450 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



ern waters during the winter season, and it is then that the Latin- 

 speaking peoples of California fall back upon the local packers for 

 their supplies. Small snappers, of which there is never a large 

 supply on this coast, are used, and the fish are hard dried and then 

 packed 100 pounds in a drum. It is fortunate that the business is 

 not more extensive on this coast, as it means a heavy drain on the 

 young cod, which, if allowed to live a year longer, would be much 

 enhanced in value. 



Large quantities of cod are sold after having been water-horsed 

 and packed in bundles weighing 50 to 100 pounds. These fish are 

 not skinned. A considerable trade in this grade of fish is had with 

 the Hawaiian Islands. 



Skinned fish are put up in strips and middles also. The strips 

 consist of one-half the fish split down the middle and are cut to suit 

 the trade — some left whole and some w T ith more or less of the nape 

 and thinner portion at the tail cut off in order to get heavy pieces. 

 These are put up usually in 20 and 40 pound boxes. The middle is 

 the whole fish after being skinned and the napes and tail cut off ; 

 how much of the napes and tail is cut off depends upon the number 

 of middles permitted in a box of a certain size. They are quoted 

 usually by the size — 8 to 10 or 10 to 12 in a 40-pound box. They 

 are also packed in 60-pound boxes. Frequently each individual fish 

 is cut transversely the width of the box and folded over itself. Thick 

 fish sometimes are cut transversely and each piece split and folded 

 over in such a manner that the clean cut appears outside. Some- 

 times the fish are cut transversely across the fiber and tightly 

 packed in boxes with the fiber running perpendicularly. 



The trade in brine-salted codfish on the Pacific coast is small and 

 is confined exclusively to the small fish or snappers. In pickling, 

 the fish are dressed, split, washed, and salted in butts in the same 

 manner as has been noted heretofore in the preparation of dry- 

 salted cod. When shipment is to be made the fish are removed from 

 the butts, cleaned with brushes, and placed in tight half barrels, 

 flesh side up, except the top layer, which is placed backs up, the 

 fish being bent to follow the curve of the half barrel. It is import- 

 ant that the fish be not repacked until thoroughly struck, otherwise 

 the flesh will be marked with yellow spots caused by contact of the 

 imperfectly cured fish with each other. Salt is placed at the bottom 

 of the barrel and over each layer of fish, from one-half to three- 

 quarters of a peck being used to each half barrel of fish. The barrel 

 is then headed and strong brine added through the bunghole. About 

 38 medium-sized snappers are required to fill a half barrel. Most 

 of these fish are' sold to coasters plying up and down the coast and 

 are fed to the crews. 



The station fishermen frequently prepare a cod delicacy that 

 they enjoy very much. Selecting a suitable cod stomach, the fisher- 

 man carefully cleans this inside and out. Several fresh, healthy 

 cod livers are then picked out, chopped fine, and mixed with a little 

 flour and vegetables; the stomachs are stuffed with this mixture, 

 after which they are cooked like sausages. 



Stockfish. — Of recent years a considerable business has developed 

 in the preparation of stockfish. A number of small shore stations 

 in the Shumagins and elsewhere, spend a considerable part of their 



