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pictures of almost all the larger African animals, the wanton and cruel slaughter 

 of these wonderful animals disgusted me. Would you like to see a man try out 

 his new elephant gun by shooting at a dainty gazelle, and see both its front feet 

 shot off, and then it bounding away on the stumps? Or see a baby zebra following 

 its wounded mother whose intestines were dragging on the ground? Imagine the 

 suffering of badly wounded intelligent elephants. I often ate my lunch beside 

 a picturesque hipi>opotamus pool deep in Portuguese East Africa and watched a 

 happy family of one big bull hippo, three cows and three playful calves. Can you 

 imagine calling a hipix) frolicsome? The three calves played tag and leaped clear 

 out of the water over the backs of their parents. I felt that I knew each hippo by 

 its first name. 



'1 approached this pool one day and met a newly arrived customs oflScial who 

 proudly boasted that he had just shot seven hippos. In the small pool they 

 couldn't hide, and lie had blasted the heads of all seven when they hiad come up 

 to breathe, and simply left them there to rot. 



When I got home a Hollywood film producer wanted me to go with him to film 

 African animals. He said, "We'll get so far away from any game wardens by heli- 

 copter that we can just slaughter all the animals we want to our heart's content." 



After living continuously out of the United States for five years I experienced 

 a wonderful feeling of patriotism and close comradeship toward all my fellow 

 Americans. It was bitter to soon realize that ibecause of lack of training and 

 discipline in all the various phases of good character, the United States had be- 

 come a much less pleasant place in which to Uve. Selfishness and greed are among 

 our worst characteristies. The lust for more and more money does away with 

 preserving our precious natural environment which includes the wildlife of 

 forests, our beautiful natural rivers and seashores. 



Statement of Mr. and Mks. Edward Silva, Oakland, Calif., in Support of 

 THE OCELAN MAMMAL PROTECTION AcT (S. 1315; H.R. 6558) 



Our nation of television viewers have been shocked at the Pribiloff seal mas- 

 sacres. They saw and heard the clubs crack on helpless seals as they were bat- 

 tered. Hundreds of thousands of school children ('as well as adults) , have seen 

 this! They watched with tears streaming down their faces (even teen-age boys 

 considered "tough"), and they care so much they asked what they could do to 

 help. They told their teachers they wanted to do something to stop this. 



Can we comprehend that what we viewed in a few minutes, takes place all day 

 long from June well into August? That as many as 2.500 are killed in any given 

 day? That the torture-skinning takes place while some are still alive, hearts still 

 beating? Who would i)erTnit his own children to see the bludgening of the gentle 

 seals and still wonder how they would want one to vote on a law that can help 

 them? 



Regarding whales : a reporter who saw a whale-ship-killing turned her memory 

 back to the sighit, and told the television audience : "They cry." Yes, they suffer 

 as we would, with, a harpoion through our body. Merciful death does not always 

 come soon. Dr. H. R. Lillie, a physician who worked with the British wlialing 

 fleet said the method still used in killing whales today is horrible. He witnessed 

 where five hours, and nine harpoons, were required to kill a female Blue Whale 

 in advanced pregnancy. Three species of whales are being killed in our ovsra 

 waters by Whaling boats operating from Richmond, California, and all three are 

 on the "endangered species list." 



Are we generally aware that seals, whales, otters, walrus, and the others, 

 serve man by making our waters viable — livable — by keeping the food chain in 

 balance? This is a vital service to everyone on earth. 



Mammals do not deserve mass extinction by man, yet they are being exter- 

 minated, mercilessly. Many will vanish forever if we do not halt the killings 

 without delay. In addition to this, inflicting agony on these creatures — the 

 brutality involved in the maiming and killing — ^has shocked the country, and 

 this shock is growing. Overwhelming response to television documentaries on 

 this subject also tell of the widespread desire to end this slaughter. 



Will vou help to end this by giving your "yes" vote to the Harris-Pryor Bill 

 No. S. i315; H.R. 6558? Will you speak out for it, and help it become a law? 

 We are deeply concerned. 



It may be of interest to know that it takes ten years to produce one siperm 

 Whale. Male and female whale each reach maturity at about age 9. A female 



