166 ALASKA FISHERIES AND FUR INDUSTRIES IN 1919. 



in wliich two exceptionally undersized escapements were in sequence, 

 so that one would produce the four-year fish and the other the five- 

 year fish of a later run. 



The smallest escapement of the series was in 1915, when only 

 259,000 fish passed the Wood River weir. These furnished thefour-year 

 fish for 1919, the worst of all years on the Nushagak. Unfortunately, 

 there is no record of 1914, the source of the five-year fish for 1919, so it 

 can not be told whether two very small escapements again cooperated. 



One other instance is worthy of attention. There is no record 

 of the escapement in 1907, which was the year before the series began, 

 but as the commercial returns of that year were the smallest from 

 1900, when fishing began on a large scale, to 1919, it is fair to assume 

 that the escape in that year was very small. But 1907 produced the 

 four-year fish for 1911, which was the next smallest year on record, 

 and the five-year fish for 1912, which was the third smallest year. 

 In this connection, the year 1920 on the Nushagak will possess 

 unusual interest as showing how many five-year fish will have been 

 produced by the smallest escapement of the series, that of 1915. 



While admitting the possibility in all these cases of the chance 

 association of numbers and giving due weight to that possibility the 

 entire series is impressive as indicating on the whole a causal connec- 

 tion between size of spawning escape and size of resulting run; but the 

 relation seems sometimes modified and sometimes effectually masked 

 by the intervention of the other factors discussed on previous pages. 



RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BRISTOL BAY. 



Reasons have been assigned for the belief that the red-salmon 



fack in Bristol Bay has reached, where it has not passed, its maximum, 

 t is believed that it is in danger of decline with the present scale of 

 operations continued unchanged, and it seems probable that the 

 present scale will be augmented. It is contended that some of the 

 usual precautions should be taken to provide a larger spawning escape 

 in this district. In no other salmon fisheries, except in certain por- 

 tions of Alaska, are all effective restrictions removed, and unlimited 

 fishing permitted, without seasonal or weekly close seasons, or pro- 

 tected areas. It is recommended: 



1. That the Bureau of Fisheries seek to have the present law 

 amended in such way that no Alaska districts will be relieved from 

 the requirement of a weekly close season of 36 hours, during which 

 no fishing is permitted. Bristol Bay is now one of several specifically 

 exempted regions. No valid reason aside from the desires of the 

 salmon packers can be assigned in any of these cases. All are in 

 need of the protection that would be afforded by this regulation. 



2. That all the Bristol Bay rivers be closed to commercial fishing 

 at all points above their mouths, and that the mouths of these streams 

 be determined by the Secretary of Commerce in his discretion, and 

 that suitable marks be erected. 



3. That a further attempt be made to enforce the provision that 

 fish should be canned or otherwise preserved within 48 hours after 

 their capture. One of the worst and most wasteful features of the 

 Bristol Bay fisheries is the custom, during heavy runs, of permitting 

 the daily capture of fish far in excess of the capacity of the cannery, 

 with resulting daily accumulation of stale fish. This is done in antici- 

 pation of a slackening of the run, which will permit the cannery to 

 catch up with its hoard of fish. But the run sometimes continues 



