116 NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCTLTV, 



scaling" business, as a whole, has l)een losing money for several 

 seasons. Renewed efforts were made bv the I'nited States Gov- 

 ernment to ])ul a stop ti) it. In the meantime .\meriean citizens, 

 a small number of whom were engaged in pelagic sealing, have 

 been prohibited from engaging in the pursuit of seals at sea, and 

 Congress j^assed laws pn>liihiting the iniporlation of seals taken 

 by pelagic sealing, into the I niied Slates. So long as pelagic, 

 or indiscriminate sealing in any form remains, the restoration of 

 the fur-seal fisheries will be impossible. The Uering Sea con- 

 trovers\- was preci])itated by the seizure b\ the I'nited States Gov- 

 ernment of Canadian sealing \essels in llering Sea. Later on, 

 the matter was plaeeil in the hands of the Tribunal of Arbitration 

 at Paris. This tribunal, having decided that the L'nited States 

 had no jurisdiction over liering Sea outside of territorial limits, 

 pelagic sealing continued in but slightlv modified form. The 

 seal herds are now so decimated that tlie surplus males a\ailab!e 

 for killing on tlu' I'ribilof Islands in i<j()4 mnnbereil ouK l^.jj^. 

 and on the Commander Islands, 8,315. 



Pelagic sealing at the present time is engaged in b\ \-essels 

 belonging to Pritish Cohmibia, a few ja]:)anese vessels partici- 

 pating."^' The sealing tleet has decreased from 122 vessels in 

 1892 to 22 vessels in 1904. Its yearly catch has declined from 

 61,838 seals in 1894 to 14,541 seals in 1904. Data in full res])ect- 

 ing the nmnber of seals taken in ])elagic sealing from its ince]i- 

 lion down to 1897, \vere published in the I'nited States l\ei)ort 

 of I'ur Seal Investigations for 18(^7 ()8. ( )fticial data, in part un- 

 ])ublished, showing the number of fur seals taken by the Canadian 

 ileet in .\merican and Asiatic waters from 1898 to i()04 is ])re- 

 scntcd herewith through the courtesv of the Department of C'om- 

 merce and 1 .ab( >r : 



1898 2S,099 1899 35vU4 



1900 .^5-523 1901 22,416 



1902 '6,143 ^603 14.701 



1904 '4-541 



■ It is now proj)<is(,-d that the ]ielagic sealing induslr_\ of Ih'ilish 

 Columbia be abolished u])on the jiayment of $500,000 by the 

 United States (iovernment, and lugoii.iijdus are pending. The 

 subject has latelv become com])licated on account of ]ielagic seal- 

 ing l)v Japanese vessels in lleriug Sea. where they are restrained 

 l)y territorial limits only, japan not being a party to the temporary 

 ri'strictions agreed to bv ( ireat I'.rilain and the I'nited .*^tates. 



* I)iit;i f<.r JapMiifSf vtssils not ;i\ail;il)li. 



