The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-08-06
CRUISE OF THETIS.
Chasing After the Seal Poachers
i'm the North.
SEATTLE VESSELS SEARCHED.
The Presidents Proclamation With Let.
tiers of Warning Delivered to the
Schooners at UnaIaska.

Major James r. Hayden received yesterday
from A. C. Amy, who is on the Thetis. letter
containing an interesting account of that
vessels cruise to the sealing grounds of the
North. Under date of June q Mr. Amy writes
at sea:
We sailed from San Francisco on the 18th
inst. for Sand Point on Popof island, in the Al
eutian group of islands, and have now been
ten days out, and expect TO reach our destina-
ton day after tomorrow.
We hope TO send our mail bv an English
steamer at sand point, which is supposed to
leave for Victoria in few days
We have bad several days of rough weather,
but now il is clear and cold with little wind
ana long sea swell and not too much motion TO
prevent me from writing at my desk.
The Thetls is very slow, although on this trip
we have been fortunate in having favorable
winds; we steam all the time, and with wind,
steam and all sail set we can make little over
eight KNOTS. Under steam alone we can make
six and half and seven knots
The revenue cutter Corwin passed us the
ond day out. She is bound for the Pribilof
Islands, and is on the same mission that we are,
70 stop the sealing and to distribute the presi-
dents proclamation on the subject
The Mohican, Marion and Alert will probably
follow us, and with some English men-of-war
VIII station themselves at different points OF the
sealing grounds TO cooperate with each other.
Cruising up here in these northern waters is
far preferable to the Central American coast,
where We were last time. | prefer it clear and
cold TO rainy and hot, and have no doubt that
few months cruising in this latitude will be
very pleasanti
The port side of the quarterback presents
quite rural scene-chickens, ducks and pigeons
out for an airing every day 1t is hard work TO
keep the captains fowls away from the ward
rooms, and II Is amusing to zee the ducks try to
battle in thimbeful OF water. Yesterday one
poor chicken fell overheard, and doubt whether
Ii realized its fate as it fOated quietly astern
and disappeared in the distance One of the
pigeons died this morning, but the others in
good condition The ducks can stand hardship
the least, as several have died already.
Under date of July Ii. Mr.. Amy writes at
Unalsska:
We arrived at Sand point on June %. after
several days of rough weather 1t is located in
longitude 100 degrees 81 minutes aud 30 seconds
west, and is quiet little harbor with good
anchorage, which gives entire protection in all
winds. The agreement to stop sealing made
between the United States and Great britain.
was concluded in Washington on June 10, 1891,
and was telegraphed word for word to San
Francisco, where several hundred copies were
printed for distribution by the ships. Eleven
days after that we began to carry out
the instructions by boarding two seal
ing, schooners at sea and giving them
each copy OF the presidents proclamation
and letter OF warning from the commanding
officer. Since then we have been cruising al
most continuously and boarding every sealer
we run across, either American or British.
Among the first We boarded were the ]. II. Lewis
and Allie i. Agar, of Seattle, and the following
from Port Townsend: George b. White. Ven
ture, Henry Dennis, Emmett Felix and J. q.
Swan.
The commanding officer enters in ink in the
schooner's register or log, over his own sigma
ture, certificate that the proclamation and let
ter of warning have been delivered to them,
ana stating the number of seal skins then
board. In case the same schooner is overhauled
by any other "naval or other duly commissioned
officers Of either OF the high contracting parties"
and more skins are found on board than at
FIRST certified to, the schooner .'may be seized
and detained, but they shall be handed over as
soon as practicable to the authorities OF the ma
ton to which they respectively belong, who
shall alone have jurisdiction to try the offense
and impose the penalties for the same"
These sealers have ali been fitted out at large
expense for the seasons work, and 1t will be
great loss to them to be compelled TO give up
their occupation so summarily Ii seems very
hard that men who have to work at such hard
living should not meet with better success.
