THE SEA FISHERIES OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA. 179 



Q. Have geologists or paleontologists satisfied themselves of that by actual cases 

 of the preservation of animal substances for a long period ?— A. Yes; we have per- 

 fectly satisfactory evidence of that. About fifty years ago the carcass of a mammoth, 

 frozen, was washed out from the gravel of the river Lena, I thiuk, one of the rivers 

 of Siberia, and was in such perfect preservation that the flesh was served as food for 

 the dogs of the natives for over sis mouths. Mr. Adams, a St. Petersburg merchant, 

 came along on a trading expedition, and found it nearly consumed, and bought what 

 was left of it for the St. Petersburg Academy of Science — the skeleton and some por- 

 tion of flesh — which were preserved first in salt and afterward in alcohol. Well we 

 know the period of time that must have elapsed since the mammoth lived in the arc- 

 tic circle must be very long. We know we can talk with perfect safety of ten thou- 

 sand years. The geological estimate of it is anywhere from fifty to a hundred thou- 

 sand years ; we cannot tell. There is no unit of measure ; we know it must have been 

 some hundreds of thousands, and probably it would have remained in the same" con- 

 dition as much longer. 



Q. Now, to come to a practical question, is this a mere matter of theory or of pos- 

 sible use ? For instance, could this method be adapted to tbe preservation of bait for 

 three or four months if necessary ? — A. The only question,, of course, is as to the ex- 

 pense. There is no question at all that bait of any kind can be kept indefinitely by 

 that process. I do not think there would be the slightest difficulty iu building a re- 

 frigerator on any ordinary fishing vessel, cod or halibut, or other fishing vessel, that 

 should keep with perfect ease all the bait necessary for a long voyage. I have 

 made some inquiries as to the amount of ice, and I am informed by Mr. Blackford, 

 of New York, who is one of the largest operators of this mode, that to keep a room 

 ten feet each way, or a thousand cubic feet, at a temperature of 20° above zero, 

 would require about 2,000 pounds of ice and two bushels of salt per week. With that 

 he thinks it could be done without any difficulty. Well, an ordinary vessel would 

 require about seventy-five barrels of bait — an ordinary trawling- vessel. That would 

 occupy a bulk something less than 600 feet, so that probably 4i tons of ice a mouth 

 would keep that fish. And it must be remembered that his estimate was for keeping 

 fish in midsummer in New York. The fishing-vessels would require a smaller expend- 

 iture of ice, as these vessels would be surrounded by a colder temperature. A stock 

 of 10 to 20 tons would in all probability be amply sufficient both to replace the waste 

 by melting and to preserve the bait. 



Q. Have you any doubt that some method like that will be put into immediate and 

 successful use, if there is sufficient call for it? — A. I have no doubt the experiment 

 will be tried within a twelvemonth. Another method of preserving is by drying. 

 Squid, for instance, and clams, and a great many other kinds of bait can be dried 

 without using any appreciable chemical, and can be readily softened iu water. I no- 

 ticed lately in a Newfouudlaud paper a paragraph recommending that, in view of the 

 fact that the squid are found there for a limited period of time, the people should go 

 into the .industry of drying squid for bait, so that it would always be available for 

 the purpose of cod-fishing. I think the suggestion is an excellent one, and I have no 

 doubt it will be carried out. 



Q. Now, what is the supply of bait for codfish on the American coast?— x\. Well, 

 as the codfish eats everything, there is a pretty abundant stock to call upon. Of 

 course, the bait-fish are abundant, the menhaden and herring. The only bait-fish 

 that is not found is the caplin. The herring is very abundant on the American coast, 

 and the alewives enormously abundant. Squid are very abundant of two or three 

 species, and, of course, clams of various kinds. Then we have one shell-fish that we 

 possess. It is never used here, although it is very abundant ; but it is almost exclu- 

 sively the bait for trawling on the coast of Great Britain. This shell-fish is known 

 as the whelk, or winkle. 



Q. Is it a kind of mussel?— A. No; it is a kind of univalve shell [submits speci- 

 men], and is almost exclusively used for the capture of cod in England on deep-water 

 trawl-liners. It is not used here at all, 



