Mr. Olney to Lord Gough.
Washington, September 18, 1895.
My Lord: Your note of June 18 last transmitted a report of Hon. John Costigan, Canadian minister of marine and fisheries. These papers have had careful consideration. Although they purpose only to give the information requested in Mr. Gresham’s note of January 23, 1895, touching Canadian pelagic sealing in 1893 and 1894, yet they contain certain statements and denials which, in our opinion, merit reply.
In answering in the negative the question whether the pelagic seal skins taken by British sealers were examined at the British ports of entry as to sex (as Mr. Gresham’s note stated was done in the case of skins entered in United States ports), the collector of customs at Victoria, British Columbia, in his letter to Mr. Costigan enters a general denial that seal skins were examined as to sex by expert inspectors at San Francisco or Puget Sound ports, and states that it is impossible to distinguish the sex of seals by inspection after the skins have been salted, and that any examination at ports of entry, therefore, would be impracticable and useless.
The statement that all skins landed at United States ports during the season of 1894 were examined as to sex by expert inspectors was supposed by this Department to be true when it was made in its note of January 23. Inspectors were duly appointed for this purpose and instructed to make such examination, and their returns were on file in the Treasury. It was discovered later, however, that at Port Town send the inspector, although examining and verifying the skins landed, made no examination as to sex. On receipt of this discovery, Sir Julian Pauncefote was notified of it on February 27, last. At the time, therefore, when the collector at Victoria made this denial, your Government had in its possession this Department’s note fully explaining the matter.
The Department does not understand the reference, contained in Mr. Costigan’s report, to the young and inexperienced lad employed by Liebes Bros, in the examination of seal skins at San Francisco. Such an examination, if it took place; was wholly unofficial and had no connection whatever with that made by the United States Government. The official expert employed by the Treasury Department at San Francisco, is a practical furrier by occupation. He has been engaged constantly and exclusively for the past eleven years in the fur business, and has handled large quantities of salted seal skins and all kinds of raw furs. He was highly recommended by persons well qualified; to judge of his ability, and is a man of great experience. Every seal skin landed at San Francisco was carefully examined by him as to sex.
As to the further statement contained in said report that the sex of seals can not be determined after the skins have been removed, I have the honor to say that the Treasury Department has consulted experts of reputation upon this subject, and is informed that any ordinarily [Page 672] intelligent person at all acquainted with the subject could in at least seven cases out of ten accurately determine the sex before the skins go to the dresser. That such is an admitted fact may be seen from the sworn statement of British, French, and American furriers before the Tribunal of Arbitration at Paris. In this connection I inclose a copy of a Treasury circular giving instructions to customs officers as to ascertainment of sex.
In this Department’s note of May 10 last the consent of the British Government was asked to the appointment of expert inspectors to examine all skins landed at British Columbian ports. The reason for this request was that there was a great discrepancy in the British and American returns made by sealers as to the proportion of females killed, the American sealers reporting a very much greater proportion than the British. Although in many instances the British sealers were close to the American sealers, yet the Americans reported from two to five times as many females as males, a result entirely at variance with the British returns. Certain masters, moreover, of British vessels in Bering Sea explained to the agent of the United States Fish Commission that the seals were skinned in the canoes by Indians and the pelts thrown on board, and that under the circumstances they had no time to bother with inspecting skins minutely as to sex.
Under such circumstances it would seem that the reports of the British sealers are unreliable, and that the proportion of female skins taken by the Canadian fleet is much greater than that returned. This would seem to be corroborated by sworn statements, now in the possession of the Treasury Department, of experts who personally inspected in London some of the largest consignments of seal skins taken in 1894, and found from 85 to 90 per cent of them were skins of females.
The Department is therefore still of the opinion that examination by inspectors of all skins landed at British Canadian ports would greatly assist in arriving at a more thorough knowledge of seal conditions, and I have the honor to renew the inquiry made in Mr. Adee’s note of the 13th instant, as to whether Her Majesty’s Government has reached a conclusion in regard to this matter.
I have, etc.,