Word: otterness
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...deeply concerned that the "Return of the Sea Otter" [Feb. 9] may well mean the demise of the sea otter. "What might the coat cost?" it was asked. It might well cost the loss of another of the world's unique creatures. Since the inception of the present century more than 40 kinds of mammals have been exterminated. They are forever lost to us and all following generations...
...slaughter of the sea otter began in 1741 with a Russian exploratory expedition to the Commander Islands. Unfortunately, the sea otter's trusting nature aided in its destruction. These naturally tame animals would swim up to the small boats, only to be clubbed to death by hunters...
...world's rarest furs is the North Pacific sea otter, for the simple reason that except for an occasional poacher's pelt, none has been available for more than half a century. Lustrous dark brown and noted for their durability and warmth, sea-otter skins were prized by Russian czars even above sable. Chinese mandarins heaped huge rewards on Siberian seamen daring enough to cross the Bering Strait and trap sea otters in the Aleutians. But two centuries of intensive hunting brought the near extinction of the species. By 1912, when Russia, Canada and Japan joined...
...otter is coming back on the market. Under protection the herds have multiplied to a present population of some 40,000-enough so that Alaska has begun harvesting a strictly controlled number of pelts. Last week more than 100 buyers representing the world's top fur houses converged on the Seattle Fur Exchange to compete for Alaska's initial harvest. In less than two hours of bidding, Alaska Governor Walter J. Hickel, who revived the trade as a state-owned enterprise, presided over the sale of 826 skins. The record-breaking top price: $2,300 per skin, paid...
...stimulate interest, went on to buy 30 pelts: "With all the couturiers looking for something new, this is the ideal time to introduce this fur. Now it's up to the women." And perhaps to the men as well. Ed Shepherd, in charge of Alaska's sea-otter trade, recalls that the fur was once lavished on masculine apparel, says: "I wouldn't be at all surprised to see knee-length sport coats of sea otter...