LETTERS TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

[American Museum of Natural History, Central Park (77th St. & 8th ave.) Department of Mammalogy and Ornithology. J. A. Allen, curator. Frank M. Chapman, asst. curator.]

Hon. JOHN W. FOSTER,

NEW YORK CITY, Dec. 7, 1892.

Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.:

DEAR SIR: Your letter of yesterday is before me. In the letter of Captain Bryant, dated June 14, 1870, and published by me (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., Vol. II, No. 1, Aug. 1870, p. 88), the phrase "the present year" refers to the year 1870 and not to the year 1869.

The words "in 1869" on p. 332 of the monograph' should read in

1870.

In this connection it is safe to assume that we have no definite information as to the number of seals occurring off the coast of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia during the years immediately preceding the year 1869, and we only know of their numbers there in 1869 in consequence of the fact that it was during this year "that the first practical essays were made in taking seals at sea" off this coast. (See British Report, Sec. 64, and Judge Swan's letter, p. 172, and first paragraph of p. 174.) Probably seals would have been found here in just as great abundance in previous years had any one had occasion to especially look for them.

Very truly, yours,

J. A. ALLEN.

Hon. JOHN W. FOSTER,

MATTAPOISETT, MASS., Dec. 15th, 1892.

Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.:

DEAR SIR: I am in receipt of your communication of the 14th inst. and hasten to reply. My letter of June 4, 1870, to Prof. Allen, was a private letter containing such fragmentary additional information as I had picked up in conversation with various parties whom I had met during my stay in San Francisco while waiting for the revenue cutter Lincoln to be got ready; and also from Capt. Scammon of the Lincoln who had had some previous experience in taking hair-seals for their oil on the coasts and islands of southern California.

In my search for information I found small parcels of dried fur-seal skins that had found their way down from the coast of British Columbia, through various channels; as nearly as I can remember I estimated them in all from fifteen hundred to two thousand skins; they were mostly the pups of the year before (1869), and in their present condition were hardly worth shipping to London. I was told by these parties holding them that more than the usual number had been seen and taken that season-the word "season" in this instance referring to the previous winter and spring, that of 1869-'70-after the seals had left the islands in 1869.

In making these inquiries I was told by these parties who had purchased these skins that more than the usual number had been taken there that season. In referring to this statement, it was intended to mean more seals, comparatively, had been seen than in ordinary years. I doubt not that the popular demand had stimulated the search more than usual, which would account for the greater number observed.

I have no doubt, however, that the numbers of seals seen there vary

from year to year with the movements of the migratory fishes, which they follow to feed upon.

In 1869 about 85,000 young seals were taken by the natives. I never stated that any such number were taken in 1870. The full number taken in 1870 was less than 25,000.

I remain yours to command,

CHARLES BRYANT.

LETTER FROM JUDGE JAMES G. SWAN CONCERNING BERING SEA COMMISSIONERS AND H. W. ELLIOTT.

[Published by permission of Judge Swan.]

PORT TOWNSEND, Wash., October 23, 1891. DEAR MISS SCIDMORE: I received a telegram from Dr. Dawson, one of the Royal Commissioners on Bering Sea, to go to Victoria and meet him and Sir George Baden-Powell, the other commissioner, and talk about seals, and accordingly I went on Monday, the 12th, and met the gentlemen at the Driard House and had a very pleasant interview. Dr. Dawson said: "It is impossible for men living on rookeries to find out anything about the migratory habits of the seals, and we have made this point our special study. Several books have been written on seal life from information derived solely from men on the rookeries and naturally not many facts have been elicited. We have found habits of seals that are not even mentioned in these works. Elliott's work on seals is amusing. I have no hesitation in saying that there is no important point that he takes up in his book that he does not contradict somewhere else in the same covers. He says in one place that no imagination could picture more crowded islands than the seal rookeries, and, a few pages after, states that the decrease of seals on those same islands was gradually getting more noticeable. His work is superficial in the extreme."

