The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1896-10-30
INK FROM FISH.
CUTTLE FARMING IN ENGLAND -
STRANGE But PROFITABLE
INDUSTRY.
Cincinnati EnGtiirer.

Cincinnati Enqtirer.
The cuttlcfish is an important be-
ing. He is Of a literary turn, and
carries about with him a stylO-pcn
and a flask OF ink. 1t is the Ink
which renders him so profitable. Cut
tletlsh farms are rare, but they take a
front place in value and strangeness,
for the pen-and-ink fish Supplies one
OF the most valuable tints known to
commerce.
Near WinchclSea, in Sussex, there
is a large cuttletish college," and
here the astute owner coaXcs ink from
his army OF tlshy workmcn, and very
good business lie finds it. The fish
farmer was recently interviewed by q
representative Of London Answers, and
talked Interestingly of his queer busi-
ness.
''They're not really fish, you know u
he said, 80 we always refer to them
politely as 'cuttlcs." However, come
round and I'll show you how a cutie
farm is made to go. This pond con-
tains salt water, to begin with. 1t is
connected with the sea there by an
iron pipe, and rises and falls slightly
with the tides. Look through this
screen, and you will see the cuttles at
home"
Sure enough, there, in the turbid
water mass OF jelly-colOred mon
sters, with long, warty arms trailing
behind them, and a group Of snaky-
looking tentacles on their heads, NOV
ed slowly up and down. Thousands
of them filled the great tank, star
ing out Of bulging eyes. and CROP
ing about with grim-looking limbs.
1t was not pretty sight.
"You see, the cuttlefsh has an ink
bay in its inside, and If you frighten
it, it squirts a dose of ink into the
water, and escapes under cover of the
darkness it has stirred up. That's
why the tanks are screened round, to
prevent the cuttleS being frightened
by the men. If they were badly scar
ed ! might lose hundreds OF pints of
ink in il few moments. The ink is
one Of the most useful colors there is,
and fetches over three shillings a
pint.
"We have to carefully avoid start
ling the cuttlcs in any way, in order
to prevent the waste of ink. Two or
three times week. we drain Ger.
tain number of them. The process is
like milking a COW. Half a dozen
slnices are opened in the big tank,
leading each to a small pool the
size of wash basin. BY making a
gentle disturbance at the other end
OF the pond the cuttes swarm up to
the slnice mouths and begin to drift
down them. AS soon as one has pass
ed the opening we close the sluice and
the cutie passes along the pipe into
the basin. An attendant peeps
through the screen to see that he ar
rives safely; then the water is drained
from the basin and the surprised and
annoyed cutie finds himself high and
dry. Then is the time.
"One of my attendants steps out
and introduces himself. The strand
ed cutie, in an agony Of terror, indig-
nantly lets fly with his ink-gun; the
charge falls harmlessly into the basin.
Again he squirts the precious fluid
into the dry basin, and after that lie
is carried tenderly back and put into
another tank, which is kept for emp
ties The ink IS carefully gathered
up and slowed in a zinc keg.
"This process occupies about three
minutes, aud often half a dozen cut.
ties arc being 'milked' in the separate
screened off basins at the same time.
A fresh lot are driven in when the
first have been drained, tnd so it goes
on for about an hour. At the end OF
that time we have often filled a dozen
kegs. The ink is Theoretically scaled
In the casks and dispatched to the
factories which refine and treat the
raw material to make it marketable.