﻿FISHERY 
  INDUSTRIES. 
  117 
  

  

  In 
  food 
  value 
  the 
  halibut 
  has 
  high 
  rank. 
  Compared 
  with 
  meat 
  it3 
  

   low 
  price 
  and 
  minimum 
  of 
  waste 
  in 
  preparing 
  for 
  the 
  table 
  combine 
  

   to 
  make 
  it 
  a 
  favorite 
  with 
  an 
  ever-increasing 
  number 
  of 
  consumers. 
  

   For 
  some 
  years 
  a 
  prejudice 
  against 
  cold-storage 
  hahbut 
  from 
  so 
  dis- 
  

   tant 
  a 
  source 
  as 
  the 
  North 
  Pacific 
  had 
  a 
  tendency 
  to 
  deter 
  its 
  extended 
  

   use 
  in 
  the 
  Eastern 
  States, 
  but, 
  as 
  a 
  result 
  primarliy 
  of 
  the 
  care 
  exer- 
  

   cised 
  in 
  handhng 
  and 
  transporting, 
  this 
  has 
  been 
  entirely 
  overcome. 
  

   The 
  growth 
  of 
  the 
  trade 
  has 
  since 
  been 
  remarkable, 
  with 
  every 
  pros- 
  

   pect 
  of 
  a 
  steady 
  continuance 
  under 
  the 
  present 
  methods 
  of 
  distribu- 
  

   tion. 
  

  

  Judged 
  by 
  statistics 
  of 
  shipments, 
  the 
  Pacific 
  haUbut 
  shows 
  no 
  

   decline 
  in 
  abundance, 
  yet 
  the 
  fact 
  remains 
  that 
  for 
  some 
  years 
  past 
  

   larger 
  vessels 
  of 
  increasing 
  power 
  and 
  steaming 
  radius 
  have 
  become 
  

   necessary 
  to 
  supply 
  the 
  market 
  requirements. 
  The 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  

   the 
  halibut 
  brought 
  into 
  Pacific 
  ports 
  formerlj'- 
  originated 
  from 
  that 
  

   wonderful 
  network 
  of 
  channels 
  and 
  fiords 
  which 
  cut 
  into 
  the 
  coasts 
  

   of 
  British 
  Columbia 
  and 
  southeast 
  Alaska. 
  Now, 
  however, 
  the 
  most 
  

   important 
  supply 
  is 
  from 
  grounds 
  off 
  the 
  outer 
  coasts, 
  and 
  these 
  

   grounds 
  are 
  being 
  steadily 
  developed 
  at 
  points 
  more 
  and 
  more 
  remote 
  

   from 
  the 
  home 
  ports. 
  Small 
  power 
  craft 
  continue 
  to 
  deliver 
  quan- 
  

   tities 
  of 
  halibut 
  yielded 
  by 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  inner 
  channels, 
  but 
  it 
  

   is 
  generally 
  conceded 
  that 
  the 
  maximum 
  of 
  their 
  productivity 
  has 
  been 
  

   reached 
  if 
  not, 
  in 
  some 
  instances, 
  actually 
  passed. 
  While 
  Frederick 
  

   Sound, 
  Chatham 
  Strait, 
  and 
  Icy 
  Strait, 
  in 
  their 
  wid 
  ^r 
  reaches, 
  continue 
  

   to 
  receive 
  attention 
  from 
  a 
  few 
  of 
  the 
  larger 
  craft, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  

   favorite 
  grounds 
  for 
  the 
  best-found 
  vessels 
  is 
  that 
  off 
  Yakutat. 
  During 
  

   the 
  past 
  few 
  months 
  explorations 
  have 
  been 
  carried 
  on 
  by 
  practical 
  

   fishermen 
  m 
  the 
  Prince 
  WiUiam 
  Sound 
  district, 
  and 
  their 
  favorable 
  

   reports 
  lead 
  to 
  the 
  belief 
  that 
  a 
  considerable 
  development 
  of 
  the 
  indus- 
  

   try 
  may 
  foUow 
  in 
  that 
  region. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  a 
  general 
  behef 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  little 
  waste 
  in 
  the 
  halibut 
  fishery, 
  

   but 
  this 
  is 
  not 
  strictly 
  true. 
  Halibut 
  are 
  almost 
  exclusively 
  caught 
  

   on 
  trawl 
  or 
  ground 
  lines, 
  which, 
  equipped 
  with 
  hundreds 
  of 
  hooks, 
  

   are 
  set 
  out 
  from 
  dories 
  in 
  great 
  lengths 
  over 
  the 
  bottom. 
  At 
  inter- 
  

   vals, 
  as 
  the 
  weather 
  permits, 
  the 
  lines 
  are 
  under-run, 
  the 
  catch 
  re- 
  

   moved, 
  hooks 
  rebaited, 
  and 
  the 
  lines 
  reset, 
  this 
  work 
  also 
  bemg 
  done 
  

   from 
  dories. 
  After 
  careful 
  inquiry 
  among 
  hahbut 
  fishermen 
  them- 
  

   selves, 
  it 
  is 
  believed 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  safe 
  estimate 
  that 
  for 
  every 
  halibut 
  caught 
  

   at 
  least 
  one 
  other 
  fish 
  of 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  value 
  as 
  food 
  is 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  

   hooks. 
  With 
  those 
  rare 
  exceptions 
  when 
  black 
  cod 
  are 
  retained, 
  all 
  

   these 
  fish 
  are 
  thrown 
  back 
  into 
  the 
  sea, 
  either 
  dead 
  or 
  soon 
  to 
  perish. 
  

   Except 
  in 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  they 
  may 
  become 
  food 
  for 
  other 
  species, 
  they 
  may 
  

   be 
  regarded 
  as 
  a 
  total 
  economic 
  loss. 
  The 
  fishermen 
  have 
  so 
  little 
  

   space 
  in 
  their 
  dories 
  that 
  they 
  seldom 
  give 
  the 
  cheaper 
  fishes 
  boat 
  

   room, 
  yet 
  a 
  great 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  have 
  distinct 
  market 
  value. 
  The 
  

  

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