ALASKA FISHERY AND FUR-SEAL INDUSTRIES, 1931 23 



In addition to the vessels owned by the Bureau of Fisheries, nine 

 boats were chartered for patrolling fishing areas. The following char- 

 tered boats were used: Bear, Chirikov, Helen Hinton, Lady Luck, and 

 Valkyrie in southeastern Alaska; Katherine L and Prospector on 

 Copper River and Prince William Sound; Coyote in Cook Inlet; and 

 Auk at Port Moller. 



AERIAL PATROL 



The curtailment of commercial fisheries operations, the abundance 

 of salmon in areas open to commercial fishing, and the consequent 

 lack of incentive for violating the fishery regulations made it unnec- 

 essary to maintain the aerial patrol to the same extent as in the pre- 

 ceding year. Flights were made in connection with general super- 

 visory work, and for the purpose of observing spawning grounds, 

 chiefly in the Bristol Bay region. In one instance a plane w^as used 

 to place a number of employees in an isolated district. 



COMPLAINTS AND PROSECUTIONS 



In southeast Alaska three seine boats were seized for illegal fishing 

 in closed waters during the 1931 season. The case against the master 

 and two others aboard the EstrcUa, found fishing in Ward Cove on 

 July 18, was tried before the United States commissioner at Ketchi- 

 kan and a fine of $50 was imposed, the sentence being suspended 

 until August 17 to allow them time to secure the necessary funds. 

 The masters of the Reliance and Klawack No. 7, who were arrested 

 on July 29 for fishing inside the markers at Mole Harbor, pleaded 

 guilty before the commissioner at Juneau and paid fines of $125 each. 



Masters of the trolling boats Ace and J. Warren, charged with 

 illegal fishing during weekly closed periods in July, pleaded guilty 

 before the commissioner at Juneau and were fined $100 and $50, 

 respectively. A suspended sentence was given in the latter case, 

 and the fine was paid on September 19. Two gill-net fishermen were 

 arrested for fishing in Ahrnklin Inlet with set gill nets in excess of the 

 specified maximum length and were fined $50 each by the local 

 commissioner. Five herring seine boats — Lorenz, Clermont, Tatoosh, 

 Teresa S, and Edgar C — were found fishing wdth seines less than 100 

 yards from other seines already set for fishing, in violation of section 

 3 of the act of June 6, 1924. The masters appeared before the 

 commissioner at Juneau, pleaded guilty, and were fined $75 in the 

 case of the Teresa S, and $100 in each of the others. 



In the southeastern district, also, seizures w^ere made of illegal 

 fishing gear as follows: 50 fathoms of gill net from the trolling boat 

 Harry Nelson, a 75-fathom purse seine from the lona T-4068, and 

 small pieces of seine web and gill net from the halibut boat Schorn. 

 No fmes were imposed, as the gear was not in use at the time the 

 seizures were made and voluntary releases w^ere signed by the owners. 



Eleven cases involving violations of the fisheries laws and regu- 

 lations by 18 individuals were brought before the United States 

 commissioner at Cordova. These included two cases, each against 

 two men and having to do with infringement of the regulations re- 

 garding weekly closed periods, that were dismissed because of in- 

 sufficient evidence. In all other cases, the defendants pleaded 

 guilty as charged and fines were imposed. Seven fishermen in the 

 Copper River area, arrested during the month of June for the use of 



