374 TESTIMONY 



March, 1892, I sailed from San Francisco for Alaskan waters, via Port 

 Townseiicl and Seattle. 



The cruise had special reference to the migration of the fur-seal herd 

 and their relation to the localities visited by us; in other words, ^Ye 

 were to ascertain whether there were fur-seal rookeries in Cooks Inlet 

 or Prince William Sound, whether they hauled out or attempted to 

 haul out there, or, in fact, anywhere in Alaska outside of the Pribilot 

 Islands. The following x^laces were visited in the order named: Port 

 Graham, with its tributary settlement of Fort Alexander, having a 

 population of 120, all Aleuts except one white man, the agent of the 

 Alaska Commercial Company. The men are hunters. Chesloknu Bay, 

 with its village of Soldovoi, having a mixed population of Aleuts and 

 Kenai Indians, numbering 103, and four white men. The natives are 

 hunters. Coal Point, population 11, all white, occupied in holding 

 possession of coal claims. Some of them having had many years ex- 

 perience in the Territory, were able to give much valuable testimony. 

 St. Paul, Kadiak, jDopulation 3S0, 05 of whom are white, the remainder 

 Creoles and Aleuts. The native men and nearly all of the whites are 

 hunters. Wood Island, near St. Paul, has a population of 193, includ- 

 ing three whites, the natives being mostly hunters. Owiug to a severe 

 winter and late spring, the men were still at home, and we were able to 

 procure affidavits from 35 whites and 55 native hunters, who had prac- 

 tical knowledge of the subject in tLe regions in which tbey were in the 

 habit of hunting. The regular work of the Albatross is deep-sea explo- 

 ration, the discovery and development of fisbing grounds, and, not in- 

 frequently, ijurely scientific investigation in normal ocean depths far 

 outside of the range of economic species. 



I have been engaged in this work nearly fourteen years, during which 

 time it has been a part of my duty to acquire information concerning 

 the seal and its life. This has been done not only from personal expe- 

 lience and observations, but by questioning ])ractical men, such as 

 inteihgent mariners, fishermen, and hunters. Pelagic sealing has been 

 a frequent subject of conversation and argument with me since my 

 first northern cruise in 1888, audi have reached the following conclu- 

 sions : 



First. Pelagic sealingis wasteful, as alarge percentage 

 Av^fsfefii.*' ^^'"""^ of seals killed are lost. Opinions on that point, vary- 

 ing from 30 to 70 per cent. 

 Sex indistinguisi]- Sccoud. The scxcs cau uot bc distinguished in the 

 crimi"ate^kmiDg."^'^ water, ex(;ept old males, and both sexes and all sizes 

 are killed indiscriminately. 

 Third. Of the seals killed, from 60 to 70 per cent are females, which 

 duiing their northerly migration are heavy with young, 

 males Va^en!'"'^"* ^'^ ^^^w of movcmeut, aud require an extra amount of rest 

 and sleep, thus largely increasing their liability to suc- 

 cessful attack. 

 ^^^^^ ^^ ^ Fourth. The female killed, the death of the luiborn 



pups. ^^^^^^ follows, entailing a double loss. 



Fifth. Seals killed in Bering Sea alter the birth of the pups are largely 



mother seals, and the farther they are found from the 



' '"^ ^"""''"s- islands the greater the percentage will be. The reason 



for this seeming paradox is very simple. The young males, having no 



family responsibilities, can aftbrd to hunt nearer home, where food can 



be found if sufficient time is devoted to the search. The mother does 



not leave her young excex^t when necessity compels her to seek food for 



