190 



FUR-SEAL FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 



secured in this day's drive, being brought right up through the scat- 

 tered breeding animals from the j)oint of Ketavie. This raises the 

 catch proi)ortionately in the little drive. The Lukannon seals were 

 nearly all yearlings, and only 7 "wigged" 4-year-()lds were knocked 

 down in this batch ; at least 25 or 30 of them were released. 



Thus these two small drives for this day show an irregularity in 

 their percentage, both being due to exceptional incidents. The Pola- 

 vina catch of 172 would not have touched 100 skins had it not been 

 for the sudden drop to "wigged" 4-year-old bulls, 81 of which were 

 knocked down. It is the very first systematic killing of this class 

 made thus far this season. It is, however, a small matter — drive, catch, 

 and all. 



The Ketavie drive was principally made from the extreme point, a 

 new spot which has not been driven from before, but the rookery is 

 now so thin and straggling that the drivers were able to get fairly 

 down onto the point and dislodge about 100 good 3 and 4 year olds. 

 The balance of the 197 skins taken in this united drive with Lukannon 

 are small 5^ to 6 pound skins. 



Going up to Polavina early this morning, I did not see a single young 

 male seal on that long reach of sand beach between Lukannon and 

 Polavina ; only weak, sickly, or dying seecatchie, a dozen or two of 

 them, and nothing else. The utter absence of the holluschickie from 

 these sands of Lukannon beach and those extensive hauling grounds 

 back of them on the Volcanic ridge and half a mile again to the north- 

 ward — this desolation is fully as startling a contrast with their life and 

 animation in 1872 as is that of Zoltoi sands and English Bay. 



July 18, 1890. — The following are field notes of the podding and 

 clubbing of a drive made from Zapadnie, the last drive here for 1890 : 



Whole number animals driven 1,192; number taken, 241, or 79 per 

 cent rejected. Minus the "wigged" 4-year-olds, 88 i)er cent turned out. 



This tally of the final killing of the season at the Southwest Bay 

 killing ground of Zapadnie shows that extraordinary scarcity of hollus- 

 chickie in a most lucid manner when contrasted with the other drives 

 of this year, which I have tallied on this once- famous rendezvous. This 

 last scrape made here to-day was opened by the appearance of only 

 1,192 animals on the grounds after a rest of nine days since the last 

 drive; 115 of these 1,192 seals were old bulls, all over (i years, and most 

 of them 7 and 10 year olds, and all the balance, outside of the 241 ani- 

 mals knocked down, were yearlings, chiefly, a few " runty '' 2-year olds, 

 a few bitten 4-year-old " wigs," and a few 5-year-olds. Every 4-year- 

 old ^^ivig^^ was taJcen, as at Polavina yesterday, for the first time this 

 season. Every "smooth " 4-year-old was taken in the first drives and 

 now, the dregs are drawn also ! 



These young bulls vary remarkably in this matter of being with 



