678 APPENDIX TO COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



Declaration of James Douglas Warren, 



Dominion of Canada, 



Province of British Columbia, City of Victoria, 



I, James Douglas Warren, of tbe city of Victoria, in tlie Province of 

 British Columbia, Canada, do solemnly declare: 



]. That I have been a resident of the city of Victoria aforesaid since 

 1854, during which period I have been absent only when on business 



for a few mouths at a time. 

 99 2. That in the year 18G9 1 began buying fur-seals from the 



Indians on the west coast of Vancouver Island. In, I think, 

 1870 I went out in the schooner ''Thornton," taking some Indians with 

 me, to hunt seals at sea off the west coast. I went out in May ffoin 

 Barclay Sound, and returned in a few days. The trip was an experi- 

 ment only. I got a few seals, and satisfied myself and the Indians 

 that seals could be got that way. 



o. That the following year, about March, I went out in the "Thorn- 

 ton" from Barclay Sound with ten or twelve canoes of Indians — hunt- 

 ers — and hunted from off Cape Flattery to off" Kyiiquot, Vancouver 

 Island. I followed this up, adding every year or so aiu)ther schooner 

 to the business, until about 1885. In 188(5 I fitted out six vessels for 

 sealing, both on the coast, and five of them went into Behring Sea. 

 One of the five was seized in the Sea, the others returned with fair 

 catches. In 1887 I sent out six schooners; one was wrecked, the others 

 sealed along the coast and went into Behring Sea. Four of those that 

 ente; ed the Sea were seized with the upper coast catch on board besides 

 the catch in the Sea. In 1888 I sent out only two schooners, neither 

 of which went into Behring Sea. The losses through the seizures of 

 my schooners so crippled me that I was compelled to abandon the 

 business. 



4. That I have hunted seals as far south as the mouth of the Colum- 

 bia Eiver, and from there north into Behring Sea. I saw about the 

 same number of seals at about the same places every year I was out, 

 and saw nothing that indicated a decrease of seals up to 1887. From 

 my knowledge of the seal, its habits, and the places it frequents, and 

 from what 1 have learnt from reliable persons since 1887, I do not 

 believe there has been any decrease in the numbers of seals oft" the 

 coast. 



5. That the catch of seals on the coast in any year while I was in the 

 business dei)ended almost entirely on the weather. One year, I think 

 it was 1874, with two schooners out from the 1st March to the end of 

 June, I got only about 350 skins from both vessels. Ten years after- 

 wards (1884) the same two schooners with the same outfit of hunters 

 got over 2,300 seals in about the same time. 



G. That of the coast catch of seals a little over one-half of those I 

 got were females. Of the females not over one half were in pup, and 

 in some years less than one-half. The remainder of the females were 

 young seals and barren cows. 



7. That in Behring Sea the proportion of females was about the 

 same, but very few in pup. The first two weeks in July a few cows in 

 pup would be got, but none after that. 



8. That when in Behring Sea I never went nearer than 50 miles of 

 the Pribyloff Islands. Most of the seals were got about 75 miles from 

 the islands. Up to the latter part of July I got a few seals showing- 

 signs of milk when skinning them. I do not think these females had 

 ever been on the islands, but had lost their pups at sea. I never saw 



