PACIFIC SALMON FISHERIES. 23 



their especially red-colored flesh, make their appearance early in 

 December, when the Indians generally catch tliem for their own use, 

 as they fear that, if the whites got hold of the fish, they might throw 

 away the hearts. Should a heart be eaten at this time by a dog or 

 chicken, the Indians believe the run would not come. In January, 

 when the fish begin to be abundant, all danger of this seems to have 

 passed, for the Indians then usually have a considerable number for 

 sale, and these are generally shipped to distant markets in a fresh 

 condition by the buyers. As soon as the canneries o])en at Moclips 

 most of the fish are disposed of at that place. The run continues up 

 to July 1. May and June are the best fishing months. 



There is a fall run of chinooks in this river, which usually arrives 

 in August and ends about Octol)er 15. 



The silver salmon appear about October 1 and the run is generally 

 over by November 15; the dog salmon appear about November 1 

 and the run is usually over by the middle of the same month, wliile 

 the steelhead trout run between November 20 and May 1. None of 

 the latter are canned. 



Moclips, the terminus of the railroad, is about 10 miles from the 

 river, and the fish are all taken by team to this place. Twenty fish, 

 weighing approximately 100 pounds, are put in each box, and these 

 are piled onto the wagons until a load has been accumulated. The 

 team owners get 50 cents a box for hauling the loaded ones to Moclips 

 and 5 cents a box for bringing the empty ones back. 



In 1915 the records of the Indian a^ent show that the Indians 

 fishing on the north side of the river caught 219,654 Quinault salmon, 

 valued at $49,820. while those on the south side caught i;]5,358 

 of these fish, valued at $30,528.60, or a grand total of 355,007 fish, 

 valued at $80,348.60. This does not take into account the r(>sult3 

 of the fishing for the otlior species of salmon and steelhead trout, 

 which quite materially swell the total. 



Fishing is restricted to the Indians, who also make their own 

 fishery laws, with the advice and approval of the Office of Indian 

 Affairs, as the State laws have no force inside the bounds of the reser- 

 vation. Under the regulations now in force, a clear channid of one- 

 third the width must oe left in the middle of the stream, which is 

 from 250 to 300 yards in width. Each ownc^ of a fishing location 

 has to fish it in person; provided, however, that widows, orphans, 

 minor children, old Indians, and those who are sick or have gainful 

 occupations other than fishing, are allowed to lease their locations or 

 hire some one to fish tliem, and then only with the approval of the 

 officer in charge. 



During the Quinault season stake nets are used, while the rest of 

 the time, as a result of the freshets, drift gill luHs are used in the 

 eddies. The stake nets are arranged in a rather peculiar manner. 

 A line of stakes is run out for about one-third the width at right 

 angles to the shore, and to tiiese are attached a n(!t by short ropes. 

 From each stake a section of net is run out and downstream, curv- 

 ing inward like a hook at the end, the hitter part being luild in place 

 by three stakes. 



The stake nets are 40 to 60 meshes deep, with 5J-inch stretch mesh, 

 and are sc^t 85 yards apart. A sc^t of these as described above forms 

 one fishing lucatioQ. 



