178 SEAL LIFE ON THE PKIBILOF ISLANDS. 



order to determine how many female skins it contained. To perform 

 the examination I detailed John J. Phelan. This man has been in the 

 employ of rny father or of myself since the year 1808. I regard him 

 as one of the most competent, trustworthy men in our service. I have 

 read an affidavit verified by him on the 18th of June. 1 agree entirely 

 with what he says concerning his experience in the handling and dress- 

 ing of skins, and from what I know of his character and ability I 

 believe that everything stated by him in this affidavit is correct. (Geo. 

 H. Treadwell.) 



It is true that the Northwest Coast catches have of late years placed 

 upon the market a certain number of good skins which could be pur- 

 chased at prices far below those for which the skins of the Alaska 

 catch were sold. But 1 realize that this can not continue to be the 

 case, for it is a matter of common knowledge among furriers that 

 these Northwest Coast catches are composed mainly of the skins of 

 female animals, and 1 understand that the killing of the seals is rapidly 

 impairing the value of the herd. (Samuel Ullinann.) 



I have for many years personally examined numerous shipments of 

 Northwest Coast skins purchased at Victoria. J have had such expe- 

 rience in handling fur-seal. skins as enables me, readily in most cases, 

 but always upon careful examination, to distinguish a female skin from 

 a male skin, and I know it to be a fact that a very large proportion of 

 the skins in such shipments are those taken from female animals. It is 

 also true that a large number of skins in many of these shipments are 

 rendered almost valueless through the numerous bullet holes which they 

 contain. (Samuel Ullmann.) 



I have observed that by far the larger portion of skins purchased by 

 me were taken from female seals. Not less than eight out of every ten 

 were from cows with pup or in milk. (C. T. Wagner.) 



During the past two years I have handled large numbers of North- 

 west Coast skins (i. e., skins of animals taken in the Pacih'c Ocean or 

 in Bering Sea). I have assorted all of them, and in doing so have 

 specially noticed the fact that a very large proportion were skins of 

 female animals. To determine this fact in the case of dressed skins I 

 see whether there are any teat holes. I never call a skin a female skin 

 unless I can find two such holes on either side. These holes can be 

 easily distinguished from bullet or buckshot holes, of which there are 

 generally a great number in Northwest Coast skins. In the case of a 

 shot hole it is always evident that the surrounding fur has been abruptly 

 cut off, while around the edge of a teat hole the fur gradually shortens 

 as it reaches the edge and naturally ceases to grow at the edge. I have 

 just looked over an original case of 90 dressed and dyed Northwest 

 Coast fur-seal skins, which have been lately received from London, and 

 were still under seal placed on them in London. I found that of these 

 90 skins 9 only were those of male animals. (Win. Wiepert.) 



Deponent further says that the skins of the Northwest catch are 

 almost entirely the skins of females; that the skins of males and the 

 skins of females may be as readily distinguished from each other as 

 the skins of the different sexes of any other animals when seen before 

 being dyed and dressed, and that the reason why the skins of this 

 catch are almost exclusively females is that the male seal is much more 

 active and much more able to escape from the boats engaged in this 

 manner of hunting than the female seal, and that a large number of 

 the female seals included in the Northwest catch are of animals heavy 



