Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-22
A Fur-seal Loss Of $40, ooo, 900.

To the Editor OF The Star:
In discussing the question of what were
the real assets of public value In Alaska,
recently, with several gentlemen who are
down here this winter from that region. 1
found that the full commercial value or
what we had lost in the fur seal business
was not understood even by them. And
still less did they understand what might
be received by the public treasury If the
fur seal herd was restored to It's natural
fine form and number by adequate and
proper international agreement.
Before submit the figures I desire to
say few words by way of introduction.
In 1890, at the request OF Secretary VIM
dom, and by authority of special act or
Congress, approved April Z, l made a re-
view of the condition of affairs in the seal
islands of Alaska during that season, and
submitted my report to Mr.. WINDOW, NO
vember 10, 1890.
In this report I urged a modus vivendi
whereby no killing on land or in the sea
should be done for period of seven years,
in the meantime. a commission OF Ameri-
can and British experts, made up or
naturalists and business men, to visit the
islands and devise proper method of re-
Stunning the killing when that time should
arrive.
Mr.. Window agreed with me, but he
went further. He said that unless the
British government united with in this
plan of rest from land and sea killing, that
he for one was In favor of at once killing
the female seals ourselves as well as the
males since it was merely question of
time in which these female seals would all
be taken by the pelagfc hunters, and the
public treasury he defrauded of just so
much property.
pelagic sealer In 1891 find today, on
carefully reviewing the subject from COM
mercal point of view. that the United
States public treasury has suffered the fol-
lowing total loss of property up to date to
wit: Six hundred thousand adult female fur
seal skins. worth between 1880 and 1905 an
average of sos per skin, SI5, 100000; 100000
male and female yearlings, and two. three
and four-year-old males, at an average
value of $40 per skin, 5000. 600. making a
total loss of public property from pelagic
killing of $40, 100000.
But this loss of S20Ooo,O0O of property
during the last sixteen years to a band of
alien hunters is not all of it. We have lost
still more. We have lost the productive
value of this herd of 100000 female seals.
II those animals were IN existence on the
Pribilov Islands today the surplus male life
which they would have engendered, and
which we could safely take next summer.
would not be less than $1,000 prime fur
seal skins, worth to the public treasury not
less than S2.5o0 600, as prices ranged in
London on the 18th ultimo or per cent
interest on S4o,e0o,0oo worth of public prop
erty.
In other words, by not adopting the
nlerciful and humane plan of Mr.. Window
and myself. outlined to the Secretary Of
State November 20. 1890, Mr.. Blaine paved
the way to the end that we have lost the
principal and the interest on An invest
ment of S40000,O00. And have at this houc
nothing to show for it but a pitiful rem
nant of that life fairly and actually threat
ened with complete extrpation.
The loss of this public property is the
more inexcusable for the following rea-
sons: The preservation of this fur seal life
on the Pribilof Islands from the greed and
destruction of human agencies was easy to
attain, had the desire of the human
butcher been denied 1t was easy, because
the habit of this fur seal herd of Alaska
places it In region FAR removed from the
path of commerce on two small isets in the
heart of Boring sea, where there is no
agriculture, no mines or mining, no fish
cries and no timber
We could not save the buffalo herds be-
cause those animals ranged that they
came into contact with millions of our own
people, who as farmers, as miners, stock
raisers and as railway builders and ope-
rators all wanted to occupy this land upon
which the bison lived
Not so with the great fur seal herl of
Alaska. Had all private and corporate kill
Ing of fur seals on the land and in the
sea been suspended by the governments of
Great Britai nand the United States in
1891 then all of that shame and misery and
| enormous loss and waste of public prop
erty which has ensued on the seal islands
of Alaska-aH of this would have been
mercifully and sensibly averted.
HENRY w. ELLIOTT.