Pacific Fisherman Year Book 



Published by Pacific Fisherman 

 1321 Smith Building. 



MILLER FREEMAN. Publisher. 



JOHN N. COBB. Editor. 



RUSSELL PALMER. Manaaer 



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JL ^- -•* 



IHE most surprising fea- 

 ture in the history of the 

 fisheries of the Pacific 

 Coast has been the re- 

 markable development 

 in the use of power 

 boats in various branches 

 of the industry. 



Fifteen years ago the 

 gasoline powered boat 

 was a curiosity in these 

 waters. The majority of 

 the cannery tenders 

 were operated by steam, 

 the rest using sails. All 

 of the salmon fishing 

 vessels and boats used 

 sails or oars as motive power The halibut fleet 

 was just then beginning to assume importance, 

 but with the exception of a couple of steamers, 

 all were sailing vessels, while in the minor fisheries 

 sail or oars were in use exclusively. This slow and 

 uncertain means of progression greatly retarded 

 the development of the industry, and the de- 

 mand for something better rapidly assumed an 

 insistent phase. 



For some years the progress made by the gaso- 

 line engine was slow. The fishermen were skep- 

 tical of its utility and staying qualities under the 

 hard and strenuous demands of the industry. 

 The early engines were lightly built, causing fre- 

 quent breakdowns, and as most of the parts then 

 had to be supplied from the East, long and ex- 

 pensive delays would be caused while waiting for 

 the new parts. Manufacturing began at an early 





date on this coast, and as the engines were made 

 stronger, and with more regard to the necessities 

 of the industry, and agencies and repair shops 

 established on this coast, where repairs could be 

 made and supplies obtained very quickly, the 

 gasoline engine became more and more popular. 

 As the introduction of the gasoline engine be- 

 came more general the need of engines to burn 

 a cheaper grade of fuel became apparent. The 

 engine builders soon had their engines so con- 

 structed that they would burn the cheap distil- 

 lates. Then came the Diesel engine, which was 

 designed to burn the cheaper grades of oil, thus 

 permitting of their operation at a vastly de- 

 creased cost. 



The power boat first came into general use in 

 the salmon industry, especially in cannery ten- 

 ders. The steam tenders rapidly passed into the 

 discard and today but few are to be seen any- 

 where on the coast, and these few are almost 

 invariably survivals of the early days. The fisher- 

 men early saw the possibilities of the motor, 

 by whose aid the gill netter and purse seiner could 

 get out to the banks and back home again with 

 their catch without regard to the state of the 

 wind or tide, thus bringing in fish that were fresh, 

 and its use spread amongst them with great rapid- 

 ity so far as the coastal states were concerned. 



In the halibut industry the use of sails as motive 

 power had greatly hampered and retarded the 

 expansion of the fishery. Being dependent for 

 its movements upon the direction of the wind, 

 the fleet was very much restricted in its range. 

 Even after a vessel secured a cargo it was not 

 certain that she would be able to reach her home 



Contents Copyright 1915 



by 



Miller Freeman. 



