294 SEAL LIFE ON THE PRIHILOF ISLANDS. 



farther north. * * * I am acquainted with the hunters and masters 

 who sail from this port, and board all incoming and outgoing vessels of 

 that class. These men all acknowledge that nearly all the seals taken 

 off the Pacific Coast are females, and that they are nearly all with 

 young. (E. M. Greenleaf.) 



We began sealing off the northern coast of California and followed 

 the sealing herd northward, capturing about 700 seals in the North 

 Pacific Ocean, two-thirds of which were females with pup; the balance 

 were young seals, both male and female. We captured between 900 

 and 1,000 on the coast, most all of which were females with pups. 

 (Arthur Griffin.) 



The catch was mostly females. Those we got in the North Pacific 

 were females in pup, and those taken in Bering Sea were cows giving 

 milk. (Joseph Grymes.) 



Of the skins taken in this region fully nine-tenths are pregnant and 

 milking females, but I never saw a young pup in the water. Large 

 bulls were never taken, their skins being practically valueless. (A. J. 

 Guild.) 



Q. What percentage of the cows are taken with pups? A. All the 

 large ones have all the grown ones have. Very seldom you find a 

 barren one. (Charles H. Hagmau.) 



A large majority of seals taken are females with young. Only two 

 old bulls were taken by me last year out of the 100 seals taken. But 

 very few yearlings are taken. Paid no attention to sex. A few male 

 seals are taken between 2 and 4 years old, I think. (Martin Haunon.) 



Q. What percentage of the cows taken are with pups? A. You can 

 safely say about four-fifths of them. You get about 800 out of 1,000 

 seals. (H. Harmsen.) 



I am told the white hunter kills mostly cow seals with pup. (Sam 

 Hayikahtla.) 



I have often conversed with masters, seamen, and hunters engaged 

 in hunting the fur seals, and their statements to me have always been 

 that the capture of a male seal was a rarity; that nearly all of their 

 catch were cow seals heavy with young, or those who had given birth 

 to their young on the islands and gone out to the fishing bank to feed, 

 and that they lose a large proportion of those killed and wounded. 

 (J. M. Hays.) 



Q. What percentage of the cows you have taken were with pup? 

 A. At least 60 per cent were with pup. (William Henson.) 



Of the seals secured in a season fully 70 per cent are females, and of 

 these more than 60 per cent are pregnant and milking cows. The males 

 taken are about equally divided in numbers between yearlings and 

 bachelors from the ages of 2 to 5 years ; bulls are seldom shot. (Nor- 

 man Hodgson.) 



Q. What percentage of the cows you have taken were with pup? 

 A. A bout the same amount (about 95 per cent) were with pup. (And. J. 

 Hoffman.) 



Most all seals taken are females with young. * * * A few male 

 seal are taken. I would say they are generally 3 or 4 years old. A few 

 yearlings are killed, mostly females. About five bull seal are killed out 

 of every hundred taken. (E. Hofstad.) 



