USTVESTIGATION OF THE FUR-SEAL INDUSTRY OF ALASKA. 821 



Mr. Elliott. On land, not at sea. 



Mr. McGuire. That is, pelagic sealing? 



Mr. Elliott. Yes; proportionately, the killing has been just as 

 heavy. Of course, the figures in the trade would not show it. I 

 labored with Mr. Hamlin as hard as I could to get a better commis- 

 sion than the Jordan commission. I did not believe that one ignor- 

 ant man and some clerks was a proper commission for this work. I 

 wanted men with strong virile minds, like Elliott Cones, Theo. N. 

 Gill, and E. D. Cope (of Philadelphia). I wanted big, strong, brainy 

 men; not one ignorant man and a few clerks. 



Mr. McGuire. I believe you stated that you did write to John Hay ? 



Mr. Elliott. Yes; I opened negotiations with him. 



Mr. McGuire. Asking to be employed. Now, then, you did write 

 to these three men — Hamlin, Carlisle, and John Hay — asking for 

 employment ? 



Mr. Elliott. Yes; in that way; employment for that specific pur- 

 pose; to get these facts, so that these men could act quicldy. 



Mr. McGuire. Did you write to John Hay, asking that arrange- 

 ments be made for the purpose of sending somebody up there ? 



Mr. Elliott. No; the whole series of letters between John Hay 

 and myself, beginning in April, 1900, and ending March 14, 1905, 

 carried only one or two references to appropriations. The appro- 

 priations were made in 1904. Then we immediately went to work; 

 but sickness took him away March 14, 1905, just as we had perfected 

 the treaty. 



Mr. McGuire. I will ask you if you made this statement in 1902 

 before the Committee on Ways and Means. 



Mr. Elliott. In 1902? 



Mr. McGuire. Yes; February 18. 



Mr. Elliott. Yes; I revised those notes. They are all right. 



Mr. McGuire (reading) : 



Provision for the appointment by the President of two commissioners, to embody 

 the largest acquaintance and most extended experience, besides being an educated 

 man in the premises. 



Did you make that statement? 



Mr. Elliott. No; Mr. Hamlin made that statement, and I thought 

 it had better go out; but it was kept in. 



Mr. McGuire. But that was your statement. 



Mr. Elliott. I know; but Mr. Hamlin put it in and I did not care to 

 antagonize Mr. Hamlin, because we had to work together at that time 

 to get something done. 



Mr. McGuire. Mr. Elliott, on page 5, Senate Document 407, 

 Sixtieth Congress, first session, you charge that certain Senators, 

 Congressmen, and department officials have been suborned into al- 

 lowing sea butcheries of the fur-seal herd. What Senators were 

 suborned ? 



Mr. Elliott. Well, that was — I do not like to name them. 



Mr. McGuire. Was Senator Morgan one of them ? 



Mr. Elliott. No. They are all in "Senate Document 407," and 

 I want to put that in the record as my answer. 



Mr. McGuire. I will read this about Senator Morgan: "This old 

 Senator Morgan in a fit of pique sat up all night in the Senate Chamber 

 in order to rise with that single objection which was necessary to 

 throw this Dingley bill over on the calendar." 



