The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-12-18
sARDINE SEASON CLOSED.
Pack Along the Maine Coast Below the
Average,

The sardfne season closed Tuesday il
Maine and it will be four months before
the manufacturers are allowed to open
for canning herring-or sardines
The season has been shorter than the
average. While the time for opening il
April Is, very few fish were put up be
fore July in this city.
The cause of the delay was due to the
scarcity of fish and refusal of the en-
ployes to begin work at the wages
offered. AS the Boston and New York
markets were overstocked with sardines.
packed the previous seasons, they were
sold below the cost of manufacturing.
Herring were soon found in quantities
in nearly all the weirs and could be
caug bit at the low price of 81 per hogs
head. which was conside rably lower than
usual for the opening.
Gradually the stock of sardiues In the
markets and stored here disappeared, and
after the question Of wages was settled,
several large factories opened, and few
have ntinued up to full time, Tuesday,
Dec. 10.
But the pack this year has been below
the average and will be fully two thirds
less than that of the former season.
There were about s75, 600 cases OF various
kinda of fish packed on the Maine coast
during 1895. This year it will fall short
nearly 300, 600 cases.
There were about 3o0.0U0 cases of sar-
dimes packed in Eastport, Lubeo and the
surrounding bays up to Oot /. Last
seasons pack was more than 100000
cases. This year it will reach about
$50, 0O0.
In one of the large factories 800 cases,
or SO. coo cans have been packed in one
day, but there are many which do not
average 100 cases.
Perhaps ut no other season for 20 years
(when the first herring were oanned)
have fish of all kinds been SO plentiful
and SO easy to catch, us during the past
three months. In the bay. on many oc-
oasions, large schools of herring have
been seen and several docks have held
hundreds of small sardines for hours. 1t
has been big fish season and proven
profitable for a large number.
The packing of sardines here employs
more than 5000 people, who find it diff
Cu1g W Aou6oAtSb luz 10 luOIibuo
with less than six months work. Yet
this has been the case this season. The
have been idle during this time
about six weeks, caused by another re-
duction in few of the factories, but
the difficulty was settled, and the men
returned to work, to finish up the short
season.
There are 16 factories here, and shout
as many at Lubec and North Lubeo
where o number from this city have
worked for manyweeks. 81
Frying fish in oil, the former way, was
tried this year with success, and fried
sardines find a prominent place in the
markets, in place Of those baked.
The recent experiment. of preserving
herring in glass jars also promises to be
profitable the coming season, and the
fish will be put up in larger quantities to
meet the demand.
Another change this season was the
opening Of .'small' factories where the
few people employed took especial care in
their work. The sardines canned in these
places are superior to the fish put up in
the average factory. Next year several
other experienced sardine packers will
enter into this industry, as the demand
was greater than the supply for the past
season in the small shops
During the season one factory was re-
duced to ashes in a few hours, and on
the site where Dan McCnllough's factory
was burned year ago larger one was
in time to open with the
nShars