COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 195 



annual killing may be made from various sources. After 

 a careful examiuatiou of tlie data, the British Commis- 

 sioners write: 



Combining the whole period covered by the figures above quoted, British Com- 

 and adding the year iu which the islands were discovered, we hnd n,i>,j,i„nors' Ke- 

 that the killing on the Pril)yloit' Ishinda averaged for this term of port, para. 39. 

 eighty-oue years about 34,000 annually. 



REASON OF EXCESSIVE KILLING- IN LAST YEAR OF 

 RUSSIAN CONTROL. 



For the years subsequent to 181G the actual numbers .j^,.^^ 

 are given in tabular form, I'roin which it appears that the 775-779'. 

 average numbers killed from 1817 to 1837 fall from over 

 50,000 to less than 20,000. After the latter year the num- 

 bers taken remained under an animal average of 20,000 

 until the year 1850, when the average for ten years rose to 

 30,y00. The high tigure of 75,000 was quite exceptional, 

 and was reached only in the last year (1807) of the Rus- 

 sian tenure, when, according to Captain Bryant, "knowing Quoted by Alien 

 the islands were to be snr'reiiderd to the United states, |^° ^'j^^'|°^ff^;^pj^ 

 the Russians took all the seals they could."' It was fortu-can PiDnibeds," 

 nate that at this time the Russian methods of handling p-^^^- 



the skins did not enable them to take more. 

 225 The killing of 75,000 in the last year of the Rus- united states 



sian tenure is, however, so referred to in the United case, p. 131. 

 iStates' Case as to appear to be a natural consequence 

 of an increasing abundance of seals, and is apparently 

 intended to lead up to the killing of 100,000 authorized 

 soon after by the United States Government. 



An examination of diagram No. 5 in the Rei)ort of the 

 British Commissioners will, however, show more distinctly 

 than any mere reference to figures, the actual character 

 and amoujitof killing during the greater part of the Rus- 

 sian regime. 



• 



OPINION OF RUSSIAN AUTHORITIES ON NUMBER 

 PROPERLY KILLABLE. 



Veniaminov, the chief authority on the condition of the 

 Pribyloft' Islands during the earlier years, characterizes 

 the killing of about 100,000 seals on the islands, which 

 occurred previous to 17y!>, as "horrible killing," and that Elliott's Cen- 

 of 50,000 seals, occurring about 1820, as excessive and ?o,'iio,'i47.'' ^!' 

 leading to diminution; while the Board of Management of 

 the Russian Company, following Mr. Yanovsky's Report jbid., p. 147. 

 in 1821, express the opinion that 40,000 might safely be 

 taken on St. Paul and 10,000 on St. George, in conjunction ^^nit«<^ states 



. , • J i- J. i. 1 V ii^ii Case, Appendix, 



With a period of total rest every fifth year. voi. i, p. 53. 



OTHER AUTHORITIES ON NUMBER KILLED DURING 

 RUSSIAN REGIME. 



Bryant, likewise, referring to the later years of the Rus- 

 sian regime before 1807, writes : 



For many years thev wore able to kill only a small numbei-, but the .Q'loted by Allen 



in M OTi f"?**!!! h 



seals gradually increased, so that they killed as many as 40,000 iu one ^f Korth A^lneri- 

 year, can Pinnipeds," 



p. 389. 



