INTRODUCTION 
The preservation of the fishery resources of Alaska on a sound 
economic basis, while encouraging maximum utilization consistent 
therewith, and the protection and management of the fur seals that 
breed on the Pribilof Islands constitute the major activities of the 
Bureau of Fisheries in Alaska. Acting Commissioner Charles E. 
Jackson spent several weeks in the Territory in the summer of 1939 
and initiated the policy of holding annual hearings in various fishing 
centers at the close of the season in order that persons engaged in the 
industry might have full opportunity to express their views. An in- 
vestigation of the fisheries of Alaska was made also by a subcommittee 
of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, assisted by a 
delegation from the Territorial legislature. 
Regulations for the protection of the fisheries were modified in some 
respects during the progress of the season to suit unforeseen condi- 
tions. Evidence presented at the hearings and in briefs filed subse- 
quently, as well as data gathered by Bureau employees engaged in 
fishery patrol and investigative work, was used as a basis for the 
revision of fishery regulations to be effective in the following season. 
Law-enforcement duties and stream-survey work for the purpose of 
appraising the escapement of spawning salmon were carried on by a 
force of approximately 100 temporary employees in addition to the 
regular personnel. Fourteen vessels of the Bureau, 1 chartered 
vessel, 5 speed boats, and a number of small power boats were engaged 
in this work, and chartered airplane service was used for limited 
periods in some localities. Weirs were again operated in 12 typical 
salmon streams for counting the escapement of brood fish. Scientific 
studies with respect to the salmon and herring were continued. 
Detailed statistics of the fisheries are published herewith. These 
include for the first time data with regard to the number of residents 
and nonresidents employed in the Alaska salmon canning industry, 
and the wages paid by that industry within and outside the Territory. 
At the Pribilof Islands 60,473 fur-seal skins were taken; 2,109 more 
than in the preceding year. Killings in general were of surplus 3-year- 
old male seals, and provision was made for a suitable reserve of this 
age group. It was computed that the fur-seal herd as of August 10, 
1939, contained 2,020,774 animals. Attention was given during the 
winter to the management of blue foxes on the Islands, and 1,258 
fox pelts were obtained in the 1939-40 season. 
The byproducts plant on St. Paul Island was again operated for 
rendering oil and meal from the fur-seal carcasses and blubber, and the 
output amounted to approximately 28,000 gallons of blubber oil, 
4,800 gallons of oil from carcasses, and 251 tons of meal. Limited 
quantities were retained at the islands, chiefly for use in fox feed, 
and the remainder of these products were shipped to Seattle. A sub- 
stantial portion of the meal and the entire shipment of oil were sold 
for commercial use. 
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