INVESTIGATION OF THE FUR-SEAL INDUSTRY OF ALASKA. 337 



Dr. Evercnann says he did not 

 wish to renew the lease — hot he; 

 nor did any of his official asso- 

 ciates; oh, no — 



Dr. Evermann. Now, as to re-leasing 

 the islands. I dp not understand the pur- 

 pose of Mr. Elliott and certain followers of 

 his in seeking to show that the advisory 

 board, the Bureau of Fisheries, and their 

 individual members favored re-leasing the 

 islands. 



Your attention is called also to the 

 recommendations of the advisory board 

 dated November 23, 1909. Recommen- 

 dation No. 3 says: 



"It is recommended that there be 

 adopted a system of regulations similar to 

 those in force on the Commander Islands, 

 the Government to assume entire control 

 in all essential matters pertaining to the 

 fur seals, blue foxes, natives, and the 

 islands in general, and the lessee to be 

 restricted to the receiving, curing, and 

 shipping of the skins taken." 



This recommendation was unanimously 

 agreed to by the advisory board, fur-seal 

 service (Dr. David Starr Jordan, chair- 

 man; Dr. Leonard Stc-jneger, Dr. Fred- 

 eric A. Lucas, Mr. Edwin W. Sims, Dr. 

 Charles H. Townsend), the fur-seal board 

 (Dr. Barton Warren Evermann, chair- 

 man; Mr. Walter I. Lembkey, and Mr. 

 Millard C. Marsh), the Commissioner of 

 Fisheries (Hon. George M. Bowers), the 

 Deputy Commissioner of Fisheries (Dr. 

 Hugh M. Smith), assistant fur-seal agent 

 (H. D. Chichester), and special scientific 

 expert (Mr. George A. Clark). (See p. 

 814. Appendix A.) 



I desire the committee to note also that 

 the elimination of the lessee was thus 

 recommended long before Dr. Hornaday, 

 representing the Camp Fire Club, ap- 

 peared before the Senate Committee on 

 Conservation and properly opposed the 

 leasing system, which he did at the hear- 

 ings of February 26 and March 22, 1910. 

 This was more than a year after Dr. Jor- 

 dan had expressed the "hope that the 

 Government will not under any circum- 

 stances lease the products of the islands, 

 at least in such form as has been in vogue 

 for the past 40 years. " And it was more 

 than three months after the Commissioner 

 of Fisheries and six other members of the 

 Bureau of Fisheries united with the ad- 

 visory board in a recommendation that 

 the leasine svstem be discontinued. 

 (Hearing No. 14, pp. 981, 982, July 29, 

 1912.) 



But his record shows that he 

 was hard at the very job, with 

 those associates in full cry with 

 him, too. 



Mr. Elliott. And I want Mr. Bowers to 

 pay some, attention to this because this 

 is important, at least some good lawyers 

 have told me that it is very important to 

 him — 



"Being an official letter covering a 

 'memorandum' addressed to George M. 

 Bowers, commissioner, urging him to take 

 steps to prevent the passage of the Dixon 

 fur-seal resolutions introduced in the 

 United States Senate by Senator Joseph 

 M. Dixon. (S. Bes. 90, 91, 92.) 



"December 7, 1909. This letter from 

 the 'bureau,' dated December 16, 1909, 

 and signed by Barton W. Evermann, 

 urges Bowers to send agents to New York, 

 there to 'educate' the Camp Fire Club 

 and induce them to agree to the 'bureau's 

 idea of renewing the lease,' as follows: 



Exhibit No. 6. 



Department op Commerce 

 and. Labor, 

 Bureau of Fisheries, 

 Washington, December 16, 1909. . 



The Commissioner: 



The Washington Star of December 10 

 last announced that the Camp fire Club, of 

 New York, had inauguratecl a campaign 

 to save the fur-seai herd through legisla- 

 tion designed to prevent the re-leasing of 

 the sealing right, the cessation of all kill- 

 ing on the islands for 10 years except for 

 natives' food, and to secure the opening 

 of negotiations with Great Britain to re- 

 vise the regulations of the Paris tribunal. 

 As the result of this movement, on Decem- 

 ber 7 three resolutions were introduced by 

 Senator Dixon, of Montana, one of which 

 embodies the provisions before mentioned, 

 the other two calling for the publication 

 of fur-seal correspondence and reports 

 since 1904. 



As the object of this movement is at 

 variance with the program of this bureau 

 and of the recommendations of the advis- 

 ory fur-seal board, notably in the plan to 

 prevent killing and the renewal of the 

 seal-island lease, the advisability is sug- 

 gested of having Messrs. Townsend, Lucas, 

 and Stanley-Brown use their influence 

 with such members of the Campfire Club 

 as they may be acquainted with, with the 

 object of correctly informing the club as 

 to the exact present status of the seal 

 question and of securing its cooperation 

 to effect the adoption of the measures 

 advocated by this bureau. 



The attached letter is prepared, having 

 in view the object stated. 



Barton W. Evermann. 



58400—14- 



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