PHENOMENAL CATCH OF SEALS. 297 



blowing a moderate gale, which continued until the following noon. Occasional 

 heavy rain squalls passed over, which kept the sea down somewhat. In the evening 

 two sleeping seals were noticed, which was unusual under the circumstances. 



In the morning of August 30 the wind had again increased to a moderate gale, 

 and since midnight had changed 2 points to the southward. The sea was very roughj 

 weather clear and sunny. 



At 10 a. m. wore ship and lay to on the starboard under close-reefed sails. Both 

 in the forenoon and afternoon we saw scattering seals. They were seemingly not 

 bound in any particular direction, and most of them were playing. One was observed 

 asleep. 



We had been in comj)aratively clear water all day, but late in the afternoon 

 suddenly Jogged into discolored water. At 5.30 p. m. the jib was set, and we stood 

 on a southeast by south course, so as to give the 60-mile limit a wide berth, the wind 

 and sea for the past twenty four hours having carried us toward it. We worked to 

 the south and west all night. In the morning of August 31 the wind and sea had 

 gone down considerably, and one vessel was in sight. At noon we were in latitude 

 55° 11' north, longitude 170° 05' west. We spoke the schooner Enterprise^ of Victoria, 

 with 1,387 skins on board. She reported the schooner Lihhie, with 1,040 skins, and 

 the Carlotta Cox, with 600, The last-named vessel carried only 6 boats, and white 

 hunters, which speaks well iu their favor as seal hunters with spears. 



Shortly after meridian we passed several sleeping seals, but the condition of the 

 weather prevented the hunters from going out. About two hours later several more 

 were seen, and at 4 p. m. we came across a bunch of " sleepers." At this time the 

 weather showed signs of clearing, and 7 canoes were lowered, but they were out only 

 a short time when the weather again became threatening. Eleven seals was the 

 result of this short trial, 5 being males and 6 females. They were all very small and 

 only one contained food. Four of the females were without milk. 



Through the day we had been in markedly discolored water, and the other 

 indications were favorable to the presence of a considerable body of seals on this 

 ground, which turned out to be the fact, as proved by the results of the hunting on 

 the following day. 



The wind had been moderate all through the night, and in the morning of 

 September 1 a light air was moving from the southwest, the sea being smooth. The 

 sky was cloudy and the air cool, but as the day advanced it grew warmer. Whales 

 could be heard blowing through the night, and at daylight a number were seen close 

 by; also immense flocks of birds. At 5.30 a. m. the hunters started under very 

 favorable conditions, the sea being smooth and nothing in the atmosphere indicative 

 of a change. The wind being very hght, the vessel remained in one position most of 

 the day. ISTumerous seals were observed, both awake and asleep. The former were 

 moving only slowly, seldom going over 100 yards, and spending most of the time in 

 finning, rolling, and scratching themselves. In the afternoon we were boarded by the 

 revenue cutter Rush. At 5.30 p. m. the canoes began to return, each one bringing a 

 good catch, the largest amounting to 25 seals, the smallest to 11. The total catch was 

 336. This was a phenomenal day's work, affording the greatest number of seals ever 

 taken in Bering Sea in one day, except that the schooner Sapphire in 1894 captured 

 about 400 in the same length of time. There were 120 males and 216 females. The 

 stomachs of those opened showed a remarkable scarcity of food. The material from 8 



