THE FISHERIES OF ALASKA IN 1906. 47 



' VESSEL FISHING. 



Nearly all of the vessels fish in Bering Sea, where there are but few 

 safe harbors for the location of shore stations. Some of the fleet 

 spent the winter of 1905-6 in the north, but for the greater part of 

 the season stormy weather prevailed on the banks in both Bering Sea 

 and the North Pacific Ocean, and as a consequence but few of the 

 vessels secured full cargoes. 



There was considerable complaint among the fishermen that the 

 cod caught ofl^ Sannak were covered with scabs, which condition was 

 ascribed by some to the dumping overboard on the banks of the gurry 

 from the fishing vessels; but this hardly seems probable. Others 

 claim that the practice referred to drives the cod from the banks. 



The fishermen working east of Sannak Island are reported to have 

 made catches of cod which averaged 8 pounds each. This ground is 

 somewhat dangerous and has not been fished for some time. 



The following new vessels were added to the fleet this yesir: 

 Schooner Fortuna, of Tacoma; steamer Newport (transporter), of 

 San Francisco; schooner Ottilie Fjord, of San Francisco; schooner 

 Rosie H. (transporter), of San Francisco, and schooner Dora Bluhm, 

 of San Francisco. The schooner Arago, of San Francisco, which has 

 been engaged in the Alaska codfishery since 1880, and the schooner 

 Zampa, of San Francisco, have been sold and are now engaged in 

 other business. 



Disasters to the fleet in 1906 were not so serious as in 1905. Early 

 in the year the small schooner Pirate, belonging to the Union Fish 

 Company, and engaged in plying between the company's different 

 stations, was wrecked and became a total loss. The schooner Glen, of 

 San Francisco, while on her way to the banks in ^larch was driven 

 ashore twice, but got off each time. The schooner Marion, while en 

 route from San Francisco to one of the stations, was wrecked April 

 11 on one of the Shumagins, and became a total loss, with no cas- 

 ualties, however. 



One member of the crew of the schooner Fremont was frozen to 

 death in his dory, while another was washed overboard and drowned. 

 A third fisherman was adrift in his dory for eight days, and when 

 picked up was suffering from badl}^ frozen legs. 



The vessel owners make frequent and bitter complaint of the class 

 of men available for the work of fishing. Usually there are a few 

 good fishermen on each vessel, but the rest are rifl^-rafl" picked up 

 along the water fronts of the Pacific coast cities. This year the 

 Robinson Fisheries Company, of Anacortes, Wash., engaged 40 

 experienced cod fishermen in Gloucester, Mass., and brought them 

 to the coast, shipping them as part of the crews of their schooners 

 Alice and Joseph Russ; it was thought by the company that with 



31581—07 4 



