XXX.-THE SALTING OF HERRING.^ 



Just as there are sick i)eov)le, who, after it Las taken years to destroy 

 their liealtli, want the phj'sician to cure them in a few days, so there 

 are persons who demand of a guide for preparing fish, that it shall give 

 rules how to obtain a good product in spite of a poor raw material and 

 careless treatment. To such persons we can simply say that the only 

 secret known consists in exercising the greatest care during the entire 

 tieatment. This is absolutely necessary, and neglect in one point can 

 easily (tounterbalanee all the care exercised in other directions. It is 

 im[)()ssi1tle lo lay down binding rules for preparing fish, nor would it 

 under all circumstances be possible to follow these rules. All that can 

 be done is to lay down some fundamental principles as regards the best 

 method to be followed during the dillerent stages of the process of 

 l)reparation. Only by following these principles in every respect can 

 one expect to obtain a first-class article. In the good old times the 

 authorities took care of such matters in a fatherly way by issuing 

 orders and decrees.! It is true that we find in these decrees the prin- 

 ciples whose correctness is recognized even at this day, and which are 

 followed in tl^nr main outlines; but, although these rules laid down by 

 law had their advantage, by contributing towards a careful method of 

 preparing fish, and by guaranteeing proper care, they were, by the obli- 

 gations which they imposed on people, in other respects, imi^ediments 

 in the way of a proper development of this industry, and often ex- 

 ercised an injurious influence. These decrees have therefore heen ab- 

 rogated, but their leading ideas have been retained in the present laws, 

 for instance, in those re(iuirements which in several countries are neces- 

 sary for obtaining the Government stamp. Compulsory stamping has 

 been abolished | by our more liberal laws, and it is left to the manu- 

 facturer to nuike the most, and we may also say, the least, of the raw 

 material. Optional stamping, however, still prevails in many places, 



'"'SallnUig af iSiW." From Xoi'sk Fiskeritidende, Vol. Ill, Bergen, January, lh'84. 

 Translated from the Danish by Herman Jacobson. 



tThe oldest of these which are known are the Osteud decrees of 1177; thohe of 

 Amsterdaui, of 1511, 1527, and 1579; and the Scotch decrees of 114d. 



tin Sweden in 1774, except for herring caught ontside the coast waters, for which 

 it was not aljolislied till 1853; in Norway in 1H52; in Holland in 1857. In the last- 

 mentioned country all ofillcial stamping was abolished in 1878. In Scotland stamping 

 was only compulsory for those herring for which the Government, with a view to 

 encourage the fisheries, paid a premium; and compulsory stamping and the system 

 of premiums ceased in 1829. Stamping at present is optional, but about two-thirds 

 of all the herring exported are stamped at the request of the manufacturers. 

 [1] 421 



