Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1922-06-06
Salmon SCARCE
Extinction Threatened Because OF
Lack of Protection.
LITTLE IS KNOWN OF FAMOUS FISH
Old Fish Die After, Young. Are Hatch
ed-They Run From February to
June-How They Are Canned.

SuHe-TlO" IHSJ TiC Sah"Se'
From Kansas City Star,
Is Pacific coast salmon to be lost to
the camper, the hurried housewife and
the bachelor? 1t would seem so. As
the buffalo. passed from the prairie, so
the salmon is vanishing from the Pa
cific 1t is one of the ironies of Nature
that, like the buffalo, the salmon, If it
does finally pass, will owe its going to
the very fact of its colossal numbers,
which led the white man to believe the
supply inexhaustible.
For years fishermen, cannery men
and others interested IL the future of
the Pacific coast salmon trade in Brit
ish Columbia have cried for more re-
strictions inFfishing and for.the salmon
to be given more opportunity to reach
the spawning beds. The salmon which
spawn are the stock in trade Of the in
dustry. Unless enough escape the nets
and their natural enemies, the future
catches are endangered. But for years
nothing was done. Friction between
the British Columbia authorities and
those of the state of'Washington pre-
vented the reaching of protective ar
rangements until September, 1919, too
late to prevent the sockeye salmon in
the Fraser river from dwindling. Some
cannery men declare that the Fraser,
once one of the greatest salmon
streams in the world, never will be n
good fishing ground again.
Drastic Steps Are Needed.
More alarming still is the opinion of
men high in authority in Alaska that
the great salmon streams Of that ter
ritory, which have been fished largely,
but for a brief period Qess than, two
decades) will shortly cease to produce
unless drastic steps are taken to obtain
more protection for the fish when they
spawn. Charles d. Garfield, Alaska
fish commissioner, recently told the
cannery men and fishermen unless
something was done shortly, the i'm
mense industry, which now brings in
about $45,OOO,O0O annually, would be
utterly demoralized.
Though fshed by Indians for count
less generations and by white men for
more than a quarter of a century, lit
tie is known of the habits of the sal
mon. Where the mother salmon
spawns, there will the young return
after, four years to spawn and die. Out
of the mysterious deeps of the Pacific,
from no man knows where, uncounted
millidAs yearly approach the Pacific
coastal line of North America.
From early March to the middle of
November the great annual breeding
Of the salmon takes place along 1,5OO
miles of coast line from Bristol Bay in
Alaska to the Fraser river in British
Columbia The salmon swarm moves
in regulated professions up the Vari-
GUS fresh water rivors and streams to
the spawning ground. Although the
various species apparently all reach
costal waters in one great drift, yet
they seem governed by some marvellous
schel. of organization, which aVots to
each species time and place Tor
spawning. How remarkable this Is
may be judged from the fact that sal
mon of the same species coming to dlt-
fcrent rivers (often only a few miles
aparD have different markings. Thus,
an Indian fishing far out at sea as he
clears his net will remark of the fish:
This is from the Mass river, this from
the Skeena, this from the OXtail," as
the case may be.
The first salmon to run is the "tyee'
or king" salmon, commercially pet
ter known as the "sbrinG.' In addl-
ton to being the best. and highest
priced as a food the king Is game
fish and a joy to the neart of the true
sportsman. The first run OF the king
takes place in February and the run
lasts until the end of June. The time
varies i'm different localities and some
times tn" king is taken in January and
as late as July: 1t is both red and
white and ranges in weight from eight
to sixty pounds, or even heavier. Com
mercially, practically the entire catch
of the species is placed in cold storage
for shipment fresh to the tables of the
Eastern states and Canada, or sold
fresh to the residents along the Pacific
coast.
"SoCkeye" Is Nearest ExtinStion.
Following the king comes the sock
eye" both a cold storage and can
merry fish, which weighs from six To
ten pounds. This was until lately the
most generally canned fish. Indeed, ii
has been so thoroughly taken that oi
all the species it is nearest extermina-
ton. The run of the species lasts
| from the beginning of June until tho
end of August; in some places some
what later 1t is red salmon. Run
ming almost at the same time is the
"coshoc," a cold storage and canncry
fish. weighing from ten to fourteen
pounds. The "stcclhcad" variety
which runs about the same time as the
sockeye, is of about the same average
weight and similar in color of flesh. a
great many of these in the past have
hoCp SnItp6 fn,. local NpYt in the