Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-04-16
A PIRATES VERSION OF THE SEAL
Ut ESfi0N.

To the Editor OF The Evening star:
Nill you kindly grant space in your valuable
Journal to present the sealer's case from his
own standpoint:
In the first place his methods have beea
pronounced by those high in authority brutal,
wantoa and unnatural
Every form OF invcctivo has been exhausted
IN giving han a name. and contumol, has been
heaped upon him until the public think him =
very wrctched being. Ii should be remem-
bered. though, that the scaler is trying to sup
port his family and educate his children. liz
this be mOnstTOus and reprehenslble IL the
shaving OF the beautiful deer or the shooting
OF ducks one cannot eat or the catching OF fl,h
that are never fried the act OF high-mlnded
Christian gcntlemSu2 The so-calIed pirate.
struggling for the means OF existence in one OF
the Few avenues open to soamen OF limited
means. Is told 1t is unlawful to Kali seal upon
the high seas; that the seal is a royal animal
ana his hide can only be taken BY a gigantic
monopoly. 1t Is piracy to hall Gods creature
on the ocean II you are a poor seAler
Since lSsl, when the first orders were issued
TO seize all yesseis found taking seal in the
Berlng sea, the various administrations have
striven 70 convince tho world that the seal VAS
tie exclusive property Of the United States, .'or
rather that portion OF them found east OF the
pelagic boundary between Russia and the
United States" For eleven wears have they
wrestled, ana vino is the first conyert2 Have
they oven succeeded in convincing themselyesf
ltseems 20 the sealor that the government Of
the United States has proclaimed sovereignty
over the seals foand IA Dsring sea which they
cannot maintain. DO the few weeks the seal
remain on the Pribyloa Islands give the United
states exclusive ownership aud power Alto pro-
tect them wherever they 80! Tue home OF the
seal Is the broad Pacific ocean, where he lives
for eight months la the year. going 20 tho Ber-
ing sea for breeding purposes only and return
lng at once when that duty rs over. The sealcr
went upon the ocean IN prosecuting his BUSH
ness thinking h.msei! secure in nis God-given
rights 10 the products thereof. to the fish in its
depths and to the animals that sport upon its
surface.
IL was the belief OF the sealer that the ocean
was the heritage OF ali mankind; that no ma
ton could claim the ownership OF any portion
thereof except limited area along Its own
shores. The sea itself could not become prop-
ert., for 1t cannot he possessed.
No giant monopoly can say to the fisherman,
81 MS is mine; get you INTO sboal water and
catch minnOws; the sea Is minc;" for II God
has given man one thing that cannot be taken
from him II Is the sea. he cannot be taxed QUA
of OF. be crowded from ~; il Is his for all time,
and as free to him The air We breathe. IL
is claimed that our government bought OF
Russia certain rights which she had always
maintained. What were these rights and how
did she assert them? 1t required very little
argument on the part OF England and the
United States TO convince Russia that she
owned very little in those seas besides the land
and a little strip OF water along it's shores. Nos
in a single instance has Russia during the last
fifty years molested any hunter or fisherman
on the high sea while she owned all the terri
tory around the BerIEg and Otschotsk sea.
Russia was not disturbed in taking seal upon
the land, and the pelaSic sealer unknown,
because the enterprisIng hunter had not vet
learned that the seal could be proftably hunted
npon the ocean. The American whalemen
went unmolested into those northern seas and
took tAerefrom wealth far IN excess OF the
values taken from the seal islands, or which
ever viii be taken upon them.
In regard to the wanton destruction OF life
by the peiagic sealer, why is he singled out 20
a destroyer Have we not had destruction
enough within our own bordersy
Where are the countless herds Of bntfals
which covered our western plans2 How have
the fisheries along our coas: been managede
In the New York World Of the 9th OF March an
account is given Of the enormous waste Of ono
OF our most delicious food fshes, ''the,mack-
erel" sold for - cents a wagon load, used Tor
manure and tons thrown back into the sea.
The great rivers of California and Oregon were
once teeming with beautiful salmon What
has become of themp
The myriad hosts OF tho same fish in Alas
kan rivers are dwindiing away. and there 10
no protection for them. Is 1t because these
fisheries are run by corporations possessed Of
great wealth and influence!
Let echo answer. Tho taking of seal uPoa
the Pr.byloff Islands rs q great commercial in.
dustry has become thing event Of the past
The Alaska Commercial Company have roaped
the golden harvest which can never be gath
cred again.
Seal life has been constantly decreasing sinco
the occupation of Alaska by the Americans,
and pelagic scaling in the Pacific ocean alone
will reduce the island catch TO very small pro-
portions in a short time. The orca, tho WOLF
OF the sea-" which formerly preyed largely
upon the whale and their young, will slnco
the determination OF tho latter, prey more and
more upon the seal, which they have always de-
stroyed in great numbers.
An agreement between England and the
United States alone cannot settle this question.
since their action cannot bind non-consentinS
nations and prevent them from exercising
their rights upon the high sea. L p r