The Daily Alaska empire., 1932-03-22
DEALERS WANT LONGER cL OSED
 HALIBUT SEASON
More Tim e for Selling Frozen Fish from Stor-
 age Is Advocated

Shortening of the closed season on haliIbut fishing in strongly op- posed by dealers in the fish. A longer closed season is advocated by them.
 At present, the closed season is. from November IS to February 15- three months. The proposal is under consideration that the Inter- national Fish Commission shorten the closed season, making it from November IS to January 1.-two months. Such a short season, deal- CTS declare would not give them sufficient time to dispose of any considerable amount of frozen hali- but and subsequently not much fish would be bought for. freezing. Extension of the closed season, making it from November Is to March 15-four months-is urged by them,
 The attitude of the dealers is set forth in a letter written to the Fishing Vessel Owners Association and the Fishermen's Union by the Lakeside Fish and Oyster Company 'of Chicago.
 Text Of Letter
 The letter follows
 We understand it has been oo,,eod l,,, +l,a xros.sr1 f,-,,,, ,,,.-, nnS., ciation and the Fishermen's Union, in fact by all halibut producers, that the closed season on fresh halibut fishing shall be four weeks shorter than heretofore; in other words instead of three months closed season, they have agreed that the closed season on fresh halibut shall be two months, and while fresh halibut fishing has previously been started February Is, it has now been agreed that fishing shall start on January 15
 If such is the case, this will certainly harm the entire halibut industry, and prices on halibut purchased for fresh use, and hali- but purchased for freezing, will be seriously effected for this reason.
 In the past when halibut deal- CT would buy certain quantity of halibut to be sold fresh, if sales were little slow when halibut reached destination. he would not hesitate to freeze up the small sur plus rather than permit all the fresh halibut to be sold at reduced low prices, for he could always look forward to the prospect of selling them during the winter months.
 Sacrifice Fresh Halibut
 "On the other hand, if the frozen halibut season is shortened so con- siderably as planned by the halibut producers, and the dealers cannot look forward with any degree of safety to disposing of the halibut that they are forced to freeze in their markets, they will most cer- tainly be compelled to sacrifice the i fresh halibut at reduced prices in order to avoid the necessity of Furthermore, if the hali- but packers have to look forward to shortened period for the selling of their frozen pack, they surely !, will be wary and will not put up large packs of frozen halibut with 1 so little time in which to sell their frozen halibut.
 There can therefore be only one result which is this:
 "All dealers will have to buy much more cautiously and at much : lower prices on fresh halibut, and very few halibut will be bought for | freezing on the Pacific Coast be- l cause dealers will have so very lit- tie time in which to sell frozen hal ibut. If the closed season is only to January IS, it will give all dealers very little time, for during the Christmas week and New Years week, as well as the week after New Years, there are practically no sales, and all fish move very slowly so in reality there would be about five weeks time altogether to move frozen halibut. It is there fore our intention to freeze very few haHbut and be very careful in the pln,chasing of fresh ha1ib,,t