Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1883-08-11
Fish as a Food Element.

The public has little idea what a loss
to the city in general it would be if the
fish supply was shut off even for a short
time. AS the wholesale business in fish
is mainly carried on when the majority
Of persons are in their beds, few are en-
abled to fee the activity of this particu-
lar market; yet there is hardly a day in
the whole year-unless there should be;
an unusual scarcity--that less than a
quarter Of a million pounds of fish are,
sold in the wholesale market, located:
on the east side of South street, and op-
posite to- the well-known Fulton Market.
On market days, which is the Thursday
Of each week, and on many days during
the fasting period Of Lent, the quantity.
of fish sold in the wholesale market will
aggregate one million of pounds per
day, and even over that quantity. This:
is exclusive of what's known as shell-fish,
such AS oysters, clans, etc., of which
also a large quantity is sold daily dur
ing the seasons.
It is estimated from a calculation
made by one of the Oldest and largest
wholesale dealers of fish in this city
that since New Years day there has
been brought into this market over co.
coo, 900 pounds of edible fish of all de-
scriptions. During the months of Jan
uary and February the fish is brought to
New York from the lakes, and also
from the Eastern States, with also q
large quantity of fine fish, such as the
red snapper from the Gulf of Mexico.
In March the products Of the waters OF
North Carolina and the coasts of the
Southern Atlantic States find their way
to New York, and shad from Savannah
and other neighboring rivers make
their appearance. During April the
spring fishing begins in the local waters,
and not only the sea but the rivers fur
nish their share of this valuable article
of food. May and June are the months
for fish brought from the coast Of Mas
sachusetts, Rhode Island, New York and
New Jersey. The deep sea also con
tributes to the supply during the whole
year, and the waters adjoining both the
New England and Canadian shores help
to fill up the quota.
There are engaged in. the work Of
bringing fish to this port about $50 ves-
sells, some of which return every three
days, while others take about two weeks
to make a trip. In addition to this
| method of transportation, larger quaint,
ties o" fish are brought to this city by
rail and steamboat. During the winter
the railroad is used constantly for the
transportation Of fish, packed in ice,
which is often sent hundreds if not
thousands of miles.
The supply of fish mainly depends on
seasons, and should such a period pass
without the usual quantity of any par,
ticular class reaching the market, the
fishermen and fish-dealers regard the
article as scarce. This has been par
ticularly the case with shad, the season
for which closed on June 20. Old
dealers say they have hardly ever seen
shad so scarce as it had been this year;
yet the aggregate supply to this city
would to outsiders be considered large.
Another scarce article Of fish has been
the lobster, which is beginning to be re.
garded as an article Of luxury among
f~ish-dealers, and it is believed that the
time is not far distant when the regular
price of Holsters will be twenty-five
cents per pound, witch will place it be-
yond the reach Of the majority Of fish
eaters. At the present time the fish
that may be considered in season arc
the salmon, Spanish mackerel and
pompano. Frogs legs are also very
plentiful, and it has been ascertained
that in this city about eight hundred
pounds per day have been sold for some
little time past. OF curse the season
for this luxury, for it is generally SO re
garded, is somewhat short, as the freez
ing process, by which so many fine fish
can be kept when there appears to be s
glut, can not be we'll applied to frogs
legs, and thus reproduce the deliciou:
article of food at any time when the
catch is ended.-CommercialA Advertiser
In Pennsylvania the Hessian fly, a:
a wheat destroyer, is assisted by a small
green worm, the repetition and repre-
sentative of the same vermicular curse
that was so active in the same State
observation-disclosures ago.-Phtadelphda