TAKEN IN SAN FRANCISCO. 457 



J)eposiUon of E. W. Liftlejohn, sealer [master). 

 PELEGIC SEALING. 



E. W. LiTTLEJOHN, being duly sworn, deposes andsaitli: I reside 

 at San Franeiseo, (3al. 1 am a sea otter and seal liuuter by oci-upation, 

 and am now master of the schooner Pearl, which is engaged in sea- 

 otter hunting. I have had eight (8) years experience in this pursuit 

 in the waters along the Alaskan coast. In the year j,. .■ 

 1S85, six hundred (000) fur-seals were caught during the ^pp"euce. 

 month of March off the Farallon Islands (Calilbniia). . Catci, oti- raraiions 

 In subsequent years we have had to go fixrther north 

 each year in order to secure a good spring catch. My exiierience has 

 been that fully 90 per cent of all sealstaken were fe- ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^ 

 males, and of these two-thirds (§) were mothers in milk, females, of w h i cii 

 It is impossible to distinguish the sex of fur-seals at two-thmis nursing. 

 sea (excepting large bulls), and no effort is made to do so, the object 

 being to secure all the skins possible; hence the kill- ^ ', 



".,..., Til 1 j_ Indiscnminate kiU- 



nig IS indiscriminate. I have observed a very great mg. 

 decrease in fur-seal life since 1885, and believe it is Decrease 

 almost entirely due to the large immber of vessels en- 

 gaged in pelagic hunting. I never saw pups born in Not born in water. 

 the water, nor do I know of any fur-seals hauling ui) „ , , . 



,,,',. , J.1 1 • XI '^ "^ Haul up only on is- 



on the land anywhere save the rookeries on the various lan.is. 



seal islands in Bering Sea. I believe that in order to 



preserve fur-seal life it is necessary to absolutely stop Protection neces- 



pelagic hunting and maintain a close season against ^^^^' 



killing for skins on the Pribilof Islands. 



E. W. LiTTLE.IOHN. 



Subscribed and sworn to bel'ore me this 13th day of April, 1892. 



Joseph Murraa', 

 United /States Treasury Agent. 



Deposition of William H. Long^ scaler {mate and master). 



pelagic saeling. 



State op California, 



City and County of ^an Francisco, ss: 



William H. Long, being duly sworn, deposes and says: I am by 

 occupation a seaman, and havefollewed the sea for the 

 last tifty years. I have been mate and master of ves- Experience, 

 sels. For the last foui" years I have not been to sea. 

 In 1885 I was hunter on board the schooner Lookout; Lookout, isss-issv. 

 in 1880 I was mate of her; in 1887 I was master of her. 

 I was engaged during these years in seal and otter Appearance of seals 

 hunting in the Bering Sea. The seals appear off the "" ''"''■''* 

 coast outside of the heads in the early part of January. They are trav- 

 eling all the time north, and from that time on to June they are trav- 

 eling towards the Bering Sea. I used both shotguns and rifles. I 

 know that a large proportion of the sealstaken were 



,, . XI • • -11 1 X T • 1 Lar^e proportion 



iiKitliers in pup, or motliers giving milk, but I paid no taken presnaut or 

 particular attention to the percentage. In killing seals "u'«i"o ""wa. 



