FISHERIES OF ALASKA IN 1907. 43 
DRY SALTING, SMOKING, FREEZING, ETC. 
Dry salting—The quantity of salmon, chiefly dogs, prepared in 
this manner has been falling off very rapidly since the close of the 
Russia-Japan war, as the Japanese, who were the chief buyers, are 
now able to secure nearly all they desire from the island of Sakhalin 
and the Amur River, in Siberia. The increased Japanese tariff on 
dry-salted fish, which has become effective since the war, has also 
proved a serious deterrent to exports from this country. The pro- 
duction of dry-salted dog salmon reached its height in 1905, when 
7,280,234 pounds, valued at $115,643, was prepared. The pack in 
1906 amounted to 1,107,680 pounds, valued at $16,969, and this 
year the pack still further declined to 107,580 pounds, valued at 
$1,505. Fortunately the rapidly expanding market for canned dog 
salmon has more than made up for the decreased demand for the 
dry-salted product. 
Smoking.—As in 1906, but one establishment, the Juneau Packing 
Company, of Juneau, is equipped for smoking on a large scale, and 
this year the company prepared 53,629 pounds of smoked dog 
salmon, valued at $1,042. The same company also smokes cther 
fish at this plant, particularly herring. 
A considerable quantity of delicious smoked product, known 
locally as ‘‘bilik,”’ is put up each season at Kodiak, red or silver 
salmon being used. Steelhead trout are the finest for this style of 
smoking, as they will remain good for a longer time than the salmon, 
but they are very scarce in the vicinity of Kodiak. There is a good 
outside demand for this product by those who have tried it, but as 
only a small quantity is prepared each season, and it is a favorite 
with the residents, there is but little surplus to ship away. An 
excellent trade could be built up if the necessary capital were devoted 
to the enterprise. The fish, when smoked, sell for from 15 to 20 cents 
a pair. About 20,000 pounds, valued at $500, were sold this year. 
Freezing.—The only establishment at present engaged in freezing 
salmon is at Taku Harbor. The quantity prepared each season is 
small, this year being only 55,367 pounds, valued at $5,130. No 
king salmon were frozen, the output consisting of red, coho, and dog 
salmon. 
Fresh salmon.—It is only since the winter of 1905 that the marketing 
of fresh salmon has attained any prominence. In January of that 
year the unusual abundance of king salmon attracted the attention of 
certain Ketchikan dealers, who began buying and shipping the fish to 
Puget Sound ports. The run lasted until May 18 and during that time 
271,644 pounds, valued at $15,600, were shipped. The enterprise was 
conducted on a much wider scale in 1906, buyers being stationed at 
Ketchikan, Wrangell Narrows, Juneau, and Douglas, and the output 
amounted to 575,802 pounds of king salmon, valued at $29,584. In 
