126 SEALS AND SEA-LIONS 



mous falling off in the number available each year. The per- 

 sistent slaughter of mothers will exterminate any animal spe- 

 cies, no matter how numerous. 



The accompanying map graphically illustrates the re- 

 markable seagoing habits of the Pribilof Fur-Seal herd after 

 the close of the breeding-season and during the intensely cold 

 and fearfully windy winters that annually render life on the 

 Seal Islands a serious task. 



The combined political and commercial importance of the 

 Fur-Seal demands a brief summary of the most important 

 facts of its rise to favor, its decline, its fall, and now the be- 

 ginning of its restoration. 



A REVIEW OF FUR-SEAL HISTORY 



For more than twenty-six years the Fur-Seal was to the 

 United States, England, and Canada a source of well-nigh 

 constant anxiety, contention, and at times irritation. Inas- 

 much as the fate of that animal is still pending, it seems 

 desirable to set forth the most important facts in its case in 

 chronological order. The history of the Fur-Seal since our 

 acquisition of Alaska is divided into three periods, one of 

 revenue, one of contention, and one of restoration. 



The Period of Revenue 



1867. — When Alaska became a United States possession, 

 by purchase from Russia at a cost of $7,200,000, the fur of 

 the Fur-Seal was almost unknown to fashion, and outside of 

 Russia was neither used nor particularly desired. 



