Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-06-24
FISH COMMISSION WORK
Operations Of the Hatcheries and Distribu-
tors.
Study of Scarcity OF Salmon in tho
Upper COlumbia-Albntross to In.
vcstigate In Alaska.

The work Of the United States fish COM
mission during the past season has been
enormous Over 10000, 600 cod fry. Matched
at Gloucester and Woods Holl. have been
planted at the fisheries on the New Eng
| land coast and 200. 900. 600 shad collected in
| the Potomac. Susquehanna and Delaware
rivers were distributed along the Atlantic
coast from Massachusetts, to Florida. About
100.000,O00 Holsters have been taken at
Rockland. Ne, and New London, Conn.,
| These are being liberated by several ves-
sells engaged in the work. 1t is expected
that 50O0oO00 more will be collected be-
| fore the end OF the season Mackerel work
| is now in progress at Woods Holl Glouces-
| ter and Casco Bay Me-
From the hatcheries on the great lakes.
devoted exclusively to white fish and lake
| trout, 125.0O0.6O0 white fish fry and II Co.,
| 600 lake trout fry have been Matched ard
planted.
The hatcheries at Quincy, ILL.,, Neosha,
No. Manchester. Iowa. Leadville, Colora-
| do and San Marcos. Texas, have collected
| and distributed 100000 trout and about
| 100000 bass. New stations will be estab-
| lished under the recent appropriation bill
at Black Hills, S. D.. in New Hampshire
| and at Irwin. Tenn. and auxiliary stations
| are In contemplation the Rogue and
| Salmon rivers In Oregon, en- Puget sound.
| Clackanas and the Little White Salmon
| rivers In Washington and on the McCloud
| D-httiSSleSh dllu TRINITY III Call10Tnla.
Pncific Salmon in the East.
| The work Of planting Pacific salmon,
| which last year reached an aggregate of
37.oOo,oO0. will be continued next fall The
| salmon industry on the Pacific coast is of
| vast Importance, but is not yet extern
sive on the Atlantic. Probably $4,000 could
| cover the Atlantic salmon catch last sea
| son.
| Or Ravenel the superintendent of fish
culture, believes that the salmon industry
can be developed on the Atlantic coast, and
last rail- about 5.00O,UW Pacific salmon Of
| the Quinnat and Sockeye varieties were
planted in the st. Lawrence. Penobscot
and Delaware rivers. The Pacific salmon.
while 1t Will take fly, is not the game
hsh the Atlantic salmon is.
over 30 per cent Of the work of the COM
| mission is devoted to commercial fish, en-
bracins the cod. shad, white fish, pollock
| mackerel, tautog, soup, sea bass lake trout
| salmon, steel head trout and Holsters.
| On the Upper Columbia.
In the n, rthwest some interesting work
has been mapped out for this summer and
| fall. under the direction of DR.. Smith of the
scientific bureau. The study of the condi-
| tons in the Columbia basin with especial
attention to the biological features, will be
| continued. Some years ago it was found
| that the salmon did not run in the upper
| Columbia, as formerly, nor in its tributa-
| rleS like the Snake river. investigations
were mad to ascertain whether this was
due to distractions in the river but no i'm
| pediments werc found that had not always
| existed. The failure of the salmon in the
| upper Columbia. 1t was concluded was due
TO the mult1pilca ton of fishing apparatus
on the lower Columbia and the enormous
| catch. This year some interesting h:o!ogi-
cal investigations will lie made at Waliowa
lake In northeastern Oregon, and another
series of Investigations on the chain
| OF lakes beginning with upper kla-
math and extending eastward through cen
| trail Oregon. including Summer Albert and
| other lakes.
| These waters have never been investigat-
| ed, and 1t Is not known what fish they con-
| tain 1t is believed to be only question OF
time when they will become Very valuable
as sources of food supply and the present
| inquiries are for the purpose of determining
| what fish abound in their waters and what
| species Of the finny tribe they can be
| stocked with.
Alaskan Salmon.
| The United States fish commission vessel
| Albatross, which has been in past years
| engaged in patrolling Boring sea and the
| investigation of the seal rookeries, Will
this year do legtin ate fish commission
work. 1t will be we'll equipped and will go
| to southeastern Alaska to investigate the
conditions on the salmon streams and make
| a systematic survey. of those waters Vast
quantities OF salmon are being taken from
these streams by the fishermen, and unless
| adequate legislation for The protection OF
| these fisheries is soon enacted they will be
exhausted One of the objects of the ex-
! petition is to study these conditions with a
| view to making recommends tons to Con-
sreSs. Last year over 60.W0,OU pounds OF
| salmon were taken from these streams.
The proceeds from the Alaska salmon
catch alone every three years aggregate
| In value the amount paid for that territory
| by the United States to the Russian gov
eminent. Alaska has. 1t is said, paid for
herself many times over from the proceeds
| of the seal fisheries. Between lJO.OU0WN
| and 2OOOOOOO pounds of salmon are an
nually taken for food purposes on the Pa
cific coast
In addition to this general work DIR.
Chas. H. Gilbert of Leland Stanford Uni
versity. a well-known lchthyologist under
| the direction of Commissioner Bird is en-
| gagged in the study of fish life from the
| Golden Gate to the Columbia