REPORT OF THl*] COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 141 



1Y9,770 gallons of .sperm oil. This included 23,000 pounds of whale- 

 bone obtained from 12 whales caught in 1902 which did not arrive in 

 San Francisco until 1003. The approximate value of whalebone was 

 $5 a pound; of whale oil, 38 cents a gallon, and of sperm oil, 55 cents 

 a gallon. 



The portion of the above catch taken by the 6 New Bedford vessels 

 in the lieet was 1 bowhead, 1 right, and 136 sperm whales, yielding 

 2,700 pounds of bowhead whalebone, 1,100 pounds of right whalebone, 

 7,330 gallons of v/hale oil, and 169,911 gallons of sperm oil. 



THE SALMON-CANNING INDUSTRY OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 



WasJiaigton. — It was not expected that the salmon pack on Puget 

 Sound in 1903 would reach the unusual figures of 1901 — 919,953 

 cases, representing a value of $3,957,331; in 1902 the same region 

 jaelded 150,121 cases, valued at ^1,290,951, a shrinkage of 169,529 

 cases and $2,666,383. But at no time in the past ten years have these 

 fisheries been so disappointing as in 1903. There was not a large run 

 of socHeye salmon at an}' time during the year. In the earh^ part of 

 the season the canneries began operating on a small scale, but fully 

 expecting a large run of fish later. As the season advanced, however, 

 the prospect grew less. Only a few of the small canneries obtained 

 full packs; those with a capacity for a pack of 150,000 cases put up 

 less than half that amount. Frequently during the season reliable 

 reports were circulated that large schools of fish had been seen off 

 Cape Flattery, Barclay Sound, and in the mouth of the Straits of Juan 

 de Fuca, all of which led fishermen and canneiymen to believe that 

 there would be a large fall run, but the fish that were expected did 

 not appear, and b}^ the middle of August the season was considered a 

 failure. 



The entire output of sockeye salmon was 159,307 cases, 127,571 cases 

 less than were packed in 1902. The total output of all species in this 

 region in 1903 was 155,393 cases. The total pack for the state, includ- 

 ing the coast rivers and the Washington side of the Columbia Hiver, 

 was 669,036 cases, valued at $2,058,113. The pack for the same terri- 

 tory in 1902 was 612,370 cases and in 1901 1,081,518 cases, respective!}'. 



The quality of chinook salmon was said to be much better than in 

 any past season, the fish being larger and of better color, and the per- 

 centage of white-meated fish less than is usually found. The output 

 was 119,777 cases, valued at $537,997, only 18,113 cases of which were 

 packed on Puget Sound, a large portion of the catch being utilized 

 fresh, mild cured, and placed in cold storage. There were mild cured 

 575,000 pounds of chinook salmon, and 660,000 pounds of other species 

 placed in cold storage, valued at $66,650. The combined value of 

 canned product, mild cured, and frozen salmon for the state amounted 

 to $2,125,093. 



