THE VALUE OF SEAL SKINS.

Theodore Lubbe, a purchaser of seal skins in the city of Victoria since the year 1875, was the only competent and experienced witness called on behalf of either party to this controversy who gave general R., 1881, line testimony of the value of seal skins in the market of Victoria in the years when the seizures by the United States were made.

64.

Mr. Lubbe testified that the Alaska Commercial Company, of San Francisco, at that time lessees from the Government of the United States of the Pribilof Islands (R., 1883, line 23), Bessenger & Co. (R., 1890, line 65), The Hudson Bay Company (R., 1891, line 60), Liebes & Co., of San Francisco (R., 1931, line 23), I. & A. Boscowitz (R., 1932, line 21) and himself, representing Martin Bates, Jr., & Co., of New York, were purchasers of seal skins in the market of Victoria in the year 1886; that J. Uhlman & Co., of New York (R., 1883, line 29), Liebes & Co., of San Francisco (R., 1883, line 35), the Hudson Bay Company (R., 1883, line 36), J. Boscowitz (R., 1890, line 35), and himself, representing Martin Bates, Jr., & Co., were purchasers of seal skins in the market of Victoria in 1887; that Walter Borns, Joseph Uhlman, of New York, H. Liebes & Co., of San Francisco, himself, representing Martin Bates, Jr., & Co., The Hudson Bay R., 1884, line Company, and I. & A. Boscowitz were purchasers in the market of Victoria in 1889.

36.

In the year 1886 all skins taken in Bering Sea and on the coast by seal hunters from the port of

Victoria were sold in the markets of Victoria or San Francisco. There is no evidence in the Record of any sales in that year elsewhere.

50.

Theodore Lubbe purchased in that year at Victoria R., 1882, line 16,797 skins. H. Liebes & Co., of San Francisco, purchased on the coast in 1886, 7,563 skins, and the Alaska Commercial Company bought a large quantity of skins in Victoria that year. The witness, Theodore Lubbe, was the agent for the sale of the Mary Ellen's skins in the year 1886; in fact, as he stated, "I owned R., 1890, line in her," and sold the skins to the Alaska Commercial Company's representatives at Victoria for $6.50 a skin.

In that year Bessinger & Co. were paying from $6.50 to $7 skin. Lubbe testified:

per

Q. Mr. Lubbe, there were purchases of the Bering Sea catch here in Victoria in 1886?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Can you tell me what they were sold for?

A. The highest I know was $7 and the lowest $6.50.

The market value of seal skins in the market of Victoria in the year 1886 is therefore definitely fixed as between $6.50 and $7. The claimants demand the highest price. They should be allowed the average market price.

58.

R., 1893, line

16.

In the year 1887 there were no skins sold directly by owners of sealing vessels in any other market than in the markets of Victoria and San Francisco. In that year Liebes & Co. purchased 17,956 skins. R., 1900. Morris Moss was buying for the Liebes firm in the market of San Francisco that year.

R., 1932, line

A total catch of 10,200 in Bering Sea was all purchased in Victoria by Uhlman, Liebes & Co., Hudson R., 1883, line Bay Company, and Lubbe.

27.

The only witness sworn as to the market value of skins in the city of Victoria in the year 1887 was Theodore Lubbe, who testified that he purchased from R., 1882, line Charles Spring & Co., on the 10th day of October,

17.

R., 1882, line 33.

Brit. Arg., 85, line 13.

R., 1883, line

30.

Brit. Arg.,85, line 2.

R., 1883, line 32.

R., 1883, line 34.

1887, 1,625 seal skins, at $4.50 each, and the witness added:

For instance, in the Bering Sea the schooner Kate did not contain any gray pups to speak of; she may have contained a few, but in the others the pups are included.

In the Argument on behalf of Great Britain, Charles Spring is cited as having sold his skins that year for $7. If Charles Spring sold any skins that year at $7, it was much earlier in the year than the cargo of skins from any of the vessels seized would have been landed in Victoria. The fact is, according to the books of Mr. Lubbe, that he received $4.50 for each seal skin of the Bering Sea catch of his schooner Kate in that year.

Uhlman & Co., of New York, bought of Munsie the 2,377 seal skins taken by the Pathfinder, at $6 per skin.

The statement is made in the Argument on behalf of Great Britain that the skins sold by Munsie to Uhlman were less valuable because of the number of gray pups contained in the lot.

