Shocking Conditions in
Canneries at Bristol Bay
• The following is an excerpt taken
from a special ^report of the Valdez
grand jury, recently submitted to
Juoge E. E. Ritchie, dealing princi
pally with the fisheries in the Bristol
Bay section:
“In the fishing districts in the west
ern part of the Third division, and es
pecially in Bristol Bay, we find condi
tions appalling, and on account of the
character of the labor employed and
the conditions existing at many of the
canneries the government is put to the
expense ef many thonsands of dollars,
which in our judgment should be
avoided.
“We wish to call attention to nar
• colic conditions. Many addicts and a
large amoudt. of narcotics find their
way to the canneries and fishing j
grounds through the cannery help, and j
it has become a, grave menace to the
safety and health of the people of
Alaska, and especially to the food sup- :
ply, through the nse of diseased helpi
in the handling and pactting of salmon.
At one cannery it appears there were
at least forty men addicted to the use
of various narcotics, such as opium, co
caine, marihuana and other habit-form
log drugs. In many instances foremen
of Chinese crews handle narcotics and
dispense them to the men under their
charge in the canneries, and there ap
pears to be narcotics sold and addicts
at all canneries,
“One instance is reported where a
man in the advanced stace of syphilis,
and having ulcers therefrom all over
his body, was employed in pressing the
fish down in the cans with his hands,
which were protected only with cotton
gloves. -Another instance is reported
where a member of the China crew was
, allowed by the company 81 per dav to
buy nurcotics on the plea that if he did
u not obtain the narcotic he would not
and could not work. There appear to
be men, imported in .China crews by
some of the canneries, who come north
for the sole purpose of practicing the
detestable crime against nature. These
men. it appears, dress themselves in
silks and women’s clothing and indulge
in these terrible practices, passing
from one cannery to another and doing
little work. Atone cannery it is le
ported there were a large number (f
- casas of rectal syphilis resulting from
these practices, more than twenty.
There appears to be no provision made
Machine, Black
smith and
Sheet Metal Work
All Kinds of Repairs
Stoves Built
and Repaired
Rcbt. E. Lowrie
Tckotna, Alaska
for the inspection of the bodily health
of the men who handle with their
hands ihe salmon packed, and several
instances are reported where men hav
ing actual handling of tin* salmon were
.nlected with venereal and other loath
some diseases.
“We wish to call the court’s atten
tion to the fact that at the present term
here are two cases of homicide and
three.. oases of assault with deadly
weapons and other crimes originating
among cannery help imported by the
canneries, which will cost the govern
ment many thousands of dollars in ;
prosecutions.
“We also beg to suggest that an
other source of trouble in the canneries
appears 10 be quality of food furnished
and fed to the China crews by Oriental
contractors in (be employ of ihe can
neries. Some of the crime and much
of the trouble originating in the cun-;
nery districts has • eeo through strikes
on account of Oh tan fs-ws. One of
these food strikes terminated with the
killing of one man aud the wounding of
two others.
“Evidence has been deduced before
us showing that a common practice in
manv of the cities of tlie Pacific coast
is to release men serving terms in jail
to come north to the canneries, which
results in unloading upon the Territory
of Alaska an undesirable and criminal
class.
“In brief, we find conditions in the
Bristol Bay district most deplorable
and alarming, especially with regards
to narcotics and bringing in of firearms
by Oriental foremen and members of
the China crews. There seems to he
no provision made for preventing men
employed bv the canneries, and espe
cially Orientals, from bringing ad
kinds of fireatms with them to the
fishing grounds. We believe that many
of the crimes committed in the Bristol
Bay district are due to permitting Ori
entals to have firearms, which they use
on slight provocation, resulting in
murder, assault and other crimes. J
“We al«o beg to report that it ap
pears from our investigation that on
account of the poor food furnished by
many of the contractors the men are
forced to supplement, their .rations with :
purchases from the commissary and
what is koowa as the slop chest, which
are sold to them by the foremen of the
, China gangs and Oriental contractors
1 at exorbitant prices. Many cases Are
(reported where the earnings of the
men were consumed in purchasing food
to supplement the deficiency of rations
and when the men finished the season
and returned to the States they were
indebted to the companies.
“We further wish to call the court’s
attention to the nature of contract un
der which these men are employed and ,
which they are compelled to algo he-,
fore leaving the States to go to the
fishing fields. These contracts leave
the men at the tuercv of the Oriental
contractors, and under their terms
slight infract ions of the onerous regu
lations will and do result in penalties
All Kinds of
Rough Lumber
Tokotna 'Delivery
S80 PER M
which consume the wages of the
workers.
“We further re', ort that men are em
ployed for cannery work in the packing
of fish in the fishing fields in Bristol
Bay and other fishing districts who are
subject to no medical examination;
otherwise it would not be possible for
men with venereal diseases or extreme
drug addicts to cnier the employ of the
companies.
“We further find that no ade' u&te
examination or inspection is made of
men who haye the actual handling of
the fish products as reported abave,
as to their being infected with conta
gious and loathsome diseases.
“Alaskan fishing, and especially sal
mon, is one of ie nation's greatest
food supplies, and yet it appears that
there has never been any government
supervision to guarantee the cleanli
ness, purity and wholesomeness of the
product packed. e • uly action taken
along these lines that the grand jury is
aware of is that in rare ,uses, wheie
the fish are decayed before being
picked, parts of the pack have been
condemned, ii there were inspectors
in the buildings at all times, not only
the quality of toe'fish to be pacKed,
but the cleanliness of the buildings
and employes and the sanitary condi
fche clanger of contamination would be
avoided.”
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