INVESTIGATION" OP THE FUR-SEAL INDUSTRY OP ALASKA. 471 



1913 must add 3 years to their age before they can breed and then 

 there must follow 3 years before their offspring can appear as breeders 

 or killable seals. We can not therefore look for any results from the 

 suspension of land sealing for 6 to 8 years from now. 



The only tangible result of the suspension of land sealing is that 

 10,000 young 3-} r ear-old males were allowed in the season of 1913 

 to pass into the category of breeding bulls. The result of this action 

 is not apparent at this time. It will appear 8 to 10 years hence when 

 these animals, having attained full adult strength, take up the the 

 contest with the active bulls for possession of the females. The 

 present stock of breeding bulls is 1,403, or, if we include the reserve 

 stock, approximately 1,800. An accession of 10.000 animals in a 

 single year is wholly unwarranted. The law provides for a repetition 

 of this unwarranted increment of breeding males through four seasons 

 more, and then for 9 years more there is to be an added loss of 4,000 

 seals annually through an excessive breeding reserve requiring 5,000. 



Fourth, the adequacy of the present stock of males: The stock of 

 breeding bulls was adequate in 1913 because there were 105 adult 

 bulls held in idleness by their more fortunate neighbors. Had there 

 been any dearth of breeding bulls, these animals would have obtained 

 harems. In addition there were 259 young bulls held out of harem 

 duty in the same way. These young animals were of full breeding 

 age and capacity, but simply did not have the strength to meet the 

 adult bulls in contest. 



The stock of breeding bulls was virile and potent. In 1912 there 

 were 1,358 bulls in active harem duty. The 92,269 pups found on 

 the breeding grounds in 1913 were due to their ministrations in 1912. 

 No other proof of their potency need be urged. The same may be 

 said for the 1,373 bulls doing harem duty in 1911, which were 

 responsible for the 81,984 pups counted in 1912. 



The average harem for 1911 yielded 60 pups in 1912; the average 

 harem for 1912 yielded 65 pups in 1913. It may be asserted that 

 these averages are not too high because the bulls voluntarily assume 

 responsibility for as many as 150 cows, if they can obtain control of 

 them. The present conditions are not abnormal. Steller, who saw 

 the animals in 1741 in a state of nature, reports the families— 8, 15, 50, 

 and 120 " wives" to a single bull. That will be found on page 203 of 

 the report of the commission of 1896-97, volume 3. Veniaminof, the 

 Russian bishop, speaks of "olden times" when bulls had from 500 to 

 700 females. That will be found in Zon's translation of Veniaminof' s 

 zapiska paper, a copy of which I can supply to the committee. The 

 general run of harems differs little from conditions in 1896-97, when 

 the number of idle bulls equaled the number of active bulls and there 

 was constant struggle. There were more single-cow harems in 

 1896-97 as a result of captures by idle bulls, but even then there were 

 many harems of 100 and over. Close observations in 1909, in 1912, 

 and again in 1913 show no material change. There always have been 

 small harems and large harems. It is a question largely of location. 



The question at issue is one of capacity on the part of the bull. 

 Veniaminof tells us (Zon's translation, manuscript, p. 17) that a bull 

 in 24 hours can handle 25 females. 



Mr. Watkins. Do you give that full allowance as correct ? 



Mr. Clark. No ; I am simply stating the previous facts. I will come 

 down to my own statement in a moment. In 1912 two services by 



