54 



solar or artificial heat, without the slio-htest appearance 

 of taint ; this not only saves the time usually spent in 

 salting, but keeps the product far more nutritious and 

 digestible. 



5. By a similar method curing of sardines for food 

 was greatly improved ; the whole, ungutted sardine, just 

 as it comes from the sea, is washed, thrown into satura- 

 ted brine — kept saturated by additions of salt — or mixed 

 with dry salt at the rate of i lb. salt to six or seven of 

 fish ; the fish are kept in salt or brine only for one to two 

 hours {according to size and fatness) and are then sun- 

 dried ; the product is thoroughly good, well-fiavoured, 

 and keeps for months ; it is the quickest, easiest, and most 

 productive of good food of any process yet adopted, and 

 enables these fish to be dealt with by tons per hour, and 

 turned rapidly into sound but cheap food instead of being 

 dried on the beach into very inferior manure. When 

 such fish are salted dry, that is by rousing with one to 

 six salt as above, it is found that three-fifths of the salt is 

 recovered, being undissolved, when the fish is washed 

 out of the salt ; this surplus salt is used for the next batch. 

 Hence the salt actually expended is only about one to 

 twelve or less, a low rate ; excess of salt is necessary for 

 each batch so that the action may be prompt and that 

 each fish be in thorough contact with the salt. 



6. Successful experiments were made in artificial 

 drying by using a low combustion stove and a hand- 

 driven fan in order to secure drying when weather 

 conditions are unfavourable or to ensure rapidity or 

 control. They will be continued this year with better 

 plant as the method gives much promise especially for 

 cloudy and rainy weather. 



7. Experiments in drying fish by means of a 

 vacuum plant have temporarily failed owing to a defect 

 which prevented my obtaining a sufficiently high 

 vacuum for evaporation at a low temperature, but the 

 method promises success with advantages which will be 

 detailed when success has been obtained ; present 

 enquiries at home will probably solve the difficulty. 



8. For light cured fish, which are more readily 

 attacked by fiies than heavily salted fish, a fly proof 

 shed was put up ; such sheds are not costly, and as the 

 fish are hung in many tiers, the method is very econo- 

 mical of space — so often deficient in crowded yards — 



