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> 1 SUBSCRIPTION RATIOS.
TIm Alaskaa/six aafti,. .... . . . . $2.60
Ibe Alaskan, per year . . $4.00
Published iT«n Friday by the a. N. B. Publishing Co., Petersburg
fluiered iu the Post Offlc« in Petersburg ss Second Class matter.
A___
WHAT OF THE FUTURE
The gaaboat “Lincoln” of Ketchi
kan, a fifty-footer, caught a total of
80 salmon this summer.
A few years ago one could go into
the “Indian River” at Sitka and
get more salmon than that with a
spear and gaffhook.
High boat at Kake this year had
a catch of 23,000 salmon—the time
waa when high boat would have
223,000—but since O’Malley and
Hoover started their conservatior
yUAiVJ VUO MT MWV v-v-www
ed 50,000.
A youag couple returned from
Tygee where they had gone lor the
summer—the husband to fish and
the mother to work in the cannery.
Their total earnings did not equal
their living expense*, for they were
in debt $38. which the cannery ex
pects to collect.
The everage earnings of local
help in Ketchikan will not exceed
$10. per person employed by the
canneries. In most of the canneries
local help 3tood and watched for
eign contract labor do work they
do not usually contract for.
Yet with these small earning the
resident labor must meet their
bills, pay taxes, pay living expenses
and taxes for schools and municipal
governments. Already reports to
this office indicate non-payment of
bills and businessman who depends
f nr hia snnnnrt is
wondering how he will manage to
pull through the winter. Perhaps
proponents of the trap system and
the Bureau of Fisheries will advise
fisherman and businessman how to
survive the winter.
. O’MALLEY—FISH PROPHET .
On the 19th of July the Anchor*!
age Daily Times printed an inter
view with Czar O’Malley, which
no doubt makes “interesting and in
structive reading’’ for those in auth
ority in Washington:
“It is the policy of Secretary Hoo
ver to have ail matters relating to
the Alaskan fisheries acted on here,
to bring the administration home
to the Territory,’’ O’Malley said.
“In keeping with this policy, I have
in the last several years and will
in the future spend the major por
tion of the summer in Alaska.
Mr. O'Malley spent the summer in
Alaska nursing Congressmen Tom
McKeown of Oklahoma and Fritz
Lanham of Texas, directing their
investigations of Alaska fisheries
** only through the eyes of the Can
ning System, taking special caie
that these men should not see and
talk with practical fishermen.
“A good run or pink salmon is
districts. TWO YEARS AGO THE
RUN WAS HEAVY AND THE
SPAWNING BEDS WERE WELL
SEEDED. THIS IS THE CYCLE
YEAR CORRESPONDING WITH
1926 AND THE PROTECTION
IT WAS POSSIBLE TO GIVE AT
THAT TIME UNDER THE OPERA
TION OF THE WHITE FISHERIES
LAW SHOULD BE REFLECTED IN
ANOTHER GOOD RUN THIS
YEAR.”
IGNORANCE EXPOSED
Last year Henry O’Malley put the
words “amazing increase in salmon
due to escapement in 1924’’ and
like increase could be expected ow
ing to escapement in 1925 and now
we haye O’Malley himself coming
to the Territory with the same
song. Going from one end of the
Territory to the other he talked of
the wonderful increase until the
packers themselves made prepara
tions for a big pack,
mer but having no other pamktionsf
By June of this summer those
who had practical experience fish
lug and had made observation of
tile ruu oi salmon, predicted tiiat
tiie ruu oi salmon would be very
small, 'iiie summer has shown
luat tiie practical iislierman is bet
ter posted as to actual conditions
than “swivel chair experts.”
The run of salmon expected is
now making its appearance. The
Bureau oi Fisheries by and thru
its regulations has protected the
late salmon and this protected run
is making its appearance according
to fishermen. The last day of fish
ing on Prince of Wales demonstrat
ed the theory of late bred fish de
velops a late ruu of salmon,
theory of breeding late fish brings
a laterun of fish—for the traps be
gan to get in their effective work.
The only thing left for the Bu
reau of Fisheries to do now i3 to
develop an early run of salmon,
close all canning operations until
after the 10th of August and pro
tect the first runs of salmon. It is
only by real protection that in the
fuure runs will be built up.
