According to the United States Bureau of Fisheries the hunter in 1891 averaged about 60 cents for the skin, while in 1902 the price averaged about 90 cents, varying between 15 cents and $2.00, depending on the size and condition of the skin. “Prime hides five feet long, with no cuts, scale slips, or other defects, are worth about 95 cents each, in trade, when the hunter sells them at the country stores, and about $1.10 cash, at the tanneries. Those measuring seven feet are worth $1.55, six feet, $1.12; four feet, 52 cents, and three feet, 25 cents. Little demand exists for those under three feet in length” (Report Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, 1902, p. 345). Hides of seven feet are in most demand, those over ten feet are not much used. The income of the hunters is largely increased by the sale of otter, bear, deer, and other skins. The different varieties of skins are described by Stevenson (74) as follows: “There are several distinct varieties of alligator skins on the markets, the most important being the Floridian, Louisianian, and Mexican; each differs from the others in certain well-defined characteristics, and owing to these differences each variety has its special uses. “The Florida skins are longer in the body--that is, from the fore legs to the hind legs--than those from Louisiana and Mexico, and consequently they are largely in demand by manufacturers of large handbags. They also have a number of so-called ‘buttons’ or ‘corn marks’ on the inside or under surface of an equal number of the scutes resulting from imbedded horn-like tissues in the center of those scales. These increase the difficulty in tanning the skins and detract somewhat from the appearance of the finished article, and for this reason the Florida skins are ordinarily the cheapest on the market. The farther south the skins are secured in Florida the greater the number of ‘corn marks,’ and those from the vicinity of Key West are almost valueless for this reason. “The Louisiana skins differ from those of Florida in the absence of the ‘corn marks’ above noted, and from both the Florida and Mexican skins in being more pliable and in having the scales more artistically curved and shaped. Consequently they are preferred for such small articles as card-cases and pocketbooks, and usually sell at the highest prices. Skins obtained in Mississippi and Texas are similar to those secured in Louisiana, while those from Georgia and South Carolina are similar to those from Florida, except that the ‘corn markings’ are not so numerous. All the Florida and Louisiana skins show greater uniformity of coloring, being of a bluish black on the upper surface and a peculiar bluish white on the under side.