THE RUSSIAN FUR-SEAL ISLANDS. 
85 
of the years 1892 to 1894. The lateness of the catch in 1895 is therefore abrupt aiul 
exceptional. Thei'e is a great deal of ditt'erence in the dates upon which the hunting 
ceases, even in former years. Thus, on Glinka, Copper Island, the catch was all in on 
the following dates: 
1877 
1878. 
1879, 
June 30 
July 12 
Aug. 1 
1880 
1881 
1883 
Aug. 7 
July 30 
J uly 13 
But the lateness of the Bering Island season of 1895 is not exiilainable in that 
way either, for no amount of backwardness of the season would account for the catch 
after the middle of August. The summer of 1895 was certainly a cold and late one, 
and the snow was in places lying down to the waters edge the entire summer; but the 
season of 1879 was also late, according to the records, and the “year remarkable for 
much snow,” yet the sealing season closed on both islands on August 2. There must 
consequently be some other reaso7i for the lateness in 1895. 
Here is where the plea comes in that the killable seals in 1895 arrived later on 
the rookeries than in former years. In answer to this I would like to ask the question : 
Is there anybody familiar with the North Eookery, Berijig Island, who would deny that 
it would have been feasible in any previous year to have obtained there 2,070 skins 
between August 13 and September 13, if an attempt had been made to “sci'ape and 
rake” the rookery to the same extent as in 1895? However, the table of the seals killed 
on that rookery in 1895 (p. 110) directly disproves the alleged late arrival of the killables, 
for it will be seen that the proportion of the killables to the other classes of seals 
driven was decreasing toward the latter part of the season, instead of increasing. 
Thus, before August 12 the average proportion of killed seals to those escaping was 
as 1 to 2.2, while after that date it fell to 1 to 3.75. 
The following table shows how exceedingly variable the first arrival of killables 
on the rookeries really is : 
First drives on Bering Island, North Bookery. 
Date. 
Number 
of skins. 
Date. 
Number 
of skins. 
1877 Juno 29 
911 
1890 Mav 25 
41 
3 
1801* Mav 29 
51 
1881 May 31 
221 
3 
1882 Juiie 8 
512 
830 
1883, June 19 
1,552 
1,103 
no 
1889, June 19 
The true and only explanation of the exceptional lateness of the season on Bering 
Island lies in the fact that killable seals, especially the younger classes, had become 
very scarce, and that, consequently, in order to get as many skins as possible — the 
company and the iiatives being equally eager to make up the threatened deficiency — 
seals were killed until the advaneed staginess of the skins x)ut a stoi> to it, as j^roven 
by the fact that in the last drive, in which 194 seals were killed, 51 were more or less 
stagy. 
This statement recalls the other change alleged to have taken place. It is 
asserted that the skins beeome stagy later in the year now than formerly. 
In order to fully weigh this allegation it is well to call to mind the fact that there 
are very few detailed and definite observations upon this point so far as the Com- 
mander Islands are concerned. Nowhere do we find any series of observations 
