THE RUSSIAN FUR-SEAL ISLANDS. 
119 
Alelcsauiler IT at Glinka, but was found to bave “4 to 5 fur-seals only.” On the next 
day Air. Grebuitski boarded the schooner Alexander, Captain Littlejohn, The latter 
swore that lie had shot the 5.3 seals found on board, denying that he had been near a 
rookery, and Avas warned off. Captain Sandman on August 12 confiscated 4 sea-otters 
from the schooner Flying Mist, Captain Bradford, Avhich was found at anchor ‘‘around 
the Northwest Cape (Copper Island) close inshore about 8‘ SE. from rocks,” but with 
“apparently no seals.” 
On September 1 the kossak and a watchman boarded the schooner Seventy Six, 
Captain Potts, off the Southeast Cape, Cojiper Island, finding only one man on board, 
the rest being on shore. The watchmen went after them, but the schooner’s* crew 
made directly for the vessel as soon as they saw them coming, and got away. “ On 
shore the watchman found about 40 seal carcasses which the schooner’s people had 
killed and .skinned, all bulls.” 
The raiders did not confine themselves to Coiiiier Island by any means, for on 
September 10 an unknown schooner visited the South Eookerj^ on Bering Island, 
killing about 25 seals, and two days later a schooner, possibly the same, was reiiorted 
“on the north side shooting seals at sea,” but left on the approach of the steamer 
Alelcsander II. After the departure of the latter, the schooner came in again on 
September 13, but the Avhaleboat which was sent asliore was driven away, by the 
natives firing at the crew, before any seals were killed. 
Captain Littleiohn, in the schooner Alexander, evidently took no heed of the 
warning giveii him, for on October IG he was on the Glinka Rookeries and took 
“ some seals again,” an exploit which he I'epeated on the moonlight night of the 18th, 
when he secured “a number of seals (mostly cows) before morning.” 
Although the record for 1881 is not quite so black, it is in some respects fully as 
interesting. 
On Bering Island Wo schooners appeared at the North Rookery on October 8 
a?ul landed G whaleboats, killing many seals, mostly females and young ones. Mi'. 
Grebuitski himself went to the rookery, but the schooner had already left. Exactly a 
Aveek later t\A'o schooners again arrived off the North Rookery, possibly the same, 
landing 5 whaleboats early in the morning of October IG. Tliis time, however, the 
natives were ]»repared, and 40 of them, well armed with rifles, met the raiders. The 
latter now oiiened negotiations, the captain offering a gold watch to the chief, money 
to the men, and Avhisky to all for the iirivilege of taking 300 fur-seals. The natives 
refused, and the raiders, after having examined some of the Berdan breech-loading 
rifles and having received an affirmative answer to their question Avhether the natives 
would shoot if they should attempt to kill any seals, withdreAv. “Seeing that they 
could do nothing, they initto sea.” 
It is iirobably to a raid in 1881 that Mr. S. L. BeckAvith’s testimony relates (Fur 
Seal Arb., viii, p. 810), in Avhich he states that as “ a mate on the vessel Alexander, 
belonging to Hermann Liebes, of which Captain Carlson Avas master,” “in 1880, or 
thereabouts,” he “ A\*ent ashore and raided Copper Island, and got about 100 .seals, and 
we AVOAihl haAm got a great many more, for we had about 1,200 killed Avheu Ave were 
fired upon. A Japanese A^essel was there the day before raiding and scAmral of the 
raiders were shot.” This last information seems to tally with the following record 
from Bering Island: “ October 11. A schooner has been at Staraya Gavan. Buried 
one Japanese.” 
