RELATING TO ST. PAUL ISLAND. 105 



in tlie year 1892, from Kadiak Island to Prince William Sound, going 

 as far into Cook's Inlet as Coal Bay. 



I never saw nor heard of any fur-seal rookeries in these regions, ex- 

 cept those on the seal islands of Bering Sea. Neither 

 have I ever seen any fur-seals in abundance save on or PribnorisiaiXy "^ 

 near said seal islands. 



Carlos G. Calkins. 

 Subscribed and sworn to before me this 27th day of April, 1892. 



Joseph Murray, 

 United States Treasury Agent. 



Deposition of Herhert V. Fletcher, chief mechanic on St. Paul Island. 



management and habits. 



State op Vermont, 

 County of Orange, ss : 



Herbert Y. Fletcher, being duly sworn, deposes and says: I am a 

 citizen of Eandolph, Vt., where I have had my home nearly all my life. 

 I am by trade a machinist and blacksmith, and by occupation a farmer. 



In 1882 I went to St. Paul Island in the service of the Alaska Com- 

 mercial Company, as their chief mechanic, and remained 

 there two years and four months, including the sealing ^penence. 

 seasons of 1882, 1883, and 1884. During such seavson of each of these 

 years, I was employed a considerable portion of the time in the annual 

 seal killing, and at other times my work took me frequently to the 

 various parts of the island, so that in the course of my stay there I 

 became, as all do who live there a year or more, very familiar with 

 everything pertaining to the seals. 



At the time of my employment at the island, everything about the 

 seal rookeries and sealing industry appeared to be in a prosperous condi- 

 highly prosperous condition. There was no lack of tion of rookeries and 

 seals. The rookeries were said by all the natives and "'^^"''^ industry. 

 residents to be as large and full as they had ever been, and the lessees 

 got their full number of skins allowed by law within the usual time, all 

 of good marketable sizes, from such sized animals as the employ^^s were 

 told to kill, and had a large surplus left each year for breeders. The 

 manner in which the seals were driven and killed . . ^ ^^-k-iy 

 seemed to me to be as good as could be adopted, and ^"'^^''^ *° ^ '"^• 

 just such as any one would adopt who was accustomed to the manage- 

 ment of farm animals. I was surprised to see how closely in nearly 

 every respect the seal herds resemble droves of our Resemblance be- 

 domestic animals. Almost anything is done with them tween seals and do- 

 that we habitually do with our flocks and herds in farm ™^'*^*' ''''^"*^''- 

 life, except to feed them. They are started up from the beaches, col- 

 lected in convenient sized droves, and driven by a very few men to the 

 proper killing grounds, exactly as I would handle a flock of sheep; and, 

 unless the weather was very hot and dry, seemed to me to sufler no 

 more nor stand any greater risk of injury from driving than sheep 

 would and do under similar circumstances. When they arrive at the 

 killing grounds they can be kept in a yard or corral surrounded by an 

 ordinary cattle fence ; but, without the trouble even of building a fence, 

 with a single keeper to watch them and a few pieces of board set up 



