FISHERIES, BY STATES. 



263 



The fisheries of the state have shown a steady 

 growth, the value of their products having more than 

 quadrupled during the twenty years between 1888 

 and 1908. The value of vessels and boats has 

 increased steadily since 1888. In the value of appa- 

 ratus of capture, however, there has been a gradual 



decrease since 1899, and the number of persons 

 employed in 1908 was smaller than in 1895, 1899, or 

 1904. 



Persons employed. — The following table shows the 

 distribution of the persons employed in 1908 for the 

 state and for the two districts: 



1 Exclusive of 35 proprietors not fishing. 



The fisheries of the Pacific Ocean district gave 

 occupation to approximately seven-tenths of the total 

 number employed in fishing and to three-fourths of the 

 number employed in the shore and boat fisheries. 



Equipment and other capital. — The following tabular 

 statement shows in detail the number and value of 

 vessels and boats, the value of shore and accessory 

 property, and the amount of cash invested in 1908, 

 both for the state as a whole and for the two districts : 



CLASS OF INVESTMENT. 



Total 



Vessels, including outfit 



risking 



Steam and motor 



Vessels 



Outfit 



Sail 



Vessels 



Outfit 



Other 



Transporting 



Steam and motor 



Vessels 



Outfit 



Other 



Boats 



Steam and motor 



Sail 



Row 



Other 



Apparatus of capture 



Vessel fisheries 



Shore and boat fisheries . . 

 Shore and accessory property 

 Cash 



value of equipment and other 

 capital: 1908. 



Total. 



$3,441,000 



1,594,000 



1,352,000 



1,194,000 



841,000 



353,000 



157,000 



113,000 



44,000 



1,100 



242,000 



235,000 



200,000 



35,000 



6,900 



377,000 



120, 000 



95, 000 



47,000 



116,000 



1,162,000 



60,000 



1,102,000 



220, 000 



89,000 



Pacific 



Ocean 



district. 



$2,592,000 



1,572 



1,352 



1,194 



841 



353 



157 



113 



44 



i: 



220 

 213 

 181 



32. 



6 



225. 



57 

 9, 



42, 

 116, 

 586, 



60, 

 526, 

 120, 



Columbia 

 River. 



$850,000 



21,000 



21,000 

 21,000 

 18, 000 

 2,900 



152, 000 



62,000 



85, 000 



4,900 



576,000 



576,000 

 100, 000 



Of the total capital invested in the fisheries of 

 Washington in 1908, 46 per cent, or somewhat less 

 than one-half, represented the value of fishing and 



2 Includes provisions furnished to the value of $187,000. 



transporting vessels, the value of fishing vessels 

 alone forming 39 per cent, or not quite two-fifths. 

 The investment in vessels was mainly in power 

 craft of at least 5 tons register, the value of which 

 constituted 42 per cent, or slightly more than 

 two-fifths, of the total capital employed, while the 

 value of all other classes of vessels formed only 5 per 

 cent of the total. In the fisheries of the Pacific 

 Ocean district 61 per cent, or almost exactly three- 

 fifths, of the capital was invested in vessels, as com- 

 pared with a corresponding percentage of a little over 

 2 for the Columbia River fisheries, where all of the 

 comparatively small number of vessels employed were 

 engaged in transporting the catch. 



Next to the value of vessels, that of apparatus of 

 capture was the largest item of capital, amounting to 

 34 per cent, or about one-third of the total. By far 

 the largest proportion — 68 per cent, or slightly more 

 than two-thirds — of the capital employed in the fish- 

 eries of the Columbia River represented the value of 

 apparatus of capture. The value of boats formed 11 

 per cent of the total investment for the state, that 

 of shore and accessory property 6 per cent, and the 

 amount of cash 3 per cent, all the cash reported being 

 invested in the Pacific Ocean district. 



Statistics as to the number and tonnage of vessels 

 and the number of boats are given in the next tabu- 

 lar statement. 



The vessels engaged in fishing in 1908 comprised 85 

 steam and 22 sail vessels, with a combined tonnage of 

 3,991, and 11 unrigged craft, the value of all classes of 

 fishing vessels being $955,000. Of these, all of which 

 were used in the Pacific Ocean district, 45 belonged 



