TAKEN IN cook's INLET. ' 227 



JDf position of John Andrew Bradley, resident of Goal Point, CooJc's Inlet. 



PELAGIC SEALING. 



John Andrew Bradley, being dnly sworn, dei^oses and saith : I reside 

 at Coal Point, on Kacliekmak Bay, Cook's Inlet, 

 Alaska, and have lived in this immediate vicinity ^^pe»'»eiice. 

 for the past fonr years. I have traveled extensively along all the 

 Northwest Coast dnring the past twenty- two years, and am well 

 acquainted with it. I have had no personal practical experience in 

 fur-seal huuting,'but at the same time have a fair knowledge of the in- 

 dustry. It is not possible to make any distinction between males (other 

 than large bulls) and females of the fur-seal species at sea, and there is 

 none attempted. Full-i)owered bulls ?.re, however, readily recognized 

 at sea by their much larger size and darker fur; they are seldom taken 

 their pelts being comparatively valueless. The slaugh- ' 



ter is therefore indiscriminate, the object being to se- .^indiscriminate km- 

 cure all the skins possible. Fur-seals sink almost in- *""' 

 stautly after being struck, and unless i^icked up immediately can not 

 be recovered. It ismy honest belief that for every far-seal skin obtained 

 by pelagic sealers, at least five other seals' lives are ta- j,.^^ ^.^^.j^^ ^^^^ 

 ken I believe that the decrease in fur-seal life, which has 

 been constant of late years, is due principally to the 

 number of vessels engaged in hunting them at sea. I ^crease. 

 have never seen any but a few straggling seals in Cook's Inlet, and 

 these only on rare occasions. I have never heard of any fur-seal rook- 

 eries in the North Pacific other than those on the seal islands of Bering 

 Sea; and am positive that none exist in the vicinity of 

 Cook's Inlet. A CaptainErratt,of San Francisco, last cwk'/in^e*t™^ "^'"' 

 year induced parties of that place to fit out the schooner 

 Lily L. on tlie face of his positive statement that a fur-seal rookery 

 existed in theviciuity of Cook's Inlet. The enterprise was a total fail- 

 ure, however, no rookery being found, although a long and diligent 

 search was made for it. It is my opinion that for the 

 proper preservation of fur-seal life, all j)elagic hunting gaf™""'^^*^^" °^'^''^' 

 should be stopped absolutely. ^^^^' 



John A. Bradley. 



Subscribed and sworn to before me this 11th day of April, 1892. 



Joseph Murray, 

 United States Treasury Ayent. 



Beiwsition of John Buff, aejent of the Cooper Coal and Commercial Com- 

 j[)any, at Coal Point, Cook^s Inlet. 



John Duff, being duly sworn, deposes and saith : I reside at Coal 

 Point, on Kachemak Bay, Cook's inlet, Alaska, and have lived in the 

 Territory for the last five years. I am the agent for 

 the Cooper Coal and Commercial Company at this ^penence. 

 place, and have no personal knowledge of fur-seal life. At Afognak, 

 where I was for two years engaged in fur trading, handling skins and 

 furs of all descriptions, I observed that the fur-seals „. ^ „. . ,. 



e, ■ 1 /i- -1 i . ,■ j_i J • 11 First appear ofl A t- 



rst ai>peared oft that part ot the coast m small num- osrsnak isiaud about 

 bers about the latter part of of the month of April, lattor part of April. 