A NORTHLAND TRAGEDY
By AHN-KUTTY
Tahltan Joe, (an upper Stickeen
Indian) in stampede days ont of the
most efficient packers out of Dyea,
was now age<^ greatly back bent.
Heavy lo^ds, for'’-’ climbing
and the wn - P, snow-bound
trails and added years to age and
stooped a once upright form to al
most deformity.
Joe lives in a small log cabin on
the gravel bank of a trickling wat
er way of the far interior. Some of
the time he Is alone. Occassionally
company comes,—wandering gold
seekers, hunters, trappers. He wel
comes them, talks with them, watch
es them depart,—and then again
the silence of the great northland.
One day in September, a few
years rearward, came Jere Wallace,
tall, emaciated ,grayhaired and in
rags. Seldom he spoke. Slowly,
with tools borrowed of his Indian
neighbor, he piled together a sort
of shelter. Into this he crawled
when the shadows lengthened; when
the sun peeked over the high ridges
across the creek, he’d worm him
self outside and sit, with bony chin
on bony knees, and the hours pass
ed until the dusk and chill of ap
proaching night forced him inside.
Joe saw that he cooked little. He
saw him eat not at all. Once in a
while he would call on this strange
newcomer and ask if there was
anything he might do. A shake of
grayhead, a negative grunt from
scrawny throat, was nearly, at all
times, the only reply he received.
As the days grew shorter and the
hands of winter gripped more
sternly, Wallace’s outdoor sittings
became less frequent, and Joe, read
ing the warnings heralded by Na
ture, cut an extra quantitiy of
wood and stored a two season’s food
supply. He had an idea he’d have
help consuming both.
The first morninig that the frost
nipped hard he crossed the dead
grass fringe, separating Wallace’s
wickiup from his own, and knock
ed at the burrow-like doorway.
“Come,” came in a hollow voice
from the gray inside.
“You want fire and meat or fish
this cold morning?” Joe inquired
when he made out in the smudge
of an excuse for fire, the drawn
up and bunched form of a man.
“No, Joe, I want nothing. I’m
getting along all right. I’ll call
you from my window when I want
anything. Don’t come any more
unless I hail you. For what you
have already done and for. your
kindness I thank you. That is all.”
The next day was colder. Joe
looked over to the poorly chinked,
loosely constructed cabin and saw
Wallace, chin on knees, close to the
one sash window. No smoke came
■- - ‘l. * 111 ——■
from the chimney . No cheery
crackle of fire came from the fire
place. The Indian went his way on
a far-flung trap line and the gloom
of night had settled ere he return
ed.
The following morning was a fret
ful taste of real chill. Joe looked
over Wallace’* way again and grew
uneasy. Wallace was in the same
place and in the same position.
Wide open ^yes ' stared straight
ahead at, seemingly, some object
across the small room.
Day after day followed. Wallace
sat and stared. Joe ran his trap
lines, kept his fires burning .pre
pared food for two and waited for
his friend to call.
Before the steaming breath of
spring touched the frost edges,
Oluf Hagan and Jack Damoind
broke powdry snow for their dog
team down the valley to Tahltan
Joe’s. Night it was and dark when
they arrived at the cabin, and he
took them in. He told the travel
ers, as they sat over scalding cof
fee, sourdough bread and steaks
of mountain sheep, of his odd
neighbor. He told them how long
this queer man had sat and stared,
and how long, how very long, he
had listened for his call.
Morning came. Hagan and Da
mond broke the frost seal ®f the
clumsy door of Wallace’s cabin and
entered. Wallace sat and stared,
not at them, but at a square of yel
low note paper in a frame direct
ly before him on the table. Writ
ten in faded ink, on the paper, was
the following:
“Come when you feel weary, Jer
ry. Come when your heart aches
when the day grows cold, when you
hear me calling,
“MARY.”
INTERNATIONAL HALIBUT COM
MISSION WARNS INDUSTRY
Mr. John P. Babcock, Chairman
of the International Halibut Commis
sion announced recently that further
scientific studies of halibut would
be made next winter and that the
commission would call into confer
ence all halibut fishermen and oth
ers interested in the industry. A re
port of the conference will be filed
with the governments of both the
United States and Canada.
