1896;] Ways of the Fur Seal 



guage by John W. F'oster in 1895 i^ ^ nox.^ of the 

 State Department. It was in connection with 

 criticisms of Foster's plain speaking on that matter 

 that the phrase, "shirt-sleeves diplomacy," had its 

 rise. Concerning this, Hamlin said to me: "If 

 you want to get John Bull's attention, you must 

 heave a brick through his front window." 



The case at issue was really a very simple one. 

 The Fur Seals of the North Pacific make their Breeding 

 "homes" and breed on islands in Bering Sea ^ — ^ the ^"""^^ 

 Pribilofs (St. Paul and St. George) belonging to the 

 United States, and the Komandorski or Commander 

 group (Bering and Medni or Copper) owned by 

 Russia. Beginning with the first official Russian 

 occupation, the breeding grounds ^ — "rookeries" — 

 had received all necessary protection; but continued 

 existence of the herds is dependent as well on se- 

 curity at sea while the animals are feeding or mi- 

 grating in the ocean beyond the legal three-mile 

 limit of territorial jurisdiction. Winter is spent by Roving 

 the entire herd in the open — the old males moving ^'^^'^^ 

 coastwise as far as the Gulf of Alaska, the mature 

 females ranging far ofTshore down to the latitude 

 of San Diego, while the young are scattered vari- 

 ously between. In June and early July all return 

 to the islands, where the "pups" are born and 

 where the young remain until October storms drive 

 them all away. Meanwhile the adults necessarily 

 leave at intervals to feed, going out for that purpose 

 from 100 to 200 miles. 



For many years, under both Russian and Ameri- 

 can control, land killing was confined to young 

 superfluous males. And as only about one adult 

 male or "beachmaster" in from thirty to fifty is 



C 547 3 



