127 



of sand which, whether accidental or wilful, is spoiling 

 a potential trade and will lead to fishery companies 

 catching their own sardines and mackerel instead of 

 buying- the stuff which now frequently contains — accord- 

 ing to Dr. Lehmann and a Fishery Company — above 

 one-third of sand. The platform system would accelerate 

 and improve drying and give no excuse for sand. 



57. But omitting minor experiments as in the use 

 of wood charcoal, etc., other processes will at once be 

 tried, notably smoking, various methods of pickling, and 

 canning. For smoking no apparatus beyond a cheap 

 building will be required ; the fish after a brief period 

 in salt will be placed in the smoke house and issued after a 

 few hours or days according to the product required. 

 The experiments will take the direction of the woods 

 or substances (e.g., paddy husk) found best for the 

 purpose, the fish best adopted for smoking, the duration 

 of the smoking, the time that the products will keep good, 

 and the acceptability of the goods ; Rs. 1,000 will cover 

 the cost of building and first experiments, 



The use and properties of turmeric and the accepta- 

 bility of the product will specially be investigated and 

 for this trifling expenditure will be needed. 



The wet pickling of fish is a most interesting and 

 promising process, and will be attempted at first with 

 small barrels bought in the market of which I recently 

 saw several cartloads, apparently from Government 

 stores. Here the investig^ation will be directed to the 

 class of fish best suited, the quantity of salt needed, the 

 duration of salting before sale, the time during which 

 the product will keep good, and its acceptability ; in 

 case of success a curer-cooper from Scotland may be 

 required but not this year ; these men from whom the 

 Scottish Board of Fisheries draws its Inspectors are 

 necessarily experts both in pickling and in coopering, 

 the two industries being inseparable twins. The 

 purchase of barrels and the building of a small open 

 shed will be the only expenditure necessary on plant. 



58. Canning. — I shall deal with this in a separate 

 letter as it involves special plant, special men, and a 

 locality where there are more cannable fish than at 

 Madras ; there are special facts as to existing or coming 

 canners which require special consideration. I do not 

 propose the process, therefore, for the Ennore station. 



