170 



FUR-SEAL FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 



Sunday afternoon. — From tlie fact that this iiiorning opened warm, 

 clear, aiul witli bright siiiisliine, 1 did not expect to see any hauling of 

 the liolluschickie. It has been the first day since the 12tli instant, that 

 has not been suitable for hauling. The weather hitherto, has been 

 excellent. Lukannon beach is as bare as it was yesterday, and the two 

 small i)ods at English Bay remain at the close of the day, just as they 

 were hauled yesterday — no more of them. I rather exi)ected to see them 

 all in the water, since it has been so warm, the first warm day of the year : 

 but they were not. 



It thickens uj) this evening and becomes cool. Not a seal on Zoltoi 

 sands this morning, and not one seen during the day. 



Monday, June 23, 1890. — Those two i)ods of hollnschickie, which I 

 have observed under Middle Hill and Tolstoi daring the last two days, 

 were driven uj) this morning. I began an itemized account of percent- 

 ages — the number driven up in each pod, and the number turned out 

 to the sea or rejected from it. 



aPod No. 1 I did not get a correct count of, so it ia omitted. 



Eleven pods of oGl animals driven up; 110 of them killed or one-fifth 

 taken, or 80 per cent turned away! All under 7-pound skins, with the 

 exception of a few wigged 4-year-olds and a dozen or two old bulls. 

 This gives a fair average of the whole drive to-day. s(m»e 2,r)0() animals, 

 since 518 only were taken. At this time in 1872, with the same stand- 

 ard of nothing under 7 pound skins, only 10 to 12 per cent were turned 

 away ! 



To-day all the seals taken, with the rare exceptions of a few 4-year- 

 olds (11 pound skins), were 3 year-olds (7i-pound skins). Not one 

 •J year-old in twenty taken, and a remarkal3le absence of 2-year-olds. 



Those turned away (nearly 2,000) were 95 per cent at least, "long" 

 and "short" yearling^s. A few 5-year-old, and a very few 6 year-old 

 bulls. A very, very few 2year-o]ds also. 



A small pod of liolluschickie made their appearance close up under 

 the bluffs of Zoltoi, 100 to 150 of them, at about 11 a. m. This calls to 

 my mind. Where have those tired seals gone which were driven this 

 morning, and let loose from the pods on the killin<:f grounds into the 

 Lagoon slough, from there, direct to the sea ? Where do they go'? Do 

 they haul up again? Yes, everybody says so: and I do not know any- 

 thing to the contrary, and do know a great deal in affirmation. Then, 

 if that be so, thene seals spared to-day may he driven to-morrow: to be 

 spared af/ain, and driren next weeJx, and so on all over the island Ihrouf/h 

 the season. What indication, then, really, have we of what number of 

 fresh ho'luschiel-ie really arrive from this time forth, if tliese released 

 seals are to continually i)resent themselves anew as they do? So, as 

 matters go, we will note the steady increase daily, of discarded seals 

 in the drives, together with the new arrivals or freshly driven seals, 

 throughout the killing season. 



In 1872-1874 this proportion of rejected or turned-away seals from 

 all the drives up to the 1st of July was not over 10 or 12 \)er cent of the 

 whole number driven. Now it is between 70 and 80 pei cent; and 95 



