Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1906-08-11
MR. BOWERS IS IN ALASKA
Arrives Thsre CUrng Raid on One
Of the Seal Rookeries.
FIVE JAPANESE ARE KILLED
Company Represented BY Senator
Faulkner Loses Heavily BY Dep

That United States Fish Commits
sioner George NJ. Bowers, of Martins.
burg. Will probably have some excit-
ing experiences in Alaska on his pre-
sent trip to that territory IN the in
terest OF his department of the govern
ment, is indicated in the following
special dispatch publisi ed this morn
iog in the city papers, bearing date
of July 2G, aud sent from Dutch Har-
Dor. Alaksa. via the town of Seward
The chief counsel for the North
American Commercial Co.. which
contfols tile killing Of seals under
government SUPERVISION. and which
IL directly concerned in the matter
contained in the dispatch. is former
Senator Charles j Faulkner. Of Mar
tinsburg. The dispatch is in part as
follows:
Five japanese were shot ard killed
on the Island of st. Paul, in the Pribi-
loft group. by order of the agent of the
department of commerce and labor en-
July II. The engagement was the
result of raid by four Japanese
schooners on the seal r0okeries. The
revenue cutter Mccullough reached
here today from st. Paul with IL
prisoners, two of them seriously
wounded. They were turned over to
Deputy Marshal Harmon.
The raiders were discovered lying
near Northeast Point, st. Paul. by
native lookouts of tie North Ameii-
can Commercial Co.. which leases
the seal privileges from the govern
ment. Word was telephoned from the
patrol station near the rookery for
which the raiders were aiming, and
Special Agent Lemanke, of the de-
partment of commerce. Oh duty among
the Priloffs. arrived on the spot as
the japanese reached shore. lie
ordered the boat to surrender, which
it did at once.
On climbing the promontory at the
end of the cape overlo6 king one OF the
larger rookeries, schooner was seen
close in shore. Looking straight
down over the cliffs, the patrol saw a
dozen or more Japanese skinning
great numbers of seals which had been
slaughtered Unfortunately. The
raiders refused to surrender when
Lemanke reached the scene and tried
to make off in their small boats. sew
eral of which were drawn upon the
shore. with their booty. HIS then
ordered his guards of natives to open
fire. The Japs offered no armed
resistance, being without firearms
Three OF the men dropped on the
beach. fourth was seen to fly over
board from one ~ the small boats that
escaped and fifth body later dritted
ashore in another boat
The men had killed more than 200
seals. many of them cows, Those
who escaped carried away about l20
skins. The raid is believed to be a
concerted effort on the part of the
Japs. who have been hanging around
the island for months and giving the
revenue cutter much trouble.
The Mccullough reached the islands
on the goth and took charge of the
prisoners. besides the Tokwa Maru.
The schooner Bosso Maru is known
to have been in the raid. Last
autumn Japanese were found fishing
and trading with the natives on the
Island Of Attu, the westernmost in
the Aleutian chain, and were driven
off by the Perry.
The raid is the most serious that
has ever occurred in the troublous
history OF the rookeries. The last at
tempt to rife the island was made
some 10 years ago by schooner fly
ing the Mexican flag, She was inter
cepted by cutter before carrying ont
her purpose.
The raid was supposed to have
been planned bv Alec Mclean, the
original of Jack London's "Wolf !
Larson" who NAV be concerned in
the present affair. He was known to
be broke in Victoria. b c.. last
! winter. bat left there for rarts un-
known in the early spring. Officials
and company men on the seal islands
are considerably excited, although no
further raids are expected as the
August patrol of the Berlng Sea by
| the cutters becomes continuous on
August /.
In attempting TO return to the seal
islands with Agent Lemanke on the
22d the Perry broke her cylinder
pump a mile from shore here and is
temporarily out of business. This
leaves the patrol short of vessels and
the sands unguarded. The Thetis is
in the Arctic, the Rush is on duty at
Nushagak. Bristol Bay; tile Bear is
out of commission and the McCul-