INVESTIGATION" OF THE FUK-SEAL INDUSTRY OF ALASKA. 479 



formed from the size of the animals, but this is only conjecture. To 

 carry out the law and to define the relations of the agents under it, 

 regulations were fixed on the basis of weights of skins. Thus, to save 

 the 4-year-olds a maximum of 8J pounds was maintained at times. 

 To protect the yearlings a minimum weight of 5 pounds has been in 

 force. These standards weights were fixed Mr. Henry W. Elliott in 

 1872-1874. They will be found on page 192 of this last document 

 that was published. 



Mr. Elliott. You can not find a 5-pound weight in any of my 

 publications. That is a mistake. 



Mr. Clark. Four and one-half pounds is given as the average 

 weight of a yearling sealskin. 



The Chairman. Refer to that page. 



Mr. Elliott. There is no use misquoting me. You have my pub- 

 lication with you; 5+ pounds is my statement for a 2-year-old, and 

 you know it. 



Mr. Clark. On page 192 it is stated that the skin of a yearling seal 

 has a weight of 4^- pounds, a mean of six examples, males and 

 females, alike in size, July 14, 1873"; 4£ as an average must be a 

 mean of skins weighing from 4 pounds to 5 pounds. I take it that is 

 a reasonable interpretation. 



The Chairman. That is your explanation of that ? 



Mr. Clark. Yes ; the law says that no skins shall be taken under 

 5 pounds, and that was a concession to the fact that a skin averaging 

 A\ pounds was the skin of a yearling. 



The Chairman. Well, is that your judgment? 



Mr. Clark. That is my judgment; yes. 



The Chairman. 4£ pounds. 



Mr. Clark. The actions of the lessees and agents have conformed 

 to these standard weights. Since 1904 individual skin weights have 

 been recorded for every skin taken. The list of weights from this date 

 to 1911 are given at page 504 of Hearing No. 10. In the total 

 of 93,323 skins there recorded 711 only have been under the weight 

 of 5 pounds. 



Now, I want to take up the killing of yearlings, and it may be con- 

 ceded that some yearlings have been killed. I will concede that these 

 711 skins that have been mentioned are skins of animals which fell 

 below the weight prescribed by the regulations. 



Mr. Stephens. What do you mean by the word "some"? You 

 stated that you would concede "some" yearlings have been killed? 



Mr. Clark. I said 711 definitely. I do not want to say that all of 

 these 711 seals are yearlings, but certainly no other animals than those 

 711 can be charged to be yearlings. 



There are two explanations for these yearlings, and the first is acci- 

 dents. The native clubber must gauge the weight of the skin on the 

 living animal, and then club it down. Of course, when he makes a 

 mistake there is no way to recall it or remedy it. As a matter of fact, 

 the clubber may strike down a small animal when he intended to 

 stiike down a large animal. At times a blow intended for an animal 

 of proper age and size reaches a smaller animal for which it was not 

 intended. The head of a seal may seem large enough to correspond 

 to that of a 2 or 3 year old seal, while the body may not conform, but 

 of course, if it has been struck down that is an end of the matter, and, 

 of course, these mistakes of judgment can not be rectified. These arc 