It is believed that some of the
banks now more or less depleted will
be closed when the commission gets
its recommendations into form. A
summary of the report follows:
‘‘The commission has, as has many
times been stated, engaged in a
study of the halibut fishery and the
life-history of the halibut, for the
Canadian and United States govern
mens. A vast amount of data has
been collected to establish the con
dition of the fishery, and experi
ments have been conducted toj dis
close the facts in the life-history of
the halibut which are esseniial to
the adminisration of the fishery.
“We have a complete record of
the catches landed at all important
ports of the coast from 1914 to
date, showing the vessels making
these catches and their composition
from the standpoint of size. As to
the vessels listed, we have their num
bers and sizes, the number of days
spent on each trip and, to a great
extent,the location of the banks
fished. A great many of these boats
have, during the past yeare, kept
splendid records of their daily
catches, and have generously put
these at the disposal of the commis
sion. Fromthese records we have
been able to tabulate the time spent
in reaching the banks, the number
of hours actual fishing for the catch
obtained, the amount, of gear used
each day and the catch obtained
thereby. The seasonal changes and
the tendency of the abundance of
the fish on the banks are clearly
shown. It la safe to say that there
is very little extant data which has
been overlooked.
Serious Depletion
“The statistical data indicates
clearly that depletion has taken
place everywhere, the degree of this
depletion far exceeding anything
which could possibly be confused by
minor errors such as difference in
gear used. But the most striking
decline has been on the southern
banks. In 1906, when the British
Columbia Fisheries Department ob
tained our first really reliable re
cords, the catch per unit of go r
in Hecate Straits was in the vicinity
of 450 pounds. Through the years
it showed a steady decline to 1914
when it was approximately 143
pounds, and we have found that
since then the rate of decline has
continued evenly until 1926 the
yield was but 47 pounds. Almost I
equally striking results are avail
able for other banks. Not merolv
the 3ize but also the average we;ght
of the fish therein has declined
[markedly, and although it is true
(that young fish could be obtained in
considerable fuantity even in early
days, now there is an increasing
tendency to fish intensively those
banks inhabited by these immature
fish, the so-called “chickens.” i
proof of decline we have shown that
the days per voyage have increased
and the number of fishing days
required necessarily have done the
saute.
(Continued Next Week •
FISH TRAP, PURSE SEINE WAR
ON SOUND NOT ENDED
From Seattle P. 1., April 30, 1027
By E. B. Fussell
With the Puget Sound salmon
run, one of the State’s largest re’
sources, as a prize, a new warfare
is on between owners of fish traps
and operators of purse seines, it
was revealed yesterday.
Resumption of the old battle sees
the state fisheries board, which has
supreme legal power over the in
dustry, split on the issue, and an
appeal carried from the majority
headed by State Representative E.
A. Sims, chairman of the board, to
Governor Roland H. Hartley whc
appoints the members.
Word from Olympia yesterday
was that an order of the fisheries
board .adopted at the meeting oi
April 14-16, by a two-to-one vote,
has not yet been published.
CHECKS SEINE USERS
This order, it is revealed, re
duces by approximately 50 per cent
the activities of the purse seine
operators. It was entered two
weeks ago, by vote of Chairman
Sims and E. P. Blake, on the peti-;
tion of the seven largest trap operat-!
ors, who stated that they represent-j
ed 85 per cent of the trap operators,
and 90 per cent of the total invest
ment in the industry. Capt. Henry
Ramwell of Everett, the third mem
ber of the board, protested the or
der and refused to sign it.
Following the issuance of the or
der purse seine operators held A
protect meeting at Everett, enlisted
the suport of eleven independent
canneries which depend upon purse
seines for their salmon, and sent a
delegation to Olympia to see the
governor.
The present purse seine fight trac
es back to a year ago, when repre
sentatives of the leading fish traps
appeared before the fisheries board
and asked that regulations approxi
mating those adopted by federal
authorities for Alaska fisheries, be
applied to purse seines in the Pu
get Sound area. An extensive hear
ing was held, but no action was tak
en.
