54 



and dried bonito with the following- provisions :— (a) a certain numlDer 

 of squid shall be called a " soku ", and a certain number of pounds 

 shall be called a " kori "; (6) squid dried at different seasons shall not 

 bo mixed in tbo same kori; (c) kori shall be wrapped in well-dried 

 mats of new rice-straw ; (d) weights less than a kori are not subject to 

 these rules ; (e) squid shall be classified in three grades, the first grade 

 being of good and uniform quality, dryness, color, and appearance, the 

 second grade of good quality and dryness, but of inferior color and 

 form, the third, inferior in all resj^ects First grade squid shall also 

 be sub-divided into large and small accjrding to a specified standard. 

 As regards bonito (see infra i-egarding the universal use of dried and 

 smoked bonito), it shall be packed in boxes of given volume and hold- 

 ing a given weight, of well seasoned wood of specified minimum thick- 

 ness ; bonito dried at different seasons shall not be packed in the same 

 box, and each box shall be roped lengthvvise and twice crosswise. 

 There shall be two grades of bonito, viz., '* superior" of good quality, 

 thorough dryness, uniform shape and color, and " ordinary ". Mem- 

 bers desirous of selling squid or bonilo to persons outside of the 

 Chamber's sphere of operations shall, under penalty of fine, tender 

 them for inspection at a small fee, if not less than a " kori " in weight j 

 inspected boxes or kori shall be marked by the inspector with the 

 ascertained grade of article ; an appeal lies against any such mark to 

 the President who may order a re-examination. These rules are of 

 much importance : they compare with practices elsewhere found, 

 such as the Scotch branding of pickled herring, and the minute rules 

 laid down both as to the quality, methods of packing, and the material 

 and liooping of the herring barrels ; the object of this marking is, of 

 course, to favour the development of tiade, especially export, by pro- 

 viding a particular standard for every class of goods and by so mark- 

 ing the goods, after examination by responsible and expert inspectors, 

 that buyers can depend upon always getting an article corresponding 

 to their orders and to the price paid. Official or authoritative brand- 

 ing may not be necessary, indeed, when trade is carried on by great 

 houses during a long series of years so that the goods are sufficiently 

 warranted by the name of the firm or by its own special marks, but 

 in the infancy of an industry and for small manufacturers such brands 

 are of great importance. In any case, in the infancy of an industry 

 the fixing of a particular standard for the several classes of goods is 

 of the first importance, if only as a guide or standard for manufac- 

 turers ; with such standards we should perhaps see better cured articles 

 issuing from our curing yards. 



119. Another special object of the same Chamber is the provision 

 of shell-fish spat which is to be grown in a special ruirsery and supplied 

 on payment to members; see below s. v. ," oyster culture '' for a 

 description of such nurseries. Further articles contain rules for 



