THE ALASKAN PISHING-GEOUNDS. 



95 



The uJcali were made for the use of native hunting parties. As before stated, the average 

 weight of a cured fish is one-half pound; hence the fish converted to this use resulted in nineteen 

 thousand seven hundred and fifty pounds of uhali. 



The schooner "O. S. Fowler" of thirty-five and forty-five one-hundredths tons, is engaged in 

 this fishery and the Kassilov fishery for the Western Fur and Trading Company. Captain Bowen 

 informed me that her present value is five thousand dollars, and that her outlay for the season of 

 1880 was five thousand dollars, which includes the cost of the buildings at Saint Paul, Kodiak, 

 used in preparing the fish for market. The "O. S. Fowler" has three Norwegians, one Eussian 

 Creole, and one- American (the captain) as its force. She brought to Saint Paul one thousand 

 barrels of salted salmon and nineteen thousand seven hundred and fifty pounds of ulcali from 

 Karluk and Kassilov, during the season of 1880. 



Smith & Hirsch own a fishery which is also at the mouth of Karluk Eiver. Charles Hirsch is 

 the superintendent. According to Mr. B. G. McTntyre, this fishery was established in 1879, 

 during which year they put up six hundred barrels of salt salmon which brought about six dollars 

 per barrel. This firm has in its service the twenty-nine ton schooner " Calistoga", of which Oliver 

 Smith is master. Her present value is said to be twenty-five hundred dollars. Besides the 

 master she carries four men, one of whom is a Swede and the other three are iJussian Creoles. 

 The average share of the crew is twenty to thirty dollars per month. Mr. Mclntyre, to whom I 

 am indebted for information about the vessel, thinks the "Calistoga" had about five thousand 

 dollars invested in the business in 1880. Smith & Hirsch are represented as having salted nine 

 hundred and thirty-nine barrels of salmon and dried seventeen thousand five hundred pounds of 

 ttJcali. 



Two seines are used by Smith & Hirsch, and their dimensions are: Length, fifteen and 

 twenty -five fathoms ; depth, one and one-half and two fathoms ; mesh, three and one-half and four 

 and one-half inches. The smaller one cost twenty-five dollars and the larger thirty-five dollars. 

 A building used here for fish-salting purposes cost five hundred dollars. Six eighteen-foot dories 

 are in use. Twenty-five men are employed — one Swede, one Irishman, and twenty-three natives. 



The results of the season of 1880 were as follows: 



The average weight of these red salmon is estimated at ten pounds. Of the tMrty-seven 

 thousand five hundred fish caught in June only the bellies were salted, making one hundred and 

 twenty -five barrels. 



In the beginning of July red salmon became scarce, and after the run of humpbacks (0. 

 gorbuscha) set in (July 12), the red salmon (0. nerlca) disappeared altogether. Smith & Hirsch 

 stopped fishing until August 14, when the red salmon again made their appearance. 



During July, August, and September, Smith & Hirsch made into ukali thirty-five thousand 

 red and humpback salmon, whose estimated weight fresh was three hundred thousand pounds; 

 the ukali made from them weighed about seventeen thousand five hundred pounds. 



The fish put up by this firm are consigned to the Alaska Commercial Company, and sold by 

 Lynde & Hough, of San Francisco. 



Captain Bowen says that a seine adapted for use at Karlak Eiver should be thirty fathoms 

 long, three fathoms deep, of three-inch mesh, with five-foot poles on the wings. He has caught and 