We only stayed ten hours at Sand point and
went to work at once chasing sealers. We
boarded nine who were at anchor at Sand point,
and they were surprised enough to hear of the
proclamation. Then we cruised to the eastward
and lodged in and around the shumagin
islands, oyerhanling several sealers; then we
eruised TO the westward along the south side of
the Aleutian islands, through Unimak pass to
Unalaska, a small village of 200 inhabitants,
mostly Americans and Aleuts, situated on the
north side OF 7 nalaska island, where the Alas
kan Commercial Company have their principal
station.
We arrived there on July 3, and found the Cor
win, Rush and AlKi in port. The last is
passenger steamer of the Pacific Coast Steam
ship Company, which has been chartered by the
treasury department for $500 per day as prison
ship, where sealers Who do not heed the warn
ing 10 stop sealing are TO be kept until turned
over to the proper courts. She has on board one
line officer OF the navy, Lieutenant Commander
Meade, three marine officers and surgeon in
charge of forty marines.
On the Fourth of July we had some boat races.
The Corwin beat the Rush in the forenoon and
the Thetis in the afternoon.
There are two good harbors at Unalaska, both
well protected and afording excellent anchor
ages. The company has two neat little steamers,
brig rugged, the Dora and the ST. Paul, which
cruise between the stations and make occasional
trips to and from San Francisco. In this way
we have an opportunity of sending and receiv-
ing mail
coal bark arrived from San francisco on the
4th, and after receiving some coal from her
sailed on the 5th for the PribiloH or seal islands,
situated 900 miles TO the northwest in Boring sea-
This group consists of two islands, ST. George
and st. Paul, thirty-six miles apart: and by con-
tract with the United states the North Ameri-
can Commercial Company has the sole right to
seal there.
We touched at St. George for an hour-long
enough to read copies of the proclamation to
the village on shore. That day, the 7th,
was mostly occupied in chasing two sealers, the
Eliza Edwards, of Vancouver, a Canadian steam
sealer, schooner rigked, and the American sealer
La kinfa, of San Francisco, both OF whom re-
uuired a shot across their bows from our Hotch-
kiss gun to make them heave TO. We have no
blank cartridges, so f0ur-pound ball
whistling through the air attracted their notice
We arrived at ST. Paul island the evening OF
July :, and our anchorage OFF the village under
the lee OF Reel point gave us good protection
from gale OF wind which lasted night and
dav
Esrly the morning OF the sth eight of the Off
GERS. including myself, and twenty of the men,
went ashore to witness the rounding up of 500
seal, from which 100 were killed for food for the
natives The skius were of course taken by the
company for each of which $50 is the market
price in London. The company pays $40 for
each skin taken and 100000 annually for the
privilege OF sealing There are several rookeries
on the island where the seals are 10 be found
this season Of the year: each is literally alive
with seal on the rocks, and in the water on the
shore. There are the bull ''coW - tbachelor',
and pup" seal, and as we passed by and partly
through the roOkcry the sight Of over 10000 OF
these animals on the rocks together was one of
the most interesting and wonderful ever saw
The seals are easily driven, and the native
drivers suddenly come up from IeeWnrd
detach a certain number by dodgiag in be.
tween them and the main lot and drive them
up on shore 10 distance of about half a mile
The seal can travel very fast in the water, and
can make nom forty 90 fifty miles day on the
land. Groups OF about twenty seals are next de.
tacned, ana the bachelor seals that are and
1 years cid are Knocked over the head with a
ctub by the nallve tuhbers and stunned They
are then laid over on their backs ana stuck
through the heart with sharD knife after
which they are skinned very dexternusly by
ths experts, who can skin each seal in less than
minute and half The other seals
are allowed 90 go, and they eventually
ma thcir WAY back to the rookerias The car
cases OF the dead seals are then cut mn and
packed IN bags on the backs OF the native
women, who carry them 10 the village 10 use for
food At the custom house are several 0overn
meat inspectors, who inspec. the killing and
count the skins A telephone wire cumming
most OF ths way around the Island is used 10
give notice at the village Of any impending raid
at distant points by the crews of poaehipg
svLuot.eIA Az armed guard protects the coast
a.. 40 seFim'nASes are sometimes INDUCED in with
these schooueTs