Lubbe testified:

Amongst these 2,377 there may have been 10 or 15 gray pups, which would change my figures slightly, but would not amount to anything.

Lubbe bought the Penelope's collection of 1,500 skins at $5.50. This same year, 1887, Lubbe states R., 1884, line that skins were sold at the following prices in Victoria: Other skins from the Pathfinder, $5.50; from the Penelope and Theresa, $5.25.

4.

R., 1884, line 13.

I think they are subject to a very slight increase on account of a few gray pups. It would not amount to any more than 5 cents per skin.

Q. And all these skins were Bering Sea skins, or northern coast?

A. Yes, sir; Bering Sea skins.

Q. Could you give us the date of that last purchase?

A. October 11, 1887.

47.

Mr. Lubbe testified that in 1887 he made this R., 1932, line memorandum in his book: "Uhlman appeared to. have enough. Davis (Uhlman's agent) could have bought a lot at $5." Examined as to the average market price of skins in 1887 in the city of Victoria, Mr. Lubbe said:

Q. In 1887 would $5.50 be a good fair average?

A. I should think so; yes, sir.

Q. For all?

A. Yes, sir; for all.

This means Bering Sea skins.

Captain Warren, examined as to the market price

of skins in the year 1887 at Victoria, said:

R., 1933, line 30.

Q. What was the ruling market price of skins in Victoria R., 1872, line in the year 1887 in the fall?

A. Well, as near as I can remember, it was about $5.50, what the buyers were paying here.

This testimony conclusively establishes that the market price of fur seal skins in the city of Victoria in the fall of 1887 was $5.50. There is no other testimony in the Record bearing upon the average market price of seal skins at Victoria in that year.

11.

Affidavits originally filed by the claimants and R., 1900. found in the British case presented to the Tribunal of Arbitration at Paris were read into the Record.

The affidavit of Capt. James D. Warren, prepared in connection with the claims of the Dolphin, the Grace, the Sayward, and the Anna Beck, claimed for each seal skin seized $5.50, the market value at Victoria in the R., 1901, line year 1887.

The affidavit filed in connection with the claim of the Ada, which was made on the 9th day of Decem

51.

ber, 1887, claimed for the seal skins seized by the R., 1901, line cutter $5.50 per skin, the market value of seal skins 43.

in Victoria in 1887.

The value of seal skins in the year 1888 is not

directly involved, and the testimony is not important.

R., 1836, line 16.

R., 1938, line 32.

The claim is made for $11 for each skin seized in the year 1889.

Mr. Lubbe testified:

Q. You have been asked to say whether a certain sum would be a fair average of the northwest coast catch as Lampson classified them in 1889, and you also say that that is not a fair way to get an average price for Bering Sea skins. Can you give us the average price for Bering Sea skins for the year 1889?

A. You mean a sum in London and here?

Q. Take it both ways, if you can, or if you can not, give us either one way or the other.

A. The price here was $7.75 and $7.60 in 1889. The price in London, I should think, would range between $9.40 and $9.50; the net results to shippers exporting skins would be between $9.40 and $9.50, the average results.

Mr. Lubbe afterwards stated that he made a sale in London in 1889 at $7.76 per skin. He again testified R., 1933, line concerning the market price in Victoria in 1889:

44.

85, line 45.

R., 1863, line

Q. Taking them as they ran?

A. You can not do that. If you take 75 per cent Bering Sea and 25 per cent coast catch, the average would be more than $7.20.

Q. But as they ran in 1889, from your knowledge of the market, $7.20 would be a fair average, would it?

A. Yes; I should think so.

Inasmuch as many skins seized from the schooners in 1889 were of the coast catch, this average price of $7.20 per skin in Victoria would seem to be a fair value for the skins taken from the schooners. The highest market price of skins in Victoria in 1889 was between $7.75 and $7.60.

There is no testimony in the Record opposed to this, and in the Argument on behalf of Great Britain the Brit. Arg., P. price of skins is dismissed with one statement that Munsie says that he sold some in London for $11.003. Munsie testified as to sales made in London in the year 1889. He sold some at $7.92. He sold other R. 1864, line Skins in 1889 at $8.103. The date of that sale was October 30, 1889. He testified that he sold one lot for $11.003.

50.

20.