The morning call., 1892-10-19
THE SALMON DYING OUT.
Commissioner Stones Views
on the Subject.
The Supply Less Than Per Cent of That
Ten Years Ago-An Alarming
State OF Affairs.

Livingstone Stone, Deputy United States
Fish Commissioner. In charge of the
salmon breeding station on the McCloud
River, in Shasta County, was at the Palace
Hotel yesterday.
Mr.. Stone was the first man to establish a
salmon breeding station in America. If not
in the world.
His first breeding station was established
on the Miramichi River. in New Brunswick,
twenty-five years ago.
Five years later the United States Govern
ment sent him out to California to establish
breeding station here, and he fixed it a.
what is now known as Baird" station, on
the McCloud River.
The station is named after the late U. S.
Fish Commissioner Baird, who was always
considered high authority on psciculture.
On the station the General Government
has expended about $4,000 in buildings
alone, and the facilities are as complete as
they can well be.
Great success has attended the efforts of
Mr.. Stone and his assistants till recently.
but in an interview with a CALL reporter
last night he expressed himself very strongly
TO the effect that their efforts were being
neutraiized by the fishermen at the mouth
OF the Sacramento River.
These men. he declared, are burning the
candle at both ends.
Instead of allowing the fish to 60 UP into
the Upper Sacramento and its tributaries TO
spawn they are deliberately destroying the
whoi5 industry by not allowing any Of them
10 ascend tie stream.
The salmon is In many respects peculiar
fish, as 1t by instinct always returns for
breeding purposes 10 the stream whence IL
originally came.
Ii knows no other cold water stream, and
thar a mQrEaA Hiffarauaal the
| salmon which are found ia one stream and
| in tile next adjoining one. which they
ascend, though both may flow into the same
| bay.
| and this popularity has been noticed Tor
| many years by those who have the Interests
| of food fisheries at heart.
Ten years ago the salmon breeding sta
| tion on the McCloud River was able with
| out any trouble to obtain in its own neigh
| borhood 100000 salmon eggs, most of
| which were successfully hatched.
| Now, owing to the actions of the fish
| pirates at the mouth of the Sacramento
| River, the sh0rtness Is alarming.
| This year they were only with difficulty
| able to obtain 100000 eggs. or less than
| per cent of the number they caught so easily
/ ten years ago.
What the outcome will be Mr. Stone says
| is obvious.
The salmon is doomed to extinction in the
Sacramento River unless steps are taken at
| once 10 stop the wholesale slaughter now
| going on.
When asked what stems he would advise
| be said the first one would be TO make the
! commence on the LIST of August instead Of
| the lst of September as at present.
bill to this effect i'll be introduced at
the next session OF the Legislature, and he
hoped it would pass without difficulty, as it
| was an actual necessity.
The salmon Is in his opinion. and Indeed
in the opinion of all connoIsseurs, the fish
of the Pacific Coast, and as it has always
been found In great numbers here until
lately, has been one of the most important
articles of food both for local consumption
and for export that the Pacific Coast
possessed.
Now it is liable TO extinction, and this not
alone on the Sacramento River, but on
every stream even as far north as Alaska.
Alter entering the streams and getting
above tidewater man is the only enemy
the fish itself has to contend with, but the
eggs have many.
Among these are the fresh-water sculpin
or mudfish, which is the worst of all, the
sucker, the trout and the water snake, all of
which destroy great quantities of eggs and
display much ingenuity In obtaining them.
Continuing his conversation, Mr. Stone
said that the officers had found and caught
q number OF German carp In the McCloud
River, where they had been planted some
years ago.
This. he said, was doubted In Washing
ton, but nevertheless 1t is true, and those
captured showed healthy growth, and
that the waters of the McCloud and other
rivers flowing from Mount Shasta are fav-
oraDle for them.
lie feared, however, that unless imme-
date steps are taken to protect the salm ON
from the depredations of the cannery-
men they themselves would lose all the
value Of their plants ard the breeding.
station would have to he closed on account
of the impossibility of obtaining eggs at the
| station.