Graham guardian., 1895-03-23
FROZEN FISH IN THE ARCTIC.
A Vast Shoal of Them Encountered Re-
Gently In Behring Sea.


Vast Shoal of Them Encountered Re-
Gently In Behring Sea.
Some recently returned salmon fish
ers, whalers and sealers from the Arc
tic tell of a strange thing-an occur
renee without parallel in the expert
ence of those who sailed to the far
north, says the San Francisco Chron-
icle.
A sea captain who wasa passenger on
the salmon schooner Glenn tells the
story with much circumstance The
Glenn left the city in March last,
bound for Behring sea, which was
reached May 4. In the latter month
there is usually little drift ice, but
seldom enough to interfere materially
with the progress of the many whalers,
sealers and other craft which make for
the sea at that time of the year This
season, however, the sea was literally
covered with drift ice, extending from
the Alaskan peninsula clear across
northward to the Yukon. The south
west winds usually blow off shore, and
driving the ice further from the land
leave a passage between ice and land
The Glenn intended to make Bristol
bay and stood to the eastward, but was
unable to reach it on account of the
ice, and SO had to put back toward the
peninsula to await the delayed south
east winds.
1t was while the Glenn and four
Others passed up toward Bristol bay
that the phenomenon was encountered
The vessel had just emerged from
Ounimak pass, about half way between
Amoukhta island and Bristol bay,
when vast quantity of dead fish were
encountered. They were in the water
as far as the eye could see on each side
of the vessel, and for sixty miles the
Glenn travelled through the shoals of
fish.
On examination they proved to be
silver hake, kind of Goldfish, but mar
rover and smaller, and having only
two dorsal and one anal fin. They
weighed between four and five pounds,
and were perfectly fresh, the gills bo-
ing still red. Some of the sailors were
afraid to eat them, thinking they had
perhaps been killed by some subterra-
mean upheaval or, possibly, through
the overflow from the volcano of
Wenyalmnor, which was active last
fall. Other sailors, less fastidious, did
not hesitate to cut the flesh open, and
then peculiar condition was revealed.
Although the fish were fresh and had
not stiffened, the gills and intestines
were found to be full of ice. This
was not the case in one instance, but
with every fish which was opened. and
apparently accounted for theii' sudden
subterranean upheaval.
Tile anomalous condition of the flesh
was the subject of much talk and spec
u!ation. That the fish should be COM
paratively timber and that there should
be ice within them seemed to indicate
that shoal of them had been sudden
ly overtaken and frozen to death, and
on the thawing out of the ice the car
casses had been released, but had not
risen in temperature sufficiently to
thaw out the ice in their bodies. Those
of the sailors who cooked the fish sail
that they tasted as good as ever, and
hat they were not tainted by sulphuT,
as they might have been in their death
being due to sudden subterranean
upheaval.
The area of the frozen fish was not
less than half a mile wide and sixty
miles long. When the Glenn on it's
homeward-bound journey reached
Ounimal pass again, August 90, every
sign of the fish had disappeared. Many
had doubtless been eaten by the gulls
and other birds, and others had sunk
in the warm water.