TAKEN IN SAN FRANCISCO. 497 



T8S<t. 



Bering Sea collection, sold in Victoria, Britisli Colnmbia; American 

 scliooner San IHer/o, 980 skins, at $8; American ^an nte o ottc, 

 schooners Otter mid Alexander landed in Victoria Brit- Aic^un<i,'''r!'uva Mary 

 ish Colnmbia, 1,700 skins to be reshippcd to 11. Liebes ^"«"'i**«^- 

 c^ Co., of San Francisco, owners of tlie two vessels; Britisli scliooner 

 Mary EUen^ 1,409 seals, sold at $7.50 per skin. 



Thus it will be seen that the British Colnmbia seal industry in the 

 Bering began in 1884. The Mary IJllen was owned by D. McLean, was 

 of 63 tons, had a crew of twenty-one whites and was worth 10,000, in- 

 cluding her outfit. 



Bering Sea collection: American schooner City of San Dlajo, 1,953 

 skins, at $7.60; American schooner Variderbilt., 1,2*44 

 skins, at $7.00; American schooner ;^a7^ D^o, 1,726, at r^^^^Sn^. 

 at $7 39; American schooner Lookout, 1,100, at $7.50; Lookout, Favorite, umi 

 Bi-itish schooner Favorite, 1,383, at $7.00; British ^'"J/ ^«««. i«85. 

 schooner Mary EUen^ 1,773, at $7.60. 



Bering Sea collection : American schooner Anne, 182, at $5.50; Amer- 

 ican schooner Therese (since sailed under British flag), 

 2,000, at $6.50 ; American schooner Sylvia Handy, 1,700, r,ia''H%iZ'''(Htv'ff 

 at $6.50; American schooner. Ci% o/ >S^frH 7)ier;o, 1,600, San iHego, iiHeu 

 at $6.50; American schooner Helen jBZmw, no record. T,7,'ThonZt\iSi^. 

 The British schooners, Onward, Caroline, and Thornton, 

 were seized in the Bering with about 2,000 skins on board. 



The Caroline, though under the British flag, was owned one-half by 

 an American named Bechtel, who furnished also the money for the out- 

 fit. Bechtel is interested also in the British schooners Mary Taylor, 

 Pathfinder, and Viva. 



The ships were put under the British flag in defiance of the British 

 merchant shipping act, which forbids any partnership 

 or beneficial interest in any British ship by a foreigner. to^Britis'h flan'^'eun'^ 

 To secure himself in case of trouble Bechtel has mort- trary to provi8?(ms'of 

 gages on the schooners. The Thornton was owned half Shipping ^I^t'/'''"'"'^ 

 by J. Bos(X)witz, an American, who owned and now owns 

 all or jjart of every schooner registered under the British flag in the 

 name of Captain Warren. This fact came out a short time ago in a 

 lawsuit in Victoria between Warren and Boscowitz. The books of tlie 

 firm being produced, it was shown that Boscowitz not only owned and 

 shared a half interest, but had advanced moneys for Captain Warren's 

 share, on which he collected interest. I append a duly certified copy 

 of part of the evidence in the suit of Warren v. Boscowitz and Cooper, 

 copied from the archives of the court in Victoria and ffilly certified 

 to by Harvey Coombe, esq., deputy registrar of the supreme court of 

 British Columbia, over the great seal of the Dominion of Canada. 



Besides the 2,000 skins taken by the seized sealers, the collections in 

 the Bering Sea by British schooners Avere: 

 2716— VOL II 32 



