238 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



from cod livers, it is now the principal fish oil of those countries. The 

 manufacture in Sweden developed rapidly eight or ten j^ears ago, due 

 to the abundance and consequent cheapness of herring. According 

 to Capt. J. W. Collins, the number of factories increased from 3 

 in 1891 to 22 in 1895, the output in the season of 1895-96 amounting 

 to about 500,000 gallons of oil and 1(3,000 tons of fertilizer. The 

 scarcity and consequent high price of herring since 1896 have greatly 

 restricted the output of these factories. 



In the preparation of sardines in Europe the heads, viscera, and 

 other waste parts are generally utilized in oil-production. They are 

 cooked and pressed, the oil separated, and the refuse used for ferti- 

 lizer. This oil is emploj^ed in leather-dressing, cordage-manufacture, 

 the preparation of paints for exterior surfaces, and, in some country 

 districts, for illumination. Unfortunately, we have no data bearing 

 on the total extent of the output. 



The herring-oil industry in Japan is probably much older than its 

 counterpart, the menhaden industry in America, but it was in a crude 

 state up to about twentj^ years ago. The species of fish utilized — 

 known as "iwashi" — is found in large schools along the Japanese 

 coast, especially on the northern side of the main island, and very large 

 catches are made in the fall and winter, when the fish are fat. 



According to a recent report by Consul Van Buren, of Kanawaga, 

 the principal fisheries are on the island of Yezo and the peninsula of 

 Ava, near Yokohama. The method of extraction is similar to that 

 employed in the United States. The fish are cooked and pressed and 

 the residuum used for fertilizer. The process of refining is likewise 

 similar to that employed in America, the oil being pressed " in small 

 filtering bags of paper, outside of which are similar ones of strong 

 cloth. A number of these are placed in a press, which forces out the 

 oil through the pores of this double envelope." 



Japanese herring oil contains an unusually large amount of foots, 

 amounting to about 25 per cent, according to some refiners. On 

 account of this, the weather-test of the crude oil is high, from 65° to 

 70° F. Before the introduction of kerosene in Japan, refined herring 

 oil was employed largely for illumination, but that is greath^ reduced. 

 It is now used locally in the manufacture of soap, in leather-dressing, 

 in cordage-manufacture, as a body for paints, and for other technical 

 purposes. 



Since 1881 large quantities have been exported to Europe, and also 

 at intervals to the United States. At first it found little acceptance 

 on account of its unpleasant odor, due to the crude method of extrac- 

 tion. Another objection was the form of the packages, consisting of 

 second-hand 5-gallon kerosene cans, which j^roved a nuisance to users 

 of large quantities. The Hamburg market price is about 40 marks 

 per 100 kilograms foi- the liglit oil and 37^ for the brown. The foots, 

 after the process of refining, sell at about 43 marks per 100 kilograms. 



It js only when domestic fish-oils are high that Japanese herring oil 



