ALASKA FISHERY AND FUR-SEAL INDUSTRIES, 1920. 53 
On August 20 practically the entire plant of the Hidden Inlet 
Canning Co. at Hidden Inlet was destroyed by fire, entailing a loss 
in buildings, supplies, equipment, and canned salmon of $217,823. 
The burning of the Nakat Inlet cannery of the G. W. Hume Co. 
occurred on August 28. Buildings and fishing gear valued at 
$75,000 were lost. 
The Chinese quarters at the Roe Point cannery of the Northwest- 
ern Fisheries Co. were burned, at a loss of $4,635. 
The vessel losses in southeastern Alaska aggregated $35,660, chief 
of which was that of the barge Dashing Wave, owned by Libby, Mc- 
Neill & Libby, and valued at $15,000. 
A rather heavy loss of fishing apparatus was also reported, which 
in the aggregate was valued at $80,288. Of this amount, $67,238 
represented the value of traps that were destroyed. 
Property losses in central Alaska amounted to $22,544, the major 
part of which consisted of fishing apparatus. In western Alaska 
losses of property having a total value of $126,966 were reported, of 
which $88,802 was charged under vessels and floating equipment, 
$31,664 to fishing apparatus, and $6,500 to buildings and wharves. 
The notable item in these losses was that of the ship Chas. F'. Moody, 
owned by the Northwestern Fisheries Co., and valued at $80,000. 
In 1920 the total loss of property in the salmon industry through- 
out Alaska was reported as S773 914, of which approximately 81 
per cent was sustained by operators in the southeastern district. 
The loss of life in this industry was considerably greater than in 
1919. In southeastern Alaska 1 fisherman, 3 shoresmen, and 1 trans- 
porter met accidental death; in central Alaska 2 shoresmen and 1 
transporter were killed and 2 transporters were drowned; in western 
Alaska 11 fishermen and 2 shoresmen were drowned and 2 shoresmen 
were killed. 
STATISTICS. 
There were operated in Alaska in 1920 a total of 146 salmon can- 
neries, 12 more than in 1919. Several of them were smal] floating 
plants. The investment in the salmon-canning industry was $62,- 
550,727, a decrease of $3,944,444. There as a decline of $3,588,093 
in southeast Alaska and $1,517,356 in western Alaska. In central 
Alaska the investment increased $1,161,005. 
The canning industry gave employment to 24,423 persons, or 1,076 
less than in 1919. Whites decreased 345, natives 126, Chinese 401, 
Japanese 39, and Mexicans 214. Filipinos increased 10, and miscel- 
laneous, including Negroes, 39. 
The pack of canned salmon was 4,429,463 cases, valued at $35,- 
602.800, a decrease of 154,225 cases in the pack and of $7,662,549 in 
value of the products of 1920 as compared with those of 1919. This 
is a decline of approximately 34 per cent in production and 173 per 
cent in value from 1919. These decreases in quantity and value of 
products are directly and entirely due to the smaller pack in south- 
east Alaska, as in both the other districts the pack was larger than 
in 1919. A comparison of the pack in 1920 with that in 1919, by 
districts, shows that southeast Alaska dropped from 3,119,260 cases 
to 2,225,011, a decrease of 894,249 cases; central Alaska increased 
from 771,907 to 1,837,448, a gain of 565,541 cases; and western Alaska 
