e enclose the sea.
That country claimed jurisdiction over the water. That claim was
known and its validity was not disputed seriously. By the treaty
Russia ceded about one half of the sea to the United States. Russia
and the United States are the countries directly interested. England
has no territorial rights and therefore she has no interest that is
not common to other nations. The United States and Russia are
interested in the seal fishery which can be preserved only by the
protection of the animals in Behring Sea. It may be claimed fairly
that Russia and the United State have property in these animals due to
the fact that they gather upon the territory of the countries at
certain seasons of the year. At other seasons they roam over the water
as other animals roam over the land. They are, at least, partially
domesticated. They are accustomed to the presence of the inhabitants
of the islands which they occupy as breeding grounds and which they
visit annually. Moreover, England has an interest in the preservation
of the fishery. The skins are dressed in London, and thus far no one
has been found, either in Europe or in the United States, who can
compete with the London workmen. For the purpose of protecting and
preserving the seal fishery, Behring Sea ought to be treated as a
closed sea. For general commercial purposes it may be used as other
parts of the ocean are used.

At a time, while I was Secretary of the Treasury, when I was detained
at my lodgings by a slight illness, I received a visit from William E.
Dodge a New York merchant and an importer of tin, whom I had known some
years before when I was a member of Congress. He said that he had
called to see me in regard to charges against his house preferred by
the revenue officers relating to the importation of tin. I said, what
was true, that I had not heard of the charges and that I had never
suspected his house of any wrong-doing in their business. His
statement in reply was a great surprise to me. He said that if there
was anything which appeared to be wrong, or that was in fact a
violation of law, the error or wrong was unintentional--that he and his
partners intended to act always in good faith. He then stated that
the claim amounted to more than two hundred thousand dollars, and he
proposed then and there to pay the amount claimed, coupled, however,
with the condition that the payment should be kept secret. I replied
that I could not take