New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-08-14
FISH IN THE FAR NORTHWEST
THE WATERS OF PUGET SOUND TEEN
WITH MANY VARIETIES
THE GAMY TYEE AND THE PICTURESQUE ROCK
CODA SETTLEMENT OF AUSTRIAN
FISHERMEN NEAR TACOMA
From The Tacoma Ledger.

OF Tacoma and. In fact, all the waters or fueet
Sound ieem with many varieties of fish, that af-
ford the most delicious dishes and III some IN
stances splendid sport.
commercial value. but there are also herring smeit
perch. founders. rock cod tom COD. ling COD true
cod, trout and other varieties Of toothsome hshes
In large quantties-such quantities that, together
S %n ' of sbapmc a oS Yq ns Who sP ve in
quaint little habitations where the arm OF the
Within the shadow OF the great city Of their home.
out OF the salt sea before the city also come
cai QUANTITY HE cIams are 'S among the most de.
llcous on The coast. being the butter variety am
stretch OF three hours ride by steamer, are thu
only shrimps OF the Pacific NorthWes and they
are OF fine size and flavor.
Salmon are to be caught and are caught In me
Bay Of Tacoma the yenr round every year: re re
humpback and silv.rside varieties come up the
Sound to spawn. and appear in the bay previous TO
Eggs In the fan and the early winter the dog
salmon is In the bay and adjacent streams. me
head is present in January. February and March
The humpback comes only. every second year. and
off Browns Point. opposite Tacoma. In June or
July; and holds the fort until the sversde moyes
schools and is easily caught with large seines ann
set nets. occasionally they take spoon but not
often
The humpback weighs average five pounds
Is snort ana pump ana "a me name I, ysrv 9ssd
ed. and might be mistaken by stranger Tor
FISH with broken back. The fish have beautiful
eEtrapped off points Of the Sound by the thousand
ana lash the Tatets almost into f0am hay been
known to spend pleasant times shooting at the WHY
fellows as they eaped AL about their boats IN
The sllversde salmon is locked upon by the ma.
Jodty 2t timers OF rugc, oOh'u o rs deserylns
OF respect This is probably because Mr.. Silversde
sm s Im y fy V nS fp shng '1H Ike bad maa
from Dawson 10 free themselves from inc NOOK.
The silverside usually tips the scales nj from
IN Ia N no
Silver salmon spawn IN Angus. September anu
The humpback and the silverslle are uaed 20 a
great extent In the canneres Of the SOUND Iherrr
The fish are dressed cooked canned and sent to all
parts OF the earth To- feed people chiefly who never
the waters OF the Pacific. and know or the rare
products Of the great ocean and its thousands OF
tributaries only through tn. tales of the seamen
coming back from visits 10 the faraway lands' "r
icy scrse the dog salmon
This fish saunters into the bay in Novr'nncr anu
after amblIng mp the water front 70 the disgust OF
the real spor-favorlng fishermen. slips mp the nv,
the head ~ the Sound where II spawhs; ana
where II Is often caught b. the thousands FOR a
low-gradc commercial fish, or taken IN eqiiaii!
large numbers for food The dog salmon USUALLY
weighs from five 10 fourteen pounds. ana averages
probably nine pounds Tho fish usually last until
some tire In December.
The steclhead comes In January. and remains
three months. /; IL long. slender graceful Marcy
fish. with red sreaks down It's sides. square tau
and many pretty spots unon the SKIN. IL "'lsnS
from ten to Twelve pounds. has hard bones con-
,ains considerable oil. and IL delicious II does not
appear I'm larg" numbers.
