REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 31 
and is sometimes called soft roe, as shown by analysis, compares 
favorably in food value with the roe and flesh of the fish. This 
is an excellent product, a delicate and palatable food, which lends 
itself to preparation in all the ways in which sweetbreads and brains 
are served. These products may be used fresh or canned. 
The Bureau has encouraged fishermen to pack these products, has 
aided in the marketing of such stocks as have been accumulated, and 
is educating the public to their merits. In addition to the usual 
pecks of roe of various fishes, small quantities of the buckroe of the 
river herring, sea herring, and cod have been put up and prepara- 
tions have been made for the pack of the buckroe of other species in 
season. Now that the packers are beginning to appreciate the quality 
of the product and the fact that it can be marketed, it is believed 
that much larger packs will be put up in the future. 
River herring or alewives.—The fehiny for these species is of 
great importance in the Chesapeake Bay region and the sounds of 
North Carolina. The Bureau has given considerable attention to 
the development of much-needed improvements in the methods of 
handling and preservation of the catch, and has emphasized the 
importance of the packers adopting these measures. Experiments in 
Scotch curing indicated that these fish, preserved in this manner, 
will not yield a high-grade product. They may be preserved as 
Russian sardines, but are slightly inferior to the sea herring because 
of their larger size and lower fat content. Some of the fish were 
experimentally canned in tomato sauce, mustard sauce, and vinegar. 
The addition of the tomato sauce greatly improves the quality of the 
fish, and, if the packers will overcome the present difficulty of shrink- 
age in the can and process the fish carefully with the addition of the 
sauce, it is the consensus of opinion that a product of high quality, 
acceptable to the trade, can be produced. Fish soused in brine made 
of vinegar, salt, and sugar, in the proportion of about 18 pounds of 
salt, 6 pounds of sugar, and 8 quarts of pure grain spirit vinegar to 
24 quarts of water, then smoked lightly and canned were very pala- 
table. Because of the added expense and labor, it may not be 
practicable to pack the fish by this method for market. It is 
unfortunate that not all of the packers appreciate the importance of 
packing only sound fish, under sanitary conditions, which must be 
done if the fishery is to continue to thrive. 
Menhaden.—The menhaden is one of the most abundant species in 
our Atlantic coastal waters. It has been used almost solely for con- 
version into fish oil and fertilizer, and the catch for this purpose has 
in a Single year amounted to over 1,000,000,000 fish, weighing more 
than 635,000,000 pounds. The possibilities of this fish as a material 
factor in our food supply are obvious. Small quantities of fresh 
menhaden are eaten by the fishermen and small numbers are some- 
times included with shipments of miscellaneous fresh fish to our 
larger cities. The number marketed in this manner is increasing. 
In New York City during September, 1917, 29,638 pounds of the 
fresh fish were marketed, and in October, 33,379 pounds. Consider- 
able quantities were marketed in Washington City in the autumn of 
1917, as many as 50 barrels (about 10,000 pounds) having been sold 
at the wharves in one day. During the fall fishing for menhaden 
in the Chesapeake Bay region, each fisherman on the menhaden boats 
