Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1884-02-06
NO. g..
Names Sardines.

NIEe-tenihs Of he ssr lines consumed
n the Uni'ed states come from Name
Very few of the real French ti,h are Im-
ported nos. Thesa Yankee saIdnes are
nothing bu; small herring put uD in
boxes. with gandy lsbeis and French In
scuptions. Ia Z is,pOTt there are nine
teen places where they turn out sardines,
besides three at L1bec, two at Jones'
port. and one each at Millhrifge, La
nome and Rcb'instOn In 1875 New
York firm did lucrative buslress pack
ing Russian ssrdines' in Eastpors
These were little herring packed In small
wooden kegs and preserved with spices
Of different kinds. 1t occurred to one
member of the trc: that these little dsh
might be utilized to better advantage BY
cooking them and packing them IN olive
OIL, like the French sardlDes. The expert
ment had been tried several years before
without success. The difficulty was 10
eradicate the taste of the herring. 1t was
easy to cook the herring, pack them Ia
olive oil IN tin cans. and sesl them air
tigh-, but when they wers opened they
had not the rich, spicy flavor Of the resu-
ulsr French sardlnes. After great many
experiments, one Of the manufacturers
succeeded in producing mixture Of oils
and spices which removed the difficulty.
The herring used for making sardIDes
are about -four inches long, and are taken
IN great qasnuties along the Maine and
New BrunsEIcS coasi. Gbey can be
bought Of the fishermen for about IS a
hoeshead, although when the fish are
scarce, as they Of en- are in the spring,
they bring as much ss Sl5 a hogshead-
To catch the fish small trees or brush are
thrust into the sandy bottom OF the sea-
arranged in lire running out from the
shore some IS or 100 feet, and then curved
back ike horseshoe. Inside this trap u
a net When the tide Is falling the net Is
raised, and the fish are taken out with huge
scoop nets. The catcl Is always very
uncertain; sometimes only bushel or two
Will be taken. and often so many are
caught as to endanger the net
There is another way OF capturing tbs
ish. Herring, ike mackerei, go In
schools, and, for some reason, always iol-
low the Eight. Two or three fishermen
provide themselves with torches made OF
cotton batting saturated with Kerosene,
and on dark nights TOW along the shores
with torch In tie bow of the boat. When
the schOol Is found The herring dart after
the boat, coming so close that they are
dipped up in nets attached 70 short poles.
After being captured the fish are taken
Immediately TO the factory and laid In
heaps upon lOrg tables. The first thing 10
to decspltate ard clean the fish The dex-
terity with which this operation IS per-
formed by the Chi dren who are employed
IS remarkable. On an average seventy
five fish are cleaned and decapratet every
minute by eacn child. Both operations
are performed with one stroke Of a sharp
knlfe. 4 box holding about bushsi lies
at the feet Of each operator, and as the
cleaning is competed the fish side into
the box. The pay for this work IS ten
cents per box, and some Of the children
make dollar and half day.
After beng washed the herring are
picked for half an hour. and are then laid
upOr trays and placed in a large drying
Rom heated by steam. After drying tbs
fsh are thrown into large, shallow pans Of
boiling oil and thoroughly cooked They
are then packed IL tin boxes by girls and
women, and in each box Is poured Q1sn-
tity of the p4teut mixture o. oils sui
spices. Covers are then fitted 10 the
boxes and sealed on by men. As ar
must be excluied, the cans, when sealed,
are placed in tank of boiling water when
they remain half an hour aud are then re-
moved and placed on an inclined plane, so
that the air inside rushes to one corner Of
the bcx. This corner Is punctured with
an swl, the hot air escapes, and the can
Is made aIr-tignt by q drop OF solder. The
boxes are then ornsmented with attractive
French labels, stating that the inclOsed are
"S4rdines Ia FrsHcasa;' sOIae are Ia
beled "a l'hUile d'ollve" The oil used Ia
cotton-seed oil, such as Is mad in So1ih
Carolina. It's a1t always the best quality
cf oil. The best cil Is used, however, foI
the ish sold as ''prlme. "