FUR-SEAL KISHKlilKS OF ALASKA. 5 



Q. Will yoa state in detail the Jiatnre of the care l)estowe<l upon the 

 native poiMilation by tlio company; or is tliat contained in your re- 

 port'? — A. J rcler to it in this. Now, I will state a point which is iin- 

 poitant, and which does not api)e;ir in this, and that is, that the com- 

 pany lixes the ])rices of the commodities sold to the natives at no greater 

 advance than 25 ]>er cent, on the wholesale price at the market of San 

 Francisco. This was, I think, done at my suggestion, if I recollect well. 



iiefore I arrived at St. Paul I. had the pleasure of meeting the former 

 president of the company, (Jenerid Miller, and I called Ids attention to 

 that i)oint, and lie said he would do as 1 suggested. As to the coin- 

 [vensation for the work done for the company by the natives, it is paid 

 in money at certain lixed i)rices. My idea was that the amount of the 

 compensation and value of that compensation would not be determined 

 otherwise than by the company, who had a mono])oly to furnish supplies; 

 and if the natives had not a lixe<l standard of ])rices for the supplies 

 furnished them, the company might say: "We will ])ay for each skin 

 $1, and then charge them $1 for eacli i)ound of sugar." Well, the presi- 

 dent of the company immediately issued regulaticns and orders to their 

 agents not to sell commodities at any greater advance than 25 per cent, 

 above the wholesale price in San Francisco. 



(»>. Have you it, copy of the regulations here, or did you embody it 

 there ? — A. 1 do not know wliether I Iiave tliat copy here, but General 

 Jelfries v.ill be able to furnish that. 1 saw that no (lepartuiY^ was taken 

 from that ride by the agent of the comi)anyat ilw store. Occasionally 

 I visit(Ml the store, and I saw v^dir.t i)rices vrere charged, and 1 would, 

 even without the knovv'ledge of tbe agent, ask the men of the islaiul 

 occasionally, " AVhat do you ])ay for this; what <lo you ])ay for that?" 

 and I could not discover any deviation from the rule ado[)ted by the 

 company. 



Q. You are satisfied, then, that they adhered faithfully to the regu- 

 lation of charging no more than 25 percent, above wholesale San Fran- 

 cisco ])rices? — A. I am satislied that everything was done in accord- 

 an(;e with the lease. Had I not been so satisticd, 1 certainly v/ould 

 have rei)orted it. 



Q. Did the (company maintain a school-house'? — A. At that tin)e they 

 could not maintain one, because it was the thst year of the lease. 



(j>. Did you build a school-house? — A. They gave accommodations 

 for a school-house. Then they were looking for :i tea(;her, which they 

 iinally succe(;ded in fniding. I think it was — I can not recollect the 

 name — but it was a lady teacher, whom 1 understand was successful, 

 but during that winter we could not have any teacher, and I volunteered 

 to start this school; and I started it, and they of course gave the accom- 

 modations. There Avas a very good building which was well heated, 

 and the next sjning they brought a regular English teacher with whom 

 they had a contract, as I understand it, who was a lady, and whoso 

 nanu; I can not recioUect. 



(i. WMiat kind of houscjs had the (joinpany i)repared for the native's 

 there? — A. At that time they had live or six cottages built; that was 

 the starting point. 1 think they built lialf a dozen cottages, Avhich 

 were an immense imi)rovement over the hovels in which they lived in 

 (he ground. 



(3. The houses in which thcnai ives lived were what you might call sod- 

 houses — dirt hovels ? — A. Yes, sir. Their dwellings, damj), insalubrious 

 hovels, constructed of diift-wood and sods, are brought in ])aiidul con- 

 trast with all other conditions ol' their life. There being no materials at 



