58 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 



The laboratory at Woods Hole was open during the customary 

 season and its facilities were afforded to a large number of investi- 

 gators engaged in marine biological research. The assistants of the 

 Bureau, most of whom were employed only temporarily, were engaged 

 in various economic applications of the results of research, promi- 

 nent among them being the investigation of fish oils, the effects of 

 poisons and industrial wastes on fishes, fish parasites and their 

 pathological eft'ects, oyster enemies, the habits of fishes, etc. 



ALASKA FISHERIES AND FUR RESOURCES. 



The salmon, fur-seal, and other fisheries, and the minor fur resources 

 of Alaska have heretofore been dealt with in the Division of Inquiry 

 Respecting Food Fishes and the Fishing Grounds, but under date of 

 July 1, 1911, a new division, provided for by law, came into existence, 

 under the name of Alaska Fisheries Service, to which will hereafter 

 be assigned all matters pertaining to the fisheries and fur industries 

 of the Territory. A special field and office personnel, headed by a 

 chief of division, has been organized to execute the important prac- 

 tical and scientific duties thus imposed on the Bureau, and a new era 

 of great importance for Alaska and of augmented responsjl^ility and 

 usefulness for the Bureau has begun. 



ALASKA SALMON SERVICE. 



Full details regarding the administration of the salmon and other 

 fisheries of Alaska will be found in a special report issued as a 

 separate document. As complete returns from these fisheries are not 

 obtainable until the late fall or early winter of each year, the informa- 

 tion here presented is for the calendar year 1911. For the purpose 

 of enforcmg the salmon laws and the regulations made thereunder, 

 there has been the usual inspection of fishing apparatus and methods, 

 and information regarding all branches of the fishing industry have 

 been obtained and appear m the special report. 



The measures adopted by Congress and the Department for the 

 protection and preservation of the salmon have been well received 

 by the fishing interests and, with rare exceptions, have been respected 

 throughout the vast territory. Under existing conditions of control 

 and certain additional legislation now being considered by Congress, 

 there is little reason to doubt that the salmon fisheries in all parts of 

 Alaska may be preserved unimpaired for many generations. 



The run of salmon in 1911 varied considerably in different parts of 

 Alaska, being exceptionally good in the southeastern region, fair ui 

 the central, and poor in the western. The fishery as a whole was 

 more productive than ever before, but this was owing to an unprece- 

 dented catch of the cheaper species of salmon, while the take of 

 sockeye or red salmon declined. The net increase over 1910 was 



