216 



FUR-SEAL FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 



islands many times, and compared them with the space occupied by the carcasses on 

 the killing ground, and I feel pretty contident that the total number has been 

 overestimated. 



Q. He estimated it at something less than 4,000,000.on the two islands. — A. I think 

 he estimates 250,000 to 275,000 on St. George. I have ligured it out in several ways, 

 and I think the 20,000 that we killed would be 10 per cent of the killable seals. 



Q. Is that your estimate — 10 per cent of all that come? — A. I take that for one 

 thing. I take our killing ground, where we kill 20,000, and where we lay these 

 seals along as close as we can, so as to give us greater area. We want to make 

 room to take the next year another piece, so tliat by the third year we can get 

 back again. I lueasured off that space two or three different times where 20,000 car- 

 casses lay, and where I cousitlered they lay as close as on the rookeries. I came to 

 the conclusion we had about 40,000 at Zajjadnie, 30,000 at Starry Arteel, and about 

 50,000 at North rookery, 10.000 to 15,000 ou Little East rookery, and about 25,000 

 or 30,000 on East rookery. That is all the rookeries. I could never make it any 

 more than that during that time. I measured the jdaces carefully.' 



Q. Do you put it at the same numbers annually? — A. About. I think the breed- 

 ing seals on the rookeries come in about the same numbers; but the lirst year I was 

 up there we killed 20,000 with great ease, and in a short time, and I considered that 

 we could kill more easily; and 1 recon)mcnded Colonel Otis to make a bigger allow- 

 ance for St. George, because we wanted to bring up our nvrn's dividends a little. 

 The next year he gave permission to take 25,000 on St. George, and they Avould take 

 75,000 on St. Paul. We got 21,000 or 22,000 that year. We had exceeded in our esti- 

 mate the nunib(>.r that we could take at that time, and they had to huish our quota 

 on the other island. Later in the season — perhaps two weeks after that — we could 

 have got perhaps 10,000 more seals, but we certainly could not get them when we 

 wanted them. 



1887. 



L. A. Noyes, per G. R. Tingle (p. 177). Measurements of breeding rookeries of 

 St. George Island, by Dr. L, A. Noves, acting assistant Treasurv agent, January 4, 

 March 1, and April 22, 1887. 



Rookery. 



East 



Zapadnie 



Little Eastern . 

 Starry Arteel-. 

 Near and North 



Total 



Sea 

 margin. 



2,200 



2,100 



600 



900 



3,500 



,300 



Pepth. 



200 

 160 

 125 

 575 

 300 



Square 

 feet. 



440, 000 



336, 000 



75, 00(1 



517,5(10 



1, 050, COO 



Seals. 



220, 000 

 168, 000 

 37, 500 

 258, 750 

 525, 000 



2,418,500 I 1,209,250 



The breeding grounds on St. George Island, surveyed July 12 and 15, 1873, gave 

 the following figures (H. W. Elliott's "Condition of Alfairs in Alaska, 1874," p.78): 



Rookery. 



Eastern 



Little Eastern 



North 



Near 



Starry Arteel. 

 Zapadnie 



Total... 



Sea 

 margin. 



900 

 750 

 2,000 

 750 

 500 

 600 



5,500 



Depth. 



60 

 40 

 25 

 150 

 125 

 60 



Square 

 feet. 



54, 000 

 30,000 

 50,000 

 112, 500 

 62, 500 

 36, 000 



345, 000 



Seals. 



27, 000 

 15, 000 

 25, 000 

 56, 250 

 31, 250 

 18, 000 



172, 500 



1868-1888. 



T. F. Morgan (p. 69). Q. Have you ever formed an estimate of the probable num- 

 ber of seals that visit the rookeries annually? — A. I have attempted to do it, but it 

 is hard to do. 



' Here he gives his figures, and after telling the committee that he can not make as 

 ttjany seals in counting as " Professor Elliott has done," yet he does do so, and more! 

 His total for the St. George rookeries, as given by him, is 185,000 seals, against my 

 sum total of 172,000. 



