The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1900-10-04
CANNING THE SALMON.
THE WORK AS EXTENSIVELY DONE
ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER.
How the Kingllest of All Fishes is
Caught, Killed, Disinembered. Cooked
and Canued-The Chinese Butcher at


| ana Canned-The Chinese Butcher nj
Work-Remarkabie Labelling Feat.
He was that King of all kingly
/ fishes-a Royal Chinook. Fresh from
the llmltlcss freedom of unfathomed
seas. from untracked journeys to mys-
terious feeding grounds. whose loca-
tion no man has yet been able to
guess, he was beautiful beyond com
pare; in form, graceful, symmetrical;
in color, n sllvered harmony. Science
stands baflled in the presence of the
salmon. For whittier he goes, on de-
! parting from his native stream, or by
what strange fate he is drawn to re-
visit the scenes of his early infancy,
not even the wlsest can tell.
1t was early morning. The lordly
| Chinook lay in lowered cage, where
his captor had flung him. There was
a score of others of his kind in this
cage, all of which had been consider
ately knocked in the head by the boat
puller as they were drawn up splash
ing and struggling, out of their native
| element
|, Hell tip the scales at sixty pounds" !"
remarked the boat puller, with a touch
of enthusiasm,
| "SiXty-fve," sententiously replied
his companion; hell weigh sixty-five
as sure as he weighs an ounce-the
finest fish we've caught this season"
Later, when recounting the notable
events of the years catch to inter
ested comrades and rivals, that fish
! loomed large in memory. and they
swore him an eighty FOUNDER
which, according to the late Hollister
ID. Mcclure. is the Chinook's maxi
mum weight. But the almond-eyed
Celestial who delivered him over to
the butcher" by means of gait
hooked into his gills. regarded him
with sullen resentment Sixty-five
pounds taxes ones strength somewhat
to lift. The Chinaman was not partial
to big fish; besides they were monoto-
nously common in his experience.
The cage, full to overflowing, was
swung slowly upward, its contents
cleaning and glintlng in the sunlight.
| Magnificent creatures, every one OF
them, but the siXty-five-pounder had
an air of regality that was all his
own. He was lifted to the butchers"
block, where a Mongolian decapltatcd
| him at a single stroke. Another sweep
of the knife deprived him of fins and
| tail, and a swift inclslon. accompanied
| by deXterous turn of the wrist left
| him minus his limited internal mech.
anism
A mere shapeless lump, shorn of
| every grace save that of color, the
shining. coral-sided salmon was slid
| into vat of running water, washed
with care and rapidity. and lifted out
| upon slightly slanting table, before
which stood the 'slimer," who gave
| him few effective downward strokes
passed him on. The next man treated
| him to a shower bath, and put hn
into the draining tank. From the
draining tank he went to the cutting
| block, and was cut into small slices
| by an automatic knife.
1t was here that he lost his identity.
| He was still salmon. but no longer
salmon. He had become just an in
/ distinguishable part of mass of cor
| al-colored section of fish, and in tliis
divided condition he was carried by
| Chinese helpers to the "fillers." The
'fllers," also Chinese, packed the sew
| cred salmon into cans, which were
then placed in trays-two dozen cans
| to the tray-and washed by means of
an automatically revolving brush. The
cans then went to n man who fitted
tops on them, and who, having re-
turned them to the trays, dispatched
| them to the "crlmper," who clamped
| the tops with II little hand tool and
sent them rolling down Il shallow
| trough, or boxed incline, where they
were soldered as they rolled Then
they Were rolled down another incline
to give the solder Il chance to cool
| After this cooling process they were
placed again in the trays, and the
tiny puncture in the top of each can
was touched with the soldering stick,
and thereby rendered alright.
| They We're now ready for the boiling
watts, in which they were allowed to
cook certain fixed time, after which
they were taken out and placed in II
| large iron cooler" \ man. Il Chi
nese, with a hammer, in which was n
sharp pointed tack, then punctured
each can, with Il single light tap, to let
out the air and steam.
Another man, again a Chinese. sol
dering stick and iron in hand. imme-
diately sealed the punctues, and the
cans were then in readiness for the
second cooking, This differed some
what from the first, in that the cool
ers, each of which, square In shape,
was large enough to contain 144 cans
and so heavy that the aid of Il block
and tackle was required in the hand.
ling, were swung into place, in great
retorts, wherein was room for twenty
| four coolers, and the steam turned on
for sixty minutes At the end of this
period, the block and tackle being
again in requlsitiOn, they We're lifted
out and submerged in Il bath of slight
! ly diluted lye, rlnsed under cold.
water shower, and left to stand over
night on the cannery floor.
The salmon was now canned. and SO
far as the canning was concerned, the
| process was complete, but there yet
remained many things to be done be-
| fAn htT IA hn n9tt r...t t,.t.