BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 333 



lOS.-THE TBEPAIVC; FISHERIT. 



By JAITIES G. STVAN. 

 [Abstract.] 



An important fishery for a food product, although one scarcely known 

 in Europe or the United States, is that carried on for trepaugs in the 

 South Pacific and Indian Oceans, where it is found chiefly on coral reefs, 

 from which it is gathered and imported in large quantities into China, 

 where it is considered a great culinary delicacy. The trepang is found 

 in all latitudes, but hitherto the supply has come mainly from the 

 islands of Oceanica, particularly New Caledonia. In Malaysia, the 

 Ladroues, and the China Sea, thousands of junks are equipped annually 

 for these fisheries. The island of Erromanga, in the New Hebrides, has 

 long been an important shipping point for this product. 



The trepang, or beche-de-mer, as it is often called — another of its names 

 being the sea-cucumber — is a rather repulsive looking animal, being a 

 kind of sea-slug belonging to the genus Rolothuria. There are several 

 varieties. The ordinary kind which is used for food {Rolothuria edulis) 

 resembles somewhat a prickly cucumber in size and appearance, except 

 that the color is a light brown with a yellow belly. Another kind is 

 black. Sometimes they are found nearly 2 feet in length ; but they are 

 generally much smaller, and about 8 or 10 inches may be taken as the 

 average length. 



The trepang, when prepared for market, is an ugly looking, brown- 

 colored substance, very hard and rigid, and can be eaten only after 

 being softened by water and a lengthened process of cooking, when it 

 is reduced to a sort of thick soup by the Chinese, who are very fond 

 of it ; and Avhen cooked by a Chinaman who understands the art, it 

 makes an excellent dish which the Europeans at Manila regard very 

 highly. 



The preparation of the trepang for market is simple. They are to be 

 boiled in water, either salt or fresh, for about twenty minutes, and 

 then slit open, cleaned, and dried. Those dried in the open air or sun- 

 shine bring a higher price than those dried over a wood fire, which lat- 

 ter is the usual jjrocess adopted by the Malays. Some varieties require 

 boiling for only a few minutes, or till they become firm to the touch. 

 They must be dried thoroughly, as thef^ absorb moisture readily, and are 

 then liable to become moldy and spoil. 



No one has yet attempted this fishing in the North Pacific, although 

 trepangs abound in the waters along the northwestern coast of America, 

 particularly in the region of the Queen Charlotte Islands and the Alex- 

 ander Islands of Alaska, as well as on the west coast of Vancouver 

 Island. Some time ago an Indian brought me two good specimens, 



