A)iicricaii I'islirrics .Vot'/V/y. 115 



not far distaiU at this rate, ^aliiiun will he so scarce thai llic can- 

 neries will be forsaken and capital taken in another direction, 

 whereas, if the Treasury Department or its representative ImsIi 

 Commission, will i)lace restraining measures upon this evident 

 wholesale grasping, conhning the seasons, prescribing the fishing 

 until a nund>er of the strong, finer fish have had time to reach 

 the spawning grounds, and thus perpetuate their species; the sal- 

 mon fisheries will not be exhausted as they must be soon, judging 

 from the stupendous preparations that have been made for their 

 extermination. 



One manner of preserving them as well as other fish, is by 

 allowing a fish-way in every dam, by prohibiting the erection of 

 enormous traps and wheels that must soon depopulate the waters 

 of all kinds of fish, unless it is expected that fish themselves will 

 discriminate and keep out of the way; by insisting upon limited 

 seasons, and by also requiring companies to avoid over-produc- 

 tion of their commodities. It is not desirable to keep fish, particu- 

 larly, from season to season. The fresh article is always in de- 

 mand, but there is a certain modicum of danger in keeping them 

 over. Having estimated the quantity recjuired for a year's trade, 

 it would be only diplomacy to stoj) at that, and let the fish have 

 liberty to grow and multiply. ( )ur I'ish Commission is cognizant 

 of this, and with Government to legislate there will be no danger 

 of the salmon canning business becoming a failure. 



It has been said of Americans that they arc greedy for wealth, 

 but the desire for revenue from fish has dominated every nation, 

 and when our laws arc prepared for the protection of salmon 

 in Alaska and Puget Sound, we will evidently be required to gain 

 the co-partnership of British Columbia, else some of the more 

 valuable kinds will not be fully guarded. 



Another great fishing scheme is being advanced rapidly of 

 late, for the taking of sturgeon. Pacific sturgeon being found finer 

 flavored, firmer in fiesh and better for keeping than the Atlantic 

 fish. Possibly, there is little wonder for this when we think of the 

 pure, almost unknown waters in which the former live, and the 

 uncleanly waterways in which many of the Atlantic sturgeon are 

 caught. Tn Fraser River the sturgeon has been found of great 

 size and richest flavor. One fish was taken that weighed over cpo 

 pounds. This fish is to be shipped by cold storage; the roe will 

 be sent to Russia for caviare making, and the Chinese i)rize the 

 spinal cord after it is dried. There seems to be no idea of canning 

 the sturgeon, though it has been whisjDcred that the same has 

 been found masquerading as salmon in some grades of canned 



