FISHERIES OF ALASKA IN 1907. 23 



applied to the king-salmon fishery with nets. An understanding on 

 this point was secured, however, and the last half of the season the 

 law was quite generally obeyed. 



The proportion of red to white meated fish varies considerably at 

 different places. On May 17, out of 49 king salmon taken in Auk 

 Bay, 32 were white-meated and 17 red-meated fish, while of 66 fish 

 taken in Taku Inlet on the same date 60 were red-meated. On June 

 26, out of 67 fish caught in the inlet only 7 were white-meated fish. 

 On the Alsek River, taking the season as a whole, the white-meated 

 fish averaged fewer than 1 in 10. In Cook Inlet the run is composed 

 entirely of red-meated fish. 



CENTRAL ALASKA. 



Orca. — This cannery, owned by the Northwestern Fisheries Com- 

 pany, is the farthest north, and is every year the first in all Alaska to 

 begin canning. This year the run of fish began quite late and was 

 not heavy at any time throughout the whole season. The cannery 

 was also somewhat hampered by a shortage of labor and the scarcity 

 of good coal. It was found that nearly all of the canneries in south- 

 east and central Alaska suffered, some quite seriously, from the latter 

 cause, there having been virtually a coal famine on the Pacific coast 

 for nearly a year now. All the king salmon were turned over to a 

 mild curer who was located at the cannery, but the run of this species 

 was exceedingly poor, and only 10 tierces were put up. The cannery 

 stopped fishing August 23, with about four-fifths of its pack put up. 



Cook Inlet. — This year, in addition to the Kasilof cannery of the 

 Alaska Packers' Association, two salteries were operated — one by the 

 San Juan Fishing and Packing Company at Kenai and the other by 

 Mr. J. A. Herbert at English Bay. The first-named saltery was 

 started primarily for the mild curing of king salmon, and gill nets 

 were employed in the fishery, but they were of 10-inch stretch mesh, 

 which was found to be too large. The Kasilof cannery used S^-inch 

 stretch mesh and made an exceptionally good catch of kings, all of 

 which were canned. All the kings caught were red meated. After 

 the close of the king-salmon season the San Juan Fishing and Packing 

 Company began salting red and other species of salmon. The com- 

 pany had a trap at East Foreland, on the inlet, and one on the right- 

 hand side of the Kenai River, a few miles up from the mouth, while 

 the Kasilof cannery operated a trap on the left-hand side of the river 

 a short distance from the mouth. Mr. Herbert's saltery was devoted 

 to the salting of red and silver salmon, and seines alone were employed. 

 All three plants had a very successful season. 



Kodiak. — In order to give employment during the summer months 

 to as many natives as possible, the Alaska Commercial Company and 

 Blodgett & Blinn furnish seines and pay S35 per 1,000 for all the red 

 35670—08 4 



