504 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



of seals and sea lions and the grmting of a bountj- on the same, to be $2.50 for 

 seals and $5 for sea lions. 



Seventh. We recommend the repeal of both the fish bills passed under the pro- 

 visions of the initiative and referendum in June, 1907, by the people of the State 

 of Oregon, said bills being designated on the baUot as 318, 319, and 332, 333. 



The recommendations were enacted into law by both States, and 

 at the same time the State of Washington in its bill also prohibited 

 fishing for salmon within 3 miles of the mouth of the Columbia 

 between March 1 and ^iay 1 and between August 25 and September 

 10, or salmon fishing on tributaries of the Columbia, except the Snake, 

 between June 1 and September 15; and also prohibited fishing for 

 salmon by any means save by hook and Ime in the Kalama, Lewis, 

 Wind, Little White Salmon, Wenatchee, Methow, and Spokane 

 Rivers and in the Columbia Kiver 1 mile below the mouth of any of 

 the rivers named. The agreement was subjected to a rather severe 

 strain, however, when it was discovered that the Oregon Legislature 

 had failed to provide the same closed periods for the tributaries that 

 were enacted for the Columbia, thus leaving the Willamette, Clacka- 

 mas, Lewis and Clark, and Youngs Rivers and Spikanon Creek open 

 to fisliing for 15 days in March and 15 days in April, while the 

 Columbia was closed. The cry of bad faith was at once raised by 

 the Washington fishermen, and for a short time it appeared that the 

 agreement would be broken at the ver}^ beginning. The Oregon 

 Board of Fish Commissioners took the matter up, however, and by 

 order closed these streams to all fishing during the times of closed 

 season on the Columbia, and thus restored peace once more. 



This agreement continued in force until 1915, when the legislature 

 of each State prepared for a thorough revision of its fishery code. In 

 order to make this revision more eftective, conmiittees from both 

 legislatures were appointed and held joint meetings in Portland, 

 where they mutually agreed upon laws covering the fisheries of the 

 Columbia River, and m order to make this agreement more binding 

 the following chapter was inserted in the codes finally adopted: 



All laws and regulations now existing, or which may be necessary for regulating, 

 protecting, or preserving fish in the waters of the Columbia River, over which 

 the States of Oregon and Washington have concurrent jurisdiction, or any other 

 waters within either of said States, which would affect said concurrent jurisdiction, 

 shall be made, changed, altered, and amended in whole or in part only with the 

 mutual consent and approbation of both States. 



As such an agreement between two States requires the approval of 

 Congress, a bill ratifying the same was introduced in Congress on 

 December 16, 1915, but was not finally ratified until April 1, 1918. 



While the compact was pending in Congress, the Washington 

 Legislature at its 1917 session made several changes in the existing 

 fisheries law and contended they were effective because the compact 

 agreement was not ratified by Congress until 1918, which then did 

 not take recognition of the new regulations. When the matter came 

 officially before the superior court of Pacific County, Wash., in 1919, 

 the court held that the compact was valid, thus nullifying laws 

 passed by the State of Washington affecting the Columbia River 

 since 1915, and if this decision stands in the higher courts of both 

 States all laws passed by either legislature since 1915, affecting the 

 Columbia River fisheries, will fail unless they happen to be the same 

 in both States. 



