﻿New 
  York 
  State 
  Museum. 
  47 
  

  

  Note 
  I.— 
  The 
  Beaver. 
  

  

  " 
  According 
  to 
  a 
  letter 
  from 
  the 
  Dutch 
  West 
  India 
  Company, 
  preserved 
  in 
  

   the 
  Albany 
  Records, 
  we 
  learn 
  that, 
  in 
  1624, 
  400 
  beavers 
  and 
  700 
  otter 
  skins 
  

   were 
  exported; 
  the 
  number 
  increased 
  in 
  ^1635 
  to 
  14,891 
  beaver 
  and 
  1,413 
  otter 
  

   skins; 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  number 
  in 
  the 
  ten 
  years 
  was 
  80,183 
  beavers 
  and 
  7,347 
  

   otters, 
  amounting 
  in 
  value 
  to 
  725,117 
  guilders." 
  — 
  De 
  Kay, 
  Zoology 
  of 
  New 
  

   York, 
  1842. 
  

  

  The 
  beaver, 
  once 
  abundant 
  and 
  of 
  great 
  commercial 
  importance, 
  is 
  still 
  per- 
  

   haps 
  entitled 
  to 
  be 
  considered 
  an 
  inhabitant 
  of 
  New 
  York. 
  ' 
  ' 
  At 
  present 
  there 
  

   is 
  a 
  small 
  colony 
  of 
  beavers 
  on 
  a 
  strea 
  -n 
  that 
  empties 
  into 
  the 
  west 
  branch 
  of 
  

   the 
  St. 
  Regis 
  river. 
  It 
  is 
  probably 
  the 
  colony 
  referred 
  to 
  by 
  De 
  Kay, 
  in 
  1842 
  r 
  

   as 
  ' 
  yet 
  existing 
  in 
  the 
  southern 
  part 
  of 
  Franklin 
  county.' 
  It 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  earnestly 
  

   hoped 
  that 
  the 
  hunters 
  who 
  frequent 
  that 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  wilderness 
  will 
  spare 
  no- 
  

   pains 
  to 
  protect 
  these 
  animals 
  from 
  molestation." 
  — 
  Merriam, 
  Mammals 
  of 
  the 
  

   Adirondacks, 
  1884. 
  

  

  Note 
  II.— 
  The 
  Wapiti, 
  or 
  American 
  Elk. 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  stag 
  is 
  still 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  New 
  York, 
  but 
  very 
  sparingly, 
  and 
  

   will 
  doubtless 
  be 
  extirpated 
  before 
  many 
  years. 
  Mr. 
  Beach, 
  an 
  intelligent 
  

   hunter 
  on 
  the 
  Racquet, 
  assured 
  me 
  that, 
  in 
  1836, 
  he 
  shot 
  at 
  a 
  stag 
  (or, 
  as 
  he 
  

   called 
  it, 
  an 
  elk) 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  branch 
  of 
  the 
  Saranac. 
  He 
  had 
  seen 
  many 
  of 
  

   the 
  horns 
  and 
  described 
  this 
  one 
  as 
  much 
  larger 
  than 
  the 
  biggest 
  bucis 
  

   (C. 
  virginianus), 
  with 
  immense 
  long 
  and 
  rounded 
  horns 
  with 
  many 
  short 
  

   antlers. 
  His 
  account 
  was 
  confirmed 
  by 
  another 
  hunter, 
  Vaughan, 
  who 
  killed 
  

   a 
  stag 
  at 
  nearly 
  the 
  same 
  place. 
  They 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  northwestern 
  counties 
  

   of 
  Pennsylvania 
  and 
  the 
  adjoining 
  counties 
  of 
  New 
  York. 
  In 
  1834, 
  I 
  am 
  

   informed 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Philip 
  Church, 
  a 
  stag 
  was 
  killed 
  at 
  Bolivar, 
  Allegany 
  county. 
  

   My 
  informant 
  saw 
  the 
  animal, 
  and 
  his 
  description 
  corresponds 
  exactly 
  with 
  

   this 
  species." 
  — 
  De 
  Kay, 
  Zoology 
  of 
  New 
  York, 
  1842. 
  

  

  "That 
  the 
  American 
  elk, 
  or 
  wapiti 
  (Cervus 
  canadensis), 
  was 
  at 
  one 
  time 
  

   common 
  in 
  the 
  Adirondacks, 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  question. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  When 
  the 
  

   species 
  was 
  exterminated 
  here 
  is 
  not 
  known. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  regard 
  the 
  

   above 
  account 
  of 
  Messrs. 
  Beach 
  and 
  Vaughan 
  as 
  trustworthy, 
  for 
  the 
  reason 
  

   that 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  rind 
  a 
  hunter 
  in 
  this 
  wilderness, 
  however 
  aged, 
  

   who 
  had 
  ever 
  heard 
  of 
  a 
  living 
  elk 
  in 
  the 
  Adirondacks." 
  — 
  Merriam, 
  Mammals 
  

   of 
  the 
  Adirondacks, 
  1884. 
  

  

  Note 
  III.— 
  The 
  Moose. 
  

  

  The 
  bull 
  moose 
  exhibited 
  was 
  killed 
  in 
  the 
  town 
  of 
  Ohio, 
  Herkimer 
  county, 
  

   New 
  York, 
  in 
  January, 
  1851. 
  Ten 
  years 
  later 
  the 
  moose 
  was 
  exterminated 
  

   in 
  New 
  York. 
  

  

  Note 
  IV. 
  — 
  The 
  Harbor 
  Seal 
  — 
  Common 
  Seal. 
  

  

  Harbor 
  seals 
  " 
  are 
  now 
  comparatively 
  rare 
  in 
  our 
  waters, 
  but 
  were 
  formerly 
  

   very 
  abundant. 
  A 
  certain 
  reef 
  of 
  rocks 
  in 
  the 
  harbor 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  is 
  called 
  

   Robin's 
  Beef, 
  from 
  the 
  numerous 
  seals 
  which 
  were 
  accustomed 
  to 
  resort 
  there? 
  

   robin 
  or 
  robyn 
  being 
  the 
  name 
  in 
  Dutch 
  for 
  seal. 
  At 
  some 
  seasons, 
  even 
  at 
  

   the 
  present 
  day, 
  they 
  are 
  very 
  numerous, 
  particularly 
  about 
  the 
  Execution 
  

   Rocks 
  in 
  the 
  Sound; 
  but 
  their 
  visits 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  very 
  capricious. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  In 
  

   the 
  Kingston 
  (N. 
  C.) 
  Chronicle 
  of 
  February, 
  1823 
  or 
  '24, 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  notice 
  of 
  a 
  

   seal 
  having 
  been 
  taken 
  on 
  the 
  ice 
  on 
  Lake 
  Ontario, 
  near 
  Cape 
  Vincent 
  (Jeffer- 
  

  

  