952 APPENDIX TO CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 
8. Q. In shooting seals, what is your experience?—A. My experience is that unless 
a seal is mortally wounded—hit in the head or in the region of the heart—the shot 
does not appear to injure it. 
9. Q. Do you believe that a seal, when shot, and not mortally wounded, does not 
sink, or seeks some place to die—a rookery, or some such place?—A. No, Sir; a 
wounded seal will not alter its course in the slightest. It will move along as before, 
its wound healing rapidly. 
10. Q. What do you consider the vital part of a seal? Where do the hunters gen- 
erally aim for?—A. For the head or the heart; it depends upon the position of the 
seal, but usually the head. 
11. Q. What is the distance at which you shoot seals?—A. It depends upon cir- 
cumstances. 
12. Q@. Are more seals shot while sleeping than in motion?—A. There are more 
shot sleeping, Sir. It is my opinion that the larger proportion of seals are shot 
while sleeping. The seals taken by the Indians are nearly all killed while sleeping. 
13. Q. What is the shooting distance?—A. It depends upon circumstances; 10 to 
20 yards for sleepers, and a little more, 10 to 30 yards, for travellers. 
14. Q. You have seen the hunters and Indians approach even nearer than 10 yards, 
have you?—A. Yes, I have seen them approach to within less than 10 feet. 
15. Q. When seals are vitally wounded, say in the head, will they move far from 
the position in which they are shot?—A. No, Sir. 
16. Q. They are likely to die right there, are they?—A. Yes, Sir. 
17. Q. And they will not sink?—A. With few exceptions, such as when a seal is 
shot aud thrown backwards, thus allowing the air to escape out of its mouth. 
18. Q. Will you state your opinion, Captain Petit, of the proportion of seal lost 
by sinking after being shot?—A. My personal experience during last season with 
white hunters would not exceed 5 per cent., and with Indians in former years 
170 =I doubt if it amounts to even 1 per cent. The reason of this percentage in 
favour of Indians is because they were caught with a spear, and consequently 
could not get away. 
19. Q. Have you ever seen a seal sl:ot wuile sleeping sink?—A. I have never 
known one to sink, 
20. Q. Then you are clearly of the opinion that seals will not sink for some time 
unless thrown backwards?—A. Iam. When they do sink, even to 10 or 15 feet, they 
can be reached with the gaff. 
21. Q. When the hunters return to the vessel at night, do they usually discuss 
their day’s proceedings, and particularly mention the loss of seals, when such loss 
occurs?—A. Yes. 
22. Q. Then, Captain Petit, you conscientiously adhere to the statement that the 
loss by sinking of seals hit will not exceed 5 per cent. ?—A. I certainly do; but there 
are seals hit and not mortally wounded, and these escape, but they are not “ost,” as 
they are quite as vigorous as before, because their wounds heal very rapidly. Ihave 
often found shot in the skin. 
23. Q. What is your opinion of the proportion of females to males killed during 
the last hunting season?—A. Last year, out of my catch of 765, I had only 18 
females carrying young—not quite 24 per cent. Of course, as in other seasons’ 
catches, we had a number of barren cows—about the usual run, 10 per cent., and 124 
per cent. of grey pups. These grey pups are always bulls, and one year old. 
24. Q. Your catch, then, would be about 75 per cent. of males last season?—A. Yes, 
Sir; including the yearlings it was more than 75 per cent. 
25. Q. You say grey pups are always males; will you explain this?—-A. The 
Indians called my attention to this fact years ago, but the reason is not quite known, 
still it is a fact. I have observed very closely, and have never yet seen a female 
grey pup one yearold. I try to account for this by the supposition that the yearling 
grey male pups are driven early out of Behring’s Sea by the old bulls. 
26. Q. Last year, did you hear any remarks about the number or proportion of the 
males to females caught, from any one or any source?—A. Yes, Sir; I heard that a 
much larger percentage of males were caught last year than in any former year. 
27. Q. I would ask you, Captain Petit, if in any former years there was a similar 
preponderance of males—do you remember of any such fact?—A. Yes,I do. In 1886, 
when off Barclay Sound, in one day we had taken 104 seals, of which 3 only were 
females. In the following year, 1887, when off Portlock Bank, we took 79 in one 
day, and only 2 females were found in that number. 
_ 28. Q. How do seal cows travel? Singly or in pairs?—A. They travel singly or 
in pairs 
29. Q. How do bulls travel?—A. They travel in bands, as do also the bull pups. 
They travel singly too. 
30. Q. Are female seals carrying young very timid?—A. Yes, Sir; they are. They 
sink their bodies, so that nothing but their noses and eyes are out of water, and are 
therefore smaller marks for the hunters. 
