64 
THE CALIFORNIAN SALMON. 
to the practice in Germany and Holland, they kill the 
salmon by giving it a blow on the head, instead of allowing 
it to expire when landed from the net. After having been 
washed in a basin prepared for the purpose, the fish are 
laid on immense tables, where workmen with large knives 
cut off the head with a single stroke. With a second cut 
they open it up in all its length, and then remove the 
entrails. In some establishments the head and other offal 
are not utilised, but in others they extract from them an 
oil of considerable value.” 
The paper then goes on to describe the process of pre- 
serving the salmon in tins, which is exactly similar to 
meat preserving as practised here, and states that : — 
“ In the fisheries of Oregon alone, this industry occupies 
not less than ten thousand workmen, and during the last 
season the exports, of preserved salmon have risen to 
a million sterling. 
“We may ask if such destruction is not likely soon to 
ruin the fisheries. Already a remarkable diminution has 
taken place in the number of the salmon, and the Fish 
Commission has taken steps to prevent their wholesale 
destruction. Some fish-hatching establishments have been 
instituted to re-stock the different streams with salmon 
fry, to take the place of those netted for consumption. 
. . . . One of these, on a branch of the Columbia 
Fiver, has an apparatus capable of hatching at one time 
20,000,000 eggs.” 
From this it will be seen that energetic efforts are being 
made by the Government of the United States, to main- 
tain in their rivers the supply of salmon, which from too 
close fishing has been diminishing for some years. 
It would be interesting to know in what rivers the 
salmon are found as far south as 30 deg., as stated here by 
M. Wattel. Should the statement be correct, as to their 
