108 EEPORT OF COMMISSIONER OP FISH AND FISHERIES. 



collection, two of whicli were sent hy Mr. James Wayne, of Astoria, Ore- 

 gon. A fifth specimen, obtained by the writer from Paget Sonnrt, is the 

 skiu of a youug fish, labeled by Dr. Girard iV. argyreus. Although imma- 

 ture, it resembles more the present species th«,n any other I have been able 

 to compare it with. In an appendix to the private edition of the report 

 above quoted (published under the title of jSTatural History of Washing- 

 ton Territory) the following additional information concerning this 

 species was included: 



" The ^Salmo quinnat, Rich., (see page 321 ,) we have ascertained by care- 

 ful examination to be the principal species brought to the San Fran- 

 cisco markets. It was found abundant there during the months of Jan- 

 uary and February, and could easily be recognized by its large head 

 and pointed jaws, and by the number of its branchial rays, which are 

 usually over fifteen in number. The tail is large, and well cut out, and 

 the lower fins unspotted. We heard of two specimens which had been 

 brought to the market that weighed sixty-four and a half pounds each. 

 These were the largest that we have known of in that locality, but fish 

 of seventy pounds, it is said, have been caught farther north. This must 

 be about the maximum weight to which it'ever attains. 



" The quinnat salmon is obtained for the San Francisco market by 

 fishermen in the Sacramento River, who take them with gill-nets, much 

 in the same way as shad are caught in the Hudson. 



"The fishmongers to Avhom the question was put, whether any pecu- 

 liarities in external appearance serve to distinguish the sexes, answered 

 that they knew of none. The same species of salmon was found, about 

 the 1st of December, abundant in the bay at Port Towusend, and at 

 Port Gamble, Paget Sound. The Indians took them in moderate quan- 

 tities, by trolling in the manner described on page 329. These salmon 

 were not running up the rivers, not yet impelled by instinct so to do, as 

 their ova tlius early in the season were but very slightly developed. 



" In the San Francisco market we also noticed a small salmon, more 

 spotted, with smaller head and more rounded jaws than the quinnat 

 — in fact, much more nearly resembling the 8. gairdneri or the 8. trun- 

 catiis. This kind is called b}' the dealers salmon-trout. It does not ap- 

 pear to attain a very large size, rarely exceeding 28 inches, and is for 

 its real or supposed excellence sold for a much greater price than the 

 Quinnat." 



Mr. George Gibbs states that the Skagit Indians believe that the yo- 

 mufsh salmon die after spawning. Tiie largest he saw weighed forty 

 pounds, and were about three feet in length. They become worn out 

 by July or August. The Simiahraoo Indians, speaking another dialect, 

 say that the Jcwitshia {8. quinnat f) alone bite at the hook. We have 

 seen many of the 8. quinnat taken with hook and line at Port Towusend. 



Mr. Gibbs in his notes describes the manner the Lummi Indians take 

 salmon in salt water by a net about 15 feet square, dipped several feet 

 under water at the front end, but kept stretched between two canoes, 



