RUSSIAN MANAGEMENT. 131 



pation, however^, the taking of gray pups was 

 practically stopped, except for food and seal oil, 

 and tlie bachelor seals supplied nearly all the 

 skins taken on the islands/ Under the general 

 protective system adoj)ted by Russia for seal life 

 and the restrictions added from time to time, the 

 seal herd continued to increase^ until the Mana- 

 gers of the Russian American Company consid- 

 ered it possible and expedient to take seventy- 

 thousand skins from St. Paul Island without 

 danger of depleting the seal population.^ The 

 Aleuts, who had been brought to the islands 

 when the company first came into possession of 

 the rookeries, had through generations of exper- 

 ience become expert in the handling and taking 

 of seals and discriminating between the killable 

 and nonkillable classes ; so that the annual 

 quota of skins was procured with the least possi- 

 ble waste of life and disturbance of the breedins: 

 seals. 



1 Letter from Board of Administration of Russian American 

 Company to Chief Manager Voyevodsky, dated April 24 1854, 

 Vol. I, p. 82. 



• 2 Letter from tlie Chifef Manager to the Board of Administra- 

 tion of the Russian American Company, dated January 13, 18.59; 

 Vol. I, p. 86 ; also same to same, dated October 7, 1857, Vol. I, p. 84. 



3 Letter from the Chief Manager of the Russian American Colo- 

 nies to Mr. Milovidof, Manager of St. Paul Island, dated May I 

 1864, Vol.1, p. 89. 



