Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-30


At present in Shetland. the principal seat of
the herring industry, the system generally
ceeds of the fishing to the owner or owners
OF the boat, who provides all material, the
other half being equally divided between
members of the crew, the owner receiving
share as such if he be one of the crew. Al
some ports men receive a certain proportion
OF the boats earnings, providing their own
subsistence on shore, but getting their oil
SKINS Tor sea use as a perquisite.
OPERATION OF CURING.
The preparations of the fish curer are OF
interest and importance. All winter long
coopers have been employed in making the
necessary supply of barrels. They receive
from 1Od. to Is. for each barrel made, and
during the herring season are paid regular
wages ranging from 25s. to 30s. per week.
The herring barrel must hold 263a imperial
gallons; the half barrels 1879; but no official
cognizance is taken of quarters or less.
Having secured sufficient ground for curing
purposes, which is called curing yard or
station" we will suppose he intends using
the tlsh landed by ten boats. He provides
rectangular box with sides about two feet
high, into which the herrings are emptied
from the fsherrnen's baskets, or from his
own carts, and around which the "crews" OF
'curers" work,
Formerly the "creel," or square wicker
basket, was used in the delivery of fish.
This has been superseded by the circular
'quarter-cran" basket, four of which make
the ''cran" of 3711 imperial gallons, the
standard measure upon which all estimates
on Scottish herring, and expense IN secur-
ing the same, are based. For handling the
hsh of ten boats. the curer will employ three
coopers, and one crew of "gutters" or 80
cutters" in all. The latter are invariably
women, crotters' wives, daughters, sisters.
Five tons or 200 bushels of salt to the 100
Grams, will be needed; and he provides bar
rels and salt on the basis of an average
years fishing giving him from 1, 800 to z, 600
Grams of fish from the ten boats.
SOLD CUT AT AUCTION.
On the arrival of the "heet" the fish are
sold by auction, a plan very recently intro
duced, and identical with that of our own
herring-fshers at Eastport, Maine. Samples
OF herring are retained by the auctioneer in
case of disputes. The salesman charges the
fishermen a small percentage, as at New
Haven, on the Firth of Forth; he becomes
responsible to the fishermen ior the money;
and payments are made daily or weekly, as
agreed. At an ordinary east-coast herring
fishing port, fully 1000 "gutters" and
packers will be at work. Perhaps 600 of
these are women.
AS stated, three form Grew" Two use
the knife and one packs" They work
with marvellous rapidity. The herring is
held in the left hand. Inserting the knife
in the throat of the fish, sidewise, with the
right hand, with one swift movement in "a
pull-like cut" as one of the women de-
scribed it to me, the herring is opened and
cleaned, and whisked into a basket. 1t is
so quickly done that the eve cannot follow
the process. The herrings are next sorted,
shifted into receiving boxes, and then emp
tied into ''rousing boxes" where they are
thoroughly ''roused" or mixed with salt.
In the packing, which Immediately follows,
the tiers are formed, between layers of salt,
by placing the herrings' backs downward.
One herring is laid in the center of form
ing tier, and then a line OF the fish is run in
either direction 20 the barrel-sides, the
spaces left on each side of this line being
laid with fish, heads outward. Every alter
nate tier is laid transversely.
FILLING THE BARRELS.
The barrels are heaped two tiers above
their level, and are then known as "up-
SETS" In two days time the salt is partly
melted, and a portion of the pickle"
is poured off The herring have also
"pined," that is, shrunk. "Filling up"
follows. The barrels are then "tighted' by
the coopers, when they are commercially
known as "sea-sticks." After ten days thev
are opened, the "pickle" again poured off.
more herrings are crowded into them, they
are again "tighted," solidly filled with
pickle through the bungs, laid in double
rows; and are now ready for official inspec-
tion.
The women forming these curers' crews
who are largely from the west coast and the
Hebrides, receive el of bounty, called
''earnest money!" which is known as "arles"
on the Aberdeen coast; about s pence per
barrel for cleaning and packing, and
pence per hour when at the final filings.
They are usually found rude lodg-
ings in addition, where, in "mess-
es," they live with the utmost econ
omy; for they are working here to keep the
croft-thatch above their heads at home.
They often labor 16 and Is hours per day.
They are of all ages, from Is to so years.
Working upon perishable food, depending
upon uncertain delivery from the fisher
men, they do not come within the restrict
ing provisions as to hours of labor of the
British factory acts. Branding and inspec-
tion are simple processes. Each curer must
brand his name and place or port of cure on
the side of each barrel, as also 'scrieve" on
the barrel the date OF "catch," day of
"cure" and grade of fish.
EDGAR L. WAKEMAN.