The ,yee IS the garies, ralmon In the catalogue
The nam. means chief. and the Ssh proves lie
TILE lie Is very hard to catch. Lut furnishes ~"
finest sport Of all his follows They 40 not appear IN
cannerics. and therefore almost tie exclusive
mca. A catch OF haIf dozen a day would be big
while dozen or eighteen would De pressing tne
in the Sound and TO not leave there except about
July. when it runs up the rivers to spawn ana inc"
gets the name OF jack samnon.
nf he. nor fgh rsfpr %
cod the rock cod and occasionally the pa AZ
cod are caush on a ~hayfs nea uatU nd some one
Of the number Is almost always 10 be nao ny w, Ihe
r is easy for single fisherman to catch half
barrelful In a day. some often doing much better
e Sole and tounder can be taken at certain places
near Tacoma with hook and line In large runners e
at certain seasons. They usually bite the year
round A..
srnet run in schools. and are taken only by the
nish the markets with heivy part Oh lneii nsn
stock good part Of the year Herring are ,ak Ken
With nets In large quantities within sght or Io-
coma The" soil well fresh and smoked thousands
Of pounds Of them being smoked for home ana IN
The salmon trout that swim about the shores II
rule. only around the points outside o' me G,ay;;
They splendid. gamy fsh, Weighing rom na h
glamour In their dainty skins OF me iart"r s'rfanl
trout A shingly beach is commonly the best pace
to p,I na wh n small spoon just far enough from
the shore for the Toller to see the bottom oi '"e
beach beneath MS 'fall
PICTURESQUE ROCK COD.
Among the most picturesque FISH in the home
waters are the rock cod. their great red bodies
swelling and growing more rotund ana assuming
beauty line after beauty line aver 9eihs er dsen
do some of them stay that when the! are hlted 70
the surface hc eyTs pop from s af
Of water like the eyos of japanese lreak, am
their shining bellies lwS STe, iHe OGDEN fms vie
in color with their red skins and lines creep ABOUT
he face Ike smiles when Jester laughs -,
Deep sea- hsh. while they do not even make non,
day visits to Tacoma. arr brought 10 ne port IN
tbnir catches on the banks Of Alaska. Vancouver
Island and cape Fiattery These deep-sea FISH are
iftecn 10 probably one hundred pounds and posi-
by averaging thirty-hve pounds. The Paclhc
steamer Edith on the Alaskan banks and brings
catch here FOR dispatch 10 hoston and r Mew W
be had In great quantities off the Atlantic banks
The @ O Fish nov snSs on
The companies engaged In the general whoiesae
h husncs II b aye The s and the
American ship all kinds OF fish to coas; and Inland
cities regularly green sh being s 1rnv them
selves. They dwell to large extent along the
shores OF ne bay in Itle houses some of them
Vino villa near Old Tacoma. Is one OF their
favorite quarters. and there many Austrian fisher
men and their families have abodes where they live
in typical fisherman style and pleasure. singing
mcrr to 5nI1sn ne FOR U s and OF
enjoying themselves in parties and little reunions
They are good chorus singers. and ut times their
melodiois voices he heard caroiline across the
waters a. they move over the Day 40 the time ana
the sweep OF the dipping oars. ~
Not MI tho fishermen OF Tacoma are shore-dwe-
ers Some of them live inland where they keep
neat little lots and cow a pig and chickens. ne
sidcs their pleasant homes
SUCCESSFUL SEASON.
The past season-the year or l@-Was the tnost
successful in the History OF the nshing Industry
that the State has known. An increase over
ALL prevlous years output Is shown ana In com
parIs,n with the preceding season the increase u
The larger Increase was SHOWN on |
puget sound In this district there was an IN |
crease I'm the value OF the cannery pack or salmon
q, over &, oO 600 During 1896 the pack amounted 20
but le5 sH cases while In 1897 the total leaped to
ia oo co SEES The value Of the output In 1896 was
800 900 and s. $4,000 last year ,,,
sixteen thousand sacks OF oysters were obtained
from tho natural and cultivated beds or fuget |
romnd Last year an Increase of six thousand over
NJ nreceding year and increase In valuation of
~ ~, shrmDs are not classified In the report or