8G BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



simply stuck between them (Fig. 4) from the right aiul the left (north 

 and south) ; but the fish are all stuck in with the back upward. By its 

 own weight the fish bends, so that the lower side turns towards the sun. 



a; 



Fig. 4. — Manner of securing flsli for drying. 



To prevent the laths from giving way and the fish from falling down, 

 blocks of wood {d d) are, at short intervals, stuck across every pair of 

 laths. Thereby they are held together so firmly that it would require a 

 pretty strong wind to blow down the fish, even if they have been hung 

 only recently. After the fish have become somewhat dry they hang- 

 safely even in a stiff breeze. If the heat of the sun is very strong and 

 there is no straw cover, all that has to be done is to turn the fish so that 

 their edge turns towards the sun. This can be done easily and quickly. 



It is not customary to have more than two rows of laths, and in a 

 place like Bordeaux, where there is so much room, there is no necessity 

 for it. The laths generally last from 5 to 7 years, and the poles some- 

 what longer. 



I have made a calculation in order to see what space it would require 

 to dry 30,000 fish, and have found that, counting two rows, and an in- 

 terval of 2 meters between the rows, it would require an area of 5,624 

 square meters, or 75 cubic meters ; while the same quantity of fish, when 

 dried on rocks, would require an area of 7,3-11 square meters, or 80 cubic 

 meters. If the interval between the laths is 3 meters, it would require 

 an area of 8,437 square meters. The dcptli (from north to south) of 

 the French drying frames is 8 meters. On a front of 3 meters 128 fish 

 can be dried ; 30,000 would, therefore, require a front of about 700 

 meters. Owing to the climate, and in view of the fact that a more dur- 

 able article is to be produced, the drying will take more time in iN'or- 

 w^ay than in France. Hence a layer of earth at the bottom will not 

 prove an advantage. The frames would, therefore, have to be placed 

 on the rocks, which would make them much more expensive. 



Bergen, Is^okway. 