This year, according to accounts
which drifted out of the meeting of
two weeks ago, a petition was pre
sented to the board, signed by the
“big seven” trap owners—Pacific
American Fisheries, Bellingham Can
ning Company, George A. Barker
Salmon Packing Company, Astoria
and Puget Sound Canning Company,
Carlisle Packing Company, Decep
tion Pass Fish Company and Alas
ka Packers’ Association.
The petitioner recites, that the run
of salmon has been so depleted by
the purse seiners that it is no long
er profitable to OPERATE WITH
OTHER FORMS OF GEAR and as
serts that Washington is the only
district in which virtually unre
stricted purse-seine fishing is allow-'
ed.
100 Miles of Nets
It is estimated, in the petition
that there will be 300 seines on the
Sound this year and that the com
bined length of their seines, placed
at more than a hundred miles would
completely close the Strait of Juan
de Fuca to the incoling salmon.
The order, adopted shortly after
presentation of this year’s petition
reduces the length of a purse seine,;
now 1,900 feet, to 250 fathoms, or
1,500 feet. Besides reducing the'
length it places a limit of 300 three
and one-lialf inehe meshes on the
depth of the net. There is at pres
ent no depth limit. These limits,
the purse seiners contend, reduce j
their activities 50 per cent.
In addition Order No. 18 prohih-J
its the laying of a purse seine with-1
in 100 yards of any other fishing
appliance, a further limitation upon'
their operations. These restric-j
tions closely follow the government!
regulations in Alaska.
.Deny Trapmen.
The purse seine operators deny
the trap men’s assertion that Wash
ington alone allows unrestricted
purse seine operations. In Canada,
they say, there are no restrictions
upon purse seiners, except that nets
shall not be less than a given |
length.
They estimate their own num-j
bers at 250, of which approximately
j half are members of an organ iza
jtion, headed by John Maskovich of
j Gig Harbor, which is carrying its
appeal to the Governor.
—Ed. Note—The above is printed
in order that the Alaskans might
know of the Washington actions of
those same hogs that have depleted,
the streams of Alaska.
HE IS BIGHT EXCEPT—
Fish Commissioner O’Malley is
| right in not conforming to the re
quests of the various communities
to extend fishing periods. (Ed.
Note—Except the area owned, op
erated and controlled by the Pack
ing Combine in Bristol Bay).
His is a delicate position and to
conform to the wishes of every com
munity that asks to have the sea
son extended tor its sole benefit!
(♦Except Bristol Bay*) would bei
to make a joke of his position.!
(*A joke already made by Hoover’s!
reported ‘amazing increase’ but at ‘
which few resident Alaskan fisher-1
men laugh.*) It would seem that
the fishing regulations as en
forced work hardship on certain
communities, but to ease up here
and there as requested would be
to render useless the laws and in
tke end work injury to those the
laws are provided to protect. (*
Heretofore tho Bureau has under
stood that the laws were provided
to protect the traps and all pro
hibitions have been made against,
resident seine fishermen. We there-!
fore understand the Stroller toj
mean the Act of June 6 ,1024 was
for the protection of the trap sys
tem.
(*)—Our own comment.
i'i.vri.LtXh
iiie Bureau or i' isnerres iuiuwa,
all aoout iisil. They nave C/Oilegu
graduates on rile force and ine>
have a school of fisheries at iiie
University of Washington where
they teach all there is about fish.
The Washington school of usher
ies has long been considered a joke
by fishermen. No doubt, the school
has contributed much to the indus
try in the line of canning, cooking
cof salmon ,etc. But otherwise they,
have developed only fish wardens'
who after a few weeks or months!
in their school come to Alaska and j
tell men who have fished for thirty!
i
years all about salmon.
Ask any one of them, Washington;
Fisheries School graduate, Bureau
of Fisheries from top to bottom, Is
a King Salmon a salmon or not, and;
they cannot give a logical reason
to their answer. If a salmon, do i
they spawn and die like other sal
mon or do they spawn and return
to the ocean?
All of the science and knowledge
of salmon, in the Washington School
of Fisheries and the Bureau of Fish
eries is tied in Dr. Charles H. Gil
bert, and since he is under the Bu-|
reeau of Fisheries he no longer;
faces the truth about oitr fisheries.!
Experts!?! Sitting in swivel- j
chairs pulling feathers from the I
Eagles tail.
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