Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-30
PRIBYLOv,s QUEST.
The Discover of the breeding Haunts
OF the Fur-Bearfng seals.

The Discovery of the breeding Haants
of the Fur-Bearfng seals.
From the Chicago Herald.
Now that the Boring sea commission has
concluded its labors. and. singular to say.
both England and the United States claim
to have come out best in the decisions. IL
might be interesting to narrate the his
tory Of the discovery of the seal islands."
remarked A c. Caperton. agent for a large
New York house which deals in sealslin
goods. Mr.. Caperton has made several
trips to Alaska. and is perfectly familiar
with the seal industry from the roaring of
the seals In rookery on some arctic coast
down TO the persuasive tones OF a smiling
Gotham clerk who is making the sale Of q
me sacque TO some wealthy woman.
FOR the lover Of true romance there a.
more than an international interest in the
Bering sea question" continued Mr. Can
erton. 1T was only about the close of the
revolutionary war that the seal islands
We're discovered by civilized man. and that
discovery is as full of romance as was the
expedition OF Ponce de Leon in search of
the tabled fountain Of immortal youth Be-
Iore tnat time the mysterious islands where
me fur-bearing seals had their breeding
places We're known only TO the Eskimos
ana only with grunt and unsatisfactory
shrug OF the shoulders would they answer
any inquiries on the subject. For a hun
.efs on Boring sea and the North Pacific
~, tne search for fur-bearing animala
hamtschatka was discovered and settled,
anu the Aleutian Islands were dotted with
.ie uaoing stations of Russian companies.
Alaska was added To the possessions OF
T,la ana a government established there.
me numerous sea offers were almost ex-
With hs,uS Two dozen Russian companies.
VIII nuhoreds or vessels and thousands OF
men. were employed I'm the business
Neahtine, every year at certain sea-
sons ule channels around the Aleutian Is
iahds swarmed with fur seals passing north
IN the spring and south in the fall No-seal
was ever known to stop even for an hour
on any part of the known Alaskan shore
Inc nauves protessei absolute ignorancs
as TO where the seals went ashore 10 breed.
IL was somewhere in the north, they said
but no Aleut had ever moored his little
skin canoe on the beach OF that mysterious
land FOR many years Russian vessels plied
the Arctic waters I'm a fruitless search for
this mysterious home OF the seal, where
wealth In fabulous sums awaited the lucky
explorer.
But Columbus finally appeared. IN.
name was Gerassim Pribylov. He was q
mate on Russian vessel An old gray
haired Aleut related to him a legend Of the
natives REGARDING certain islands said 70
exist In Boring. Old Pribylov was SUPER
suuous as any sailor and believed there was
some truth In the legend. The next spring
ne ntted up the little sloop St George and
sailed from Ounalaska out into the foeev
northern sea He PASSED through great
swarms OF seals as he sailed 10 the north
put gradually they disappeared, and after
sdilns all summer over the icy waste OF
waters. with never ship or even an island
IN sight, he returned south again TO his win
ter quarters. AS he went back the seals
came with him. for they also had a mys-
ferrous hiding place south for the winter
But old Pribylov was chock full of grit
The next spring he followed the seals back
north again. He kept this UP for three sea-
sons; ana hnally, In l7s6. was rewarded by
MI
ferrous breeding grounds. For weeks he
had been enveloped in a dense fog and vas
making progress SO slow that his patience
was severely tried. when suddenly one day
in July he heard a vague roaring and rum
bling sound coming through the dense va
por. Old Pribylov danced with glee for
his experienced ear told him That the great
roaring came from a seal rookery. Guided
by the sound. he steered the vessel through
the dense fog and soon ran up against q
| rocky island that rose like a wall out of the
ocean. Along the rocky shore millions OF
seals were lying as closely together az
| worlds fair visitors pushing through an
exit gate at the closing hour
odd Pribylov and his crew shouted for
| JOY, for he had at last found the myster1-
Gus breeding place of the willy seal. His
fortune was made. lie loaded down his
ship with skins and sailed back 10 Ouna-
laska, after leaving a part OF his crew to
guard the secret Of his discovery. He sold
his cargo in the nearest Russian port and
fitted out his vessel for another voyage
| north. Before leaving the island ne took
possession of IL in the name Of the Gar Of
| Russia, and named IL st. George. after his
| vessel. But the secret was too big TO keen
and the next year, l7s7. all his men deserted
him. and when he started 20 sail north
from Ounalaska a dozen vessels lowered
| about him and followed his vessel north.
His secret became known and the seal
ISLANDS became common property. Priby-
lows men discovered the other seal island.
st. Paufs. that same summer. These seal
islands are zoo miles from any other island
| or mainland, and are loo miles north OF
Sitka as the crow flies. or /. 800 miles by ves-
/ sell 1t is difficult to approach the islands.
and a vessel sometimes fingers for two
weeks In their vicinity before being able to
find them on account of the dense fog.
| These islands lie just where the warm
Japan current OF the Pacific meets the icy
currents from the Arctic ocean. and hence
| the fog of summer and the binding snow OF
winter. The seal that inhabits the warmer
waters of the central Pacific I'm the winter
seeks this constant summer fog every
| x-xa