Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-08-18
ABOUT SEAL HUNTING
A Demand Made Upon the North
American Commercial Company.
A RESULT OF THE AGREEMENT.
The Important Question Of Damages
to British Subjects NowComes Up.
WHEN ARBITRATION FAILED

WHEN ARBITRATION FAILED.
The Bering sea controversy took an unex-
pected turn late yesterday afternoon. when
Secretary Carlisle made an official demand
on the North American Commercial Com
pany for $2s9, ISIS for rental and bonus Of
the Pribylon Islands. The amount due by
years is stated as follows: 1880. 81. 400; lsgl,
$13s, ,62S64: 1892. $10S 6S652
The action Of Secretary Carlisle IL based
on an opinion rendered by Attorney Gen.
eral Olney. In his letter to Mr.. Lloyd
Travis OF San Francisco, Cal. president of
the North American Commercial Company.
Secretary Carlisle says:
THE action of my predecessors in max
ing reductions in the rental and bonus
which your company agreed to pay to the
United states under its contract for the
! exclusive privilege of taking fur seals In
Alaska was without authority Of law"
The present contract was entered into in
1S9o, and fixed the annual rental at Sc, 900
per annum. and limited the maximum catch
any one year to $1,000 seals. which catch
soNld be reduced IN the discretion OF the
this rental the government was to receive
$3.50 per skin Of each seal taken, besides
other provisions a. to the care Of the ma
tives.
Acting on an opinion rendered by At
torney General Miller. Secretary Charles
from the original contract, sO,oO0 to 1850.
reduced the rent In proportion This action
Of Secretary Foster Is now declared to have
1T is understood. will be followed BY legal
proceedings In case the demand II not
complied with.
The original lease Of the seal privileges
OF the Pribylon Islands with the Alaska
commercial Company ran for twenty years
Irom at, Nay " lo &c. and IND during that period It
from the lessees In rent bonus. &c. at
least 100000. representing an estimated
total catch Of 2.000 900 seal skins. The rev
| enues under the existing contract have been
duced rent and the greatly reduced limit
American Commercial Company. the pres
ent contractors. have secured less than
6o.ooe skins. all told: during the three years
10000 skins for 1880, 1900 for 1881 and 7,6oo
each for 1892 and 1899. 1t seems now that
the e. GgoMyernment M IL going to exact full rental
/ OF the present contract to last twenty
years.
~ Unofneiai %E advice, rsesiysd at the Treas;
large. The catch was principally along the
ports from eighteen American vessels show
total catch Of IL. $50 skins; from twenty
one British vessels. total catch of zS.645
s,t
and one japanese vessel. 22S7, making q
total Of %9.oa2 skins.
Corporation to British Subjects.
The main interest in the decision now
centers in the question Of damagea In &C.
| cordance with article Of the convention
| for the renewal of the modus vtvendi the
arbitration tribunal must decide how much
compensation Is due Great Britain from the
United States, to be used for British SUBJ
1ects for abstaining from the exercise Of
the right to take seals in Be:ing sea during
| the tendency of the arbitration.
1t Is understood that the commissioners
Of arbitration have already passed on the
subject but their report has not been made
regard to the damages this government will
be obliged to pay. and they must be paid
promptly by agreement In the treaty renew
But the main question Of damages for
| seizures made Ii not in SO defnable and set
| tied condition. There is no provision for
allowing damages to persons who have been
| injured through the unlawful seizure Of
sealing vessels, and It 10 stated at the De-
| take the course usually followed in d.
plomacy. Claims against the United States
either individual or in bulk, win BE filed BY
the owners OF vessels seized. Then the
United States will enter into correspond
| ence with the government Of Great Britain
with reference to their settlement. If 1t is
| seen that a settlement as to the Justice Of
| the claims made and the compensation to
| be made can be reached the matter will
proceed through the ordinary diplomatic
channels. Failing to come to some basis
for a settlement without resort to arbi.ra-
tion the two governments will agree to
leave the question % to the Judgment Of an
| claims commission will be appointed
An English Victory.
| A prominent lawyer Of this city, who has
made q special study of the Bering sea
question, made the following statement to
| a Star reporter today in regard to the re-
suit Of the arbitration proceedings:
ITO begin with. the English won and the
United States lost every point of the con-
tention submitted to arbitration.
The regulations providing for the re-
ape ali is sasS
| US for the total defeat of our contention
and the loss of our prestige and standing
Of presenting an unfounded claim. NV ''
Prior to this award the Jurisdiction as
serted by the legislative and executive
waters | was Is not @ disputed by any e power s ea-
| cept Great Britain. The right Of our gov
| ernment to protect seal life and control the
| award the waters Of Alaska are decided to
be the high seas. and thrown open to
every poacher in Christendom. except cur
"Our right Of property in the seals which
are born and reared on our own soil is de-
stroyed. If the seals are found three miles
full prize Of any poacher who sails under
any flag other than that Of England or the
| United States, for 1t will not be contended
| by anybody that these regulations bind any
| nation which was not party to the arbi-
| tration.
mot only that, any English. Canadian
| or American poacher who flies the nag Of
any nation other than that Of England or
our own can capture seals at all seasons
In every part Of Rering sea where he can
| fnd them UP to within three niles of the
rookerfes or other coasts Of the islands or
| the mainland Of Alaska
THE prohibition against pelagic sealing 9
| north of the thirty-ffth parallel and with
| In the sixty miles circle only applies to the
English and our own poachers. and even
they will pay little attention to Il as
| they did to the attempted prohibition Of
| the modus vivendi, which resulted in plac-
| ing greater number Of pelagic seal skins
| on the market each year than ever before.
'1t would be difficult to prove that a given
| vessel when seized was within the inter
| dicted circle; the almost constant fogs and
| approach to accuracy as to ships posi-
ton, and the accused would have the ben
| eft of the doubt.
Firearms are prohibited, but Ehot guns
| are permitted. Now, rifles are no good in
| sealing and shot guns are used Utmost ex-
| clusively. The explanation of this IL sim
| pie. Seals shot at long range with rifles
/ invariably sink before the hunter can reach
| them. but shot guns can be used at such
| short range that the seals are easily caught
/ before they have had time to sink. Therefore
the prohibition Of firearms does not ac-
| complish its purpose II an exception is
| Of this arbitration seems to be the loss of
| everything we claimed and the srrrend ar