Omaha daily bee., 1897-06-25
INCREASING FISH SUPPLY
Steps TaNen BY the Government to Per-
petuate the Finny Tribe.
WORK OF UNITED STATES COMMISSION
Millions of the Fry of Food Varieties
Have Bccn Liberated to Re-
stock Depleted Waters
Scientific work.

WASHINGTON. June 2i.-The work Of the
United States Fish commission during the
past season has been enormous. over 100
600 coo cCd fry, hatchcd at Gloucester aud
Woodshall have been planted at the fisheries
on the New England coast, and 200.OOO,OOO
shad collected in the Potomac, SuSluehanna
ana Delaware rivers were distributed along
the Atlantic coast from Massachusetts, to
Florida About 100 900 900 l5bSte.s have been
taken in Maine and Connecticut These are
being liberated by several vessels engaged
In the work. From the hatcheTics On the
great lakes $4,000 600 white fish fry and
II. 600 coo lake trout fry have been Matched
and planted The hatcheries at Quincy, I'LL"
Neosho Mo-, Manchester, S. headyille,
Colo. and San Marcos. Tex. nave collected
and distributed 100000 trout and about
100. 600 900 base \ new station Will be es-
tablahed in the Black HIS, South Dakota,
and auxiliary stations are in contemplation
on ths ClaCkamas, Rogue and Salm, rivers
in Oregon. on Puget sound, and the ltttle
White Salmon river in Washington ana on
the McCloud. Battle Creek and Trinity in
California The work of planting Pa'lhc
ealmon which last year reached an aggre-
gate of 81 600, 900 will be continued next
fall The salmon Industry on the Pa'ihc
coast Is Of vast Importance, but Is not us
yet extensive on the Atlantic.
over % per cent of the work of the com
mission Is devoted to cOmmerclal hsh, en-
bracing the cod shad, white FISH, pollock.
mackerel. tawtog, soup, sea bass iake Fou''
sllmon steel head trout ana loDSterS'
In the northwest some interesting WORK
has been mapped out for this GUNNER ana
fall under the direction of DR.. smith oil tme
scientific bureau. The study OF the cohai,
tiora in the Columbia basin, with especial
attention to the biological features viii be
continued. Some years ago 1t was FOUND
that the salmon did not run i'm the upper
Columbia. as formerly, nor in its tributaries
like the Snake river. investigations were
made to ascertain whether this was due to
obstructions in the river but no impediments
were found that had not always existed The
failure of the salmon in the upper Columbia,
Il was concluded, was due to the multiplied
ton Of FISH apparatus on the lower Columola
and the enormous catch. This year some
interesting biological Investigations will be
made at Wallowa lake, in northwestern
Oregon and other series of Investigations
on the chain of lakes beginning with upper
klamath and extending eastward through
central Oregon, including Summer, Albert
and other lakes. These waters have never
been investigated and 1t is not known what
fish they contain. 1t is believed to be only
question OF time when they will become
very valuable as sources of food supply and
the scientist is to determine what species
the water is to be stocked with
The United States fish vessel Albatross,
which has been in the past six years en-
gagged in patroinS Bering sea and the in
vestigation of the seal rookeries, will this
year do legitimate fish commission work.
IT viii be equipped and go to southeastern
Alaska to investigate the conditions on the
salmon stream1 and make systematic sur
vey of those waters. Vast quantities of
salmon are being taken from those streams
by the fishermen and unless adequate legis-
lation for the protection of those fisheries is
soon enacted they will be exhausted One
Of the objects of the expedition 10 to study
these conditions, with a view to making
recommendations to congress.
The proceeds from the Alaska salmon
catch alore every three years aggregate in
value tho amount paid for that territory by
the United states to the Russian govern
mant. Alaska has, it is said paid for itself
many times over from the proceeds of the
seal fioherics.
In addition to this general work Dr.
Charles Fl. Gilbert Of Leland Stanford uni
versity well known ichthyoIogst, under
the direction of Commander Bird, is en-
gagged in the study of fish life from the
golden gate to the Columbia