The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-01-01
Abundant Halibut Banks Off
Cape Flattery.
HEAVY CATCHES OF a SEASON.
Alaskan Coasts Have Fine Cod Fish
ing Banks.
Fleets Of Vessels Fish For the Wealth OF
the Pacific Fisheries Equal TO
Those of Atlantic Coast-Needed Pro-
fective Legislation - Cruise Of the
AIbatrcss.

The bulletin of the United States fish
commission, 1859, gives much valuable in
formation concerning the fisheries Of the
North PACING, obtained by the inyestiga-
tons OF the United States steamer Alba
tross, Lieutenant-Co q. L. Tan
ner, q. s. navy, commanding. Although
il had been known for many years that the
Pacinc coasts of North America were
abundantly provided with choice varieties
Of edible hshes, IL was not until 1850 that
even the economic species inhabiting that
region were thoroughly studied and classi-
fed and the Alaskan cod determined to be
the same as the cod of the North Atlantic
IN every respect of form and markings,
differing only as regards the tongues and
sounds, which in the Eastern cod are con-
sidered delicacies OF considerable CONNER
cial value, but are inferior IN the Pacific
cod The first cod brought to San Fran
cisco from the North Pacific region were
taken in 1853 OF the island of Saghalien,
one OF the Japanese group in the ochotsk
sea, by vessel which discovered them by
accident. Two years later seven vessels
were engaged in this fishery, and In 1866
they began to fish in the neighborhood of
the Shumagin islands, on the Alaskan
coast. The largest number of vessels that
took part In this industry prior 20 1850
was in 1870, when twenty-one vessels were
employed. Until the summer of
ISIS, however, no systematic Investigations
had been made TO determine the character
Of any of the fishing grounds located In
the North Pacific ocean. Professor George
Davidson, in the Alaska Coast Pilot of 1869,
mentions several shallow off shore sound
ings, indicating the existence of banks, on
some of which he found cod abundant.
In 1880 DR.. Tarleton III. Bean further
elaborated this subject in two important
papers, which have been published by the
United States fish commissioner in the
Fishing Resources and Fishing Grounds of
Alaska in 1ss7- DR.. Bean states that sex
tended areas of soundings on which cod
assemble In great masses are present in the
Gulf of Alaska, but they have been but
little investigated, and their limits and
characteristics are imperfectly known"
From this account we lind the following
summary:
Potlach bank, extending in northeast
eriy direction from the eastern end of ko-
diak island about lis miles, with more
numerous soundings near land. This is
the largest bank yet discovered ON the
Alaskan coast.
Shumagin bank, from ten to forty miles
south and southeast of the Shumagin ISL
ands, has an area of about 4, 100 square
miles.
Albatross bank, off the southeastern side
of Kodiak island, has an estimated area Of
3, 100 square miles.
Davidson's bank lies south of Unimak
island and extends westward from the
neighborhood of the Sannahk islands to
about longitude 164 degrees, 40 minutes
west, near the southern entrance to
Unimak pass. 1t area was estimated by
Professor Davidson at about 1000 square
miles, from forty TO fifty fathoms deep.
Sannahk bank begins Immediately to
the northeastward of the southern edge of
the Sannahk islands and covers an esti-
mated area of about 1 300 square miles.
These five banks were more thoroughly
examined by the Albatross in 1855. Good
fishing was obtained at nearly all localities
where trials were made with handlines,
and ii is natural TO infer that the entire
submerged plateau from Unalashka island
to Fairweather Ground is one immense
fishing bank, limited on the outer side
only by the abrupt slope which may be
said TO begin about the 10o-fathom curve
This important tract of hshing ground
can best be compared with the succession
of we'll known banks which skirt the south
ern border of the British province on the
eastern coast of North America, from the
Gulf of Maine TO beyond Newfoundland,
but its total area is much less. In addi-
ton to the fisheries of the Great Bank the
cod are reported 10 run In great numbers
in and around the entrance of Hamilton
bay, near the western part of Friedrich
sound. In Behring sea, a bank lying about
twenty miles to the northward of the
Unimak pass has yielded some of the
largest cod taken in Alaska. During the
present season tIsS0) the Albatross discov-
cred and located extensive banks of cod
tish all the way from Unimak pass TO Bris-
toll bay Cod and halibut abound in all
the deep waters and tords of Southwestern
Alaska.
YELLOW FISH or ALASKA MACKEREL.
Fishermen from the Alaskan waters have
RECALLED the people of Puget sound with
tastes of the fine mackerel caught in Beh-
ring sea. So positive have been some of
these inventors of fish stories in the cor
rectness of their assertions that many
present have believed their fables. There
are no mackerel in Behring sea or in Alas
kan waters; but there is a delicious fish as
fat as a mackerel, and when salted and
cooked, could be easily mistaken for mack
erel, so far as taste and fairness are con-
cerned, but that is all. They are the yell
low fish, miscaIled Aka mackerel (Pteuro-
orammus moRopterygiusl. They are regard
IA he those who have eaten them as sTI-
perior To any other on the coast
of Alaska as an article of food
The yellow fish usually ap-
proach the Shumagin islands, says
Captain Tanner, about the latter part of
August, and remain in that region in i'm
mense schools until the beginning OF cold
weather, when they retire TO the deep
water south of Shumagin bank They
can probabaly be caught by the same
methods employed in the mackerel fishing
on the Atlantic coast. They are distributed
along the coast for many hundred miles,
and occur in incredible numbers. Some
years they appear earlier than Others.
Vessels lifted With boats and purse seines Of
the fashion of eastern mackerel men, could
readily obtain large fares. The few ship
menfs sent 10 market have brought good
prices. Some lots have sold in San Fran
cisco markets as high as SIS per barrel.
HALIBUT RANKS OFF CAPE rLATTEgY.
A well-known halibut bank, resorted TO
by the Indians, begins close 70 the shore
in the vicinity of Cape Flattery, in seventy
five fathoms, and extends thence north
westward some fifteen miles, with varying
depths of thirty-nye to seyenty-fve
fefharos The Indian name for this hank