4 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 
On November 15, 1888, Mr. W. A. Wilcox was assigned to the duty 
of making the inquiry, and he immediately began work at San Fran- 
cisco. Later he went to San Diego and, beginning there, traveled 
north to Puget Sound, visiting nearly all the fishing stations along the 
coast and on the rivers. In some instances he was able to secure all 
necessary information for certain regions from parties carrying on the 
fisheries there, but who were met elsewhere. In these cases no advan- 
tage would have accrued from visiting the localities omitted, because 
they were generally in remote places difficult of access, and since it was 
then out of the fishing season the canneries were closed ; besides, no 
one else could give such reliable information concerning the fisheries at 
those points as the parties interviewed. With few exceptions, however, 
the various fishing centers, rivers, bays, etc., were visited during the 
height of the season, when the conditions and methods of fishery could 
be observed under the most favorable auspices. 
Many difficulties were encountered in prosecuting the inquiry, and it 
became necessary to go over much of the region twice. Fisheries situ- 
ated away from the ordinary lines of communication had to be reached 
by primitive methods of travel, and the utmost tact was required in 
some cases to secure necessary information from suspicious Chinese, or 
others having only an imperfect knowledge of the English language, 
and whose interest in the fishing industry goes no further than the pit- 
tance it supplies them. Though instances of this kind were exceptional, 
they were occasionally almost insurmountable obstacles to obtaining a 
full knowledge of the fisheries. 
An important phase of this inquiry has been the examination of the 
commercial fisheries of the small streams, bays, and harbors along the 
coast, many of which had not previously been investigated. 
The canvass made by Mr. Wilcox closed on September 23, 1889, when 
he was ordered to other duty. Subsequently, during the winter of 
1889-90, it became necessary to make some additional inquiry concern- 
ing certain details of fishery, etc., at Santa Cruz, San Francisco, and 
the Sacramento River ; the Albatross was then lying at Mare Island 
navy-yard, and Mr. A. B. Alexander, fishery expert on board that 
vessel, was detailed for the purpose. The notes forwarded by him con- 
tained considerable information relative to the fisheries in 1889, which, 
of course, it was not practicable to secure at an earlier date ; this has 
proved valuable in the compilation of the report. He completed his 
work on January 7, 1890. 
Although the inquiry covered 1889 in part, complete statistics were 
obtained only for 1888. These figures are given in the tabulated state- 
ments, while the statistical data secured for 1889 appear incidentally 
in the text. 
As fishery expert on the Albatross , Mr. Alexander made studies of 
certain phases of the cod fishery prosecuted in Alaskan waters and of 
the Puget Sound fisheries, to which reference is made elsewhere. 
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