The National tribune., 1894-10-11
HABITS OF THE FUR SEALS.
With Half the World to Choose from They
Stick to Two Little Islands.

Isl. Methodist
The fur seal its name should be furry sea
lion) is the most celebrated of all our fur
bearers, and the United States Government
has been as active in protecting it from de-
struction rs it was indifferent to the fate Of
the buffalo millions If our great interna-
tional dispute with England and Canada over
the fur seal had arisen 20 years ago, before
the days of peaceful arbitration, there
would surely have been war over it, Nor is
our interest in our fur seal to be wondered at
when we stop to consider that from 1870 to
1890 our national treasury received S. 000,-
900 from the Alaska Commercial Company as
royalty on the animals killed (six-sevenths of
the purchase price Of Alaska.) When to this
we add the amount received in a 20 per cent.
import duty on the dressed skins as they
came back to us from the English dyers, the
total revenue derived from tine fur seal in 20
years amounts to the enormous sum of 81, 500,
600. such an animal was worth saving from
destruction. No other quadruped ever be-
came such e bone of contention between two
great nations for a long period, the discussion
winding up with a high and mighty con-
ference of arbitration.
As usual, the whole trouble arose through
the greediness of few irresponsible and law
less individuals. The sealers of the Pacific
coast insisted upon taking fur seals by shoot
ing them in the open sea, by which wasteful
process seven were lost for every three Sc
cured. But if it were not for the loss of
money revenue derived from this animal, it is
quite certain the Government twould have al
lowed the wasteful slaughter to 90 on until
the last seal was dead.
The fur seal is not true seal by any
means, but a sea-lion, with naked. paddle
shaped fippers and tiny ears. 1t is about
two-thiTds the size of the Zalophus, and is
therefore the smallest member of the sea-
lion family. Mr. Elliott gives the average
length of the full-grown male animal as six
feet from nose TO tail, and weight from $50
to 500 pounds. The average length of the
adult female is trifle over four feet, and
weight from 81 to rs pounds. When dry,
the coat is of dark, steel-gray color, and
only the coarse, stiff, outer hair Is visible
Underneath this lies a dense coat of very fine
and soft light-brown fur, in which lies all the
value of the skin. In preparing the pelt,
the coarse outer hair is entirely removed, and
the underlying fur is dyed shiny, lustrous
black, and Sheared down very evenly. For
some mysterious reason, we, the people of
Yankee ingenuity are actually unable to
dye seal fur successfully, and this work is
from sheer necessity sent to England. When
it comes back there is a high rate of duty to
pay, which in addition to the original roy
atty of S10.22 paid TO the Government by
the North American Commercial Company
for every skin taken, the very long bill of
transportation charges, labor and profits all
along the line, from the back of the seal to
that Of the fortunate wearer, accounts for the
price of from $3.50 to 5000 on a seal-skin
cloak
In its habits the fur seal is a remarkable
creature. With 3, 600 miles of coast to land
upon if it chose, this strange and pcrEerse
animal now refuses to set hipper upon any
portion Of the whole North American eonti-
nent, island or mainland, save the two little
dots of land in Bering Sea, st. Paul and st.
George Islands, known to the world collec-
lively as the Priblov Islands. ST. Paul is
seven miles by IA, and st. George is only
five and half by 13.
And yet, when Mr.. Elliott made his care
full and elaborate surveys of all the 'rooker-
les" or herding grounds on those islands,
in July, 1873, and laboriously calculated the
number Of their fn-footed inhabitants, he
found there the astonishing number of 3, 1873
420 fur seals. Like sheep in pen, they
actually crowded one another on the sloping
shores OF sand, or waterworn boulders, or
tables of slaty-blue basalt Each burly old
male appears giant beside the females and
young males gathered around him.