430 TESTIMONY 



Deposition of Frank ])[. Gaffiwy, sealer {master). 



PELAGIC! SEALlNGr. 



State op California, 



City and County of San Franeiseo, ss.: 



Frank M. Gaflfney, having- l)eeii duly sworn, deposes and says: 1 am 



31 years old, an American citizen and master of the 



Experimce. scliooncr HaHcocl', owncd by Lyude & Hough, of San 



Francisco. I am now, and have been since 1879, en- 



voyage to Gaiapa- gaged in flsliiug and seal-hunting. In 1885 1 made a voy- 



E?^ tfS, iss^"'''" age to the Galapagos Island as master of the scho.oner 



Dashing Wave^ arriving there on the 30th day of August, 



and remaining until the 8th day of December of the same year. I 



obtained at this time on those islands about 1,000 fur-seal skins Avhich 



were sold in London at an avei a.i^e price of about 7 shil- 



not m!|rfte. *^*^^ "^^ li^g's each. The seals upon this group do not migrate. 



I observed the birth of pups during frequent intervals 



during all the time I was there, and from the size of those a little older 



it was apparent that they are born at all seasons of the year. They 



live in deep caves ander the cliffs, seldom going into the sun. Many of 



those obtained by me were pulled out of these places with long gaffs 



and killed. We slaughtered old and young of both 



siau-'iia"""'°'^*'^ sexes. These seals are browner and in other respects 



quite different from those obtained in Alaska, yet they 



are the true fur-seal. 



During the past winter I have made a second voyage as master of the 



schooner Hancoch to the southern waters, in search of 



nZnlocf iumi^^ '° seals. I arrived at Eees Islet, off the coast of Southern 



Chile (latitude 46o45' south, longitude 75° 45' west) and 



remained therefrom December 1st to December 1 7th, 1891, but obtained 



only one seal. I learned that seal still breed there in considerable 



numbers, but the Chileans are accustomed to visit this islet at an earlier 



time than the date of my visit while the pujjs are young, and to kill all 



La xinfa 1880 ^''^y cau obtalu. In 1880 Captain Mills, of the schooner 



X^rJVMi/ff, visited this islet and obtained a small catch, 



and I am credibly informed and believe that more than 12,000 seals 



have since been obtained there. 



On my return voyage Itouched at Juan Fernandez (latitude 24° 21' 



south; longitude 76° 10' west), but got no seals though 



isfaud. ^""'"''"'''^^^ there were a few seen about there in the water. On 



December 25, 1891, I landed at Massafueros Island 



MassaiuMos Island, (latitude 34° 11' south ; loiigitudc 80° 50' west) and got 19 



fur-seal skins. There were, I should think, about 200 



or 300 seals on the island when I arrived there, but as they went into 



the water and did not come on shore again during my stay, I could not 



secure them. The pups at Massafueros are born in October, I think. 



They were old enough to SAvim Avhen I was there. 



A few days later I touched at St. Felix and St, Ambrose Islands (lati- 

 tude 26° 10' south; longitude 80° west) and saw two fur 

 AmbroS«iami]. ^'' ^^als. Fiiidhiy's South Pacitlc Directory states that 

 there were formeily large herds of fur-seals on these 

 islands. 

 1 touched also at Guadalupe Islands, but found nothing. Thelnter- 

 ^ , , ^ , , national Company have had the lease of these islands 



Guadalupe Islands. ,. t ± -i r •,- iii 



for several years x^ast, and, as I am mtormed and be- 



