THE PRESERVATION OF FISH 201 



product, but the quality of the product deteriorated 

 in storage. Improved methods of storage will have 

 to be devised before the novel processes of dehydra- 

 tion will come into general use. 



Much fish is dried in Scandinavian countries ; some 

 is dehydrated by the modern processes in Germany ; 

 and in the warmer Oriental countries, particularly 

 in India, China, Japan, and the Philippine Islands, 

 dried fish is one of the staple articles of diet of all 

 classes of people. 



In Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa immense quantities 

 of fish are dried on mats placed in the sun just as 

 they were thousands of years ago. These Orientals 

 store their dried fish according to methods peculiar 

 to that region. Some are packed into large earthen- 

 ware jars smeared with fish oil inside and are then 

 buried in a shallow trench in a shady place. A large 

 proportion of the fish is not packed in jars but buried 

 in the ground. The dried fish are placed in shallow 

 trenches about two feet deep, lined with mats and 

 straw, and covered with straw and then with matting. 

 When the trenches are filled, the earth is thrown 

 over the fish. Fish stored in this way is supposed 

 to keep for a year or more, but it soon acquires a 

 brownish red color, together with an odor and taste 

 which are not relished by persons who have not 

 acquired a liking for it. 



In contrast to this crude process is that which is 

 used to a limited extent in Germany. According to 

 this method, the cleaned, pressed fish are hung on 

 lath racks built on trucks, which are run into dehy- 

 dration chambers, through which warm, dry air 



