The Press., 1883-10-11
THE SALMON CANNING INDUSTRY.

ters to his paper thus treats of an interest ing topic:
 AT LAST WE COME TO ASTORIA
 which is largely built upbn piles and sal mon. The business part of the town is over the water and residencers go rambling up the hillside and are often located upon short streets, which no horse can ascend The Pacific is only few miles away, and Horace Greelys admonition is never heard in the town. It has permanent popula- ton of some 4,OOO. This is more than doubled during the fishing season from April 1st to August 1st. Like the natives of Nantucket the Astorians were All on the dock to receive us, and @ hearty welcome it was. Carriages were furnished, and by their use and a good deal of foot climbing we reached the highest point behind the city, and got a view of the bay, the spot where Lewis and Clark wintered in 1905. and tho. Pacific ocean that will never be forgotten. After this we visited some of the canneries. ..
 64O,000 CASES OF SALMON
 or 15a, 500 tons have been packed this sea- son. The most of this has already been shipped. The catch this year has been so large that the price is very low, and the pdChS1o dIC lOW 6ClluS dU Jpf. JU D6I CdS6 of forty eight one pound cans. There are thirty-seyen canneries, one-haf of which are owned by the fishermen, and run by them on the cooperative plan. The amount of money invested in these can- neries is in the neighborood of $1 500, ,0O0. This estimate is based upon the amount of capital invested prior to returns at the end of the season, being the amouns expended only in preparations. The number of fish caught in the Columbia during the last three years will exceed an average of 1,500, ,000 per annum, with a{product of more than 500, ,000 cases in each year, as in 1881 the pack was 548, ,O00, and in 1882 542 ,0OO cases, at rough estimate. The value of the product for the two years mentioned was $6, ,000, ,O00 in round numbers.
 Inn boats which the fishermen use cost $250 each and last from eight to ten years, but the nets are good for one season only. These are about 300 fathoms long and cost $400, the lines and corks being worth at the end of the season about $75. The thread of which they are composed costs $l. 10 per pound These nets are made by the fishermen during the winter time. Attached to every cannery are extensive piers on which are racks for spreading out the nets to dry, and these may be seen on every side. When the fishermen owns his net and rents boat he receives ninety cents for every fish but when both are supplied by the cannery the price is but fifty cents. This varies each year accord ing to circumstances. Although salmon sixty pounds and even more are occasionally caught, the average weight is twenty pounds. The average catch of the largest cannery last season was ], 200 fish per boat The fishing is generally done at the mouth of the river near the bar, the best time being at the turn of the tide. With the exception of here and there @ sail nothing can be seen just before the tide comes in, but soon afterwards the white sails cover the river as the boats come home with the product of their nights fishing.
 MANY LIVES ARE ANNUALLY LOST
 in the breakers of the bar, but the fate of their companions does not deter others from following the dangerous occupation. The fact that many fishermen has drawn over '$2, ,OOO as & remuneration for four months labor is too much for those who are dependent upon this for a living. On one day this year over 40,0O0 fish were brought to the canneries, for which the fishermen received 90 cents each, or $36, OOO.
 At the end of the fishing season 8 num- Der of these men seek other climes, or re- turn to their sea-faring lives, while per haps the majority remain on terra frrna. In Astoria hundreds of these men have erected neat little cottages for themselves and families, and remain in the place men, toned from year to year, working during the off season alongshore or on the repair ing and manufacturing of nets. The ma jority of these fishermen are hardy and sturdy Scandinavians, though other na- ionaities, the Italians ranking next, are represented. There are about 4,OOO Chi namen employed in the different canner- ies. Adding these to the number of fish ermen and the other white labor engaged in the box factories and responsible posi- tions in the canneries, an army of 5000 men can be easily mustered. Including the wives and children relying upon the results of those engaged in this business, it would be no exaggeration to premise that 15, ,000 souls depends upon the salmon in- terest of the Columbia river for 8 liveli- hood
 HOW THE SALMON ARE CANNED.
 The fish, after being removed from It's native element, is brought to the cannery, and received from the boats in fresh con dition only. After the boat-load has been discharged the fish are immediately taken hold of, dsemboweled and decapitated, and, on being cleaned, are cut by revolv- ing knives into pieces four inches wide, then split again with chopping knife, and handed to the filler's table. The process of filling is, in the majority of establish ments, performed by hand, though the latest improvement in this respect is the filling machine, the use of winch necessi- tates less chopping, and saves fully 75 per cent of manuel labor. When the can Is filled the top is adjusted, and the pound of piscatorial lusciousness.is passed on to the trimmer, attached to the soldering machine, and, after being trimmed, is taken hold of by an endless chain and rolled along an incline, the base of which Is filled with diluted solder. On leaving the solder bed it rolls down track to the examining bench, and, on being pronounced perfect as far as sealing is concerned, is passed into test-kettle to ascertain if there be any leaks in the can. Now comes the cooking process, the first step of which is to place the sealed cans in so-called cool CTS, or, to give another name, can-racks. These coolers, or can-racks, from five to seven feet high, are then dipped into Q vat of boiling water, remaining there from an hour and half. On being taken out of the cans are pierced to permit an escape of the air, and, being immediately reseal- x1,A,1 ,<<,n e,ko