302 • TESTIMONY 



Deposition of Billy Yeltachy, sealer. 



PELAaiC SEALING. 



Billy Yeltaclay, beiiiii- diily s worn, deposes and says: I was born at 



Howkan and have lived there all my life; am about 24 years old and 



am a hunter by occupation. Have hunted fur-seals the last two years 



in Dixons Entrance and around Prince of Wales Island, between 



March and June. The seal leave here in June and 



Migrntion. ^^ north. I use the shotgun for taking seal, and lose 



about two out of ten that I shoot. About half the seals I have killed 



were females with pup, and the balance were yearling 



nant femaiM.'^ ^'^''^' seals aud two and three year old males. Never killed 



an old bull in my life, nor have I ever seen one. I can 



not distinguish the sex of a seal in the water, but kill eveiy seal that 



comes near the canoe if xnissible. Seal have become 



Decrease. _ ^^^.^ scarce arouud Prince of Wales Island since the 



white men began hunting them in schooners, and unless they are 



stopped from hunting them in schooners, the seal, like 



Protection. ^^^ scaotter, will soon be all gone. The Indians are 



obliged to go a long way now for seal. I have been out three times 



this year and have only killed one seal, and only saw 



No pelagic birth. ^^^^ ^^, three this season. Have never seen or heard 



of any pups being born in the water or on the land around this part of 



Do not haul u on ^1^*^^^- I uevcr heard of any fur-seal hauling up on. 



coast."" ^^ "^ °° the land anywhere in British Columbia or Alaska. 



lii.s 



Billy x Yeltachy, 



mark. 



Witness to his mark : 

 J. M. Potter. 

 A. W. Lavender. 



Subscribed aud sworn to before me this 11th day of May, 1S02. 



A. W. Lavender, 

 United States Treasury Agent. 



Deposition of Hastings Yethnow, sealer. 



PELAGIC SEALING. 



Hastings Yethnow, being duly sworn, deposes and says: I was 

 born in Kas-aan. Have lived there all my life aud am now 60 

 years old. Have hunted fur-seal every season since I was a 

 boy. Have always hunted in Dixons Entrance and off Prince 



of Wales Island. The seal make their appearance in 

 Migration. March and disappear in June, going north. The 



reason we don't hunt the seal in March is that the weather is so bad 

 we can not go out in our canoes. We consider May the best month for 

 fur-seal hunting. When I was a boy, bought a shotgun from the Hud- 

 son Bay Company at Fort Simpson and have always used the shotgun 

 for taking seal. Sometimes I lose one and sometimes two out of every 

 ten that I shoot. I always shoot the seal close to the boat, so I don't 

 lose many. Some years ago there were more male seals taken than are 



taken now, but now about one-half are females with 

 femaies.''^^"^''^^''"* Pup- The rest are yearling seals and one and two year 



old males. I have never examined the yearlings to 



