THE RUSSIAN FUR-SEAL ISLANDS. 127 



Wise by experience, the sealing fleet kept pretty well outside the 30-mile zone, 

 though the following seizures of British vessels were made: 



(1) Miuuii', of Victoria, British Columbia, seized by the Yaliut, July 17, 21 miles 

 southeast of Copper Island. 



(2) Ainokt), of Victoria, British Columbia, seized by the Yakut, July 22, 16 miles 

 south of Copper Island. 



(.•5) ^f(lud 8., of Victoria, British Columbia, seized by the Yahiif, August 2!l, 22 

 miles southwest of Copper Island. 



(1) Arctic, of Shanghai, seized by the Zabinka within the 30-mile zone. 



Of these, only the Minnie was afterwards coudemned. 



The provisional agreement as given above was renewed in 1S91 and ISO.-i for 

 those years. Owing to the threatening i)olitical aspects, as a consefpience of tlie 

 Jai)anese-Chinese war, the linssian Government had only one ship patrolling the 

 30 mile limit in 1895. The British cruiser Caroline did patrol duty early iu the season, 

 and was relieved by the I'orpoise, Captain Francis R. Pelly, commanding. No seizures 

 were made in that year. 



As schooners flying the flag of the United States were also among the fleet 

 preying upon the Commander Islands herd, it was found necessary to establish a 

 modus virendi with the Cnited States similar to the provisional agreement with Great 

 Britain. An arrangenK'nt, differing only in a few verbal changes from the latter, was 

 drawn up by the Imperial ^Minister for Foreign Aftairs, Mr. Giers, and signed in Wash- 

 ington by the representatives of the respective governments on May 1, 1894. The 

 exact text of this arrangement, which " shall only be iu force until further oi'ders," 

 is found in Executive Document Xo. 07, Senate, Fifty-third Congress, thii'd session, 

 being the President's Message regarding the I'juforcement of Regulations respecting 

 Fur Seals, p. 82. 



The Twenty-seventh Annual liciiort of the Canadian Department of Fisheries 

 contains an account of the Canaduui pelagi(' sealing operations on the Asiatic side 

 during 1891, by Mr. R. N. Venning, from which we ([uote the following abstracts: 



The vessels this year operating iu the vicinity of the Russian Seal Islands are reported to have 

 kept well ontside the protective zone, principally working about 100 miles southeast of Copper Island. 

 As a conseiiuence, the present year's operations are marked by au almost total absence of interference 

 with the Canadian fleet by Russian authorities. 



Tlie only instance reported is that of a sealing boat of the schooner May Belle, of Victoria, B. C, 

 manned by Joseph Morrell, Charles K. Leclaire, and Jauies Costin, which lost the vessel iu a fog, and 

 after reuiaiuingout all night and failing to fiud the sclioouer on the following morning, the occupants, 

 fearing a storm which was threatening, made for the shove of Copper Island for shelter. They were 

 discovered and arrested before lauding. 



The boat and her equipment were retained at Copper Island and the three men were taken to 

 Tetropaulovski, on the mainland of Kamchatka, where, after a detention of 32 days, they were 

 handed over to Her Majesty's ship Dapliue, taken to Yokohama, Japan, anil delivered to Her Ma;iesty'8 

 consul ,at that port. 



They were imprisoned, but released some four liours later, and informed by the consul that the 

 charge against them was not sufticieut for their detention. They were accordingly sent by Her 

 Miijesty's consul to Victoria, B. C, by Canadian Pacific Railway steamship, where they arrived on 

 the 20th November, 1894. 



Claims for damages have been filed by the parties and by the owners of the sealing boat, and 

 representations have been made to Her Majesty's government on the subject. 



