Okotsk and Japanese Seas; and 

 there have been persistent and more or less successful raids made on 

 the rookeries both of the Commander and Pribyloft' groups. 



735. In recent times, in the North Pacihc Ocean, the greatest instauce 

 of the revival of this form of seal hunting occurred -during the inter- 

 val of the transference of the Pribyloft" Islands from Eussian to 



12G American control. Some vessels equipped for the purjiose at 

 once visited these celebrated islands and landed sealing parties. 

 Various Companies of United States sealers occupied the islands in 

 1808, chief among them bands of Connecticut sealers, all of whom 

 entered into armed combination to drive off the sealers under Pfliigel, 

 who had come uj) from the Saudwich Islands to raid. The general 

 result was that at least 75,0[)() skins were secured in 1867, 24-},()00 in 

 1808, and 87,000 in 1809, or a total of more than 400,000 skins in these 

 three years. 



730. It is necessary for our present purpose to review the details only 

 of raids made or attempted on the Pribyloff Ishinds since the United 

 States Government leased these islands to the Alaska Commercial 

 Com])any, and this Company took formal possession under established 

 Regulations in 1870. 



737. The existing records are irregular, often insufficient, and fre- 

 quently consist of mere allusions or indirect testimony. It is, there- 

 fore, probable that but a small proportion of the whole number of raids 

 have actually been recorded, but the notices, such as they are, amply 

 indicate what has been doing. In September 1870, the Secretary of the 

 Treasury gave written authority to the Company to use fire-arms in 

 protecting" the rookeries against marauders. 



738. Between 1871 and 1880 several actual raids were reported, one 

 of the earliest being one by the "Cygnet," of San Francisco, caught 

 on the 30th August, 1874, shooting seals close to Otter Island, and which 

 raided the rookeries at Zapadnie, St. George Island, on the 1st Septem- 

 ber, 1874, and again in 1875. In July 1875, the "San Diego" was 

 seized oft" St. Paul Island with 1,660 skins taken on Otter Island. On 

 the 21st June, 1876, the "Cygnet" and the " Ocean Spray" raided the 

 same rookery. 



739. In 1877, the "Industry" was reported as hovering around St. 

 Paul Island, and a raid was made on Otter Island. 



739.* In the same year, the revenue-cruizer " Corwin " was instructed 

 specially to look after the seal fisheries. In the Report of her Captain 

 for 1879 occur the following remarks: 



In 1877, our first year in these waters, there was a vessel (the schooner " Industry ") 

 about the islands late in September, which, without doubt, intended to tal<e seals. 

 She touched at St. George nuder the plea that she was short of water, but hearing 

 that the " Rush" was still about tlio islands, left very abruptly without waiting to 

 water ship. I would respectfully state that, in my opinion, it is only necessary that a 



