ent business of their own, they are enabled to stand upon a par with the other canners, who have to some extent regarded the business as simply a temporary investment to be made the most of while it lasted, and after it was "played out" to invest their capital elsewhere. It is to be said, however, that the canners now operating are men of much breadth of mind and ideas. An excellent fish law, prepared by the State Fish Commissioner, and having the fullest approval of both fishermen and canners, has just passed the Oregon Legislature. Its main feature is to provide a fund for propagation of fish by a license system laying a tax upon fish gear, such as nets, seines, traps, and wheels, and also upon the canneries.
Further legislation will be necessary to regulate the use of gear, but the Union feels that it is making progress, and in general now favors the use of reasonable measures, such as public persuasion, legislative and legal remedies, and cultivating friendly relations with other packers and canners. This it is able to do chiefly on account of owning and operating its own cannery.
Nothing, withal, could have been of greater educational value for the fishermen themselves than this enterprise. Most of them were foreigners, mainly from Norway and Sweden, or Finland. They came here unacquainted with our language, laws, and methods of business. They undertook fishing, as it was an industry with which many were already familiar. Through their daily labor, and the organization that arose out of its exigencies, they have been learning our language. They have even suggested and influenced legislation, and are now taking an intelligent part in our business and politics.
One of their number, Mr. Sofus Jensen, is the secretary and business manager of the cannery; another, Mr. N. J. Svendseth, was elected to the State Legislature two years ago to represent especially the fishermens' interests at the state capital. Mr. Svendseth was not reelected, but the fact that when they thought it necessary the fishermen could take part in politics had been demonstrated, and the legislation they desire is given respectful attention by all parties.
One feature is quite interesting, as it has developed since the fishermen became canners. This is their treatment of Chinese laborers. Formerly they thought seriously of expelling the Chinamen from town. They now employ a limited number in the cannery. While the Chinese are not altogether a desirable body of residents—being mostly single men and transients—it is pleasant to see their usefulness as laborers recognized, and no ill-treatment offered them by white laborers.
Mr. Ole B. Olsen, secretary of the Union, reports that since their organization, and their business enterprise, there has been a marked improvement in the
