The Wrangell sentinel., 1942-09-04

particularly in the Wrangell-Peters- burg districts.
 As we recorded last week, central Southeast was given the bureauera- tic snub by the old familiar method of stalling when action was needed and the fish were running. On Fri day. last. V. 2. Crouch. whom Dr. Gabrielson had sent north to coor- dinate the fisheries effort this sea son. as he had last. arrived in Wrange1l in response to wires sent a week previously asking for exten- sions where fish were running Co., ordinator Crouch aid he was delay ed by lack Of transportation al- though we were led to believe that the Fish and Wildlife airplane and the entire fisheries and game com mission fleets were subject Co call 10 service of the Coordinator.
 At any rate. Coordinator Crouch arrived and said ueid reports by his agents indicated that there was not sufficient run Of fish to war rant opening and therefore the sea son was closed. As soon as Clarence Strait and the West coast seasons came 10 an end that night, August 2S. and the following day. fishing for the 1912 season would be fin- ished Thereupon, Co-ordinator Crouch wished everybody well and continued on his way, like MT Moto, very sorry it mad 10 be like this
 Last Sunday word started seeping in from the west coast. officially known as the South Prince of Wales District. that an extension had been granted in that district Nothing official about it so far as central Southeast Alaska knew, just a re- port. Fishermen and packers, in fact, had been told by bureau of ficials to stack theIr gear because fishing was all over. Therefore, the report from the west coast wasn' t given much eredence.
 At Ills last Monday afternoon the second blow at central South east Alaska's chin came At that hour a radiogram was received by the local fisheries office advising that on the previous saturday. CHI CAGO. (new headquarters of Fish and Wildlife Service since moving from Washington had ordered an extension on the west coast. part of the district to close Monday night. the balance on Wednesday night. This was Monday afternoon. Aug ust 31. Many of the fishermen al- ready had put away their gear in response to the word from Crouch Packers had called in their tenders and were laying off many of their crews. During the IS hours pre- yiously when the boats could have been running to the grounds, there was a deep, dark silence in this district about the extension. We are not sure that Petersburg was ever advised. If they were, they were in the same boat as Wrangell---too late to do anything about it.
 Report is current that still fur ther extension was granted on he west coast. We haven't been able to confirm it. Probably it isn't so, al- though it would fit in very nicely with the gross mismanagement pol icy the Fish and Wildlife Service has had in effect this season.
 Not even a Yogi with a crystal ball can predict the future of fish cries, but as an impartial observer, it appears to us that this is what happened in the governments new deal for Alaska fisheries. It's con- trol was placed in the hands of the highly efficient enforcement branch of the Fish and Wildlife Service which is admittedly tops at enforc- ing the law. Unfortunately, per haps, the enforcement branch ap- pears to consider strict enforcement the paramount means of conserva- tion, as 1t has learned with game.