The Royal Commissioners did not confine their ivestigations to the Pribilof Group, as hitherto all the American special agents and commissioners have done, but followed down the coast, calling at various places to interview Indians, and even went to Neah Bay and conversed with the old chief, who knows me and who corroborated everything I have stated in my report to Professor Baird which Elliott denonnced as unreliable. They found that all I have stated about the habits of the fur-seal at Cape Flattery is strictly true. Dr. Dawson said that now an opposition company has the lease of the Pribilof Islands, and the Alaska Commercial Company are willing to tell of things which hitherto they have kept to themselves and they obtained some valuable information from them which they will embody in their report. There are different classes of seals in Bering Sea easily distinguished. The Royal Commissioners also have found that the seals of Cape Flattery do not go to Bering Sea at all, but go to Cook's Inlet, Cross Sound, and other of the Fiords and inlets of Southeastern Alaska, where they are found and killed by Indians during the same months of the breeding season on the Pribilof Islands. In short, he knocks Elliott's munchausonisms into smithereens and vindicates me in my statement,.

My friend, Capt. Hooper, of the United States revenue-cutter Corwin, told me on his return recently that all through this controversy about seals and their habits not one of the cutter officers had been required to report about seals until this sea8011. "We did not attempt to make any volunteer statement," said he, "but now we are required to report, and mean to tell all I know." "You have seen the seal pups swimming around at Neah Bay, as I have stated,” said I. "Yes, repeatedly, and now that I have an opportunity I intend saying so. You have knocked Elliott higher than a kite, and I am glad of it, because you have had truth on your side, and Elliott had fiction and romance on his side." The old saying comes true, said I, that when thieves fall out honest men get their dues. Now, that these two monopolizing corporations have fallen out, truth will prevail. I have fought Elliott for more than ten years, and now I have come out victor and I am glad of it. If our special agents to the rookeries had been as careful to arrive at exact facts about the habits of fur-seals as this Royal Commission has, I would have been vindicated long ago.

I intend writing an article on the present status of this seal question for the Seattle Post Intelligencer, and when published I will send you a copy. Say to inquiring friends that my flag is still at the masthead and never has been lowered in this controversy with Elliott. When I know I am right I will stick to the truth before any one. All your Port Townsend friends are well.

Very cordially,

Miss E. R. SCIDMORE,

1502 Twenty-first Street, Washington, D. C.

JAMES G. SWAN.

STATEMENT OF C. M. LAMPSON & CO.

64 QUEEN STREET, E. C., London, 8th Decr., 1892.

We hereby certify that no bundle of fur-seal skins shipped to us by the Alaska Commercial Company ever contained more than two skins. We further certify that, to the best of our information and belief, all sealskins taken by the Alaska Commercial Company from the Pribilof Islands, throughout the term of their lease, were consigned to and sold by us. C. M. LAMPSON & Co.

STATEMENTS OF ALFRED FRASER.

A.-CONCERNING THE NUMBER OF SKINS IN A BUNDLE.

50 WALL ST., NEW YORK CITY,

December 7, 1892.

I hereby certify that during the years from 1870 to 1876 I personally supervised the unpacking and counting of all sealskins received by Messrs. C. M. Lampson & Company in London from the Alaska Commercial Company. I have in this way seen many thousands of bundles opened, but never saw or heard of one that contained more than two skins.

CITY AND COUNTY OF NEW YORK, 88:

ALFRED FRASER.

On this 28th day of December, 1892, personally appeared before me Alfred Fraser, the person whose name is signed to the foregoing, and acknowledged to me that he executed the same.

[SEAL.]

EDWIN B. WOODS,

Notary Public, Kings Co.; Certificate filed in N. Y. Co.

B.-CONCERNING THE NUMBER OF SKINS SOLD BY C. M. LAMPSON & CO. FOR ACCOUNT OF THE ALASKA COMMERCIAL COMPANY.

