﻿84 
  KEPOET 
  OF 
  THE 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  and 
  a 
  large 
  run 
  in 
  Bering 
  Sea, 
  A 
  slight 
  decline 
  in 
  the 
  humpback 
  run 
  

   occurred 
  in 
  southeast 
  Alaska, 
  where 
  the 
  red 
  salmon 
  practically 
  held 
  

   their 
  own. 
  There 
  was 
  a 
  shortage 
  of 
  red 
  salmon 
  in 
  the 
  Nushagak 
  

   region 
  and 
  in 
  central 
  Alaska, 
  which 
  induced 
  an 
  increased 
  pack 
  of 
  the 
  

   inferior 
  species 
  in 
  those 
  regions. 
  

  

  The 
  Alaska 
  fisheries 
  as 
  a 
  whole 
  were 
  more 
  productive 
  in 
  1912 
  than 
  

   ever 
  before. 
  This 
  was 
  owing 
  largely 
  to 
  the 
  great 
  increase' 
  in 
  the 
  

   catch 
  of 
  the 
  cheaper 
  grades 
  of 
  salmon. 
  The 
  net 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  

   salmon 
  catch 
  over 
  1911 
  was 
  over 
  16,963,000 
  fish. 
  The 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  

   product 
  of 
  aU 
  the 
  fisheries 
  showed 
  an 
  increase 
  over 
  that 
  for 
  1911 
  of 
  

   more 
  than 
  S2,000,000. 
  The 
  aggregate 
  catch 
  of 
  salmon 
  was 
  60,938,945, 
  

   from 
  which 
  were 
  prepared 
  4,056,021 
  cases 
  of 
  canned 
  salmon 
  valued 
  

   at 
  $16,295,480, 
  and 
  in 
  addition 
  to 
  these 
  were 
  minor 
  products 
  of 
  the 
  

   salmon 
  fisheries 
  valued 
  at 
  $837,652. 
  The 
  number 
  of 
  salmon 
  canneries 
  

   increased 
  from 
  64 
  to 
  87, 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  new 
  plants 
  being 
  in 
  

   southeast 
  Alaska. 
  

  

  In 
  1911 
  the 
  five 
  private 
  hatcheries 
  took 
  167,146,800 
  red 
  salmon 
  

   eggs 
  and 
  the 
  two 
  Government 
  hatcheries 
  102,520,000, 
  making 
  a 
  total 
  

   of 
  269,666,800, 
  from 
  which 
  were 
  hatched 
  and 
  liberated 
  153,868,800 
  fry 
  

   by 
  the 
  private 
  and 
  87,729,700 
  by 
  the 
  Government 
  hatcheries, 
  a 
  total 
  

   oi 
  241,598,500. 
  In 
  1912 
  the 
  private 
  hatcheries 
  took 
  86,295,000 
  red 
  

   salmon 
  eggs 
  and 
  the 
  Government 
  hatcheries 
  80,814,470, 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  

   167,109,470, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  decrease 
  of 
  102,557,330 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  1911. 
  

  

  Under 
  the 
  provision 
  of 
  law 
  exempting 
  from 
  taxation 
  the 
  output 
  of 
  

   the 
  salmon 
  canneries 
  at 
  the 
  rate 
  of 
  10 
  cases 
  of 
  canned 
  salmon 
  for 
  each 
  

   thousand 
  red 
  or 
  king 
  salmon 
  fry 
  liberated, 
  the 
  companies 
  maintaining 
  

   private 
  hatcheries 
  were 
  entitled 
  to 
  receive 
  in 
  1912 
  rebates 
  on 
  153,- 
  

   868,800 
  fry, 
  or 
  $61,744. 
  

  

  The 
  order 
  of 
  the 
  Secretary 
  of 
  Commerce 
  and 
  Labor 
  of 
  December 
  19, 
  

   1907, 
  closing 
  Wood 
  and 
  Nushagak 
  Rivers 
  to 
  salmon 
  fishing, 
  remains 
  

   in 
  force 
  and 
  no 
  commercial 
  fishing 
  was 
  carried 
  on 
  in 
  those 
  streams. 
  

   With 
  the 
  cooperation 
  of 
  the 
  companies 
  operating 
  canneries 
  in 
  the 
  

   Nushagak 
  region, 
  Wood 
  River 
  was 
  again 
  racked 
  in 
  1912, 
  and 
  a 
  tally 
  

   was 
  kept 
  of 
  the 
  red 
  salmon 
  ascending 
  that 
  stream 
  to 
  Lake 
  Aleknagik 
  

   for 
  spawning 
  purposes. 
  The 
  number 
  of 
  fish 
  thus 
  counted 
  was 
  

   825,264, 
  as 
  against 
  354,299 
  in 
  1911. 
  The 
  number 
  of 
  salmon 
  caught 
  

   in 
  the 
  Nushagak 
  region 
  was 
  3,866,950, 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  1,053,313 
  over 
  

   that 
  for 
  the 
  previous 
  year. 
  In 
  the 
  five 
  years 
  from 
  1908 
  to 
  1912 
  the 
  

   catch 
  in 
  the 
  Nushagak 
  region 
  has 
  decreased 
  37 
  per 
  cent, 
  while 
  the 
  

   number 
  escaping 
  to 
  the 
  spawning 
  beds 
  has 
  decreased 
  87 
  per 
  cent. 
  

   In 
  1908 
  the 
  number 
  escaping 
  was 
  30 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  entire 
  run; 
  in 
  1912 
  

   it 
  was 
  but 
  7.7 
  per 
  cent. 
  This 
  indicates 
  a 
  very 
  serious 
  condition 
  if 
  

   natural 
  propagation 
  alone 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  depended 
  upon 
  to 
  keep 
  up 
  the 
  

   supply 
  of 
  salmon 
  in 
  that 
  region. 
  

  

  