ALASKA SALMON INVESTIGATIONS IN 1900. 
235 
believed that the increase in this year’s numbers is due chiefly, if not entirely, to the 
fact that Karluk fish making the coast in the vicinity of Seal Cape feel the influence 
of this fresh water, and, following it up, soon find themselves off the mouth of the 
Ayakulik, schooling in the open water, as described. As the stream has worked to 
the northward the catch of redfish has been observed to increase. 
The run of redfish at Ayakulik this season has been very large, and it is estimated 
that the total catch amounted to 700,000 fish from the beach around the mouth of 
the stream. In the early part of August the humpbacks came in myriads; it is said 
that a boat could hardly pull through the dense masses when they were schooling, 
and that fishing for redfish then ceased. The weather was very favorable for 
conducting the fisheries at Ayakulik this year; the sea was exceptionally smooth, an 
excellent condition for outside beach work. 
KARLUK. 
A full account of the canneries, streams, and fisheries is given in my former 
report, pages 144 to 157, to which reference is made, and only changes or omissions, 
together with the 1900 statistics, will be referred to in this article. The operating 
canneries at Karluk are the Karluk Packing Company, the Hume- Aleutian Packing 
Company, and the Alaska Improvement Company; those of the Hume Canning and 
Trading Company and the Kodiak Packing Company are held in reserve. These 
are all the property of the Alaska Packers Association, and, with the cannery of the 
association at Uganuk, they are operated under one superintendent, with headquar- 
ters at Karluk Spit; there is a foreman at each operating plant. Karluk is the depot 
of supplies for the district, and affairs are conducted in much the same manner as 
noted under Nushagak and elsewhere, where several canneries under one organization 
are located in close proximity, that is, the stores and equipments are common to all 
and the fish are supplied equally. As the run at Uganuk is short, usually ending by 
the middle of July, the force at that cannery is transferred to the Karluk canneries 
on the completion of the pack. In 1898 and 1899 the three canneries mentioned 
as the operating canneries at Karluk were used, but the run of fish was so slack 
during those years that in 1900 only the Karluk Packing Company and the Alaska 
Improvement Company were employed in packing. 
The Hume-Aleutian cannery was not operated, and as it was desired to increase 
the capacity of the Bering Sea canneries, the three fillers and three toppers of the 
former were removed and installed in the latter district. They expect to install new 
machinery in the Hume-Aleutian cannery in 1901. The reserve canneries are in the 
same condition as mentioned in my last report, though that of the Kodiak Packing 
Company can hardly be said to be in reserve, as practically all the machinery has 
been removed and the buildings used as warehouses, workshops, etc. 
There has been no increase in the capacity of the operating canneries. The 
cannery machinery in each consists of 7 retorts, 3 fillers, 2 toppers, 2 solderers, 1 
cutter, and 2 sets of canmakers. Usually 2 fillers only are used, giving these can- 
neries a daily capacity of 1,600 cases, though by using a third filler the capacity might 
be increased to 2,100 cases; but that could hardly be kept up for any length of time, 
unless an additional topper is used, which may be taken from the can-making depart- 
ment. A fair capacity for these canneries as now installed is 2,000 cases per day. 