Exhibit A, attached to my affidavit verified April 1, 1892, contains a statement of the salted fur-seal skins sold in London between the years 1870 and 1891. In order to deduce from this statement the number of fur-seal skins taken by the Alaska Commercial Company under its lease of the Fribilof Islands, this statement should be modified as follows:

(a) From the number of skins therein stated to have been sold in the year 1870 there should be deducted about 5,900 skins which were taken from the Pribilof Islands prior to the time when the said lease took effect upon the islands.

(b) The number of skins therein stated to have been sold in 1874 should be 99,150. Through a clerical error I originally gave this number as 90,150.

(c) The skins therein stated to have been sold in 1890 and 1891 were not taken from the Pribilof Islands by the Alaska Commercial Company.

I annex hereto press copy of statement of skins sold by C. M. Lampson & Co. for account of the Alaska Commercial Company from 1871 to 1884, which statement was prepared at London in the year 1884. ALFRED FRASER.

STATE OF NEW YORK,

NEW YORK, December 6, 1892.

City and County of New York, 88:

On this 6th day of December, one thousand eight hundred and ninety-two, before me personally appeared Alfred Fraser, to me known and known to be the individual described in and who executed the foregoing instrument, and he acknowledged to me that he executed the EDWIN B. WOODS,

same.

[SEAL.]

Notary Public, Kings Co., Certificate filed in N. Ý. Co.

Alaska fur-seal skins sold for account of the Alaska Commercial Company.1

Looking over the invoices of sealskins shipped by the Alaska Commercial Company from 1872-75, I find the smallest number of skins in any one cask in each of these years of―

1872, 46 skins, weighing 568 pounds, or 12 pounds per skin.

1873, 39 1874, 46 1875, 54"

14

6614

The gross weights above given include cask, skins, salt, and string. The annexed memorandum shows the average weight of all skins shipped by the Alaska Commercial Company.

There may have been, especially in the early years of the lease, a few bundles of skins from the Pribilof Islands weighing as much as 60 lbs., although I never remember seeing any of this weight.

1871.

1872.

1873.

1874.

1875.

1876.

1877.

1878.

1879.

1880.

ALFRED FRASER.

Average weight of Alaska salted fur-seal skins shipped to London.

NEW YORK, 15th December, 1892.

This is compiled from the press copy referred to in the foregoing statement of Alfred Fraser.

CITY AND COUNTY OF NEW YORK, 88:

On this 28th day of December, 1892, personally appeared before me Alfred Fraser, the person whose name is signed to the foregoing, and acknowledged to me that he executed the same.

[SEAL.]

EDWIN B. WOODS,

Notary Public, Kings Co.; Certificate filed in N. Y. Co.

STATEMENT OF C. W. MARTIN & SONS, LONDON, ON THE COMPOSITION OF A CERTAIN PELAGIC CATCH OF SEALSKINS.

[C. W. Martin & Sons; telegraphic address, Tinmar, London.]

4 LAMBETH HILL, QUEEN VICTORIA ST., E. C.,

London, December, 1892.

We have made a careful examination of the sex of each one of the fur-seal skins designated in the annexed report and hereby certify the correctness of the results given therein. We are of [the] opinion, based upon the numerous holes found in them, that almost all, if not all, of these skins were taken from seals which were killed in the sea by shot or spear. We are informed by Messrs. C. M. Lampson & Company that these skins were received by them for account of the Russian Government through their Mr. Fraser, to whom they were consigned, in the latter part of the summer of 1892, at San Francisco, from Petropavlovsk by the Russian Sealskin Company. The casks in which they were received, were numbered one to twenty-one, and were marked as follows: "R. S. S. Co. (G)"

C. W. MARTIN & SONS.

Report on 1,028 salted fur-seal skins as to sex, examined November 16th, 22d, and 23d, 1892.