﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISHERIES. 
  37 
  

  

  The 
  census 
  for 
  1911 
  was 
  based 
  chiefly 
  on 
  estimates 
  and 
  was 
  evi- 
  

   dently 
  an 
  underestimate. 
  Nevertheless, 
  it 
  is 
  beHeved 
  that 
  there 
  were 
  

   on 
  the 
  islands 
  in 
  1912 
  at 
  least 
  30,000 
  seals 
  that 
  would 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  

   there 
  if 
  pelagic 
  sealing 
  had 
  continued. 
  During 
  the 
  season 
  of 
  1911 
  

   the 
  pelagic 
  sealers 
  took 
  14,511 
  skins, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  report 
  of 
  

   Messrs. 
  C. 
  M. 
  Lampson 
  & 
  Co., 
  of 
  London. 
  This 
  number 
  included 
  some 
  

   skins 
  from 
  the 
  Commander 
  Islands 
  herd. 
  It 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  the 
  

   pelagic 
  sealers 
  kiU 
  many 
  seals 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  recover 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  actual 
  

   number 
  of 
  sldns 
  marketed 
  is 
  far 
  below 
  and 
  probably 
  is 
  less 
  than 
  half 
  

   the 
  number 
  of 
  seals 
  actually 
  Idlled. 
  With 
  this 
  exceedingly 
  low 
  esti- 
  

   mate 
  it 
  is 
  evident 
  that 
  the 
  loss 
  actually 
  sustained 
  by 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  herd 
  

   in 
  1911 
  could 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  less 
  than 
  15,000 
  breeding 
  females; 
  and 
  

   it 
  is 
  safe 
  to 
  assume 
  that 
  as 
  great 
  a 
  loss 
  would 
  have 
  occurred 
  in 
  1912 
  

   if 
  pelagic 
  sealing 
  had 
  gone 
  on. 
  These 
  15,000 
  breeding 
  females 
  thus 
  

   saved 
  produced 
  15,000 
  pups, 
  making 
  30,000 
  seals 
  on 
  the 
  islands 
  in 
  

   1912 
  as 
  the 
  immediate 
  response 
  to 
  the 
  cessation 
  of 
  pelagic 
  sealing. 
  

  

  In 
  1913 
  a 
  census 
  of 
  the 
  seal 
  herd 
  made 
  under 
  the 
  same 
  conditions 
  

   as 
  in 
  1912 
  and 
  participated 
  in 
  by 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  cooperating 
  agents 
  of 
  

   the 
  Bureau 
  gave 
  the 
  following 
  result, 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  pups 
  being 
  

   accurately 
  determined 
  by 
  actual 
  count 
  after 
  the 
  harems 
  had 
  broken 
  

   up 
  in 
  August 
  and 
  the 
  equivalent 
  number 
  of 
  breeding 
  females 
  being 
  

   necessarily 
  present: 
  

  

  Active 
  bulls, 
  with 
  harems 
  (actual 
  count) 
  1, 
  403 
  

  

  Idle 
  and 
  young 
  bulls 
  (actual 
  count) 
  364 
  

  

  Bachelors, 
  1, 
  2, 
  3, 
  and 
  4 
  years 
  old 
  (count 
  and 
  estimate) 
  47, 
  000 
  

  

  Cows 
  1 
  and 
  2 
  years 
  old 
  (count 
  and 
  estimate) 
  35, 
  000 
  

  

  Breeding 
  cows 
  (equal 
  to 
  pups) 
  92, 
  269 
  

  

  Pups 
  (actual 
  count) 
  92, 
  269 
  

  

  Total 
  268, 
  305 
  

  

  The 
  number 
  of 
  skins 
  shipped 
  in 
  1912 
  was 
  2,880 
  from 
  St. 
  Paul 
  Island 
  

   and 
  884 
  from 
  St. 
  George 
  Island, 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  3,764. 
  These, 
  together 
  

   with 
  9 
  skins 
  from 
  the 
  previous 
  season 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  sent 
  to 
  Wash- 
  

   ington 
  for 
  experimental 
  purposes, 
  were 
  sold 
  at 
  auction 
  in 
  London 
  

   January 
  17, 
  1913, 
  by 
  Messrs. 
  C. 
  M. 
  Lampson 
  & 
  Co., 
  acting 
  as 
  agents 
  

   for 
  this 
  Government. 
  The 
  net 
  proceeds 
  of 
  the 
  sale 
  were 
  $130,640.57, 
  

   for 
  which 
  sum 
  a 
  certified 
  check 
  was 
  duly 
  received 
  and 
  covered 
  into 
  

   the 
  United 
  States 
  Treasury. 
  Under 
  the 
  leasing 
  system 
  which 
  pre- 
  

   vailed 
  prior 
  to 
  1910 
  the 
  Government 
  would 
  have 
  received 
  only 
  

   $38,589.25 
  for 
  the 
  season's 
  take 
  of 
  skins. 
  

  

  The 
  fox 
  sldns 
  obtained 
  on 
  the 
  Pribilof 
  Islands 
  in 
  the 
  winter 
  of 
  

   1911-12 
  consisted 
  of 
  109 
  blues 
  and 
  27 
  whites 
  on 
  St. 
  Paul, 
  and 
  275 
  

   blues 
  and 
  2 
  whites 
  on 
  St. 
  George, 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  384 
  blues 
  and 
  29 
  whites. 
  

   They 
  were 
  sent 
  to 
  London 
  and 
  sold 
  at 
  auction 
  March 
  7, 
  1913, 
  by 
  

   Messrs. 
  C. 
  M. 
  Lampson 
  & 
  Co., 
  acting 
  as 
  agents 
  for 
  this 
  Government. 
  

   The 
  net 
  proceeds 
  of 
  the 
  sale 
  were 
  $20,505.17, 
  for 
  which 
  sum 
  a 
  certified 
  

  

  