166 COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



Mr. A. Laivg. — Loss 10 per cent. 



Captain T)'. Cox.— Loss nil (with spear). 



Jiuh/c J. G. Swan — All recovereil, whether speared or shot. 



Ah'ut Hunters. — Loss nil, whether shot or speared. 



Sitka Hunters. — Loss, perhaps, 10 to 20 per cent, of seals shot. 



Haida Hunters. — Seldom lose any. 



Mr. A. Mackenzie. — Very few, indeed, lost of seals shot. 



Mr. B. H. Hall.— Yery few lost. 



1/r. R. Cunrnfiham.— Lous may reach 20 per cent, in the case of 

 Tshinisian hunters. 



Makah Hunters. — With spears, loss nil. With gnns, perhaps 2 to 4 

 per cent. 



GENERAL STATEMENTS CHECKED BY NUMERICAL STATE ^ 



MENTS. 



« 



It is fair to state that mosi, tliongli not all, of the state- 

 ments heretofore given have been derived from persons 

 more or less direetly interested in pelagic sealing, from 

 whom alone it is possible to obtain the results of extensive 

 actual experience on the subject of losses at sea. The 

 statements are, morever. also chieHy of a general charac- 

 ter, but in order to further test the accuracy of such state- 

 ments, the British Commissioners proceeded to collect facts 

 as to the actual number of seals shot and recovered, or 

 shot and lost by individual hunters in certain years, and 

 in this manner succeeded in actually accoujiting for nearly 

 10,000 seals shot by white hunters. In tabulating these, a 

 general agreement is found as between the percentages 

 deduced from the individual statements, and the average 

 loss reaches but 4 per cent. 



THE AVERAGE LOSS BY SINKING OE SEALS KILLED AT 

 SEA SHOWN TO BE ABOUT 3 OR 4 PER CENT. ONLY. 



At the request of the British Commissioners, the masters 



of a number of sealing vessels directed their hunters to 



keep an account of the seals lost by sinking in securing 



their catches. This was done by many of the hunters, and 



See Appendix, fyQxxi their swom statements regarding their catches in 1892 



vo .11, p. . ^^^^ previous years an additional Table has been prepared, 



which shows that the average loss on 39,879 seals shot by 



white hunters was about 3 per cent. Where a general and 



a numerical statement have both been made, it is found 



that the general statement as to loss almost invariably 



exceeded the numerical, so that when a general statement 



only has been made, it probably exceeds the actual loss. 



British Com- Similar treatment has also been accorded to such 



po'rSara"627.'' 101 actual numbcrs as could be obtained from Indian 



hunters, and though the whole number of seils 

 accounted for in this case is small, and therefore not so 

 satisfa(;tory as evidence, so far as it goes this is in general 

 accord with statements made. 



THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE FUR-SEAL WHEN KILLED AT 

 SEA SINKS IMMEDIATELY, CONTRADICTED BY FACTS. 



Ibid., paras, In Concluding their consideration of this subject, the 

 C29, C30. British Commissioners point out how completely the re- 



corded facts in the case contradict the h priori assumption 



