The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1888-08-16
THE sAap,Ns INDUSTRY.

= nuoxmcs9 Tnot Has ElOufi9hoO Tor MANY
Years ON the brittany Coast.
Apropos Of the new regulations just
issued by the French Government, the
RevUe des Deur Mondes has published
an interesting account Of the sardine
industry, which has 80 long fourishcd
on the coast Of Brittany. As but little
is known about the true sardine, even
in France. and OF course much less in
this country, our readers may like to
see the facts.
When It reaches its full growth the
true sardine Is little smaller than the
herring; at this stage It Is fat, oily,
and of mediocre taste. It weighs be-
tween a quartersnd a third of a pound.
This fish, which on the coast of Corn
wall is known as the pilchard, and In
Brittany as the ''winter sardine," ap-
pears toward the close Of the cold sea-
son and vanishes by June. II is then,
more than two years old. This sardine,
is salted, but never preserved in oil.
1t is the so-called summer sardine,
which is fried in boiling oil, packed In
tin boxes. and shipped all over the
world. This is the same fish as the
pilchard or winter sardine, only II is q
year younger. II arrives of the Breton
coast in vast shoals during June, and
thenceforward until November It Is
taken in nets, the bait used being the
salted roe of the Goldfish or q minute
species Of shrimp procured In the
neighborhood. Whittier It goes and
where it passes the cold season is un-
known, but 1t is believed to be deep
water fish, which only in the months
mentioned comes to the surface. This
Is certain, however, that 1t Is met with
only nearly that section Of the Atlantic
coast of Europe which extends from
Cornwall to Portugal.
The sardine industry has Of late
years passed through severe crisis.
The take was small during the whole
period from 1880 to 1885, with the ex-
ception of the year 1883. In 1886 the
value OF the sardine in oil exported fell
to $2, 800, ,00O or less than half OF what
1t was seven years before. Last year,
on the other hand, was extremely
profitable to the canning factories, al
though the prices paid for the fresh
sardines per thousand ranged from
sixty cents to ten dollars. The com.
petition to which the French manu-
facturers are subjected comes not only
from the United States, where the fish
used is not the true sardine, but also
from Portugal, where the genuine fish
is procurable and where extensive can
ming establishments have been recent
ly inaugurated. Nevertheless, there
are certain French Gamers whose
trademarks are widely-knOwn
and whose products everywhere
command prices relatively high.
Their control of market is
probably due to the fact that they are
careful to employ nothing but veritable
olive oil of superior quality. The
vast quantity Of cotton-seed oil annual
ly shipped from Alexandria to Mar
seilles raises the suspicion that some
French sardine Gamers may expose
themselves to the same charges that
have been leveled at their American
rivals. At all events, 1t follows that
the exquisite flavor of certain French
product is owing partly to the quality
of the oil, and partly to the fact that
only genuine sardlnes are used; and
moreover, TINT they are washed, evils
cerated and fried within an hour or
two after they are caught. No fish de-
teriorates more rapidly after removal
from the water than the sardine.
The French Government has recently
forbidden the use Of the large, capa-
cious and improved nets, by which
huge multitudes Of the summer sar-
dine could be drawn in at q stroke.
This prohibition was issued in con-
formity with the wishes of the Breton
fishermen, who ascribe the crisis to
which their industry has been subject
ed to the sweeping reduction of the
fish by the new-fangled implements.
But as the large seines are employed
by their Portuguese competitors, the
French Gamers naturally protest
against this interference OF the state.