IN BERING SEA AND NORTH PACIFIC. 87 



observe this mortality among" the pups on the Dead pups ou 



J \ ° # l L the rookeries. 



rookeries (Sec 83), from which belief they draw 

 the inference that "the death of so many young 

 seals on the Islands in 1891 was wholly excep- 

 tional and unprecedented" (Sec. 355). The dep- 

 ositions, however, of many witnesses appended 

 to the Case of the United States show not only 

 that dead pups had been observed on the rook- 

 eries as early as 1885, but that the numbers had 

 after that year annually increased. 1 Mr. J. 

 Stanley-Brown testifies that he had already seen 

 and noted the dead bodies before the Commis- 

 sioners arrived at the Islands in 1891, and that 

 the cause of death had been fully discussed by 

 those on the Islands. 2 



The same opinion as to the cause of this mor- Cause of death, 

 tality, which "in no instance was * * * at 

 first voluntarily advanced " (Sec. 83) to the Com- 

 missioners, namely, " the killing of the mother at 

 sea" (Sec. 83), existed for several years before 

 the British officials examined the Pribilof rook- 

 eries. 3 It is unfortunate for the position taken 

 by the Commissioners, to the effect that the mor- 

 tality was unusual and that the cause assigned 



1 Appendix to Case of the United States, Vol. II, pp. 32, 39, 51, 

 71, etc. 



2 Appendix to Case of the United States, Vol. II, p. 19. 



3 Appendix to Case of United States, Vol. II, pp. 32,39,51, 

 71, etc. 



