70 



Cold-Storage of Fish 



[Oct. 



be detected in the flesh at all exposed surfaces. The whole fish and 

 all portions of the flesh, in every instance (12 hours after thawing), 

 were devoid of any odor that might have indicated significant bac- 

 terial change (comparisons were made with fresh fish of the same 

 kind). The stomachs of the fish, even at the end of two years of 



General average data pertaining to the composition of flounders in cold storage 

 A. Average analytic data quoted from Smith's paper, p. 67 (Table 4) 



B. Averages of our own analytic data 



storage, sometimes contained large masses of undigested matter — 

 in a number of instances small fish that had been swallowed were 

 almost wholly undigested!^ The gastric and intestinal membranes 

 were intact, and withstood a surprising degree of tension. The ab- 

 dominal viscera in general were sound and, when handled, emitted 

 no odor that is not common to them when exposed in fresh flounders. 

 The constancy in the data for the yield of ammonium nitrogen, 



♦Expressed as mg. of KOH required to neutralize i gm. of the total lipin 

 mixture. 



t Expressed as c.c. of n/s NaOH sol. required to neutralize 100 c.c. of 

 extract. These data for the first three records {A) were compiled from Tables 

 1-3 in Dr. Smith's paper. 



2 In one case, 2 years and 19 days after the flounder was sent to storage, the 

 stomach contained two fishes, each of which was about 5 in. long and 1% in. 

 wide at the middle of the body. Digestion was advanced at the caudal end of 

 one of these fishes, in the abdominal region of the other, and it was apparent that 

 digestion of the skin had occurred here and there, but it was surprising to note 

 how little change had occurred. There was no putrefactive odor. 



