58 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
case of salmon contains forty-eight 1-pound cans. The greatest output for the United 
States in one year has been 1,000,000 cases, or 48,000,000 cans. 
Proposed change in location of canneries . — As thirteen of the Columbia Eiver can- 
neries have been closed during the past year, it is probable that the production for 
this year will fall considerably short of the maximum reached in this fishery. The 
owners of many of the closed canneries talk of establishing themselves in Alaska, 
where the cost of catching and canning the fish will be very much less than on the 
Columbia River, and where their general expenses will be lower. 
The winter fishery. — As soon as the run of salmon is over the fishermen seek other 
employment. Some engage in dogfishiug, which begins in November and lasts until 
spring ; others fish for cod, smelts, and other small species. Gill nets are used for the 
capture of cod and trawls for dogfish. The trawls are very heavy. The ground lines 
are made of six and nine thread manila, the gangings of 18 to 20 pound line, while the 
hooks are about the same that are used in the Atlantic coast halibut fishery. The 
anchors are exceptionally heavy, some weighing as much as 75 pounds, the average 
weight being about 50 pounds. A few of the fishermen in the Sound realize that 
lighter anchors and smaller gear generally would answer every purpose, and talk of 
adopting the eastern style of trawl, but the majority are prejudiced in favor of their 
present methods. 
PORT TOWNSEND. 
Port Townsend has a much finer harbor than Seattle, capable of sheltering a large 
fleet of vessels, and already has excellent wharf privileges, where vessels of deep 
draught can remain afloat at all times of the tide. There are also many places in the 
harbor well adapted to the construction of marine railways. With the development 
of the ocean fisheries on the northwest coast, especially in the event of the completion 
of the railroad to Port Townsend, now under construction, this harbor seems destined 
to become the center of an important industry, as it apparently possesses greater facil- 
ities and offers more inducements to the fishermen than any other place on Puget 
Sound. 
VICTORIA, VANCOUVER ISLAND. 
Local fish marTcets . — During the brief stay at Esquimalt in July advantage was 
taken of the opportunity to examine the fish markets of Victoria, which is only 3 miles 
away. It was observed that the fish stalls at that place were superior in most respects 
to those of any other city on the Pacific coast, the superiority appearing to be due 
mainly to the manner of handling the fish. The stalls were well supplied with ice 
and the fish looked fresh and wholesome, in marked contrast with the stalls of San 
Francisco, a city vastly larger and with equal resources, so far, at least, as possibilities 
for cleanliness and care in handling the catch are concerned. At this season, and 
again in October, when a second visit was paid to Victoria, there was an abundant 
supply of the following local species: Halibut, averaging probably 50 pounds each; 
flounders {Pleuronectes stellatus); rockfish (Sebastichthys), two species; rock-trout {Hex- 
agrammus), three species; salmon, two species. 
The halibut, flounders, and other marine fishes are caught in the Straits of Fuca, 
the fishermen using trawl lines of the same pattern that are employed in Puget Sound. 
Neither fresh nor salt codfish were seen in the markets, this species beiag replaced 
