The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1901-01-11
The End OF The Socteyes.


The following is part of an article in
a recent issue of the Whatcom Re-
publican: !.
An item IN the Daily Reveille few
days since said: Deputy fish commits
sioner A. D. Boardman was in the city
and was feeling highly 'elated over the
success Of the hatcheries."
One would naturally suppose from
the above that the hatcheries are do
ing great work. The purpose which
they are intended to serve is that OF
keeping up the supply of fish which
the fishing industry is now annually
depicting, And the hatchery system
would we're the energy rightly directed.
But as means of propagating the
fish that supplies the great lowers mud
canneries, hatcheries on the .N'cnat-
chez, on the Duwamish, the Ssvko-
mish or the Samish or even the Skagit
and Nooksack are worse than useless.
For the fact remains that while we
are fishing out the sockeye, the real
dependency of the fishing industry,
not one thing is being done to re-
plenish the supply.
Four-fifths of the value of the en-
tire Puget sound pack is in the sock
eye salmon alone. The total spring
pack of fish native to Fraser river for
the season of 1900 was $4,000 cases
as compared with 100000 cases of
fall varieties, all Of which we're the
cheaper grades of fish, and none OF
which were packed with any consider
able profit, if with any at all. In pre-
ceding years this discrepancy has been
more marked, The sockeye were
scarce last season, forcing cannery-
men to rake as with fine tooth comb
mong the poorer fall varieties for suf-
ficient fish to make respectable
catch.
The pack of sockeyes on Puget
sound for the year 1899 reached 5O2,-
1872 cases as against 128,S28 cases OF
all fall varieties. Many of the fall
salmon are worth scarcely half the
price sockeye will bring in any of the
principal markets of the world. And
it is this feature to which / desire to
call attention.
In maintaining a lot of little third
rate hatcheries for the propagation OF
silver salmon, cohoes and tyees we are
wasting energy for we are INDUSTRIOUS
ly keeping our streams stocked with
inferior fish and allowing the superior
fish to become extinct. If this con-
dltion of affairs is allowed to continue
the end of the fishing industry, at
once the pride and almost the Deepen
dence of the lower sound is in sight.
The sockeye can't possibly survive the
onslaught. Unless drastic measures
are taken at once eight years will sure
ly see the end of the fishing industry.
The year 1904 will not produce as
many as the,Pacific American Fisheries
company packed this season. Every
sockeye that could be caught was taken.
II is safe to say that not one one
hundredth of one percent found their
way to the natural sockeye spawning
grounds. If this be true where are the
salmon of four years hence, the fry of
last seasons run, to come from? :
In 1899 the combined pack of sock :
eyes for Puget sound and Fraser rive
reached 9S3,1O5 cases; in 1900 the
sockeye pack totaled for these same
districts 39l ,423 cases, yet both years
were off years.
The above conditions are pictured
in the Northwest Republican. The
remedy given is to propagate SOCK
eyes on tremendous scale, or the COM
MERGE Importance of the salmon can
ming industry is on the wane from
this time forth. Hatcheries on the
American tributaries of the Fraser
river are suggested.
The editor goes on to disagree with
those contending for radical change
of fishing methods, and supports the
trap system. If the Sound fishermen
are honestly interested in the perpetu-
ity of the sockeye salmon, as well as the
common species of salmon, the only
remedy lies in restricting, if not alto
gether abolishing the traps, which are
fixed appliances and permit not a
single fish in their course to escape.
1t is admitted that under existing
methods the end of our salmon of all
kinds, is in sight. Why not call halt
now. until the natcheries demonstrate
their capacity to produce fish, which
will mature to commercial value, and
make good the yearly destruction?