THE FUR-SEALS AND THE BERING SEA AWARD 61 



estimated a prospective catch of 3500 to 5000 skins at a value 

 from $3.50 to 112.50 each. On June 14, 1898, a joint reso- 

 lution of Congress appropriated the sum of $473,151.26 to 

 pay the award, and two days later, the Assistant Secretary 

 of State, Judge Day, delivered a check upon the Treasury 

 to Sir Julian Pauncefote. Thus closed in amity the question 

 of the Bering Sea claims. 



Deep regret was felt that the Joint High Commission had 

 been unable to frame a new set of regulations. Under the 

 five years' regulations of the Paris award, the seals were 

 to a certain extent protected, although that protection was 

 admittedly inadequate to preserve the herd; but since the 

 termination of those laws and the failure of the Canadian 

 commission to create new ones, the seals have been left 

 wholly and absolutely without protection while in the sea ; 

 the same distressing conditions which existed in Bering 

 Sea before 1894 prevail once more. During * the season 

 of 1899 and the season of 1900 pelagic sealing was and is 

 to-day free to all without let or hindrance. 



If the seals were in danger of extermination, even under 

 the protecting laws of the Paris award, as is generally 

 believed to have been the case, that danger must now be 

 vastly increased since all restrictions have been removed. 

 Now, still further to aggravate the situation, while Canadian 

 vessels are accorded perfect freedom to kill seals in Bering 

 Sea waters, American vessels are barred from all partici- 

 pation in pelagic sealing. The laws to this effect passed by , / 

 Congress in the winter of 1897 remain in force, and thus, in 

 the final slaughter which is promised, the Canadians will reap 

 all the profits. 



The herd had become so diminished in numbers in 1898 

 that the industry for that year was quite unprofitable. The 

 Canadian sealing fleet of 1899 1 was smaller than that of the 

 previous season, but considering the depletion of the herd, an 

 alarmingly large catch of seals was made. 2 A larger fleet 

 sailed last year, 3 and the outlook for the present season is a 



1 Twenty-six British vessels. 2 35,346 ; 55 % females. 



8 33 British vessels. Catch 35,191, with a large excess of females. 



