﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  LIII 
  

  

  under 
  favorable 
  circumstances, 
  these 
  large, 
  gamy, 
  and 
  vigorous 
  fish 
  bite 
  

   readily, 
  arid 
  it 
  sometimes 
  happens 
  that 
  a 
  boat 
  will 
  take 
  a 
  fare 
  of 
  200 
  

   or 
  250 
  fish, 
  some 
  weighing 
  from 
  20 
  to 
  30 
  pounds 
  (the 
  average 
  weight 
  

   being 
  about 
  10 
  pounds), 
  in 
  a 
  day. 
  As 
  a 
  rule, 
  the 
  great 
  bulk 
  of 
  the 
  eatch 
  

   is 
  disposed 
  of 
  fresh 
  at 
  Key 
  West, 
  though 
  occasionally 
  some 
  fish 
  are 
  

   salted 
  on 
  the 
  boats, 
  and 
  sometimes 
  small 
  quantities 
  are 
  salted 
  and 
  dried 
  

   on 
  shore 
  in 
  a 
  rather 
  primitive 
  manner. 
  Cured 
  in 
  tins 
  way 
  it 
  makes 
  

   tolerably 
  good 
  food; 
  but 
  the 
  texture 
  and 
  the 
  oil 
  contained 
  in 
  its 
  flesh 
  

   suggested 
  that 
  it 
  might 
  make 
  an 
  excellent 
  article 
  of 
  commerce 
  when 
  

   smoked. 
  The 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  seemingly 
  abundant, 
  and 
  can 
  be 
  bought 
  

   at 
  a 
  comparatively 
  low 
  figure, 
  the 
  average 
  wholesale 
  price 
  not 
  exceed- 
  

   ing 
  2 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  for 
  fresh 
  fish, 
  favors 
  its 
  introduction 
  as 
  an 
  ad- 
  

   ditional 
  article 
  of 
  smoked 
  food, 
  in 
  which 
  form 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  introduced 
  all 
  

   over 
  the 
  country, 
  thus 
  relieving 
  the 
  fishermen 
  of 
  their 
  present 
  depend- 
  

   ence 
  on 
  the 
  Cuban 
  and 
  local 
  markets. 
  

  

  While 
  the 
  -Fish 
  Commission 
  steamer 
  Albatross 
  was 
  at 
  Key 
  West 
  in 
  

   the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  March, 
  a 
  considerable 
  quantity 
  of 
  kingfish 
  was 
  ob- 
  

   tained, 
  and 
  after 
  being 
  split 
  and 
  salted 
  the 
  fish 
  were 
  brought 
  North 
  by 
  

   the 
  Albatross, 
  reaching 
  Washington 
  on 
  April 
  G, 
  from 
  which 
  point 
  they 
  

   were 
  at 
  once 
  forwarded 
  to 
  Gloucester, 
  Mass., 
  to 
  be 
  smoked. 
  The 
  Com- 
  

   mission 
  is 
  indebted 
  to 
  Messrs. 
  William 
  H. 
  Wonson 
  & 
  Son 
  for 
  smoking 
  

   free 
  of 
  charge 
  this 
  possible 
  rival 
  to 
  smoked 
  halibut, 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  great 
  

   pains 
  they 
  took 
  to 
  have 
  it 
  cured 
  in 
  the 
  best 
  possible 
  manner. 
  

  

  The 
  samples 
  were 
  caught 
  after 
  the 
  proper 
  season 
  for 
  their 
  catch 
  was 
  

   over 
  and 
  during 
  the 
  opening 
  part 
  of 
  their 
  spawning 
  season 
  ; 
  and 
  some 
  

   of 
  the 
  fish 
  in 
  consequeuce 
  were 
  in 
  poor 
  condition, 
  while 
  during 
  the 
  win- 
  

   ter 
  they 
  are 
  rarely 
  poor. 
  They 
  proved, 
  however, 
  to 
  be 
  an 
  excellent 
  

   smoked 
  fish, 
  being 
  tested 
  by 
  many 
  experts, 
  some 
  of 
  whom 
  pronounced 
  

   them 
  equal 
  or 
  even 
  superior 
  to 
  smoked 
  halibut 
  or 
  salmon, 
  being 
  free 
  

   from 
  the 
  rather 
  rank 
  taste 
  that 
  the 
  halibut 
  sometimes 
  has. 
  

  

  1G. 
  — 
  CHEMICAL 
  COMPOSITION 
  AND 
  NUTRITIVE 
  VALUE 
  OF 
  FISH. 
  

  

  The 
  report 
  of 
  the 
  Commissioner 
  for 
  1883 
  contains 
  a 
  brief 
  account 
  of 
  a 
  

   portion 
  of 
  an 
  investigation 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  conducted 
  by 
  Prof. 
  W. 
  O. 
  

   Atwater, 
  in 
  part 
  at 
  Wesleyan 
  University 
  and 
  in 
  part 
  in 
  Europe, 
  upon 
  the 
  

   chemical 
  composition 
  and 
  nutritive 
  values 
  of 
  American 
  food-fishes 
  and 
  

   invertebrates. 
  The 
  whole 
  investigation 
  is 
  much 
  more 
  extended 
  than 
  this 
  

   report 
  implies, 
  and 
  includes 
  not 
  only 
  chemical 
  analyses 
  of 
  the 
  flesh 
  of 
  

   nearly 
  two 
  hundred 
  specimens 
  of 
  American 
  food-fishes 
  and 
  invertebrates 
  

   and 
  a 
  considerable 
  number 
  of 
  other 
  analyses, 
  but 
  also 
  more 
  abstract 
  

   studies 
  upon 
  the 
  constitution 
  of 
  the 
  flesh 
  of 
  fishes. 
  During 
  the 
  past 
  

   year 
  the 
  investigation 
  has 
  been 
  continued 
  in 
  the 
  latter 
  direction, 
  this 
  

   branch 
  of 
  the 
  subject 
  being 
  important 
  not 
  only 
  in 
  its 
  bearing 
  upon 
  

   chemical 
  physiology 
  but 
  also 
  upon 
  the 
  food 
  values 
  of 
  the 
  substances. 
  

   The 
  research 
  has 
  already 
  attained 
  a 
  magnitude 
  far 
  greater 
  than 
  that 
  

   of 
  any 
  other 
  of 
  the 
  kind 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  attempted 
  in 
  this 
  country 
  or 
  in 
  

  

  