280 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 
BERING SEA, SUMMER OF 1890. 
BRISTOL BAY. 
Since 1882 from one to four vessels have fished each year in the shallow 
waters of Bristol Bay. The fish inhabiting this region do not run as 
large asin the North Atlantic Ocean, and vessels of large tonnage, 
therefore, find it impracticable to depend entirely upon these grounds 
for a season’s work. Small vessels are more profitable, as they do not 
exhaust the bottom so quickly, and consequently have to change their 
berth less frequently. _ 
The fishing vessels entering Bering Sea sometimes make trials in the 
vicinity of Unimak Pass and the Northwest Cape of Unimak Island, 
the latter being located near the western end of Slime Bank. It is 
not unusual in the spring that they find comparatively good fishing off 
Akutan, Akun, Tigaldi, aud Avatanak islands, but full fares are never 
obtained in those places, and a large catch is never expected. The size 
and quality of these cod compare fairly well with those of Bristol Bay, 
but, finding them much less abundant, the vessels remain here only a few 
days. The natives of the region, however, find no difficulty in obtain- 
ing all the cod, flounders, etc., which they require for their own use. 
Slime Bank has been so named by the fishermen on account of the 
great numbers of jellyfishes which occur upon it. It extends from the 
northwestern extremity of Unimak Island, parallel with the coast, to 
within about 10 miles of Amak Island, and has a total area of about 
1,445 square miles; its average width is about 17 miles. The bottom 
consists of gray, yellow, and black sand, with occasional small rocky 
patches. The water is usually comparatively shallow, the greatest 
depth discovered being 75 fathoms. 
After leaving the Akutan and Unimak grounds, the fishermen next 
anchor on the western part of Slime Bank, and thence work gradually 
to the eastward. Up to the middle or latter part of June the jellyfishes 
are not sufficiently abundant to be considered a nuisance, but immedi- 
ately after that time they increase rapidly and soon become a serious 
obstacle to fishing operations. Their soft tentacles not only cover the 
baits on the hooks, making them unattractive to fish, but they also 
adhere so tenaciously to the lines that the latter can only be handled 
with difficulty. They also produce much irritation and at times cause 
severe sores to break out on the hands of the fishermen. By the Ist of 
July the mass of “ slime” has become so thick and troublesome that it 
is almost useless to remain longer on the bank. Otherwise, Slime 
Bank is well adapted to fishing during the summer months, as cod are 
very abundant upon it. The largest and most thrifty fish are found 
some 6 or 8 miles off shore, a large percentage of those caughtnear the 
land being small and of inferior quality. 
Although we had previously passed over Slime Bank, our first actual 
work upon it began on June 24. Hight trials with hand lines were 
made in the vicinity of Cape Lopin and the Northwest Cape, the catch 
