The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1894-08-02
A GLOOMY OUTLOOK.
Salmon Packers on the Fraser still
waiting for Fish.


/ This is an odd year over on the
Fraser" said Hon. Benjamin Young
to an Astorian reporter yesterday, land
: If the situation does not change pretty
soon, the pack on that stream for the
Z season of 1894 will be the lowest In
years. Up to date there Is scarcely
any pack to speak of. and but few
days remain in which they can hope to
I make up for lost time, even if the fish
should start to rum"
Knowing that Mr.. Young had spent
many years on the Fraser river in the
salmon packing business. and since his
residence here had kept thoroughly
posted on the industry, the reporter
ventured few questions regarding the
present gloomy situation Of the Fraser
packers, and the probable cause. He
continued:
II cannot explain the cause of the al
most total absence of fish in the Fraser
at this time of the year, for taking the
history Of the industry on this stream
for the past seventeen years, one would
naturally figure on an unusually large
run of salmon, beginning early In the
season. When the Hudson Bay Com
pany, 30 years ago used to salt salmon
for the London market, they claimed to
have discovered that each four years
the salmon would come in increased
numbers into the Fraser, continuing the
second year. Then for the two following
years the run would decrease to almost
nothing. This they claimed had contin-
ued during their operation on the river
I'm 1878 there was an unusually large
run Of salmon, but the canneries then
located on the river did not commence
keeping a record of the time the fish
would start or stop until the following
year, when the river seemed filled with
salmon. The run started on July 18th,
and continued until the 9Th of August.
This was supposed to be the second big
year. as the Gamers called it, and was
verified when the two following years
passed with exceedingly light runs of
salmon. In 1882 the second year of the
big rum commenced on July Sth, and
ceased August Goth. Four years later
in 1886, the run commenced on the 18th
of July and stopped on the 10th of
August. In 1890 the second big run
started on the goth day of July and
ceased on the goth day of August, and
we have now on the 1st day of August,
16 years from the time when the rec
ords were opened, year that promised
o heavy run of salmon, absolutely no
report of any fish having entered the
Fraser river.
by reference to the dates of the last
16 years it will be seen that the run of
fish has never started later than the
goth of July, and taking that as al
basis, 1t would seem altogether proba,
BILE that the pack this season, even If
the fish should come in at once in un,
preeedented numbers, will fall below
any previous year in the history of the
industry on that river. The run, if
any, this season, is likely to be only
small squirt, and the canneries can only
pack so many cases, no matter how
large the catch. The thirty canneries
on the Fraser river have a capacity of
about 100000 cases, with a full seasons
run. This year, figuring on heavy
season, the various canneries advanced
a large amount of money to the In.
dians, Chinese and white fishermen,
and now that season of failure seems
staring them in the face, they are
to cut down the supply of
provisions. The fishermen do not take
kindly to this, and say they will go
away at once if it is done. In the event
they do leave, and a run Of fish comes
in, the packers will be in a pretty hard
fix. II
with two poor years staring them in
the face, 1t is not likely that all the
will resume operations next
season. This means a great loss to
them, for they will be compelled to
carry their supplies over until the next
big rum comes on. which will probably
be in '9S. I cannot account for the pres
INT light run, that is bound to have such
disastrous effect on all the packers on
that river.