The Daily Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Or.) 1876-1883, 1882-05-18
"reminiscences and Opinions o
William Eume.

who either didn't know how to make
them or couldn't. | concluded that
fish must be plentiful in country
where they needed SO many nets, and
| made up my mind 10 visit the coast
at once. Fish and game were always
my delight, and the stories which l
heard about the latter fairly carried
me away. 1 started accordingly for
the coast, and in 1868. or theresbouts,
I commenced to fish on the Sacra-
ment river. We could catch plenty f
salmon, but the great trouble was that
the trade was wholly local, and the
fish were hswked about the streets as
berries are By the Indians to-day. l
got to thinking about the matter, and
when ] recoliected that the English
and Australians were powerfully fond
of salmon, / concluded that the trade
must become more than local. Ac-
cordingly, in 1864, A. S. Hapgood,
who is now dead, and myself entered
INTO partnership to do Il general can
ming and fishing business. Hapgood
WAS n timer by trade, and he thor
oughIy understood the art of making
tin cans, and knew hos TO fish.
The agreement between ns was that /
was 20 be free to go and come when |
pleased, and after the fishing season
was over, conld spend my time in
hunting, while Hapgopd must look
after the business. We started in and
packed quite a number Of cases.
"The merchants aud others did not
take kindly to cur business, and we
had some little trouble in Introducing
our catch took large basket one
dag and filled il with the first cans
turned out, and went about from
door Ia door with it on my arm, and
sold and gave away whatever | cOnld.
| made presents OF some to the whole
sale merchants Of Sacramento, and
sent others TO my friends. The local
demand of cnurse vas nothing, and
our catch Fema;upd on nur hands.
This was the origin Of TIE great salmon
trade, and | don't known that it has
ever been published before. Hap
COED I nothing discouraged sont lot
to Australia, and luckily for us, they
were snapped mp by the English, who.
as remarked before, were powerful
lv fond of salmon, and could tell a
good one az socn az they tasted it.
We at once received an order for the
balance Of our catch, and thus you
see the canning trade was Il, success
from tho first, although couldn't
dispose OF the first b;sketful of cans.
"Ab0ut this time we heard much in
regard to the extra fine quality and
the great quantity of the Coiumhis
river fish and sent my brother George
up 10 locate cannery. He chcae th'
very spot on which this establishment
; stands, and in 1866 Hapgood and
started in here; and here / have con
tinued to fish and will fish to the last
"What do [ know about the salm
Oh, ehl Wei. ] wilI tell YOU
' very little. He is under water S,
It mach that / can't watch him all tn
y time, and the longer keep hIIatin
3 him the less | know about him
o Younger mon eau tell you teh times .
n much IS can. They know every
Il thing, while | confess know nothing
Ia For instance, al one time though
d that all the salmon returned to tn
" same river in which they once swan
II my observation, however, has mad
a me conclude that they do not.
% don't say that they don't. mark yor
"a but simply that my observation lead
ia me to that conclusion. Again,
thought ~ tone time that when ii
river was high the salmon came i
from the sea IN larger numbers tina
III at other times. The catch in hig
re water is always larger than at an ord
8e nary stage; but have concluded tn
'u it is accounted for by the force OF Il
e current driving into shoals all the f,
&c which are scattered through the W
IN ters, and hehce apparently, but n
H. really, Increasing them IN number
o. "The connection between the smt
LIS and the salmon, too, has been mu
no dwelt upon. Learned men say Il
w smeit are the forerunners of the s;
"0 mon, the pilots of the great body as
'' were. l don't think there is much
ey this theory. In 1866, [ believe, I
!" smell stopped running into the Cului
nc bia, and for several years they did,
oo appear at all, but the salmon were
Ply plentiful as ever.
ay "Will the salmon play outl We
1 can't tell you for certainty. If