264 TESTIMONY 



First seen and taken seal off Sitka Sonne! ; about tke mid- 

 Migration. fll6 of Apiil each year tliey make tlieir appearance. They 

 are then working northward and westward. In early 

 days I used spear altogether. Of late years the shotgun and rifle 

 have been used exclusively. About GO per cent of the seal are lost 

 when shot with shotgun. When rifles are used a much larger propor- 

 tion is lost. Most all seal killed by me have been cows 

 naifrftmiies!^'^^'^^^ ^^^^ pups. Thiuk COWS are much more plentiful on the 

 coast; sleep more and are more easily captured than 

 the male seal. Have not killed a bull seal for three 

 _^ina.8cnmmatekiii. ^^^^^^^ j ^^.^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^ ^^^ yearliiigs, mostly females. 



I always kill every seal that comes near the boat; 

 hunters use no discrimination. If seal are shot dead, they sink at once 

 and it is hard to secure them. Seal are shot in the head Avheii it is 

 Decrease possiblc to do SO. Havc uoticed that seal are decreas- 



ing very fast the last few years. I think the cause of 

 the decrease is that there are too many schooners hunt- 

 1 „• 1 • 1 i"S seal in Bering'Sea and along the North Pacific coast, 

 o pe agic ir . jj^j^yg never known any pups to be born in the water, 

 or anywhere else on the coast, but have heard that they 

 are born on the Pribilof Islands and nowhere else. Have 

 coSft °°* ^'^^^ "^ °° never known any seal to haul up on land or on the 

 coast of Alaska, but have heard that they haul up on 

 Trotection *^^^ Pribilof Islands. I think if all vessels were stopped 



from hunting seal in Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean, 

 the seal would again become ijlentiful. 



his 



John x Kowineet. 



mark. 



Witness to his mark. 



George Kastrometinoff, 



United States Court Interpreter. 



Subscribed and sworn to before me this 9th day of April, 1892. 



A. W. Lavender, 

 United States Treasury Agent. 



Deposition of George Laclicelc, sealer. 



PELAGIC SEALING. 



George Lacheek, being duly sworn, deposes and says: Am 40 years 



of age; born at and live in Sitlca. Am by occupation 



■i?,-T^p,-,VT,,.fl seal hunter in summer and deer hunter in Avinter. 



Have hunted seal every season since a small boy. Have 



Mioration always hunted off Sitka Sound. The seal generally 



igra ion. make their appearance about April 15 of each year. 



Tliey are then advancing uf) the coast and disappear entirely about 



July 1. In early days spear and arrow was used exclusively, but now 



the shotgun and rifle are used instead. About 50 per cent of the seals 



are lost when shot with shotguns; a much larger per cent are lost 



when shot with a rifle. Most all seals that I have 



na^ucraale*!;^^''^'^^^" takcu wcrc COWS with pup. Think cows are less active 



and require more sleep than the young male seal, A 



few male seal have been tak<au by me from one to four years old. 



