The Great Columbia Salmon Run Was Dying — and Oregon and Washington Couldn't Agree Who Should Save It

The Chamber of Commerce of Portland, Or., has recently memorialized congress, urging that an appropriation be made for the protection and propagation of salmon in the Columbia river and other rivers of the Pacific coast. It is urged that the salmon packing industry, which has been a great source of revenue to the people of the Pacific coast, and has given to the world a delicious article of food, is in danger of destruction because of lack of restrictions in regard to the catching of fish, and disregard of restrictions which have been made by the several states interested.

The industry in the Columbia river has been injured because of a conflict of jurisdiction between the authorities of Oregon and Washington. The Oregon authorities claim the right to prescribe regulations for the entire river, while Washington very properly insists upon its right to exclusive jurisdiction to mid-stream. This difference has tended to prevent the proper execution of the laws, although Fish Commissioner James Crawford, of Washington, has done his full duty under discouraging circumstances, and has done all within his power for the prevention of illegal fishing.

Mr. George T. Myers, the well known packer, in urging the adoption of the memorial referred to by the Portland Chamber of Commerce, gave the following interesting facts regarding the salmon packing industry and its threatened extinction:

'Until recently the Columbia has been the greatest salmon-producing river, besides being more famous for the superiority and fine flavor of its salmon, than any other river in the world. On its banks has been established an industry that within the past twelve years has produced, as our statistics show, 5,910,000 cases of canned salmon and 18,000 barrels of packed salmon, valued at $31,500,000, and at the same time has given employment to 2,500 people, and has been the means of giving Oregon a reputation abroad for the superiority of her products.

'Since 1883 the manufacture and packing of canned salmon has been gradually diminishing, until today the pack is only a little more than one-half of the pack of 1883. Taking an average of the pack for the past five years would make this average.

'In 1893 the combined pack of Oregon, Washington and California was only 601,000 cases. From these facts we are naturally led to infer that our grand Chinook salmon of the Columbia river will become extinct.

'Congress should be made to see the serious necessity of at once taking some immediate action. We are menaced with a loss that we cannot recover financially, besides loss of employment to thousands of our citizens. The duties paid annually on tin plate and twines and other materials used in the manufacture and packing of canned salmon approximate about $65,000.

'At the same time we would ask that our legislatures of Oregon and Washington should be appealed to to enact such compulsory laws as would protect salmon and other food fish at certain times from fishing; also condemning rivers and tributaries in which are established hatcheries.

'My experience in the matter convinces me that had we proper hatcheries and absolute laws for the time of fishing, we would have an abundance of Chinook salmon, without fear of extinction, no matter what devices were employed to capture salmon. Such are our laws that there is not enough propagation and too much illegal fishing and infringement of the fishing laws.'