Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1884-08-07

-vrEEsrvE INDUSTRY WHICH
N orTv1sHE5 DOWN EAST"
sou wa' ',eEi1% ,cpnninr " ss T,. 81
,cv MAR tC;.

A. Ta.tport Me- letter to the Boston
~ i..,y.. Very few are aware when
,..rIaasc tin box Of sardines, that
Hs. If the gaudy and attractive label
,,itu its French inscription and
'.,ic head. these "little fishes billed
'' p. are not the clupca SARDINIA from
~. r.a,t Of Sardinia and from other
ofthc Mediterranean sea, but are
PM, more nor less than a Yankee
''-.:,,., CAUGHT off the coast of Maine,
hs.'. IN cottonsced oil. The imitation
f'' Lor,nlete that the imported sardine
..rrciv if ever, used as a hors
&c Int in its stead we have the
t.I' Maine herring, garnished with nu-
.n. -Iiccs Of lemon, quite as inviting
n. cpicnre and with flavor as highly
".oanod In fact, the day OF the inn
r,eJ -lrdincr has passed, and nine
,,b. of the sardines now eaten In this
...o,ry come from Maine. How this
all brought about may be told as
GI,y,.. For some time prior to 1875,
... York irm. Mcssrs. Wolff IL Rees-
w., were engaged in experiments en-
ia,yorinu 10 produce an article similar
" fine French sardiucs. They had
.oom fitted up in their store
,,b;ch no one was allowed to
,ater excepting the two members of
,to firm and the Frenchman who
,,,s cnoaoed in the experiments. On ac-
count Of being unable to secure exactly
tbo fish they needed, it seemed as if all
tbcir labor and efforts were 10 be of no
.caH and they were considering the
,nestion Of abandoning their project
,rbcn Mr. Wolff, one of the firm, visited
r,.,nort. Me, and, on seeing the small
borrno caught in that vicinity, which
rcrc then used for farming purposes, he
f.It that at last he had discovered the
I,o,, souoht for fish As the result of
nj, investigations in 1876, he established
a factory in Passport and commenced
r,nnino. Since then there have been
ciohtccn other canning factories estab-
Gshcd in PASSPORT, two at Robbinston,
enyen nj fubcc, with one more IN process
of erection. three at Jouesport, and one
each at Milbridge, Luinoine, Bass slIar-
bor. Broollin and Camden, beside one
at st. Andrews, NJ b.
The herring used for the manufacture
Of sardincs are caught in the waters of
P1ssamaQuoddy bay and vicinity. Large
wers are built, being constructed of
niles driven firmly in depth of water
not exceeding twenty feet, while the
space between the piles is filled IN with
brush interlaced with the rail which sur
round the piles. A large opening in the
inclosurc is left, through which the her
nno e ter at high water, and a drop
seine is used to close the opening when
the weir is we'll filed. Just before low
water the fishermen enter the weir In a
net boat. and with huge scoop net take
the fish out and deposit them in the boat.
The fish are offered for sale by the hogs
head to the boatmcn of the different
factories about seventy-tive in number,
each factory employing from two TO six
boatmen-and the bidding commences,
which. at times, almost rivals the
stock exchange; in fact. it is
the sardinc exchange. If only few of
the weirs have fish. the bidding is spir-
tied and a high price is obtained for the
haul; but, if fish are plenty, they do not
bring so high price, and the bidding is
attended with less excitement. When
the industry was first started, 81 per
hogshead was good, fair price, but,
within tie last two years. as high as $50
has been paid for hogshead After the
FISH had been transferred to the boat of
The highest bidder, start is made for
She factory, small signal flag being run
up to the topmast, to show the owners at
the factory that fish are on the way.
When the wharf is reached, the fish are
hOisted from the boats and placed in
large tanks partly filled with salt water.
to preserve them until they are all cut.
From these tanks they are taken in large
baskets to the cutting room and deposited
on the long, rough tables, where they are
seized by the cutters, and by a dexterous
sweep of their large knives are quickly
decapitated, the entrails being pulled out
by the same movement The operation is
performed with such quickness that those
skilled in the business will cut seventy
which, when full, is carried TO the fore
man OF the room, and the cutter receives
TN ticket stamped with the company's
INITIAL and amount to be paid. These
cutters are mostly boys and girls, from
Ten to sixteen years Of age, and, in hav-
ING what they term "a good week, " they
earn from IS to $40. After being cut,
he hsh are picked. This is done
ey placing them in tubs and salt
ing them thoroughly, after which they
are washed in several changes of water,
ana then placed in low, fiat baskets,
Nnen' after being carefully drained, they
&c holsted into the taking room. The
uaking Is done by women The flakes
ale OF wire, nearly three feet long by