The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-08-10
These are the res gestde-the facts Of the
,oan .,d nom xph ~ ~ bau,

Dy the Y. .. through the purchase OF Alas
ks from Russia, and are the only really
valuable fisheries OF the kind In the world
Many other seas have plenty of seal, blu,
the fine fur seal Of commerce Is found only
In Alaska, Annually, at q certain season
the seal come 10 the islands Of st. Pau
and st. George for breeding purposes
Each female has her mate, that watches
over her brood, yet as there are many
more males than females, so careful Is the
government of preserving the animal from
extinction or dlminution, that 1t allows only
the bachelor seals to be slain, and only
at the time when the whole coloney occupy
the Islands above named for breeding pur-
poses.
All other fishing for seal within the
limits OF Alaska or the waters thereof" /.
declared unlawful by Sec. 1866 of r. s. OF
the U. s. and severe penalties are pre-
scribed for violation of the law and by
another act of Congress 1t Is made the du'
ty of the President annually TO issue a
proclamation warning ell poachers of the
penalties of trespass, and directing the rev.
enue officers In Alaska to proceed vigor.
ously against all offenders found In the
Alaska seas.
Under this law not only numerous Amer.
lean, bnt also British vessels have, since
1885, been boarded and serched In Behrlng
sea, and II seal skins were found unpon
them, they were sliced and the vessels
sent to Sifka for adjudication. There are
also cases, as that of the Alfred Adams,
In 1887, where British vessels seized by
American revenue cutters and ordered to
Sitka, have, like the Black Diamond, VIC.
lated their parole, and sailed away to Brit
ish ports.
The only motive of the government In
these rigid measures against poaching as
already intlmated, is to preserve the SEAL
Killing them only when they visit the is
lands of st. Paul and st. George, and then
only the bachelors, the annual prod
uct Of the fisheries for a number of years,
remained about the same, until lately, and
the perceptible diminution Of late has been
clearly traceable to poaching, the poachers
killing the animal out Of season, when the
females are heavy with young, and killing
males and females Unfortunately as they
find them afoat In the open sea.
In this preservation Of the seal England
has as deep an Interest as America, for 1t is
we'll known that after the seals are caught,
the skins are taken to London, where the
only dryers and furrlers are found who are
able so to dress and color them as TO fit
them for commerce. England, therefore,
really makes more money out Of the skins
than America.
The muss, therefore, which Canada is
now trying to kick up over the seizure of
the Black Diamond Is only In the interest
Of species Of robbery for which England
no more than the U. s. has any apology to
offer; but the specious ground Of 1t Is, that
Sea, instead Of being closed wa
ter within the exclusive ownership and jur.
isdiction of the United States, Is an open
sea, free to all the world, like the Atlantic
ocean, anywhere beyond the limit of three
miles from shore.
On that point indeed there may be grave
doubt. There is no question that Russia,
before she sold Alaska TO the U. 8. always
treated the Behring as a closed sea, and In
describing the boundaries of the cession to
this country, includes that sea. Yet the
rule that to constitute an inland sea the en-.
trance to 1t must be narrow enough to be
guarded by land Notifications on each side
cannot apply to Berhing Sea- the straits
At the narrowest point are over 40 miles
In width. Nevertheless England ought to be
the last nation to complain on that score,
for In her control Of the we'll known pearl
fisheries of Manar, in the East Indies, she
controls the entire Gulf, larger water
han Berhing Sea, and none of her fisheries
lie less than six, and many 20, miles and
more from the mainland! The pearl
fisheries also lie from 10 to 20 from the
mainland. Yet no nation has ever
questioned the right of Great Britain
to project either of those open sea
against destruction by poachers.
The breeze raised over this Black Dla.
mond seizure, then, is likely to have only
one, aud good result. 1t will compel the
U. s., Great Britain and Canada to give due
diplomatic attention to the subject, and
while some definite conclusion will
be reached as to the question of
the exclusive ownership AMI jurisdiction
of the u. 8. over the Behrlng Sea, it will
lead to the other and more important re-
suit, of mutual agreement to protect the
seal from ruthless and indiscriminste
slaughter by vile brood of sea rovers,
worse than pirates, American, Canadian
and English that infest the entire north
Pacific coast.
-
The Hon. Elmer Baldwin has broken
loose In the Republican again on the subs