FISHERIES OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 
253 
The apparatus and methods employed by the white seal-hunters are 
essentially the same as those referred to under the head of the fur-seal 
fishery from San Francisco. 
Review of the fur-seal and sea-otter fisheries , 1888. — The following 
review of the pelagic seal and sea-otter fisheries prosecuted from the 
various ports of this region is arranged to show the interest of each 
place during the season of 1888. When the investigation closed upon 
which this report is based the season of 1889 was not completed. 
The business of taking fur seals and sea otters was prosecuted from 
Dungeness, Seattle, Port Townsend, and Neah Bay in 1888. 
One vessel, the schooner Granger (49.62 tons), engaged in pelagic 
fur-sealing from Dungeness. The vessel carried 3 white men and 18 
Indians, in addition to 2 squaws employed in dressing the skins. Its 
outfit included 9 Indian canoes, and guns and spears. The result of 
the season’s work was 510 sealskins, valued at $2,550. The lay, which 
differed somewhat from that in other fishing centers, was as follows: 
The Indians received $1.15 for each seal secured; the captain was paid 
a salary of $75 per month, and the other white men were also on salaries, 
at $40 per month. 
Three vessels, aggregating 129.24 tons, made Port Townsend their 
headquarters while engaged in this fishery. One of these also devoted 
some attention to the pursuit of sea otters. The season’s work resulted 
in the capture of 1,040 seals and 30 sea otters, valued at $5,825 and 
$3,450, respectively. The seal-hunters from this place received $2 for 
each seal recovered, and the boat- pullers got 50 cents a pelt. The 
masters of the vessels were paid regular wages, and also a commission 
on the gross stock. The cooks got 50 cents a skin. 
For a number of years a few small vessels have followed fur-sealing 
from Seattle with varying success. Recently larger vessels from 
Gloucester, Massachusetts, have entered into the business, and in 1888 
the fleet consisted of 5 sail, with an aggregate tonnage of 341.45. The 
seals are all taken outside of Puget Sound, on the high seas. The 
vessels go south in the spring, and usually fall in with seals iu the 
vicinity of the Farallone Islands. They then follow the animals as 
they migrate north. The season lasts from April to October, during 
which time, if fishing is good, vessels in this fishery will make several 
trips, landing their fares at Port Townsend, Seattle, or Victoria, refit- 
ting and again following the seals toward the north. The crews con- 
sist of 18 to 29 men, and are divided into boat-pullers and hunters, one 
man of each class going in a boat. The boat-pullers receive $25 a 
month and a bonus of 10 cents for each seal secured by the boats, while 
the hunters are paid $1.50 for each seal taken. White men constitut- 
ing the crews use only guns iu the capture of seals, while the Indians 
employ both guns and spears. One vessel, in 1888, was fitted out with 
three large gill nets for capturing seals; these had a total length of 
350 fathoms, were 3 fathoms deep, and had a 10-inch mesh. The vessel 
