Digital Bob Archive

The fish hatchery program of the Territory of Alaska, which had been advocated by sports and commercial fishermen, cannery operators and Juneau businessmen, was delayed for a full two years by the carelessness of the secretary of the Senate of the Third Territorial Legislature.

SB 29, providing for hatcheries and for the protection and care of natural spawning grounds was introduced by Senator J.R. Heckman, superintendent of the Alaska Packers cannery at Loring near Ketchikan. It carried an appropriation of $80,000 and there was an understanding that this would fund three hatcheries, one each in the Ketchikan, Wrangell and Juneau Districts; although that was not written into the bill. There would be a Board of Fish Commissioners with four members including the governor, one general superintendent and three assistants.

The bill passed the Senate on a 6-1 vote, Senator Ronan of Anchorage voting \"no.\" The House amended the bill slightly and passed it unanimously on April 28.
Then, to pay the cost, a tax bill was amended to add one cent to the tax on each case of canned salmon. The Senate concurred in the amendments as its last business on Wednesday, May 2, the 59th day of the session. The bill should have gone to the governor the following day.

The legislature finally adjourned sine die in the early hours of Friday, May 4. On Saturday M.S. Perkins, who had been reporting the session for The Alaska Daily Empire, went to the governor's office in the old Presbyterian Mission building to check the file of bills that had passed. His tally showed 76 bills passed and two vetoed, but he could find only 75 signed bills in the file. Senate Bill 29, the hatchery bill, was missing.

The governor's office had no record that the bill had been received. On Monday morning Perkins went to the office of William M. Eddy, the secretary of the Senate, in the Goldstein Building. Eddy was an old-timer from Nome where he had been the first chief of police, then the city clerk and tax assessor. This was the first, and only, time he was secretary of the Senate. Neither Eddy nor his assistant, W. Grant Johnson of Juneau, could find a record that the bill had gone to the governor's office. They began an all day hunt for it. It was nearly 11 o'clock p.m. when the bill was found \"among other papers.\" The governor was called and signed the bill at 11:20. He expressed doubt that the action was valid, but said the court would have to decide.

Governor Strong appointed B.M. Behrends and W.W. Casey of Juneau and Senator Heckman of Ketchikan to the Board of Fish Commissioners. They met in Juneau on June 28 and decided to bring a test case. After getting an estimate on the cost of printing letterheads, they drew a warrant to pay for them. Territorial Treasurer Walstein G. Smith refused to honor the warrant, and suit was filed. During the fall term of the District Court, Judge Robert W. Jennings declared the hatchery law invalid because it had not been signed within the time prescribed by the Organic Act.

Juneau did get a fish hatchery, as will be related next week, but two years behind the intended time because the secretary of the senate failed to keep track of the 86 bills in his care.