﻿FISHEEIES 
  OF 
  THE 
  PACIFIC 
  COAST 
  IN 
  1895. 
  645 
  

  

  islands 
  where 
  the 
  traps 
  had 
  never 
  before 
  been 
  set. 
  Most 
  of 
  this 
  catch 
  

   goes 
  to 
  San 
  Francisco. 
  Sea-otters 
  have 
  apparently 
  been 
  exterminated, 
  

   hunters 
  having 
  spent 
  weeks 
  on 
  the 
  usual 
  camping-grounds 
  on 
  the 
  

   islands 
  without 
  seeing 
  a 
  single 
  otter. 
  

  

  The 
  Chinese 
  have 
  a 
  monopoly 
  in 
  the 
  abalone 
  fishery, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  

   preparing, 
  eating, 
  and 
  marketing 
  of 
  the 
  dried 
  abalone. 
  The 
  meat 
  and 
  

   shells 
  are 
  handled 
  by 
  a 
  Chinese 
  merchant 
  at 
  Santa 
  Barbara 
  and 
  by 
  

   him 
  forwarded 
  to 
  other 
  Chinese 
  at 
  San 
  Francisco, 
  where, 
  having 
  sup- 
  

   plied 
  any 
  local 
  demand 
  for 
  dried 
  abalone 
  from 
  their 
  countrymen, 
  the 
  

   surplus 
  is 
  exported 
  to 
  China 
  or 
  the 
  Sandwich 
  Islands, 
  There 
  is 
  one 
  

   cam]) 
  of 
  Chinese 
  in 
  the 
  abalone 
  fishery, 
  if 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  so 
  called, 
  on 
  each 
  of 
  

   the 
  islands 
  of 
  Santa 
  Eosa, 
  Santa 
  Cruz, 
  San 
  Miguel, 
  and 
  San 
  Clemente. 
  

   The 
  abalones 
  are 
  gathered 
  from 
  rocks 
  around 
  the 
  shores 
  of 
  the 
  islands, 
  

   a 
  small, 
  thin, 
  iron 
  bar 
  being 
  required 
  to 
  pry 
  them 
  loose. 
  They 
  arc 
  

   then 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  shell 
  and 
  for 
  two 
  hours 
  boiled 
  in 
  sea 
  water, 
  to 
  which 
  

   a 
  small 
  amount 
  of 
  salt 
  is 
  added. 
  After 
  the 
  boiling 
  they 
  are 
  spread 
  on 
  

   the 
  rocks 
  or 
  ground 
  until 
  the 
  sun 
  and 
  air 
  have 
  dried 
  them 
  almost 
  as 
  

   hard 
  as 
  bone. 
  The 
  average 
  price 
  of 
  dried 
  abalone 
  meat 
  in 
  1895 
  was 
  4^ 
  

   cents 
  a 
  pound. 
  The 
  shells, 
  also 
  sold 
  by 
  the 
  pound, 
  have 
  had 
  a 
  wide 
  

   fluctuation 
  in 
  price, 
  which 
  has 
  averaged 
  $20 
  a 
  ton 
  — 
  a 
  much 
  lower 
  price 
  

   than 
  in 
  past 
  years. 
  Only 
  the 
  best 
  shells 
  are 
  now 
  saved, 
  a 
  large 
  propor- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  those 
  gathered 
  being 
  cast 
  aside. 
  The 
  shells 
  are 
  sold 
  to 
  button, 
  

   fancy-box, 
  and 
  ornamental 
  workers 
  in 
  America 
  and 
  Europe. 
  A 
  small 
  

   portion 
  of 
  the 
  highest-colored 
  and 
  best 
  are 
  polished 
  and 
  sold 
  for 
  decora- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  private 
  houses. 
  

  

  LOS 
  ANGELES 
  COUNTY. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  reports 
  of 
  past 
  investigations 
  of 
  the 
  fisheries 
  of 
  this 
  section 
  

   attention 
  was 
  called 
  to 
  its 
  many 
  advantages 
  for 
  a 
  fish 
  business, 
  and 
  

   the 
  prediction 
  was 
  made 
  that 
  the 
  future 
  would 
  see 
  a 
  great 
  development. 
  

   That 
  such 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  case 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  steady 
  gain 
  in 
  the 
  prod- 
  

   ucts; 
  910,531 
  pounds 
  were 
  taken 
  in 
  1889; 
  1,155,168 
  pounds 
  in 
  1892, 
  and 
  

   2,905,988 
  pounds 
  in 
  1895. 
  

  

  Three-fourths 
  of 
  the 
  fishery 
  products 
  of 
  the 
  county 
  are 
  from 
  the 
  

   fishermen 
  of 
  San 
  Pedro, 
  the 
  remainder 
  being 
  from 
  Eedondo, 
  Long 
  

   Beach, 
  Santa 
  Monica, 
  and 
  Wilmington. 
  Since 
  the 
  destruction 
  by 
  fire 
  

   of 
  the 
  fish 
  works 
  at 
  Wilmington 
  in 
  1892 
  the 
  business 
  there 
  has 
  declined, 
  

   many 
  of 
  the 
  fishermen 
  moving 
  to 
  San 
  Pedro; 
  at 
  all 
  other 
  places 
  in 
  the 
  

   county 
  the 
  business 
  shows 
  a 
  steady 
  gain. 
  During 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  1895 
  two 
  

   canneries 
  at 
  San 
  Pedro 
  were 
  engaged 
  in 
  packing 
  sardines, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  

   canneries 
  being 
  destroyed 
  by 
  fire 
  early 
  in 
  1896. 
  The 
  sardines 
  here 
  

   packed 
  have 
  met 
  with 
  a 
  favorable 
  reception 
  and 
  an 
  increasing 
  demand. 
  

  

  The 
  products 
  of 
  the 
  fisheries 
  not 
  utilized 
  at 
  the 
  packing-houses 
  or 
  

   for 
  local 
  consumption 
  are 
  sent 
  to 
  Los 
  Angeles 
  for 
  a 
  market. 
  Several 
  

   firms 
  with 
  ample 
  capital 
  represent 
  here 
  the 
  packing 
  industry 
  and 
  the 
  

   wholesale 
  and 
  retail 
  fresh-fish 
  business, 
  and 
  have 
  largely 
  increased 
  the 
  

   fisheries 
  by 
  building 
  up 
  a 
  trade 
  throughout 
  the 
  interior 
  of 
  southern 
  

  

  