198 TESTIMONY 



I have ficqueutly noticed in tlie liailior of Petropaiilcwsky that the 

 natives in killing hair-seals are only able to obtain one animal out of 

 every fonr or five of those killed, and that they frequently wait about 

 four days for the bodies to be washed ashore. 



During the killing season on the Commander Islands we frequently 

 find in the bodies both bullets and shot, 



I know it to be the custom of seal hunters to shoot seals at sea when 

 they are at rest upon the surface of the water, and that those generally 

 obtained are females and constitute but a very small j)ortion of those 

 killed and lost. 



Sealing on Eobben Island, in the Eussian group, was prohibited for a 

 period of five years for the purpose of encouraging the 

 ben'isilnd!'*" "" ^°^ iucrease of the herd, but their propagation was inter- 

 rupted by the frequent attempts of poachers to raid the 

 rookeries, and I believe that 4,(t(l0 or 5,000 seals were killed by the 

 marauders while we were attempting to X)romote the 

 growth of the herd. 

 There are many fines imposed at the Commander Islands for killing 

 Drivincramikiiiiii'' ^^^^^'^^^ scals, eveu by accident, and I am quite certain 

 living am i i „. ^^^^^ ^^^ decrcase in the nuniber of seals thereon is not 

 owing to the methods employed in killing. When a female is discov- 

 ered in a herd while being driven to the killing ground she is carefully 

 turned back and slowly driven to the water's edge, sometimes the work 

 of several hours. 



Special precautions are taken not to frighten or molest the animals 

 on the rookeries. Even fires are not permitted to be made where it is 

 thought their light or sight of the smoke might alarm them. 



My observation has also been that while male seals are sometimes 

 timid about coming ashore, the females being about 

 ^_ Pelagic birth impos- ^-eady to pup, haul up on the land, even in spite of 

 unusual or unfavorable conditions. Pups if born in 

 the water are sure to drown. It is a matter of actual observation that 

 they nuist first learn to swim, and do not leave the 

 Pups learning to q]^qj.q until they are four or five months old. I have 

 ^^""' often seen the mother seals i:)ush their pups, when 



several weeks old, into the water and watched them flounder about awk- 

 wardly and scramble ashore, seeming delighted to get back. 



The seals of the Commander Islands are of a different variety from 



those of the Pribilofs. Their fur is not so thick and 



iiifii^i^ntftomtiicPri- bright and is of a somewhat inferior quality. They 



ijiiof- form a distinct herd from that of St. Paul and St. 



George and in my opinion the two do not intermingle. 



I was present as interpreter when the English Commissioners were 

 taking testimony on Bering Island. They examined 

 Testifies as to stete- among othcps wheu I was present, Jefim Suigeroff, 

 CommiTstoner by Je- chief On Bering Island, he being the person selected 

 cbier"*^**^"*' "'"^*^^^ ^y them there from which to procure the testimony 

 relating to the habits and killing of seals. This Snig- 

 eroff testified that he had lived on the Pribilof Islands for many years 

 and knew the distinctive characteristics of both herds (Commander 

 and Pribilof) and their habits and that he removed from thence to Ber- 

 ing Island. He pointed out that the two herds have several different 

 characteristics and stated that in his belief they do not intermingle. 



He also said that the pups could live on land at least seven or eight 

 days without sustenance and that those born in the water would imme- 

 diately drown. He further stated that the seals had rapidly decreased 



