Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-12

the present lessee. the North American
Commercial company OF San Francisco, eN-
p.res ON April 20. 1909. This lease allows
the holder to kin about 1900 seals annually
and these sell ON the London market FOR
nearly half a million dollars.
Tie palblof Islands we're acquired along
with the rest Of Alaska In tSJ1. The Alaska
Commercial company leased them for the
first time in 1870 The North American
Commercial company made a better bid
fer the sealing privilege in 1880 and Sc
cured the rights. Meanwhile the old com
pany. the original holder has continued
IN activity in the seal fur buying business
in the same territory and viii probably
compete for the lease.
Under the present contract the lessee
pays at the rate or about $40 for each skin
taken. The government determines the KIDD
and lumber OF skins to be taken each
year and the method even Of killing the
seals. Under the regulations the animals
are row killed with O lusty club. az this
does not lnJure the valuable hides.
The kill Is restricted TO the 'batchslor
seals. Of from . to 9 years old. The age
Is determined by the W ight OF the skin.
none Of which Weighing less than elght
and a half pounds are legal. The "bache-
lo-s' herd by themselves most OF the Kill
ing season. SO the selection q The animals
has TO be exercised.
The company which holds the lease or
the seal Islands furnishes the natives with
dried salmon, salt and salt barrels for the
preserving Of their meat supply. eighty
tons Of coal a year. comfortable dwellings,
school houses and teachers for an eight
month term OF school competent medical
oftopAapng and the nroraaIfng pf 1ifa IN
the widows, orphans, aged and lnflrm OF
the inhabitants unable to provide for them
selves. The natives are employed to per-
form all such work as they are competent
TO handle On these Islands at n wage fixed
by the secretary OF labor and commerce.
The government Is taking care that the
seal are not allowed to become extinct and
a force Of inspectors Is employed to see
that the regulations OF the "klil' are not
transgressed. The fleet OF revenue cutters
and naval vessels is there to prevent the
marauding OF the stands by pelagic seal
ers.
The Pribfloff Islands are the breeding
grounds of the major herd of the Pacific
fur seals, and the greatest source Of fine
sealskins in The world. These islands were
discovered by Gerassim Pribilof, a naviga-
tor for a Russian trading company, in 1856,
They are located IN tho Bering sea, about
2,OC0 miles north and west of Seattle, Wash.
The group consists Of five islands, com.
pletely isolated from other land. The
nearest port bears the lonesome sounding
name OF Unalasks, on one OF the Aleutian
islands, some 200 and odd miles to the
south.
The Pribllof islands are peculiar in that
while they do not reproduce a thing to
support human life. except fresh air, wild
flowers. Of the most exotic beauty abound
during the summer months, These seal
islands are credited with being of volcanic
origin.
Life here, as IN other Of the outposts Of
the fur industry, is like TO be rather glum
For a large part of the year navigation is
much restricted by the heavy fogs which
hover about the islands and the surround
ing seas. The native bidarka, a canoe
made of skins, is about the only vessel on
the islands which can be used with safety,
ond that only in the hands of a skilled
Aleut. The only time that the residents of
This Yuletime Thule como In touch with
the outside world II when the steamers of
the North American Commercial company
call twice a year, and at rare intervals
when the revenue cutter puts in for a few
hours.
Tho Pribilof islands are the breeding
grounds for the American fur seal herd,
which. even though much depleted, is the
largest fur seal herd in all the world. Tit
seals breed on two islands of the grouI
during the summer. and annually in the
fall put out to sea and cross through the
Boring sea and the passes between the
Aleutians into the Pacific ocean. Some Of
these seals winter fashionably at Santa
Barbara, southern California.
A few OF these seals remain to BRAY,
the arctic winter. The annual migration
begins in November and by the end of De
cember they are all gone but those whC
linger through the long cold period. TIL,
migrants come back in June.
The fur riches of the world sustained
heavy loss In the depletion Of the fauna o.
these islands following their discovery b!
the Russians, The Russians found seG
otter, walrus, sea lions and foxes, but tn,