SEALING SEASON

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26198, 8 July 1946, Page 4

SEALING SEASON

MARKET FOR SKINS PRICE FACTOR DOUBTFUL Although no indication is given as to the prices likely to be realised, some interesting information concerning the preparation and marketing of sealskins has been received by a firm of Dunedin skin dealers from merchants in the United States. The indications are that any skins from New Zealand would have to be dealt within the United States, as the only English firm which handles them is likely to be fully occupied otherwise for a considerable time to come.

In the first place, fur seals are the only ones whose skins are suitable for commercial purposes, and they must be taken at the right season, when the skins are fully furred. The condition of the skins in the raw state is the most important factor in ensuring good results later on. They are more difficult than any other type of skin to dye and dress, as it takes at least three months and a considerable number of operations, involving 15 to 25 applications of brush dye to process them. If the skin is not properly handled in the raw state, not only is it more difficult to deal with any damage to the skin, but the leather is affected to a much greater extent than in any other article. There is also a great deal of shrinkage between the raw and the finished state. The American firm with which the Dunedin dealers have been in communication handles all the Alaskan seal trade as well as the skins from the Cape of Good Hope. It is now some 25 years since they have had sealskins from New Zealand waters, but they state that from what they remember the New Zealand product is in no way inferior to that of Alaska or the Cape, although the skins they received from here were inclined to be badly handled and damaged with shot. They emphasise that it is necessary to leave a fair proportion of blubber on the skin and to pack them in plenty of good fresh salt. Size is one of the main points in the grading of sealskins. Alaska skins are 42 to 45 inches long for large and 39 to 42 inches for medium, most of the Alaska skins being in the large category. It is almost impossible to say what the New Zealand skins will be worth, the American firm states, as it is so long since they have been dealt with and the great determining factor is the condition in which they are received. So far there is no record of any skins having been offered for sale since it was announced that the Government had decided to permit a limited open season.