32 ALASKA FISHERIES AND FUR INDUSTRIES IN 1919. 



given the Secretary of Commerce authority to do certain thmgs when 

 in his judgment the protection and preservation of the fisheries de- 

 mand such action. The Department will therefore give unbiased con- 

 sideration to all the information which comes before it touching upon 

 the questions involved, but it is not required to accept as correct any- 

 thing less than a fair, unprejudiced presentation of the facts. 



The two main contradictory views involving the Yukon situation 

 are, first, that of the commercial interests which contend that there 

 are large runs of salmon in the Yukon and that the number taken for 

 their purposes is but a small fraction of the total ; and second, that of 

 certain of the natives and others who maintain that the runs are 

 small and that no salmon can be exported without a resulting local 

 state of privation. The question of large interest, however, to the 

 Department is not whether commercial fishing shall cease in order 

 that noncommercial fisliing may continue, but whether the runs of 

 salmon in the Yukon are being or will be depleted under the present 

 scale of operations. It is proper that cognizance be taken of any 

 condition that threatens to destroy the fisheries, whether it be the 

 result of operations by a packing company or by a resident popula- 

 tion, or by both. 



There is much to be learned regarding the salmon runs in the 

 Yukon before the Department considers further limitations upon 

 fishing in those waters. Competent investigators will, therefore, be 

 sent to the Yukon in 1920 to study the salmon runs and to ascertain 

 the actual conditions of the natives in their relation to the salmon 

 fisheries. Further regulations of the Yukon salmon fisheries will 

 depend very largely upon the results of their observations. It 

 remains true that a just regard for the rights of humanity must 

 inevitably weigh heavily in considering the final regulation of these 

 fisheries, but it seems now that the Yukon can support at least a 

 reasonable commercial fishery for salmon and at the same time insure 

 an ample supply for local food purposes in perpetuity. 



CENTRAL AND WESTERN ALASKA FISHERY. 



In order that the Bureau might be in possession of accurate and 

 trustworthy information regarding certain phases of the salmon 

 fisheries of central and western Alaska, arrangements were made 

 for a joint investigation by Dr. C. H. Gilbert, of Stanford University, 

 engaged as special assistant, and Henry O'Malley, field assistant. 

 Dr. Gilbert and Mr. O'Malley left Seattle on May 12 and returned 

 early in September, 1919. While en route to western Alaska, a stop 

 was made at Cordova, from which place local trips were made in con- 

 nection with Copper River fishery conditions. Thereafter the jour- 

 ney to the Bristol Bay region was continued, the overland route from 

 Iliamna being followed. A number of weeks were spent on Bristol 

 Bay waters and tributaries, following which inquiries were made in 

 the Port Moller and Ikatan regions. The conclusion of major field 

 work was in the vicinity of Karluk. Much valuable information was 

 secured as a result of the investigation. The report of Dr. Gilbert 

 and Mr. O'Malley is given on page 143. 



