FISHERY INDUSTRIES. 63 
This, however, is much easier to control than any of the preceding. During their 
spawning period and for some time previous, they are valueless as food for human con- 
sumption and are used only for bait or in the manufacture of oil, fertilizer, chicken 
feed, or similar preparations, At this time they are much less wary than usual and are 
readily seined in large quantities. In any of these operations not only theindividual 
fish are sacrificed, but the eggs that are to produce the supply of fish for future years are 
lost as well. Such destruction can not do otherwise than decimate the numbers of 
herring when taken in conjunction with the other destructive agencies at work. 
Frequently when seining is done on the spawning grounds the seine and boat become 
amass of spawn. Thus not only the herring and the eggs remaining in them are 
destroyed, but many of the eggs that have already been deposited are ruined. 
The freezing and preserving in cold storage of herring for bait is not an expensive or 
difficult operation, as is shown by the fact that it is at present done to a considerable 
extent. The taking of herring or the disturbing of their spawn should be prohibited 
in southeastern Alaska each year from March first to May first. It is during this period 
that all spawning occurs in southeastern Alaska, so far as the writer has been able to 
ascertain. Atthesame time the retention of herring in pots or inclosures for more than 
five daysafter the commencement of this suggested close season of each yearshould also 
be prohibited. Under present conditions it isnot infrequent that during their spawning 
season thousands of barrels of herring are retained in pots where they deposit their 
spawn, practically all of which is lost. 
The Craig and Sitka regions are the two more important spawning grounds, and 
represent the two types of grounds, i. e., the single large areas and the many small 
isolated coves and bights, the former exposing a large percentage of the eggs at low 
tide and the latter comparatively few. Besides these grounds, there are about 20 
other points in southeast Alaska at which it is known that herring have at times 
spawned. Of these a few are regular resorts, but the majority are not used annually, 
and a few only rarely. At all of these grounds the conditions are essentially the 
same as those of either the Craig or Sitka regions, particularly as regards the natural 
enemies and the operations of the natives. It is quite probable that more detailed 
work would develop other spawning grounds. 
Under the discussion of the natural enemies and the operations of the seiners, 
methods have been proposed for remedying the existing conditions, but no comment 
has been made on the advisability of prohibiting the natives from taking eggs, as the 
other two factors are of so much greater importance in the destruction of the herring 
that it seems advisable to recommend first the correction of those evils. As was shown 
under the discussion of the natives’ operations, they destroy considerable quanti- 
ties of spawn, but, as compared with the natural enemies and the seiners, the natives’ 
work is not of great importance. In the writer’s opinion the natives should be pro- 
hibited only after provisions are made for checking the ravages of the birds and the 
prohibition of seining during March and April of each year. 
The Bureau is now giving careful consideration to the formulation 
of measures having in view the abatement as far as practicable of 
those agencies which are destructive to the herring fishery. 
THE WHALE FISHERY. 
SHORE STATIONS. 
The whale fishery in Alaska in 1915 was confined to the operation 
of two shore stations. One of these plants was that of the United 
States Whaling Co., at Port Armstrong, in southeast Alaska, while 
the other was operated by the North Pacific Sea Products Co., at 
