Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/456

 xes 91,166

Dried fruit, pkgs 7,236

Ore sacks 18,592

Onions, sacks 5, 161

Teasels, cases, 29

Stoves, 1 ,61 5

Total value of exports $16,960,147

For 1887 the shipments of wheat were 173,915 tons, and flour 45,766 tons, making a total — all reduced to wheat O of 237 tons. The total exports of 1887 were $13,985,681.

The statistics of wheat for 1888 are given as follows :

To Europe — centals 3,149,764 valued at $3,716,598

To San Francisco, centals 1,099,109 valued at 1,288,819

Coast-wise — centals 160,154 valued at 196,370

Peru — centals 53,344 valued at 60,610

The shipment of flour for the same period is shown by the following table :

Europe, barrels 402,734 valued at $1,399,773

San Francisco, barrels 107,834 valued at 397,346

Coast-wise, barrels 62,967 valued at 245,775

China, barrels 71,036 valued at 259,412

The total shipment of wheat reached 4,462,371 centals of a value of $5,716,598; flour, 644,471 barrels, of a value of $2,302,606.

The total export of 1888 reached $16,385,658. The shipment of salmon was 428,437 cases; the production of wool about 18,000,000 pounds.

THE COLUMBIA RIVER FISHING INDUSTRY.

Commencing with a small pack in 1870 the salmon packing grew rapidly until in 1875 the pack reached 231,500 cases; in 1876 it ran up to 428,000 cases; in 1877 it dropped back to 392,000 cases, and in 1878 fell off still farther to 278,000 cases; and in 1879 ^^ ^^^ "p a little and the packers turned out 325,000 cases.

The industry has varied on the river from year to year according to the sup- ply of salmon. In 1886 the pack was 470,000 cases, in 1890 it was 353,000. In the past season the total catch in the Columbia and Oregon streams is about thirty million pounds of fish, which would fill about 600,000 cases, and be worth two million dollars.

The profits of fishing to the individulal owner of a gill-net are very attractive to industrious men. Now in this year of 1910, the following earnings are re- ported from Astoria, August 29th. "The 'high boat' among the gill-netters, that is, the one making the largest catch during the past fishing season, was A. Nis- sen, who is employed by the Eureka cannery. He caught 18^ tons of fish, which netted him about $2,500, and 15 tons of these were taken before July i,

J. Nissen, who also works for the Eureka cannery, caught 14 tons, that brought him in the neighborhood of $2,000 for his season's work. Another gill- netter who did remarkably well was Peter Dicklich, who fishes for Phil McDon- ough of Bear Cliff. His string amounted to $2,001.62.

The Oregonian of August 29, 1910, speaking of this industry, says : "The Columbia river salmon pack reached its maximum at a time when fishermen and packers were so actively engaged that the perpetuity of the industry received scant consideration. This king of food fishes entered the river in such countless numbers that the supply seemed inexhaustible. The necessity for any laws, rules or regulations that would tend to conserve the industry, made no impression on those most interested.

Fortunately a halt was called before the fish were exterminated, and it is gratifying to learn that the results of the 1910 season's work shows that we are