Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1914-10-08

been making anu was Objectionable tc
the company for that reason,
Because of the action of Secretary
OF the Treasury Carlisle, resulting
eventually IN heavy PENALTY, and be-
cause Of the pro mitigation Of the new
regulations. the company began to feel
the need of a friend at court, and
after Major Mckinley became Presi-
| dent Senator Elkinh had his personal
and political friend appointed Com
| missioner of Fisheries. Bowers was
appointed, because of the insistcnce OF
Senator ElISins, over the vigorous
protest of naturalists, scientists and
others interested in the work Of the
bureau, and in the face of charges
that his appointment was In viola
ton of law
The testimony recorded in the
hearings shows conclusively that
after the appointment OF Bowers the
law prohibiting the killing OF certain
seals was yioated with impunity; with
the full knowledge OF Bowers md with
out his protest. ii shows thai profits
amounting to many millions OF doll
lars We're made by the contractors
through the practical extinc ton of
the seal, and that when the attention
fsf IL saA ~,
he sent specia; agent to make an
investigation of conditions on the seal
islands. The report Of the special
ag emit bore out the contention that
the law was beiag violated consist
emily and II was promptly suppressed,
while another agent was instructed
to make repor. He made 2 totally
different r4port, and it was substi-
4tuted for the original and was pub
lished to show hat there were no
violations of Law in connection with
the seal killing
The contract OF the North American
Commercial Company for thu exclus-
i've right to kill seals on the Pribiloff
Islands expired IN 1910, and prior to
that time Bowers interested himself
In an effort to have the contract re-
newed for anothFr period OF 20 years,
notwithstanding he knew the law had
been persistently violated by the COM
pany and that tie seals had heen al
most exterminated by it. The con-
tract was not r. newed, but instead,
the killing of seals on the islands was
to be done for the government under
the direct supervision OF the Bureau
of Fisheries. The killing was con-
tinued as before. the young seals be-
ing killed in gr Hat numbers and tire
defamation Of tho herd continuing.
In 1909, the LIST year of the con-
tract, the North American CONNER
cial Company XII led more than 1000
yearling seals. The killing of each
of these was abs olutely in violation OF
law, and not only that, but killing
them when under the required age
meant taking that many seals which
the following year would have been
eligible to slaughter, but which woald
then have been the property of the
government. Thus, it is SET forth in
the hearings, the company in the last
year of its contract took from the
government property worth at least
$150,000.
Because of the manner i'll which
his office had oeeI conducted and be-
cause he had knowingly permitted
the persistent violation of The law,
and had undertaken to have The con-
tract renewed SC the pilIaging Of the
gt yernment might be continued for
20 years more, the resignation of Mr..
son. soon after he came into The pres
idcncy In addition to the resignation
Of Mr.. Bowers, r. actically every one
of his immediate assistants has been
removed from Office or ask d to re-
n. Secretary Of Commerce Red
field stated that most of the changes
in the Bureau OF Fisheries lad been
ctsnges in wha he regarded as in
ju 'cious eontinusnces of personnel
and because the occupants of The posi-
ticns were out O. harmony with the
administrative policies of the depart
mant and because he felt them to be
oe: of harmony with the law which
he regarded as sound and wise. He
spoke OF their 'tIlental attitude, their
past mental attitude, which seems to
be inharmonious with the act of con-
grass"
This is the record Of George NJ.