242 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
Tlie Oommissiouer may be quoted ou this point as follows : 
The uumber of chiuook salmou taken in April and August is relatively small and under condi- 
tions not so profitable, either to the canneries or the fishermen, as those carried on during the months 
of May, June, and July. The April run of this salmon, if allowed to pass without interruption to the 
headwaters of the Columbia and its tributaries, would spawn in those waters, and the present pro- 
ductive capacity of the river would be increased to such an extent as to much more than compensate 
for the restrictions imposed by the prohibition of the fishery operations during the mouth of April. 
The August run of Chinook salmon consists of gravid fish near their spawning time. The flesh for this 
reason has undergone deterioration, and if canned constitutes an inferior product, the sale of which 
will discredit the reputation which the Columbia Elver salmon justly hold in public estimation. None 
of the August run of Chinooks probably ascend the Columbia above The Dalles. They spawn in 
the tributary streams of the Lower Columbia and in the main stream between The Dalles and the 
mouth of the river. — ( Eeport of the Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries ou Investigations in the 
Columbia River in regard to the Salmon Fisheries. Washington, 1894. pj). 16, 17.) 
As the Commissioner states, the packing of salmon in April is not generally 
regarded as profitable, owing to the irregularity with wbicli the fish come and the rela- 
tive scarcity, because of which much time is lost by the canning force. As to the 
August fish, they are usually so near the spawning period that the flesh is soft and 
often unfit for canning, and much waste results; the fish are also often scarce and the 
supply is insufficient to keep the canneries in ojieration. It sometimes happens, 
however, that the season is late and the August run consists of an abundance of fish 
in excellent condition for canning. In some seasons the fish are more abundant and 
in better condition in August than in any other month, and in 1893 the run of fish in 
the month in question contributed much to the financial success of the cauuers. 
The sentiment of the canners in the lower river is strongly favorable to the 
restriction of the canning season to the three mouths of May, June, and July, and the 
suspension of fishing during the whole of April and August. A few canners favoring 
a shorter season would like the privilege of packing in August if they thought it 
desirable, and still fewer would prefer to oi^erate their canneries in Ainnl. 
That, as a whole, no conspicuous part of the pack is taken in April and August, 
and that making a close time of these mouths would not seriously impair the business 
of the canners, may be seen from the following summary based ou the quantities of 
fish packed during each of the four years ending in 1892: 
Percentage of weight of each hind of salmon pached on the Columhia Piver in each month in 
1889, 1890, 1891, and 1892. 
Years and species. 
April. 
May. 
June. 
July. 
August. 
Total. 
1889. 
12.47 
21.81 
23. 61 
42. 11 
100. 00 
15. 78 
32. 93 
35. 49 
15. 80 
100. 00 
5, 77 
9. 03 
38.47 
46. 73 
100. 00 
1890. 
Chinook 
3. 66 
26. 50 
28. 29 
39. 99 
1. 56 
100.00 
Blueback 
8. 59 
27. 55 
40. 42 
20. 44 
3.00 
100. 00 
Steelhead 
3. 97 
8.31 
31.65 
50.45 
5. 62 
100. 00 
1891. 
Chinook 
8.74 
19. 09 
23. 73 
42.22 
6.22 
100. 00 
Blueback 
9. 05 
28. 70 
43. 50 
16. 83 
1.92 
100.00 
Steelhead 
2. 72 
6. 99 
27. 67 
51.44 
11.18 
100. 00 
1892. 
Chinook 
6. 05 
20. 61 
26. 33 
37.76 
9. 25 
100. 00 
Blueback 
9. 90 
35. 38 
37. 86 
14.67 
2.19 
100. 00 
Steelhead 
2. 41 
7. 51 
32. 32 
45. 63 
12. 13 
100.00 
