SALMON AND SALMON FISHERIES OF SWIFTSURE BANK 
725 
THE PURSE-SEINE FISHERY 
By George B. Kelez 
The importance of the purse seines has varied considerably during the history 
of the salmon fisheries. Shortly after their introduction they surpassed the drag 
seine, their forerunner, and were in turn superseded by the traps. They again be- 
came an important factor when motor-driven vessels were employed. Since the 
use of traps has recently been prohibited in Puget Sound waters they are the only 
important gear operating in that district, and a knowledge of their effectiveness, 
the species taken, and the seasonal nature of operations in various areas, is of extreme 
importance to the administration of the fishery. 
DRAG SEINES 
One of the earliest forms of fishing gear to be used on Puget Sound was the drag 
seine. This was a long shallow net provided with cork floats on the upper edge and 
lead weights on the bottom, and was pulled by lines attached to each end. 
In use the net was loaded into a skiff and one of the hauling lines passed to a 
man on shore. The skiff was pulled directly away from the beach until all the line 
was payed out, then turned parallel to shore and the net run out, after which the 
skiff returned to the beach with the second line. The lines were rapidly hauled in 
until the wings of the net were ashore and the fish concentrated in the center or 
“bunt” of the net, whereupon the remaining web was quickly hauled onto the beach, 
landing the catch. Since a beach free of large rocks or other obstructions was nec- 
essary for landing the catch, the drag seiners worked in unobstructed places where 
the fish were concentrated by favorable currents, or where their migration routes 
led them close inshore. The mouths of streams where the mature fish schooled 
before ascending to spawn were favorite locations prior to the passage of legislation 
protecting these areas. 
The number of drag seine-licenses from 1897-1934 is shown in table 10. The 
greatest number of licenses was issued during the period from 1908-14, and that 
number steadily decreased thereafter. 
Drag seines were commonly used in early years along the east shore of Van- 
couver Island and in Puget Sound near the cities of Seattle, Tacoma, and Olympia. 
They later appeared on the sands at the mouth of the Skagit River, the Nooksack 
River, and Lummi Slough, as well as at Point Roberts. They were also used exten- 
sively in the inlets and passages of the west shore of Puget Sound and in Hood 
Canal. 
In early years the catch of this gear consisted chiefly of coho and pink salmon. 
Later, chum salmon became of considerable importance, and in some years large 
numbers of king salmon were caught. Subsequent to 1924 the total catch of the 
drag seines has been only a few thousand fish per year, consisting chiefly of pink 
salmon. Sockeye, which were caught only occasionally in former years, are now 
second in importance. These changes in the proportion of various species in the 
catch have been due in part to the competition of other forms of gear, but have re- 
