Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1914-10-08
Uncle SamRobbed
OF Several Millions


has been made 70 suffer a property
loss of approximately $4,000, 900
through the practical extinction of the
fur seal of Alaska, in order that the
late Senator Stephen B, Elkins and his
associates might me enriched, and oil
how this was accomplished by per-
sistent violation of the law, with the
full knowledge of George M. Bowers
and other officials OF the government
and without their interference, has
been exhaustively told in series OF
hearings before different committees
of Congress.
The story is particularly interest
ing at this time because OF the highly
important part played in the pro-
ceedings by the former United States
Commissioner of Fisheries, George M
Bowers, who is row a candidate for
the office of Representative in Com
gress from the second West Virginia
district, backed ny Davis BlSins, son
of one of the ben Factories of his fail
ure to enforce the laws.
Mr.. Bowers WAS federal office
holder for more han is years. He
is now seeking election to another
public office In placing his name be-
fore the people Of the second district
for support, Mr.. Lowers must carry
with him his public record Of Is years
service and must stand upon that
record. The ability and fitness of a
candidate for public Office can be
judged better by his past conduct than
by his promises as to the future.
The record of George M. Bowers. in
his official capacity as United States
Fish Commissioner, in connection
with the great fur-seal scandal, is en-
bodied in several thousand pages of
public documents, hearings, reports,
etc, printed in connection with the
investigation of the fur-seal industry
Summarized from this mass of evil
dence, the story If the fur-seal scan
dad and the connection Of George M.
Bowers with it is substantially as
follows:
Senator Stephen B. Elkins became
financially Senator Stephen B. e.
kins became financially interested in
the business of killing seals for their
fur in 1890, when a new contract for
the killing of fur-seal for period of
29 years was granted by the United
States to the North American Com
prior to that time, had been held for
20 years by the Alaska Commercial
Company, whose profits were many
millions of dollars. When the new
contract was to be left, Mr.. Elkins,
who had not been elected to the Sem
ate, was bidder In connection with
other parties, ard the North Ameri-
can Commercial Company, successor
to the Alaska Commercial Company,
was also a bidder There was a long
and bitter struggle over the award
ing of the contract, which ended by
Mr. Elkins becoming stakeholder in
the North American Commercial Com
pany; George r Tingle, a friend of
Elkins, becoming it's general man
ager, and the contract being award
ed to this company. This put Elkins
into the business of killing seals for
profit.
In 1891, Secretary of the Treasury,
Charles J. Foster entered into an ar
rangeInent with che North American
Commercial Company by which their
annual rental WAS reduced from $780,
900 year to $4,000, and the tax
and bonus on each sealskin taken was
reduced from 1882 to 1882. In March
1893, John G. Carlisle succeeded G.
j. Foster as Secretary Of the Treas
ury, and when the company under
IOOh W ulsthC Ia dnHu6l S6IllGlueuL
with him ON the same basis as before
he refused to agiee to the settlement.
Suit was instituted against the COM
pany, which resulted in an opinion
by the Supreme Court of the United
States, handed down on May 81, 1898,
by the terms of which Elkins and his
associates of The North American
Commercial Company were compelled
to refund to the United States some
thing over $9OOn0O.
Prior to 1896 there were no regu-
lations regarding the killing Of the
seals, but in that year regulations
were made prohibiting the killing Of
the small seals in order to save the
species from destruction. This regu-