236 REPORT OF COxMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



weight of the fonner being 20 pouiKLs, and of tbe latter lOf pounds. 

 In addition to the quantity canned in 1892, 34 barrels of chiuook and 

 163 barrels of silver salmon were salted. The salmon are mostly caught 

 with gill nets, oidy one haul seine being used. The fishermen comprise 

 various nationalities, one-third of them being native-born, one-half 

 Europeans, aud twelve Indians. The cannery employees are Chinese, 

 with the exception of a few Indian women. 



This stream has no spring run of salmon. The first fish to enter the 

 river are the chinooks, which arrive about the middle of July; most of 

 the run of this species is in the river by the middle of September, a 

 few also being found u^) to October 1. Silver salmon first enter the 

 river about the time the run of the chinooks is dropping off, or from 

 the first to the middle of September. In 1802 the first silver salmon 

 were taken September 16. A good run at that time was followed the 

 first week in October by a very large body of fish. When the river was 

 visited by the writer on October 5 silver salmon were very abundant. 



Large and small sardines are very abundant between June and Sep- 

 tember, and other varieties of good food-fish are found in the river at 

 certain seasons, and at all times just outside of the river. From its 

 isolated location, with indirect transportation facilities, no attention is 

 I)aid to any branch of the fisheries except the salmon. 



BENTON COUNTY. 



This comparatively small county has two rivers whose fisheries are 

 of considerable prominence, namely, the Alseya and the Yaquina. 

 Each of these near its mouth expands into a long, narrow bay, which 

 takes the name of its respective river. Outside the rivers the fisheries 

 are of no importance, although there is an abundance of salt-water fish 

 on the outlying banks in the near vicinity. 



Alseya River. — The run of salmon on this stream was quite large in 

 1889, and 9,000 cases and 50 barrels were packed at the only cannery 

 in operation. Prices of canned salmon ruled low, and on that account 

 aud the poor prospects for satisfactory results tlie cannery was idle 

 during the following year. Fish were scarce in 1890; the cannery was 

 closed, and besides a few salmon taken for local use only 50 barrels 

 were salted and 6,000 pounds shipped fresh to Portland. In 1891 the 

 fish were not abundant, aud only 3,500 cases were canned, 50 barrels 

 salted, and 16,000 pounds shipped away fresh. In 1892 a very large 

 run of salmon entered the river for the first time in three years. The 

 canners, not looking for the great increase, were prepared for only a 

 light catch, and were obliged to close down early in the season as soon 

 as all the cans had been filled. At the time the river was visited by 

 the writer, on October 8, 1892, it was full of salmon, but no fishing was 

 carried on. With only a limited number of cans to fill and a large 

 run of fish to draw from, the fish packed consisted almost entirely of 

 chinooks, altliough, as in the other coast rivers, silver salmon com- 

 prised fully three-fourths of the run. 



