Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-06-22
NEwFOUNDLAND.s SEAL CATCH.
The Animals Numerous and the Price
of Oil High.

Quebec Corr. Chicago Record
Following closely upon the reports of the
great success achieved by the seal hunters
of the Magdalen Island comes news of the
Newfoundland hunt. This industry has
turned out better this spring than for TWEEN
ty years past. and the seal oil is $50 a
ton higher than 1T was last year the island
colony will profit largely by the good luck
of the hunters. For the first fortnight of
the hunting season those engaged in the
hunt have secured something like 100000
seals amounting in value to about S640,00O.
These are not of course, the Boring sea
or fur seal, but the hairy seal of Green
land. and most of them belong to the harp
variety. They killed when from a
month to six weeks old. upon the icefoes
upon which they were born, from about
The birthplace of the seal is in the Arctic
ocean, but the icefields which they first
see the light Of day. away to the north Of
Newfoundland. have drifted down on the
Arctic current to the west and south of the
island by the time that the "whitecoats,
as the young harp seals are called, are
about month old. 1t is then, in their
babyhood and when still fed by their
mothers mild. which is Of a thick. creamy
consistency, and very yellow and nutri-
tious. THAI they are most easily killed. and
il is then that they furnish the largest
amount Of oil, and that of the finest quail
lily. The skins tanned into leather.
The Importance to Newfoundland of
successful seal hunt may be judged, not
Only from the fact that its product will Of
ten run from s51D,I1 to s1.Go,0o. but also
from the additional circumstances that
some COCO men. twenty-five large steam
and a number of sailing vessels are
employed in 1t.
This year the sealing vessels all steamed
out of 1he harbor of ST Johns about the
middle of March. Two days later they
met countless thousands of the seals on
he. icRfiells 1t ig remarkable that
although the seal hunt has been practiced
annually for over century there should
b. no apparent decrease in number of
seals.
This spring the conditions of the hunt
were exceedingly favorable. The iceields
upon which the seals were met were far
enough away from the shore and rocks
for the steamers to run In among them and
land their crews upon the foes among the
seals, floating with them over the surface
Of the ocean until enough of the animals
had been killed to make full cargoes.
1t was forty miles northeast of the Funk
Island that the seals met this year.
and plentiful We're they that some of
the steamers concluded their cargoes in
couple of days. The crews followed their
usual practice Of leaping overheard to
the icefieIds when they came up with the
seals, and of killing them by striking them
over the nose with stout stick, which
easily caused ath by fracturing the skull.
Then, with sharp knives, they detach the
skin with the adhering fat from the car
Inc latter Is le1t upon the Ice. Wnlie
the peltS are dragged to the ship and taken
L. port, where the fat is manufactured into
oil and the skins sailed and exported
for tanning.
The dangers. the excitement and the I'M
certainty of this chase make of it the most
attractive kind Of sport, and Sportsmen
from Canada and the United States, and
even from England. have been known to
travel to Newfoundland in the early spring
for the purpose of joining In the seal hunt.
There are few prettier trophies for the
sportsmans room than a stuffed specimen
of a very young "whitecoat." especially if
II happen to have been born after the kill
fng of its mother. The boys of Newfound
land look eagerly forward to the time when
they will be big enough to go to the seal
hunt, and those who once participate in it
are most anxious to repeat the expert
ence. Notwithstanding its attendant perils
But when the seals numerous. as
they Were this year. the killing of them.
profitable though IL be, can no longer be
considered sport 1t Is rather butchery,
rendered excessively distressing by the
scenes of blood and slaughter, the whimp-
eriEg of the baby seals and the sad means
OF the mothers almost resembling in
fant's cry of pain.
One sealing firm of st. Johns, which
owns five steamers. has already received
10000 seals the result of their first trip
this season. The reports of those steamers
The Neptune. 10000 seals; the Aurora
3o.D0 seals; the Terra Nova 1900 seals;
the Vanguard. 1900 seals, and the Ran
I - lie