THE COD FISHERY OF ALASKA. 203 



very short time preceding dark, tweuty-six cod, tine, plump, and healthy, averaging not less than 

 12 pounds. 



Capt. D. C. Bo wen gave me the following information about the shore fish around Kodiak: 

 First comes the " herring school," consisting of medium-sized fish, continuing from May 1 to June 

 or July; then the "lant school," short, thick, well-meated, but not so large as the herring school, 

 occurring June to July. After this comes the "capelin school," of good-sized fish, about equal to 

 Newfoundland cod, July to September. Last comes the " squid school," averaging 12 pounds each. 

 All of these are shore fish. The bank fish are always larger. 



Capt. J. C. Caton, who is well acquainted with the Shumagin fishery, says that in 1867 the 

 Sanborn took 60,000 fish, averaging 2 pounds when cured and ready for the market. Now vessels 

 will average 80 tons (60,000 fish) of 2J pounds each. (The market returns show the average to be a 

 little more than 3 pounds to the fish at present.) Captain Caton remarked that none of the fish are 

 so large as the George's cod. Capt. Andrew Anderson informed me that when he was mate of the 

 Wild Gazelle, in 1873. she took, on Seminoffsky Bank, 93,000 fish, averaging 2 pounds each when 

 dressed. In 1874 she caught 97,000 cod, averaging 3 pounds each. Capt. H. E. Bowen, of Saint 

 Paul, Kodiak, gives the average of the shore fish there as 6 pounds round, and says that the largest 

 weigh 14 pounds. Mr. Thomas Devine, in charge of McCollam & Co.'s fishing-station at Pirate 

 Cove, Shumagins, gives me as an average of the fish taken there something between 8 and 12 pounds 

 round, the largest weighing 50 pounds. 



On the 19th of July I saw many fish brought into this station by dorymen. One of the men 

 had 157 for his day's catch, none of them being less than 26 inches in length, and many of them 

 weighing not less than 30 pounds. The smallest weighed about 8, according to my estimate. Prof. 

 George Davidson, assistant to the U. S. Coast Survey, in his report on Alaska, states that in north 

 latitude 53 39', west longitude 164 10', in 50 to 60 fathoms of water, many cod were caught from 

 his vessel, the largest being 37 inches long; several reached 36 inches. The finest was 36 inches 

 long, 23 inches girth, and weighed 27 pounds, was very fat, &c. In the New York Times of July 

 15, 1879, is found the following extract from the report of Captain White, of the United States 

 Eevenue Marine Service, who was on duty in the Alaska waters in 1878 : " One day, when sounding 

 south of Kodiak, wishing to lay in a stock of codfish, I ordered the sails set back, and prepared 

 twenty lines, with four or five hooks to each line. Puget Sound clams were used as bait, and in 

 two hours we caught 250 fish, weighing 30 to 40 pounds each." 



From Dr. A. Kellogg, of San Francisco, surgeon and botanist of one of the Coast Survey 

 expeditions, I have the following memorandum : " I copy from my diary verbatim the very brief 

 note made on the spot relative to the cod caught on board the Lincoln, latitude 53 30' N., longi- 

 tude 164 30' W. cod 18 inches girth, 30J inches length, 14J pounds ; 20J girth and 34 inches 

 long, weight 20 to 22 pounds; 3 feet long and 23 inches girth, 27 pounds." 



We were in the harbor of Iliuliuk, Uualashka, from the 27th of July to August 3, and from 

 October 6 to 18, 1880. Between the first two dates we saw native fishermen daily bringing in cod 

 for winter use. The fish were caught near the village, and were uniformly good-sized, many of 

 them of 15 to 20 pounds in weight at least. Men were sent out from the vessel also to supply us 

 with fresh fish. They generally fished on the ridge at the entrance to Port Levasheff, and never 

 failed to secure a good supply of cod, averaging fully 12 pounds. In October there was no falling 

 ofi' in the supply, and the size was about the same. In deeper water, farther from the village, we 

 took larger cod. 



I find in the notes of Prof. D. S. Jordan the following comparison between the Okhotsk cod and 

 that of the Shumagin Islands : " Okhotsk cod are larger and more numerous than Shumagin cod, 



