REFRIGERATION OP FISH 



539 



constitutes a natural protection for the fish. These arguments have 

 some force when applied to perfectly fresh, ungutted fish. In fact, 

 if the fish could be frozen round immediately after coming from 

 the water, without washing, they would be best of all ; but after they 

 have become infected heavily and have been gutted and contaminated 

 with intestinal bacteria there seems to be no escape from the necessity 

 of thorough washing, even though it does remove the slime. 



Halibut when slimy are sometimes scrubbed with a brush before 

 they are frozen. This practice is to be recommended, as old slime 

 is of no value, and only serves to detract from the appearance of the 

 fish. Eels should not be washed entirely free of slime. When 



Fig. 12. — Washing. The fish in this case are in trays with slat bottoms. They are 

 washed with a spray of water that runs through. In this freezer the wash 

 water is maintained at 32° F., which serves to precool the fish. The fish may 

 also be washed in the tanks, a more common practice. Courtesy, Bay City 

 Freezer 



perfectly fresh, the slime is desirable for the German smokers; but 

 when the eels are a few days old the slime becomes ropy and un- 

 sightly and should be washed off. The glaze does not stick well over 

 a heavy slime, but if not too heavy or ropy some of it may be left on 

 by washing only lightly. 



The water used for washing fish is usually, though unfortunately 

 not always, pure, clean drinking water. The practice of using harbor, 

 lake, or river water that has not been filtered or otherwise purified 

 and that may contain bacteria that not only promote decomposition 

 of fish but are a menace to health, is wholly bad. If there is any doubt 

 about the quality of the water used, it is, of course, a duty that the 

 proprietor owes to the public to have samples examined by a com- 

 petent bacteriologist or the city or State board of health that has 



22279—27 4 



