62 RKPORT OF ALASKA INVESTIGATIONS. 



see that it can likewise be overcome in Alaska. The method used is simply to impound the fish for three 

 or four days, thus permitting them to digest and eliminate this so-called "red feed" and the flesh is then 

 as clear and suitable for food purposes as it is at any other season of the year. To-day there is an enormous 

 quantity of herring used for halibut bait; in fact, thousands of barrels are put up each year for this pur- 

 pose. Salt herring, however, are not as suitable for bait as are fresh or frozen herring. 



It is hard to estimate the potential value of the herring industry from its present undeveloped condi- 

 tion, but it is safe to say that the outlook is bright and that this undeveloped business will be worth thou- 

 sands of dollars each year to Alaska. Beyond question, herring should not be used for fertilizer, oil, or 

 fish meal. The present practice of the Indians in southeast Alaska of taking millions of herring eggs every 

 season and drying them for food should be stopped at once, for this not only means partial destruction of 

 the future supply of herring, but is quite needless, since these Indians have many other ways of obtaining 



food. 



USE OF FOOD FISH FOR FERTILIZER AND OIL. 



For the last 25 years the manufacture of fertilizer and oil has been conducted by one factory located 

 at Killisnoo, on the west coast of Admiralty Island. This industry has created much adverse criticism 

 because of the general claim in Alaska that an edible and valuable fish like the herring should not be used 

 except for food and bait purposes. It has been stated by the management of this plant that the business 

 has not been a financial success, but it is safe to assume that any factory that has operated for a quarter 

 of a century must be a paying proposition, otherwise it would not remain active. The manager of this 

 plant emphasized the fact that they use almost nothing but herring, the only exception being an occasional 

 straggler of other species. This, however, must have been a mistake, for I not only heard that all fish 

 irrespective of species caught in the seines were used, but one evening last summer when a boatload of 

 fish of about 125 tons, representing 875,000 herring, or approximately 1,250 barrels of 700 fish each, were 

 being discharged into a large storage bin at the plant I observed that while most of them were herring 

 there were also numbers of cod, a few halibut, and some flounders scattered all through the cargo. I 

 called the attention of the manager to this condition, and was assured that these other varieties of fish had 

 not been with the herring before, and therefore had not been utilized. A number of the employees, 

 however, assured me that in every boatload there were fish other than herring. 



While this factory is now the single and isolated case, it seems to me that it should not be allowed to 

 continue operations, but should be permanently closed by the Government. The further operation of 

 this plant not only sets a bad example, but it destroys many thousands of good salable fish and opens the 

 way for the establishment of other such reduction plants. In fact, just now there is a large company 

 anticipating the same use of herring, and they are only waiting to see if the Government disapproves the 

 continuation of the Killisnoo plant. Up to this year the Killisnoo factory has manufactured fertilizer 

 and oil only. It has now partially discontinued the manufacture of fertilizer and is making instead a form 

 of meal which is utilized chiefly for poultry food. 



WHALING INDUSTRY. 



The whaling industry in Alaska is confined to two shore stations and to intermittent and now unim- 

 portant efforts of old-time vessels operating on the high seas. In the latter phase of the whale fishery 

 only the oil and whalebone of commerce are used, thus meaning that the carcass of each whale is wasted. 

 At the shore stations, however, nothing is wasted, as every part of the whale is utilized, the products includ- 

 ing various grades of oil, as well as fertilizer and animal meal. The whales handled include humpbacks, 

 finbacks, sulphur bottoms, and sperms. The sperms are less numerous than the others, but they are 

 the most valuable. A good-sized sperm whale is worth about $3,000, consequently it is a prize for any 

 crew and is hunted assiduously. 



One of the Alaska shore stations is at Akutan, near Unimak Pass, and the other is at Port Armstrong, 

 on Baranof Island, in southeast Alaska. These stations are modern and complete in every respect, and 

 appear to be well conducted. The whales are killed by means of small steamers having a muzzle-loading 

 gun mounted at the bow. 



There has been much talk of a close season on whales. At the best, whaling stations can be operated 

 only during four or five months of the year. Throughout the remainder of the year the boats are tied 



