New-York tribune., 1907-10-20

N-'NN
.7iiied now was being put in storage and held
Tor the still further advances that are made
regularly every winter when the weather puts
s'op TO fishing along the northern coasts.
li'e relations Of the wholesalers, the fishermen,
lie oold storage plants and the retailer all have
'lelr effect on the consumer. The distribution
oi nSh differs from that of any other food
product- First of all, the members of the Fish
moAgers Association say that they cannot give
quotations on fish. George Il. Case. secretary
OF the association. expressed himself by saving:
"hy' hsh IS changing in value all the time If
there's storm and fishermen can't go out the
supply on hand dwindles and the price goes UP
accordingly All the elements of storm and sea
conditions enter into the business as well as do
the movements OF fish. Il cannot be regulated
ana conducted like the oyster fisheries. Any
'aIN or combination that keeps u2 prices is
absurd. The storing Of fish at this time Of the
year Is customary From December until May
'here Is little or no fishing done in the northern
waters Tor this market, so fish is stored for
Nhose months. From September until December
dealers lay in at the warehouses their winter
stock This reserve stock has almost no effect
on the quotations Of fish brought in to be sold at
once"
CANNOT QUOTE FISH PRICES
Amos Chesehro, director of the association
'''N''''N' VI tIit III III ok OHeSebTO bTOIntES.
one of the largest wholesale fish merchants in
the country, also said he could not make com
pariSons of fish prices. They are always vary
ing, he said. why. if a man wants TO eat fish
ne can always find some sort that is good and
cheap But people don't always do things that
way. For instance there'n be heavy sales of
bIuefish or halibut days when II is way up in
price If the consumers willing to wait
and take some other fish at the time there would
De oIuefsh on the market at much lower rate
perhaps the very next day. I've been in the
hsh business good many years. but I can't say
whether fish is higher or lower now than it was
last year. on any particular date you might
make comparisons. but within twenty-four
hour large haul Of fish might cause the prices
TO fall or a spell Of nasty weather might keep
the hshermen in harbor. This would bring
about a resulting scarcity of certain varieties
and raise in their price"
The views of Mr.. Chesebro and Secretary Case
We're shared by their fellow members OF the
Flshmongers' Association. All of those who
would consent to talk gave the same expIana-
uoh or dismissed the fish quotation briefly by
saying. NO man can regulate or corner the fish
market because ii varies according to the
weather and the runs Of fish" Still, it appears
that the fish business is thoroughly organized in
this city, and several independent dealers out
lined the situation. The Fishmongers' Associa-
ton is made up Of the eighteen firms at Fulton
Fish Market. These eighteen firms DO ma
jorty Of the large wholesale business of New
York. and they handle fish from both the At
lantic and the Pacific
The association has many interests Its mem
Ders own shares in sixty sChooners and twenty
five smaller vessels that fish out Of" New York
during the summer and until the December
storms cause them TO be laid up for the winter
or 70 be sent southwark. The captains and
crews Of some Of these vessels fish on the ..shar,
basis, getting a percentage of the receipts of
their catch. Other crews are hired by the own
ers There are very few independent fishermen
coming TO New York-that is fishermen who are
not in the employ Of members of the associa-
ton.
But New York's main supply is brought here
by rail The association operates Jointly y feb
train, the Centennial Express. that leaves Ros-
ton at O'Clock in the evening and arrives at the
Harlem River yards Of the New York, New
haven & Hartford Railroad At 3 n m. There
the cargo OF fish from New England waters is
loaded on the steamboat Fulton Market. that
'aEeS the load TO the pier behind the Fulton
Market. The members by this ARRANGEMENT
nave facilitated transportation. A dealer NOT IN
me organization remarked that together win,
tHe hshlhg fleet owned and operated by the big
dealers and their specials from the shore feb-
hG~
were advantages not enjoyed by the men who
have not co-operated.
FRESH WATER FISHERMEN.
The firms that deal in fresh water fish excIp-
sively are In and about Peck Slip. and none ~
them is in the Fishmongers' Association. In
handling fresh water fish the custom is to auo-
uon ii Off and Thursday Of this week tba
dealers had 80 much hand without facilities
10 freeze it that whole boxes Of pike, perch
and pickere We're sold at the cost Of expressage.
But there was not evident any slump in prices
10 the consumer The large firms IN the Fish
mongers' Association. however are not thus
obliged 10 sell a loss, for the excess Of first
class fish is taken to ono Of the great cold stor-
age plants
The manager Of the Brooklyn Rridge Freezing
and Cold Storage Company, which is in Frank
lin Square, in the anchorage Of the bridge. told
Tribune reporter that in the ammonia cooled
vaults at present 5000 GOO pounds Of frozen
fish. This more than he had on hand last
year at this time, and 7ince fish VIII continue to
come in until December. he expected the supply
would be increased by several million pounds for
the winter trade.
Il know nothing about the price Of fish" he
explained FOR We simply take the FISH of the
wholesalers or retailers who wish it kept against
period Of scarcity. Usually the winter stock
is entirely gone by April or May when the spring
catch has already begun 10 come in here or
course. cold storage fish is not as palatable per-
haps. as fresh fish, but there are several months
a year when some sorts Of fish cannot be caught
and others are scarce Much Of the cold storage
fish comes TO New York from Gloucester, Mass
where there is freezer and from the plants in
Boston, Norfolk, Va. and several Jersey towns
have not heard Of any scarcity of fsh this sea