The Alaska daily empire., 1918-08-29
SOLUTION FOR FISHING
 LSTO GIVE PEOPLE THE RIGHT
 10 REGULATE OWN AFFAIRS

stoutly upheld by fishermen espec' , ially those who use other means of taking salmon. It is charged that seiners and gill netters sweep the streams and take the salmon before the fish have had an opportunity to spawn This charge is loudly pro claimed by those who operate traps. Thus the warfare of words has con- tinued for many years-attack fol- lowed by counter attack, each side using all the poison gas available. | Is it not fact that nearly all en- gagged in the taking of fish in Alas kan waters, are foreigners or con- cerns not attacher permanently to Alaska, not interested in the general welfare of the Territory or it's popu- i lation, and care very little about 1 the protection of the natural re-
 sources Their main object seems to be to get all they can while the getting is good. They are more in terested in making money than in propogating fish. If they have any anixiety it is manifested in a desire | to be left alone to work their will upon the Territory and it's people. | If they give thought at all to the question of supply, they reason that if still in the fishing game, when the waters in one locality are ex
 hausted, they will follow the finny tribe to other waters, just as they turned to Alaska after exhausting more Southern attitudes.
 This, however, is not the view ta
 ken by conservative men engaged in the salmon cannery business. They are very much concerned about the source of supply. Almost any can neryman will frankly tell you that the salmon supply is certainly being depleted, no matter how much the production seems to grow in mum. bers of cases packed each year. He will also tell you that as a measure of self protection, he takes all the fish he can get and pack each year,
 because the other fellow is doing it.
 But he wants the supply of fish kept up The has money invested in his cannery, and, he likes the profits
 from the business, even though he has no other interest in Alaska. Most
 of the cannery interests at one time
 were opposed to home regulation of l the fisheries Some of them have changed their minds about this. They have commenced to realize that the filing of hatchery certificates will not 1 produce a good run of salmon. They have commenced to realize that scien- | tific discussion by fish experts on
 the habits of the salmon, have had
 but very little effect on the habits of those engaged in the fishing game. They are beginning to under stand, that their interest in the fishing business is not greater than that of the people who make their homes in Alaska, and they reason that the people of Alaska are even
 more concerned in maintaining the
 supply of salmon than they are:
 Therefore the people of Alaska want the privilege and the power to resu.
 late the salmon fisheries of the Ter
 ritory.
 Delegate Charles A. Sulzer has in
 trduced bill in Congress, the cen. tral idea of which is to bring the regulation of Alaska's fisheries from Washington. D. C.. to Juneau Alas
 ka Copies of this bill have been generously distributed throughout the Territory with invitations. from it's author to offer suggestions for improvement before the measure | comes up for consideration in Con- gress.- Now is the time for those ] with ideas, to produce them. Slug gestions have been voiced that it is a bad measure. Let those learned on the subject point out the objec- tions and give their reasons for such belief at the same time offering new ideas on the subject.
 Attacking Sulzer. instead of Sul- zer's idea, will not bring results. No one except Wickersham questions Sulzer's honesty of purpose or loyal fty to Alaska. The sort of propagan- da being conducted by those opposed to Suixer politically will not aid in